And a quick update...

These thoughts didn't fit with the last post, so I thought I would just make another one!

Dave asked me the other day if I was unhappy here - I'm sure he's worried that the crazy version of myself might gradually appear. New baby, sudden move...the same set of circumstances triggered her arrival a few years ago, and nobody wants to see her again! But I assured him that she's not even on the horizon. It's true that I'm not yet in love with Ohio (and they can't EVER make me do things like call Coke "pop"). The snow was lovely for the first few days, but the second week of it did start to make me feel a bit claustrophobic, and the cold seeped into my bones - all of which made me feel irrationally giddy when ordinary rain and warmer temperatures melted the snow and gave us an outdoor kind of day yesterday. We went to a park and did some hiking together, and that brings to one thing I do love about being here - lots of time together as a family. Dave works regular hours (and not nearly as much as some weeks back in SC) and has much more time and energy for all of us. He'll need his own blog to tell you if he thinks that's a good thing! He does seem to be enjoying his job, however.

The kids are doing a great job overall, despite the strain I know this has been for them. The older kids have been missing their SC friends and activities rather fiercely. I wish I could make it easier for them. but there's nothing for that - it just hurts. And I'm not sure they think this "family-togetherness" deal is quite worth it! The younger ones don't have the same kind of attachments to miss, but they are feeling the lack of outside play. The little boys have practically lived outside up until now, and obviously that has changed abruptly, although of course warmer weather will come eventually. I think.

Scarlett obviously doesn't care one way or the other, as long as I'm available. I confess that's one thing I love about having babies - it's a lovely thing to be the center of someone's universe for at least a short period of time. Of course I'm not the only thing in her universe, and she does love her daddy and her siblings, who are a constant source of entertainment for her. She had a fever last night, and was miserably unhappy when she woke up this morning, and when Chase came bounding in, we started to tell him to be quiet and stay away from her because she wasn't feeling well. But as soon as she saw him, she stopped crying. It was beautiful. He talked to her, and she talked back to him, reaching for his face, and just loving him. I don't usually think of Chase as a peacful presence, but there it was.

More updates later. No really - see previous post! It's part of my "tweaking."