This evening was out of the ordinary. It was weird, and that's kind of nice.
At about a quarter till 9:00 p.m. the power went out in my neighborhood (I'm still not sure about the surrounding area). The lights flickered on and off twice, and then everything went dark. Well, almost everything, my living room was nicely illuminated by both my laptops which happened to be turned on. I was in the middle of working on my new website http://www.mommy-vine.com/ and I switched over to the newer laptop because besides being shiny and pretty it has a bigger and better screen. Anyway, I digress.
My sons and I sat in our living room for about ten minutes once I realized that the lights weren't going to come back on immediately I started the process of lighting every candle I owned, so my living room was nicely lit and "cozy" as my neighbor put it.
So while my son played with his flashlight and I fed the baby we sat in our softly lit living room snuggled under a blanket, I was trying desperately to get my older boy to fall asleep - it didn't work, as illuminating different objects in the room and calling them by their name out loud was much more fun.
"Look Mommy, I found my Wii!"
"Look, Mommy, Mommy LOOOOOK, I found my train set."
Then my son said the funniest thing. "Mommy, Daddy be here soon. He needs to fix the lights."
As I began to explain to him that although Daddy is great at fixing most anything, I didn't think he'd be able to fix this. I told him that the Electric Company would need to do that. At which point he very matter-of-factly and in no uncertain terms told me that his "Daddy can fix anything!!!" Well! When you put it that way...
The rest of our time was spent pretty much the same way as we waited for the Daddy who could fix anything to get home.
You know what? Within five minutes of his arrival, our power magically came back on.
Perhaps my son knows something I don't.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Strange Happenings
Monday, September 15, 2008
Library Card Month!
This is a bit tardy however September is National Library Card month. If you don't have one (gasp!) you should sign up and get one at your local library. What else costs absolutely nothing and yet enables you to travel the world, learn new languages, and immerse yourself in total fantasy? Plus, if you have a student who doesn't have one sign them up! Reading and the love of reading is one of the most valuable gifts you can give your child!
Saturday, September 13, 2008
What is up with those shoes?
A Queen Bee, a few Wanna Bees, and Somewhere In Bee-tween
My daughter started Kindergarten less than three short weeks ago; naively I thought the extent of my problems would be whether or not she ate all her lunch and how quickly she’d grow out of her new school wardrobe. I had no idea how wrong I would be.
As of yesterday, my daughter had to participate in what her school calls “A Friendship Group" because she had been bullied by three girls in her class. They are five years old! Here's how my conversation with her school counselor went.
Counselor: “Your daughter is a ‘free spirit’, not a ‘Queen Bee', and definitely not a 'Wanna Bee'. She’s somewhere in between.
Me: “Huh?”
Counselor: “To get an idea of what I mean you should watch the 1994 hit movie starring Lindsey Lohan Mean Girls.
Lindsey Lohan? Not exactly the role model I want for my daughter. If you haven' t seen the movie, Mean Girls it's about a high school clique where three girls ruled the school and everyone in it, including the teachers. My daughter just started elementary school for Pete’s sake! Two days ago my biggest concern regarding her time in school (which is only half day by the way) was what shape I should cut her P&J sandwich into. Now I’m faced with the worry of how she will master the art of delicately maneuvering herself through school when faced with challenges brought on by the “mean girls”, so that she can have a good experience while maintaining her sense of self and not commit “social suicide” in the process or give in and join the crowd, just to fit it. I feel like an Army General thinking up war strategies instead of a Class Mom.
Now my peanut butter and jelly worries seem so minute when compared to the fear of which “Barbie” she’ll become, and whether or not these early school experiences will affect her for the rest of her God given life!
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Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Breastfeeding - Nature at it's most difficult!
Why is it that when a mother chooses not to breast feed her child she will often feel the need to explain herself? I ask this question because it’s something I’ve done it myself.
When my first son was born I had this image in my mind of me sitting in a cozy rocker while cradling my son while he nursed peacefully at my breast. The reality was that I couldn’t do it. Physically all the parts worked just fine, it was my son who refused to latch on. I learned last year that he probably couldn't latch successfully because of a lingual frenum. If he'd he’d been examined while in the hospital it could have been corrected and the weeks of torturous guilt I felt could have been avoided. Not to mention the need for a hospital grade electric breast pump which left me feeling more like a dairy cow than a new mother. Because my milk was not induced naturally my supply quickly dwindled and I had to formula feed. I was left feeling like a failure, not exactly healthy feelings for a first time mother who did not have a network of o supportive mothers to offer encouragement and lend support.
With my second pregnancy I was absolutely positive that I would be able to breastfeed exclusively for at least six months, possibly a year as recommended by doctors. I read up on everything breast feeding related I could. I had a great group of women who had successfully breastfed their babies to lean on for encouragement and support. I essentially knew everything there was to know about breastfeeding and I figured with my knowledge base there would be no way I would have any problems; especially since I’d already done the whole newborn thing. After all I was a pro at being a mother. What I wasn’t expecting were more challenges. I figured since I had such a hard time the first time, I would be so relaxed for my second go that nature would just take its course. (You wouldn’t believe how something which is supposed to be the most natural thing in the world could be so unbelievably difficult.) The first 6 weeks were a blur. With the need to nurse every two hours I felt that my son was literally attached to me all the time. Add in the skin irritation I had to deal with because although he would latch on with out a problem he wouldn’t latch properly. Needless to say I spent many weeks pumping and attempting to be successful again, and literally exhausted because I had two children who needed me. At about 7 weeks my son began to refuse to nurse, I tried consistently to work through this by putting him to breast first, then pumping, and then bottle feeding. Eventually my milk supply dwindled and I gave up.
I’m surprised I didn’t give up sooner, stubborn I am, a masochist I am not, and when I realized that it wasn’t going to work out I refused to think myself a failure. The difference this time around is that I’m not beating myself up over the fact that not only did I not nurse exclusively for the first two months; I’m not going to reach that 6 month goal either. I made a valiant effort, and I’m happy about my overall breastfeeding experience. I am a little sad to know that part is done, and a part of me wishes that I could be one of those mom’s who could nurse with out a problem. Who knows maybe next time! Although my body is no longer producing what is nourishing his body, I won’t neglect the fact that I did carry him in my womb for nine months and tried really hard for two months to breastfeed him. However, I am looking forward to getting my body back to myself again.
To those mothers who can breastfeed and do it successfully I applaud you, it’s hard work, and unless you’ve done it yourself, you will NEVER understand.
To those mothers who choose to bottle feed their babies, I applaud you, be proud of your decision, and stop making excuses. What is important is that your baby is loved and snuggled, and cared for while feeding. He’s still going to look up into your eyes adoringly whether he’s breastfed or bottle fed.
To all the mothers who read this don’t judge a mother for her decisions. Instead of judging support one another because the choice to breast feed or bottle feed is inherently personal and with all the challenges that motherhood brings us we don’t need to add guilt to the list.
