I have moved

I have finally moved to my own domain. Come visit me there: http://www.notsouglyducklings.com/

The design is a work in progress.

Little Olivia

Okay, so I know I said I would be back with a new blog design, domain... etc. However there is a small issue with my server, so all that is going to have to wait.

I however, wanted to give a little update on Olivia. As some of you know, we have had some growth issues with her. A lot of it due to breastfeeding issues.

I won't lie.

It was heartbreaking to once again have a child not grow while breastfeeding.

It was stressful and constantly on my mind.

But we are past it.

That's right.. we seemed to have moved forward. Despite the fact that it seems like she is not eating enough, she is gaining weight. In fact, this past month she moved up a whole growth curve! She is still down two from her original curve, but as long as she maintains or increases it is good.

So what changed? Well, unfortunately we cut down breastfeeding. A lot. Unless she insists, I am breastfeeding her twice a day. In the morning and in the evenings. We added more formula to the mix, however we are starting to move away from formula, and increase her food intake.

Food is up and down with her. If it is served on a spoon, she isn't interested. She must feed herself! It is messy, but she does okay. Some days she is more interested in driving her food around or hiding food in her chair.

By the way, can you believe she is 9 months already! Time sure has flown since she was born.

She is still a very happy little girl. She has the best smile. She is pulling up on everything and will walk along the couch or whatever she has pulled up on. She has started to push chairs around a bit. She even tried to walk away from the couch. It didn't end well. She still needs to work on her balance.

Over all she is doing well. She is growing, and she is happy :)

Be Back Soon

Hi everyone
I'm sorry I have not been posting. Life has been busy... kids have been sick.
But I will be back soon, (Next week hopefully!) I will also be moving to my own domain and back over to WordPress.

So until then, I hope you are all having good times.

Inspired Tuesday - June 4th

Hi everyone. I have to make this a quick post! My mom arrived today from Canada to spend two weeks with us. We are so excited to have her here.

This week I want to feature This Post by Jack's Paper Moon. I always love the photos posted on this blog.. but I am just in LOVE with the last photo of this particular set.

And here is this weeks free printable:

It can be downloaded  by clicking HERE.

What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

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Inspired Tuesday - May 28th

Happy Tuesday!

I am so sorry I missed last week. Life kind of just got busy.. and well you know how that happens.

Due to June being super busy for me ( my mom is coming to visit for a couple of weeks!!) I won't be doing any features with Inspired Tuesday in June. I love you all, and you all write beautiful posts, I just may not be able to visit all of you over the next month, but I will try my best.

And with that, on to this weeks free printable:

You can download this from HERE.


What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

 Loading InLinkz ...

Back to full time mom

First of all, I apologize for missing Inspired Tuesday yesterday. It was a long weekend here in Denmark, and the husband and I decided to take a date day on Monday. And I will be honest... I forgot to make the post a head of time. But I promise it will be back next week.

Today is my husbands first day of work since Olivia was born. His paternity leave is up. It is a bit of a sad moment for all of us. It is also my first day back as a full time mom.

And guess what... it is only 3:30pm and it has been event full already.

So we woke up this morning to lots of rain. LOTS. The husband and I just kind of laughed, because every time I had to pick up the kids from daycare.. it rained.. and wouldn't you know, it had to be raining today, when I would have to drag the two youngest to pick up our oldest from preschool. We shrugged it off, hoping that the rain would stop by then.

The morning actually went well. By 9:30 both husband and Elisabeth were gone, I had managed to have the other two fed, dish washer unloaded and kitchen cleaned up slightly.

I go to the bathroom... it is half full of water. You see we have a leak in the roof, that should be fixed soon. However.. LOTS of rain = flooded bathroom. I don't need to go outside, I can just step into my bathroom to get rained on. So I scoop the water off the floor and into the shower... and move on with my day.

My phone rings... Elisabeth is sick they say, but they can arrange for someone to bring her home to me. Great.

I start getting lunch ready. Phone rings again. Elisabeth isn't sick.. just pooped a  lot and is better now.. great... no need to drag two kids in the rain to fetch the other one.

Oh did I mention we have no food in the house? I had planned on going grocery shopping this morning.. by the rain kind of ruined that.

Anyways.. I figure something up for the kids to eat (notice how I have yet to mention that i have fed myself yet...). They eat. Time for naps...

