You are currently browsing the monthly archive for July, 2008.
Well, after last night’s fiasco, it’s official: Baby J is sick. She woke up this morning with a smile .. and a snot mustache. She definitely looks “peaked,” but today I’ve succeeded at being a Very Good Momma as far as her naps are concerned. She was down at 9am, slept for almost 2 hours, was down again just after 1pm, and I plan to try to squeeze a third nap out of her later this afternoon, too. But little J is just not her usual self; you can see it in her droopy eyes. Lyd also complained that she felt sick this morning, but outside of her saying so, I didn’t notice anything different about her. But, hey, it made for an easy excuse to put her down for an afternoon nap, and she didn’t fuss about it at all. Lyd has taken at least a two-hour nap every afternoon this week – score!
I don’t know if it’s just the fact that my sleeping has been not so good lately, or merely the fact that it was awful last night with an upset baby, but I feel lousy today, too. I’m probably just really, really tired. I re-started taking Echinacea again today, as well as some Grapefruit Seed Extract and extra Vitamin C. I don’t want to be sick just as we’re getting ready to leave for Wisconsin.
I finally heard from JJ at lunchtime today (Thursday)! I hadn’t heard from him since Monday evening, so I was pretty excited to read his emails. I think this is the longest he and I have gone without some form of communication in our married life. But I know what WELStock is like and how super-busy it can be, so I wasn’t completely surprised or bothered by the lack of communication. I had already figured that I wouldn’t hear anything from him Tuesday night, due to the fact that he was leading a worship service on Wednesday morning at 8am (which is 6am body time!). If I had to preside over a worship service (a presider does everything except preach the sermon) in front of 1000+ people the next morning, I probably would opt for sleep over calling my spouse, too! The conference ended at noon today, so now he’s on his way home. I have someone lined up to come babysit tonight around 11pm so that I can go pick JJ up from the airport. I’m sure he’ll be tired and ready to crash! But, regardless, our family will be together again. No matter how tired we all are, it’s good to be all together.
Then, it’s pack like crazy for a few days, and then off this family goes to Wisconsin! For two whole weeks! Yay!
Last spring, I taught a music class geared for babies that were Curious J’s age. So, I took Curious J with me when I taught the class, and she LOVED it. This summer, I’m not teaching a babies music class, and I’ve had a hard time finding a way to bring Curious J to one of my music classes. (I don’t bring Lyd anymore, as the dynamic between her and me in class when I am the teacher just doesn’t work. But she still loves the songs, and sings them often.) Today, I thought I had such an opportunity. J woke up on the later side this morning, just after 8am. I was scheduled to teach a class at 10am. I had a sitter lined up for the girls, but since J woke up later than usual, I decided to bring her with me so she could be part of the class. She did okay, she enjoyed the class, but I could tell she was tired. About halfway through the 45 minute class, I realized, “This was a stupid idea. She’s not going to remember this one music class, but this missed nap is going to come back and bite both her and me in the butt.” On the 15 minute drive home, J was awake until the very end. She did fall asleep in her carseat, and once I pulled into the garage and closed the garage door, I let her sleep in the car as long as she would. She slept about 20 minutes — definitely not a real nap.
I resolved to do better with her afternoon nap. I fed her lunch, let her play a bit, and took her upstairs for her afternoon nap. I changed her mildly poopy diaper, nursed her, rocked and sang to her — her usual naptime routine. After that, I placed her in her crib, calm but still very awake, and I headed downstairs. She was okay for a few minutes, and then she started to mildly fuss. I could hear her on the monitor, but I said to myself, “She’s overtired, so it’s going to take her longer to fall asleep.” She fussed and cried and cried and fussed for a good 45 minutes to an hour. I never went up to check on her. Finally, she was quiet. For about half an hour. Then she REALLY woke up with big wails. This time I headed right up, checked her, and found her awash in an extremely poopy diaper. I could tell it had been there for a while. Once I came in and changed that diaper, I knew there was no chance of her going back to sleep. Another nap, blown to pieces.
I was so mad at myself for not going up to check on her right away, after 5-10 minutes of fussing, just to make sure she was okay. If I had gone up, I could have gotten that diaper changed right from the start, and she could have had a good afternoon nap. But, no, I was on the computer instead, listening to her cry.
