Why is television called that? I get that the "tube" part = old-school electronic parts. Is the "boob" part an insult to the average viewer? Did I just answer my question?
I am happy to report that breastfeeding is going well. (Roll with me here, for a minute, it's relevant!) Emmy is in the 100th percentile for weight for her age group. She's got her daddy's length and her momma's chunk. I don't know what I'm going to do if that girl has curves AND long legs. Anyway... more time with the Boppy and a thirsty baby on the couch has unfortunately led to more TV time. Emmy doesn't yet get my running commentary on the shows, so I wanted to make a few points here about what I've been watching lately.
The Event - Anthony and I were enticed by this NBC drama solely by the fact that its creator (J.J. Abrams) was the mind behind LOST. Many a Tuesday night we have spent catching up on the political/social/relationship drama on OnDemand. Although one or two plot holes and a tendency toward the impossibly optimistic plot line reveal the show's infancy, it was strong enough to keep me guessing and cheering on a Palmer-like president. The villains are bad in a new way (the main antagonist is a mother figure), and the heroes are good in the same way that comfort food is. They are familiar. So, do you want to watch it now? TOO BAD, because NBC has fated it to go the way of the buffalo. And honestly, I don't want anything other network (except maybe ABC) to pick it up. It just wouldn't work.
Real Housewives of Orange County - The entire Housewives franchise on Bravo has long been a guilty pleasure, one I admit to my girlfriends, deny to my husband and need to just give up! However, I've followed one woman, Vicki, on this show for several seasons and honestly wish that I could've given her marriage advice. She is a mother, workaholic professional, loves the good life, and now considers her husband as a "roommate". Vicki was once in love with Donn and the reality series has painfully recorded their marital struggles, from dealing with external problems like a failing economy, to internal cracks in the foundation. Vicki spends too much time at work. Donn makes hurtful comments about Vicki's personality.
What saddened me the most was to see Vicki admit to a girlfriend that she wanted a "biblical man" -- a godly husband. Though slick editing prevails and we only see one side of the story, it was obvious that Donn had given up. He was content to be emotionally and physically detached from his wife. Now they are entering into divorce proceedings and both have moved past the point of trying. Very sad indeed, and I would have presumptuously told Vicki to only work part-time, downsize into a smaller home and do whatever she had to to restore the joy that her marriage once held for her. In the end, though, it takes two to tango.
Saturday Night Live - Though the writing for this long-running series has, as of late, been lame at its worst, hilarious at its best and amusing on the average, the current cast is phenomenal. Kristen Wiig is awesome. My favorite new character is an NYC nightlife expert named "Stefan" who is featured on Weekend Update with Seth Meyer. Bill Hader plays a weird gay man to the T, and I can't put into words how funny I think he is. Just go youtube "Stefan SNL".
Ummmm.... there should be a conclusion paragraph here. Nah.
June 1, 2011
Answered Prayers
I have friends in Ft. Benning and Columbus.
Joe and Vanessa are walking with Jesus (it seems like more than I am). Vanessa was baptized by Anthony last weekend!
All of my sisters get to go to Peru for Holly's wedding.
My marriage is strong and thriving, and having a baby has only brought us closer together.
Thank you, Lord, for hearing my silent morning prayers.
Joe and Vanessa are walking with Jesus (it seems like more than I am). Vanessa was baptized by Anthony last weekend!
All of my sisters get to go to Peru for Holly's wedding.
My marriage is strong and thriving, and having a baby has only brought us closer together.
Thank you, Lord, for hearing my silent morning prayers.
April 13, 2011
Cute Little Bombzilla
I call Emmy that when she creates diaper masterpieces for me. Honestly, she has a great digestive system. It's working well.
Anyway, you can find photos of her, which I hope to update on a weekly basis, at:
We'll hopefully have a family photo shoot in May, but for now, daily snapshots are good too. The picture above is of her at 4 weeks with her friend (aka future husband) Ransom. He was super interested in her and reached out for a genuine, unstaged pet. His mom, Abigail, and I, were so excited and I'm stoked that she captured this!
Much love from a happy mommy,
M.
