"The Princess and the Kiss: Three Gifts of Christmas" Book Review

 

I purchased this book because our nearly-three-year-old daughter has taken a sudden interest in princesses.  I'm a tomboy through and through so this is all new territory for me.  I was seeking a Christmas story that would interest our daughter and this one caught my eye.  A princess book I might actually be able to stomach AND it's about Christmas?  I figured we'd at least give it a try.

Oh my word.

McDaniels' watercolor illustrations are fresh and delightful but what impressed me most was the story.  Ms. Bishop artfully weaves a fairy tale worthy of any princess storybook... but one that hits home and ever so gently reminds us of Christ and His story during this time of rushing and selfishness that has become such a part of Christmas in the US.

My eyes filled with tears as the princess and her family shared a new (to them) way of celebrating Christmas.  Their gifts are limited, but chosen with care.  They all learn, together, that even the most precious of gifts becomes even more so when shared.

Merry Christmas.

Why you should never trust your GPS in Japan

Distance to Destination:  13 km  (8.1 miles)
Estimated Travel Time: 37 minutes

LIES!!!!!

Actual Travel Time: 61 minutes.

With a cranky two year-old.  In the rain.

This is normal people.  As in everyday occurrence, not unusual, par for the course, expected.

And family and friends ask why we don't travel much...

On Colds and Nursing

I've been battling a nasty cold for 3 weeks and it's kicking my tail.  Unfortunately Baby Bird and Daddy have it too.

When we woke up this morning barely able to talk, my husband announced "We're going to Sick Call."  Yay for family togetherness.

3 doctor appointments, 4 hours, and 5 new meds later, we dragged ourselves in the door and flopped into bed.  Well, Baby Bird and I did - Daddy had to go to work.

One of the meds the doc prescribed for me is Sudafed.  The real stuff, not the over-the-counter stuff that does nothing.  She actually prescribed it 2 weeks ago when I went in thinking this cold was maybe strep (it wasn't), but I've only taken it maybe 3 times.  Sudafed works wonders.  However, it is also one of a small handful of cold meds that can affect your milk supply (Benadryl is fine in case you're wondering).

Baby Bird's already down to a handful of insanely short nursing sessions so any dip in supply could be a problem.  Neither she nor I are ready to stop nursing just yet.  I love that she's getting health benefits that simply cannot be replaced with anything else and it's the one time she sits and cuddles for more than a split second.  Baby Bird begs to nurse at certain times of day (mainly before and after sleeping) and often tosses in a few other random nursing requests throughout the day.  They're short but clearly meeting a need.

Enter Sudafed.

Doc says if I want relief from the coughing and non-stop nose then Sudfed's the way to go.  She knows I'm nursing and recommended staying hydrated, etc. to prevent a supply dip.  After a particularly painful hacking session I give in a take a round of Sudafed.  Just 1, nothing too crazy.  That was at 1pm.

7pm, time for Baby Bird to get ready for bed.  She potties, we read a book, she climbs into her PJ's and settles into my lap for her last nursing session of the day.

"There's nothing there!"  She opens her hands, palm up, and looks at me in surprise.

"Try again, baby."

"There's nothing there, Mama!  Where Mama milk?"

Well, crap.

Baby Bird crawls into bed, a little surprised but not too upset, and drifts off to sleep.

I go straight to the kitchen and down a glass of water.  And refill it.  And drink another.

If we're done nursing, I'm not thrilled about it but it's okay.  However, I am NOT happy that this cold and accompanying meds may be causing a rather abrupt end to an otherwise healthy nursing relationship.  I'll do my best to hydrate, etc. but booger.  Just, booger.

Solar Eclipse

Hubby woke me up this morning with "Eclipse time!"  A bit groggy, I followed him to the back porch and we were treated to this:

He had the brilliant idea to line up several sunglass lenses so we could actually look at the eclipsed sun.

I remember seeing the last solar eclipse as a kid, so this was pretty spectacular!  Baby Bird was a little less enthused:

She liked the pictures afterwards though and kept asking for pictures of the "moon" (i.e. the partially-eclipsed sun).

