Yes, we are teething

It's something I felt pretty sure we were dealing with for awhile now.  The drool.  The lack of sleep.  The general crabbiness.  Today, I was trying to nurse Eliza and she would constantly stop and start to cry.  I thought, maybe it's gas.  So I burped her, and she belched like a champion.  A few minutes later, she was chomping at my shoulder, so I thought maybe she was still hungry.  It began again.  We went through a routine of switching back and forth the most constant thing being Eliza fussing and getting mad, and finally, I stuck a plastic (not cold) teething ring in her mouth.  Silence ensued.  And chewing.  Yes, folks.  I think we're definitely teething.  Now if only they would start to cut through the gums (which are not yet red and swollen, though you can see her teeth have moved down to just above the lip).

Update

So, if you read my post yesterday and wondered if I really did get up and go to work... I did.  I got up from my computer, cleaned the bathrooms (including scrubbing at the difficult spots in the shower door.  I will never get dual sliding doors on the shower!), vacuumed carpets, tidied the bedroom, and changed our sheets.  Very productive day, don't you think?  Especially when you count in bathing and dressing Eliza, feeding her, cleaning her up after her meals, playing with her, hugging her, making sure she gets a nap...  They weren't kidding when they said babies are a lot of work!

For today, my hope is to get some laundry done, tidy Eliza's room (there are clothes everywhere!) and get some organizing done.  I had a massive pile of magazines to go through and I managed to pull out all the ideas and recipes I wanted to keep.  But, they just ended up in a pile on my bookshelf.  That's on the agenda today.  We'll see how much Eliza lets me get done. :)

A woman worth finding

For my high school girls small group, we've been going through Proverbs.  I admit, this book is not one of my strong suits and it's been difficult for me to teach.  As I've been going through it, trying to put together lessons and things, Proverbs 31 has been looming over me.  I've gone to read that passage and commentaries over it several times, and each time I feel as if a stone has fallen down through my chest to weigh down my stomach.  This is a woman worth finding, and make no mistake: Proverbs is very clear that a good wife is the best thing a man can find.  A woman of character, who works hard, who makes her husband's burdens easier, who has no fear of the future, who teaches wisdom, who takes care of others beyond her family (how does she find the time??).  She rises early to see to her household, she deserves praise and she fears the Lord above all else.  Sounds like perfection, isn't it?  Are you like me wondering if she ever has a bad hair day or loses patience with her children (or are they perfect, too?) or if she ever even sleeps??

I don't mean to sound sarcastic here.  It's just that every time I read this passage, I realize how far I am from every measuring up.  I have admitted on here before how bad I am at housework.  Yeah, that schedule I made up?  Went out the door after Eliza was very sick and her schedule fell to pieces.  I have risen early to make my husband's lunch for him, but then head back to bed for awhile because I'd lost so much sleep during the night.  When, likely, I should have begun "attending to my household."  Sometimes I think to myself, "Does this Proverbs woman not have any small children?"  But, at one time, she had to have because her children rise up and call her blessed.  Was she this together when they were small?

Truth is, Eliza is often the reason I don't get a lot of work done.  She is too demanding, or things just happen (can you say two blow outs in a matter of hours?), or she won't nap.  But sometimes I wonder if it's just an excuse.  Then again, running the vacuum while she's sitting in the living room really isn't a hot idea, and cleaning the bathroom if she's with me makes me a little nervous because of the fumes of the cleaners in such a small space.  And sadly, she's currently going through a phase where if I'm in the room, and I'm not holding her, she throws a fit.  I can only take that so long, sadly.  (And though Mom tells me to let her cry, she can only take it so long as well. ;) )  Still.  I know moms with four children, five children, who homeschool, who do a variety of things, and still manage to keep their homes in working order and put good meals on the table.  (This is another subject for posting to come soon.)  Surely, then, I could, too, right?

Don't mistake: the condemnation is mine alone.  I have an amazing husband.  A husband who tells me almost every day that I am a blessing to him.  And a husband like that deserves a Proverbs wife, a woman of character and a keeper of the home.  So, I've got some work to do.  Excuse, me.

