the baby blanket.

Today I celebrated the hope of our daughter's arrival with the reasonableness of any American mom. I bought something. At least it was just one something. That counts in my favor, right? Anyway, it is a blanket for the baby. It is really plush and warm (not to mention it has pink on it!), and I justified the purchase by the fact that I previously did not own a plush baby girl blanket. only a blue one. I am washing it and plan to keep it around our house and on my bare skin for the next few weeks. My idea is to give the blanket to the interim care family so that our scent can become familiar to the baby while she is in their care. It seems like a lot for a new baby to be separated from the scents of the woman who has carried her for 9 months, then adjusting to new people with new smells for 10 days, then finally joining our family and adjusting again. Perhaps I am over analyzing, and I know a newborn isn't a puppy. However, if I can make it all easier for her, I certainly will. If for some reason the parents decide to change their minds, the baby will have a nice blanket as a gift from us.

One step forward, one step back. It seems my 1.5 ounces was not an every day kind of thing. I'm going through that "feel like an alligator is chomping on me" adjustment that I felt when Josiah was new and when I tried to start pumping regularly last year. I'm upping my water intake, taking prenatal vitamins again (in theory...as in, I intend to take one when I get up from the computer...?), pumping several times a day, and giving it a few days to see what happens. There are a lot of really fantastic (and yucky) supplements out there. I'm still trying to decide if there is a magic bullet pill that I don't have to sip on or smell like maple syrup from. All, I guess, are a small price to pay for the cost savings and convenience of minimizing formula.

I'm on a mental countdown until Tuesday when we meet the mom that has chosen us. I'm trying to not be. It's hard. It feels like the expectation of Christmas or any other event one can't wait for. We are going to an event this evening at the agency and I'm hoping that pacifies me in some form or fashion. I'm also hoping for the impossible answers to questions like, "is this really going to happen?"

In some ways it seems things are really shaping up in perfect timing. Jonathan has been doing well at real estate and even received a phone call today from a stranger about buying properties. Today I received notice that I got my promotion and my raise will be effective starting Sunday. The favor of the Lord is resting on our family this week! Praise be to God!