So tonight, after a previously scheduled playdate/supper date at a friend’s house, I put my utterly exhausted baby to bed. She nursed greedily, burped, and fell asleep easily. But 45 minutes later, she was awake and crying frantically in a strange way. This time I did go up to check on her and found her sitting up in bed, gagging and spitting up/throwing up. (I’m not sure which one it was.) I quickly got her out of bed, wiped her mouth, rocked and sang to her again to calm her cries. She fell back asleep, and I laid her back down. She slept for another 45 minutes, woke up crying, and we did the same routine again. She was gagging, and spitting up/throwing up, but not very much. This time I nursed her before lying her back down, asleep.
I feel so guilty tonight, because I know that her inability to stay asleep at night is a direct result of her poor to non-existent naps today. This is the way she has always been. I KNOW that; I know my baby. And tonight she’s so tired that she’s practically throwing up from exhaustion. Plus, with all the crying she’s been doing, now her head and nose are all stuffed up so she’s breathing funny, which is the last thing I want this baby to have to do. I should have put her needs before my feelings. Nice work, Mom. Way to take care of your kid.
And now it’s 11pm, one hour after our last rendezvous, and she’s awake and wailing again. Poor, poor baby. Today was not a good Mommy Day as far as my beautiful Baby J is concerned. Tomorrow I will make it a priority to make sure she gets regular naps, and that they don’t get shafted for something else.
While eating supper last night, I asked Lyd what she thought Daddy was doing right now. (Remember, JJ is in Minnesota at the WELS National Conference on Worship, Music and the Arts, aka, WELStock.) I knew that, being opening night at the conference, the Festival Concert was happening at that moment. I have sung in the opening Festival Concerts of the first 3 WELStocks in ‘96, ‘99, and ‘02, and it has always been a Grand and Glorious experience, a taste of what the heavenly choir will be like. So last night, as I sat at the kitchen table with my two daughter, one picking at her supper and the other smearing her supper all over her face — well, I sure wished that I could be singing in that Festival Concert, too.
So, as Lyd and I talked, I explained to her about the Festival Concert where Daddy was. I explained how JJ and I had sung in that concert in the past, and I added that I wished I could be singing in that concert again right now. Then I thought how that might sound to an impressionable child like my daughter so I added, “But even though I’d really like to be singing in that concert, it’s more important for me to be taking care of my two daughters right now. No one else can be your momma! But someday, when you girls are older, I’m going to sing in that concert again, and you and your little sister will be part of the people that listen to the choir sing.” I paused for a moment, and said, “And when you’re even older, Lyd, you’ll sing in that concert with me!”
To which Lyd quickly added, “Can I stand right next to you, Momma? Then I can hold your hand. Maybe when J gets older, she can sing in the choir with us, too, and she can stand on your other side. Would that be good?”
For a moment, I pictured that. Me, singing in a fantastic choir concert. Lyd on one side, J on the other, both girls holding my hands, as is common in many college choirs today for singers to do. The three of us, singing our hearts out. The mental picture made the tears spill out of my eyes.
“Yes, Lyd,” I said, smiling through the tears. “That would be VERY good.”
—
Later as I was rocking J at bedtime, I thought over that conversation and my longing to be at the conference, and it brought to mind the idea of vocation. JJ was very interested in the doctrine of vocation for a time, and if memory serves me correctly, it was the topic of the annual Seminary Symposium last fall. Martin Luther had strong feelings on the doctrine of vocation, as it was highly misunderstood at his time. He lived in a time where people who wanted to show their devotion to God became priests or nuns or monks, and those people were considered “holier” than average, working people. Luther took a different position; he said that it was possible to serve God well in your day-to-day life, no matter what work that entailed. I believe he said something to the effect that a mother changing dirty diapers or a baker baking bread or a farmer tilling his fields or a soldier serving his country could be serving God just as much as a monk or a nun did, and Luther argued strongly to do away with monasteries and nunneries. People are justified by the faith in their hearts, not by what they did, Luther said.
I reflected on that idea as I finished my mothering tasks. It’s certainly not as Grand and Glorious of an experience to be scraping food off the high chair tray, washing the dishes, wiping dirty behinds, and reading the same favorite bedtime story yet again to a young daughter. But it’s still serving God just as much as singing in the Festival Concert at WELStock. Which is a humbling thought. And while it doesn’t take away my longing to be at WELStock, it helps me feel better about staying at home. My girls need me to be with them at home. Lord willing, there will be future WELStocks that I’ll be able to attend, perhaps even with my girls, but for now, I need to be with them here, building a foundation for their future.
