Wednesday, March 4, 2009

bliss



i have no idea how i lived before this little lady came into our lives. i have been soaking up every minute with her these past few days and even though i know it has to happen, i don't want her to change.

i remember friends who have said to me, "i love the newborn stage" and i never agreed with them...mainly due to my experience with caleb. the constant crying, the pumping for 6 weeks, the weekly--sometimes daily--doctor's visits to check his weight, the unending need for sleep though when i would lay down, it would never come. i was traumatized.

my reply to them was always, "i would love to skip the first 6 months." and knew how that must have sounded. bitterness.

i have to admit that i felt cheated & robbed of my chance to enjoy being a new mother. i felt like i was in constant turmoil and was in a large sea barely treading enough to keep my head above water. but there were many times i felt i was drowning. honestly the only thing that saved me from going under was the support of ben & from loved ones around me. that and getting on my knees any chance i could to pray for more strength to keep going.

when i found out i was pregnant this time, i prayed to God that this time it would be different. before caleb was born i had wanted a large family, my goal was 5 kids. then it all changed as i had to take a step back to really look into my emotional well-being and be realistic about whether or not i could handle 5 of caleb's.

please don't get me wrong, there were so many wonderful things that came from that small boy. this was where i first learned the true meaning of unconditional love. i also learned that i had a strength inside of me that i had never known existed. i learned to rely on others and mainly, my heavenly father, my testimony and faith grew so much during that time. most importantly i learned how to be extremely grateful for those moments that were good. each moment was magnified and so much sweeter than it would have been if caleb had been a healthy, happy, easy baby. i clung to those moments.

i also learned my limits and accepted myself for them. there are some women who can handle stressful situations without flinching. i am not one of these women. even when i was away from caleb...a rare moment...my mind and heart never left him. i would stress myself out, call ben a million times, want to know every detail. i drove myself crazy. i knew i needed to let go but didn't know how to. i still struggle with this.

it is so difficult to have a child with health problems. and to have it be your first child can really throw you for a loop.

getting to the point here...

i have had the opportunity to just hold this little bundle for 5 days now. to watch all of her hilarious expressions and enormous yawns.


to hear her tiny hiccups and sneezes. to feel her little fingers wrap around mine in a vice grip. to stroke her soft fuzzy head and smile every time her dimples appeared.

i am in love and i am so, so grateful.

and i am now a mother who can say,
"i love the newborn stage."

thank you, leah.

thank you, God.


18 comments:

Clancy Pants said...

That was the best post. It actually made me want a newborn of my own again... really bad.

I am happy that you are enjoying the bliss...

K Harker said...

This post seriously made me cry, in a good way! I am happy for you and your sweet baby girl.
Now I want to see a picture of those dimples you were talking about.
I love the big yawn, she is precious.

The Pyne's said...

ok, so I was almost in tears with this one. And I so agree with you too on ALL of it. You know my experience as well and I was the same BITTER way. I was not excited to have another one and then when everything went soooo much better on the second I thought ok, I LOVED the whole deliver, newborn, everything stage. So I am so HAPPY for you and no you have not posted enough pictures.....I am living on your baby right now (which so made me want another one!), but am so not ready for it....mentaly, physically, emotionaly and probably even spiritually. I look at my boys and LOVE them dearly but they are just so insainly CRAZY that some days I wonder how far away another baby will be. I'm going for the 3-4 year stretch this time!!

Congrats again. SO EXCITED and HAPPY for you guys.

Question: How is caleb handling this so far?!?!? Good luck! I so see him as such a good, loving, kind big brother.

The Pyne's said...

ps. I seriously can't wait to hear the birthing experience especially compared to the last!!! =)

Francis and Fawn Becker said...

Kali is looking at your blog with me and she said, "oh she is soo cute and sooo tiny"....and I second that! She is sooo cute :)

garrettandbritt said...

Wow, way to get my water works going. I am so glad this one is so much better. I felt the same way about Axton. Nakeaden didn't have near the problems Caleb did, but getting him here sure was hard. Thank goodness we have faith enough to try again. Enjoy every minute cause the second one grows way faster then the first.

Lauren Horsley said...

She is definitely a sweet little blessing and an answer to prayers. I'm so grateful that things have gone more smoothly this time so that you can relax a little and just enjoy the precious experience of new motherhood.

Tui Family said...

Oh Lyns,
I'm so happy for you! I'm glad you are able to experience the wonder of a happy baby girl! They are the best...and soak it in! It NEVER lasts long enough...something that is SO sad to me! Thanks for always being open and honest about your life...I love reading every single post. And keep those pics coming of that beautiful baby girl! I can't wait to see the dimples! =) Love ya!

Rachel Chick said...

Lynsey, I'm so happy for you!!! Each child changes your family so much. - It's just incredible! I'm so glad that your little lady is such a joy to you! I totally second the people saying that you need to post more pictures! :)

Shellee said...

Ooh, I just want to hold her. Unlike the others, I don't want any more babies, but I'd sure like to snuggle her a little bit. Keep the pictures coming. I'm very happy for you.

Trixy Lovelace said...

Gotta tell ya, I do not enjoy the newborn phase, which is to say, I choose sanity. My kids come out screaming and they don't stop though. I do love the way they sleep with their bums in the air like little stink bugs though. And the smell...ohhhh, the smell is delicious.

Joel and Carrie said...

Have I told you lately how much I love your blog? I LOVE YOUR BLOG! I so appreciate your comments on mine too. I know I'm going to crack up right hwen I see I got a little sum sumthin' from you. :)

AL said...

Babe, I did not go through ANY of what you guys did and I can say honestly that I hated the newborn stage. You never sleep, your boobs hurt, you are tired and hormonal, and it totally blows. Isaac never has slept through the night, and although it has gotten better that he usually settles himself and only needs us to come in after a bad dream...it still sucks! I am sure it would have been easier too if we lived by any family that could help too. I love the age he is now that he can tell you what is wrong and what he needs. Plus, I get more than my fill at work of newborness. I took care of a lady that had moved here from Taiwan and she said that there they can leave there babies in the hospital to have nurses care for them for MONTHS...even up to a YEAR! I could not imagine doing that...but I have to say it would be nice to have someone else do all those sleepless nights! Oh wait, I DO do those all those sleepless nights for someone else...at least I am getting paid. You could not pay me enough to take one of them home with me though!

Angela said...

Thank you so much for sharing this! You have a great way of stating things. Not having a "normal" birth experience really does change the way you feel -especially for the first child. It's hard. I'm so happy that things went well for you this time. It's amazing to me how much Heavenly Father really does know us and what we need. He gives us challenging experiences to help us learn, but then knows when we need a little break. It's not always easy but we need to trust Him. Blessings come in many packages. Thanks again for sharing! You've given me a new hope for the future.

Rayanne said...

Lynsey!

Congrats on your new beautiful baby girl. I'm so glad she's healthy and you are able to enjoy the newborn stage this time around.

Love ya!
Rayanne

cortney and neil said...

Lyndz, she is so adorable. I love all of her little expressions. I am so glad that this time has gone better. I agree I LOVE the newborn stage. Hopefully I will be experiencing it very very soon.

Rachel H. said...

SOOO PRECIOUS! I am so glad you are feeling bliss. YOU DESERVE that! What sweet little ones you have...

Sara and Company said...

I am so sorry you had such a hard time with Caleb. It is a hard enough adjustment just becoming a parent without all of that. But we do learn from our trials....wish it didn't have to be so, but it is and in hind sight we can truly appreciate them. But more importantly, we can appreciate our blessings even more. I'm so happy you are enjoying your sweet Leah! She is beautiful!