Parenting Picks: Song for a Fifth Child

Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing and butter the bread,
Sew on a button and make up a bed.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I’ve grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
(Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo).
The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo
But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo.
Look! Aren’t her eyes the most wonderful hue?
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
For children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.

by Ruth H Hamilton

When I am old, there is one thing I will not regret; how much I have held my girls.

Some days it seems absolutely nothing gets accomplished except for a whole lot of breastfeeding, bouncing and cuddling. In fact, I am sure there is a biological reason that babies need to nurse so frequently (besides the fact that tummies are small!) Keeping mommy busy nursing prevents her from doing other things that take her away from her all-important job of supporting her relationship with her baby. 

Any time the house is upside-down, food is not made and nothing is in order...we're enjoying each others company.