that's so touching.

It's official: we have a touch baby. What is that? A baby that loves to be touched, of course. The closer to me, the better, as far as she is concerned. If she could just ride around in the sling all day every day, I think she would be satisfied. My back would not. Unfortunately for her, there are times when I deem the sling a danger...such as when I need to iron (a danger to her) or do my hair and makeup (a danger to my appearance). During those times, she sits on the floor or in her exersaucer with all of her very captivating baby toys and fusses at me after about 5 minutes of complying with my non-holding antics. All day long we do a dance of "mom tries to show baby how much fun she can have without being held/baby tries to show mom how much fun it is to just be cuddled." She loves to fall asleep cuddled up in my arms or with the sling pulling her snuggly into my chest. She loves to have her hair and face stroked and her back rubbed. If I stop she pulls back and grunts to say, "Keep going. I didn't say stop!" All of this is creating a delicate balance of showering our sweet girl with affections and security in our embrace while trying to keep from creating bad sleep habits for her, as she is already at an age where that happens quickly. It is hard to navigate since we are still in "newborn" phase of our relationship. That being said, she very much knows who her parents are, and she has no problem hollering at a stranger and reaching back for me.

Josiah has adjusted very well into his role as big brother. After a few days the whining wore off, and he has ceased to complain when we have to meet her needs before his. He loves to make Evangeline smile, which he does with little effort. He likes to be the tickle monster and to remind her, "Hey, it's your BIG BROTHERRRRR!" He has been known to add some extra bounce to her jumperoo seat, which distressed me until I realized as soon as he stopped she looked at him waiting on him to help some more. My heart just melts when I catch him showing her affection or speaking sweetly to her. I trust this is just the beginning of an amazing brother and sister relationship.

Two weeks in, and they are continuing to nap at the same time, which is AMAZING. I am hoping to maintain that. The key is that Josiah is fairly flexible with me for his nap time, so we can cater to his baby sister's schedule a little bit. I have tried to figure out her schedule and then keep her on it, but occasionally she gets tired a little earlier than I anticipate. Thank you, big brother, for being flexible and napping when I say it's time. I appreciate the 2-3 hours of quiet efficiency you afford me each afternoon.

I am enjoying being home all the time with these two kiddos, and I can't imagine managing all this once I have to return to work. I'm ignoring it for now, as I know it will distress me too much in the present. For now, I'm trying to just relish in how abundantly blessed we are to have two beautiful, wonderful children.