Mississippi Queen

Wednesday Apr 29, 2009

Mississippi Queen

If you know what I mean
Mississippi Queen
She taught me everything
This lady she asked me
If I would be her man
You know that I told her
I'd do what I can

"Hmmm, what could this blog be about?" you're asking. Well, we're not going to Mississippi, that's for sure. And we've never met the queen. It's all about the music.

My latest goal is to get Jay to enjoy good music. He's recently started to dance along as his Fridge DJ (thanks, Aunt Jill!) plays the hits. Of course those "hits" are songs like "Ten Little Leapfrogs" and "The Days of the Week." Not exactly your high culture tunes. So, every day in the car, we sing along to the radio.

Yesterday, we were singing to one of my current favorites - Jason Mraz' "I'm Yours." Such a happy little tune and so easy to sing along with. Jay didn't seem to care one way or the other. So, when the song was over, I started surfing through the XM buttons. He didn't seem to even notice I was changing stations, until we hit Classic Rewind which was playing Mississippi Queen. Immediately, he began clapping and slapping his hand on the console in time to the song. No lie! Now, this song is not your happy little kid ditty. It's the real deal - 1970's classic rock. And he was clapping and slapping along like "Finally! Some REAL music!"

We've got a budding rock star on our hands, folks.

Posted at 02:10PM Apr 29, 2009 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[2]

Christ the Lord is Risen Today

Sunday Apr 12, 2009

Christ the Lord is Risen Today

Alleluia!

Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!

Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!

Sing, ye heav'ns, and earth reply, Alleluia!

Happy Easter! Easter is always a very reflective time to me. At church this morning, we stopped to remember those in our congregation who have died since last Easter. Lately, I've been very much missing my "Appie" who died just before Easter. Every Easter, we would dye eggs at her house, and she never seemed to mind that we left permanent splotches on her kitchen island. But the sermon today was about living in the present and remembering the fact that this moment is part of eternity. So I'm celebrating Easter with a sense of joy and real gratitude for the people I have in my live - and those who have been a part of my life and are now watching over from a distance.

We've had all kinds of fun ways to celebrate Easter this year. Jay got to experience his first Easter Egg Hunt, which his daycare held on the Capitol grounds. He wasn't too excited about hunting the eggs, but he did like putting eggs we found for him into his basket and opening them up to discover the treats inside. If only his mom would have let him eat the candy...

And yesterday we took him to get his portrait made in his new Easter outfit that LaLa gave him for his birthday. Cute as a button!

Okay, if that picture of him "dancing" in the center doesn't make you laugh, I don't know what will.

Happy Easter!

Posted at 02:19PM Apr 12, 2009 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[6]

Sounds like life to me...

Thursday Apr 02, 2009

Sounds like life to me...

Sounds like life to me, ain't no destiny
Yeah, the only thing for certain is uncertainty
You gotta hold on tight, just enjoy the ride
Get used to all this unpredictability, sounds like life
Man, I know its tough but you gotta suck it up
To hear you talk you're caught up in some tragedy
Sounds like life to me (sounds like life to me)

Sometimes when I write in the blog, I have a topic in mind and find a song to go along with it. Other times, I hear a song and it just such a perfect snapshot of my life at that moment that I just go with it. This (Sounds Like Life by Daryl Worley) is one of those songs.

A few months after Jay was born, when both Derek and I were trying to get into the routine of work/school/daycare/fix dinner/pack bottles & lunches/repeat, he got a little overloaded. In what we now both refer to as the "suck it up" speech, I apparently told him that this is your life now and you better come to grips with the fact that the time you used to spend lounging on the couch watching My Name is Earl is now taken up with time lounging on the floor and playing with Jay. And if you do get any free time, those dishes aren't washing themselves, thank you very much. I have no recollection of this conversation (remember, I was in a sleep-deprived coma for many months).

Then, a bit later, I had the same "I can't take it anymore!" kind of overwhelmed feeling. We were driving back from a trip, and I had a mini-breakdown in the car. I told Derek that we could never go out of town again because it's just too hard to pack the gazilion things that we have to bring JUST IN CASE and then come home to a house that's a wreck and not have had any time to prepare for the week ahead. And he ever-so-gently reminded me of the suck it up speech I had given him.

We even had to give the "suck it up" speech to some friends of ours. New Mom Friend was missing out on the fun of what she could do with her cutie pie in favor of what she "ought" to do. She had that overwhelmed look, and we could tell it took everything she had to get it together enough to come to church that morning. Derek (ever so gently!) told her about our suck it up speech ... and I think it helped. She's mentioned since that she's thought back to that conversation and been grateful for the reality check.

When everyone said "Parenthood will change your life" I imagined all the cutesy, snuggly ways my life would change. I even prepared for the sleepless nights and dirty diapers. Spit-up stains on my shirt? Bring 'em on. I guess I just wasn't prepared for the not-so-good ways that parenting would change my life. Namely, I wasn't ready for the fact that I will never again in my life feel like I'm organized and "together." So, back to the song. I heard it this morning in the shower, and I had to laugh. Someone finally wrote the suck it up speech into song.

This is our life. And we absolutely wouldn't trade the chaos for even one moment of peace and quiet.

Posted at 09:26PM Apr 02, 2009 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[2]

Comments:

TOJ, I love you...even though you don't feel organized and "together!" You're a kick butt Mommy!

Posted by TOOJ on April 06, 2009 at 06:29 AM EDT #

I have passed this now infamous speech onto others. Way to go guys. I hope everyone is feeling better, including the grandparents!

Have a wonderful Easter we love you all!

Posted by robin Perry on April 07, 2009 at 10:29 PM EDT #

Sick and tired of being sick and tired...

Friday Mar 27, 2009

Sick and tired of being sick and tired...

