School is out in just 8 more days. This means my time will be freed up a bit more so I can really do some in depth writing. Awesome. So I must ask you readers, what would you like to see me write about?

Do you have a website that you'd like to see featured? Would you like to do an email or in-person interview? (In person if you live within about 150 miles of Nashville, TN. Unless you want to pay my travel expenses. In that case, have laptop, will travel.) Do you have an issue you'd like to see brought to light? I'm all about it.

Simply leave a comment or email me at badbadivy {at} gmail.com and let me know what you'd like to see!

My favorite color has always been blue. I associate it with a bright blue sky and also the color of a body of water. To me, blue is both calming and invigorating.

I stumbled across a blog that has a bunch of personality quizzes. There is a whole set of quizzes that assess the relationship between your personality and color. I normally don't find online quizzes all that interesting or fun but somehow I ended up taking quiz after quiz! They are not very long and to my surprise, they were eerily accurate.

For a little fun (and maybe some insight), take the  What Color Is Your Mind quiz on Blogthings. It came as no surprise when my result said blue! If you enjoy that quiz, there are four other color related quizzes to take. I took them all and actually found it to be time well spent.

I read Post Secret every Monday morning, since I usually take Sundays off from the internet. When I opened PostSecret today, I got a heart-lurching feeling when I read the secret pictured here.

That secret hits closer to home than just about any other secret I have ever read. My grandma died very suddenly last year. I was completely blindsided by this. She had been very sick about 10 months prior to her death, but she had completely recovered from that. Then, she started throwing up so they put her in the hospital to fix her dehydration from that and the next thing we knew, she was dead. I never even visited her when she was in the hospital that time.

When that happened, it opened up a great gaping hole in my faith in the stability of my life. If that could happen, anything could happen and anyone could just drop dead at any time. The rug could be pulled out from under me, my house could be flattened from a tornado, I could suddenly lose my job, one of my kids could run out in front of a car, anything can happen. And it's a scary, disconcerting thought. I've been tightrope walking over an abyss all my life and never knew it.

Many of my regular readers know that my dad has been battling with kidney disease for quite some time. Seven years ago, I went to take something up to my husband's work and my dad was with me. Everyone at his work was buzzing that I was driving around with some good looking man in my car. Seven years ago, my dad was healthy and filled with vitality and looked young enough to start rumors that I was running around on Mr. Ivy.

On Friday, someone I know said they saw me driving on Nolensville Road with some old man in my car. That old man was my dad. And the person who made the remark has seen my dad before on many occasions although not recently. They didn't recognize him, he looks so sick and old and tired. It was a kick in the stomach.

And that's my worst fear of all, when that hole opened up and I realized I was tightrope walking over the abyss. My dad could die at any minute and I might never have the chance to say goodbye. The thought of that makes me not want to continue living. I don't think I'd kill myself, I'd hate for my kids to grow up without a mom. But with this fear, this paralyzing fear that has me living every day with a shadow over me, I'm only operating as a shell of my former self.

So, I understand this secret completely. And this post isn't my "Oh, hai, guyz, I'm gunna kill myself!!" post, either. No, this secret made me realize something. I've been tightrope walking over this abyss my entire life. I just didn't realize it until now. I can't keep living under this shadow of fear. I've got to start living. Sure, things could happen at any time and I could be blindsided. I've just got to steel myself up against that and go. Life will go on, with or without me, and I'd rather it be with me. Wish me luck.

Two days before Mother's Day, Michelle Duggar announced to her family that she is pregnant with her 18th child. The family of soon to be 20, has children ranging in age from 9 months to 20 years old. This famous family was on The Today Show and you can watch this video from the show. Wow, I cannot even imagine having so many children. The Duggar family seems to handle it with ease and is something really special.

The big day has finally arrived. This is my favorite job here at Love Shak Baby!! I love picking winners for our giveaways. Today is even better because we are able to pick two winners.

The first winner is.....Tanyetta from Days Like These...congratulations!!

The second winner is....Susan Chester...Congratulations!!

Keep your eyes open and check back often at all the Shaks for more awesome giveaways.

Freeshipping.org and Love Shak, Baby would like to extend a sincere thank you to all of you who left a comment and posted about our contest on your blogs.

Make sure to use Freeshipping.org for all of your shopping needs.

Mother's Day is not exactly my favorite holiday. Sure, I'm a mom, but I think there's an awful lot of pressure and hype built into the holiday. As far as I'm concerned, my kids could just pile up in bed with me on Mother's Day and we could snuggle and watch TV and be just fine.

Unfortunately, that's not how it will work out. My husband is a restaurant manager, and Mother's Day is the #1 restaurant holiday, so he'll be at work all day. We'll probably go to church and then for dinner at my mom's house. It will be nice, but I'd still rather pile up in bed and watch TV.

What is nice about the holiday is the chance I will get to show my mom how much she means to me. My mom has been an absolute rock in my life- she is supportive and loving, and I can trust that she'll do what she says. My mom's fabulous, fun, and funny. She's beautiful and resourceful and wise. I'm lucky to have a mom like her.

Tell me about your mom and/or how you'll spend Mother's Day. Will it be a big family affair, or will it be small and cozy?

Why is it that when you are not looking to buy something, you see so many things that you would love to buy? Yet, when you need to buy something, you just can't find a thing!

I am going to a wedding tomorrow. I have been looking for a new dress to wear for the occasion. I must say, I have never seen such ugly dresses! I went to at least five stores and could not find a thing that I would be tempted to wear. The fashion right now seems to be huge, bold prints with colors that don't even make sense together.

I finally settled on a black skirt with a fun top. The top is a colorful pattern, but I like it enough since I will have a plain black skirt to tone the look down a little. I don't think I am overly conservative when it comes to clothing. However, I found the current dresses to be very unappealing. What are your thoughts on the current spring fashions?

BlueMilk hits a home run with her post about maternity leave:

Maternity leave is not a holiday - it is paid leave to physically and mentally recover from an extremely taxing biological experience - childbirth, as well as time to establish a bond with the baby. Don’t underestimate the second of these. The baby’s very life depends on its bond with the primary care giver (in most cases a mother). It is essential for the physical and psychological health of the baby (and indeed the adult it will become one day) that it has a secure bond with its mother (primary care giver). We all have a vested interest in this outcome because we have to share our planet, if not our neighborhood with them.

Go see the rest. She's responding to a commenter who opposes paid maternity leaves. It's good stuff.

Sensuality involves how sight, sound and touch effects the way you feel. It is an awareness of what the senses perceive. The degree of your sensuality is a factor in how you experience life.

This Time ~ This Space has an enlightening article called "Take the Test: How Sensual Are You?". I really enjoyed reading this post and also taking the test. The message I took from it is to try and live in the moment a little bit more.

I have always appreciated beautiful scenery and certain smells. The smell of cut grass will always bring back memories of my childhood. The smell of gas reminds me of boating with my family. The sound of a diesel engine reminds me of my brother-in-law and his family that moved away and are missed. Blue has always had a calming effect on my mood. Certain songs have the ability to change my mood completely. The senses really play a huge part in your life from minute to minute.

On the How Sensual Are You test, I scored a 69. The results say that I have found a good balance between enjoying my senses and keeping my emotions balanced. I am pleased with the results but it has inspired me to try and tap into my sensual side more often. What do you think your score will be?

How are you going to spend your stimulus check? Will you do as the government wants you to and spend it to help the economy, or will you bank it or use it to pay bills?

Me, I'm going to buy the MacBook I've been saving for, tithe 10% and bank the rest. I feel so guilty doing what the government wants me to do! ;)

Tell me what you're doing with yours!