{Good Weeks}

These last two weeks have been an absolute blast. We were able to see all of our family and connect with a few friends along the way. I love when people come to stay with us and it felt good to have a house full of loved ones again. I needed that.

Kali and Jamison came to stay with us for the weekend so we could do some wedding planning. We love spending time with them and it was fun to show them where we go to church.

 Mom came up Monday night to babysit while we had a class (God bless her).

 My grandma had surgery here in town so the family was up to stay for a few nights while she recovered.

 She loves him.

 Getting lots of attention from Grandma Jeanette and Aunt Sara!

 We took her shopping and the girl was such a trooper.

 Our last adventure included a trip back to Central City. We spent A LOT of time in front of Grandpa and Grandma Faeh's new fireplace. It was a perfect setting for that nasty snow storm.

 Jewel and I took Penny to Grand Island to check out some of the antique stores. We decided to pop into Prairie Winds and it brought back memories of when I used to take sketching classes there as a little girl. I'm so thankful my parents encouraged my creativity and I plan to do the same for Penny.

 We also got to hang out with Great Grandma and Grandpa Faeh.

 Penny loved all of the big windows throughout the house. She and grandpa watched the snow fall. Last time we were home she was going through a phase where no one could hold her but me. This time she loved playing with grandma and grandpa and it was so sweet to watch.

 She was a very happy girl the first part of the trip until...

 Those darn teeth started bugging her. She hasn't really been teething yet so I wondered if I would know when it was that time...there was no question about it. Poor girl just cried and cried and nothing could make her happy. She refused to sleep unless it was in my arms and she wasn't content for more than 5 minutes. We spent a ton of time in the rocking chair. It got a little frustrating at times but I had such a beautiful view behind me and I really loved the extra snuggle time.

 I could take a million sleeping Penny pictures...

 We were able to have a little play date with friends, but because of Penny's teeth she didn't enjoy most of it (sorry girls, hopefully next time!). Little Brynn was being so sweet to her, but she just wasn't sure what to think.

 However, she seemed to cheer up when Carl was within arm's reach :) This girl is feisty! Not looking forward to the teenage years if that's the case... Poor Carl must grow tired of being such a stud.

 I feel so spoiled to have spent so much time with loved ones. I'm so grateful for the time we're spending here with old and new friends, but it gets a little lonely being so far away from everyone. Caring for a tired and teething baby was hard for me. I know that the older she gets the more challenges I face, but this made me really doubt myself as a parent. It was 1am and she was still awake crying because she was tired and hungry but refusing the bottle. I was exhausted and my arms were tired from holding her most of the night. I stood there rocking back and forth doubting my ability. Was I helping her the best I could? Was my own desire for comfort getting in the way of being completely compassionate? Am I a bad mother for not being natural and giving her tylenol every 6 hours? Or even more, am I a bad mother for being a little mad at her for not cooperating? And then, of course, those doubts lead to even more unrelated doubts until I've snowballed into this big, whole mess of fear. She fell asleep and stayed asleep as I put her down. I crawled into bed feeling defeated. Truman wrapped his arm around me, pulled me close, and whispered "you're such a good mama."

It was all I needed. I'll remember that forever.