Childbirth Musings

I am expecting again. Babe #9 will arrive sometime in late March or early April, God willing.

I've been contemplating the birth culture in our country. I've thought about this a lot in the past too. There is so much fear surrounding birth, so much reliance on "science". Instead of embracing birth as a wonderful transition to motherhood and trusting that God created our bodies with the capacity to birth our babies, there is fear and an unwillingness to birth as nature intended.

In most cultures, even in our own before the advent of the male obstetrician, birth is women's domain. Women help each other through this journey to motherhood. When a woman is in labor her mother, her sisters, her cousins, or friends come and stay with her. Perhaps they take care of the older children or cook. They encourage her and comfort her through labor. I wish we had that.

There has been a move toward that. In most places you can hire a doula. This isn't exactly what I would hope for though. Hiring someone to help you seems... wrong somehow. This is something we should do for each other as women. Not because we are getting some financial gain from it but just because we share this thing, this amazing, hard, rewarding, thing called birth. I wish to see women coming together to support each other during pregnancy, birth, and those difficult early weeks. I'm just as guilty as the next woman of neglecting that duty to my fellows. Caught up in my own concerns and unsure of what is the right thing to do.

There are big hurdles in getting to what I think is the right place in birth. Hospitals have policies about how many people can be with the laboring woman during labor and birth. Most women have too much fear surrounding birth to even contemplate a homebirth. Those of us who do homebirth are somewhat isolated. There is also the fact that most women work and can't take off for three days to sit with their friend and comfort her during labor. Or if they do stay home they have kids that must be cared for.

I've had three wonderful homebirths and one pretty awesome hospital birth. I've not had the kind of atmosphere I think is ideal. I like having people around when I am in labor, but it freaks most people out. I have long labors I would hate to be, no I did hate being, isolated during labor. My husband is great and I am so thankful for him being with me for the births of our babies, but even that isn't what my picture of an ideal birth is. With my last two homebirths I had some extra folks around, but they were there mainly to help with the other kids not to be my labor support. I've never had that wonderful feeling of being helped and comforted by those who understand what I'm going through. I want that for myself. I want to be that for someone else.

This isn't the post I set out to write, not exactly. In my mind I was much more eloquent. :) It turned out to be rather jumbled and pointless. Oh well.

My reaction to Obama's reelection

Meh. Realistically, it was him or Romney and they are too much alike for me to lament. I have given up on ever supporting a candidate from the Democratic or Republican parties ever again. I will not play the stupid political game anymore. I will not be duped into thinking there is some discernible difference between the two.

The only issues they really disagree on are abortion and gay marriage. Peripheral issues that should not be a determining factor in anyone's vote. They claim a difference in economic policy while both advocating for the same kind of regulations and stimulus that is killing our economy. Not to mention the unaccountable FED.

What this election shows most of all is how easily people are led. How easily they are brainwashed and dumbed down. So little critical thinking and a shocking amount of cognitive dissonance.

It is a sad day for America, but not because of who sits in the White House...

Is this the love of Christ?

During "Jesus Rifles" discussion
"Spiritually as believers, we should use every option possible to get the gospel out. Christians are in Iraq, they should try to lead them to the Lord, but if they don't get a chance to, and they are told to fight with them, they should send them to Hell for ever to be with Allah and Mohammad. If you want to be Biblical about it, the Jews are suppose to be in their land and most of Iraq and Iran is their land! American soldiers are only doing the same thing God wanted the Jews to do in the O.T. It is God's will being fulfilled by the US soldiers, God has used Gentiles before to fulfill his will."

Mosque near ground zero controversy
"Build your Mosque in your own country, get out of our's."


"Ban ALL Muslim immigration. For those that are here, the 1st time anyone of thier family commits a crime, all of the family should be deported. Those that do not assimalate or use public assistance should also be given a one way ticket to what ever chess pool they came from. Of course that is wishfull thinking, things like the Consitution get in the way.......and they know that. Yea you youngins need to learn Arab"


"I do not speak to muslims unless they want to ask me a about something. I do not want to get involved with animals who would take my life for telling the truth. I say let the stupid be stupid and remain delussional. God makes them ev...en more delussional because they insist on being ignorant. Sure, we should share The Gospel with others, but I have come to find that in these days and the last 20 years since I have been saved, that people generally don't care about going to hell and will even act offended when you tell them how to escape it. My family and I are saved. Those are the only people I need to worry and care about. In fact, there is a creepy jihadi who lives directly below me. I am not going near that demon unless if God sends him to me for the truth and to get saved. Though, I have had thoughts of placing delicious bacon at the foot of his door."



