Care-giver....

Shawn loves new babies. Our new babies, that is. The second he has a chance he snatches them up, lays down, and places them on his chest. They kind of stick to him like Velcro. It isn't long before they are too squirmy to hold like this, or they are simply too big to fit on his torso. I have numerous photos of him in this position with all 5 of our kids. I think they like it as much as he does. Last week my Mom flew back to Idaho after spending a week with us. Her flight was early Saturday morning so we rented a hotel room for Friday night. I was intending to take Kennedy and Presley with us so Shawn could be with just the boys. He told me I needed a night off and sent me without Presley. Everyone in my family all said "You're leaving Shawn with the baby?". I was actually relieved to not have to travel with a newborn to uncharted territory. I think he really enjoyed the extra time he was able to spend with her. She is our last and is already wearing 3-6 month clothes. She'll be checking into college next week I'm sure. I'm glad he's capable. And what I don't actually know about won't hurt me. Even if she was only in a diaper when I returned because he sees no need for clothes. "She doesn't know what she 's wearing." He's a great Father. I'm glad he's the Father of my babies.

Absentee-ism....

I've been a little absent from the blogging world lately. I've been a little preoccupied with this beauty queen.The other half of my time is split between these people.

It's been 3 weeks and 2 days. Life is having to resume. I've got too many people counting on me to spend my days in sweats on the couch.

Rearview Mirrors....

I took a drive today. Shawn is working a long weekend in no-where ville and inadvertently left his cell phone on the kitchen counter. I decided to load up the kids and take it to him. It's about an hour away so I used my rear view mirror quite a bit. Not in the fashion that would make my drivers ed. teacher proud. I used it for more of a monitoring system. Always checking to make sure everyone stays buckled and seated. Checking to see what window the kid talking about the cows is pointing out. Checking to see what the scuffle is. I also use it just to watch my kids being kids without them knowing that I'm watching. I saw a lot today. Landon was quietly watching Sponge bob. Really quietly. I asked him a question and he never answered. I realized he was asleep. I wasn't sure about that because his eyes were covered with sunglasses. Too cute for my sound asleep 2 year old to be hiding that he was asleep because he was "cool". Kennedy's appearance had me chuckling out loud. Yesterday she discovered a small lock of hair on the top of her head that is about one inch long. It stands straight up in the air. Like Alfalfa. She told me she wets it and it lays flat, but then once it dries it stands up again. Watching her interact with the boys with that chunk of hair making her look all out of sorts cracked me up. We enjoyed our time with Shawn. Actually, I ended up taking the younger 3 to a park while he finished up a patient and the older kids played DS in the lobby. I didn't get to see him as long as I'd have liked. When it was time to go he loaded us all into the van and kissed us goodbye. I looked in my rear view mirror so I could back up. I watched my main squeeze walking with his back towards us heading in the emergency room doors. The way he walks is so familiar to me. His long white doctor coat was flapping around the back of his knees and my heart strings pulled. I haven't missed him like I did at that moment for a long time. Not the "I really need your help at home" kind of missed him, but the "I want to sit on the couch holding your hand and watch the newest episode of the Office together" kind of missed. I truly missed him. I didn't realize how necessary that rear view mirror in my van truly is until I spent time driving today.

Amnesia....

Labor hurts. Almost everyone on the entire planet Earth knows that. Except me. Because I forgot. You think going at this the 5th time around I would know what to expect. Not me. I really truly didn't think it was going to hurt this time. I have memories of sweet epidural taking my pain away, but not of the pain itself. It wasn't until noon when every contraction brought tears to my eyes that I vaguely began to remember that labor was indeed that---labor. I also forgot how true exhaustion feels. The kind where at 4 am when you are up for the 4th time your head is throbbing, your body aches, and it takes what seems like an eternity to drag yourself off the bed into the living room to feed someone who insists that eating every few hours is necessary. Complete exhaustion that sometimes brings tears to your eyes because crying seems to be the only release you get. I forgot. But, I also forgot how easy it is to sit on the couch and watch a newborns facial expressions for hours without it getting old. I forgot about the giant lion sized stretch with the baby's back curled and their bum sticking out and how sweet it is to cuddle that little body up when it's done stretching. I forgot how easy it is to fall in love over and over again with this new little person that is now considered mine. I forgot. I'm glad I get to remember it all again. I'm putting these memories deep in the recesses of my brain so I don't forget ever again these precious moments that pass with the blink of an eye.

