Life is So Good...

I have always loved the first weeks after our babies have been born.  Of course there are difficult adjustments and sleep doesn't come easy making emotions sway up and down, but for the most part, those emotions even are something I cherish.  Fierce love for this new little one that can make me weep as I hold him in the quiet of the night.  Innocent tears of weariness that come from a new sleep pattern being established, a powerful renewed devotion and love for my older children that comes from reminders of when they were so tiny and new. A bit of sadness at the complete awareness of just how fast time goes and how little time we have where they are ours, even more so this time as my oldest only has a few years left with us.  Fear of loss which can make it difficult to rest my eyes at night but it also brings such a deep need to know the Lord and trust His plan.  These first weeks seem peaceful to me, we move slower as a family, we observe life in it's smallest form together and bond over this new adventure that has changed our family profoundly. Troubles seem smaller in comparison to the joy of this new little guy, letting things wait until tomorrow seems like the right thing to do.

This time even brought continued construction on our bedroom only days after Israel was born.  Our bedroom was finished on Friday afternoon, we moved our bed and a chair in right away and an hour later, Matt's mom and Dad arrived in from MN to meet Israel, but somehow, there has still been quiet moments and rest.

Israel is doing wonderful, he is such a joy and such an easy going baby.  He doesn't mind the kids kissing and holding and touching even a bit.  They each seem to be able to soothe him in their own special way.  He is a week old as of yesterday.  Seems like a lifetime ago already that we were off to the hospital.

For those of you who have followed along with the changes in our house, I thought it would be fun to share our finished new bedroom.  Matt and I are overjoyed to have our own bedroom!  No more spidery dark basement nook to rest our eyes in at night, this new room is absolutely one of the best and most humbling gifts we have ever received!!  God is so good and we are so blessed!!


My mom is such a gifted crocheter and has blessed us over and over with her beautiful work.  I was beyond thrilled when she brought this blanket for Israel that she had made.  It is all white-which is something I absolutely love!!  For as much as I love color-which is not hard to tell when you walk in my front door or see the projects i am working on-I adore the simplicity of white.  But white is not the best for 6 kiddos amongst these beloved walls:).  So, a baby blanket in white works-and it is a true heirloom piece!!  Here is Israel sleeping next to me as I finally have sat down to the sewing machine since having him.  Think he is used to the sound of the whirring machine?

 Since our bedroom is finished in the basement, we have been able to start moving our family room back down there.  Oh my, have we missed this space!!  I gave up my studio space to be able to build downstairs, but I do still have some space to work in that is right in the family room.  My table is less than half the size it used to be, BUT!  I have changed quite a bit of how I work over the past nine months and it has prepared me to really enjoy enjoy this change.  I like the size of the table more now-it is easier to work on things from all sides.  I also like being right in the midst of the kids as I work and they play.

 

Here is my new work buddy!  I had always desired a Moses basket, but this is the first time I have had one.  I found it thrifting before I had gotten sick with the pregnancy-such a fun find.  It is great for the limited space we have.

We have not moved everything back into the family room, but the kids are having a great time with getting this space back. Board games, wii games, art....ah, so needed.

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This afternoon while Israel slept and the kids played, I decided to sit down at the machine to finish a few projects.

I finished a fabric basket to keep at the changing table with all of the essentials. The nice thing is that I can easy grab it if I need it in another room.  I have one of these in our bedroom as well for in the wee hours of the night.

I was able to quilt this floor quilt for Israel as well.  I loved working with solids on this one.  Fun to look at.  Just need to bind it now.

Life is so good!!