Smallest Blessing

This morning had me in a bit of a panic. My mission was to get 4 children clean, dressed, fed and to church by myself... on time. I might add that getting any place 'on time' has never been my forte. But with much prayer and coffee I set about my task.

God has blessed my husband and I with 3 children - the 4th child that I am referring to today is a precious foster baby we had the privilege of caring for these last 5 days. He is the most sweetest five month old that I have ever met. He seems to take joy in anything and everything. Those big brown eyes of his will light up, followed by the most precious toothless smile. Often times a squeal or giggle bubbles out of him as he kicks his little legs in excitement.

So back to this morning... I am drying my hair while keeping an eye on the time for baby's morning feeding. And time is a funny thing for me - I have a horrible concept of it - sometimes 5 minutes can feel like an hour, or an hour can fly by like 5 minutes. I had a feeling the next 30 minutes or so would disappear with the blink of an eye. Just then my son Ryan walks in the room. He is dressed, brushed and fed, so I ask him if he would feed baby for me. This would be his first time feeding a baby. His blue eyes light up and with a grin he shrugs and says he'll give it a try. I make the bottle, have Ryan sit and hand him baby who smiles when placed in his arms.

Ryan brings the bottle towards baby who is eagerly reaching for it. I hear Ryan giggle as baby begins to eat. It was the sweetest sight to see. My "baby" Ryan caring for this tiny infant asking questions to make sure he was holding and feeding baby properly. He worried that baby had too much of the bottle in his mouth. But I assured him it was just right. He was concerned that he wouldn't be able to tell if baby needed a break while eating. I told him not to worry baby would stop sucking and would let him know. Ryan took the responsibility of feeding baby very seriously.

It brought unspeakable joy to my heart to see the loving care and concern my son had, and the happiness, smiles and giggles exchanged between the two boys.

We made it to church with plenty of time this morning. And I have cherished the memory of Ryan and baby. It may be a small thing, but sometimes the smallest blessing can fill your heart with the greatest love.