Landonisms....

The other day Jack was holding Presley on the couch. Landon walked over to them really close, put his hands on his hips and said, "You know, we got that baby from our dad's work". No wonder he doesn't like Shawn to go to work. Who knows who else he'll bring home.

One morning I had just finished feeding Presley and was burping her. Landon climbed up next to me on the chair and inquired, "Why do you always *smack* the baby after you feed her?" Poor guy thought I was so sick of feeding her that I needed to rough her up a bit.

Debut....

This is Presley. She doesn't resemble any of our other babies, but we still think she's a keeper. She was born at 5:17 pm on September 4th. When she finally decided to come, she did so in a timely manner. Thank you Presley. She was 9 pounds, 3 ounces. She is second in size of our line-up. (Nobody can out-weigh Jack.) So far Presley is a really good baby. She doesn't really cry. She lets out a loud squawk if her diaper needs to be changed or if she's hungry, but she doesn't feel it necessary to burden us with drama. She could, however, help us all out if sleep became a necessity during the dark hours. Last night she preferred to be cuddled. I like to cuddle too, but I'm much nicer if there is sleep involved at some point. She'll eventually figure it out and life will resume. Hopefully. We are all grateful that Presley made it her mission to get down to earth and live in our family. Welcome baby girl. We all love you more than we ever thought possible

Tomorrow....

I find myself singing:

Tomorrow, tomorrow, I'll love ya, tomorrow. You're only a day away!

At the top of my lungs and skipping through the house. Okay, not really skipping. Waddling room to room. But, I would skip if this body would allow it. I keep watching the clock and thinking "tomorrow at this time I'll be....". Let's just all hope this goes smooth and this baby makes her debut without too much turmoil.

The Replacements.....

I admit it. When I was in high school I was addicted to Beverly Hills 90210. Fiercely addicted. So were my friends. We tried to watch it together whenever it was possible. If not together, then we watched separately and just talked about it continuously the next day. We loved watching teens our own age struggle with an entirely different lifestyle. Drugs, living alone, intimate relationships, and of course lots and lots of money. We probably enjoyed the show because it was so different than our reality. Seems like every cast member had some sort of dysfunctional life hidden beneath beauty and riches. The cast was our age---they graduated in '93 with us. They went to college with us. I was actually married before the series finale took place. I think out of all the years it played I missed maybe 3 episodes. I sometimes like to catch re-runs now and again when I'm folding laundry. Pathetic, I know. (At least I know it's pathetic.) My reasoning for this flashback is due to the show that aired last night on the CW. It's called 90210. They did away with the Beverly Hills part of the title. Yes, it is a remake of the original. I was so curious I couldn't resist watching. It was interesting to see these kids lives play out. Similar lifestyles as the old cast, but this cast seems so-----young. Probably because they are. The original cast was played by 20 somethings so they were older than me in real life. This fresh cast is played by people that are actually the age of the kids they are portraying. And, in reality, I'm old. I found myself not at all enjoying what these teens were up to, but rather wondering how in the world I'd handle the situations as a parent. Took the fun right out of the show for me. Kelly & Brenda both have cameo appearances and I found myself more curious about their lives. Kelly is a single mom. Who's the father? Dylan? Brandon? Is Brenda single by choice? I guess in theory this might have been a fun show to re-produce. In my opinion? Some things shouldn't be messed with.