Oh what a glorious feeling!

These shots were captured mere SECONDS before the storm hit... The Macvies love a good summer storm.

Fixed?

SIGH-- already been confused for a boy...

OMG, are you kidding me?!

SO, I finally talked my darling girl into getting her hair cut professionally about 3 weeks ago (see the picture on the top of this post, taken mere hours ago). A stylish a-line wedge for my little fashionista. SUPER cute and fresh for summer and Kindergarten (which is far too close for comfort, btw-- more on that later). SO about 15 minutes ago, Mike, Ryan, my dad and I were spending some quality time (okay, so we were watching tv) and Chloe was "working on a project". She emerged from the den with a triumphant, "Hey guys... I cut my hair!". I honestly (HONESTLY.) don't know if I was laughing or crying. Feast your eyes on the carnage and the tool of destruction. Sweet mullet, huh?

A new attitude....

I'm turning over a new leaf with this whole blogging thing and am now taking a page from my dear friend Maigan's blog and will be using this as a method of keeping my family and friends posted on the happenings of the Macvie crew.

We are living fast (and furious? YIKES) and eagerly segwaying into a summer packed with mini-road trips, lake adventures, and lots of sunscreen and bug repellent.

We just returned from a (slightly manic) trip to Montana to see my mom and grandpa (as well as my sister, who joined up with us on Saturday, a brief chat with my mother-in-law and her mom and stepfather and my dear friend and her daughter). It was a lot to take-on but, as always seems to be the case, the kids rolled with the punches beautifully. Montana is, and always will be, my home and being there acts as a vitamin for my spirit. The weather was beautiful and the kids adapted eagerly to country life... lots of dirt and manual work and even a tick in little Ry-Guy's hair. Thankfully, no yellow-jacket or wasp stings (poor Allie, Maigs) but they were everywhere!

We find ourselves oddly refreshed, even after a 14 hour trip up and a 13 hour trip back as we realize that things are becoming more and more manageable and the kids are both adventurous and adaptable.

Please enjoy the pictures and check back as I vow here and now to be better about posting updates and news.

Keeping your child safe is manageable?

I sometimes feel like the act of protecting my children is a lost cause. Not to sound too morose but seriously... every time I turn around I learn of some hidden threat that I would have assumed to be utterly benign. Here are concerns that I have and what I've done to combat them:

1) BPA-- it seems to be lurking everywhere.... bottles, pacifiers, formula cans and containers (the plastic, premixed are apparently the worst) and good ol' fashioned canned food.
I purged my home of any glaringly obvious offending containers and bought me some crazy expensive Siggs (later found that Walgreens sells aluminum bottles, complete with carabiner for under $5... they don't have a sports attachment but hey, we're talking 75% savings here).

2) Latex-- apparently some studies reveal links between latex and cancer... this only effected us on a minor scale, since my children don't worship the binky god... we simply eliminated the remaining bottles that had latex nipples.

3) Parabens-- I am now a converted paraben-aphob. If you are not savvy to this serious (and debatable) topic, please see this link: http://www.terressentials.com/truthaboutparabens.html
We took about 3 hours to purge our medicine cabinets, showers, and pantry of ALL products containing them and replaced them. Interesting to note: not all "organic" products are pure products... and some cheap products are well ahead of the game and have eliminated the toxin from their list of ingredients. FYI: I LOVE the Tiny Tillia brand, affordable if you catch it on sale (think Fred Meyer if you've got one near by!)

4) Toys-- Seriously?! One in three toys tested are toxic? In AMERICA? See this frightening link: http://www.healthytoys.org/press.releases.php A reassessment by the FDA will address this (apparently in February of 2009) and make changes. Sadly, this will effect the mom-and-pop places that have been creating safe, green toys all along. We did our best by reviewing the list at healthytoys.org but they only tested select toys and they seemed fairly random and irrelevant in our lives so I'm sure there's a sweet sampling of toxins lurking in our toy boxes! I was confused to see that (for example) some Little People toys tested poorly and others were fine. Since we have a Little People empire, I am NOT looking forward to further test results. ALSO I have avoided the draw of the mega toy sales that are going down right now-- clearly the retailers don't want to get stuck holding the hot potato!

