Thank You Note Forgiveness Policy...

Here's the munchkin with David's mom. I loved his big eyes in this picture. He's two months old today! It's nearly impossible to believe that I was in the hospital having him two months ago. Where did the time go?

If you'd like a little idea of our daily schedule right now, here goes. We do have a schedule for him, and he hasn't resisted it a bit. We're taking our cues from a combination of Babywise and the Baby Whisperer. He eats at 8, 11, 2, 5, and 8 right now, with a little fudging in there, but not usually because he cries to eat early. He's perfectly happy to get his food at the appointed times, which I love, because it makes planning trips out a lot easier. He goes down for bed after the 8:00 feeding (swaddled, no passy, cries usually for less than 10 minutes), he wakes me once in the middle of the night around 2, and I wake him up to eat at 5, and then again at 8, thereby getting in the minimum 7 feedings he's supposed to be getting a day right now. If he wakes up a little early, say, half an hour, he comes to bed with me and is happy to doze off again with a passy. He's a wonderfully easygoing baby. I thought that two strong-willed, type A's would be doomed to a rambunctious, bullheaded child. Nope, not so far. God has been gracious to us newbies.

But the reason I write today, friends, is to attempt to inaugerate a little something I hope to call the Thank You Note Forgiveness Policy. You see, there are lots and lots of people that love me, love my husband, and love my baby boy. They have showered us with so many gifts that we just stand back and marvel at the kindness of others. I am grateful for each and every item that we have received for Seth and for all the love behind each one. I get excited when we get a slip under our door telling us we have a package because I know that Seth is getting a new goody. But, I knew I was running into an emotional problem when we got a card a couple of days ago in the mail from a lovely lady that we used to go to church with, and I saw the return address, and I had this thought: "Please don't let there be money in there. Please don't let there be money in there." She is so kind, and I was shocked at myself. I realized that this thought came completely from my dread of the growing list of thank you notes that I have to write. The list grows and grows, and my despair at ever getting through it increases. Before he came, I got out all the thank you notes from my showers, and I was proud of myself. Then he came, and my mom, seeing my despair, addressed a bunch of thank you note envelopes for me. And somehow, I ploughed through those. But at this point, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. I asked others if it would be possible for me to type my thank you notes and do mail merge to print out envelopes. I was told that this was not polite Southern etiquette and that Miss Manners would come and put me in jail if I so much as entertained the thought for a second time.

But I defy Miss Manners! I dare her to come and haul me off to her etiquette prison where you get 50 lashes for each improper use of "may" vs. "can." I defy her on the internet in front of all by what I am about to suggest. I am asking you, my gentle readers, for Thank You Note Forgiveness. If you have sent me a baby present for Seth, and if you haven't recieved a thank you note from me, I'm asking you to allow me to send you an email thank you note instead of something handwritten and carried by the U.S. Postal Service. If you are willing to do this, please send an email with the header, "Forget Miss Manners!," to ellenwit@hotmail.com. Thank you, and if you don't want to do this, please don't turn me in to M.M. I hear that in her jail, they take away your food if you use the wrong fork. =)