SO FAR, SO GOOD

So, I am almost two days in to having the four kiddos mostly by myself.  Since two of them sleep a majority of the time, this has proven to not be as difficult as you might imagine.  Things are logistically more challenging, i.e., the amount of time it takes to get in and out of the car is a bit obscene, but it has been better than I thought it might be.  Just like with anything else, I have to plan ahead more and prepare to be able to do stuff, but it is doable.  So far.  I'm just two days in and may be crying "Uncle!" by the end of the week.  We shall see.

Last night we gave the babies an extra feeding in the evening, and they slept like little baby rockstars between all of their feedings.  That will put a positive spin on any morning.  What I am realizing is that I will just have to let more stuff slide in life.  I was already pretty lax, but I that is already going to a new level.

For example, yesterday, I forgot to change Bella's diaper all day until in the evening, while we had people at our house, her diaper could hold no more, and there she was standing, confused, in a puddle of urine.  I regularly comfort myself with the fact that urine is sterile.  Also, the last few mornings, the girls have been helping themselves to breakfast.  This has meant they have been wandering around the house with bags of cereal in their hands.  This proves to be a crummy (get it?) breakfast all around.  I actually found a mostly empty bag of Lucky Charms behind my closet door.  All of the marshmallows were gone.

The girls have been mostly incredibly wonderful during this transition.  Bella has been more motherly than I had any reason to hope that she would be.  She sings over the babies when they fuss and gives them their pacis and claims them as "My Brother" and "My Sister" when she sees other children or adults coming to see them.  Lily continues to be an excellent big sister, and I am so grateful for her kind spirit with all of her siblings.

There have been a few rough patches with both girls.  Bella has been super clingy at drop off for any childcare.  Lily has been a bit more sensitive than normal to reprimands.  She told me the other day, "You are being 'dis-espectical' to me."  It took me a moment to realize she was saying "disrespectful."  So, we had a talk about what that means and that it is not an appropriate thing to say that Mommy is doing to her.  She went on to say that Bella had been being "dis-espectical" to her ALL DAY.  Which, I don't necessarily doubt.

So, for right this second, this feels like a fun challenge at best, and a screamy, but doable reality, at worst.  I think my personality and parenting style are suited to this, and I am so thankful for that fact.  I believe that God equips each of us for what he has for us, and I am so glad for that fact.  Also, I can see that when the twins are awake a lot more, this will get harder to manage.

Until then, I am reveling in the joy that the Lord put these children into my care.  What a privilege and blessing - one that I do not take for granted.  As I have hash-tagged on Instagram, I know my hands are full (as if I didn't know, people keep telling me at every turn), but my heart is fuller.