TMI

Warning: do not read if the concept of nursing freaks you out!
So, Ezra is coming up on 3 weeks now and I'm on 3 weeks of pumping....pumping every meal because he can't "latch on". I've been really adamant about giving him milk instead of formula because I believe in all the benefits, but it has been EXHAUSTING! Going through the regular routine -all night of waking up to feed him, change him, & get him back to sleep is enough, but having to pump once he is down- and clean bottles and flanges is kinda pushing it- don't you think? Never-the-less I have persevered...with minimal melt-downs. ;) BUT I don't always have enough milk for him (that boy can eat!) So, we've had to supplement with formula some of the time. This really bothered me- to the point where I've cried over it...multiple times. (Blame all those pregnancy hormones!)
Anyway, yesterday Bobby & I were talking about whether or not we should make using formula as a supplement into a regular habit for when we are "out & about" so that I don't have to feel trapped if I don't have enough pre-pumped. I was thinking about it while getting ready and I was totally flustered when, suddenly, I thought of a twitter account that cracks me up (& puts things back into perspective) called #firstworldpains. It's all things we complain about (as if they were real problems) because we live in a first world country.
For example:
"My laptop feels too warm on my knees when I use it in bed..."
"I drank all the soda and now the only thing in my house to drink is water"
"I just got toothpaste on my clean clothes"
"I can't go out in public without makeup on"
"I had to make 2 trips to my car to get all of my groceries out"
"One time I had to pay for a small fry at McDonalds with all pennies"
"The person ahead of me in line at subway ordered for five people"
"I finished all my popcorn before the movie even started"
"Twitter is over capacity"
"there is a fly in my room"
"A bird pooped on my car"
"there's a 30 miute wait for a table at my favorite restaurant"
"this weather is really ruining my weekend plans"
"the refridgerator is full but theres nothing to eat"
"that guy just took my parking spot"
"I look terrible in these pictures I'm tagged in"
"I will never have enough money"
"this orange juice has pulp in it"
"I only get 3 bars of cell service in my apartment"
"getting 10 hours of sleep & still being tired"
"When you like a status on facebook, then getting a notification everytime someone else likes or comments on it."

**I'm on a roll**

"starbucks mispelled my name on my coffee"
"still finding sand in my car 2 weeks after going to the beach"
"I asked for no pickles"
"A closet full of clothes, nothing to wear"
"I spent all morning straightening my hair, & now it's raining"
"It's way too hot out"
"My stainless steel appliances get smudged to easily"
"I can't decide where I want to eat for dinner"
"I'm dissatisfied with the square footage of my adequate and affordable housing"
"I left my phone at home"
"My conditioner always runs out before my shampoo"
"My stomache hurts because I ate too much"


...I read this article in the New York Times the other day about the drought going on in Somalia. These Somalis are fleeing to Kenya as refugees in order to survive; and the path to get there is lined with the bodies of those who didn't make it. There was a quote at the begining of the article that really hit me. "By the time they get here, many can barely stand or talk or swallow. Some mothers have even shown up with the bodies of shriveled babies strapped to their backs."

...so....I'm upset about giving my son formula!? I'm sure that any one of those mother's would give their right arm to have the option of giving their starving babies formula when they couldn't give them milk! I'm sure they would've given anything to keep their babies alive.
After reading that, I realized that "I'm having a hard time with pumping so I have to give my baby formula" is TOTALLY a #firstworldpain !!!
So, I'm not going to complain about all of the options there are for feeding Ezra because I don't want to be "that guy". I want to live a life of gratitude for all that God's given us and where He has put us!

What about you? Are you complaining about things that would be considered a first world pain? Let's make a commitment to be more THANKFUL for what we have. What do ya say?! :)

I hope you're all having a MaRvElOuS MoNdAy!!!

Oh yeah...I have a blog.

Will I ever get back to daily blogging? Who knows! BUT there is much to tell...and very little time to tell it...Ezra's starting to scrunch his face in his sleep which means he will wake up soon and MUST be fed IMMIDIATELY...or things get ugly. ;)

Which brings me to my first fact: Ezra is here!

6/29/11 - 10lb. 3 oz. - Lots of hair! haha

Things have been pretty wild around here since then...no sleep, lots of pumping (TMI), lots of eating, an extra trip to the hospital a week later for me (which is a whole other post- in itself!), & a bit of cabin fever... but all so worth it! :)

In other news, I'm missing our Garage students! Youth has been going great and so has the summer internship- I'm just jealous I've had to be MIA. (insert fun group picture here...bc I don't have one right now. haha) But I will be rejoining them this week and I can't wait!

I'm lacking pics because Bobby, in an effort to be a mult-tasker, was: holding Ezra, using the Mac, and drinking coffee all at once...the coffee and the Mac didn't mix well. BUT better to spill hot coffee on the Mac than on Ezra, right?!....crazy boys.

There's some other news too....some that isn't as fun or exciting. News that has been pretty difficult for me to swallow....

Right around the time that Ezra was being delivered one of our Garage students was in a fatal car accident...

At first no one told me. I'd just been through surgery and what a roller coaster of emotions etc. It wasn't until around 5AM the next morning that I found out. Bobby had been trying to keep me from using my phone to get online and I didn't know why. Finally, I insisted he hand it to me and before he did, he explained what had happened and why they didn't think they should tell me right away. I cried....and felt like someone made a huge mistake because that was impossible...then I cried some more. The next few days were a huge mixture of emotions. Students and friends from church came to visit and our conversations were a mixture of excitement over Ezra and sadness over Sarah. The schedule for Bobby was between the hospital and the memorial -and the hospital and the funeral. All the while I was in the hospital, feeling very disconnected. The truth is, I don't know that I've fully realized that it's reality yet- because I still haven't been anywhere that I normally see Sarah....

Since she passed I've been reading all the sweet things people have written on her facebook wall and spent time talking to God about why things like this happen... The bottom line is we really aren't promised tomorrow and we aren't promised that things will stay the same...

My OB (who is a christian) heard about the accident and knew Sarah was part of our church family. She came to the hospital to see me and asked how I was coping with everything and I told her how it's such a strange feeling having Ezra and being in the hospital- and not being there for all of this with Sarah. She looked at me and said "You're part in this is not to be at everything. You're part is here with Ezra...and being a reminder that though now is a time of mourning for many and things seem hard- there will still be beautiful and joyous times ahead. That's your (& Ezra's) role in this."

So, as I think about beautiful Sarah and I think about my sweet little Ezra: I'm reminded that life changes in a flash. And I want to remind YOU not to take any of it for granted.

Tell the people that you love- that you love them. Treat others with kindness. Don't waste your time. Share Jesus at every chance you get. Be thankful for everyday and don't take anyone or anything for granted.

Sarah was a smart, beautiful, & VERY talented girl. A natural leader. A CRACK-UP to talk to!

She was the reigning queen of "chubby bunny" at the Garage. :) 

She was a part of our church family and she will be missed.

I didn't intend to be so long- but that's what's been going on in the Sasser house...and would you look at that: little Ezra is such a good boy, he slept just long enough for me to type it all out. Now, I'd better get going or he will put me in a choke hold! (you think I'm joking?) ;)



I hope you're all having a Fantastic Friday!!!