As Requested...

There isn't much to update today, but I'm writing for those who request :-)).

Everyone but myself, Mom, Dad, and Jonathan have now gotten and recovered from Anna's flu - of which we are now sure WAS a flu, since practically everyone's gotten it. Katherine, Michael, Leah, and Elizabeth were only mildly sick - Leah and Elizabeth didn't even throw up - but Aaron was pretty ill. He, Anna, and I tend to get stomach bugs the worst, something about touchy stomach muscles that won't quit throwing up once they start.

We're still praying Jonathan won't get it. I'm praying I don't get it either, but I haven't gone through being born and being in intensive care for a month.

Jonathan is getting bigger and fatter every day. He sleeps all night still and then takes many small naps during the day: we think it's because he's growing like a weed and working very hard to nurse. Mom no longer has to pump to get him started nursing, which is the new improvement over the last day. He is now sucking long enough and hard enough to get milk on his own, even though he still only goes about four to six minutes on each side. He's also seems to enjoy nursing more, holding his hands curled together like contented nursing babies do and not fussing so much about having to nurse in the first place. He is fussing a lot more when it's time to eat, though. His voice has come all the way back and he is definitely letting the world know when he's hungry. Mom went out today to buy birthday presents for Michael and he started to get pretty upset when he fussed to eat and Mom was there right away to feed him. He was so happy to see her that he didn't make a peep about having to nurse but tried extra hard and spent longer at it before he got to his usual "I've had enough - feed me the easy way!" stage.

Another new improvement? Jonathan FINALLY lost the stump of his umbilical cord. It took a long time to heal because there were so many other things in his body that needed healing, I think...but at any rate Katherine came running into the kitchen this morning announcing, "Jonathan has a belly button now!"

She has a question to ask about every move Jonathan makes. "He's snuffling, Mom. Did I snuffle when I was his age?" "Did you change everybody's diapers too, Mom?" "Did Michael sleep in that bed when he was a baby?" "Was I a messy eater too when I was his age?"

Katherine's been very happy to be home all the time. She comes and keeps Mom company while Mom's feeding Jonathan (which is what Mom mostly does these days), she plays in the living room with Michael, and she is no longer stuck to my leg like glue, which was her permanant state of being during all the hospital running-around time.

Jonathan's new trick is beginning to consciously grab for things, which is funny to watch. We're making an effort to put him down on the floor every day, since we learned from Leah that placid babies don't learn to crawl because they're perfectly happy to be held or sit in their chairs all day. She didn't crawl until she was eight months old because Mom suddenly realized, "Oh, I guess she should be crawling now...maybe I should take her out of her bouncy chair more often!"

At any rate, two nights ago he was laying on his blanket next to Elizabeth's popcorn bowl, which was a green and white plastic container. We didn't notice he was trying to grab for it until he tipped it over; Elizabeth picked it up again and then we noticed how he was staring at it. He kept waving his hand at it until he finally touched it and then he got excited and whacked it with his fist, knocking it over again. He did this for a long time until he finally got frustrated and started crying. Now we've been giving him a toy with a bunch of brightly-colored nobs on it that he likes to look at and he grabs for that too. If he manages to wrap his fingers around it, he starts licking his lips like he's about to eat it, but he doesn't quite seem to know how to get it into his mouth yet. I'm sure he'll figure that out soon.

His hair is starting to grow in by his forehead where it all got yanked out by the IV tape. He hasn't lost that mohawk of his yet and we're wondering if maybe he'll be like Elizabeth and not lose his hair. One thing is for sure: the stuff growing in the front is growing FAST. He's going to need a haircut before he's six months old at this rate!

I don't have any pictures from the past few days due to the flu situation - everyone who usually takes pictures has been laying around and I've been running around doing errands, taking care of people, and trying to keep up with the overflow of things to be done. I found out today, however, that the office doesn't want me working from home anymore. The reason I have been working from home is that I have too many responsibilities here right now to be spending as much time as necessary at the office, and bringing work home to take care of in between my other stuff was my compromise. If I can't work from home, I can't do the work. I do not like letting people down and I'm pretty good now at what I'm doing, but there is a point at which I have to choose which responsibility I'm going to give my allegiance too and my home duties take priority.

Which leads to why I'm going to quit writing now...I'm plumb worn out!

Did I mention that Michael's favorite book to read out loud has become Amelia Bedelia? I hear it several times a day...