Censored

I am a little embarrassed to admit that I did not think through the potentially unfortunate descriptive manner of my last blog entry, so I have deleted it entirely. I really did not want my blog to show up as a result of a Google search for "woman in hot shower." So now that search will bring them to THIS post. (Serves you right! Now, go take a cold one and call your mother!)

Let us simply state that a warm shower is much better enjoyed if one remembers to bring her towel into the warm bathroom ahead of time.

That being said, the other night my mother brought me Godiva chocolates as a special treat after a hard day. She said that there is nothing like good chocolate while soaking in a bath to cheer someone up. I had just finished brushing my teeth. Why do these shining examples of the worst timing always happen to me? (I ate the chocolate anyways - I'm not stupid.)

In other news, I have lost my camera again. I am having a great week, can't you tell? No, it is not under the couch cushions like last time; I already checked. I even resorted to asking Bella to help me look, knowing full well the risk I was taking. Still didn't help.

How is everyone else enjoying their week?

Inauguration

Last Tuesday our country witnessed yet another historical moment for our Nation. If I take a moment to cut through my own cynicism I am happy to say that once more I am proud of our country's democracy.

We saw once again a peaceful transfer of power. How many countries of the world can only dream of a government in which there is such respect for the outgoing administration? I was proud to see 4 former Presidents present at the ceremony to swear-in the people's choice for Commander in Chief. This is the beauty of democracy - no bloodshed, no disgrace, no use of force. Regardless of personal feelings, they shake hands as former President Bush leaves for home, and President Obama stays.

As I watched the excitement enveloping the crowd, I thought about how far our country has come and how quickly - it was a great triumph over injustice, a great testament to the triumph of human dignity. I thought about the hope that comes with each change of administration, for both those that support the incoming administration, as well as the hope of those who face a great challenge with the change of ideals.

I did not support Barack Obama in the election. I certainly do NOT agree with his policies, priorities, or moral programs. I have my concerns about the direction our Nation is heading, especially with him at the helm. Nevertheless, when I watched him emerge from the building I saw... a man. Not a savior, not even a powerful leader. He will never be the former and he will have to prove himself the latter. But what I did see was a man who believes that he is doing what is right; he believes he is fulfilling a need for the American people. And I respect him as President of the United States.

More than anything we must pray for him. President Obama faces great challenges, as do his wife and daughters. One look at any former President after their term will tell you that this is a draining, difficult job, and that they need our prayers. Our Country faces a great deal of "change" - let us all pray that it is for the advancement of the dignity of each and every human being, and that our new President leads our country with wisdom, fortitude, and respect.

No One is Immune to...

A Bad Hair Day

Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland

It snowed! After several days of complaining about the bitter weather (single digit temperatures!) with nothing to show for it, God took pity on my grumbling self and it was beautiful! (or, "boOOful", as Bella says.)

When I told Patrick how she was standing at the window watching it, he says "you should take her out! She won't need the [warmer] hat [we can't find], she'll only want to be out a minute and she'll love it." So I donned some slip-on shoes and armed myself with a camera for this fun, brief outing.

Thank you Patrick. He was right on one point... she loved it! The pictures belie her excitement, as she had just stepped out and was more in awe than anything else. When we started walking she was in heaven, listening to the crunch of the snow, watching it fall all around her, making footprints. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw her reflection - all bundled up in "jacket! hat! puppets!" (That's what she calls her gloves.)

Patrick was wrong on one point, though... I had to drag her back inside when my feet were going numb.

To LIFE

"We ourselves feel what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean, but the ocean would be less because of that missing drop. "
-Mother Teresa

""Each time someone stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope."
-Robert Kennedy

"This country will not be a good place for any of us to live in unless we make it a good place for all of us to live in."
-Theodore Roosevelt

"The greatest destroyer of peace is abortion because if a mother can kill her own child, what is left for me to kill you and you to kill me? There is nothing between."
-Mother Teresa

The annual March for Life reminds us to pray. Thousands of people gathered in D.C. today to stand up for the souls who cannot speak, and yet because of the society in which we live their voices will go unheard. Thousands of men and women, children and elderly marched in a peaceful, prayerful demonstration protesting the greatest injustice of all time, fighting a monumental uphill battle against hope. With the change of Administration we witnessed just 2 days ago in Washington, it may seem like a losing battle, and yet there they were.

Mother Teresa's words echo in my mind today, behind the sound of my own voice as I joined my prayers with those walking warriors. Warriors of justice and love, warriors against deception and lies. "We can do no great things, only small things with great love."

We continue to hope, and mostly to PRAY. What else can we do? Each year we stand up for LIFE, and we will continue to do so. I prayed specifically for the conversion of the politicians who do have the power to save lives; healing for the women who have been wounded and suffered the loss of their child; for the doctors and nurses who participate in this violent act; for those who stand up for life in whatever capacity they can; that science further the fight for life rather than destroy. Mostly I prayed for the truth to shine; there is a great deception in the world about abortion. People have been led to believe that this cannot be murder, since the fetus is not a person. You could liken it to the way Jews were perceived in Germany; if you can convince enough people that others are not really people, not really equal then there is no evil in killing them. I pray that the truth be revealed, and that "The Truth will set them free" (John 8:32).

