Reflections in the Dishwater

"Christian women must reject any distorted view of the modern housewife- whether it be the miserable household drudge; the fanatical, sock-matching wonder-woman; the child-centered, worn out soccer mom; or the deceptive, apron wearing vixen.  When we consistently renew our minds by absorbing Scripture and by passionately embracing the sacred calling God has truly given us as women, we will refute the perverted image of the desperate housewife by believing His promises and showing the world there is something better for which we can truly be passionate!"
- Passionate Housewives Desperate for God  

This book came in the mail yesterday afternoon, and I've already read it all.  It was a breath of fresh air and encouragement.  I was blessed with some rare quiet time this morning, since I got up around 5, and was able to finish it and then turn to the dishes and watch the sunrise while thinking over what I'd been reading.





"If the world can convince us to acquire a taste for the futile blandness found in a self centered marriage, to be content with recreational motherhood, and to prefer a sterile, disposable version of home "economics," then we will miss the beauty and poetry that is ours in the heavenly magnum opus of a God-glorifying, well-ordered home."
- Passionate Housewives Desperate for God (bold added)

Today I'm thankful for the beauty of clean dishes, of sunlight coming through windows, of my dishsoap in a pretty recycled vinegar bottle, and watching the sunrise as I wash away, wearing my beloved gloves... 

 "What you do in your house is worth as much as if you did it up in heaven for our Lord God.  

We should accustom ourselves to think of our position and work as sacred 

and well-pleasing to God, not on account of the position and work, 

but on account of the word and faith from which the obedience and the work flow."              

- Martin Luther

Celebrating the beauty of biscuits...

yummy flaky biscuits... 

 

and leftover biscuits so I can have them with breakfast 

 

...and for the peace to take pictures of the reflections in my dishwater, and  to share my reflections with you. :)

Some Favorite Children's Books

 Scuffy the Tugboat and His Adventures Down the River

I LOVE Scuffy. It has been one of my favorite read aloud books for many, many years... our copy is one I gave to one of my brothers many Christmases ago, and he passed it on to our little ones so it could give more enjoyment.  I love the storyline -  Scuffy is discontent where he is, so he sails off to find adventure, and then realizes that he really does need the man with the polka dot tie and his son, and wishes that he were back with them... and just as he is entering the ocean, which has no beginning or end, the man and his son scoop him up and he is safe again.

 

                                  One of our board book favorites is Barnyard Dance!  It was a gift to Nathan when he was born, and we've loved it ever since. It has a fun rhythm and shows all the different farm animals dancing.  It has a lot of "moo" and other animal noises, which makes it a toddler favorite, and the fun pictures also make it a good book to entertain the baby during church.

 "Bounce with the bunny.  Strut with the duck.  Spin with the chickens now- CLUCK CLUCK CLUCK!"


We also have another board book by Sandra Boynton called The Going-To-Bed Book- it is fun and is our current diaper bag book, for distracting and calming a wiggly little one in church or elsewhere. :)


It has a really fun cadence to it as well...

"And down once more, but not so fast, they're on their way to bed at last.
The day is done.  They say good night, and somebody turns off the light."


And of course, we love the classic kid books...
- Green Eggs and Ham,  Bears On Wheels, Make Way for Ducklings, The Little Engine That Could, Corduroy



As you can see, we're bookworms, and it seems to be passing on to the next generation!  I think we better get some more bookcases soon, because these are all  full already...  are any of these your favorite stories too?  Have any others we should put on our library/wish list? :)

(contains affiliate links, FYI)

Some Favorite Birth Books

• The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth, by Henci Goer

I love how Henci Goer looks at specific interventions, specific research, specific risks... and gives you information to help you decide whether you're willing to consent to having your water broken during labor, for example.  During my pregnancy with Nathan, I read most of the book, but I read and reread the section on breech birth... the risks, the pros and cons of a vaginal delivery vs. a c-section, and the importance of an experienced care provider.  It really helped as we pondered our options.  I knew that I didn't want a c-section, and her helpful comparison of the risks showed that with an experienced care provider scheduling a c-section wasn't mandatory at all.  Thankfully he did turn before birth so we did not end up having to change our birth plans (our wonderful midwife wasn't comfortable doing a planned breech homebirth, although she encouraged a vaginal breech delivery if that was what we wanted), and he was born, head down, at home.

