Note to self..don't post about sleep on this blog..

I should know better than to post about how well Joshua is sleeping. Wouldn't you know it after i wrote that all i had to do to get Joshua back to sleep at 5 was pat him on the back, then, seriously, the next day he wouldn't go back to sleep after he woke at about 5. He cried and cried and when that got no response he writhed around in his crib whimpering until finally around6/ 6:30 i just got him up for the day. The best part is that this happened again the next morning and then the next and the next. Praying that tommorrow morning he'll go back to sleep right away or better yet, not wake up at all!!

Suffice to say, I am not going to comment on my son's sleep habits anymore. it only causes trouble :)

ahhh sleep

This is actually an unusual sleeping position for him.
Usually, his bum is in the air. it's actually quite cute:)

okay, well there has been a few record breaking events around here this week. First Joshua went 11 1/2 hours one night before waking up. Usually he wakes up still after nine or ten hours of sleep, which, lucky me, tends to be around 4 or 5 in the morning. Thankfully, he usually goes back to sleep, although i usually have to get up and lay him back in his crib and give him a few pats on the back first.

Then he had a 2 1/2 hour nap...not once, but twice, this week. That is the record of records. I know for most of you who have great sleepers that may not seem significant. But for my child it sure is. Usually he only makes it to an hour, if i'm really lucky, he'll sleep for an hour and a half, and then sometimes it's only 45 minutes, which is often it for naps for the whole day, as he no longer takes two naps. Now, although i was really excited about the extra long sleep, part of me actually kept hoping he would wake up soon, because i just didn't know what to do with myself, not being used to having all that free time. I almost felt like i wasn't earning my keep:)

Musings

Wow, two posts in one night. that has to be a record. I recently read a post on someone else's blog about Oprah's new spirituality. Apparently, it has a huge following, especially since Oprah has endorsed it. Now, i know next to nothing about what this is, all I've been able to gather is that it uses Jesus Christ, but isn't true to the christian faith or something like that. if anyone knows anymore about this, i would love to hear more. Anyway, more striking to me were the comments made by the many, many christians who wrote on some of the boards on her website about this spirituality.

The comments all strove to make clear what exactly christians believe. The comments were all doctrinally sound yet, i just felt like something was missing. It was like life was missing. there were all these great words on a page. All these wonderful scriptures from the bible, but it somehow seemed dead to me. I am thinking as i'm writing, so bear with me.. I just went back to read over the comments and it hit me why it all seemed so dead, lifeless to me.. for one there was no sense of the transforming power of Christ. Sure the words were there, but no testimony. I wanted just one person to write about how Christ had transformed their lives. Furthermore, So many writers went on about still being a sinner ... and i thought where is the victory in that. Is that why we come to christ so we can get a get into heaven card and then go on living the same? Shouldn't our lives be victorious? shouldn't we be able to have victory over sin, over selfishness, as Christ did??? Isn't that what people are looking for? searching for? and if Christianity doesn't supply that. If our lives don't show that? Then why would anyone want it ? I think that's it, that's what i sensed in these posts. defeat to sin.

I don't think we/I should feel defeated by sin, saying oh i'm a christian but you know i still sin! I am a sinner. i'm not sure it is good to cling to the identity of sinner. Why did Christ say over and over again, "go and sin no more," if it wasn't possible thru him, to do that. why are there so many verses in the NT that say that those in Christ do not sin like 1 john 3:9 for example (whoever is born of God does not commit sin.....he cannot sin because he is born of God)?

I myself am not living victoriously. And everything in me wants this. I have felt recently that only if i were to have a damascus road experience would this victory occur, or if the Holy Spirit were to descend on me the way it did the apostles, but now writing this I wonder if it's merely in beginnning to recast my identity as a daughter in Christ that victory will and can occur.

Well, i think i've gotten to the end of my ability to think clearly. my brain is getting foggy and i'm starting to feel confused again, just when writing all this out was helping me see things more clearly... so those are my thoughts for now.. i would love to hear your thoughts, comments on what i have written.

the promised Potty Training story

Okay, so it started like this. I was reading something online, can't remember what exactly anymore and i stumbled across some articles on diapers. They were describing how many chemicals are used in the diapers to enable them to be so absorbent. I had no idea, until then, or at least i had never really thought about what they do to make them absorbent. Needless to say I was horrified after reading these articles. So, i thought what should i do, do i switch to cloth, even though i could start potty training soon, or do i just start potty training to try and get him out of diapers. Well, i remembered reading in the book the baby whisperer that you could start as early as nine months and i had heard of the diaper free philosophy, so i knew it could be done early, so i thought, hey why not try it.

