AZ Best Start Bag Project

The AZ Best Start Bag Project needs your help! We've gathered the samples and information that we believe will help breastfeeding families overcome any hurdles they might encounter and continue to breastfeed longer. We have local Midwives and Birth Centers willing to share this information with their clients. What we don't have are bags and that's where you come in...


This is a call for simple, handmade, reusable bags.  The finished product does need to be at least 12" wide by 14" long, have handles and be made of a sturdy material like quilting weight cotton. The tutorials here and here may help get you headed in the right direction. Please feel free to ask questions as well.

Don't sew??? We'll gratefully accept reuseable shopping bags!

Our goal is for 200 bags by April 30, 2011---to be donated to families in May 2011. Are you in? Leave a comment on this post or on our Facebook page here!


**Update:

For mailing address, please send an email to mishaleestrunk@yahoo.com

Drop off locations:
The Center for True Harmony & Wellness
480-539-6646
 2152 S. Vineyard #138, Mesa, AZ 85210
(near Baseline & Country Club)

Women's Birth & Wellness Center
504 W. University
Mesa 85201
480-833-6582
Please call first

Blossom Birth & Wellness Center
2928 N. 18th Place
Phoenix, AZ, 85016

	602 256 7766

11 Months

Eleven snapshots of our eleven month old for your viewing pleasure. A few new things this month are: Max is favoring his LEFT hand thus far (yay!) - he's a baby mountain goat, climbing up on the couch, the coffee table, anyone that will stand still...only problem is, he hasn't got his landings down yet - he's starting to talk (well, he has been talking, but we are just figuring out what words he's saying in English...dad, mum, stop, kiki (kitty) and he points at the dog and says NO!, wonder where he got that from.) We're working on some ASL signs to help us simple parents understand his needs. He's still nursing like a champ, tasting more and more foods and I can't believe he's this close to his first birthday.....

Spanky's Summer & The First of Second

This summer, Spanky was able to take a couple of classes, spend a lot of time with friends, attend his first Cub Scout Day Camp and visit with family.

Feeling brave:

Swim class:

Making faces....

...for this reaction:

Loves his Gramma:

Day camp awards:

Drama Class:

And now my big boy is at school, workin' the second grade:

Maybe they'll teach him how to smile. And don't feel too bad for him...he was up at 5:15am and in the shower, dressed, made his lunch, ate breakfast and was ready to go by 6:30am. School starts at 8:30am. These pictures certainly don't show it, but he was so excited.

*And for the record, I held it together today. I got a little misty-eyed, but talked myself out of it! Still 2:45pm can't come fast enough....

10 Months

10 pictures of the 10 month old...

It's hot, it's sooo hot.

Two top teeth to match to two bottom teeth.

How mom is able to accomplish some housework. Thank you ErgoBaby.

Still loving our cloth diapers.

Sometimes it's rough being 10 months old.

Other times it's so awesome, you sing.

Learning new things like standing up is great, it helps you get into more stuff.

The OREO

I didn't freak out as much over the oreo as I did the glass of milk, but Spanky assured me he didn't share that. I have the corner on that market.

A Grand Visit

"It's Hot. It's soo Hot." --Jim Strunk, my father-in-law visiting from Oregon. This was his mantra for the week. I'm sure no one will let him forget it, least of all his grandson.

We had a good visit, eventhough it really was so hot. Grampa and Spanky were twins:

Max and Gramma snuggled:

We played Skip-Bo, Yatzee, and Monopoly (my least favorite game of all time.) Spanky cleaned house!

Me thinks someone looks like his Grampa and his Daddy:

We love you Gramma and Grampa!

9 months

This is such a fun time in Max's babyhood. The two top teeth have just broken through, he's a pro at the army crawl and he's trying to pull himself up. He 'talks' and laughs and is such a happy boy.

He loves his big brother.

Daddy got him a sheepskin to snuggle at Ikea today (so what's a mom to do...I HAD to get a bare bottom shot!)

Max loves Gunther and says "key-key." But his first word, like his brother, was "da-da." Spanky likes to decode what Max is thinking and saying, so needless to say, we get some seriously funny dialouge around here.

See you next month!

(Spanky update coming soon...)

The Giving Tree

I'll make something for you!

Here's the good news: I will commit to making something for you and four other people. A of mine on FB has sent out a similar note and, as a soon-to-be recipient of "something" from her, I agreed to pay it forward.

The first five (5) people to respond by commenting on this post will get something made by me.

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations so please read carefully:
1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make. Whatcha get is whatcha get. If you'd like to send me 15 words naming things you like, I will probably play with that.

2. What I create will be just for you, with love.

3. It'll be done this year (2010).

4. I will not give you any clue what it's going to be.

5. In return, all you need to do is post this text (you can alter it because I did) into a note of your own and agree to make 5 things for the first 5 to respond to your note. You can make whatever you want - cookies, paper airplanes, sock puppet, a poem... whatever you want.

6. Send me your email address.

7. It doesn't matter who you are - if I talk to you every day, or once every 10 years, worked with you, if you are a man or woman, or both or neither - if I talked to you twice in high school and have only just now gotten reacquainted it is because I LIKE you and have always thought you were COOL in some way or another... SO please if you want to participate, DO!

8. If you aren't one of the first 5, you can still start your own Giving Tree!

IMPORTANT: This offer is null and void if I do not see you post your own note to pay this forward. For reals.