The Odyssey

Since I like to post crazy conversations with my kids, I thought I should let you know where they get it from. The apple really doesn't fall far from the tree. Both of these happened while I was in labor with Danica. First Example: I was in pain but hadn't dilated enough to do anything. I was moaning and complaining. Dwayne : You should try to think of other things to help take your mind off the pain. Me : Like what? This hurts. Dwayne : Think about cleaning the house or laundry or something. Me : Fool, I'm in pain. Do you really think I want to start thinking about household chores? Dwayne : That's the first thing that came to mind. Me : (All I could do was roll my eyes) Dwayne : Okay, think about Boracay beach in the Philippines. Remember the powdery sand. Blah, blah, blah. Me : That's better but you're still stupid. Second Example: At this time, my contractions were less than a minute apart. I had to stay on my right side because the baby's heart rate kep...

I am absolutely in love with this little girl. Danica was born with a heart murmur but we found out today it's no longer there. We are so happy with this little perfect being and can't wait to get to know her more.

I haven't blogged this week because I just don't have much to talk about. I have an appointment with my doctor today to see if I have progressed at all. Dwayne thinks the baby is coming tomorrow because Danae and Brayden were both born on Friday mornings. I guess we'll see. Brayden told me the other day that I am the best teacher ever. Yes, I know he has nothing to compare me to but it was still nice to hear. I love watching my children learn and learning more about them. They are so alike yet so very different. They also learn very differently. For instance, Brayden is picking up on phonics so very easily. He is trying to sound out words when he sees them. Danae, on the other hand, hasn't picked up on phonics as easily. She has a superb memory though. So, she recognizes sight words easily but can't necessarily use phonics to distinguish between two words like cat and bat. This frustrated me at first but I've learned that I just have to adjust the way I teach he...

So, during my morning worship today, I was reading my Sabbath school lesson. It's about the prophetic gift for those who may now know. Anyway, it made me wonder something. Our church recognizes Ellen G White as a "modern-day" prophet. I put that in parenthesis simply because she's been dead for so long that it's hard for me to think of her as modern. Let me get back to the point. A lot of Adventists, particularly the younger folks, don't give as much credence to her writings as the older people. I wonder if it's because people don't read her books as much and are simply going by what they're heard. Or, is it that people don't think her writings are relevant? I have read several of her books: "The Great Controversy" "The Acts of the Apostles" "Patriarchs and Prophets" "Last Day Events" "Counsels on Stewardship" "The Desire of Ages" "The Story of Redemption" and parts of the fo...

...is how far I've dilated. Not much, but it is a start. My doc doesn't think I'll make it to my next appointment which is in a week. I don't know about that. During my two previous pregnancies, I was dilated 1-2 cm for 2 weeks before the baby came. I'm not in a hurry anymore though because I believe she'll get here when she's supposed to. I can endure backaches and leg pains for a little longer if it's best for her.

One of the best things about being pregnant in the winter is that I don't feel pressured to shave my legs. I know that probably sounds crazy but it's kind of difficult to get to all the hairs down there. So, I can just wear pants and no one knows the difference. I love it! The other good thing is that I'm not miserably hot like when I was pregnant with Brayden. My body temperature seriously escalates during pregnancy. It's so bad that I sometimes have to change clothes in the middle of the night because my nighties are soaked through with sweat. Just imagine how I was during the Houston summer. Because of this, I'm convinced that I'll have horrible hot flashes during menopause. My baby is due in 12 days. I go to the doctor tomorrow and fully expect him to tell me I have dilated. *** On another note, why did my friend just tell me that one of our high school classmates just died from a heart attack. I'm really tired of hearing about so many deaths. This is we...

I just found out that Gloria Musgray died last night. She was a member of the church we attended in Tallahassee. She fought a long battle with cancer but unfortunately succumbed to the disease. I pray that her family and friends find comfort during this time of grief.

I spent the bulk of the day yesterday comforting my daughter since she was the lucky recipient of her brother's germs. Guess who has a very sore throat today? Yep, that would be me. I knew I shouldn't have allowed her to lay on me so much yesterday. Guess who is still a huge bundle of energy even though he's infecting everyone else? Yep, that would be Brayden. I am having the hardest time explaining the concept of death to Danae. I would've left it alone by now but she keeps asking me questions and I don't want her to bring it up with Georgia's family again. She already asked her daughter why her mom wasn't at church last Sabbath.

Every post will probably have my countdown in it. I can't believe that in 15 days (or less) I will have my new baby girl in my arms. I'm so excited! Now off to the real post. The good and bad thing about Facebook is that you can reconnect with past friends and associates. Let me tell you about a couple of them. In middle school, I met one of my cousins. We attended the same school and were both in the drama club. One day, we had a competition and my mom thought this girl looked like her family. Then, she asked her name and found out her last name was the same as my grandfather's (mom's dad). Well, he was definitely a rolling stone and it turned out that the schoolmate (J) was my cousin. Her grandfather and my mom were siblings, or half-siblings. So, for a minute, J and I thought that was cool. Except she was a little crazy. She had a serious hangup when it came to complexion and hair texture. She was (and still is) a gorgeous girl with flawless chocolate skin. If anythi...