My eye condition for those of you that asked.

I've had a lot of emails lately about people wanting to know about my current eye condition. If you have been paying any attention to my increased number of misspelled words you would realize that Its still not great but honestly I couldn't have better news for you.

I'm several months into the progression of my eye condition and to be quite frank by now most people would have had several more laser treatments, and at least two more injections all the while still loosing vision. Remember the longer that thing bleeds in my eye the more vision I loose and every time you have to laser one of those nasty vessels out of the eye again.. irreversible damage. What damage that was done by the initial bleeding is indeed irreversible but thus far *knock on wood* we have had no new bleeding which its quite amazing. My doctor always seems a bit shocked every time he looks in my eyes and nothing is happening. I guess that's really quite rare so its really a blessing that its still dry. If I am lucky enough to make it 9 months with no new bleeding it will be considered "inactive" mind you there is no cure and there is no promise it wont restart anytime in my life or happen in the other eye, but I can at least stop visiting my doctor twice a month and move it up to every six months or a year. Not that I don't think he is a swell guy but this little "eye condition" has become very very expensive.

But the good news is though my right eye (the affected eye) did loose quite a bit of vision including a good deal of my peripheral vision, and I suffer from double vision and focusing issues in that eye, if I really really concentrate (ok when I say concentrate I mean stare blankly at something for a good five minutes) I can see 20/20 (not crisply but it can be done) again out of that eye. Heh. Well that is when the eye decides to work with me. For the most part though its just easier to close the right eye and read with my left eye when working with books or schoolwork. So if you just happen to be reading this and see me at school, if Im "winking" at you its not that I'm winking at all I just am trying to see what I'm doing.

Again, I'm sorry about the slow update, but with whats going on with my cousin Chandler my eye issue just seemed a bit low on the priorities list. I'll update you guys on Chandler soon and our quest for a trumpet.

OMG... I'm so confused

So, I'm avoiding working because I have a thousand reviews to do.. and I am looking over my friend Stacy's youtube videos.. and I find this.. If anyone lives in the NJ area.. please send help over to Stacy ASAP!

heh... I need to use the potty now.

Ahhh Blogher..

Everyone should be off to Blogher for the weekend... and I am stuck here doing homework and I have to admit I'm a bit jealous... even sad about it. I could be doing homework on a plane on my way there.. ahh well.. next year?

Is it just me?

Or is anyone else having problems with Etsy?

I still can't load it... *grumble*

Well Hmm.. Ok now its time for me to ask for your opinion.

I don't want to be one of those bloggers that complains about their personal life on their blog as I can't really complain, Connor is amazing and I love my blog. But I had some pretty scary news today and since its a fairly rare thing in someone my age I'd love to hear from you guys if you've had any experience in it especially with someone under the age of 40.

So those of you on my Twitter or know me personally may already know that for the last week I have been having some problems with my right eye. I thought at first I had just been spending way too many hours in front of the computer as I am seriously backed up with school work and I had been putting in long hours to keep everything trucking along. I took the weekend off to see if my vision issue was just a straining problem and no.. it was no better by Monday.

To make a long story short.. and four doctors later I finally have a diagnosis.. and have started treatments. I have Idiopathic Choroidal Neovascularization (in non doctor terms that means New Blood Vessels of unknown origin in the Choroid which is the underside of the macula part of your retina (your field of vision)). Basically to break it down I have blood vessels growing into the back part of my retina (where you actually "see") which is causing me to loose a significant part of my vision in my right eye. As of this morning there were three very well formed healthy blood vessels in a place that they should not have been, making some serious trouble. Literally on Tuesday I was fine.. On Wednesday I had basically gone from 20/20 vision in my right eye to 20/40 (barely). Its pretty freaking scary to put it bluntly. And thats in nice terms.

Well today after my fourth doctor and two specialists in less than 24 hours we came up with a treatment plan.. basically today they burned those pesky blood vessels out of my eyes which sadly also burnt any chance of me seeing where they were out of my eye as well.. which I guess means I will forever have white spots in my field where those blood vessels once were. My real fear and a possibility is the fact that they could come back.. even closer to my optic nerve this time and essentially rendering me blind in one eye. The other odds are is since this happened in one eye.. it could possibly happen in the other. I don't even want to go there.. or think about that as no vision means no writing and I am pretty much dead in the water without being able to write.

