Baby Safety Month [+ Giveaway]

I can't think of anything more important than keeping my three little ladies safe. There are the obvious safety precautions, such as blocking off the stairs, covering up electrical outlets, and buckling into a car seat whenever you hit the road. However, did you know that car seats may be ineffective when used improperly? 

As a first time mom, I had no idea that there were car seat rules. I figured if Veronica was buckled in, she would be safe in the event of an accident. Unfortunately, that's not true, and more than 9,000 children age 12 and under died in crashes in the past decade. (Source) For Baby Safety Month, I teamed up with some other fantastic bloggers to bring you some baby safety tips.

Here are a few tips for keeping your little one safe in the car:

• Use a new(er) car seat: Did you know that car seats have expiration dates? Be sure to check the date on your seat before strapping your little one in. Also, be sure that the seat you're using, has never been in an accident, as this can reduce effectiveness. If you must use an older seat, be sure to check it's recall status. 
• Make sure the straps are tight enough: The straps should lie flat against your child. You shouldn't be able to pinch any of the straps between your fingers. If you can, the straps should be tightened. 
• Remove bulky clothing such as winter coats: In the event of an accident, safety straps may not be able to provide adequate protection over a coat. Instead, layer a blanket over your child after they've been buckled in.
• The chest clip belongs on the chest. This one might seem obvious, but it's incredible how many children have the clips down near their stomach.  The clips should be flat and aligned with the child's armpits.
• Make sure that straps are positioned correctly: Double check with the user's manual, but normally, the straps on a rear-facing seat should be at or slightly below the child's shoulders.

Most importantly, make sure that you're actually using a car seat and that it's the appropriate car seat for your child's size.

And now for the giveaway, brought to you by: True Agape, This Ole Mom, Ramblings of a Marine Wife, Krafts and Kiddos, and myself. The giveaway runs from today, September 15, through Monday, September 22. The winner will have until that Friday to respond before a new winner is chosen. 

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Be sure to link up your own baby safety posts below!

An InLinkz Link-up

True Life: I'm a Military Wife

Today, I'm joining Mal and Samantha for their Real Military Wives of Blogland link up! I don't think it's a secret that my husband is in the military, but I don't think I've ever really blogged about his military career or our experiences as a military family.

My name is Alex (Alejandra), I'm 26 and from the bizarre state of Florida. I stay at home with two kiddos and another on the way. Currently, we're living in Hawaii, where we've been for five and a half months.

I met John in college while studying to get a Bachelor Degree in Marketing. At that point he had already been in the Army for five or years as an enlisted Soldier and was doing the Green to Gold program to finish his degree and earn a commission. Due to him being in the military and having to leave for training after graduation, we got married after knowing each other for seven months. I'll be sharing that story for our anniversary next week.

Pinning Hubs. Just after I dropped the bar on the floor and I made the Colonel pick it up. Oops.

After getting married, I still had a semester left of school, so I stayed living with my parents and working at the mall as a visual merchandiser. John headed to Fort Benning and Fort Leonard Wood for BOLC, and luckily I was able to fly up pretty frequently. Four and a half years after starting college, I finally got my degree and joined John in Savannah, while he was stationed at Fort Stewart.

In the five years that we've been married, our family has had the opportunity to live in Georgia (Fort Stewart) as well as in Missouri (Fort Leonard Wood). So far, I have to say that Fort Stewart was my favorite. While at Stewart, I got relatively involved with the unit as an FRG leader for three years. Although I hated it a lot of the time, I miss it now, and am looking forward to having the opportunity to be involved with another Family Readiness Group.

Along our Army journey, there have been a variety of peaks and valleys. John deployed to Afghanistan for a year just after Adri was born, which really sucked. For the most part though, everything else has been wonderful. We've made lifelong friends and have been able to travel the country on the government's dime. I went from the ROTC girlfriend with no idea what a "sarnt" (eye roll) was to a semi-experienced military wife. I have to admit that I still tune some stories out because I have no clue WTF John is talking about.

