3 month olds need encouragement

Rylyn turned three months this week and it is bringing new adventures. She is much more curious and adventurous. Looking everywhere and exploring her surroundings. Last night in the bath tub (with mommy) she decided to dunk her face. She came out all smiles. She tried again...smiles. It was so cute. I had to push a third try. She breathed in water. Devastation. Rylyn coughed it out and regained her breath. She had a blue tinge to her colouring around her nose and mouth afterward. SCARY! Bathtime over. We got out of the tub and I flipped her over and gave her a few good back blows (just in case). Her colouring returned to normal.

This incident made me realize a few things: 1) how quickly babies can asphyxiate 2) how important it is for me to let Ry set the pace and encourage her but not push and finally, 3) how hard it is for a parent to walk the line of erring on the side of caution and being irrational. I considered the emergency room and phoning nurse Auntie Lori to listen to her chest. Lifeguarding has provided me with too much information for my own good. Ignorance is bliss. I settled on having Ry sleep in our room in the bassinet instead of her crib so I could hear her every breathe (we both slept great).

Although adventures with children can be scary they can also be rewarding! Rylyn is sharing lots of smiles and giggles! She is also grabbing things. I love this because when she needs or wants me there is a little tiny hand grasping for some part of mom!

Bible Reflections:

John 2 (New Living Translation)

The Wedding at Cana

 ¹ The next day^[a] there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, ² and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. ³ The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told him, “They have no more wine.” ⁴ “Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”
 ⁵ But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
 ⁶ Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons.^[b] 7Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled, ⁸ he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions.
 ⁹ When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. ¹⁰ “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!”
 ¹¹ This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
 ¹² After the wedding he went to Capernaum for a few days with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples.

-Interesting that Jesus' mother pushes Him in this situation despite Jesus saying it is not time. I feel I need to learn how to respect that boundary of readiness as parent to know when to encourage because Rylyn is ready and lay off because she isn't. That is the difference between encouragement and being pushy. I wonder if Jesus felt encouraged or pushed by His mother's confidence in Him. I wonder about their conversation afterwards in Capernaum.

Birds of a Feather

I will start with a tangent! I sit writing this blog entry on a Saturday morning as a respite from a night of getting up and down with Lil' Bean. We are trying to put her to bed earlier. Her demeanor after dinner tells she is now ready for the early bedtime as the screams of a growing infant have been replaced with the whines of a tired girl. That does not mean she is not resisting! The new routine will probably account for a few more unsettled nights. I will enjoy the solitude of my early morning, while Ry snuggles in with Daddy a little longer.

I was inspired by a mommy friend to write this entry. You can check out her blog Switz-Art. She is one of several positive and supportive new friends in my life.

I don't believe in coincidence. I also don't believe people join "mommy" or "baby" programs for the latest baby research (although that can be a perk). The Public Health programs I joined, I did so to meet people on the same boat as me. With time, I have learned that others have done the same.

I am grateful for these new friends. We definitely are birds of a feather, but that doesn't mean we are of the same species. Some are peacocks. Some are birds of prey. Some are song birds. Some are penguins. I say this generally, for those of you wondering, as I have not actually assigned a bird type to each of my friends or myself. Although, at our next get together a good conversation might include answering the question what bird are you most like and why? :)

Some cloth diaper. Some use a crib while others bed-share. Some breastfeed. Some bottle-feed with formula. Some bottle-feed with breastmilk. Some have girls others have boys. Some have circumcised, some have not. Some listen to metal, some to classical, others to both! Our differences don't divide us, but unite us in our goal: to raise happy and healthy families.

Many of us also have people in our lives who don't understand our family choices or go so far as to criticize our family choices. I fully appreciated having support for my choices from friends who may in fact have chosen something different for their family. Likewise, I enjoy being able to support them in their choices that are different from mine. The instant approval and acceptance from these friends make it easy to ask for advice when it is needed and our differences allow for a spectrum of ideas!

It is no coincidence that each of these friends have crossed my path. Although the future may bring unexpected turns in our lives, I am glad we can share the road for a season, if not, hopefully, longer.

Bible Reflections:

Galatians 3:28-29 (The Message)

In Christ's Family

 ^28-29In Christ's family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ's family, then you are Abraham's famous "descendant," heirs according to the covenant promises.

-Jesus did not judge first and then love. He loved first and reserved judgment. Being a part of His family grants us equality. So too must we love others as equals and without judgment.

Counting Sheep...