5) Toxins in disposable diapers--ignore for a moment that a disposable diaper reportedly takes 500 years to break-down, apparently we also have to be concerned about how consistent use is going to effect our children's (specifically boys) reproductive health! http://www.checnet.org/healtheHouse/education/articles-detail.asp?Main_ID=554 Yikes!
We considered, humming and ha-ing about switching to cloth diapers but stumbled upon the perfect solution for us: (drum roll, please!) gdiapers! Concerned as we were? Check them out and discover the hybrid diaper that has changed our lives! 50-150 days to break down in a landfill, or flush or compost the liners (pee only, of course!). Follow this link and become a believer: http://www.gdiapers.com/?gclid=CPvv_7WP55cCFQv7agodb2D_Dw

I guess when it's all said and done, the best we can do is stay current and mindful. And NETWORK. Anything I missed? Please, fill me in!

Picture books that deliver the goods:

Okay-- so I'm sick of the same old raves about the same tired books. I hate to hate but I must say that "Good Night Moon" makes my brain bleed and "Love You Forever", though sweet and precious rips my still beating heart out of my chest (literally: tears every time I read it). We all know that Dr. Seuss is an undying classic choice that always reads well and is fun and light but what about other books? There are a million-bazillion out there and let's be honest... many are severely lacking. Particularly peevish to me are the ones that try for a super complicated story-line or moral. Let's keep it simple. Readability matching interest level: pretty important stuff. So, here are my favs.... tested also by little Miss C (an expert, by the way). Please comment back with any that you consider to be all-encompassing... vivid pictures, strong rhythm, memorable characters, fun and whimsical with an undercurrent of meaning: whatever the category, please enlighten me!
(No particular order)
1. "And Here's to You" written by David Elliot and illustrated by Randy Cecil
2. "Farmer Brown Shears His Sheep: A Yarn About Wool" by Teri Sloat
3. "Barnyard Dance" by Sandra Boynton
4. "Old Black Fly" by Jim Aylesworth and Stephen Gammell
5. "Alphabet Soup: A Feast of Letters" by Scott Gustafson

Not to take myself too seriously...

Okay so the whole BPA thing gives me the absolute creep-out. I'm working towards purging our house but MAN it's hard, you know? Not only are the big offenders in baby products some of the spendiest, they are also the ones that I thought were the healthiest and/or most "natural"... and some are even ORGANIC. Some companies are trying to make up for it. Both Dr. Brown and Playtex seem very motivated to make amends (see top two links below).
Here are the measures I've taken: I threw my old Avent and Playtex Vent Aire bottles and discs in the trash (I'm all for sending things to charities to be recirculated but NOT something that will make something detrimental accessible to people that may not be educated about the situation) but saved the nipples and rings to use with my Medela breast pump bottles (BPA free)... they fit perfectly. I also ordered $80 worth of SIGG water bottles from Amazon... unbelievably cute but clearly not affordable and not the solution for babies still using bottles. I also stopped buying baby food in plastic containers; as you may or may not know, the plastics that are cause for concern are 3, 6, and 7 (imprinted on bottom with the recycling triangle around the number)-- plastic baby food containers are often a 7 (including Gerber Organics). Also be aware of the fact that some formula cans are lined with BPA containing material (see third link below-- you can get a free guide at this site).
Okay-- I will step down from my giant soapbox... just hoping to spread a little knowledge.
http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?t=829833
http://www.playtexbaby.com/bpafree/info.html
http://www.ewg.org/node/25570
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=sigg&x=0&y=0
http://www.squidoo.com/saferpacifiers