Books that changed me

Better late than never, right? I saw this at several of my favorite blogs (Megan, Sarah, and Elizabeth, to be exact) and am only now getting around to doing it myself... it sure seems like we have read many of the same books!

Books that have changed the way I. . .

think about marriage: The Mystery of Marriage by Mike Mason (*this is actually the only marriage book I've ever read, and I did love it; however, I was single both times I did read it, so I'm due to read this and this.)

think about politics:

appreciate Christian spirituality and the personal essay: Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller, The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne, Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell, and A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken

view the writing process: Since I'm not technically a writer, I'm including the essay in college that had the biggest impact in thinking about the process of writing, Slouching towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion

mother: The Baby Book by Dr. Sears, Grace Based Parenting by Dr. Tim Kimmel (still reading this one, but it's great), and Easy to Love, Difficult to Discipline by Becky Bailey

go about my daily work: they're not books, but many of them ought to be: the blogs in my sidebar and in my favorites folder leave me inspired and convicted quite often

feed my babies: The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and BestFeeding

feed my family: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

think beyond myself: What is the What by Dave Eggars

I love books so much and this is just the tip of the iceberg of books that made an impact on my life!

Hey, Blog, remember me?

I'm emerging... Out of the clouds and haze of having a newborn for a whole month now (really? 4 weeks already?), but also trying to solidify a few things I've been ruminating on for a while. I hate to say something as vague as that and tell you I'll be more specific later, but that's exactly what I'm going to do. My time is limited these days with caring for the older boys and attempting to nurse the wee one, so as I'm able to add to the growing drafts in my folder, I'll share my thoughts here.

Quickly, though, I can say some blogging changes will be happening, probably piecemeal due to that whole time thing, but the first one I'll start with is my kids' names. I've thought and re-thought about their monikers, and decided that at the end of the day I'm okay using their given names. So blog, meet Shea (aka Bear), Connor (aka Bunkin), and of course the newest Avery. These little men, along with their awesome daddy known as Hunny, are the light of my life and the happenings of my days, and as I write about them I will keep in mind their safety and what is acceptable to be posted on the Internet.

There may also be some format and background changes, as well as a possible URL change, so bear with any construction issues, please!

Other than Avery's arrival (more on that in a minute), our lives have been busy with hosting company for a week and some uncertainty with Hunny's job security. The dust of company has settled but alas, work has not. If you are a praying person and would like to pray for clarity and peace, we'll take it! Having my friend Amy here was a powerful tool to incite some action on my part. At first, I was very homesick for Memphis and friends there (church! community!), and I still am. But after some discussion, Hunny and I feel we moved here for a reason, and we want to make a good faith effort at figuring that out. We'd like to honor our lease, which still has one year, and to take that time to really be proactive with relationships, both for us and for the boys. So, hopefully you'll hear lots more on those successes! Down with loneliness!! Part of that means I continue to lie low online so that I can pursue real-life friendships, maintain some sort of cleanliness at home, as well as support Hunny as much as I can while he seeks a new job or stays where he is.


On to the picture-heavy part of the post!! That's what you were waiting on anyway, right?

Remember this picture (scroll down just a bit) of Phineas and Connor? Well, same photo-op but with Phineas and Avery:

Yup, Phinny still thinks my lap/the Boppy is for his personal use despite being occupied. And a little side note: he's expecting a litter of his own. Sigh... yes, our other cat Mia is pregnant. The kittens should be pretty darn cute, though!

And here is Avery's solo act; don't you love how newborns literally just surrender to sleep (even if it is on their schedule!)?
And, Elizabeth, if you're looking at these pictures, I promise we don't just have Arkansas apparel, despite my t-shirt and the one of Avery here and on my blog! Just sayin'!

What I love about Avery now: his faux-hawk (well, it also looks like the tuft of hair, er, feathers, on a duckling called Fuzzworth); his gas or dream induced grins-they're totally lopsided; his spindly little limbs...Shea and Connor were much more stout than he is; and his complete and utter mellow-ness. He's so chill all the time (except when he's hungry or gassy, and those you expect and desire!), it's strange. But in a good kind of way. :) I still can't figure out who he looks like, so that'll be fun to watch.
Anyway, that's all for now... I'll be back soon!

Leave of absence, sort of...

As is obvious by now, I've not been a very good blogger in terms of frequency! Part of it is simply being summertime, there is more to do, and part of it is just where I am in life right now. I've had spurts of things to say, but a lot of it would have been complaining, and I didn't want to drag anyone down with me so to speak!
To update everyone in my personal life, I have about 4 weeks til we deliver this baby, which I'm greatly looking forward to, even though I'm quite disappointed it looks like I will need a repeat c-section. I'm grateful that Hunny and I have two friends willing to come all the way to Texas to help us out, but I'm still battling fearfulness for surgery recovery (if it comes to that) and still needing to be Mama to two little guys at home as well. I'm also nervous about what 3 kids look like in "real life"--I thought going from one to two was hard!
Speaking of real life, this is actually my main incentive to take a decisive break from blogging (as opposed to the accidental beaks I keep taking). I need to get stuff done. I just got done reading an excellent article about being a calm mother and "getting off your butt parenting", but while I read those posts, I yelled at Bunkin at least twice without physically diverting his attention and redirecting him, and I ignored a plea or two from Bear for me to help him do something... also while having my couch covered in laundry that's been sitting there for two days not folding itself! I can make a hundred excuses for why I don't feel up to doing certain activities, but the truth is, often I take the lazy route, leaving me with disgruntled kids and myself highly frustrated as well. I need to take a season, especially with this new baby, to reprioritize balancing real life and all the other things that take up my time (crackbookfacebook, anyone?). I have a girlfriend who refuses to get on the computer at all while her kids are awake... I'm on mine all day long for various reasons. Instead of reading about parenting, I need to DO parenting. It's great to be inspired and convicted and read about spiritual disciplines or healthy/natural living, but to what avail if I'm not actually DOING any of those things?
So... I need a break. I'm sure there may be random posts here and there if I'm particularly inspired by something or just want to show off my latest crafty adventures, and certainly I'll post when the new little man is here, but til then, I'm going to lie low both in my own blog and in the rounds I make reading others' blogs (in fact, I'm going to clean up my sidebar and narrow down to the blogs I truly love and get something from instead of trying to keep up with the blogging Joneses and link to everyone).

In which she cringes.....