I've met quite a few interesting characters, but for the most part, I can say that most military spouses are pretty normal people. Of course there are the ones who wear their Soldier's rank or demand military discounts (the stereotypes aren't completely made up), but in general, we're mostly nice people. Mostly. It seems to be a growing experience for most of us, and unfortunately, sometimes that's harder for some people than it is for others.

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Sunday Social

1. What was your best birthday? Probably my 22nd birthday. My husband would strongly disagree, but I had an absolute blast. I had way too much to drink, puked, went back to drinking, and then proceeded to insult everyone around me. I also managed to roll out of bed. In the morning I felt great though. John was not amused.

2. What was your best vacation? It had to have been a cruise. More than likely, our last cruise which was in the Western Caribbean, with stops in Mexico, Belize, Grand Cayman, and Roatan. We had so much fun on our excursion in Cozumel. We spent the morning cooking, followed by an all-you-can-drink afternoon. I can't wait to do it again.

3. Best date you’ve ever been on? Hubster screwed up with taking me to the Melting Pot on our first date. It was my first time there, and I fell completely in love. With the food. Unfortunately for him, he's not as big of a fan of fondue, so he has to suffer through all of my first date recreations.

4. Best Movie (quality) you’ve seen? I have a hard time choosing one. I don't really have a favorite movie, but two of the best that come to mind are The Prestige and Mr. Brooks. Looper is a good one too. I like when they make you think.

5. Best TV show ending of all time? I can't say that I've ever stuck around until the end. I'm working on getting through Breaking Bad. Then I'll probably get back to Mad Men. I've loved both of the season finales (?) for House of Cards.

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Single and Ready to Mingle

Sorry to disappoint guys, but I am still very much taken. Today, I'm actually linking up over at Kelly's Korner in hopes of setting up a dear friend of mine.

I met Suzanne through blogging, maybe a year ago. She's a Carolina girl, so back when we lived in Georgia, we had hopes of getting together. Now that I'm in Hawaii, I'm sure she wouldn't mind a trip to paradise. 

Suze is the baby in her family at 20-something. She has a dog named Kate, and two adorable little nieces who she enjoys spoiling.

Like the true Southern girl that she is, Suze loves God, America, and sweet tea. How could you not like her already? Add to that her love of football, and she's definitely a winner! Last year, Suze helped me out by sending some baked goodies to my friend and his unit which was deployed in the Middle East. Her Papa served in the military during WWII, so she stands behind our troops.

My friend has had some rather interesting dating stories lately, so creepers need not apply. Suze is an extremely loyal and caring person, who is willing to relocate. And if you're lucky, she'll cook and share her wine with you.

Feel free to email me if interested, and I'll forward her your info! (:

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Currently..

I'm pretty uninspired lately, so thanks Eloquent Rambles for the inspiration..

I am currently resolving to continue with my goal to do better this year. I'm not failing miserably yet, but I'm not as on track as I'd like to be..

I am currently anticipating our stuff being delivered next week! Hubster was finally able to speak to a person from the moving company yesterday, and they said it should be here on Monday. I don't 100% believe them, but lets all keep our fingers and toes crossed.

I am currently eating Lucky Charms with my little animals. Be jealous. Unfortunately, they got to the box sometime while I wasn't paying attention and picked out most of the marshmallows.

I am currently making not a damn thing. I can't tell you how excited I am to get some of my housewife appliances back next week. The first few things that I plan on unpacking are my KitchenAid stand mixer, Cricut, and sewing machine. It's been far to long since I've cut paper.

I am currently remembering all of the things that I need to do today. We've made a bit of a mess with our stuff all over. I need to clean up, get some loads of laundry done before they take our loaner machines, move the stuff that we're getting rid of.

Linking up here.

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Share Your Accent Link Up!

I've been insanely excited for this link up since last week! I loved watching Dara's video last week, so I'm really looking forward to watching everyone's videos today!

If you have not yet recorded your video to share, it's super easy to do so. Go here to take the quiz, and record yourself doing so. It literally takes three minutes. THREE.

My quiz results were accurate. Did the quiz get your accent right?

