The Cold caught us

Along with the busyness of trying to prepare for Advent and Christmas, life with a newborn and three year old, new house projects, ministry obligations, classwork for a Master's class....and more...all of us girls caught a cold. 

Pearl got it first and passed it on to Princess and me.  Pearl seems to be on the mend, but Princess and I started antibiotics.  Yuck.  Hopefully we'll get over this soon and enjoy this Advent Season.

Advent is my "favorite" liturgical season.  Maybe getting these colds is a reminder to me to slow down and enter in:)

Heartened and Disheartened

Heartened: Last night we didn't have quite the night I had hoped for Pearl. Up a few too many times. However, as she awoke a little earlier this morning, it enabled us to get out the door more quickly to pick up a few items from the grocery store.

As I was driving there, I checked the time and realized that we could make it to morning Mass!! And it's the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Score! So we took an awesome detour over to Mass and finished the grocery shopping afterwards. Thank you guardian angel for getting us up and over there in time!

Disheartened:Checking out some sites this morning and all of what I found on American Papist makes my heart hurt. Lord, Have Mercy! Let us continue in prayer!

Heartened: Friends of ours are moving this weekend as the Marine Corps beckons. We get to have them over for dinner tonight for one last gathering. Excited to visit with them and praying for their journey.

Isn't it ironic...

that the lawn men always mow during naptime?

Home again

but for how long?

We went and helped my mama get all packed for her move at the beginning of July. We'll be headed back later that month to get her all settled in. Hopefully all goes smoothly for her and she can enter into this next phase of life as peacefully as possible.

It was a good week to be there with her, albeit, I wish it was under different circumstances. We continue to pray for forgiveness and healing...most of all within ourselves.

This weekend will see us welcoming DH's parents for a quick visit. They are very excited to see us, most especially Pearl. I pray that she won't have a bad teething weekend. There is another on the bottom moving up.

Teething has been the bane of these past 7 months. When do kids get all their teeth? Does it hurt this much when the adult teeth come in? I hope that future babes don't have this rotten of a deal as Pearl has had.

Pearl-proofing in on pause as the cabinet locks I purchased do not work on our cabinets. Go figure! So that will have to wait until DH can find the right ones for our house later in the week.

I'm also looking for an entertainment center with doors for our TV and I would like it to have side pieces with shelves for books. I need to get the books out of Pearl reach!! I'm hoping to find something through Craigslist that will work for us.

I used to want to sling Pearl for the sweet bonding and attachment. Now I want to sling her to keep her out of mischief!!

Musings

Things I am thinking about this morning:

-Today is the Feast of St. Michael, also known as Michaelmas
-I hope the weather starts to cool; I love Autumn!
-Need to pick up assorted goods for Pearl's baptism this Saturday.
-Have to clean guest room for my SIL's visit.
-Make grocery list for the week and for the party.
-Praying for Elizabeth
-Already thinking about Christmas--gifts and budgeting
-I like how this looks
-that last night was a pretty good night with the little one.
-I really do like the concept of my Fall cleaning spree being aligned with the Feast of St. Vincent de Paul.

This Morning

I blew up our washer. Seriously, you should smell our house right now; I was afraid I set the house on fire. Of course this happens while DH is gone for the morning with the college students. I flipped the breaker, so we're okay. Unfortunately, I had a load of diapers in the wash. Fortunately, I called the neighbors and they said I could use theirs to finish the job. What happens when your DH is away?

Surprise Visit

These past 17 days of Pearl-ness have been wonderful, sleep-deprived, hysterical, exciting, overwhelming, humbling, and so much fun!

We definitely struggled in the beginning with nursing and still have a few hurdles but for the most part we're doing well. Pearl is putting on weight and loves to nurse. She is definitely a milk monster. We're just working on her latch technique.



I haven't much time for anything since I'm sleeping when she sleeps and when she's up I'm nursing or trying to feed myself. I lost 20 pounds in the first 2 weeks! I was quite surprised to see that much come off so soon. The swelling in my feet is all gone but I still can't wear my wedding rings yet. Hopefully that will continue to improve. I miss wearing them.

On Sunday we were blessed to have a surprise visitor. My best friend, Sr. Giovanna Mariae, made her first vows on the 15th of August with the Sisters of Life. She is on her home visit and was able to come see us for two days. It was so amazing to spend that time with her and have her meet Pearl. We had planned to attend her vows but with Pearl due on the 10th had told her in Dec. that we would be unable to attend. So it was such a joy to have her visit for two days and tell us about her profession. I eagerly await photos taken by her family who were there.



So now we're on our own for a few days and then more family comes to visit this weekend. Hopefully by then, my DH will be feeling better. We're not sure what it is but he is highly allergic to something in the house. It just showed up a few days ago, but he is completely covered in hives. We're not sure if it's a new chair in the house or the baby wipes we had been using. They contain lanolin and some people have an allergy to that substance. I tossed those wipes and got some hypoallergenic ones and we've moved the new chair out of the way for a bit. Yikes!

So we're doing really well. Busy with the babe and thinking that at some point I'll have a routine:) But each day is a gift and I'm enjoying it so much. Thank you for all the lovely comments! I am feeling really good. Once we got through the first week my mobility picked back up and I wasn't as sore. We had family visit the first weekend and it was nice to use their extra hands. Pearl even has some adoring fans...er, grandparents!



Yesterday was our anniversary and today's Mass was offered for our family and intentions. We took all of you in our hearts!

Busy Busy

Yesterday left little time for blogging. We had deadlines to meet at work, a staff Advent Luncheon (which was wonderful!), a friend over for dinner, and an overnight houseguest. So definitely a little busy.

We have the Men's group this evening that DH does. He mentors the male University students in our Catholic Campus Ministry. This evening they will be watching this movie:


I've been given permission to stay since it's just a movie night and not "Man Time." Normally I head over to a friend's house for some girl time on Thursday evenings, but everybody is packing and getting ready to travel.

During the movie, my plan is to get the laundry done and get us packed and ready to leave tomorrow after work.

Prayers that I can finish my last little tasks!

While the DH is away...

My DH is on a business trip up to Pittsburgh for a week. He left this past thursday and returns this wednesday. While he has been away, I have been inundated with requests for "girl time." So my adventures have taken me to:

-an indoor soccer game to support a friend's brother on Friday night.
-a lunch date with a friend that ended in us getting DRENCHED from a sudden downpour on Saturday afternoon.
-a dinner date with another friend which icluded planning meals for an expectant mother.
-followed by some sweet Turtle brownies and ice cream while watching Miss Potter. We really enjoyed this film and I would recommend it!
-Sunday morning I took my Saturday lunch date friend with me to Mass.
-In the afternoon, I saw the movie Bella. I enjoyed the film and would also recommend it. I didn't think it met with all the hype though. Good but not great.

So now, I'm back in the work week. A busy bee with one co-worker on vacation, so I pick up a few more hours to help out. I'm also on call for our friends who are expecting. We signed up to watch their doggie while they are at the hospital for delivery. They called earlier to say they were headed to the hospital, but it might be a false alarm. I should get called later to confirm what the plan is.

It's been very gloomy here with rain everyday; I'm not sure if that's what is contributing to my mood being so down. It's probably a combination of DH being gone for a whole week, gloomy weather, and reaching the end of this cycle. Not really a fan, but I'm going to keep trucking. Looking forward to some adoration time this evening and some restorative sleep.