Eating grapes while being fanned by a french god yup that about sums it up......A Response for Amy Glass

Well, kinda....

Im eating grapes out of the kids snack because i forgot to eat breakfast or lunch and its already time to pick up the older kids from school and the fan is more like being swatted at by a 3 month old, all while donning my oh so figure flattering yoga pants and stained tshirt just trying to cover up the extra 10 lbs I still have on from baby boy!!!

OH THE LIFE OF A SAHM!!!!

BUT, I do it all for them and me....We may be ridiculed for being JUST a SAHM or JUST a Wife....But I tell you what. Id love to see some of the people who pass judgment on what we do, do it for just a week!!! No pee breaks or coffee breaks, ( without a little one attached to you) no time to think or make phone calls (without screaming or fighting in the back ground).

Some say I took the easy way out by having kids and choosing to stay home until school age with them, HA! I dare you to try it for a week and tell me I took the easy way out!!!!

I ADORE my children and husband more than any one mother or wife should on some days. I am their biggest cheerleader. However they are KIDS and a MAN!!! They drive me Bat Shit Insane most days. Couple that with maintaining a clean house with clean clothes and dinner on the table when they come screaming through the door.....OH yeah I live a life of bliss (Sarcasm alert) !!!!

HOWEVER, I LOVE IT!!!!! And while some women sit on their high horse and ridicule what I do, Ill continue chasing 2 crazy fighting girls around while DS is attached to the boob almost constantly with my hair piled high on my head in a new "I have 3 kids and your lucky I brushed my teeth" Chic hair-do and Ill continue to flick off the A**holes who thinks she is better than me because she wears a suit to work ( that cost more than her weekly salary) and continues to drown in her credit card debt from having to keep up with the latest fashions because " SHE is in corporate America making a difference" ( Scoff) SPEWWWWWW!!!!!

Ill continue shaping the minds of 3 lil people who will one day be the best parents and contributing individuals this world has ever seen..... So with that and 2 middle fingers in the air enjoy your lack luster, corporate America do-bitch job in your uncomfortable 5 inch stilettos going home every night to your facebook page of friends and no boyfriend!!! Men dont want a bitch they want a mother for their children and to build a life with her NOT her job!!!!

And yes this is in response to the cranky bitch Amy Glass that spewed the most non-educated piece of blog shit I have ever come across on the internet...  http://thoughtcatalog.com/amy-glass/2014/01/i-look-down-on-young-women-with-husbands-and-kids-and-im-not-sorry/

Amy, I am a 33 yr old well educated woman, formerly of the transportation industry, one of the few women in the industry, turned housewife and Stay at home mom .......POUND SAND Chick!!!! and enjoy my grammatical errors that should prove your point more!!! <3

Sincerely,
Opal :D

A Naturally Twisted birth story.....Opal's Birth Story

At 32 years old, after 11 years with my husband and after having a 7 and 9 year old, we were done having babies by our 10 year anniversary.

 Never in a million years did we think we’d be doing it again this year. 

My first delivery was a cake walk at 39 weeks and 3 days I labored at home for 12 hours and got to the hospital only to push for 13 minutes and pop out a gorgeous 6lb 14oz perfect baby girl. My second experience just 2 short years later would later become part of the reason I would decide not to have anymore children. At 39 weeks I was medically induced with Pitocin and an epidural Pitocin started at 7:30 am and epidural at 10 am by 1:30 pm, I was fully dialated and effaced yet she was still high, I pushed for 2 hours after they turned off the epidural to only deliver her head and find out she had shoulder dystocia, My midwife performed an episiotomy and whisked my pepsi can blue baby girl away to the neonatology team that had been called in. She was 7lbs 11 0zs and as blue as a pepsi can but some how managed 9, 10 apgar scores. I wouldn’t hold my daughter for an hour after that. It was so traumatic on both my husband and myself we vowed to never be put in that position again. 

