Back In Butterville - Scattered Thoughts

We've moved in with the folks! It's going VERY well and we are sooo grateful.

In case you were wondering, it takes LOTS of boxes even to move just a few things.

There is no way we'd be able to put our house up for sale if the Gardeners weren't willing to let us live here. We started school today and I just can't imagine doing school in the house back up in Bridgeport while trying to get/keep it show-ready.

If you are a pray-er, would you please pray for a quick sell for us? A sign will probably be in our yard by the weekend!

Thoughts are a little scattered right now but I wanted to make a little post so you'd know I was still alive.

OOh....my sis, Uma told me that she started a blog today! She didn't give me the URL (cuz I had to cut her off -- sorry, sis!) but I'm hoping to see it soon. Maybe she'll let me share it! She's hilarious and I know you guys would love reading her.

Captain's crawling (even more today than yesterday!) He's so doggone cute. Can't wait to take some new pictures and show y'all.

Lastly, look at this Harvard article discussing the latest "babies need touch" research.

Things A Mom Says

I tried getting this video code for embedding in the blog but I couldn't find the original on youtube. So you'll have to go to this site to see this HILARIOUS Mom Song!

Coughs, Knobs, & A Faux-Hawk

Before we went to the beach, Henry was trimming the bushes. That night and the next day (beach day) he had a pretty rough cough. He said it came from the dusty mess found in our previously neglected shrubs. Made sense to me. He struggled with feeling icky off and on at the beach but we kept thinking it was just his outdoor work causing the problems.

Then a couple of the kids started coughing after we got back home. Not sick, just a nagging cough. Hmmm.

This past Wednesday, Captain and I got it. Blech. We needed some major naps and lots of kleenex. Henry stayed home with us that one day because I really needed to rest enough to make it to church that night (which I did.) Poor Captain was dealing with teething on TOP of whatever we had (btw, teething saps a baby of their calcium reserves which DOES make them more susceptible to germs -- even though peds usually say that sickly, teething babies are just coincidental...whatever.) Thankfully/unfortunately, the tooth he was cutting broke through on that same Wednesday. He had a rough day.

But we're better, THANK YOU GOD, and hopefully its the last of sickness for a lonnng while. Teething, however, is only just beginning.

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We're packing things up to move in with the Gardeners next weekend! The boxing process is not going as fast as I'd like.

We're also making official, gotta-cross-these-off, lists of things we will be doing before sticking a sign in the yard. The house should be on the official market in just a couple of weeks!

Tonight we bought some new kitchen cabinet knobs on ebay. They were an incredible price compared to retail stores like Home Depot or even Walmart (whose options were crappy anyway) so we're just hoping they're good quality. They look to be nice and should be a simple way to spruce up the kitchen just a bit.

Watching "sell this house" -type shows is my way of doing research in this apparent "buyer's market." Our agent will meet with us after Labor Day to help further.

*******

He-Man is awesome. I'm just sayin'. Since watching the HORRIBLY (horribly) lame kid movie "Shark-Boy & Lava Girl" he has desired "spikey hair." It used to be that he was pleased enough with letting the girls play hair-do with him during bathtime but in the last couple of weeks, he's seriously wanted to carry the look with him throughout the day. So I've let him wear it up some but without using hair products, it wouldn't last very long. But the look has grown on me so today I used hairspray and gave him an adorable little faux-hawk.

He was beaming with pride, looking at himself in the mirror over and over and smiling.

Then he cracked us up by saying, "I look like Zac Efron!"

As we were standing in the hall outside of He-Man's class after church this morning, two cutesy, blonde, teenage girls walked by and said, "Awww! There's He-Man! HEY He-Man!!" As they walked off they said, "He's so cute!"

Yeah. I'm proud. Sorry :)

Have You Missed My "What's Up With Us" Posts?

I know I've slapped a few posts around here lately but none of them have been the personal, what's-going-on-with-the-fam type posts. Tonight I figured I'd try to hit the highlights and share a few pics to get you all caught up!

In Captain news, he has his first tooth and is scooting around all over the place. He's not technically crawling but he's definitely covering some major square-footage. He makes the big kids crack up when he bounces back and forth on his hands and knees. The 13th marked his 6 month birthday. How'd that happen so fast!?