In Denmark, babes nap in a pram outside. This is the only place Julius will nap. Did I mention the pouring rain? I decided to bring the pram inside. I run out, drag it in to the back room... The stupid thing is full of water. Sigh... Then I realize... I need the double pram to be able to pick up Elisabeth.. I run back out... it is full of water also. GREAT! I have no way to transport my children.

I call up my sister-in-law to see if she can come sit with kids, so I can walk up to the preschool and pick Elisabeth up early (because I know she also has to pick up her own kid later). Her basement is flooded, and she just put her babe down for a nap.. I laugh.. such luck I am having today. She tells me to bring the kids over to her place.

That is what I do. However I have no rain clothes for Olivia, so I throw a blanket on her, rain clothes on Julius... However... I do not have a rain jacket. I DO have gummy boots though. Beautiful blue ones (that are actually really uncomfortable.. but they cost like 10$... so I love them). I run over to her house, drop the kids off. She loans me a stroller and tells me to get groceries as well. Thank goodness.

I get Elisabeth, who is just fine. She just pooped a lot this morning I am told..... We grab groceries. Drop them off at home, go back to the sister in laws. We have coffee.. I find out that Olivia freaked out for a few minutes and Julius broke the door off their fridge.... Sigh..... but the coffee was good! She helps me  bring the kids home on her wait to pick up her daughter.

I give the kids a snack.. Julius passes out at the table, Elisabeth is putting her teddies down for a nap, and Olivia has now crashed on my lap.

I still have to figure out dinner... At least it has been an interesting day so far..

And... I am kind of hungry....

Inspired Tuesday - May 14th

I am really missing blogging, but I am having such a struggle to find the time! However I am sure to get this Inspired Tuesday out at least!

I hope to return more regularly soon.

But enough about me and on to this weeks features.

First up we have Cathie from Toddlers Through Preschool. Last week she blogged about a book she reads to the kids and some fun activities to do with it. I really enjoyed this post because this particular book (Jamberry) is one of the only English books that I read to my kids on a regular basis. It is one of our favorite reads. Be sure to stop by Cathie's blog and leave her some comment love.

Next up we have Bethany from Before, During and After and she blogged about doing Crossfit during pregnancy. I kind of has to say, that is crazy! But in a good way. I say good for her, and very inspiring post! Seriously, go check out this post!

And  on to this weeks free printable:

You can download it by clicking here.

What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Inspired Tuesday May 6th

Can you all believe that it is May already! I can't. The weather hasn't helped with that either, we are still getting frost in the morning a couple times a week!

I know each week I usually feature a blog or two that linked up the previous week. This week I am taking a break from that because I have something I really want to share with you.

Some of you may or may not know that I am a blog designer, some of you even took my Blog Design eCourse. However due to exciting things happening in my life I just no longer have time to do blog designs for others, so I am no longer taking additional clients.

However... one of my eCourse students has taken the leap and started her own blog design business. I want to introduce you to J9 Designs:

I can not say enough how proud I am to have one of my eCourse students take what they learned from me to the next level. She offers a variety of services and designs for both Blogger and WordPress.

If you are looking for some help with your blog I would highly recommend J9 Designs. You can visit her website HERE or stop by her Facebook page and show her some like love.

And with that... on to the link up..

What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Spring has arrived

Spring has finally arrived here. I can not say enough how awesome it is to have a garden with flowers. I no longer have to go searching for flowers to take pictures of. There are plenty in my backyard.

Today these lovely blue ones opened up.

I love the 'pop' that blue flowers add to a garden.

Inspired Tuesday - April 29th

Sorry it is up late! I had it scheduled... but it didn't post.

Happy Tuesday everyone!
You guys linked up some really awesome posts last week! It was very hard to choose a couple of you to feature. But, here are two featured posts from last week:

I really love the story shared on Framed by God.
I also really love the reflection that was shared on Special Moments in Time.

And here is this weeks free printable:

You can download it HERE.

What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Little Olivia

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about my struggles with breastfeeding. I ended the post on a positive note, wish a plan in mind and the plan to continue to breastfeed.

Well I hate to say it but I am conflicted again. We took Olivia for her weight check at the doctors office. We left with a referral to see a specialist. Olivia just did not gain enough weight. I was very disappointed. It  wasn't all bad. The doctor was very nice, and she said she doesn't really think something is wrong, developmentally Olivia is ahead, she is very active, but we need to check it out to be safe.

