Whew!!

I had GRAND plans to have a post all done first thing this morning.......funny how plans don't always work out, isn't it?!?!?!

It was quite a loooooooonnnnnnnng day today.

It started off with a not-so-great night of not-so-much sleep......but, what do I expect with a newborn????  I guess I expect she'll sleep the 6-8 hours straight she's been doing every night, but, I have to remember that that might not always happen!!!  And, last night was my reminder!  She slept a good 4 hours straight from 8-midnight, but then it was up and down every 1-2 hours.......and on top of that, Ava comes bouncing in the room at 5:55 this morning!!!  Yikes!  I'm not quite used to this, but I guess I better start!!

The kiddos (A & L) are still acting out quite a bit, too, and are definitely not quite settled into the idea that sister Anna is STAYING, and that she is taking some of Mommy's attention away from them.  They love her to death, but it's a little tough for them right now.  They also don't know how to be gentle with her, and I found out the hard way this morning.  I set Anna in her bouncy seat after nursing her, to go into the kitchen to pour my coffee.....Ava and Luke were both in the room she was in, and I told them not to touch her, or the seat.  The next thing I hear is Ava and Lukie giggling like crazy, so I thought all was well.....but, then......the NEXT thing I hear is Anna screaming bloody murder and the pitter-patter of Ava and Luke running like the wind!!!  I run into the family room and find Anna off her bouncy seat and face down on the floor!!!!!!!!  I FREAKED out!!!  Thank the Lord that the bouncy seat was on the floor and is low to the ground!!  She ended up being totally fine and stopped crying as soon as I picked her up, but, boy was I upset!!  Neither Ava or Luke would fess up to who did what, or what actually happened, so they BOTH got time out.  They are generally pretty great kids, but we're having issues right now of them DOING WHAT I SAY.  I'm constantly reinforcing and disciplining ALL day, ALL the time.  Sometimes I feel like that's all I do, but it has to be done!!  Man, did I learn my lesson today, though......I need to strap Anna into any seat I put her in, and not trust my 2 and 3 year old to know how to handle an infant!  Just one of MANY things I'll be learning along the way!!!

I spent the majority of today with Anna in Seattle.  I think I mentioned that Anna has some kidney issues, and we were at Children's Hospital today getting an ultrasound and a VCUG.  (Don't ask me what that stands for!!)  It was hard to see my precious 2 week old in pain and screaming throughout the procedure, but she was a champ and did so well.  We still have a long road ahead of us with her kidney issues, so instead of going into great detail about it now, I'll fill you in as soon as we know, for sure, what lies ahead for her.  But, as of now, she is completely healthy and doing fine!

I work one day a week doing childcare for a Mom's Group at a local church, and I got a call this morning from one of the members congratulating me on our new little one, and telling me that they want to provide meals for our family!  What a blessing!!  They'll be providing 3 weeks of meals, three days a week!!  Wow!  We're sooooo blessed to have them do that for us!!  So, that means, Monday Meal Plans can pretty much go out of the window for the next 3 weeks while we have generous ladies bring us meals!  Yippee!!!

I do have to give props to an AWESOMELY tasty recipe!!  I made Amish Baked Oatmeal this morning, (it was also our breakfast on our first morning together as a family of five!!), and it is DELICIOUS!!  If you like oatmeal, or even if you don't, TRY THIS RECIPE!!!!  You'll love it!!!  Click HERE

I'm going to try to savor this week with my three little ones, because next week Ava starts back at school at the Developmental Preschool, and soon after that, Luke starts once-a-week at a Pre-Pre-School for 2 1/2 year olds!  It will be a little crazy, but, they are both sooooooo excited and CAN'T WAIT to go!!!

I am so happy and proud of my sweet, little family, that sometimes I am moved to tears.  God is so good.