Visitors

Before Lily got here, I had this idea that we would want to limit the amount of visitors we had. I thought that we'd want time alone as a family for bonding. I even thought we'd want some time by ourselves before my mom got here. That has to be one of the stupidest ideas I ever had. 

This is just more evidence to support the assertion that no matter how much you think you prepare for the arrival of a first baby, you find yourself completely unprepared. Contrary to my theory of alone-family-time, we needed the help to have the time for bonding moments as a new family.

But, to my surprise, this time has not just been important for my new family, but also for my existing family. I've loved spending these days with my mom, my dad, and my brother. I'd love it if all of my family could come, but I also know that's not as easy as I want it to be. It's been just amazing to see my family meet my little baby girl, to watch them hold her, soothe her, talk with her, and just smile at her. And as an added bonus, it's been nice for me to have some adult company -- and to spend quality time together. That's what makes living 1500 miles from my family bearable. No, I don't have the option of getting together frequently for a couple hours here or there. But when we do have time together, our time is longer, less interrupted, and all the little daily crap doesn't matter for a few days. 

Beyond the long visits from my family, we've also had lots of short visits from Khan's family and from our friends. Again, I thought we'd want to limit these sorts of visits. Nope, not even a little bit. I love having my friends and family over; it doesn't detract from our time with Lily at all. In fact, now that the first few weeks are past, our visitors are starting to dwindle, and I'm missing them.