The 2012 Recap

*Note: You can also read this entry on our new blog by clicking here*

What a year it has been! I can't believe this year is over. I think I say that every year, but it really is true. Time flies by too fast. 

This year we.. 

• Started Learning Domestic Discipline (the website)! We merged our two blogs (Learning DD, and Knowing Your Roles) into one site- Learning Domestic Discipline. The response has been overwhelming, and it's still so surreal to us. We look forward to what 2013 will bring! 
• Celebrated our gorgeous sons first birthday. There are no words to explain how quickly kids grow up. :-( There are also no words to express our love for him. He. is. perfect. 
• I started the 1 Year No Spanking Challenge. Several other bloggers also undertook it, and it has been awesome to support each other through it. My challenge made it 5 months the first time, and now I'm in month 2 of the second "re-do". I'm determined to make it a year! 
• Realized that my husband and I might be a little too addicted to real estate and home improvement shows. House Hunters, House Hunters International, DIY Disaster and Love It or List It currently dominate our DVR, and have most of the year.
• We also realized how awful Yo Gabba Gabba is. Unfortunately, that is our sons favorite show which means that Clint and I walk around all day with Yo Gabba Gabba songs stuck in our heads.
• We took a few amazing trips, including a (much needed) beach vacation to a gorgeous island, a Charleston SC trip (the first time we had a trip, just the two of us, since our son was born!), and a few others. We also planned some exciting trips for 2013 that I really wish would hurry up and get here. We love traveling.
• We launched the Learning Domestic Discipline forums! It's been a lot of fun to meet new people. 
• We were contacted by a big-name talk show. Discussions about it are on-going, but we are excited to see what 2013 holds in terms of domestic discipline and sharing it with as many people as we can.
• I got, what I would consider, the worst spanking ever. 
• I told all the playgroup moms about DD. Surprisingly, the reaction wasn't near as bad as I expected!
• My husband started a new job, which has been great, because it allows him to be home much more and it's in a field that he really loves.
• We started maintenance spankings. It was a concept that I was not so thrilled with at first, but now that it's been some time, I can totally see the benefits (and I think my husband can too). 
• I was hospitalized for just shy of a week, and during that time, went through 3 surgeries. It was a very difficult time for our entire family, but we got through it. It's situations like that one which really make me realize never to take anything for granted. Thankfully, I'm back to normal, healthy, and everything is great. 
• We implemented a "no cussing rule", something that we have never had before, but now that our son is picking up so many new words and beginning to mimic everything we say, it was definitely time. I struggled with it a lot at first (and, still have some minor slip-ups from time to time) but I think it's safe to say that soap in the mouth, or swats, really does work.
• We celebrated a lot of firsts with our son. The most memorable was the first time he ever said "mama" was on my birthday. Talk about the best birthday ever. He also took his first steps this year (over Memorial Day weekend), celebrated lots of first holidays like Valentines Day, Easter, Fourth of July, and more, started eating "big boy food", and so much more. It was a year of firsts. :-) 
• We realized how important, and how wonderful, the DD community really is. The amount of support we have gotten this year (especially while I was sick!) will be an everlasting memory for us. We've gotten to meet some great domestic discipline couples this year, and we're looking forward to meeting many more in 2013. 

We are looking forward to what 2013 holds. From our family, to yours, happy holidays! We hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas, and New Years. Stay safe, and remember how short life is- it really flies by too fast. 

Happy Holidays,

Clint and Chelsea

5 Things: The New Site Edition

Feels like forever since I've done one of these. It's long overdue, for sure. :) 

1: Lots of updates to our new site! Judging by our traffic numbers it seems everyone (and then some!) has already seen our new site. Pretty awesome, right? We love it, and we're glad that you all do too. The feedback has been overwhelming awesome. We're glad you all were as excited as we were! Here's a look at what is new on the site this week: 

• We have a new blog feature! The blog feature is similar to our current blogs (except merged together) and all our blog entries are already on there, and ready to go. We wanted an easier to read method, rather than our past articles feature, and we think we have found a great solution. In the future, all blog entries will only be posted on the new site, but for now, we'll be posting them in both spots (our blogspot blogs, and our new site). 
• We are working on creating a blogroll! We're looking forward to having everyones blogs on our blog roll. Stay tuned for more information as we finish ironing out the details! 
• You can now leave comments on our blog entries on the new site. All blogs, on the new site, now have a comment feature. Note that the name and email fields are optional so you can still remain anonymous when you comment if you choose to do so. 
• My husband wrote a new post entitled Spanking Multiple Times Per Day. You can read it by clicking here. 

