Only YOU can prevent forest fires!

[author's note: thinking of post titles is my favorite part of blogging]

I have been so saddened today with the failure to pass SB5, which would ban abortions in Texas after 20 weeks gestation. Lately I have become more and more aware of the issue of abortion and what it means scientifically, emotionally, physically, and spiritually, both for individuals and for the nation. I have learned so much. And I have done nothing. I pray sometimes. Once a month or so. And I get sad about it every few weeks. I think more so since my miscarriage. But I haven't done anything. I don't think you can tell someone to go and stop sinning without introducing them to Jesus, so I need to call a pregnancy center and ask if I can help. I'm not sure if I can volunteer with Abigail in tow, but I won't know unless I call and ask. I can definitely pray faithfully though. There's a lot that can be changed in prayer. Internet, you can be my accountability partner. I need to call a local pregnancy center this week and ask if I can help. Please ask me if I did it.

Tuesday Quickie

I'm knee-deep in tax homework, so this will be short, but I wanted to give an update after my last post. After talking to some smart ladies and the internet, I found an herb that I can only describe as magic. It's called Vitex, although it's also known as Chasteberry. It's an herb to help balance estrogen and progesterone, ie the crazy hormones. It cleared up all the physical issues I was having after only two doses and the emotional issues seem clear too. I at least feel like I'm at a much more peaceful state of mind. So thank you for your prayers, and thanks to an incredibly creative God that made plants that fix all manner of problems.

Hell Hath No Fury

Hey Everyone. Today's lesson is about hormones. It's a short lesson, so listen up! Hormones do not pop back to normal after a miscarriage. You might think they would, but they don't. Actually, you might think they wouldn't. Apparently when the body goes through all the changes that come when you're pregnant, then something goes horribly wrong, and the body goes through all the changes of ending that pregnancy abruptly, it can take time for everything to get back to normal. It makes sense that this process would take time and have some bumps in the road, but the human body is normally so incredibly efficient that it's always a surprise when it doesn't all go smoothly. I am not going to go into more details here, but suffice it to say that we all know how much fun it is to be/be around a woman whose hormones are out of whack. Basically, we're all learning to pray for patience and grace in the Nipp household these days. Well, except for Abigail. She's just mad we won't keep our shoes on. She keeps bringing them to us when we take them off and cries if we won't put them back on. Strange kid.

Here's hoping that some balance comes back soon.

Milestones

A life with a baby is a life of celebrating new milestones. Yesterday we had another one - throwing a temper tantrum. I didn't even know she was old enough to have one (she's 14 months). Abigail now has definite opinions about what activities she would like to do. Her most common one is to go outside for a walk. Normally we try to take her, but yesterday she wanted to go right as I finished cooking dinner. I told her "Not now, but after dinner" at which point she lay down on the floor in front of the door and wailed. I'm sure it will be frustrating later, but as her first-ever temper tantrum, it was hilarious! My little baby is growing up, and I am so proud. After an uneventful dinner we went on a family walk, and it was lovely. Abigail's next activity of choice? Bath time. That girl has good taste.

In other news, I happened upon the website for an organic, grass-fed, free-range, happy happy animal CSA. The prices are really cheap and they deliver! I think I've found my new best friends! The website is jolievuefarms.com if you are interested in checking them out. I'll get my first order in on Sunday, so I'll try to let you know how it goes. I have very high hopes for eating organic, grass-fed steak next week.

Personality Plus

Becoming a parent is a crash course in learning to put another person's needs ahead of your own. A very small, loud person, but a person. Something has changed though. This small loud person suddenly has wants, and not just needs. She wants to climb on top of the lady's desk at the bank. She wants to yank every skein of yarn off the shelf at Michael's. Not all of the wants are automatic yeses or nos though. Michael's is right beside Barnes & Noble, which Abigail loves thanks to all the toys on bottom shelves. I didn't need to go to B&N, but we did since we had spent the rest of the morning running errands for my wants and needs. Abigail was very appreciative, until it was time to go. I know we can't do everything she wants, but it is so gratifying to make that little girl happy. Especially since one of her most frequent wants is for us all to shake our heads no as a family. You have never seen a smile so big as when that happens! At least we're a ways off from her most frequent want being not wanting to be seen in public with her dorky parents.

And then I'm back! From outer space!

