Infant Potty-training (elimination communication)

I had tried to 'potty-train' four of my other babies. I had varying degrees of success. However, by the time they were a year we were using diapers all the time. Somewhere along the way I would start missing when they needed to go or I just got lazy.

So, while I was pregnant with Sara I prayed that the Lord would help me do it right and that I would be successful this time. One should be careful, very careful, in what one prays for.

Since the day she was born Sara did NOT like to wet her diaper. She would cry and fuss until we took the diaper off and took her to the pot. Now she is a little more diplomatic and will go in her diaper if I do not take her in time...during the day. At night she fusses and squirms until I drag my tired body out of bed to take her potty. I don't even bother putting a diaper on her at night anymore. She never wets during the night.

I should not complain. I have what I wanted. But I do complain...every night. I lay there with Sara tossing and turning next to me wishing she would just go to sleep, knowing that she will not until I take her potty. I am so tired at 2 am.

On the good side. I have taken her out in public without a diaper on several occasions with only one or two accidents. A package of diapers will last two or three weeks. It is fun to see people's reactions to us taking Sara potty.

Sara is only six months and it is usually after that time that I quit with the other kids, but I have a feeling it will be different this time. At least I hope it will be, all the lost sleep will be worth it if I can do well with her.

Canyon trip

We go to Palo Duro Canyon several times a year. Usually it is just me and the kids. We went yesterday and had loads of fun. We went to a different part of the park than we usually do. And we found caves!

There were some other people out there too and we must thank them for showing us some of the caves and for escorting some of the kids through the first time. The one was very narrow in the opening and was very dark for a short period, that made it exciting!

Kyla did not go. She held the baby so Mom could come back with the other kids. Ellis did not go the first time but he did go on the return route with Mom. Mom did not let Wes go, he stayed with Kyla. Next time he'll go though. I hope we have some more nice weather soon so we can do some more exploring!

Here are some pics:

Mom and Wes and Sara

Cora the Brave (the first one to go through one of the tunnel caves)
Entrance to the dark tunnel cave


Opening (the strangers who showed us the cave and helped the kids)
The 'out' side of the cave

You can read my eldest daughter's account of our trip here

A Christmas to remember (pics added)

Our Christmas morning began VERY early. About 2 am.

Wes woke up sounding awful with croup and seemed to be having trouble breathing. I tried to comfort him and get him calmed down so he could breathe easier. Hubby was beside himself, worried that he has gotten water in his lungs that night in the bath. I love my hubby, but he isn't very level-headed when he's half asleep! LOL So Dh called 911 and Wes and Dh went to the hospital in the ambulance, first ambulance ride for our kids.

At about 5:30 I went and picked them up from the ER and then we came home to get a nap.

We let the kids open presents at about 9. They were all happy. The blocks were a big hit. We ate a late breakfast of pancakes and eggs with homemade egg nog.

Oh I need to back up and tell about the egg nog. The day before Christmas Eve I found my bottle of rum extract spilled in the pantry and made a mental post-it note to pick some up. Well...mental notes don't stick on me anymore.

So at 7 pm Christmas Eve when we were ready to make the egg nog I remembered about the rum. Every place was closed. Who would have rum extract? If it had been vanilla I could have asked anyone, but rum extract?

I called a lady from church that is always baking. I knew if anyone would have it she would. She looked in her pantry and the bottle she had was gelled. Then she spied another bottle that was nearly full and still good. So I drove 20 minutes to her house to pick up the rum extract and then back home to make the nog. It turned out pretty good, if I do say so myself!

Okay, back to Christmas. I started the ham about 11:30 so it would be done around 3:30. Then I went for a nap. I got up at 1:30 and dh went for his nap. At 2:30 I decided to check on the ham. The roaster oven was not on!! I should not cook when I am so sleepy! LOL So I turned it on and figured it would be done about 6:30.

During all this time the kids were playing and watching a movie or two. Ellis managed to break one of his new toys. The blocks kept the boys and Kyla busy for quite awhile ( I will be uploading pics later). Emma has been listening to her new MP3 player all day. And Cora has been skating around the house in her new in-line skates. She has been very productive too, looking for any excuse to be helpful so she can skate around. lol

We just finished dinner at 6:30. Not a bad day, a bit tiring, but not bad. And not one we will forget soon. I sincerely hope that the kids will go to sleep early.

