Mostly Good News

I say mostly because the topic of the house construction sends me into to serious stress mode. This in turn makes me have Braxton-Hicks contractions which stress me out even more. It is not a pleasant cycle in which to find oneself. However, thanks to a MUCH NEEDED mommy-chat this morning I am feeling better. It is so nice to have my mom back on her own turf (she just got to go home from caring for Nana!) because I don't feel near as guilty when I call to whine and cry and ask her to cheer me up. In turth, chatting with her this morning just sort of affirmed that I am not insane, my logical thinking skills still work, and despite the pregnancy hormones that are ruling my life I can indeed still function as a productive member of society. Thanks Mom for helping me feel normal again!

Now for the good stuff....Paris is having a great day! See, for a while we have been re-evaluating our discipline strategies with her. She has been pushing the limits to say the least. Easy and I have talked some things over and we (with the help of my best girlfriend who happens to be a Marriage and Famiy Therapist - we went to grad school together) made a pretty good plan - we think. Then I implented half of it. Things seemed better for about a week and then the insanity resumed. It occured to me this week that I never did the other half of our plan! So, today Paris helped me make her star chart. It simply includes a calendar and three color blocks - green, yellow, and red. We discussed what happens when she ends the day on which color. How she moves from green where she starts each day down the "stoplight" of colors. She seemed to get it and we had the most peacful rest time she has had in probably six months! She has had to move to yellow today, but she's also gotten a special green star in her square for obeying the very first time I told her to clean her room! You would think that with a degree in psychology and in marriage/family therapy I wouldn't need a reminder that incentives and rewards for good behavior are frequently much more effective than consequences for disobedience and "poor choices" as we say in our house. Who knows if this will make as great a difference in the coming days/months, but as of right now I feel like the light at the end of the tunnel is closer and we may indeed find a way to handle some of these parenting challenges that have plauged us the last few months.

And lastly....I started reading a great book. Captivating by John and Stasi Elderidge. If you are familiar with Wild at Heart, this is essentially the book John and Stasi cowrote for/about women. I've only read two chapters and I must say that I already feel more validated in my skin. I have been reminded that God did indeed make me the way I am for a reason and that some of the things society sees as weakness in a woman were put there by the Master himself. I'm looking forward to the rest of the book. With all the stress of the house and pending childbirth I think the timing could not be better to read something that puts me back in perspective in the world. I am a creation of God and as the bumber stickers say, "God Don't Make No Junk!"