Brain Dump V
Saturday, March 13th, 20101. Just Like My Maternity Session- But With a Better Body
Janssen (a longtime reader whose blog I love, and is also pregnant herself!) sent over the link to the photos from her sister’s maternity shoot. (Her sister and I are due about the same week I believe). I’m flattered that my shoot was used as inspiration, but extremely jealous of Merric’s darling little body. This is my first time stumbling on Molly’s blog, she does beautiful work!
2. Cord Blood Banking
I receive at least 5 advertisements a week asking me if I want my baby’s blood to end up in the trash (a reference to the way it’s done in hospitals I guess?). That Husband always knows I’ve found another one in the mail pile because I scream “IT’S THE BABY’S BLOOD!” each time another one pops up. So yeah, I’m against the idea of cord blood banking unless mom and baby have to be separated for medical reasons immediately after birth, especially the idea of paying some company to bank your blood when the chances of it ever being used are almost nill. If you’re receiving those same adverts (believe me, if you ever get pregnant you will), I’d suggest reading this post. Don’t worry, it’s not written by some crazy natural birther like myself, Elizabeth is using a CNM at a hopsital, not that uncommon these days.
3. Formspring
My friend Erin doesn’t like blogging about blogging. I’m beginning to think blogging about Formspring should be added to my dislike list (and yet I keep doing it!). As I’ve found I don’t have the time to attempt to run a photo blog, a personal blog, participate in Twitter, and answer all of the questions that come in on Formspring, I’ve decided to start answering questions that come in with names attached to them first, and get to the others later. So if you have a burning question and would like it to be answered in less than, I don’t know, three months time, I’d suggest signing up for an account or attaching a name you use to comment here on That Wife when you submit something.
For those who were following the “TH and taxes and patriotism and callousness” craziness, wasn’t it fun to see him speaking up a little bit? He got pretty worked up about it though and I think he’s going to hold off on answering things for awhile. The benefit of him gaining my account information? He’s starting deleting the rude questions before I can see them so I don’t get sad. I love him.
4. Baby Deal Sites
I’ve been collecting diapers and slings and other goodies slowly over time, mostly from the following sites:
http://www.greenbabybargains.com
https://www.theminisocial.com and https://www.btrendie.com and http://www.totsy.com/ (Invite only, email me and I’ll send one your way!)
Please don’t buy all the good stuff from these sites before I can get there.
5. Blessingway
Recently I used the term “blessingway” on my blog, and I had someone on Formspring point out that there are Native American tribes that find the use of this term offensive. This sent me off into a spiral of research and googling, and I’ll be honest, I’m still not sure where I stand on the issue. This thread on mothering.com hashes the issue out pretty well, and I’m wondering if anyone else has any insight for me? I’m having a tough time with the idea that a group can “claim” a word, forbidding others from using it, especially when that word is a translation of the original term. As a member of a group with many sacred rituals I tried to place myself in their position. An example of an LDS ritual that is considered very sacred (and that we are very saddened to see mocked) is the endowment ceremony. If a group of people heard about the endowment ceremony, read that it has been described as an ordinance ”designed to give ‘a comprehensive view of our condition and true relation to God’ (TPJS, p. 324), ‘to prepare the disciples for their missions in the world’ (p. 274), to prevent being ‘overcome by evils’ (p. 259), to enable them to ’secure the fulness of those blessings which have been prepared for the Church of the Firstborn’”, and then this group of people in question decided to design their own endowment in the spirit of the purpose of the ordinance and called it “endowment” just as we do, I’m not sure I would be offended. They aren’t mocking or even trying to impersonate, they are trying to re-create an experience for themselves in the same spirit as the original event, or with elements of the original event. It does not lessen or demean my own experience personally, or even the experience of the LDS members, to think that others would like to capture some of that spirit for themselves.
Also, I’m not convinced that the term blessingway belongs to the Navajo in the first place. It sounds like something many Native American tribes have incorporated into their rituals throughout time, and what rite does a specific sect have to say that a word belongs to them? What if the Catholic Church came forward and claimed the word “sacrament” as their own, forbidding everyone outside of the Christian religion to use the term?
Maybe I’m not interpreting the situation correctly. Thoughts?
