To Stitch or not to stitch, that is the question.

Perspective.  It is all about perspective.  A mother of one or two kids, runs to the doctor to sew up every little cut.  Now that I am a mother of five, I have seen my fair share of stitches and know when they are necessary and how many they will need.  But here's the thing the older and/or country doctors will tell you that the city/younger ones will not.  Most cuts don't need stitches.  You just need the wound cleaned and kept free from dirt and bacteria (that means $2 in bacitracin and bandaids).  Your body is made to heal itself.  So this is the decision I had to face today.  Should I take Keener to the ER?  Honey is gone, which means all of us would have to go.  It is not a decision to be made lightly.  A trip to the ER  for stitches will cost you 4 hours of frustration, $700, 5 whiney kids, AND whatever disease you happen to catch!!
Keener's forehead got sliced when she fell off of brother Christopher's shoulders onto a gravel driveway. This is 4th time I have seen this head injury in my kids.  This was a"borderline" case.  A country doctor would not sew it up, but a city doctor would.  I decided to save myself the trip, the money, the sanity and the health.  I got Keener all cleaned up, gave her some arnica, and some hugs.  Truly this is all she needed.  The bleeding stopped eventually and she is healing fine.

---and in case you are wondering.  Her hair is that short and crazy.   She keeps cutting her hair.  It is impossible to keep scissors away from her.  So for now, she looks like a boy.  and that's okay with me, I love her to pieces even if she has crazy hair

Happy Mother's Day!

Our Priest printed this in the weekly bulletin, so I cannot take credit for finding it myself, but this is so beautiful that it is the simplest way to say Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful mother and all the other mother's.  May you have a very blessed and happy Mother's day!

The Most Important Person

on earth is a mother. She
cannot claim the honor of

having built Notre Dame
Cathedral. She need not. She

has built something more

magnificent than any
cathedral-a dwelling for an
immortal soul, the tiny
perfection of her baby's
body…The angels have not

 been blessed with such a
grace. They cannot share in

God's creative miracle to bring

new saints to Heaven. Only a

human mother can. Mothers

are closer to God the Creator

than any other creature; God

joins forces with mothers in

performing this act of

creation…What on God's

good earth is more glorious

than this: to be a mother?

-Joseph Cardinal Mindszenty

#5 is alive.

With great joy and a new begining, I get to announce another gift to my life.  This one is currently turning me into a zombie, but this should pass soon and the double-wide me will begin.  The other children are all so happy.  It makes me proud that they find joy and not jealousy.  Before having kids, I always wondered how children could feel the love of their parents if they have to split it with more people.  What I am finding out, is that each child has more people to love them than the child before.  Each child gives so much pure love to their new sibling, that it would be impossible not to feel loved.  A mother of course always has enough room in her heart to love one more little one, but the brothers and sisters are who make such a big difference.

Achey Breaky Mama

I sure am tired. Not that I can remember doing that much today. I came home from the gym and put my feet up. They were so achey. I really need a good pedicure! Love the massage part and the foot soaking part. I really don't care that much about the whole painted nail thing. That's the excuse to get a foot massage! The days are ticking slowly 'til Honey comes home, but I will try to enjoy the days as they come, No use wasting a perfectly good day with mopeyness.

Men and planning.

  Okay, so every woman who has planned a wedding knows that a man just does not get it  where planning is concerned.  Most men think that it is something that you whip up in a day at the most (Yeah right! We wish!)  So although this is not about a wedding it is about planning.

          Today Christopher's Scout pack had a camping trip.  Because we have lacrosse games and other activities to deal with tomorrow, I allowed him to go, but not camp.  I planned on picking him up at the end of their campfire event 9:30 pm, so that he would miss nothing other than sleeping outside.  At 9:00 pm as I was getting ready to walk out the door, I get a worried phone call from one of the dad's.  "I don't think you will be able to get into the campgrounds, they close the gates at 9:00"  

           I replied, "Uhhh, actually they close the entrance gate and tell everyone who is camping to use the exit gate if you need to enter after hours."

         "Oh are you sure, I don't think so.  They said we were going to be locked in." 

 What is this? Prison or a campground?

            I assured him of the facts and left to pick up Christopher.  I had actually camped there last year with the girl scouts so I was familiar with this rule.  The reason I knew about this particular rule though, is not because I needed to leave, but because as soon as I heard that they closed the gate, I asked how would I get out in an emergency.  See what I mean? Planning...????

        Guy's never think about what would happen in the worst case scenario.  Gals do.  We have to protect our family.  Our kids safety comes first.  Think about it.  Is it most often Dad's or Mom's that throw their kids in the air and catch them? Let them run off in the woods by themselves?  Let them ride a bike without their bike helmet? Let them use the opposite sex bathroom by themselves? Make the kids wear sunscreen? etc.   

         Mom's by nature protect first.  That is the battle a mom has with child-rearing... letting them become independent.  Letting them fly on their own.  It is not an easy path to watch my little ducks slowly leave the nest.  I can hopefully guide them on their journey, but I will have to sit and watch as they each fly away hoping that I taught them well and praying that they don't find too many obstacles on their way.

Mothers

     I got a startling call today from my dearest childhood friend.  Her Mother had unexpectedly passed away yesterday.   I feel so saddened for my friend and hope that she finds strength to move on.   I guess when you have no choice but to move forward, you just do it.   Motherhood is such a precious gift and a joy, but the loss of a mother must be heart wrenching.  I remember very clearly when my own mother's mother died.  Not knowing what to say to her (and who does really know the right thing to say?),  I said "It will be alright."  What my mother said back to me has echoed in my ears all these 15 years since.  She said, "No, it will not be alright.  It will never be alright again."

     How true she was.  It never has been the same.   I long for my grandmother.  I long to know what she thought about silly things like her favorite song or flower, but especially once I had children of my own.  What does she think of my choices in life? Would she be proud of me? happy for me? It's the unanswered questions that bother me, for I will never know the answers. It is amazing how you can miss someone so much, even though many years have gone by.  Even now it is hard to think about her without crying.

    A daughter's relationship with her mother is like a wave in the ocean, sometimes it's calm and sometimes it's a tidal wave.  Even still, when the seas are rough,  what remains is that this woman chose to give me life.   She took care of me so that I could take my first breath, and for that no child could ever truly thank her.  How do you thank someone for the gift of life?