With "HOPE" the impossible IS Possible

YOUR INVITED to a BOOK AND WINE PARTY !

When: Friday May 15th 6:30 PM

Where : My Place,,Oswego IL 60543
E mail me for exact location and directions if your interested in comin,,,,,


Join us for an evening of delicious Barefoot wine, good food and fun conversation. Oh and.. of course GREAT Barefoot Books!

And in doing so you will also support a great cause for a great friend of mine.

All purchases made this evening support the American Cancer Society and all proceeds will benefit Naperville Relay for Life/ Team BP/ Jen Vasek.

About the cause:

One of my dearest and closest friends, Jen Vasek is a survivor of cancer. She is one of the most kind hearted generous and caring people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. She, like many others you may know and love,,suffered and BEAT her battle with cancerl If it werent for an experimental drug she might not be here right now and I may not have ever had the pleasure of having her in mine and my familys life. That is why this cause is so near and dear to her and her family,, as well as mine. New developements procedures and treatments are being discovered each and every day. It is up to us to continue to keep HOPE alive. To honor those who have won their battle with cancer and to honor and keep the memories of those who sadly, have not, alive and in our hearts !

Jen amazes me with her dedication to this event. Every year my family and I honor her and support her in this great and worthy cause. Her hard work and caring and kind heart deserve to be applauded.

This year I wanted to do a little something "more" . Hence the Barefoot wine and books party came to life! Sure to be a good time... Wont you help me in honoring her and supporting this GREAT cause?

If you cannot make it to the party, please feel free to browse the wonderful selection of books online. Use this link


to purchase books and to ensure all purchases are applied directly to this cause.

To view her link and story,

With "HOPE" anything is possible.......

EARTH DAY Excitement - GO GREEN or GO HOME !

So,,,, this Earth Day my family will be celebrating in several ways,,



1. We did this neat art craft from Barefoot Books Earth Tales,,, creating a pine cone bird feeder,, made from all natural ingredients,,( see pics below )
Barefoot Books has partnered with "eco Libris" and will plant a tree for every "Earth Tales" book sold,,, so,,,, if you cant think of anything to do this Earth Day to "make our world a little greener" log on to my website and purchase this book,,, somewhere in the world,, a tree will be planted because you CARED.... And,, when you get the book,,, you will LOVE it ! It is an anthology of folk tales from many countries around the world .
At the end of each short story there is a neat art project you can do with your kids,, things like, pine cone bird feeders, design a mini water garden,, make a corn husk doll,, create a song line painting,, etc.. For ages 3 to 80 ! We had SO MUCH FUN doing this project, even my TEENAGER got involved,, he helped my daughter put the shortening on the pine cone and my 2 year old LOVED rolli ng the pine cone in the bird seed... FINAL touch was hanging it on the tree in the yard with daddy,, we watch closely every day to see what birds have eaten from it..Check out the pics of our project!!!!!






ALSO,,,

2. We will be planting a Dog wood tree in our backyard, ( aaah the world needs more oxygen)
3. Were gonna sit down to dinner with a pen and pad of paper ( recycled of course) and come up with THREE things new we will do to make our world a little greener,,, after all if Kermit can be green and be loved,,, so can we :)LOL

I have my own ideas of what I want to do,, but we will see what my family comes up with,, Naturally my teenage son will probably these activities at all costs and claim they are "lame" but regardless he will participate and Im confident that some day somewhere along the road of his life he will look back on it and appreciate and perhaps even teach HIS kids to be a little bit more earth friendly.

My husband and I spent an hour a few nights ago watching am Earth Week special on Nickelodeon for Kids about an "eco Village" in Missouri,,, while I must say I will NEVER be crunchy or granola enough to live completely off "the grid" and go without indoor plumbing,, ( sorry,,,some things I just cant stomach) many of their ideas truly INSPIRED me.
After watching this I asked my husband,, "why is it that when attempting to live "greener" it seems like we have to "Step back" in time,,,, I think its because we all took TOO many things for granted and don't TRULY appreciate what we have. Talk to someone who has spent time abroad in third world countries or in the peace corps and you will realize that what we HAVE is not necessarily what we "need"
I feel we only have one earth and it is wasting away,, its sad,,, I have hear so many people say,, well its nothing that will benefit my kids or my grandkids so why bother,,,, well IMO thats just an Excuse..
Let me ask you this,, if our ancestors thought that way,, perhaps WE wouldnt even be here right now,,, look at it that way,,,

So,, im hopping off my soapbox now,,, I hope eveyrone has a GREAT Earth day no matter what you do,,,

MORE Easter Basket Fun....

