I spent last weekend washing and folding all kinds of baby clothes. We were up in Tacoma visiting our daughter, Lindsey, who is having a baby girl within the next three weeks. Yes, our son is having a boy within the same time frame, so that can get confusing for you. But in washing and folding anything that is going to come in contact with that baby I learned some life lessons.
I learned that we had no clue about how to care for a baby as we raised our own three.
I think this will only relate to us nearing grandparenthood. Everything (not literally) we did back then is not what is done today. I can’t believe any of our children survived to adulthood, to be honest. What is even more astonishing is that any of us grandparental types survived childhood in the homes of those from the previous generation. Of course, it doesn’t help that what I remember about raising children doesn’t seem to match what we really did back then. My memory has faded over time and has some holes in its fabric.
I learned that medicine has come a very long way, making having babies thirty years ago seem like the dark ages.
The ability to detect what’s really going on inside the womb is amazing. Sex can be determined with a blood test very early on, in case you didn’t know. And Danny’s heart defect which was discovered after birth could have been detected at 20 weeks. That is unbelievable to me. We could have known and the hospital been prepared for his arrival. There are countless anomalies that can be detected early. Some can be repaired while still in mom’s womb, others allow the staff to be prepared upon the arrival of the child.
I learned the joy of being loved.
Lindsey and Noah have received bags of clothes from friends. Hand-me-downs are the best. And now they are all washed and sorted according to age and type. But they have also received so many wonderful gifts from baby showers – and folks from Peninsula as well. To be surrounding by loving friends means a lot. And as the days get long, it’s nice to walk into a room prepared and well-stocked with tons of love.
So now we are on baby-watch. There are two coming soon, a third in the fall. I have a new role this time around. Just be quiet and support the mom and dad. That’s hard to do, you know. My job is to hold my tongue, and pay for the gifts grandma gets for the grandchildren. Grandparents have an important role in the life of their grandchildren. I can only hope to be a loving resource for those newborns as I watch them grow. I already pray for them daily. Each of them. I pray they will impact this world for Christ in ways I can’t even imagine today.
I learned the joy of walking with Jesus and passing the torch to the next generation.