"Be gentle, Noah"

That has become a mantra here in the Du Toit household. Noah loves his brother so much that he could just squish him! Hence, the need to enforce gentleness.
 Not a lot to update you on, friends. Noah's still blowin' and goin' and loves to wake up bright and early. I'm just smitten with Witten and we're working on being awake during the day as opposed to sleeping throughout the day and staying awake at night. Mommy's still trying to find the perfect time to do everything. When can I clean when it wont take away from time spent with my sons or time that I could be catching up on much needed sleep? How am I supposed to shower without Stephan here to watch the babies? Why does Noah love the bouncy seat so much? Can I let Witten sleep until he wakes up hungry at night, or should I wait a bit longer? And most importantly, when can Stephan and I have meaningful couple-time besides right before bed; when both boys are asleep but mommy is tired and Daddy is wired? (He's decided that coffee right before bed might be a bad thing and that maybe he should cut back on it.)
     Well, I've spilled enough of my guts for now. Today, I'm gonna go to Walmart with the boys. I will let you know how that goes.

   "Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28

Jumbo Spaghetti and Meatballs

My hands are still itchy and dry.
 I know how badly you all want to see as much of Witten as possible, but the last few times I've experienced Kodak moments I've only had my cell phone handy which means that I have to text any pictures taken to Stephan who then e-mails them to me so I can download them to the computer so I can upload them to my blog. Yeah.
 Anyways, These are too sweet not to share, so here are a few pictures of how much Noah loves his baby brother Witten:

Lovin' on his bro. Sweet sibling hugs!

At first, he was biting his hand, but after a sharp warning from mommy, it turned to kisses.

He wanted to share his football.

Then Noah started to count fingers.

  Yes, friends, more and more am I seeing Noah not only acknowledge Witten's existence, but also show real affection for him. For instance: every time I change Witten, be it his diaper of his clothes, he cries. (He hates being any kind of naked). And every time Witten cries from his changing table, no matter where Noah is in the house, he stops what he's doing, runs into the nursery, climbs onto the side of the changing table and says "crying!" while trying to pat Witten reassuringly. It is adorable! 
   On the other hand, there has been some hints of regression:    

 No, not really. Noah just loves this old bouncy seat. So does Lydia and pretty much any other toddler that comes into our house. Besides Noah's love of baby toys, the only notable difference in his attitude and actions is that he now LOVES his daddy so much more than mommy. It's cute and yet sad.
 
  Friends, I'm excited. A sweet woman in my Sunday school group has sent out an email inviting anyone who wants to to join her in an upcoming 10K. As I have already pledged myself to running a 10K, I eagerly expressed my interest in signing up. I will keep you all informed in how that goes.
  On a related note, please pray for me. This is definitely going to take self-discipline, a character quality that I sadly lack.
   Be blessed, friends and readers!

Compare and Contrast

I'm not sure if it's wrong to compare your babies as long as it's not in a negative context. I just like to wonder at the differences, or more so, the similarities of baby Noah and baby Witten. For example:

Fresh out Noah

Fresh out Witten

 Noah and Witten both came pretty quietly into this world. Once the nurses and doctors were done processing them, they both stayed quietly bundled with their little caps on. (Thank You, Father God, that both your blessings of life to me are sweet, mild-mannered boys)

Noah a few hours old

Witten a few hours old

 Another similarity the boys share is how stinkin' much I love them. I honestly feared that once Witten was here in the flesh, my love for Noah would be split in two and shared between two brothers, though one would probably get a bigger half than the other. I could not have been more incorrect. My love for Noah has stayed the same and a new, identical love for my baby has manifested itself in my heart for Witten. Somehow, God has taken my heart, a heart that was already full of love for my Savior, my husband and my son, and easily and painlessly made room for more love to fit in.
  So far, a week and two days into being a mother of two, the only notable differences in my sweet children are their appearances (even there, both look astonishingly like their father. Someday I might have a baby that looks a little like me...).   
  So again, as I have often ended my blog posts, I say Praise God from whom all blessings flow! Praise Him all creatures here below. Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost! Amen!

my hands are so dry right now

I can't believe it has been a week already.
It's hard to believe that a week ago yesterday, I delivered a baby. I feel a lot better than I did a week after Noah was born. And Witten has already been with us for over a week now! SO crazy! The baby I carried in my womb for nine months has been here for 8 days. What's even weirder to think about it Witten is currently 6 lbs, 10 oz, which means that he was even heavier those last few days in my tummy. (He was born 7 lbs, 1oz.)
  It's very surreal. I'm dong better at treasuring the time, I think, but it's still flying by so very quickly.

Noah's making a mess and I have to get ready for BSF. (yay!) I'm sorry about the short post, friends. May it tide you over until the next lengthy, wordy one.