Well then 7 yrs later we found out we were expecting once again, and this time it was FINALLY a boy. We decided to stay with our amazing midwife, Robyn and under the care of our OB/Gyn. But, this time we were going to take a different approach and be in command of our pregnancy and our delivery. At 10 weeks pregnant just like my previous pregnancies I had a cervical cerclage placed due to a short and incompetent cervix. Well once again plans changed at 19 weeks I was diagnosed with Hydronephrosis of the right kidney and at 24 weeks had a nephrostomy tube place through my back into my right kidney to drain the fluid to a bag, after 3 different procedures to replace the tube and a picc line in my arm to treat a growing infection of said kidney, I was in hell in the form of kidney issues and had almost forgotton about my impending birth. We decided to Hire our amazing Doula Chrystin Pflum of Serene Birth Services (https://www.facebook.com/SereneBirthServices?ref=br_tf) after we had 2 meetings with her to talk about our hopes and wishes of this birth being a healing experience after our last birth. At 35 weeks I started contracting uncontrollably despite Procardia or nephedipene to stop them so the cerclage had to be removed a week ahead of schedule, my midwife removed the cerclage and immediately I was at 2 cms dialated. Where I would sit until 37 weeks when I was 3cms and 60% effaced, I continued to contract uncontrollably. The day I turned 38 weeks I went in to labor and delivery for a labor check due to severe contractions and was found to be at 4cms but still 60% and was sent home once again. Well needless to say I was at my wits end with the contracting. It turns out my cervix had a large band of scar tissue and was having a hard time changing with the contractions so it was decided that I would be induced a week later on the 39^th week due to the kidney issues as well as the contracting and scar tissue. I was not happy with this due to not wanting any medical intervention but knew it was what had to be done, so I reserved myself to the fact that Pitocin and possibly an epidural were in my near future. So that evening I gave up! Literally said Im not pregnant, Its not happening on its own Im unpacking the bags that’s it Im done……….

Welllllll 6 am the alarm went off to get the older kids ready for school and the hubby out the door for work, and like it was scheduled, I rolled over to turn the alarm off and heard and felt a “pop” in my belly, as I sat up I thought I couldn’t control my bladder as I felt a gush I ran to the bathroom to make sure I made it in time…..as I stood over the toilet I realized and yelled aloud to my husband “MY WATER BROKE!!!” He was clearly still asleep and started to get out of the bed and made coffee for both of us. I wandered to the table to have coffee with him and call my Midwife. She returned my call promptly and asked me to go straight to labor and delivery as the baby was still high and there was a risk of cord prolapse. So we woke the girls and dressed them comfortably and we left for the hospital, with a towel between my legs I waddled to the elevator and up to the 5^th floor of Mease Countryside hospital. We got to the admitting desk as a huge gush soaked me and the towel. Instead of triage they admitted me straight to room 5104 

 and got my vitals and baby’s and we were off and running. 

The contractions started coming hard and fast and I was pretty uncomfortable but was still adamant to stick to my birth plan of no intervention by epidural or Pitocin. So my Doula Chrystin, had me get up and out of the bed and use the pilates ball as well as gravity to help move my baby down my birth canal.

 About 10:30, I asked for a bolust of staydol to help take the edge off of the pain of contractions, by this time I was 5 cms and 60% effaced. HALLELUJAH!!!!! I had broken the scar tissue on my own without medical intervention.  About 20 minutes later I was really uncomfortable and my nurse Cheri checked me to find I was at 6cms and 90% effaced. They called my midwife, Robyn to make her appearance and a baby nurse was put on call as I was flying to transitional labor fast. Robyn came in just in time for me to be checked again at 8cms and 100% effaced I was offered my epidural or another shot of staydol as this would be my last chance for the epidural. I remember everyone getting quiet in the room as they waited for my response. I thought long and hard for a moment. My doula, Chrystin and my husband both encouraged me and said that I was doing great without the pain meds and they supported my decision either way.  I said  “No epidural by the time I get it, It will be time to push, I can do this on my own, I will take the staydol please.”  I was given the staydol which kept me in the bed for another 30 minutes due to the hospital policy of the drug, But after that I was really uncomfortable and asked Robyn to allow me to get in the shower to allow gravity and my body to take over for transitional labor. She allowed me to do so and my husband joined me to support my body and mind through the transition. 

The hospital team left us to labor alone together only coming in to make periodical checks. By this point the contractions and the intensity of my baby trying to move down my birth canal had me in a trance like state. I retreated back to the bed where it was already broken down and ready for the impending arrival of our first son. Robyn checked me and I was fully dialated and effaced my cervix just had a small lip left to get past. A few minutes later the urge to push came over me like wildfire. It was 12:30 pm and I had gotten all this way in 6 hours on my own accord with my AMAZING birth team beside me every step of the way. My Husband, My sisters all standing by my side, Lindsey my best friend of 19 years, Meghan my best friend of 13 yrs, My sister in law Jessie and My mother in law Karen. My Doula Chrystin, My Midwife Robyn, My Nurse Cheri, a team of nursing students as well as a baby nurse team!  The delivery room was packed but by this time I had no clue.