March 24, 2011
Emmy's Birth Story
Baby Emmy is here! She's been here for almost two weeks already, so that's no big announcement. I have so many things to say about how much of an impact she has already made on my world, and she is growing and changing so much every day that it seems like there is no way to capture it all in time.
I do want to tell the story of her birth here. It's not just because I need to rehash out all the details for myself. In fact, sometimes it is still difficult for me to talk about it with close friends without completely choking up and weeping. This story brings glory to God because it is the story of a miracle.
Emmy (short for Emmanuelle) started making her long journey into the world on Thursday night, March 10th. I woke up with full-on contractions, nothing like the tightening but painless Braxton-Hicks ones I had a few months earlier. Excited, I started walking through them and woke Anthony up around 1 a.m. to tell him that I was laboring. He moved out to the couch and we jibber-jabbered nervously off and on while he tried to sleep. Contractions continued and moved closer together, as close as 6 minutes apart. I called my ob's office the next morning to cancel our appointment for that day because "I was going to be in the hospital".
Skip to Sunday morning, March 13th. Wait, what? Did I miss a few days of action? Yes... and no. I labored through the whole weekend without dilating to more than 3 cm. All in all, I labored 56 hours at hospital triage, home, at the park, and through car rides. Both of our families were here by that time, so they counted the minutes as I sat on an exercise ball and breathed through each wave of pain. It made for some good laughs and I am still so thankful that they were all here to help and support us.
Anyway, Sunday morning, I hit contractions about 4 minutes apart. I had paced the house all night moaning like a cow (seriously! it was crazy!), and tried to sleep in between contractions, only to be shaken awake by my arms and legs spasming. Around 7 a.m., Anthony and I climbed into the (long-packed) truck and headed again for the hospital. I squeezed the grab handle in the truck and pressed my hands against the cloth ceiling with every coming contraction. Poor Anthony.
At the hospital, I was admitted and assigned the sweetest nurse. Although my intentions were to have an unmedicated birth, I requested an epidural. 56 hours took it out of me, and I didn't have the energy to labor for who knows how much longer it might have taken to fully dilate. I gladly took the epidural and Pitocin and was able to sleep for short stretches at a time. I must admit that I was very, very pretentious about the idea of an all-natural childbirth. I still think that it is probably the best way to go, but I just knew that I wouldn't need any help at all, thank you very much. Also, getting wheeled out of the hospital was not going to happen. Weak sauce. I was going to walk out with my baby in my handmade sling.
Ha. Haha.
The Pitocin helped me progress quickly, and around 5:00 p.m., the doctor had me start pushing. That part was actually really easy. Anthony held my hand and we breathed through it. I could feel Emmy descending and was elated that I would meet her soon. At 5:22 p.m., Emmy was born. My heart was racing as I saw her for the first time. In that moment, I was shocked to see her, the sweetheart that had grown inside of me for the past 40 weeks. This was the baby that I had prayed for, walked with, sung to, nourished and felt.
Then came the realization that all was not well. Emmy had been born with the cord wrapped tightly around her neck. She was completely limp and colorless. She was not breathing after suctioning, and we heard the nurse tell the delivery doctor that she had no heart rate. Time stopped for me and Anthony. We held hands and prayed silently and our eyes filled up with tears. Having known the pain of loss before, my heart screamed with the thought of losing her. With a team of nurses and the doctor working quickly and quietly with oxygen and chest compressions on our baby, I reached my hand toward the God of heaven and earth and asked for mercy.
Just as He breathed life into Adam and Eve, God breathed life into our Emmanuelle. After what had to be have been at least a full minute or two, she gave a cry and my heart burst. The doctor allowed me to touch her before they quickly took her to be put on steady oxygen, monitors and IVs. The next few hours were tense. She stabilized relatively quickly and was able to breathe on her own but remained hooked up to monitors for almost six hours. Anthony stayed close to her in the nursery, and wheeled me over to see her for a few minutes. It was disorienting and disconcerting to be separated from her, but I had a strong peace and sense of relief. Late that night, she was moved to our room, where I held and nursed her throughout the night.
We stayed in the hospital until Tuesday because of all the tests and lab results that she required. She passed them all and we left on a beautifully sunny afternoon. I was teary-eyed on the quiet ride home.
