Motherhood is a balancing act. Balancing the needs of various family members. Balancing the needs of the house, hearth, and home. Balancing the needs of the bank account. It's like balancing spinning plates.
It feels like my spinning plates are careening out of control for a moment. *lol*
I started pumping for the first time in six months this week. I cannot aptly express the anxiety that melted away when I saw that liquid gold dripping into the storage bag. I had stopped pumping because I didn't have a need for milk wasting away in the freezer (I threw out almost 30-ounces of six-month old dairy-laden breastmilk earlier this month); but now I have a need again and, gratefully, I am able to still pump.
It's interesting to observe differences between my milk back in August (with a four month old) and my milk now (with a 10 month old). It takes a little longer for it to start dripping into the storage bag. There is no obvious foremilk. I still get less with the pump from the same side I have always gotten less with (even with the first child). And I'm getting less milk overall than I was in August. But, while we rely heavily upon my breastmilk, it is no longer the only nutrition received so I'm not spazzing about only pumping one or two ounces at a time.
We will likely rely heavily upon my breastmilk until he is at least two years old. He has an issue with dairy. I have an issue with soy, almonds and coconuts that I would prefer not to introduce him to prior to more effective communication. So we'll be providing breastmilk for at least two years.
It's just another plate to spin into balance--and it's looking like a good balance at the moment! Now to work out the other wobbling plates. ;)
Showing posts with label Preparedness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Preparedness. Show all posts
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Friday, August 26, 2011
Unprepared
Irene, while not a huge concern for us at this moment because of how far inland we are, is actually catching us a bit unprepared.
Our 72hr food kits were cycled-out but never restocked. We *do* have two full flats of water, but we don't have any jugs of water (for cooking and hand-washing).
We still don't have full 72hr kits pulled together. We still haven't determined our evacuation meeting places or plans. We no longer have our out-of-state contact available; we had their office designated as our primary contact in the event of disasters or evacuations, but their position was just downsized.
We're low on fuel and on funds. Payday hits *after* the hurricane. Not likely we'll see the $3.499 prices next week.
We also didn't do our annual review of hurricanes. The plan was to revisit our hurricane studies each May before the season officially started 1 June. Part two of that plan was to reboot our emergency kits, etc as well.
Fail.
Hopefully this won't prove to be an epic fail. Think tomorrow will be spent attempting to remedy some of these, at least temporarily.
Our 72hr food kits were cycled-out but never restocked. We *do* have two full flats of water, but we don't have any jugs of water (for cooking and hand-washing).
We still don't have full 72hr kits pulled together. We still haven't determined our evacuation meeting places or plans. We no longer have our out-of-state contact available; we had their office designated as our primary contact in the event of disasters or evacuations, but their position was just downsized.
We're low on fuel and on funds. Payday hits *after* the hurricane. Not likely we'll see the $3.499 prices next week.
We also didn't do our annual review of hurricanes. The plan was to revisit our hurricane studies each May before the season officially started 1 June. Part two of that plan was to reboot our emergency kits, etc as well.
Fail.
Hopefully this won't prove to be an epic fail. Think tomorrow will be spent attempting to remedy some of these, at least temporarily.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Materialism and Preparedness
Yesterday we found out that our dear friends no longer lived in their house--a couple weeks ago a bolt of lightening struck their utility room and set their house on fire.
Fortunately they were not home when it happened.
Fortunately somebody familiar with neighbors happened to be driving by and called 911.
The neighbors were able to get in and save the cat.
Even the pet fish managed to survive!
But the house did not.
The fire tore through the attic.
The attic that held the holiday decorations.
The attic that held the wedding dress and wedding decorations I, and others, had made for them.
The attic that held totes upon totes of clothing for her kids--clothes being passed on to the littlest, the next season/size for the oldest that had been gleaned from conscientious shopping of consignment sales.
As the fire tore through the attic, and as the firefighters battled the blaze with their water hoses, the ceiling gave way and all the careful cleaning that had occurred that very afternoon was wasted.
Smoke, water, charred debris littered every inch of what remained of their house.
This dear friend is a phenomenal couponer--utilizing coupons to stock a food storage for her family for pennies on the dollar. She isn't wasteful or greedy like the Extreme Couponers. She is a wise manager of her home, pantry, and budget. Her modest stockpile is gone. Where they once had peace of mind about having food and goods (like dish detergent) to squeak through tight times, they now have nothing.
No home, no pantry stash, lost family history memorabilia...
But they have each other. They have their family. They have their extended family. They have friends. They have a few belongings that a disaster clean-up company is trying to make usable once more.
For me, seeing the pictures of during and after was heart-wrenching. All the effort, planning, and expense literally down the drain. The realization that one is no longer prepared when their preparations go up in smoke.... How do you prepare your food storage for a house fire? How do you have a 72hr kit when the disaster strikes your home while you're away? And if you resort to keeping your 72hr kit in the vehicle, what do you do in the event of a vehicle fire or loss?
Yes, this line of thought could get bogged down in despair and paranoia. But what all of this reminds me of is a tale about a housefire in Arizona where a tearful 5yo boy, while watching his house burn, declared that he didn't lose his home. That was his house burning, but his home was wherever his family was.
Fortunately they were not home when it happened.
Fortunately somebody familiar with neighbors happened to be driving by and called 911.
The neighbors were able to get in and save the cat.
Even the pet fish managed to survive!
But the house did not.
The fire tore through the attic.
The attic that held the holiday decorations.
The attic that held the wedding dress and wedding decorations I, and others, had made for them.
The attic that held totes upon totes of clothing for her kids--clothes being passed on to the littlest, the next season/size for the oldest that had been gleaned from conscientious shopping of consignment sales.
As the fire tore through the attic, and as the firefighters battled the blaze with their water hoses, the ceiling gave way and all the careful cleaning that had occurred that very afternoon was wasted.
Smoke, water, charred debris littered every inch of what remained of their house.
This dear friend is a phenomenal couponer--utilizing coupons to stock a food storage for her family for pennies on the dollar. She isn't wasteful or greedy like the Extreme Couponers. She is a wise manager of her home, pantry, and budget. Her modest stockpile is gone. Where they once had peace of mind about having food and goods (like dish detergent) to squeak through tight times, they now have nothing.
No home, no pantry stash, lost family history memorabilia...
But they have each other. They have their family. They have their extended family. They have friends. They have a few belongings that a disaster clean-up company is trying to make usable once more.
For me, seeing the pictures of during and after was heart-wrenching. All the effort, planning, and expense literally down the drain. The realization that one is no longer prepared when their preparations go up in smoke.... How do you prepare your food storage for a house fire? How do you have a 72hr kit when the disaster strikes your home while you're away? And if you resort to keeping your 72hr kit in the vehicle, what do you do in the event of a vehicle fire or loss?
Yes, this line of thought could get bogged down in despair and paranoia. But what all of this reminds me of is a tale about a housefire in Arizona where a tearful 5yo boy, while watching his house burn, declared that he didn't lose his home. That was his house burning, but his home was wherever his family was.
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