Seven Quick Takes on Friday--Volume 66

One.
After three nights in a row in my own bed, Gemma decided that I'd had my little break and went back to her nocturnal wiggling and shouting. Part of the problem is that we are entering our third cold since the week before Christmas, and she is congested, making nursing difficult. I moved the two of us to the sleeper-sofa at 11-something last night and she finally did sleep with me, at least until 3:30 a.m. Oh well--what doesn't kill me makes me stronger...

Two.
After a few weeks of frigid temperatures and some snow I was looking forward to a respite and some milder weather, and we got it. Unfortunately it has been accompanied by lots and lots of rain. Outside it is swampy and gray. I cannot hang out my cloth diapers to be whitened and sterilized by the sun. Where is the sun?

Three.
And on the subject of cloth diapers, Gemma had to take a break from them so that I could get what appeared to be a yeast infection under control. It went away quickly, but two patches keep returning as soon as I put her in the cloth diapers. It has me mystified, as the rash isn't even in the little fat-folds on her thighs but on a more exposed area.

Four.
None of this is made any better by the fact that since beginning solids--just once a day so far--she has gone from pooping once a week to pooping in every diaper I put on her. I am changing 3 a.m. poopy diapers, and I don't know if I've ever done that for a 6 month-old before.
I am less than delighted about her digestive system's increased activity.

Five.
You don't need a cow to love this stuff:

Winter and indoor heat do a number on my hands, and I won't even discuss my feet, but this stuff is a wonder. It is a bit sticky going on, and it has a definite lanolin smell, but it absorbs after a few minutes and leaves your skin feeling petal-soft. A beauty tip from our Jersey cow...

Six.
We are happy about the Republican win in Massachusetts. Apparently not everyone feels the same way about it:

Seven.

Even with colds, fatigue, mud, poopy diapers and chapped skin I find not much cause to complain. The images of devastation in Haiti are shocking and heartbreaking. My pregnant sister and her household have spent the week in the throes of one of those virulent, horrible intestinal viruses, and they have been puking all week. My friend Marilyn and her household are still coughing like crazy, and my friend Cindy is living apart from her family to be with her tiny baby--1lb 10 oz as of yesterday. Madeline has a heart murmur that has to be looked into more closely, and Cindy says it frequently looks as if she is struggling to breathe. Please do keep up the prayers for her. I cannot gripe about a few snotty noses, dirty diapers and tiredness.

Visit Jennifer's Conversion Diary for more Seven Quick Takes, and have a great weekend...