My Reflections

One of the things about having kids close together is a lot of milestones happen all at once. We found this with Logan and Abby, who are 17 months apart. We're now finding it's the same with Justus and Emma; they are only 13 months apart.

A few days ago I wrote about Justus' escaping to freedom and tonight I find myself sharing something I'm not sure I'm ready for. Emma has gone mobile. Earlier in the day Steve asked me if I had moved Emma; at the time I didn't think too much of it, I figured she just rolled over. Fast forward to our playtime after dinner. We are all in the family room (which at this point is just one big empty room) and what do I see but Emma DRAGGING herself over to a toy. I thought, WOW, that's pretty amazing. But then she continued to do it most of the evening and my amazement turned to a bit of uncertainty. Add to this momentous occasion the fact that she's starting to sit up on her own a lot more, and is catching herself from falling...that's a whole lot of new for one week!

I must admit that at this moment, (after the kids are in bed and I'm reflecting on a long and exhausting week), I'm feeling a bit emotional. With everything that happened during the first year of Abby's life (My recovering from the accident, and the process of Logan's diagnosis etc), I didn't remember how quickly these stages pass. I think it's even more pronounced because of both Logan and Abby's delays. But as I look back on the kids stages of life, I'm sad to see the end of Emma's life as we know it. Don't get me wrong, I'm SO excited to see her development on track, but there is a small part of me that kind of wishes that I'd be able to enjoy that cute cuddly baby stage a little longer, this is the LAST one after all (I promise!). From my experience with all of the others, once they went mobile, they weren't interested in staying with me very long.

So tonight I say goodbye to that infant stage, I'm letting go. I will embrace whatever life brings in the next stage, and take it by the horns as much as I have this stage. I feel so blessed to have the 4 kids that I do have. They have all taught me such different things, and I love what they offer this family. I love watching the friendships develop between the kids, and I'm excited to see what Emma will offer as she gets older. The one common bond between all of the kids is their love for life, they all approach it so enthusiastically, all from different angles but brimming with life.

This is the end of an emotional week, and I'm praying fervently that next week will be status quo. I'm needing a few weeks of 'calm' (hahahaha) during the holidays so that in 2008, we can start fresh! Boy I don't ask for much, calm in a house of 4 kids with a pastor for a husband around the busiest season of our life...I sure do aim for the stars, don't I?