So, my meeting with Caleb didn’t go as I had planned it to.
In fact, I had been scheduled to be at my sister’s on March 1. Which meant I would have been there when Caleb arrived on March 3. But my little stint in the hospital changed those plans. And as I spent time recovering, Jenny welcomed her beautiful 9.5 pound baby into this world – and I wasn’t there. That was the most difficult thing I missed.
But, my Dad always knows how to make it better. He offered to take me down there this past weekend so that I could visit with Caleb and Cai and Jenny (my brother-in-law Chuck was working). And, it might have been weeks after I’d planned it, but that didn’t make it any less wonderful.
Caleb is so big! Turns out Chuck and all his siblings were more than 10 pounds, so I guess Jenny could count herself lucky (for the record, she had a C-section).
He’s the sweetest little baby. He is so peaceful and calm – so long as someone is holding him. He does not like to sleep alone! I certainly didn’t mind doing my part to hold him, thats for sure.
Of course, I got to spend time with Cai, too, who is 20 months old. He is absolutely adorable. Here he is with Caleb:
Unfortunately Cai got a fever about halfway through our visit and was inconsolable. I felt so badly for him! Have not seen a child in that much pain in a while. My aunt Josie was there and thinks it could be an ear infection. Jenny finally calmed him and he slept in her arms. When Caleb woke up needing to eat, Jenny carefully passed Cai to me. His eyes fluttered awake and he started crying as he saw Jenny pulling back, but then he looked at me and seemed to be content. He fell back asleep and won my heart as he lay in my arms, burning up and clutching his ears and his head in his sleep.
I was pretty worn out myself – it was the most activity I’d done since I’d been injured. I drived off to sleep on the couch, Cai in my arms. Jenny drifted off too, with Caleb. Dad was on the other couch and commented later that all was right in his world – his two daughters, both of us recovering (me from my fainting injuries and her from her C-section), both of us sleeping peacefully with two of his grandchildren in our arms.
It was just about the perfect day ever.
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The day was perfect, but the evening was too. I had to cancel my birthday backpacking trip on account of my injuries. I told the others to go without me – we’d been planning this for a couple of months. But they chose instead to come over for a low-key cookout to celebrate. Jim, Jason, Jeff, Scott, my Dad, Meghan and Colleen enjoyed Jeff’s homemade chili, hot dogs and beer, and my very first ice-cream cake birthday cake! I don’t know why, but I’ve always wanted one and it was soooo yummy.
Dad was correct – all is right in the world.