File Under: Huh?

How can something be new AND famous?

Just wondering.

Reciprocal Blogroll

You are welcome to join my new blogroll. It's very simple. Just link to me on your blog and I'll add you to my blogroll. Send me an e-mail (mail *at* cindee *dot* net) with your request and I'll check out your blog and add you to mine.

I just ask that your blog is not offensive (to meJ) and is free from foul language. Just heed Philippians 4:8 and things should be great!!

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.

Rebecca's Birds

Check out my daughter's blog. She's got a new post up that shows great drawings she did when she was 8.

LibraryThing

Newly added to my sidebar is LibraryThing. I love LibraryThing. Someday I will have all of my books catalogued there and will know exactly how many books I have. I'm guessing I have 1000+. It will be interesting to me to see the real number. You can see what I've catalogued so far by clicking here. It will be a slow process.

Abby, my little duckling

Hey, I've got a duck on my head!

I can't see it, but I think it's here somewhere!














Aha, is that it?!














Yay, I've got it!














Anybody have a clue why I can't see the Flickr photos I posted here. I can't seem to get it to work!! I put in the URL correctly but the photo won't show up. :-(

Figured it out!!

Which Superhero Are You?

My results:
You are Spider-Man
You are intelligent, witty,
a bit geeky and have great
power and responsibility.


Click here to take the "Which Superhero am I?" quiz...

Let My Lifesong Sing

I was thinking of changing the name of my blog. I thought about it for a long time and finally decided that it would be rather like renaming one of my children for no particular reason. I've settled for just making over the look of my blog (maybe, probably...eventually, sigh!) and NOT changing the name. I had even written a post about the new name of my blog. I'm going to publish the post anyway because it still is about things that are on my heart even though I chose not to change my blog name.

********************

The (would-be) name of my blog (Let My Lifesong Sing) comes from a song written by Mark Hall of Casting Crowns. This song continues to my heart and conveys something that I strive for, living a life of worship. I need to keep on understanding that everything I do is an offering to the Lord and I want my offerings to be the best I can offer. I am to be a living sacrifice. My actions need to reflect that.

Romans 12:1-2
Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (NASB)

Here are the lyrics of his song:

LIFESONG
Empty hands held high
Such small sacrifice
If not joined with my life
I sing in vain tonight

May the words I say
And the things I do
Make my lifesong sing
Bring a smile to You

Let my lifesong sing to You
Let my lifesong sing to You
I want to sign Your name to the end of this day
Knowing that my heart was true
Let my lifesong sing to You

Lord, I give my life
A living sacrifice
To reach a world in need
To be Your hands and feet

So may the words I say
And the things I do
Make my lifesong sing
Bring a smile to You

Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Let my lifesong sing to You

Here's an excerpt from an interview with Mark Hall:

Can you explain what you mean by the title track off “Lifesong.”

All the songs you ever hear from us are songs that we’re talking about in our church, things that we’re talking about and dealing with in people’s lives and as a group. We started talking about worship and about the fact that to think that we can live our lives however we want to all day long and then wander into a church at night and read a bunch of words off a screen--to think that’s worship is a misunderstanding of what worship is. (emphasis mine)

Colossians 3 says that “Whatever you do in word or deed, do it all for the glory of the Lord.” So everything I do is to bring a smile to his face.

The song started when you woke up this morning. Today is your song. Everything that you’re doing. I remember at a prayer time one night, saying out loud, “God, let my lifesong sing to you” and I knew when I said it that it was something that we would hear again. This has kind of turned into a theme for us.


Here is a link to the whole interview.

Another quote from Mark Hall:

“This is your life song. This is your act of worship: what you do with the life you’ve been given. A life of worship says ‘God, I’m waking up today. I’m going to do a lot of things, I’m going to go a lot of places, I’m going to talk to a lot of people, but my goal is to point others to You and to make You smile today.’ The more we live like that, the more we become like him, and the closer we get to His heart, the more we see that His heart is for people. So then you start seeing people that are hurting. And ministry becomes the overflow of a life poured out at Jesus’ feet.”

This is my prayer.

Quotable Quotes - 09/30/06

My favorite quote this week comes from a blog I read regularly, Life In A Shoe. In reference to the necessity of training the wills of our children, KimC says,

"How will they obey an invisible God in the hard times of their lives if they can't obey us now..."

