Book Review: Learning to Stand

I was given the opportunity to review Clauida Hall Christian's book, Learning to Stand, via the Business 2 Blogger community. If you choose to purchase books from the site, you can use the discount code BLOGTOUR for a 20% discount off any books!

Learning to Stand is the second book in what appears to be an ongoing series about Alex Hargreaves, a female green beret and then special forces soldier. Alex 'The Fey' Hargreaves is part of an elite team of people that specialize in hostage retrieval. I wish I had read the first book before reading this one, as it would have given me more insight and understanding in this story. Still, I enjoyed the book. In Learning to Stand Alex is recovering from a devastating attack on her team and dealing with her grief, her survivor's guilt, and ongoing threats to her and the people she loves. The book is a good mix of political thriller and personal struggle. Alex is unsure how to carry on without the people she was closest to, but also unsure how to live a life apart from her work.

Alex, as well as a couple of other characters, also seem to have some kind of supernatural or other-worldly powers. I was a little confused about the nature of these powers and who knew about them and who had them. But, this might be something made more clear in the first book. Learning to Stand definitely references The Fey, the first book, so I would suggest reading it first. My only major complaint about Learning to Stand is that it seemed to be poorly edited. I noticed a lot of missing words or misplaced words and so on. It was a little distracting, but maybe I am too picky.

The story in Learning to Stand is a little confusing to follow, but it was engaging and kept me interested. I was definitely eager to find out what happened next and I want to read The Fey and any subsequent books that might be written.

You can win your own copy of Learning to Stand! Just leave a comment and I will choose a winner next Saturday, June 5. Also, feel free to ask any questions of the author in the comments--she'll be visiting the blog and will interact in comments.

Disclosure: I was given a free copy of Learning to Stand for review. The opinions expressed are my own. I was not required to say anything positive or negative as a condition of receiving the book. I was not financially compensated for the review.

The Needs of a Princess

Something is missing here. What do I need?



That's it! I'll get it now!



Hmmm. This poufiness can be troublesome.



One for me. One for me. And, well, one for me.



A princess is under no obligation to share. This photo session is over.

To achieve this kind of poufiness (totally a word, promise) you need to wear two ballet tutus and three princess costumes. And a cooperative parent to put them on.

So far, so good

Hello friends and family! Obviously life with a new baby has kept me away from the blog. I expect that to continue for a while, but I hope to post once a week at least.

My dad leaves today and we are officially on our own for good. We have had a day here and there with no help, so I feel mostly prepared. Husband has admirably handled the morning routine these couple of weeks, and I suppose he will continue to do so, since BTS is almost always nursing when the kids have to get ready for school. I thought I would dread the end of school, but I'm counting down the days because I know our mornings will be smoother. Next week should be our last week of sports, weather permitting, and I am also excited about that. I want to just slow down and hang out and do spontaneous things when the kids are being cooperative.

This past weekend we went on our first outing as a family of eight (!). We walked to the local ice cream shop that is about a mile from our house and had lunch and yummy ice cream. We try to only go there if we walk, to somewhat mitigate the calories ingested. I have a baby wrap from Lovey Duds that BTS and I both really like, and it was great for walking (I bought the wrap on my own, with no compensation or advertising or promotion from the shop). It was fun to get out and do something we did before we had a baby.

We have both had our two week checkups and all is well. BTS has regained all of his weight lost and then some, tipping the scales at 8 pounds, 10 oz. at two weeks. He loves to nurse, thankfully. I have lost all but 3 pounds of my baby weight! I wish I could take credit for that, but I'm just lucky. I can wear some of my regular clothes, but I prefer my elastic waist skirts from Old Navy most days. I'm so glad I saved those to wear after baby was born-it gives me a little lift to wear something cute and new.

LCS is still pushing all our buttons with her behavior. Thankfully I've been graced with the patience to weather the tantrums and move on. I'm sure things will settle down as I get into a rhythm and life resumes a more normal pace. I would gladly speed through the first six weeks post-partum though. I don't like the nursing soreness (BTS doesn't open his mouth wide enough to latch pain-free, but none of my kids did and I know I'll get used to it) and the inconsistent nursing schedule. Still, the sweet boy does fabulous at night and things are going much better than expected.

