Milked Out

I think I am just about milked out and I am "udderly" disappointed. I would really like to nurse Kirby for a full year, but lately when I sit to pump, all I get is about an ounce. No matter how long I sit attached to that darn machine, all I get is an ounce. I am not ready to give that up. Besides the fact that it is the best thing for her and there are nutrients that formula can not duplicate, I love the intimacy of nursing. It is my favorite time. When she gets up at night, I actually get excited that she gets to nurse. That is gone; not sure what happened. I kept it up as long as I could, even with school. It seems that every time I turn(ed) around I was attached to the machine. I ate like they suggest, trying to get enough calories in to keep up. I have not run in forever, so I am not loosing too many calories. I tried and gave her the best I could for the longest I could. I actually thank the Lord that I was able to do it for (almost) 8 months. I know some mothers can't nurse at all, so I am forever grateful that I had this chance.

I do not have any new pictures this post because I keep leaving my camera card here and the camera is at home. One day I will get it all together and get rid of what all the magazines call "pregnancy brain". I say I am more than likely going to be forgetful the rest of my life now that I am a parent, and that is just some silly excuse. They don't even have a prescription for that diagnosis so it must not be real.

Kirby weighs 17 1/2 pounds now. We had to take her to the doctor last Friday because I was concerned about an ear infection. We caught it early, so doctor said I had good mother's intuitions. I said, "well, when I miss 3 hours of sleep in a row I know something is wrong." That shouldn't take a rocket scientist, but it did make me feel like a good momma. She is actually crawling now, not just scooting backwards. She only goes about 4 "steps" before pushing herself up to a sitting position and acting completely worn out. I imagine if I was lugging around her beautiful, chunky thighs I would be pretty exhausted too. I mean, she weighs 17 pounds, but I think 10 are in her thighs and 5 in her cheeks! I love to squeeze her cheeks and thighs ... she cracks up and they are just so cute and healthy! She loves people - she loves going to the baseball game and getting passed around to all the pom-pom girls who smile extraordinarily big. She loves their big poofs at the front of their hair and pulling on their perfectly tied bows. She made it all the way through church and Sunday school in the nursery last week! There was a student of mine in there so I suggested she take care of her because she loves teenagers (she once was a cheerleader, so I am sure the bubbliness helped as well). They said she was the only one that could keep her; when they tried to pass her off she fussed. Therefore I think she will be our personal nursery sitter!

Our last wedding of the wedding stretch is this weekend. I am so excited to see family again ... it feels like it has been forever, but it has only been a little over a month. Oh how so much has happened in that month, though.

What is even more important about this weekend is that it is Easter. What does Easter mean to you? I know to me it means sacrifice. It means redemption. It means eternal love and life. It means doing something that I would never be able to do. It means Heaven and it means He is alive. This year I have been very discouraged with some of my students as far as being able to share Christ with them. Every year I get so close to my kiddos and they KNOW, I mean KNOW I am a Christian. This year, I don't think most of them even know what a Christian is, so it is hard for them to notice. They know I am different in some way, but that is it. Some of the things they say just pierces my heart. One kid told me he didn't have time for church. I cried. The reason I tell you this is not to discourage you as well, but to encourage you to pray for our youth. Pray that their families would take them to church. Pray that the Lord would work on their hearts and in their lives to draw them close. Pray also that I could be a fisherman in such a big way that they would say, "I have to have what she has!"

Matthew 5:19 "Follow me and I will make you fisher's of men."

These are old, but I love them I don't think I ever shared these.

Singing until the whole world hears ...