Wow! You can read her entire post here.

Stone or Clay?

Which of these materials could become a bowl?:

Clay or Stone?









Maybe I should ask which of these could more easily be made into a bowl, because you are correct. They BOTH could be shaped into bowls.









The thing is the process of becoming a bowl is so much easier on the clay because it is yielding, malleable, pliable, willing. The stone can become a bowl but it's going to be a much tougher process on the bowl. Tougher on the one forming it as well. Instead of warm, gentle hands in direct contact with the bowl as it's being formed it will be hard, sharp, tools chipping away at the stone. Still, it must be done gently else the bowl will break. It's going to be difficult. Sparks will fly.










Are you clay in the Father's hands? Or stone? Do you need to be more willing to let the Father have His way in your life?

Are you trying to shape one of His children entrusted to your care?
Are they more like clay? Or stone?
If they are a stone, be careful. You want to make a bowl; not shatter the stone.
If they are clay, don't overlook them. You want to make a bowl; not a hardened, unformed lump of clay.

But now, O LORD, You are our Father,
We are the clay, and You our potter;
And all of us are the work of Your hand.
Do not be angry beyond measure, O LORD,
Nor remember iniquity forever;
Behold, look now, all of us are Your people.
Isaiah 64:8-9

Grocery Store Alternative

For those in Washington, Idaho, Nevada, California, and Oregon who need a grocery alternative to Wal-Mart because of recent developments, I suggest WinCo Foods. Here is a list of their locations. I have done my food shopping here for many years because of the great low prices and their HUGE bulk foods section.

Anybody have any other suggestions for alternative grocery stores in your area?

Where am I going to shop?!?!?

I'm SO disappointed that Wal-Mart is about to make the descent into the pit. The pit of Places Where I Can No Longer Shop due to the events and organizations that it sponsers. According to the American Family Association,

"Wal-Mart has given its full endorsement to the homosexual agenda and homosexual marriage. Boise State University in Boise, Idaho, will observe LGBT Diversity Week October 9–13. One of the sponsors for the Diversity Week is Wal-Mart." Read the rest here.

This hits close to home. Very close. About 25 miles away. If Wal-mart does not pull it's support of this event, I'm going to have to find some other place to shop. I spend around $200 dollars a month at Wal-Mart, more or less. I'm sure I'll have to pay more in order to buy my stuff somewhere else. That's a bummer. I've shopped at Wal-Mart so long, I don't even know where to go instead...

Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans for Truth, a group that monitors the homosexual agenda throughout American culture, says,

"I think the corporate world is now in a rush to embrace the gay agenda fully. They don't see a downside, and it's up to pro-family Americans to create a downside. And to do that, those in the corporate environment with traditional values have to take a stand against the diversity agenda in order to see its growth stymied. Read entire article here.

Spread the word. Contact Wal-Mart. It's up to us to make a difference. Please post this information on your blog or link back to my post, either way it's fine. We need to get the word out!

WFMW - Precooking Hamburger

This week are instructions are: "Instead of sharing a new WFMW idea, go back in your archives and find your WFMW that you consider your best one." I've only posted four tips so I'm reposting my very first one.

For several years now before I freeze it I cook most of my ground beef (with diced onion, salt, and pepper). THEN I divvy it up into ziploc bags and freeze it "flat and smooth". That precooked meat is then really quick to use for spaghetti, tacos, stroganoff, pizza, sloppy joes, or whatever. I just add whatever other spices it's needs and voila! I'm done. It also takes up less space in the freezer if it's precooked. (It's good for 2-3 months in a big freezer)

I also premake porcupine meatballs and hamburger patties and freeze them on cookie sheets. I transfer them to ziploc bag when they are totally frozen. The patties go straight to the grill from the freezer and cook in just a few minutes. The meatballs go straight into a casserole with sauce and into the oven. Cooks in about 1 1/4 hours. It saves me so much time in the end to "do up" the meat all at once.

Oh, I also premake and freeze meatloaf, but I thaw it before cooking it.

Do you have anything that you precook and freeze?

Visit Shannon at Rocks In My Dryer for more great tips!

Abby's Nap

After she finally quieted down and went to sleep, I went in to check on her. This is what I found!:

Be strong to the finish...