Its a humbling experience to say the least.. and I am a bit anxious. If any of you guys have any sort of experience with this.. especially on the side of the odds of it reoccurring please speak up and tell me what you think. I guess its fairly rare in people under 40 and I am only 29.. so I've gotten a lot of weird looks the last few days like I am some sort of oddity (Its never good when a doctor tells you your rare btw... *grumble*)

Typing with one eye btw.. is also a weird feeling for me. The real question is how do you make a pirate eye patch look sexy? LOL (Ok I just have to laugh at that..) Wee.

UGG ok I have to rant

I usually don't do this on my blog but I really just need to get this off my chest.

I have a Sprint cell phone and since the moment I switched back to them several years ago its been a living nightmare. When I was pregnant with Connor we decided I would move Connor's dad onto my phone to conserve money and share minutes as usually all he calls is us anyhow... but that ended up in almost a 4 month battle. You'd think moving a phone line that is already on Sprint to a family plan with another user on Sprint would be fairly simple? No..

To make a long and incredibly frustrating story short. That culminated into me standing in the middle of the Sprint store after fighting with them for months to get this accomplished in tears, screaming, with a one month old baby in my arms. I should have canceled my plan right then and there and ate the cancellation fees but no.. I stayed and they gave me a measly 10% off for my troubles. Well here I am again.. wondering why my bill is so high and tada.. there is a vision plan on my second phone line that we never ordered. I have been so busy with school and such I guess they snuck it in on us.. but seriously people after all you put us through already is that really necessary.

I called in tonight and tried to talk to a customer service rep about it but I couldn't understand not one word she was saying, and though she was plenty loud and clear she mumbled so badly I had to ask her to repeat herself so many times I just ended up getting frustrated and hung up, removed the vision plan myself online, and I guess I will just end up eating all those mis bills.

Seeing as I've only ever talked to one person that truely had any clue what was going on at Sprint, and only after I stood in the middle of the Sprint store sobbing and broken did they finally connect me to a manager who fixed my four month battle in a mere 10 minutes. I seriously should have gotten her direct #.

My contract isn't up till May of next year.. but believe me the moment it is I am switching. Anyone have any clue who offers a reliable cell phone company with a great family plan? Id really like to have an unlimited talk plan but I don't think I can stomach $99 per line.

Summer Break is finally here!!

Well its day two of my most coveted summer break. Two weeks no classes, no babysitters, just me and Connor and well blogging. In honor of our new found freedom I will be posting a new summer toy all week as well as some awesome giveaways. Yesterday we were so beside ourselves we spent all day at the park... and this weekend we will be having a HUGE garage sale. Finally I am going to clean out those closets and get rid of some of Connor's old clothes and toys he has outgrown plus all those things Ive been hanging on to that we just don't need. It will be great to reclaim some space but I have a feeling its going to take up most of my vacation time. Ah well.

What do you guys have planned for summer vacation?

Saying goodbye to Roo...

UPDATE : Visit Nigel's story about Roo. For those of you who have ever been touched by a four legged "kid" its really touching and honest.
Saying Goodbye to Roo
The pictures alone are worth the visit, I love the one of him running by the water in MN as the stick picture. I only wish Nigel had included a video (if he had one) of Roo saying his name.. Roo was one smart cookie, and I'm not bragging only because I was his birth mommy.

Thank you so much to all the wonderful bloggers who really went all out to try to get the news out about Roo. News came tonight that Roo had been hit by a car on the same night he escaped. We will miss Roo, he was a wonderful friend to Nigel, not to mention the cutest puppy ever, we certainly will never forget him.

We love you Roo. You will be sorely missed.
8/23/04-4/25/08

An update

Its been a crazy week.. between learning Roo was not returning home with Nigel, to the constant dread of doom of finals lurking over my head, to a dog flying in from Chicago, to finally the birth of our newest house mates, needless to say I'm pooped. For those of you who love Prize-A-Tron don't worry I have not forgotten you my eyes are burning from being exhausted and I promise I will get back on track no later than Thursday evening.

