Quick, before I get Sidetrack'd

A few weeks ago I was given the opportunity through MomSelect to review a Temple Touch digital thermometer. When the package arrived in the mail I immediately opened up the thermometer (that they sent for me to keep, free of charge) and tried it out on the kiddos. There are a lot of nice features on this thermometer – a backlit display so you can take temperatures even when your child is sleeping, memory recall, a timer feature, and it can be used on the temple or the armpit – but what I like most is that it is quick, easy, and accurate.

It is just next to impossible to hold my children still for the 60 seconds or so that it takes our regular thermometer to register the temperature in their armpit, but the temple touch thermometer registers the temperature in just 6 to 8 seconds. I can even keep the 18 month old still for that long without having to hold him down. Taking a temperature is as easy as pressing the “on” button, waiting for the two beeps, pressing the sensor firmly to the temple (about half way between the end of the eyebrow and the hairline), and waiting for the long beep that means it’s finished.

We’ve used the thermometer several times (both with and without elevated temperatures) on the kids, on Matt, and on myself over the last few weeks; every time the readings have been accurate to what I expected. The information that comes with the thermometer states that it “rapidly samples the heat flowing from the blood vessels in the skin surface and translates it accurately to the body temperature” so that you don’t have to worry about adding a degree or remembering to adjust the number in your head so you have an accurate temperature.

The Temple Touch thermometer that I was sent is sold at Walgreens and retails for about $20. Having used a regular digital thermometer for the last three years, I’m looking forward to continuing to use the temple touch with Little and Boo as well as the baby girl when she arrives. I would definitely recommend this thermometer for anyone with children, especially small children.

And, best of all, MomSelect sent me a second thermometer to giveaway to one of my readers. If you’d like to enter to win, please leave a comment on this post (and make sure I have an accurate e-mail address to contact you if you are the winner). For a second entry, tweet about the giveaway and include @sidetrackd in the tweet. I will randomly choose and notify a winner next Friday, October 22.

I came across a post on Simple Mom this weekend (via Rocks in My Dryer) entitled “The Great Myth“. It was a great reminder that none of us, no matter how it seems, is able to do it “all”. I was particularly struck by these two quotes:

“Every choice we make in life is both a choice to do something and a choice to not do something.”

“And at the end of the day, we need to trust that God gave us the energy to do those things to which He called us, and no more.”

I hope you’ll read the complete post and find encouragement for those days when you just don’t seem to measure up (at least in your own mind).

Over the past few years I’ve considered taking up several new hobbies. The most notable were quilting and sewing both of which resulted in my giving up and selling all of the related items (mainly due to my inability to stay focused on any one thing for a considerable length of time. There is a reason this blog is titled sidetrack’d). I’ve also dabbled in paper crafts (card making, etc) and, lately, a bit in decoupage. I enjoy both of these, but to do them on a regular basis just requires more creativity than I’m generally able to eke out.

That brings us to the latest in the long line…knitting. For quite some time now I’ve contemplated learning to knit, but I just haven’t made the effort to find a class or a book to help me get started. I enjoy needlework (counted cross-stitch, embroidery, etc – basically things that involved counting stitches and a pattern), so I think knitting would be a good fit. And, I would be able to knit cute little hats and sweaters and things for my girls which would be a definite plus (Little just isn’t all that into cross-stitched things :-)).

So, I’m off to seek out some instruction to get me started.

There are so many posts I would like to write. So many posts swimming through my mind. And yet, of late, I’ve just lacked the motivation to take the time to write.

So, in the meantime know that we are here and we are well. We’re enjoying these last weeks of HOT days and looking forward to Fall.

I’ll “see” you around.

I’m just not feeling very inspired this week. I’ll be back soon.

It’s the first day of Spring, my thirtieth birthday, and the beginning of UBP ’09. Definitely time to party!

Hi, I’m Jana. Welcome to my little corner of the world. Come in, help yourself to a piece of strawberry cake, and stick around to chat for a while.

