Shannon Yee

When I signed in at Jungle Java I signed a waiver as Eila’s parent/guardian and didn’t really think much of it. After lots of fun playing and a little eating, I took Josiah to use the toilet and while we were washing our hands one of the other little girls with us came to tell me that Eila needed me. So, we quickly returned to the table where our stuff was and I found Eila sobbing hysterically.
In the few minutes I was gone, she had been dancing and singing near some other girls who apparently didn’t like it and started pushing, punching and scratching her. Another mom saw it and stop it as they were getting ready to kick her. As I write these words I feel so angry and sad and helpless. I want so badly to protect my kids from any kind of harm or evil and I can’t really do that at all.
Eila calmed down (not terribly physically hurt) and the girls apologized; she forgave them and went back to playing. I am still at a loss for how to respond and help Eila respond in the future. But I am very certain that guardian is not the right term for me (today, at least).

I had a lapse of good parenting judgement today. Josiah has suddenly decided that he’d like to wear undies instead of diapers and is doing so. When we were playing outside and he needed to take care of business, I let him just go in the grass rather than taking him inside. Unfortunately, Eila thought that seemed like a great idea and before I knew it she was joining him and then there were two naked kids running around the yard. They quickly got on their bikes and escaped to the front yard streaking down the sidewalk. Our neighbors found them very amusing along with my attempts to corral two very naked kids back home.

After about a month of constant help, I ventured into the world with all three kids and it is a lot like adjusting to two kids for me. The hard part is not having a new baby, but the same other kids who have a slightly more tired mom with a little less patience and reasonable, logical thinking. A continuation of pregnancy sort of, except that I’m more comfortable physically and can take the baby out if desired…

Okay, two more things to be thankful for are health and help.

I made a special trip to U of M today with Thaddeus and am so thankful for my good friend, who graciously agreed to take both of the other kids even though J was throwing up last night and not only that, she made us dinner too!

Thad has had a pretty rough go of this cold that he got from Siah and was having some signs of breathing trouble, so we were sent to the ER and after a brief check by several doctors, he was given the all clear with just a stuffy nose.

So, thank God for friends who help and for baby brother’s health.

Being thankful should be so easy. I know all the things I have to be thankful for, and yet I find myself wanting to complain all the time and having a hard time not being cranky all the time. This week I have been especially irritated at everything, pretty much all the time.

I was/am irritated that my B-H contractions turned to real contractions and then no baby. I’m irritated that Eila and Josiah aren’t perfect and that my house is constantly in need of cleaning and we always need to eat. I should be thankful that we have a really nice house and lots of toys and art projects to make messes with and plenty of food to eat. I should also be thankful that baby boy is developing perfectly and that my body is getting ready for labor. I should be thankful, and I’m trying… sort of.

I love Sundays. In our house, we try to keep them as a family day. Church can sometimes be a little busy since Brian and I often have to be there at different times with varying responsibilities, but today we were both just regular church attenders. On Sundays, I especially enjoy Brian helping with dinner and often making it all complete with grocery shopping since we are often out of food at this point. Today was no exception and he took Josiah to the grocery store with him, while Eila finished napping. We had family nap time and then went for a walk around the block enjoying the great outdoors. We all cleaned up together after dinner and then watched the space shuttle launch. And, Brian and I watched the end of High School Musical 3. It was a perfect lazy Sunday.

I had wanted to post my thoughts on my birthday about the previous year and hopes for the upcoming year… I had actually wanted to do that at the new year, but my good intentions didn’t amount to much.

I’ll try to keep this short and sweet, but since I am a woman of many words, who knows how much I will actually write.

I am very blessed in every way. I have a fabulous family (both immediate and extended, including my in-laws and step-family and all the others too!) My husband has a great job that he enjoys with relative security, given that we live in the worst-hit area economically. I have two healthy and bright kids. I am pregnant and love it. I cannot think of anything that I should be able to complain about.

So, for this year I really want to focus on being grateful and showing my thankfulness and contentment in all that I do. Practically speaking that means simple things like just expressing appreciation out loud or in writing more often. It also includes things like being more patient with my kids and showing satisfaction who they are now even when I don’t like what they are doing or it is messing up my plans. And I have lots of plans every day, but gracefully accepting the inevitable disruptions is a big part of being grateful, I think.

I guess even though I’m now in my thirties, I am still a work in progress and really not that much farther along in many ways than my two and four year-olds. I am thankful though that I get the chance to make some changes and grow each day.

Tagged again… Consider your self tagged if you are interested and have a firstborn.