For those of you that were wondering about our newest edition(s). Ellie (one of our chihuahuas) delivered two beautiful little girls yesterday evening. Mom and babies are doing wonderfully but I'm a bit worst for wear. I stayed up almost all night on Sunday night as she was showing signs of labor and seeing as this was her first litter and she is an awfully small Chi, I was concerned we may be making a trip to the vet for an emergency c section (not uncommon in this breed). Well come Monday late afternoon between two finals I rushed home to see if we had a puppy yet, and no.. nothing but she seemed a bit distressed to me so I rushed her into a vet here in town to watch over her (or perform the dreaded c section if need be) and was sure by the time I finished class at 5:30 we would be certain to have a puppy... nope.. nothing.. so the vet sent her home as she was laboring.. but slowly.. and he felt she was sure to have them naturally (I honestly was not so sure) and low and behold we started hearing yelps as we sat down to dinner. By the time I had the dishes cleaned up I was in the frenzy of puppy birthing as a beautiful little black and tan girl made her presence, though she gave us a scare with some fluid, she came around pretty fast though left me a bit breathless from the scramble. And to my surprise I felt Ellie's tummy and there was another puppy in the birth canal!! (NO WAY!!) Its a rare treat these days for my girls to give me two puppies as they are a bit on the smaller side and leave it to the littlest girl we have to deliver the biggest litter. Both are tri colored blacks and though a tad bit small, are healthy, active, and talkative. Though they are not out of the woods yet, things are looking positive.

Indy also returned (our champion minpin) from Chicago with a repeat breeding to Ch Valdon's Tight Squeeze. Her last litter produced easily the best dog of my breeding/showing career Ch Valdon's See You at the Top... so I am waiting on pins and needles to see if she is pregnant and if so what this litter will bring. Indy has been sleeping a lot and a bit picky about her food so I'm hoping that all points to the fact that she could be carrying extra baggage.

Otherwise finals for this semester are over on Thursday (thank goodness) and I can get busy about enjoying a few weeks off before the Summer session starts shortly.

We will be running a summer feature next week including a new summertime toy/product every day. It should be a blast and it will be a great way for us to start Connor off on what should be a great summer.

An ode to Roo....

Today is not a good day...

My dear friend Nigel has lost his beloved Roo. Roo was a puppy from my very first litter and is a dear beloved friend and fabulous dog. If anyone and I do mean anyone out there is in the twin cities area of MN please please please keep your eyes peeled for Roo and tell all your friends. Its really important we get him back and I'd really appreciate any help we can get.

Roo's info can be found here : LOST DOG IN TWIN CITIES

Any help spreading the word would be wonderful. Ive been trying to email shelters/vets in the area... but more the merrier.

Ever just have one of those days??

Ok, I had to take a break from reviews for a moment.. yesterday was SO frustrating, between lack of sleep, impending doom (aka finals), some emails gone bad, and Connor having a few meltdowns.. I was a bit frazzled.

Needless to say my new friend Scott over at ScottWrites did a great job of cheering me up today and somehow in our conversation the whole idea of Rick Rolling people came up (if your not familuar with the idea.. go here..)

Of course I am a google freak and I was trying to find a good one to use on Scott, and he thought I should share the one I used. Enjoy.

Happy Birthday Connor!

Happy birthday my beautiful little man. As much as I tried to fight it, your growing up. It seems like it was just a few minutes ago you were sitting in that plastic basket they bring you to my room at the hospital, and I was staring at you wondering how on earth I got so lucky as to have you.

I can't wait for the upcoming year, I'm still waiting on those first steps, and the first time you say Mommy (grr Why did you have to say Dada first?!). I love you Connor!

For those of you that attended his birthday party thank you so much for coming and sharing in our big day, for those of you on the blog that are sharing with us online we are just as grateful!
Enjoy the last day of the party, Don't forget that today is the last day to enter for the door prizes on the main post. The rest of the party games will expire throughout the week, just check the posts for each exp date. Our last game will be posted today and it should be fun!

Love,
Angela & Connor

Connor's First Birthday Blog Bash!

Connor is finally turning one year old (sob)!! Come join us for the celebrations, games, and giveaways as we celebrate Connor growing up, way too fast if I might add!

The Birthday Bash is open to Bloggers and non Bloggers there are just a few simple rules to join in the fun!

For Bloggers :

• Post the banner in your sidebar for the length of the party. The code for the banner is below!
  
• <a href="http://www.sevendogsandababy.com/search/label/connor%27s%20first%20birthday"><img src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_oSPBN-CPuO8/R9ysmbQqQ0I/AAAAAAAAAvI/vhQFlg7_aEI/s320/seven_dogs1.jpg" title="Connor's First Birthday Bash!" alt="Connor's First Birthday Bash!" /></a>
• To make this fun go back on your blog and post about the party including a link inviting everyone to join. Please feel free to introduce yourself and your kids, send Connor a birthday message, host your own giveaway, and/or just be creative! Once you have done that sign Mr Linky below with a direct link to that post as the url. Please only one Mr Linky signature per person.
• Thats it! Make sure you check back each day for giveaways and games!