On my way to the doctor yesterday, I had a bit of an "aha!" moment.... but not exactly in a good way. More of an "I really thought that?" moment. I've had the idea of social justice on my mind a lot, mostly because of reading Shane Clairborne's Irresistible Revolution, and just thinking through the so-called practicality of a missional mindset (while my kids are young and as I wrestle through my own opinions and beliefs) and wishing fervently that Hunny and I found a place we could worship and find fellowship. Anyway, driving through downtown, I saw a woman standing on a corner where I normally see the same homeless guy holding his sign. I've driven past this same man for 10 weeks in a row (I see the maternal fetal doctor every week, thanks, Diabetes!), and it kind of shocked me to see someone else in his place, maybe especially because she was a she? No sign, no expression, just standing there, and I have no idea if she was homeless or just there.
For some reason I recalled almost simultaneously two things I participated in at college. The first was a class that fulfilled my Life* requirements, called Hunger, Plenty and Justice. It was both a philosophy and religion course taught by one of the most brilliant professors on campus. And I barely passed. I struggled so much in that class, and at the time I simply said that I couldn't wrap my brain around the philosophy side of the class. That's true (I still struggle to think through logic or other forms of rhetoric), but I think there was also a spiritual implication I just refused to "get" at the time. I was trying to figure out my own faith, and the Life course (among other things) certainly did much to shake me! I wish I'd let this class impact me more then and grow me up, instead of me backing down and refusing to internalize the issues we discussed: the idea that there is an inequality of food distribution in the world and the implications of those who choose to tackle such a huge project. [*At my college, before Freshman year, you had to declare Life or Search, a 2-year "religion" general education requirement, the difference explained at the time was the "Bible" course or the "History of the World" path.... in retrospect, despite its being billed as biblical, the Life course was very secular, and the Search course was not nearly as boring as it sounded at the time. However, Search students seemed to have twice as much homework as I did, so I don't regret that particular decision! Not to mention 2 of my all time favorite classes were taken as Life requirements.. so there!]
The 2nd thing I thought of was a servant-leader group I joined to help fulfill some of my volunteer service hours for the Bonner Scholarship I was a member of. Besides the preposition at the end, what's wrong with that sentence? I only did it to fulfill a requirement: to log hours of community service. The group was called Micah 6:8 (He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.), and their purpose was to learn to be servants by being leaders in the effort to promote social justice. I was so clueless. I thought life was pretty good back then, so I didn't really understand the term social justice (or inequality) at all... I knew that I was poor compared to some of the other kids on campus, but who cared, right? I didn't even end up completing the internship, and again, I desperately wish I could go back and be moved by others' true desire to be servant-leaders and to give to their community.
As if that were not enough, I then remembered an evening I'd been out on a date and ordered a very expensive fish sandwich of some kind. I don't remember why I got a fish sandwich, because the mere idea makes me want to gag now. If I remember correctly, it's because I was at a fancy seafood restaurant, and I was trying to mask my distaste of fish (which I don't normally care for), so I thought, "bread will help this." Needless to say, I still didn't care for it, and I did my best to nibble the bread and make it seem as if I enjoyed the food, and then was too "full" to eat it all, so please box the rest for me, thankyouverymuch. Walking back to the car, a homeless man walked up to my date and me and asked for change. Truthfully, I told him I didn't have any, but would he be interested in leftovers? He GLADLY took that box of nibbled-on fish, and I remember how relieved I was not to just throw the food away (and thus admit to my date I hated the food) and pity that he would eat a sandwich I'd been more than wiling to throw away. And I was proud. Proud of my solution to the not wasting food and proud that I'd helped this man out.
WHAT???
Yes, all this passed through my mind very quickly as I took my turn at the light, but I cringed as soon as I recalled feeling that prickly sensation of self-congratulation for offering a half-eaten sandwich to a man who deserved a sit down meal and a decent conversation. I treated him as the dregs of society and patted my own back for it. How foolish!!! How humbling?! What if God gave me that kind of grace? "Here. I'll let my Son's sacrifice cover about half your shortcomings, but really, I was just gonna throw it away anyway, so you'll be fine." SHIVER.
I still have no idea what I think about worldwide justice. Politics make things muddy. My own priorities make things uncertain at times. I do know, however, that I have a passion to not just BE in my own little world, ignoring the sufferings of others. I want to offer myself and expect nothing in return. I want to serve soup in a homeless shelter and not feel superior. I want to teach my kids that there is more to being frugal than trying to be millionaires. I want to have my own eyes and ears opened so that I can see other people and hear their true needs as Christ would... and love them as He would love his bride. This feels like a tall order, and I fear falling very, very short of this. But it's the journey I'm on, and one I'm still figuring out what it looks like. I'm also fairly sure I'll mess up along the way, but at least I know that His grace looks a heck of a lot better than a half-eaten fish sandwich, eh? It might look a lot more like 5 loaves and fishes turned into 5000, and that kind of grace is pretty awesome.

Cloth diaper giveaway!

Oh my, way too much time has passed since my last post, but please, if you are praying for Josiah and his parents, continue to do so! I know Merri and Stephen have appreciated everyone who has lifted their sweet family in prayer!!

I have so much to write about and catch things up, but I'll start with OH MY GOODNESS, I have less than 50 days til this baby is born!!!! There's a lot that goes into that (while I'm technically 31 weeks, I'll be delivering by 38 weeks at the latest... so soon!), which of course means my mind is in overdrive!

One of the things I'm most excited about doing with this little man is starting him in cloth from the beginning. Since potty training is nonexistent not working at this point with Bear, I may have three kids in diapers, which means a lot of money! One of the reasons I never started Bear and Bunkin in cloth from their hospital days was my prefolds were just so huge on them. As I wrote before, I have some newborn sized dipes, and I'm very excited to get going with them!
As an additional boon, Simple Mom is giving away some cloth diapering options on her website. She has an EXCELLENT series on cloth diapering if you haven't heard me laud them enough! She has a great review of several of the major brands, and you or I could potentially be a winner of one of these brands, so go on over and check her out!!

You can call me (domestic) Diva

Oh, my, where to start? How about a little randomness? I'm a member of a local AP mom email group, which has been a pretty good source of information on things like natural-minded pediatricians, etc. Every once in a while a mom will share that she's getting rid of cloth diapers or that she wants a partner for a co-op, that type of thing. Well, the latest cloth diaper advertisement caught my eye, because the mom was selling her gently used FuzziBunz for at least half off retail price--that's a GREAT deal, and I really love them. (We just have a few large sized and Bunkin and Bear can both wear them; at this age, they're just a lot easier than prefolds [especially since I lost my Snappis], and with Bunkin's rash of rashes [ha!] lately, the microfleece liner keeps him dry and is soft without chemicals sitting on his skin. All that being said, I love them!) She was selling 7 small size, and I told her I was interested. She invited me to her home to look through all her leftover diapers. She lives about 30 minutes from us, and let's just say I got terribly, terribly lost on the way to her house. And the GPS in my phone was not working that particular day (grrrrrr) and she hadn't given me a home phone number, just her address. Just when I figured all my time was lost and I'd have to drive until I could ask for directions, I saw The Woolie Ewe. I even recognized it because it's where I bought my latest yarn for my friend's recent baby arrival (they are the closest yarn shop to where we live). I had to stop in... you know, for directions! Well, let me just say I walked away with a crazy deal, but still spent way more money than I ought to have. I bought this gorgeous angora yarn made by Classic Elite called Lush, and it is indeed one of the most luxurious and luscious fibers I have ever touched, and the Ravelry raves have been extremely positive on how wonderful it is to knit (though, apparently, it sheds like crazy). Very exciting. I even have a sweater in mind.

