Mommy Needs Help

All of you have read what life with a preemie is like from my perspective; if you haven’t read it, I encourage you to check out the last three blog postings from AD&AD. You’ve heard enough from me, so I’ll step aside and talk about the most important person in the shuffle:  mommy. Most of you know Chastity is one of the strongest, most independent (stubborn some days, but that’s my call) women I know and thankfully is the one I married three-and-a-half years ago. I do thank all of you for your continued prayers for her and Caeli in these different days in the NICU as we aim to make a joyous homecoming happen in God’s time and will.

Wazzup?!!

One thing we have learned up close is that family will really show their true colors in times like these. All of us have seen opportunistic folks show up in the darkest of hours to take advantage or judge a situation they are too callous or inexperienced to be familiar with. For me, it has been particularly easy to give the Eff You look and blow off the snide remarks; for the missus, not so much. We understand everybody wants to be helpful and sometimes communicating that is hard, so allow us to help you out. Read below and find the role that can suit you best:

1. Pray for a healthy baby and joyous homecoming to Springhill Manor, whenever that may be.
2. If either of us gives you an errand to run, be joyful and do it without grumbling. It is hard enough to get through the hours without having to babysit every minute detail much less someone who doesn’t actually want to be helpful.
3. Grocery shopping. Beyond milk and bread, we pretty much have everything else covered all the time – and I do need to lay off the beer. Lazy Magnolia will be there when life manifests itself as a normal.
4. Home cooked meals. Y’all know I like to eat, but we don’t necessarily need 24 casseroles or a live-in chef. Follow your heart and go as God guides you.
5. Gift cards. During days like the ones we are living in, cash goes away more quickly than usual thanks to bills at home, additional fuel for the commute between home and the hospital, and the unexpected. Those are certainly godsends as are the donors. 
6. Literature. If you’re in BAM, Wal-Mart, Hastings (yes, there’s one in Benton), or anywhere that dispenses knowledge in a book/magazine/newspaper format that may be helpful in our unique situation, lend it to me. You should know that I am a bibliophile by now.
7. Making a thank-you list of gifts and anything else that can help us.
8. Doing laundry and helping us keep the house clean.
9. Be there when we need someone to talk to. Fortunately, our closest friends live within a few miles – and in Veronica’s case, a quick commute away. As I’ve rediscovered from Heath, what are friends good for if they don’t come around?
10. Blog. Having that blank canvas to express my thoughts also serves as my sounding board and it is simultaneously the journal that keeps up with Caeli’s life. I use Blogspot because of its ease for the rest of my Google Android world, but Tumblr is a really good host; ditto for WordPress.
11. Stay in touch. Chastity and I are still humans that need interaction with other Homo sapiens. Unless you’re one of those people who always has a hand out looking for a favor, we appreciate seeing you – and at the very least, hearing from you. Parenthood from the NICU is not a prison sentence.
12. If anyone is mechanically inclined, there is a storage building that needs to get put up.

While this is nowhere near a comprehensive effort in what Chastity needs, I hope it is a start. I’ll tell you to follow your hearts and go in the routes that God (Allah, Buddha, or higher power of choice) take you. I know for a fact she won’t get specific in wants; consequently, a happy wife is a happy mom and makes for a happy marriage.