Went out bought the potty. let me tell you it was a bit of a dilemna deciding what potty to buy. Do i get the one that sings or the one with an extra step, just the one you put ontop of the adult toliet or the three in one. Anyway, so I finally decided on the three in one, bought it, went home. I couldn't wait to get started. i showed Joshua the potty and he was thrilled with it...Well of course, to him it was just another toy. It was really cute actually because he climbed up on it and sat on the edge with his feet in the bowl. I wish i had a picture, but I couldn't get to my camera fast enough.

So..my plan was to wait for the poo..it's very obvious when he goes..and grab him, put him on and just do it for the poos till he got used to it and then start with the pee. Well, wouldn't you know it, i could never quite get him to the toliet fast enough. by the time i got him there he was all done.. sigh...once i was in the bathroom with him and he started grunting so i said go on your toliet Joshua, and he actually climbed onto the potty and went on the toliet.....with his diaper still on...my cold induced brain was not really up to speed at the moment..although it was probably a good thing i didn't get his diaper off, b/c he was sitting with his feet in the bowl again.

Anyway, i have lost momenteum, since i haven't really mangaged to get him on the toliet in time. I always seem to miss it.. I want to get more focused and really consistently work on it. I keep promising myself i'll do it tommorrow...but tommorrow never really comes. But i really should, b/c if i don't do it soon, i think i'm going to have to go the cloth diapers route..b/c i really don't want him in those disposables for much longer.. I'm worried i'm going to be ruining his future ability to produce offspring..if what these articles suggest is at all correct.

so that is my potty training story...

it's late but..

here i am blogging anyway. i'm probably really going to regret this in the morning, but i'm not feeling even a smidgen of tiredness right now, even though it is 11:30.

so many things to recount..i don't know where to start!! First Easter..i have to say, before i go on, that i wish we had another name for that weekend..maybe resurrection weekend or something like that...the name easter really bugs me and this year the most of all for some reason. i don't know who decided that calling one of the most sacred and central celebrations and rememberances of the Christian faith by the name of a pagan Goddess was a good idea, but i think they were smoking something. it would be like calling it Zeus or something like that.. in my mind it's also the equivilant of a moslem calling one of their holy days Christmas. Okay, i think i got that off my chest..now i can go on.

Anyway, Easter happened..ate lots of food..was a little disapointed at the lack of reflection on christ's death and resurrection over the weekend, even the church service didn't really have much (was quite surprised), and then with all the family stuff i didn't really feel i focused at all on the death and resurrection of Christ. It seems to be that way with most christian holidays. they end up being a family holiday, which is nice, but there's not much spiritual significance. I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that our christian celebrations are largely divorced from the celebrations at the roots of our faith (like passover, feast of tabernacles etc). i don't know. i just know that every year i want to make it meaningful (well some years i care more than others..to be honest)and it rarely ever happens.

So, easter was not only the time of good eats it was also the time of the dreaded flu...one by one the members of the Ravensbergen family fell to the deathly flu until Joshua, my hardy son, and Ken my equally hardy husband, were pretty much the only ones left standing, although i got a pretty mild version since it didn't involve hours of puking. Oh the hours of joy had by all.

Okay, but before the puking and the eating and the non celebration of the resurrection came the celebration of the 3'rd anniversary of Charlene and Ken. yes you heard it here first..we made it to three years..yippy!! And to celebrate this ospicious (sp?) occasion we treked out to Abbotsford where our babysitters dwell, namely Grandma and Grandpa, and dined in style at the Keg. oh how I lOVE the keg. mmmm, i 'm salivating as i type this thinking of their juicy sirloin steaks and their scrumptous casear salads, the baked potato with everything on it and then their to die for mocha mud pie!!! oh it was heaven... I can't tell you how much i enjoyed going out w/out the little one. i sometimes really miss time away with just Ken and I. And as much as i throughly love and enjoy my little guy, i sometimes wish Ken and I had waited just a tad longer so we could have done a few more things when it was a lot easier to get away.

okay, i think i'm going to have to quit. this post is getting really looong. i'll have to tell you about some of my adventures with toilet training next time.....

