So the kids and I are on day number two of our solo flight during the day since Jason headed back to work on Tuesday morning. Grandma has been helping with getting Joshua picked up from school until I get my driving privileges back (tomorrow, yay!) and that has been a huge help. I will say, though, that today has been a marked improvement from yesterday. Yesterday, although I was up and showered before Joshua left for school, my hair remained undone and I never quite got around to putting any makeup on. Honestly by the time I had time to do it amidst the other list of things that needed to be done, I figured there wasn't much use. I'd just be washing it off in a few hours. And that stuff isn't cheap. (How's that for rationale?) Mara was in her pajamas until approximately 2:00 when I was finally able to get her cleaned up and free of the previous night's spit up. We did manage a hot dinner on the table last night, as well as all beds made, three loads of laundry that had piled up in our bedroom put away, and a new load washed.
Today, though, we're settling into our groove. I made it up, was showered, dressed, hair and makeup done before Joshua left for school at 7:40. The girls and I hung out here this morning, reading books, doing puzzles, drinking milk or coffee, getting cute and cleaned up and even started some more laundry and did some cleaning up/organizing around the house. By the time Joshua was home from school, I had most of my list accomplished and had breathing room for the rest of the day. We were blessed by a meal dropped off by Emily that is going to be seriously yummy! The kids have been good- playing all afternoon together with very few spats. And Mara....sweet, sweet Mara....she continues to do what she has done since she was born, eat, sleep, smile and cuddle, and then repeat the whole cycle all over again.
I have been so blessed with phone calls and visits today from people who have been checking in on us, wondering how we're doing and showing love to us. It has been good for my spirit to have a few adult conversations with people I admire and respect for their opinions, and who have been such a great support. So thank you to everyone who has helped to celebrate Mara's arrival with your time, your thoughts, your prayers, your calls and your visits. We appreciate them so very much.
I also promised I'd report on Mara's trip to the pediatrician on Monday at 11 days old for her goopy, yellow, glued shut eye. As it turns out, she has a blocked tear duct (A+ on your diagnosis, Emily!). We were prescribed some drops to clear up the infection that she had and they have worked wonders. Apparently this is likey to rear its ugly head again and again over the next few months, so we'll keep the drops on hand. Evidently these usually resolve on their own by 6-8 months, and if not, we'll be referred to an opthamologist for a surgical procedure to open it up for her. I choose not to think much about that until we absolutely have to. Another worry for another day. The good news was that, even though we were short of two weeks by a few days, they did her 2 week appointment for us. She was exactly back to her birth weight at 6 lb 10 oz and was still 20" long. After the big weight loss she had, getting her back to her birth weight by 2 weeks was a major win. All signs of jaundice were gone and evidently our hybrid feeding model is going OK. (I rue the day I suggested that I was going to try the "hybrid" model this time--- Joshua had been a formula baby, Lauren a very serious nurser.) But regardless, all that matters is that we got the opinion that Mara appears to be perfect (which we knew) and super sweet (which we knew).
This was Joshua and Lauren's fort this afternoon. They told me they were taking a trip to Nana and Pap's by boat and needed marshmallows for food. They were happy and playing nicely, so if they needed some sugar to keep things that way, I'm totally cool with that.
Lauren continues to be absolutely smitten with her baby sister. She refers to her as "pretty girl" (a definite take away from me). Any concerns I had about how Lauren would adjust to life as a big sister was a total waste of energy (at least so far). Every bit of sweetness and tenderness in her personality has been poured on to Mara. It absolutely warms my heart to see the two of them together, knowing what a special gift a sister is. I'm not so naive to think that this isn't going to turn ugly at some point-- after all, I did live through most of the 80's and early 90's with my own sister, and definitely recall some periods of...shall we say....tension among us. But for now, I'm loving how this is working out so far.
And really, how much cuter can she get? I am so in love.
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