In 10 days, I will add another photo to this collection. A family of 10 ... in 10 days.
In 10 days, I will wake up (if I sleep at all) with one thought on my mind, "Please, please God be with me today."
In 10 days, I will be cleaning an already clean house in the wee hours of the morning. I will probably be starting a load of laundry while the sun is rising. I will be reminding everyone that, "There is this to eat. And that to eat. And extra milk in the storage fridge."
In 10 days, I will forget all about the terrible morning sickness (if Baby weighs just 6 pounds, I will weigh less than I did the day I got pregnant with him). I will have permanent pregnancy battle scars, motherhood in the trenches with beautiful spider veins. I will no longer have a love affair with Tums.
In 10 days, I will leave my home, and it's making, in the hands of my two daughters. They will care for it, and their brothers, in much the same way I would...because Nana will not load the dishwasher, or do the laundry, or know the flow of our routine like they do.
In 10 days, I will kiss my seven oldest children good bye for a few days. And I will cry. And I will have to make myself walk out the door.
In 10 days, I will be reminded how steady, caring, and responsible my husband is. As he goes back and forth from hospital to home, looking after me, a new baby, and making sure our children and home are in order.
In 10 days, I will give birth to our eighth child, our eighth blessing from Heaven above...our sixth boy in a row. Zacharias Eugene Bailey.
In 10 days.