Oh, and just for the record, I did end up finding her house and buying some cloth diapers, though not the Fuzzibunz I'd set out for. She was asking a bit more than I'd hoped, and after spending money at the yarn store, I felt I got a much better deal with some of her infant fitted diapers and contour diapers that I'd been wanting to try. Bear and Bunkin had so much fun playing with her 5 and 1 year old sons, so it was a trip well worth it all around!

And of course, as you can see from my yarn picture, I'm still in love with my new fabric for Bear's quilt. In fact, the night I originally posted about it, I cut out all my 3" and 6" squares. I can't believe I made the math part so difficult! Just cutting it was so much easier! Tonight I cut out the 9" squares, and thanks to Hunny, we got a picture of a layout that makes me very happy. It is so bright and so colorful, and it was so cute watching Hunny poring over the layout to make sure there wasn't too much "color clumping" going on! I'm so excited about this quilt (and I'm sorry I keep saying that!).

And of course, Phineas had to "own" my newly cut out fabric pieces, and was not happy about me trying to shoo him off!
Love those legs, Hunny!

After my long evening of cutting and arranging, I was ready for a break, and thanks to our trip to Central Market today, I had the perfect snack waiting for me:

Don't worry; I didn't actually drink the Lambic OR eat the Lindor Balls... they were very tempting, though!! (G, that cheese is divine; It's a New York triple cream cheese; I'll find the name for you--it was heaven and the very reason I'll not be a vegan!)

Last, but not least, I have two superfluous Cute Baby photos... I mean, this post doesn't have nearly enough photos just yet, does it? :) Here is Bunkin wearing the sweater I made; ignore that it's a girl sweater and obviously too small. I wish he were looking at the camera so you could see how pretty his blue eyes are, but clearly Desitin is waaaay more interesting! (Don't you just want to cuddle those rolls!)

One more, because he's just so stinking cute
Well, I've had a blast being crafty and showing off, but I have an EARLY doctor's appointment tomorrow and it's after midnight... Off to bed!!!

Managing Chaos, part II

Phew! I'm finally back to blogging my Managing Chaos posts, and if you missed the first one on Beauty, you can find that here. The second part of my thoughts refers to the idea of Quality. I actually wrestled with what to write, partly because I'm still stuck on the notion of Beauty (the 2 can very well be interchangeable at times), and partly because quality seems to speak for itself. However, the more I thought about what Quality means, one concept came to mind. When I go to a restaurant or make a phone call needing sales support (or the like), I expect quality, demand it even. I know there are times that I have pitched a fit mentally or otherwise simply because I didn't get what I thought I deserved. Yet, how often am I the one with less than satisfactory service to my own family? I've served food with a bad attitude, I've cleaned the house with a grumbling spirit, and I've pitched my own temper tantrums with the slightest provocation. Thinking about the quality of service I offer to my own family has been humbling, particularly in this season in my life when I've been pretty selfish and frustrated. I am not going to freak out with unrealistic expectations, but I am going to attempt to think about serving them in a manner that tells them I love them enough to pull out all the stops for them and give them the best. I can offer the best quality food (whole, nutritious things with very little processing), I can offer the best room service (ha!) with natural ingredients instead of a bunch of scary chemicals, I can provide the best we can afford in terms of environment and toys, and I can put their needs over my own. I bet life wouldn't feel as "chaotic" as it does sometimes if I simply remember why I'm serving them and the best way to do that! This was a good lesson for me this week.

(And on a completely separate note, would you please pray for me as I have to make a big decision this week about my prenatal care?! Thanks!)

Commercial break

Just kidding-it's not a commercial, but that's what I kept thinking when I thought of starting this post off with "I'm going to interrupt my series with an Easter post..." I am going to finish the Managing Chaos posts, though, but I'd mentioned this particular "tutorial" to a friend via email, and she wanted pictures and the like, so I figured I'd post here so others could do it if they wanted to as well.

When I lived with Meg, one of the things I loved was learning various traditions she'd taught her boys, and I think besides the Jesse Tree ornaments, this one is my favorite. It is a tactile and visual version of the Easter story, and it works kind of like doing an Advent calendar in that you open an egg a day for the 12 days before Easter. Since today is the first of April, I'm late in getting this out there, but my kids are still a bit too young for this project so I'm saving up for next year.

Without further ado....

Oh, and sorry for the shabby picture. It's from my cell phone and on a spread out t-shirt with lots of shadows. Oops. The back row is eggs 1-7; front row eggs 8-12. The little brown papers inside the eggs have the corresponding verse for reading aloud together (and conveniently on the back it lists the objects and egg number in case things get mixed up). This set is one that Meg made for me before I left, and the asterisk denotes things that Meg actually made herself as opposed to using an actual object or prop.

1. Luke 19:29-40 (colt and palm frond*)

2. Luke 22: 14-20 (loaf of bread and cup)

3. Matthew 26:14-16 (30 pieces of silver)

4. Luke 22:39-51 (sword)

5. John 19:1-16 (purple robe/cloth*, crown of thorns*, and I also have the vinegar swabbed stick* that was offered to Jesus)

6. Mark 14:66-72 (rooster)

7. Luke 23:33-44 (cross*, 3 nails)

8. Matthew 27:35-37 and 27:45-48 (black cloud*, dice)

9. Matthew 27:57-66 (stone)

10. John 20:1-10 (burial cloths*)

11. Luke 24:1-9 (nothing for the empty tomb)

12. Acts 1:1-11 (cotton cloud* and silver cloth* for shekinah glory)

I hope someone else is inspired by this fun and inspiring little project, and if you do one, please let me know! Also, if you have questions about what materials were used in these eggs or how Meg made them, leave a comment and I'll get back to you, but despite my fuzzy picture I do think by reading the verses and seeing the correct object, you could easily come up with your own ideas!