...and DON'T eat your spinach!!!

2-year-old Idaho boy dies after eating spinach

Quotable Quotes - 09/21/06

updated to fix link

My favorite quote this week is from Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer. She refers to the show LOST as:

The Queen Mother Of All That Is Good And Right In Television.

I have to say that I agree!!
Do you have a favorite quote that you'd like to share?

Three Things Thursday ~ Vol. 2 No. 7

1.) I'm finding that I really miss the way church "used to be". I'm missing the good old hymns (I never was tired of them in the first place) and I'm increasingly disenchanted with the newer, fluffy songs. It's true that there are some really, really good new songs and some fluffy old ones, but by and large I'd like to go back to the old music or at least a good mix of the old and new.

"Make new friends but keep the old.
One is silver and the other gold."

2.) I dislike church shopping because of the disconnectedness that accompanies it.

3.) I kind of like church shopping as it gives me a chance to meet new people and renew acquaintences with old friends.

My Tummy Hurts

I just read a really good post. Here's an excerpt:

My Tummy Hurts

Her seven-year-old words echoed down the hallway.
Defiant, rebellious, and angry.
~I won't~
~Only if~
~But she~
~NO~

Consequences meted out,
as painful to me to lose our
bedtime stories as it is for her.
Choking back tears,
her words rang out louder.

(read the rest here)

Spiritually Single

I just read an article on Lisa Whelchel's website and I'm wondering what you (general reader) think of it. Do you agree with what she says here? Here is a link to the original article as well as the article itself.

Spiritually Single

My husband isn’t a Christian, so I struggle with raising
our children to be believers by myself. While my husband doesn’t prevent us from going to church, my kids wonder why he doesn’t go with us and why we disagree on some parenting issues. How can I parent in a way that respects their dad yet honors the Lord?

Common sense tells us we should submit to our husband only if he’s submitted to God. There’s one major roadblock to this, however: God’s Word isn’t common, and it doesn’t always make sense! Case in point—1 Peter 3:1 says, Wives, fit in with your husbands’ plans; for then if they refuse to listen when you talk to them about the Lord, they will be won by your respectful, pure behavior. Your godly lives will speak to them better than any words” (TLB).

You may be thinking, What? I’m supposed to follow my husband even if he isn’t following God? There’s no telling where we’ll end up! Besides, my children’s spiritual well being is too important to risk. But that’s where trust comes in. Even if you’re unable to trust your husband, you’re still called to trust God.

Are you willing to submit to your husband’s authority as head of your home and then trust God to take care of your kids? Can you keep from nagging or disparaging remarks when you walk out the door without your husband on Sunday mornings?

By respecting their dad, you’ll honor the Lord. And by modeling obedience to God’s Word, you’ll accomplish your primary goal of training your children to be believers. (And they may not be the only ones who come to believe because of your quiet faith.)

Tell me what you think.

Free Blog Design Contest

Susie at Bluebird Blogs has a contest going where 2 people can win a free blog design. Here's the scoop:

"Autumn is my favorite time of the year, and it's just right around the corner. To celebrate the beginning of the season, I'm having a contest for 2 lucky people to win a totally free, completely customized blog design from Bluebird Blogs.

Information on how to enter:

- Send an email with your name and blog address to bluebirdblogs@gmail.com.

- Entries will be accepted from 7:00pm EST on Thursday 9/14/06 until 11:59pm EST on Friday /22/06.

*Bonus* - Mention this contest in a post on your blog and receive 5 extra entries into the drawing!

The winner will be announced at Bluebird Blogs on Saturday, September 23rd, 2006. Good luck to everyone! "

File Under: Huh?

Here's an example of another inane idea the Postal Service has for making the carriers job even more complicated sure packages are scanned and delivered properly:

Tell me, if the carrier checks the other box on that sticker, who's gonna care? The recipient? "Let me check and see if I received my package. Oh, yes, here it is. It's marked 'Delivered'. I must have gotten my package then."

Maybe it's the sender who needs that information. What are they going to care that the box has been checked? Um, it's been D-E-L-I-V-E-R-E-D!

