Jiggity-Jig

Home again, home again, jiggity-jig! That's how I feel right now. I think it may be an entire week since I last posted. It has certainly been a busy week! As you recall, Deborah had her baby on Tuesday and I was there to help out.

This is my sweet niece and her new baby sister. Deborah has great kids and they were very good for me. I was informed that I did not know how to properly make Cream of Wheat, but aside from that, it was surprisingly fun to be with them.

Aargh. This is totally out of order, but I can't move it, so here it is. This is Callie, being my big helper. She loves to hold her sister!

This is how you bathe a baby when you only have a shower stall! Rylee wasn't sure at first, but then decided she liked it and had a good time splashing away.

Last night I met up with my in-laws to retrieve Callie and Delaney. It sounded like they all had fun and the girls loved having sole attention. Grandma enjoyed spending time with Rylee as well. You can see that Rylee was enthralled. I have fabulous in-laws. They are so good, they emailed me pictures of the girls having fun, so I would not worry! I was going to post those pictures, but I forgot to download them, so you'll have to live without them.

Today I flew home with my 3 little girls. This is where the previous picture of Callie belongs. The 2 littlest ones took lovely naps, which was very nice. The flight (4 1/2 hours!) went very well, especially since Rylee had one ear with fluid in it, and one infected! (I had taken her to the doctor in UT and that's what was making her cranky at night.)

These are the people I missed the most while I was away! I was glad to be home with my family. they are so fantastic. And did I tell you that the house was clean when I got home! It was wonderful to come home to that!

I keep wondering what I was suppose to learn from this trip. I mean, who in their right mind flies across the country with 3 little girls to help out her sister, who lives in a 2 bedroom apartment with her own family of 4? As I said, that part was fine. Rylee, however, was not. She was cheerful all day long, and then cried all night long. She ended up sleeping with me most nights since she woke up crying about every hour, and I'm pretty sure Deborah was getting more sleep at night then I was. I was concerned that I would be more hassle than help, so it was a relief to see that I could be useful despite having Rylee with me. I was able to make dinner for Deborah and I put meals in her freezer for after I was gone. And I was able to make sure she could nap during the day when she needed to (and sue needed to!). It made me feel better to feel useful, and I know Deborah needed me and that that was where I needed to be. I know this, because the Tender Mercies of the Lord were poured out on me. Despite a terrible lack of sleep, I was able to function very well during the day, without feeling exhausted. It was amazing. Deborah's children were amazing. They were really a joy to look after and I would totally babysit them any time. I really enjoyed them a lot. And that's not what I expected to be able to say before I got there! I know we were blessed with the flights as well. We were able to get non-stop flights both ways, for the cheapest fare. Plus, the flights were fabulously well, there were lots of nice people offering help, and the girls were so good. The timing of Deborah's birth was also a true Tender Mercy. It happened at just the right time to allow me to get the girls off to my in-laws, and then to spend the maximum time helping her. There were just so many little things that were tiny miracles. It was a long week, a tough week, but a great week. I am really glad I was able to go be with my sister. Did I mention that I love my sister? I do. She is pretty great, and I'm s glad I could be there for her when she needed me.