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WHEN: Friday April 17th, 2009 Time: 10am to 12pm
WHERE: Babies in Bloom, Corydon Village Mall, 6 - 1700 Corydon Avenue, Phone #: 415-2756
Bring the kids, stay and play. Enjoy tasty snacks, check out our displays and enter to win earth friendly prizes! Space is limited so please RSVP to info@easyecobaby.com by April 15th, 2009.
Wednesday
Waiting
You've probably been waiting for us to update this blog. We're all waiting for spring to arrive (or stay). If you've been driving in this weather, you've probably done your share of waiting in traffic. And if you're like several in our family, you're waiting for a persistent cough to clear up.
Waiting. Most of us aren't that crazy about waiting. Or good at it. My kids are notoriously impatient. I think they come by it honestly. Where am I going with this? I'm not even sure. That's what I like about the creative process. You never know where it might lead. It's like a great novel or an exciting adventure.
My friend is doing a lot of waiting these days. She broke her ankle in three places. Now she waits for it to heal. And waits for others to do things for her, when normally she is the one making things happen (and a lot of things happen at once, I might add).
I have experienced the waiting that comes with pregnancy three times. With the first came lots of reflection and anticipation...and a little trepidation. The second and third went by much faster, with less time to savour the experience.
With our business, we've done a lot of waiting...waiting for the breakthrough...where everything we've done starts to come together in synergy and our business takes off. Well, I think the waiting is over. It feels a little surreal at times, to see our dream becoming a reality, but I think it's slowly sinking in. It's been a long time coming.
I think the waiting has enlarged us (like being pregnant). I think it has expanded our capacity for hope. I think it has increased our ability to trust. I think it has opened up our hearts to be more grateful. I hope so.
Rodney and I often find it difficult to find the balance between "doing the stuff"and trusting. Sometimes it comes down to receiving the wisdom to do the "right stuff at the right time" and sometimes it is simply receiving a gift we could never have orchestrated ourselves. Those gifts "out of the blue" remind us of the vastness of God, so that we don't over-inflate (or over-work) our limited selves.
What are you waiting for? Have you been feeling desperate? Have you nearly given up hope? Do you wonder if you are foolish to believe it will happen? Are you afraid of disappointment? The one who created us waits for us to turn to him. He knows our hearts. He knows what we need. He is fully capable of meeting those needs. Our part is to wait...in expectation (and with a bit more "stillness" than my children!)
Well, I think I got to where I needed to go. I hope the path was scenic enough.
...I'm waiting to hear from you!
Waiting. Most of us aren't that crazy about waiting. Or good at it. My kids are notoriously impatient. I think they come by it honestly. Where am I going with this? I'm not even sure. That's what I like about the creative process. You never know where it might lead. It's like a great novel or an exciting adventure.
My friend is doing a lot of waiting these days. She broke her ankle in three places. Now she waits for it to heal. And waits for others to do things for her, when normally she is the one making things happen (and a lot of things happen at once, I might add).
I have experienced the waiting that comes with pregnancy three times. With the first came lots of reflection and anticipation...and a little trepidation. The second and third went by much faster, with less time to savour the experience.
With our business, we've done a lot of waiting...waiting for the breakthrough...where everything we've done starts to come together in synergy and our business takes off. Well, I think the waiting is over. It feels a little surreal at times, to see our dream becoming a reality, but I think it's slowly sinking in. It's been a long time coming.
I think the waiting has enlarged us (like being pregnant). I think it has expanded our capacity for hope. I think it has increased our ability to trust. I think it has opened up our hearts to be more grateful. I hope so.
Rodney and I often find it difficult to find the balance between "doing the stuff"and trusting. Sometimes it comes down to receiving the wisdom to do the "right stuff at the right time" and sometimes it is simply receiving a gift we could never have orchestrated ourselves. Those gifts "out of the blue" remind us of the vastness of God, so that we don't over-inflate (or over-work) our limited selves.
