Winter is rapidly slipping away towards Spring! Anyone sad about that? Not me.  There were times it felt like winter and all it’s trials were going to last forever. Today as I write, it’s a typical March day with a cold rain and wind to speak of!

It’s been weeks since I last wrote. Most of the winter I wasn’t feeling well. With the arrival of February came the long anticipated arrival of baby!! I won’t go into detail of my health challenges through the pregnancy, but basically every month presented challenges of some sort or other. The month of October stands out to me as a smooth month, but otherwise, I could point out the difficulties in every month.

But I don’t want to focus on the negativaty! A precious, healthy baby is well worth the difficulties, and my heart goes out to those of you reading this who hope and pray for a baby, yet have unfulfilled longings, year after year. Hugs to you!! 🤍 That journey is not for the faint of heart! I feel unworthy of God’s answered prayers to us!

February 18, we welcomed Miss Macie Avonlea Rhodes.  So much sweetness and newborn cuteness wrapped up in a priceless gift from God! Over and over I thank God for her. We have no control over how our babies are created or look, and yet, God has given us such a cute baby girl to love! Her adorableness feels almost more than I can handle sometimes- just jaw clenching sweetness! Can you Moms identify?

She is nursing and gaining well. Sometimes she purrs contentedly while nursing, which totally melts my heart.  She also does serious stretching. She will grunt and creak and groan almost constantly while she sleeps. Then she scrunches up her face, flinging out her arms and legs in such an adult kind of way it makes me laugh!  I’ve started calling her Stretchin’ Gretchen.

She had a chubby face at birth, but it’s filling out even more, along with a kissable double chin and chub rolls on her arms. Could someone explain why chub rolls and double chins are absolutely adorable on babies, yet we never hear exclamations of cuteness when they’re on adults?!

Old fashioned baby girl names ending with ie are on the top of my ‘like’ list. I could have a half dozen girls with those names, but of course that’s not possible! There are loads of cute options but landing on one that Hubby and I agreed on was a significant decision.  When I discovered the Hebrew meaning of Macie, it clicked for both of us. The spelling of it took a bit longer, but we both agreed on the ie ending. We like simple names without difficult spellings, as well as names that are not too common.

Avonlea means “field or meadow near the river” and is after Anne of Green Gables and her town of Avonlea. I think it has such unique summery vibes, even though Macie was a winter baby. 

This little crib is one that my Parents used for most of us 8 children. We got it when we were expecting our first. We had it repainted and ordered new mattresses. It’s special to be using it be for all three of our babies. And all three of ours slept on these same pink sheets. Yes, even Reece. It didn’t hurt him at all!

The crib is on wheels, so at times we push it out to the living room for a safe place to lay her.  We have her big crib set up in the nursery across the hall from our bedroom. 

I’m still in definite postpartum recovery. Nighttime is completely unpredictable. There appears to be strings attached from Macie’s voice box to Mom’s bed. Countless times I lay her down, go use the bathroom, then quietly as possible, creep back in bed. The moment I’m getting comfy, baby starts to squeak and creak! I’ve even gotten out of bed and went to pick her up. But when I get to the crib, her eyes are closed and there she is, innocently sleeping. Yet as soon as I crawl back in bed, she automatically rouses her voice box and puts it to use. And oh, am I ever tired at night! I try to sleep whenever possible, but sometimes her naps aren’t long enough to get much sleep since it takes me longer to fall asleep.

But this is all part of the Motherhood package. I remind myself it is a season. Not forever. Besides, I feel so rich cuddling my baby and seeing her nighttime sleepy smiles, how could I not love her?!

My sister Geneva Peachey and my Mom flew out to help us for 10 days.  They have been such a blessing! I used to help Geneva with some of her babies and now she has returned the favor.  I’ve been spoiled to let her take care of breakfast/ getting Josie combed and out the door for school, while I slept in. It has felt amazing!

One of the main things they have worked on besides cooking delicious meals for us, is putting food in my freezer. And so much food!! I had a long list of items to make which they mostly accomplished, but per my sister’s abilities for management, she made at least 5 other main dishes that she wanted to make, to help stock the freezer.  And when I say 5 other dishes, it’s like 2- 4 pans of each kind!  These are 8×8 size pans. I won’t mention all the other baked goods and breakfast items or miscellaneous things they stocked the freezer with. 

Plus, she sewed me 2 dresses and did a few other odd sewing projects.  Then they cleaned the house, and refixed the children’s beds with clean sheets before they left. I feel so blessed by their kindness! It will help so much to have easy meals in the months ahead. I’m super ready to be back in my kitchen, but also know how hard it will be to not overwork myself when I feel good again.

This is the nursery.  I still have a large canvas I want to hang by the changing table instead of the little motto that’s there, but we haven’t got it ordered yet. 

With our other babies, we used the Honest brand of pampers. This time, I looked into other clean options and decided to try Earth and Eden brand. So far they’ve been working great and I’m pleased. With the countless newborn poops, we’ve not had any major blowouts yet. Earth and Eden are cheaper than Honest, which was another plus.  As for wipes, I’m using Water wipes which I have for years. They are clean, unscented and do a good job.