Mums the Word

Every time I fly I think of my dad.  I remember every apect of traveling with him.  The drive with 'classic' music we would sing along to, unloading at the paking spot where my dad would flag down the driver, as if he didn't see us in the designated pick up spot.  Then he would proceed to talk to everyone on the bus giving them our whole life story.  Funny, people would usually tell us there's.  We would then check in and hit security which was always fun because dad would always be pulled aside and hassled.  We joked that he fit some sort of criminal description.  We totally looked suspicious.  After we boarded the plane he would tell some jokes and familiarize himself with everyone within a 10ft radius and become best friends with the flight staff.  As a benefit, I got to see more cockpits than most children.  When we took off and landed my ears would hurt with the air pressure.  Dad would distract me by talking about our trip and...

Dear young people, I used to be you.  I could stay up all night, drink whatever mixture was put in front of me and wake up the next morning like nothing happened. Well, maybe not like nothing happened but minimal suffering with a possible fuzzy feeling.  And nothing bad enough to detour me from doing it all again the next night.  (Although there was one night I did 7 shots of tequila and I had to take a week off.) Oh and did I eat that entire pizza???  When you're young you can party how you please and it's all good in the morning.  If not, go back to bed and sleep it off. Welcome to adulthood, things are different.  For starters I have four kids, so there is no such thing as sleeping in.  'Sleeping in' is making 6:30 without WWIII breaking out.  Once up there is no going back, just counting the hours until bedtime.  Just staying up late, will cause you to wake up feeling like you have a hangover.  Then add an actual hangover and yo...

Kids are funny.  Their minds are learning something new and how to use it every minute.  The younger they are, the more they can take in.  They are so dependent on us, their medial higher power.  Maybe the less control one has, the more likely they are to accept change.  Kids lives are already a whirlwind of transformation.  This world demands they must cope and adapt and because of this, they become better at accepting change. Death is change. When my dad was dying, we explained that 'Poppy was going to heaven'.  The younger kids (who were four and under) took it like any other news.  I could have said, 'It's going to rain today' and had the exact same response.  I didn't want them to miss what I was saying so I explained further that dying is when you go to heaven to be with Jesus and we wouldn't see him for a long time, until it was our turn to go to heaven.  My four year old expressed his dissatisfaction and appealed for that to not...

Today on the Corrie farm we learned about corn, soy bean seeds and planting. The hot topic of the day was GMO's. Scary right?  Things that we don't understand can be.  I may have been a little uneasy with GMO's before my conversation with these farmers.  Luckily they were ready for my questions and possibly majored in bio chemistry with an emphasis in 'I can use big words'. Anyways, for the general public I'm going to break it down for you.  GMO's are genetically modified organisms.  Monks actually came up with this stuff...naturally.  It's when you mix different plant genes to get a certain type of plant, as in one that will be the most viable in it's allocated environment.  This may be a helpful example:  if you plant spicy peppers in your garden right next to lettuce, you may get a salad with a kick.  True story. GMO's have created a Gattaca-like world of plants.  Gattaca is a movie featuring Ethan Hawke and Jude Law (Ooo Law la...

You new moms are so adorable!  You care about everything, worry about everything and are so easily overwhelmed.  I love it as much as I love that new baby smell. Welcome to the fraternity called Motherhood.  Why not sorority you say?  Oh because in a sorority, freshmen are revered and doted on.  Fraternity's on the other hand, make their freshman earn it! When I think of what you're in for, I smile.  Why? Because all of us sustainers have had to suffer through our 'freshmen year'.  We lure you new pledges in with fun stories of our precious moments and playgroups and then, BAM, you're up all night with a screaming baby and a husband who can't hear a damn thing.  It may or may not be instinct.  You will argue about this. Anyways, unlike seniors in a fraternity, we seasoned moms are here for you.  We will gladly lend a hand, give advice and that much needed pat on the back of encouragement.  No, no, it's not us you need to worry ...

So lately there has been a movement to tell moms to be more grateful.  'Treasure every moment!', 'It goes by so fast!', 'You'll wish you could go back when they are older!'  and my personal favorite 'These are the best days of your life.' These people that have such pearls of wisdom for your life don't have enough on their plate.  Are you currently in charge of keeping four small children off the street?  No? Then shut your face!  If someone can see you are in a personal storm and tells you 'These are the best days of your life', that person is an asshole. Here's the truth:  I am grateful.  I have four, beautiful, healthy, fairly happy but headstrong children. Raising them up, teaching them right from wrong and spending all my time with them can be rewarding.  I love them more than anything and I chose this life but here's the thing....it's hard as shit.  I think there is something to be said for living in the moment, I...

Crib. Check.  Stroller.  Check. Car seat.  Check.  Swing and/or bouncer. Check. What's next? Here's my list: 1.   Diaper bag .  The bigger the better.  Needs to fit your entire life in it.  Always have a least one change of baby clothes.  The second you step out the front door, they are going to have an up the back blow out.  It's fine.  Also consider the fact that they are only a baby for a little while and if you are going to spend crazy money on this you may want something you can use after the 'baby days'.  I had an OiOi and after four it was destroyed but I highly recommend. 2.  Bedding .  The only thing you really need is fitted sheets.  I said 'sheets', plural.  Get a few.  I recommend getting waterproof flannel crib pads.  They are easy to pull and wash, without having to wash entire fitted sheet.  I also like sleep sacks for babies once they are done with being swaddled. 3....