I can't remember what movie the song that contributed to the title of this post is from. If you remember, you get bonus points! Which are worth ... not much. Anyway, sorry for the long break. I was in school and working on homework most days at work. I'm fixing to start summer classes, so I may disappear again, but I'll try to do better.

I know there are seasons in life where God focuses you in on certain spiritual themes. For a while, every sermon, radio show, or scripture I read was about honoring God in your marriage. I've been through seasons where it was all about knowing how much God loves me. But lately I feel like the heart of my focus has been on Israel and it's role in the Middle East. I'm not going to pretend to be on my way to be an expert, but it seems like I keep stumbling on information, and not from the news on tv.

Nathan gave me a book to read called Destiny Disrupted by Tamim Ansary, which is about the history of Islam in the Middle East. It started with Mohammed and continued on through 2001. It didn't lay blame on anyone or excuse anyone, but instead attempted to present history through the view of a Muslim in the Middle East. It was really fascinating. I knew next to nothing about the Middle East, Muslim or not, and the author did an amazing job of not sounding like a complex encyclopedia.

The next book I picked up was Israel, my Beloved by Kay Arthur. It was a completely random choice, as I was working through a stack of books in my closet and this one was next in line. I also did not know what it was about, except of course Israel. It's actually a history of the world through the eyes of a group of Jewish people, told in a narrative form. It was the perfect book to follow Destiny, since the information was all fresh. It was two sides of the same story one after the other.

I have no grand thesis to share with you right now. I'm still learning and don't have my thoughts organized enough to present anything like a coherent argument, except to say that Satan doesn't want any of God's children to prosper in any way, and especially not God's chosen people. And Satan uses willing people to do evil things every day, whether they know they are being used or not. It's a very complex issue though and smarter people than I have not been able to find a solution. It's interesting though, and nice to feel like I'm getting a grasp of what's going on behind the 5-minute snippets on the nightly news.

Now I have to go play in a bouncy castle with Abigail, so that's all for today. I know, life is hard right?

King David

Amazingly enough, I am still sticking with reading through the Bible in 90 days. Today's reading started with the last words of King David. Now, reading through David's life in big chunks struck me a lot differently than reading in little bits has. David did some awesome things, but he did some terrible things too. He murdered a man, committed adultery. He was a really crappy dad. And he spent most of his recorded life hiding in caves, being deceitful to others in order to avoid capture, and running. This is not a very impressive life. But like David said,

If my house were not right with God,
    surely he would not have made with me an everlasting covenant,
    arranged and secured in every part;
surely he would not bring to fruition my salvation
    and grant me my every desire.
                                    -2 Samuel 23:5

I'm trying to reflect on what was good in his life. What I see is a man who knew God was in charge and would win. He didn't necessarily think God was going to always give him his way, but he always knew God would get his way. He was moved to action by this (David vs. Goliath), but he was also moved to wait by this (see how often he didn't kill Saul, because he was God's anointed?). The world tells us a lot that what we want matters most. I strut around thinking that what I want and how I think things should happen matters so much. But I doubt God agrees. It's his glory that matters; luckily, if we are seeking that, our happiness is often a by-product. But it's never a guarantee. It's also good to remember that a not impressive life can also be incredibly pleasing to God.

Back to the Grind

Happy New Year! Sorry not to post over Christmas break. I was busy breaking and enjoying every minute! This year I had the real treat of being off for two weeks of paid vacation with my husband, which is my new favorite thing ever. We got to see lots of family, which Abigail actually loved! My mom's house is very spacious and completely baby-proof, thanks to my 18-month old brother. She took full advantage of the situation, and was crawling EVERYWHERE! She also had a lot of fun with her baby uncle, rubbing his head and tugging on his ears. I know he was excited about the unexpected head massage.

We did get some not so happy news though. My step-dad has been battling colon cancer. We thought everything was on the up and up after two clean CT scans, but he had one last week and there was a mass on his liver. We are praying that it's nothing, or if it's something that God will heal him. There are more tests coming soon to see what the situation really is though. In the meantime, any prayers are appreciated. I'm sure every family says this, but we need him here.