For Non Bloggers

• Visit at least five of the blogs posted on Mr Linky and check out their party posts. Leave a comment on each post, make sure you leave me a way to reach you on your posts, ie a email address.
• Once you've done that come back to this post and leave a comment stating which blogs you visited and a little about yourself!
• Thats it! Make sure you come back each day for giveaways and games!

Once your entered into the main drawing your free to enter all the party games! Party game prizes will be awarded to bloggers and nonbloggers that are participating in the party!

Connor's Birthday Bash Prize List :

Current Prizes :

• Nina and Tom - $50 gift certificate to one winner! - Nina and Tom is one our favorite designers in baby and children's tshirts! They offer a (mostly but soon to be totally) organic line of clothing that is made entirely here in the US! Some of our favorites include the "I'm this many tshirt" and the "Comfy shorts" thus far those are the only shorts that I have found that actually fit my teenie man's little waist.
• Braincandy - Tshirt and DVD to one winner! - Braincandy is one of the best DVD series for developing minds. Featuring an unusual cast of "parts" Braincandy explores the senses in a way I have never seen till now. Truly eye candy their DVDs are beautiful and educational.
• Umi Shoes - a pair of Pram or Prewalkers to one lucky winner - Umi is one of our favorite shoes for small feet. I would wear them myself if my feet were just a tiny bit smaller. Simply stunning shoes that will make your child stand out anywhere they walk (or crawl).
• Riley Roos - Two pairs of Sandals to two lucky winners! - Riley Roos come in a fun selection of styles and colors as well as being soo incredibly soft on those precious little feet. A perfect and very affordable shoe for the toddler set!
• Peppers and Pollywogs - Five Winners! - The ultimate guide to planning and hosting your child's birthday party. Without it I would have been lost in planning Connor's first birthday party!
• Snapfish - Gift Cards to four lucky winners! - Snapfish is a great place to not only make photo copies from all those great digital prints you have, but I highly recommend that you check out their photo books which is my personal favorite.
• Robeez Tredz - Two Pairs to Two Winners, one boy, one girl! - Made famous by their amazing soft soled shoes that are not only adorable but nearly impossible for the child to remove. I personally keep a pair in my diaper bag at all times and use them like I would socks. Robeez Tredz are the new toddler version that not only has many of the same great features of their soft soles but now sports a new outdoor safe sole as well as an extended size range for toddlers!
• Pediped - Two winners! One 0-6m boy, One size 10 girl! From crib shoes to kindergarten, Pediped offers a line of shoes that will take your child from the bassinet to his or her first day of school! Incredibly stylish with very flexible soles, perfect for those developing feet and fashion conscious mommies.
• Deglingos - One Winner - Some of our favorite plush friends! Each of the Delingos clan is made from a great assortment of fabrics that gives them a look and a feel unlike anything else I have seen! We love them all so much I'd have a hard time picking our favorite but Connor is awfully fond of Molos which happens to sound a lot like Melos!
• Happy Panda Baby - FOUR Winners!! - Happy Panda has generously donated four $25 gift certificates. Happy Panda carries an adorable selection of clothing for the "tall and large" baby. Though smaller babies will also love Pam's clothing please check out the sizing chart as they run big. We especially love the panda pants and panda onesies!
• Huggies Clean Team Products - The ENTIRE line of Clean Team Products sponsored by Huggies Clean Team! If you didn't know about Clean Team in the past, its a great line of baby, toddler, and kid friendly bath and "clean up" products including some great smelling shampoos! (I LOVE The blue melon!)
• Bibi and Mimi - One Winner! - Bimi and Mimi offers an adorable line of soft soled shoes and matching apparel! We especially love their line of socks including the stripe baby socks! They are giving away one pair of their Monkey soft sole shoes in size 18-24m
• Announcements Galore - One Winner! - Announcements Galore offers a gorgous selection of fully customizable invitations, announcements and collages and many of their designs you can choose to have them printed or print them yourself! They are offering one custom collage to one winner!
  

