How Babies Are Made

So I know you all are thinking I have given up on blogging. Not so. My latest blog has been on my mind for a couple of weeks, I just haven't had the time to write it. I do not mind admitting that there have been moments over the past few days that I have truly thought raising 4 kids was not possible. I was ready to pull my hair out! Then I was gently reminded by Shelby that I have felt this way after the arrival of each of our children, and that things will get better. He was right. Life already feels manageable, and I do not even remember what it was like before Emilia arrived. Bringing her home from the hospital was really like starting from day 1 again. Plus she had a few extra needs that she did not have when she was first born. The most difficult of these was a complex feeding plan that involved her having a feeding tube leading from her nose down her throat into her stomach. We had to feed her with a bottle as much as she would take and then gavage the rest through the feeding tube. The whole process took forever! We all hated the feeding tube, but Emilia hated it the most. She kept pulling it out. Finally we ran out of tape to retape it to her and gave up on the feeding tube. We got the OK from the in-home nurse when she came to weigh Emilia. When we left the hospital she weighed 6lbs 15oz. Now she is a whole 8lbs, which may not sound like much but we are thrilled. Every day she is more like a normal newborn baby. She rarely seems in pain, and is even almost entirely nursing now. She is a sweet and precious baby and we love her.

Lilly asked me if I went to the doctor and he cut a hole in my tummy and put the baby in there when I was pregnant with Emilia. When I told her that is not the way it works, her next question was of course "Well then how does the baby get in there?" I was just about to tell her that I am not ready to have this conversation with her when Rachel piped up "No mom no. There are eggs inside your body and one goes up into your stomach and it um...pops." I am sure by "pops" she means "hatches". I think her slightly vague explanation is perfect for now.

Last Thursday was Rachel's first day of school. You have never seen a child so excited. We bought her a princess backpack and two new outfits that she picked out herself. One was a blue t-shirt with blue leggings and the other was a sweater dress. Both were very cute but I found myself thinking "what if the other kids don't like sweater dresses? And what if they don't think princess backpacks are cool?" Rachel will be well-liked no matter what because she is a great kid, but this school thing is hard on parents! The first day I tried to talk her into letting me take her to school but she wanted none of it. She was going to ride the bus no matter what. I took her to the bus stop in the morning and waited with her. "Are you scared at all about the bus?" I asked. "No." "Are  you scared about kindergarten?" Again she answered "No." Finally when the bus pulled up, she was off. It was all I could do to get a kiss good-bye. When she got home, she told me all about her day. I understood very little of what she was saying, but the general sense I got was that it was a success. she made two new friends, but did not remember their names. She also liked her teacher but did not remember her name either.

While I was gone, the kids and Grandma found a cat face spider living outside our sliding back door. The thing is huge, the biggest spider I have ever seen around here. It has been there for weeks, and has only gotten bigger. They named it Elly, and every so often we see her through the glass door come down to her web to eat her latest catch. We all think it is so cool. I have never seen a spider live and eat this close up before, and since it is outside, it does not bother me a bit. It reminds me of Charlotte's Web.

Carson is so good with Emilia. Sometimes he can be overly affectionate. And often tries to give her her pacifier even if she is already eating, or sound asleep. He thinks she should always have it. He is also a little overly attentive and could use to give her some space. But with all of this it is clear that his intentions are always unquestionably good. Today he was singing her "Wheels on the Bus" which is his favorite song. Since he really cannot say most of the words of the song it was mostly inarticulate sounds along with the hand gestures. So sweet!