Surviving Pregnancy

I hate being pregnant.  I mean, really hate it.  When I was pregnant with my first baby, I felt guilty for hating every second of it.  By now I've made my peace with it - - and I've realized that I'm not the only one who feels this way!

Whether you hate every living breathing moment of being pregnant or you cherish the miracle happening inside of you, we have to find a way to survive it, don't we?  I've been working on a list of products, attitudes, and activities that have helped me survive my pregnancies... and maybe even find some ways to enjoy it for a split second.

Summer's Eve Products
Have you ever heard of Summer's Eve?  It's this ingenious company that makes wash and deodorant for our lady parts.  If you are pregnant, or ever have been, you know how uncomfortable it is to realize how you smell down there... and there's really nothing we can do to stop it!  Summer's Eve products make me feel more feminine and certainly less... well, stinky.  I use the feminine wash at the end of every shower, and I use the deodorant every day at this point.

Take a Video of Your Belly Moving
Even if you don't want to share it with anyone, sit down and take a video of your moving belly - - it will cheer you up!!

Go for a Walk
Okay, I'm a lazy pregnant woman.  I sit on the couch and watch TV most of the day.  Walking up the stairs to change a child's diaper is way too much work!  Going for a walk is often the furthest thing from my mind - - but then I step outside out of necessity and realize what the fresh air can do for me!  And bringing my son for a walk is good for him, too - - he gets some energy out, which is wonderful for both of us!

Drink lots of Water
The doctor told me this when I was pregnant the first time, but I didn't want to listen (go figure!).  But drinking lots of water actually does make me feel better.  It helps with feet swelling, cramps, energy, and a whole lot more!

Sweatpants
I hate maternity pants.  So when I'm too big for my jeans (with a hair tie holding the button closed), I only wear sweatpants!!  Actually, this time around I picked up a $5 pair of jeans that are two sizes above what I usually wear and they fit great!  I need more sweatpants, though, because I always feel better being pregnant when I'm comfortable... and jeans are not really the way to do that.

Milk it!!
I've learned to enjoy the perks of being pregnant - - like having people wait on me hand and foot, rubbing my feet, and carrying things/holding doors for me.  I also have enjoyed eating whatever I want, whenever I want.  If I have a craving, it's a good enough reason for us to have that food for dinner!


What helps you survive pregnancy?

Waiting

I heard a statistic a long time ago about how long the average person spends in their life waiting for something.  If you Google it, you'll get all kinds of different answers.  Ask.com said that the average person spends 2 weeks waiting at red lights... then if you scroll down you'll see they also say 8 years for the same statistic.  Who knows?  All I know is it's a long time.

AnYwAyS... when I first heard whichever statistic I heard, I made a decision that I would never waste time waiting for something again.  I would always have something to do while I wait, whether it be homework (at the time I was in high school), memorizing scripture, ding a Sudoku puzzle... anything other than sitting around and waiting.

And yet here I sit, ten years later... waiting... for hubby to get home, for another life on Candy Crush, for the baby to come, for some clarity as to what I am to do with my life, for the baby to kick so I know that everything is still okay...

But perhaps waiting isn't the worst thing in the world?  Maybe it's while I wait that I have the time to relax, and start to hear the voice of God more clearly?  Maybe what I am willing to wait for says something about who I am.  Maybe waiting helps me to trust in God in a whole new way.

So I'll wait.  Maybe it won't always be patiently, but I will know that as I wait the Lord is working in me.

It's been a long time...

It's been so long since I last posted!!  There has been so much going on.  Here's our family update:

We're pregnant!!  Our "Little Bity" boy will be born in early December of this year.  I hit the third trimester yesterday!  Go me!

Love Bug is walking, talking, backtalking, climbing, and everything else that a 1.5 year-old should be doing.  He is SO funny!!

We have a new pastor at our church, who is absolutely wonderful!

Hubby got a new job installing and fixing A/C and furnaces.  And if I can just brag for a minute - - he got his license to buy and install refrigerants in the mail yesterday!  I might not understand everything that he does (...or much of what he does at all...), but I'm so proud of all that he has been learning and of all the hard work he has been doing.

I started writing a book, and I also started writing my own curriculum for Children's Ministries.

Most recently, hubby and I have been talking about the possibility of my going to seminary full-time next semester (after the baby's born) to finish the ordination process, which I started about 8 years ago.  Prayers in that area would be much appreciated!!

Well, now I'm remembering why I haven't posted in so long... writer's block hits as soon as I sit down at the computer!  Maybe if I keep up with posts regularly, I won't have this problem.

Until next time!  (And may that be sooner than the last time I said that...)