Sometimes at night when I am changing countless diapers or nursing, I thank God. When I am in pain from my (last-minute and necessary) episiotomy, I thank God. I thank Him for creating her, for sustaining her in my womb, and for showing mercy when we had only hope to hold to.
"Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. For You have rescued my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. I shall walk before the LORD in the land of the living." Psalm 116:7-9
I do want to tell the story of her birth here. It's not just because I need to rehash out all the details for myself. In fact, sometimes it is still difficult for me to talk about it with close friends without completely choking up and weeping. This story brings glory to God because it is the story of a miracle.
Emmy (short for Emmanuelle) started making her long journey into the world on Thursday night, March 10th. I woke up with full-on contractions, nothing like the tightening but painless Braxton-Hicks ones I had a few months earlier. Excited, I started walking through them and woke Anthony up around 1 a.m. to tell him that I was laboring. He moved out to the couch and we jibber-jabbered nervously off and on while he tried to sleep. Contractions continued and moved closer together, as close as 6 minutes apart. I called my ob's office the next morning to cancel our appointment for that day because "I was going to be in the hospital".
Skip to Sunday morning, March 13th. Wait, what? Did I miss a few days of action? Yes... and no. I labored through the whole weekend without dilating to more than 3 cm. All in all, I labored 56 hours at hospital triage, home, at the park, and through car rides. Both of our families were here by that time, so they counted the minutes as I sat on an exercise ball and breathed through each wave of pain. It made for some good laughs and I am still so thankful that they were all here to help and support us.
Anyway, Sunday morning, I hit contractions about 4 minutes apart. I had paced the house all night moaning like a cow (seriously! it was crazy!), and tried to sleep in between contractions, only to be shaken awake by my arms and legs spasming. Around 7 a.m., Anthony and I climbed into the (long-packed) truck and headed again for the hospital. I squeezed the grab handle in the truck and pressed my hands against the cloth ceiling with every coming contraction. Poor Anthony.
At the hospital, I was admitted and assigned the sweetest nurse. Although my intentions were to have an unmedicated birth, I requested an epidural. 56 hours took it out of me, and I didn't have the energy to labor for who knows how much longer it might have taken to fully dilate. I gladly took the epidural and Pitocin and was able to sleep for short stretches at a time. I must admit that I was very, very pretentious about the idea of an all-natural childbirth. I still think that it is probably the best way to go, but I just knew that I wouldn't need any help at all, thank you very much. Also, getting wheeled out of the hospital was not going to happen. Weak sauce. I was going to walk out with my baby in my handmade sling.
Ha. Haha.
The Pitocin helped me progress quickly, and around 5:00 p.m., the doctor had me start pushing. That part was actually really easy. Anthony held my hand and we breathed through it. I could feel Emmy descending and was elated that I would meet her soon. At 5:22 p.m., Emmy was born. My heart was racing as I saw her for the first time. In that moment, I was shocked to see her, the sweetheart that had grown inside of me for the past 40 weeks. This was the baby that I had prayed for, walked with, sung to, nourished and felt.
Then came the realization that all was not well. Emmy had been born with the cord wrapped tightly around her neck. She was completely limp and colorless. She was not breathing after suctioning, and we heard the nurse tell the delivery doctor that she had no heart rate. Time stopped for me and Anthony. We held hands and prayed silently and our eyes filled up with tears. Having known the pain of loss before, my heart screamed with the thought of losing her. With a team of nurses and the doctor working quickly and quietly with oxygen and chest compressions on our baby, I reached my hand toward the God of heaven and earth and asked for mercy.
Just as He breathed life into Adam and Eve, God breathed life into our Emmanuelle. After what had to be have been at least a full minute or two, she gave a cry and my heart burst. The doctor allowed me to touch her before they quickly took her to be put on steady oxygen, monitors and IVs. The next few hours were tense. She stabilized relatively quickly and was able to breathe on her own but remained hooked up to monitors for almost six hours. Anthony stayed close to her in the nursery, and wheeled me over to see her for a few minutes. It was disorienting and disconcerting to be separated from her, but I had a strong peace and sense of relief. Late that night, she was moved to our room, where I held and nursed her throughout the night.
We stayed in the hospital until Tuesday because of all the tests and lab results that she required. She passed them all and we left on a beautifully sunny afternoon. I was teary-eyed on the quiet ride home.
