Holiday Craze

The curse of the stay at home mom, or any mom for that matter, is the guilt you feel when things don’t pan-out quite as they were supposed to.

Troy’s busy-busy at work! As in go-go-go all the time. If he’s not working he should be and if he is working, he should be working more! Its crazy! Great for profits; not so fab for the burnt-out brain.

But I digress.

We’ve been planning to Christmas shop for the last four or five weekends, but something always came up to mar our plans; Troy working insanely, Emma being sick, etc. Finally, this past weekend we got to go!

Well!

I turned down an invite to a stagette party in order to go Christmas shopping with Troy, Emma and Gavin in tow…it was not to be…

We were welcomed into the Southcentre Shopping Mall parking lot with a traffic jam! But we figured ‘we’re here now’. So instead of high tailing it out of there, we embarked on a fruitless journey.

Inside the mall it wasn’t too bad…or so I thought until I went to stand in line at Indigo Bookstore…there were 40 to 50 people standing in line awaiting their turn to hand over hard earned money for overpriced books!

That’s when I decided to admit defeat; it doesn’t take me long to not stress myself out. I’m in no way a martyr. If something isn’t important, as most little details aren’t, I forget about them.

I like things to be nice, organized, and pretty just as much as the next person – but I’m not going to cause myself undue stress to achieve them.

So, instead of having lots ‘o gifts under the tree, Emma and Gavin will only have a few and a stocking each.

At first I was appalled at the situation and then I began rethinking why I was appalled. There is no reason for it.

I had planned to complete the Christmas shopping in October while waiting for Gavin to arrive. Gavin arrived two weeks early. Then I had four weeks recovery time for the c-section required to introduce Gav-Gav to the world. That brings us to November 15th. Then Gavin and I both had doctor appointments. Then we had a cold spell and we didn’t venture from the house at all. Then Emma got sick with the croup. More doctor appointments for all of us, and then a traffic jam. So voila!

As a new mom, struggling with sleep deprivation, I think I’ve done rather well with what we have.

We’re going to have a beautifully cooked Christmas dinner. The kids will have gifts upon gifts anyway, thanks to far-flung family and friends, and we’ll have memories. What more can you ask for?

The Christmas Season isn’t about who gets what or how much. In a world where we usually only think about others at Christmas time, I’d rather Emma and Gavin not have gifts but see me every grocery day purchase non-perishable items for the food bank.

Yes, kids should have gifts, but not to the extent that most families do it. Families go further and further into debt to give the hottest this or that to their loved ones. Shouldn’t children learn its better to give than to receive?

Instead of the newest of new, why not buy mittens for the homeless or bring cookies to the kids in hospital – and bring your children along. Make it a family tradition to help those in need!

Lots of folks, children included, would do anything to have a warm coat, let alone the newest design for the 2007 season.

There are plenty of ways you and yours can give back this Holiday Season as well as throughout the year:

Volunteer - www.volunteer.ca
Food Donation - www.cafb-acba.ca
Clothing and No Longer Used Items Donation - www.diabetes.ca/Section_services/collection.asp
Money Donation - www.canadian-charities.com/charityentry.html
Knit A Block - www.blankets4canada.ca

Its easy to forget what Christmas is really about – generosity of spirit.

Don’t get lost in the Holiday Craze Maze! Make this Holiday Season a bit brighter for someone else and teach your children to do the same.

Thanks for reading!
PS: Check back in January for a post on the subject of Tithing. Find out how helping others can help you…

Fever

Every book or reference has a different indication as to what a fever is…this is rather annoying! So, I’m posting it here for all to know…

To be precautious, I’m taking the lower as gospel. Therefore, as stated in Growing Miracles, a fever is above 37.3°C (99.1°F). This means that Gavin had a fever last night when I checked it before going to bed. A low-grade fever at 37.5°C, but a fever none the less.

Growing Miracles also states that you should see the doctor right away if your child is under three months of age and has a fever.

I hope this helps clear things up...Thanks for reading!

A Sick House

I’m sick. Blah! And so, unfortunately, is Gavin. Poor snotty, watery-eyed Gavin!

