Only Child for a Day

Tom and I were quite sick with the flu yesterday. He took a sick day, which is very unusual for him. My parents came to take Liesl home with them at 11:00 a.m. yesterday and returned her to us this afternoon, giddy and giggly from spending a day and night at Grammie and Papa's house.

After they left with Liesl, the house was relatively quiet. One small baby. Few pressures other than to drink fluids, rest, and get well. Frankly, I have forgotten how easy it is to have one child. Babies, compared to toddlers, are EASY. They eat, sleep, cry a bit, poop, play, cuddle and laugh. There are no time-outs, no overseeing of toddler chores, no discipline/consequences to dole out, no doors and gates to stairwells to be kept closed, no additional food to prepare (and indeed, to clean up after.) You put the baby down, walk away for a moment, come back...and she's still where you put her! Amazing. Compared to caring for two very small children together, one small baby is easy to care for...even with the flu.

And that one small baby is 4 months old today! Ava is getting so big--she giggles, plays, and talks a LOT. She rolled over for the first time yesterday, just one day shy of her 4 month "birthday." She has some rare difficult moments, as all babies do, but she is an absolute joy. I am so in love with this precious, perfect baby. We are so blessed.

She loves her cloth undies

And she loves tummy time!

Daddy and Ava had a bit of a nap together today.
Shhh...don't tell Tom I took (and published) this photo!

Snuggles and cuddles with Ava will cure all that ails you