The Mosque at Ground Zero

Maybe I'm naive or ignorant because I just don't get it.  What is the huge deal about building a mosque in the vicinity of Ground Zero??  I am not the biggest fan of Obama.  I like to think I vote on issues but I am quite conservative and generally vote Republican.  With that said, I don't think the Muslim place of worship should be a political issue but yet it very much is.  I am not the most well-versed person on this subject.  I've read a handful of articles pertaining to it but don't claim to know all the details.  However, this is what I believe:

A religion did not cause 9/11.  People did.  Individuals.  Individuals who were Muslim.

(Most?) Muslims who would worship in this Mosque are American.

There are American Muslims who are fighting for the United States in Iraq. 

We should be a country of tolerance and forgiveness. 

When Jesus was dying on the cross, he pleaded for God to forgive his betrayors.  I am especially surprised when Believers are vehemently opposed to the mosque at Ground Zero.  I like to think that the same Jesus who asked for his attackers to be forgiven would be pleased with us showing a small remnant of the same behavior.  Then again, I think it's important to maintain the distinction between the RELIGION and the INDIVIDUALS who carried out 9/11. 

I understand this is an extremely emotional situation for many.  If I lost a loved one on 9/11, I may feel differently.  However, I feel like most of those who are outwardly opposed to this place of worship were not personally affected (as in experienced the death of a loved one) by 9/11.  It has become extremely political,   which is just sad. 

Don't even get me started on those who want Obama to prove that he's not a Muslim......

Claire at 16 months

Claire is 16 months old!  It is such a fun age.  I am really excited for the age she'll be at during my maternity leave.  It's almost like you can literally see the millions of neurons forming in her brain (did I sound like I know anything about science?  Cuz I dont.  But it sounded right).  She is adventurous, playful, joyful, strong, determined, loving, empathetic and smart.

At 16 months, Claire....

• has 11 teeth... 6 on top and 5 on the bottom.  Teething is still a struggle but doesn't feel as hard as it used to be.  It's obvious when she's teething because she'll have trouble going to sleep, refuse to suck on her pacifier, and want to cuddle.  Despite the increase in teeth, she still prefers to chew with her front ones.
• wears size 12 month and 12-18 month clothes.  This morning I put size 18 month sweatpants from Osh Kosh on her but had to fold the thick waistband over and they were still a tad long..but they were cute!
• goes to be about 7:00-7:30 PM and wakes up pretty consistently around 6:45AM.  Although this morning (Saturday), it was about 5 minutes to 6:00.  But that was one extra hour I got to spend with her. :)  She naps usually twice a day.
• has been exploding in the verbal category!!  It seems like she has a new word almost daily! I don't know if I could count them all because I would surely leave some out.  Some of the new ones I like are: Josh, milk, please, shoes, boo.
• is very empathetic!!  If you tell her you have an owwie and show it to her, she gets upset- she'll scrunch her face up and whimper and look like she's in physical pain.  She's even seen some freckles on my arm and thought they were owwies and gotten sad.  It's cute and sad at the same time! 
• throws trantrums, but fortunately they aren't too terrible and it's pretty easy to distract her out of them.  But the scary part is that she'll throw herself on the ground and throw her head back, without regard to what's behind her.  Yesterday I caught her head right before it slammed into the bottom of the end table.  This morning she threw it back and hit the hard floor.  The joy of becoming a toddler!
• knows what "no" means and says it all the time.  She also frequently scrunches her face when she says it and forms a double chin- I should try to get that on camera!  She'll walk up to an outlet, turn around, look at me, and say, "no no no no no".  She even tells me and Josh now!  I've heard "mama no" a couple times! 
• is quite strong and believes she's even stronger than she is.  She will try to lift or push anything, even picnic tables.  She can carry objects that are large and awkward and 3/4 her size.  And she wants to carry EVERYTHING.  I am proud of her determination and self-confidence!  I pray she always believes in herself. 
• is enjoying her time with her cousin Brody.  Now that he can sit up, they can interact more and are having lots of fun!  She gives him kisses and hugs.  She tried picking him up the other day but they weigh the same amount! 
• has become motherly.  She's attached to her babies and blankets and wants to carry them everywhere.  She'll tell you her baby is sleeping by putting her finger to her mouth and "shhh"-ing.  Sometimes she tries to carry 2-3 blankets and 2 babies at the same time!  It's amazing to see this motherly instinct develop- where did it come from or is it just purely natural for young girls?  Hopefully she'll feel this fondly about her baby brother. 

I could go on and on about our sweet girl but I must get ready for the day before she wakes up from her nap!  Have a blessed weekend!

In Full Bloom

I have been following this blog for a couple year's now.  She lost her baby boy 16 minutes after he was born (she was told around her 20 week ultrasound that he would not be "viable with life" but she chose to carry him, against her doctor's recommendation).  She now has a gorgeous baby girl and is returning to work soon (she's a teacher).  She wrote a post recently regarding her struggle with going to work and leaving her daughter, and of course, it resonated with me.  One line in particular has remained with me and been a source of reflection.

Stacy's husband told her to "Bloom where you are planted, until God clearly moves you".

That is powerful for me.  Yes, I wish I could be with Claire more right now, with every piece of my heart.  But I can't be.  At least right now.  Maybe someday I will.  But in the meantime, I will choose joy and thankfulness, and bloom where I've been planted.

You can read her full post here.

3rd Trimester!

I'm officially in the third trimester!  I turned 28 weeks last Thursday.  A little update on me and the babe...

I'm feeling great, for being 7 months pregnant.  I have no sign of sciatica, praise the Lord!!!  I have had very, very few low blood sugar episdoes, PTL again!  I am feeling very large.  I never understood why pregnant women were happy when people told them that they look small.  I mean, when you're pregnant, you want to look pregnant.  And you probably always feel a bit bigger than you look.  But now that I've gained almost as much weight already as I did the entire pregnancy with Claire and my stomach is much larger than it was last time at this point, I don't mind one bit if someone tells me I look good or look small.  Because usually I get the opposite comment! 

My lung capacity continues to feel low.  It can be hard to catch my breath and difficult to speak without having to take a break and a deep breath.  My thyroid was tested at my last appt and came back normal, so my doctor said that the shortness of breath is nothing to worry about and just part of my organs being pushed around. 

I'm still sleeping well and not using body pillows yet.  I continue to be more tired than usual but it doesn't seem like I have fatigue to the same level as I did before (meaning, I can actually stay up past 9PM some nights). 

Little Docken Boy is active and I can tell he's getting stronger because I am feeling more rolling and large movements.  I really can't believe we'll be meeting him in 12 weeks or less.  At this point, I actually hope he doesn't come early.  With Claire, I was ready the minute I turned 37 weeks.  But we're enjoying the 'easy' life right now with just one teething, independence-seeking, tantrum-learning, word-speaking, laughter-loving little girl! I know that soon enough we'll be thrusted into the throes of the crazy newborn life! 

I love my girl; she makes my heart overflow

andrew peterson's planting trees

verses 6 and 7

"She rises up as morning breaks

She moves among these rooms alone

Before we wake

And her heart is so full; it overflows

She waters us with love and the children grow

So many years from now

Long after we are gone

These trees will spread their branches out

And bless the dawn

These trees will spread their branches out

And bless someone"

We heart the cabin

We returned today from another fabulous weekend at the cabin.  This time it was just me, Josh, Claire, Brad, Mom, Laurie, and Andrew.  And the three doggies.  We fished, boated, roasted marshmallows, played in the pool, put a grill together, played cards, relaxed, ate, ate, and ate, sat by the fire, and had fun!  We are so thankful we have this beautiful cabin to enjoy!  It was a wonderful three day weekend and now I'm looking forward to just three days of work before a 4 day weekend!  This next weekend we're visiting Grandma Annie and Grandpa Jeff at their campsite in Bluff Valley.  Should be another fun-filled summer weekend.  But I gotta admit, I'm ready for fall!  It's been a terrific summer but it's so darn hot (can I blame my whining on the oven inside my tummy??) and I just love the autumn season!