I (so far) have only a sore throat and have decided I am refusing to become any sicker. After all, I have a wedding to attend on Friday…oh…and two kids to look after… ;-)

Emma was sick with The Croup last week and now Gavin is sick (but not me!). I was under the impression that breastfeeding created an invisible shield around the new baboon to protect him from all things icky and sicky…?

Right here in my handy dandy book Growing Miracles published by the Calgary Health Region on page 40 it states that breast milk is “Protective. It helps protect your baby from illness and infections…”.

Hello?! Hello? Is my breast milk defective in some way?

So, what can you really do for a sick infant?

Steam Bath – to loosen the stuffy, phlegmy stuff up. (To the steam bath specifically selected essential oils could be added. See the post at http://aromatherapyinformation.blogspot.com/ for more information.)

Saline Drops – to loosen and dry the stuffy, phlegmy stuff up.

Medication Through Mama – since everything passes through me into him via my breast milk, I’ve got Garlic Chicken Soup on the stove bubbling away! I’ll garlic the icky-sicky out of him! ;-)

Cuddles, cuddles and more cuddles!

There is nothing to bring you down and humble you like not being able to ‘make it better’. When Em was sick last week she would cough and shake uncontrollably!

This was the first time she has ever really been sick. She has had a sniffle or two, but nothing like this. It was also the first time I wasn’t able to ‘fix it’.

She would cough and look at me as if to say ‘Hello?! Do you not see me coughing here? Make it better, woman!’ But alas, I could not. She simply had to cough her way through it.

Em’s better now though! It took about five days and a Cold Mist Humidifier (my new secret weapon) to clear up, but she’s better. Whew!

Now I have to worry about Gav-Gav! We have a scheduled doctor’s appointment on Thursday, so as long as he’s alert and waking to feed, I’m going to hold off on running to the fabulous Dr. Heeg.

I’ll keep you posted…Thanks for reading!

Think And You Shall Receive

Can your intentions truly be made reality?

That is, if I decide I would like one million dollars to flow into my life, can I simply think that thought and it will be so? Lets try!

What is manifestation?
Manifestation is defined as ‘the act, process or an instance of manifesting…an occult phenomenon; specifically: materialization’; materialization is then defined as ‘the action of materializing’. Therefore, manifestation is willing something to be. No matter what that something is, if you want it badly enough, you’ll get it.

There is such a thing call the Intention-Manifestation Model whereby a person decides they want something, declare their intention and then be open and accepting to what they are ‘given’ to help them manifest the something they want.

Explanation – How does it work? What is the theory?
Law of Attraction, Field of Intentions, Intention-Manifestation model…for the most part they’re all the same.

The basic theory is this: whatever you focus on you get. Therefore, if you are constantly focusing on what is bad in your life you will continue to attract more of the same. The law of quantum physics states ‘like energy attracts like energy’.

In essence you make your own luck! Your own success! Your own life! The Universe is not plotting against you if you have a bad day – after all, you forgot to set the alarm clock, not the universe. ;-)

So if you want to find a loving, caring, generous individual to share your life with, become that person yourself. Become what you seek!

You cannot expect the dream job to be handed to you; you have to go get it. However, there is nothing wrong with letting the universe know you want it! ‘Ask and ye shall receive’ and all that.

If this sounds mumbo-jumbo-y, hocus-pocus-y, somewhat religious-y, it is…and it isn’t. Every religion has the same basic concept whereby if you want something, strive for it and you’ll achieve it. Of course in every religion too, you have your martyrs who strive for the good of all – and that’s great, but most of us are a selfish lot! As long as what you’re ‘wishing’ for won’t hurt anyone else (because, trust me, karma is a bitch!), then go ahead and strive away.

This isn’t a new concept, its not new-age-y and all the goal-setting gurus are proclaiming it’s the way to go! If you want something, draw a map of how you’re going to get it. Visualize yourself with that something – how does it look? Feel? Taste?

Essentially, this is what a Business Plan is – where do you see your newly formed business going? Ok. Now work toward that. It keeps you focused. So why not make yourself a Life Plan…it doesn’t have to be formal. Your local bank manager isn’t going to see it. Think of it as a way to stay focused in your life.

I firmly believe we make our own life. If your going to be down on yourself, people are going to be down on you; however, if you take the stance of ‘I’m going to be happy, damn it’, people will feel that energy and they’ll embrace it - and you!

