Posted By Christina M on December 4, 2007

They say they don’t worship any man. There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his name? Um, I mean prophet. Er, Prophet. Uh, I mean Prophet, peacebeuntohim. Or is that peace be unto Him?

They call upon the government to execute a person who allows her kid to name his teddy bear after a classmate because the classmate happens to be named Mohammed. If using lightly even the name of the prophet is a blasphemy, it sounds to me like a form of worship.

Perhaps these self-named monotheists ought to rethink their worship of their idol prophet.

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Posted By Christina M on November 28, 2007

Oh, sweet Lord, grant me strength and grace, so that I may please You today.

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Posted By Christina M on November 27, 2007

Although I realize it may seem that way.

Mainly, I’ve been stressing and exhausting. And It’s very hard for me to write when I’m stressed or exhausted. The stresses have been that the child support suddenly ended, so we’re not able to meet our expenses again. That, and Baby is expected in a mere six weeks and we are as unready as it is possible to be. The exhaustion stems, no doubt, from those same facts.

Earlier in the year, the support was spotty and partial. Silly me, I complained; so I get the chance to see how much harder things can get. I prayed about going back to work, and was given an emphatic “No!” So for the time being, there doesn’t seem to be much to do short of disobedience. That’s not a road that either Joel or I wants to go down, so we have to bide our time and find creative ways to answer the phone when the creditors call. I’m learning, at least, to trust in God. He has a funny habit of waiting till the very last moment to send assistance, no doubt to test and strengthen our steel.

Even as I write, the song “Blessed be the name of the Lord” just came on. The line missing, but the line I must constantly remember is in the Biblical context, is the first part: “The Lord gives, the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” I really wish, sometimes, that God didn’t feel so strongly that our moral lessons need to come out of the Book of Job. It is not an encouraging place to go to be fed. But obviously God has his reasons for inspiring the book and allowing it to be included in the Canon of the Bible. He didn’t consult me on the matter, so I need to remember that I don’t have to understand His reasons.

The unpreparedness is a newer issue. It kind of hit suddenly, when I realized that it will take more than six weeks to get our bedroom clean enough to make space to put a cradle. We have yet to fish the boy clothes out of the garage and wash them, and something tells me it might be a good idea to buy some newborn diapers.

A few things I am prepared for, though. First, I’m fairly prepared for my first appointment, two weeks from now, with the obstetrician who will be delivering our Little Guy. (My regular family doctor has handled the pregnancy, but the OB will do the actual cutting.) I have my questions ready about medicines, recovery, and keeping husband and baby with me during recovery, if possible. I’m also prepared to “act like a sissy.”

You see, last time around I felt silly staying more than a day and a half in the hospital, so I went home before I could handle being home. I couldn’t do difficult tasks like getting in bed or lying down. I had to sleep in a chair, because the bed was just too ambitious. This time, I don’t care how silly it feels, I will stay as long as they allow me to. I will have a footstool beside my bed, and a shower chair in the shower, and I will walk around as much as I’m able to speed up my digestive tract after surgery. And yes, I will bring movies and maybe some earphones. I will allow, just this once, total strangers (if you can call people who go to my church and cared for me through my last two childbirths and recoveries) to treat me like a princess.

It sounds silly, maybe… but just feeling ready for these small aspects of delivery and recovery makes me feel just a little less overwhelmed with the idea of bringing home a baby for whom we have enough love but not enough money and not nearly enough space.

We’ve rounded that final corner, at least that final measurable one. The appointments, starting Monday, will be weekly. Never mind that it’s only because I’m old, not because I’m in the final month; it still gives me that marvelous feeling of progress. And because of the two vessel cord, they want to do another sonogram on Monday to check fetal growth. This will be our fourth sonogram this pregnancy — a record for me.

So now you’re all up to date. Now that I’ve made my excuses for blog-lethargy, maybe now I can get back to that biting sass you’ve all grown accustomed to.

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Posted By Christina M on November 23, 2007

Jesus doesn’t fly like Superman, and the cross is not a personal flight device. (He is, however, more powerful than a locomotive. We’ll have to talk about that some other time.)