It was time to push this baby boy down and out. He was still high in the birth canal so I had a lot of work to do to bring him to light. So we started, we pushed on my back for a while, we tried to push on my side which I didn’t like at all and was intensely too painful. Then someone recommended a tug of war sheet with a nursing student. I was slowly losing my energy and breathe so the tug of war allowed me to pull myself up while pushing the baby down. About 1 pm I had lost all energy, I would push 3 times and then fall back into the bed and try to sleep between contractions.

 Finally Robyn recommended my husband, Chris get in the bed behind me and feed me his energy and help push for me. It worked beautifully, I had his energy and spirit and raw emotion tangled in mine as we pushed our son to light. At 1:17 pm we welcomed our first born son and our third child, Memphis Cayde Renaud was 7lbs 9ozs and 20 inches long with apgar scores of 8, 9 and he was absolutely perfect!!! 

While Memphis was still attached to the umbilical cord I asked someone to please get my daughters quickly so that they could meet their baby brother first before anyone else. In they came wide eyed in amazement and they both were nervous. Aysia my oldest daughter at 9 years old could only stare with tears and amazement in her eyes that he was finally here. Addyson my middle child at 7 yrs old was very nervous but excited that she was now a big sister. They loved their baby brother immediately and that love showed in their eyes and faces. Aysia’s eyes filled with tears as she said to me “Mommy these are tears of joy I am so happy you and Bubba made it and he is finally here I will be the best big sister I can be” The tears flowed and I responded how blessed I was to be her mother and what amazing little girls her and her sister were!

I laid back in the bed with my son on my chest and my husband and daughters flanking us and just reflected on what had just happened.

I did it, I delivered my son into the world the way God intended, NATURALLY!!!!  I may have screamed and yelled and scared some nursing students half to death as well as used many expletives. However, I DID IT!!!!!!!

This natural child birth would have never been possible without the support of my team so with that, I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for keeping me focused and encouraged to have the healing birth experience I so desperately wanted and needed. It couldn’t have gone more according to God’s plan!!!!

I highly recommend hiring a Doula but more so I highly recommend Chrystin Pflum of Serene Birth services.
 https://www.facebook.com/SereneBirthServices

All Pictures used are courtesy of Chrystin Pflum of Serene Birth Services please visit the link above to visit her page. 

Out with the old...In with the new!

Here at 2NTM's it has been quite the ride! Sorry it is has been so quiet in our corner of cyberspace, we have had a pretty crazy summer but are ready to get back out there and mingle. My husband I have talked about moving for a few years now but never found just what we were looking for. In June we found the perfect house and moved within a few short weeks, just in time for our oldest to start school. In September we welcomed our 4th child into this crazy world and have been trying to get everything settled in before I begin my last semester of my degree. 

Miss Opal and her family are also running in about 500 different directions these days as well. Her and her husband are full time students and they are getting ready to welcome their 3rd child in November. {WOOHOO!!}. Opal has had some set backs, but she is one tough cookie!! 

Now that I have fully explained my negligence....here is today's topic: {~EASY DINNER RECIPES~} Right before (about 2 days before) we were set to go to the hospital I decided that I needed to prep some dinners for my MIL and FIL so they didn't have to cook while watching our other three and so we didn't have to cook when we got back from the hospital. So, off to Kroger I ran and I stocked up on everything I needed to make 8 different recipes. They are large meals so they have produced two meals each, for the most part. 

I am hopelessly addicted to Pinterest, so this is where I started my search. It was exhausting! There were tons of links that took me to everything BUT what I was looking for, tons of dead links and then when I finally found some recipes they seemed to be gourmet meals that would cost me a ton to make. I was on a budget and needed some family friendly recipes. And then, I found it! The perfect link! ~>http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/09/slow-cooker-freezer-meals-make-8-meals.html 
The Six Sisters do all the work for you by giving you recipes with detailed instructions, suggestions on what to serve with them and the ability to print the recipe and a SHOPPING LIST! {<~That was my favorite part!}. All I had to was print and head to Kroger! All of these dinners are amazing and super easy to prep. We had everything labeled and in the freezer within an hour. I hope you enjoy this link as much as I have. Until we meet again.... 

Much love, 
Susan 

The best kept confessions of a Stay at home mom....the stuff we hide from everyone ( a new weekly series)

Yup! You read that correctly and I am sure I will have plenty of my SAHM friends upset that I let our secrets out, But Im sure a few of you will be happy I said it and you can sit back and laugh behind your computer screens without anyone knowing you secretly do some if not all of these things too!!!