Not that I ever did count sheep...but I certainly don't now!

Last night Rylyn slept for 7 hours straight. This is miraculous to me! Now I am praying for another miracle...that this would happen again and I could join her. You see, after almost three months of not sleeping for longer than 4 hours at a time, my body automatically wakes up after a certain period of time.

To be honest, waking in the middle of the night doesn't bother me. I am still getting good sleep, it is just not consecutive. I am left to rack my brain to figure out any new routine we implemented yesterday to try to repeat the process tonight. If I am still puzzled at what we did differently by bedtime, maybe I will just teach Rylyn to count sheep.

Bible Reflections:

Psalm 121:3-5 (New King James Version)

 ³ He will not allow your foot to be moved;
         He who keeps you will not slumber.
 ⁴ Behold, He who keeps Israel
         Shall neither slumber nor sleep.
       
 ⁵ The LORD is your keeper;
         The LORD is your shade at your right hand.


-Just as parent keeps night watch over baby, so too does God keep watch over us! The only difference? He will not sleep. He never tires. He is our Shepard...ever counting and tending to His sheep.

Rollin Rylyn

New video of the roll over milestone.

Bible Reflections:

1 Corinthians 9:26-27 (New Century Version)

²⁶ So I do not run without a goal. I fight like a boxer who is hitting something—not just the air.²⁷ I treat my body hard and make it my slave so that I myself will not be disqualified after I have preached to others.

-To get better at our own relationship with God, we have to practice. That is where discipline comes into play.

The cloth diaper experience

The reason we have chosen to include cloth diapering in our child rearing practices is mainly environmental. I was feeling awful about throwing diaper after diaper into the garbage knowing that each one takes around 500 years to biodegrade. Hopefully, we will half (or better) the number of disposable diapers in our ecological footprint.

Rylyn is enjoying her FuzziBunz cloth diapers. The other perks to cloth diapering that we are also enjoying are Ry has a chemical free bum when wearing and she is learning the difference between wet and dry. She generally won't cry for a diaper change unless she is wearing cloth. The "stay dry" factor of disposables really do keep her dry. Of course there is also the long term money saving factor too.

The pocket diapers are easy to use. The FuzziBunz we have chosen are a one-size diaper that will take Ry right up to potty training. The waist and legs include adjustable elastics and snaps to keep the diapers on. The pocket diapers are like a disposable with the exception that a cloth insert is placed in the "pocket" between the waterproof outer layer and the soft, fuzzy fabric inner layer to absorb baby mess. We are also using a biodegradable liner which is flushable to reduce staining. Pee? The liner goes in the green bin. Poo? The liner gets flushed. Regardless, it decomposes in 20 days!

Washing has not been tedious. Prewash. Hot-cold cyle. Second rinse. Hang or tumble dry on low. We have 12 diapers which last us two days. We are using disposables at night and on wash days. A happy combination of being green and convenient. Oh, and did I mention they are super cute and stylish?!

Girls can wear blue too!

         

What 2 month old babies do for fun...

• Enjoy "bath" time - check out my video...

•  Creatively capture that we are 2 months old

• Try out the "Bumbo" chair...because we are starting hold our heads up for extended periods of time

• Go for walks with Daddy to the mailbox

• Shop online - these are so I can ride in the Bug with Dad 

A Team Sport

Parenting truly is a team sport. It takes a village to raise a child...not necessarily because the child needs multiple influences (although I do believe that is the case)...more because raising a child is such a tall order.

Chris has been sick the past three days. I have felt exhausted at the end of the night as his support was limited to looking at Rylyn in my arms and saying, "She's so cute!" Ry and I resorted to sleeping together in the single bed in her room to help with fatigue and night feedings. Not to mention quarantining ourselves from the "daddy germs." We went over to a friends' house for dinner on Sunday night. Chris was feeling better that evening, only to feel worse the next morning (as is custom with a chest congestion that often sticks and settles overnight). It was nice to give my arms a break and enjoy her someone else's arms.

When someone else is holding your baby you get a different perspective of her you can't get from holding her close. Like watching her expressions over someone else's shoulder that you can't see over your own. There is also that wanting inside...a wanting to hold her again, which feels so much better than the wanting to put her down.

Bible Reflections:


2 Peter 1:5-7


⁵ But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, ⁶ to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, ⁷ to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.


-Life is rarely a sprint, but more often a marathon that requires perseverance. Through knowledge, self-control, and the love of God and others we are able to keep running and more importantly, we want to keep running.