Tuesday, August 18, 2015

A Shortage of Babies

Library of Congress: Mother and Baby, California, 1939.


When my first baby was born, everyone in the family was so happy.  Company came by to sneak a peek at the sleeping infant.  We even had to make special trips to visit distant relatives so they could see the baby too.  The arrival of a baby was the most exciting thing in the world and such a gift!

I remember how the nursery looked.  I was given many lovely things at the baby shower.  A pretty crib with matching changing table, a high chair, a carriage, and a playpen were all the basics.  The clothes were in abundance, along with baby blankets for swaddling and snuggling.  I received rattles and handmade sweater and bonnet sets. It was so much fun caring for the baby with all the happiness and support.

Each time I announced that I was expecting another child, my mother-in-law would clap her hands with delight.  Her smile lit up the room with her delight!  This happened with each of my five babies (her grandchildren). She was also so happy when any of her children were expecting a treasured baby.

It is important to have this kind of loving support from family and friends.  It makes those difficult days of caring for a sick baby, or not getting enough sleep, so much easier.  While there are certainly rough days of caring for a fussy baby, when we get though those times victoriously, we feel as if we have achieved much! We are doing great work caring for babies and children, and bringing them up in our loving homes!

These days, there seems to be a shortage of babies.  There are not enough welcoming arms to usher them into this world.  A baby and a small child bring such laughter and fun into our lives.  They bring beauty and happiness.  Mother Theresa is quoted as saying:

"How can there be too many children? That is like saying there are too many flowers."

For those who don't have much experience with caring for babies, there are many willing mentors in grandmothers and good friends.  It is worth the effort to find the right people (when family members are not available) to encourage and cheer you on in the great joy of motherhood.

May God rise up many who will lovingly care for an abundance of babies!

Blessings
Mrs. White


From the Archives -


The greatest fun in the world - Playing House in Real Life.

Some Encouragement - Inspired to Keep House.

Happy Days - Cleaning House with Baby.

 

- To find out more about this blog, or Mrs. White, please visit our About page. -

 


Mrs. White's nostalgic book for Mothers:


"Old Fashioned Motherhood
: Baby and Child Care Advice from a New England Housewife." 

62 pages, paperback. 


 

 


8 comments:

Sharon (BennBoo Creations) said...

The media puts a lot of fear into the minds of people with thoughts of not being able to "afford" another child; and of course, churches do not promote the "whatever will be will be," attitude with having children, thus, many resort to birth control to ease the cost and pressure of more children. Rely on Jesus!
Isaiah 41:13
Romans 12:2
James 1:17
John 10:10
A recent news story from one of our missionaries abroad, stated that the average Christian family is having less than 2 children per family; while Muslim families enjoy an average of 5+. Rise up Christians and allow Our Lord to be in control!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful Post! I have two married daughters, and between the two of them I have 10 grandchildren and one on the way. They are all under 8yrs old. Every time I hear they are going to have another one we are soooo excited! This time I got a little nervous because they are all so close in age. I guess the Lord knows they can handle it, (with His help) I have one more daughter at home yet, and I am looking forward to many years of more babies! Makes Grandpa and Nana very busy in a really wonderful way!

Ifeoma Samuel said...

Children are such a blessing Mrs White.
Thank you for sharing your heart. I smiled while reading this.
God Bless

Lori said...

Babies are a beautiful gift from God. Sadly, society doesn't agree with that statement. I wonder about all the babies that could have grown into the doctor to cure cancer, become the next great evangelist, or the parents of beautiful children of their own, if only they would have been allowed a chance to be born. Thank you for sharing this post and for linking up with Thankful Thursdays.

Unknown said...

I love your quote from Mother Theresa! Yes, babies are just like flowers. The world needs more of them with loving arms to hold them. :)

Our Home of Many Blessings said...

Sounds like you have a wonderful mother n law! Babies ARE wonderful! Thank you for sharing your thoughts!

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for this post! It was a special encouragement to me as I found out today that we are expecting baby number 6:) We are excited, but sometimes get nervous about how other will react. We live in California and only know of 1 other family that trusted the Lord to fill their home with blessings. Having you lovely ladies online encourages my heart so much to know we are not alone, there are so many other wonderful godly families that are welcoming children as the treasure they are!

Yesika said...

Hola! Te saludo desde Colombia... Soy una joven mamá de 25 años mi esposo y yo tenemos 3 hijos por la gracia del señor, hola perdido 3 y actualmente estoy esperando un cuarto, confiando que el señor hará como mejor sea. Me conmueve mucho esta entrada de tu blog pues mi suegra por el contrario recibe tan mal la noticia de un "nieto más" se enfada con nosotros, no nos vuelve a hablar y se aleja muchísimo. Dice que no quiere más nietos que, para que? Mis padres tal vez no están muy de acuerdo, pero siempre están ahí... Aún no les damos la noticia de que estoy esperando un cuarto, estamos orando para que el señor quite los temores, y bueno a nuestros hijos los vemos cómo hermosos regalos y queremos recibir los que él desee darnos. Gracias por tus publicaciones, no pude escribir en inglés... Pues soy pésima en él. Dios te bendiga!