Why I Love Milk Crates

I stood in my basement and realized I had an empty milk crate.  Oh the possibilities!  Of course it can only hold large items with such holes all over it. 

I was taken back to my college days.  How many dorm rooms used them as impromptu bookshelves?  When I started college my mom purchased two yellow crates for me.  They were a tad larger than ones smuggled from behind the grocery and the walls much thinner.  Since they were new and properly purchased, they also did not stink of sour milk (a scent hard to shake from the ill-gotten ones).  Their larger size allowed to be a proper laundry basket.  Once it was full it was ready for a trip to the laundromat!

The red, illegal ones provided good storage and sturdy transport.  Did you know the ones nabbed from the dark alleys behind dairies are contraband?  I mean besides the theft of lifting something that doesn't belong to you?  They state quite clearly on the side there is a sizable fee for illegal possession.

Despite such dire warnings, they have been lifted by resourceful students across the country.  There were girls in my dorm who became even more resourceful by grabbing several carloads of crates and began distributing them to their neighbors.  Three or four towers of red, yellow, and green crates stood ceiling high in their tiny room.  Oh and the stench!  Showers lit up that night as girls across the dorm scrubbed their new storage devices.

But what am I supposed to DO about possessing a milk crates graciously given to me?  I do not know of a milk crate contraband buy-back program.  And I certainly don't want to toss a perfectly useful item in the trash.  They have stayed with me through the years providing various services.  Currently one holds unpacked treasure from my old house and another sits empty in my pantry awaiting its next assignment.

Slip Slidin Away

Several weeks ago we had our first ice event.  During my commute to work, I hit a major backup at the on-ramp to another highway.  So as I sat and waited.  And waited.  And sat.  I watched car after car slide their way across.  WHILE A SNOW PLOW WAITED IN THE TRAFFIC JAM.  Three cars in front of me.  And no one would let him through!

So while I waited, I snapped a picture

And through my super awesome technology goddess skillz I zoomed in on the slip sliding cars

Blizzard AKA Doom and Gloom Armageddon 2014

Evidently a crazy freeze vortex or some such technical term descended on the midwest.  Poor little St. Louis Missouri was in the crosshairs and this is the third day of the city and surrounding counties are basically shut down.  I've been enjoying the days off work, not that I've done anything particularly productive.  I'm hoping today to finally get my Christmas tree taken down.  Or level up on Candy Crush Saga.  Whichever comes first.

I've taken pictures around the yard but I find myself missing my old house!  This yard is 4 or 5 times larger but that old one had lots of architectural features that made for great photography.  I've been itching to establish a fabulous garden here.  Hopefully next winter will have some of those structural features.

It wasn't a complete wash

This was from the snow on New Year's.  I love how the sun glistens off the snow.

On Sunday we received over 10 inches of snow.  There are no tracks in my yard except a highway of sorts between two trees for the squirrels and this one single set of rabbit tracks going from a tall bush to this scrawny tree.  Or is it the other way around?  I can't tell.

Several neighbors have large snow drifts.  My yard only has swirls.... not that I'm disappointed.

Advice To My Pregnant Daughter

Yes, another grandchild is on the horizon.  If you're keeping count that would be THREE grandbabies!  This arrival will be a first for my daughter.

There is so much to say and so many questions to answer.  Of course I am instantly brought back to my first pregnancy.  26 years ago today I was eight months along and done being pregnant.  If the icky pukey morning sickness stage is miserable, just wait, seven/plus pounds of wiggly fetus pressing on your bladder, colon, stomach, kidneys, rib cage, lungs and whatever else that stinker can stretch out and reach will make you wish you were hugging a toilet, hacking up a handful of crackers.

For however gross and uncomfortable it all is and will be, it is totally worth it.  This is a unique journey not afforded everyone.  And your first time?  Truly magical.  This is the time you can truly appreciate what miracles your body can produce.  There is an actual PERSON growing in there.  I remember rubbing the nearly non-existent bump and humming songs.  If you love music I'm sure it's because how much exposure you had before you took your first breath.  Unlike my next two pregnancies, when I had oooohhh YOU running amuck, I could focus completely on the changes my body was making as you grew.  I found it fascinating and I hope you do too.

So, for my actual advice:

Take time to journal your experience.  This baby will not allow you the peace and quiet necessary to gather your thoughts during future pregnancies.

Sleep.  I'm pretty sure I taught you the value of sleep, but let me remind you.  It is as vital to your health and sanity as eating healthy.  Take naps often.  This is good training for after baby arrives that you let the dirty dishes sit so you can grab essential sleep.

Eat.  And eat right.  At the moment anything you can keep in your stomach is "right" but soon you'll be ready to rampage a buffet like a million teenage boys.  Keep yourself in check.  Milk, which includes cheese and milkshakes, are essential, but try to do so in moderate amounts.

Exercise.  I just could not master this one and am still paying the price.  Keep your body active, stretch regularly. 

DITCH ALL ADVICE BOOKS AND WEBSITES.  I quickly learned to disregard all of those helpful tips coming from every damn corner.  It's overwhelming, frequently counter-intuitive, and most of it does not apply to your situation.  Find a zen way to blow past it.  You only need to listen to your mother and your doctor :)  Actually, if you come across books like "What to Expect When You're Expecting" take them for the spirit they are intended, simply as a guide.  Seek advice for the clinical stuff and developmental stages, but all of the rest is just noise and treat it as such.

Building off that last one, avoid pregnancy/delivery war stories.  I've warned you about this one before and I'm sure you've already been subjected to horror stories.  Find a way to escape these conversations.  They are not helpful and could actually build unnecessary fear.

Fear.  It is natural.  I went through crazy bouts of paranoia and the nightmares were unreal.  They make sense if you think about it, your body is forcing you to protect this baby.  It is what makes you into a growling momma bear.  So hearing all of that other crap scaring you about delivery or your future baby's health is totally unneeded.  Your active imagination will fuel all of that without any help.  Find a grounded source to talk these things out - my ear is always available.

Take some time to consider your parenting style.  Think about what you did and did not like about your upbringing.  Be careful with the I-never's because that will bite you in the ass. 

God gives us nine months for a reason.  You may be ready to hold your little bundle right here and now, but the rest of us, especially daddy, need that time to absorb and prepare.  Be patient if he isn't quite on the same page.  Dads don't tend to accept the reality of a baby until they actually hold that pink, screaming child.  It is also during this time that your body trains you for waking up for a baby eating every two hours, adjusting your sense of smell so you can literally sense danger and identify your baby from all of the other ones in the nursery, and widening your hips so you can pass a watermelon.  It is all for a reason.  Ride the tide and appreciate it as literal steps in your development as a mother.

This baby is a blessing and my heart is simply bursting with pride and anticipation.

With all of my love,
Mom