I read a comment in my "Today's Parent" magazine where a mom spoke of combating stress by remembering to "live in the moment". I've been thinking a lot about that comment ever since. It has really resonated with me because I tend not to "live in the moment" a lot of the time. I'm so busy thinking about the next 3 million things I have to do that the present too often becomes a blur. I end up stuck in an anxiety filled puddle - worried that I'm not doing enough. Worried that I'm somehow less of a person because I can't seem to keep on top of the laundry and the cleaning and every other freaking thing I seem to think I HAVE to do!
Well that ends NOW.
Or rather, I'm going to work on ending this destructive pattern of thought day by day until I'm once again a happier, more relaxed individual. My family are my priority and as long as they are happy and healthy then the laundry can wait for another day. (Unless of course we're basically out of clothes: Then I might need to harness some stress to get it cleaned. I'm thinking that having to join a nudist colony will add another whole dimension of stress. I'm not a big fan of stranger nudity - especially if said strangers is doing something like mowing their lawn or stooping and scooping after their dog - UGH!)
Here's to focusing on the moments as they unfold. I tried this today while walking at the mall with the Little Diva. I stood tall, savored each sip (ok most of the sips) of my coffee and laughed with her as she sprinkled her treats and milk all over herself. Enjoying her enjoyment makes way more sense than being frustrated because she spilled her milk! Who cares!! In the grand scheme of things getting sticky is fun - and milk washes out :) Also, I'm sure there are a few critters living in the mall who are right now enjoying those treats!
Anywho I'm on my way to being "in the moment" as far as refreshing sleep goes. So I'll bid you all a GREAT, AWESOME and AMAZING night! Sweet Dreams all :)
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Adventures in Weaning!
I have decided that it is time to wean the little Diva. I have this terrible fear that if I don't hurry up and get with the program she'll soon be commenting in full sentences about the milk. "Yo mommers could you lay off on the spicy food - I feel like I have to chase my milk with some tums" or, "Mmm the almond butter you had for lunch really enhances the flavour". I'm sure that in reality we are a LONG way from that but she has started trying to climb down my shirt in public and really I think enough people have already seen my cleavage without her adding the entire checkout line at the grocery store to that list.
So yes, we were at the point where I had decided to commit to this plan. The little Diva though didn't quite share my enthusiasm. The plan was to only breastfeed in the morning when she wakes up and in the evening before she goes to sleep. The rest of the day would be devoted to her sippy cup.
We tried a ridiculous amount of different bottles and formula's before giving up on those and moving on to sippy cups with homogenized cows milk. We tried cups with spouts, cups with nipples, cups with straws, cups with silicon spout things; we tried warm milk and cold milk and milk chilly right from the fridge and the responses were pretty much the same. The little Diva would chew on the spout/nipple/straw get a tiny bit of milk into her mouth and make a ridiculous noise. This noise sounded something like a mix of hissing and gargling and the point she's making was CRYSTAL clear. GROSS I DON'T WANT THIS!!
So with this in mind we picked out the cup that was least offensive and planned to add cold milk right from the fridge (the least offensive way to drink it apparently). Day one of weaning was heartbreaking. The little Diva was so unimpressed with me. She knew what she wanted, and she knew that I KNEW what she wanted and she couldn't understand why on earth I wouldn't give her what she wanted! I kept offering the sippy cup and all manner of snack and tried to shush the little voice in my head telling me what a horrible human being I was. We finally reached a truce and went our for our errands - the horrible sippy cup in tow - and the little Diva slept pretty much the entire time we were out.
Day two went a lot better - she drank a bit more milk throughout the day and we didn't have any angry outburts aimed at yours truly. The little voice got a little quieter and a different voice started whispering about how big the Little Diva was getting and I felt a sense of nostalgia for the days when she'd fall asleep on my chest. We spent all that time in the hospital teaching and urging her to breastfeed and now I'm trying to convince her to move on to a cup. Yup the little voice is still whispering ever so quietly...
Anywho enough about the voices in my head and lets fast-forward a few days. We went to visit Granny and while trying to convince the Little Diva to use her sippy cup granny suggested trying a different bottle that she had. Granny's bottle was an INSTANT hit. I was absolutely floored. We spent so much time and money trying the other bottles and the one she's decided she likes is a teeny little Rubbermaid lunchbox bottle!! A lovely $2.57 at Walmart. Since the discovery at Granny the days have been a LOT easier. The little Diva is actually excited to see her bottle - now if I can only teach her not to shake and squirt it everywhere once she's had enough!
Best of luck to anyone else out there who is battling with weaning and the self inflicted guilt!
So yes, we were at the point where I had decided to commit to this plan. The little Diva though didn't quite share my enthusiasm. The plan was to only breastfeed in the morning when she wakes up and in the evening before she goes to sleep. The rest of the day would be devoted to her sippy cup.
We tried a ridiculous amount of different bottles and formula's before giving up on those and moving on to sippy cups with homogenized cows milk. We tried cups with spouts, cups with nipples, cups with straws, cups with silicon spout things; we tried warm milk and cold milk and milk chilly right from the fridge and the responses were pretty much the same. The little Diva would chew on the spout/nipple/straw get a tiny bit of milk into her mouth and make a ridiculous noise. This noise sounded something like a mix of hissing and gargling and the point she's making was CRYSTAL clear. GROSS I DON'T WANT THIS!!