Boys, boys boys

Just a very very quick blog update.... we are having another little boy!!!! I'm very excited, and Hunny is .... beyond thrilled! I think he may have smirked a little. He, at least, has a clue of what is to come, whereas I am completely naive sheltered! So, here's to the next half of our pregnancy. Oh, and I did meet with my dietitian today, and she wasn't as alarmed by my glucose readings as I have been, so I hope that is good news. I'm still trying to be diligent.

On unrelated notes, I'm about to pull out my hair with this silly baby romper, and if anyone wants to volunteer to make it for me, help yourself! Lastly, if anyone wants to pray that our house gets well soon, we'll take it; I'm just very very ready for all of us to be healthy and well and stay that way for a while!

Why diabetes sucks and projects to distract me

Ok, I rescind all that about being fine with the whole diet thing. I was trying to be fine, but I'm not. Can I just rant for a moment and shout out to no one in particular that I HATE DIABETES. HATE IT. I was still encouraged by ranting talking to G (who also has this stupid disease), but after a whole weekend of eating correctly and my numbers still being out of whack, I feel like giving up, or to be more precise, drowning my sorrows in the largest slice of cake I can find. (That would be "happy birday to Edah cake," if it were Bear speaking--he's obsessed with blowing out candles and singing happy birthday to his cousin Ethan since his birthday a couple of weeks ago). While that kind of indulgence is highly impractical, it's also completely wrong, but I'm so aggravated that doing things the "right" way still isn't yielding the results I need. In fact, it's even more annoying given that I have to count calories, carbs, proteins, and all the while try to feed two little boys and menu plan for a family. Oh, and did I mention the whole pricking your finger thing? At first it doesn't hurt, but now every one of my fingers is calloused so I have to use the larger needle size and it does hurt! If you want, you can imagine me stamping my foot in a moment of childish petulance.

Ok, ranting done. Just needed to explain why I've been in a Lurch (again, a la Dr. Seuss; can you tell what I've been reading to Bear?) and terrible food-related mood. Chocolate chip cookies anyone?

However, I have been keeping my over-pricked hands busy today doing a project I've wanted to do for a long time. And that would be unraveling a sweater to recycle the yarn. Yes, I'm that amazing. :) I first read about it here, then read about it here, then was reminded how much I wanted to attempt this after reading she's doing it, too. A couple of weekends ago B and I went to the local Goodwill and there were a ton of sweater choices. I bought 3 for $12 and while I'd hoped to go with 100% cotton or wool, I did get two all-cotton sweaters and one mohair/nylon blend. I took a picture of all three sweaters, but then accidentally deleted it from my phone. I do, however have my first sweater, a lovely butter yellow cotton sleeveless turtleneck:

Following the above tutorials, I got out my scissors and starting ripping away. I ended up having to just cut out the neck because of all the "bad" seams, but I still yielded quite a bit of yarn for the $4 I paid for the sweater! Here's an in-progress shot:

And the final outcome! The only problem is I don't know exactly how much I have, and I can only guess at its gauge (I'm thinking dk or sport weight if you're curious).
This was way easier than I thought it would be, and I've already started my second sweater, which I thought was a beautiful variegated maroon and baby pink yarn; however it's actually two strands: a maroon wool and a baby pink thread. It was a little tricky beginning the unraveling of the sleeves, but once I figured out I was dealing with two strands, it made a lot more sense and went much faster. So far, I've done both sleeves and have two sizable balls to work with.
Now the fun part will be deciding what to make with my cleverly repurposed yarn, eh? The yellow will probably become a baby garment, and I'm thinking the pink would actually make a really nice scarf and hat, maybe some mittens?

Letters to Myself, Part 4

This is the last letter in my series, and I'm sorry for the delay!

Dear 26 year old Misty,
You are in the somewhat unique and certainly precarious-at-times situation of being a new bride and an expectant mommy. Remember this first and foremost: God is faithful, even when His followers do not seem to be. The Church is full of people just like you who have sinned and who sin against others. Please don't let the condemnation you and Hunny have experienced make you so bitter you lose your trust in Him. But also own up to sin, be honest and real about it, and free yourself of the guilt that you carry. You have been given a wonderful gift-a precious baby boy growing inside of you. You're not going to believe how much life is going to change once he's on the outside!!
Love Hunny. No matter what. Remember how perfectly paired you two are, and seek to serve him in the little things. He loves you more than you even know, and he's going to be a pretty amazing daddy. Times are going to be hard for you two. There isn't much of a honeymoon period when you're hormonal and exhausted, and, um, you're going to be this way for several years. In a row. So rest in your husband's arms while you can before the little one(s) come, and when times seem too hard, pull those memories out and dust them off, display them on the shelves of your heart to remind him, too.
You know how you always compare yourself to everybody? Please quit that. It's not as much of an issue as a bride and wife, but as a mommy, you're going to face the toughest competition if you keep cutting yourself short. You will make mistakes. Plenty of them. But you'll also do some things correctly, and you'll even figure out that what works for you doesn't have to be what other mommies do, and that's okay. Use that god-given brain and mommy intuition!
And having a boy... what can I say? Your hands will be full. You will scream at him. He won't seem to have an off button. You will fall short. So will he. But He doesn't. There will be a moment very early on, where you will get a true glimpse of sacrificial love. Yes, my dear, it will be you doing the sacrificing. And as hard as it is, it's also the truest thing there is.
I wish I could tell you things will be easy and you'll get the hang of it sooner than later. I wish I could tell you that you'll always feel supported and secure. I wish I could tell you you'll never feel lonely. But I think you know why I can't tell you these things.
Just trust. You're not very good at it, but you need to get better. Trust Hunny. Trust the Father.
You've got some amazing times on the way, but I don't want to spoil them!
Love
Your 28-year old self

Letters to Myself, Part 3

Welcome back to my 3rd installment of my Letters to Myself Series.


Dear 20-year old Misty,

Wow, in college, and a Junior! At Rhodes. You are having the time of your life, aren't you? You've made the best friends of your life, been out of the country twice now, and are knee-deep in a college ministry that is central to how you are developing spiritually. You're also not doing so great grade-wise. You really should stop going to The Ugly Mug when you NEED to study; that's what libraries are for, and you know you won't work at the coffee shop! So stop pretending. Your GPA depends on it.



Other than being the best time of your life, you are also experiencing new lows. But they're good lows, I promise; they're the kind that mold you and shape you, your beliefs, and your views of God. I'm so proud of you for talking to Elin and getting some counseling. Talking is good, even when it is hard, and please, keep sharing what you're sharing with Bet. She needs to hear it, even if she doesn't think she does. She's listening, I promise.



