Blessed Teething

Ah teething. I forgot.  That should be encouraging; that we forget.  We forget the 4 am wake up, the 4 am wake up where baby all of sudden has more vigour than at 4 pm and thinks its time to play.  How about the constant slobbering; having to change baby every few hours because he got a chill from being so wet from all of his drool?  Then there's the gnawing of hands, fingers, teething toys, your fingers, your shirt, the dogs tail, his blankets, the piece of apple his daddy gave him when I strictly told him "he's only 4 months old!"  Now the constant needing to be held, and comforted and hugged and talked to...that is hard to forget, but you do.  You remember that it happened but you actually look back at it as a special time of bonding and snuggling and soothing.  You lose count of how many times in the night they woke up from the pain and the number of shirts that were covered with snot.  You may even forget which tooth came first and when.
You won't forget how adorable they were when their gummy smile turned into a 2 toothed one or how their looks changed when they suddenly had these seemingly massive white chicklets hanging below their top lip.  You might remember that you got bitten while breastfeeding but it's more of a funny story now.  What you will think after it is all done is, "Wow, that went by so fast."
Mom, sometimes it seems like that night will never end.  Sometimes it seems that 8 months will never end.  It does...and it will go faster than you would like.  One day you will wake up and they will be losing those teeth that they agonized over, only to verbally express their excitement for their replacements.
So, cuddle them when they are fussy. Carry them around all day if you have to.  Empathize as best you can (we "hear" it is a horrible pain).  Take one 2 hour night sleep at a time.  Enjoy the slobbery kisses and wet shoulders and be patient with the nips on the finger or boob.  Put a bib on them to catch the drool and use all the necessary means to ease their pain.  Enjoy each smile with its new teeth. It may seem hard to believe now but the memory of all of this hassle will be fuzzy and faint.  Pray for them, comfort them and savour those moments.  This too, shall pass.

...this was a pep talk for myself, but if it works for you too, awesome.

my little munchkins in different stages of teething

Bless you today as you walk in this blessed journey of mommyhood.  Let's give extra cuddles and kisses today and thank God for letting us care for His wonderful creation for a time.  Have a great day.