In family stuff, we went to the beach last weekend and returned Tuesday but because of our busted camera, didn't get any good pics to share. Pa Trippe took a couple but they were either fogged up by the humidity or showed my too-bouyant and scantily-clad (not really) body from a top-looking-down-into-pool-angle and I just didn't want to show you. The weather was great...hot at the right times, cool-ish breezes when needed, and a torrential downpour late in the afternoon when we needed a break from the sun. We had a great time.

In crunchy-Mommy love, I am working very hard, and starting to see success, with getting Ricki Lake to town, along with her Director Abby Feinstein for a pre-release showing of "The Business of Being Born." It hopes to be the "Unfortunate Truth" of the childbirth industry (childbirth & industry don't even deserve to go together but that's what's become of everything...) Anyway, I can't believe I'm actually getting so close to rubbing some major elbows with some real-life celebrities! More info on this soon, I'm sure!

In the "Make-A-Reservation-For-Me-In-The-Looney-Bin" category, I will share a crazy little development. Ready? We are preparing to sell our house and move back to Butterville! And if you think that's crazy, get this ... We're going to move in with my parents during the transition! I'll try to get a longer post on here about the 'hows' and 'whys' but just know that if I'm a little quiet, it's cuz we're pretty busy.

And BECAUSE of all of this, and one of the several reasons we are moving in with Ma & Pa Gardener is because of homeschooling. We haven't started yet but will start immediately after moving in with Mom & Dad. Ya see, as crazy as this might sound to non-ball-playing families...we'd REALLY like to be in a house CLOSER to the ballfields this year when we have 4 (yes, FOUR) playing. And I know that if we start school in our house NOW, I'll never get the house ready and we'll push back the selling. SO if we get OUT of the house and school elsewhere, we can have this house on the market very soon.

We're SO thankful my parents are cool enough for us to be able to hang with them for a little while. It will really be nice to be back "in town" and close to everything again. And I believe that being out of our house will prevent me from having too much more gray hair through the process.

In closing, I'll share a couple of pics from the week. Of course the first is Captain but then there's a couple showing the kids playing outside with their race track pieces dumping cars off the roller coaster into the water table. It's child abuse to send the kids outside without at least a little water to play with!

Hope you're all staying cool!

Ha! "Diabeetus"

I can't stand these advertisements but my kids cackle over Wilfred's commercials...and ALL because of the funny way he pronounces this word.

Boy, they are gonna LOVE this! (Thanks to Jen to making me aware of it!)

Impressive!

Sweet & funny song by a Daddy on youtube.

I Hope This Lady Really CAN Sing

Otherwise, she really made a stupid decision.

My Story

In conclusion of World Breastfeeding Week, I thought I'd share a brief version of my breastfeeding story.

In 1996, when Ray was born, I had no idea there would even be such a thing as a breastfeeding story. Back in the day, I was left to rely on the small world of office birth and parenting stories and had very little input from friends. In fact, I really was just going through the normal course of doctor appointments, childbirth classes, and the one-hour breastfeeding class held at the hospital. I wasn't reading any books about breastfeeding because I was still in college and spent my spare time preparing for natural childbirth with the ONE (yes ONE) childbirth book someone had loaned to me. So I really just wasn't very prepared for breastfeeding and I guess I just assumed it would happen normally and easily.

And it did happen pretty well. But when I look back on how it started, it's really a true blessing that we had any success at all. I was very much a closet nurser and did lots of soothing with a paci. I remember being frustrated with those nights when Ray would cry after being put back in her crib or when she seemed to want to nurse again before 2 or 3 hours had passed. But somehow, we made it.

Until she was 9 days old that is! WOULD YOU BELIEVE I LEFT HER FOR AN ENTIRE EVENING SO THAT HENRY AND I COULD ATTEND A GARTH BROOKS CONCERT IN BIRMINGHAM?!? What was I thinking? (I am sooooooo sorry, Ray!) I know she didn't have very much milk expressed for her in a bottle because I wasn't making very much "extra" with pumping. She cried a bunch while we were gone. And I will NEVER forget feeling that music in my full boobs! When the concert was over, I could NOT get home fast enough. I was such a dummy....

