all you've got

I was reading a book the other night that finally clicked another of those little puzzle pieces in place.

John Gray in Mars and Venus Together Forever relates this story:

While I was signing books in a bookstore, three women and my wife were sharing stories about how difficult it is to be a mother today. When one woman disclosed that she was the mother of seven, another immediately gasped in admiration and sympathy.

"I only have two children," she said, "and I thought I had it bad. How do you do it?"

A third mother added, "I only have one child and that wears me out."

"I have three children," said my wife, "and I thought that was a lot. I can't imagine how you handle seven."

"Whether you have one, two, three, or seven kids, you give them everything you have," the mother of seven replied. "You only have so much to give, and every mother, no matter how many children she has, gives it all."

You can probably guess why I liked this revelation so much. So many times I feel like a whiner if I have any parenting or family problems, thinking that other people must be rolling their eyes, thinking, "Yeah, yeah, try 2 (or 3 or 5 or 7!)" I guess in a big way, my feelings were validated, and that's always nice.

In another way, it was extremely calming. You only have so much to give, and you're already giving it all. That helps calm those constant worries about what another child would do to our lives....to my mood swings and proneness to anger. I'm now thinking, probably nothing. Another child probably would change very little of my "worry areas," particularly since there would be such a large gap between the children.

On the having babies front, I woke wide-eyed at 4:45 a.m. this morning while Sassy laid awake wide-eyed next to me, hot with a fever. The first thought that struck me upon waking was about my teeth. Four or five of those puzzle pieces fit themselves into a little piece of the big picture, starting with my teeth. I've had over 20 cavities in my teeth since Sassy was born. I've had one root canal and will probably need another. My gums are in the same shape as when I had her 5 years ago. No matter how I change my dental habits, it doesn't make a difference.

We all know the relationship between the health of your teeth and the health of your body. Weston A. Price has a wealth of information on this subject. If the teeth are a little window into our bodies, I'm pretty certain that my body is deficient in some key minerals, and possibly vitamins.

The thing is, I eat pretty well compared to the SAD, and even pretty well for someone on an alternative diet. My little puzzle pieces are telling me that it's enzymes. Simple digestive enzymes and the lack of a quality whole foods supplement to bridge the gap between what I'm taking in & what my body's digesting.

Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that my body zapped its reserves during my pregnancy with Sassy. Most people would have built their reserves back up by now. What about people who aren't digesting their nutrients properly? What could they have possibly built back up? Would these people likely present with poor dental health?

Would this lack of reserves terminate a viable pregnancy? Would this lack of reserves later make it nearly impossible to start another pregnancy?

It seems like an easy enough issue to address & I plan to do so right away.