God's Naughty and Nice List

I'm on Day 2 of the "Bible in 90 Days" plan. I read Genesis 17 - 28, roughly. One of awesome things about Genesis is all the stories of great faith. I read so much of the Bible and think "if I were in their shoes I would not have done that." Why? Why wouldn't I have acted in faith and obedience? Has God ever let me down when I did act in faith? Why am I so scared to trust the creator of the universe? The hardest things I have done in faith have ended up having the greatest and best effects on my life. I should be asking God to give me challenges so that he can bless my life more!

Take Abraham for example. God decided to bless him and make him the father of nations (and Jesus!) because of his faith and righteousness. God also decided to tell him about the plans to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because he didn't want to hide what he was doing from the father of nations. Seriously! God didn't want to go behind Abraham's back as a direct result of his faith and righteousness (Gen. 18). And then, God decide to spare Abraham's nephew Lot on Abraham's account. Not only that, but it sounds like angels whisked Lot and his immediate family out of town when they hesitated to go on their own (Gen 19). Because of Abraham's faith, the lives of his family were saved, even when they did not have faith. Every time I read the act of faith and think "I would never do that" and need to realize when I read the reward and blessing afterward that I would never have that. And frankly, that's sad.

So many plans

We are postponing buying a house, for reasons I will disclose once they become completely official. Suffice it to say that we will hopefully be in a much better place to buy in a year and we have much better options happening now. We're looking for a new (bigger) apartment or condo to rent, so if you know of a good one, let me know!  We are both completely happy with this turn of events though, and we learned a lot by starting the house buying process. For one, we learned how important it is to check your credit report often! You get one free credit report from each reporting agency each year. If you order one every four months and rotate which one you order from, then you can keep an eye on your credit throughout the year. This way you can nip errors in the bud, and not 2 years later like we did with ours. Also, we learned some parameters that lending companies require before letting you buy their money from them. For example, you have to have worked in your field for a minimum of two years. Bad news for people like me that enjoy job hopping. They couldn't even count my income in getting us approved. Apparently they were not impressed by my ability to find so many jobs. Also, you cannot owe more money to people than you make in a year. This was not an issue for us, thanks to Dave Ramsey, but it was interesting to note. I am keeping a much better eye on our bank accounts now. I always think, now what would our mortgage guy say if he saw this. It makes banking more interesting.

In other news, I may be helping someone set up a business selling art. For any of you small business gurus, selling online gurus, or shopping online gurus, I would love imput! What has worked for you, what hasn't? What sites do you love to shop at? What sites do you hate to shop at? Why? What programs have helped you succeed, or were a total waste of your time? I would love any and all input.

It's almost the weekend, I hope it's restful and awesome.

Holiday Fever

Ok, fever is probably a little bit of an exaggeration. I do love this time of year though! I love the busyness of it, even though I know that is what most people complain about. Especially the shopping. We made a short list of people to get gifts for this year. Usually I like to get/make for everyone, but there isn't time or money for that this year. As a result, I am having a lot of fun buying for the few people I do get to buy for. If you didn't make the list, don't feel bad. Nathan didn't either. (I love you Sweetie!) We are hoping to get family photos made next week, and then the Christmas cards can be mailed soon after that for the people we don't get to buy for. I have also been inspired by gluten-free holiday baking, so that will be taking up time soon. It will be so worth it for the yummy smells filling our home. And the best thing, the very best thing, is that for the first time ever, Nathan and I will both be off together for two weeks at Christmas! We were off in college, but we spent it with our respective families and then met back up at campus when class started. This year we are very married, so we will be together. And with our little pookie! (not poopy, like the daycare boys always think I say) It is going to be amazing. I am already looking for fun things to do with her. I know she won't remember all the sights, smells, and sounds of her first Christmas, but I will. And I will treasure them for a very long time. I hope you're enjoying this holiday season as much as I am.

The After Party

Well, we made it through one major holiday. Only 17 more work days until my next holiday break begins. Why doesn't everyone work for a school?!?!? Anyway, I hope your Thanksgiving was great. Mine was fun. We went to Arkansas to visit family. The little one had a great time playing with all her relatives. She also practiced her new skill - crawling. She just started crawling and just hit that stage where she wants to have mommy in eye-sight at all times, so she has almost perfected crawling over to me and into my lap. Definitely my favorite trick! It's always something new with a baby though. I'm constantly having to learn what she needs for her current developmental level and mood. It's a constant evaluation, and you can take nothing for granted. It's a challenge, but so wonderful.

