Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Thoughts on "Pumping & Dumping"

Its very simple, a pump is complicated. Tubing, those tippy little bottles, that annoying sound, getting it all set up is a pain in the butt on a good day. If you are drinking and you have the wherewithall to set up your pump, then in my opinion, you are fine to actually breastfeed. If you are totally falling down drunk (and few moms can get to this point) then drink a bunch of water and go to bed. You can nurse in a few hours. If you are totally unable to take care of baby, then your partner can feed a bottle of whatever to baby in the middle of the night. I don't think there's ever really a time or place for pumping & dumping milk. I've been nursing for basically 8 straight years and haven't ever done it & don't plan on ever doing it.

Monday, October 29, 2007



Our old neighbors have an annual Halloween bash that is totally geared for the 12 and under set. They do an unbelievable job with food, gross out games & scary games. Grown ups have fun too! Little children are encouraged to sing karaoke. Even though my boys haven't seen the Spiderman movie, they feel in love with their costumes at Target. 2 observations: all little girls dressed like princesses or queens. I'll have to see if thats also the case on real Halloween. Also, I think Hugh Hefner has taken over this holiday, because the only costumes for adult women resemble the cheesiest "ho-wear" I've seen. It was sad watching these poor teenage girls at the costume shop try to decide which raunchy outfit they might feel OK wearing. My kids wanted us to dress up, so we went all peasanty, from the princessy era. I think the box said "tavern wench" on mine.:)

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Babywearing



Getting stuff done the old fashioned way since 2000.

Today I went to the post office to mail a package to my beloved cousin and I had 2 boys in school and my littlest guy on my hip in a sling. The lady at the counter said, "Oh, I see more ladies carrying their baby that way these days!" Then she turned to the guy next to her and said, "That's that new stuff." We were all joking around for a minute and then I said, " Actually , its that really old stuff." She was like, " Oh yeah, in Africa women do carry their babies all day and they really don't cry."
Yup!

I was always fascinated by babywearing. My friendly neighbor calls it "my passion and my fashion." I did it long before I knew what the hell I was doing. My slings were all twisty and crazy, but I was trekking without any encumbrances. I was free and my baby was free to be, with me. With older kids, I have to have my hands free & I have to be able to respond quickly to the baby. The closeness is the design for human babies, born helpless and missing the womb. When My first boy was a baby the Sacajawea dollar came out and here was my ideal woman on a coin for the world to admire. Beautiful and peaceful, the baby and the mama. An adorable little face sleeping on his moms shoulder, while she did work! That Native ideal and African and Asian mamas inspired me. I never miss a chance to wear the baby, I love the feeling of closeness, I love how settled and content it makes the little ones and I love the extra exercise I get. I do get some crazy looks, especially as this guy is nearing 30 lbs, but I don't care. Its worth it.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Monday, October 22, 2007

Rowing in the bay on Sunday morning was such a treat. The same bald eagle pair would come by each day too and I caught one of them on film, although he looks tiny, in real life you could see how immense these 2 eagles were compared to the other birds near them. And here's a picture of Teeny & his godmother and I didn't even know she was there when I took his picture. Kind of cool :)





The last morning and goofy brunch



Evening at camp







Thank you B!





The Godmother of the littlest guy has access to a summer camp thanks to her job as a public servant and she was kind enough to invite us to spend the weekend at this gorgeous spot at the end of our state, on the Chesapeake bay. The weather was ridiculous, the kids got along and we had a lot of unhealthy food and drink. It was a real gift to get away so completely in October.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Normally my spouse works daytime hours for 6 weeks straight & then he works 4 weeks of nights, 6 pm to 6 am. As I muddle through each day without much help I try to think of all the ladies who have husbands in Iraq or Afghanistan, some of their husbands will never come home. Thankfully, mine does come home each morning but it is a brutal schedule on all of us. He sleeps all day and works all night.By the second week it gets rough. I start to lose my patience with my older 2, helping my second grader with his homework can drive us both to tears if I let it. Last night I was up about half the night and everything seems extra hard right now . What got me through the night was knowing that it was his last night of nights, what really sucked is that this time they made him work an extra weekof nights, so this was week 5. I found out this morning they need him tonight too. I want to go on vacation and drink heavily, but that's not healthy so I'll probably strap on my big baby and walk in the woods to clear my head and go face the music all over again.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

That albino pumpkin won't leave me alone!
Blogger, you are acting like a butt again, not letting me post photos.

