Close Your Eyes...and Jump

Yesterday we had another beautiful gorgeous day and the Knight decided that a little water fun was in order.

He broke out the Slip and Slide that someone bought for the girls a while back, the one that we haven't had a chance to use yet because it was only our fourth sunny day since May (those of you in New England know exactly what I'm talking about). The three of them put their bathing suits on and I sat out on the deck to watch the fun.

The Guppy was content on splashing her feet in the little pool at the end of the slide, but we could all tell that the Mermaid really wanted to slide. Splashing in some pool was not enough for her today, oh no, she wanted to slide fast and furious!

But she was also afraid. The Knight patiently demonstrated how to run, jump and slide over and over again. The Mermaid did all right on the running start but when it came time to jump she would lose her nerve and just run off to the side.

Normally we wouldn't push her in any way, but it was obvious that she wanted to jump and slide. So finally, the Knight knelt so that he was eye level with her, and told her that she could just close her eyes and jump, and trust him to not let her get hurt. She nodded and began her run to the slide. I watched as she shut her eyes tightly....then jumped.

She slid down the slide, and by the time she got to the end her eyes were open with delight and she was laughing. She happily spent the next 1.5 hours running, jumping, and sliding to her delight.

How many times have I been in a situation where I wanted so badly to accomplish something, but one little fear made me stop or hesitate? Or worse, how many times have I found myself succeeding in my goals, but one little comment made me start to doubt myself and lose focus?

I've been feeling a lot of doubt lately. Doubt about my abilities as a homeschooling mom, about my abilities as a wife, as a person with her own goals in life. Was I just wasting my time, striving for these goals?

This doubt, this fear, has halted my progress in all my goals these past two weeks. I've become distracted and unfocused. But watching the Mermaid close her eyes and jump, watching her have complete trust in her father, made me realize that I have a Father that I could put complete trust in as well.

I'm at edge. The ride ahead looks wonderful and exciting. All I have to do now is close my eyes...and jump.

Close Your Eyes...and Jump

Summer Trips

Last week the Knight and I took the girls to Six Flags, along with his family. We all had a blast, although the Mermaid kept insisting on going on all the rides and then crying her way through them. Kids.

Enjoy the pictures!

Summer Trips

Wordless Wednesday: Beach Bums

For more Wordless Wednesday, visit 5 Minutes For Mom.

Wordless Wednesday: Beach Bums

Weekly Deals

I found a lot of great deals this week, especially at CVS. In fact, this week was my best CVS'ing trip ever.

First, my CVS trip:

Deals I focused on were: CVS 1 subject notebook, $0.99 with $0.99 ECB reward; PaperMate grip pens, $0.99 with $0.99 ECB reward; CVS 3 subject or 5 subject notebook, $3.99 with $3 ECB reward; Caliber scissors, $2.99 with $2.99 ECB reward; Caliber glue, $0.99 with $0.99 ECB reward; Caliber ruler, $0.99 with $0.99 ECB reward; Brita filter, 3 pack, $14.99 with $5 ECB reward; Gillette Fusion Razor, $7.99 with $4 ECB reward; Tylenol 8hr, $3.99 with $3 ECB reward, Kotex Light Days, 2/$7 with $2 ECB reward; and all Almay cosmetics, BIGIF.

Transaction 1:
2 CVS 3 subject notebook
3 packages of PaperMate pens
1 Gillette Fusion razor
2 boxes of Tylenol 8 hour
2 CVS 1 subject notebooks
2 pairs of Caliber scissors
2 Caliber wooden rulers
2 CVS 5 subject rulers

Used 2 $1/1 tylenol printable coupon
Used 1 $4/1 Gillette Fusion razor from newspaper insert
Used $3 in ECB's that printed out for me at the coupon machine
Used $27 in ECB's from last week.