Breaking up with John is not nearly as hard as you are making it out to be. I'm sorry he cheated on you, but even when he says he's sorry, don't go back; you need to move on. And don't skip a whole week of school just because life is hard. Damaris will help bail you out of English, but you have two professors who don't care. And that is bad news. This is not the time to do it all yourself. It is ok to ask for help. People love you and want to help. Trust them even when it seems like you've only ever been hurt--you're just thinking that right now because of your depressed fog. Reach out.



I'm sorry to say your relationship with Mom and Dad does not get any easier. In fact, it's going to get worse. They are feeling threatened and insecure, and you don't know what to think anymore. But living a lie is not worth it. Please trust me on that. Right now you just don't want your family life to have been a lie, but it was, and will continue to feel like a lie if you don't get healing and move forward.



You are still struggling with self-worth and external values. Being on the ladies' ministry team is not going to make you feel like you're contributing anything. Being on leadership team is not going to cement you as a spiritual conquistador. Stop trying to be more than you are, and stop worrying about what other people think of you. It's not about them, or you; it's about God. Try talking to him sometime. You'll be surprised.



Oh, and about Canfield. Stop worshipping him. He's a brilliant professor, eh? But don't let him get so much in your head. Grow a little more, take a few English classes by some other professors. However, don't shirk your duty to figure out where you stand on some of the issues he's raised; they are going to crop up later in your life in a way you didn't think possible, and it's good. Oh, it's different than what you're thinking now. Let's just say social justice is possible-necessary?-as a Christian, and you will still have to wrestle with how you marry your brain and your faith.


Unfortunately, dear Misty, you have not seen your end of heartbreak in the relationship world. You're going to meet a guy next year and the summer after you graduate, you will be engaged to him. It's going to be a roller-coaster from here on out, because you are going to make some mistakes. You are going to move to his parents' house, and you are going to think you are going to die sometimes. But you're not. And Meg and Larry will be there in ways you have never known before. You're going to get even more wrapped up in Nick, physically, and emotionally, and your relationship is more dead than you know. You have placed him upon a pedestal where he doesn't belong. When he comes crashing down, your whole faith is going to crumble because of your misplaced idolatry. The recovery is brutal. But you will recover. You are even going to "get over him," I promise.



You have stopped talking to Mom and Dad because they continue to call you a liar, and you will even go through a period where you and Bet don't talk because of it. You will never feel more alone in your life, ever. But God is bigger than you are (you are only now making this your mantra in your life) and He will send a friend to help you, and a real counselor to help make new progress. And he gave you Meg. I know that you are worried that there is no way you and she can truly still be friends, but I promise, your relationship will be sweeter than ever in a few years, and she loves you as if you were her own daughter.



You will get married, and have children. That will seem a lifetime away to you now. But it's closer than you think. You won't join the military (I think you knew deep down that it wasn't going to happen), and believe it or not, you will move back to Memphis (it's ok, Mr. Right is waiting for you). You will feel pretty lonely adjusting to your friends who seem to have moved on without you, but you will make new friends, too. And you will emerge from all of this with a real relationship with Jesus. That is going to rock your world, I promise.

I don't want to leave tips for this entry because so much emotional territory was covered, but I'll write again in a few years.
Love,
Your 28-year old self

Letters to Myself, Part 2

Today is the 2nd installment of my Letters to Myself series. To see the first letter, click here.

Dear 15-year old Misty,
You are in high school now, and it's not all you'd thought it was going to be, eh? (You're going to have a professor in college who will forever embed "eh" in your vocabulary, just FYI.) You won't automatically get a boyfriend, get a car, and get thinner when you're 16 either. Just sayin'. You're in the process of trying to figure out who you are and who you want to be. It's hard at times, and you will second-guess yourself a lot. But please, don't obsess over the ridiculous.

You've already figured out you don't want to be in the "in" crowd, but don't allow that to become pride and a sense of know-it-all; it pushes people away. Gilia's boyfriend is going to tell you when you graduate that he knew a couple of guys who would have asked you out, but they knew you'd say no so didn't bother. Don't let that kind of wall build up around you all the time. I know it feels safer that way, and in some ways, I guess it is, but don't forget to trust. You're going to need lots of practice, and starting younger sure would make my life easier!

Speaking of boyfriends, you're not going to have one in high school at all. But you're still going to go to prom with a huge group of friends , (Bet will be your "date") and you will have a blast, stay pure, and not get into any trouble. And you'll actually remember it, which I hear is a good thing.

Please don't get so caught up in external values for your worth. You do not equal who your friends are, what clothes you wear, how thin you are, or even how smart you are. And yes, you are smart, except in math, and that sure doesn't change. But you have already learned to use words as a weapon, as a way to not feel so vulnerable, and even when you hurl insults at others and it feels good momentarily, you feel worse inside. This is going to take you a while to figure out; you do, after all, have justifiable hurts that lie deep beneath the surface. I wish you believed that God loves you. You tell people He does, but you don't truly trust that yet. I wish you were beyond being just good to being a child of His; there is a difference.

I also want to know that it's ok to be confused about things right now, about family, future, and God. There will not always be straightforward answers, and you're going to realize soon how much of a control freak you are, and how much you thrive on knowing things and having it all together. But you don't. He does. He has a plan for you, including your past, all headed for your future. He is good, even though it doesn't feel like it. And start opening up your ears when you hear the word grace: it's fixing to knock your socks off!

Here are the tips I'm going to leave until the next time I write:
1. Try a little harder at math; it could make your college experience a tad better.
2. Stop obsessing about your weight. You're actually a very normal size, and you will long to wear a size 8 later.
3. Stop trying to compete with Bet. You will each come into your own and you'll survive.
4. Don't alienate Kathy now. She needs you and Bet more than ever.
5. Don't be mad at Mama and how much she's affected by what's happening to Michael right now. You'll understand a little better later.
6. Get a job. Save some money.
7. Don't expect grades to always come so easily. They won't.
8. Sing more.
9. Play a sport or spend time outside. It really is good for you!
10. Cooking dinner isn't that bad; when you are a wife, you will be so grateful you know how to cook!
11. You really should research more college grant applications. You are going to owe a lot of student loans.
12. You will get kissed, I promise.
13. This will be strange to you, but Gilia and Sonny are going to be the only HS friends you keep up with. But treasuring your new-found sense of identity while still being moldable will become important with friends in the next season of your life.
14. You are going to grow a lot in the next few years (read: have some really, really tough times), but go with it. Seriously.
15. Love yourself more. Quit procrastinating. Quit self-deprecating. Quit cheating yourself of the self-love you deserve.

