Rocking Chairs

I love rocking my babies. It is a quiet, relaxing time for us. Allison was out of the rocking mode for a while. Actually, Ernie suggested that we stop rocking her when she was about 7 months old. "Stop rocking her?", I asked. "But she's my baby!" "We may not get to have another one!" But in the end, he was right. She fell asleep much sooner in her comfortable bed than she did fighting me to the finish. (And God did give us another baby). Now she knows when we tell her it's close to bed time, that it is time to "rax" (relax). We get her favorite clutch blanket (her "duck") and her favorite blanket (her "bears") and we sit together for a few minutes. She either sits with me or Ernie on the couch or in the recliner (her choice, of course) and we snuggle for a little while.

Then, there's Nicholas. Our sweet boy was born 7 weeks early and I didn't get to hold him until he was four days old. It just so happened to be the day that I left the hospital, but he would be in for another 2 1/2 weeks. We got to hold him more and more while he was in the hospital and getting stronger. Then came the night before he came home and I got to spend the night with him in the hospital. I was the one who cared for him overnight. It was a feeling I will never forget. He wanted to rock and snuggle a little longer than Allison did. However, now you have to sit with him in just the right position or he knows that you are trying to get him to sleep. Sometimes it's too much of a fight and we just have to put him in his bed. We often end up going back in to get him (because he's crying) and we try sitting with him again. This time though, it works. We get his favorite blanket, he wraps his arm around it and lets himself relax. We rock, his little head falls to one side, his big blue eyes flutter and he goes to sleep.

Is there anything more peaceful than watching your babies sleep? Even though we've put them to bed and I know they are OK, I cannot go to sleep without checking on them one more time. Are they covered up? Are they comfortable? I say a prayer for God to keep them safe through another night.

I know they won't remember these times, but I hope it gives them a sense of peace and security. I hope they know that we love them beyond measure. And one day I will tell them about our special, quiet times in the rocking chair.