At 3 months old, I was starting the weaning process because I knew I'd be returning to work. I tried pumping to supply her needs but the job I ended up having was NOT pump-friendly and by 4 months, I was having to supplement with formula. It only took a couple of days before she wanted nothing to do with nursing and was a full-time formula-fed baby. She got her first ear infection (that never really went away for a year) that first week off of breastmilk.

Fast-forward to Indie. Because of Ray's massive ear infections, I was determined to nurse Indie for longer. I was confident the formula made her sick and I did NOT want to experience that same pitiful baby stuff again. So I swore I'd stick it out.

But it was HARD! I remember wanting to quit at around 6 weeks old but Henry sat with us while I was crying and said, "What can we do? You know you'll regret quitting. What can help? Don't give up yet. Let's figure this out."

So I found some breastfeeding books, read them cover-to-cover, and did every step-by-step instruction in them. And, thank God, things got better. But in hindsight, I realize I probably had a pretty massive breast yeast infection because things never really got perfect with her, just better.

So we worked through all the stages the pediatrician says you're supposed to do...cereal, apple juice, jarred baby food, etc. And around 6 months of age, I felt accomplished and even wrote in my journal, "it was time to wean." Besides 6 months just being the "goal" I also knew we had a Disney World trip planned for the time Indie was 7 months old and I'd surely be insane to be breastfeeding while on vacation! OH HOW I WISH I HAD KNOWN BETTER! The hassle of carrying around bottles of good water and powdered formula was such a PAIN! Breastfeeding would have been a MILLION times easier!

Skip ahead again to Rocky. By the time I was pregnant with him, I was bound and determined to nurse for at least a year. I was into doula-ing by that time and made all kinds of new friends in the natural childbirth world. I was on the internet by that time and found a huge new world to research and interact with. I was finally being changed in the way I thought about things, and boy was it different.

And in all honesty, I don't remember too very much about Rocky's first months. I know it was horribly depressing and hard and that it was only by a mix of committment and laziness that I pushed through those first few months. We had yeast/thrush SO BADLY and I was struggling with post-partum depression in a pretty big way. I remember the agonizing pain of every nursing and the pitiful cries Rocky made as his rock-hard stomach struggled to deal with the massive buildup of gas in his gut. I remember being laid out on the couch while Henry took Rocky outside to calm him. When he couldn't walk with him any more, I'd lay down with him and be miserable in pain as Rocky desperately wanted the comfort of nursing but was painfully unable to latch for long. It was rough.

But when he was 9 months old, my desperation and Henry's prayers brought us to a new understanding of health and nutrition and within a few months, our lives were radically changed! We slowly conquered the yeast problems and our household was sane again! It was by Rocky's 1 year old birthday party that I realized this healthy-living stuff really worked and that I was gonna stick with this breastfeeding for as long as we both wanted because it was working for us in a really big way! I also had a bit of guilt-related stuff going on that drove me to attempt making up for lost time. Mix all of this with a Maya Wrap and we became a crunchy, attachment parenting family without really even trying!

Rocky happily nursed into the first trimester of He-Man's pregnancy. I don't know if hormones made for a taste or supply change but something made him ready to stop. His very last nursing was at the movie theater when we went to see the Jonah Veggie Tales movie. I distinctly remember him saying, "I'm allllll done, Momma." And that was that.

He-Man got the (I'd like to say...) advantage of me being older, wiser, more experienced, and MUCH crunchier than ever before. By the time he was born, there was no question that he'd be 100% breastfed for as long as we both were happy with it and I fully expected that to be at least 2 years. And I was right. It was at least 2 years. It was ALMOST 3 years! But another Disney trip played a part in weaning. By the time He-Man was nearing his 3rd birthday in March, we went to Disney the December before and his nursing was down to pretty much just naps and bedtime. Well, at Disney World, exhaustion was the only thing needed to get a child to sleep. There was absolutely no need for "mik." So with a few, "I think I like to nurse" sessions after our trip. He-Man decided it was done.

And I thought that was it forever.

