Update

(Young A and Miss M long ago)
The small ones are sleeping and the smallish ones are on their way. The pink eye is quickly retreating. Calm has descended where earlier chaos reigned.

You are forewarned...

Do not wake up my baby. Otherwise I will send you to time out for the week.

And should you feel inclined to whine/cry/scream at me today, don't bother. There are five people ahead of you in line, and they have done more than enough for the next week.

Should you happen to find an extra night's sleep lying around, please send it my way. I could desperately use it.

And should you be misguided enough to want some pink eye/croupy stuff/teething?/congested cough/allergies, let me know. We've got lots and lots to share.

I keep thinking, "This has to stop sometime. I can't do this much longer." And then the Lord says, "Let's find out if you can." I'd rather not.

Musical reminder

Our choir sang a beautiful song yesterday. I enjoyed being reminded that there is more to life than me and my problems.

Lord, Speak to Me

Lord, speak to me that I may speak

In living echoes of Thy tone;

As Thou has sought, so let me seek

Thine erring children lost and lone.

O lead me, Lord, that I may lead

The wandering and the wavering feet;

O feed me, Lord, that I may feed

Thy hungering ones with manna sweet.

O teach me, Lord, that I may teach

The precious things Thou dost impart;

And wing my words, that they may reach

The hidden depths of many a heart.

O fill me with Thy fullness, Lord,

Until my very heart overflow

In kindling thought and glowing word,

Thy love to tell, Thy praise to show.

O use me, Lord, use even me,

Just as Thou wilt, and when, and where,

Until Thy blessèd face I see,

Thy rest, Thy joy, Thy glory share

Words: Frances Havergal, 1872

I had forgotten

You would think I would know about this baby stuff by now, and yet there is so much I had forgotten.

Such as...

• Typing is tricky with a baby on lap (and, thus, it is very easy to not email or update for weeks).
• Somehow, this little one who sleeps so much still takes up most of my time.
• 8 or 10 or 13 pounds gets very heavy after a few hours.
• How quickly I can lose my heart to a stranger.
• I think very slowly (and imperfectly) when I sleep like a baby.
• How much my family needs me to be the mom, even when I don't want to.
• How overwhelming it all can be.
• The reality (and suddenness) of depression, even when it only lasts for a few hours or days at a time.
• How kind the Professor is as he deals with an emotional rollercoaster of a wife.
• There is never a good time to clean.
• Little babies are divine right after a bath.
• It is very hard to take only one picture of my boy (once I find and get out the camera, that is.)

Young T, back in October

He's here

A few days before Halloween, we welcomed Young T into our family. I woke up about 6, we went to the hospital, and he was born just after 8. I like it when things are quick and uncomplicated. I learned a few things this time around.

Did you know they now have CPAP machines for newborns? This translates into less time in NICU for babies that just need to breathe a bit better. (3 hours rather than 48+)

And, since Miss M was born, they have discontinued having the annoying lady come around to take pictures of the babies and then try to sell them to you. Hooray! One less interruption for tired moms.

I also learned about cephalohematoma, a large bruise trapped under the bone membrane on the skull. Young T had two of them giving his head a heart shape. They have healed, but it took over three weeks.

I've learned that lots of rest really does help new moms heal faster. I've always had help, but this time I rested more and had more help at the beginning. It was wonderful. I'm thankful to both sets of parents for all they have done.

I've learned that the people in my new neighborhood are amazingly kind. We've had meals and playdates, rides and gifts, babysitting and phone calls to check on me. They have helped me get kids off to school and taught my Sunday School class and raked my leaves. I love my neighbors.

My Fortune

While I am only a little bit past my due date, I have never gone past my due date before, and the doctor has been expecting me to have this baby any day for the past three weeks. So, while there is nothing to worry about, I feel like I've been waiting (along with everyone around me) a long time for this little one to come.

On Sunday, the choir sang "Be Still My Soul," and I was reminded to "with patience bear thy cross of grief or pain, leave to thy God to order and provide." (You mean I'm not in charge of this?!) And "The hour is hast'ning on... when sorrow (is) forgot, love's purest joys restored." (Some minutes it is easier to remember the sorrow to come more than the joys.) Much of that song seemed particularly well suited to calming a very tired woman who feels large with child and has no idea how soon the Lord will send a tender mercy and make her "mighty even unto the power of deliverance." (see 1 Nephi 1:20)

Apparently, I need multiple reminders that the Lord is in charge of this. Because they keep coming. My favorite happened yesterday.

Miss M came home with a fortune teller. Remember those papers with colors and numbers you folded in 2nd grade? Well she is in 2nd grade. Young A used it to tell my fortune. Here is what it said:

"Good things come to those who wait, you will be one of the waiting ones."

I found it terribly amusing.

What a week!

Hmm... What should I tell you about the past week? Should I tell you about the awful cold/stomach flu that crept through the entire family leaving lots of laundry and croup and congestion in its wake? Or maybe you would rather hear about the leaking water heater that left a large puddle of rusty water on my basement carpet and no hot water in two thirds of the house? Should I mention that we had family visit in the middle of the fun? Or maybe about how I fell down the stairs as I went down to show the insurance guy the damage? Or how about the two times I thought I was beginning labor only to have everything stop once I told my husband?

I think I would rather talk about what a blessing it was to have my nesting energy hit just in time to be able to stay up at night with sick kids and still function during the day. I also found it amazing how my intermittent contractions stopped for days until the last child was finished with the majority of her bad night.

Did I mention how grateful I am for family that wanted to be shown around a new house, including the seldom ventured into basement, allowing us to find the puddle quickly and dry everything out? I am especially grateful that she then helped with the children while I made phone call after phone call and showed person after person the damage getting it cleaned up. I am very grateful for a hot water heater that runs only part of the house and continues to work.

I am also amazed at how quickly my arm that was wrenched trying to stop sliding down the stairs healed. (Last time it took much longer.) And, thanks to the fact that my baby decided to wait just a bit, I had a marvelous sleep last night and am feeling almost healthy again. What a blessing to have a rested, healthy body for labor rather than an exhausted, sick one.

I have been astounded at how abundantly the Lord has blessed me this week, turning a very difficult experience into another example of His careful care of me.