Sometimes at night when I am changing countless diapers or nursing, I thank God. When I am in pain from my (last-minute and necessary) episiotomy, I thank God. I thank Him for creating her, for sustaining her in my womb, and for showing mercy when we had only hope to hold to.
"Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. For You have rescued my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. I shall walk before the LORD in the land of the living." Psalm 116:7-9
March 3, 2011
The Home Stretch (Marks)
Our due date rolls around in just 5 days. Although I could go for another week or two after that, I do feel her coming on! Anthony is just as excited as I am, possibly more, and our bags are packed and waiting by the door.
I don't post status updates about my pregnancy on Facebook every five minutes (although it seems like things are happening every five minutes!), and neither have I been faithful to blog about the little milestones and miracles along this journey. If I were to be honest with myself, it's because I am afraid of being relegated to the mommy corner, the one where you only talk about cloth diapers, nursing schedules and what your baby has been doing lately. I want to talk about these things but am afraid of losing some type of sense of my own identity, one I think and hope to be more complex than just changing diapers.
This is my own poor perspective of motherhood (and my purpose when writing). I confessed my fears of being "mommy Melissa" to Anthony, and he kindly suggested that I should embrace the inclusion of my personal motherhood experiences in this blog. The conversation ended simply with him asking, "Well, that's what you are going to be, right? It's now part of who you are and you write about everything else". How simple and true! Just because I crave some sense of privacy and autonomy with my daily practices doesn't mean I have to live silently.
That said, here's a blog inside a blog: my list of random pregnancy observations.
1. Most of the cliches are true. Most of the pregnancy books' statements are true. It's still an incredible shock when they happen to you. I'm talking about you, stretch marks.
2. It is a rare moment when I forget I'm pregnant. I wake up thinking about her, and my body, from week 7, wouldn't let me do anything else but pay attention.
3. First trimester = 24/7 morning sickness and exaustion; second trimester = slight weight gain, energy for exercising and a real live baby bump; third trimester = man-sized appetite, a big ol' belly and crying for joy over the tiniest socks.
4. I am both more and less judgmental of parents now. More because I actually have an opinion about parenting things (immunizations, etc.), and less because I know how poorly I receive personal criticism and sometimes there's no need to discuss opinions if they're just that.
5. Pregnancy is a privilege. I am so thankful for my health and although there were very difficult days on my body, I have never been in need of food, health care or shelter. Often as I thought to (and did) complain about a sore back, bleeding gums or my love/hate relationship with tomatoes, I was reminded that many, many women would do anything to experience these things if they meant that they could bear a child. Small price for an undeserved blessing.
.... Hopefully my next post will have a picture of our whole out-of-the-womb family! Unless I get really antsy and decide to tackle some Middle East peace issues on here before then.
I don't post status updates about my pregnancy on Facebook every five minutes (although it seems like things are happening every five minutes!), and neither have I been faithful to blog about the little milestones and miracles along this journey. If I were to be honest with myself, it's because I am afraid of being relegated to the mommy corner, the one where you only talk about cloth diapers, nursing schedules and what your baby has been doing lately. I want to talk about these things but am afraid of losing some type of sense of my own identity, one I think and hope to be more complex than just changing diapers.
This is my own poor perspective of motherhood (and my purpose when writing). I confessed my fears of being "mommy Melissa" to Anthony, and he kindly suggested that I should embrace the inclusion of my personal motherhood experiences in this blog. The conversation ended simply with him asking, "Well, that's what you are going to be, right? It's now part of who you are and you write about everything else". How simple and true! Just because I crave some sense of privacy and autonomy with my daily practices doesn't mean I have to live silently.
That said, here's a blog inside a blog: my list of random pregnancy observations.
1. Most of the cliches are true. Most of the pregnancy books' statements are true. It's still an incredible shock when they happen to you. I'm talking about you, stretch marks.
2. It is a rare moment when I forget I'm pregnant. I wake up thinking about her, and my body, from week 7, wouldn't let me do anything else but pay attention.
3. First trimester = 24/7 morning sickness and exaustion; second trimester = slight weight gain, energy for exercising and a real live baby bump; third trimester = man-sized appetite, a big ol' belly and crying for joy over the tiniest socks.
