Not sure if I can come up with five...
1) my faith and church. I am a Christian and I don't apologize for it. Does that make me perfect? No. I still struggle with the battle between my flesh and my spirit EVERY day. Sometimes the flesh wins. Sometimes the spirit. I do try to do things and avoid other things in order to make my spirit the strongest part of me. I'm getting there. I am also passionate about Church of the Highlands and VERY defensive to those who think it's a cult or that we're "too happy all the time". It almost makes me laugh. We have been set free in Christ! We have a lot to be happy about! I'm okay with people not getting it. I'm NOT OKAY with people trying to put it down because their church hasn't grown like ours has. I'm sorry, but figure it out.
2) breastfeeding. While I am a firm believer in choice and I don't like for women to be put down for not being able to, it DOES break my heart when mothers won't even try. There is no mistaking that breastfeeding is not only beneficial for the baby nutritionally but also has benefits for the mom as well. There is reduced chance of breast cancer, you pay more attention to what you eat and drink and are therefore healthier overall, you get back to prepregnancy weight faster, etc. etc. And then there is the bonding. I'm sorry, there just is no way to duplicate it with a bottle. It's more practical than bottle feeding--you always have a ready supply wherever you are and you don't need to heat it! It was so much easier to me to hook 'em up in the bed with me than to get up, get a bottle and try to hold it in place. I had such a wonderful experience with all three of mine. I did not nurse as long as I wanted to with any of them--Dylan 2 months, Kayti 5 months and Brooke 3 months. With Dylan I went back to work and was persuaded to put him on formula when I did. It was such a nightmare trying to find the right one that I deeply regretted that decision. So with Kayti, I decided to pump and did until she weened herself as did Brooke. But all three thrived on breastmilk and the fact that they are smart and rarely get sick to this day, I credit to breastfeeding. Ladies, at least TRY it.
3) adoption. While I'm not called to adopt myself because of my situation being single, broke and on medication that does not pass the "screening", I do have a heart for the 170 million orphans in the world. I have more than a few friends that have been blessed through adoption, foreign and domestic, younger and older, special needs, normal (whatever that is), white, black, asian, hispanic, etc. And I have been blessed to know their stories. I believe that one day, Brooke will adopt. And I will fully support her opening her heart and home to a child and doing what God calls us to do--care for the orphans.
4) spay and neuter. There is absolutely NO REASON not to have your pets spayed and/or neutered. I don't care what kind of animal, there really is no reason to breed them. There are enough unwanted pets in the world, please stop making more simply for your financial gain, enjoyment or whatever it is that gets you off about it. I know everyone has breeds that they are crazy about. And I know it isn't likely to ever stop. But still. If you are going to have a pet, you have a responsibility and if you can't follow through on that--don't get a pet!
5) See, I can't really think of a fifth. I wish I cared about other animals, recycling, blah blah blah but I really don't much. Everything else that I do care about is really just a pet peeve--driving slowly in the fast lane, people with cluttered houses, etc. Nothing I'm "passionate" about. Maybe I need to work on that.
Nah.
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