This post is taking forever to get done. I just had to take a break to give Wes a bath. Now Sara wants me to hold her while she goes to sleep.

Enough rambling I suppose. Merry Christmas!

Sara wanting her mommy

A sleepy Daddy looking at a big mess!

It was amazing!!

That pic on the top of the page was taken after only one try!! I was not going to push it and try to get a better one. The preparation for that pic took about an hour and a half. I was already worn out. Everyone was looking at the camera and no funny faces or closed eyes. That's good enough for me! So that's the one that is going in all our Christmas mailings. Just waiting to pick them up from Walgreens and then put the envelopes in the mail box and pray hard that they will arrive by Christmas Eve to their destination. Not likely that they will, but one can hope.

P.S. Well they are off. Want to hear something funny? When I went to Walgreens to get the pics the attendant told me I needed to have a release form signed to get them. Apparently they thought that they were professional portraits done in a studio because of the background. Thankfully I had taken my camera with me and showed the picture on it.

Intellectual Espionage

http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/chapters/3b.htm

Portion from a book by John Taylor Gatto...great stuff!

From the page:
"Looking back, abundant data exist from states like Connecticut and Massachusetts to show that by 1840 the incidence of complex literacy in the United States was between 93 and 100 percent wherever such a thing mattered. According to the Connecticut census of 1840, only one citizen out of every 579 was illiterate and you probably don’t want to know, not really, what people in those days considered literate; it’s too embarrassing. Popular novels of the period give a clue: Last of the Mohicans, published in 1826, sold so well that a contemporary equivalent would have to move 10 million copies to match it. If you pick up an uncut version you find yourself in a dense thicket of philosophy, history, culture, manners, politics, geography, analysis of human motives and actions, all conveyed in data-rich periodic sentences so formidable only a determined and well-educated reader can handle it nowadays. Yet in 1818 we were a small-farm nation without colleges or universities to speak of. Could those simple folk have had more complex minds than our own?"

and,

"Put another way, black illiteracy doubled, white illiteracy quadrupled. Before you think of anything else in regard to these numbers, think of this: we spend three to four times as much real money on schooling as we did sixty years ago, but sixty years ago virtually everyone, black or white, could read."

Interesting isn't it?

I hate being sick!

Today I woke with a monstrous sinus headache. I had a fever and my nose was running. I did not want to get out of bed and cook or clean or take care of a fussy baby. Thankfully I didn't have to cook or clean...still had take care of the baby though. Kyla, my wonderful teenager, rallied the troops and got everything cleaned up and breakfast made!

Days like this make me so glad that I spent time teaching the kids how to do things. It is a comfort to know that the house won't completely fall apart while I lie around trying to get well. I did take something for the headache and that helped some, except now I feel all dizzy in my head. Medicine always does that to me. The dizzy feeling is much more bearable than the headache!

I really do have some great kids!

FDR and the Great Depression

FDR's policies prolonged the Depression

And here is a link to a review of a book. I am going to read it...one of these days...

It concerns be greatly that President Elect Obama wants to create more, and expand those existing, government programs. It will not help the economy. All it will do is increase government interference in our lives and push us closer to globalization.

Time is so short

Time is racing by these days. When I look at my children, who are growing so fast, I wonder if I have spent enough time with them? Have I taught them all they need to know? I am a good example of what an help meet and mother ought to be?


I fear the answer to those questions is 'No'.

I spend too much time with frivolous things. I spend too much time worrying.


My oldest girl is nearly a woman. My oldest boy is looking less and less like a little boy. And the baby is sixteen months already!


These moments slip by so swiftly! And yet so often I am wanting them to hurry along. Always looking ahead, and sometimes behind, instead of living in the moment. What I do right now, today, determines the future. Am I spending the time necessary to make that future a bright one?


Have I done enough to equip my daughters to be successful in whatever they pursue in life? Have I shown them how a wife should treat her husband, even when he doesn't deserve it? Have I shown them how a mother ought to love her children? Have I taught them to use their time wisely?


