When did this happen?

Disclaimer: This post is not an opposition to all things medical. I believe there is a time and a place for medicine and doctors, but.....

When did it happen that we turned from trusting God and believing that he can provides things to help us and instead turn to believing that man made things are better than God made things? Sound like a broad question? Let me give you an example.....

Not only is this an TOTALLY CUTE picture of my baby (which I have to admit, it really is), but in this picture Campbell is sporting her teething necklace. It's not a necklace for her to chew on, but an amber beaded necklace (yes, its safe for babies and is made specifically for them and no she doesn't sleep in it). It is to help with the pain of teething. Here is a good page that talks about how it works... http://www.amberartisans.com/frasqu.html.

Now, why is it that my family and friends once again think I have fallen off the looney bin wagon. What is wrong or weird or whatever about trying something that is FOUND IN NATURE and thus created by God to try to alleviate pain. I'm not placing my faith in amber, nor do I believe that it is a cure all. I'm merely trying to find a natural, gentle aid to help my baby get through the teething stages of life. And yet, I get the rolling of eyes and the craziest comments from everyone I see. Here's the kicker - if I were putting Tylenol in her every 6 hours to help with the teething pain no one would blink an eye. Why is that? Why do we question and think people are weird for trying something more natural and more gentle to a baby, but not question the use of man made drugs as the cure all for everything?

Anyway, I was just thinking about this today as I nursed my beautiful baby girl while she was sporting her cute necklace. I guess it also leads me to a lot of questions. But I'll spare you those thoughts for now. :)

Wow

A whole month has past. This blogging with three kids thing is hard! Maybe someday I'll have time again to write deep and meaningful posts. We'll see! Anyway, here are a few of the things we've done this past month.

4th of July - It was too cold for Campbell to just wear her little 4th of July shirt so here she is sporting the sweater I made for her (which is already too small - so sad).

Here's Campbell is her new toy that we aquired from a friend's garage sale. She isn't QUITE big enough for it, but she likes to sit in it for a little bit and bounce around. I think the bigger kids actually like it more than she does at this point.

Kaelyn and Campbell trying to beat the heat we had in mid-July. We all survived. :)

And yes, I missed posting about Campbell at 4 months. But here is her picture from July 15th when she was actually 4 months old. Such a little personality she is getting!

And this was just a couple days ago. We missed a few weeks of picture taking because everyone was gone (more about that in a minute). But here is Miss Campbell with the cat. This is a Kaelyn posed picture. LOL

So, that's about it. Well, that's not all we've done, but that's all the pictures we've taken. In between these pictures we've taken Kaelyn to swimming every single day of the week (Monday-Friday), the kids have been to one week of VBS at our church (where I also volunteered) and one week of VBS at the grandparents house. While attending VBS at the grandparents church they stayed with them for a whole week. That was a pretty nice week for us all. :) After those two weeks Kaelyn went to her first year of Junior Camp. It was hard to let her go away for 5 whole days and 4 nights, but she was with people we trusted so it turned out fine.

So, now we're here in August. Looking to the future and trying to get prepared for back to school (which isn't happening in this household until after Labor Day) and hoping to enjoy the rest of the summer with a camping trip with family, more swimming for Kaelyn, and some other fun events. Hopefully I can keep this blog updated a *little* better than I have been. :)

Photo Dump

First of all, those of you who joined me yesterday in the "new attitude" - how did it go? Did you find it hard, easy, did you forget?

Personally, I really enjoyed my day. It helped that I spent lunchtime and early afternoon without Cooper (and thus without kids arguing all day) and with my mom. That is always helpful! But, I found that I was reminding myself all day of what I was "getting" to do and how thankful I was that I got to do those things. I think it certainly made me less stressed out! Which is nice for everyone. :)

Anyway, I've had great intentions to do some fun posts and have taken some pictures lately - but haven't found the time to actually sit down and write those posts. So, here is just a picture dump.....

Relaxing is hard when you're three months old. :)

Happy Father's Day to Daddy, Papa & Papa John!

Just enjoying a little tummy time. :)

This outfit is one that I wore when I was a baby. Too cute. Although its VERY 70's I still love it.

Cooper and I at Kaelyn's 1st swim meet

Kaelyn at her first swim meet. She was SO nervous and anxious. But she did great. She swam in the 8 and under 25m freestyle and 25m backstroke. She came in 2nd in the backstoke (which she would have won by a landslide if she hadn't slowed down because she was afraid to hit the wall) and 1st in the freestyle!

Jeff got out his big Tonka trucks from when he was a kid. Cooper has had SO much fun playing out in the dirt pile (aka the garden of past years). There is nothing like a boy and some dirt!

Cooper also had his first experience with a temporary tattoo. He got these for his birthday with a pirate kit and had fun pretending to be a pirate all day.

My three kiddos in their big brother/sister & little sister shirts. Too cute! Not that I'm biased or anthing. :)

A new attitude

Today I'm changing my attitude. A friend posted on her facebook status that today it was not what "has" to do, but what she "gets" to do. So, today I'm going to try to remember........

.....that I don't HAVE to take Kaelyn to swimming for the 500th time. I GET to drive in a car that most people can't afford and watch my daughter do something that some children will never have the ability to do.

....that I don't HAVE to nurse Campbell. I GET to sustain a life and do something that is a priviledge to do.

....that I don't HAVE to get frustrated when Cooper asks "why?" for the millionth time today. I GET to teach something new to a child who has the ability to learn.

....that I don't HAVE to make dinner. I GET to put a whole complete meal on the table for my family. One that is healthy and enough to make us satisfied and full - and may even have leftovers.

....that I don't HAVE to clean the house. I GET to care about the place that I live. And I'm going to remember that the place that I live is bigger and grander than the majority of people on this planet.

So, that's what I'm vowing to do today. In the day to day routines of life I get so overwhelmed with what I HAVE to do, that today I'm going to change the attitude and remember what I GET to do.

Anyone else going to join me?

Three Months Old

I can't believe Campbell is already three months old. She has gotten so big! At least in our eyes. I see changes in her every day. She is getting so strong and is holding her head up really, really well. She wants to be sitting up ALL the time. She has to be upright unless she is sleeping. She has also started reaching for toys (or pretty much anything in sight). She has been very successful at actually grabbing anything really well, but she definately wants it! Watching Kaelyn & Cooper is one of her very favorite activities. She loves to lay on the floor or sit in my lap and watch them play and run around. She is SO happy. She smiles at us all the time and even carries on "conversations" with us. Too cute. She is sleeping pretty well. She usually falls asleep for the night around 9 or 9:30 and wakes up once between then and around 7am. After two other kids who didn't sleep well at all I can handle this sleep schedule! We're still off dairy completely. I accidentally had some ranch the other night and oh. my. goodness. Dealing with her the next day was not fun. Not that she was screaming, but she just was gassy and not herself at all.

So, happy three months baby! I know you're not going to listen, but please stop growing so fast, would you? Mommy doesn't like that you're growing up.