Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

That’s what Reed Benson at BYU would say about modern day revelation and the teachings of the living prophet, and he was right.  You’ll note that I completely spaced Friday’s post; I’d decided to listen to all of October’s General Conference–the twice-a-year sermons from our church leaders–between Wednesday and Saturday morning, when April’s General Conference started.  (I was actually aiming for Friday night, but that didn’t happen.  I made it by 9-ish on Saturday morning, though–April’s sessions started at 10!)  I was both inspired and reminded of what I wanted to be focusing on in my personal and spiritual growth.

This weekend’s General Conference brought another wave of inspired messages, and I look forward to studying them in the weeks and months ahead.  (Now that I can listen to them on my phone–and have been doing so for months–I’m blown away by how much more I get out of them.  You miss SO MUCH trying to listen to talks and parent at the same time…)  I stumble and struggle in my commitments to my Savior–especially in making Him the center of my life instead of getting lost in daily and weekly tasks, commitments, and projects–but I’m trying.

May all of us find the guidance and growth we seek in this life.  I am grateful for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, which lights the path that I work to follow in faith.  I am also grateful for a living prophet–and for Today’s News Today.

Tomorrow is my hubby’s birthday, technically, but today was a better day to visit him at work with birthday treats, and so last night I went searching on Pinterest.  Since he’s a S’mores fan, I looked no further than these S’mores Magic Cookie Bars–they seemed like a match made in heaven, you know?  A graham cracker crumb/butter crust, a sugar cookie layer, chocolate chips and marshmallows, and sweetened condensed milk drizzled on top.  What’s not to love?  I got them in and out of the oven before preschool dropoff this morning, thanks to my hubby’s graham cracker crushing skills and some fabulous neighbors who had marshmallows that WEREN’T hard as a rock.  I picked up my youngest from preschool, we bought lunch from an untried place to bring with us (risky, I know, but it paid off), and eventually we sat down with Daddy to eat Doner Kebob Express sandwiches, crinkle fries, and the aforementioned bars.

Sadly, they were my least favorite part of the meal.

Here’s the thing, though.  Part of the problem was that they were underdone–not only was I worried about preschool dropoff, but the recipe warns you to watch carefully.  Do watch carefully–but let them get ALL THE WAY DONE.  The rest of my problem was that they were SO very sweet.  I like sweet, yes, but even with semisweet chocolate chips (I don’t buy milk chocolate) and salted butter, I was wishing for contrast.  Unfortunately, I have no idea how much of a difference another 3-5 minutes in the oven would have made (although I suspect there would have been a difference).  All I can say is that if these sound good to you, and you’re prepared for sweet, make sure you bake them til they’re done!

One of my best friends and I had our two youngest children within three weeks of each other.  I’m thinking it was sometime in the following year that she lent me Tina Cassidy’s Birth:  The Surprising History of How We Are Born, but the truth is, my memories are hazy and she remembers nothing about this at all.  (Which is partly what makes me think it was within a year after having our babies…)  I’m pretty sure she’d found it interesting, however, and was thinking I might as well; now that I’ve gotten around to it (those babies we had are FOUR YEARS OLD, and I’m not sure how that happened), I did indeed find it interesting.  The book focuses more on the western world, certainly, but Cassidy provides enough statistics, anecdotes, and history to fascinate anyone.  I was often riled in the reading–let’s face it, women endured a great deal of pain (which not infrequently ended in death) as a result of supreme stupidity, inexcusable arrogance, and completely misguided ideas–but I was also amazed, fascinated, and even amused by turns.

I will say, however, that I enjoyed the history most; her interpretation of the modern era feels (perhaps unconsciously) skewed towards the “birth is an EXPERIENCE” end of the spectrum.  I didn’t necessarily feel that she referenced my sort of birth experience–she talks about some women having c-sections because they “don’t want to put their vaginas at risk,” but her tone seems almost flippant.  (For those of us who ripped as far as you can rip, who had more stitches after a vaginal birth than after a subsequent c-section, and who wondered at their baby’s 9 month checkup if sex would ever stop hurting again, it isn’t JUST vaginas at risk, and this is not an issue to be flippant about.)  She talks about lactation consultants from La Leche League as women who teach, help, and support breastfeeding mothers;  this is, of course, true in theory, and undoubtedly true of some (perhaps many?), but I know mothers from multiple areas of the country who felt bullied by those consultants (some refer to them as “Nursing Nazis”).  I still wish I’d complained to the hospital administration about one of mine–she gave me completely false information and then informed me, when I told her that what she was doing hurt, that “it shouldn’t!”.  (And NOT in an “oh, let me fix that, then” kind of way.  She also noticeably disapproved of–and subtly disparaged–my very first successful attempts at breastfeeding, which pushed me that much further down the path of postpartum depression.)  Cassidy’s self-evaluation at the conclusion, however, was reassuringly human; ultimately I was far more fascinated than frustrated.  If you’re looking for an interesting (if by no means complete) history of childbirth, look no further.  (And, really, an actual, fully complete history of childbirth all over the world?  Ain’t NOBODY got time for that!)