The final countdown...

Induction is set for our due date next Monday, unless this little guy decides to make his appearance sooner. (Which the doctor assures me is a real possibility considering how far I've already progressed but we're not getting hopes up.) For Valentine's day, Steve gave me last Saturday without kids to get stuff done before the baby arrives. I knew I needed his help and the help of the kids so the day morphed into getting help from everyone in the morning, Steve taking the kids away for several hours in the afternoon and then a dinner date with just the two of us. It was just what I needed to ease my racing mind.

I checked things off the Baby Must Do list as well as the Need/Want To-Do list.
Cameras charged and memory cards cleared.
Pulling baby gear down from the attic.
Washing swaddle blankets.
Cleaning out the car and making room for another carseat.
Washing guest sheets.
Sending files to print for work.
Etc, etc...

And at the end of the day, I sat across the table from Steve on a restaurant patio and we talked and talked without any interruptions. We talked about baby names and made little to no progress. We discussed our excitement and our anxieties about baby #5.

I realized, the excitement changes with each child. Its not as if we're less excited about this child than we were our first but it morphs into something a little deeper. We know for the most part what we're getting into - we know the struggles of recovery both physically but more importantly emotionally. I vividly remember both types of pain and I don't enjoy either. We know the exhaustion that's about to overcome both of us. We know how a baby changes the dynamics of our family, not to mention my relationship with Steve. Our eyes are open. And yet knowing all of that, we're happy and excited to do it again. It is love and gratitude on levels that are hard to describe.

Yes, it will be hard. And yes, it may look like we've lost control on most fronts - but most things in life that are worth something are hard. Luckily, we've got a home full of love, waiting with open arms for this little baby boy and siblings who are as anxious as can be to meet him.

It's the final countdown...