So, I sang J her lullabies with extra conviction as I put her to bed, and I took extra care last night to talk with Lyd about serving Jesus, why we serve Jesus, and how we serve Jesus. We also talked about heaven, and when Lyd brought up hell, we talked a bit about that, too. I know that the most important task in my life is to nurture the faith in the hearts of my girls that was placed there at their baptisms, so my daughters can carry their faith on to their children, and so that we are all ultimately together in heaven forever. Nothing else compares to that.
But, I’ll admit, it was still hard when JJ called tonight to hear him say, “Emily, it’s too bad you aren’t able to be here, because you would really enjoy it.” Yeah, I know. But when I snuggled up with Lyd in my bed last night (she gets to sleep with me when JJ is gone), and woke up in the night to nurse my hungry baby and felt her warm body nestle into mine, it made it a little easier. My girls need me HERE right now — for so many reasons.
(Of course, it also made me feel better to realize that the conference is on a STRICT schedule — breakfast is at 6:30 am, morning worship starts at 8am. That’s 4:30am and 6am California time! Add to that the evening Gemutlicheit which starts at 9:30pm — and you’ve got some long, tiring days going on out there. JJ’s going to be exhausted when he gets home. Plus, his flight home lands just before midnight on Thursday! When I consider that schedule, well, all of a sudden staying home doesn’t look quite so bad anymore!)
Today marks Baby J’s 10 month anniversary of her arrival into our family. We celebrated the day by — not celebrating. However, Curious J did mark a first today: she had her first time eating lunch in a high chair at the local mall’s food court! (Is that a noteworthy first? Ah, well.) With my husband off conference-ing in Minnesota, I decided to venture out with my daughters to the mall on my own. J’s new pictures were ready for pick-up at Sears, plus I wanted to stop at the local Motherhood Maternity store to check out some new nursing tops and a new nursing bra in preparation for our upcoming trip to Wisconsin. After my shopping was done, for a treat we had lunch at the food court. Then it was off to Whole Foods for some more shopping, thus continuing in my committment to combining trips as much as possible with these high gas prices. We finally got home just before 3pm. I tried to put J down for her afternoon nap right away, but, being overtired, she resisted royally. After much weeping and gnashing of teeth, she finally slept — for barely an hour. Lyd also was put down for a rest, resisted, and finally fell asleep so hard that I had to wake her up at 5:30pm. I rested for a while, too, but had to then get up with the baby. All the running around brought on a horrible headache, so I took the pre-emptive strike approach and took an Advil early to prevent a complete meltdown on my part — Momma can’t meltdown when Daddy’s not there to back her up! Lyd was a horrible crank when she got up, and Curious J wasn’t too happy herself, so I was thankful I’d taken the Advil! But after a good supper, everyone felt better. Lyd did her goofy dance for J, and J giggled away in her happy baby way. It was so cute!
So, what’s new with Curious J at 10 months? Well, I noticed over the weekend that she’s popped out two more teeth on top, bringing her teeth total to six. That explains the fussy middle-of-the-night wakeups last night, and explains why a dose of Tylenol helped her sleep so much better. She still has seemed fussier than usual even during the day, but she’s also working so hard on trying to stand alone and walk, and I think it must be frustrating to know what you’re trying to do but be unable to do it. She is eating chunkier foods when I give them to her, although frankly, it’s still easier to give her baby food purees, which she likes. But tonight I gave her little chunks of chicken, and she thought that was great.
She can stand alone now for a few seconds. I think she actually COULD stand for longer, but it’s as if she realizes she’s standing, freaks out, and immediately falls down. But she loves to be standing, and she loves when someone holds her hands and helps her “walk.” She is a super-mobile baby. She can climb up stairs now, too, a feat I have to watch out for carefully!
Her hair is getting quite full on her head, making the mullet on the back of her head not so noticeable anymore. Instead, now you notice the cute ringlets over each of her ears. I’ve never seen anything like it on any baby, and the only thing I do to her hair is wash it every night and comb or brush it in the morning. But there they are — perfectly formed ringlets! She looks like a doll!
Nursing is still going well. My mastitis seems to be gone, thank you, God! My boob is barely sore at all today. I am SO grateful that our nursing days aren’t coming to an abrupt ending. I’m feeling positive for the future that our nursing relationship WILL make it through a whole year, and hopefully longer! So, as I mentioned earlier, I invested in some summery nursing shirts today. Nothing like new clothes to make you feel pretty!