Love
Your 28-year old self
p.s. I'll write again when you're 20

Letters to Myself, Part 1

This is a project with many inspirations. I originally came across the idea at Becoming Me, but Musings of a Future Pastor's Wife, Mama Belle, and Not a bow in Sight all did one. I read them all, and you should, too. They're funny, poignant, and I can relate to various points in all of them. And so, like Angela, I'm going to do a series of letters to my younger selves. I think the original goal was to write a letter to yourself 20 years younger, which puts my initial entry at much younger than some of the above letters, but it's actually a critical age. This first one will probably be my hardest letter to write, as it lays the groundwork for my older selves as well.

Dear 8-year old Misty,

I'm going to say some things and use some words that may not make sense to you now, or that might make you uncomfortable, and that's OK. Eight is going to be a hard age for you. Mama just got married to a man who will sweep your family off its feet, and it's going to seem like a whirlwind. You're going to go from calling him Mr. Richard, to Pops, to Daddy as he encourages you to truly think of him as your dad. You are going to long for his love like nothing you've ever experienced before, and (oh, this breaks my heart to tell you) he is going to hurt you. He is going to tell you he loves you and give you things, and even tell you that you are his favorite, but this will cost you a lot in terms of your sense of self-worth and fuzz out your ideas of black and white truths.
He is going to teach you who Jesus is, and that is a good thing. Listen to your heart's stirrings; you really do want to be a Christian, even though it seems scary, and even though you will feel guilty for being too shy to tell other people about who your new Savior is, a seed of faith has been planted deep inside of you. But your view of God the Father is going to get muddy because you're not really sure what a good father is.
Daddy is going to touch you in places that make you uncomfortable. He is going to want to kiss you in ways you don't like. He is going to ask you to touch him in places that you know is wrong. And this is going to happen for a few years. You aren't even going to know that it's happening to Beth and Kathy as well. You think you are alone, but you're not. And you're still going to love him, because you honestly don't know any better, and because you want better for yourself. And that's OK, too.
You will eventually tell Mama, but she's not going to believe you. You will not know how bad that hurts until you are much, much older. And you're never going to talk about it again after that night until you are a Freshman in college. And by the way, that castle that you see on your way to the zoo? It's not a castle--it's where you're going to college and where some of the best things in your life are going to happen to you!
Chin up, sweet Misty. Be strong. Don't get so caught up in fantasy and reading that you are numb to what is going on around you. I wish I could encourage you to tell someone else, but I think Our Father had a different plan. And one last thing: you will share your story to a girl in China (China!) in a few years, and she is going to love the Lord because of it. So maybe that was the whole reason you're hurting right now, I don't really know.
Now that I talked about some heavy things, I'd also like to give you some tips to help you in this season of your life.
1. Stop being a couch potato. Being outside is a good thing. But wear sunscreen: you will only ever burn and freckle. And yes, you will be called FreckleFace many more times in life.
2. Stop eating junk food so much. You really will get cavities. And a little pudgy. Sorry.
3. Try to get to know Kathy a little better. She's just as much fun as Beth, just in different ways.
4. Don't be so shy!
5. Stop smiling with closed lips; you have a lovely smile.
6. Do enjoy Callie; she's going to teach you that you are a dog person for the rest of your life.
7. Stop eating onions; you're just going to throw up when you eat them, and it's not true: you won't like them when you're older.
8. Ask the librarian for better books than The Babysitter's Club and Sweet Valley High. There is a whole world out there of classic children's literature that you will love until you are old.

Love,
your 28-year old self
p.s. I'll write again when you're 15.

Nesting

I've had several projects of things to do around the house lined up in my brain (is that a dangling modifier?), and I finally did one of them this evening! I read just recently a report that a woman was never more productive than when she was pregnant, and I get that; I've been a busy bee, and I'm gonna expose the skeletons in my closet... just kidding, but this closet is still pretty scary!

See?


Things thrown every which way....

Just a mess... books not returned when I got them out, pitiful yarn stash tossed aside...

And, yikes... same shelf as above, but with the bottom space: more books, missing glue gun, random candles from a party a year ago; that is some pretty bad organization!

Now?

This shelf is still mildly wonky, but that gives it character, right?

Yum, nice lined up books and photo albums, separated by category (knitting, gardening, quilting, pregnancy/birth, and old journals, if you must know!). Sigh. I just love organizing things, really... :)

Eh, still blah, but a tad bit better than it was before! At least there aren't any dangerous cords lying about!

It feels good to have this closet organized, and now I won't have to call Hunny when he's out of town asking if he's seen my latest knitting book or where I put some crafting supply. Yay!


Oh, one other thing I got done tonight was my Christmas Thank-you cards... yes, Christmas!! Oops... a little late, and I'm usually so prompt! It was nice writing letters and being reminded of the thoughtfulness of others, so hopefully I'm not in too much trouble for being a couple of months behind!

I'm here, sort of

I've been a bad blogger lately; I'm sorry. You know how when you firt enter blogging, one of the repeated bits of advice is to not get so caught up in blogging ABOUT your life that you don't actually LIVE it? Well, that's been me, except I haven't been blogging. Wait, I know that makes no sense.... It's just that I've become obsessed with a couple of things and have been doing so much research on the internet, and it's sucking all my time, so I just haven't had anything to say, because, well, I'm not doing these activities yet!! Argh! I so want to make a quilt. I've been staring at archive after archive of quilt patterns and just can't wait to get my hands on some fabric and try it. I also am itching to get my garden started, though I'm not sure how practical that is since I'll be uber-pregnant and busy with a newborn come harvest time! However, it would still be such an accomplishment to feed my family in part from my own backyard, so I've been researching Texas-friendly varieties, planting seasons, etc.
So.. the most boring post in the history of blogs, but I felt like I had to say something!! Kinda like my dog ate my homework or something...
But I promise, I'll live life and blog... soon!!

On my mind

This is a post that has been in draft form since October of last year, but many of the things I was mulling over are still on my brain, and since I've been lax about blogging, figured I could at least finish this post and see where it takes me.
I had watched the movie "Freedom Writers," and it deeply affected me, in the sense that I had lots of questions after I saw the movie, most particularly about the idea of social justice and my "obligation" to it as a Christian. Hilary Swank's character became quite dedicated to teaching in an inner-city, underprivileged school, mostly minority school, yet her own life fell to pieces as she sacrificed everything to make sure her students got the best chance at a real education. I admire that (really!), but what about her own husband? To whom did she owe a greater obligation? How does one juggle both giving to others and giving to your family? Is it one of those "seasons of life" things? (As in, right now while my kids are little and need much more attention, is it right and normal to not have a sense of outreach, but at the same time, if I'm not showing by example, how do I raise aware and compassionate kids myself?) I watch movies like this one, or more recently read books like George Barna's Revolution and I get this burning sensation that I want to do and be more. I come from a long line of service and volunteering, and in college it became a part of my identity. I am not really sure how my desire to give back fell by the wayside, but it's been easy to keep at bay with just having a family. While living with Meg, I heard over and over how you need to take care of your own backyard before worrying about others, and to a great extent, I think I believe that. But I don't want to permanently squelch my hope of service and eternally procrastinate or make excuses for not doing what I can. I think another factor that makes me over think things is the idea of barriers: race, class, gender, religion, etc. I tend to be afraid of unknowns and change, but I want to change.. be change (be the change you want to see; isn't that the Gandhi quote?). The other aspect of all of this that I've been considering lately is the idea of community. It pairs well with the above questions when you consider "Who is my brother?" and yet, it's more, too. Hunny and I have had several conversations regarding who our community is. Do we look for it in a traditional "brick and mortar" church, where we do not feel we fit, or do we find a small house or "organic" church where we might fit in just fine but with whom we may not agree with the theology? Do we just hang out with friends (that are as of yet unmet), or do we go create them (er, go out and get them... however you say it!)?
So, basically, I'd love to hear any one's thoughts on these issues, and I'm also just getting it down on virtual paper so that I can clear my head for a little while!

