Baby Fever

With so many people around me having babies or trying to have babies, it's hard to not think about having another. I love, love, love those first days with baby. Being in the hospital (call me crazy) is like a mini vacay. Think about it. I don't have to clean. I don't have to cook. People wait on ME hand and foot. I remember when Lane was born...I thought...do I HAVE to go home now?? I mean the food's not great, but come on, all I had to do was snuggle with my teensy, weensie little love bug who smells so amazing (what is that smell anyway??!!). In bed. With a t.v. Watching what I want to watch. Sleeping when I want to sleep (except when those annoying blood suckers come in at all hours of the morning- what's with that??). But then my 48 hours is up and they force me out. They say my time is up. Go home. Be a mom to ALL of your kids. 
*humph* Fine. 
But still, we had this new little person. Who really doesn't need much. Some milk here and there. Lots of snuggles. Lots of diapers. But Lane slept so much, that for a moment I thought- Huh. This is easy. What's all of the fuss about? I can do this! Three kids is cake! Life is GOOD! So I spent my maternity leave in this blissful little bubble. No work. All snuggles. Then my bubble popped. And reality came storming back in. This is why I say that women should take their maternity leave when their babies turn 6 weeks old. At least that's when I should have taken mine (not that I really took one with my last two!!). But at 6 weeks, all hell broke loose. Lane (and let's be honest- the other two as well), all of a sudden, became little life suckers. Crying. All. Of. The. Time. Wanting to be bounced. All. Of. The. Time. They hated everything. The car seat. The swing. Being swaddled. Not being swaddled. Bottles. Pacifiers. All of it. Except bouncing. That's when Matt and I looked at each other and said, "What on Earth were we thinking???" I remember feeling that I was neglecting the boys, because well, I was. Lane needed so much attention. Her naps got shorter. Sometimes non-existent. She hated her father (for reasons unknown- wink, wink). So that left me to be the lone ranger when it came to Lane. Trey became clingy. Drake even said once that he wished we didn't have another baby so that I could spend more time with him. Mommy Guilt set in big time. 
But life continued on. 
And things got easier. 
At least a little.
Lane is becoming more and more self sufficient. I can spend more time hanging out with ALL of the kids, making sure each one knows exactly how special he or she is to me.  But now that Lane is coming up on the age that I would usually get pregnant again, people often say to us- "Have one more. You have three already...what's ONE more?" Heck, Drake is even known to ask for another little sister from time to time. And sometimes I entertain the idea. How bad could it really be?..... But then I think about all of the things that were fun to go through (3 times remember) but that I'd really rather not do again (i.e. baby food, crawling (hey! they get flithy!! and remind me of how dirty my floors are all of the time!!), teething (yes- we are still in this stage!), etc., etc.). And I imagine how much less time I would have for each of my already existent little people and I know that 3 is the number for me.   
So, as jealous (and I mean like green with envy) as I am of you all that are having your sweet little people right now, I know the limits to my sanity.  And our pocketbook. 

If only someone could bottle up that baby smell...