A Quick Story

I thought I'd share a funny little story with you all from church today. I was sitting in church during Sacrament meeting (Brandon had to work today so it was just Y and myself. There was a little 7 year old girl sitting in front of us and while Sacrament was being passed she turns around looks at me, then at Y, and back to me and then she whispers, "Is that your baby?" I quietly nodded my head yes. The she looks at me in a curious way and asks, "Your real baby?" Needless to say I thought this was hilarious. I'm sure that when I go out with Y there are many adults who want to ask the same question but wouldn't dare or maybe they just assume that I'm the babysitter or nanny. But she's all mine and I have the scar to prove it!

From the mouth of babes...

Favorite Mommy Moments #6-9

Here's a few more of my favorite Mommy Moments:

• The look on her face when she half smiles by opening her mouth and pressing her gums (still no teeth) together. She then continues to make a noise by sucking air in and out, over and over again.
• The way she stares curiously at things when she is trying to figure out how they work or what is going on around her. She does this a lot when I turn on the shower. I guess she is used to seeing the water come from the faucet when we fill her tub, but the whole shower head thing seems a bit foreign to her.
• Watching her sleep.
• Often when she is sitting on my lap, regardless of whether she is hungry or not, she will move her head from one boob to the other like she's trying to eat it. It's actually quite funny to watch, I have named it appropriately "Bobbing for Boobies."

Twitter

So I've been hearing about this whole Twitter revolution and have decided to check it out. I've had it for a whole half an hour now but can't say that I'm completely sold on it yet. I've had my MySpace account forever and my Facebook account just short of forever but will admit that it took me a while to truly become a fan of either. I also tried the one called Hi5 but it seemed to be more for "teeny boppers" and so I deleted that one. Also, since so many of my friends are now on Facebook my interest in MySpace is quickly waning as well. I guess we will have to see how the whole Twitter thing goes, I have decided that I will at least give it a try for a while and I must admit that I like the idea of being able to update my page via text messaging. Part of the reason it took me so long to try it was due to the idea that I would have to log onto the internet on my phone in order to use it and I only use the data (internet) feature when I absolutely have to but text messaging I can do. So if you happen to be on Twitter you can follow me: http://twitter.com/ulovettfox

Easter

We had a lovely Easter spent in Canada with family. Claudia and Åsmund have been visiting from Norway and we were finally able to see them and Y able to meet them for the very first time. We really enjoyed our visit and getting away for a couple of days, we even think that Y is started to get used to their place a little more. Anyways, here are some pictures from this weekend!

Personal Reflections

I just finished wrapping Y's Easter gifts, all of which deal with Christ and as I looked at each one I began reflecting back on the past 15-16 months or so (from the time we got pregnant until now) and how different my life and my life's path have become. It's not an easy task being Mormon and I definitely won't sit here and say that I've always been a picture perfect one. And being the very imperfect being that I am makes me that much more grateful for the Atonement of Christ. I was once told two very important things and I never completely understood them until becoming a mother. The first was that as I went through the temple for the first time I would "receive understanding, light and knowledge and personal revelation as to your purposes here on earth and the true meaning of life and family." I can say that I did learn a lot that day but I'm not completely sure I learned that. The second thing was that my most choice blessing was to be a mother and that I will teach them the principles of the Gospel through my example and testimony as well as teaching them the commandments of their Heavenly Father. I guess that until I became a mother I never really saw it as being a blessing, I approached it more like it was a job. However, now, that I am a mother when I reflect back to those very important passages I realize that if I never succeed in teaching Y anything else, I must succeed in teaching her that her Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love her unconditionally. That is my life's purpose and as long as I can succeed in teaching her that then everything else will somehow work itself out. Now, that may sound like an easy task but coming from someone who has always struggled with feeling worthy of that unconditional love it can be a tough task. I will say this though, being a mother has brought me so much closer to Heavenly Father and Christ because it has taught me to seek help from Them much more often. Again, I am so very grateful for the Atonement of Christ, for His ultimate sacrifice, and for all the blessings that I have received because of it. Sometimes I feel as if this blog is not the best place for me to post my spiritual thoughts but maybe it should be. Happy Easter, everyone. 143!

