I know all too well how incredibly easy it is to get wrapped up in the world. I love shopping, and it often consumes me. For some reason I think acquiring material items will give my completeness. Could I be further from the truth? After doing some online window shopping this morning, I realized how trivial it all is. I need to give thanks for the beauty of imperfect world we are in. The flaws in the world makes our completeness in the Lord that much sweeter.
In hopes of changing my own way of thinking, I am going to do a 50 Days of Giving Thanks Challenge. Each day I will write about two things I am thankful for, for 50 days. I am hoping God will reveal himself to me in beautiful ways through out this challenge. If you feel led to, please participate in this challenge with me!
Today I am thankful for good health. In this instant so many of my family and friends are healthy. But my father is very sick. His sickness has given me a new appreciation of good health. I pray that the Lord works miracles and restores his health. I am thankful for the health of my husband and children. After dealing with Bobby's thyroid issue and the risks of giving birth to Liam prematurely, I am so incredibly thankful that both my husband and son are completely healthy. I can't believe I dilated to a 5 but did not give birth. The Lord definitely had his hand on my womb!
I love thunderstorms. Living in sunny southern California it is so rare to experience heavy rain and thunder! But today we have rain, thunder, and lightning!! My windows are wide open and I am just loving it. I am thankful for the thunderstorm today. I will enjoy this day by cuddling up on the couch with my healthy kiddos in their warm jammies and watching movies. What a BEAUTIFUL day!
Please let me know if you are participating in the challenge with me! I would love to keep up with what you all are thankful for too!
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Living Simply....or maybe crazy??
Well bed rest is in full swing and I have tons and tons of down time on my hands! Thankfully I have found some productive outlet for my boredom. Over the past few months we have began to pair down our lifestyle. It started with simply getting rid of our smart phones because our cell phone bill was ridiculously high. We made the first big change....and it wasn't so bad! Now we are totally used to using regular phones and leaving the internet surfing to our iPad or MacBook (we still indulge :). Paying for internet in the house, on the xbox (for netflix), on the iPad, and on our cell phones was a tad ridiculous.
Next we began to become more aware of what we were eating. We found that we actually saved money by buying mostly only fruits/veggies and meat. We have done some shopping at Sprout's but it's a little pricey, so we are balancing that with buying healthy organic options at the commissary. We also eliminated artificial dyes and many sugars. Really enjoying our new eating habits and excited to see how this evolves.
Another change I am in the process of researching/making is soap. We bought some homemade natural soap from the Oceanside Market and absolutely love it! We are almost out so I am researching other options we can buy in bulk rather than by the bar. I have discovered Dr. Bronners soaps and think this is the route for us! They are all organic and can be used for everything in the house! Showering, hard surface cleaning, laundry detergent, etc... love that! I plan on buying a gallon soon and seeing how quickly we burn through it. I am especially excited that they offer a lavender scent! I will keep you posted on how it goes! Here's a link to their website if you're interested in learning more-http://www.drbronner.com/DBMS/LS.htm
Now I'm going to get real crazy. I'm taking the plunge....no 'poo! I am getting rid of shampoo! I have read so many articles about how unnecessary shampoo is. The only thing that was holding me back from swearing of shampoo was the first month of having "extra sleek" :) hair. But now that I am on bed rest and not leaving the house...who cares! I can deal with a transitional period without any weird stares! Woohoo! Once you eliminate shampoo it is suggested that you simply rinse your hair with baking soda and hot water once a week and use a natural mild conditioner (if you want). I have yet to decide what I will do conditioner wise, but am excited to see how this goes. I've read tons of stories of women who took the plunge and absolutely had the best hair ever!
We've also stopped using paper towels and started just using our dish clothes! We used to go through paper towels SO quickly. We were so so wasteful. Surprisingly, the dish cloth transition was super easy. I'm really excited about it.
Only making a few minor changes has been so much fun! I am learning so much and soaking it all up! We are still on the fence about cloth diapering Liam....but I'm leaning towards it! I suppose I just need to do more research! Who knew that bed rest would be so productive! :)
Next we began to become more aware of what we were eating. We found that we actually saved money by buying mostly only fruits/veggies and meat. We have done some shopping at Sprout's but it's a little pricey, so we are balancing that with buying healthy organic options at the commissary. We also eliminated artificial dyes and many sugars. Really enjoying our new eating habits and excited to see how this evolves.
Another change I am in the process of researching/making is soap. We bought some homemade natural soap from the Oceanside Market and absolutely love it! We are almost out so I am researching other options we can buy in bulk rather than by the bar. I have discovered Dr. Bronners soaps and think this is the route for us! They are all organic and can be used for everything in the house! Showering, hard surface cleaning, laundry detergent, etc... love that! I plan on buying a gallon soon and seeing how quickly we burn through it. I am especially excited that they offer a lavender scent! I will keep you posted on how it goes! Here's a link to their website if you're interested in learning more-http://www.drbronner.com/DBMS/LS.htm
Now I'm going to get real crazy. I'm taking the plunge....no 'poo! I am getting rid of shampoo! I have read so many articles about how unnecessary shampoo is. The only thing that was holding me back from swearing of shampoo was the first month of having "extra sleek" :) hair. But now that I am on bed rest and not leaving the house...who cares! I can deal with a transitional period without any weird stares! Woohoo! Once you eliminate shampoo it is suggested that you simply rinse your hair with baking soda and hot water once a week and use a natural mild conditioner (if you want). I have yet to decide what I will do conditioner wise, but am excited to see how this goes. I've read tons of stories of women who took the plunge and absolutely had the best hair ever!