Since about the same day we have been having a struggle with Olivia. We can not seem to get her to eat more than a few bites. Due to no allergies in the family we were given the green light to give her just about anything to find something she will eat. She doesn't seem to want to eat anything.

She is also nursing less due to me working during the day. While I am working my husband gives her some formula. But that too is a struggle.. she will drink some, but never more than a couple ounces. She is no longer nursing or eating at night. I don't think I am producing as much milk as before. She has become a bit fussy and is not as happy all the time as she used to be.

This stresses me out. A huge amount. The husband usually has more luck getting food into than I do. She will always take a boob from me, rarely food, and almost never a bottle.

We see the children's nurse again this week. We do not know yet when we will see a specialist. I hope we can get some tips this week. We need her to eat and gain weight. I need her to eat food that I give her. My husband goes back to work here in a couple of weeks and I will be taking the role of stay at home mom again for a couple of months.

Anyone have experience with a picky baby that won't eat? Got any tips?

Life lately...

I keep mentioning that life lately has been hectic. It has. There has also been a lot of stress. In all honesty I feel like we are in this really torrential stage right before everything just falls into place. I can see the silver lining  and it feels like we are just about there, but getting there is proving to be very tough..

So here is what's been happening lately that is causing a lot of stress (both good and bad).

1. Olivia.
Our little one. She is extremely active (crawling, sitting up on her own, exploring the entire house on her own). As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago in this post, we are having a bit of a problem getting her to gain weight. We went for a check up last week.. it was not great. She did not gain enough weight over the last month. We have been refereed to a pediatrician to have her looked at. Generally, the doctor doesn't think there is anything is wrong do to her being happy, and developmentally ahead. Still it needs to be looked into, as dropping down 3 curves on the growth chart is not good.

2. The Studio.
The photography studio kind of turned into this never ending project. Finding the time to get it down was difficult. We managed and it is just about finished. Yay!

3. Julius
Julius's reflex anoxic seizures started happening again. It has been months since he had any. It sucks to see them happen again.

4. Just setting up the house.
We have been spending so much time with the studio, that we really have not finished setting up the house. There are still boxes.. we are mountains behind in laundry...

5. Potty training.
Elisabeth decided to ditch diapers. She is good most of the time... but not all the time. Julius has decided that he likes to take off his diaper, but has yet to go pee in the toilet.

6. Another business venture.
I am working with my husbands cousin in starting another business... more details at another time.

7. Just the strain of it all.
My relationship with my husband is a bit rocky at the moment. We 3 kids under 3 we just don't get any quality time together. We feel it. We need more quality time. We are working on it.

8. Danish
Right now I can not take danish lessons due to a teacher lockout. This stresses me out. I really need to get a better hold of this language. Not being confident in the native language here gives me a lot of anxiety  I feel like I am being judged because I can  not speak much of the language. I feel like I should have mastered it by now. The reality is, I am struggling with it. But I plan on taking a new approach with it (taking classes in person instead online), but I have to wait to start...

So that is a little glimpse in my life right now. Honestly just writing it all out kind of takes a tiny weight off my shoulders.

But like I said... I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.. The photography business is coming together well. If this other business comes together, then financially we will be comfortable, which will also take a lot of stress of. Things are looking up, even if at the moment they feel pretty dark.

5 Disney Characters I love

I think I missed my 5 post last week! Honestly life has been totally crazy around here. I plan to do a big update post on that maybe Thursday. But for now, how about some fun.

I have always loved Disney movies. Growing up a knew so many of them word for word. Yes, I watched that often. I was a lucky kid. I had a tv in my room and could watch movies all the time.

However, now that I have kids, I have started to watch Disney movies again. Does anyone else find them so different now? When you are kids you don't pick up on the more 'adult' jokes or even adult themes. Very interesting to say the least. Anyways... here is a list of some of my favorite Disney characters.

1. Mater

So my son is totally into cars. We watch the cars movie at least once a day. Have you ever just say and listened to the lines Mater says? Hilarious.. seriously best character in the movies! He is the only reason why I have not thrown this movie out the window out of annoyance! Each time I pick up on a new funny thing he says.

