The mess that is our house

I don't have any pictures to prove it, but most of the rooms in our house are significantly altered and overflowing with half-packed boxes. And I don't have the pictures on this computer to prove that Nanny Sam is here, but she is!! It's SO good to have her here again! Most of the kids didn't seem to remember her at first, but Seth sure knew something was familiar. He was riveted by her from the moment she walked in the room, and we could see the little gears turning in his brain as he tried to figure out who this lady was again. It makes sense as he spent the most time with her, especially at the hospital. All the kids warmed up very quickly, and within minutes Will had attached himself to her legs like a limpet! I think he might be convinced he's an only child and she's his real mom (after all, he looks a whole lot more like her than me!). :)

Thank God Sam is here; it's a huge help in sorting and packing! She has an organized mind; I do NOT.

Cute Gracie story: She calls herself "baby" and she calls Marcie "baby" (the boys are never "baby"). The other day I was reassembling one of the bottle drying carousels after the kids had played with it. She saw me and was immediately fascinated. She toddled over to me, earnestly looked up, and asked, "Baby . . . more? Baby . . . more?" to request a turn to play with it. First sentence! (Unless you count "Hi, Daddy!")

The kids have started saying "car" (without the r), although I think they've been saying it for a while and I just didn't realize what they were saying. And Seth knows how to make car sounds when he plays - adorable "vvvvvvvvvvvvvv" sound!

Seth is still too skinny, all ribs and scrawny legs, but he's eating really well. Please keep praying he'll gain weight and grow even more beautifully healthy lung tissue. He did great during his therapy session today; the physical therapist says he continues to get better with that left foot turning out, although she wants to try to brace just to see if it helps or not. She doesn't want him wearing it full time or long term, though.

The kids can sense something is up with all the packing going on, so please pray for God's peace to guard their little minds and emotions. They are definitely showing some more anxiety than normal and therefore increased crying and clingy-ness. Yet we have packing that needs to get done, so we can't just hold them all the time. So please pray for wisdom, patience and love for us, too. Thank God Gavin's parents are here, Sam is here (as I've said), and we still have wonderful helpers each day! What a HUGE blessing!

My dad is sure ready to be allowed to get in a car a week from today (next Wednesday). It's hard to be cooped up all this time. I'm sure ready to have him around our house again, even if he can't carry or hold babies for a few more weeks.

Marcie wants to contribute to this post, so I'd better get the computer out of her grasp (I'm at my folks' house).

Love and gratitude,
Carrie

Dad and David