To update my 30 day pre-Thanksgiving challenge, I did not make significant weight/measurement differences. However, I have been exercising just about every day, I am eating less sweets and junk food, I am not eating until 10 every night, and I've had several people at work tell me I look thinner. All in all, I'm counting this as a success. My 30 day pre-Christmas challenge is going to focus on being really gluten-free. I found out that my gluten intolerance potentially added to or caused my difficulties breast feeding Abigail, and I'm on a mission to not have the same problems with the next baby, whenever it may come. So I'm going GF until the Super Bowl! Hopefully that will be long enough to really set the habit. What about the holidays, you ask? Betty Crocker makes GF cake mixes and I'm going to try to make cake balls with them. After all, everyone knows it's impossible to feel deprived when you're eating cake balls. But in case I slip, feel free to knock the fried chicken right out of my hand!

Well, back to work everybody. Make it count!

Update

Internet, you are not a good accountability partner. I started out pretty good, but then Abigail got sick. And if you think it's hard to get things done with a healthy baby, you should try getting things done with a sick baby! So I haven't been working out, but I am doing pretty well on the food side. Unfortunately, I only lose weight if I work out, so you can't really tell. But I'm feeling, I don't know, cleaner since I've been eating better. And that's definitely something.

In other news, the election happened. Most of me is disappointed that we're not getting a new president. Or a vice president with a 6-pack. But part of me, the snarky part of me, is excited to see all the crazy things that so many conservatives are threatening will happen if Obama stays in office NOT happen. Like I said, the snarky part. All of me though is working on remembering that God said to pray for your leaders, to respect those in authority over you, and to remember that they are in power because God has allowed it. True, it could be that God allowed it as punishment (see any random chapter in the Old Testament as example), but God still allowed it. And frankly, I want to be obedient to God more than I want to rail against an elected official.

In final news, the house shopping is on a pause. When they ran our credit there was an error on the credit report which is taking hours of yelling and weeks of waiting to be corrected so that we can get the best rate possible. This is your warning, keep an eye on your credit! Preferably before you want to do something really expensive! Also, be sure at least one person in your marriage is good at calling and yelling at people. Although not being good at it is not a bad thing. Might even say something good about a person. But hopefully it will be corrected in next moth or so and we can go back to house hunting.

I hope you're having a good day, Internet. Thanks for listening :)

30 Day Pre-Holiday Challenge!

I have been trying to get gung-ho about eating paleo for awhile now, but today I am deciding to be gung-ho or else. Why? Because I found a pair of size 6 pants that fit before I got pregnant and I would really like them to fit again. I was hoping I could talk a certain somebody into being hardcore with me for a month, because I know if I cheated before he did that he'll make fun of me for the next 10 years, but he declined. So I've decided that you, Internet, are going to be volunteered to keep me accountable. If I mess up, you get to hold it over my head forever. Or at least until something else cool happens online. I do have one disclaimer up front. I do not know how many days it is until Thanksgiving and I am too lazy to look, but I think it's less than 30. Regardless, my 30 day challenge will end on Thanksgiving. Because it's Thanksgiving. Other than that, no exceptions or cheats! Here are the guidelines:

No grains
No gluten
No dairy, except cheese. Strict paleo usually has no dairy, but most cheese has no carbs and makes  food so delightful!
No soda, no candy, no ice cream
Very little added sugar
Two fruits a day max - one at breakfast and one for dessert after dinner if I'm craving something
Exercise at least 3x a week in some form or fashion

For any good accountability, we need records! So here's a small sampling of my stats:
 Starting weight: 168.7 lbs
 Starting waist size: 39.5 inches
 Starting hip size: 43.0 inches
 Starting waist to hip ratio: .93 (bad - you really want .81 or below)

I'm keeping more stats on my computer, so we'll see how I do. Internet, you've been officially volunteered. Let's do this.

Games to Play with a 6-Month Old

So, if it's been awhile since you've had a 6-month old to play with, let me remind you of how awesome it is! Every day she's learned something new. We are amazed by what she can do today that she couldn't do yesterday. You can tell she's loving every minute of life, because to her every thing is so so funny! I spend all my free time trying to make her laugh, so we've made up a few games to play:

1. Making the Bed
 We figured out how to make this chore fun. Add a baby! After you put the bottom sheet on, it's fun to put Abigail down and billow the top sheet over her. Every time it comes up and we peek under, she makes a different face or different funny noise.  It was like her own private comedy show. And she loved watching the sheet come up and down.