Exhausted

I'm beat.  Drained.  You know how you feel after you've been really sick, that exhaustion that just wears you down even though, technically, you feel fine?  That's how I feel.  Eliza has begun to wake up in the middle of the night and want to play.  We are doing our best to convince her she really doesn't want to do that.  But I can't really sleep if she's not sleeping.  Believe me, I've tried.  And unfortunately, even after I finally get her back to sleep, sometimes I still have trouble sleeping.  So, unfortunately, my brain is just as drained as the rest of me.  I have a post I'm working on, on the Prov. 31 woman, and standards and all that good stuff.  But I don't have the wherewithal to get it done and posted.  Sorry, but you'll just have to wait.  Hopefully this week, though.  (And Mom goes back to work for a little while this week, which means I'll have the internet to myself for a bit.)

*Sigh*

Eliza has taken to sleeping on her side.  I wish I could take a picture of it without waking her up because it's too cute!  With her little, diapered bum sticking out and her legs thrust to the side.  Makes you wish you could pick her up and cuddle her, but that would mean waking her her up...

I have to tell you

I'm really excited about my second blog!  No worries!  I'm not giving this one up.  But the project I've got going on over there really excites me.  Of course, I'm still in the planning/strategizing/organizing/setting-up stage, and that's what I like best.  I'm going to have to be in for the long haul to make it work!  So, here's praying for some perseverance.

If you haven't jogged over there yet, you should.  It's called Chronological Thoughts on the Chronological Bible.  Stinky, I know.  I had to slap on a title just to create it.  Maybe I should have put up "Under Construction!"  I have the subtitle/blog description I want, but that name just reeks!  If you have something better, let me know!  But the premise of it is that I will spend the next two years reading through the Bible chronologically and then blog about it.  Why chronologically?  Why blog?  Well, that's answered over there, so I'll let it do the talking.  I know it may not be exactly original.  Though I did think of it myself, I'm sure someone somewhere has beat me to the punch, and perhaps more eloquently.  But, I need this.  It's for me.  So, here I go.

The idea started when Nick and I were reading through Genesis together.  Our idea was to read through the Bible by the end of the year.  But we started late.  And we both already had two other studies/projects going on.  It became to much.  So we cut it down to the Old Testament by the end of the year.  And then we cut it completely.  However, I had really enjoyed it when we did do it.  I enjoyed reading it and I enjoyed talking to him about it.  I hope to get him on board with my blog, but I don't know if I will.  But still, the thought of being able to read and then "talk" about it with someone excites me.  So, dear reader, I am talking to you. 

New blog!

I've started a new blog!  It's obviously under construction as there's not much on it yet: not even an explanation of what it is!  But I will leave that info to the blog itself.  For now, here's the link, and a hint, and you can peruse as you like!


http://readingbiblechronologically.blogspot.com/

Hint: it's my Bible reading plan for the next few years!

I have no pithy title for this post

You know how when you're laying in bed, unable to sleep thanks to a full cup of coffee ill-timely downed with an after-dinner brownie, and you have all these wonderful reflections and they sound so good in your head?  But when you get up and log on to your blog to put them all down, suddenly the words don't sound right anymore?  Or, the fact is, you can't remember what the right words are anymore?  Yeah, it's like that.

Curse you, delicious hot coffee, with your infectious caffeine boosts!  Curse you, decadent brownie, that demanded the pairing of coffee!  Curse you, feeble mind, for letting words drain out like a sieve!  Curse you, aging body, that is not longer immune to the workings of caffeine!  ...No, not really.  I'll likely have another some day, just not soon.  It was that good!

Destination Flea Market?

I love to travel.  Road trips, long trips, even short trips to a town a few miles down.  It's all good.  And I've got some miles under my belt to prove it: I've traveled across four continents (including our own), hit some 18 countries (if you don't count international lay-overs), and I'm still looking for more!  My Bucket List is really just a list of places I want to see before I kick that bucket.

