Welcome to the Before and After Party at Baby Tea Leaves!!! What is the Before and After Party??? It's exactly what you think. It's all about the befores-and-afters. I'm all about the happy ending despite whatever is going on in life. And since this time of year is a time of reflection for me (you'll see why in a minute...) I decided on a party about it! Over the next week and a bit, I'll be sharing a lot a few little tidbits in my life. A look at what it was like in many, many realms of my life before, and then after. Apparently I like reflecting... I've gone on and on about my plant situation, my patio (like you all really care...)
All you have to do is:
a) show up.
b) share anything before and after in your life, from your childhood to now, your wedding photos, projects you've done, home improvements, literally anything related to a before and after. (And just so you know, I've gone and dug deep to find some pretty old stuff to share so it could get interesting.)
c) either sign the master linky here with your post on your blog (and be sure to leave your permalink to your post so everyone can find it!).... or
d) e-mail me your before and afters and I'll post them right here. (christieo_7 at msn dot com). Or:
e) all of the above.
What is all this about???? Oddly enough (or not, and I think not) every year, Poops' birthday coincides with the March of Dimes' Walk for Babies in April. As you may or may not know, Poops was born 6 weeks early because (we think) of the pre-eclampsia I developed in my second trimester.
Poops is my champion.
I walk for him every year, just as I walk for other families who have been touched by prematurity. I would love it if you could sponsor me for the walk. There is no donation too small and you can do it by clicking right here or on the button on the top left of my sidebar. Everyone who donates will get this:
My very favorite silicone bracelet that says, "Strength, Focus, Discipline".
Even if you choose not to sponsor me did I mention it's tax deductible, please join the party anyhow! I will be sharing stories from families who have also been touched by prematurity, along with a lot of little nuggets in my life completely and utterly unrelated to prematurity. But,for day one, I'll open up with my baby's 3rd birthday. Which was yesterday, on Easter.
Holy cow. He's three.
And that's his amazing before and after. His birth is always a time of reflection for me and absolute wonderment, really. Because it takes me back to the time of complete and utter panic and sadness and fear I felt and on his birthday, and now I can look at him blowing out the candles and see this little boy full of life and spirit and imagination and excited about his new bike. One who is uber-excited that he is now three and can hold up the three fingers vigorously and awkwardly to reiterate.
Every year as he gets older and bigger and oh so wiser, I always think about how much I wish "future me" could go back and tell that scared first-time mommy, peering into the incubator in the NICU and crying, that this is what it would be like. That it would be ok.
Poops actually spent very little time in the NICU, only about two weeks. He was 4 lbs 6 ounces when he came home and other than jaundice, he was fine. We were very lucky. Lucky that his lungs matured quickly, that he was off the breathing tube within 12 hours, and that he did not suffer any longterm effects. So many people are not so lucky and I walk every year for them just as I walk every year for my son. I truly believe that the research that is funded by the March of Dimes helped him and also, through weekly injections, helped me carry a second child to full-term. This is what your donations help to do.
On a much lighter note and completely off topic but still related to the topic of before and afters, I was reminded last week of my helmet hair by Maggie, who reflected on her large hair and as I was digging through the photos for the Before and After party, I found this and I felt some courage at the time so I thought I'd share:
HELLO! Yep. I can't even use the 1980's as an excuse. That's the 90's. Specifically what 1993 looked like for me and whomever I was all dressed up to go out with. Poor chap. I can't even remember what function that was to tell you the truth. I'd be able to tell if I could see the dress, but the picture is cut off because of my unusually large face and hair. And this is because my mom took the picture and she was a huge fan of the close-up shot in these formal-type situations. So whenever I dig up old pictures, I see a barage of photos from far away (the group, the couple, the single, the corsage, the dress...) then BAM! My big mug, as close up as possible. Thanks mom!
So come on! Join the party!! Post and sign the linky or e-mail me! Party ends Saturday, April 25th, the day of the walk!! And spread the word with a button! (Especially if you want some dirt on your good bloggy friends!!) This linky will be up and remain up for the entire duration of the party!
It's my silicone bracelet that I love so much, with the message, "Strength, Focus, Discipline". No donation is too small, seriously. Especially for a cause I am truly devoted to.