Most Likely Scenario: The Post Office needs to know if the package has been scanned into the system as attempted or delivered. Still, if it's been delivered, then it's been D-E-L-I-V-E-R-E-D and the post office WILL. NOT. SEE. THE. EVER. LOVING. STICKER. THAT. SAYS. SO.

Just who this information benefits I don't know.

And you wonder why the workers go "postal"? Just ask my sweet husband. Actually he is much more patient with the USPS idiocy than I am. I'd have quit by now! I'm lucky to have such a patient hubby.

WFMW - Holey Jeans, Batman?!

This is just under the wire but it IS still Wednesday. So, here goes:

IF you have a Shopko in your area, this may work for you as well. My son wears the knees out of his jeans SO quickly. Thankfully Shopko has this Kid Tough Promise:

Are you the parent of one of those youngsters who always seems to be coming
home with jeans ripped at the knee? No problem if you purchased those trousers
at ShopKo! We have a Kid Tough Promise! Any garment you buy at ShopKo will last until your child outgrows it, or we’ll replace it! (Same item. Same size.) Now
that’s a promise that will make any parent smile!

I take advantage of this deal several times throughout the year. I buy about 3 pairs of jeans for him in the fall and just replace them as needed. At first I felt like I was being sneaky and doing something that I shouldn't because it was SUCH A GREAT DEAL. But I'm over that now and very thankful to the mom of 3 boys that told me about Shopko's Kid Tough Promise.

Go over to Shannon's at Rocks in My Dryer for more helpful hints.

A cartoon for my rural-letter-carrier husband

Enjoy!:














http://www.toothpastefordinner.com/

Jon Stewart Post 9/11 Speech

Hat tip to the Headmistress at The Common Room for the link to this video. I completely agree with her statements:

Jon Stuart's (sic) post 9/11 speech is deeply moving. We don't agree politically, and sometimes he has a foul mouth. When he controls his mouth, he makes me laugh. I am sure that theologically we aren't even in the same book, and for this I grieve for him. But this was masterful. I wonder if he's watched it lately?

TIP: If you have trouble, as I do, with some videos starting and stopping while it's trying to load fully, here's what I do. I start the video and walk away. After it's played through once then I go back and watch it and this second time it plays without interruption. This video is almost nine minutes long and very much worth watching but if you try to watch it the first time around it will probably take about 15 minutes with all the irritating interruptions. However, if you don't have that kind of trouble then please, just ignore all that I just said!! :-)

9/11/01 - September 11 Tribute

Latchkey dogs?

I don't even know what to say about this. It's just so ridiculous. I say, someone in this position probably shouldn't own a dog.

Moms & Dads for Modesty

You'll notice a new button on my sidebar. Go to Everyday Mommy to read more about it. I totally agree!

Manufactured homes & equity

What does anybody out there know about buying about a manufactured home and if they build equity or not? Is it just a waste of money? Where would I go to get good answers about buying a manufactured home (or not buying one)?














Isn't it pretty??

Where did baby go?

Click on images to enlarge

According to this certificate BonusBoy received today, he has graduated from babyhood. I'm sad! The nice thing is that the barber doesn't charge a little boy for his first haircut. I didn't know that going in. He also gives the one getting a haircut a free Hot Wheels car.
We DID know that! :-)

BEFORE:


DURING & AFTER:

Happy 11th Anniversary

Monday was my eleventh wedding anniversary. I haven't taken the time to post about it until now because (insert excuse here).

Eleven years ago, July 31, 1995 at 10:10 p.m., I married my husband, Jim, on the shores of Payette Lake in McCall, Idaho. He has been a wonderful gift from God. An example of God's provision and protection. As my mom and grandma say, "He's a real jewel! You sure are lucky!"

And I am. So very.


Pictures of us getting married (eloping!):





















What we have accomplished in these eleven years:




What he wrote in the card he gave me:




The flowers he had delivered:



My only complaint? How he says that "you will almost be 50 and I will be in my mid-40's"! I'm only 2-1/2 years older than him and he'll never let me forget it!!! J
Oh, and how do like it that he has his hand in his pocket when he is kissing me!?!!?

WFMW - Cleaning out the fridge

I don't always take the time to do this, but I'm sure happy about it when I do.