Ten months! You’ve come a long way, baby. We’re so glad you’re part of our family!
Last night after writing my post, I went to bed, where I promptly was beset upon by fever and chills and general aches and pains. Lovely. I consulted my breastfeeding books, and it read like mastitis to me. The treatment for mastitis is fairly simple: rest, drink copious amounts of water, and nurse frequently on the affected side. If you’re not seeing improvement in 24 hours, go to a doctor for antibiotics. Okay. Dr. Jack Newman’s breastfeeding book recommended ibuprofin for the pain, and thankfully, one lone Advil did the trick for me. Aviva Jill Romm’s herbally-minded book recommended Echinacea and extra Vitamin C. I had both of those on hand, so I started in with that. The La Leche League book recommended lots of rest, lots of water, and bringing the baby into bed with you so that you could continue to nurse and rest at the same time. Hmm. That probably would work well when your baby is small, but it doesn’t work so well when you’ve got a 10-month old who is practicing standing alone every chance she gets and sees Momma’s bed as a place to play. So, that one I couldn’t do. All three books recommended nursing frequently, drinking lots of water, and using heat on the affected breast, so I slept for part of the night last night with a heating pad on low on my chest. After reading all this stuff, I also decided to wake up Baby J and nurse her before I went to bed, even though I was tired and achey and just wanted to go to sleep. Plus, I hated to wake her up from a sound sleep, but this was an emergency, as my pump just wasn’t doing the trick. Luckily she woke up enough to nurse, but then went back to sleep easily. The books all said to nurse every two hours, but the books also said to rest as much as possible. Kind of a catch-22, if you ask me! So, I opted for every four hours during the night. I went to bed and set my alarm for 3am to get up and nurse her again. And when I got up at 3am, I took another Advil, more Echinacea, more Vitamin C, and more water. I nursed the baby, and then tried to pump again. (Note to self: pumping at 3:30am NEVER WORKS!!) But I did get a little milk out, and then I ate a little food, too, which was probably good with all the supplements I was taking.
During the day, it was easier to keep up with my water drinking, taking Echinacea frequently, and nursing, while still resting as much as possible. I even got a nap in this afternoon. I put Baby J down, and I was just so tired that I laid down in my bed, turned on the heating pad on my chest again, and fell asleep. I was vaguely aware of hearing little feet come up the stairs, look in on me, and then leave. I found out later that Lyd actually put herself to bed on her own for a nap! So all three of us ladies took an afternoon nap together in our separate rooms. Score! While we got our beauty sleep, JJ went and got a haircut and picked up a loaf of bread at the grocery store for me.
Tonight I’m feeling better. My breast is still sore, but it’s not as acutely painful as it was last night at this time. I don’t have the fever and chills and aches anymore, although I am super tired. I’m still trying to chug the water and I’m continuing to take an Echinacea capsule every two hours. I am hoping that I’ll be even better in the morning and won’t have to go to the doctor for antibiotics after all. I’ve got someone from church coming to help me on Wednesday, I’ve got a playdate set up for Thursday, and I pretty sure I can get together with another good friend for a playdate tomorrow. So, I’ve got some help lined up while JJ is gone. I’m thankful for that.
—
I told Lyd this morning that my breast was very sore and that she had to hug me very carefully. Apparently when she went to Sunday School this morning, the teacher asked each child what they would like to pray for, and Lyd prayed that Jesus would make Mommy’s sore breast better. I think that’s sweet and just a little embarassing at the same time! What a girl!
—
I had another slightly embarassing conversation before church today. As I was walking into church, I met a middle-aged man from our congregation, and the following conversation ensued:
Man: How are you feeling, Emily?
Emily: Ugh, not so good today.
Man: What’s wrong?
Emily: Oh, I’m just a little sick.
Man: Oh, no! Is it something contagious?
Emily: No, no, I’ll be okay.
Man: What’s wrong?
Emily: I think I’ve got mastitis (hoping that he knew what mastitis was, and wouldn’t ask any more questions).
Man: What’s that?
Emily: It’s a breast infection.
Man: Oh! How do you get that?
Emily: I’m not exactly sure.
Man: (after a pause) Well, I hope everything is okay.
Emily: Thanks. Have a good day!
It was an awkward conversation, to say the least. But now he knows more about mastitis than he did before! 
