Hi everyone! Sorry for the lack of blogs this past week. I'm sure you can understand. It truly is amazing how much time a newborn requires.
Anyway, we are all doing well. My parents arrived last Saturday, and have done an incredible job of taking care of us. My mom has done countless loads of laundry and dishes, made meals, changed diapers, prepared kids' school lunches, etc. And my dad has helped out by being the bus driver... taking the kids to and from school and their after-school activities. I haven't had to lift a finger, which has been so nice. It's allowed me to focus on taking care of Collin, nursing, resting, etc.

Collin is doing just great. He's gaining weight nicely, which is so encouraging to an unconfident, nursing mom like me. He was 9 pounds at birth, and was 8 pounds 11 ounces yesterday. He's already a professional pooper, often granting us a second curtain call after we've just changed him. He's been sleeping well too, and once we get him to sleep, he usually sleeps for most of the night-time, except for feedings (and yes, I am knocking on wood as I am typing this!). He seems to be pretty content so far, and doesn't seem at all affected by the chaos in the house. It's apparent that he feels very at home with his big brother and big sister, who just love him. Maddie, in particular, just smothers him with attention to the point of literally squishing him. She's learning, though.


The hardest part about this past week, is that I came down with Mastitis. It hasn't been particularly painful, but I had 3 days of severe flu-like symptoms that just wiped me out.... chills, fever, headaches, etc. Thankfully, we caught it early, and I was able to get on an antibiotic right away. Again, I don't know what I would have done if my mom wasn't here.
So, come Monday, my parents will be flying home, and Ethan and I will be flying solo (well, duo, I guess). I really have no idea what condition our home or kids or refrigerator will be like a week from now. I suppose it's a good time to focus on the priorities for survival, and let the rest of the details find their way back in someday.
Thank you to all of you who have emailed us with congratulations and words of encouragement. It's amazing how loved we feel even being so far away from you all. And, please feel free to leave any advice for us in the comments. We can use all the help we can get!