What we're doing now (and more realization of how far we've come!)

Some things the babies are up to that we were able to catch them at:

Seth loves to read by himself sometimes. He is so careful and methodical about turning the pages and touching the pictures (even when they are upside down, as in this photo!), although today I came home to find him doing a little sitting wiggle dance while "reading" and pressing the buttons on one of those musical activity books.

Marcie's adorable new habit of taking an item or toy and lying down on her tummy to enjoy looking at it.

Gracies adorable new habit of ecstatically exclaiming and laughing, with real intonation like a grown-up!

Will and Marcie discovered they could fit between the back of the couch and the window. They can climb back there quite quickly by themselves but can't climb out again nearly as easily!

Rub-a-dub-dub, two boys in a tub . . . of sorts. Seth and David in the Mega Bloks box with Daddy as the driver.
David looks unsure about sharing his ride, doesn't he?

Crazy trampoline-induced static hair on Seth!
The babies all pile inside and run around and fall down and laugh.
They can't really jump yet, so the danger isn't there. :)

Seth with his former NICU nurse, Frances.
Thanks for the visit and help today, Frances and Corbi!

Naomi stopped by for a little playdate. (What a great babysitter/nanny!) The linking rings were a hit!
Sorry the picture is a bit fuzzy. Marcie is standing by Naomi, then Gracie, Seth, Will, and David, clockwise from top.

In the above two pictures Seth's shirt says "Mommy's Super Hero," and I love to see it on him. Really, all our babies are "heroes" insofar as they had to fight for their little lives, but God did it all in them and for them and through the work of the NICU staff and specialists in answer to the prayers of so many! 

Sorting through a big box of NICU paraphernalia last night brought me to tears as I pulled out the teeny tiny diapers, minuscule blood pressure cuffs (like, with a diameter of one inch!), the little "sunglasses" the babies wore to protect their eyes from the anti-jaundice lights, the world's tiniest pacifier, and the foot-long orange ruler that was the same length as Gracie! Perhaps the two most tear-provoking objects were (1) the fleece pad that was special ordered to help stop Seth's knees from breaking down with bed sores since he had to be positioned on his tummy to keep him from stressing out and make his oxygen saturations plummet; and (2) the  pink "Baby D" sign that was also Seth's. Baby D was "supposed" to be a girl, since the girls were highest up in my belly, but Seth was so buried inside me that Marcie came to the surface first and became Baby C, or third born. (Seth had always been C on sonogram because he was third up, counting from the bottom of my pelvis). But since everything for Baby D's/Seth's use had already been made pink in preparation for a girl, they stuck with the color for a few weeks. However, when Seth wasn't getting better and in fact was getting worse, the head of the NICU decided we needed to help him "man up," so she put duct tape all over his pink signs and over the pink tape on the floor marking his bed area. I kept the signs (with just their tiny bit of pink still showing inside the D). I even kept the roll of duct tape, and I still can't bear to part with it! It's such a bittersweet memory and such a powerful reminder of how much God has blessed us with Seth's life. He's still such a sweet, sensitive boy. He's a lover, not a fighter. If he falls or is hurt, he is frequently heartbroken about it and comes for a hug. He loves everyone he meets, I think! Clearly those 5 months in the NICU did not harm his little psyche. He well knows what it is to be loved and cherished by everyone around him. :)

 [Let me hasten to add that Seth's past struggles don't mean he is more special or loved or cherished than any of our other unique and wonderful kids, it's just that he is HERE when for a long while it looked like he might not make it at all.]

Heading to bed with a grateful heart! TO GOD BE THE GLORY, GREAT THINGS HE HAS DONE!
Carrie