A Question a Day in the Merry Month of May: "How Do You Deal with Morning Sickness?"

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I will share my little method, but remember--especially when one is pregnant--doctor's advice and orders trump anything one reads on the Internet.

My method is oatmeal.  Fortunately, I have always been blessed with the company of understanding folks when pregnant.  So I ate oatmeal every few hours in addition to my regular meals.  The most important servings of oatmeal are midnight and four a.m., in order to prevent or to lessen low blood sugar.  I usually arise at about seven a.m., and when I was pregnant, I ate a protein meal immediately upon arising. 

I hope that my little woman-to-woman ideas have helped.

Agape always,
Cynthia

A Question a Day in the Merry Month of May: "What About When Your Husband Asks You to Wear a Skimpy Outfit?"

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This situation occurs more often than many people might imagine.  I tend to agree with Alfred Hitchcock who is supposed to have quipped, "A man wants a cook in the kitchen, a lady in the drawing room, and a [woman of loose morals] in the bedroom."  I did change Mr. H's wording.  

My general suggestion is that if a lady's husband asks her to wear a certain garment, she ought to wear it. A few possible exceptions exist, however.

1.  If wearing such a garment is against the formally published teachings of a woman's religion,  she should gently and respectfully let her husband know that wearing the garment would be against her religion and be ready to point out such a teaching.  For example, I am a Christian, so I would have the Bible and my Church's teaching to consult.  Many men (and who can blame them?) do not realize that modesty is a requirement of most religions.

2.  A possibility exists that a lady's husband is wobbling the pedestal, to see if she will remain true to her stated morals and standards.  In that case, I would suggest that the lady express the shock she understandably feels and say that she cannot believe that he would ask such a thing.  Women are allowed, after all, to express their feelings. 

3.  If the garment is truly skimpy--say, a string bikini--and if her husband absolutely insists that she wear it, perhaps a negotiation is in order.  She can tell him--gently and respectfully--that she does not feel right about wearing such a thing in public; would a private wearing of the garment suffice?  Perhaps he has some sort of a fancy about seeing his wife in some get-up. Who knows?

I hope that my little woman-to-woman ideas have helped.

Agape always,
Cynthia

A Question a Day in the Merry Month of May: How Do You Juggle Home Duties and Work?

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Despite my valiant efforts to the contrary, I had to commence working outside the home after the death of my husband.  This time was not my first foray into the world of paid employment, but it has been the most difficult.  Let's face it:  none of us is as young as we once were.  Age and other factors have made this a very challenging time.  The ironic part is that I read (several years ago now) a minister's wife who is a remarried divorcee lamenting that divorcee's had to leave their home to work because their husbands weren't around.  Oh, no!  Well, we widows frequently, if not almost always, have to do so, especially those of us who live in community-property states (community property means community debt and medical care is expensive).

So I juggle.  Really it's more like the plate spinners from the Ed Sullivan show.  Do you remember those intrepid souls?







Just like a plate spinner, I do a little here and a little there and keep it all going.  Usually.  This past spring has been a real challenge in every way.  Most of my plates fell to the ground, and I am still catching up.  And I probably will continue catching up until the end of the year.  

The only real wisdom I have to share is to seek a balanced life.  Seek God each day through prayer and through His word.  If you have children at home, be sure to spend at least an hour a day with them.  Have some fun with them as well as being their authority figure.  Eat as well as possible and drink an appropriate amount of water.  If  your physician approves, take appropriate supplements.  Enjoy what beauty exists around you.  Beauty exists everywhere, but we may have to seek it.

Agape always,
Cynthia

A Question a Day in the Merry Month of May: "How Does One Get Rid of Urine Smells?"

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One lady left a very interesting comment.  I won't be publishing the comment (yes, I do eventually get around to doing so) because I don't want someone who knows her daughters to find the comment and tease them about what happened.

You see, her daughters had left urine-soaked underwear and potty training transitional diapers in their bedroom and the bedroom, even after cleaning, smelled like urine.  The lady said that she would try the vinegar to delete the smell, but I fear that vinegar-in-a-bowl won't work in this case--at least not until the root problem is conquered.

The first thing to do is to correct the issue of leaving wet undies and transitional diapers on the floor.  The girls may need more supervision when undressing in order to learn that ladies do not have wet drawers very often and, when such an unfortunate event occurs, ladies rinse out their drawers and hang them up to dry.

I suspect that the urine has seeped well into the carpet and, perhaps, even the pad.  If professionally cleaning the carpet is out of the budget, then I suggest the use of baking soda and water.  Be sure to test a hidden area (in a closet, perhaps) to make sure that the baking soda and water do not remove the color from the carpet fibers.  