Easter Gifts for Childcare Workers

At my church, the nursery is almost always open - - something I am very grateful for, as the mother of a 14-month-old who loves to move around and talk (loudly) during service.

I wanted to give the nursery workers a small gift of appreciation for their dedication to helping young families like ours enjoy the services on Easter.  I have no money, and I am not very crafty.  This is what I came up with (and I'm a little proud of them!).

 

 

Cookies in baggies - - cost me no money because I had all the ingredients on hand... and the baggies as well.  I was tempted to run to the store and grab some (off-budget) cuter bags, but I resisted.

 

Those little flowers I have had in my crafting box for a long time now.  Same with the cardstock.

 

What are you doing for the childcare workers at your church this Easter?  Did this post inspire you?  Leave me some love!

 

Discipline

Ugh - - that word.  I hate that word.  Yet here I am, forcing myself to write into our budget "Debt Snowball."

We are so excited to have taken Financial Peace University - - have you taken it yet?  Seriously, you have to.  It has revolutionized the way that we view our money.  Here's the thing, though - - it takes an enormous amount of discipline.  Here we go, though - - working through our debt snowball... and it might be weird, but I need to celebrate our little successes.  Here is where we are in our debt snowball:

Our total debt = $139,104.64
(We have no credit cards, no house - - it's all student loans and my car)

 

7 Things that Every New Babysitter Should Know

We recently had a newbie babysitter watching our little love bug while we went out for a class in town.  She had watched him a few times at her house, under the "supervision" of her parents.  We were so excited to help this young lady out as she learned how to babysit.

I have been thinking a lot about my first babysitting experiences lately.  I started babysitting quite young.  When I started babysitting, I had already gained a lot of experience working with kids through my church.  There were a lot of things that I didn't know, though.  Here is a list of 10 things that every new babysitter should know - - from a new mom who started babysitting very young.

#7 - - Just because a child can crawl or walk doesn't mean s/he can get down from the couch or bed
Never leave a very young child unattended on the couch or bed.  If the child sleeps in a bed rather than a crib, you should be good.

#6 - - If you wouldn't call the parents to ask them, don't text them.
Although parents will tell you that you can text or call about anything, they don't want you to unless you really need to.  If you want to text them something positive, that's another story!  Especially if it's your first time babysitting for the family or if you had to pry the child off of mom's leg, text a picture of their child smiling!  Don't text the parents if it's not important enough for you to call them.  You will be interrupting their night out which they are paying you for.

#5 - - Sometimes it takes an hour or more to put a child to bed.
Don't be surprised if your first time babysitting it takes a very long time to get the child to go to sleep.  Try a variety of techniques, and make sure that you know the child's normal routine.  Remember that the first time you put a child to bed will set the stage for the rest of your babysitting visits.  Stand your ground - - bedtime means bedtime.

#4 - - Always clean up after yourself!!
This is a big one.  If you want to disappoint the parent, leave all the dishes in the sink and toys all over the floor.  If you want to impress the parent, do all the dishes and have everything cleaner than it was when you came!  Somewhere in between there is what you should always be doing, though - at least rinse the dishes that you used, and clean up the toys that the kids played with while you were there.

#3 - - Get back to the parents in a timely manner
When the parents text/call/email you, always get back to them as soon as you possibly can.  It's fine to ask your parents before you respond, but do it ASAP.  The parents of the kids that you babysit should never have to ask your parents anything for you.

#2 - - It's okay to tell the parents what you charge per hour
If you're a beginner babysitter, start out around $3/hour.  You can charge a different amount for each family for which you babysit based on how many kids they have and the ages.  Don't go over $5/hour, though.  We pay the babysitter that just started babysitting $3/hr and we pay the more experienced, college-aged babysitter $5/hr to watch our one-year-old son.

...and the #1 thing you need to know...

#1 - - Have fun!!

A Tribute to my new Kindle Fire

I have been wanting a tablet for a long time now - - specifically, I have been wanting an ipad.  Hubby kept telling me that ipads were too expensive (which of course is true) and that another tablet would be just as good (which I couldn't bring myself to believe).

When I was at Best Buy (after carefully planning out our budget and waiting for the right time to buy a tablet), I spoke with a representative and he told me that if I bought an outdated ipad (the only kind of ipad I could afford), in a few years I wouldn't be able to update the software because of how Apple products are.  Apparently they come up with new products and leave their old products in the dust.  Um, no thank you!

So I looked around at all the tablets they had in the store and I decided on the Kindle Fire.  Got an OtterBox for it so the Love Bug can't destroy it and I am so happy!!

What kind of tablet did you buy?  How did you make your decision?  Leave some comment love!