Pet Meme

First, so many hugs and thanks to all you wonderful ladies for encouraging me after my last post. I'm no longer quite on a pity-party wagon, so that's good! I realize that there is purpose in all things, and this diagnosis has come at a time and point in which I was not motivating myself to be healthy and so now my hand is being forced, so to speak. But truly, thank you for kind words and virtual hugs; they made me feel so much better!

Tonggu Momma tagged me in a fun little meme, and since I love pets, I'm more than willing to oblige! (However, TM, I have to make one minor little correction: I most assuredly am a dog person, and yes we do own 2 cats, but we also own 2 dogs. I just don't have reason to talk about the dogs as much, because Leos cats are just much more interesting to talk about! In my defense, I married into Mia the Siamese's family, and after we got rid of Hunny's dog, I thought since he's a weird cat lover guy cat person he'd like a cat, but Phineas adopted me instead. Take that, Hunny! I'm sure it's just because I'm a Leo, after all.)


1. What is the first pet you remember?
The first animal I have memories of is my mom's cat Bart, whose name was originally Little Fart, until she got pregnant with my brother and realized that may not be the most appropriate name. In keeping with the same sounds, he was Little Bart, and then just Bart. He was a Russian Blue, which if you've never seen a real one, they are kind of odd looking. Very aquiline facial features and extraordinarily large ears. He lived til I was 14, so we pretty much grew up together.

2. How many different kinds of pets have you owned?
Growing up, we lived "out in the country" (although I think Hunny disagrees with my assessment of "country"), and we had at various points, dogs (too many to count), cats, birds, rabbits, goats, chickens, a pig, and we cow-sat once. So that's 7 species. Wow.

3. What was your strangest pet?
I personally have never had a strange pet, so I'll speak for my sister K instead... When one of our goats had a kid (haha, pun totally intended), she fell in love with it, and the feeling was entirely mutual. Sweet P (It was originally "Pea" til we found out she was a he) would literally follow her everywhere... even tried getting on the school bus a few times. We sang K--- had a little goat all the time. He came in the house and everything.

4. What is your dream pet?
I'd love to raise alpacas, but I'm not sure if that is like owning a pet. There's just something about a dog wanting to be petted that endears the term "pet" to me.

5. What is your nightmare pet?
Tarantulas. I'm going to encourage my boys to love nature as best as I can, but I really don't want them to want a pet spider. I couldn't handle it. I'd rather feed lizards little mice and crickets than have to stare at a hairy, multi-eyed beast. Shiver. For the record, I also think fish have got to be the most boring creatures.

6.Your best/ funniest pet story...
When Hunny and I had only been dating a short while, I wanted him to meet my spiritual mom and dad. Anyway, about a week before we were to visit them, I spontaneously got a yellow lab mix puppy. I'd also just baked Hunny a birthday cake, his favorite-Red Velvet. This was one of the best from-scratch cakes I'd ever made, and I wanted to take a piece to Meg to share the goodness and keep it from going stale while we were away. I grabbed one of those plastic take-away canisters from the coffee shop I worked at, filled it with a huuuuge slice of cake, and off to Atlanta we drove with Pele in the back seat. At one of our gas-filling stops, I got out of the car to stretch and grab some goodies, and I let Pele out of her crate but kept her in the car. Needless to say, when I got back to walk her around, there was no cake left, and believe-you-me, this thing was as large as she was! She ate every last bite of cake, and this will be totally gross, but her BMs were a startling shade of scarlet for the duration of our stay!! Now when we look at Pele, Hunny and I muse that that piece of cake was only as big as her head is now.... they grow so fast!

7. Tell your worst/ saddest pet story...
This one still ticks me off. My first dog was Pepe (sorry, I have a thing for P names), and he was a black toy poodle. I got him when I was in 8th grade. He was supposed to be my mom's dog, but I went to get him with my dad, and I think we just bonded. He slept with me every night til I went away to college. While in college, my relationship with my parents went very downhill, and my mom didn't tell me that Pepe got sick, and they put him down while I was on an overseas mission trip without telling me. It still makes me so sad that I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye.
On a much lighter note, this is bad but pretty funny. My friend KP is from Northern Ireland, and when we were in college and she was going back home for Christmas vacation, she asked me to watch her pet fish Henry. Mind you, this was the 5th fish in a semester called Henry, so in my humble opinion, she was not the best fish owner ever. Hurrumph. Anyway, so I grabbed Henry's bowl and as I was saying goodbye to a couple of friends while waiting for my boyfriend to come pick me up and take me home, I set Henry on the roof of a car. After watching Top Gun for the first time in my life (I was only 19, only 13 years too late) with said boyfriend, I asked him what he did with Henry, and he said uh, nothing... Knowing that one of my friends was still in her dorm, I called to ask if she saw the bowl sitting on a car in the parking lot, but she didn't. I never did find out what happened to him... until we got back from break (yes, I was honest with KP and let her know I lost her fish). She worked in the mail room and actually overheard some guys talking about the fish that they found on some one's car in X parking lot, and it had frozen to death! I was so sad she had to hear it like that!!! The reason this story is funny is because just a few months later, the same friend I called to ask if she saw Henry and KP and I all lived together for the summer in yet another dorm. KP had graduated to a beta called Florida, and one day D called an exterminator to our room to get rid of some ants. Thinking the fumes would kill Florida, she set him in the open windowsill in the closet--in July.... he kind of boiled. So, in the words of Robert Frost, Some fish think the world will end in fire, and some in ice!! KP has never asked any of us to watch her fish ever again. In fact, I think she quit trying to own them after that!!

