gagets and thingamabobs, taking over our lives one piece at a time...

My Mom and I were talking a while back about the internet. 

Don't worry, we are not banning it. trust me my husband wouldn't let me lol. 

He would go through borderlands and minecraft withdrawals, since he gets on his Xbox and computer and plays with his friends. :) 

Anyway, we were talking about how the internet has taken over every corner of our lives. 

We are on the internet constantly. we can even get internet on our phones,

(even without smart phone capability.) Just have them send a message in txt form. 

Our lives are permeated with it.

I was watching TV the other day, and a quote from the show sums it up.

 these kids had the internet taken away until, they learned to use it properly, 

A girl spoke up and said "I read on the internet one time, that kids used to do stuff without the internet."

And its true, today's children do not know how to do anything without computers, cell phones or electronic devices. 

When I was growing up, I watched a lot of TV  Much of my generation did. That is what we did for fun, Now I played outside as well, But a good portion of my time, was spent watching TV. I would get home from school and I would go straight for the tv. 

A tv commercial cracks my husband and I up, It's for a car, but holds such relevance for this.

The thing about it, is that, while she was sitting there at the computer her
parents were out enjoying themselves. and that is how today's generation are,
they would rather, "socialize" on face book then get out and enjoy their friends in real life.
I ran across an article today  about internet fasting and thought I would share as well.
click the picture below to go to the link. :)

 I had the great Blessing, when I was 13 of moving to the woods with no power and water. 

The only thing we had was a battery operated radio. 

We lived that way for about two years.

We hadn't set out to "rough it" so to speak, It wasn't necessarily that we made a decision 

to go without TV or such.

The simple reason we lived for two years without it, was that the price to bring the electric poles was something we could not afford after buying the property.

It wasn't that it was right there, it was I'm going to say a mile, or 2 to get it back. that's expensive when one person is paying, or even three. We had split the property, (20 acres) with my Aunt and uncle and family, and my grandparents. 

So we just lived without it, until we could afford to get electricity...We didn't completely go without TV  or movies, we had a generator, still gas was expensive, to just toss it away on a simple two hours, every day.

So, it was reserved for when we need the light at night, (Dad working on a car or running power tools for building.) Or, the occasional birthday or a special occasion. 

Instead  We listened to the radio.
Music, while we were cleaning, or such, and in the evenings
our local radio station aired Adventures in Odyssey
a christian children's program (which, I still listen to once in a while, when I can catch it.)
We would listen almost every night. We loved it.
Mom also  bought us a dramatized version of Pilgrims Progress.
I can still remember sewing yo-yos while listening. :)
Then some of my favorite memories of those two years, was my mom reading to us.
We would get a chapter book, usually a classic and we would spend the evening
 reading a few chapters of the book as a family. Some of the most memorable were:
Treasure Island, Huckleberry Fynn, and Jack London's Call of the wild.
It got to the point where we would all look forward to it.
All of us, even Dad would sit in our spots and listen to mom read,
I, many times did my hand sewing when mom was reading.
It was enjoyable and brought us together as a family.
And... we played outside. (Us, kids)
We read books, built forts and went hiking, swimming, and exploring.
and in the winter we went sledding, snowboarding,
 (not me don't have the coordination...lol.) had snow ball fights
and even a few times went "hooding"
It wasn't about about learning something (although we did.)
And, it wasn't about filling up the time  (we did that too.) 
or even about  Becoming closer as a family  (And, Yes This was accomplished.)
It was about having fun and enjoying each other.
It was about making due with what we had, learning to be content with little
and just Enjoying life and being happy with what God gave you.
 We didn't set out to discover that, but somewhere along the way it discovered us.
You know, after we got the electricity back, it wasn't the same,
we began to be super busy with our own lives and
that sense of enjoying the simple things somewhere in all the noise
 and confusion of an electronic, "internet connected, and busy world, 
It vanished.

So, pick up that book, yes, even on a kindle and read.
grab one of your children's books or even one of the classics
and read together.
Grab your tennis shoes and go for walk, get out and see the glory 
of Gods beautiful reation, change with each season. 
Go build a fort with your kids, even with blankets. 
Turn the tv off and sit down to a family dinner. 
You won't regret it, because
 before you know it, those sweet little ones, 
will be grown and off  raising a family of their own.

The Trials and blessings of a natural gift to mothers

I have been a mom for almost three months now. 

I know that I have neglected my  

blog, facebook, e-mail, and such... 

but I have a beautiful, smiley, sweet, blue eyed

red haired little darling for an excuse.

I love being a mama. 

It has opened my eyes to the wonderful blessing 

of my own mother...

Something i did not appreciate when I was younger

and regret profusely. Its an understanding that I think you can

only see after you become a mom. 

