Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Where's Catholic Catherine?
I know this is technically (or purportedly, anyway) a Catholic blog, and lately I've been focusing on poo and how fast my baby is growing (did I mention that he is already in size 3 diapers?), when I do write at all. And when I do post something, the sentences are mostly run-ons that require a decoder ring to muddle through (see: previous sentence. and this one too, kind of.) Anyway, I am hoping to get back to more Catholic-minded thoughts. I always have lofty post ideas and then a million things come up and suddenly days go by and the topic is no longer relevant or I've completely forgotten it. So, you know, just in case you come here looking for Catholic stuff...it's coming.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
The Legend Lives
There is a tale from centuries gone by. The legend has been passed down, from great-grandmother to mother, and maybe even between a father or two. A tale of preposterous circumstances, a perfect storm of physics and plastics so harrowing that the details are usually only relayed in a whisper and never when the shadows have grown long and the sun has set. It is the legend of the REVERSE POOPY. Let me set the scene for you......
Mother and baby wake up at usual time. Baby smiles big, gummy grin and both begin their morning routine - diaper change, songs on the changing table, a quick wardrobe maneuver from jammies to the day's [first] outfit. Matching bib is secured around Baby's chubby neck and downstairs they go! Nothing out of the ordinary so far....Baby is placed in bouncy seat in kitchen while Mom gets coffee and cereal. Jokes and smiles and songs are exchanged (albeit mostly on one side). Mom lifts Baby's bouncy seat and places it on dining room table so the repartee can progress while Mom eats. Baby is unusually quiet, but very smiley, so Mom continues with routine. They chat. There is a slight rumbling from Baby's stomach and a subsequent gurgle from his posterior end. Hmmm, no look of deep concentration on his face. No earth shattering explosion. This is clearly only a moderate dirty diaper. No need to rush upstairs. Mom takes vitamins and gives Baby his Vitamin D drops. No more sounds from this sweet child. No unusual smells. Mom scoops up Baby and, singing a little song, saunters upstairs to the changing table. Same old, same old. Maybe not even worth changing! Or, is it.....? Mom places Baby on the table. Something is not right....There are dark spots on the front of his pant legs. Did he manage to drool without Mom noticing? She moves closer for a sniff....Is that....poo? On his thighs? In the front? A feeling of fear creeps through her stomach. She begins to peel off baby clothing. And....it is everywhere. Poo. In places you could never imagine you would ever find it. She thinks, Do I even have enough wipes to handle this? The monkey pants are an unwilling sacrifice. Who knows if the onesie can be saved. She can hardly find the diaper in all that poo. But the fact that it was silent and enormous is really not what you, Dear Reader, should take away from this. Those factors are disturbing but not as uncommon as the inexperienced diaper changer might think. No, the most terrifying part of the whole ordeal was how the diaper completely blew out in the front. No poo up Baby's back. No smears on his bottom. But hideous, orange poo obliterating his thighs and knees. Physically possible? Apparently. Perplexing? Absolutely.
Mother and baby wake up at usual time. Baby smiles big, gummy grin and both begin their morning routine - diaper change, songs on the changing table, a quick wardrobe maneuver from jammies to the day's [first] outfit. Matching bib is secured around Baby's chubby neck and downstairs they go! Nothing out of the ordinary so far....Baby is placed in bouncy seat in kitchen while Mom gets coffee and cereal. Jokes and smiles and songs are exchanged (albeit mostly on one side). Mom lifts Baby's bouncy seat and places it on dining room table so the repartee can progress while Mom eats. Baby is unusually quiet, but very smiley, so Mom continues with routine. They chat. There is a slight rumbling from Baby's stomach and a subsequent gurgle from his posterior end. Hmmm, no look of deep concentration on his face. No earth shattering explosion. This is clearly only a moderate dirty diaper. No need to rush upstairs. Mom takes vitamins and gives Baby his Vitamin D drops. No more sounds from this sweet child. No unusual smells. Mom scoops up Baby and, singing a little song, saunters upstairs to the changing table. Same old, same old. Maybe not even worth changing! Or, is it.....? Mom places Baby on the table. Something is not right....There are dark spots on the front of his pant legs. Did he manage to drool without Mom noticing? She moves closer for a sniff....Is that....poo? On his thighs? In the front? A feeling of fear creeps through her stomach. She begins to peel off baby clothing. And....it is everywhere. Poo. In places you could never imagine you would ever find it. She thinks, Do I even have enough wipes to handle this? The monkey pants are an unwilling sacrifice. Who knows if the onesie can be saved. She can hardly find the diaper in all that poo. But the fact that it was silent and enormous is really not what you, Dear Reader, should take away from this. Those factors are disturbing but not as uncommon as the inexperienced diaper changer might think. No, the most terrifying part of the whole ordeal was how the diaper completely blew out in the front. No poo up Baby's back. No smears on his bottom. But hideous, orange poo obliterating his thighs and knees. Physically possible? Apparently. Perplexing? Absolutely.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Sweet Baby J
Baby D's cousin is finally here! We are all super excited to meet Baby J tonight. Please say a little prayer for this brand new baby and his brand new parents!
a little Middlemarch on Monday
The tenacity with which he strove to hide this inward drama made it the more vivid for him; as we hear with the more keenness what we wish others not to hear. Instead of wondering at this result of misery in Mr. Casaubon, I think it quite ordinary. Will not a tiny speck very close to our vision blot out the glory of the world, and leave only a margin by which we see the blot? I know no speck so troublesome as self.
