Nothing Like a Newborn

We welcomed our newest baby home this past week! A six day old little princess who is doing wonderfully in her new home-for-now. She has an adorably sweet disposition and is already putting on weight and settling in well. It has been quite a few months since we've had a newborn and all of our older babies are quite intrigued with this new little person who is taking up so much of "their" time with their Aunties :) 

One of the favorite parts of my job at the Baby House is participating in what I call "bonding initiation" with our new babies. I do my best to spend the first 24 to 48 hours with each of our new babies welcoming them into our home. I do "kangaroo care" with each one, taking off all their clothes and sticking them underneath my clothes so we are skin-to-skin. For our smallest and youngest babies this helps them maintain temperature and helps regulate their heartbeats. For all of our babies it begins to lay some of the first pathways of bonding in their precious brains and helps welcome them into the heart of our home: love! 

 

I love getting the opportunity to delight over every little, sleepy coo… listening for and witnessing sensations that belong exclusively to brand new babies. The weight of a little body completely surrendered to molding into the perfect space underneath your chin. The adorable uncertainty of first sneezes and itty bitty hiccups. Marveling over each newly heard sound, delighting in the softness of skin unweathered by time, soaking in the reliance of someone completely dependent. 

I know it sounds overly sentimental but I am convinced that there is something intangibly sacred about feedings and cuddles that happen in the still of the middle of the night. It is a privilege to soak up one-on-one moments unhindered by the busyness of our joyfully chaotic home. It is such a unique and fleeting treasure! It is just a snippet in the life of each of our babies that won't be easily forgotten. 

I always sneak a few middle of the night photos with each of my new babies. The photos typically end up grainy and poorly lit and I usually look like a new mom: extremely happy and a bit haggard looking! They are never the best (or most flattering) pictures but I want the Forever Families of each of my babies to know how loved their children were from the very beginning. There was someone who delighted in their baby until they could delight in them for themselves. And there is Someone who loves and delights in them even deeper still. The One who made them, knows them and loves them more than anyone ever could or ever will. Our good, good Father who is perfect in all of His ways.