If you say ‘I’m going to be a successful entrepreneur but do nothing to help yourself achieve that goal – well, you didn’t fail, you just didn’t try.

In Think and Grow Rich there is a passage about how a man asked the world for just so much, but if he would have asked for more he would have got it. So ask for it! Get it! Whatever ‘it’ is for you – go for it!

To recap: If you want something, ask for it. Then start the ball rolling to get it, take whatever steps are necessary – ‘magically’ things will fall into place.

Personal A-Ha!
Several years ago I worked with this fellow who had ‘it’ all. I have to admit I was in a place that really made me dislike him – a lot. But looking back now, he was just doing the above; asking for or taking what, he wanted (I’d err on the side of asking – always be polite) and getting it. The only area of his life that seemed out of sorts was the area of love. I do hope that has remedied itself and he is completely happy now.

At the moment I ‘woke-up’ and realized what he had been doing (even if he didn’t, but I’m sure he did), I didn’t dislike him anymore. I actually wanted to thank him for being a teacher of sorts. For showing me how, even though I only got the lesson years after it was taught.

So I say go for it! Decide what it is your want and ask for it, then set about to achieve it. What is the worse that can happen? The Universe will say ‘no’? I highly doubt that will happen, but if it does re-think what it is you ‘want’…maybe the Universe is trying to tell you something…

Basically it comes down to what goes around comes around; you get what you give; do onto others as you would have them do onto you; etc. If you’re positive, the people around you, the world around you, will be positive!

The Million Dollar Experiment
Steve Pavlina, a personal development guru for ‘smart people’, is conducting an experiment on his website, http://www.stevepavlina.com/, called The Million Dollar Experiment. It’s based on the intention-manifestation model and ‘the goal is to generate $1 million of additional wealth for each person who chooses to participate’. The experiment is free to join except for the daily time required to put forth the intention: ‘In an easy and relaxed manner, in a healthy and positive way, in its own perfect time, for the highest good of all, I intend $1,000,000 to come into my life and into the lives of everyone who holds this intention’. To date the experiment has resulted in a manifestation of $2,243,978.07 and there are 4039 public participants, including myself.

Why not decide to bring yourself an extra one million dollars by declaring an intention and then finding ways to manifest it? In light of that, I’ve added Google AdSense ads, affiliate links, and product reviews to my blogs (http://astayathomemomsview.blogspot.com/, http://atoddlerandababy.blogspot.com/). Not to mention donation keys to be clicked on for those of you who are feeling generous… Think about it, if one million of you send me one dollar, I’ll have reached my goal! ;-)

I invite you to join The Million Dollar Experiement too! Why shouldn’t you ‘generate $1 million of additional wealth’?

It is an interesting concept and certainly one that could be applied to any part of one’s life or world. Why not have a public intention for world peace or to end hunger or for that matter, to get Brittany Spears to stop showing her knickers (or the lack there of) in public. Poor Brittany!

My Manifestations
In the past, I have never deliberately used the ‘Laws of Attraction’, however, I have gotten everything I truly wanted. Let me show you:

1 – I wanted to leave the small town I grew up in – check!
2 – I wanted to love and be loved by a great man – check!
3 – I wanted to have a home of my own – check!
4 – I wanted to have a garden – check!
5 – I wanted a job I enjoyed – check!
6 – I wanted to have children – check!
7 – I wanted to be a stay at home mom – check!
8 – I wanted to write for a living – check (in a round about way)!

In conclusion, know that the concepts of the Intention-Manifestation Model, Laws of Attraction, etc. are not difficult concepts to grasp. Its about thinking positively and believing in yourself and having ‘faith’. It is difficult to re-work your brain to not think negatively; I myself catch myself thinking negatively all the time. I’m a work in progress… It is also difficult to wrap your brain around the fact that each thought is an intention, and therefore you must be careful what you ‘wish’ for, because you might just get it….

Spitting Up Is Hard To Do...

...Or not so hard in Gavin's case!

Emma hardly ever spit up, but this little guy spits up all the time. So of course, being the 'I-Wonder-How-Come' person I am, I decided to get on the Internet and find out why he does.

I found the great article that follows...
***
My Breastfed Baby Spits Up Frequently
By: Natural Mom Business Guide

Q: My breastfed baby spits up frequently. Is there something I'm eating that could be causing this? Could it be reflux? Or is this normal?

