15 months 13 days

Gosh, am I tired already, and it's not even midnight! The last two days/nights I've had even less sleep. I'm planning on going to bed earlier, as I have to get up really early tomorrow, and I know that things will still come to mind while lying in bed trying to fall asleep, things to pack or do.

The last few days they've been getting up an hour later than usual, which is perfect, as it's an hour earlier in Mali than here. They're already adjusting to the new time zone! But they were still upstairs when my alarm clock rang, so I added half an hour, and Randy took them downstairs. After half an hour I got woken up again, made their food, and we fed them at 10 am. Then we put them down to sleep; it was 10:20. After half an hour Tammy finally fell asleep on me, and then she slept nearly 90 minutes. That was good, as it was the only nap of the day.

Everyone went downstairs to play, while I started preparing for our trip. I ended up taking Sammy upstairs with me, and put him into the swing so he could watch me work. Then Randy came upstairs with the others to make omelets (we had lots of eggs to use up). Tammy and Emmy were running around, opening drawers, and Tammy went straight to the swing Sammy was in, as he loves it so much, and she doesn't care whether it's occupied or not. She just went in there (video uploaded), on top of Sammy, and then ended up pinching and scratching him. At first he was okay, but when he was about to cry, I rescued him and got him out of there. She immediately jumped into the empty swing.

Today I was asking Emmy to put stuff BACK into the drawers, and he actually did it. I was impressed! And Barbara said she heard him say "thank you" in German several times. One time I heard it, and it sure sounded like it.

While Randy was cooking, the babies were getting pretty tired, so I finally put them to bed just after 2 pm. Randy said to put Tammy to bed also, as I had a few more things to finish and an omelet to eat, and I did. That was a mistake. She kept the boys awake. I think Sammy got a few minutes of sleep. I finally stopped what I was doing, put the omelet on the bed, and got Tammy. I lay down with her. It was about 2:30, and it was also the time Barbara arrived from Germany, to spend the night and fly to Mali with us tomorrow.

Emmy was crying really hard, so I got up with Tammy, who was still fighting sleep, handed her to Randy, and picked up Emmy. They all ended up going downstairs, and as Sammy was crying as well, I picked him up as well, and he also ended up downstairs. We've been giving him and Tammy cough syrup, and Tammy eye drops, and her eyes are so much better. Tammy's nose is now better than Sammy's, even though he started before her, but by now they're doing well breathing through it again.

They had to get reacquainted with Barbara who has stayed with us twice for several days each to help with the little ones. It didn't take them long. After I had gone upstairs to work, I heard Emmy laughing constantly, and I've uploaded a cute video of him rocking the giraffe and Barbara tickling him, with him laughing hysterically. We fed them their afternoon meal pretty late, and then Randy had to run to the grocrey store to buy some bread to make sandwiches for our long trip.

At 5 pm I had to go upstairs to make their dinner, and I had to take Sammy with me as he was not happy. It was a little hard doing everything with one hand, as he did not want to stay in the swing for long. I was glad when Randy returned and could take him, so I could finish the preparations for dinner and bed. The were all so tired, having skipped the afternoon nap, and came up fast for dinner. I was amazed when both Emmy and Tammy ate well.

I had finished the baby shampoo yesterday, and had packed the other bottles, so I put regular bath soap into the bathtub, and somehow it created lots of foam. When I put Emmy into the water, he was scared again of all that foam, so he wasn't happily playing like he usually does. It didn't bother the other two.

Once they were all in bed, I walked away, and even Tammy hardly cried at all, that's how tired they were. I was able to do other things much earlier than usual! However, I was extremely tired myself and had a hard time. I feel like I have not put enough thought into what I still need to pack. Randy finished the last suitcases, and now only one and the carry-ons are still open to be finished. There's definitely a lot more to take than when they were a few months old, and a lot more because of our night in Paris!

In the morning, a friend from church with the big church van, and my Mom with her car, are coming at 8:30 to pack up and go to the airport. We have 10 suitcases total, and about 5 carry-ons plus the double stroller. The flight is from noon until 2 pm, and then we head to the airport hotel for the night. PLEASE PRAY FOR US! We are all three sitting behind each other with a baby each, and on the flight to Bamako on Thursday, Barbara is sitting far away from us, which won't work. I can't even begin to tell you all the challenges ahead, and remember how tough last time was, even with all your prayers. I'm planning on letting you know from Paris tomorrow night how the day went, and will check in briefly in the course of the day as possible. I'll be heading to bed early tonight!