Leaving Oz

My Speechless Ultrasound

I wanted to send an update about my latest prayer request.  For months, I've been dreading what I had to go through being over 35 years old and pregnant.  I've been asking for peace of mind to get through the genetic ultrasound done that is done at 18 weeks. 

When the test was done for my first pregnancy, there were multiple "markers" that indicated brain damage, down syndrome, and trisonomy 18 defects. We forewent doing the amnio, since we were committed to have the baby, defect or no defect.  We had to undergo regular testing to monitor the status.  Needless to say, we endured months of tears, agony for months, waiting to see something change.  It wasn't until testing was done later in the pregnancy showed that everything was fine.  The results had been false negative.

So going into the test this second time, Hubby and I were very stressed.  We braced ourselves for a set of "markers" and a pregnancy frought with worry once again.

Coming Out as a Christian

No, I'm not gay.  But, psst.  I'm a Christian.  Surrounded by a lawyer who just got off a tough work day, a Manhattan mom in kitten heels, a Los Angeles writer, and the company of Silicon Valley moms, I came out of the proverbial closet about being a Christian.  Not by announcing it.  By simply passing out my business card, which had Leaving Oz as a "Christian Moms Blog" printed on it.

A few weeks ago, I was registered to attend the annual BlogHer Conference (2,500+ attendee conference for women bloggers).  And to kick off the festivities, I was invited to attend the Night Before Party at Slide, a really uber hip, private club in downtown San Francisco hosted by Yahoo, Chevy and Saks Fifth Avenue, just for the writers of the Silicon Valley Moms Blog.

I was feeling very excited about getting my hair done in the city, dressing up for a night out on town and checking out such a cool party as part of an exclusive community of writers.  Little did I know that I would be challenged that night by my own feelings of inadequacy and fears of being known as a Christian.

 

 

My July 4th Prayer

I love July 4th.  When I was out in the workplace, it meant I'd get a three day weekend out of the office.  Not only that.  Tack on some personal vacation days and voila! I get an extended time away for a long trip somewhere.

But this year as mom, I'm especially sentimental about July 4th.  It's not only a date on the calendar. God reminded me this holiday to be thankful for being a mom in the US.

There is so much unrest in the world, violence, war, and death.  Our country is also in the midst of internal turmoil, with bad blood between those of the extreme left or right on political party lines. 

Surviving the Summer Without Preschool

"Looook, Mommy! .. I have a silly hat!"  TJ runs headlong into me with a plastic bin over his head, giving me a headbutt as I try to clean off the kitchen counter.  Ouch!  That hurt!

Yep. This is what I signed up for as a stay-at-home/work-at-home mom.  I started my own online business so that I can have my own flex hours and be able to hang out with TJ during the day.

Little did I know that my summer without preschool was gonna be tougher than I thought.

"Aaaahhhh...", I thought, drifting into my romanticized motherhood day dream. "Summer is gonna be great!  We can go to the beach, have picnic with friends, and hit the swimming pools.  Finally, TJ has passed the baby stage.  He's old enough to actually understand (somewhat) fun activities, can withstand more than 15 minute car ride, and is flexible with his nap times."  Day by day, I chart out his calendar so we can have some summer fun.

But still, I can't always be out and about, like some camp counselor day in and day out.

My Father's Day On This Side of Heaven

Father's Day is really all about dads. This year, it was also meaningful for me as a mom.  Since I grew up with a single parent mom, I've had the girl-power version of a family.  Whenever people find this out about me, sad expressions wash over their faces and their voices lower a couple notches.  They ask me gently, "What's it like growing up without a father?"

As a young girl, my reaction to this kind of question was kind of a blank stare.  "Uh, I don't know.. "  I was never quite sure how to answer this question.  I relate to other people who were born without a limb, who I've  heard answer,"You can't miss what you've never had."

As I grew older, though, I came to resent that question.  First of all, a lot of people who ask me this question may not even know me.  And I think it's a rather personal question, you know?  Like if it really was tough to answer, especially for some kids who do have memories of their dad living with them.  I felt it was very rude for people to ask right up front.

The second reason I came to hate this question was that I realized when people asked it, they assumed that there would be some dark, terrible, or sad answer. 

Soaking Swim Trunks Can Be Dangerous

No, I'm not moving.  That is not why the cabinets under the sink are empty.  And no, there wasn't a break-in committed at our house.  There is a logical explanation to why all the drawers have been pulled out and everything is gone.

You see, it's summertime.  TJ finally got to sport his new Thomas The Tank Engine swim trunks.  I forgot to wash them the day before when I peeled them off him.  So, now they smell a bit like dried chlorine. 

And what I love to do often is what I call "soaking".  Soaking is my secret household weapon that Hubby continually finds baffling. 

"Can I help wash these dirty dishes in the sink?"  Hubby likes looking at an empty, cleaned up sink.

"They're soaking.  I'll get to them."  Soaking is used when I'm multi-tasking around the house.

"Um, what about this wet shirt in the bathroom sink?" Hubby hollers from upstairs.

"Yeah, those are soaking too." Oh, shoot.  I need to scrub that stain out before it actually disintegrates the one shirt I love.

"But, weren't they soaking here earlier this morning?" Uh.. oops.

A Stress Mess: My Problem with Limits

My body decided to hold a protest last weekend.  I didn't get any warning about it's complaints. At least, I didn't catch it before hand.  No,my body decided to just call it quits. Kaput. I-am-no-longer-working-for-you-anymore type of rebellion.

When did my body decide to throw in the towel?  Yep.  Saturday night, right before my kickoff meeting with all the LeavingOz mom writers the next day.  Hubby and I had just returned from our monthly date night out.  I was in seventh heaven. 

As I got ready for bed, I noticed splotches of red bumps appearing all over the front and back of my body! What?! My first thought was, "Okay, it was probably the lamb I ate at that new Afghan place tonight." As another hour passed, the bumps had turned into welts. Itching and burning welts which were swelling up in large masses. HIVES. Okay, now I was really freaking out.

A Blog is Born

It is late Friday night.  Usually I'm kicking back, breathing a sigh of relief that I've survived the week.  But, not tonight.  It's crunch time to put together the odds and ends of preparing Leaving Oz's Kick-Off Get Together on Sunday 6/1/08. 

I am so excited.  There will be thirteen Christian moms coming from different locations around Silicon Valley.  Together, we represent 6 different churches in the area.  I am so looking forward to getting to know all these fellow moms.  And what better way than through blogging! 

Blogging is where it's at, 'cuz it means we gonna be sharing real, unedited slices out of our crazy lives as moms.

What makes a good blogging team? ..