I have a few more FUN FUN FUN items I will be stashing in my lil plums easter basket this year,,, Wanted to share my excitement !

CHUMS: What an AWESOME idea,,, I found a company called "Simply Fun" A fellow mom and direct sales rep,,named Rana,, who btw,,, ROCKS ! She and her two awesome lil ones are regular attendees of my bi weekly Barefoot Books Storytimes in my subdivision and one of my BEST customers.Simply Fun focuses on providing families with FUN games that can help teach our kids life shills, help strengthen Family Bonds and provide LOADS of unique social interaction. These games are sure to be ones you wont find on your typical store shelf,,, they go along with my EVER PERSISTENT quest to provide my kids with "unique" non commercialized" products that help nurture a childs unique creativity and imagination,,, This one imparticular is a spin off of the original "go Fish" game of old that most of us are familair with... PERFECT size for an easter basket. Granted my daughter might be a tad too young to grasp the concept of the game but I am SURE she will get hours of fun and entertainment looking at all the unique and cooky fish caricature depictions and hopefully next year will be able to fully grasp the concept of the game and PLAY AWAY !




Magnetic Ladybug Puzzle : Along with fish Lily LOVES bugs,,, she is the only child I know that doesnt RUN from grasshoppers and bugs but actually goes to touch them,,,, this fun puzzle looks like a good hand eye coordination game that will take an ounce or two of patience but Lily ,, like her dad,, loves to fish and this game provides a unique way for the kids to "fish" for lil bugs with a magnetic fishing pole... I cant wait to see how Lily responds to this fun fun game,,



I have to say just a few more things about this AWESOME company,, like Barefoot Books,, this company stands up for more than just "profits" They partner with a wonderful organization called " My Stuff Bags Foundation" this company provides "my stuff" bags to foster and abandoned children. Each year, over 300,000 children in America must be rescued from dire circumstances of abuse and neglect. They often enter crisis and foster shelters with nothing of their own.

The My Stuff Bags Foundation provides comfort and hope to these children through individual duffels called My Stuff Bags. A bag of comfort to a child who has nothing to call their own.
Each customer if choosing, gets to make a donation purchase of a measly $ 15.00 to provide a "my Stuff" bag for a child in need...

Of course last but not least the Obligatory Chocolate Easter Bunny. I planon making a feeble attempt at a home made dark chocolate Easter Bunny for her this yes,,, stay tuned to Lilys Veggie Bites,, my childrens food blog for complete run down of recipe and pics of the final product,,,


So,,, Im HOPING this will be all for now otherwise,,,, we will be in NEED of a BIGGER Easter Basket ! til next time,,,

A DIFFERENT and FUN easter basket !

I LOVE easter,,, I have always loved easter. When I was younger my grandma always made the BEST easter baskets,, my favorite part was the stickers and the books. The thing
I loved most about them is that they were different. I never knew what to expect,, it forced me to use my imagination and creativity . Something BAREFOOT BOOKS always does,, gives our kids the tools to use their own creative imaginations.

Here are a few I have chosen to include in lilys easter basket...


WHOLE WORLD,, FUN ECO ACTIVITIES,,,another activity book that has fun activities that also teach our children about being friendly to our earth,,, in the spirit of Earth Day which is ALSO this month. You can never start too young in teaching your kids how each footprin we leave makes a difference. To care about not only oursleves but the world around us,,,, I will also be giving this title to my niece who is 12. A little too old for a "easter Basket" but a fun activity that sends a positive message too !


TALK WITH ME,, a GREAT NEW title from barefoot books that provides interactive fun for your little one.. sure to keep your little one interested. This book introduces your young one to differnt animals and their sounds and lets your child actively participate by askng them to lift the flaps ,,,,



ANIMAL PLAYGROUND CD,, an AWESOME collection of multilingual animal themed folk songs from around the world. LILY LOVES TO DANCE and I love watching her dance around to these upbeat Puntamayo songs,,, sure to be a fun one to watch her dance to,,,,,

When LEMONS arent always bittersweet

I am AWESTRUCK by my daughter !!!

Everyday she never ceases to amaze me with some of the smallest things
WE like to "learn" as we grocery shop. We sometimes spend an hour in the produce seciton . The lil plum likes to name all the produce. We also like to find exotic fruit she can pick up and smell and touch This is in additon to the weekly regulars arugula, onions, mandarin oranges, bananas ( or nay nay's she likes to call them ) tomatoes, mushrooms,broccoli, peppers etc.. and of course,,LEMONS..!!!! more on that.

