Happy Due Date to Eve

It's crazy to think that today is Eve's due date! While I didn't necessarily think I would still be pregnant today, I didn't anticipate having a baby who was nearly 3 weeks old, either. As I mentioned earlier, I kind of got the inkling she would stay put a little longer than Eden, who was born 2 weeks early. Obviously I was wrong about that! On the other hand, when I found out I was pregnant this time around, I had a hard time getting my head around having a baby in May (much the same way I couldn't quite imagine having a baby in July--and didn't). April seemed more appropriate, somehow. And that's when Eve's birthday turned out to be.

Things are going pretty well around here.

Happy Mother's Day!

Having another child, the passage of time, and the graduation of my first baby into the toddler stage have all facilitated the fact that every day, I understand my own mother (and other mothers) a little more. On the one hand, there are little daily trials where I have to remind myself to keep the edge of cynicism out of my voice. On the other hand, as I nurse and snuggle a wonderfully sleepy Eve, or laugh and tickle a shrieking Eden, I'm reminded that the best moments of my life are with these girls. It makes me look back at my own childhood a little differently, and helps me understand why our own parents were so anxious for us to move back nearby, especially once we'd produced a grandchild or two.

What a day this has been; what a rare mood I'm in...

It's been quite a day around here. This morning, Matt and I got up early and left the girls with my mom so that we could drive about 50 minutes from here and look at a medical exam table for my gestating midwifery practice. We were trying to time it so that I could feed Eve and we would be back before she needed to nurse again (she's pretty reliable about eating every 2-1/2 to 3 hours).

Things were going great as we drove down the highway; I had just said to Matt, "This is really a lovely drive when nobody is screaming at you from the backseat." And he had said, "Oh, it is, and it's such a nice day, finally," or something like that. And then suddenly our car's engine cut out and the speedometer dropped to zero.

Settling in

Eve is 11 days old, and of course by now it feels like we've always had her. She's a very easygoing baby so far, and she's even up at night less than I had anticipated--two facts we're grateful for. I'm also incredibly thankful that Eden is turning out to be a doting and proud older sister. She's extremely sweet and loving toward Eve, constantly wanting to give her kisses, hold her, and share her things with her, and has really not acted jealous or anything like that at all. If anything, I'd have to say that Eden's behavior has gotten better since we had Eve. She's really risen to the occasion. Not to say that we don't still have our challenges, like today, when I found myself struggling to keep my patience after repeating, for the 1000th time (today) things like "Keep the sand in the sandbox," and "We only draw on paper." But I try to remind myself that these things are completely appropriate to her age and stage, and not something she's doing to personally drive me insane. I think.