Confucius Says...

In an effort to make my blog more interesting Asian, I've changed my "Life Lessons" titles to "Confucius Say..."

Confucius says... Silence is a true friend that never betrays...

Before I had a baby there were so many things I heard moms (in general- not mine in particular) say that I thought was so stupid surprising. I hope I bit my tongue when I heard these moms speak because now I'm realizing that these ladies are right.

For example- I could totally use 4 arms and hands. While I've mastered being able to feed Emi while only using one hand- its my right hand I still use when feeding her. And, as it turns out, my left hand/arm is completely useless. I am trying to be better about being patient while feeding Emi and really enjoy the bonding time, but after 8 hours a day, you are bound to get bored. I mentioned to my mom the other day that I wish I had scotch tape to tape Emi's pacifier into her mouth so I didn't have to reach down every 30 seconds and put it back in her mouth. My mom looked at me appalled as if I must not love her if such a thought had crossed my mind. She later than maneuvered Emi's blanket over her pacifier to hold it in. Same difference, right? Well, after being concerned about the blanket suffocating Emi and seeing my mom's reaction to the tape idea, I've now taught Emi to hold the pacifier in her mouth herself. She hasn't perfected it yet, but she is getting quite good!

I also hated the comments that moms make about not being able to be away from their children or catering to their kids needs. I always thought to myself when I heard these ladies "Oh, get a grip!" Well, today I needed to get a grip. I finally hooked up the baby monitor in an effort to get Emi moved into her nursery. I was on the main floor getting ready to clean up the kitchen. Emi hadn't slept well earlier in the day so I thought if I put her in her nursery (you know, the beautiful nursery I spent so much money time putting together for her to enjoy) that she would sleep just perfectly while I got the houeshold things done. Well, I hooked up the monitor (its a video monitor) and went to go to the dishes. Well, as I stood there with the water running I could only watch her in the monitor. She had moved her hand and therefore lost the pacifier out of her mouth. She wasn't happy and was moving around uncomfortably. I thought "just be patient, Dawn. She will settle down and be asleep in moments dreaming about owls and humming birds and butterflies." So I waited, and I waited, and I waited... at least 15 seconds... I couldn't take it anymore. I ran up there as fast as I could. I tried rocking her and getting her to go to sleep. Since she wouldn't fall asleep I brought her back downstairs with me with the bright lights, loud tv, banging dishes... and in five minutes she was asleep.

The last example I can think of is how parents would let their kids control their life. That was not going to be me! Well, had I attended a breastfeeding class I would have realized before Emi was born that she was totally going to control my life. And I find the more I try to have her not control my life, the more it backfires. Don't get me wrong- I LOVE being a mom.If I put it in capital letters it makes it more believable, right? I think I just thought I'd have a little More control over our schedules. Man, can you imagine what this blog would say if I didn't have one of the world's easiest babies? I guess God really only does give us what he knows we can handle...

In other news, on Sunday we went on our first walk with Emi. It was a good time! With the gift cards we got from our friends and family we were able to purchase this jogging stroller. We didn't take Emi for a jog yet, but we did have a nice walk. It was a lot of fun!

I've had to stop putting Emi in outfits that have buttons all the way up. After seeing the new "Leg Bomb" trend made famous by Angelina Jolie at the Academy Awards... she keeps sticking her leg through the holes between the buttons. We are team Aniston in this house!