18 October 2010

End-of-October Miscellany

:::We registered for baby stuff on Friday.
When we registered for wedding stuff 5 1/2 years ago, we had ONE DAY and we were in the store for 10 hours.  It's really hard work!  Friday, we spent about 2 hours deciding on a stroller 'system,' a pack-n-play, and some gender-neutral baby stuff.  Then I got tired of deciding and we moseyed over to the book department and registered for about 15 books.  Whee!

:::We find out the baby's gender really soon.
One of my brothers-in-law and his wife decided to wait till the baby came out to find out boyness or girlness.  There's no WAY we can wait that long!  I can barely wait till Christmas to open my presents, and this is much more of a big deal than a present...it's a baby!  So we can't wait to find out.

:::Dude, it's November soon.
Yikes.  I need to get back on the Christmas-crafing bandwagon.  I've totally fallen off since...well...since I found out I was having this baby.  (I had shockingly little energy for a long time!)

:::Knowing if it's a boy or a girl in there brings us closer to deciding the baby's name.
It'll divide our short lists in half.

:::I find myself surprisingly easily annoyed by little things.
Elevator music.  Cheap PA systems in stores and the muffled voices that are relayed over them.  Slow drive-through lines.  Slooooow people moseying when I want to hurry.  That kind of stuff.  On the other hand, I also find myself more easily amused; dumb jokes make me happier.  And on yet another hand, spotting a baby captivates me more.  (My days at work are like roller-coaster rides.  Repetetive music?  Check.  People who walk slowly?  Check.  Babies?  Check, check, and check.  [Look at that cute baby!])

:::And lastly, I don't understand that backhand-slap advice.
It may be that I'm more easily annoyed, but people, there has got to be a difference between well-meaning (if unsolicited) advice and unkind, fear-inspiring prophecies of doom

I get that many women want to reminisce about their pregnancies.  I get that when they ask, "Are you nauseous?" they really want to know and so I tell them the unvarnished truth.  (And it's not pretty...but it's like pulling off a scab: you just feel compelled.)  I am thankful that my friends and family love me, and I'm thankful for their kind, gracious, encouraging advice. 

But every now and then someone asks "How are you," hears my answer, and follows it up with something along the lines of "Just wait until ___."  Sheesh.  If I'm clearly uncomfortable now, why do you think your gloomy, Eeyore-ish pronouncement is helpful?  Please be kind.  At least tell me something I need to hear, even if it's trite.  Here are some suggestions: 
*It's all worth it. 
*When you hold that baby in your arms, all of this struggle will be eclipsed. 
*God's grace is sufficient even for this. 
*Christ in you strengthens you for any challenge.
*Oooh, I understand.
*That sounds hard.  I know you can make it!

::If you worry if the previous rant was directed at you, it probably wasn't.

11 September 2010

Babywearing contest

I just read about this contest to win an Ergo babycarrier.

I'd love to win it, dudes.
I love the idea of carrying your baby as much as possible but keeping your hands free for things like dishwashing and laundry (when I'm doing chores) and for things like taking photos and holding on to my hiking sticks (when I'm walking with baby and my babydaddy).
I've seen so many babywearers at the children's museum where I work and all the babies seem content and satisfied to be with the family and yet able to see and observe all there is to see.

Good luck to me!

30 August 2010

It's a .... Baby!

I'll just come out and say it.  I'm pregnant.  That's the big change coming down the pike for us.

Until today, this pregnancy hasn't really seemed real.  Let me explain.  I like the idea of a baby in March, and I know everything will change, and I trust that I'll be happy as a mom, but it's been .... a little .... unreal.  I know factually that there's a person growing and getting ready to meet the world, but my experience of this pregnancy so far has been 1) fatigue 2) nausea and 3) lots and lots of advice (95% of which is welcome!).

So today's doctor visit and ultrasound was amazing.  My husband got to come...he took time off work to come and see the ultrasound...and you would not believe how baby-ish that little fetus is!  It has arms and legs and fingers! And it was moving around: arching its back, moving its hips, waving its arms, kicking its legs!

Now it seems like there's a baby in there.  I'm getting excited.

