Sweet Babies

This is a pic of our friend's daughter Kaybrie. She was one of the members of our camping crew last weekend at MacGregor Point. It was awesome to have a baby there to snuggle (although her mom probably wished she weren't camping with a one-month old at times...you did well Lea Anne ;).

God does such a great job at creating babies. Babies are so tiny, so adorable, so helpless and they smell SO good!! I remember really paying attention to that "new baby smell" when I had Lyric. My mom was gracious enough to care for Izzy and Obi for a few days so I could have a "babymoon" with Lyric and I remember lying there in bed with her and just inhaling her scent. It was the most intoxicating smell. God really knew what He was doing when He made newborns so irresistable to cuddle... to ensure that we would always look after them. I distinctly remember her losing that "baby smell" on her eigth day of life. Not that she didn't smell good anymore, but she had lost that newborn smell. Do you know what I'm talking about? I remember that was one of the first things I mourned because I knew then that she would be my last baby.

I have never regretted our decision to permanently cap our family at five members. I feel really bad for some of my girlfriends who regret their decisions to end their ability to have more babies. It must be a very awful feeling! I definitely have never looked back. When I see my family I couldn't imagine it with another little being...we just feel complete. I'm grateful for this. Even those moments when I have the pure joy of holding someone elses infant as they fall asleep in my arms, I never once wish that i could do it all over again. For a woman who has difficulty with things ending I find this amazing (and a great relief). Maybe it's because I still get to be so intimately involved in pregnancy and birth with clients of mine. I still get to swaddle babies and hold them, smelling their sweet fuzzy heads moments after birth. It's definitely one of the 'perks' of my job :) I also love holding my friends babies...and giving them back if I can't settle them. I imagine it's what being a Grandma will be like: enjoying them and then sending them home ;)

Having children has definitely been one of my greatest accomplishments, each one is a little miracle. I often am in awe as I look at them and see similarities to Joel and I. A girlfriend and I were just mentioning today how cool it is to look at our children and seen those aspects in them that mirror ourselves (although that can also be a bad and embarrassing thing when they pick up our bad habits and faults..which they always seem to do!).

Yesterday Joel and I visited his sister Leah who is still in the hospital...awaiting the birth of her new baby. Being in the maternity ward in London made me ache to be back in the delivery room. It's interesting how much a passion can impact you. I'm so glad to have such an amazing job.

And Leah...hang in there hon. It's been a long wait...but pretty soon you'll be holding your own little sweet babe and inhaling the scent of new life. Can't wait to meet the new baby.

Mel