Sunny Days

Well, I have written so many blogs in my head lately, but none have actually ever made it onto here. I never seem to have the time. not that i'm extremly busy, just by the time night falls I'm to tired to think. Do any of you write blogs in your head? I also find that the blogs in my head always sound way better than the ones I actually write down.

Anyway, with that said..on with the blog... So, I am throughly, utterly, completly enjoying motherhood right now. It's not that anything has really changed. I'm just loving being with my son more and more for some reason.... I love going to the park with him. We walk down our lane together, which takes about 2ominutes instead of 5 because he has to stop to pick up rocks (must be the age, i notice Heidi mentioned Tristan doing this too), stare through a fence, poke at the water sitting in the manhole cover, and drop rocks down the grates covering the drains. And wow if it happens to be garbage day, he wants to stick all the lids back on the garbage cans. I try not to let him do it, b/c i don't know how hygenic it is. Then he goes in the stroller for the rest of the ride to the park (also my daily exercise, as it's a good 15 min walk one way). Once we get to the park, He'll play on the playground and then eventually just wander off to again pick up rocks or go the the sandpit and dig up the sand. It's so fun watching him. Oh, he loves the slide right now too. And now that he can climb up the stairs, his favorite thing to do is climb up and then go down the slide, run around, climb up and go down the slide. And he giggles while he goes; it's so cute.


Another thing I'm I'm finding that I'm really enjoying is cooking. I've started making more and more of my own stuff from scratch and I love doing it. it feels so good to eat food that doesn't have chemicals and additives in. Plus, i find there is a lot of creativity in cooking and it's fun to try out different recipes and tastes. I've started planning my meals for the week and I find that doing this makes things so much easier, b/c i can take out what I need ahead of time and cook in a reasonably relaxed fashion, unlike before where it would take forever to decide what to cook and then i'd be rushing around stressed trying to get dinner done before 8 at night.
I've also found that I love organizing. i never knew this about myself before. have any of you discovered things about yourself that you never knew before, b/c of motherhood?? I like organizing my day, i think, b/c it helps me keep on top of all the things i have to do like cleaning, shopping, doing things with Joshua and then I feel good about myself b/c i'm keeping ontop of things.


I'm also doing this great bible study by Beth Moore called Living Beyond Yourself. I do one session a day 5 days a week while Joshua has his nap. And i really feel that it is helping me to connect with God and my faith again and I am very thankful for this as well. I think starting this bible study may be a huge part of why life is sunny right now, as ever since i started i just feel better, even though many of the circumstances that were making me somewhat miserable at times before have not changed.


Okay, this post looks like it's getting a little long. Anyway, that's why i titled this post Sunny Days, because these are indeed sunny days for me. Life is good. I am so thankful to God for this time of contentment, peace and joy. it's so nice to not feel sad, frustrated, and lonely.

First Hair Cut

Okay, for the life of me, I can't get this durn program to cut and paste, so this is all out of order. what i wrote should be first, before the pictures. This picture should be second. this of course is Ken cutting Joshua's hair.



aaaahhh...now it won't let me write under this picture. this is Joshua before the haircut...




After the Hair cut...From the back
Front view....isn't he cute...i'm biased of course.


So Joshua got his first hair cut this week. Yes, all his beautiful curly locks were cut off and he looks quite different now, older in some way. Ken cut it. I can't cut anything straight, which by the way, is why i hate any breads or buns that aren't presliced (just thought you might like to know that). Anyway, the reason for cutting it is that Joshua was starting to have Albert Einstein hair and people were continually thinking he was a girl. in fact, just the day before his hair was cut, this mom at the playground said to her child, "watch out for the little girl," grrrrr! That was the last straw. When Ken came home that night i said, we are cutting his hair. He was a little reluctant, because he really liked his curls and who knows if they will grow back, but he did it. So now Joshua is shorn, like a sheep:)! And i think it looks quite nice!