Donating Hair=Shedding Baggage!

The last time I had my hair cut for more than just a small trim was over three years ago.  I wasn't growing it out specifically, or not cutting on purpose, I just never cut it.  Maybe it was a time thing but for some reason, I just let it grow on and on.  A while back, the thought crossed my mind that I could probably donate it by now.  The very next thought in my head was, no way, your face is too chubby still.  The last time I had my hair very short was when I lost my baby weight with Ryley.  I gained all that weight back when I had Avery and I still have yet to lose it.  In my head, I kept thinking, I need to get back to my pre-baby weight, and then short hair will look right.  I kept telling myself that my hair helped me to feel beautiful, when sometimes I really didn't feel outwardly very beautiful with all that baby weight hanging around still.  Recently I read a book by a lady named Lesa Terkheurst called Made to Crave.  The subtitle is Satisfying Your Deepest Desire with God Not Food.  You can not imagine how much this book has changed my perspective.  I've blogged before about learning to love oneself with all your flaws, but some days, that's easier to do than others.  Reading this book has really opened my eyes to the self deflating thoughts I still sometimes have about myself.  Reading this book made me realize I was hanging onto my hair just to have a reason to feel pretty.  Lesa's book guided me to scriptures that I have read before but really hit home for some reason this time!! 

Psalm 139:14 NIV  I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;  your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Also  Psalm 73:26  My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

1 Peter 3:3-4 ESV Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious.

That being said, I am using what I've read and learned to help me make better food choices, and to help me grow in spirit with the Lord.  I remind myself daily of my worth in HIM.  Feeling worthy, feeling loved, feeling perfect.  Those things all come from God, not from hair, from weight loss or gain or beauty of any sort.  I've really felt lighter because of this lately, and today, I took a step forward in trusting God's view of me as beautiful.  I donated my hair!!  Now I feel legitimately lighter!! 

Night time potty issues

Okay parents.  I need your help.  A little background info:  both Lilly and Ryley potty trained very early.  We just let them tell us they were interested and made it a no pressure, laid back learning process.  It worked very well for day time potty training and they were both close to 100% day time trained by age two.  It took much longer for Lilly to be able to go all night without being wet, and I had a few conversations with our pediatrician about it.  He assured me it was something you could not "train" a child to do, that you simply have to wait for their body to be ready.  Right around her fourth birthday, Lilly was able to be free of diapers or pull ups completely.  Fast forward to Ryley's impending fourth birthday.  About a year ago, when the baby came along, we expected some regression.  However, the opposite happened.  She decided diapers were for babies and she wanted to wear panties at night.  So we let her and for a few months only two accidents.  Then we had a big bed switch up and she went from her toddler bed into the bottom bunk with Lilly on the top bunk.  And que the night time accidents.  We decided not to worry too much about it, maybe she just wasn't physically ready and we went back to (cloth) diapers for night time.  Some mornings she was wet, sometimes dry.  However, about two weeks ago Ryley decided again she wanted to wear panties at night.  Since we've been letting her steering this potty training train, we agreed.  At my mom's suggestion, we tried making her potty when she goes to bed, then waking her when we go to bed and letting her potty and then see if she can make it through the night.  My daughter is, for lack of a better word, a grump when she first wakes up.  She needs a minute (or ten) to really wake up to her sweet spunky self.  So, in the middle of the night, waking her up to pee has been interesting to say the least.  Kicking and screaming sometimes, refusing to pee, and all of this because I am convinced she is still, for the most part, asleep.  If she actually empties her bladder, she is totally dry in the morning.  If she fights and refuses, sometimes wet.  She doesn't seem to want to go back to diapers but she doesn't seem to be able to be dry for 12 hours consistently, without us waking her in the night.  We had these awesome cloth trainers we used for a long time and it was the best of both worlds!  She has to have cloth and these are like a pull up and she loved her trainer panties!  She is way too big for them now though, and I don't want to invest in more because I don't think she will need them much longer.  We will most likely use cloth trainers for Avery but I am not convinced she will ever need the size I would have to buy for Ryley.  So where does this leave us?  Does anyone have any advice?  What else could we try?  Thanks for reading and helping if you can!

Ready, set.....GO!

