Currently…
Reading:
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini – I borrowed this one from the library last Friday and am really liking it. It’s set in the Middle East and I keep finding myself wanting to find a quiet corner to sit and read more of it – although, there was a bit of a lull in part two (but I’m past that part, now).
Esther: It’s Tough Being A Woman Study by Beth Moore
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver – started this one a while back and just now getting back to it. My brother bought it for me for my birthday last year, and I decided to finish reading it closer to garden planning season (which is now) 
It’s a GREAT read, especially if you are interested in gardening or even just learning about what’s in the food you are eating NOW – even if you THINK you’re eating healthy.
Projects:
-Making a quilt. This could quite possibly be my “current project” for the next 10 years if I’m not careful. I feel like I need to hurry up and finish it before I bag the pieces to be procrastinated about. I’m bad about half-finished craft projects.
-Washing and drying some clothes from mom’s closet to be taken to a consignment shop. They were clean, technically – but, washing and drying seemed SO much easier and less time consuming than ironing each button down top. I HATE ironing button downs. Hate, as in I don’t do it. Thank goodness for dryers and wet wash cloths (and the lack of many button downs in my own closet).
Observations:
-Uh oh. Mom and dad have television (well, programming) and Lorelei has become quite obsessed. Oops. I swore I wouldn’t be one of those parents, but it’s kind of hard to resist when it’s there and when it’s pretty much always on unless she and I are alone. Things will change soon enough, I guess. Kind of a blessing in disguise that our television at home is no longer hooked up to a service – it’s a lot easier to find “quiet time” and “together time” and “play/explore” time when TV isn’t an option (besides, the best shows are online, anyhow).
-I’m pretty sure my almost-two year old isn’t the only one testing me. Seems like other people like to “test” me too – especially when it comes to her. BAH
Questions:
-How do you walk the fine line between being content and gracious with what you have and seeking to be all that you can be?
-Is it normal for 1 year olds to cry out some during the night if they never fully wake up and act fine once they do?
-Why does everyone want to put Lorelei’s mullet into a ponytail, which would look like a rat tail?
Things I Find Overwhelming:
-the huge amount of doctors’ and hospital bills STILL coming in.
Welcome back!
Comments
Tara R.
Not saying this is an answer to Lorelei’s crying out at night, but when my daughter was very young, she would have night terrors. Worse than nightmares, crying, terrified, unconsolable, but she also did not remember anything the next morning. She eventually outgrew it, no worse for the wear.
JenniK
Carter will occasionally cry out in the middle of the night but be completely asleep. I recall Xavier doing the same. I think it’s normal. Cam says I do it from time to time.
As for the doctor bills… I know you don’t like the thought of debt or bills going unpaid, but try to train yourself not to fret over them. The bills won’t go anywhere, and there will come a time in life where it’s easier to take care of things. Until then just do what you need to do to take care of you and baby A. You know? It’s a kind of mentality I had to adopt or I was going to make myself sick just from worrying over bills. Ask me if I ever paid the bills from C. HA! I think the hospital got an end of the year write-off because the debt isn’t there anymore and they don’t contact me about it or say anything about it when I go now (which, I can finally afford to pay at time of service).
The fine line? I think it’s about your mentality while trying to become something more. There’s a difference between not being content with what you have and wanting to become someone better. The drive to become someone better isn’t the same as the drive for MONEY MONEY MONEY in a greedy sense. (Refer to my ex-hub for a good example of the greedy sense ie. he makes nearly 50/hr now but charges my cousin a dollar for a canned drink out of his fridge…when she works for his parents making minimum wage.)
HUGS AND LOVE!
Kelley
Perfectly normal for them to wake like that in the night. More terrifying for you than the child.
Honestly.
Colleen - Mommy Always Wins
Wow – so much to comment on. The “How do you walk the fine line between being content and gracious with what you have and seeking to be all that you can be?” question could take up a very long post of its own! I think that’s something we all struggle with! I’ll stop there or I’ll end up with a page and a half!
The TV thing kills me. We have satellite, which I like to think of as a perk that we all can enjoy and is cheaper than lots of other forms of entertainment. BUT – my kids are now demanding to watch their shows, and ALL THE TIME. The other night I shut the TV off before dinner and left it off till after the kids were in bed and you’d have thought I staged a mutiny! It was like I was torturing my 4yo that he had to play lincoln logs with his brother instead of watching whatever crap he wanted to watch. It was tough but you can bet I’ll be doing it more often.
That’s a fine line, too – some TV’s OK (and I’m thankful for the 30 mins Wall-E gives me every now and then) but too much is horrible!
BTW – I’m having a giveaway today – come check it out!