I am no different than any other parent out there. I am just trying to do the best that I can for my kids. I am incredibly blessed to have three beautiful, wonderful, amazing, healthy children. It is that moment of birthing my first child, Ariana, that I realized that my life is no longer my own. Everything I do, think, and desire to be is to benefit them. When I had Ariana I became very aware of my surroundings and everything that I did. I had a wonderful teacher in my own Mom but I realized that there was so much more that we now know. I have melded what has been passed on to me from my Mom, Grandma, Great-Grandma and so on - but I've also incorporated a whole new way of thinking with it. We are sooo incredible lucky to be parents today. Yes, I know that sounds funny because most of the time we are hearing about how things are more messed up today. And yes, that is true but we are so much more knowledgeable now also. I love the simple things. I love the simple life. I love nature and what it has to offer us, how it can benefit us, and how we can use simple nature to create magnificant results in our children that our parents simply didn't know to do.
The purpose of this blog is to share. I want you to share, and I want to share with you. We are all, as parents, out there trying to make things better for our kids. No different really than our parents tried to do for us, or what any parent desires to do.
The reason I do what I do is because I love my babies sooo much that I can't imagine a world without them. When you find something that makes a difference, what do we do? We share it!!!! So let me start with who inspires me.
Ariana - this is my oldest. She is about 4 months away from 9 yrs old. As she likes to remind me, she is only 4 yrs away from being a teenager. Oh Lord...Really! Ariana is pure sweetness. She is everything I wish I could be. She is kind, loving, caring, peaceful, easy-going...and a gift. She amazes me. She came into this world perfect, then at 4 days old we learned the harsh reality of parenthood. When you become a parent your heart no longer beats inside your chest, it walks and talks and breathes and grows...it is your child. Well, our child ended up in the NICU with SEVERE jaundice. Her prognisis wasn't good, thank God I chose not to believe that the doctors were in charge of her prognisis. The after effects of her rocky start in this cruel world have been a severe lazy eye issue. She's had surgery once already and is going to need another in the coming year. A testimant to her personality is something she has said more than once to me, "Mommy, Did God give me lazy eye so that I can be a friend to another child just like me. Is that why God gave me lazy eye?" Yes baby, God knew you were special.
Nicholas - my middle child, my son, 7 yrs old. He is a combination of both my husband and I. He has that 0 to 60 mach 10 Italian Temper from my husband, he is sooo sweet and loving like any good Dutch person would be, and he is a strong, stubborn German all rolled into one amazing little boy. I don't know what else to say about Nicholas other than that he is Mommy's Little Boy. The bond between a mother and a son is an amazing thing. I love that he is different than me, but sometimes the same as me. And, not going to lie, I love that his world revolves around his mommy. That is such a cool thing to experience.
Bianca - my baby...she's 4. Bianca is soooo strong, I know that whatever she does or whatever she is confronted with in this life - she will conquer it. Bianca was our little surprise. I have to admit, shamefully, that finding out I was pregnant with her was initially not a happy moment for me. Only because I had really wrapped my mind around the fact that Nicholas was our last. Then...the surprise came. It took me a bit to absorb that we were going to have another child. At 16 weeks into my pregnancy, I was loosing her. Doctors told us she'd never make it full term, she'd be severly mentally challenged, physically challenged, and that was all IF she made it through to a live birth. Again, Thank God I didn't listen to the Doctors and instead listened to my mother's instinct...and a whole lotta prayer. Bianca, who they said would be VERY premature, didn't come out until a full 42 weeks - yep, a full two weeks past her due date. And she has no mental or physical issues at all. She's a fighter. She came into this world from the get go saying "NO, you will not determine my fate in life, I'll do that thank you very much." She is my payback child. She is me. Extremely social...sometimes to a fault, and nobody tells her how to be. She will decide that. She is proof that there are miracles today, not just in what we read about.
I had all three of my kids in a birth center, not a hospital. I did so because I wanted to have a "natural child birth". It's not a disease, it's birth. Back to my quest to have "simple" in my life. I had my babies, and was home with them 4 hours later, recouperating in the comforts of my own home. I believe that every woman has the right to choose how they birth their children so I don't criticize anyone, this is just what was right for me. If I really look at what started my path to where I am today, it was the experience of birth with midwives, depending on "nature" to do it's job that led me to where I am today. I feel the need to share, because I know what the statistics are out there, that my girls were both over 8 and 1/2 lbs and my son...was born natural...with no drugs...and NO C-Section and he weighed in at a whopping 10 lbs. 5 oz. And guess what, I didn't die from it like the Dr. said "it can't be done" Bull-honkey!
Am I a tree hugging vegitarian/vegan/raw person! H-E-double hockey sticks NO. I come from a farm family that believes that we sit on the top of the food chain and I love a good steak! What I do believe is that we are a society that depends to much on modern technology and modern medicine to cure what ails us. Today, we believe that a garden can't grow without some sort of chemical to fertilize it's exhistance. We believe that the only way to clean our house or feed our families is by what we can buy in the store...because our glorious government wouldn't allow products into this great nation that will "harm" or "kill" us. Again, choosing not to believe what they tell me, going with my mother's instinct on this one. I don't want to be a parent that looses my child to cancer or leukemia, who"s child is plaugued with Asthma, Allergies, ADD, ADHD, or the ever growing Autism. Do I think I have the "cure"? No! Do I think I know how to "stave it off" or lessen the chances in my children? YES!!!! I believe that our bodies are machines, much like any other machine, and if you "feed" it the right gasoline, get your regular tune-ups, and take care of it with regular maintenance...your body will perform at it's peak of performance consistently. So here is the beginnning.
It's not about making a big giant leap, it's about making a few small changes, sharing them with others, and seeing how those changes lead to other changes. And, it's about looking back 50 years from now knowing that I did the BEST I could do for my family. I hope you will share your experiences too!
The Health of a Child - cannot be measured.