Lemons,, if she grows up to be like me she will LOVE lemons. Lemon ANYTHING. I had a good friend Angie who sadly,,, is no longer with us. She taught me something about food and adding lemons and lemon juice to the oddest things. French fries,chicken strips,sandwhiches,, and then of course there is the obvious things like on salad..Its amazing the "little things" and "Small" memories that "stick" with us.It is those that we carrywith us and have the BIGGEST impact in our lives. So naturally,,, Lily has already had her fair share of lemon dishes and has had her fair share of grocery store learning experiences with them.

On with the point,,, We were driving home from Phillips Park yesterday. Lily kept asking for water.. her sippie was empty so I took some from my to go cup and poured it into hers... Mind you,, more often than not,, either a wedge of lemon or lime is always in my water,,,

She took a sip of the water out of her Foogo and she said,,

mmmmmmm yummy "lemons"

WOW !!!!! AMAZING ! A 2 year old that can pick out the taste of "lemon" in water. No way she saw the lemon in the water,, the cup was not clear..
This girl is well on her way to being a "true" foodie and I must tell you I am SO PROUD and AMAZED at how intelligent and receptive she has already become..

aaaah the SWEET SWEET SMELL Of Lemons,,, Thanks Angie who will forever be rememberd not just for lemons but for the small things she left with us
and thanks to Lily for never ceasing to put a smile on my face and pride in my large mommy heart with some of the smallest little things...

Reminds me ,,, never stop remembering every little moment in your life is precious and never stop making every little moment in your kids lives a learning experience that will "Stick" with them. THESE truly ARE the memories that matter the most

March 2nd..

I spent the majority of today absorbed in "Motley Crue",, the dirt. The autobiography of Motley Crue
Thoughtless, entertaining, but mindless reading. .

Anything to keep my mind off of the dread this day brings.

2 years

2 years since my dad died. This days marks the death of my dad and within a week I will be celebrating my daughters 2nd birthday.

It hardly seems fair,, kinda cruel actually.

But,, since when did life become fair ?
I thought it would get easier with time. I must have been kidding myself. It has in fact,,, gotten harder. Thinking about him almost always brings tears to my eyes and hurt in my heart.
I spent the majority of February 2007 at the hospital. Either in the emergency room, with my dad or at one of his many bedsides within those three months prior or in my OB GYN office at my weekly pre natal visits.
Most of the cafeteria and hospital nursing staff knew me by name,, even if they didnt partake in mine or my dads care. Stopping me in the hallways to ask how I or my dad was doing.

At that point I was already dilating , having irregular contractions and was ordered off of work and anticipating the inevitable ealry birth of my daughter in my 8th month of pregnancy. Stay close to home and no strenuous activity.

Try to avoid stress .
HAH! HAH ! DOUBLE hah !

How do you do that when you are taking your dad either to the emergency room, sitting with him day after day by his bedside in the hospital, then in the nursing home and ultimately at his bedside a few feet from your bedroom,, in your home,, watching him wither away on hospice care and trying like heck to avoid going into labor at the "wrong" time. Living with the fear that you may be bringing another beautiful soul into this world ,, all the while your fathers beautiful soul is leaving this workd,, without you by his side.

Avoid stress ? Not a possiblity.

Anyone who takes on the role of caretaker of a dying loved one can attest that you dont think twice about what your doing,, out of love for the other person,, you do it. Without hesitation. You never realize the heartache and guilt and second guessing you endure thereafter when all is said and done.

That last week is like a blur of commotion for me. I followed the ambulance from the hospital to my home,, with my dad in the back. Watched them bring my dad up the stairs on a stretcher and put him in his room ,, on a hospice bed and I scurried to make him his favorite meals.

Five bean soup. Apple Cobbler and home made chili. My house was filled with people it seemed. My brother and his family had come from Tulsa to be with us for part of the time. My sister was there as well. The hospice nurses in and out all day. But the majority of the caretaking had been mine up until that point and I dealt with constant second guesing on what I did wrong to make things happen like they did.
He lived with me. I fed him. I did his laundry. I picked his doctor. I drove him to his doctor appointments. I picked up his prescriptions. I ensured they were all in
the pill box for him to take. I ensured his oxygen tank was working. I ensured he participated in his physical therapy. I waited for him in the waiting room after countless procedures and stent placements. What did" I" do wrong I thought to make this happen the way it had.

This wasnt how it was suppose to be .

He is suppose to meet his grand daughter.

He never did.