<br /> <a href="http://www.munchkinsandmilitary.com/2013/10/share-your-accent-link-up.html"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZpTOXQsSdLraaiLFYiafRoNvDHv6XtmOv21ho6k_0xvq9tcIOEk-rnv__MkPSlPVFdBssaawjSa8nvMqlVd2yaEYotZJ9EZROB5cXoktI4j4QJEjCnofT4IRnnY-8qi4mWKLmaVN9MVs/s1600/Share.png" border="0" alt="Share Your Accent"/></a><br />

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Pinterest Power Party

I'm excited to be co-hosting the Pinterest Power Party this week! Pinning my posts on Pinterest has made a huge difference in my page views. The online advice for bloggers always recommends pinning something from every post. Here is your chance to promote that pin! I love Pinterest parties and hope you will join this one.

Don't forget to join in with Dara and I for the Share You Accent link up TOMORROW!

<br /> <a href="http://www.munchkinsandmilitary.com/search/label/share%20your%20accent"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZpTOXQsSdLraaiLFYiafRoNvDHv6XtmOv21ho6k_0xvq9tcIOEk-rnv__MkPSlPVFdBssaawjSa8nvMqlVd2yaEYotZJ9EZROB5cXoktI4j4QJEjCnofT4IRnnY-8qi4mWKLmaVN9MVs/s1600/Share.png" border="0" alt="Share Your Accent"/></a><br />

Happy Wednesday, and welcome to this week's Pinterest Power Party!! If this is your first time at our party, thanks for joining us!! Every Wednesday we host this party in order to focus on YOU - the readers! Do you have a DIY project, frugal gift idea, or delicious recipe you want to share? We want to see them and share them on our Pinterest boards too!!

Alrighty, are you ready to get to the party?! We are too!

<div align="center"> <a href="http://www.sewmuchcrafting.com/search/label/pinterest%20power%20party" title="Pinterest Power Party"><img height="200" width ="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8RRd0Eu0E57DYN7FIGL6_BWKX0-0zvxuRwqbADipC2sO6bVGcXd6nEoRJkVVX87Speyc3DhmrnD740cAQrRZpmQpEJ0hkHedHry98pnpG0OS6Qg5vIjnsIt5RGypqDbgGLU5ACvbPRF1G/s1600/PPP+Button.png" alt="Pinterest Power Party" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Share Your Accent

One of my favorite things as a blogger is to watch the vlogs personal videos made by other bloggers. With blogging, it's easy to connect a name or URL with a face and a style of writing. In the back of my mind I always wonder what that person sounds like in real life.

Believe it or not, I'm usually surprised by the sound of each blogger's voice. Seriously, you guys never sound like what I expect you to sound like.

Yesterday, Dara posted a video of her taking an quiz online to determine what type of American accent she has. It was such an interesting video, that I decided that I wanted to do one of my own. It's like a vlog, but without the pressure of actually having to know what you're talking about. Along the way, Dara invited me to host a video link up with her, and from Share Your Accent, was born.

<br /> <a href="http://www.munchkinsandmilitary.com/search/label/share%20your%20accent"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZpTOXQsSdLraaiLFYiafRoNvDHv6XtmOv21ho6k_0xvq9tcIOEk-rnv__MkPSlPVFdBssaawjSa8nvMqlVd2yaEYotZJ9EZROB5cXoktI4j4QJEjCnofT4IRnnY-8qi4mWKLmaVN9MVs/s1600/Share.png" border="0" alt="Share Your Accent"/></a><br />

Next Thursday, October 3, we would love for you to stop by Not in Jersey and/or Munchkins and the Military to share your own video. All you need to do is record yourself taking this quiz and post the video on your blog. It would be super amazing if you would share the link up button, so that other bloggers can join in. Think about it, wouldn't you love to know what all these people that you've formed online relationships with, sound like in real life?

You can see Dara's video here, to get an idea of what you're getting yourself into.

Then go here, and record yourself taking the quiz out loud. Maybe include a little intro. Dara had a video about her name.

Finally, come back in a week to share your video and find out what your friends all sound like.

