Okay, Now I'm Back, Though No Less Disjointed Than Before

See what happens when I put my mind to something? No blogging, I told myself sternly, until you finish all that work. And, more or less, I obeyed. I've missed reading everyone's blogs, though, and am relishing the end of my self-imposed exile!

Except for the fact, or perhaps because of the fact, that half the people I invited to Allie's party weren't able to come, we had a great time. It was definitely less overwhelming than previous birthday parties. I actually had time to have conversations with people instead of a harried exchange consisting of "Hi! How are you? Do you need anything to drink? Okay! Talk to you soon!" (I'm not the calmest hostess in the world.)

A few photos from the party, if you're interested.

The next biggest excitement of the week came last night. Flush with excitement of having snatched one of Sean's toys, Allie had just begun running away when she tripped and fell. When I checked her to see if she had cut anything, all I could see was an enormous amount of blood spilling out of her mouth.

Long story short, she had bit her tongue pretty hard. Not all the way through, thankfully, but enough to scare me. Although intellectually I understand that mouth injuries produce a lot of blood, it was still quite upsetting to see all of that blood spurting from her mouth. A quick call to the doctor confirmed that nothing could be done. Just lots and lots of comforting (and wiping) till the bleeding subsided. (Quick plug for generic OxyClean here -- it works wonders on blood stains!)

At bedtime, Allie had a hard time going to sleep. Her Binky, which she now uses just when she goes to sleep (slight regression in Binky Deprogramming), was obviously not its usual source of comfort to her. Eventually I picked her up and rocked her to sleep. What a long time it's been since I've done that! As I cradled her in my arms and felt her breathing become slow and regular, I recalled the seemingly thousands of hours Jeff and I spent rocking our children in that chair. And even though many times I would be frustrated or resentful at all the rocking-to-sleep effort, I still marvel at the amazing power parents have. That we can soothe their fears and frustrations just by holding our children close, snuggling with them in a quiet, dark room. What a tremendous gift and privilege that is.

I'll have to keep that in mind the next time the kids are driving me crazy.