99 until 11/11!

99 days until baby boy Docken is due!!  Hooray!!

Here was this milestone in my pregnancy with Claire!

I had my 26 week doctor appt this morning and it went great!!  I passed my diabetes testing and my level was much more normal than last year.  With Claire, it was in the 40's.  Today it was 126.  Big difference!
The ultrasound was the best part.  He is so cute!  He already has chubby cheeks.  It's amazing how much his face has filled out since my last ultrasound 7 weeks ago.  He measured at 2 lbs 1 oz and in the 60th percentile.  At the 19 week ultrasound, he was in the 40th percentile.  While I am 25 weeks 6 days today, his belly is measuring 27 weeks 2 days.  Love it.  Because the ultrasound went so well, I don't need to have another one until I'm 36 weeks.  If all looks good there, then we are in the clear for the delivery!  Wow, 99 days to go!  Oh, and I've gained 18 pounds. Hmm.  With Claire I only gained 23 the entire time, and most of the weight gain comes in the third trimester, which I have yet to enter.  I wonder what my total weight gain will be this time.  But, I'm not sweating it.  I feel healthy and look healthy.  I dipped under my pre-pregnancy weight when I was nursing so maybe my body is just partially returning to normal.  Now, I gotta go eat a brownie with milk and watch SYTYCD! :)

I can't breathe/Claire is too cute/We have a name

1. I can't breathe
I have had, what I would consider, an easy pregnancy thus far.  At this point last time I was suffering from sciatica, which has to be one of the worst pains in the world.  I remember just crying in bed and begging for it to stop.  Well, no sight of it yet this time!!   Hardly a day goes by that a stranger doesn't look at me and say "Boy??".  Apparently I'm carrying low and that might be helping prevent the sciatica!  I am still sleeping great at night and I hope that lasts awhile!  But today, today isn't a great pregnancy day, because I can't breathe!  I've been short on breath all day.  I keep feeling like I just worked out and can't catch my breath.  Strange. Tomorrow is a new day and hopefully it's a better one for my lungs!

2. Claire is too cute
Claire loooooves to get into Sydney's water.  It happens every day.  We put it up on the counter a lot but the dog has to drink sometime.  Claire knows she should not get into it.  When she's making a beeline and we say "No!" and go after her, she picks up her speed and starts giggling and rushes to shoves her hands in the bowl and spill it everywhere.  It's like a moth to a flame- if she's ever quiet for a moment we know where she's head and what she's into.  Well, tonight something adorable happened.  I was frying hamburger and she snuck her hand into the bowl and spilled the water before I could grab her.  She then walked to a drawer, opened it, and took out a kitchen towel.  She took the towel to the spilled water, got on her hands and knees, and wiped up the water.  After wiping, she brought the towel back to the drawer and put it away (except she put it in the wrong drawer).  It was so cute, I can't even describe it!  Maybe it was one of those "you have to be there" or "it has to be your daughter" moments. :)  If she's this smart and helpful at 15 months, just think what she could do 3 months from now! "Claire- go get a diaper for your brother".  "Claire, go get his paci".  "Claire- take care of your brother so mommy can take a hot shower and a nap".  Well, I can dream.

3. We have a name
We settled on a name!  But we still aren't going to share.  It'll be fun to introduce our little boy as his name for the first time!  Josh is worried he's going to slip and say it, so don't be hard on him and try to trick him up!  We haven't quite decided on a middle name yet, but we're close.

Thoughts from the mind of Josh

"Claire.... you are just like Puss 'n Boots...your eyes... they get me every time".