What are you waiting for? Have you been feeling desperate? Have you nearly given up hope? Do you wonder if you are foolish to believe it will happen? Are you afraid of disappointment? The one who created us waits for us to turn to him. He knows our hearts. He knows what we need. He is fully capable of meeting those needs. Our part is to wait...in expectation (and with a bit more "stillness" than my children!)
Well, I think I got to where I needed to go. I hope the path was scenic enough.
...I'm waiting to hear from you!
The Kind of Day it's Been
Oops! It's 10:27 p.m. and I'm trying to cram in a post before bed. It's been a long week so far with my husband busy preparing for and presenting a seminar-type talk at the Winnipeg South camera club. I'm looking forward to a night off from putting the kids to bed.
But tonight was good. Maybe not stellar as far as early bedtimes go, but fairly enjoyable. Supper was ready at 5:30 (yay for crockpots). Managed to scrounge up enough energy to get the kids to help with cleaning up the disastrous-looking kitchen floor. Kids got pajamas on fairly painlessly. After making night snack, I took off for a little "me" time and played piano. My eldest joined me and we sang a duet! Red a fun story from the library...twice! (Minerva Louise and the Red Truck or something). Very cute. Tickled and chased my youngest (I love his laugh!) rather than fighting over who would take his diaper off, his clothes off, etc. Managed to curb the kids' desires to be distracted without too much nagging or time-wasting. Talk/Tuck In time got a little long, but not too bad. Two-year-old went to sleep easily and quickly! He's been fighting sleep so much. He was rubbing his ears last night, so I asked him if they hurt. We started putting in Similasan Homeopathic Ear Drops and he's been sleeping better. Yay! (google to learn more). Just been puttering around on the computer mostly now...my sister sent me flowers on Facebook!
Hope my hubby comes home soon! Anyone been reading any good books lately?
But tonight was good. Maybe not stellar as far as early bedtimes go, but fairly enjoyable. Supper was ready at 5:30 (yay for crockpots). Managed to scrounge up enough energy to get the kids to help with cleaning up the disastrous-looking kitchen floor. Kids got pajamas on fairly painlessly. After making night snack, I took off for a little "me" time and played piano. My eldest joined me and we sang a duet! Red a fun story from the library...twice! (Minerva Louise and the Red Truck or something). Very cute. Tickled and chased my youngest (I love his laugh!) rather than fighting over who would take his diaper off, his clothes off, etc. Managed to curb the kids' desires to be distracted without too much nagging or time-wasting. Talk/Tuck In time got a little long, but not too bad. Two-year-old went to sleep easily and quickly! He's been fighting sleep so much. He was rubbing his ears last night, so I asked him if they hurt. We started putting in Similasan Homeopathic Ear Drops and he's been sleeping better. Yay! (google to learn more). Just been puttering around on the computer mostly now...my sister sent me flowers on Facebook!
Hope my hubby comes home soon! Anyone been reading any good books lately?
Irony
Well, after posting about my adorable, lovable two-year-old, he turned over a new leaf and has become fiercely independent, openly defiant, and generally very challenging to deal with. And not napping very easily. Oh, the joys of motherhood! He's still great, but I find myself exhausted by all the emotional skirmishes. And with number three, mommy finds herself yelling right back! Sigh...
On another front, I just posted "How to make Chicken Noodle Soup" on our Eve blog. Feel free to check it out if you're in a space that feels like soup-making might be possible. It can be quite satisfying, especially if Daddy is with the kids and it's more like a little creative "me" time.
Enjoy the snow!
On another front, I just posted "How to make Chicken Noodle Soup" on our Eve blog. Feel free to check it out if you're in a space that feels like soup-making might be possible. It can be quite satisfying, especially if Daddy is with the kids and it's more like a little creative "me" time.
Enjoy the snow!
So cute...
Just have to share a photo of my youngest. I love this age (well, except for when he's growly or throwing things). He's so cuddly and he's learning words all the time. Here's my baby...
What is your favorite age or stage?
Nostalgia
I ran across these when I was doing a speech on nature. Isn't it wild to look back at old photographs? It's amazing how much kids change in two years...
Stre - tch - ing
I'm actually NOT going to talk about stretching in the yoga or physical sense of the word. Today, I'm thinking about being stretched intellectually. As mothers in the thick of mothering small ones, life tends to become a series of repetitious acts: lots of feeding, diapering, getting off to sleep, cleaning up etc. There can be lots of joy in that...lots of love...lots of rewards. There can also be a sense of despair that sets in: "I'm never any farther than I was the day before". We become easy candidates for depression, often unaware of it at the time. "Why is everything so hard right now?" When we give and give (night and day), we burn out. We get grouchy. Even start feeling like the victim in it all. (Or am I the only one?!! I don't think so).
Good things to do in those times or to prevent getting that low can include: getting some time alone or with a friend, doing one nice thing for yourself (like taking a long bath instead of doing the dishes when the kids are in bed), asking for help, or....learning something new! Some of us probably find it easier to do some of these things than others, for various reasons. That's okay. But we do all need a certain amount of attention and care ourselves or we self-destruct. Because we have limits. We can't do it all. When a battery's energy is being depleted by long use, it needs to be recharged. So do we.
These days I've often been feeling low. There's always more to do than I can handle, we've all ben struggling with illness since Christmas, not sleeping well at night, and other things I won't go into. But one thing I started in January, in the middle of all of this, was a pubic speaking course. Sound crazy? Maybe. But I'm doing something that's getting me closer to a dream of mine...a dream that had been dormant for quite some time...the dream of speaking to women. Plus, learning is a passion that also has been unpursued in the past six years.
So, I'm taking this course. And I'm learning. And I'm being stretched. And it's giving me energy. Yesterday was my first prepared speech. I went into it, feeling very insecure and under-prepared all day. Then, suddenly, it was show-time. And I did well! Sure, I hand-clasped and rushed at the end, but I did it! And I was happy with it. And I've been on a bit of a high ever since. It hasn't been easy trying to squeeze in the time to prepare and rehearse, but it's given me an outlet for my creativity, a place for me to grow and try things, an opportunity to say, "I did that and I'm proud".
If you're in a place in your mothering where you can take a bit of time away from your kids, I encourage you to go out and try something new. Str-etch a little. It will be so worth it! And if you're right in the newborn phase, try to snatch up the time you can to read something or write something or even take a Mom-and-baby Pilates class or something. You'll gain all the energy back you put into it and more!
Good things to do in those times or to prevent getting that low can include: getting some time alone or with a friend, doing one nice thing for yourself (like taking a long bath instead of doing the dishes when the kids are in bed), asking for help, or....learning something new! Some of us probably find it easier to do some of these things than others, for various reasons. That's okay. But we do all need a certain amount of attention and care ourselves or we self-destruct. Because we have limits. We can't do it all. When a battery's energy is being depleted by long use, it needs to be recharged. So do we.
These days I've often been feeling low. There's always more to do than I can handle, we've all ben struggling with illness since Christmas, not sleeping well at night, and other things I won't go into. But one thing I started in January, in the middle of all of this, was a pubic speaking course. Sound crazy? Maybe. But I'm doing something that's getting me closer to a dream of mine...a dream that had been dormant for quite some time...the dream of speaking to women. Plus, learning is a passion that also has been unpursued in the past six years.
So, I'm taking this course. And I'm learning. And I'm being stretched. And it's giving me energy. Yesterday was my first prepared speech. I went into it, feeling very insecure and under-prepared all day. Then, suddenly, it was show-time. And I did well! Sure, I hand-clasped and rushed at the end, but I did it! And I was happy with it. And I've been on a bit of a high ever since. It hasn't been easy trying to squeeze in the time to prepare and rehearse, but it's given me an outlet for my creativity, a place for me to grow and try things, an opportunity to say, "I did that and I'm proud".
If you're in a place in your mothering where you can take a bit of time away from your kids, I encourage you to go out and try something new. Str-etch a little. It will be so worth it! And if you're right in the newborn phase, try to snatch up the time you can to read something or write something or even take a Mom-and-baby Pilates class or something. You'll gain all the energy back you put into it and more!
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