Our country has a history of fighting against injustice, fighting for equal rights and fair treatment. We have fought against prejudice before, and have seen the triumph of those efforts. Those battles, too, began with the small voices of those who believed strong enough to stand up for those discriminated against. Let's hope that this is the same battle.

For a triumph of the Culture of Life over the culture of death...

Something New

Well, what do you think? (Those of you with RSS feeds have no idea what I'm asking. )

I needed a change, and now that I've figured out how easy it is, and a great place to find the designs free... well, I'll just try not to change the scenery too often.

Lost, Lost

"Lost, Lost... I've lost my marbles."
-Tootles in Hook

"Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most."

Right now, the thing I miss the most is my camera. How, I ask you, is a mother to survive each day with the two most precious girls if I have no camera with which to capture their beauty? Well, somehow I am. Instead of scrambling for a camera each time Anastasia smiles I am just calmly enjoying it. The loss of the camera is also preventing the ongoing battle with Isabella in which I scramble to hide the camera from her before her grubby little fingers goop up my lens. There's a lot of scrambling on a daily basis, come to think of it...

Of course, I could probably blame Bella for the loss in the first place. She has been known to snag interesting items and gleefully run around pretending with them while Mama's brain is otherwise occupied... say with reading blogs or consuming coffee. That wouldn't be entirely fair, though. Maybe I should blame the unnamed person who has been piling everything on the kitchen counters for days. Man, that person is really cramping my otherwise perfectly clean and organized style. Obviously I would always know where my camera is, with everything in the house in perfect order. I would certainly never let unfinished projects and un-filed mail balance precariously in towers that threaten to topple in an avalanche of papers and plastic containers. Nope, that of course is not me.

I will find that little gnome of disorder and evict him (but then again, where would I go?), but in the meantime, no pictures.

18 to 1

Months, that is...

Although she is still a pipsqueak size-wise (last week she was 20lbs 2 ozs), Bella is more and more a big girl. She can follow directions, throw things away, fetch diapers (important!) and knows when she has done something wrong. She's growing acutely aware of when she's "messy" and will tell us almost all the time. Miss Personality plays pretend with her baby doll, sings songs (we hear a LOT of "row row row your boat... capsize!" and "ring around the rosie" and "baa baa black sheep") and tells me "that's silly" when we're goofing around. Books, songs, and applesauce all remain big hits, and now puzzles have joined the ranks of favorite toys. I have finally learned to watch my language, since Bella is a walking tape recorder - we're never quite sure what she will say next, but it almost always makes us smile. Still a Daddy's girl, the highlight of her day is when her hero walks through the door, greeting him with a big hug/kiss and commands "wrestle!"

Anastasia is, well, 1 month old, and running pretty par for the course for a one-month-old. She is 9lbs 2 ozs (50%) and 20 3/4 inches (25%). (that's short and squat like Mama.) She can raise her head high off my chest, makes great eye contact with those beautiful eyes, and follows voices and lights. With all her happy smiles lately, I think we'll keep her. :) Looking for jobs that can help pay for her proficiency in excreting, though... :)

I LOVE having "the girls!" I adore the way Bella insists on kissing "Stacy" all the time and gets very concerned when she cries. Anastasia looked right at Bella this morning, their faces inches apart. While Bella was thrilled, I think Anastasia was simply sizing her big sister up. Meanwhile, I am starting to feel alive occasionally - I even took them both to the doc's yesterday (in the rain, yuck!) and am cooking an actual dinner tonight! We've been eating very well, but we are running out of leftovers from the kind souls who had stocked our freezer. Eventually I have to grocery shop, too, but let's not get too hasty. In the meantime, I am content to spend my day chasing Bella, holding Anastasia, and drinking a lot of coffee.

Today's Shorts 5

Bella has been introduced to the world of Fisher Price. She is playing with a Little People school bus, and has her foot in it saying "step" pointing to the little steps inside the door. She is also obsessed with the "Choo-Choo" that holds animals - does life get any better than that? Oh, and the little car, and making the little girl say hi to the cow in the barn, over and over and... Yup, the "people" are a winner!

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Anastasia is smiling at me. No, not "angel smiles" but rather a REAL, looking-at-me-with-her-eyes-mouth-open-SMILE! I could never get tired of this! Pictures soon.

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Bella learned how to work the on/off switch to her new cow bowling ball. (Thanks, Aunt Sherry... ggrrrr) I turned it off so it could be a regular ball, instead of a maniacal noisy torture device. Bella is apparently enjoying sending her mother closer and closer to needing a padded cell, since every time there is the slightest vibration the &*(*$% thing moos and plays its little song.

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Anastasia has officially announced her entry into the "How Many Diapers Can We Go Through in a Day" contest. I am pretty sure she's winning that one, as well as the "How Much Laundry Will Mama Do Today."

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Survey Question: What do you do when there is ONE Tylenol left in the bottle and 4 hours til the Hubby gets home?

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I was stupid enough to make the Salty Chocolate recipe from Justine. See, since it's topped with pecans and goes very well with a glass of milk then it's healthy, right? And since there are many glasses of milk involved and I need protein, I have NO problem justifying this for breakfast. Lord hep me in 2 weeks when I start the diet plan.