But I believe he looks down on her everyday and smiles thinking what a beautiful gift and miracle she is.
He was watching over my son today as he went to freshman baseball tryouts and he was with me this morning when I woke up early,, 5:12 AM,, funny,, right around the time he left this world,, I suddenly awoke and I heard the morning dove outside my window.
I havent heard that dove in months. !
We have had a long long cold winter,,,
But he woke me this morning.
I got my slippers on and a light fleece jacket and went downstairs to see if I could see the morning dove perched out on the porch on the railing where he normally was

He wasnt there,, but I heard him. so I went searching.

He was perched on the gutter ,, right above my dads window.
My dad always loved to sit on that porch and feed the birds with his cup of Mc Donalds coffee in his hand.Perhaps it was just coincidence or it was my own wishful thinking that makes me think in some strange way it was daddy telling me he will always be there. ,, but I prefer to believe the latter.

I guess my point is,,while i havent figured out a less painful way to mourn those you love and I hanvent found a way to make the pain go away,, I have come to the realization ,,,
It shouldnt .
When you mourn someone,, they dont go away. It doesnt get easier,, you dont "close the book" on them. You dont EVER find closure..
As my brother so poignantly said. "why would you want to ?"
As Benjamin Button said,, you have to lose someone you love to truly know how much they really meant to you.

They will ALWAYS be in your life ,, in your memories and,,, .
In your heart.
And if you loved them
Thats how it always should be.

READ to a child

And I quote......
" TURN OFF the T.V,, TURN OFF the Video games and READ to your child. "!
President Obama ROCKS ! ! ! !

Amen Barack... !!!!

The responsibility of our child's education DOES lie in the hands of the parents. When was the last time you heard a president actually "talk" about family values and the RESPONSIBILITY of parents?
How refreshing...
Its about time we got back to what should REALLY matters . And what REALLY matters starts at home. !
Being a parent is THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT job you will ever have. To teach your child to be a better person for your family,, for themselves and for the world. . I dont know about you,, but thats enough motivation to get me movin every day...

On that note,,, this is what I will be reading to Lily tomorrow.. One of my favorite new Barefoot books,,,, "You and Me"

I LOVE LOVE this book and I LOVE LOVE LOVE reading to my children..
How about you ??

Chaos of Childhood

I am NOT ok with "CHAOS" ,,, it stresses me out. I like things in order.

When I start something I like to finish it and when I do something,, i "like" to do it to the "best of my ability" These are things about me, that as a mom, are more to my detriment than to my favor.

The above statements can no longer hold water when you become a mom,, a stay at home mom even moreso, Starting something I finish ?? HAH !!!! yeah right,, were lucky if we get a 1/4 of the way through. Doing things to the "best of my ability" has been replaced with ,, doing things "good enough"

I'm trying to appreciate the chaos of childhood , instead of stressing about the organized childhood chaos we encounter EVERY day.. I know all too well,, it will be over before it started and you will find yourself yearning for it,,, wondering "why" your teenager would rather watch the SAME SHOW you are watching, alone,, in his room, in seclusion,, rather than with you..

The chaos of childhood I speak of is this,,,,

You know,, the messy living room filled with every brightly colored plastic toy known to man,, That no matter how many times you put away in the "toy bin" or on the cute cubicle shelf,, still ends up in the middle of your living room. !!!!
The food scraps on the floor underneath the high chair that for the life of you ,,, NEVER seem to go away no matter how many times a day you sweep and vacuum them. The laundry piles that go unadressed

The chaos doesnt go away with time,, it just takes a unique turn,,, take a stroll into my teenagers bedroom and you will sure to be amazed and disgusted at what you will find piling up[ or even growing in his bedroom :)

Then,, my lovely little plum,, my 2 year old daughter does something like this, ( see pic above) and I am reminded that "Childhood Chaos" is a work of art,, one to be appreciated. One to be relished and one to NEVER be taken for granted,,, before you know it,, the neatly lined rubber duckies and fishies will have disappeared from your now "Serene" and "clean" bathroom ledge and you will find yourself yearning for those neatly aligned rubber duckies and fishies,,, And feeling like something was missing,,,

Thank you Lily for your wonderful work of tubby time art.... it made me smile today... ...

" Simple Happy Days" - taken from my other blog..

Have you ever had a day where you just WANT to be happy. You yearn to find the simple things in life that TRULY make you happy.

If your ever wanting to find out where to seek true joy and happiness, you can see that in the eyes of a toddler walking and running through the leaves. A single leaf can bring a smile to her face. A single leaf can bring her happiness and make her mind fill with wonder and awe. Before the time hits when children are taught "learned' behavior and material desires ,,, true happiness and wonder can be found in the simple things. Like nature. What a beautiful gift.

