Ouchies!

As my giant dumbell-shaped water bottle I had in high school put it, “no pain, no gain.” This is the essence of Ila’s last month of tooth growing and it has not been easy for any of us! Just when she was settling into a nice predictable schedule and I thought I was doing SUCh a good job, she suddenly despised her crib or anywhere outside twelve inches of her mommy. We gave her some tylenol before she went to bed on the nights she really seemed to be in pain, but if she immediately stops screaming when i simply hold her, she can’t be in all THAt much pain can she?! I guess her mommy is her favorite medicine ;) So while I inwardly am LOVING this mommy-clingy stage, it’s also exhausting! It is sooo cute bringing her in bed with us at night and having her cuddle against me, but that also means that I’m stuck in that same position for the whole night no matter what! After two weeks of that along with her taking 30-40 minute naps during the day, (as opposed to her usual 1-1 1/2 hours) we started trying to keep her in her crib at night again. It works, but it also means jumping out of bed 5-6 times per night and running to her screaming until I can get her to sleep again. I honestly don’t think I’m capable of the “cry it out” method, but fortunately I don’t really believe in it either. I’ve studied too much Freud I think. Anyway, as hard as it is to watch my little darling experience some of the “ouchies” of life, I think I am meant to cherish this period of late-night cuddling because I know it will go by before I know it. With God’s help, I hope that I can provide her with the love and comfort she needs and instill in her trust that someone will always be there in her times of “ouchies.”

To Tweet or Not to Tweet?

Twitter is causing quite a stir. Though it has been out for several months now, it has lately caught on with our hip technology savvy friends. (If you don’t know what Twitter is, just skip this entry or watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN2HAroA12w). While I acknowledge the dangers in moving even further away from actual human contact in relationships, fueling the need for instant gratification of KNOWING what people are doing, and even fooling oneself into thinking one has friends, I think it can also be a lot of fun if used “properly.” Now, what do I mean by “properly” you ask? Well, I’ll tell you. From my perspective, I don’t care too much to know the mundane things my friends are doing like watching TV with their cats, (but now if Ashton Kutcher was doing that, I WOULD be interested). Celebrities are a different story. (They are obviously using Twitter for their own personal gain of promoting themselves by making thousands of people think they are actually friends with them and then telling these “friends” to watch their show or movie; however, it is still somewhat intriguing to know what they are eating for dinner. So despite feasting on the not-so-mundane information of celebrities eating spaghetti with their cats, I do think there are some great reasons to tweet). But back to my reasons to tweet. My “tweasons, if you will . . . Firstly, I think it’s really fun to use different variations of the word “twitter” while tweeting. “Don’t you twitterstand? You could become a twitterlebrity!” This “bite-sized yippity yap” can be really fun if you don’t take it too seriously and delve into the lingo. Secondly, it can keep you better connected with your friends. Sure, this would be lame if we based the entire friendship on 140-character texts, but when tweeting is used in addition to the phone, emails, facebook, texts, and oh yeah, actual human contact, it can really enhance the friendship through sarcastic banter and random comments. Thirdly, and I guess lastly, because I’m already feeling a little silly writing this much about twitter . . . tweeting is ideal for us stay at home moms (and unemployed dudes) to feel connected with humans throughout the day when there isn’t time to be on the phone or talking in person to other adults. It just makes the day a little more entertaining. Sure, it’s probably true that it’s more enticing to share with “others” what you are doing than it is to read what they are doing, which is a little narcissistic, but if one realizes this and embraces the ridiculousness of it all, I say go right ahead and tweet away. . . After all, it’s not very often one has the opportunity to talk to NO ONE and EVERYONE all at the same time. That sounds twitterific if you ask me.

What's That Fing On Her Head?

So Ila was born with what is called a “hemangioma” on her head, which is a collection of blood vessels that are temporarily clumped together. Lots of babies have them. It has already reached it’s largest point and has started shrinking, and it will eventually deconstruct on it’s own within her first year. Since “hemangioma” is a big word that I often forget, we call it “Steve.” While I don’t really notice it anymore, and when I do it actually makes me thankful that it is the biggest of our worries, the comments I receive about it from grown adults amaze me. Adults comment with polite passive aggressive attempts to inquire about it (and if we are having it removed of course), while children have no qualms about coming right out and saying what they are thinking. I prefer the honesty of kids. We were out to dinner the other week with a four year old who kept asking “What’s that fing on her head!?” This gives me the opportunity to make up something absolutely ridiculous about it being a magic button that makes her stop crying when we push it, or I just tell them “his name is Steve.” The other day a woman at church said to me “Oh I’m sure they can remove that.” Thanks lady. I would much rather her say “Hey, what’s that fing on her head?” To which I would kindly respond, “it’s attached to your rod motha licka.”