And from Seven Dog's own swag bag :

• Baby Love Slings - One Winner - A toddler sling in a beautiful blue print. It was ment for a birthday present for Connor but we'd love to give it to one of our readers. We always love to share! The perfect present for a toddler or young child that grew up in his or her own sling and now wants to pamper some of their own toys/stuffed animals.
• Lobotome - One Winner - MomMe Daily Planner a great fill in the blanks weekly planner for busy moms!
• Gelaskins - Two Winners -The coolest way to protect your electronics! I have two ipod nano (gen 3) covers to give away!
• An assortment of books - I'm going to be giving away an assortment of ARC books from my collection. There will be at least two winners possibly more depending on how many participants we have! Each winner will be given a choice of books to choose from until we have given away the entire stash, one book per winner.
  

That brings our current prize listings to well over $530!

The giveaway for the Door Prizes will end on April 27th and will be awarded the following week. Each party game will run on a standard one week entry so some of them may run a bit longer.

That brings us to Mr. Linky!

Huggies Clean Team to the Rescue...

I had the worst experience this morning when it comes to messy babies.. which is ironic as I was planning on doing this review today.

I was in the kitchen making Connor's breakfast half asleep when Connor's dad comes around the corner and says "Um I think Connor went poop..." and of course my response is "Did you check?".. and all he says is "No.. I don't need to.. just go look" and of course he is off to leave me to the disaster that is about to happen.

Connor in the meantime is happily crawling across the living room floor.. just as happy as a clam smiling and cooing and up to his usual 6am nonsense (how can one person be so freakin happy that early in the morning) and I look down and there is a huge brown stain on his back. Needless to say after a couple of choice words I head into the bedroom to change him and his clothes. What I found was enough runny poop that you would have thought six babies made the mess not one... (mind you I had just changed him not even 15 minutes before hand with a poopy diaper) the poop debacle not only filled up his diaper to monumental proportions but it also extended up his back and all the way to his hairline and into the base of his hair. Serious.. I am not joking. It took everything I had to take the clothes off of him without choking and I have a strong stomach.

It was so bad I ended up having to do an emergency diaper removal from the house as this diaper was NOT suitable for the diaper pail. We had our Huggies Cleanteam moist wipes by the crib so I ended up just flushing them in the toilet (yay for flushables!) I really love the flushable wipes for traveling too as if you have a mess and your in a friend or family member's bathroom its great to just flush them away. Not to mention they are great for adults too as sometimes we have our own messes that need to be flushed. *cough*

So I stripped him down naked, covered with poop, and threw him in the bath tub.. and I'm seriously telling you it took me almost getting out a scrub brush to get that poop off of him. Once I did get most of the "mess" off it was time to soap him off and get the smell off.. I soaped and soaped and soaped with my regular baby wash and still he stunk. Then I remembered I had laid out the Huggies Cleanteam samples in the bathroom closet so I would try them out. I ended up using the Sammy The Snake Extra Conditioning Shampoo on his entire body and hair which has the best blue melon scent, I just LOVE it, and he came out smelling better than ever.


Needless to say when it was all said and done I felt as if I should take another shower myself, but instead ended up cleaning up with the Huggies Cleanteam handsoap. If you guys have not seen its COOL dispenser you have got to check it out. Every time you use the pump Henry Hippo lights up and blinks so your kids (or yourself) know how long they "should" be washing your hands. It was a great reminder as I know that even I can cut it short especially when your spending most of your day running after a wild monkey named Connor!

Head on over to Huggies Cleanteam and check them out yourself. I really highly recommend the Sammy Snake Shampoo (you will want to use it yourself it smells so great) I really have to get some of Billy Buffalo body wash to go with it! Also head on over to M80s Parents Blog to hear more about Huggies Cleanteam!

Connor's First Birthday Blog Bash Update!

Connor's First Birthday Blog Party will be starting before you know it. The official dates are April 17th-29th. I will be announcing the winners a few days after the end of the party.

An updated list of prizes!

• Nina & Tom - $50 Gift Certificate
• Brain Candy - Tshirt & Video
• Umi - Pram or Prewalker shoes in the winner's choice
• Riley Roos - 2 winners
  
• Pepper & Pollywogs - 5 winners
  
• Snapfish Gift Cards - 4 winners
• Robeez Tredz - 2 winners - one boy one girl
  
• Pediped - 2 winners
• More Coming!
  
• Want to add a prize to this list? Just send me an email! I have some very exciting reviews planned for the giveaway week as well!