Sweet Baby Mine

*ba da da*

Witten has smoothly and easily found his place in our home. As the new baby brother, he is perfect for helping big brother Noah review the anatomy of the face (eyes, ears, nose, cheeks, etc...), as little baby, he's perfect for snuggling and loving on. As he is less than a week old, he still sleeps a majority of the day. He has "awake" time twice a day at the most. I remember this with Noah. I remember being bored because newborns are so boring, and I also remember then feeling bad about feeling bored because that must have meant I was a bad mother for not cherishing every single moment spent with my baby.

Why hello there.

   Friends, that is one of the joys of being a second-time mother. Most, though certainly not all, of the worries and unknowns of having a newborn have diminished, if not gone away entirely. I can comfortably let Witten sleep undisturbed in his crib/bassinet/swing without feeling like I should be holding him or else I'm neglecting him. I don't jump up the second he starts to fuss a little in order to make sure that he's okay. Feeding is still a tad bothersome, but that's mainly because I want to make sure he's getting enough. (He'd sleep forever if I'd let him.) I look forward to the time when he starts to be more aware and responsive, but for sure I am not rushing it. I fear that with Noah I wished away his infancy, always eagerly awaiting the next stage when, surely, he would be easier to handle. This time, I can already tell it's different. I relish every moment I get to snuggle my sleeping baby. I love that he's so tiny. No hurry, Witten. You can take your time growing up.

Can I be any more blessed?

   Noah just said "all better" after his daddy kissed a boo-boo and said "all better". That was adorable!

My Cat.

My cat is fat.
He hates the world
He loves to hide
Like a sissy girl.

My cat is soft
because he's fat
a lovely thing
to squish and pat.

My cat, he sheds
his hair abounds
on pillows, chairs,
clothes and the ground.

My cat is good
at lest for us.
Now friendlier cats
seem treacherous.

My cat, he sits
upon my lap
I'll write about him,
then give him a pat.

I'm sorry, cat
for calling you fat
I love that you're fat.
I'll never mind that.


And a picture of Noah stuck in his drum:

This is part of what makes my days wonderful.

First few days as a Family of Four

Welcome to the world, my precious little son!
Witten Allen Du Toit hit the scene at 8:14 on Sunday morning. For all the hoopla he made in my tummy, he has been a near identical baby to my firstborn. In character, at least. Although very often, he does look a lot like Noah did.
  After a long night/morning of laboring, I pushed nine times, and Witten debuted with a small cry. Then, much to my surprise and delight, he settled right down and only cried when the mean old nurses pricked, poked, pulled, and pried at him. Just as with Noah, Stephan and I fell instantly in love with this tiny baby boy. He's so small! Even though he weighed in a full pound heavier than his big brother did at birth, he looks so tiny! And then my mom and dad got there with Noah and he looked even smaller! Or maybe it was that his tiny-ness makes Noah look massive! Either way, the size difference is astonishing, and since Noah started out even smaller than Witten did, Witten has very good chances of being a beast like his brother.
  As if the birth of our son wasn't enough excitement for Stephan and I, the hospital informed us that Witten was the first baby of the new year. Thanks to his order of birth, Witten landed us on three different news stations and in the Tyler Morning Telegraph. Needless to say, I am framing that front page article and hanging that in Witten's nursery.

Noah loves to hug and kiss Witten. Notice Stephan having to restrain his enthusiasm a bit.

  As for how big brother Noah is handling all this craziness, at first, he wasn't to sure of anything. He was even miffed at me for a while there. Then, after much encouragement from mommy and daddy, Noah warmed up to his baby brother. (We're trying to make sure Noah feels protective/possessive of his little sibling by emphasizing their brotherly relationship.) More than once has Noah hopped up to where Daddy was holding Witten and tried to snatch his baby brother into his own arms. He's so big, though, that we have to keep a very close eye on him to make sure that he is being gentle.

First slumber party! (They didn't actually sleep that way, but it was a cute photo op)

  As for how the parents are coping, I have noticed that life continues on much as it used to, only with a noticeable change. All my worries about not knowing what to do or being overwhelmed have thus far fallen flat. The way I see it, I do what I've always done with Noah throughout the day while at the same time, repeating what I did with baby Noah with Witten. So far, since being home, this system has worked very well. (Thank You, God! Praise You forever!) I don't want to sound overly self-confident and assume that life from here on out will be a cake-walk because I'm some super awesome parent. I know there will be trying times (and days) in the near future.  For now, I plan on taking each day one hour at a time and treasuring every moment I spend with my amazing husband, my crazy toddler, and my snuggly baby.
    Sorry, friends, but there may be a decrease in updates from now on. Come to find out, there is little down time when you are the mother of two. Take now, for example: my baby calls.

    Thank You, God, for Your astounding goodness to me!