Blessed.

Sometimes, I think we expect our hearts to feel full when everything in the world is going right.  A lot of times, however, I've found that those moments pass and I realize later that I forgot to stop for a second and soak everything in.  Or I was more concerned about every hair being in place, not running one second late, etc.  

Today has not been a day where everything is going right.  Henry is sick, sick, sick.  He has a fever that has seemed to go down to normal for maybe 1 total hour in the past 24.  After the Tylenol has kicked in (and his fever drops at least a few degrees), that child still manages to have a smile slapped on his face.  Even if he is supine on the couch with his favorite stuffed animal watching "Melmo" on the DVR.  The only thing he has not been a big fan of is Walter having any of my attention - that makes feeding times a bit challenging.  Walter seemed to pick up on this, and decided today was a fantastic day to start cluster feeding in the afternoon while Paul was still at work. Figures. :)  

But I am not complaining - this is my dream job.  And it's a tough one.  Days like today make law school, the bar exam, research, motion practice, etc. seem easy.  Those things have an end date.  Those things may nag you a little in your sleep, but they certainly don't scream at you from a nearby cradle.  Or through a monitor that has little red lights screaming at your sleepy eyes as well.  Those things also tend to come with Rules, Blue Books, learned traits/habits, and guidance from a partner, as opposed to tantrums, inconsolable sobbing without any logic, or attempts at communication that you just can't understand no matter how hard you try.  Those things also give you at least a minute or two here and there to use the restroom in peace.  But there is no way I'd trade a single, difficult second for the two littlest loves of my life.

And then there's the big love of my life. He got about 7 hours of interrupted sleep (see reference to the cradle and monitor above), but got himself out the door for work by 6:45 am.  He also managed to look quite handsome.  When I texted him at 2:00 that Walter chose today to be particularly hungry, he got himself home before 4:00 to help me out.  He had plans to run, but Henry's fever started to spike right as he was getting ready to put on his shoes and strap Henry in the jogging stroller.  So what does a father do when his workout plans get foiled?

 So Mama snuck downstairs for some peace with this guy. 

So despite some difficult moments, today I've felt especially blessed.  Blessed to have two beautiful children.  Blessed to have an infant that only cries when he's hungry and only sometimes fusses when his stomach cramps up.  Blessed to have a toddler that can manage to smile, laugh, and race me to the front door, even when he's running a fever.  And especially blessed to have a husband that loves his children as much as I do.