This is for real

Well, I think it's fair to say that we had our first real dose of what life is going to be like when our son is born in a few short months and it all had to do with our "first child," Bentley, our sweet black lab.

Now, Bentley's gotten up in the middle of the night before and Alan and I would nudge each other in a "it's your turn/no, it's your turn" moment. One of us would grudgingly get up, let her out, get back in bed, get up to let her in, and fall asleep only to be woken be her a few hours later (yet, it seemed like minutes).

I wish I could say last night was one of those nights, but it wasn't. Bentley got up at about 2:45 am with the "I've got something in my throat" cough and was in and out until about 5:15 in the morning. In one of my trips to let her out I noticed that she had vomitted in the basement. On a side note: I really do appreciate how she tries really hard not to do that sort of thing on the carpet, but rather on the concrete, linoleum, or hardwood, where it's easier to clean up. I sure hope the baby is that considerate - ha! At this point, Alan is up (1 1/2 hours before he needs to get up for work) helping me clean up, Bentley's outside eating grass, and we can appreciate having each other there to help take care of the dirty work.

It still wasn't the most fun being up for almost 3 hours straight wondering if I'll need to take her to the vet in the morning, giving her ice cubes to prevent her from being dehydrated, and praying that she's okay, but it's going to happen more and more often. The baby who has his days and nights confused, the toddler who wakes up screaming from a bad dream, the little boy with an upset stomach....It's scary, it's exciting, it's humbling, it's nerve-wrecking, it's for real.