BEFORE I go grocery shopping, when my refrigerator is at it's lowest inventory, I go through it and toss out any outdated or spoiled foods. I wipe out the drawers and clean the shelves and glass. This time I had just gotten back from being out of town for 9 days so there was precious little in the fridge. I took out the bins and shelves and washed them in the sink. (I rarely take it this far but the cleaning bug bit big time once I got started.)

THEN I go grocery shopping. It's really nice to come back and restock my very clean fridge! I'm including a picture because it's the best it's looked in a while and the best it's going to look for a while to come I imagine.

Works for me (when I do it)!

Check out other tips at Shannon's blog, Rocks In My Dryer.

WFMW - Trimming Baby Nails

It's always been easiest for me to trim my babies' fingernails (and toenails) while I am nursing them. I just make sure that their heads are propped up sufficiently using a boppy or a pillow (or the arm of a big recliner) and I trim away while they are busy nursing. While I'm trimming I usually say "It's your job to be very still and mommy's job to be very careful". After I do it this way for about a year I don't have trouble trimming their nails even if I'm not nursing them at the same time. When they start talking they can even say the instructions along with me. I've done this with all four of my babies and I haven't drawn blood yet. ( I hope I haven't jinxed myself!)

Check out other tips at Shannon's blog, Rocks In My Dryer.

Watching the clouds roll by

My husband and my son

"Looking for the sun,
Two loving hearts are better than one.
We'll have lots of fun
Watching the clouds roll by.

Cares don't mean a thing,
Whether it's winter, whether it's spring,
While two hearts can sing
Watching the clouds roll by."

from Watching The Clouds Roll By
by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby

I stole this post from my daughter!

Oh my goodness!

This. Is. So. Sweet.

What the enemy meant for evil...

...the Lord can use for good. (cf. Gen.50:20)

I'm so glad I stumbled across this story. What an opportunity to see God at work through His people.

Chris and Jenni are real life friends of MamaK. Their house burned down on July 12, and they lost nearly all of their possessions.
There has been an outpouring of donations to replace what they lost, but surely circumstances like this will bring many unforseen expenses as well. Please check out their blog and the Help Page they have set up, and consider donating financially as well. Their email address is provided on their Help Page.

I copied this post from Kim at Life in a Shoe. I was too tired to type it out but I wanted to pass it on to those that read my blog.


As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. Genesis 50:20

Nothing But Net - Autistic Teen's Hoop Dreams

Wow! You really should go and view the video referenced here at Blest With Sons.

Five Things Meme

The Deputy Headmistress at The Common Room didn't want to be the last one to do this meme so I said I'd bail her out...

5 Things in my Refrigerator:

1. leftover salmon that I forgot was there. It's too old to eat now and I'm very bummed!
2. salsa
3. milk
4. eggs
5. fried rice

5 Things in my Closet:

1. my 8 y.o. son's tattered baby blanket
2. a fire truck (my 2 y.o.'s - he like to play there)
3. a package of MD toilet paper from years ago. (I had a strange attack of nostalgia when they changed the packaging!!) (BTW, I got the picture from The Virtual Toilet Paper Museum - no kidding!! I didn't know it existed before today...)
4. belts
5. a box of travel information that I've collected about places that I want to go someday

5 Things in my Purse:

1. a baby teething toy
2. a brass heart paper weight that a friend gave me when she discoved my kinesthetic nature (it IS very nice to handle - it's been in my purse for 12 years!)
3. Tic Tacs
4. a back-breaking wallet
5. Sunglasses

5 Things in my Car:

1. strollers, two of them
2. a tattered map of Oregon - God's Country - where I want to be...
3. Trivial Pursuit cards - for those drives to Oregon
4. CD's & kids' music tapes
5. Wet-Ones - for the grubby ones!

I think it's very much in my nature to say that a Five Things Meme should have five things on five subjects, so I'm adding one (if I can think of one!). :-)

5 Things in my Junk Drawer:

1. shoe polish
2. caulking
3. oil lamp wicks
4. stud finder
5. the knob for adjusting the water heater temp. (little ones kept adjusting it)

Your turn to do the meme... you know you want to.
BTW, if you don't have a junk drawer, I don't want to hear about it!

Works For Me Wednesday

I've decided to join in the fun (even if I only do it sporadically) over at Rocks In My Dryer.

