Living an Intentional Life
Apparently, I’m in this cast for two weeks, but since Dr. Waz needs to go on vacation, (Whatever!!) I have to sport this pink boot for THREE! Then, DAS BOOT for ___ week? Not sure yet.
Tomorrow, I will attempt to work part time and enjoy the kids!
I think my dog misses me; I’m absolutely ZERO fun for him at this point. 
The good news is that I am two weeks into this journey, AND I get my cast on Monday (3 days away). Bad news? Today was really hard. I wanted to have a “girl’s day” with my mom and go to lunch and Pottery Barn. The distance from my car to the front door was zero effort for a two-footed individual. For a gal on crutches? Man, it was miles. After Pottery Barn, we needed to head back to the car to repark for Cheesecake Factory. Ugh…repark. The amount of people at Kierland trumps the amount of spaces for cars. Don’t these people know that I can’t walk? By the time we reached the restaurant, my underarms were on fire. Forgive me, but why do they call it a “crutch pad?” Crutch pad…my foot! Forget new outfits, I need underarm cushions. Finally, we reached our destination, and I’m ready to eat!
News? What I have noticed is that my splint is loosening (perhaps due to swelling decreasing). When this happens, the splint moves about and rubs against my stitches. Since I cannot see inside my bandages, I just have to wonder what is occurring on the incision. It is not only bothersome, but painful. I’m definitely ready to go back home to my comfort zone. I am NOT ready for prime time quite yet.
Monday…come soon! I hear the cast is much more friendly.
What did I do to celebrate? I went to Cheesecake Factory with my mom and put Tatum at Temple Chai for the day. Hmmmmm….fair? Probably not, but I sure did need to breathe the air outside and feel partly human.
When she awoke this morning, she gave me the HUGEST smile, and I just melted.
Tatum is EXPLODING with personality as of late. Only roughly a week ago did she cry at the drop of the proverbial hat. Now, we spend many minutes googling and goggling; oogling and awgling; blubbering and bloobering…it’s dynamic! Pure gibberish, and if one were a fly on the wall he would think me ridiculous. One person’s ridiclous is another’s treasure.
She is my treasure.
Yesterday, I was inspired when reading a blog by John Piper. He is the author of one of my favorite books, Desiring God. He discussed how many mornings, he wakes up with the ominous feeling that something is wrong or something may go wrong. I resonate with this feeling in that I know I have to do some kind of battle that day, and I just don’t feel up to it. I need someone to have my back, yet I don’t have a line of bodyguards to protect me. Often though, the battle is not a physical one where bodyguards are needed but a spiritual one where my mind and thoughts are attacked. This in itself makes me feel fragile and a bit fearful.
Piper writes, “Instead of letting me sink into a paralysis of fear, or run to a mirage of greener grass, he has awakened a cry for help and then answered with a concrete promise.”
Scenario: You wake up and feel weak, lifeless and vulnerable. You don’t even know how or what to pray, you just know you need help. That is when you just say, “Help me Jesus…I’m feeling weak.”
What verse can be a comfort? “Jerusalem shall be inhabited as villages without walls, because of the multitude of people and livestock in it. And I will be to her a wall of fire all around, declares the Lord, and I will be the glory in her midst. (Zechariah 2:4–5)
How is this comforting? Piper notes that for that time, “There will be such prosperity and growth for the people of God that Jerusalem will not be able to be walled in any more. “The multitude of people and livestock” will be so many that Jerusalem will be like many villages spreading out across the land without walls.”
Walls are security however. They secure us from the enemy and give us borders. God is promising us to be not only a wall but that of fire! What protection that can that be from the arrows from the enemy. But, moreover, “and I will be the glory in her midst” assures us not only protection but the knowledge of HIS PRESENCE. He’s always with us and that is genuine security.
For Piper, this was his “deliverance.” I find this comforting as well, and will cry out to Him when I fear or fret. He IS there. He IS our protection. As Piper says, “We are fragile. But he is not.”
Source: http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/what-to-do-if-you-wake-up-feeling-fragile
She was conducting the ultimate test: What will fit in my mouth?
Today, Tatum was caught chewing on her fist! It started with a binky. She then graduated to her index finger; then three fingers. Now, it’s the whole darn hand!
To her chagrin, it would not fully fit. Therefore, we figured she may be starting to teethe. Enter teething beads. My mom put a bit of Tylenol drops on a bed in case she was in any pain. The result? She loved it!
But then…The fist ultimately won.