—
Time to wrap up the laundry so that JJ can finish packing. He wants to take his “Organ Music Rocks!” T-shirt along. He said there’s no better place to wear that T-shirt than at a worship conference where people will actually appreciate the joke. Too bad I’m not going along. If I were going, then I would wear this shirt.
I wanted to write about Good Things tonight, such as my wonderful husband or the fantastic picnic at the park I had today with KB and my girls. But, in the last six hours, my right boob, aka. The Reliable One, has gone from Perfectly Normal to Super Painful. I’ve never had a problem with the girls before, other than a mild plugged duct here or there. This is way beyond a plugged duct, and I really really really hope it’s not the dreaded mastitis. Because this is the PERFECT TIME to have mastitis! JJ is leaving early Monday morning, leaving me a single parent for 4 days, which will, of course, give me plenty of time to relax and rest and heal, right?
Gah.
My boob. It hurts. I feel achey. This is not too good…
While perusing the entertainment gossip page in my local paper, I came across the following:
Apparently Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt didn’t do what comes naturally to bring little Knox and Vivienne into the world. A source told Us Weekly that the twins, born July 12 in Nice, France, were conceived through in-vitro fertilization because the parents “both desperately wanted more babies soon.” Jolie, 33, reportedly opted for the treatment to avoid the hassle of trying to get pregnant. Take note, you fantasizing ladies: Apparently it’s a hassle to have sex with Brad Pitt. This from a woman formerly married to Billy Bob Thornton.
I almost fell off my chair laughing!
However, if this report is indeed true, then it’s a teeny bit disturbing that
A) she was unwilling to wait to get pregnant the old-fashioned way and
B) her doctor was willing to go along with this.
I wouldn’t care so much about this except for the way this connects to natural childbirth. How does this possibly connect to natural childbirth, you ask? Well, in the same way Angelina Jolie elected to use IVF rather than wait for Mother Nature, there is a similar trend today for women to have elective C-sections at a time that suits the mother and the doctor, rather than waiting for labor to start in its own. These elective C-sections usually end up with the baby being delivered at least a week early. Some women even think that they’d rather have a C-section than risk damaging themselves “down there” for the future. Like you’ll have less of a tummy pooch if you have a C-section! And bladder weakness? Please. Your chance of getting your bladder nicked with a scalpel is a lot higher with a C-section. And really, once you have a baby, no matter how you get the baby out, you are Never The Same down there. It’s the glorious price you pay when you give birth. So, I’m not a fan of elective C-sections, as you might imagine, and I’m not a fan of IVF, elective or not, either.
Anyway…
I still think it’s funny that it would be just too much of a hassle to try to get pregnant the old-fashioned way — when your partner is Brad Pitt! But then again, who knows? He may be a good daddy, but perhaps he has B.O. and is a lousy kisser. Apparently Clark Gable, the screen idol of the 1930’s, had horrible breath, and Vivien Leigh hated doing kissing scenes with him in “Gone With the Wind.” Of course, the guy also smoked, drank, and had a full set of false teeth, so that may have had something to do with it.
Such a crazy world in which we live!
Take the Quiz here!
Thanks, KB!
I know that I’ve been writing lately as if my anxiety is all gone. Well, that’s not quite accurate. The physical symptoms (ie. racing pulse, innards turning to water, difficulty sleeping) are a lot better, thank you Dr. Sijbrant! But my thoughts… Oh, my thoughts… I still have difficulty with those, although it IS a lot easier to deal with your thoughts when your body is not going haywire on you.
I was priviledged to connect with some friends today via email and phone, and I was gifted with some gems from those conversations, things to remember when I’m feeling, well, when I feel like I don’t have control over my feelings:
- I am not my thoughts. So if my thoughts go where I don’t want them to go and I can’t control them, it’s still okay. My thoughts don’t define me.
- I am not my hormones. So if my hormones are out of whack and I feel miserable as a result, it’s still okay. My hormones don’t define me.
- I am not my children. So if my children don’t do as I want and they frustrate me, I know that their actions (or lack of them) don’t mean that I’m a bad person. I’m still okay, and my children are still okay, too. My children don’t define me.
I came across this wonderful post tonight, called Wilderness, that brought me to tears. The author is right: God is in the wilderness, too. Everything he does for us, everywhere he leads us, is only for our good. I’m still safe in his protecting care.
And like my husband has said to me many times, it’s not that everything WILL BE okay — everything already IS okay.
