A Mother's Touch

I could never understand what a mother's touch or a mother's instinct could really do, until I became a mother. It truly is a miracle what it can do. My first experience as a mom was right after Lyla was born. We haven't slept in 4 days because I was having contractions for that long. We were so tired that our last night at the hospital, John suggested that the nurses take her into the nursery and only bring her in for feeding, so we can have some kind of sleep. I really didn't want to do this because I would miss her too much. Plus, as a new mom I felt like I was trading my baby in for a few hours of sleep. But I knew we both needed some rest before heading home to do it all on our own. So I let them take her away into the nursery. Now I know they say a baby can only see a blurry 6 inches away but I swear as they rolled her out, she turned her head and looked right at me! I just broke down to tears as I saw her looking at me and wondering why I wasn't going with her. I just kept crying to the point John just said, let's bring her back in here if it will make you feel better. At that point, only 20 minutes went by and I got a phone call from the nurses asking if they could bring her back into the room. I asked them if there was something wrong and they simply replied that since she left the room she has not stopped crying. I told them ME TOO! Bring her back! As soon as she came back into the room, she fell asleep. Aw, she just missed her mama and I sure missed her...

Well, I came across this video and my little story is far from a miracle then this mother's. Kate Ogg gave birth to premature (27 weeks) twins. Emily made it just fine. But Jamie was pronounced dead after 20 minutes of the doctor's trying to revive him. The doctor's handed the lifeless little boy to his parents to say goodbye. Kate immediately took her shirt off and was skin to skin with her baby for 2 hours!! After 5 minutes of her holding him and caressing him and talking to him, he started moving. Doctors still did not give them hope because he claimed it was just a reflex. The baby's movements got stronger and stronger and eventually he even opened his eyes! Kate put a little bit of breastmilk on her finger and he began to suck. Doctors could not believe their eyes. This baby was not breathing nor he had a heartbeat but with his mother's touch and embrace, she brought him back to life.

That doesn't say much about science, huh? After a measly 20 minutes, the doctor's gave up! Seriously? Is that our cut off time to try to revive someone these days? Of course, a mother was patient enough to hold her son for 2 hours!! What if they cut her time off after a few minutes? This baby would've just sat there dead with no one paying attention to it while the parents mourned him and planned his funeral. Unreal. It goes to show that God is above all Science.

Take a moment and think about it. Kate did what was intended for all of us to do before science began to take over. And a miracle was born...

Here is the video for the full coverage. Please watch it, grab a tissue because if this doesn't bring a tear to your eyes I don't know what will....

A Mother's Touch

Clothes Swap Party: Yay or Nay?

Ever heard of "One's girl's trash is another girl's treasure?"

We're all guilty in having clothes and other accessories in our closets that we haven't worn in months, some even years! There is always that one piece or pieces that you just can't bring yourself to get rid of. You always make an excuse such as, "Well, I was looking for that! or So what it's not in style any more, I can wear it around the house!" Let's be honest, we NEVER do!

I made a rule around here. If we haven't touched it, seen it, used it, missed it or worn it in a year, then we don't need it! This is where clutter comes from! Is your closet FULL but yet you stare at it for hours and still say, "I have nothing to wear!" ?? Well, then it's time for a change. This is exactly how I feel. I can't buy anything new because I have no room and I feel like my closet is full. But it's full of nothing I wear any more!! So another rule we have is, in order to buy a new one you get rid of an old one. This mainly applies to the hubby who has so many t-shirts, hoodies, and sneakers!! So if he sees one that he likes and wants, he can buy it as long as when we get home he donates an old one!

We've gotten rid of so much already. We donated bags FULL of clothes, shoes, and other accessories. But now that Fall/Winter is right around the corner, it's always a good time to go through your Spring/Summer stuff and get rid of it instead of storing it again for yet another season.

SOOO I'm thinking about having a Clothes Swap Party. I've heard about other people doing this and I thought, why not? It's a great way to get rid of something that one of your friends might like and instead of shopping and spend money, you swap! Not only will you feel good about putting your under utilized clothes and such to good use, but you will be recycling them as well! It's also a great way to hang out with your friends!

I would love to hear feedback on this and see if anyone has ever had one or been to one? Did you like or not? I know the goal is to have several people with different sizes. So what do you think?

Yay or Nay?

-Natalie

Fight Cancer...With ZUMBA!!

Everyone please come out to this event to help out! We all know that ZUMBA is so hot right now. So why not take a Zumba class for only $7 and still participate in a great cause!!

Veronica Bocchicchio (Zumba Instructor, mother of

Riley-7, Reagan -2) has been battling Melanoma

since ‘08. July 2010, the melanoma spread to her brain

and on August 4th Veronica had the tumor removed.

