7 Quick Takes Friday

1.

A Google search I never anticipated making: "glow stick liquid in eye."

Thankfully, Mary was alright after the dibutyl phthalate was flushed from her eyes and we did not have to follow up with a call to The Poison Center. It was really creepy to see glowing droplets of liquid all over the floor, her shirt, and her face.

2.

A sick baby + a desperate mama = a milestone!

Thomas caught the little cold we'd all had, which made him cranky and unable to sleep more than a few minutes out of arms. He's so big that I put him on my back in the Ergo for the first time and was able to cook dinner without leaving him to wail.

And now he'll probably take after his siblings and pretty much live on my back like a baby koala until he learns to walk around 10 months old. I reserve the right one minute to consider the Ergo the most convenient thing since sliced bread and the next to consider myself overly burdened by a baby on my body all the time.

3.

Advent starts on Sunday November 29! See my favorite spiritual preparation worksheet for this "little Lent" here at Regina Prophetarum.

"A Beautiful Season: Busy Times Ahead" by Charlotte Siems--a good piece to remind us to maintain our home life routine, including the nightly read-alouds.

Advent ideas from my local friendly acquaintance (and mom of 13, I think), Christi: see here.

4.

"5 Ways I Got Homeschooling on Track after Chronic Illness" by Molly Aranda--excellent advice for women in an out of debilitating pregnancy and newborn periods as well.

5.

No matter how many children are watching television, they all insist on sitting in this one chair.

6.

It took a week and a half to see great improvement in a particular child who would not pick up daily clothing off the floor. Mama doesn't even mind reminding nightly, "time to pick up clothing off our floors!" but Mama is done with a child who balks, fights, and outright refuses. I confiscated the small mountain of clothing that had built up on the carpet and informed said child that I needed to see five nights in a row of the child picking up clothing without reminder in order for the child to begin earning back the outfits. The first many nights, the child left the clothing out, so I went into the bedroom after children were sleeping and quietly confiscated those outfits also: my sack of clothing ultimately filled a plastic garbage sack. Finally the child noticed the paucity of outfits hanging in the closet and decided it was worth it to pick up clothing off the floor, and five days later earned back the clothing. Now I know what to do next time when this habit begins to slip again!

7. 

I think the dark fog of pregnancy/postpartum time is starting slowly to blow away on the breeze, as evidenced by the fact that I haven't been able to concentrate enough to read a book in seven months but now I'm eagerly in the middle of reading three: "Alignment Matters," "The Eternal Woman," and a new Bible study I'm doing.

Check out 7 Quick Takes Friday at This Ain't the Lyceum!