The Roots are Just as Important as the Flower

I remember being a little kid and my grandmother from my mother's side stayed with us for quite awhile. She would wake up early and sit in the rocking chair that my father made her and watch us get ready for school. When we would get home there was almost always a warm batch of fresh german rye bread made from scratch by a recipe that she had memorized. She was fluent in "old German" and we would sit and talk back and forth as we were learning the language in school. My grandmother made her own noodles, made magnificent quilts, and made almost everything she wore by her own hand. I look back on that now and admire that she was able to do all of those things. I want to someday be able to teach my children the importance of these things and where they come from.


My husband made a short list for the new year too.  The number one thing on his list is learning a new language.  He has a dream that he, Conner, and I will someday become fluent in German and travel to Germany able to communicate with the locals and appriciate the culture.  I am three quarters German and Dave is about a quarter German.  I am a third generation American and would love to learn where my family came from.  We would love for our son to grow up learning two languages and to go on in life understanding his roots and the culture from which he was raised.  Being in the United States I think we tend to let go a bit of our traditions and fall into the melting pot.  I have always thought it was sad that our different cultures blend and with each generation the line becomes more and more blurred between who our families were and who they are now.  We want to change that in our family by bringing back some of the traditions that our great grandparents celebrated and a huge part of that, we believe, is the language. 

So with that I want to ask my readers if you have integrated a second language into your families and if so, how did it work for you.  Do you follow any traditions from your ethnicity and culture that differ from the mainstream American?  Do you think that your children understand and value the things that you are teaching them?  Please share with me your thoughts and practices.

Peace,
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Quitters Rule

So I will admit, from the time I was fourteen until the day I found out I was pregnant, I was a smoker. I had always liked to smoke, made excuses why I smoked, and puffed away guilt free for many years. It was not until I went back to school and had to take anatomy and physiology classes that I became aware of my habit and began to feel self conscious about it. I hid it; wore more perfume, stopped smoking in my car and became obsessed with finding the ultimate gum to cover up my smoker's breath. Anyway, the point of all of this is the fact that I tried to quit so many times in the two years before I became pregnant and each time I failed miserably. So when I took that pregnancy test, I made a vow to myself that I would never smoke again. It was probably one of the easiest things that I have ever done, which surprised me because I had always not only failed at quitting before but I was scared of quitting. It scared me because it was a big part of my life and I was an addict. It is a scary thing to admit that and to walk away from your habit. I had always said that if I become "with child" that I will kick it. So with that and besides the obvious and doing what was best for my baby I never touched another cigarette. I didn't want to smoke anymore anyway because my morning sickness was in high gear from the beginning of my pregnancy until about halfway through my fourth month and my sense of smell was heightened. I could smell cigarette smoke from someone smoking in the car next to me with all the windows rolled up and it made me gag to the point of wanting to find the nearest receptacle ASAP. So that made the whole quitting smoking thing for me really easy.

So I haven't had a cigarette since August. I think the hardest thing for me though was the feeling of not fitting in and no longer wanting to be a part of something I had always been a part of. Pretty much everyone I know smokes and so I had to completely alienate myself from all of my friends for a few months. Mostly because I did not feel included at all and also I did not want to puke on their carpets from smelling the stench. What was really tough though was that my husband had not yet quit.

You know the drill - there will always be an excuse or a "reason" not to quit. for example a few that I have used and/or heard are, "work is really stressful, the holidays are coming up, my wife just found out she is pregnant and I am a little freaked, I like to smoke with my coffee, I will quit when the taxes go up again, I am afraid I will gain weight", the usual. I am sure that you can pick out of that list the reason that was keeping my husband from quitting. He was a little freaked out. I don't blame him, so was I. Anyone would be lying to you if they said that they did not have a little fear when first presented with a pregnancy and at first that was his main reason. That and then school, then the new job, then graduating, then finally the holidays. He is not a weak man nor is he one to fail. He decided that it was his time to quit and so he made a promise to us that the pack he bought on the 3oth of December would be his last. Now I can honestly look into my husband's lovely eyes with pride and love and call him a quitter to his face. He is on day #3 today and for him that is quite a feat. Now we are both quitters and quitters rule :)

To my DH - I love you baby and I am so proud of you. I knew you could do this and I have so much faith in you that you will succeed. Keep up the good work... PS - your coat doesn't stink anymore, yay!