2. Princess Jasmine

I just thought she was cool and pretty when I was younger.

3. Belle

Okay this is a big one. I loved Belle. I wanted to be her. And really what is not to love about her. She was kind, she loved books (hello library in the movie that I want.....) and I think she had the best Disney dress. She also had brown hair and brown eyes... just like me.. Thinking about it, I should have named my first born child after her. She was just awesome and a good all around character..

4. The fish tank fish 

Okay so this is more than just one character. But this group is always good for a little chuckle!

5. Marry Poppins

Favorite Disney movie of all time. I really wanted Marry Poppins to come to my home. I still cry every time in this movie when she leaves.

What are some of your favorite Disney characters?

Inspired Tuesday - April 23rd

Welcome back to another Inspired Tuesday. I hope you are all having a good week.

This weeks featured blog is You'll Shoot Your Eye Out by Kathy. Last week she shared some really beautiful pictures with us. Be sure to stop by if you didn't last week and say hi to her.

As promised, this week I have two free printables for you:

You can download this one from HERE.

You can download this one from HERE.

What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

We are all beautiful

Last night while stalking Facebook I came across Dove's newest video. Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful message. You have not yet seen this, you should do it now.

Did you watch it? Did you cry like I did?

And some more beauty for you:

Inspired Tuesday - April 16th

I am sorry this post is running a bit late. We are in the final push of finishing up the photography studio, and honestly I kind of forgot to do this post last night! Oopps... I am sure my lovely co-hosts are more than ready for me to get settled and get them this post on time :) Love you girls.

This week we have 3 featured blogs, and I am sure you have seen them before, but all three of us hosts thought that they really stood out this past week.

First up we have Amanda from wildly simple. She shared some facts about herself and some lovely pictures for a blogging award she received.

Stacy from Stacy Uncorked shared something very cool. She recently gained a very awesome new follower on twitter! Head over to her post to see who!

Jill Wellington shared some really neat whimsical pictures on her blog. So much fun to look at!


What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Okay.. and again no printable this week. I lost my bank card, had it cancelled, which caused my adobe cloud account to be locked, which means no photoshop for me today. Next week I will have 2 awesome freebies for you instead.

I wish you all a inspired week.

I am not a runner... but I want to be

Today I decide to start my c25k program. For those who do not know what this is, its full name is Couch to 5 kilometers in 8 weeks. Basically it is a running program designed to get you off the couch and running. It is supposed to be good for those non-runners like me.

I have been thinking about doing one of these for a while now. Mostly because it feels like everyone on my instagram feed is doing it, and I feel like I am missing out. I generally hate running, but I don't want to hate it. You knows those videos of that fit hot woman (or even better man) running down the beach, happy look on their face.. yeah I want to be that girl. Expect minus the beach.. running in sand sucks! And I don't have a beach to run on.

I need some sort of exercise routine. I want something that I can do on my own time, that is flexible and something I can do on my own. Running seems to fit that. So... I am going to become a runner.

I hope that it will help rid of the last bit of baby weight that I can not seem to ditch this time around. I hope that it will help me just feel better in general. I hope that I stick with it. I am bad with sticking with any sort of exercise plan.

But... I think I can do this one. I did my first run this morning. I am super proud, I did the whole thing. I did not cheat on it once. Go me! I was so proud that I even instagramed a picture of my red, post run face.

Here are a couple of things that I learned though..

1. I need a sports bra to contain my milk boobs. I am sure all the bouncing was distracting to anyone who drove by.

2. Um... I can feel my muffin top (especially in the hip area) bouncing... not cool!

3. I need somewhere to put my phone. I accidently grabbed the headphone cords and ripped the phone out of my other hand and my headphones off.

4. I will not die after running.

5. I need to focus more on my music and less on the actually running.

6. The second half is much easier. I can not explain how excited I was when my app told me I was halfway and I could turn around.

7. I really need to shave my legs more often if I am going to be wearing shorts. Seriously I am not sure when the last time was and it was a bit embarrassing to be out running with my massively hairy legs.

8. I kind of enjoyed it.

So to keep myself accountable I am going to do something unthinkable.. I am going to share some before pictures with you. Even the ones that show a bit of my butt. Here they are:

And I just thought about how I should have done a side picture.. next week. I am going to update each week with my progress. 

