I have been having a little delayed post-partum baby blues, thinking about maternity leave coming to an end. I go back to work April 4, and I’m very much looking forward to the work and the people. However, much as I try not to, I’m doing some anticipatory sweating of small stuff. The good news […]

Well, the reality is finally settling in for little she-who-is: I Am Not the Center of Attention Anymore. It’s a sad realization for her, but I’m grateful she’s not taking it out on M. Her father and I can take it.
On Wednesday, when I dropped her off at day-care after our Morning with Mommy, she […]

RevBaby Reviews
…an occasional series for the diapered set
Today’s topic: Nursing Options in the Big Suburban Mall
It happens every time. A morning jaunt around the shopping center works up an appetite. Fortunately, the anchor department stores provide lounges for those in-between snacks, but quality varies widely at these eateries. I sampled Elevensies at three locations, […]

worries:
infertility
miscarriage
birth defects
gestational diabetes
bedrest
preeclampsia
emergency c-section
prematurity
twelve-pound baby
post-partum depression
SIDS
autism
asthma
allergies
leukemia
abduction
car wreck
bullying
drugs
psycho boyfriend
psycho girlfriend
no boyfriend or girlfriend
peer pressure
heartbreak
drunk drivers
the easy way out
the wrong man
infertility
miscarriage
birth defects
…
“So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” –Matthew 6.34

I’m feeling a bit down today. It’s snowing a little outside, but not the good kind. I was with both the girls this morning and felt like I had limited patience and energy for both. How do you play with a spirited preschooler when your baby will only nap in your arms?
Monday I told C […]

1.
At first, she was nothing to me,
nothing I could see.
Then two points collided in secret.
And through some Euclidean miracle,
two points made an indigo line
that floated to the surface of a white window plane,
a handheld compass pointing I knew not where.
2.
Then the line spread out,
and became flat images of white on static:
forehead, nose, chin,
five slight fingers,
a […]

little miss M
she who is: divine one
loves to talk sleeps sweet
and I listen, and I watch — and
laugh along with you at our great
good fortune, and at the abundant
completeness of this, our family
of […]

I’ve been reading a lot of interesting stuff lately—a biography of Marie Curie (Obsessive Genius), an anthology of Jane Kenyon poems (Otherwise), and the latest Mothers Who Think collection, called Because I Said So. I really loved Rosellen Brown’s essay “No Blame,” in which she writes about being a writer and a mom. I’ve wished […]

for C, little she-who-is
When did I become a mother of two?
Was it six weeks ago, when your baby sister catapulted into the world and spread slender arms into empty air, groping for something to hold onto?
Was it later that day, when my eyes fell on the two of you together for the first time, when […]

A good friend from seminary said the following, sometime after her daughter was born but before mine was:
I never really knew how much my parents loved me until I had one of my own.
I remember hearing her say that and thinking, aw, that is so sweet. The love of a parent.
Then little she-who-is was born. […]

This maternity leave is the first time since high school that I’ve had no job or class to go to. It’s mostly nice, although you should know that life with a newborn can be mind-numbingly dull. It’s long stretches of the mundane punctuated with flashes of “damn you’re a cute kid.”
I’m what, two or three […]

I’m still here, cocooning with the RB. She’s eight days old, slept a six hour stretch again last night, and I’m wearing non-maternity jeans (albeit one of my larger pairs). Cheers! On the other hand, she insisted on snacking all afternoon. Jeers!
It’s amazing how soft baby feet are–and why not? No mileage.
When babies bend their […]

Baby M was born at 3:20 a.m. December 27.
She is 9 pounds even. 20 inches long. Short wispy brown hair, 10 fingers and 10 toes, nice pink coloring. Apgar scores were 9 and 9 if you care about such things.
Birth story–rated “moderate” for the squeamish:
YES those days of prelabor (especially yesterday) were doing something–in fact, […]

my mother had a charm bracelet.
my aunt had one.
I have one.
someday my daughter will have one too.
but for now, mine is hers,
each trinket traced and jingled by
her slender fingers—
claimed, counted, chronicled,
identified one by one:
here’s a sand dollar,
a flowered cross,
a Texas (deep in the heart),
a teacup with spoon,
a tiny Bible
(no the pages don’t open),
a cat with […]

Of course, the laziest thing to do is to actually buy playdoh, but the shelves in the toy section at Target were annoyingly mislabeled last time I was there, and I thought C would enjoy actually making some. Do I actually know how to make playdoh? Well no, but that’s what the internets are for.
During […]

Here’s one: How to teach your children to address non-family adults. This is a current topic of interest in the reverendhousehold.
R’s thought seems to be the following:
1. There are friends who are so close as to be family. These are the people whom your kids learn to address as Aunt or Uncle Firstname.
Example: PastorG. She’s […]

Sun-shaft on the floor:
“Can I splash in the puddle?”
We nod, and she jumps.
That happened this morning.
Incidentally…
I’ve been writing stuff down since I could write stuff down. And I always enjoyed learning about and writing haiku, even in elementary school.
Does anyone else remember the cinquain? It seems kind of the black sheep of poetic forms. I […]

I certainly do enjoy the interactions on this blog. I like when new people stop by, but I must admit I’m glad things aren’t too busy over here. This blog is sorta… down the dirt road, past the abandoned gas station, and I like it that way. Seems like the bigger you get, the more […]

What’s new with RM, the Mr., and C?
Went to the outlet mall yesterday. We really wanted to walk around and it was raining, and R needed some new clothes, so there you go.
There are certain activities that are uniquely parental in my mind. Shoe shopping, for instance. Like, I can buy clothes, books, toys, for […]

I have an essay coming out in the new Mothers Who Think collection about how I love my husband more than my children. I know I’m going to get grief for that, even though the editors wisely discouraged from putting in a line about how I love my husband so much that I would toss […]