WFMW:
For several years now before I freeze it I cook most of my ground beef (with diced onion, salt, and pepper). THEN I divvy it up into ziploc bags and freeze it "flat and smooth". That precooked meat is then really quick to use for spaghetti, tacos, stroganoff, pizza, sloppy joes, or whatever. I just add whatever other spices it's needs and voila! I'm done. It also takes up less space in the freezer if it's precooked. (It's good for 2-3 months in a big freezer)

I also premake porcupine meatballs and hamburger patties and freeze them on cookie sheets. I transfer them to ziploc bag when they are totally frozen. The patties go straight to the grill from the freezer and cook in just a few minutes. The meatballs go straight into a casserole with sauce and into the oven. Cooks in about 1 1/4 hours. It saves me so much time in the end to "do up" the meat all at once.

Oh, I also premake and freeze meatloaf, but I thaw it before cooking it.

My Most Traumatic Night Ever ~ Part 3

Part 1
Part 2
(again, the disclaimer: if you are easily grossed out, read at your own risk)

---

My (so far) Most Traumatic Night Ever ~ Part 3 A nurse brought in a gurney and asked me to get off of the exam table and onto the gurney for transport to my hospital room. I wasn’t sure I could get off that table. I had to go to the bathroom SO bad that I was sure I would have an accident trying to dismount. I did manage to get down and over to the gurney. At this point, I mentioned to the nurse that it was of dire importance that I get to a bathroom. (Without telling me about it, they had decided that they really didn’t need a urine sample after all) She followed me down the hall pushing my IV cart. She stood outside, I went inside, and my IV’s snaked under the door. I don’t think I could possibly describe the level of relief I experienced at that moment.

Back in the exam room the nurse instructed me to hoist myself onto the gurney. I was still hurting some. The pain medication in the IV hadn’t reached it’s full potential yet. I stood there a moment envisioning myself, back to the gurney, lifting myself up with my arms and scooting backward. I asked the nurse if, perhaps, there might be a step stool I could use. She said, “Oh, sure”, and left to get one. I remember thinking that she should have thought of that on her own. Anyway, I soon was on my way through the hall to the 6th floor of the hospital.

Into my room they brought a bassinet for Rebecca and a cot for Lorry. Since Jim had to work the next day and Jaymarie had to fly back to New Jersey the next day also, Lorry decided to stay the night with me to help take care of  Rebecca. When I got to my room I was all ready for them to perform an “ER”-like maneuver, sliding me from the gurney onto my bed. No such luck. I had to scoot and slide on my own... again, to get situated. As luck would have it, I had to go to the bathroom again. After I had done that, I asked the (male) nurse if I could please have some underwear and pads (My originals had been thrown away in the ER), and a nursing gown. They went to the 8th floor (Maternity) and got the things I needed. Thinking back, I wish they had just put me in the maternity ward. I would have felt a little more comfortable. At that point, however, the Vicodin had really kicked in and I was feeling pretty good about things. I was able to joke around with the nurse a little.

At 1 am, the pharmacist called up to my room and told me that I WOULD be able to nurse while taking the antibiotics. When I hung up the phone, Rebecca woke up. Right on cue. She hadn’t eaten and had stayed asleep for four hours! God was working. Jim went home and slept in our new bed alone. I stayed in the hospital for two days. My sister, Junelle arrived and stayed with me the second night and Lorry had to go home. The only explanation for my illness was that it was a non-specific, post-partum, uterine infection. I guess it just happens sometimes and I was a lucky recipient of this mysterious infection. I continued with oral antibiotics when I returned home.*

That is the story of my most traumatic night ever. It's quite alright with me if that's as traumatic as it ever gets!

* p.s. My doctor ignored my complaints of continued pain with normal activity for the next 3 months and upon the advice of a girlfriend who said that this kind of prolonged pain wasn't normal, I went to a second doctor who examined me and found me "full of infecton". I went on a 14-day course of strong antibiotics which finally cleared up the infection. My suspicion is that the original infection never went completely away and that I had an ongoing infection for 3 months. I also suspect that had something to do with my body's eventual rejection of my thyroid. Hashimoto's thyroiditus (sp?) is an auto-immune issue and I think that the root of it for me was that prolonged infection. I'll never know....

The Size of Our World

You really must check out this post by Bruggie Tales. It's most amazing!