And now we're to Captain and things couldn't be better. I can't believe I'm blessed enough to be doing this again. And time is going by much faster than it ever has before. I REALLY can't believe it's time to let him start experimenting with solids! I mean the kid's gonna be 6 months old next week!! We've already let him gnaw on a hard-baked dinner roll but I'm sad about the fact that I need to start considering some other foods we can let him play with.

So, you can see that breastfeeding has been a big journey for us. I certainly didn't start out as a passionate, some say millitant, breastfeeding Mom but with the blessings we've seen and the health improvements we've received, and the bonding that's occurred, I can't help but want to encourage other Moms to reach for the same thing. It's MORE than worth the effort. It's really just an amazing way to love and be loved.

Hope you've all had a wonderful Breastfeeding Week!

Happy Anniversary LLL!

Thank you for 50 Wonderful Years, La Leche League! The reaches of your organization are immeasureable!

Here's the LLL story from the women who started it all...

A Beautiful Way To Do A Beautiful Thing

PLEASE don't think you have to be a public nurser to breastfeed successfully. I have to say that being able to nurse discreetly in public is awesome because you can often calm a fussy/squirmy baby without anyone having a clue what's going on. I know, however, that the "discreet" part of nursing is sometimes difficult and often requires lots of attempts, patience, and practice.

So, for those who prefer a little assurance that their 'bidness' is kept private, these HOOTER HIDERS (aka Nursing Covers) might be just the thing for you! The fabrics are GORGEOUS!!!

(Gotta give source kudos to Lactation Consultant Extraordinaire, Amy Spangler, for her site www.babygooroo.com. It's a new favorite I stumbled upon this week.)

Happy Breastfeeding Week!

Did You Know You Can Breastfeed With A Nipple Piercing?

Not that I will ever speak from experience on that one but it's one of the issues mentioned on the "Is This Safe When Breastfeeding?" page.

Happy Breastfeeding Week!

Breastfeeding - A Blessing & A Right!

Tonight, 5 teenagers got their giggles from realizing that I was nursing Captain at Chick-Fil-A. They weren't ugly about it but when the first one noticed and nodded towards us to tell his friends to look at us, their previously loud table got VERY quiet. Then there was lots of whispering. I think they tried to hide the fact that they were staring by changing the subject, which I thought was nice enough. They could have gone on and on about it but they apparently didn't want me to know they had seen us.

I really wish it wasn't such an odd thing for people to see a baby eating at Mom's Diner! Breastfeeding is something that should be seen happening more often than not...

At least no one has ever made a fuss about it with us. Many Moms, sadly, can't say that. There are lots of places that have caused a ruckus over a nursing mother. I guess our day of confrontation could be ahead of us but hopefully we won't ever have to educate anyone of our breastfeeding rights in a controversial manner.

In case you're wondering, here's some info about Breastfeeding Laws for each state.



Happy Breastfeeding Week!

US Prison System Could Take A Lesson

Although, I don't believe American prisoners would cooperate.
From a prison in the Phillipines (I LOVE THIS!!!)

I <3 NY's New Gift Bags!

Go NYC!

New York City’s public hospital system announced this morning that it is no longer supplying free baby-formula samples in the gift bags it provides to new mothers.

Happy World Breastfeeding Week!

Happy World Breastfeeding Week!!!

World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action says breastfeeding within the first hour of birth ensures child survival. "Women have a right to this knowledge and to receive the support they need to initiate breastfeeding," the WABA statement adds.

Henry Wants To Know Why I Don't Have Normal Dreams

Last night, just before going to bed, I was working on labeling some old posts and making sure all the names were changed (to protect the innocent, of course.)

I guess I was still thinking about the blogosphere when I drifted off to sleep...

And then I ended up DREAMING this

My memory starts with Ryan hearing me contemplate ways I can blog about things near and dear to my heart without the information being received by readers in an unintended way. His reply to me was something like, "yeah...cuz I don't really understand all this glyconutrient stuff you talk about."

I answered something like, "Really? Well sometimes you have to receive the info like a child and not like an adult."

I then proceeded with, "Can I help you see this from a child's point of view?"

Then I took out my magic wand and tapped him on the head. He turned into CAPTAIN! So I sat him in a high chair next to me and started drawing diagrams and talked about the "good guys" that make up our immune system and the "bad guys" that come in the form of viruses and bacterias. That's when Ryan/Captain started chewing on the paper I was using to draw diagrams of human cells.