To carry a budle of blessing and joy for nine months, 

to nurture and nourish it with your own body is something wonderful

Then to go through the process of labor. to ssuffer through all the pain 

and uncertainty of your ability to do something so hard and something you have 

never done before is quite the feat.

To feel her head crown and her whole 7 pound little body go through the 

birth canal, But  then comes that moment.

The moment of relief, to finally have her out and the doctor finally placing he;r in your arms.

to have her look at you with those very alert beautiful eyes.

This is the moment your love becomes tangible, the moment you know it was worth all the

waiting, the pokes and prods of the doctors, and the pain of labor. 

The moment the world fades away and it is just the two of you...

Fastforward to  now...

I feel as the the Lord has given me a second chance to 

experience another blessing.

To breastfeed my daughter. 

I know it sounds silly and maybe a little confusing. 

Here let me rewind... 

The day my daughter was born, was one of the best day of my life but there was a moment that

made things hard for this little mama. 

while pregnant I tried to do as much as I could to get ready for her birth, 

but sometimes no matter how hard you try things 

just have those little speed bumps that slow the process down. 

The nurses  gave her to me to try to nurse and she; latched well,

she was one of those they call a natural, she knew what she was doing.

 But my body protested and my nipples cracked and started bleeding

 immediately. By the time I got home from the hospital both sides were cracked and bleeding.

No matter how many different positions we tried It hurt

I felt like red hot needles were piercing my breasts and

 I would sit and cry because of  the pain.

Please don't think I mean to discourage anybody , 

quite the contrary. I wish to let others know  so those young women 

who have struggles can say "I can do this, I will do this"

I didn't want to give up. 

I guess that's where my determination comes in  (The good side of my stubbornness)

Not only was there pain, but  she kept falling asleep, so she wasn't getting what she needed

and my milk supply wasn't getting a good establishment.

That first week home, it felt like we were going every day to our pediatrician 

just to check her weight which was going down and wasn't getting better.

after a few days of things not working I tried pumping.

I got half an ounce, and she wanted more.  I woke my husband up 

and had him go to the store and get bottle stuff we needed..

. later we ended up settling on "Dr Browns" because regular bottles were causing her tummy troubles.

 

This struggle went on for about a week when one night I was walking the floor with 

her and she and I were both crying, she because she was hungry, me because I couldn't

do anything. My husband woke up and I told him to get the formula... (I had gotten samples in the mail)

That was the first time  we gave her formula, the first time she slept full and satisfied, and first time I felt like I 

had failed in this situation. 

The next day we had another appointment and our doctor weighed her... she was right at the
10%  weight loss  mark... :(  It was labor day weekend  so we had a long weekend ahead
of us and she suggested  I pump, give her everything and supplement. We would see where she was after that. All the while my milk was increasing.  (We only supplemented for about a week or so to get her weight up, and my supply of extra bottles of milk up which  eventually did work and we were back on just my milk, the supplementing lasted about a week)
 Through this whole ordeal I had a few people who were mad at me for even trying to breastfeed.
 they openly said so and made sure I heard (or over heard) what they thought about it.
When you hear things like "That baby isn't getting enough." "She needs to stop because some women just can't breast feed" "That baby cries too much, you need to switch to formula"
And this from the person who told us to let her cry because they need to learn
how to self sooth...
So the stress was not helping my milk levels, and then hearing the formula thing from the dr
was so discouraging I cried all the way home. heartbroken
 (Remember by this time I am at a really low point, and still emotional from hormones.)
I felt like a failure, like it was my fault this had happened and that things were not quite right.

But the Lord reached down and picked me up.
My husband rallied behind me was my encouragement
and researched and told me everything he found out, helped whenever we tried to latch on
(he was right there listening to the lactation consultant, and helping me every way he could)

When we started trying to nurse again later, he was right there telling me how proud he was of us.
And the ladies at my church were awesome  encouraged me in every way that
they could suggested way to help me heal  encouraged me to keep trying  and told me that it was better to pump and give the milk than give up completely

All in all  I have dealt with low milk supply, cracked and bleeding nipples, clogged ducts, milk blisters. , and  pain of over stimulation from pumping.

In all these trials, God has shown me true blessing.
Even when it is hard, even when you feel like a failure,
even when your not  sure if you can go on with it and even when the obstacles
seem overwhelming and insurmountable.
If you persevere unto the end you get the reward.
 You see nothing compares to the moments you spend nursing your child.
Bottle feeding and pumping does not compare It truly is something magical and wonderful
to receive that blessing

I also have noticed that there is a difference in her.
she is more of a happy contented
baby than she was before and I thought that couldn't happen.