25 August 2010

My Kindergarten Report Card was Accurate

One thing (among many) that my kindergarten teacher was right about was her assessment of my ability to complete tasks.  The category was "Prompt Completion of Task" and she accurately graded me with "room to improve" or some other positive way of saying that I wasn't good at completing a task.

It's a burden.  Those that know me and care for me tell me that I have many, many wonderful skills; I struggle with concentrating on the good when the 'room for improvement' skills discourage me as much as they do.

I have seen great improvement in myself over the last several years in lots of ways!  But my basic struggle with following through with a great idea is still there.

Well, this blog is still here, because I like it and I want it to continue, even though I haven't been really faithful to this little space.  I'm going to keep trying and trying; please bear with me.  I daresay the topics I write about will be the same, but I'll try to vary them a bit as well.

Thanks for staying with me!

22 March 2010

Waiting

waitingwaitingwaiting.

waiting makes me nervous.

so im waiting nervously.

28 February 2010

Olympics and Olympic fever

What a pleasure to watch the Olympics.  There's the whole 'Olympic spirit' thing and the fantasy that Sport will heal the nations*, which sure is a nice idea nontheless.  There's the idea that these athletes have worked hard their entire lives to get to where they are.  That they even get to compete is an honor, because these are the best in the world. Period. There's the hopes and dreams of nations with their national pride (yes, and nationalism) riding on the success of the athletes.  The emotional side of the games...these are people competing, people with loves and hopes and fears and goals, just like us.  It's amazing.

My family of origin is a sports family.  I've seen so many Broncos games, Rockies games, Rapids games, and even Nuggets games on TV.  Many in person as well.  I must admit I don't really like regular sports.  I don't get a lot of the rules and very little of the strategy makes sense to me.  I don't like watching a game and having people yell and scream...yet for these games I've yelled and screamed.

Joannie Rochette, the Canadian women's figure skater who skated on even in the death of her mother.
Kim Yu-Na and her lovely, graceful perfection even in the midst of so much pressure from her home country.
The Chinese pairs figure skaters, Shen and Xhao, who finally won gold!
Steve Holcomb, the American bobsled pilot who A) isn't blind because of an amazing elective surgery and B) won gold by a large** margin.

Everyone has a story like these.  And it's stories like these that make me love the Olympics.

---

*The Bible says that Christ alone will heal the nations.  That's why I say that Sport healing the nations is a fantasy.
**He won by, like, half a second.  That's hardly any time in the real world, but a giant margin in bobsledding.

Upcoming posts

Olympics and Olympic fever
Parenting (no this is not a pregnancy announcement)
Paper journaling
My job is awesome and here is a paragraph (or two or three) telling everyone why

Long Time No Write

Readers:

It has been a long time.  I haven't forgotten about writing here.  To be honest, I've felt as if I haven't had much to write about.  This isn't true, I know, because you can write about anything...but I haven't really had words flowing out of me when I've sat down to write.  If you know me, you know I'm not very disciplined; blogging takes discipline and focus.  I'm lacking in discipline.

I digress.  I'll write a few small posts this evening as I sit and watch the closing ceremonies, and hopefully over the next few months I'll have more time and energy and desire and focus to sit and write.

08 January 2010

Shelter...January 8

Psalm 11 (ESV)
In the LORD I take refuge;
how can you say to my soul,
"Flee like a bird to your mountain,
for behold, the wicked bend the bow;
they have fitted their arrow to the string
to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart;
if the foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?"

The LORD is in his holy temple;
the LORD's throne is in heaven;
his eyes see, his eyelids test, the children of man.
The LORD tests the rightous,
but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.
Let him rain coals on the wicked;
fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of thier cup.
For the LORD is righteous;
he loves righeous deeds;
the upright shall behold his face.

02 January 2010

Shelter...January 2

The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9:9-10

New Year 2010

I'm not big into resolutions, but last year I read a blog about a woman's decision to choose a word of the year: a theme, if you will. This, combined with my 2010 calendar choice, made me realize that my theme for this new year should be...are you ready?
Shelter.
I like it. Simple, easy, and a lot to ponder.
Who is my shelter?
How am I sheltered?
What am I sheltered from?
For what purpose am I sheltered?
And so on. We shall see what we shall see.
Sent from my iPod