Mommy's Potpourri

Listening skills come in handy in every area of your life. Especially motherhood. In the baby-stage, you learn your baby's cry. You can pick out your little one's whimper while sitting in the back row of the church sanctuary down the hall. Supposedly some mommies can tell what their baby needs based on what the cry sounds like. I am on my third little babe, and still have not been able to do that. All of his cries sound exactly the same to me. I kind of think people who say they can tell the difference, are just super-confident guessers. But if you think you really can, then more power to ya. I still don't believe you. Exercising your listening skills in the toddler stage is super-fun. You can always listen for a second, and tell what (in general) they are in to.  If I hear the water running, I am bringing a towel to whatever sink Luke is in. The clanging of the silverware, I just need to make sure he is in the "safe" drawer and somehow did not climb on to the

     Tuesday night I went over to a friends' house and watched part one of a webinar about mothering. I don't remember what it was called (if I don't write stuff like that down, there is no hope for me recalling the details later) but it was helpful.      One of the parts that resonated with me was when she mentioned understanding your childrens' God-given personalities. And after understanding them, learning how to cultivate them.      I should say that my son Anthony is not a difficult child. He is an outgoing, smart, relatively obedient and sweet little boy. Even though this is true, there are times I have thought to myself, "I just don't understand him. I don't get it. Why does he need to talk so much? And constantly? And why is he so particular about things? Why does he get so upset if I do something in a different order than he is expecting?" There are days that we just do not connect, because I feel like I cannot get in to his headspace.  

     Well, things have calmed down in a lot of ways, which frees me up to blog. Something I really enjoy doing. There will be another element to this blog, as I figure out how to navigate the exciting and overwhelming world of food allergies.       My oldest is diagnosed with severe food allergies, and now my 8 month old baby is showing signs of the same things. We are managing severe food allergies to eggs, peanuts, tree-nuts, fish and shellfish. I have eliminated milk from my diet and it is helping the baby immensely. I strongly suspect he has a severe allergy to milk.      So our house has been turned upside-down by food allergies yet again. I had grown used to using milk products as a crutch for making sure my boys got enough of their nutrients. It is likely we will have to transition to a milk free home sooner rather than later. I have already cut it from my diet, and must say that I feel pretty good. I do miss cheese and ice cream though.      So basically we are now eating al