Busy busy busy and We're home! and he's not a baby anymore
It's been insanely busy. We had several births in the last few weeks, and of course with every birth is the 24hr visit and then the 1wk visit at their home... and well it's just a lot to do when you add in prenatals, school, eating, sleeping etc.
There have been some great births, the most memorable was a brand new young mom. They are a very sweet couple, both very young, early 20's and married as virgins. She's been very confident the whole pregnancy, no fear of labor, which was fantastic, but in reality she had no idea what to expect. When we arrived at the house she was working through the contractions, breathing, squatting and working hard, but she was only 2cm. It wasn't long before she got discouraged and overwhelmed. There was discussion about submitting to the contractions and not fighting with them. We all prayed for her and then left them alone for a couple of hours.
Not long after we returned there was a very noticeable transformation. Much like when a girl becomes a maiden, and a maiden becomes a bride, there is a point when the bride becomes a mother and in an instant you can see her mature, grow and at the same time submit, let go and sacrifice. I think labor is designed to make us good mothers, it's the first of many times we will hurt, and sacrifice for the sake of our child. This was so very evident in this mother, she changed in a moment, she gave in and allowed labor to consume her. You could see it wasn't easy but she was determined to do it; and she did it so very well. She quickly progressed and got into a squat, with her husband and mother in law beside her and her mother watching and taking pictures, she pushed out a beautiful baby boy. She was so strong, so amazing, so much a mother. I asked her if she felt like super woman, she said she didn't, but she sure looked like it.
And I have a home!!
My family is all moved into the RV! Well mostly, there are some things I'm waiting on to help me get organized and make sure everything has it's place. It's been good being in a small place, hard, but good. It's hard to find a place for everything and immensely important that everything have a specific place. In that regard it's been great, paring down and being selective about what's important. It takes no time at all to clean up and the kids are loving the woods. We got walkie- talkies so they could explore and Mom isn't worried they've broken a leg and are stuck in a ravine. The down side is the super small fridge, so grocery shopping is happening twice a week and the super small stove. Using my 12" cast iron skillet I can't use any of the other burners and the oven barely fits a cookie sheet, but I'm getting into a routine and it's getting easier.
And My baby turned one!
Last week Gavin turned 1, I can hardly believe it. He's walking everywhere, I missed the first steps; which kills my mommy heart. I think he particularly likes the RV because he can actually walk the width and length of it without falling down!
He's also eating everything in sight. This boy has quite the appetite, his favorites though are apples and bananas. (I like to eat, eat, eat, eapples and benenes lol) Though he wasn't terribly interested in his cake, I'm pretty sure he made the least amount of mess of all the kids, I think it's because it was lemon instead of chocolate (Dora requested a lemon cake).
His birthday made me stop and reflect on being a mother. When my oldest was little I loved it, but was sure that wasn't enough, I was certain I needed to "be more" you know chase a career, "have it all". Now that my 7th is one I wonder how I could have ever desired to do anything else! My children are amazing, this particular little guy warms my heart in an instant. When we wake up in the morning and he sees me he smiles; this sweet, warm smile that says "all is right with my world". How can the sight of me, little ol' imperfect-selfish-not-Donna-Reed me, bring such joy?! I don't know, but I'll take it! No matter how my day has gone, who I've disappointed, or what I've screwed up at the end of the day I'm still "mom" and I'm still loved. I can get a peanut butter smelling hug, a slobber laden kiss or just a sweet, innocent smile and it puts everything into perspective. I'm so glad my first name is Mom.
There have been some great births, the most memorable was a brand new young mom. They are a very sweet couple, both very young, early 20's and married as virgins. She's been very confident the whole pregnancy, no fear of labor, which was fantastic, but in reality she had no idea what to expect. When we arrived at the house she was working through the contractions, breathing, squatting and working hard, but she was only 2cm. It wasn't long before she got discouraged and overwhelmed. There was discussion about submitting to the contractions and not fighting with them. We all prayed for her and then left them alone for a couple of hours.
Not long after we returned there was a very noticeable transformation. Much like when a girl becomes a maiden, and a maiden becomes a bride, there is a point when the bride becomes a mother and in an instant you can see her mature, grow and at the same time submit, let go and sacrifice. I think labor is designed to make us good mothers, it's the first of many times we will hurt, and sacrifice for the sake of our child. This was so very evident in this mother, she changed in a moment, she gave in and allowed labor to consume her. You could see it wasn't easy but she was determined to do it; and she did it so very well. She quickly progressed and got into a squat, with her husband and mother in law beside her and her mother watching and taking pictures, she pushed out a beautiful baby boy. She was so strong, so amazing, so much a mother. I asked her if she felt like super woman, she said she didn't, but she sure looked like it.
And I have a home!!
My family is all moved into the RV! Well mostly, there are some things I'm waiting on to help me get organized and make sure everything has it's place. It's been good being in a small place, hard, but good. It's hard to find a place for everything and immensely important that everything have a specific place. In that regard it's been great, paring down and being selective about what's important. It takes no time at all to clean up and the kids are loving the woods. We got walkie- talkies so they could explore and Mom isn't worried they've broken a leg and are stuck in a ravine. The down side is the super small fridge, so grocery shopping is happening twice a week and the super small stove. Using my 12" cast iron skillet I can't use any of the other burners and the oven barely fits a cookie sheet, but I'm getting into a routine and it's getting easier.
And My baby turned one!
Last week Gavin turned 1, I can hardly believe it. He's walking everywhere, I missed the first steps; which kills my mommy heart. I think he particularly likes the RV because he can actually walk the width and length of it without falling down!
He's also eating everything in sight. This boy has quite the appetite, his favorites though are apples and bananas. (I like to eat, eat, eat, eapples and benenes lol) Though he wasn't terribly interested in his cake, I'm pretty sure he made the least amount of mess of all the kids, I think it's because it was lemon instead of chocolate (Dora requested a lemon cake).
His birthday made me stop and reflect on being a mother. When my oldest was little I loved it, but was sure that wasn't enough, I was certain I needed to "be more" you know chase a career, "have it all". Now that my 7th is one I wonder how I could have ever desired to do anything else! My children are amazing, this particular little guy warms my heart in an instant. When we wake up in the morning and he sees me he smiles; this sweet, warm smile that says "all is right with my world". How can the sight of me, little ol' imperfect-selfish-not-Donna-Reed me, bring such joy?! I don't know, but I'll take it! No matter how my day has gone, who I've disappointed, or what I've screwed up at the end of the day I'm still "mom" and I'm still loved. I can get a peanut butter smelling hug, a slobber laden kiss or just a sweet, innocent smile and it puts everything into perspective. I'm so glad my first name is Mom.