Enter to Win a Clickin' Moms Lifetime Membership!

I love contests. I love entering them, winning them, but hosting them is also a favorite! I'm so happy to have a contest for YOU!

Hey all of you DSLR owners or anyone who is looking to learn more about photography - I am giving away Clickin' Moms Lifetime Membership ($195 value) on my photography blog! I have been a member for about a year and a half and have gleaned so much great technical information from the forums as well as inspiration for discovering my own sense of style when it comes to photography. There is a plethora of information on that site! The majority of members are professional photographers, but there are plenty of hobbyists as well - so come join us! The contest ends June 30th, so come on over for details on how to win.

Sarah Severson Photography Blog

I'm a Winner :)

I subscribe/read quite a few blogs on my Google Reader and have entered plenty of blog contests in the last year. Some of the effort has paid off! So far, I've won two different Bob the Builder DVDs (from the same person, but two different contests), a Mei Tei carrier, Ficklets charms (they're more for a young girl, so if anyone has a child who wears glasses and would like them, let me know and I'll send them to you!), some earings from an etsy shop, etc.

But in the last week or so, I have won two contests - the first was a huge prize from the company, Inspired Crib Bedding. It was through the blog, Project Nursery. On Saturday, I received a big box in the mail with these things inside:

A feeding/support pillow (basically a fancy Boppy) covered in the patterned fabric on one side, and a soft minky fabric on the other. Retail: $62

A Swaddler - Retail: $45

Hooded Towel - Retail: $52

Stroller Blanket: $45

The contest actually just had three things, but the Inspired Crib Bedding owner sent the swaddler as an added bonus! So, so nice.

And then today I got an email from the blog, Petit Elefant, saying I won a hospital gown! Retail: $89

(this is obviously not me in the picture - this girl is missing swollen ankles, uncurled hair, and no makeup :)

Hopefully the hospital gown will arrive soon! How fun is that.

In the meantime, Chicago is under a blizzard warning for tonight/tomorrow, and then it's going to turn into bitter, bitter cold. Check out our highs/lows in the next few days:

Tuesday: 14/-2
Wednesday: 19/-1
Thursday: 3/-6
Friday: 6/6

These numbers don't include the wind chills, so it will feel much colder than those temps. There is snow in the forecast every day, but tonight may be the worst of it with strong winds and limited visibility. This is one of the worst winters I've ever experienced here!! I feel like I need to make a treat for our mailman (or give him some hot cocoa if I see him in the next few days). Brrr!!

Another Early Morning - and I'm a Winner!!

My day has been really up and down. It started at 4:30 a.m., when the dog lady upstairs got up for the day. She of course woke up Eli, who started screaming in his crib. He and I were up for about an hour, and then I attempted to put him down to sleep - amazingly, he actually fell back asleep. I on the other hand, was ANGRY. Who on earth wakes up at 4:30 a.m.?? And why were we so lucky to have a neighbor above us who does this??

I was not in a good way this morning, and almost marched up there again, but knew I wouldn't say anything nice so I tried to go back asleep instead, thinking about poor, teething, not-sleeping-well Eli.

(The picture above is from last week. Don't worry, that snot sucker was never used for its actual purpose - he uses it as one of his toys instead.)

Anyway, I did finally fall asleep, and Eli was back up at 7:30 a.m. I took him to playgroup and then we came home and played for a little bit before his next nap. You know what really turned the day around?

I won a blog contest!!

I have entered so many blog contests and never won a thing until today. The blog, Seven Dogs and A Baby, has tons of contests for baby/kids products and it's easy to enter (you just check out the product's web site and leave a comment back on her blog stating your favorite). I won the Picara Mei Tai baby carrier, as shown above - worth $80!. You can hold your baby in the mei tai in the front, back or side. We'll see how it works with Eli! I think it's so funny because I never got around to getting a Beco or Pikkolo baby carrier, that is similar, but not a Mei Tai style. I don't love that you tie the knots yourself, but maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised.

On to other happier things - my parents and Gram stopped by yesterday on their way to a great gardening store in Chicago. Here they are playing with Eli:

And below are some pictures of Eli playing this morning. Motrin does amazing things... he was in a much better mood today than he was yesterday. I think his teeth are still hurting him though.

Notice he is chewing on this frog rattle in most of these pictures...

He makes me smile. I'm still debating what I can do about my neighbor situation.
What would you do?? My friend Katie suggested I ask the dog lady if we can have a "conversation" about the early morning hours issue. That way the dog lady could help come up with a solution, especially if I express how hard it is when Eli is waking at these horrible hours. She isn't as unreasonable as the garbage disposal neighbor below us (who I saw outside yesterday morning as I was taking Eli to the doctor - I said hi and she turned her back to me. She is CRAZY).

At 4:45 a.m. I was thinking, we are putting our condo on the market TODAY. Now I'm trying to be more rational :) Next winter isn't that far away, right?