2: We're working on some exciting features coming soon! Our site is constantly evolving. Here's a look at what is coming in the weeks and months to come:

• All comments that our previously on our blogs will be transferred over to the new blog ASAP. We're hoping to have that done this week, but with the volume of comments we have it takes some time. 
• We're creating a new comment organization system that we are hoping to have done within the next week or two as well. This will allow you to sort comments by category. 
• Our HOH Headquarters and The DD Wives Club will be launching this spring. We're excited about creating a special spot for both roles of the DD structure to be able to interact with each other, and to provide resources specifically for each role.
• A  mobile version of both our Learning Domestic Discipline site, and our Learning Domestic Discipline blog site will be available within the next month.  

3: An update on us: Honestly, I feel like so much has been going on lately between getting ready for the holidays, the new site, and more, that I never have time to write a "personal blog entry" anymore. Hopefully that changes soon. In the meantime, here's some quick updates on us. :)

• Our son turned 17 months old this past week! It's crazy how fast he is growing up. I'm so blessed to have such an amazing son. He's getting smarter by the day. He is learning numbers (and can count to 6) and new words each day. And, he still loves dancing. :) 
• We finally had a date night! I think I've been asking Clint for one for like months now, but our schedule just never seemed to allow it. We were both really looking forward to it, and it was a lot of fun. We went out to dinner, and watched a movie (you know, the standard date night stuff) but it was much needed. It was great to take a break from all this site stuff for a night. 
• My Christmas shopping is like, hmm....maybe 40% done? Yeah, I need to get on that. It's in the plan for this week.

4: An awesome new DD blog: Written by Heather (who, by the way, has an adorable Wordpress layout that I absolutely love), her DD blog is just starting out, but it's great so far. It's definitely worth adding to your blogroll, if you haven't already. 

5: The Connecticut Tragedy: For the final link this week, I'm linking this well put together resource page for how you can help the victims of, honestly, one of the most horrific tragedies I've ever heard of- the shooting in Connecticut. Click here for a list of resources to help the victims. 

As a mother, I cannot imagine what the parents of the victims are feeling, yet alone their families, friends, and all that loved them. This is one of the worst things I've ever heard, and our heart, thoughts, prayers, and hugs go out to the victims, their families, and everyone in Newtown, Connecticut who is struggling to comprehend one of the worst tragedies this country has ever seen. God Bless Sandy Hook Elementary, the families, the victims, and the first responders. 

 

Also, on Tuesday December 18th, there will be a Blogger Day of Silence in remembrance for all the victims in the Sandy Hook tragedy. If you're interested in participating, you can find out more information by clicking here.

OUR NEW SITE IS OFFICIALLY UP!

Well, it's official! Learning Domestic Discipline is now a website!!!

We really can't believe this day is finally here. After many months of extremely hard work, many times of staying up all night and countless hours..our new site is now up!

Our new site URL will now be http://www.learningdd.com

First, there is a lot that you need to know. But, we'll try to keep this short.

1. Starting on January 1st, 2013 both the Learning Domestic Discipline blog and the Knowing Your Roles will be redirected to our new site.
2. The new site is completely free. 
3. There are areas of the new site that are still under construction. We are hoping to have those up and running within the next few months. Some sections (like the comments/questions section) will be up within the next 2 weeks. Other sections (like the HOH Headquarters and DD Wives Club) will be up in a couple of months. 
4. Right now the site is not compatible with most MOBILE browsers. We will be creating a mobile version of the site to be compatible with mobile browsers within the next 30 days. 
5. The site is, however, compatible with all internet browsers including Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and more.
6. The new site may take some getting used to, and we fully understand that. However, we hope that you'll find that it is much easier to use and organized as opposed to our current blog formats. 

We are so thankful, and grateful, for all of you. We truly hope that you love our new site as much as we do. 

If you have any questions, comments, problems, or need anything please either email us at contact@learningdd.com or by clicking the contact button at the top of our new site.

Thank you all for the overwhelming support, encouragement, kind words, readership, and much much more. This is an amazing community that we are so proud to be a part of.

Sincerely, 

Clint & Chelsea

Coming Soon...

We have been a little out of touch with everyone lately as we get ready for our new site to launch in just a few days!

Just a quick update to let everyone know that our new site will be launching on Saturday December 1st and we couldn't be more excited

-Chelsea (and Clint)

I'm Thankful For..

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. Actually the entire holiday season (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years) is probably my favorite time of the year. 

Clint and I are thankful for many things this year. We are beyond blessed, and we are truly grateful. One of those things is our readers. 

It never ceases to amaze us how supportive, amazing, wonderful, encouraging, and just plain great this community is. It makes me remember why we began blogging in the first place, and we're truly thankful every day for all the support, kind words, and comments we receive. It still shocks us sometimes how many marriages we have truly been able to help, and with each one of those testimonials it just makes us more thankful.