Everything around you's growin' old.
The days drag on, the nights last forever,
Every day's tougher just to keep it together.

(Can you name the band? Anyone? Hint: It's one of Derek's faves!)

Seriously, how long can a kid have a cold? Saying Jay has a "cold" is like saying Biltmore is a "house." The poor kid is sick with one of those nose-running, eyes-swelling, cough-inducing, snot-smearing, awful colds. He's been to the doctor twice, and twice we've gotten the reminder that there's nothing you can do about a virus or a cold except wait it out. Uggh. But the worst part is that he's just plain cranky! I know he's felt like crud, and I can't say I blame him. Unfortunately, when he feels like crud, his only way to make that known is to whine and cry. Which makes me want to whine and cry right back at him. Mature, I know.

But he's spent 2 days with his LaLa, which have done wonders for his physical health (and my mental health!). Being cooped up in the house with a cranky kid has given me a new respect for my SAHM friends. It's hard enough when you can take the kid to the park and do fun things together ... it's maddening when the only grownup you see all day is the noon news anchor and nothing you can do makes the little one happy. A million thanks to my mom for keeping Jay for the past few days (and spoiling him rotten as only a LaLa can!) and to my wonderful friend LJ for letting me escape for a little ice cream and gossip. Y'all are the best!

Posted at 09:02PM Mar 27, 2009 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[2]

Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand

Saturday Mar 07, 2009

Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand

Six Hundred Minutes
Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand
Moments so dear
Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand
Six Hundred Minutes
How Do You Measure - Measure A Year?
In Daylights - In Sunsets
In Midnights - In Cups Of Coffee
In Inches - In Miles
In Laughter - In Strife

In - Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand
Six Hundred Minutes
How Do You Measure
A Year In The Life?

Wow - a whole year. It seems like I was pregnant yesterday, and yet it seems like Jay has been part of my life forever. How can that be? What is it about motherhood that warps the space-time continuum? (No, it's not just losing the hour for daylight savings time...) I'd love to share some meaningful reflection on what it means to hit the magic one year mark, what it means to say goodbye to my "baby" and welcome a toddler into my life, and share thoughts on motherhood as I reflect on this year. But it's seriously a little overwhelming to go there. I will say that it's been among the most challenging years of my life, and has given me a new appreciation for my extended family, my friends, and most of all my hubby. I love you all, and I thank you for helping me get to this point! It really does take a village.

We had a really fun first birthday party for Jay today. We turned our front yard into Foster Field and had a baseball celebration to remember. We played wiffleball, ate hotdogs and pretzels and cracker jacks and peanuts and laughed with friends and family. What more could you want in a birthday party? We'll just ignore the minor incident where he grabbed the burning candle off his cake then hollered for 20 minutes... He wasn't really interested in cake after that (well, who would want to eat something that burns your fingers?), but otherwise it was a great celebration of a wonderful year.

Posted at 10:53PM Mar 07, 2009 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[5]

Stand in the place where you live...

Friday Mar 06, 2009

Stand in the place where you live...

Think about direction

wonder why you haven't before

Your feet are going to be on the ground

Your head is there to move you around

So Stand

Just a quickie post today - I'm really going to try and be better about putting up SOMETHING even if it isn't the world's most fascinating entry. Jay's latest trick is that he's learned to stand up in the middle of the room without help. Picture it: he'll stick his adorable little backside out, hands and feet on the floor, like a bear. Then he'll push his hands off the floor, and then stand up, wobbling all the way. All grownups watching get excited and clap, clap, clap! Then he gets excited and claps, but the clapping throws his precarious balance off, and he crashes down again. Hilarious! Even more adorable!

He must have done it 25 times last night, over and over. Then, after time #25, we remembered to pull out LaLa's new video camera, which happened to be at our house. By the time we bring the camera into the room, he's moved on to exploring his toys. Sigh. Even after all the begging and pleading and helping we could do, we never really got him to do it again for the camera. Performance anxiety, perhaps? It's okay, kiddo. Mom and Dad don't really like to be the center of attention, either.

Posted at 02:18PM Mar 06, 2009 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[1]

Ch-ch-ch-Changes...

Wednesday Feb 25, 2009

Ch-ch-ch-Changes...

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes
(turn and face the strain)
Ch-ch-changes
Just gonna have to be a different man
Time may change me
But I cant change time

As much as I've loved looking at that little toothless grin, I was just starting to wonder if Jay was ever going to get any teeth. My dear uncle referred to him as "dentally retarded" which is hilarious, though not exactly PC. I was starting to look into baby dentures, but Derek told me that was probably unnecessary. Well, folks, the worries were needless ... he's getting teeth! And not just one tooth, either. Why go through the misery of teething multiple times when you can just get them all at once?! Okay, not all - just two. The first one broke through on Saturday and he's getting another one today. He's been a little more cranky than usual, but seems to be dealing fine as long as we keep that Orajel out of sight. He hates that stuff.

And speaking of things he hates, he's decided that he hates being anywhere that Mommy isn't. He has gotten very clingy with me, to the point that he screams frantically when I try to leave him. On Sunday after we dropped him off in his Sunday School class and headed up to our class, he was out of control wailing. As we walked out of the nursery, we ran into a friend who said (and I quote) "Wow, that kid is really miserable." Yeah, that was my kid. I know, it's just a phase. This too shall pass. He'll grow out of it soon. But I really, really hate that every time I leave him, the last thing I see is that miserable sad crying face and those little arms reaching out to say "Come back and get me!" And I'll probably be equally sad someday to drop him at junior high school and realize that he'd rather not be seen with me. But for now, I'm gonna have a hard time not running back to scoop him up, stick him in my purse, and take him to work with me.

Posted at 09:26PM Feb 25, 2009 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[0]