<3 your body

Just lately, I love my body. Usually I feel insecure about something or another... my love-handles hang over my pants too much, my belly flab is excessive, my boobs are too small, my thighs are too big, my butt is too jiggly, etc. But not lately. 

Lately, I love my body. Not because I've been working out or am in excellent shape. Not because of any loss of fat. Not because I've been eating healthier. I think it's just because I'm pregnant. 

My belly sticks out further than usual...because there is a baby inside of it!

My love-handles feel bigger than ever... because my hips are spreading out extra wide for a baby to fit through them. 

My boobs are extra sensitive and a little bigger than normal...because they are gearing up to provide nourishment after that baby arrives. 

My thighs are big... because I'm carrying around a lot of extra weight and need that extra support. 

My butt is jiggly...but at least it's comfortable to sit on when the rest of me is exhausted. 

Even though my body is far from perfect, I feel completely comfortable in my skin (stretch marks and everything). When I feel the teeny-tiny wiggles and jabs inside of me, I am amazed at how my body can  carry another life. This baby, boy or girl, big or small, is growing inside of MY body. My body is able to support him/her during the most delicate stages of life. 

Even if you're not pregnant or don't necessarily love your body right now, think about this: 

Your body is what you live in. Your body allows you to take in nourishment and transfers it into energy. Your body provides you with what you need to think and communicate with others. Your body gives you signals to tell you when it needs something vital to your existence, like sleep, food, or water. Your body screams at you when you overuse or abuse it. Your body can warn you of danger and provide you with comfort. Your body has an automatic cool down system built in for when you get too warm. Your body has muscles that allow you to move from one place to another and complete the tasks at hand. Your body is pretty cool. 

Whether or not your love-handles hang over your jeans or your boobs are too big, whether your thighs are jiggly or toned to perfection, whether you're riddled with scars or have perfect skin tone, your body is amazing. Treat that thing with respect. You don't have to look like a movie star to be thankful for your body. It does pretty good at doing its job right now. So, rather than getting down on ourselves for the extra weight we carry or the imperfect skin tone we have, let's appreciate what our bodies do every day. 

My 22 week baby bump: 

(sucking in, pushing out, standing normal)

The Dentist

The last time I went to the dentist was when I was just a kid... Ok, maybe not quite that bad, but I certainly haven't gone since we got married and that's been at least 4 years. I'm pretty sure I was at most a teenager the last time I went. Since then I've gotten married, started cooking for myself, and gone through one and a half pregnancies that involved lots of throwing up and lots of sugar.

Anyway, I went to the dentist today and was a little bit worried that they were going to tell me it would be best to pull out all of my teeth and get dentures instead. Turns out they aren't so bad! In fact, I only have one little cavity. However, they didn't do x-rays because of this kid in my belly, so I suppose there is still the possibility of some super hidden ones. There was some tarter built up on the back of those bottom inscisors, but he said that for four years, it wasn't bad at all. I was pretty pleased with the verdict. 

Thanks for the good teeth Dad! 

Picture update

I found a bunch of fun pictures on my iPad that no one but me will enjoy unless I share them, so here they are for your viewing pleasure! 

A day at Java Gym with Brendan (from June):

Making his own entertainment on our roadtrip (early July):

A day at the library with mom (late July):

This goofy kid (July/August): 

These kids love to read (August): 

A day with three kids (late August): 

Special thanks to picstich for motivating me to organize my pictures. 

Work, sweat, and tears

This is my first week "back at work."

I'm only working two afternoons and one full day a week, but it has been a bit of an adjustment already. John naps whenever he gets tired, usually going down sometime between 11 and 2 and sleeping for two hours or so. When we're just hanging out, running errands, or visiting friends, that works just fine. I make sure he has a two hour chunk of time in there and we're all good. 

Well, yesterday, he got tired right at 11, so I put him down right away. It would have been fine if he woke up at 1 (I had to be at work by 1:30), but of course, he didn't. So, I had to wake him up from his nap. Pearl helped me wake him, so he was very happy when he woke up and had a great time at Amanda's the whole time I was working. 

However, his cut-short-nap time meant that he was really cranky and tired by the time we got home after grocery shopping after work. When he went to bed, he just didn't sleep well. Usually, he'll go down around 8:30 and sleep straight through the night until about 8:30. Last night he woke up crying and upset around 9:30 and then fussed about 4-5 more times through the night. 

After his restless night of sleep, I had to wake him up at 8 this morning so we could leave again. Pearl helped me wake him up again, so he was a happy camper, but still a little groggy. He spent the day at Kelly's and unfortunately didn't nap well because he and Brendan went back and forth crying/waking each other up. He fell asleep in the carseat on the say home and, knowing he was exhausted, I picked him up carefully and just laid right down with him. He slept for about 40 minutes and then woke up crying. He kept crying no matter what we did and then went and hid behind the chair in his room, just sobbing. Eric finally rocked him back to sleep and he slept for another hour (6:30-7:30, way off schedule). When he woke up, he was just crying and screaming again. He wouldn't eat or drink anything, didn't want to be rocked or held, didn't want to be on the ground. We force-changed his diaper because we couldn't figure out what was wrong. Force fed him a teething tablet in hopes that that would help, but he just kept crying. I started to worry that something was seriously wrong with him. Poor little guy. 

After about 10 minutes of that, he noticed Sam sitting in his bed and pointed to him, while crying. I bent over and started to pet Sam while holding John. Out of nowhere, he stopped crying and started giggling and petting Sam. Then he walked over to the table, climbed in his chair, and started feeding himself the applesauce that he had refused five minutes earlier. After that, he was just joyful for the next hour and half. He played, hid, ate, talked, chased, and giggled. He drank his bottle, helped clear the table, filled his diaper, brushed his teeth, and cuddled up to listen to his Bible story all without a tear or sob. If only I could understand what goes through that little head of his.

Oh, and we can't forget the sweat...

After putting him to bed, I was watching him on our handy-dandy-freebie video-baby monitor. He rolled over and pulled the whole blanket over his head. After waving his arm in a lack-luster attempt to remove the blanket, he gave up and went to sleep. A few minutes later I snuck in and gently removed the blanket from its suffocating position. John was dripping in sweat and all of his hair was matted down to his head. What a funny little boy.

If you get a chance, pray that our continued transition to the school year goes smoothly for all of us.