We are thankful for you! 

We hope that everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Safe travels, stay warm, and enjoy this time with your family and friends. :)

-Chelsea (and Clint)

The Liebster Award

I recently found out I was nominated for The Liebster Award from Pooky over at CDD For Life. Thanks for the nomination Pooky! I appreciate it! 

Here's the rules..

When one receives the award, one posts 11 random facts about oneself and answers the 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you.

Pass the award onto 11 other blogs (while making sure one notifies the blogger that one nominated them!)

One writes up 11 NEW questions directed towards YOUR nominees.

One is not allowed to nominate the blog who nominated one’s own blog!

One pastes the award picture into one’s blog. (You can Google the image, there are plenty of them!) 

Sounds like fun right? :-) I agree! 

Here are Pooky's questions for me. 

1. Where are you sitting as you write this post? In our family room (with Yo Gabba Gabba on in the background. In case you don't know what that is, it's quite possibly the most annoying children's show ever created).

2. What is the last book you read? The last book I read completely was Bringing Up Bebe. It's basically about an American woman who raises her little girl by European parenting standards. I spent a lot of time in Europe growing up, and it's important to me to raise our son in a similar environment in terms of parenting styles (especially when it comes to food). Needless to say, it was a great book and I learned a lot. 

The book I'm currently in the middle of reading is Gone Girl, although I'm only like 10 pages into it. I went a little crazy purchasing books when I first got my Kindle, and so I'm slowly working my way through the 70-something unread books I have on there. :)
3. Which is your favorite of the Seven Dwarfs? My favorite one is probably Happy. To be completely honest though, I can only remember the names of like 4 of them. Shows you the last time I watched the movie Snow White, lol.

4. How do you like your eggs cooked? Scrambled eggs with shredded cheese! Prior to meeting my husband I used to always eat them over-medium, but then I met my husband and he got me hooked on scrambled eggs (with shredded cheese blended in). Now I'll probably never go back. 

5. What would you do if Someone close to you in real life found out about your secret Blog? I don't have a secret blog, so I honestly don't know how to answer this. I don't hide my blog from anyone. There are some people who don't know I have a blog, but I'm not trying to hide it from them- it isn't a secret. If they asked, or if the topic ever came up, I'd gladly tell them and I'd love if they read it! :)

6. Who was your favorite teacher? That's a really hard one. Probably my Biochemistry II professor. He was my favorite professor at University of Texas and helped me so much (both personally and academically), especially when my mom passed away. Sadly, he passed away in 2009, but he was an awesome professor. He taught me so much.

7. Why do you think you were nominated for this Award? I don't know, but I'm grateful and thankful! :)

8. When was the last time you were spanked? Almost a month ago!! Since I had to restart my 1-year no spanking challenge over, I'm about to officially hit month 1 of my new 1-year no spanking challenge. I'm excited and more determined than ever. 

9. If you were lost in the woods with no cell service, and no one with you- what 3 things would you want to have with you? I would want people, lol. My husband and son without a doubt. But, if people aren't an option, then I would probably want food, water, and a car with GPS to get me out of there.

10. What is your favorite quote? Another hard question. :) I'll list my top 3. 1) "Everything will be OK in the end. If it's not okay, then it's not the end." -Unknown
2) "We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned so as to live the life that is waiting for us." - Joseph Campbell
3) "Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to let your heart go walking around outside your body." -EL James

The next half of this is to nominate 11 people and write them 11 questions. 

I'm really not good at nominating people because I always feel really bad if I leave people out. :( However, I'm truly grateful that I got nominated. 

For those of you who haven't been nominated yet, feel free to comment and I'd be happy to write questions for you so you can participate  because I really don't want anyone to be left out.

-Chelsea

The LDD Forums have LAUNCHED!

I've been waiting for this day forever, it seems like. After countless hours of work, money, and stress, the first step in our new site is officially ready to launch!

For those of you who haven't heard, my husband and I have decided to combine our blogs into one "brand". We're extremely excited to launch our brand new site, http://www.learningdd.com, in just a few weeks. For a more in depth look at what the new site will feature, please visit my husbands latest blog entry. But, in the meantime, the first segment is launching tonight- the LDD Forums!

The forums are completely free, and include places to ask questions, post your personals ads, get advice, meet other DD couples, and much more. 

To join the forums please follow the below steps:

1: Go to http://www.learningdd.com/forum

2: Click register in the top left corner.

3: Read and agree to the registration rules and agreement.

4: Choose your username and password.

5: Start posting!

That's it! :) 

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. 

We look forward to seeing everyone over there in the future.

-Chelsea (and Clint)