She is still having headaches, blurred vision, and needs

help with the medical bills that are now piling up.

Please help us to fight with her!

Everyone is welcome!!

Only a $7 minimum donation for 1.5 hours of Zumba Fun For A Cause!!!

When: Sunday, Sept. 19th

10:30am - 12:00pm

Where: Northeast Racquet Club

9379 Krewstown Road

Spread the word to all your friends and family! Together we can make a change and help Veronica!

**If you can not make it to the event, you can still make a donation!**

Here's how:

-Make checks payable to Cielo Butler

-Mail them to:

The Abinton Club

ATTN: Heather Ellis

300 Meetinghouse Road

Jenkintown, PA 19046

Thank you!!

L'il Angels Semi-Annual Kids Consignment & Community Event

It's that time again!! This weekend is Lower Bucks biggest Kids Community Event!! It's a 2 day community event that only happens twice a year, so you don't want to miss it!!

In addition to the HUGE consignment sale, a FREE Kids Community Event will be held on Saturday AM. Special appearances with "Mr. & Mrs. Mouse" (9-11 AM), the Reptile Show, Bensalem Police (Child IDs), local EMS/Fire Dept (Blood Pressure Screens), Caricature Artist, Balloon Twisting, Martial Arts Demo, & much more!!! Fun for the whole family! Refer to website for more information:www.lilangelsconsignment.com Come see why we were voted Philadelphia's Best Consignment Sale by ConsignmentMommies.com!

Where: Saint Ephrem's Marian Parish Center
5400 Hulmeville Road, Bensalem, PA 19020

When: Saturday,September 18th 7 AM-1 PM
Sunday, September 19th 8 AM-12 PM (50% off sale on most items)

So if you're looking for like new or gently used quality, name brand children's clothing or related items at a fraction of the original retail cost, come out to L'il Angels Consignment Event!

There are so much children's and maternity clothing, toys, furniture, baby equipment, and much more!!!

Not only that, but they offer FREE children's activities!! Make a family trip out of it! It's great for everyone!

This will be the second time I will be attending and the first time that I signed up to volunteer! I'm so excited and it's for a great cause!

Please don't hesitate to visit their website for more information!!

L'il Angels Consignment

Hope to see you all there! If you spot me, come say hi!! ;o)

-Natalie

My Perfect Day

Ever had one of those days where EVERYTHING goes the way you planned or wanted to? That was my day yesterday! And it doesn't happen too often when you're a stay at home mom/student/wife/keep inserting titles here...

If you didn't know, yesterday was Grandparent's Day! My parents offered if they could take our girls to the mall and hang out with them. Now, normally John and I go along with them because wherever our girls are, we are too! No matter who's with them we're always there because we like to hang out as a family. But due to the clutter that has been swallowing our house in whole, we decided to let them go with my parents and meet up with them once we were done.

It broke my heart to have them say goodbye to me and drive away. Ok, I know I know. I'm so dramatic. They were only going to the mall with my parents for a few hours!! But they are never without me, unless I really need to run an errand or go to an appointment without them.

Anyway, so we got A LOT done in the house. We got to spend some time together just laying around, watching t.v. and then we got ready to go out. It's amazing how quickly we can get ready without interruptions and without having to worry about diaper bag, outfits, bottles, etc.

For the first time in a long time, we took the hubby's car. We're always in my SUV with the girls because of the carseats, so it was nice to be just the 2 of us in his convertible. It felt like those pre-mama days. We decided to stop and grab something to eat since my parents ate with the girls. Hubby decided for sushi.

We went to OOKA! OH-EM-GEE! At first I was hesitant to even go to eat because it had been 3 hours already without my babies and we were supposed to meet them at the mall but the thought of eating at a restaurant just the hubs and I and I would get to eat my food right when it came out, while it was still hot and just sit there and have an adult conversation, sold me in!

Can I just tell you how AMAAAZING OOKA is?? We had a little trouble ordering at first because it's not everyday we go to a sushi restaurant ya know? But we ordered an appetizer, an entree and some sushi! It was sooo delicious. I don't know if it was the fact that we were starving or how excited we were to be just us, but everything was sooo good. My mouth is watering just thinking about that sushi.

Here's what we ordered:

Appetizer: Gyoza- Pan fried pork dumpling (so yummy)

Entree: Teriyaki Chicken which comes with rice, mizo soup and garden salad. (awesome, hubby loves that dressing!)

Lobster Dynamite Roll- fresh lobster, avocado and mango covered with spicy tuna and sweet chili sauce. (this was the best everrrrr!)