Friday, August 20, 2010
thankful
Sometimes you just have a wonderful day, with beautiful August weather, phone conversations that deepen friendships, and afternoons with caring relatives. And then your son smiles at a silly dance you do. And you are so, so grateful for it all.
Monday, August 16, 2010
a little Middlemarch on Monday
"It was certainly a hasty speech, my dear," said Mrs. Garth, with whom speaking evil of dignities was a high misdemeanor. "We should not value our Vicar the less because there was a ridiculous curate in the next parish."
"There's something in what she says, though," said Caleb, not disposed to have Mary's sharpness undervalued. "A bad workman of any sort makes his fellows mistrusted. Things hang together," he added, looking on the floor and moving his feet uneasily with a sense that words were scantier than thoughts.
"Clearly," said the Vicar, amused. "By being contemptible we set men's minds to the tune of contempt."
"There's something in what she says, though," said Caleb, not disposed to have Mary's sharpness undervalued. "A bad workman of any sort makes his fellows mistrusted. Things hang together," he added, looking on the floor and moving his feet uneasily with a sense that words were scantier than thoughts.
"Clearly," said the Vicar, amused. "By being contemptible we set men's minds to the tune of contempt."
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
The Things I Don't Regret
This mom lost her son to drug addiction...a sad, beautiful post.
It makes the sleepless nights and cranky days a little easier to bear.
It makes the sleepless nights and cranky days a little easier to bear.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Happy 3 Month Birthday, Baby D!
Three months! Where o where does the time go? Looking back through my log of old posts, I realized that I had written one on his 1 and 2 month birthdays, and never finished/published them. So this post combines all three into a super-mega-fantastic post. So let's work our way backwards, shall we? Here we are, Baby D, three months after the day you were born. I used to call you Little Man because of your old man hairline but now you really are a little man! You smile and respond and laugh and coo; you can hold your head up (somewhat) and you can even support some of your own body weight on your legs! We don't even swaddle you anymore, so we find you in all sorts of crazy places all over your crib when we check on you at night. Boy do you like to travel around your bed! But not in the car - you hate the carseat, with its confining belts and gadgets. Even a baby mirror and my singing can only entertain you for so long before you start to wail - a horrible noise that you really only make when strapped into that seat. Which makes me want to cry, because I can't pick you up! But you're really just not that into crying (except at the end of a very long day). Instead, you have this kind of yell, like you're calling out to us - hey, feed me! entertain me! love me! You're just a happy kid who likes to spend time with people, even if it's just sitting on the front porch and watching the trees move in the breeze. And I could spend all day with you, Baby D, watching you smile at the world.
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Whew! Happy 2 months, Baby D! All three of us have survived many, many sleep deprived (but wonderful!) days. And now you smile! You coo! You're actually quite chatty. You like to watch light and shadows, stare out windows, take baths before bedtime, play with your hands, and kick your legs constantly. It's like you woke up one morning and realized there's a whole big world out there. We have to carry you facing away from us now, so you can look at absolutely everything while we tote you around. But you still love to snuggle and be held while you fall asleep - thank goodness! I wouldn't want my little man growing up too fast. As difficult and trying and exhausting as these months have been, there is nothing as delightful and absolutely breathtaking as watching you really come alive and find the world around you. Even a ceiling fan or a leaf blowing in the breeze is mesmerizing when you contemplate it the way a baby does. And it's even more enthralling and magical to watch the baby as he watches the world. Thank you for this gift, Baby D.
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Baby D is finally one month old! Part of me can hardly believe it's been a month already, and part of me feels like it has been forever. It's been a rough four weeks - we're all waiting anxiously for that first smile to reward us for all the late nights and endless diaper changes. But there are little glimmers of development along the way - he grabbed my shirt! he held his head up for 10 seconds instead of 5! he noticed himself in the mobile mirror! Something so small seems so big when you witness a human doing it for the first time ever. I can't wait to see what's coming next, D.
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Whew! Happy 2 months, Baby D! All three of us have survived many, many sleep deprived (but wonderful!) days. And now you smile! You coo! You're actually quite chatty. You like to watch light and shadows, stare out windows, take baths before bedtime, play with your hands, and kick your legs constantly. It's like you woke up one morning and realized there's a whole big world out there. We have to carry you facing away from us now, so you can look at absolutely everything while we tote you around. But you still love to snuggle and be held while you fall asleep - thank goodness! I wouldn't want my little man growing up too fast. As difficult and trying and exhausting as these months have been, there is nothing as delightful and absolutely breathtaking as watching you really come alive and find the world around you. Even a ceiling fan or a leaf blowing in the breeze is mesmerizing when you contemplate it the way a baby does. And it's even more enthralling and magical to watch the baby as he watches the world. Thank you for this gift, Baby D.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Baby D is finally one month old! Part of me can hardly believe it's been a month already, and part of me feels like it has been forever. It's been a rough four weeks - we're all waiting anxiously for that first smile to reward us for all the late nights and endless diaper changes. But there are little glimmers of development along the way - he grabbed my shirt! he held his head up for 10 seconds instead of 5! he noticed himself in the mobile mirror! Something so small seems so big when you witness a human doing it for the first time ever. I can't wait to see what's coming next, D.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
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