Special Visits

Oh, the joys of a stretch of nine hours of sleep.  Travis and Steph, who will undoubtedly read this at some point- I know that's not a nice thing to gloat about.  "This too shall pass" - but man, I'm glad those sleepless nights aren't in my immediate future.  =)

My kids were thankful that the sleep-deprivation irritability factor was all but gone too.  I am a "nasty sleep-deprived person".  My filter gets shot, words that I never use come to mind, and I unleash on everyone.  It's not pretty.

I was so honored Monday night when Heather asked if I would be her date to go see Whitley.  She chose me over Kenjon...gotta love that!  (Though, as you'll see, he showed up too) =)  Michele hopped along for the ride too...the kids were so bummed they didn't get to go.

Heather said she's never held a newborn before.  You sure wouldn't guess it by looking at the pictures. As with everyone else who's come in contact with Whitley - she's in love too.

Looking phenomenal after about 60 hours with a combined total of 5 hours of sleep (Whitley not included)

Reunited again.  I was doing the happy dance in the hospital room that in a few months this little girl will be spending a lot of weekday time with me....

Kenjon was enamored, but was not wanting to hold her himself.  That guy can take on the scariest linemen in the country, but this little girl had him terrified.  We knew he wouldn't "fumble", so with all of our encouragement, we encouraged Heather to make the "hand-off" to Kenjon.

Open eyes from Whitley...oh the love that girl has in her life.

More open eyes....we've seen very little of that in our visits.  Apparently, she does that all through the night, and then sleeps all through the day.  

Kristen stopped by for a visit as Michele and I tore ourselves away to go back home.

The party scene.  Yeah, I've seen Travis look a little more "alert" than what we are seeing here.  They are both holding up so well.

Part of the reason Michele and I had to leave was because we were set to meet up with these amazing ladies in Silverton later that afternoon.   Left to right:  me, Lydia, Kelly, Lisa, Michele, and Gretchen.

These gals (along with a friend, Renee, who couldn't make it) are all lifelong friends that bonded in college through the help of our involvement in Campus Crusade for Christ and our joint love for Jesus.  We've seen each other through a whole lot of highs and lows.  The older we get, the more we let down our guard and share our deepest vulnerabilities with each other - all recognizing how short we fall, but how much grace God has for us.  Our definitions of "blessed" all look different with the testimonies of our families' stories, but it is rich and abundant.  I love these ladies.

So, another late night drive home.  No more Schillings at our house now for over a week, just us with not a lot on the immediate docket.  The Whites come home today, but we really want to not swarm or smother them - but we'll take any amount of time they desire to give.    I think it's time for me to start regrouping and getting back to a place of normalcy.