My starting weight: 61kg / 134.4lb

My goal weight:  55kg / 121lb

App I am using: C25K - 5K Trainer Free for android.  I will let you know how I like it once I am further in the program. First impression.. I like it and super easy to use.

Inspired Tuesday April 8th

Welcome to another week of Inspired Tuesday. How has your week been? Mine has been super busy (as usual..)

This weeks featured blog post comes from Jill over at Jill Wellington Photography - Passing the knowledge forward. Last week she shared some beautiful pictures using only natural light. Be sure to stop by her post if you didn't last week and let her know which one was your favorite.


What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

 I ran out of time this week and was not able to create a printable for you. Sad Face :(
Instead I am going to share a pictures I took today with you:

I edited this picture with a couple of Kim Klassen's textures. If you love photography and textures, you should stop by her blog. She makes some of the best textures and if you sign up for her newsletter, you get them for free. She also does a weekly link up on Tuesday's called Texture Tuesday.

I hope you all are having a wonderful Tuesday!

Struggles with breastfeeding

I have been putting off writing this post. Breastfeeding is a bit of a touchy subject for me. Mostly because I feel like I have failed at it multiple times.

With Elisabeth I didn't make it past 6 weeks. It was painful, I was stressed, she stopped growing, I didn't feel good about it, so I stopped. It was a both good and bad. Suddenly we had a very happy, growing baby. I however experienced something I didn't expect. I missed it.

Past experience made me even more determined to breastfeed Julius. I know the benefits and I think it really is best for baby. I made it in total, 6 months. However, at around 4 months Julius stopped growing. We added food at 5 months to make up for the loss.. however the stubborn child decided it was boob or nothing. After a few days of him starving himself for over 8 hours just so he could have breast milk, we decided it was best if we cut him off. He needed the nutrition. I was emotionally heart broken. But.. he needed to grow.

I had/have a lot of guilt over this. I don't quite understand why I can't seem to make nutritional milk past a certain point. Why doesn't my body do what it is supposed to do. I figured perhaps it was the stress of moving from one city to another. I had a lot of stress the first time around as well.

I tossed around the idea of not breast feeding Olivia out of fear of having another child not grow. But I know breast feeding is so good for them. So, that is what I did.

It has been a struggle with Olivia from day one. She had a sever tongue tie, and although we got it clipped only days after she was born.. the damage was done. I pushed through the pain only to get thrush. Then a blocked duct, which turned into mastitis. But we pushed on. I was determined to make it to 6 months.

Around 5 months, her eating habits changed. She started eating every 1.5 hrs to 2 hrs around the clock. Warning bells starting going off. I talked to a couple of people. I was told it was normal and to not worry about it. Knowing my past experiences I should have known better. I should have found someone who would take my concern seriously. Someone who would have looked at my past, my health (because my body has never done things the way it is supposed to), and might have considered that I am a rare case of just not being able to produce healthy fatty milk.

In the beginning of March we moved to a new city, which meant new doctors. We took Olivia for her 5 month check up a month late. Since birth Olivia has dropped down to lines on the growth curve. She has grown very little over the last few months.

I.Felt.Horrible. The reason she is up and eating every 2 hours around the clock is because she is actually hungry because she isn't getting enough.

The doctor suggested we call the children's nurse (here in Denmark we have a health professional who is specialized in children under 5 and particularly the first year), and have her come and look at Olivia, talk about our food options for her, and to schedule a weight checkup in April.

I was pretty sure this was the end of breast feeding for us. Over the last week I have been having an internal battle with whether I should continue and be stressed about Olivia getting the nutrition she needs, or just going with formula. It has weighed very heavily on my mind.

Today we met with the nurse. She was wonderful. We discussed many things, including how to get Olivia to not eat at night. She pointed out things such as your child will be angry, but she never needs to cry alone. We are not to wean her at night until we can get her to eat 4 meals a day of table food for a week.

We also discussed how I should NOT stop breast feeding. She does not think formula is the answer, at least for now. Olivia does, however, need to gain weight. The nurse made this assessment  not by actually weighing her, but looking at her. He said she doesn't have enough 'chunk' on her. She showed us that Olivia is a bit too much skin and bones around the belly. Then she weighed her and looked at how tall she is. She is 71 cm and 6.6 kg. A bit too small.