1. WAS YOUR PREGNANCY PLANNED?
Yes

2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME?
Yes

3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS?
Happy, excited…

4. WAS ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU?
No, never

5. HOW OLD WERE YOU?
26

6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT YOU WERE PREGNANT?
A pregnancy test, but I’d been charting and knew based on temps and timing.

7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST?
We told both of our parents, but then no one else until quite a bit later.

8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX?
Yes

9. DUE DATE?
January 19, 2005

10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS?
No

11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE?
Water

12.WHAT IRRITATED YOU?
Lots of stuff, but the same things that irritate me anyway.

13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CHILD’S SEX?
Female

14. DID YOU WISH YOU HAD THE OPPOSITE SEX OF WHAT YOU WERE GETTING?
No. I just wanted a healthy baby.

15. HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY?
about 25

16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER?
Yes

17. WAS IT A SURPRISE OR DID YOU KNOW?
No surprises

18. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY?
No

19. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH?
Providence Alternative Birth Center

20. HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR?
33

21. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL?
Brian

23. DID YOUR WATER BREAK NATURALLY?
Yes. Well, it didn’t really break as much as leak.

24. WAS IT VAGINAL OR C-SECTION?
Vaginal

25. DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN?
No. I had a natural, wonderful birth experience.

26. WHO WATCHED YOU GIVE BIRTH?
Midwife, ABC nurses, and Brian.

27. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH?
6 lbs. 10 oz.

28. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN?
January 16, 2005 at 8:40am

29. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM/HER?
Eila Rose Yee

30. BIGGEST SURPRISE DURING CHILDBIRTH?
No real surprises, but I guess my being in transition and wanting to push on the way to the hospital was a bit surprising.

31. GREATEST MEMORY ABOUT CHILDBIRTH?
The great support of my husband/coach and the thrill of actually holding a healthy baby in my arms.

31. DID YOU BREASTFEED?
Yes.

32. HOW OLD IS YOUR FIRST BORN TODAY?
She turned 4 about 2 weeks ago.

I was tagged (a few times and a while ago…), so here it is:

1. I feel badly about hogging the computer and writing this up instead of talking to my husband.
2. My husband is playing WOW and probably glad that I’m not talking to him.
3. I like to give advice, when asked for it especially, but also if not asked.
4. My favorite food is fresh-baked cookies.
5. I really dislike pickles, fennel (anise), and dill.
6. Going to a fancy restaurant and spending several hours eating fine cuisine with good company is the best.
7. I enjoy being the center of Josiah’s world, but am really anxious for him to ask for Daddy at 3am instead of me.
8. I know all about breech babies – turning, delivering, types, etc.
9. I hope that all this breech baby info will be totally unnecessary for me.
10. My little sister is getting married this summer.
11. I could use a massage right now.
12. I’m reading three books and four magazines whenever I get the chance.
13. I love to cook with my husband.
14. I do not like grocery shopping and meal planning.
15. I’m really excited to go to Ohio this weekend for my nephew’s first birthday.
16. Josiah is getting really good about the potty; that makes me feel strangely very proud.
17. I haven’t talked to my birth-father since before Christmas and might not until next Christmas.
18. I talked to my step-father last night and will again tomorrow.
19. High School Musical 2 is in the DVD player.
20. My feet get really cold now that we moved the computer next to the large front window.
21. Even the picture on the front of The Shield DVD case disturbs me.
22. Both of my kids are sleeping on the floor by their own choice (and do every night).
23. I need three pillows to get comfy at night, but would prefer four or five.
24. Last night I slept about for about four hours total with various interruptions: Josiah, Josiah, Josiah, baby boy, Josiah, baby boy…
25. I think I’ve decided on baby boy’s name, but I don’t know if Brian agrees.

For Christmas, Brian got me the book Clean House, Clean Planet and while we were vacationing in AZ, I read most of it and then started to make some products when we returned. I had already been using my own versions sporadically, but found that these recipes are much better than my own. I especially like her disinfectant spray, which is simply water, liquid soap and tea tree oil. I’ve been using the peppermint Dr. Bronner’s soap and love the smell. I also found that her Earth Scrub recipe works wonderfully. It is the replacement for Soft Scrub and was great at cleaning my bathroom and kitchen. The kids sort of helped and everything smelled really good (like peppermint again!).

For my birthday (which isn’t until next week…), I got myself a few months of someone coming to clean my house. She did a great job cleaning my house, but it smelled so strongly of bleach in the bathroom that I had to open all the windows in the house and turn on all the fans for a long while after she left. So, I think that I’ll give her my new homemade cleaners for the next time. Making the cleaners takes a few minutes at most and is really easy, so it shouldn’t take away from the pampering of having someone else clean my house at all!