As I sit on my couch, drinking coffee, baby girl has the hiccups.
Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop. And now she’s wiggling her legs, like she’s showing me what she can do.
It’s a little how Eli will play a game of peek-a-boo, completely unprompted. I’ll see him with his head into the couch and realize he’s been doing that for about thirty seconds. It takes me a second to realize he’s playing…
“Eli!!!!” I say, in a sing-song voice.
His head pops up and he laughs so hard.
or sorta how Noah, right now, is playing Wii and he keeps talking to me about his endeavors and asking me who I think is going to win, he narrates and celebrates. He really does think I’m very aware of the game he’s playing. But I’m not but he’s involving me and I like that.
or how Anna will do her own hair and not show anybody, especially her brother or Dad but she’ll sneakily come up to me and show me and I’ll rave and rave about how good she is at coming up with cute hairstyles and she smiles and giggles and removes the walls she’s built and walks taller and prouder and when Dad says “Anna, you look so cute!” She says “thank you!” and buries her head into his chest. (carefully, so she doesn’t mess up her hair.)
or how even Brian will come up to me and tell me that he finished my laundry and his and he’s going to go into the baby’s room and begin clearing it out so we can paint it TODAY because she’ll be here a month from TODAY and my mind is so stressed and my heart is a little sad at how little I can do to help prepare for her arrival and he knows this.
So, he comes up to me and tells me in his soft voice that he’s taken care of these things “so rest your head, pretty Mama.”
I have these people in my home and in my belly who share with me their silliness and their challenges and their triumphs and I’m in the middle feeling important even though I feel like I’m contributing so little to them right now.
But they’ve reassured me and I remember how important my role is, and this makes me happy today. This makes me proud.
This made me cry!
Love those guys.
This just made me smile in so many way. Love you and your family.
This made me cry, too!
Beautiful! What a lovely family you are!
After reading this, I almost don’t want to shank Brian. ALMOST.
Big smile while reading this. Love you.
Tears here too! That was beautiful Beth!
Tears in my eyes. So beautiful is each sentiment about your family.
Just your being right there on that couch contributes more than you will ever know. The love that oozes from this post tears to my eyes. XOXO
This made me cry! Isn’t it amazing how all they need from us is just a smile, a nod or a hug… as much as they fill our lives with joy, we do the same for them. I can’t believe there is only a month left before we get to meet your beautiful little girl! Rest, pretty mama… because you deserve it so that you can be the best you that you can be for them.
aw!! your family is too sweet.
beautiful post! So sweet! You have such a beautiful family!
I’m sitting here reading this post, breathing through braxton hicks (or are they real?!) and trying to rest. Such a sweet post! Makes me think and appreciate my 3 yr old telling me “you’re a good maker, Mama!” when he enjoy’s his food, or my 1 yr old asking to kiss the baby in my belly on an hourly basis, and my sweet husband downstairs building new pantry shelves for me. (I also have 4 weeks to go until baby arrives). Hope you get some good rest and more sweet family time this weekend!
The beauty of you being temporarily prevented from doing all the things you would normally do, especially before the baby arrives to capture so much of your attention, is that you have the opportunity to take stock of all that you do, including things you may not usually give a second thought. And as long as you’re there and your family knows how much you love them, your contributions to them are too grand to measure.
what a beautiful post!!
Such a beautiful post. It really brought back how much I enjoyed being pregnant. My son would get the hiccups almost every night when I would lay down to go to sleep after a long night at work. It really was wonderful to know that he was safe within me. Now, he’s an adult and out on his own. Enjoy every moment and don’t worry that you’ve been forced to rest more than you would like.
Wow. This is a beautiful post. Thank you so much for sharing!
So sweet. My little girl gets the hiccups all the time and makes my belly jump too
BEAUTIFUL post! What an amazing family you have. Thank you for sharing!
I’m reading along, first I catch myself smiling, and the next second I’m crying. Beautiful post, Beth.
Beth, this is such a beautifully written post describing the love your family has for you and you for them. It is like my heart knew I needed to open my computer today and look to see if there was a new blog entry from you. I am so thankful to read this right now as all my girls nap and change my attitude once they have awoken. You are so inspiring and I too, can not believe the 1mth countdown has begun. I pray it is a relaxing one for you filled with many more moments like this. Take care, Mich
Lovely! I hope that you are well.
Sometimes being present is the toughest job to do. As tough as it is, to just be….enjoy this, life won’t give you too many of these opportunities to just stop and enjoy the littlest things. I love reading your posts. It’s amazing how you capture exactly how we feel in ways that move us to tears. <3…