Everything came out fresh and fast and it was the perfect portion amount. It was reasonable and so cute inside. Even the mints they give you with your bill was good! Our bill was only $50 with tip! Can't beat that!

By now, the mall was closed and the girls were getting tired so we just decided to meet them back at the house. On our way home, we stopped at Sprinkles Ice Cream Parlor for some amazing ice cream! It was sooo good!

Loved getting back to reality and to our girls. They had an amazing fun-filled day and got spoiled rotten with my parents! They went to bed right away, leaving the rest of the night for the hubby and I to relax.

I couldn't ask for a better day. Although we missed our girls terribly and were talking about them all day, it was nice to have a date again with my love.

Kourtney Kardashian picked ME!

LOOK AT WHAT I WON!!

Not the baby of course, but that would be Kourtney Kardashian's adorable little man Mason! But that cute playmat! She hosted a giveaway on her blog for a Skip Hop playspot and bedding set and I entered it. I soooo did not think I would win because she received over 900 entries and there was only going to be 3 winners!!

I'm a huge fan of the Kardashian shows so every now and then I stop by their blogs. I happened to see that she was giving this super chic playmat away and didn't hesitate to enter it. All you had to do was to leave a comment about your favorite childhood toy. So I did, not thinking for a chance I would be selected. Did I mention she received over 900 entries and I was picked along with 2 other winners? So cool! Look how cute they are and they come in different colors too! Plus, I won a bedding set as well. I researched them and the playmat alone is $79! The bedding sets are about $300! Talk about a nice win!

You can click HERE to read more about it through Kourtney's blog!

-Natalie

PLEASE VOTE!

Regis & Kelly are having this contest right now and Lyla is one of their finalists!!

I'm so excited about this!

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE VOTE FOR HER!!!!!

I know I have been asking everyone to vote for her in the past (Yo Gabba Gabba Contest) but this is serious stuff!

Her video actually played during the show today and Regis & Kelly were trying to do the spoon trick themselves! So exciting!

Ok, so here is what you do! Voting only takes place today, so you must vote!!

1. Click on the link: http://bventertainment.go.com/tv/buenavista/regisandkelly/contests/wildandwacky/vote.html
2. Register for the site (it only takes a second people)
3. There are 2 categories. She is on the 2nd one called "Talented Tots". You must vote for a random act in the 1st category to get to hers. Once you do that her category will show up and her video will be right there to vote under "Lyla Dempster, Philadelphia PA".
4. If you have more than one email please keep voting or just make one up! haha

Please help her win her category! Once she does they might have voting again to select the ultimate winner, so you know I will be bugging you again!

THANK YOU EVERYONE WHO HAS BEEN VOTING OR WHO HAVE VOTED! PLEASE REPOST THIS ON YOUR BLOG, EMAIL, FACEBOOK, TWITTER, ANYTHING!!!

-Natalie aka. One Proud Mama

*CLOSED* YumYum Bubblegum Necklace: Review & Giveaway - Congrats to Norma!

YumYum Bubblegum Boutique sells beautiful, handstamped, silver jewelry. You can choose to personalize it by adding a special text or name. You can even make it more unique by adding a birthstone, pearls, beads, etc.

They have so much to choose from! You can personalize your own necklace, bracelet, ring, earrings, you name it!

I was lucky to receive my very own personalized sterling silver handstamped double disc charm necklace!

Look how cute this is! I had Lyla in scripted on the big disc to represent her big sister role and Kalina on the little one to represent her little sisterness. LOL

I'm IN LOVE with this! Since I've received it, it has not come off my neck. It's so cute and dainty. I have had many people come up to me and say how much they liked it and want one! This item will make for a great, special gift for someone! It's very unique!

YumYum Bubblegum and I are teaming up to give you a chance to WIN this item ($3o value)! Personalized to your liking of course!

Here's how to enter:

Mandatory Entry: Visit YumYum Boutique and tell me what other item you would like to own and leave a comment below with your Name & Email.

Additional Entries:

1. Like my *MOM*ents on Facebook
2. Like YumYum Bubblegum on Facebook
3. Follow my *MOM*ents on Twitter
4. Follow my blog through Google Friends Connect
5. Subscribe to my Blog via Email
6. Share this post on Facebook (Make sure to tag my *MOM*ents)
7. Tweet about this giveaway (Make sure to tag @MyMoMentss)
8. Purchase something from YumYumBubblegum (5 entries)

Make sure to leave individual comments for each to increase your chance to win!

Contest will end Monday, September 6th at 11:59pm (EST). A random winner will be chosen on Tuesday, September 7th!