So our plan of action is this: 4 meals of day, no matter what. Since Olivia isn't that fond of mushy food, just skip it. Give her the real stuff. Feed her what we are eating if we can (minus all the salt). Breast feed Olivia whenever she wants it during the day (and night for now). In a month, she will come back and we will re-evaluate.

She also explained to me that there is a breast feeding hump. All women reach a point where breast feeding alone is not enough, and food needs to be introduced. Some women reach this point sooner than others. Me, it seems, to be about the 4 month mark.

After today I feel considerable better. We have a plan, and we finally have found both a doctor and a children's nurse that takes us seriously. No more with the 'that is rarely the case' so that can't be the problem. Because lets face it.. we kind of do rare in this family. I labored 3 times in a extremely uncommon way (even more so since it happened 3 times!), Julius had a very rare time of seizures do to an iron deficiency (which could have been due to my crappy milk).

All that a side, I am happy that this doesn't need to be the end of breast feeding, because I am really not ready to stop. So wish us lucky in fattening the little one up!

5 Songs I am loving right now

So, I missed my '5' post last week. We have just been super busy (have I said that enough yet...). This week I am going to share 5 songs I am enjoying right now.

So here they are in no particular order:

1. Gone Gone Gone by Phillips Phillips

Besides a really repeating name (both in the song title and his name), I am really in love with this song. Actually just with his music in general. And I am way behind on this.. because I don't watch American Idol. I am not even sure how I stumbled upon him.. either way.. Love this song right now.

2. Home by Phillips Phillips

Surprised you with this one didn't I.....

3. Little Talks by Of Monsters and Men

Strange band name.. but good song.

4. Some Nights by Fun.

I actually came across Fun. some months ago and I love their entire CD.

5. Ho Hey by The Lumineers

Another some and band in general that I have fallen in love with recently.

I am always looking for new music to listen to so tell me: What are you listening to these day?

Inspired Tuesday - April 1st

I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend. We did. The end of it had some nice weather, and we have been working on the photography studio. Overall a good weekend!

This weeks featured blog post is from Gaye over at Calm.Healthy.Sexy. She wrote a great post about 6 free gifts to your husband.  If you didn't stop by it last week, I encourage you to stop by her blog this week and show her some love.


What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

And here is this weeks free printable:

You can download it from HERE

And this weeks link up:

Inspired Tuesday March 26

You guys are so awesome! We had 34 blog posts linked up. I am so happy to see this blog post start to take off. So much great posts out there!

I think I may have missed commenting on a couple of your blogs this past week. I am so sorry if I did, but I did stop by everyones blogs.

This week we have two featured Blogs

The first featured blog is Just call me Petty. The last few weeks she has been linking up her Make A Difference Monday posts where she features charity's and other organizations that make a difference. You should really stop by and check them out!

Our second featured blog is A Rural Journal. Last week Nancy shared a beautiful picture with some lovely words, as well as some awesome textures.


What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

This weeks free printable:

You can download this free printable from HERE

What I want to write about

I am behind in posts. There are so many posts that I want to write such as:

My baby boy turned 2 (in February....)
How to NOT move with 2 toddlers and a baby
An update on my breastfeeding journey and my mom guilt
Olivia's 6 month update
The new house
The studio and the photography business

But I am just having a hard time sitting down and writing a full out serious post. They will come soon though I promise. I finally feel like I am catching up a bit with life. Until then I want to share a couple of Blog Designs that I installed for two lovely ladies over the last couple of weeks:

First is Life On The Hill:

And the second one, installed today is Sticky Floors, Happy Kids

Be sure stop by their blogs and give them some comment love.

Happy Monday everyone. See you tomorrow for Inspired Tuesday.

Top 5 Shows That I Miss

I will admit in high school I did not watch a whole lot of TV. It wasn't until I moved to Denmark and had months of nothing to do while I waited for paper work and school to start that I really started watching TV series. Now, being in Denmark I didn't really have easy access to a lot of the American TV shows, but I managed to find old episodes online.

Now I am a TV series junkie, and will watch almost anything, but I have my favorites (save those for another week). However, there are a few series that are no longer playing... that I miss. Here are 5 in no particular order:

One Tree Hill

Image Source: Wikipedia

This was probably one of the first series I started watching in Denmark. And I fell in love with it right away. I think I probably watched the first 3 seasons within a few days. I even continued to watch when they made the jump from high school to adulthood, which they managed to do okay with. I was very sad to have it end.

