I have noticed that once you're a parent, poop seems to come up in so many conversations. I had this conversation with our friends Amber and Rivers recently. Then I realized that my last three phone calls with my mom have started by talking about Mena's bowel movements (she's had a bit of a rough stretch), and that Brian and I seem to talk about it at least once a day - what was it like? How many times? Color? Consistency?
Much more than I ever wanted to know about poop prior to having children. And now here I am writing a blog post about it.
Who would have ever thought.
October 30, 2008
October 22, 2008
Starting from the Middle.
Starting from the middle is strange. I think that when you have a baby there are expected feelings, emotions, attachments, and things that people expect from you as well. When you start in the middle there are not expectations. There are no books on how to start raising a child at nine months, or at seven years. There are lots of adoption books, but this is not adoption.
I'm not even sure how to write about the feelings. And everyone seems to have all of the answers, (Not that I'm not very thankful for advice...goodness knows that I need it!!!) but they are not answers for this. They are answers for starting at the beginning. It is difficult that no one we know has this experience, so that we can get answers - or at least dialogue - from people who know this starting in the middle kind of challenge.
Anyway, what I do know is that I am so thankful to our creator that He is always there. That He understands and knows each situation, each person, each heart. It helps with the lonely nature of trekking on different ground. He knows my heart, and my feelings even when I cannot put them into words. Thank you Lord, for that companionship.
What I also know is that when Mena sees me coming to get her up from her nap and squeals with a toothy grin on her face, or when she is upset and I am the only one that can console her, and when Cassandra comes to our bed in the morning to snuggle, that He puts in my heart a love for these girls. These girls that may be with us for a very short while, or for a very long time. Only He knows.
I'm not even sure how to write about the feelings. And everyone seems to have all of the answers, (Not that I'm not very thankful for advice...goodness knows that I need it!!!) but they are not answers for this. They are answers for starting at the beginning. It is difficult that no one we know has this experience, so that we can get answers - or at least dialogue - from people who know this starting in the middle kind of challenge.
Anyway, what I do know is that I am so thankful to our creator that He is always there. That He understands and knows each situation, each person, each heart. It helps with the lonely nature of trekking on different ground. He knows my heart, and my feelings even when I cannot put them into words. Thank you Lord, for that companionship.
What I also know is that when Mena sees me coming to get her up from her nap and squeals with a toothy grin on her face, or when she is upset and I am the only one that can console her, and when Cassandra comes to our bed in the morning to snuggle, that He puts in my heart a love for these girls. These girls that may be with us for a very short while, or for a very long time. Only He knows.
October 13, 2008
Joy.
This takes everything. When you become a parent, it IS your life - it requires all of you. I'm so glad for short nap times when I can spend some time finding God. In some ways, since this adventure has started, I feel like I have lost a part of myself - primarily because I don't have time to think about that very thing - myself. Which brings me to the things God has surfaced in my life through this trial:
1. My impatience.
2. My selfishness.
Parenting does not allow for these - so they really stick out like a sore thumb. God is working on these in me. I find myself thinking, "I just want some normalcy back!" (which no longer exists) and longing to be at YAMS or out with Brian instead of doing bed time. That's when God stops me and says, "Maggie, why are you doing this? What makes this worth it, the conditions of your current circumstances, or me?"
So when Mena is crying and won't take her nap, or when Cassandra just can't make it through her homework - I have to stop asking God to change my circumstances, because that is His lesson plan. Instead I have to ask him to change my heart to be more like His.
With all of that said, thank you Mom.
1. My impatience.
2. My selfishness.
Parenting does not allow for these - so they really stick out like a sore thumb. God is working on these in me. I find myself thinking, "I just want some normalcy back!" (which no longer exists) and longing to be at YAMS or out with Brian instead of doing bed time. That's when God stops me and says, "Maggie, why are you doing this? What makes this worth it, the conditions of your current circumstances, or me?"
So when Mena is crying and won't take her nap, or when Cassandra just can't make it through her homework - I have to stop asking God to change my circumstances, because that is His lesson plan. Instead I have to ask him to change my heart to be more like His.
With all of that said, thank you Mom.
October 7, 2008
Weekend Trip
I had planned on going to a conference with my mom this past weekend, and while we didn't end up getting to go to the conference, we had some fun times with the kiddos!
Our picnic on the quad at Mizzou. (ranked number 5, I might add)
ZOO Fun!!!
She's a Ham. :)
Our picnic on the quad at Mizzou. (ranked number 5, I might add)
ZOO Fun!!!
She's a Ham. :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
LinkWithin
