So there is new buzz surrounding Suri Cruise and her use of a pacifier at almost 5 years of age. First it was the high heels and now it’s a pacifier. Most parents know it can delay their children’s speech and mess up their teeth or their bite and try to get rid of the pacifier by a year or so.

With our first we got rid of it before she turned 3 and she only used it for nap time and bed time, it never left the house. Some mothers nurse until the child is a few years old so why can’t they use a pacifier for comfort for a few years? Yeah there is a difference between nursing and a pacifier but comfort wise I think they are pretty similar.

As far as Suri Cruise goes, I personally do not care if the child wants to walk around with a pacifier in her mouth. Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise seem like halfway intelligent people so I’m sure they know the consequences of using a pacifier at her age. I’d feel the same way about that 5 year old running through the aisles of Target with a pacifier in his or her mouth.  Now if she was walking the street drinking a beer or hitting a bong I’d definitely have an opinion on that.

a new phalaenopsis that I got for Valentines Day! Who needs roses that die in 3 days when you can have an orchid that can live for many years to come?

The definition of “filter” is “remove by passing through a filter” “filter out the impurities”. The older I get the more I feel like I have to filter what I say. When I scroll through my News Feed on Facebook some days I really just want to comment and say what I am really thinking, but most of the time I don’t. I guess some people just use the passive aggressive approach when they comment. This, I try not to do.

Oh how it would be nice to be 4 again and just say whatever thought crossed my mind… in the mean time I guess I’ll keep “filtering” my thoughts.

I’m not sure what brand of ear protection they use but after a quick search on Amazon we decided to order Peltor’s junior ear muffs for our daughters to wear to the Grand Prix.  The kids did great! Our younger daughter hung out in the Ergo most of the day and was even able to take a nap.

If you have a teething baby you might be familiar with Sophie the Giraffe. She is made by Vulli, a French company. Apparently, babies have been playing with Sophie for over 40 years now. She is made of 100% natural rubber and paint. On the box our Sophie came in it said the paint used is food paint which is safe for the baby. After hearing all the rage about Sophie we decided to spend the $20+ to get one for our little teether. I was so excited when it finally arrived! I took it out of the box and what is it? It looks just like a dog toy! It even comes with a squeaker just like a dog toy! My daughter was about  4months old at the time so she takes it and tries to hold it. Not too interested in it but she’ll hold on to it, maybe gnaw on it for a few minutes. Now at 8 months she still plays with it but whether I give her Sophie or a rubber play block that squeaks she’s just as happy.

Will I spend $20+ to get another Sophie ever again? Probably not. Will I recommend Sophie to friends? Eh, maybe.

She came in lightning speed. My labor started around midnight by my water breaking and then intense contractions set in immediately. The grandparents got here as quick as they could to watch our older daughter and we were off to the hospital. I had to be dropped off at the ER Entrance as it was past midnight and L&D was closed unless you entered through the ER. I quickly got an ER Nurse to wheel me up to L&D. The contractions were very intense. Once up to L&D they checked me and I was 8-9cm. Baby girl was born at 113AM.

I was reading an article on a blog that I visit frequently- Celebrity Baby Blog and they were talking about Expanded Newborn Screening Tests. Apparently, Scott and Renee Baio’s daughter had a positive result for one of the metabolic disorders glutaric acidemia type 1 (GA-1). To read the article please go to Celebrity Baby Blog.

After reading about all the additional tests and anxiety that they went through I had to do my own research to make sure my daughter has been tested for as many of the endocrine, metabolic, and other disorders that can be detected by newborn screening.

In addition to celebrities, pro athletes like Jim Kelly are fighting to get states to expand newborn screening tests.

Buffalo Bills’ Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly is fighting to get more states to implement expanded newborn testing. Jim Kelly established Hunter’s Hope Foundation in 1997 after his son was diagnosed with Krabbe Leukodystrophy, an inherited, fatal, nervous system disease.

To find out the different disorders each State tests for you can read the National Newborn Screening Status Report Updated 06/02/08 . The U.S. National Screening Status Report lists the status of newborn screening in the United States.

Other information pertaining to Newborn Screening in the U.S. can be found at: http://www.newbornscreening.info

This past weekend, my husband attended the bi-annual Florida Native Orchids sale located in beautiful Saint Petersburg Florida. Florida Native Orchids has an amazing amount of beautiful orchid species. The owner, Bud Spence, is incredibly knowledgeable and boasts over fifty years of growing experience!

Our native and non-native orchids are classics, some old & some new hybrids; also our own crosses are available. These are divisions from our very best plants. Some are not to be found anywhere else! We recommend the Florida native,

With so many orchids for sale, it is so hard to choose just one. My husband decided to being home a Phalaenopsis hybrid (an Elegant Select TW50 to be exact). So, I have decided to share some pictures. Note: our camera does not due this plant much justice and the true colors of the petals do not really come through. The white areas are really a darker shade of yellow.

Close up:

To get a better idea of what the flower looks like, check out this great picture of the same species I found here.

Jessutopia