To declaw or not to declaw, that is the question.

Our feline son Keats will reach his 6-month birthday next week and will be old enough to be neutered. What were're trying to decide now is whether to get him declawed in front while he's going in for the other procedule. The surgery is now done with lasers and is much less painful for the animal. As someone who grew up with outdoor cats and even barn cats, this whole indoor cat lifestyle (the litterboxes and toys, etc.) is new to me.

I can think of several reasons to not declaw: the expense, and loss of his ability to kill mice if we get some.

The reasons for the surgery are many: To prevent him climbing so much (like the curtains!) and clawing the furniture (though he hasn't wrecked anything yet). My bigger concern is how much he now claws us and how he might hurt the baby. Joel seems to think the neutering alone will calm down these bad behaviors, but I'm not so sure.

Any thoughts?

How does he do that?

I'm talking about Olympic silver medalist Evgeni Plushenko, the only man who can do what's called a Biellmann spin (lifting his free leg behind his back, and holding it over his head, fully extended, while spinning).

Here's how, according to an article in Sports Illustrated: His mother, Tatiana, wanted him to learn the move to improve his skating fortunes, so every night in the kitchen of their Volgograd home, she stood behind him and pulled his legs up in the Biellmann position, first the left one, then the right. He still frowns at the memory: "I told her, 'I'm a small boy. It's so much pain. I don't need this.' But we work every day and stretch hard. Now I say, 'Thank you, Mommy.' "

I had a bit of a scary experience last Thursday. I went for my monthly obstetrics appointment, and everything seemed fine. My bloodwork was all great--no anemia or rubella immunity problems. I'd only gained a pound in 4 weeks and my blood pressure was okay too. But when they tried to pick up a fetal heartbeat with a Doppler device, nothing. Neither the nurse or doctor could pick it up. I was getting kind of tense, so they sent me for another ultrasound right away.

Well, the baby was simply hiding under the placenta. S/he is growing well. The u/s tech did a very thorough scan, looked at several major organs and all the limbs. The spine especially was very visible. At first the baby was curled in a tight ball, the way Joel sometimes sleeps. Later s/he stretched out and started kicking and waving. I haven't felt any of this movement yet, so it was good to see the little one so active.

We now have a new pile of fuzzy, hard-to-distinguish photos to hang on the fridge. Joel hopes to scan a few for his site. Stay tuned.

Was the Canadian pairs team robbed? I'm not entirely sure. I watched the top medaling performances on tape last night, trying to ignore the commentators' comments and simply look at what they did. The Russians skated with more speed than anyone else. Their lifts were more complicated and dangerous. They did more interesting maneuvers between big elements. And yes, Anton nearly fell once. Their scores took a hit as a result.

The Canadians made no mistakes, no question. Buuuut, they didn't have the speed. Their routine was pretty straighforward and not especially risky. They didn't have as much expressiveness or unique elements as in their short program.

The top two were very close score-wise. That seems fair to their complex with a mistake vs. straightforward and clean performances. I have my doubts that this investigation into "score fixing" will uncover anything. It's a subjectively scored sport and the judges could easily back up their decisions.

Maybe the Cold War isn't really behind us yet?

I only saw some of the men's short progams last night before cueing up the VCR and heading to bed. I was amazed to see for the first time ever, a MAN spin while holding one leg above his head. It was Oksana Baiul's most breath-taking move--something I didn't know men were capable of doing. No wonder the guy has had a groin injury!

Joel stayed up later and told me about Todd Eldrige's performance. I feel sorry for the guy. I think he should have gone pro after the last Olympics so he can just enjoy his skating. He does well in every other competition, but cracks under the pressure. Run away, Todd! Go be great somewhere that the media doesn't hound you. Enjoy your gift and forget the stupid medals!

Last night Joel and I listened to several taped lectures by John Barach from a pastor's conference. I wanted to cheer. He totally hit the nail on the head regarding the issues that bug me most about our church. Time and again I become annoyed by the hoop jumping required for converts to be baptised, children to become communicants, and anyone to become a member. Requiring people to prove some spiritual attainment to be worthy of entering the life of the Body runs counter to what we say we believe--that salvation is all of grace, and a gift. It also, as he said, exposes an unhealthy tendency to make judgements about whether our brothers and sisters are "really elect."

I was especially moved by his examples of how rightly understanding election can help Christians who are struggling with temptation and sin. I found it really helpful, especially as I've begun coming to grips with my less than godly response to the crisis of infertility last year.

Morning sickness (or more aptly gestational nausea, since it lasts all day) has not been a fun experience. I realized last night just how unforgiving my body can be of poor food choices. I was so thirsty after napping that I drank two glasses of orange juice, followed by toast, followed by girl scout thin mints. Uugggh. grooooaaaan. Never, never, never again!! Acid + chocolate = ugly, ugly mess in tummy (or back out of it, as in my case).

Growing a baby is not glamorous work.