I realized at that point that I had made Ryan TOO young so I tapped him with my magic wand again and turned him into Grayson "You'll Be Grinnin' When You Buy From McKinnon" Russell. Thankfully, that was a good match and he was able to listen to and understand exactly how glyconutrients help the immune system. After hearing my explanation, he nodded and ran off to the backyard to swing on the swingset.

Next thing I remember was a very crowded kitchen. Henry said, "Look! That's a lot of people for supper. Do you want me to start the macaroni and cheese?"

The last vision I remember of this dream is of the two boxes of Annie's Organic Macaroni and Cheese sitting on my kitchen counter. The boxes were orange so I obviously dream in color.

Crazy, huh?

It Ain't Easy Goin' Green....

Interesting.

Look who appears to have the greener house.

Cheeseball's Naughty Cousin

Yeah, I'm all about HEALTH but sometimes a little no-no dessert does a body good :) This is the yummy goodness I took to Jamie's the other day and what I'll be taking to the lake again tomorrow.

It's Cheeseball's Naughty Cousin - The Chocolate Chip Cheeseball!
This needs chill time so keep that in mind...

This tastes just like cookie dough and actually IS healthier than eating the tubed stuff!! Rolled in chopped pecans, this chip-studded spread is wonderful with graham crackers. I use the "stick" kind because they're easy for scooping. I think Nilla wafers would be yummy, too!

1 pkg (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter (the real stuff), softened

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup confectioners sugar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

3/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup finely chopped pecans

Graham crackers

In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla until fluffy. Add sugars, and beat again. Stir in chocolate chips (minis can be mixed in with mixer on low.) Refrigerate for 2 hours. After firming, shape into ball and put in fridge again for at least 1 hour. Just before serving, roll cheese ball in pecans. Serve with graham crackers.

IRL

There are Internet friends and there are friends IRL (in real life) but there is a double blessing when you have people who are BOTH!

First, I have my friend, Jen, who started as an IRL friend, then became a web friend because of distance, and ultimately stayed an IRL friend BECAUSE of staying in touch through the web. Now I'd like to CONGRATULATE her and her sweet family in the ultimate net-geek fashion, by giving her a "HAPPY NEW BABY" shout-out on my blog! Her new son Jake arrived yesterday and I'm just so excited for her and Chris and Luke! Can't wait to meet the little guy IRL :)

Next I have to say how cool and creepy it is that an Internet friend recognized me IRL and introduced herself to me at Walmart yesterday. It's totally awesome that she spoke up and that we were able to share a hug but also a little bizarre that my family is recognizable because of my posting stuff online! (Lisha, I'm totally glad you spoke, though! It was great meeting you! Even though I am saying it was weird that you recognized me, I TOTALLY would have spoken to you if the roles were reversed!)

Lastly, email, blogs, and internet forums have allowed me to become closer friends with Jamie, after meeting her IRL because of Jen. Today, we were actually able to hang out together and share a wonderful meal and afternoon together. Thankfully she took some pictures of our good time today! I'll have to continue relying on other people to help me with pictures until we find a solution to our broken camera. THANKS J for sending these my way!

Re-Visiting The Cows

Some of you have received an email from me requesting your vote in this silly little Chick-Fil-A contest. For those of you who have not yet voted, PLEASE consider doing it now. We're in the top 40 but we'd LOVE to end in the Top Ten!!

The contest runs for a while (sept) but I have no shame in asking you to vote for us with every email address you have and to ask others to vote for us, too! We'd just REALLY LOVE TO WIN SOME FREE CHIKIN!

So won't you please consider going to www.ShowUsTheCow.com and searching for "My Brothers and Sisters Are Cow-tagious!" by either finding us in the Top 40 or by doing a search for AL pictures in the "Vote for Photos" section.

You can also click here and go straight to the vote page. I recommend filling in only the required fields, and unchecking the the box for future mailings. Then you'll need to confirm the vote in your email box and that's it!

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

And until our digital camera gets repaired, there won't be many new pics of us so help us make the most of the pics we already have! (And if we end with the top pic, we can REPLACE our broken camera with the new one included in the Grand Prize!