So with this in mind we picked out the cup that was least offensive and planned to add cold milk right from the fridge (the least offensive way to drink it apparently). Day one of weaning was heartbreaking. The little Diva was so unimpressed with me. She knew what she wanted, and she knew that I KNEW what she wanted and she couldn't understand why on earth I wouldn't give her what she wanted! I kept offering the sippy cup and all manner of snack and tried to shush the little voice in my head telling me what a horrible human being I was. We finally reached a truce and went our for our errands - the horrible sippy cup in tow - and the little Diva slept pretty much the entire time we were out.
Day two went a lot better - she drank a bit more milk throughout the day and we didn't have any angry outburts aimed at yours truly. The little voice got a little quieter and a different voice started whispering about how big the Little Diva was getting and I felt a sense of nostalgia for the days when she'd fall asleep on my chest. We spent all that time in the hospital teaching and urging her to breastfeed and now I'm trying to convince her to move on to a cup. Yup the little voice is still whispering ever so quietly...
Anywho enough about the voices in my head and lets fast-forward a few days. We went to visit Granny and while trying to convince the Little Diva to use her sippy cup granny suggested trying a different bottle that she had. Granny's bottle was an INSTANT hit. I was absolutely floored. We spent so much time and money trying the other bottles and the one she's decided she likes is a teeny little Rubbermaid lunchbox bottle!! A lovely $2.57 at Walmart. Since the discovery at Granny the days have been a LOT easier. The little Diva is actually excited to see her bottle - now if I can only teach her not to shake and squirt it everywhere once she's had enough!
Best of luck to anyone else out there who is battling with weaning and the self inflicted guilt!
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Where has the year gone?
I find that the more I promise that I'll post more frequently - the less I actually post. So here's to no more promising of posts - if I type, I type and if not - well then there won't be anything to read....
Life has progressed at its usual, hectic, and fun-filled pace since my last post. As a result there's so much to type I don't really know where to start. Hmmm... well the last BIG event would have to me my becoming a Canadian Citizen! It was an amazing day and I'm so thrilled to be able to call myself a Canadian! The little Diva had fun too for the most part until she became over tired and then it took two sets of Grandparentals and her daddy to get her to sleep. I had to sit with the other "Canadians in the Making". When she wasn't over tired and cranky she had fun waving my little Canadian flag and running around while Granny hung onto one of her hands. I was off to the Passport office a few days later and am now also the proud owner of a Canadian Passport - YAY!!!
We had two separate family get-together's to celebrate my Canadianism and both were fantastic - so wonderful to be able to spend time with everyone. I cannot believe that it is already October... seriously where did the year go? It feels like just day's ago we rolled into January and now here we are. It is October, the little Diva is running all over the place and we've even dared to take her to the Early Learning Centre near our house. For the most part she seems to enjoy herself there. She tends to keep more to herself at the moment but I"m sure she'll interact with the other children more and more. Hopefully as she gets less shy, this mommy gets less terrified of potential germs!
I finally managed to book myself in for a massage today and although I now know EXACTLY where each and every one of the hundreds of knots in my back are - I do feel better. I just need to squeeze in a few repeat appointments before the end of the year.
I'm also in the process of trying to wean the little Diva to a sippy cup. She however has other ideas and is not that impressed with my attempts to convince her that Homogenized Cow's milk is just as tasty! About a month ago she decided to start refusing her one morning bottle (the one I hid her vitamins in) almost as if she could sense my impending attempt at weaning! It has been entertaining trying to find a bottle or cup that she'll take to since then. Right now we've settled on a playtex sippy cup with a spout and it looks like we're having some success.
Anywho it's getting late so I best be off. I'll typed again when I do!
:D
Life has progressed at its usual, hectic, and fun-filled pace since my last post. As a result there's so much to type I don't really know where to start. Hmmm... well the last BIG event would have to me my becoming a Canadian Citizen! It was an amazing day and I'm so thrilled to be able to call myself a Canadian! The little Diva had fun too for the most part until she became over tired and then it took two sets of Grandparentals and her daddy to get her to sleep. I had to sit with the other "Canadians in the Making". When she wasn't over tired and cranky she had fun waving my little Canadian flag and running around while Granny hung onto one of her hands. I was off to the Passport office a few days later and am now also the proud owner of a Canadian Passport - YAY!!!
We had two separate family get-together's to celebrate my Canadianism and both were fantastic - so wonderful to be able to spend time with everyone. I cannot believe that it is already October... seriously where did the year go? It feels like just day's ago we rolled into January and now here we are. It is October, the little Diva is running all over the place and we've even dared to take her to the Early Learning Centre near our house. For the most part she seems to enjoy herself there. She tends to keep more to herself at the moment but I"m sure she'll interact with the other children more and more. Hopefully as she gets less shy, this mommy gets less terrified of potential germs!
I finally managed to book myself in for a massage today and although I now know EXACTLY where each and every one of the hundreds of knots in my back are - I do feel better. I just need to squeeze in a few repeat appointments before the end of the year.
I'm also in the process of trying to wean the little Diva to a sippy cup. She however has other ideas and is not that impressed with my attempts to convince her that Homogenized Cow's milk is just as tasty! About a month ago she decided to start refusing her one morning bottle (the one I hid her vitamins in) almost as if she could sense my impending attempt at weaning! It has been entertaining trying to find a bottle or cup that she'll take to since then. Right now we've settled on a playtex sippy cup with a spout and it looks like we're having some success.
Anywho it's getting late so I best be off. I'll typed again when I do!
:D
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