...... HOMESCHOOLING?!

I know this isn't the "official" video or post on it:
But I hope this gives you a general idea of why we're choosing to to UNTRADITIONAL SCHOOLING.
Yes: the proper vocabulary usage is "nontraditional" ....
 but I like UNtraditional better. Feels a little more.... UNtraditional!

I decided to do this simply because of our lifestyle: not only do we eat and live differently but we also LOVE to travel!
I believe in having freedom. That freedom is what led me to pursue a different career path. How could I do that and then get tied down into a school system where our lives are literally ruled by school's time and calendar year?
How could I saying that our family time is limited because you can only take off so many days / year without being considered truant?
It was just : a crazy double standard to me.
One that I couldn't live by.

Life is so short: why spend most of your precious childhood indoors? I know from personal experience and from watching my own kids that life goes by so fast.
Why miss it? Why not enjoy it?
Why not see a sunny day and be able to take off and go to the beach instead of being tied to a desk (at school or at work?)
I want to be able to show my kids the freedom to design their own life and then teach them the self-discipline necessary to facilitate that.
I want them to know that just because everybody does it or because society says it's "normal"... doesn't mean that you have to follow suit and just go with the flow.
YOU can choose to be different.
YOU can choose your own path.
YOU can design your life.

That's my hope for my kids anyways.
So here's a little sneak peek into what's going on so far!
(PS - we started kindergarten with Christopher in the summer and he's HALFWAY done with the curriculum already!)

Thanks for watching!
and please: know that IF you have your kids in school....
I am in NO WAY SHAPE OR FORM trying to make you feel bad!!!!!
No no no!!!!
Homeschooling is NOT for everyone!
This was just a very personal decision. One that I, PERSONALLY, struggled with.
And up until a time ago I thought people who homeschooled were outcast weirdos and homeschooling meant you had to dress them in khakis and bake pumpkin pie all day and never do anything cool.
I had NO idea it was do-able.... much less fun (and rewarding!)
So I wanted to shed light on that.
I completely respect every parent's decision and I absolutely appreciate the respect I get with the decision that I have made!  You all are fantastic.

35 Weeks Pregnant with Baby #3

Here: let's do a little fun comparison...

here was me at 33 weeks with Christopher, 33 and then 35 weeks with Ryan :) 

(FYI: Christopher was 10 lbs 3 oz at birth and Ryan was 10 days early and 8 lbs 6 oz.... so had he gone full term he would've been very near 10 lbs, too!)

I, personally, do not feel as large as I did with either of the boys! 

I feel much more like how I was at 31 weeks with them. 

Maybe that's because I've been swimming this pregnancy and just feel better in general (not as sore and more energy!) or HOPEFULLY it's an indicator that the little princess is going to be a wee bit smaller in size than those big brothers of hers. 

PREGNANCY STATS:

- weight gain: approximately 15 lbs 

- she is head down and moves A LOT!

- Lia is very scheduled. She moves at certain times. Sleeps at specific times. I feel she is a peaceful baby with a mellow yet adamant spirit. I don't think it's going to be ANYTHING like what I experienced with the boys. She wakes at 4, 7, and 10 pm. Then from around 11:30 / midnight until 7:30 / 8:00 a.m. she is..... sleeping. 

- cravings: none

- cold: FINALLY completely gone

- still swimming (well...who am I kidding....still FLOATING!)  Next week I have us booked for 6 days of swimming. I want to be ready for labor / delivery!

- started drinking my delicious third trimester / labor prep tea and started Evening Primrose Oil regimen more on that here

- NESTED. Got baby's stuff all ready and the complete last of things was ordered for her. 

(batteries for swing, bottles washed and ready, still need to completely pack / re-pack labor bag, though)

I have also started doing some "birth affirmations".  Sounds corny, I know. 

But seriously: when I was pregnant with Christopher and during the labor / delivery I learned a lot about myself. I learned to trust my body instinctively. Prior to this week I tried to take 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes before bed to just silently lay there and think about little baby. Now I'm actively visualizing everything and a good labor. I REALLY want her to come out in a state of peace. I do not want a repeat colic baby like with  Ryan. Kid cried every waking moment and was in a baby carrier between 16 and 22 hours PER DAY for his first 3 months of life. The doctors actually kicked me out of the ER because he had such extreme colic but there was nothing medically wrong and nothing they could do for me. Yep.  So: I want a peaceful baby and I want to do everything I possibly can to ensure I get one :) 

Anyways. 

I also really want to do this labor / delivery naturally. 

I just think: why not.

I mean: I won't kick myself if I end up with an epidural or something comes up.

I just really feel I want to try out this whole self-affirming hypno thing I'm trying out. 

Harnessing the inner warrior goddess of untapped potential. 

Ok - not that extreme. But: you get it ;) 

I just had such a beautiful experience when Christopher came out and it's a memory I'll remember forever and ever and ever just absolutely imprinted on my heart.

With Ryan? Yeah. I didn't have that. 

And I want it again.

Anyhow. Off to bed for me and the munchkin.

Tomorrow's plans: working online on my site and getting everything set up so after I have her I can easily transition back into working from home with the right foundation.

Then you all can follow my post-baby body journey! (or whatever you want to call it!)

Thanks for reading and following along my journey. 

You might also be interested in:

-- Name Reveal

-- 34 weeks (baby #2)

-- 35 weeks (baby #1) Oh my gosh.... I can't believe how different I am now!  I was so ....shy back then! PS - DO NOT USE THAT LAUNDRY DETERGENT FROM MY VIDEO! AGHHH!!!

.....how little I knew then.  WWW.NONTOXICDIVA.COM 

Feel free to subscribe to my YouTube channel if you'd like!

It's where I put out new videos, random life moments, updates.... etc. 

Pretty much anything going on and then I organize them into playlists.

Been vloggin' since 2009! Can't believe how much things have changed since then....

Exciting Pregnancy Update - Baby Number Three

Thanks for watching! 

If you would like to subscribe to my personal YouTube channel you can do that by clicking HERE 

Baby #3 is due Halloween 2014 and I'm SO excited!

If you'd like to watch the Gender Reveal video & Home Footage from Rob's Visit CLICK HERE

Thank you all so much for the outpouring of love and support my family has received.  It has not only been encouraging but very much appreciated more than I will ever be able to express to you.

IF YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE YOUR STORY OR WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THOSE WITH PTSD you can submit it via the contact form as well.  I am collecting stories and words of advice to put into my book. 

THANK YOU!