Have I been an example that my sons can honor? What will be their thoughts about their wives or just women in general? Have I praised them enough when they sacrifice to do a job? Have I encouraged them to be self sufficient enough, so they will be good providers?


Lord, remind to do the things that matter...the things that will last.

Interesting post on the gay marriage issue

Copied from someone else online (with permission)

Enough W/ The Opinions on Gay/Straight Marriage ... How 'bout a CONSTITUTIONAL Perspective?

Okay, so there have been several journals about gay/straight marriage and the Prop 8 issue. There is enough opining going around to really stink up the issue, so I have decided to write about the CONSTITUTIONAL view of marriage.
First, I want to put the following on the table:

I am a Christian - which means I am personally and religiously opposed to gay marriage.I am a Libertarian - which means that I am politically opposed to a Constitutional Amendment banning or granting same-sex (or any other kind) of marriage.

Here is the basis for my argument:

The US Constitution does TWO things:

It PROTECTS an individual's rights - it DOESN'T GRANT rights
It BINDS the government to a restrictive rule of law, OBLIGATING them to protect and uphold the Constitution.

First, lets look at what a right REALLY is:

According to Black's Law Dictionary, a right is "inherent in one person and incident upon another .. the power of free action." Please note that rights are "inherent," meaning that it is physically impossible for rights to be extracted from a person by ANY means. In other words, someone can kill you - depriving you OF life, but they cannot deprive your RIGHT to life.

A right is something you can do without permission, therefore the opposite of a right is something you cannot do without permission. ANY time you need permission to do something, it is a privilege. Black's Law Dictionary defines this as, "a particular or peculiar benefit or advantage enjoyed by a person, company, or class, beyond the common advantages of other citizens. An exceptional or extraordinary power or exemption." Rights and privileges are opposites. To have a more thorough understanding of the differences between Rights and Privileges please click here: Rights vs.Privileges [note* I am not sure this is the link the original author posted, I lost that link]

Here are some corollaries:

ALL rights are derived from property
EVERY right implies a responsibility
The ONLY limitation on your rights is the equal rights of others


For the sake of brevity and applicability, I am paraphrasing the information in the above document for the purposes of this journal.

It may come as a shock to read that there are no "constitutional rights." This term is misleading because it gives the impression that the Constitution grants rights.

NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH!

The Bill of Rights enumerates our rights, but none of our founding documents bestow anything on you at all. All of your rights precede the US Constitution. The government can burn the Constitution & shred the Bill of Rights, but wouldn't have the slightest effect on the rights you've ALWAYS had. This also means that these rights aren't exclusive to Americans; America is just the country who has promised to protect them.

"The convention of a number of the states, having at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added: And as extending the ground of public confidence in the government, will best insure the beneficent ends of its institution."

- The Preamble to the Bill of Rights (didn't know there was one did ya?)

Let's break this down:

Who? The convention of a number of states
When? At the time of their adopting the Constitution
What? They expressed a desire to prevent misconstruction or abuse of government power.
Solution? To add further declaratory and restrictive clauses.
Why? To further extend public confidence in the government

When we make an amendment to the Constitution, we are DECLARING to the government that we are claiming a specific right that they may not, under any circumstances, touch. Remember, rights are something that we don't have to ask for, and something that is inherent in us - we are born with them. If we had to ask our government to practice our rights - then they wouldn't be rights, they would be privileges (put this in the back of your mind when contemplating any other rights - you might begin to see how unconstitutional our current government is).

So how does this apply to the marriage issue? Let's break down the argument to its most basic points:

Proponents of gay marriage argue that marriage is a right for all couples who are in a loving committed relationship regardless of sexual orientation, AND should be privy to the same "rights" that heterosexual married couples have. (I have rights in quotations for a reason ... I hope that you understand this as I go on)

Opponents of gay marriage argue that marriage is a right for ONLY one man and one woman, and homosexuality should not be rewarded because of the negative moral and social implications. Marriage is a religious issue and the government has no business in it..........

*Sigh* Where do I start .......

How about with this: Marriage is NOT a right! ..... For anyone ..... gay or straight .....