To participate as a blogger :

Post our birthday banner in your sidebar. Once the party is live make a post on our blog about the party and inviting others to join. You can post about gifts appropriate for toddlers, host a giveaway with a toddler friendly prize on your own blog, or even just send Connor some birthday wishes or advice.

As a non blogger :

Visit and post comments on the blogs participating. I haven't set the actual number of blogs you must visit yet as it has a lot to do with participation. I will update sometimes on April 17th or 18th. Once your done you will need to come back and make a comment on the page with the Mr Linky list that your participating.

Some of our prizes will just require participation to win. Some will be part of party games.

This should be a lot of fun and I can't wait to see you all there!

Here is the code for the button!

<a href="http://www.sevendogsandababy.com/search/label/connor%27s%20first%20birthday"><img src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_oSPBN-CPuO8/R9ysmbQqQ0I/AAAAAAAAAvI/vhQFlg7_aEI/s320/seven_dogs1.jpg" title="Connor's First Birthday Bash!" alt="Connor's First Birthday Bash!" /></a>

Connor's first easter!

Connor had his first picture with the easter bunny taken today.. Is he not the cutest thing or what? I am not super excited about the outfit, but I almost hate to admit that we almost waited to late to get an easter bunny picture all together. It's been a busy week!

Happy Easter my little man. We are off to attempt to do some easter egg hunting this weekend.

Don't tell Connor but he is getting some bubbles, a bubble machine, a stuffed Peep, a sucker, the CUTEST handmade easter bunny I got from a local store here, and a cookie monster toy in his basket. Not a bad haul for your first time out!

Am I weird - meme

I am so positive the answer to that is yes...

Laura tagged me.. and I normally don't do these but I think I'm pretty weird sometimes so why not.

Rules are:

• 1. Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
• 2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
• 3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
• 4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Facts about me:

1. I hate the color yellow, I'm not sure why but I think I was just yellowed "out" as a kid as all my furniture was yellow. I think its just overstimulating to me as if I wear yellow or sleep near yellow I tend to have more nightmares. I'm trying to deal with this as Connor looks adorable in blue and yellow.
2. I had a stuffed clown in my chair when I was a kid that totally freaked me out after I saw all those 80 horror movies that had clowns that came to life and did scary things. I donno what happened to him but I'm sorta glad he's gone.
3. I actually didn't like the color pink either until about three years ago.. so there is hope for yellow.
4. You prol think all this talk of colors is a bit obsessive... ok.. you might be right. I like the color Purple so much I painted my entire computer room purple in my last house, I wasn't as brave this time around.
5. My chihuahua Melos's whole name is actually Melos Meatloaf Whitefang Goldiosis Puppyoso. He goes by Melos, Meho, Mecho, and Mechopottomus. No wonder he is so paranoid.
6. Connor was conceived on birth control, right after I had some pretty in debt laser surgery for some precancerous cells. My doctor had told me it may be hard for me to have kids.. obviously he was wrong.
7. I'm friends with a son of a famous singer.. and to tell you how oblivious I am I actually didn't realize his dad was famous until we had known each other for over three years. Even then It didn't really click until my mom almost hyperventilated when his mother showed up to pick him up after we went on a "date" lol.

I'm not big on this tagging thing.. but Ill tag Stacy as I know she is weird and I have stories to prove it.

Connor is turning ONE & Bloggy birthday party!

Connor will be be turning ONE in just a few short weeks, and to be honest with you.. I am not ready for it at all.

To honor his birthday and to help keep my mind off the fact that my little man is getting bigger faster than I would like, We are holding a HUGE birthday bash for him the week of his birthday here on Seven Dogs and a Baby. The party will run April 19th - 27th and we there will be lots of fun for all including games and prizes!!

If you would like to help out, or sponsor a giveaway and or bloggy game. Just shoot me a email.

I hope everyone can make it over to attend and wish Connor a great new year.

A little sneak peak at some of the prizes thus far :

• Nina & Tom - $50 Gift Certificate
• Brain Candy - Tshirt & Video
• Umi - Pram or Prewalker shoes in the winner's choice
• Riley Roos - Pair of shoes
• Pepper & Pollywogs - 5 copies of their book!
• & More coming!

To participate in the prize drawings post the birthday invite button on your blog in your sidebar and link back to this post! Once the party has started we will have Mr Linky set up for entries as well as possibly some party games as well. Keep checking back I will have more info as we get closer to the party!

