(I posted this on my online birth board. Wanted to put it here so I could refer back to it whenever I needed a reminder...)
Babies don't keep. They will only be
infants for so long, and that time will fly by. Remembering this can
help you in positive or negative situations.
If your baby is colicky, this too shall pass (repeat a thousand times,
then a thousand more...). If you're wondering if you're holding your
baby too much, before you know it, they will be too big to hold. They
won't become a menace to society because you decided to babywear (or
not). They're infants. They want to be loved, cuddled, cared for,
calmed. They want YOU.
In the blink of an eye, they'll be begging you to drop them off at the
end of the street, or to walk ten feet behind them at the mall. They'll
move out, move on, start families of their own. While this precious time
is here, right in front of you, seize it. Do your best to see the big
picture, even in the most trying moments.
For me, I LOVE cuddling my baby girl. I know that she will soon be
wriggling out of my lap to run off and play, so I choose to take
advantage of these next few months while they last. I'm not "creating a
monster," I'm helping my daughter to feel secure, cared for, and safe.
She needs me. I'm happy to oblige.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Monday, October 15, 2012
Bedner's Pumpkin Patch
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| Sleeping through it all! |
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| If you make Becca turn around for a picture, this is the face you'll get... |
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| Awake for a little bit |
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| Grandpa's Jumbo Pumpkin! |
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| Becca's regular-sized pumpkin :) |
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| Pumpkin in the "pumpkin seat" |
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
A P.S. and a P.S.A.
(P.S. Our "cancer" is averted! At least for now... let's hope that holds true for Janice's sister Amy as she battles breast cancer. Her chances for a positive prognosis are good, but fingers, toes, and all other crossable body parts are currently crossed... and prayers and thoughts are definitely flowing her way.)
"Why can't you just [insert random errand/night out/event here]?"
There's a reason why I never asked this of parent friends of mine, back in the P.B. (pre-baby) days. It seemed to me that it didn't take a brain surgeon or rocket scientist- or, in homage to Sheldon Cooper, a theoretical physicist- to understand that when you have a child, all concept of unadulterated freedom goes out the changing table window.
Yet I still manage to get some version of this question on a pretty regular basis. Usually, people are astute enough to know that Paul and I can't go to a concert or a club at a moment's notice. But why not the grocery store? Or the mall? To pick up someone? Go out to eat?
Here's the PSA, for the simultaneously clueless and childless* people out there:
My schedule, and therefore my household's schedule, is dictated by feedings, sleepiness, fussiness, diaper changes, and/or naps. I am at the mercy of a 12-pound, 22-inch tyrant known as our beautiful baby girl. I couldn't be happier about this; I'm sorry if that messes with your idea of what I should be able to do.
Now mind you, Ashley is a fairly easy-going baby. We are able to take her to a restaurant or the mall if we want to meet up with friends or family. It's the "at a moment's notice" stuff that is currently out the window.
So if, in the past three months, you've ever asked me the above-mentioned question and you didn't understand my look of combined exasperation and amusement... well, the more you know.
*I say clueless and childless because there are plenty of childless people out there who are not at all clueless...
"Why can't you just [insert random errand/night out/event here]?"
There's a reason why I never asked this of parent friends of mine, back in the P.B. (pre-baby) days. It seemed to me that it didn't take a brain surgeon or rocket scientist- or, in homage to Sheldon Cooper, a theoretical physicist- to understand that when you have a child, all concept of unadulterated freedom goes out the changing table window.
Yet I still manage to get some version of this question on a pretty regular basis. Usually, people are astute enough to know that Paul and I can't go to a concert or a club at a moment's notice. But why not the grocery store? Or the mall? To pick up someone? Go out to eat?
Here's the PSA, for the simultaneously clueless and childless* people out there:
My schedule, and therefore my household's schedule, is dictated by feedings, sleepiness, fussiness, diaper changes, and/or naps. I am at the mercy of a 12-pound, 22-inch tyrant known as our beautiful baby girl. I couldn't be happier about this; I'm sorry if that messes with your idea of what I should be able to do.
Now mind you, Ashley is a fairly easy-going baby. We are able to take her to a restaurant or the mall if we want to meet up with friends or family. It's the "at a moment's notice" stuff that is currently out the window.
So if, in the past three months, you've ever asked me the above-mentioned question and you didn't understand my look of combined exasperation and amusement... well, the more you know.
*I say clueless and childless because there are plenty of childless people out there who are not at all clueless...
Monday, October 1, 2012
Cancer Awareness
I've been debating back and forth as to whether or not I was going to give this one particular person any attention on any kind of a public forum. I didn't feel that it was worth the time and energy, and while so central to our lives currently, this person is also someone that we'd very much like to be able put in the past. Then September turned to October, and I realized that I could talk (and therefore vent) about this in the context of (breast) cancer, being that October is breast cancer awareness month.
No one wants a cancer in their life- be it a literal form of cancer, or a cancer in the form of a toxic job/boss, toxic lifestyle, or in our case, a toxic person. But like any cancer, it doesn't care whether or not you want it in your life. It simply shows up, sets up camp, and slowly (or aggressively, in some cases) begins to take over.
At that point, you can pretend to ignore the cancer (which may bring you short-term blissful unawareness) but there will come a point where you will have no choice but to face it. We are at that boiling point right now. As any cancer patient will tell you, there are two basic ways to approach the disease: head-on or not at all. So here we are, facing this head-on, and I can tell you that it is about time.
Even though the cancer led the way initially, I can't shake the feeling that we are in the driver's seat from here on out. We have to be, because our strength and our sanity as a family is at stake. I talked about stress and action plans in an earlier post. Our action plan is in place; now we get to test its strength!
No one wants a cancer in their life- be it a literal form of cancer, or a cancer in the form of a toxic job/boss, toxic lifestyle, or in our case, a toxic person. But like any cancer, it doesn't care whether or not you want it in your life. It simply shows up, sets up camp, and slowly (or aggressively, in some cases) begins to take over.
At that point, you can pretend to ignore the cancer (which may bring you short-term blissful unawareness) but there will come a point where you will have no choice but to face it. We are at that boiling point right now. As any cancer patient will tell you, there are two basic ways to approach the disease: head-on or not at all. So here we are, facing this head-on, and I can tell you that it is about time.
Even though the cancer led the way initially, I can't shake the feeling that we are in the driver's seat from here on out. We have to be, because our strength and our sanity as a family is at stake. I talked about stress and action plans in an earlier post. Our action plan is in place; now we get to test its strength!
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