Backyard Water Fun

Padawan and his cousin are home now from church camp and cooling off!!



BonusBoy is having his fun as well.

Solitare

"So, it's a fun way to organize cards?"

That was my daughter's response to my explanation of how to play the game.

JellyBean ~ 6 Months

I got some (kid) pictures taken at WalMart today so since I won't have them back for about three weeks, I went ahead and took some pictures of JellyBean in the clothes she wore for those pics...

My Most Traumatic Night Ever ~ Part 2

Part 1
Part 3
(again, the disclaimer: if you are easily grossed out, read at your own risk)

---

My (so far) Most Traumatic Night Ever ~ Part 2

At the ER they gave me some regular Tylenol which unfortunately did little to stem the pain I was in. They said they suspected a bladder infection and would need a urine sample. Since I was still bleeding from delivery they would not be able to get a clean sample unless they catheterized me. (Yippee!) I was told not to go to the bathroom because they need to get a sample and I would have to wait a little while for that to happen. As a good nursing mother I had been consuming great quantities of water so to be told I couldn’t go to the bathroom caused me no little distress.

I was ushered into an examining room and told to undress, put on a cute little hospital gown, get on the table and wait. I undressed down to my hospital-issued, disposable underwear with a huge pad in it (remember, I was still bleeding so I chose to keep that article of clothing ON). I put on the fashion-plate gown and somehow got up on the exam table. This was no easy task. Hoisting my self up on a table and scooting into position was very painful. I laid on that table for an eternity. It was after eleven o’clock at night, I was freezing, in pain, and I was hearing Rebecca cry since it had been more than two hours since I had nursed her. She was nursing every 2 hours like clock-work and now she was screaming. Soon I reasoned out that Rebecca was beyond two closed doors so I really couldn’t be hearing her. However, as a new mother who has had four whole days to bond with her child I figured I must be hearing her with my new, parental ESP. Even if my ears couldn’t really hear her, my mammary glands must have. Now I was leaking all over myself with no bra or nursing pads to help absorb the mess.

After a while, Jaymarie entered and asked how I was doing. Crying, I asked how Rebecca was doing. She said that Rebecca was sleeping. So much for ESP. I thanked God that she was sleeping and prayed that she would stay asleep until we all got out of there. Jaymarie requested some blankets for me and I soon warmed up. I asked that she send Jim in and she did that. About 11:30 pm the doctor and a nurse came in to do a pelvic exam. Great, I thought, just what every recently post-partum woman wants! I still had to go to the bathroom, I was still in extreme pain, the front of my gown was now stiff and crusty where I had leaked milk all over myself, and they wanted me to scoot down to the end of the table and put my feet in stirrups. I was not having a good day! My medical record says that “on exam, she was uncomfortable and in moderate distress.” I’ll say. Although I would have called it extreme distress.

During the exam, the medical professionals were trying to get me to relax. Right. I mentioned to Jim that I would rather be pushing. The pushing during labor was much easier and less painful than what I was enduring at that point. I guess the nurse thought I was actually wanting to push and started saying, “No! Don’t push!” Whatever. She didn’t get it. During the exam they found a rather large blood clot and a lot of infection. But that is enough of that! When the doctor informed me that he wanted to start an IV with antibiotics, I started crying again. I hate IV’s. I delivered Rebecca without one because I refused to have it. When the poor guy came in to do the IV, I told him that, no offense, I probably wouldn’t like him after this.

Now it was about midnight. The doctor informed me of two more things: he wasn’t sure I would be able to nurse while taking the antibiotics and they were admitting me! At this point, I pretty much lost control of myself. In the first place, I was feeling particularly unlovely. I hadn’t done my hair and make-up, I had been crying a lot, I was in pain and then I found out that I couldn’t nurse my baby? I was devastated. And they were admitting me? What was I supposed to do with my baby? Crying, I told Jim to call my friend, Joy. She would know what to do. I couldn’t think and Jim was pretty overwhelmed and wasn’t problem-solving at this point either. I think she is the one who mentioned that Rebecca could probably stay with me in the hospital.

(to be continued)

JellyBean Eats!

JellyBean had her first experience with solid food today (rice cereal). It went without a hitch!!







Here's a 15 second video (it's a little dark, sorry!):