Okay, next week maybe I'll post something less baby-centric. But this is my life, so it might be all I have to talk about for a while. The following picture was taken sometime last week. I need to take more pictures!

Friday Faves: Baby Stuff

BTS is being cooperative, so I'm posting twice in one week! I wanted to share with you two things I bought especially for him and the Etsy shops they came from. These are things I purchased on my own, with no compensation or exchange of goods from the vendors. Just things I found while browsing.

First, I hope this will be his "lovey." We like green things around here.



We bought this striped monkey from The Monkey Shop.

I wanted BTS to have a special outfit/onesie to come home in. I knew I wanted his initials, but I wasn't too picky about font and fabric, so I left it up to the lovely Brown Owl Designs to make him a custom onesie and they did not disappoint. Also, I left it to the last minute but still had the onesie in hand several days before delivery. Great service and great product! I'm hoping to go back and purchase a couple of tie onesies for church.



For more Friday Faves visit the Other Mama.

One Week

TJS loves his little brother.

BTS has been here for one week. As expected we have had our ups and downs.

First, my surgery went remarkably well. I was really nervous about hemorrhaging, one of the major risks of repeat c-sections. They had two pints of blood ready, just in case, but they were not needed. My bleeding was way less than expected and I am so glad. My recovery has been easier than ever and I'm feeling great. Yea!

BTS was a dream in the hospital. He took to nursing right away, and he went back to sleep easily. In fact, he was always so content and sleepy all wrapped up in the blankets that I never changed his diapers! I let the nursery nurses handle that. :) He slept for nice stretches, so my time in the hospital was truly restful.

We came home on Saturday. It was just the eight of us, and that was fine with me. It gave us a chance to get settled in before my mom came on Sunday to help out with the driving and the other kids, especially LCS. My brother is here right now too. We're so blessed to have the help.

I got a few hours experience managing all six kids on my own on Sunday, as Husband had to do some lawns. We all survived with the help of Nick, Jr. and snacks. It was good practice for real life.

Since being home things have gone fairly well. LCS is having her issues adjusting to Mommy not being available to meet her every need. We are tired and not as patient or understanding with the kids as we should be. But, we are all doing our best. BTS sleeps well most of the time, and is minimally fussy. I do have to hold him and give him a pacifier to help him fall asleep sometimes, but that is manageable.

I know there will be good days and bad days. Today is a good day (long stretches of sleep last night!) so far. I was able to make breakfast and lunch for the kids before school for the first time. Then, I even managed to make chocolate chip cookies and clean up the dishes! Not every day will be this smooth I know, but I'm trying to take it one good thing at a time. I would gladly skip these first few weeks, as nursing is still uncomfortable and we are not in a routine yet. But that's not an option and we'll manage until things get back to a new normal.

Thanks so much for the prayers and good wishes before and after delivery. I loved checking my email and seeing your comments.

Number 6 is here

My husband updated his blog with pics. Go here

Surreal

Today is baby day! I'm sitting at home, trying not to think about how thirsty I am, and ruminating on how very strange it is to think that the little boy I feel moving around inside me will be out in just about five hours. Scheduled c-sections are funny things. You basically know when the big event will happen (barring emergencies) and so you are just waiting around. Usually my surgeries have been in the morning, which is a GOOD THING because it means less time to get nervous. Alas, my surgery today is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. CST. I woke up at 5:00 a.m. to drink as much water as possible before 6:00, when no food or drink could enter my body. I've done some cleaning, I've packed my bag, I've got the coming home outfit for BTS. And so I wait.

We took the kids out to dinner last night, our last night out as a family of seven. We bought some baskets (50% off!) to serve as temporary (or not) storage for clothes for BTS. A cousin gave us loads of clothes and now the ones that we will use are sitting in those baskets, on our fireplace/hearth, because we have yet to carry out the makeover necessary in the girls' room that must be finished before we can really get settled. Deadlines obviously mean nothing to us.

Friends, if you are reading this before 2:00, please pray that all goes well and we (and my SIL who is delivering their second son today) come out of surgery healthy and whole. If you are reading this after 2:00, please pray that our recovery is smooth and we (BIL/SIL and us) are blessed with easy babies! :) I'll try to have Husband post pictures as soon as possible.

"See" you soon!

The State of Texas Should Know Better

We picked up our license plates for the Largeness (what Husband is calling the van) this weekend. We were a little surprised.