You must ask permission to be married; you must ASK your significant other if you can marry them. If they say yes, you are granted a privilege to be a part of the person's life "as long as you both shall live." If they say no, you have NO legal recourse; you simply cannot marry that person; you've been denied that privilege. If marriage is a right, then the government is OBLIGATED, by the law of the Constitution, to protect your right. This DOES NOT happen! If Johnny asks Suzy to marry him, and Suzy says no, Johnny cannot sue her, and the government doesn't come to the aide of Johnny in order to protect his right to marry.

EVEN if you get past the first hurdle, the two of you STILL do not have a right to legally marry. You must ask permission from religious clergy or a JOP to marry you - they can also refuse - and you must apply for a license in order to do it. Black's Law Dictionary defines a license as "a personal privilege to do some particular act or series of acts on land without possessing any estate or interest therein, and is ordinarily revocable at the will of the licensor (red flag)
and is not assignable." Did George Washington have a marriage license? (No.) Did Thomas Jefferson? (No.) Did they simply ask the women they loved to settle down with them and perhaps raise a family? ..... Uh Yes! Ever heard of a Common Law marriage? Did you know that the ONLY reason why we have marriage licenses to begin with was to "approve of" interracial marriages.(red flag)

Because rights are derived from property, the ONLY way for marriage to be a right, is if you OWN your significant other. Owning a person is slavery and it not a right because (we all know this), it infringes on a personal liberty. Your rights cannot infringe on my rights and visa versa.

The Constitution was not designed to give the government the power to grant privileges to certain (or any) groups of people for any reason. Let me say this again......

"We the People" NEVER gave the government the authority to license , permit, or otherwise grant special privileges to anyone for anything!

The authority lies with in our own power to exert our own rights. For this reason (marriage) licenses are unconstitutional. However, under the current law, their is a civic injustice which discriminates against a certain group of people - in this case homosexuals.So to the PROPONENTS of homosexual marriage ......If you want the government to grant to homosexual couples the unconstitutional privileges that heterosexual couples enjoy, then keep doing what you are doing. HOWEVER, true liberty CANNOT thrive while our government continues to act illegally. If you want true justice you should be fighting to get the government OUT of marriage by calling for the immediate discontinuation of the issuing of marriage licenses, the discontinuation of government endorsed privileges associated with marriage (and while we are at the penalties too), and revoke the authority of Justices of the Peace to marry couples. After all, the only reason to legally marry under current law is to reap the benefits associated with it. No one has any business telling homosexuals that they cannot have a common law marriage. If your significant other grants you the privilege to marry than it should be your right as a couple to live how you deem fit; you shouldn't have to ask anyone else beyond that. (This principle should apply to heterosexual couples as well). If a homosexual couple desires to have a clergy marry them and conduct a ceremony, then seek out a clergy who supports your relationship.
While this may be outside the Christian faith (at least) why would you want to force someone to do something against their will?

And to the OPPONENTS of homosexual marriage ....Please remember that I know why you feel the way you do; I feel the same way but with a major exception. If marriage is a religious issue and the government has no business involved with this, then why do you ....

permit the government to license marriage?

permit (and accept) government endorsed privileges?

try to misuse the Constitution -which dictates federal law - to fight a culture war?

Remember, the Constitution doesn't grant rights but it also doesn't restrict the people. The Bible may say that homosexuality is an abomination but it never says that we can use the government as our mouthpiece and coerce people to submit to Biblical law against their free will. Jesus Christ NEVER forced ANYONE to follow Him against their free will. I believe that we are a nation founded on Christian principles, but that doesn't make us a Christian nation. If we were, then the founders would have established a theocracy and not a Republic; a government that protects the rights of the individual over that of the group. If you want true justice you should be fighting to get the government OUT of marriage by calling for the immediate discontinuation of the issuing of marriage licenses, the discontinuation of government endorsed privileges associated with marriage (and while we are at the penalties too), and revoke the authority of Justices of the Peace to marry couples. After all, the only reason to legally marry under current law is to reap the benefits associated with it.

These two completely polor opposite postions have a common ground on which they can fight upon: To get the government to follow the Constitituion and get out of marriage in order to allow us to live as "We the People" choose to live.

Imagine how powerful we can be when "We the People" speak!

Imagine taking back the power we have relinquished over time to the government!