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Happies & Crappies

This is my first week linking up with my happies & crappies. I have some complaints, but I didn't want to blog about that without including something positive.



Happies

1. V started school this week! She's really been enjoying it so far, so I'm happy! Having her gone all day gives me a huge break.
2. I got a Influenster VoxBox in the mail yesterday! I had no idea what was going to be in it, and I was pleasantly surprised. Everything is actually stuff that I need and will use. I also have another VoxBox on it's way. The one I already received is the Paradise VoxBox. There is nothing more appropriate to get our move to Hawaii started.
3. Caesar is ready to go! The vet stuff has been taken care of, I have his rabies certificates and Hawaiian import form. I am just missing a notarization on the import form and I'll be able to send everything in. I might wait a while though, since he won't actually be allowed on the island until mid-December.
4. I made the most amazing bread from scratch yesterday!! SO GOOD! If I would have let the loaf rise more before sticking it in the oven, it would have been the perfect loaf of Cuban bread! I'm quite excited about this since no one outside of Miami knows what Cuban bread actually is. It's differnent from the French loaf that some grocers try to pass it off as.
5. My dentist appointment wasn't so bad yesterday. They did the scaling on the left side of my mouth. When I went in to have my right side done, it was a lot more painful than I was expecting. This time, I went in expecting it to feel like child birth in my mouth, which I think helped with the pain.

Crappies

1. V is sick today. She started running a fever last night. A little Tylenol helped for the evening, so it's back. Because she's sick, there is no school for her today. It'll be the three of us stuck at home while Hubster is gone on a class float trip. 
2. Speaking of V's school, I'm not impressed. The owner is kind of a shady b. Like I said before, the class itself is wonderful, but the way that the place is managed, is not good. She keeps telling me that she'll get me a school handbook "next time" but I don't ever foresee that happening. The first time we went in, she said he office was a mess because she was rearranging, but no, a month later it's still like that. Since I have no book, I really don't know how to handle V's sick day today. I'll speak to the teacher next week, because it's become obvious to me that I won't get anywhere speaking to the owner. 
3. Along with V being sick, so is Caesar. Hubs and I each had to get up last night to take him out to poop. This morning he's had diarrhea. I suppose that's what he gets for digging in the trash last night and eating scraps.
4. V's gymnastics session ended last week. I was hesitant to sign her up again, because I wasn't a huge fan of the gym. I grew up with my sister training next to Olympians, and this gym was not like that at all. The last straw was when the owner didn't let me reschedule a class that V missed. The gym was closed due to the flooding in town, so we were told that we could reschedule the following week. Apparently, I waited too long. Oh well. Hopefully we can find something better in Hawaii. 

And that's pretty much the gist of my week. Nothing overly exciting in my neck of woods.

I hope everyone has had a wonderful week, and has a great weekend!

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MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

I've been struggling to get into a good blogging routine. I've been busier than ever trying to help prepare things for part of Hubster's unit coming home. Well, with the ADVON group coming back yesterday and earlier today, I'm hoping that things can settle down for a little bit. I know in just a few months though, I'll be busting my butt trying to collect items to fill up the Single Soldier barracks.

Join in at wifeofasailor.com

1. What’s one thing in the past month you would have changed?
Probably just be more organized. My kitchen and dining room were a huge disaster with things lying out all over the place. I also killed both car batteries, completely dead by leaving lights turned on.


2. What was your favorite thing that happened in August? 
My hubs came home on R&R!! We went on a week long cruise and celebrated his 30th birthday!

3. What did you do to celebrate Labor Day?
Labor Day Weekend was spent in California for a friend's wedding. I actually flew back home on Labor Day, but Thursday-Sunday were having fun and celebrating with a handful of my closest friends.

4. What do you HAVE to have handy by your bedside?
I always have my phone. I usually fall asleep emailing or browsing the internet. I don't really HAVE to have it since I know not to expect phone calls, it's just a habit thing.

5. What are you looking forward to in September?
Having time to hopefully relax. I'd like to try and get the girls back into our "normal" routine since it's been disrupted quite a bit lately.