Grateful

I recently learned of a family friends baby who had to have surgery at 8 months- the poor little guy (a twin) kept getting repeated infections with bacteria showing up in his blood.  They tried many rounds of antibiotics and eventually did more investigating to find some abnormalities with his kidneys- one of which wasn't properly connected to the bladder.  He went through a surgery to correct this and is now doing well.  But when I heard this all I could think was how hard, emotional,  scary, and trying that would be for baby, mom, dad, and any loved one.  It made me so grateful that L is and has been healthy- so what if he doesn't sleep well, so what if I had to stop dairy for a while- he is healthy.  The blog world- and the "real" world- is full of families and innocent babies battling some pretty serious stuff- I am so fortunate and lucky to not know what their experiences are truly like.

We are also so fortunate to have the things we have, and the amazing people in our lives- I can be a huge complainer, find a negative in just about anything- but there is no denying that my life, my family's life is good.  In my work I got to hear how difficult many people's baselines could be- and by baseline I mean what they were born into not caused by any behaviors or choices of their own- poverty, abuse of all kinds, addiction, trauma, illness, racism.  Yes some people can strive and overcome such things, but so many never have to- it's something to be grateful for.  I miss working with people who are fighting for something better in their lives- it gives me perspective and it's important work.

D and I just returned from our two nights away from L.  It was nice to get sleep and spend time together like adults, but we were so ready to come home and see L.  In just two days time he has more hair, more energy, says more words, and didn't miss a beat with nursing.  Funny or not- I had my first period (in 26 months!) to deal with on my vacation.  Not exactly how I had envisioned this vacation- but I am glad to know I can nurse and still get pregnant.  I was really starting to think I would be one of those women who had to wean completely.