First Things First....LOVE

First things First

LOVE

I have always told my kids and have always believed that love is the most important thing in the world.  It was one of the first words my children learned.

First Words:
Gavin - hot, because we were at my parents' house a lot and they had their gas fireplace on.  We needed to teach Gavin not to touch the fire place

Anna - cookie.  Well, like most kids, Anna likes cookies...still does!

Owen - car.  Unfortunately for my face, Owen love Matchbox cars...he really liked throwing them at my face!

Liam - Ma.  I'd like to think he was really saying Mom!

It's hard not to get caught up in money.  We need money for everything...even going to the beach, at least in New Jersey!  I'd love to have an updated kitchen, a bigger bathroom for the kids, and at least a month a year (a week at a time) where I do nothing but sit on a beach in 80F weather.  All of these things cost money...oh wait, the kids want to play tennis, soccer, baseball, dance, go to birthday parties and have their own birthday parties.  All of which cannot be done without money.

But when it comes down to it...why do I have my embroidery business...get up at 6am to work on my orders, because, because of love.  I love my kids (& my husband).  I want them to be happy.  Making them happy, makes me happy.  What would all this be, if it weren't for love?

We talk every night at dinner with our children.  We don't repeat the same stories every night, but we do often talk of love.  The love that brought Brian and I together.  The love we have and had for a family.  The love that will live on past our existence on earth.

There is a saying that there is no love like the love of a mother.  As a mother, I believe this to be true. However, admittedly and obviously, I have never been a father, so how am I to know how a father feels.  I do tell my kids that no one will ever love them the way I love them and I believe that everyone on this planet can say that, because we are all different.

Regardless of whether I love you more than your father, boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, partner, and children, regardless of whether I am near or far or dust in the ocean, I love you, Brian, Gavin, Anna, Owen and Liam.  I hope that you always remember that I taught you how important love is and that you aren't scared of it and run from it.  Your hearts are pure...let the love flow freely to and from your heart.

Your loving mother,
Laura

Ode to Opu

My First Baby - Opu

Opu Summer 2011 - Enjoying the Sprinker

Opu is our very much loved black labrador retriever.  I got him when we was 40lbs and 4 months old.  Now he is eleven years old (yikes) about 90-95lbs.  He has arthritis in all his joints, but his right shoulder is the worst.  He started complaining (moaning and refusing to go up and downstairs) in January.  

My veterinarian, my beloved cousin, Jen, prescribed him some medicine and it seemed like I had my puppy back.  However, at the beginning of this week, he started yelping, crying and moaning again.  Dr. Jen let me double up his medicine and he seemed ok for an afternoon.  The last two nights, he woke Brian and me up with his cries and moans.  It's sad and breaks my heart, because I know additional medicine is only going to pro-long his life by months - not years.  

Opu has seen me through tough times.  He dealt with my single life in NYC - the ups and downs of dating.  The death of my Godmother, who meant the world to me.  He listened to me when we were planning our wedding.  Helped me deal with my migraines when I was pregnant with Gavin.

Opu and Me (pregnant with Gavin)

Opu, much to popular myth, loved Gavin from the moment we brought him home.  Opu would sleep right under Gavin's crib and curl up next to me on the couch when I was feeding Gavin.

Opu - Love at First Site

Opu sat next to me and kissed my legs, when I cried over a miscarriage or failed IUI.  He consoled me continuously through the triplet pregnancy.  Always sitting right next to me and giving me encouragement.  

Opu and Brian enjoying the Pool

My beloved lab shares the trait of most labs.  He is happiest near food and drink.  At this very minute, he just finished moaning, so he could walk over to the to the deserted plate of waffles.

I'm hopeful that the new medicine he is on will help him enjoy the summer - probably his last summer.

I will always love you Opu, my very first baby.

**Opu passed away on September 24, 2012 - exactly two months before his 12 birthday.  I started a new post about all his crazy adventures during his.  However, his death is still too painful - maybe next month.

My Book at Amazon: Five Strands of Hope 

75% of Premature Baby Deaths Could be Avoided

(Los Angeles Time)

Three out of every four babies who die after being born too early could be saved if more countries used inexpensive, proven techniques such as holding the baby skin-to-skin against the mother, according to new report (click HERE) from the World Health Organization and other groups.

“This is a solvable problem,” said the March of Dimes’ Christopher Howson, co-editor of the report. Countries such as Botswana and Ecuador have halved their premature neonatal deaths, he said.

Over the last two decades, premature babies have become more common in all but three countries around the globe, a dangerous and sometimes deadly trend. Almost half of all babies who pass away worldwide are born premature. Those who survive are at higher risk for lifelong physical and neurological disabilities.

The problem hits poor countries such as Malawi and Zimbabwe hardest, linked to infections and malaria. More babies are born early there and fewer survive: In low-income countries, more than 90% of extremely premature babies die, compared to less than 10% in high-income countries, Howson said.

Though the numbers are daunting, some of the solutions are surprisingly simple. “Kangaroo care" –- holding the baby skin-to-skin against the mother to keep it warm –- is one basic step that could save 450,000 of the 1.08 million babies who die annually of premature birth complications, the report said.

Steroids that help immature babies develop their lungs, which cost only a dollar per injection, could save another 400,000. Antiseptic cream and antibiotics could also save lives.

While premature births are more common and more deadly in poorer countries, they have also been on the upswing in wealthy nations such as Austria and the United States, where the trend is tied to older mothers and more fertility drugs, the report said. As of two years ago, the U.S. had a higher rate of premature births than Benin, Cambodia or Tajikistan, with higher rates for teen and middle-aged moms.

The report, released this week, was authored by the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health and Save the Children, in addition to the World Health Organization and the March of Dimes Foundation.