8. Did you ever have a scary animal experience?
I can't think of anything particularly scary.

9. What was your favorite pet?
As much as I loved Pepe, Pele is my favorite dog hands-down. She is just so laid back and kind of goofy. And now that she's used to little ones, she's a champ with the babies. She truly is the best dog ever. And this is completely superficial, but I love her name* so much, and it will make me sad when she goes because you can't just name another dog the same name!! (*her name is pronounced pay-lay, and I got it from a Tori Amos album, boys for pele. Apparently Pele is the Hawaiian goddess of fire or volcanoes and she'd take little boys for sacrifices. Kind of macabre, eh?! However, Hunny being the soccer fanatic that he is, doesn't mind the futbol reference himself!)

10. What did you really want to tell us about pets that didn't fit into the other questions?
I do not get cats... at all. They are sometimes downright mean, don't want affection (except occasionally on THEIR terms), and yet, I've grown to love Mia and Phineas. I mostly like Mia because she's beautiful, but Phineas is alright because he was such a cute kitten and now will jump into my lap, though goodness knows why because I throw him right back off of me more times than not!! Also, this is pretty random, but I used to be a purebred snob, and now I'm totally against this because of the inbreeding and mass-production it usually elicits. I will only go the route of shelters or very reputable breeders in the future.

The four I'm tagging are Melanie (because I know they've had some weird pets), Brownie (because I'm interested in what her answers will be!), Biz (again, because I'm curious how she'll answer the questions), and Kellie (because she strikes me as an uber-cat person [note I did not say crazy cat lady!] although I could see a yippy little dog as well!).

Community

Isn't community the buzzword in Christian churches/circles? I tend to cringe when I hear over-used words or phrases, but community is one of those things that draws me in over and over. The thing is, I miss it. But sometimes I wonder if I've ever had it? It has so many faces, so many different expressions. I have true community with my immediate family and sister and her family, of course, but there are times I miss "the old days" in college when life was crazy in a different way and community was handed to you on a silver platter. That is to say, being part of a great church with a great singles/young adult ministry had its perks. There were a lot of us who worshipped together on a regular basis, albeit a little too caffeinated. I've mentioned before that moving here has been hard at times just because I'm lonely and feel kind of isolated during the day. (Side note: when I say isolated, I'm not kidding...there are days I feel I'm the only one home during the day! No cars, no people out and about, no kids) And, Hunny, if you're reading this, I don't mean you... I mean other moms, other women, other believers. I am not a huge social butterfly by any means, but I do need interaction with others, and I believe that as Christians it truly is vital to our growth or stimulation or just feel-good fuzzies, lol. We have not had great success in finding a church, but haven't worked terribly hard at it, because it's such a hard and long process. I feel like my posts have not been particularly happy sounding lately, and for that I'm sorry. I am happy; I'm just also feeling a bit lonely and wishing that I could find a friend or two here, especially for Hunny as well.

Random bits

Here's another "bloggy salad" type post to say all those random things in one post.
The one that makes me happiest is I had my first midwife appointment yesterday. YES! I said midwife, and that feels so good to say, especially after meeting her for the first time yesterday. Her office is in the hospital at which I'll be delivering, and it's not like there were fireworks the minute I walked in (!), but the staff (all of them, even the receptionists) were so welcoming and informative. The nurse about chatted my ear off telling me about the way the practice runs and what to expect from a midwife, etc. When I did finally meet her after all the paperwork, it truly was like breathing a breath of fresh air. I know that sounds poetic and exaggerated, but it's not. I've had two rough go's with OBs I didn't care for, and to instantly click with her and know that she potentially would be the one to help me deliver my baby was just.... great. I am still trying for another VBAC, and so far we're on target for that. She was very enthusiastic that I wanted to be proactive this early on with the Gestational Diabetes, and that was encouraging as well. Basically it was a near-perfect experience for me; unfortunately my amazingly sweet husband who knew not only did I want to drive into Dallas for the first time unassisted let alone in the freezing rain, had to drive around w/ the boys in the car the whole time, and Bunkin got quite a bit fussy. The whole visit took 2.5 hours, so I don't blame him for being frustrated, either!!
Can I just say, though, that my boys are officially coming into their own? Bear is quite assertive with his little brother, and has a definite set of likes and dislikes, as well as a possessive streak as big as the state we live in!! Bunkin, not to be deterred, has sheer brute strength going for him, and it is pretty funny watching him successfully wrestle things away from Bear! I think we've got our hands full for the next 18 years! Someone, please send pink dust our way, pleeeeaaaase?
Does anyone have a really good dog-training book or video recommendation? Our little shelter adoptee is not doing very well, and I only remember the vaguest things from when I was obedience training our former dog Coco. I've been looking on the Internet, but as you can imagine, it is an infinite source, meaning that I'm not even sure where to start weeding out unreliable methods/information.
Lastly, I'm amending my "no resolutions/goals in 2009" stance, but that's because this particular issue is very important in terms of our family's health. Hunny has been having some issues that we are narrowing down to diet, so we may be revamping things seriously in the next while, and depending on the diagnosis/outcome, going to a gluten-free diet. I feel challenged by this, but kind of excited, too. I'm not sure if Celiac is hereditary, but I know that my mother and maternal grandmother both have it, so I think limiting or removing gluten from my own diet would probably be healthy. I know I still have a lot to learn about the diet, and I also know that we need to wait for an actual determination from Hunny's appointments. In addition to this dietary change, I will also be eliminating for once and for all (lol) high fructose corn syrup. I'm slightly abashed to admit that the foods that I rely the most on for convenience are those for the kids: waffles in the morning, breaded vegetarian chicken nuggets, etc. I'm trying to slowly steer away from pre-processed and -packaged foods like these, but first and foremost I want to get rid of HFCS. While I'm scrutinizing labels, I figure I'll go by the mantra of "if I can't pronounce more than 3 ingredients, don't get it." I feel it is finally time to engage my actions to follow suit with my heart's desire to feed my family as naturally and healthily as possible. Hunny will still be vegetarian, and I'm aiming for that unless my dietitian tells me to eat meat (I'm staying away from processed soy foods such as tofu, TVP, etc.) for the protein. I'm particularly interested in this experiment as I continue to learn about being frugal and simple, because my own experience has not been very successful with organic/natural foods coupons. It seems to me that buying generic foods is still usually cheaper, as well as coupons are so often for the convenience foods. We have a long road ahead of us as Hunny goes back to school, and there is a lot of motivation for me to truly have as a habit living frugally and on a wise budget so that we can set some money aside for when he has to be in school full-time (and if we're really wise and willing to live tightly, I won't have to work during that time). Phew! That was a lot of information!!
Anyway, I think that's it for now... sorry for such a random lot of uninteresting details!!