Cereal diaries - day 5

Haha... today started off with a bang. Princess Crybaby only wanted her morning milk warm, thank you very much mommy, OR ELSE.

In what is sure to be an indicator of the future, she wailed at me until I remade the bottle to her satisfaction.

*rolling eyes*

cereal diaries - day 4

I wonder if this is a new phase. Now that we've started cereal, when she wakes up and it's time to eat, she is almost hysterical as I get her bottle ready. Like she's trying to communicate she only has moments to live, MOTHER, and how on EARTH can I deny her the life-sustaining food she so desperately needs?!!!? *laugh* Then, of course, when she is given food, she's back to being the happiest baby I've ever met. Does this hot/cold approach remind you of somebody? .... me neither.

HAHA

This forward progress in the food area has caused a temporary (please God) setback in sleeping. Her naps during the day haven't really changed but she's been getting up every couple of hours at night. This is VERY hard on Mommy's brain. I feel a little like we've gone back to square one. I'm not sure how to help her. I would try letting her fuss it out but she's got some SERIOUS lung power and fussing turns into a full-fledged screamfest in a matter of moments - it wakes up the entire house. Munchkin gets back to sleep pretty quickly. The idiot boy dog, however, is not nearly as accomodating.

So, I get up every two hours, hoping she'll bounce back out of it.

nanny state?

I've heard this term a lot lately and thought I'd better check it out for myself. It's hard to know where to stand on issues any more. As I become older and more informed about the political "process," I am more convinced we are the next verse in a very long song. Our country is but one of many who succumb to the insistence of its leaders that they, not the individual citizen, knows what is best for the people and, as a result, doom the entire nation.

The stark fact is that you cannot give power to rule others to a select group of people and expect good things to come from it. Power is like a drug; once given it is very hard to use it only to serve others. We tell ourselves we act in the best interests of others but we are, in reality, stripping them of their personal freedom. This creates a larger and larger gap between the rulers and the ruled until a once humble and noble-intentioned person entrusted as the head of the State becomes a conceited tyrant - bent on pushing forward programs, laws and policies that only serve the people writing them - other politicians. Progress becomes lost in the endless maneuvering, currying favor and compromises made in backroom meetings. The deal is done before it ever sees the light of day.

We are not fit to rule ourselves. Only God can truly lead a people. Haven't we seen one civilization after another begin with the noblest intentions, built on righteous ideals fall apart a few hundred years later because of corruption, greed and all manner of evil?

So what is an average person to do? Scream into the wind with no affect or stand aside and be swept along with the current of political whim?

Cereal Diaries - Day 2

Gave Munchkin a turn with the spoon this morning. Princess Crybaby was, again, a little confused, but ended up successfully eating two or three spoonfuls. Success! Baby is learning! (Mommy is remembering)

The best thing about all this is remembering this process with Munchkin and, I think, that makes this even more fun (and less worry-filled). Instead of worrying I'm not doing it right, she isn't going to learn or some other insecurity, I can relax and enjoy the mess.

Cereal Diaries - Day 1

She wasn't sure what to do but she was very enthusiastic. Well received - will call this a successful start.

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Earth, Wind & Fire (no, not the disco band)

Munchkin is a great kid.  As my mother says, she is a very, very, very bright child in an itty, bitty body.  That's a lot of brilliance to contain in one little package.  Like capturing the wind.  You can contain it, but it is very, very hard to make it sit still.

That reminds me of how, when my brother and I were still living at home, Mother used to describe us as we might be found in nature.  Brother is light - he fills a room with his presence - he is impossible to miss.  He chases away shadows just by being there and warms cold spots.  People, like moths, are drawn to his light - it radiates from him. 

I am fire.  Raw energy that causes forward motion.  Fire is impressive by it's power and beauty but can be very, very dangerous if left untended.  In my family, my temper is legendary in its ability to flare up, seemingly out of nowhere and be gone again, just as fast.  Fire also has the ability to draw people in.  Fire gives warmth and protection when harnessed. 

If my brother was light and I am fire, Munchkin is wind and Princess Crybaby is water (so far as I can tell).  Let me explain:

Munchkin is wind.  Wind is constant motion.  Wind carries songs and wishes.  Wind powers turbines and creates electricity.  It sustains life.  Wind can be terribly destructive if your structures aren't built (and reinforced) solidly.  Wind will mess up your hair, blow your dress up and ruin your umbrella on a rainy day.  But, it brings joy because you need it to fly a kite, or sail in a sailboat. 

Princess Crybaby is water.  Water is the giver of life.  We are made of water and without it our lives would end.  Water, like wind, has its own song.  From a babbling brook, to the mighty oceans, people choose to be near water - for many reasons.  Water is flexible but never mistake it's adaptability for tameability.  You can dam up water but beware its power and the potential for catastrophe if the dam breaks.  Very quickly, a little bit of rain can overrun a stream and run a car off the road (as we are constantly reminded during flash flooding seasons). 

Coach is light.  Because I admire my brother so much, it is understandable I would marry a man who shares many of the same qualities as he.

While any one of these things has the power to destroy, we need (and want) all of them around because of the benefits they bring us. 

What describes you: Wind, Fire, Light, Water (or something else)?

Random thoughts on Christ - a mom's perspective

I sometimes wonder what conversations with the boy Jesus would sound like if he were born into a normal, 21st century American household..  Maybe something like this:

"Jesus, I dont care if you are the Son of God, you are going to eat your spaghetti."

"WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE YOUNG MAN?!"

"I know you are the Son of God but you still have to do your math homework."

I wonder if Mary yelled at Jesus out of frustration, like every other mom in the history of the world has done or if she would be more restrained because she knew who He was.