We've also stopped using paper towels and started just using our dish clothes! We used to go through paper towels SO quickly. We were so so wasteful. Surprisingly, the dish cloth transition was super easy. I'm really excited about it.
Only making a few minor changes has been so much fun! I am learning so much and soaking it all up! We are still on the fence about cloth diapering Liam....but I'm leaning towards it! I suppose I just need to do more research! Who knew that bed rest would be so productive! :)
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Ecstatic for Labor!!.....(seriously?)
Hooray! I am now 15 weeks pregnant and feeling fantastic. I am so glad the first trimester has come and gone. No longer are we concerned about loosing our little one, and I feel like a normal human being (with the exception of my outrageous emotions). Since becoming pregnant with this sweet little bundle of joy, I have been researching birthing methods. Thanks to the encouragement of some special friends and family members, I began researching natural birth like mad woman (I still can't go a single day without reading about it). I stay up late at night reading birth story after birth story and am so thrilled to eventually be able to put together my own natural birth story!
My first big learning curve came when I watched "The Business of Being Born" on Netflix. I HIGHLY recommend this video to everyone. Not just pregnant women. Everyone needs relearn what birthing really is. Unfortunately, the U.S. has really medicalized an experience that our bodies were created to do on their own. I totally understand that sometimes medical intervention is completely necessary, but not required in every labor!
We finally made the commitment that we are going to have a natural labor (if all goes as planned health wise). This was huge for me to actually say it out loud and begin to make decisions regarding my prenatal care! After investigating home birthing, I have discovered that it is "illegal" to have a planned home birth on base. I find this to be a little ridiculous, but what can I do!
We have chosen to use Best Start Birthing Center in the Hillcrest area of San Diego. All of their reviews are just fabulous. Our only concern is the 45 minute drive (without traffic). So, we plan on printing a map from our home to the birthing center and mapping out all of the hospitals on the way just in case we get stuck in traffic and our baby doesn't want to wait! With Kazleigh, my labor was only 6-7 hours, which is pretty quick for a first-time mom! I am assuming this labor will be 3-4 hours.
I am so thrilled for this entire experience. I will be keeping this blog updated at least weekly with new information about natural birthing and our journey!
We find out the sex of this little babe in one short week. Initially, I was really hoping for another girl because we saved everything from Kazleigh and my practical side has been focusing on how much money we will save by not having to purchase a single thing! But in these past few days I have been absolutely enjoying the thought of this baby possibly being a boy. Bobby would be so thrilled to have a son. I think it would be rather fitting to have a boy this time around since my pregnancy and labor will be such a different experience than my birth with Kazleigh. Boy or girl, we will love this baby! Since day one Kazleigh has been telling us it is "ah boy baby". We will know soon enough!
My first big learning curve came when I watched "The Business of Being Born" on Netflix. I HIGHLY recommend this video to everyone. Not just pregnant women. Everyone needs relearn what birthing really is. Unfortunately, the U.S. has really medicalized an experience that our bodies were created to do on their own. I totally understand that sometimes medical intervention is completely necessary, but not required in every labor!
We finally made the commitment that we are going to have a natural labor (if all goes as planned health wise). This was huge for me to actually say it out loud and begin to make decisions regarding my prenatal care! After investigating home birthing, I have discovered that it is "illegal" to have a planned home birth on base. I find this to be a little ridiculous, but what can I do!
We have chosen to use Best Start Birthing Center in the Hillcrest area of San Diego. All of their reviews are just fabulous. Our only concern is the 45 minute drive (without traffic). So, we plan on printing a map from our home to the birthing center and mapping out all of the hospitals on the way just in case we get stuck in traffic and our baby doesn't want to wait! With Kazleigh, my labor was only 6-7 hours, which is pretty quick for a first-time mom! I am assuming this labor will be 3-4 hours.
I am so thrilled for this entire experience. I will be keeping this blog updated at least weekly with new information about natural birthing and our journey!
We find out the sex of this little babe in one short week. Initially, I was really hoping for another girl because we saved everything from Kazleigh and my practical side has been focusing on how much money we will save by not having to purchase a single thing! But in these past few days I have been absolutely enjoying the thought of this baby possibly being a boy. Bobby would be so thrilled to have a son. I think it would be rather fitting to have a boy this time around since my pregnancy and labor will be such a different experience than my birth with Kazleigh. Boy or girl, we will love this baby! Since day one Kazleigh has been telling us it is "ah boy baby". We will know soon enough!
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