Firsts . . .

 Ila is growing so fast. We woke up two mornings ago and I swear she looked different than the day before. It makes me sad to think how fast she’s growing, (which I am constantly reminded of by almost every adult parent who has a child out of the house... yes, I understand “they grow up before you know it!”) Please stop reminding me people; I can see it before my own two eyes! BUT, it also amazes me to watch her grow and develop. SHE amazes me every day. So now that she is almost six months old, she has had several “firsts” lately. Her first time at a playground was last Wednesday when it was almost 80 degrees, so we tried out the swings for a few minutes. Now that she can sit up on her own, she no longer needs her infant bath and she can sit in the front part of the shopping cart! I can’t believe it! She had that expression on her face the entire time we were in the grocery store, just taking it all in. We also took a trip to St. Michaels last weekend with the Rathbones, and judging by this picture, I think she already has her first boyfriend! Ok, not really, that scares me, but isn’t this picture cute?!

Noah and Ila

A Day at the Aquarium

Ila and I had a nice afternoon at the Virginia Aquarium, formerly known as the Virginia Marine Science Museum, which is what I still call it... anyway, with Blair and Kate Fine! Sure, it may have been a premature effort to expose our babies to new and mind-enhancing environments, but us mommies sure did have a good time snapping pictures and watching sharks and sea turtles just inches from our faces. I was absolutely positive that the biggest scariest shark wanted to eat me. Meanwhile, Kate was more interested in sucking on her feet and Ila on her fingers, but we got some great pictures! Ila was actually interested in watching some fish swim by her here and there, but was way more interested in her fingers for sure. It was cute to see all the other mommies with their babies doing the same things... holding their babies up to look at the ginormous sea turtle right in front of them while they stare at the floor or try to devise a way to suck on their big toe. But hey, we mommies gotta get out of the house and flaunt our cool strollers at some point! Can you see Ila’s excitement in this picture?!

In Memory of Warren Stone

Our dearest friends Meade and Mary Elizabeth Stone recently lost one of their twin sons, Warren, after a whirlwind of testing, waiting, hoping, and despairing. It is times like this that many say “Where is God? How could He allow this to happen?” But what is apparent more than anything else right now IS His presence and unfathomable peace and grace He has bestowed upon Mary Elizabeth and Meade. Contrary to many “prosperity gospels” that are widely preached by pastors like Joel Osteen, the Bible does NOT say that we won’t suffer in this world, even if we are faithful to Him. Thank GOD He does not repay us according our faith and good works or we would all be utterly scorned! But instead, the Gospel of hope tells us that it is IN our weakness that He is glorified and most near to us. It’s in our brokenness and pain that we are most sure of His promises and truth, NOT in times of blessing and prosperity. As the hymn “Jesus I My Cross Have Taken” says, which was sung at Warren’s funeral:

Go, then, earthly fame and treasure!

Come, disaster, scorn, and pain!

In Thy service, pain is pleasure;

With Thy favor, loss is gain.

I have called Thee Abba, Father!

I have stayed my heart on Thee.

Storms may howl, and clouds may gather,

All must work for good to me.

Man may trouble and distress me,

'Twill but drive me to Thy breast;

Life with trials hard may press me,

Heaven will bring me sweeter rest.

Oh, 'tis not in grief to harm me

While Thy love is left to me;

Oh, 'twere not in joy to charm me

Were that joy unmixed with Thee.

So today as we mourn the death of this sweet innocent child, we can take rest and REJOICE in knowing that he is with his Maker and know that in the midst of the pain, God is nearer than ever. We are reminded that earth is not our true home and that we must gladly await when we too can meet our Maker.

We love you Warren, Meade, Mary Elizabeth, and John.

Dream Giggles

Tonight when I was feeding Ila, as she drifted off to sleep she started laughing in her sleep! It was the cutest thing ever. It started with a little “ha”.... then “ha ha ha ha.” It was one of those moments that I just wanted to bottle up and keep forever. I feel like the luckiest person in the world to get to be with our little Ila all the time.