The Tudors

Image Source: Wikipedia

Another one of my favorites and ones that I watched early on in Denmark. I loved this show so much that I made sure to have episodes of it on my laptop for when I was in the hospital in labor with my first. The show did run its course though.. but I would LOVE for them to do the story of Elizabeth.

Firefly

Image Source: Wikipedia

Not my usual genre, but my husband got me into this one. I really think it is Nathan Fillion's charm. This is one series that ended way too soon!

Merlin

Image Source: Wikipedia

This one is more recent. I loved this show. It was actually one of my favorites playing at the moment. I had no clue it was ending until I watched the last episode. I was devastated! I cried. I am really not sure what will fill magical/historical TV needs at the moment (okay Game of Thrones has helped a bit).

Veronica Mars

Image Source: Wikipedia

I couldn't leave this one off the list. This was one of those TV shows that I had heard about, but didn't think it was something I would enjoy. Wrong. This was such a fun series, it was pretty sad when it ended. However I am super excited about the movie that will be made due to their kickstarter project! If I could, I would donate just to get a digital copy of the movie.

So there is my 5 list for this week, but honestly there are a lot more series missing from this list! What are yours?

Inspired Tuesday March 19th

Welcome to another week of Inspired Tuesday. This week we have two featured blogs!

First up we have this photo that Marissa from A Journey Called Life shared.

Click the image to see also the words she shared in her post.

Our second feature is from Bi Ti from the blog Prêt-à-Vivre. They shared a wonderful post about San Francisco. What to see and do there, and shared some beautiful pictures! Here is an example of one. Be sure to click on the image to have a look at the original post.

Last week I think we had a record number of people link up. This week lets try and hit 30!

What is Inspired Tuesday?

Each Tuesday Not So Ugly Ducklings hosts Inspired Tuesday along with two awesome co-hosts Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly, where we offer up a free printable with some encouraging words.

Me and my co-hosts believe that any post written can inspired someone else, whether it is a personal story, a photography, a recipe.. whatever, so I invite everyone to link up their posts no matter the topic.

The rules are simple:

1) Follow Not So Ugly Ducklings, Dawn's Disaster and Peanut Butter and Jelly  in any way of your choosing.
2) Follow this weeks featured blog(s).

3) It would be nice if you added the Inspired Tuesday button to your post, or even just a link back to the link-up.
4) Try to visit others and be inspired!

That's it.

Here is the button if you would like it:

<div align="center"><a href="http://notsouglyducklings.blogspot.com/" title="Not So Ugly Ducklings"><img src="http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh540/sommerfugldesign/inspired-tuesday-button_zpsa22cc19f.png" width="150" alt="Inspired Tuesday" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

And this weeks free printable:

It can be downloaded from HERE

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Wednesday Top 5 - TV Guys

Okay so I know I said Wednesdays I would be writing a story and posting it here each week. Well I am just too busy for that at the moment. So instead I am going to do a Top 5 every Wednesday. Just for fun.

This week I am going to start with my Top 5 TV Guy crushes.

5. Jonathan Rhys Meyers from The Tudors

Did you watch the Tudors? If you didn't you really should. Great show with some great eye candy!

4. Ed Westwick - Gossip Girls

Okay.. so this means I have to admit to watching Gossip Girl. I will admit it. I can't say it was one of my favorite shows, more just something to fill some time with. But I always enjoyed the dynamics between Blair and Chuck.

3. Ian Somerhalder - The Vampire Diaries

I am not sure if I find him hot outside of the show. But Damon Salvator... yes please!

2. Matt Bomer - White Collar

Okay, seriously it was so hard to choose a picture! I love Matt Bomer. I try convince my husband that he should dress like him, maybe even dye his hair darker to look more like Matt. My husband just makes fun of me and reminds me that he is Gay and Matt will never be in to me. I am seriously jealous of Matts man.

1. Jensen Ackles - Supernatural

This is my number one TV crush. If I were not married with kids I would totally move to Vancouver and stalk the sets of Supernatural. I recently found out that he is having a baby in the summer. I  didn't even know there was someone else. I may have cried a  little.

Who is your TV crush?