• Ina May's Guide to Childbirth

The person who loaned me this book (I have my own copy now, since I liked it) felt the need to give the same caveat I'm about to give- some of these birth stories are a tad odd.  You may not (I certainly didn't!) plan to give birth in a camper trailer with your children, spouse, and multiple midwives present.  You may not look at birth as an opportunity to bond with a bunch of other women over the shared experience of childbirth.  However.  I found it very encouraging and helpful to read the many different birth stories in this book, which all affirm that women are meant to do this.  Our bodies were in fact designed to give birth, and when allowed to do that in their own timing they usually do a very good job.  I also found it helpful to read them because it reinforces that labor is not the same for every woman.  It was especially helpful to me as I prepared for my first labor to read a variety of birth stories and know that there were lots of different labor patterns that were all within the range of a normal, healthy labor.

• Emergency Childbirth 

Written for police officers, firefighters, and others who might be called on to assist a woman giving birth, this book has very clear, simple directions on what to do and what not to do to assist the birth process.  I liked having this book around especially before our first, in case for some reason the midwife wasn't able to make it in time.

• and not a birth book but on birth and I watched it recently...  I enjoyed it and found it very interesting, but I wouldn't recommend it to everyone.  Much of it isn't really very husband friendly, in my opinion, due to some of the footage of women laboring and birthing, however.
  
• The Business of Being Born
  
• and not a birth book, but I love it and it is on a related topic...  
• The Nursing Mother's Companion (Kathleen Huggins, R.N.)

  
FYI: I'm an Amazon affiliate now, so all these links are affiliate links.  I had been meaning to work on updating the book list on my sidebar and adding links to it anyway and decided to go through it and categorize them and post them in separate posts that I can link to from the sidebar.

What are your favorite birth books? :)

Edited to add... I ran across this today and thought I'd add this in here since it is about labor:

"Since the evidence shows no benefits or harms, there is no
justification for the restriction of fluids and food in labour for
women at low risk of complications. No studies looked specifically at
women at increased risk of complications, hence there is no evidence to
support restrictions in this group of women."

Nice!  With a 25 hour labor with Nathan, I can't imagine having to push at the end without having eaten in 25 hours.  I'm so glad I was encouraged to eat as I wanted, and stay hydrated.

Slowing Down and Reading Aloud

Normally, I read fast. If a story grips me, barring interruption, two to four hours later, the book is done. I find a good story very addictive, and a good plot can induce me to forgo sleep, food, showering, and other basics of civilized existence.

However, I'm discovering that there are other ways to enjoy a good story than by snarfing it down as quickly as possible. Micah read 100 Cupboards and Dandelion Fire aloud, and I really enjoyed it. It is forcing me to slow down and enjoy each part of the story, instead of rushing to the end to find out what happens. Which is definitely the fate these books would have had, since I can't wait to find out what comes next!  And I can't wait until we start The Chestnut King!

 

Swagbucks

Some of you may have noticed my Swagbucks banner on the sidebar, but I thought I'd take the time to write a post on Swagbucks because I'm getting ready to spend my third $5 Amazon gift card thanks to Swagbucks.  If you're already signed up with Swagbucks, this won't be too interesting, but if you're not, keep reading. :)

What is Swagbucks?

Swagbucks is a search engine that rewards you for searching.  It does this by randomly awarding points, or "Swagbucks" for searches.  Once you have enough Swagbucks, you can redeem them for prizes.  I've redeemed all of mine as gift cards, but you could also get a Paypal gift card and spend it like cash anywhere online.  I installed the Swagbucks toolbar, and I can search easily and quickly from there.

Why should I sign up using your referral link instead typing Swagbucks into my address bar?
Because if you go using my referral link (every Swagbucks link in this post, or the banner below) then I get points. :)  And if you use Swagbucks after signing up with my link, I get more points.  Which means more Amazon gift cards for me, which means more books, music, and general fun splurgy goodness.  :)  Plus of course you're earning points just for searching the web like you already do!

So what are you waiting for?
Go sign up!  Start earning while you search the web! :)