"Can you tell me what the Muslims have done to Humanity, you seem to not to ever mention about this religion of peace. It is thier Religion to practice as they please-but not here in this country. They remind me dope pedlers & pimps in the corners waiting for my child to pass by."

"Israel is strong enough to defend herself. She will be cornered again by the Muslims for the final blow. Israel will have no choice but to Nuke every Muslim country & I rejoice."

Comment on a post about a facebook group calling for beating muslim women drivers
 "it's the law of bestiality, where the Qu'ran is not a real book, but almost like the diary of some crazy bastard who add as he goes,things that he like to do against others, to endure pain, suffering and most dead... I am against this barbaric people and to all the extend of the word, and I support any woman who stand against it, even at the risk of her own life,"


In a facebook thread about muslims allegedly asking to have a muslim only plot in a graveyard. 
(original status update:  "At one of the Graveyards here in Amarillo, the officials in charge were asked by a group of Muslims, that they demanded a section just for Muslims. The officials told the Muzzies NO.")


 A, "shudda told em for christains only*"


B, "the christian graveyard would be decapitated heads and nothing else. We just need to NUKE THE SONSABITCHES."

So much of the above is so completely incoherent and honestly didn't even seem to fit the subject that was being discussed... I have seen so much of this kind of vitriol, and from professing Christians that it makes me ashamed to count myself as one of their brethren. I am angry that they drag the name of my Saviour through the mud with this kind of talk. I am disgusted that they have the gall to proclaim themselves followers of Christ. I pity them when they meet Him. Do they honestly believe that he would condone or approve of the hatred they propagate with that awful sentiment? Can they imagine that the Father looks down with happiness on that? Really?! 

What gets me is the utter hypocrisy! All the time railing about how the Muslims are always saying they want to kill the infidels, and in the same breath cursing the Muslims with their "Christian" mouths (and fingers).

Christian, those are souls -eternal souls- that you are rashly condemning without thought of what you are saying. Do you have any feeling? Any compassion? Did Christ only die for you? 

Christ died for all men. ALL. Not some. Not a few. ALL! When he was on that cross suffering pain and humiliation, he did it for every living soul that ever had, or ever would live upon the earth. All of them. Every last one. Those men who beat him. The men who spat upon him. The men who nailed his hands and feet. He felt no animosity toward those who fulfilled the prophecy, he loved them, he died for them. And he loves those 'evil Muslims' too. "Do good to all men...", get that? ALL men. 

So, from now on I will separate myself from people who talk like that. If you post hatred like that on facebook, or twitter, or wherever, if I hear it come out of your mouth, and you presume to call yourself a Christian, I will not associate with you. I will not. 


And here is my daughter's take on it, Heart Sore.

Play

Last night I was reminded why I keep having babies. Kids are fun! :D

After church, me, hubby, and seven of the kids went to the park across from the church to wait for Kyla to get done with choir practice. We had so much fun.

There is not a more joyous sound in the world than a child's laughter. Or hearing your 3 year old say, "This is amazing!" when push her high on the swing.

It is great to see my husband running a race with his kids. Or him trying to show up his boys by climbing to the top of the swings! Now that was funny! LOL

Kids are fun, and people who don't like kids are just... weird! Having kids is the best of life. I need to remember that more often. :D

Because I recently made some people mad over this...

Military does not equal soldiers.

Soldiers make up our military, but the military is not the soldiers. I dislike the military, but I respect the individual soldier. Those who because of duty (a misplaced one IMO) to their country sign up to, "...support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.", I respect that. I know they mean well.

However, the military as a whole carries out the killing of many innocents and destruction of property. The military follows orders that are wrong and unconstitutional. I cannot respect that. A wise man once said, "The liberties of a people are in danger from a large standing army, not only because the rulers may employ them for the purposes of supporting themselves in any usurpations of power, which they may see proper to exercise, but there is great hazard, that an army will subvert the forms of the government, under whose authority, they are raised, and establish one, according to the pleasure of their leader." Brutus (no not the one from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar).

A standing army as we have here in America is a dangerous thing.

I have too many friends or family who have served or are serving in the military to believe that those in the military are evil. Those who give them orders (and I don't mean the POTUS), however, often are. The designs of those in charge are not righteous. The reasoning they provide for the carnage they order our soldiers to commit is not sound. They lie, because the truth would outrage the citizenry that they must keep in the dark to maintain power.

I appreciate the soldiers, but I do not, will not, support our military or the wars they are currently engaged in.

I hope that clarifies my position and will assuage any damaged feelings.