My first confession: Well its quite simple really my youngest daughter had her first tooth pulled this week so was on a diet of soft foods, you know the sort of things, mashed potatoes, pudding, jello, etc. So being the best mom in the world that I am ( scoff) I decided to make her lemon pudding in little dishes.

Well of course who has 6 of the same sized dishes when you have kids, so naturally 2 were bigger than the other 4. When the pudding had set and it was time to dig in, Naturally the kids wanted the two larger dishes. SOOOOOO Of course, I told them there was entirely too much sugar in them and they needed to be split to smaller dishes. So they were allowed to have the smaller dishes.

 ( Needless to say at 17 weeks pregnant and a killer sweet tooth, the large lemon puddings may have disappeared over night)

When asked the next day where they went I of course said " Oh hunny Im sorry they went bad over night"

While yes this is not one of our bigger secrets, it just goes to show you that we are not above telling little white lies in order to have peace and quiet with our lemon pudding!!!! I hope you all enjoy our new weekly series as Susan and I embark on something new and fun!!!

If you have any confessions ( but dont want turn yourself in) feel free to email us your confessions with full anonymity we will gladly post them as if they were our own :) 2NaturallyTwistedMoms@gmail.com

Have a great day Moms ( and Dads)!!!!

~Opal

Cravings, Heart rates, needles and thread? Who comes up with this stuff?

So DH and I have our NT scan on monday and as most parents do at this stage in a pregnancy, we are both really anxious about possibly finding out what species of baby we are having. I could have sworn with both of my DD's that they were both boys and MAN ( or should I say Wo-Man) was I wrong!!!! From cravings to heart rates to the way I carried and so on EVERYTHING screamed boys.....not to mention out of 14 grandchildren on DH's side of the fam 13 were boys.

My grandmother used to use the old Italian wives tail of the needle and thread suspended over the belly ( I cant for the life of me remember which direction meant boy or girl) But it was always right.

So I write to you all today to find out what is the craziest, wackiest, funniest or realest gender predictor you have ever had? Leave them as a comment!!!!

Have a great day Momma's ( and Daddy's)

~Opal

It must be in the water........

Ok After 6 years of swearing up and down that my Hubby and I were finally content with 2 little girls and NO MORE babies, I mean come on, 4 years of no diapers?! Who would go back to that right? Well Apparently we were dumb blessed enough to do it all over again :)

That's right folks 2 Naturally Twisted Moms are both pregnant at the same time :) Susan is due Sept 10th with a little boy which will grow their crowd to 4 bundles of joy!!! And I am due Nov 27th with an unknown species gender :) Taking our little crowd to 3 bouncing babes!

With 2 little girls ages 8 and 6, we are hoping to have a male species joining us in late November, however we will be quite content with a healthy happy baby :) 10 fingers and 10 toes are plenty for us.

So with that being announced, we will ( through morning sickness and bouts of sleep deprivation and cravings) I will be starting a mom-to-be diary and question and answer weekly.  So stock up on the questions :)

Also please leave a comment on this post with things you would like to see from the dynamic (pregnant) duo that is 2 Naturally Twisted Moms....Recipes, healthy alternatives, gardening, pregnancy, breastfeeding etc if it pertains to kids, moms and families, we will do our best to give it to you :)

Hope you all have a fantastic day, Ill be on the couch eating pickles and Ice cream :)

~Opal

Mmmmm.....

So, as I sit here being productive sidetracked (as usual), I can't help but to think about all the delicious-ness that was our dinner last night.

*Disclaimer: we try to eat healthy with every meal and snack, but sometimes you just can't fight the urge to have a grilled cheese sandwich......with bacon.......dipped in a beer batter......and deep fried! LOL*

We have been watching the show Bar Rescue and on an episode they served a deep fried grilled cheese sandwich with bacon. It looked delicious, but was soon forgotten about. Last night as we were thinking up ideas for dinner the episode replayed....and we couldn't fight the craving any longer. J and I were off to King Soopers and before too long, we had a heart attack on a plate!

Here is a picture of our wonderful sandwich with the recipe for those who want to give it a shot. =D
*Original website: http://www.chefbrianduffy.com/#!deep-fried-grilled-cheese/c1ldt
(The recipe was too long to post here, so follow the link and enjoy)

Our attempt at the recipe. =D

Let us know how it works out for you! 

Enjoy! ~Susan