Stomach flu and angels

Wow. That was  NOT how the first week back was supposed to go. We pulled into our driveway on a gorgeous autumn Thursday afternoon.  Later that evening,  the Murdocks brought Pippin back so we could all be together again as a new family.  That night was a rough one.  Little Joshua was unsettled from two days of traveling and refused to settle if laid down in his bassinet. Paul had work on Friday, so it was my first all-night shift. The next morning came finding both Josh and I worse for wear, so Paul was able to arrange to stay home.

That was fantastic until he started having horrible stomach pains and then started throwing up. He still had to dj his school's dance that evening because he was the only one who could work the sound system,  and how he got through that is beyond me.  With Paul being sick, he couldn't help with Joshua, so it was my first, real dive into the deep end of newborn-mom-survival-school. Josh and I sequestered ourselves to the guest room upstairs and prepared for night #2.

Aaaaand then 3am came-  with stomach cramps waking me up and getting worse as the hour wore on.  It was obvious I was dealing with the same stomach flu Paul had. 4am. I was exhausted and teary from throwing up and knowing minute by minute that I was becoming less and less capable of taking care of my baby.  Thank goodness for sweet friends you can call on at 4:20 in the morning. Half an hour later, Melinda was there,  had sent me to bed, and I knew Joshua was safe and loved.

Over the next day and a half,  three more guardian angels swooped in at a moment's notice and cared for Joshua throughout the night and into the peace of Sunday morning.  The more I reflect on that development our first few days back, the more fitting it is. When it came to getting this little one to our home, there is nothing- and I truly mean nothing we could have done on our own. We tried and tried for so many years to bring children into our home on our own. However, when Heavenly Father began preparing our hearts and home for Samuel, who prepared them for Joshua, there was not a step of that journey we took without help from those around us.  How fitting that his arrival here in Oregon become a community experience.

As Paul and I recovered,  I think the biggest beneficiaries of our downtime were Pippin and Mali who snuggled with us to their hearts content while we slept off that stomach bug.

Now here we are at the end of two wonderful sick-free days. Joshua doesn't appear to have been touched by the sickness at all and is developing the diaper-eat-sleep routines that are the center of our little world right now.   Love and support continues to envelop us in the form of little gifts left on the porch, texts and messages,  and delicious meals (now that food once again sounds appealing).

Tomorrow is our first Oregon pediatrician's appointment, so we're hoping Joshua has some good weight gain and that his little body continues healthy.

Love to you all.