Since I can't put shameless pics of my little sweeties up here, I'll share a couple of things. Its been a very hectic October so far, way too many events, no time to stop and appreciate the leaves. This weekend we are going away, to celebrate the MAN of the house's birthday. I am very excited! We are going with good friends and with kids & it should be fun.

At my breastfeeding meeting tonight I was looking at the sign up sheet and I noticed these babies have some cool names. All of the babies looked fabulously cute and well loved, it is worth the trek each month to see these awesome babies & new parents figuring it all out. Here's the names: Marcello, Leonie, Killian, Aleksander, Siara & Wolfe! There were many, many more names, but they were all fairly normal. I have 2 normal names for my kids and 2 less normal. I like these bold names.

Friday, October 12, 2007

Always thinking of my boy who is not here...

From a great blog, http://ingliseast.typepad.com/ingliseast/
She describes losing a child so well;

"It is unfair that I am his mama, yet I don't know where he's gone. I'm supposed to know these things. I want to know why he couldn't stay, why he was ever hurt in the first place despite what should have been the refuge of my body.
It's not only his absence that aches. It's the knowing that his absence will never make sense."

Monday, October 08, 2007

Boyz on the hammock


More winery wonderland

The dog that would not leave!
Lushness
Baby on blanket with bro & wine
Sweet little river
Log cabin for kids

Sunday, October 07, 2007

This is where we were yesterday. After Dinosaur Land. This is one of the most beautiful wineries I've ever been to. I dreamt of a vineyard in Virginia that was not snobby, not too fancy to bring kids to, not too shabby either. This place is run by a cute couple with teenagers and many rescue dogs. Its so laid back and I can't wait to go back. Sometimes just going out driving without a serious destination is how you can fall back in love with where you live.

Dinosaur Land

Second grader was thrilled to show all of us Dinosaur Land, the truly retro spot in the Virginia countryside that celebrates each and every dinosaur.
Freaky



Friday

Precious!
I cleaned up and had my oldest and very dear friend over with her husband and adorable baby Abby (see links). It was nice and I wish we could have more energy, stay up later, see each other more. One day I hope we are grandmas & grandpas together, all of us, still hanging out. And if her baby wants to marry my baby and make us in laws---even better, ha ha!

Friday, October 05, 2007

I had the radio on this morning and as I switched stations I heard a DJ talking about how he was totally NOT OK with women breastfeeding in public. It made him mad that mothers were demanding the right to nurse in public. Of course this was the station that is proud of their website with tons of photos of "hot chicks". That's the kind of weird dichotomy that makes America so weird! Why can't a grown man see a woman nursing and then just look away? What's even crazier are women who are offended by breastfeeding. I honestly don't get it. When I'm out in public I see lots of things that bother me, some things bother me for a long time, like a child getting hit or yelled at. But nursing? Somebody would have to really be reaching for something to get upset about for something so normal/quiet/healthy/adorable to bother them.

I wouldn't even talk about it here, beacause its such a no brainer to accept nursing in public, but there are still people like this DJ who just don't get it. So... since we suck at making women feel secure nursing in public, I'll share 2 kick ass Australian ads that really make it clear how weird we are in the U.S.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUN6Snu2WnA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnReJeQrK0k&mode=related&search=


thanks to Elizabeth for the eating in the bathroom ad!

Tuesday, October 02, 2007





Back from South Carolina where we visited the most adorable girl baby, little Sadie. It was so great to see my family down there and see the beginning of a new family. Here are a few pics of the little sweetness:

About Me

My photo
I'm just a mom in the world. A crunchy Catholic mama of 6 trying to make sense of it all and stay positive. 5 boys here & 1 in heaven. One awesome man who I get to grow old with. I help new moms breastfeed. I`m happy. I don`t go to shows or dance clubs every night but I would if I could. Where`s the nanny? When I see her she`s SO fired! One of my boys is super sweet and sensitive, another one is a holy terror. I learn a ton from all of them daily. Like Nigella says, as any parent of small children knows,there comes a point in the day where you can`t go any further without a drink! I love cocktail hour. I`d like nothing more than to be with my family and some good friends surrounded by tropical plants drinking a margarita listening to the Eagles. I don`t care about trendy, I like that grungy 70`s vibe.