Anti Resolutionist

My mother is a genius. She is one of those people who is always looking for something new to fill her time and new ways to become a more well rounded, better person. Every year, instead of making a silly resolution that she is sure she will neglect or forget, she makes a list. She looks closely at her life and makes a list of things that she would either like to change, improve on, start or stop doing, or just be better at. These lists make so much sense because not only does she get to take many different aspects of her life into consideration, she can actually see the improvements. My mother just remodeled her kitchen and in doing so put a chalkboard wall by the back door. She puts her list there so that every time she walks by that wall she sees a pleasant reminder of her progress. My mother made a list of ten things last year and at Christmas I asked her how it worked for her... she accomplished all ten and then some. You rock mom... you are the bomb ;)

So in the tradition of my mother's dedicated lists, I have decided to make my own and watch my progress through the year... plus it will give me some great stuff to write about!

To Do List for 2010

1. Have a baby - this is a given, but it will be monumental to me so it is number one.
2. Love the crap out of my husband - show him how much I love him and not ever take him for granted
3. Make a dentist appointment
4. Finish Conner's nursery
5. Take down the Christmas tree before February
6. Feel pretty at least once every day
7. Organize the basement
8. Finish one more semester of school
9. Beat Mario Brothers on the Wii
10. Make a cork board from my wine cork collection

Not too shabby if I might say so myself... It is simple, meaningful, and most importantly - doable! Wish me luck!

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Making people

Today has been really good to me. I love being pregnant - especially when Conner reminds me that he is here. Those little movements still feel like flutters but they are getting stronger every day. Now that he has a name things are becoming more into focus. Before it was a abstract thought that we would have a child and that child was growing inside me, now it feels much more real. His nursery has a few things in it and Dave built the crib and the changing table. I am working on his paintings for his room and my sister gave me all her son's outgrown clothes. I have been asked about the baby shower and my pre-pregnancy jeans are so far from fitting I have hidden then out of sight. Dot and Daisy are even acting differently as if they are aware that there will be a monumental change in our home. I am going to be a mother and my husband a father. That sentence right there is so foreign yet so meaningful to me. Man I am crazy excited. Today I went and just stood in his room. Feeling him move and looking at his things really gave me a sense of pride, fear, and some serious tear action. I love him...

Pregnancy has been good to me. I was not enjoying the first three months, but it is over and I am on to the dare I say, fun stuff. I have quite the baby bump, and my whole appearance has changed. I see myself looking completely different than I did last summer. Besides the weight gain I just feel content and happy and I think that shows in my appearance. Don't get me wrong - there are some days I feel like I look like a female version of humpty dumpty, but it waxes and wanes. I had a lot of energy today which surprised me because this last week was exhausting. We hosted Christmas here this year and that was a ton of work. The cooking, cleaning, shopping, organizing, decorating, baking, baby making, all kicked my butt. I made it through unscathed and have some great memories for the bank. Today was just one of those days that I sat by myself and went through all of it in my mind with a smile on my face and subtle kicks to my bladder...

a few pieces of me

he loves me


a nice place to hang our hats

Introducing.... (dum da da duuuuuum).... ME!

Insert round of applause... picture me bowing. Thank you, thank you! So glad to be here!

OK, that was a little self indulgent of me but I couldn't help myself. This blogging thing is completely new to me so I am taking advantage of it a little here. I guess we should get to the important stuff, like what brought me to blogging and what I am all about. My sister in law has been blog savvy for quite awile now and has on many occations tried to include me in her successful blog, www.jenniferreviews.com. Needless to say I have always been too shy. We were talking last night and she shared with me information about mommyblogs. I was amazed that anyone could get out there and put in their two sense - so the next day BumpStop was created.

I mainly think it will be fun to share my more often than not humorous steps in marriage, pregnancy, and soon to be mommyhood. I have so much to say and talk about, but mostly I have a lot to be thankful for and that is another reason I want to share. I have a wonderful husband Dave who has been nothing but a pillar of stregth and honesty for me. We have a cozy home in a mid sized town in Wisconsin, we have two dogs, and a great group of people that we have managed to hang on to for quite awhile. We are not perfect but we have learned to laugh more than anything and accept who we are,(He taught me that, told ya he was great). We have our first son on the way. Our little man will be named Conner James. He will be the first little one for my husband's family and the second for mine. I have two wonderful sisters, one of which is a mom and has been by my side every step of the way through my pregnancy so far. I have a brother who is more talented than any other living person I have ever known and two great parents who have cleared much of the battlefield for me by laying down on the front lines. I love them.

My home life is great. I spend way too much money at IKEA but it makes for a pretty palace. I love color and texture and warm places and that is my house. Our home is modest and comfortable and where we love to be. Our dogs, two black labs Dot and Daisy sit at my feet as I write this panting quietly, most likely falling asleep to my tapping on the keyboard. They are the best friends I could ask for and they love me which is pretty cool.

All in all I have it pretty good. I hope that my writing will bring a smile to your face.

Peace,
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