The Best Gift Ever

We have been blessed with amazing friends and family who have been an endless support of help over the last 8 weeks. Yep... our daughter is 8 weeks old and we are actually beginning to breathe a little better. Life has changed dramatically, the shock is wearing off, and we are begining to adjust our lives and learning to enjoy every moment.

On the Friday after Thanksgiving we named our daughter in a Simcha Bat ceremony at our synagogue (separate post to follow about this). We were overjoyed to share it with almost 100 people especially since it was on a holiday weekend. But, we knew that many of our friends and relatives would not be able to make it.

My dear sweet cousin Janis from Phoenix was one of those relatives who did not make and who I actually encouraged not to come so that she could come another weekend and we'd have lots of quality time together. Well that weekend just passed and it was the best gift ever!

Janis spoiled my daughter with presents and toys (the most amazing bouncy seat ever... Baby Einstein that lasts through toddlerhood!) and just her mere presence in her life. But the BEST GIFT EVER she gave was to her daddy and me! Janis offered to take over the feeding, diapering, and cuddling of our daughter while she was here. She wanted as much time with her as possible. We had no problem with that (one of the benefits of bottle feeding!) and we were happy to share our beauty.

I never realized that her offer extended into the entire night. She asked if Hadarya could sleep in her room and if she could get up in the middle of the night to feed her! We actually have two places for her to sleep and one was in Janis' room, so it was so easy. Although the late night cuddling because it was cold in our house meant that the bassinet wasn't really necessary. We got two nights of uninterrupted sleep and a couple of days of fantastic company. It was the best gift ever... the gift of time of someone and the catch up on sleep. I am not sure who is more excited about the next visit she makes... us for the extra sleep or our daughter for the extra pair of hands to hold and cuddle her all the time.