6 Weeks

And when Esau lifted up his eyes and saw the women and children he said, "Who are these with you?" Jacob said, "The children whom God has graciously given your servant."

It is Saturday morning. Tom said I could sleep in, but Jacob said I couldn't. He wins. Wow. I did not blog much in September. Having a new baby and having school start for 5 of our children has kept me busy. Plus, it's that time of year when my Family Room looks like a resale shop. I'm switching out our children's Summer clothes for the Winter clothes. It's not a fun job. It's starts out ok, but then it gets very overwhelming. Boxes and bags of girls and boys clothes from newborn to size 16. For myself, I am packing away my maternity clothes and trying to find "regular" clothes that fit me. I'm not quite back into my old wardrobe yet. That will take awhile - especially with the cold weather coming. Being inside all day with little ones, a lot of snacking goes on.
I did have my 6 week check-up this week. All is fine. I always get uncomfortable thinking about this appointment. This is where they bring up the "c" word. What bothered me more this time was that the nurse asked me about contraception while she was checking me in - doing my weight and blood pressure. I didn't think it was something I needed to discuss with her. I really do like my doctor. He seems to understand that Tom and I have a hard time with this. He didn't try to talk me into anything, just gave me some options and told me to call him if he can help me with any of them. I just gave my usual answer, that I'll talk to Tom. (The nurse seemed upset with my answer.) Even now I'm not sure what to write because I don't want people to think that I judge others because of their choices on this. I really don't. I understand and believe that people have to do what they're comfortable with. I believe it's between them and God. But honestly...I do feel that Tom and I are judged by others. Mainly strangers. Lots of looks, lots of comments. People really do ask us if they are all ours when we're out. They ask if we know what causes it. They ask us how we can afford all of them. (We can't. Just kidding :o) Tom and I just dream of the vacations and cars we'd be driving. Ha!) They tell us we're brave. (I prefer when they say blessed.) Or they just stare at us. A few times I've heard people quietly counting our children then making a comment under their breath. I'll just smile at Tom and say "we just got counted."
One time this Summer we were at a pizza restaurant and an older gentleman walked by our table, looked back, and counted our 6 children then said to our waitress "6!" Our waitress was very sweet, probably around 18 yrs old, and after taking our order asked us if we were planning to have any other children. I stood up and showed her my very pregnant tummy. She smiled and told us that she was the 7th child in her family, that's why she had asked. She said it was nice to see a big family.
Earlier this week I took all 7 of our children to our pediatrician for flu shots - Jacob just came along for the ride. (When I told my OB this, his nurse asked me "By yourself!?" - Yes. I do that.) My children were very well behaved. They were playing together at the tables and reading books. They got a lot of stares, which is fine. I'm getting used to it. Plus, I know it's really because they're all amazingly beautiful :o) When we went into the room for the shots, it was nice to see them helping each other through it. They were trying to make each other laugh so they wouldn't be so scared. When it was done, they each got a lollipop. All better.
On our way out I saw a lady that goes to the same church we do. She has 6 girls. She came over to me to see our baby (she happened to be at the doctor when we brought Jacob in for his first appointment too.) It's nice to bump into someone you know and/or who understands having many children. She is always very sweet and asks how things are going. When we went to the dentist last weekend (it's a Saturday morning event every 6 months) the receptionist told me that she is one of 7 children. She always wondered how her mother did it, but now she looks at me and sees how it can be done. I'm going to take that as a compliment.
It's a cold, gray day outside this morning. Makes it hard to get going, but we have a Little League game to get to. Noah hasn't hit a ball during a game yet. I pray that today is the day. (Yum...Brandon just gave me a piece of Monkey Bread he just made.)
After writing about all this - it reminds me of a saying I thought was funny and true. For Christmas, one of the gifts I bought Tommy was a coffee cup for work that says "Stop asking me if I'm going to get fixed. Obviously, nothing is broken."