Prize is provided by YumYum Bubblegum. This giveaway is open to those with a mailing address in the US.

Here's Your Chance to Win Yo Gabba Gabba Live! Tickets

Ok, listen up everyone! If you are a Yo Gabba Gabba fan or one of my readers, you should now know that they are running a Cool Tricks Contest. Of course I immediately entered Lyla doing her Spoon Trick! She was actually in 1st place for a while. Now she's in 4th!!! WTF!

ANYWAY, I want to give you guys a chance to win tickets to the Gabba concert here in Philly on August 29th. How you ask? Ok, I'll tell you...

We already have tickets, I've only been bragging about it for months now. As I said before we got her the VIP package for her birthday, which is TODAY!! Woo-Hoo!! Ok, back to the point, so the contest winner will receive 4 tickets vip style to the show plus other goodies. One of them that interests me the most is the winner's video will be played at the show for all to see! Winning the tickets won't make difference to me because I already bought them. But I would love to see her face watching her video on the big screen. It would be PRICELESS!

SOOO if Lyla's video wins the contest I will have the tickets to give away to someone who really wants/needs them!

Here's what you can do: VOTE FOR LYLA!! Get on the Team Lyla bandwagon! You can vote every 24 hours! Every time you vote, leave me a comment below telling me you voted. Please include your Name & Email Address. You can increase your chance to win by telling ALL of your friends & family to vote as well. If they're not interested in the tickets themselves, they can still vote for Lyla and nominate YOU as the winner.

EXAMPLE: If "PERSON A" have kids and want to win the tickets and have voted already, any of their peoples can vote and leave a comment below telling me they voted for Lyla and are nominating "PERSON A" to win the tickets!

I will randomly select a winner! So the more times you vote and the more people you get to vote too and nominate you, the more chances you have of winning.

By Lyla winning you are too! So remember, Lyla MUST win for the Philly area! They are having many winners, one for each city they are touring in. So let's represent Philly! The concert is this Sunday, and I believe the contest for (Philly) will end on Friday. IF Lyla's video win, we will give out the tickets to one lucky Lyla's voter!

It's so quick and easy. All you have to do is click HERE to vote!

So spread the word.

Also, there is another video on there of a little boy, Alex, doing the belly roll. He is so adorable and it's his 3rd birthday tomorrow. They are trying to win for the California show! Please show him some love and vote for him too HERE!

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAS VOTED SO FAR AND ARE REPOSTING ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. LYLA IS ALMOST AT 600 VIEWS ON YOUTUBE IN A MATTER OF DAYS!!

Love,

Natalie

Annoying People

This was me last night!

I just wanted to give a shout out to 2 people who annoyed me last night. After a long night the night before and a long day to follow I still had to go out and run some errands. Let's just say I only attacked 1 of the 3 stores I had to go to.

My first shout out goes to the very anti-social Staples employee! We didn't get to the store until 8pm. I needed a few things for me to get started on Kalina's 1st birthday invitations. I knew exactly what I wanted. The hubby was hanging out with the girls so I can pace through the store quickly. I got stuck on 2 items. First, I had a paper question. This employee was so monotone to answer me that I felt like I was prying information out of him. I had to almost drag him to the paper isle to show him what I was talking about. By now, it's almost closing time and all I needed was some damn adhesive magnets! I know they had it because I was smart enough to check the website before going there. I'm searching the entire store for ANYONE who works there. Anyone? Anyyyyyone? (echoooo) Nothing! I finally found someone wearing a Staples shirt and who is it?? Mr. Personality himself once again. He looked at me like I just spoke in another language. He finally told me to go to isle 5, which by the by I had just came from. As I'm making my way there his personality decides to come out and tell my daughter to put whatever she takes off the shelves to put back because he had just organized that isle. UMMM...OK! Dude, she's like 2! And long and behold, I found my adhesive magnets on isle 6 ALL BY MYSELF! Thank you very much! I made a point to go back to Mr. Personality and tell him that. Good night!

My second shout out goes to the lady at Wendy's! I wanted to get the girls something to eat since they had an early dinner so Lyla requested nuggets. Kalina was already freaking out in her car seat just because that's what she likes to do now... There was ONE car in front of us who were already getting their food. The lady at the drive thru window just decided to take her good old time and talk to her fellow co-workers and not make an attempt to take our order. We actually had to beep the horn to get her attention. After all of that with kids waiting very impatiently for their late snack, she proceeds to tell us they ran of nuggets for the night. (Insert car tire screeching here)

So I just wanted to give those 2 a wonderful shout out and thank them for their wonderful customer service. I think you picked the right career for you! Keep up the good work!

-Natalie