fun times ahead

My in-laws arrived this afternoon, they'll be in town for the next week.  My brother-in-law, his girlfriend, and my sister will then come out Wednesday night, and we'll all have a big Thanksgiving celebration together.  It'll probably be hectic, crowded, and I'm totally looking forward to it all.  D has entered a phase where he kinda freaks out when he first sees family members who are visiting (as in, screaming and running away from people he normally ADORES) but after the first few minutes he goes back to being totally enamored with them.  It's so interesting seeing these changes in his social behavior (which seems to be going through tons of development right now).  So while I know he'll be over the moon with everyone here this week, I imagine it'll also throw him for a bit of a loop.

Just a few weeks ago I was kinda freaking out at the very thought of trying to meet the needs of a newborn and a toddler at the same time.  I'm feeling a bit calmer about it all now (perhaps b/c I'm focusing on know that my mom will be here to help for at least the first few weeks).  I've also started looking forward to having a cute teeny baby around, this time with the difference of feeling so much comfortable with newborns and with my skills and knowledge as a mother.  With D, I felt like I had no clue what I was doing for a long time.  I remember feeling somewhat shellshocked when he was born, when the midwife first placed him on my chest, and he started crying and I honestly did not know what to do.  It will be nice to be more relaxed this time around, to feel more confident (at least, I hope I'll feel that way... ).  And maybe this is part of why I feel more impatient about giving birth this time than I did with D.

So. Zach is home from his business trip.  His parents are here, eager to play with their grandchild.  And I get to spend these last few days/weeks watching my firstborn and basking in just how incredibly beautiful and adorable he is, able to fully focus on him just a bit longer before his baby brother enters the picture.