Imagine the freedom YOU would have!

The first snow of the season!

Rather late this year. The first year we lived here it snowed over 6 inches in the middle of Oct! Keep in mind that we moved here from Florida. Thankfully the snow only lasts around here until just about the time you are completely sick of it! :)

We only got a dusting yesterday, didn't even cover the grass. But here are some pics...

Keeping Christ in Christmas?

I have a hard time with that. Not because I don't believe in Christ or don't want to use this holiday season to remember his birth. I have a hard time with it because I know that the roots of Christmas are pagan and it was later absorbed by the Catholics to be a holiday commemorating Christ's birth.

Any Christian who studies much knows that Christ wasn't really born on Christmas day. And the holiday has become SO commercialized!! Even I am infected with the idea that one MUST get presents or it isn't really Christmas. Which explains why I am a little disappointed that our kids won't have much in the way of presents this year.

Anyway, back to my original topic. Why do we say "Keep Christ in Christmas"? If it's roots are really pagan (it had to do with the celebration of the winter solstice) shouldn't we really say, "Put Christ in Christmas"? ( Here is another link.)

Do not misunderstand me. We celebrate Christmas. And I wish people 'Merry Christmas' not 'Happy Holidays'. But Christians cannot claim that the 'ungodly' are trying to steal their holiday when a good case can be made that the opposite is true. And why not represent all the various holidays? Why not put up Hanukkah and Kwanzaa and the like? I have no problem with a Jew wishing me a 'Happy Hanukkah'. To each his own and all that. :) Why must Christians be so rabid about their holidays and then be so against retailers trying to include a variety of beliefs?

Let's face facts. We have a very diverse set of people here in America. I agree that if someone wants to put up a 'Merry Christmas' sign on their business they should be allowed to do so. I also think that if they prefer to put up 'Happy Hanukkah' or 'Merry Kwanzaa' or 'Happy Saturnalia' or just 'Happy Holidays' they should be allowed to do that without being harassed. We are supposed to have freedom to practice our religion in this country, right? But too often I hear Christians saying things that belie them. They seem to only want religious liberty if the religion bears the 'christian' stamp.

So, celebrate Christmas, but do not get upset when people celebrate something else during the same time.

Merry Christmas All!

God really is too good to me!

Originally written June 20

I thought I would share my meditation from my devotions this morning. My heart is full right now and I want to get it out.

I read in Matthew 27. Verses 28-31, "And they stripped him...they had plaited a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head...and they...spit upon him, and took the reed and smote him on the head. And after they had mocked him...and led him away to crucify him."
In looking over those phrases from those verses I was so humbled.

Christ, the creator, suffered so much pain and shame and yet his grace extended even to his tormentors. But the men who beat and whipped and mocked him were only the vessels used to deal out the judgement. Every blow of fist, every stripe from the whip, every harsh word, every drop of spittle they cast at him was for MY sin! I was his tormentor.

It was for my sin that he stood and took it all without a murmur of complaint! The Bible tells us that he suffered all of that for "the joy that was set before him". What was that joy? My salvation! My freedom from the penalty of my sin. My liberty from sin's power.

He took joy in his suffering knowing that the end of it would be the salvation of the one responsible for it! What grace! What compassion!

He knew that most of his creation would reject this ultimate love offering and yet he did it anyway for the few who would accept it.

What right have I to give into bad attitudes or discontent when the creator of the universe was willing to suffer so much for me that I might be free?! What right have I to become frustrated when my children disobey when God graciously forbears with me when I go astray?! What right have I to be offended when my husband or someone else hurts my feelings when Christ suffered so much humiliation on my behalf?!

The troubles I have are so transitory. They are nothing compared to what he suffered. To give into worry or despair insults the grace of God.

My prayer is that I would 'walk worthy' of Jesus' sacrifice. That I would remember that he gave all that I might be free. That every moment of every day would be filled with thankfulness for what he has done, and does, for me!

Sara's Birth

Well, I woke with contractions on Monday (June 23) morning about every 10 minutes apart. By that evening I was 2 cm. Not much but things were moving, or so I thought. Tuesday night I was only 2.5 cm. That was discouraging. My mom came out on Tues because I had been so sure Monday that the baby would arrive soon.

