Shua

I wanted to take my 6 month anniversary picture in the pool.....but the water was way too cold...maybe next month

Shua:

   I know that Hashem works in mysterious ways and sometimes we just have to trust in his ways. When Shua was born I didn’t really believe the doctor that we actually had a boy.  My parents have 11 grandchildren and only three boys.  My oldest brother had four girls already and my second oldest brother had two girls and then two boys.  We already had two girls so I was totally into girl mode. I imagined myself with another daughter and was perfectly ok with it.  Clearly Hashem had other plans for me.  He knew that we would only have three children (refer back to ovary removal in previous blog) and he really wanted me to experience a boy.  And boy is Shua a BOY!!!  Many people have asked me “how in the world did you do chemo, surgery, and radiation with a baby boy?”  Sometimes I have no idea how I did it.  Of course I had a lot of help.  Pilar was my savior during Chemo.  She was there to take Shua out so he could run around and I could rest.  Next, there was Alex.  At first, I was very anti high-schooler babysitting because I couldn’t take care of my kids.  But then I looked forward to Alex coming by and taking Shua for a walk or just chasing after him because I physically couldn’t do it.  Shua loves Alex so much.  On Shabbos mornings when Ruthie or Elisheva comes down in a dress he immediately goes near the window and waits for Alex to pick him up.  We have all learned not to say “Alex” unless she is really coming because Shua will flip out.

Last summer I missed out on a lot of Shua time.  Lately, we have done a lot of snuggling and cuddling on the couch.  I realized how much I missed last summer.  Even though we can’t keep chairs around the table and have the house in lock-down mode all the time, I sure love the little guy.  He is one special boy and I am so happy that he joined our family two years ago.  

Here is a just a sampling of our Shua:

me:  Stephen how did Shua get upstairs?

Stephen:  he is in his crib napping.

me:  no he is not, he is standing at the top of the stairs with his hands full of his toys and a big grin on his face.....

sitting in Elisheva's seat and causing chaos in the kitchen

Girls where is your brother?  Oh there you are behind the kitchen having a little picnic...

Shua can usually be found with some links in his hands or on his arms...

or his sister's bags......

Blurry but you take what you can get with Shua :)