Falling in Love

Most people remember the early days with newborns as hectic, sleepless, sometimes even a blur and while admittedly these things are true, what stands out to me most is that it is a time for falling in love. Of course, it is a time to fall in love with a new baby and Noah, like my other two, has made that extremely easy. He's such a sweet little guy. He cries when he is hungry, sleeps a whole lot, and spends an hour or two each day just checking out his surroundings. We spend a good deal of time each day just gazing at each other and I am so thankful for these times. I wish I could bottle them because if I could, I would be a billionaire for sure. I am fairly certain that he will be my last baby so I am trying to savor every single second of his "newbornness". Falling in love with the new baby is obvious. Who can help but fall in love with such a sweet, innocent little being who smells so sweet it's almost intoxicating? But the early days with a newborn are also a time to fall in love (again) with other family members.

First of all, I should mention my parents. With our house on the market and me recovering from surgery (so not able to keep a house "show clean"), they have been very gracious in letting us stay at their house. Their typical household of two has been totally over-run by our "party of five" and we really appreciate their generosity and patience with us.

Secondly, seeing Tyler interact with his younger siblings has reminded me of what a good kid he really is. Occasionally with a "tween" you need reminders of this and right now I don't have to look very hard. He's been so helpful in entertaining Grace and is totally smitten with his tiny little brother as well. It warms my heart to see him take such an interest in these little people who will certainly look up to him as the years go by.

And then there is the sunbeam. You would think little Grace would be the most "affected" by this new addition, but so far she seems to be taking it all in stride. Granted, she is unaware of her own strength, so we do keep her at least an arm's length away from Noah most of them time. Still, she is fascinated with him and seems nothing but happy when she sees he's still here every day. Every morning, when she comes in and sees him, she points and says "ohhhhhhhhh" as if to say "ohhhh, he's still here!" If you ask her where Grace's baby is, she points to Noah and grins from ear to ear. When the postpartum hormone drop hit leaving me with a short-lived case of baby blues, I mourned the fact that her "babyhood" was taken away so early, but in her own little way, she has given me the reassurance that everything is okay. She is still a baby and as long as we don't forget that, she's going to be just fine.

Finally, with the birth of each of our two babies, I have found the early days of their lives to be a time for falling even deeper in love with my husband. You see, I knew before we had children that he was a wonderful, special man, but there is something about seeing a daddy take an active part in his children's lives that makes the "small stuff" seem so insignificant. After a grueling couple of months getting our house ready for the market, Aaron's paternity leave and my "vacation" couldn't have come at a better time. It has given us a chance to re-connect and to focus on the most important thing, our family. When life gets busy, it is so important to take the time to fall in love with your spouse all over again.

As I reflect on this entry, I think I understand exactly how the postpartum amnesia mentioned in a previous blog entry occurs. All of the discomforts of pregnancy are completely superseded by the overwhelming love that follows. Second and later children everywhere should be thankful to a loving Heavenly Father for a clever plan to ensure their existence. :)

Much love to all!
Melissa