Well spoken...

Friday, July 31, 2009

I got this in an email, and thought I would post it.



THIS WAS WRITTEN BY A SOLDIER IN IRAQ .

Okay, I need to rant.

I was just watching the news, and I caught part of a report on Michael Jackson . As we all know, Jackson died the other day. He was an entertainer who performed for decades. He made millions, he spent
millions, and he did a lot of things that make him a villian to many people. I understand that his death would affect a lot of people, and I respect those people who mourn his death, but that isn't the point
of my rant.

Why is it that when ONE man dies, the whole of America loses their minds with grief. When a man dies whose only contribution to the country was to ENTERTAIN people, the Amercian people find the need to
flock to a memorial in Hollywood , and even Congress sees the need to hold a "moment of silence" for his passing?

Am I missing something here? ONE man dies, and all of a sudden he's a freaking martyr because he entertained us for a few decades? What about all those SOLDIERS who have died to give us freedom? All those
Soldiers who, knowing that they would be asked to fight in a war,still raised their hands and swore to defend the Constitution and the United States of America . Where is there moment of silence? Where
are the people flocking to their graves or memorials and mourning over
them because they made the ultimate sacrifice? Why is it when a Soldier dies, there are more people saying "good ridence," and "thank God for IEDs?" When did this country become so calloused to the
sacrifice of GOOD MEN and WOMEN, that they can arbitrarily blow off theirr deaths, and instead, throw themselves into mourning for a "Pop Icon?"
I think that if they are going to hold a moment of silence IN CONGRESS
for Michael Jackson, they need to hold a moment of silence for every service member killed in Iraq and Afghanistan . They need to PUBLICLY
recognize every life that has been lost so that the American people can live their callous little lives in the luxory and freedom that WE, those that are living and those that have gone on, have provided for
them. But, wait, that would take too much time, because there have been so many willing to make that sacrifice. After all, we will never make millions of dollars. We will never star in movies, or write hit
songs that the world will listen too. We only shed our blood, sweatand tears so that people can enjoy what they have.Sorry if I have offended, but I needed to say it. Feel free to pass this along if you want.
Remember these five words the next time you think of someone who is serving in the military;
"So that others may live..."
Only two people have ever effectively given their lives for you.
Jesus Christ and The American G.I.
One died for your sins, the other died to give you freedom.


Amen.

One month old

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Today Parker is officially one month old. It's amazing how fast time goes by. She is really and truly a good baby. Most of the time she is very content- only crying when she's really hungry, or has a really gassy tummy. I've only seen her get really upset a handful of times. Other than that, she just sort of fusses to let us know when she has a wet diaper, or is tired. Since we haven't been to the doctor in two weeks, and aren't scheduled to go for another 4- I will have to guess on her stats:
One Month Stats
9lbs, 19.5 " long

Her likes:
*Mom's Milk(she gets VERY excited, and sometimes frustrated at feeding times)
*Sleeping on dad's chest
*Going for walks
*Sleeping in the car seat
*Her pacifier, especially when she's tired
*The curtains in her room

Her dislikes:
* Being in a wet diaper (but she doesn't mind the poopy ones!?)
*Having her clothes changed
*She's not a huge fan of being in the cradle, but she tolerates it.

She's progressed into sleeping 4-4.5 hours in a row at night before waking up to eat, and she has become very good at putting herself to sleep.

She had ONE blissful wonderful night where she slept for almost 7 hours straight, but it's only happened the one time.


Here are a couple pictures at one month:

Hanging out with her dad


I love this picture because she likes to give me the pouty lip look.


I got this idea from my sister in law Mara-each month you take a picture of the baby next to a stuffed animal so you can track how big they are getting. SO this is her with her stuffed animal Thor that her dad bought for her.

Never forget

Friday, July 3, 2009

This past Monday night something happened that I never want to forget. When I'm having a bad day, or frustrated, or crying because of lack of sleep- I can always think back to this past Monday night, and it will remind me of how lucky I am to be this little girl's mom.

The week Bevan went back to work was the week from hell because I was so used to having him around, and here I was taking care of the baby by myself. But since his shifts rotate every other week, he happened to go back to work on the bad week where he had a bunch of shifts all in a row. Baby P and I made it through the week just fine, but by the time the next Monday came around - Bevan was working again, and I was exhausted. So at 10:00 that night, I was trying to feed her and put her down to bed so I could get some much needed sleep...but she just kept crying. After 30 minutes of trial and error, I figured out that my milk still hadn't dropped, and the poor thing was just hungry. So I got some reserve milk from the fridge (that I had been trying to stock up on for my inevitable return to work), warmed it up, and put it in a bottle. By this time, it was about 11 PM- and I was worn out and feeling like a bad mom for not being able to feed my baby. As I sit down on the couch, crying, to give her the bottle, all I can think about is how tired I am and I wish I could just go to bed. As she starts eating- I obsess about the idea of sleep, and find myself wishing away these precious newborn months-wishing she was older and would sleep through the night already.

That was when it happened. Here I was still crying, and being extremely selfish- when she reached her hand up, and wrapped her tiny fingers around my hand that was holding the bottle, and she just looked at me. She stared me in the eyes, and held my hand tightly until she was done eating. It was the most amazing thing I have ever experienced- it was like SHE was trying to comfort ME. By the time I was done feeding her, I was still crying- but not because I was tired- but because of the love and adoration I had for her. She definitely put me in my place that night, and I vowed to never take this time for granted. She'll never be this little again, and I need to savor it. Eight hours of sleep doesn't compare to the time I get to spend with her.