So, no I don't regret not being able to do this from the beginning, yes it was hard,
but it made me stronger and gave perspective.
When I was younger I thought its so easy, not gonna be a problem.
But breastfeeding is hard, that's not a bad thing
Don't be afraid to say something is hard,
lots of things that are good are hard
I am joyful that not everyone has to struggle with  nursing,
But to those of us who do have to work all that much harder,
The moments that we do succeed are that much more precious
and  that much more satisfying.
 to know that we earned these moments, that these moments are the payment
for every ounce of hard work (pun intended)
In the end I am so much more thankful for the moments when we are snuggled up
or she stops nursing long enough to smile at me. than if It had come so easy to me.

 

To use or not to use that is the question!

 

    

To Use or NOT to Use...

That is the Question!

I am writing this because I inadvertently set in motion a slightly heated debate.

Now I am not one to purposely put something up to cause an argument, or debate, but this is kind of important...
It started with the posting of a picture of a MOBY WRAP

Anyway,  the concern was of suffocating of the infant
which, can very well happen, but can also happen with
other baby products even if used right-------------. 


The subject I want to address here is the middle ground.
what I mean by this is:
 rather than being the overly worried, over protective, and non joyful mama
or even the careless, non-responsible and neglectful mama.
We choose to be the mama that is informed, joyful and confident.


I once had a girlfriend that with her first child she practically 
sanitized the poor baby she was so afraid of germs...
she was such a stickler, that she made you wash your hands 
before you could even get near her little tyke.
this is a classic case of allowing fear to control your life.
of being so afraid that you don't enjoy your baby. 


Than there are mothers who could care less about there 
children. who knowingly allow their children to be placed 
in a dangerous situation... 


I'm not saying this person who voiced the opinion  was an over
protective mama,In fact far from it she is a great mama, but it got me thinking about things,
and wondering if sometimes we even as regular everyday
parents don't sometimes go overboard in some things.


Now obviously you wouldn't subject your child to something such as this....
Note: this is a gag I found on the internet... :/

But, the key to things I think are

 #1 the seeking guidance from God. That is super important.

I know as expectant parents my husband and I sometimes have

uncertainties Our goal is to rely on our Heavenly Father and the wisdom

of others who have gone before us

#2 And using common sense. Don't allow someones fears and insecurities 

to rule your life. 

#3:  Be informed. know what your children are using and you are using for 

your children.

I won't say anymore on that because each person is led down a different 

path The Lord leads each of us and convicts us differently. 

But whether it be a crib or baby carrier  the most important thing

should always be, before you buy do your research check the pro's and cons of a product

and always know the risks. So anyway, 

thanks for listening to my ramblings and being patient with me while 

I got my babbling done. :)

with Love,

$5

     

                                                  

   So the other day we went to go get my Tenn care appointment taken care of

and they sent us over to the health department,

to take the official pregnancy test.

It only took a few moments and I was in and out...

Well If any of you have met my husband or

even been on his facebook

you know what kind of sense of humor he truly has... 

He looks at me and says... 

you didn't take the test...

(despite the fact that he has seen two pregnancy

test I have taken prior lol  ^_^ )

You paid them five dollars to say it was positive.

Your not pregnant, your just Fat! :) :-D 

The things husbands say lol ;) 

I love my husband dearly, and he definately will keep me giggling for the rest of my life.
He will make an awesome daddy, and we both can't wait to meet our  lil' punkin' :)

Exercise...

Ok... I am terribly ashamed to admit this... 

But I have neglected this part of  my routine...

Before I got married for about four months I was walking 

two miles nearly everyday. and I really began to get into shape...

 Then the wedding came... oh boy...   

I simply, kinda forgot... 

well it wasn't exactly like that... 

I have a really bad habit that

when I stop following a routine I 

stop doing that when I get 

back a place where I can start again...

But, part of the reason 

was I really don't know the neigborhood ,

 The roads here are very busy 

with traffic and the I just felt uncomfortable 

walking by myself...

over at the house I had my awesome companion 

Jenny to keep me company,

But her there is no one who would or could go with me. :(

  Now that I am pregnant I am wanting to 

eat right and stay healthy...  But again I really haven't 

tried that hard and as a matter of course  I have gained for weight in the last few weeks than I want to... 

What got me thinking was the simple little non- lying ability of a friend or enemy... how ever you want to phrase it... 

          That awful little fiend we call our workout friends never lies when it is telling us we have gained more weight. :( And yes I understand that being pregnant  you gain weight- a healthy weight... 

          So in order for me to be happy 

#1: Eating right (which doesn't involve chocolate no matter how much I think I want it! lol) 

#2: That means eating fruits and veggies... not a sonic burger... oh yeah a healthy dose of proteins too. :) 

#3: this means getting exercise that will be good for me and punkin' both... (not over doing it.)

Does anyone else notice this is kind of sounding like a

New Years Resolution type of thing?

Oh well... Happy New Years Everyone Hope it is blessed and Full of

Fun, Laughter, Joy, and Love