So, I know this is on its way, so I want to remember these tips from Scottsdale Mom’s Blog
http://www.scottsdalemomsblog.com/2012/11/20/teething-baby-must-haves/
I know every child is different in terms of how they handle teething, or really, how they handle any situation, but man, teething sucks!
My little man just finally had his first tooth break through, and it took a while. I felt like I always heard friends say that one day their baby’s gums were red, and the very next morning they had a tooth fully popped through. Well that? That was definitely not our case. Bray started drooling and shoving his fist in his mouth as early as four months, then had swollen gums for a week or two, then had the slit in his gums for about a week, thenyou could finally feel the tooth. It took another full week and a half for the tooth to really be visible. So what’s that, a month? Not exactly the overnight magic like I had heard of!
Since our process was drawn out, I really have had time to learn some things to help make the pain of teething a little more easy for our sweet babe. Here are my top 5 life-savers (no sponsored stuff in here – just my mom-to-mom recs):
Baltic Amber Teething Necklace:
No, I am not a fan of my son wearing a necklace all the time…but I am a HUGE fan of what it does for him. This is not a necklace for them to chew on, which many people think is the purpose. The amber beads {get unpolished over polished} naturally release succinic acid, which helps with inflammation, controlling drooling, and helps heal the wound. It is all natural and has been around forever. For more info on that, read here. During the day I keep it around Brays neck {and he has never noticed it being there} and at night I wrap it around his ankle, which is in his footie jammies.
This is our favorite teething toy ever. He chews on all parts of it, and the squeaking entertains him…and our dogs! It’s also super is to clean, which is always nice for toys that go in the mouth.
Habba Wooden Toys and Munchkin Ice Ring:
These two teething toys are our next best options. The wooden toys is great for his gums, and the way the wood slides and clinks together, he loves banging it around! The ice ring is fabulous to cool and numb the gums, whether its taken out of the freezer or refrigerator.
These tablets are completely natural, and completely awesome. If Bray is being extra fussy and I can tell a tooth is about to break through I pop a few of these in his mouth {they melt under his tongue} and usually within minutes he is back to his chipper self. Love them!
CVS Infant Tylenol:
When all else fails, Tylenol. We tried the Little Fevers brand first since it is dye-free, but Bray would literally spit it out. Then we tried the CVS brand, and he eats the stuff like its the best tasting thing he has ever had! We’ve only had to use this a few nights before bed time, but it sure did the trick!
AAAH>>the 2 E’s! I cannot believe how hungry I have been since this injury. Ironically, I was exercising THREE times as much pre-ATI. To move just across the room takes so much more effort that I must be exerting so much energy, hence hunger! But, on the other hand, I’m sitting on my ‘arse’ THREE times more so it does not compute.
What am I doing to at least try to stay in some sort of shape? Upper body weights are helping. I’ll work on back, chest and biceps one day, and then the next day, I will do shoulders and triceps. I have to keep my core strong also because my back is getting so much more stress put upon it with all the awkward motions I must make with these darn sticks attached to my body! My lower body is not getting the workout it is used to, but I guess hopping around is helping. My left leg will be the only part of my body which will look ridiculous vs the rest of my body.
Swimming used to be my “drug of choice” for getting my heart rate up and my muscles worked. Now, it’s not an option, but I have discovered that once my incision is healed, I can begin. I won’t know how it is doing until they remove my splint. I receive my cast on Monday, the 25th of Feb for which I cannot wait.
I seem to be craving peanut butter lately. Man, I could easily down a jar of this creamy delight in one sitting. I just bought a jar of creamy vs crunchy and it is so much better. Also, the sugar and additives make it taste so much better! Forget nutrition when it comes to this stuff. Heck, if you are eating peanut butter, you might as well have the full monty.
MEAT. I also have been craving MEAT! Last night, I created the perfect burger. Take some ground beef and chopped onion and mold it into balls. Then add some A-1 Steak Sauce, salt and pepper, and fry it up! Dang..these were so delectable. I did use super lean beef so they fell apart quite easily, but they still melted in my mouth. Add some ketchup (low sugar), lettuce , tomato and more onion for a wrap, and you have yourself a tasty treat. Definitely healthy too, I might add.
What does this all have to do with ATR? Well, you have to learn to enjoy the little things in life when you are laid up. Making these burgers for my family made them happy as well as me.
Exercise became WAY too important, and so also I am trying to find the balance in this as well….. So, I am learning to appreciate the small things, balance the big things, and find the center in all of this.
None of this is possible without TONS of prayer and my relationship with God. He truly gives me the strength I need because seriously some days, I just want to throw up my hands and crawl in a hole. Then I look up and say HELP ME JESUS! Poof.. .”I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” (Phil 4:13)