Wednesday and Thursday passed with no change, still having contractions about every 10 minutes and they were a little stronger each day but just not enough to get anything done.

Thursday night I slept great! And then Friday morning I went back to bed after my morning devotions because I was falling asleep while reading. I didn't get up until 11!

Friday I decided that I was just going to ignore the contractions because it was obviously pointless to think they were doing anything.
So Mom and the kids and I went to Sam's and then to the library and then back home. I took another nap then. When I got up Mom and Emma and I went to the grocery store. While at the store there was a noticeable change in the contractions. They would not be ignored anymore. We hurried up with the shopping and went home.

The midwife had already intended to come by and try stripping my membranes that day but I really didn't want to do that and am glad that she had ended up going to another town to deliver a baby early (1 am) that morning, so I called and told her I didn't want to do that and what had been going on that day. She said that she was going to take a nap because she knew I'd be calling her at 1 am! lol


I decided to go ahead and go to the discipleship meeting we have every Friday. By the time we left there at about 10 pm I was pretty sure that the baby was really coming! My dh was busy chatting and I had to tell him I needed to leave.
We got home and dh and the kids set up the birthing pool and Mom and Kyla and I set about cleaning up the house.




I didn't do too much, I was busy with contractions. I called a friend that offered to come and watch the kids. By the time she got here only Wes and Kyla were awake.

When the mw came (at about 1am) I had prepared myself to hear that I was only 4 or 5 cm so when she said 7 I was thrilled!


I had already been in the pool for a little before that and then after I got back in. Time seemed to be moving fast for me. I remember asking once what time it was and it was 2:30 and it just didn't seem like it had been that long.


Wes got in the pool with me for a little bit the first time I was in it. I wish I'd thought to get a picture of that. He was wired the whole time. I couldn't believe he stayed up through the whole thing. Kyla went to bed about 2 and Cora got up about the same time. Gilbert woke up just before the birth.


The water was nice. I had wanted to get out to deliver but when I got up to get out and while dh and my friend and my mom were getting the towels and my dry clothes another contraction came and I said, "Forget it, it's too late." and got back down in the water. Dh said that he felt rather useless because I didn't seem to need anyone, but I was very thankful for his presence and encouraging words.
The urge to push came on gradually. Starting out it was just at the peak of contractions. I would push just a little with those. I never paid so much attention with my other births to what my body was feeling and what it was telling me to do. And I never would have believed that childbirth can be painless (allowing, of course, for some very intense sensations! Thank you Dr Grantly Dick-Read! and all the women who put videos out of their own painfree childbirths).

The mw had been dozing on the couch until I got to where I was pushing hard and could feel Sara's head. That was amazing!! I had never felt the desire to do that before, but it was just such a wonderful thing! When I could feel her head I started talking to her.

I have no idea how long I pushed, my perception of time was way off and no one else can give me an idea because most of the time I was pushing they were unaware I was. I had a bit of trouble with her shoulders, or at least it seemed so to me. Dh says it didn't take any time at all but I felt like it was taking too long.
When she was born and I lifted her out of the water I didn't even look to see if she was a girl or boy right away. I just looked at her and held her close. She was so perfect! Her color was good and she was moving around. It took the mw suctioning her mouth before she cried. After a few minutes of admiring her I finally thought to see if we had a boy or a girl.

Dh was so funny. He was so worried about her being in the water! LOL He kept saying, "Shouldn't we get her out?". I don't know how long we stayed in the water but it was quite a bit longer than poor dh felt comfortable with. We sent all the kids out while I got out. Dh cut the cord and I got settled on the couch. Delivered the placenta and then the kids came back in.

Wes was so cute, he said, "Mama, I like this baby." Cora was a little disappointed because she had wanted to catch but I was in the water. But she couldn't have been any closer without actually catching so she is satisfied.
Dh got the kids off to bed and I got cleaned up a little and then dh crashed. The mw left about 6 am and Sara and I were left alone in the quiet of early morning. I am in awe of the whole thing. I couldn't have gotten any closer to an unassisted childbirth without actually having one. I enjoyed the whole experience. It makes me smile to think how it went and to remember it all. My only regret is that we didn't video it.