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Posted By Christina M on October 28, 2007

One, two, look for your shoe.

Three, four, repair the door.

Five, six, Put down those sticks!

Seven, eight, don’t swing on the gate.

Nine, ten, here we go again.

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Posted By Christina M on October 21, 2007

Now that I am in my third trimester, I find myself reflecting on my last birth, the one that ended in a surprise and terrifying Cesarean Section. Because of the last one, I’m required to have a “repeat c-section” with this birth. At least I have the good fortune of being able to prepare for this surgery. So, partly as a reminder to myself and partly as advice to others, I offer these things I wish I’d known last time but will be careful to remember this time.

If you are expecting, and you are certain that this post will never apply to you, I beg you to read it anyway. Humor me. I was also certain I’d never need a c-section. I wish I had learned more about them.

1. Any delivery can involve surprise emergencies. No mother is exempt.
In my case, I was certain that a c-section was out of the question because I’d successfully delivered four children already, two of them large. I have what one obstetrician once called “very good birthing hips.” And I figured with my history, I could even be fairly sure that my children would be in the normal size range. It never occurred to me that the words “uh oh” muttered by a nurse during a labor exam would change everything. It never occurred to me that I’d have a ten and a half pound breech baby. Be at least a little prepared, even if you think it isn’t a possibility.

2. Many doctors routinely feed a medicine called “Duramorph” into the epidural or spinal for c-sections. It is a form of Morphine, and will make you feel strange. If you start feeling sleepy or surreal on the table, don’t panic; it’s just the medicine.

3. The Spinal or Epidural medicine may surprise you.
Even if you’ve had an epidural before, for a non-surgical delivery, the epidural or spinal you receive for a c-section does not feel the same, because it is dosed much more strongly. It can actually make you feel numb all the way up to your lungs, so that you can’t feel yourself breathing. It does not mean you are not breathing. Again, do not panic. If you are really worried, just tell the nurses, and they will watch you closely during recovery.

4. After delivery, your first pain may be a sharp pain in the shoulder. This is not a pulled muscle, but a gas bubble pressing against an abdominal nerve. The best remedy is to walk. That helps you work out the gas.

5. Ask for what you need in the hospital.
The nurses may not think to give you a stepstool to help you into bed, or a shower chair for in case you get dizzy while showering. Just because they don’t think of it does not mean your needs are unimportant. You will have needs after a c-section that you would not necessarily have after a natural delivery.

6. Do not go home sooner than you need to.
I can’t stress this one strongly enough. I thought I was ready, and felt a little silly staying in the hospital being “waited on.” So I went home before they made me. One of the first things I discovered was that my bed was not patient-friendly, and that the need for a mechanical bed that automatically raises and lowers can be extreme. The first night home, I was not even able to get into my bed, resulting in serious leg swelling the next day from not being reclined during the night. I also discovered I could not get in and out of my chair very well to pick up the baby to nurse. The assistance available at the hospital may not be available at home, and don’t underestimate its importance.

7. Medicine maintenance is a much bigger issue after surgery.
Don’t be afraid to use pain management medicine, especially if you are nursing. Pain can seriously impede your ability to nurse. But also be careful not to use more than you need, particularly narcotic medicine. If you find that it becomes difficult to fall asleep without it, you may be working into a dependency, and it may be time to reduce your dosage or stop using it.

8. It can take a couple of days longer for your milk to come in if you are nursing after a c-section.
I’m not sure if this is because of pain, or shock, or because your body hasn’t been through the whole birthing process. But extra patience is necessary. The more often you nurse, the more milk you will get, so keep at it! Also, prepare for nursing after a cesarean by reading a good article or two on the subject.

9. Have fiber.
Prepare ahead of time, and make sure you have a fiber supplement in the house before you have the baby, whether you expect a c-section or not. I cannot begin to tell you the pain you can save yourself by using a good fiber supplement daily while recovering from any birth but especially from a surgical delivery. Your muscles will not have the strength to push, and you will have natural (and possibly wise) fears about stressing your stitches. But a case of constipation can leave you very, very sore even after it is gone. So take the fiber preventively, before you need it.