For those of you who are new to these parts, let me tell you a bit about myself…

I am wife to the love of my life, Matt. God has entrusted us with two precious lives in the form of our 2.5 year old, Little, and our 11 month old, Boo; and I have had the privilege of being at home with them since Little’s birth. I lead a life filled with blessings – a great family, great friends, and, most of all, a great God.

I started blogging a little over two years ago and chose to name my place Sidetrack’d because, well, because I’m very easily distracted. You will find me writing on a wide variety of topics – funny anecdotes from everyday life, my faith, books, baseball, cooking, and anything else that strikes my fancy. I write because I enjoy it and because it is a much better way to record my children’s milestones than trying to remember to write in their baby books.

Feel free to hang out for a while, look around, and if you like what you see, subscribe to my RSS feed.

Thanks for stopping by today; I hope to “see” you again soon!

Oh yeah, if you’re interested, here’s the recipe for the yummy strawberry cake we’re enjoying for my birthday I’ll post the recipe the first of next week.

Thanks for 5 Minutes for Mom for hosting another great party! Be sure you check out all of the prizes they are giving away, too. If I were to be so fortunate as to win a prize, my three top picks would be:

Prize 7 – Ergo Baby Carrier offered by A Giveaway Addicted Mommy

Prize 3 – $25 Gift Certificate for Happy Panda

Prize 106 – Melissa & Doug Dress Up Set offered by Good for the Kids

And if those are already taken, I would love any of the following:
1, 4, 8, 16, 18, 19, 21, 26, 28, 37, 38, 43, 44, 45, 50, 52, 62, 70, 77, 78, 79, 83, 88, 91, 93, 95, 99, 105, 118, 122, 123, 125, or any of the other prizes related to babies and toddlers/preschoolers.

Doing switcheroo with web hosting service.[stop] Banned from posting until change over complete.[stop] Only posting now because comment required data move again anyway.[stop]  If don’t see me for few more days you know why.[stop] Will be back.[stop]  Over and out.[stop]

I’ve been thinking about it, and I think that I’ve been blogging less because I’m using Twitter and Facebook so much.  There’s something about the instantaneous feel of those platforms as well as the fact that I only have to put one sentence together at a time usually.  I want to blog, I have things to blog, but with my limited time (especially of late, it seems) without children in lap and underfoot, I’m finding that writing in two minute spurts fits by life a little better right now.  I’ll definitely still be around, some times more often than others, but I plan on posting at least a couple times a week.  In the meantime, if you don’t already follow me on Twitter I’d love to hear from you, and let me know if you’re on Facebook, too.

Barb posted this meme earlier this week; it looked like a challenge, so I thought I’d try it.  It’s based on the Scattergories game, and, let me tell ya, some of the questions were pretty difficult.

Here are the rules:

~Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following questions.
~They have to be real places, names, things; nothing made up!
~You can’t use your name for the boy/girl name question.
~Tag 5 people to play along.

1. What is your name? Jana

2. A 4 Letter Word: jolt

3. A Boy’s Name: Jason

4. A Girl’s Name: Jennifer

5. An Occupation: janitor

6. A Color: jade

7. Something you wear: jeans (my favorite cool weather attire)

8. A Beverage: juice (apple being the preferred type around here)

9. A Food: jumbalaya

10. Something found in the bathroom: john (you think of something in the bathroom that starts with “j”!)

11. A place: Java (you know, the island)

12. A Reason for being late: just plain lazy (a stretch I know; this one was hard)

13. Something you shout: Jackpot!

14. Now tag five others: if you’d like to play along I’d love to read your answers

Sorry for the poor quality of the lighting in these photos; they were taken with Photo Booth since the camera memory card is full we’re too lazy to clean it off. 

This is what I looked like this time last week:

Please note the hair and face.  And yes, that is my new Babyhawk; thanks for asking!

And this is what I look like today:

Oh look, I’m even wearing the same shirt.