If it's safe to do so, spray a mixture of two Tablespoons baking soda and sixteen ounces of water onto the smelly areas.  Saturate the areas so that the pad is moistened.  Then, cover the sprayed area with a folded white rag (such as a flour sack towel) and then place some weight (such as an iron or something along that line) on top of the rag.  This process will help to lift the baking soda water out of the carpet and pad.  Leave for several hours.  (I suggest that the rag be thrown away or laundered carefully using hot water and a sanitizing fluid.) When the affected area is dry, I suggest sprinkling it with baking soda and vacuuming, just to be sure that any trace scent is eliminated.

Good luck!  I hope that my little woman-to-woman ideas have helped.

Agape always,
Cynthia 

A Question a Day in the Merry Month of May: What Do You Think of the "1900 House" Series and FW?

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I received an interesting e-mail from one of my Advanced Students regarding the television series The 1900 House, which played here in the States on the PBS network in 2000.  I watched the series avidly as I have a special interest in late Victorian/Edwardian culture.

As it related to FW, the series helped me to feel even more grateful to be alive now.  I realized that although my daily life had its stresses and strains, I lived in a time of relative luxury and convenience.  I remembered how many beneficial inventions had come forth in the twentieth century: reliable electricity,  indoor plumbing, antibiotics, vaccines, shampoo, reliable feminine supplies, refrigeration.  As the lady of the house notes, "Everything takes three times as long!"  Sometimes we can look back at a supposedly more gracious time with envy; in reality, times may be tough, but these are the good old days. 


I felt surprised that the lady of the house felt that having a maid contravened her feminist ideology and that she was doing her maid a favor by dismissing her.  In 1900, the young lady would have had few options in life, and being dismissed by an employer might have caused her great hardship.

I felt surprised at the difficulty of obtaining food, even for a middle-class family.  The family had been vegetarians, but the lady of the house found herself challenged in maintaining a vegetarian food habit.  Some of the foods usually available to her family did not exist in 1900; in addition, with all the extra work and walking, the family's caloric needs increased.  I remember one particular instance when a pizza coupon flyer reached the family in error.  One of the pre-teen twins found it and nearly drooled over something that wasn't unusual at all in her 1999 life.

I remember feeling quite warmed that the family learned the necessity of working together, as a team, which they had to do to make life a success.  I think that is one thing that we miss now.  It's so easy for us to be isolated from one another.  I notice that sometimes when families are together, they aren't taking notice of one another.

The lady of the house does have several FW moments.  One of my favorites, when she expresses her gratitude for a birthday cake, is embedded below. I find it cockle-warming. 

Agape always,
Cynthia

A Question a Day in the Merry Month of May: "What Do You Like Most and Least about Being a Mother?"

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What I like least about being a mother will comprise the short answer:  "Morning (afternoon, evening, midnight) sickness and toilet training."

Everything else I enjoy, to one degree or another. Children are so interesting!  Who needs television when children are around? All day, every day, they discover newness.  

• Infants are a world unto themselves and require the best of the physical, spiritual, and intellectual efforts of their mothers.  
• Toddlers and preschoolers are active funsters, growing and changing by the minute.  Many of my toddlers' and preschoolers' questions led me to scientific inquiry--why is the sky blue?  
• Early and middle childhood--the ages five to twelve--seems to me to be the best time to share one's religious and moral teachings as well as forming and educating taste.  We mothers do this, in the main, through example and guidance rather than through overt instruction.  
• The young adult years of thirteen through eighteen lend themselves to spirited discussions of vital issues.   Young adults possess a capacity for voracious learning of all manner: why confine them to seven subjects taught from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.?
• From ages eighteen through thirty and beyond, our children begin to launch themselves into lives of their own choosing.  This time can be poignant as we see the beginnings of the fruits of our labors.

It's all joy (which does not necessarily equal happiness).

I hope that my little "woman-to-woman" ideas have helped.  Happy Mothers' Day!

Agape always,
Cynthia 

A Question a Day in the Merry Month of May: "Is Fascinating Womanhood a Panacea?"

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Short Answer: Only God is a panacea.

Fascinating Womanhood (FW) can help women to be happier whatever their life circumstances.  I choose to follow FW teachings because they help me to be happy.  I enjoy sharing these teachings through my classes because I believe that these teachings can help almost any woman to gain happiness and contentment in life.  

A few months ago one of my graduating Advanced Students stated that she originally thought the class would teach her how to manipulate her husband into doing whatever she wanted and expressed her surprise that the class was about learning to change herself. 

That is what FW is all about: learning to change ourselves.  We work on our characters, our feelings about ourselves and femininity, our physical presentation, our physical health, and our intellectual lives.  We work on taking better care of our husbands and children (if we are so blessed) as well as ourselves.  We work on becoming Domestic Queens and on achieving an improved life balance.  I truly believe that all this together helps women to be happier with their lives, overall.

I hope that my little "woman-to-woman" ideas have helped.

Agape always,
Cynthia