On Babies: From the Trenches

And to think I thought it was just me!  Here's a Facebook post from a dear friend, who's pregnant with her second child:

I know my friends without kids hear all the time how much harder it is to get stuff done with kids. I know they get sick of it. But here's a little insight into the types of things that come up ALL the time:

 9:00 am : I decide to go run a quick errand with Cora.
9:00-9:10 am : Get Cora dressed while she squiggles and squirm doing everything possible not to get dressed
9:10-9:20 am : Cora starts throwing a tantrum every time I put her down leading me to think she might need a bottle
9:20-9:30 am: Give Cora a bottle
9:30-10:00 am: Cora continues to cry and want to be held.
10:00 am: I decide to try to put Cora down for a nap since it's close to nap time.
10:10 am: After napping for ten minutes, Cora continues to cry and want to be held.
10:30 am: After taking her temperature and holding her, I decide to go out anyway, hoping she is just overly tired and she will fall asleep in the car.
10:45 am: Due to excessive un controllable crying I decide to come back home
11:00 am: We strip her down and put her in the bath and she calms down immediately. We chalk up her crying to one of her toes possibly being squished back in her shoe.
11:30 am: A now fully wired and calm Cora and I decide to go out again.
12:00 pm: Cora falls asleep in the car.
12:30 -???: I write this post from the parking lot in front of the store I need to go to while Cora sleeps.

THE END.

Sometimes it's a challenge to remember that all children are a GIFT from the Lord.  Thanks, Annabelle, for reaching out to us from the trenches!  This young mother does all this AND takes absolutely exquisite portraiture of those people and occasions that really matter in life:

http://www.annabellephotoblog.com/


Enjoy!

Pray for Phenomenal!

A dear Catholic friend of mine has taught her five children, whenever they hear an emergency vehicle's siren, to pray silently for all those involved.

Among her children is a teenage girl, Therese, who struggles greatly with cystic fibrosis.  Despite the enormity of Therese's personal challenge just to breathe, she has an incredibly sunny and generous disposition, ever mindful of the personal difficulties that others might be facing in their lives.

Therese and her mom were in her hospital room yesterday when they heard a siren.  Therese started praying immediately, but her whispered words puzzled my friend.

"What did you say?" her mother asked.

Therese paused, distracted.  "What?"

Her mother frowned slightly.  "Did you just say, 'phenomenal?'"

The girl brightened immediately.  "Oh.  Yeah!"  She tilted her head thoughtfully.  "You know, I used to just pray, 'Lord, please let everyone be okay,' whenever I heard a siren.  But, then I thought, you know, Jesus raised Himself from the dead!  I mean, why am I just praying for, 'Okay?'  I should be praying for, 'phenomenal!'  So, now I pray, 'Lord, please let everyone be phenomenal!'"

Wow.

Therese's grin and her utter confidence in the Lord granting her supplication positively lit up the room. Beside her, I think my name is probably O Ye, as in, "O, ye of little faith."  If we all had the faith of a mustard seed like this girl (and like Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, not be afraid to use it) we would indeed change the world!

Please pray for Therese during her current hospital stay!  Her lung function has dipped into the 40s and there are other complications.  Thank you!