—
By the way, my husband declined his Call. We’re not moving.
At lunchtime today, I asked Lyd to put away her playdough so that we could set the table. She immediately stretched her arms and whined, “I’m tired.”
This response has been frequent lately. I ask her to do something, she responds that she’s tired. Today, I Had Had Enough of This. I informed her in no uncertain terms (but without yelliing – score one for me!) that her complaints of “I’m tired!” need to stop. When she is asked to do something, she needs to do it. If she really is tired, then she should be in bed. I then asked her to repeat back to me what I had just said. She did. I then asked her to decide what her consequence should be the next time she complains that she’s too tired when she’s asked to do a job.
She thought seriously about this for a few moments and responded, “I would lose all my candy.” She was referring to a small plastic bowl of (leftover Halloween — can you believe it!) candy that she recently re-discovered, and now gets a piece from every day. I was impressed! She was honest about allowing herself to be “hit where it hurts!” My thought for a consequence would have been something more mundane, like losing TV or computer priviledges for a time. So, I agreed with her, although I softened it slightly. “How about we throw away only HALF of your candy?” She agreed to that, and that’s where we left it.
And you know what? She’s been pretty helpful all day! She even helped me mop the floor this afternoon and had a grand time doing it. It inspired me to do a quick mop of my kitchen floor as well. My kitchen floor has been mopped twice in 6 days! I think it might just faint!
—
Lyd really can be an honest child. Last night at supper, Lyd complained that her head was itchy — “Because S [her friend] put sand in my hair!” she added indignantly. Knowing that S is not an instigator of such antics on her own, I inquired, “Well, did you put sand in HER hair?” A pause, then, resignedly Lyd said, “Yes.” JJ and I couldn’t help but chuckle at her. (And, Jen, I do apologize for the sand in S’s hair! I’m sure it wasn’t S’s idea to do this!)
And when Lyd does actually try to lie to me? It’s TOTALLY obvious. And actually kind of funny. Although I never laugh in front of her. It’s just that her lying is so blatantly bad that it’s comical.
When does this stage of absolute, utter honesty end? Never, right? 
—
The other night for some reason I was all worried that other kids will think Lyd is “weird” when she grows up. I whined lamented to JJ, “What if she’s an outcast and no one wants to be friends with her because she’s weird? I know that I felt weird all the way through school!” JJ looked at me, rolled his eyes, and said something along the lines of “Good grief!”
He’s right; Lyd will be fine. Although, like any normal girl, she will OF COURSE spend a sizeable chunk of her childhood, especially adolescent years, feeling weird. Everyone does. And It’s only been in the last 5 or so years of my life that I’ve realized this. I now realize that even the “cool” kids felt weird in school. And if they didn’t feel weird then, they probably have experienced it by now! Everybody feels weird during childhood, yet we’re all more alike than we realize.
But, Lyd will be fine. We went to the library park this afternoon, and it didn’t take 5 minutes for Lyd to make a new friend and begin running around with her all over the playground. After half an hour when she came to me looking for a drink of water, I asked her what her new friend’s name was. She didn’t know. So, if she can manage to play well with a strange girl for half an hour without even knowing her name, she’ll be fine.
—
Speaking of making friends, Lyd starts 4 year old Kindergarten at our school this fall. It’s an every morning program, 8:30 to noon. Next year she’ll be in 5 year old Kindergarten, which is an all-day program. I really debated about whether to put her in the 5 year old program now, as she will be 5 in October, but in the end I decided that having her be the oldest in her class would be the best choice for the long run. One of my main rationales was that hey, if we were back in the Midwest, there would BE no other option. She would OF COURSE be the oldest in her class. It’s just that we currently live in California which has a screwy educational system that allows people to enroll their children earlier than most other states! Besides, someone has to be the oldest in the class just like someone has to be the youngest. Lyd has the rest of her life to be in school, and she will do just fine being one of the older ones in her class.
But in looking at the calendar today, I realized that six weeks from today, Lyd will have completed her second day of school. Her second day of countless school days in her life. My baby is going off to school! She’s growing up!
And maybe I’m just a baby at heart, too, but I’m really glad that she’ll only be in school in the mornings. I don’t know if I could handle not having her around all day. Only one more year until she’s gone during the day for good. And before I know it, she’ll be off to high school! And then she’ll move out and go to college! And then get married! And have babies! And…
Somewhere, JJ is reading this, rolling his eyes and saying, “Good grief!”
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