At six and a half weeks old, Eli finally made it to church. I didn't intend to wait so long to take him, but we've had a pretty rough go of things and it's just how things panned out. So today was his first time at church. I kept him wrapped on me almost the whole time, but he was not as sleepy and cooperative as I had hoped he would be. Really, though, that's progress, because it means that he's maturing enough to do more than sleep all the time. I'll call that a victory.
After church, Chris took the big kids to Costco and dropped Eli and me off at a nearby fabric store so I could get supplies for the boys' Easter outfits. (We'll see if the outfits pan out; I'm optimistic!) The plan was for Chris to come back and pick me up after they finished at Costco. Five minutes into our visit, Eli was hungry. Not just "I'm gnawing on my hand and pecking at your chest" hungry, but wailing, shrieking hungry.
I panicked. There was nowhere for me to sit down and feed him, and I couldn't retreat to my van to feed him because Chris had taken it. I know many women can nurse while wearing their babies; in fact, I just watched a YouTube video showing how to do it the other day. But the lady in that video had a 15-month-old, not a premature 6-week-old. Still, I tried it and we failed miserably. Eli just isn't able to help me out enough yet. After a while, I frantically transformed my wrap into a sling-like carry that was secure enough that I could hold him with one arm, he could nurse, the rest of his body was supported, and there was extra coverage for modesty. It wasn't pretty, but it was effective, and we finished our shopping trip that way. I wish I'd thought to take a selfie of it!
By the time we got home, I was exhausted: I did a lot of pacing, swaying, and bouncing to keep Eli happy at church, and then the shopping fiasco. After a quick lunch, Eli and I retreated to my bed for a 3-hour nap. It was lovely, and he and I are finally finding a system for co-sleeping that feels really comfortable.
Then I prepped some food to take to our small group tonight, and Chris and I got the kids all ready to go. Moments before we loaded the kids in the van, I double-checked my email. Oops. No small group tonight. But we still loaded the kids in the van, and decided an impromptu dinner picnic was in order. I texted my friend Jessica, who hosts our small group, to laugh about my mistake, and she told me that they were about to set out for a dinner picnic, too. We ended up merging our picnics and having a lovely evening!
The kids were so disappointed when we didn't have small group tonight, because they love playing with all of the friends there. Having a picnic with Stella made everything better.
Love my boys.
OK, this is just too sweet. Caleb and Daisy both had long-sleeved shirts on, and Lily was wearing a short-sleeved dress. Somehow we managed to bring hoodies for Caleb and Daisy, but nothing for Lily. Luckily, Daisy's hoodie almost fits Lily, so I put it on my chilly girl. Daisy immediately got upset, protesting that she was cold and she wanted a hoodie! Without saying a word, Caleb quickly took his hoodie off and put it on Daisy.
Chris and I looked at each other and both melted into a quivering puddle of goo. Those two may bicker, and Caleb often has a hard time listening, but that action showed us that he is learning what we're trying to teach him about kindness and chivalry and selflessness. We were so proud!
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