The Tyra Show and Race

So I'm sitting here watching Tyra Bank's talk show and I must say that I am a little concerned. The show is about race and one segment of the show focused solely on mixed raced women who identify solely with one of their races and hate the other. Why does this concern me? Because I have a multiracial daughter (black, white, hispanic) and I want her to love each of her races equally. I don't want her to feel that one is better than the other or to hate the idea that she is interracial. I've never really thought that she would grow up to show any preference for one of her races and watching this show I guess it just struck me that it could potentially happen and that I need to do all in my power to guarantee that it doesn't, that she never feels one race or culture is inferior to another. I think that maybe these women on this show had some horrible experience as a child that caused them to have these views. It's truly sad to watch and see how ignorant they are towards themselves and how they have stereotyped these races and by doing so are stereotyping themselves. I can't see into the future and know what Y will be like when she grows up but I do know that it is up to me (at least partially) to make sure she loves herself for everything that she is. Fortunately I feel that we live in an area and surround ourself with people who will allow her to feel comfortable with who she is but I guess what causes me concern is knowing that one day she will start school and she will be faced with issues that I never had to face because she is interracial. I'd like to think that it won't make a difference but since I've never experienced it I can't really say that and be 100% sure that it's true. B is mixed race and has told me of how it was growing up being half Mexican in Sarnia and honestly I'm hoping that since we live in a more culturally diverse area that Y won't have those issues. I dunno, but I do know that in the next 4½ years before she starts school I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure she loves each of her cultures and even those cultures that she's not a part of. Maybe we'll ship her off to spend time with relatives in different parts of the world. Likely that method won't happen so I'll try to do all I can here at home!

Can't Wait for Summer!!

Why, you may ask...well aside from the snow that we got overnight because we just purchased Y's first swimsuit. Actually I suppose it's more of a tankini. It's 2 pieces but the top is longer and covers more than a bikini top. Anyway, here's some pictures. I can't wait to see her in it but seeing as I don't swim and have no interest in doing so, I haven't owned a swimsuit since I was about 9 years old or so. I guess that means it's a special time she can spend with daddy! Anyway, here's the pictures:

Another Month Has Passed...

My precious baby is now 7 months old!! I cannot believe how fast the time has gone as I look back over it. I am enjoying so much being a mommy and I'm really saddened by how fast it has all gone by. She is such a joy to be around and just seems to be happy a lot of the time. I am told that even when I think she is being cranky that she's still pretty mellow, I guess Heavenly Father blessed me with an angel for my first born so that I would definitely have more. I sometimes think back to when she was first born and I would often get a little sad as I considered how B and I wouldn't have as much time to spend together because we would be so focused on taking care of Y. Well I won't tell you that I don't miss being able to do whatever we wanted whenever we wanted but I will tell you that my somber views were slightly misguided because now I can't picture my life without Y in it. I love my little girl so much, words simply cannot express it. Anyway, enough about me...this is all about Y!

I know I'm a couple of days late but on Saturday Y turned 7 months old and I snapped a few pictures of her for your viewing pleasure. I tried to get a video but every time I begin filming she stops whatever she is doing and just stares blankly at the camera, and that's really not much fun so I won't post the video. She can roll over but only does it when she wants to do it. She can also sit up, but again, only when she wants to. She loves to laugh, touch and pull mommy's hair, smile, make noises that sound like a chirping cricket. She sleeps through the night again but isn't the greatest napper. She absolutely LOVES her bath, actually I just think she likes to make sure that mommy and daddy get just as wet as she does. I told B that with the way she kicks those legs and treads water she should be a swimmer. She doesn't even care that she splashes water in her face and eyes! Oh yeah, and she still has no teeth and from what I can tell it doesn't look like they're coming anytime soon. Her cousin, G, is 8½ months old and still has no teeth either so I guess we're just late bloomers. She is truly a fun baby and a joy to be around! I always snap pictures on her month-day (and lots of other days), so here they are: