This is not what I expected . . . It's more.

I am Jen.

I am 35 years old.

I am the proud mother of this incredible little boy.

We co-sleep.

We cloth diaper.

Breastfeeding is still going strong. (Oh, the horror!)

We are Gluten Free.

We are Vegetarian. (But eat seafood on occasion)

I practice peaceful parenting (and it DEFINITELY takes practice)

We both wear our babies. . .

And . . .

I am a single mom.

I work full time.

My work takes me all over the Midwest, and sometimes farther.

I have perfected the art of pumping on the go.

I have an AMAZING support system.

My son LOVES his nanny. (and so do I)

I planned to be happily married. Twice.

I planned to be living in Arizona, enjoying the most beautiful weather all year 'round.

I planned to be done having babies by 30.

The universe had a different plan.

This is not the life I planned. This is not the life that I (intentionally) chose. This life is better than I could have ever imagined, and sometimes it takes a while after your "plan" crashes and burns, before you realize that even the challenges in life are part of a much larger plan.

This is not what I expected . . . It's more.

I love my life.

Comments

Cloth V.S. Disposable . . . It's not just about the environment

So here I was again, pregnant with my son and trying to wade through the virtual piles of research I had compiled on diaper options. You would think this would be a super easy decision . . . but I was a Crunchy mom-to-be in a world full of Cashmere and Silk. As a matter of fact, before I joined my Bradley Group, I only knew one person cloth diapering . . . and she is over 500 miles away. Thank you 'neighbor'. You know who you are, and you know I love ya ! This is what I knew * Cloth is better for the environment - Less waste in the landfills * I really wanted to make cloth work, long before I found out I was pregnant * My son is worth all the hard work. 'Wait . . . how hard will it be?" * Baby butts wearing a cloth diaper are simply ADORABLE ! This is what I was told *"Cloth diapers smell so bad, even when they are just wet" *"It is so much easier to use disposables" *&q

My Awful Blessing . . .

You read that right . . . The past several months have literally been LIFE ALTERING. I am, however, choosing to look at this situation that I find myself in as a gift that I am not allowed to open. YET. A gift that I KNOW is there. I don't yet know what it is. I don't yet know how I will use it. I don't yet know if it will fit. I don't yet know if it's what I've always wanted. No amount of shaking the box, or tossing out guesses wi ll clear up the mystery. So I wait. I will admit that th ere are times when I wonder who I am, now that I am not "Jen with Alterna" . . . or "Jen with Aloxxi". Now I am just Jen with Jackson This 'gift' may not have been my choice, but this much I know . . . I have gotten to spend almost 1/2 of my son's second year/ bonding and just hanging out with him. I would not trade that for ANYTHING in the world. I have come to know the generosity of others in im

Amber Teething Necklaces . . . Hippie Hype?

Want to win a FREE Amber Teething Necklace? Scroll down for GIVEAWAY link... "Awwww, What's his na . . . oh sorry HER name?" (as Jackson's Amber necklace peeks out of his collar) Please don't get me wrong, I am in no way offended by this simple assumption. But I'm sorry, have you seen this kid? He is ALL boy, if I've ever seen one. Jackson sporting his Amber necklace in polished yellow Now back to the necklace. About one week before my lil' monster decided to make his earthly debut, I got a little package in the mail that I was really excited about. It was a Dark Cherry Raw Amber* Teething Necklace. It was so cool that I wanted one for myself. I had only recently learned some pretty interesting things about Amber. First things first, the most common question I have heard . . . Is it for chewing? No, it most definitely is not. It actually warms to the body temperature, and then releases trace amounts of a natural healing substance cal

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