  Well, not really ready, set, go BUT she's working on it!  I honestly thought Avery would be well past the one year mark before walking.  Lilly was in the 9 month range and Ryley in the 10 month range when they started walking.  Avery is shortly going to be 11 months old.  She is pulling up on things but really shows no interest in standing alone or cruising along the furniture, much less walking.  Actually, she only has recently figured out how to get back down once she stands up to something.  As far as I am concerned, I hope all these milestones take forever to reach.  I am glad she took a while to crawl, to cut teeth, to feed herself.  It just means maybe I can keep her my little baby that much longer.  Granted, she will always be my BABY but she won't be a baby much longer.  Know what I mean?  You mommas, I know you know.  As far as feeding goes, she went from hating table food, to accepting only table food and almost totally rejecting a bottle in the last month or so.  Basically we are down to maybe 10 ounces or less a day.  It is seriously depressing, I LOVE cuddling her close and that time is dwindling fast. 
  Anyhow, the whole point of this is because the other day I was in the kitchen doing homework with Lilly when Carl shouted for me to come in the living room.  I came in and Avery was busily emptying a laundry basket onto the floor.  Then he picks her up and drags the basket back to the other side of the room.  He says, "watch this!"  Avery stands herself up on the basket and proceeds to push the basket across the floor.  Walking.  My kid.  The one who scooted on the floor for MONTHS.  The one that who's never even cruised around furniture!  I was shocked, I didn't see that coming at all!  I got it all on video, it was so cool!  And scary.  And sad.  These moments really do sneak up on you, I feel like we were just bringing her home from the hospital yesterday!

Gun Control Controversies

  Every day, something happens that I think would make a funny, profound, enjoyable, entertaining, thoughtful or even just silly blog post.  Then I get busy doing something else and forget all about my blog.  Even my personal journal has taken a big hit lately.  I have about 2 months worth of dated notes on scrap paper, just waiting for me to add to my journal!  I say this a lot, but it seems like I am always busy, always doing something, but somehow, nothing ever gets done!  I know this is an exaggeration, but it feels true!

  I avoided blogging or facebooking or talking to most people in person over the last few months about anything remotely political.  I am actually pretty reluctant to even write about it right now.  As I am typing this, I am debating about whether or not I will even post it when I am done writing.  That being said, I feel like I ignore or bottle up lots of feelings when it comes to reading lots of facebook posts lately.  I am 100% okay with having different opinions and political stances than my friends.  I am also okay with a little bit of controversy, but after watching a very public election go down last November, it seems like lots of people can't talk rationally when it comes to these sorts of topics.  BUT, I wanted to talk about some things that have bugged me.  Know that whomever reads this, I value your opinion, even if I disagree.  I am just hopeful someone might read this and enlighten me.

  Tell me, why all the gun control posts?  Why are people so freaked out that the current administration is going to "take away our 2nd amendment rights"?  How are these new laws somehow going to effect an individuals right to possess a firearm?  Where does it read, "Obama is gonna take away your guns!!"  I've read the proposed legislation, and it includes a ban on assault weapons, restrictions on high-capacity ammunition magazines and strengthening federal background checks of people attempting to buy guns. What part of this says, you can no longer possess a firearm?  This is what I don't understand.  When the 2nd amendment was written, I doubt that our forefathers could imagine a fully automatic weapon.  How does banning this sort of thing from the average America hinder our second amendment rights?  I am all for being able to protect our families and proudly own weapons, but I don't see why anyone needs such a weapon.  My husband says jokingly, "but babe, they are so fun to shoot!"  Maybe so, but really, why does anyone need one?  Help me understand why this ban, especially this particular point is so bad?!  Also, why shouldn't people have thorough background checks when purchasing weaponry?  Any honest, law abiding citizen should not balk at this sort of change.  If you want a gun to protect your family, what difference does a day or two make?  If you are looking to shoot up a school or mall, I could see how this might bother you.  I have heard lots of people argue, "but criminals don't follow the laws!"  Obviously this is true, or they wouldn't be criminals!   However, if small changes could prevent even a few lives lost, why is this a bad thing?!  Making guns more easily available is definitely NOT going to save any one's life. 

  I won't claim to be politically savvy in any way.  I don't know everything about these laws, and I can't claim to understand why people choose to make poor choices.  I've read this lately in FB posts,  "guns don't kill people, people kill people." or something along those lines.  I couldn't agree more.  I am not saying this proposed "gun ban" is going to stop bad people from doing bad things, but I don't know why it so bad for us as a nation to try to take steps toward a safer world.  Please by all means, tote your 12 gauge along with me!  Go learn to shoot and be proud of it!  But put away your fully automatic high capacity weapon.  If you aren't a sniper in the army, you don't need it.  Thank you.