2. Copy Cat Noises
At first, Abigail just thought it was hilarious to watch us smack our lips or buzz our lips at her. Now she learned how to copy the noises, so we make as many funny noises as we can think of and she copies them. Never too soon to teach your baby rude noises, right?

3. Flying
What every baby loves, being tossed in the air!

4. Smack Daddy (lean in for a kiss)
 This one Nathan does not like, but he'll lean in to kiss her face and she'll either turn away or smack him. I think it's because his beard is scratchy and bigger than her head. Poor Nate takes it personally, but I just think it's kinda funny, so it falls under games.

5. No More TV (put my hand in front of her face)
 Alright, this one is purely for my enjoyment, because nobody else likes it. Abigail really likes tv though, so I have fun putting my hand up in front of her face and watching her try to see around it. I think this is why her neck is so long.

Any suggestions for those of you with little ones running around?

You know, they took "gullible" out of the dictionary

My brother told me that when I was in junior high. With as preposterous as I thought that was, you would think I had invented the word! I promise you, I ranted and raved for about a minute before it sunk in what he had said. And then wanted to deck my little brother. Sadly though, my ability to be fooled has not gotten much better as I've gotten older.

I am very easily swayed. I know this, and I try to protect against it. There are certain things that I know to be true, so I'll stay away from arguments against it. Why? I don't want to be talked out of what I know is right. And there are certain things that I really want to be true (whether they are or not), so I ignore the arguments against those as well. The internet really makes this hard to do though. I often think that ignoring the arguments makes me dumb. After all, you really should look at all sides of some things before jumping in. But I also don't want to be one of those people that can see everyone's point of view, and so believes nothing. Really, those people are just obnoxious. But where is the middle ground? And how do I figure out who is right and who is wrong without trying it all myself?

Some things I have tried. I was vegetarian for a year and a half and then switched to paleo. I felt better within a month, so I feel find saying I know which one of those is right, at least for me. I've tried working jobs that are super crazy busy and jobs that are slow. I have a definite preference, and know where I thrive. But big things, like politics? How do I try socio-economic solutions out to see what works? How do I figure it out on the things outside of myself, when I'm so quickly swayed by their proponents? There's got to be an anchor for things like that, but I haven't figured it out yet.

The Thrill of the Hunt

It seems that having a baby was not enough change for us Nipps, so we also threw in house hunting and church hunting. It's a lot of work, but it's been a good chance to evaluate what's important to us and to learn more about each other. For example, we were reminded last Sunday how much of a Baptist I really am. Years in a non-denominational church followed by years in a Presbyterian church, and I still feel right at home when a good ole Baptist hymn starts up! And we're having conversations about "hard" and "soft" sermons. Who uses phrases like that? In houses I am intensely attracted to any house with a huge kitchen, and I can't help but think it's because of all the great memories in my grandma's kitchen. And I'm checking every house for the place where our "family photo wall" will be. I love looking at family photos hanging in people's houses, and I want mine to be great! (Notice I said photos hanging, please don't pull out your photo albums next time I come over)

It's fun working together to feel out and have a say in the changes going on in our lives. Sometimes the best things are the unexpected ones, but as a young married couple, it usually feels like our life is mostly the product of chance or the decision of others. For the first time since I chose to move to Houston, it feels like we are really getting to decide what our life together is going to look like. We're praying through all of this, knowing that God's vision for our lives in far better than our vision, but it's still really exciting to know we're getting to choose. I hope little Abigail likes what we decide.