A: If your baby is spitting up, even if it's a frequent occurrence, it's rarely a sign of a serious problem. In fact, "In a healthy baby," according to the late Dr. Gregory White, previously a medical advisor to La Leche League, "spitting up is a laundry problem, not a medical problem." If your baby is gaining weight properly and otherwise developing normally, you probably have nothing to worry about, and likely the problem will lesson and eventually go away by the time baby is a year old.

Still, it can be disconcerting if your nursing baby spits up a lot. You may be wondering if he or she is getting enough milk or if there is some problem with your breastmilk. Rest assured. There are several things you can do to help prevent frequent spitting up.

1) Let Gravity Help When Feeding
Basically, any position that causes the milk to go against gravity will help baby handle the flow of milk more easily, and cause him to swallow less air. Try nursing baby in the "football" hold with him looking at your breast and partially sitting up, facing you. Nursing lying down will allow baby to let extra milk flow out the side of his mouth. After a feeding, try holding him upright in a baby sling. Many Moms have found that their frequent spitters are helped when they're frequently held close to Mom's body in a soft carrier.

2) Finish The First Breast First
At the beginning of a feeding, your baby is getting the lower fat "foremilk" and later on, the higher fat "hindmilk". If you remove baby from the first breast before he pulls away and give him the other side, he may fill up with foremilk, causing some gassiness, fussiness, and more spitting up. Let him decide when he's done with the first breast, either by pulling away or falling asleep. If you have a very strong "letdown", or milk ejection reflex, then this is especially important. You may have an overabundant milk supply. Try keeping baby on one side for an entire feeding.

3) Pay Attention To Your Latch
Be sure baby is latched on properly. His mouth should be open wide and he should have a lot of areola (not just the nipple but surrounding tissue) in his mouth. If he is latched on well you will have no pain, and baby will swallow less air. It's also a good idea to burp a frequent spitter before offering him the second breast. Oftentimes a thorough burping will prevent spit up later.

4) Relax!
Frequent spitting up is often caused by an underdeveloped esophageal sphincter (fancy term for the muscles that keep food down). The problem will likely resolve as baby gets older. Spitting up is rarely caused by something a nursing Mom ate. There is no one food that causes trouble in most or all breastfed infants. Nursing Moms worldwide eat a variety of foods (including spicy foods, garlic, dairy products and "gassy" foods like onions, cabbage and beans) and nurse healthy babies. Food allergies are rare in breastfed infants. If you have a strong family history of allergies, then your baby may be allergic to something that appears in your milk. Ask your health care provider for recommendations about changing your diet. Fussiness can be caused by many different factors, including temperament. If you suspect that your baby's frequent spitting up is caused by Reflux, he may have some of the following symptoms: trouble gaining weight, difficulty breathing, gagging and extreme irritability. Ask your baby's Doctor about your baby's symptoms if you're unsure.

Carrie Lauth is the author of The Natural Mom Business Guide, a complete step by step course to building a natural business on the Internet. It contains tried and true advice to help you start, build, and market an online business. To find out more Click Here!
***

Gavin is as healthy as healthy gets! He has absolutely no problem gaining weight - at 7 weeks old he is already the size Emma was at 3 months - so I'd say there is no problem, except for, as the article states, with the laundry! ;-)

Thanks for reading...

PS: I'm still researching tithing and manifestation - there is just so much information to 'digest'...

It's My Birthday!

The BIG 3-0! Thirty years ago today my mother gave birth to me, isn't that incredible?! Well, not that incredible, really - lots of women have given birth and lots of people have turned thirty. But this day is pretty spectacular to me! I'm 30!

Troy and Emma made me a cake and a card. Emma sprinkled it with chocolate chips and candy sprinkles - it is beautiful! We're going to have a quiet night in, snacking on finger foods and watching a movie.

Troy and I had planned to go out to celebrate (read: go to the mall and get some Christmas shopping done) but our babysitter cancelled on us. Phooey! Oh well, the mall was sure to be a big gong show anyway as it always is at this time of year, not that it isn't any other time, but the Holiday Season is always worse. ;-)

I'll post pictures later of the cake and my thirty year old smile on our family website, http://thekbfamily.tripod.com/.

Thanks for reading!