A Heart for any Fate

Testing, testing. Is this blog still on?

Where were we? Ah, yes.  I was still riding the high from miraculously weaning Regina off of her feeding tube in a ridiculously short period of time and she was eating like she had been eating by mouth all of her life. I thought to myself, “time to finally relax and rest on your laurels, Sylvia.”

There are some small obstacles that occur that are God’s way of reminding us that we were not made for comfort alone, and sometimes He likes to hit you with it like a ton of bricks. He knows that subtleties tend to go right over my head, so for me He chose the latter version. And quite frankly, I think it has taken me this long to write about it mainly because I am still reeling. I simply couldn’t find the words.

Obviously, Scott and I are not upset about the baby herself or himself. Every new life deserves joy and excitement, and I will rob no child of mine of that. It’s the timing and the circumstances that unnerve me. Since the Bible makes a point of saying “do not be afraid” several times, you would think I would listen. But between you and I, I am really struggling with not being afraid. I am still pretty traumatized from Regina’s startling pregnancy and rocky first year of life.  But God gave us the grace to get through all of that, so I must have faith that He will give us the grace to face whatever this pregnancy has in store.

Ok, enough of the heavy stuff. I am all agog to see if this is a girl or a boy. The girls all want a baby brother. My sisters keep asking me when do we find out it’s a girl. We’ll find out at the 20 week scan!

With this newest baby, we’ve officially outgrown our beloved Honda Odyssey. Anyone have any suggestions on a good van or SUV for six kids, all still in car seats or boosters?

Also, talk to me about this fancy newfangled Dockatot all of you trendy moms are raving about. I was wondering what the appeal of it was. Is it more comfortable? Safer? More convenient? I just can’t figure out what it brings to the table if you already have your typical crib, pack n play, rock n play, Moses basket, etc.

In other news, Regina just had her first birthday. She is still the most incredible person I know.

16 thoughts on “A Heart for any Fate

  1. movinglittlemountains

    I was so excited to see new blog posts! Congratulations on the baby!

    I had the DOT for my son. Although it’s only approved for “supervised sleep” in America, it’s my understanding Europe considers it safe for unsupervised sleeping. He slept well in it and it was great for co-sleeping, but I would never spend that kind of money again. Mostly because he grew out of it MONTHS before it claimed he would!

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  2. Laura

    Congratulations! Your family is beautiful and it’s such a testament to God’s grace and providence to see him working through all the hills and valleys. Will remember you in my prayers for much peace!

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  3. Cheryl

    All I can tell about the DaT is that it’s $200 of the same stuff we already have. Just another way to make money off of desperate for sleep moms.

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  4. beverley baggett

    Oh how wonderful to hear you will be having another baby. You may not think so, but God must know how wonderful a mother you are to all your children to bless you again. Just remember it is a blessing!! and if it is a boy just think of all the new wonderful things you will learn and your husband too. I will be praying everything goes smoothly this time so, you might enjoy this baby right from the start!! I know you enjoyed regina too but you had worries. So, for now relax and enjoy this baby. Worrying just sucks out all the enjoyment of today but really does not help tomorrow any anyway. Happy new Year to your whole family may it bring all kind of new possibilities!!

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  5. katylady

    Hi Mama, soooooo good to hear your voice again! Many, many prayers of thanksgiving coming from our family, we are overjoyed for you even if you might feel a little overwhelmed. 🙂 I’m still adjusting to our *big* family myself, so you are and will continue to be my role model.

    To your two questions: we have friends who have the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter and the Nissan NV; both seem to be pretty satisfied! My pastor (who just welcomed his sixth) is doing similar comparison shopping, and said positive things about the Ford Transit van, which my aunt also had, many moons ago. Personally, I loved the 8-seater Suburban we had growing up; so easy to drive and just felt safe. Very handy in case you get another surprise snowstorm!

    As for the Dockatot, I couldn’t justify the cost and the effect seems to be similar to the rock and play or even a good bouncy seat with an infant insert–it’s the *hug* feeling. I do have a rocking cradle that we loved that came with our pack and play, that worked well for the first tiny weeks. Every baby but #4 snoozed in it until they were a couple months old.

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    1. sylvia.hobgood@gmail.com Post author

      Thank you! Yeah, it is so expensive! I just couldn’t figure out what exactly it was bringing to the table to justify the cost.

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  6. Courtney

    I think the appeal of the dock a tot is 1. Being able to put it on the bed for co sleeping and 2. It surrounds the baby, making them feel like they’re being held, helping them sleep better. After I looked into it I found it is only labeled for “supervised sleep” aka you’re not supposed to leave your baby in it without you. But a lot of products, swing, rock n play, bouncer etc are labeled the same way. It is a flat surface and people I’ve talked to who have one say the sides are very breathable and they don’t worry about leaving their baby in it unsupervised. I don’t think there is a good way to prop it if your baby has reflux though. Also the price tag is kinda outrageous for a little pillow. I decided not to get one mostly based on price, if I’m going to spend that much I would rather it be for something approved for all baby sleep. Plus we have foster babies and you have to follow the safe sleep guidelines 100% with them.

    Anyways, congrats on your new baby and good luck!

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  7. Meg

    Ford Transit 150 and 350 are great cars! We were lookingv at both asnd ended up going for the big one so we can also drive around friends or family if we need to 🙂

    Reply

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