My mother-in-law is kind enough to fuel my wanderlust with her old copies of Budget Travel.  And I found one that seems like an excellent excuse to sock away money: a Global Flea Finder.  Yes!  It's a list of excellent flea markets around the world.  Athens?  Yes, they have one!  Tokyo?  You bet!  You know how you're always looking for just the right souvenir from a trip?  Find one on the cheap at a local flea market where you can haggle for a genuine antique right there with the locals!  Awesome.

And, in fact, there are a few places on this list from good ol' Budget that I would love to hit up.  Can I convince my husband to start saving for a trip to Cairo so we can find a one-of-a-kind flea market find for our living room?

(My mother-in-law, by the way, will be in Athens in October.  Perhaps I should pass this info on to her so she can do some shopping...)

A penny for you thoughts

I love being a mama.  I really do.  In just the five months she's been here, Eliza has brought so much joy and challenge into my life.  I wouldn't trade her for the world.  I don't get to go out on a whim anymore.  For pity's sake, I really don't get to go out at all anymore!  But I don't mind.  I have to haul two tons of crap with me whenever I do go anywhere, but I don't really mind.  I don't mind changing the diapers and it doesn't bother me that most of my day revolves around another person.  But there is just one slice of my time from my pre-motherhood days that I do wish I could get a little more of.

After Nick and I got married, I got in the routine of getting up in the morning, having breakfast, and then enjoying my coffee in front of the computer.  I spent this time reading e-mail, reading blogs, just reading on the internet and in the books I kept on my desk.  I wrote, journaled, blogged, and just took time to think.  It was wonderful.  I don't really get that anymore.  Back when I could schedule Eliza's day, I got some of it.  But now, when she wakes up before I'd like her to, when she doesn't sleep hardly at all, I haven't been able to find as much time.  (However, I think she has finally hit the end of her rope and at this moment has been asleep for an hour.  I'm hoping for at least another half, if not a whole hour more!)  I miss that.  Just time to think.  I rarely think anymore about anything other than diapers, spit up, extra clothes, and nursing schedules.  When she's in rare and happy form or actually asleep I might get some work done.  Or I play with her and marvel over what a miracle she is in our lives.  But time to think and reflect seems like it might be something I just won't get to do a lot of... for awhile.  Someday, hopefully, when my kids are at a stage when I can get them on a schedule, I'll carve out a slice of my day for just what I miss: reading and writing and thinking.  Quiet moments all my own.  But, likely, I'll have to lock them out of the room...

Happy 5 months!

My baby girl is five months old today!  Hard to believe, I know!  I keep thinking that before long she'll be sitting up on her own (something I look forward to) and then she'll be crawling and walking and talking.... She's such a delight.  She squeals and jabbers (but though she can make consonant sounds, she often doesn't).  She's chewing on quite a few things and we think she is likely teething.  She's fussier and having a hard time sleeping; you can see the buds of her two front teeth have moved down and her gums are a little red, though not swollen.  She is more willing to stay on her tummy longer and pushes herself up on her hands, something she could do before but refused to.  She hates her Tummy Time.

But she is a great deal of fun.  She loves to play, especially with her daddy, and she's warming to peek-a-boo.  You smile at her, and she will grin right back.  Her nose crinkles when she smiles really big, just as I did when I was little.  Her hair is growing and growing!  It curls around her neck, so it is hard to see that the back actually reaches past her shoulder blades. 

She has begun to eat cereal!  After weeks and weeks of trying! (We actually tried before the four month mark because she was never satisfied for long just nursing.)  She will only take it if there's something mixed in, so I've started making homemade baby foods.  I'm no super mom: I usually make up one vegetable or fruit at a time, puree it and keep it in the fridge, etc.  So far we've tried sweet potato, avocado, and plum.  She was a big fan of the plum and sweet potato, but we suspect the avocado didn't agree with her, so it was "canceled".  We've tried one new fruit/vegetable a week, falling back on the sweet potato because we know she'll take it.  I, like so many moms, hope to encourage her in her vegetables, but she is a big fan of the plum.  She enjoys her cereal so much now, if I take too long to mix it up, she lets me know about it!

Here's a picture her daddy and I can't quit looking at: it's a great pick-me-up when you're down.