I wonder if Jesus talked back as a little child.

I wonder if Jesus went through a biting phase.

Would Jesus share his toys with the other children from infancy or was he selfish; like all toddlers?

I try to imagine Jesus as a little child.  For some reason, it is hard for me to imagine the Savior with a runny nose. Or being potty trained. Or having a temper tantrum.

I think about how miraculous childbirth has been and how humbling and terrifying motherhood has been (and continues to be) and wonder how, on Earth, Mary was able to cope; knowing she was raising the Savior.

Am I the only one who thinks like this?

Why?

Before I start this, let me just put out there I know why but that doesn't make it any easier to understand.

Why is there so much cruelty in this life?  What happens in a person's heart to completely and permanently smother the light?  To send them to the brink of madness where acts of complete evil are somehow justified?

Is there not one safe corner in this world?

You read the headlines and cry out to Heaven that, surely, these are Signs that the Lord is coming soon?

The weight of looking into the face of such darkness makes me so sad.

Sing, sing, sing

Laying in bed at the end of a hectic weekend. The dog is lapping up lake Michigan, in the kitchen, the girls are settled into dreamland, coach is putting final touches on coaching plan for tomorrow and I am laying here, reflecting on yet another of my good friend, Sarah's, posts (you are REALLY cooking' good stuff, mama).

She talks about a time when the only thing that got her out of bed some days was a commitment to her dance lessons.

I think of a few times in my life when I ran from singing because I thought my sorrow or anger ran too deep. I thought my song spoiled by my rage or heart-break. I always regretted it.

When Roy Finney died, I did not sing in the choir at his funeral but helped start Go Ye Now in Peace at his graveside.  I will never regret openly weeping as I sang, because I allowed myself to say goodbye in a real way, rather than allow my grief to steal that moment from me.

I did not sing most of my first marriage. My mother wrote a poem about she who could not sing for crying. There was so much hurt during that time, I could not see much to sing about.

I sang By My Side as Riley died inside my womb. The simple songs of praise in Godspell; the simple act of stepping outside myself and the earth-shattering loss I was dealing with truly acted as a lifeline.

I cannot downplay the importance of loved ones around me during times of crisis. It is not that only the song got through.  But it certainly helped.

I was an adult before I realized that, perhaps, God did not give me the gift of voice only to entertain but to praise Him and act as a beacon to others. It is an injustice to ignore this gift when I am hurting. It is precisely this gift that has lifted me out of the depths over and over.

Thank God He can see what we cannot.

By the time we hang the lights...

...it'll be new years day and time to take them down.

I wish I had the pause feature in real life like I have in Sims. You can build without the clock flying by. Where is that feature in real life?

I never seem to have the time to get it all done. Today, for example, I wanted to work on getting the lights up and the front porch decorated. I laid down and took a nap instead.  I needed the nap but I also need to sweep and mop the floor, wash the sheets, etc....

Well, there is always tomorrow.

The Proverbs 31 Woman

My friend Sarah blogged about raising girls and the social philosophies associated with the task.

I used to struggle with this idea too until I spent some very real time with God and Proverbs 31. The Prov 31 woman has a lot of business savvy, she is super-organized and runs the house. She is much more than "just" a wife and mom.

I think the "lady in waiting" ideal is another one of those goofy things that came out of the Dark Ages.  I guarantee you the mother of the Prov 31 woman didn't let her daughter sit around, looking pretty, waiting for her prince to come.  I'm sure she was expected to learn the necessary skills needed to be the CEO or the home.

While our economics has changed and staying home full-time may not be an option for every woman, as mothers, I think it is our responsibility, as mothers, to equip our daughters to manage the demands of running a household, and finding a balance between work and home.

Thanks, Sarah, for a great post - it really got me thinking!

Downhill Slide

10 1/2 days until Christmas break. Thank goodness. Holy guacamole I am tired.  And not the kind of tired you feel when you've had a long day or you didn't sleep well. It's the kind of tired from having a long YEAR.*laugh*

On the homefront, all is great. Princess Crybaby is getting big. She is so alert - one of her favorite activities is watching people walk by.

She wants to talk and I think it aggravates her that she can't make her mouth form the sounds she wants to make.

Munchkin's teeth woes continue. I fear the fact that both her parents have less then great teeth combined guarantees we will have problems with her mouth.  I should get a job now to start saving for braces.

She had a tooth filled back in April. Well, the tooth was damaged and now requires a root canal. We started that treatment this week. The endodontist was top-notch and I really liked him. He used a lot if big words and I felt like I spent the better part of his explanation with my mouth hanging open with an expression you might see Mater make....uhhhh, whut?

Before and after school soccer practice has started so I don't see the Coach much.  I'm excited about the season and hope the boys do well and we get through it with no serious injuries.

Speaking of soccer, what on earth is up with picking Qatar for the World Cup in 2022? That's just stupid.

Work is going well. We have our annual clean up tomorrow and, while it has morphed into something quite different than the original intent if the day, it should still be a good day.  Work, otherwise, is fast and furious.

Oh, did I mention I'm doing another show? I've been cast as Grace Farrell in Annie. It opens the end of January.

I've become a little superstitious about doing shows as somebody important to me has died in the last three shows I've done.  Roy Finney, my beloved friend and mentor, died during the run of My Way. I miscarried Riley doing Godspell and my sweet kitty, Oscar, died right after I found out I was cast in Annie. Weird, huh?

Well, other than the insane juggling act that is my life right now, nothing is really going on.

*hysterical laughter ensues*

If you will excuse me, I will go slip into my white jacket with the buckles on the back now....  standard uniform here, in Crazyville.

'night, friends.