10. If you catch a cold, hold your belly.
Specifically, if you need to cough or sneeze hold your abdominal muscles in place. This will make your cough or sneeze far less painful and less dangerous.

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Posted By Christina M on October 17, 2007

Hijacked from Christine at Domestic Vocation.

1. Who is your man? Joel

2. How long have you been together? We’ve been married almost 5 years (December 30)

3. How long did you date? 1 year 9 1/2 months

4. How old is your man? 39

5. Who eats more? Usually me, the knocked up one.

6. Who said “I love you” first? I did. We’d been chatting for about 9 months and he made a game of trying to figure out where I lived based on my verbal clues. (The man loves a challenge.) I realized I had fallen in love, and spent two weeks praying about whether to tell him, and the day my two week vigil was up, he figured out my address. I sent him an e-card that said “You’ve found the way to my heart.” And in white text, with a white background, I wrote “I love you.” He was supposed to figure out the secret message, but I ended up having to tell him to press control-A.

7. Who is taller? Joel by 11 inches.

8. Who sings better? I have a better singing voice, but he remembers the actual lyrics.

9. Who is smarter? He is. Even my family reluctantly suspects it.

10. Whose temper is worse? Mine. There’s a reason I call him my Charming and Patient Husband.

11. Who does the laundry? Usually me, but not exclusively by any means.

12. Who takes out the trash? The kids, if I have anything to say about it.

13. Who sleeps on the right hand side of the bed? Him.

14. Who pays the bills? Me, with the money he earns. (I kept Christine’s words here.)

15. Who is better with the computer? He’s better with hardware, I’m better with software.

16. Who mows the lawn? The kids. All I have to do is consider mowing the lawn, and I’m pregnant.

17. Who cooks dinner? Him. He’s a darned good cook.

18. Who drives when you are together? Men have that mysterious form of carsickness that shows up any time someone else is behind the wheel, ya know?

19. Who pays when you go out? Usually him, but does it really matter? It’s coming from the same source either way.

20. Who is most stubborn? Him.

21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? We both do, in different ways.

22. Whose parents do you see the most? His, because mine live too far away.

23. Who kissed who first? The first time we met was after we’d been “seeing” each other for five months online. I picked him up at the airport, and he walked straight into my arms and kissed me. The he backed away and said “I hope to God you’re Christina.”

24. Who asked who out? I guess me. When we met, it was for my niece’s wedding that I’d asked him to.

25. Who Proposed? Oh, he did. He took me to the nicest Mexican restaurant in town, together with all the kids. He had my oldest in his truck, and I drove the rest in my Geo. (We couldn’t all fit in one vehicle, even then.) On the way, he asked my son’s permission to marry me. While we were waiting for our dinner, he took out a newspaper printout that had a picture of him on one knee with the words “Christina, will you marry me?” And he took out a ring and put it on my pinkie, the only finger it fit on!

26. Who is more sensitive? Me. And he’s awfully sensitive to my sensitivity.

27. Who has more friends? Him. I’m not good at making friends.

28. Who has more siblings? Me. I have four sisters, and he has one.

29. Who wears the pants in the family? I think Christine was referring to this same movie scene: in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the mother explains that the husband is the head of the family, and the wife is the neck that tells him which way to turn. But it never really seems to come down to authority, because we both trust each other’s judgment so much.

And I can’t word the tag better than Christine did: If the spirit moves you, go on and leave a link to your meme answers in the com boxes!

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Posted By Christina M on October 15, 2007

Please pray for those in Atlanta, where a drought threatens to leave drinking water gone in three months. Rain, Lord, please!

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Posted By Christina M on October 8, 2007

God doesn’t just love “people.”
He loves YOU. He knows every fault and every fear, and He can’t get enough of you.

God is love, but He is more than a concept of love. He is someone who loves you more than you ever, ever imagined.

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Posted By Christina M on October 2, 2007

In future, be sure to look closely at Hypertot’s coat before sending him to preschool, to make sure it is actually a coat and not a snowsuit.

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Tags: hypertot, parenting