If only we all could run with abandon like children and think with unbridled amazement and awe. I have reached a point in my life where simple things mean SO MUCH MORE than the large material valued items that so many people seek to have. I find this joy and happiness in my children. Yesterday imparticular I had one of those "Simple happy days" I wished I had my camera with me, as I like to capture these moments in picture,, but sadly I didnt. Hope my words can help eveyrone to envision what I was seeing this day. Here is what I posted in my daughters journal.

Watching you experience simple joys really truly make me feel blessed. You make me see life through a new set of eyes. It's like ive been blind all this time and watchng you makes me see how incredible life can be. Makes me stop and think and KNOW what TRULY is important. It was a sunny breezy beautiful day today. Not a cloud in the sky about74 degrees The sum was warm and the breeze smelled like "fall" , like grass clippings and drying leaves sprinkled with the fragrance of fall flowers. Falling leaves from the trees as we walked in the shades of yellow, red, green and orange.

We went to Hudson Crossing Park. I love to spend time with you in nature,. I watched you run through the grass, staying a few steps behind you. I watched you and I couldnt help but smile from ear to ear. As you ran , you laughed and giggled,, I think the sound and feel of the leaves rustling under your feet amused you. Every so often you would trip over a tree trunk, topple over, get your hands and knees dirty, you would sit there for a minute, look at the dirt on your hands, you wouldnt cry, you'd simply investigate the dirt on your hands, Turning your hands back and forth, back and forth. Then youd look up at me and say "uh oh" so Id come down and squat beside you,, and reassure you "its ok" just a little dirt and I would show you how to brush it off. Youd brush it off and getback up and keep running. Every so often a brightly colored leaf would catch your attention. So you would stop and pick it up ,, some of the leaves from the old oak trees, as big as your head , you would hold it out to me and say "wow" ! ! ! On the way back to the car I spotted the biggest tree in the park. A tall stately tree that as far as trees go. could give the Sears Tower a run for its money,, it not only was tall but as it grew higher,, its branches spread wider as it embraced the sky and hovered over us like an upside down wedding dress. Its leaves were bright yellow and small and when the breeze blew they sort of "twinkled" . I said

"WOW Lily look,,, she said "Wowo" SUNSHINE ! and blew it a kiss.

Yes Lily,, it does look like Sunshine doesnt it ??? aaaahhhh if only adults could find this inner simplicity and happiness... Im working on it..

Daddys words of Wisdom,,,

A memory I put to writing that had on the long car ride home from Tulsa over the lovely and wonderful holiday week,,,,

Daddys words of wisdom.

I remember near the end,, the day we made the decision to proceed with hospice care in my home,, my father in his hospital bed, I, at his side, Lily, in the womb already showing signs of her inevitable arrival with each false contraction. All of us eagerly awaiting the discharge nurse to arrive,, giving us permission to bring him home to pass away in peace. My father looked over at me, smiled, patted my belly with his arm that he could barely lift and said,, "its gonna be ok" Tell her she's going to be ok. Everythings going to be alright sugar. That was a grandpa saying goodbye to a beautiful grandaughter he would never get the pleasure to meet or touch ,to hold, spoil, kiss on the head or bounce on his knee,, But despite it all he felt confident enough in me and in the world to know she, my daugher,, would be "ok" . It seems clear to me now what he meant, but at the time, nothing could have been foggier. The positive words of comfort and assertion from a man who was incessantly negative and who sadly probably didnt hear those affirmations much himself growing up.. An affirmation he probably spoke to himself often in times of struggle. This may seem surprising to many who knew him,, but ,,,, He made sure we heard them quite often as children and even as young adults. They say near the end we all have moments of clarity,, I suppose this was his shared moment of clarity to her. This was his blanket of soft comfort for her to carry her through her life from her grandpa. It makes sense now. throughout my life, whenever I had struggles ,, he would pat me on my butt or later in life ,, on my hand ,,,and say those very same words to me,, "its gonna be ok" and for some reason,, I believed it,, and all seemd right with the world.

Now ,, when I, or my chldren face a time of struggle,, I will cover my children and myself in grandpas blanket of comfort with the most simple, yet meaningful worlds I know,, "Its gonna be ok" and,,, so it will...

Sorry for seeming a little down and depressing,,, just wanted to share this memory I had and to remind myself and everyone that when life gives you lemons,, MAKE LEMONADE ! Tell yourself some positive words of affirmation to get YOU through whatever struggles you may have .....