So cool!

Japanese Advice

One of the many reasons I love living in Japan.  This is an email snippet from our church choir director, who is Japanese:

Please don't catch cold, stay warm and healthy

(drink ginger tea or ginger soup is helpful these days....)

Make a good ginger drink;

Cut couple ginger slice, honey(or brown sugar), lemon(if you like) and add hot water.

Make good ginger soup;

Grated ginger, bonito, chopped long onion, little bit of soy sauce, add boiled water

Easy and healthy..... Stay warm

 I do believe I must now try these :).  Hope you, too, stay healthy and warm!

*Bonito is tiny flakes of dried fish, often used as a flavorful topping or to make dashi stock (mild fish/seaweed broth)

Reset Button

I am terrible at time management.  Always have been.  It's not so much that I don't know how to plan my time, it's that I have virtually no feeling of its passing.  When I was a kid it drove my mom and teachers nuts.  As an adult?  Let's just say it can become a major problem.

Enter The Internet.

The internet has most recently become my biggest time suck.  As in hours of my day gone.  Daily.  I couldn't even remember what it was I was reading.  Drastic measures were needed.

I waved goodbye to Facebook for the last week, swore off email, surfing, and TV, and limited my reading to the Bible and Bible studies I've been woefully neglecting.  A one-week RESET.

I'm here to say I survived.  It was challenging and refreshing.  I wish I could go longer but technology truly is the way we link to our world since a) I don't work outside our home, and b) It is the primary mode of communication both for our local community and our family on the other side of the world.

I'm trying to slowly reintegrate computer usage into my day but with some boundaries.  I started this blog because I needed a place to see my thoughts in print and to keep a little sanity in our crazy life.  It hasn't been working because by the time I wade through emails, Facebook, blogs, and surfing, the baby's crying, the dog's going ballistic, my husband wants to know what's for dinner, and I'm already 15 minutes late for my meeting.  I've been forfeiting peace and clarity for Facebook drama and a list of crafts I'll never finish in 10 lifetimes.

I've neglected friends and responsibilities, I've traded needs for wants, I've turned my priorities upside down.  If I've hurt you because of this I am truly sorry.

I'm moving on.  I'm putting my priorities back where they should be.  I'm (hopefully) growing and experiencing the pains that go with it but I know it's worth it.  That God is worth it.  That my family is worth it.  That my friends are worth it.

Please pray for me and know that I am praying for you, too.

Peace.

I'm Still Alive

So just a quick update, since I appear to have fallen off the face of the planet:

Life's been busy, or not, depending on how you look at it.

I LOVE staying home with Baby Bird and she's been tickling us left and right with the funny things she does and says.  She's entered the age of cute and silly but hasn't quite gotten to the defiant stage.  We're hoping to skirt around that one as long as possible!  We've dabbled in the idea of elimination communication (also known as infant pottying) and so far it seems to have paid off - we're "catching" more and more trips to the potty and therefore having to wash fewer diapers.  I'm a big fan of less laundry.  From the looks of things she may well learn independent pottying early - yay!  Of course now that I've said that it'll probably come back to bite me...

We're at the decision point for military career choices.  We have about a year and a half till our assignment here ends and the enlistment runs up at the same time.  Stay in?  Get out?  Go Guard or Reserves?  Move to Tahiti?  We have way more questions than answers right now but I think that's okay.  God is good and we know He has a plan, we just need to figure out how to listen!

I've always loved baking and recently started decorating cakes for friends' birthday parties and such.  It's been going well enough that *gasp* I'm working on starting up my very first home business!  Thrilling and scary at the same time.  I'm not sure our kitchen will ever be the same.  Did I mention this new line of business is absolutely terrible for my waistline?  Thank goodness for friends who are willing to sacrifice by tasting all my trial run goodies!

Well, that's us in a nutshell right now - busy but in a generally peaceful way, and trying to follow where God leads us.  Life is good and God's even better!