4. I am both more and less judgmental of parents now. More because I actually have an opinion about parenting things (immunizations, etc.), and less because I know how poorly I receive personal criticism and sometimes there's no need to discuss opinions if they're just that.
5. Pregnancy is a privilege. I am so thankful for my health and although there were very difficult days on my body, I have never been in need of food, health care or shelter. Often as I thought to (and did) complain about a sore back, bleeding gums or my love/hate relationship with tomatoes, I was reminded that many, many women would do anything to experience these things if they meant that they could bear a child. Small price for an undeserved blessing.
.... Hopefully my next post will have a picture of our whole out-of-the-womb family! Unless I get really antsy and decide to tackle some Middle East peace issues on here before then.
January 26, 2011
Is it faux pas to...
...give dinner guests "the tour" of your home? Is that showing off?
...not send thank-you cards for Christmas presents to geographically distant family?
...use free wi-fi at a place without buying a coffee every single time? (Personally, I think of it as window shopping for a beverage where there happens to be free interwebs and I happen to have my laptop.)
...post pictures of yourself on Facebook and when you receive kind compliments, say nothing back?
I don't consider any of these true dilemmas that some family ethics professor somewhere needs to address, but these questions do run through my head at times. Is it safe to trust your own intuition and experiences when it comes to the navigation of postmodern social scenes (evites, Skype dates, online class discussions)? I do own an Emily Post manual, but I bought it at Goodwill for my own entertainment, not to reference in a moment of panic.
On second thought, I do reference a "protocol" manual for Army social situations. Better safe than sorry.
...not send thank-you cards for Christmas presents to geographically distant family?
...use free wi-fi at a place without buying a coffee every single time? (Personally, I think of it as window shopping for a beverage where there happens to be free interwebs and I happen to have my laptop.)
...post pictures of yourself on Facebook and when you receive kind compliments, say nothing back?
I don't consider any of these true dilemmas that some family ethics professor somewhere needs to address, but these questions do run through my head at times. Is it safe to trust your own intuition and experiences when it comes to the navigation of postmodern social scenes (evites, Skype dates, online class discussions)? I do own an Emily Post manual, but I bought it at Goodwill for my own entertainment, not to reference in a moment of panic.
On second thought, I do reference a "protocol" manual for Army social situations. Better safe than sorry.
December 17, 2010
The Year in Review... sort of.
Every December, I search out "year-in-review" lists because I find them entertaining and because they remind me of everything my brain has already forgotten from the most recent months. Writers and analysts list their Top 10 everything, from fashion statements to news stories, and handpick the person(s) they think had the most impact on the world that year.
It's a little early to do what might seem like a gratuitous reflecting-on-all-that's-happened-in-2010 post, but I'm not feeling that heavy, not yet, at least. I'll wait until the window for Seasonal Affectiveness Disorder has passed before I represent the entire 365 days through the gloom of winter. Let's do something fun.
Top Unedited Moments of 2010... no filter, no posing and no planning. Just living.
A surprise birthday party for my mother-in-law... around 6:00 a.m., the only time she could be caught off guard.
An impromptu trip from Ft. Benning, GA to Opelika, AL and down to Destin, FL, with a Yankee who had never seen the Gulf Coast. She got offended at the cat calls to our more tanned friend.
It's a little early to do what might seem like a gratuitous reflecting-on-all-that's-happened-in-2010 post, but I'm not feeling that heavy, not yet, at least. I'll wait until the window for Seasonal Affectiveness Disorder has passed before I represent the entire 365 days through the gloom of winter. Let's do something fun.
Top Unedited Moments of 2010... no filter, no posing and no planning. Just living.
Real snow in Dothan, AL. Vanessa, my future sister-in-law, and I bought rubber boots at Target.
I caught my first fish at the pond in Selma, AL and it was a whopper of a largemouth bass. Almost two pounds, I believe.
Fourth of July with the sisters and fireworks.
Airborne School dropzone. Insanely hot, but families stayed for hours with a Gatorade and love.
A few weeks' leave, after a year of training, in Florida. Also the height of morning sickness, but I remember this meal being DELICIOUS.
I may have to do a Review, Part 2. Stay tuned.
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