I've graduated!

From the care of a psychiatrist, that is. :) I had such bad postpartum depression/OCD after Isaac's birth that I've been carefully followed during this whole quint journey. THANK and PRAISE THE LORD, it's been over 10 months since they were born and no postpartum issues besides the odd bad day or stressful week! I know it's completely due to God's grace in answering the prayers of so very many, and also providing all the people and help we've needed to stay sane, get sleep, get out, and everything else so vitally important to healthy mental balance. Our marriage has been blessed and protected too, as has Isaac and our relationship with him.

 I don't want to think of this as "Okay, we're out of the woods now," because I know we can't let our guard down in any of these areas, but I sure feel like we're off the deepest, darkest path in the densest part of the woods. However, "even darkness is as light to You," as David says in Psalm 139, and the scary, sad, upsetting days were still full of blessing and grace for each moment. I am watching Seth laugh at Lynée playing peekaboo with him as I type this, and I remember trying hard to let go of him when we knew we could lose him at any time. It was AWFUL seeing him in that plexiglass "box" with a tube down his throat, looking gorgeous and perfect the whole time he was shuddering and shaking with the effects of the oscillator, heavily addicted to pain and anti-anxiety meds. I still can't read the blog posts from back then. I praise God continuously for His mercy over Seth's little life and ours. Even though he is needing oxygen part-time again, I remember how his hospital treatment and recovery seemed to be two steps forward, one step back (and sometimes vice versa!) and see how very, very far he's come! And he's such a sweetheart through it all. :) He's a perpetual grinner when he catches our eyes, and his little chuckle almost always accompanies it.

Marcie pulled herself up on the plastic play house for the first time yesterday! And Will started soldier-crawling today. Seth comes SO close to rolling back to front and has started clapping his fat little hands with glee. (He loves being clapped for when he eats well, which he's doing more and more regularly!) David is climbing out of his seat at the table and out of the bathtub and kiddie pool, and has discovered that electronics can be unplugged from the wall. So far he's unplugged the baby scale and the oxygen concentrator. Grace LOVES to get the attention of her siblings with her laughing, babbling (ba-ba-ba-ba), and HUGE grins. Nothing makes her happier than interacting with the other babies. They laugh or screech at each other. Will, too, screeches to get the kids' attention. He screams at the top of his lungs when he feels overwhelmed or frustrated. He doesn't handle the chaos as well as the other babies do. :}

Will and the mirror

David (no, we're not Cardinal's fans; pretend this says Rangers on it)

Remember the picture of the kids watching Baby Einstein while on their tummies? Now it's crawling position!
Grace, Seth and Will

Love and gratitude, all glory to God!
Carrie
" . . . that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith." (Philippians 3:9, the verse that's been going through my head all day yesterday and today.)