Case in Point

Okay, so these pictures are of Baroque period statues, which is a different era altogether.  But still, if you look in their faces, at their arms, they are fuller than you would ever see on a supermodel or most of our actresses of today that are considered prime examples of beauty.  ** Please see previous post to see what I'm talking about. 

***Just as a note, these pictures are ones I took myself of statues within a cathedral in Florence.  Do you know how many famous Renaissance and Baroque personalities are from Florence??  Machiavelli, Galileo, Rossini, and Dante Alighieri are among the few that are buried/have monuments within this single church.  I was fascinated by the beauty of the statues and took more than just a few pictures of them.

Body Image

Tonight, I made the observation to my husband that if I had lived during the Renaissance period, I would have been smokin' hot.  And it's true.  If you look at the art, the paintings and sculptures, you would notice a certain voluptuousness to the women, not just in bosoms and derrieres, but in arms and legs, hips and thighs.  If you go by the depiction of woman's body by the timer period's art (which I think is rather accurate), you can see what the "ideal" woman would look like for that time/society.  Renaissance dudes would have digged me.

Now, before you make any assumptions about my husband, he did make the appropriate response that I'm "smokin' hot" regardless.  Very good man.  But I still ponder...

Trends come and go, correct?  So when is the trend back towards a more supple figure going to return?  Would it even be possible in a society crazed by health food trends, SUPERmodels, and the skinny jean?  What would it take to return us to a less skinny-obsessed to a well-padded woman?

There are two parallels that I see here.  Both the Renaissance woman's image and woman's image today are influenced by one thing: the figure that is harder to get.  Don't believe me?  Think about it: during the Renaissance only those who were rich and had access to greater quantities of food and greater quality of food were likely to be plump.  Though things were not as dire for the regular citizenry than in the Medieval period, still, you had to be doing well to have so much to eat that you were more than a thin frame.  Today, it's the opposite.  The ease and frugality of convenience and junk foods (or really, they are one in the same) has created a nation that is hitting the obesity statistics.  And instead of patting ourselves on the back and admiring our general gorgeousness by our ancestors standards, we have instead become obsessed with the stick skinny woman, who in her forebears' time would have been considered quite differently.  Scrawny, maybe.  Today, it costs more to buy organic or even just fresh produce than it is to depend on frozen commodities all year round.  Have you seen the price of peppers, even in season?!  Plus, the amount of exercise needed to remain stick-thin (unless you're blessed by an enormous metabolism) cuts into other daily activities: you have to be committed.  And really, a personal trainer wouldn't hurt, either, if you could afford one.  I wonder if anyone's done a demographic study on obesity....  But, I could be way off.  I simply know that from my experience, it was much cheaper to buy prepackaged, unhealthy convenience foods and try to make them stretch with some frozen veggies when we've been strapped than to try to indulge in fresh produce, particularly out of season.

An interesting thought.  I think this reinforces to me that, rather than being concerned about how I look, I need to be far more concerned about being healthy: being active and eating healthy and letting my weight stabilize on its own.

HURRAH!!

Nick is gainfully employed once again!  He's in training even as I write this at Schendel Pest Services. God is SO GOOD!  Thanks if you've sent up a prayer on our behalf.  Thanks for your support.  It means a lot to me.  I'm glad he's got a job, but I think he's even more so: he's been going stir crazy at home.  Things will still be very tight for us, and we're still waiting for Healthwave to come through to insure Eliza at the least.  I will have to become a pest at their door, and I've heard that they're not even considering applications from last year anymore, which is when we submitted ours.  Hopefully, we'll be able to get through and convince them that we could use it!  So, continued prayers are in order, if you don't mind, please!  We'd appreciate it.  But at least we can get on the road to putting things back in order!

Still Waiting

We're still waiting to hear back from the interviews Nick had last week.  We had hoped that by the end of the week we'd hear something.  It seemed so promising last week when they called every day to move him forward in the hiring process: a second interview, a back ground check, a physical.  Now, nothing.  We're still waiting upon the Lord to provide, and we're even still hoping for this job.  But it's hard waiting.  Especially after seeing so much movement last week!   But God is good.  He WILL provide, even if not in my time.