5 Minutes for Mom - Ultimate Blog Party + A Door Prize!!

We LOVE blog parties for the main reason as one you get to learn some new stuff about your favorite bloggers, and you also get to see some blogs that otherwise you might not have seen previously!

This post is actually Part TWO of our Ultimate Blog Party Post we started over at Prizeatron. Go over there and check out the first half of the story and then come back here to read the second half.. don't forget to sign up for the door prize on both posts!!

Connor came into my life with a bang, I was barely through the generals of my nursing degree (which by the way happens to be a super long.. super frustrating degree to get just in terms of the hoops they make you jump to just enroll!! arg.. but thats another story) and as a huge surprise to me, and an even bigger surprise to his Dad, Connor was conceived. I had had some doubts if it was even possible for me to get pregnant but needless to say he came regardless of the odds against him. (he's a stubborn little man thats for sure)

Surprise or no surprise Connor has changed my life for the better, sure going to school full time and being a stay at home mom has been challenging, and finding time to study is nearly impossible... but he is worth every ounce of extra work.

For those of you that have asked.. no I am not married, and at this point in my life that is not an issue. Connor's dad is wonderful and I think he likes being a dad as much as I love being a mom regardless if he likes to admit it or not. :)

If you frequent my blog a lot you will occasionally see Connor pictured with a tiny white dog. That dog is his best friend and sidekick Melos. Melos is a 3 1/2 lbs Chihuahua and though he has never been one of my show dogs, he is a beloved pet and has been at Connor's side night and day since we brought him home from the hospital. He even sleeps with him in his bouncy chair and though poor little Melos keeps his distance from those grabby hands now that Connor can really get a grip on him, he still never goes more than three or four feet from Connor and the pair is inseparable. I'm sure at this point Melos is just waiting for Connor to get a bit more control on his hands and his impulse to pull hair. Connor's favorite game is to crawl at full speed after Melos, but that game goes both ways as Melos likes to chase Connor just as much. I'm sure you will see a lot more of Connor and Melos in the future.

Connor will be one year old in just two short months (see the counter on the blog) and honestly I'm as much excited as I am sad... I really have no idea where the year has gone and I will miss my snuggly little baby lump, but I can't wait to see what this year has to offer us. So far being a mom has been a huge adventure and Connor is just the most amazing little man.

A few random fun facts :

• Connor's name was originally going to be Logan.. but at the last second I switched his middle and first names.. so now he is Connor Logan vs Logan Connor. I did not tell any of my family his name until after he was born as I didn't want to be influenced. Connor means "wolf lover" which is not why I picked it.. but it works, and Logan is my grandfather's middle name who was larger than life to me growing up and very much one of the greatest "heroes" in my world. He passed away just a few years ago.. sadly before he got to meet Connor.
• I hate the color yellow.. I'm learning to overcome it slowly.
• Up till I was pregnant with Connor I hated Salads and anything really green (that is in foods) but now I can't get enough of them.
• All I wanted to eat when I was pregnant was Salad from Olive Garden and anything with jalepenos.
  
• I'm 4'10 and though it seems like a stretch.. I was an accomplished hunter/jumper rider (Horses for those of you that don't know). I currently do not ride as its expensive and my butt has gotten way too big... but my dream growing up was to be in the Olympics.

Don't forget to check out the Ultimate Blog Party's other Blog Participants as well!

Our top pick of the prizes are :

• #1 Rocking Horse - OMG Perfect for Connor's Bday!
• #37 Moby Wrap
• #137 Go BPA Free Sippy Sampler
• #84 Mod Mum Sling
• #11 $40 Gift Certificate to Good for the Kids
• #64 Pirates Cd Player
• #47 Baby Legs
  

Ok that brings us to the door prize :)

We are offering some of our huge collection of books to a few of our readers.

Here at Seven Dogs and a Baby I am offering :

• Football Hero - by Tim Green - A football adventure story for ages 8-10 (This is an ARC)
  
• Refuge - by Detective Sgt Donald Stewart - A book about domestic violence and abuse - Brand New (this is not a ARC) TWO COPIES
  

To enter :

• Let me know which book you would like to have, and tell me a little about yourself.
  
• If you want to blog about the Ultimate Blog Party & my door prize, go ahead and do so and leave me a link to the post and Ill give you a second entry. Super Simple!
  
• Ill award the books to three winners on March 14th.