Still & Bare

"When the earth is still and bare, the somber gray-brown bark of the hickory tree trunk can be quite magical. The deep forest-green ivy that cascades over the aged brick wall beside my kitchen door becomes the rarest of gifts.
...
In my wintertime garden no butterflies flutter, no honeybees hum, there are no whimsical Johnny-jump-up faces or graceful summer dahlias. Yet I know each is safely hidden away in its own secret bed, where winter's silence holds the promise of spring's exuberance."

~Emily Jenkins for Victoia Magazine January 1993

Another Three Weeks

It looks like Baby Girl will be in her brace for another 3 weeks, but her hips show GREAT improvement so that will do the trick. Another 3 weeks will be challenging for us, but we are SO BLESSED her progress was as good as it turned out.
Praise God!

Wordless Wednesday

Of Peas and Peace

I'm genuinely contented and happy to be a mom. I enjoy my soft and squishy little blessing even when she's crying, which is a lot, because quite frankly she's been dealt a challenging hand so far. With skin irritations, potential allergies, and Hip Dysplasia, she is learning a lot about life here on earth with its hurdles to overcome. I know she can't make heads or tails of why she must be forced to be slathered in ointment and wear a restrictive contraption, so I hope she can feel my love for her with every kiss, cuddle, song, feeding, Eskimo kiss, back rub, and even our naps together. I pray she knows I am always here for her and never worries that I might leave her (however instinctual that fear is).

These past 7 weeks have been a learning experience/marathon for me as well. I am restricting my diet, something that is much more challenging for me than a sleepless night, and eating only the basics until we determine what was causing the extreme rash she had a few weeks back. My snacking sources are scarce and mostly consist of vegan, gluten-free bread with something on it (bananas, avocado, vegan buttery spread, honey...). One of my favorite snacks, though a little pricey, are freeze dried fruits and veggies. I can go through a bag in one sitting. Yum, yum delish!

These Minutes are Milestones

Every pursed lip,

Nod of head - 

Bobble and Reach:

Prepare a path

And part the proverbial

SEAs

For onward steps

Across the divine divide

And show us mountains

on the other side.

Love and Demand

"Demand nursing, as I saw it, was no different from caring for a family member who has been rendered powerless. Would we refuse an incapacitated father a meal because it was "not time"? Or leave a paralyzed spouse alone in a room to "cry it out"--checking in every 10 minutes to say, "It's Ok"--without trying to find out what is wrong and doing something about it? If he or she only wanted to be held, would we refuse, for fear of spoiling someone we love?"

From:
So I Nursed Him Every 45 Minutes
By Elizabeth N. Baldwin, Esq.