Big Bird is My Hero

Have you ever seen this clip from Sesame Street? It is of a mom breastfeeding her baby and Big Bird asking about it. I think it is so sweet.

I get some raised eyebrows about the fact that Bridget is still nursing at 19 months. But it works for us. She loves to nurse, and while sometimes it is inconvenient for me, I do enjoy providing for her in this way. With our infertility issues, then having a rough birthing experience, breastfeeding has been very healing for me. It gave me a little more faith in my body - that my body could actually function the way it was intended to!

Even though I do look forward to weaning Bridget someday (she will wean, right?!), I am thankful everyday that I have been able to breastfeed.

Mardi Gras

What did you do to celebrate? I went to Dairy Queen and got a Dr. Pepper float. Mmmmmmm. Tomorrow, my sensible eating plan will start anew. It isn't called "Fat Tuesday" for no reason, after all. :-)

What are you doing to observe Lent? I think I'm going to follow a couple of daily devotionals. I guess I have an hour and a half to decide for sure.

Bridget's sleeping is going so much better. She is such a trooper. She is typically falling asleep by herself (7 out of the last 8 days), and she is sleeping a lot longer at night, too. Not every night, but most nights. I had some realizations about how blessed I am to have such a healthy kid, and I am going to do my best to never complain about her sleeping habits again. I am really tired - I really am - but I am so blessed to have Bridget. She is just the best.

Small Successes

1. So I already mentioned this before, but now we are on night three of Bridget falling asleep on her own! Hoooooooooooray!

2. I didn't lose my cool with Cox Communications when our Internet was down, even when they sent over a tech to fix it at the worst possible time of day, and then it went down two hours later. All seems to be well now, and I don't even need to go to Confession after the ordeal.

3. My mom came to visit on Sunday and stayed until Tuesday afternoon, and while I didn't diet while she was here, I'm still down 9 lbs from my starting weight, which is impressive to me. I need to get back on my full-scale, calorie-counting bandwagon, but I think I'm learning to make healthy food choices sloooooowly.

What did you do this week? Celebrate it!

The good, the bad, and the ugly

Good: Bridget fell asleep by HERSELF last night! I nursed her, held her for a few minutes, then laid her down. I was going to sit on the bed near the door like I have been for the last two weeks, but she seemed really chatty, so I just slipped out and planned to go back in when she wound down. But she fell asleep! Tonight she cried a little when I left, so I went back in a couple of times to calm her, but she fell asleep in the crib again. ROCK ON. She is still waking up frequently through the night, but I'll take what I can get.

Bad: Our Internet keeps going down. Cox Communications is gonna get a piece of my mind at some point this week. I can feel it. I have spent a significant portion of my life on the phone with Cox. They make me crazy.

Ugly: Me wearing my grandmother's clothes for a skit at St. Isidore's at Sunday night. It was a ton of fun, but I was horridly embarrassed to walk into a room of 100 people with baby powder in my hair to make it look white, and wearing old lady clothes. Everyone laughed, and I nearly did, too.

Small Successes

1. I have lost 11 lbs so far! Bill and I have both been eating really healthy and controlling our calories. Today, I even looked in a heart-healthy cookbook before I went shopping. Yay us!

2. I cleaned out the car. I will not reveal the contents that I extracted from the depths of the car, but let's just say the cleaning was long overdue.

3. I didn't lose my patience with Bridget last night while trying to put her to sleep. I sat on the bed calmly and even prayed. It took nearly an hour for her to drift off to slumberland, but I didn't lose my cool!

Cold and Flu Season, Thou Art Mine Enemy

This stinks. Bridget was sick, then Bill, and now me. The good news is that it is relatively mild at this point. I am not grumbling about being sick because I don't physically feel good - I'm grumbling because it is such an inconvenience! I want to be able to watch Ellie for Ben and Mandy, and darnit, I can't do that when I'm sick! I'm grateful that minor colds are our only health issues right now. We really are blessed in that way. I just hope we get to feeling better so we can help with Ellie! (And for anyone who doesn't know Ellie, her blog is one of my links. I watch her while her Mommy and Daddy are working/at class.)

On a side note, I have lost 9 lbs.! Bill and I are counting calories with Fit Day, and it is going okay. I hope we can keep this motivation going!

Tears for Cora

I have never met this family (although they look strangely familiar to me), but my heart breaks for them today. Their sweet little 10-month-old daughter, Cora, died of cancer on Sunday. It is tough to look at the pictures of that adorable baby girl and know that her mom and dad will have to endure life without her. Please pray for them.

When I read their story this morning, I cried. I cried hard.

There is something about knowing that a mother is sorrowing over her child that pulls at any mother's heart. I knelt down to the floor and called for Bridget. I said, "Can you give Mama a hug? Mama needs a hug." And my sweet girl ran to me and laid her head on my shoulder. That made me cry even harder. I think of Cora's mom and dad who won't get to see her run to them and wrap her arms around them. I think of how they'll never see her blow them a kiss. My heart breaks. I wonder why God allows such pain. I wonder how I would survive without my baby.

Then I remember that Bridget isn't really MY baby. I can no more possess her than I could possess the stars or the sky. Bridget belongs to God - He is just loaning her to me to love. And someday He will call His child home.

Please pray with me today for all parents who have had to say goodbye to their children, especially for Jess and Joel McClenahan.

A really cool prayer

I read this last night, and it was such a beautiful prayer that I wanted to share it:

O Lord, I do not know what to ask You. You alone know my real needs, and You love me more than I even know how to love. Enable me to discern my true needs which are hidden from me. I ask for neither a cross nor a consolation, but simply wait in patience for You. My heart is open to You.

For Your great mercy's sake, come to me and help me. Put Your marr on me and heal me, cast me down and raise me up. I silently adore Your hold will and Your inscrutable ways. I offer myself in sacrifice to You and put all my trust in You. I desire only to do Your will. Teach me to pray.

Isn't that nice?

This One's For Sandy

Sandy says that I don't post enough. So here is a post.

But I don't have anything to say. That's a problem.

But I love Sandy, so here's my post. :-)