Things I do to Keep Busy vs. Things I Wish I Did

I have a lot of free time, but in all the wrong places. There are so many things I wish I did/could do, but there is only so much you can get away with in a cubicle. Even if you do have an awesome privacy cubicle in the back corner of the office. And there is only so much time in the day when your commute to daycare and work takes an hour each way. However, I am a huge believer in the power of lists, so I thought maybe this would help get activities organized. Here is my day the way it is and the way I wish it was:

Things I Do To Keep Busy:

• My accounting homework, which is surprisingly fun at this point! I get to learn something new that is slightly challenging. Not very challenging (yet) but enough that I get the satisfaction of having learned something.
• Free class at Notre Dame - currently taking Jews and Christians Throughout History. This class is great because a lot of the texts are available online and a few are available at the library. It's been really eye-opening to learn our relationship throughout the centuries. With any religion, the more you learn about others means the more you learn about your own. This is especially true with Judaism and Christianity, so it's been doubly interesting to me.
• Free class at coursera.org - currently taking a class on logic. These classes are not self-paced, but you do get a certificate of completion if you do well in it. I figure logic could be helpful.
• Bible study - the nice thing to free time with limited other options is that it's been easier to spend time with God every day. I guess God may not appreciate being relegated to the "things I do to keep busy" category, but it's definitely one of the things I'm glad I'm doing!
• Shop for a house (!) - we aren't looking at buying until early next year, but oh the shopping is fun!
• Shopping for furniture for said house - really am not looking to buy anything right now, so I need to stop this one! I keep finding awesome deals for things I love and absolutely CANNOT buy right now. Why? There is only so much room in our 1-bedroom apartment, which is part of the reason we're moving in the first place.
• Yoga - the perfect exercise. You don't get sweaty unless you really try, and it always makes me feel tall and thin. Just because I'm not doesn't mean anything.

Things I Wish I Did:

• Run - my running has fallen totally by the wayside. I think trying to run a half-marathon while working full time and having an infant was a bit lofty of a goal for me. Not saying it can't be done, but that I'm not willing to do what it takes to do it. I just don't have the time or energy to run when Abigail finally goes to bed for the night, and I'm not willing to spend the few hours I have with her by running. So I know it's not really reasonable right now, but I miss it.
• Stare at the computer less. It seems like I am always, and I mean always, staring at the computer. This can't be healthy.
• Cook. I miss cooking elaborate and fun foods. I have to cram anything fancy or time consuming into the weekend, and then by the end of it I hate cooking. Nathan cooks most nights so I can take care of the baby and I love him so much for it, but I miss it.
• Clean!!! I'm a little OCD, so don't take this to mean that we're nasty, but I so want to scrub my apartment. It needs a deep deep cleaning, but I haven't made time to do it. This may actually be my project this weekend.
• Go out. Saturday nights are not enough. If we stay at home we end up just sitting and eating. I love going out and walking around and seeing things. I need to find a way to work this into more evenings.
• Start getting ready for Christmas. I do not want to be in crazy mode in December. Period.

The Day the Swing Died

For those of you who haven't gotten to spend the night since we had our precious bundle, you may not know that Abigail sleeps in a swing. We have a really nice swing that plays white noise and plugs into the wall, so we don't go broke buying batteries. We started letting her sleep in there when she was a few weeks old and screamed every time we put her down. Looking back on things, part of that may have been because she wasn't getting enough food, but who knows for sure. What I did know, was that she would sleep, and I could sleep, for four hours at a time if she was swaddled and swinging away. She sleeps so good in the swing, we just keep letting her do it. After all, why trade what works for less sleep?

Anyway, long story long is that the swing broke. We noticed on Thursday night that it kept stopping, but it would start again. We went out of town last weekend and borrowed my mom's swing, so no problems there. When we got back Sunday night though, Abigail's swing would not swing. So we are now crash-weaning her. Surprisingly, she's doing really good! We're still putting her down in the swing with the white noise, and that way we can rock her for a minute while she falls asleep. (We'll work on taking that part out later) After her 3am feeding we (I) put her to bed in her co-sleeper thingy in the hopes that will make it easier to transition to a crib later. I don't put her in the co-sleeper in the evenings because she just screams and cries then. Frankly, if I don't want to cry myself to sleep, I don't think Abigail should have to either. So far, I'm really proud of her though. She's taking a broken bed like a champ! Much better than her momma would.

Accounting Fun

There is someone that I consider to be an extreme saver. It's not that he saves every penny, but it seems like every penny saved has a name and an assignment. My savings account has always just been one generic fund. I may be saving for one thing, but only one at a time. And most of the time it has just been a place that hopefully has a little extra in it for when my car breaks. I've been intrigued by the idea of keeping my savings account organized, but I didn't know how without opening 16 different savings account. I think the things I'm learning in my accounting class will let me do that though! So I'm playing super nerd and making a budget for my savings account. Let the pie charts flow!