Seven Quick Takes Friday

its my second Seven Quick Takes Friday! By clicking here you will be linked over to Conversion Diary, a great blog about living Catholic after a lifetime of not believing. She hosts the seven quick takes, so I hope you check her blog out if you have the time. She is also featured on the side column of this blog in favorites!

1. The night of the living dead followed by the morning in the family bed
We thought we were doing great with our sleep "training" for almost 5 month old Clark. I no longer needed to nurse him to sleep for every nap. He could pretty much fall asleep on his own for most naps with little fussing and crying. This plan may have back fired as he started waking more at night. I used to feed him once in the night (12-4am) and once in early morning (5-7am) but with the new sleep schedule he started waking 3-4 times per night! So, Thinking it was teething, I gave him tons of Hyland's Teething Tabs (didn't work), Tyenol (didn't work). I co-slept with him. REALLY DIDN'T WORK!!! I switched back to disposable diaper at night (didn't work). And finally Tom and I started giving him Rice Cereal. We were hoping to wait until 6 months or beyond to start solids, but we were soooooooo tired!!!! Last night was his second night, he got up at 4am, and again at 6:30am. Maybe my angel is back...

2. Natural Family Planning Awareness Week!
Last week was NFP Awareness week. I posted regularly on Facebook to promote this wonderful method of family planning. I am happy to say that there was some good discussion on my posts from NFP practitioners and people who knew nothing about NFP. A few people said they checked NFP out due to the postings. YAY! On another note, this week was good timing for us. Due to the decrease of nursing/napping, I was supposed to increase vigilance of signs of fertility. It looks like it may be coming back. Now you know.

3.Goliath Tomatoes
They now reach the porch roof!!!!! GO Farmer Tom!!!




4. Some siting action
With the inspiration of his 2 month older best friend, John Paul (on the right), Clark is working on his sitting skills.




In other JP news, Josh and Ashley are now living in DC!!!! Tom and I have known them since our Tulane Days (2001-ish) They also blog which can be found here(Catholic stuff) here (more Catholic stuff) and here (family stuff).

5. FREE pictures!
Sears Portrait Studio has this deal where you can go get a FREE sitting and a FREE 8 x 10 photo. You can go EVERY DAY if you want. I guess it is $40 to join or $10 if you buy some other stuff first. I'm in! Who wants Clark 8x10s???



6. Motherhood
Sometimes motherhood is like going to the zoo and having a moment with a wild animal. The chimp who puts their hand up to the glass is your child grasping your finger. The butterfly who lands on your finger is your child's gentle arm resting on your shoulder as they fall asleep. You can't will them to action, their actions are a miracle you just happened to witness.

7. Why blog?
Its interesting to blog, to put all of your personal thoughts and actions out there for the world, or more embarrassing, your closest friends and family to see. I admit, in parenting, wiving, and living I feel a lot of uncertainty. It is somewhat scary to be alive and make decisions on behalf of others, let alone write about the process of those decisions and the subsequent outcome, good and bad. As a mother, I find that I look at other moms and judge, judge, judge. I think, "my kid will never do that!" But as my sister-in-law once told me, "I never thought I would let my daughter throw food. But she hardly eats anything, I'm just happy that she eats SOMETHING." Its true. We never think we will make the decisions we do. Instead we let our lives unfold and decisions are made upon the way. Some how, I feel that the blog is like my ongoing confession of prideful triumphs and then my subsequent downfall. Forgive me.