pablitorun: Madgie and Patch Help

As I previously mentioned, Madgie flew up to help us out and Patch came as well, then flew home to work, then flew back up to help again! We are so thankful for their help. Madgie drove the kids to all of their activities (thus allowing me to rest at home, recover from the surgery and not take Matthew out into the Polar Vortex), she cooked, cleaned, did laundry, served as emotional support, held Matthew so I could shower or actually get something accomplished, and was just there for fun conversation and company during the day. I don't know how we would have managed the first few weeks without her help. She was also on hand to give the other kids some extra attention while I was tending to the baby. We were so lucky she could come up for that long to help us out.

Now back to Matthew updates...it took almost 3.5 weeks, a little bleeding, a late night call to the doctor and follow up appointment the next day for Matthew's umbilical cord to fall off and heal. So we were not able to give him a true bath (sponge bath only) until that happened. Finally, around 3.5 weeks, Matthew had his first bath. And he really enjoyed it. Paul said it was funny to watch him in the warm water start to curl up - almost like he wished he was still back in the womb! Anyway, here is the obligatory first bath picture!

Luckily, we had lots of helpers with the bath. We waited so long for it and everyone was so excited to finally give him his first bath! By the way, I should mention that as I am writing this, Matthew is almost 8 weeks old and I still have my excited helpers every night waiting to give him a bath and taking turns with what needs to be done for the bath, including filling up the tub, pouring water gently on him, holding the towel out for him, getting his diaper ready, putting lotion on him and picking out his clothes. As you can see, lots of opportunities for helping!

Any time Matthew makes the slightest sound of discomfort (which he does a lot - gassy baby), I have little Mommies rushing in to see if he is OK.

And this is what you get as the fourth child...older siblings get to make paper hats and put them on you for their own amusement.

Matthew is staying awake more each day, which is so fun for us to see. He has beautiful blue eyes, just like all his siblings.

Abbey playing with Matthew.

Now Madgie and Patch eventually had to get back to FL and their own lives (side note, I am immensely proud of them for how they handled the crazy weather we have had - apparently they do not want to ever move here though). Before they left, we had a birthday celebration for Ben since they left about a week before his birthday. Madgie got him an oreo ice cream cake that he loved.

Madgie gets in some last minute Matthew time during the birthday celebration (and Matthew is wearing his Valentine's Day Prince Charming outfit Madgie got him).

Really cute picture and again, it shows that the girls really need to be wherever Matthew is all the time!

Madgie and Patch got Ben an erector set for his birthday, which he really enjoys. He liked working on it with Patch, although I am not exactly sure if Ben or Patch enjoyed it more!

Madgie and Patch getting last minute Matthew time!

Who gets all those kisses?

And then it was time for them to leave :( We thank you both so much for everything you did for us. As I briefly mentioned, Matthew is a bit of a fussy baby due to the amount of gas he seems to have. This causes him to not sleep well at night too. Our other three children were such excellent sleepers and easy babies that this has really thrown us for a loop. I went back to look at their baby books because I wasn't sure if they were actually that way or if I am just forgetting what it's like to have a newborn. Juliette's baby book actually says, "She is such an easy baby. She never cries. I have to wake her up to eat." Yeah, no wonder we wanted a fourth baby! Anyway, with our severe lack of sleep, it was so helpful to have extra sets of hands to help out with everything. We really thank you so much. As you can see below, we are exhausted!

The kids are handling it pretty well though. Sometimes things get a little crazy in the house though...

My baby boy and baby girl!

Luckily, we were not on our own for long before more help arrived! Mama Kay and Papa came up a day after Madgie and Patch left and we are so thankful for their help as well! They jumped right into the routine of where and when to drive the kids around. And then before we knew it, it was Valentine's Day! Here is Prince Charming and Abbey!