God bless Dr. Ferber

Thanks to Dr. Ferber and my own mother, I have had three nights of uninterrupted sleep. I think it has been at least two years since I've had a run even close to that. Mom kept Jewel overnight on Friday, her first night away from us. And the last two nights she has slept soundly all night long!

In certain parenting circles, Dr. Ferber is demonized as a let-your-baby-cry-it-out villain who is partly to blame for the moral decay of our society. But, when I was nursing a nearly-one-year-old all night long instead of sleeping, I knew that we would both be happier people if we were getting better sleep. So, I actually read Dr. Ferber's book, and discovered it was not authored by Lucifer nor published by the Hades Press, in fact, I think Dr. Ferber is considerate, and non-judgemental - allowing us to define problems ourselves. So off she went to her crib in her room. We were down to two wakings a night, and -- knock wood -- no wakings for the last two nights.

Thank you, Jewel, for my early Christmas present. In the words of Tiny Tim, God bless us everyone, and you too Dr. Ferber.

Outlasting a greyhound

Here is one of the only pictures I have of myself on the Breast Cancer 3 day walk:

Also featured in the photo is my personal support crew. It was an amazing event, that I think I will participate in again in 2009. Obviously Breast cancer is a personal health concern to me, as well as something I council patients about on a daily basis. I met a great friend on the walk, who is keeping up with her own training and putting me to shame. So Jennifer, if your reading, we're still a team!

So in order to improve my own health, and to appear less hypocritical to my patients, I went for a run with my dog today. I estimate that I ran half of the distance and walked the other half. My greyhound, Stella, came along for emotional support and did well in her role. By wearing herself out she made me feel that perhaps I wasn't as out of shape as I feared. (Of course, greyhounds are sprinters, not distance runners, and granted I'm not a cat or a bunny) Although it wasn't a marathon, it was a start.

Anyway, I'm proud of myself, and I'm hoping to keep it up.

One year ago today . . .

I gave birth to my darling Jewel at 3:02 in the morning. I did it without medication, without medical technology or prying eyes or hands. I did it with dignity and courage and love and the assistance of a few other loving family members. I did it in the privacy of my own home. It was just the way I wanted it to be.

Then, we had the most wonderful snuggle in our own bed, followed by a feast of a breakfast with the entire family in attendance to help us celebrate. I sat at the table, with my new babe in my arms, feeling a little tired, but mostly in awe of the wonderful new life among us. Thrilled to feel physically well after such an amazing travail.

Today we sang to her and I held her close. She has a cold today and doesn't feel well. Saturday we will have a small celebration of her first year earthside. I'm so grateful for her and so happy to be her Mommy. It's wonderful.

Tonight's bedtime snack:

Sleeping belle:

Round 12,378 of Jenny Vs "The Man"

Remember this post?

Well, over the holidays I received a reimbursement check from the insurance company for said Home Birth! It took months of harassment, and prodding from me, but finally, an insurance company paid me!

One day, I'll have to post the story of her birth. Maybe when her birthday rolls around. It was, perhaps, the best day of my life. I can't think of any way in which it could have been better. And, now the icing, on the frosting, on the cherry, on the whipped cream of the most wonderful cake ever is that I got paid back.

Victory.

Thanksgiving carols

Thanksgiving was wonderful, and just as it should be. The children serenaded us with Thanksgiving carols of their own composition. Sadly there is no audio, but this is the best photo I have:

There are musicians budding in our midst.

Thanksgiving was truly a time I am thankful for. We even reconnected with a side of the family I haven't seen in a long time.

Only 8 days until Julianna's birthday. I can't believe it has nearly been a year since that wonderful day she arrived. We must make preparations.

what we did today:

Because Eric's office was closed for Veterans' Day and I happened not to be scheduled to work today, we took the children to daycare and had a day off together. It was the most time we have had alone since Jewel was born. We spent most of the day in Rome, but we did wander past this curious sign:

In case you don't have 20/20, it reads "Historic Site Meteorite Landing Circa 1998"

This is me in the hole created by said meteorite:

We had fun just toodeling around, not being interrupted by little vioces, or potty emergencies, or feeding schedules. We did just what we wanted, which renewed us, and refilled our well of patience so that we can handle the little voices, potty emergencies and feeding schedules more gracefully tonight.

We did it!

Thanks to everyone who helped us across the finish line. As much as I hyped the 3 Day Walk, I feel badly that I haven't written about the actual event. Believe it or not, the closest thing I can liken it to is natural childbirth. It left me feeling like I could do anything. My mother, Joann, and I raised over $3000 between the two of us. As a group, the Atlanta Breast Cancer 3 Day raised 8.3 Million Dollars! That much money was raised by regular people like you and me. Astounding! Friends of ours walked in the San Francsico 3 Day, which raised over 5 Million Dollars (it was the first year in that city). Can you imagine?

I made a great friend on the walk, also named Jennifer. She and I cheered eachother on, remenicsed about Atlanta hotspots of the 1990s, and played games to get eachother through the tough miles. 20 miles, three days in a row is no joke, folks. It hurt! But we did it. I can't speak for her, but I got the impression that Mom's job as 3 day crew member was at least as hard as my job as a walker.

Last minute planner that I am, I didn't bring a camera. So as soon as I get photos from other people, I will post them. It was truly an amazing event, and a great example of how regular people like us can change the world.

Never doubt yourself, or your ability to make change in the world.