Total before discounts and coupons: $51.98
Total OOP: $2.98
Total ECB's received: $30

Transaction 2:

2 boxes of Kotex Light Days
1 Brita Filter, 3 pack
2 Almay concealer sticks
1 reese's cup (filler)

Used 2 $1/1 Kotex printable coupons
Used $1/1 Brita filter printable coupon
Used $27.93 in ECB's from transaction #1.

Total value before discounts and coupons: $47.24
Total OOP: $.02
Total ECB's received for next week: $10

Now, for the grocery deals:

Price Chopper:
180z container of blueberries, $2 each, bought 2
Price Chopper tissues, $1 each, bought 2
Total before discounts: $12.76
Total OOP: $6.10
Saved $6.76 plus got $1 off per gallon for gas.

Big Y:
Colonna Pasta Sauce, BI at $2.49 get 2 free; bought 9
Polar Seltzer water, 10/$10, bought 8
Ace of Diamonds Tuna, $0.89, bought 5
Total before discounts: $43.38
Total OOP: $20.32
Saved $23.06

I also stopped at a fruit stand and picked up bananas, plums, and peaches for $4. In total, I stayed under budget for the week by $15!

What good deals did you score this week?

Weekly Deals

Pit To Distress: Or, Another Reason To Run Away From The Hospital.

Lately there's been a lot of buzz surrounding the article Pit to Distress: Your Ticket To Unnecessary Cesarean?

From the article:

“Pit to distress.” How have I not heard about this? Apparently it’s quite en vogue in many hospitals these days. Googling the term brings up a number of
pages discussing the practice, which entails administering the highest possible
dosage of Pitocin in order to deliberately distress the fetus, so a C-section
can be performed.

Yes folks, you read that right. All that Pit is not to coerce mom’s body into birthing ASAP so they can turn that moneymaking bed over, but to purposefully squeeze all the oxygen out of her baby so they can put on a concerned face and say, “Oh dear, looks like we’re heading to the OR!”

She goes on to say:

Jill asks the questions, “OBs, do you still think women are choosing not to birth at your hospitals because Ricki Lake said homebirths are cool? Do you
still think we are only out for a “good experience?”

I imagine that all of us who have openly questioned the practices of obstetricians in the U.S. have been hit with the same backlash. We must be selfish, irrational and motivated by our own personal satisfaction. We’ve been indoctrinated into a subculture of natural birth zealots and want to force pain on other women or just feel mighty and superior. We fetishize vaginal birth and attach magical powers to a
so-called natural entrance to the world.

Nah. It’s stuff like “pit to distress” that made me run for the nearest freestanding birth center. If I had to do it all over again, I’d stay home.

Yes, I am a big fan of home birth. But I'm not a "natural birth zealot". I don't believe that home birth is an option for everyone, but it is a real problem and a real shame when women who choose not to give birth at home have to choose instead to give birth in a hostile environment where Pit to Distress is becoming more common. Where women are told what they can and cannot do, where they are lied to, and where they are transformed into powerful women whose bodies are doing what nature intends to women who are forced to lay still, be helpless, and let someone else take over their birth for them.

Haven't we had enough already? Consumer desire is slowly making progress in terms of changing hospital practices, but it isn't enough. We need to demand more.

Pit To Distress: Or, Another Reason To Run Away From The Hospital.

Having Kids Makes Life Exciting

Chris Bojhalian. Jodi Picoult. Gail Tsukiyami.

What do these authors have in common?

The answer is simply that they are quickly becoming my favorite authors. And I would not have discovered them, or their books, if I did not have children.

I'm over at MassMoms today, talking about how children have made my life more exciting, even in small ways, like in the books I read. Head on over and let me know what you think.

Having Kids Makes Life Exciting

Wordless Wednesday: Sleepy, Sleepy Princess

She's a princess from dawn to dusk, and isn't afraid to let you know. But this morning, she was very sleeepppyyyy....

For more Wordless Wednesday, visit 5 Minutes for Mom.

Wordless Wednesday: Sleepy, Sleepy Princess