"Babies Don't Keep"

This post is dedicated to my 5th child, Stephen. He will turn 25 tomorrow. He is my middle boy and often got mixed in with the shuffle of all the busyness of a big family. Sometimes, I wish I could go back and relive some of those days when he was little and cuddle him again. He just grew up too fast.

I love you, Stephen, and I'm proud of the wonderful young man you've become.

Here's a poem for all the young mothers out there. It was given to me when my children were small and I want to pass it on. I love that it was written for the fifth child. Each baby is a blessing and special. Sometimes it's hard to find time to cuddle them if other things are pulling you in ten different directions. The housework will wait. Take time to love your little one.



SONG FOR A FIFTH CHILD
by
Ruth Hulburt Hamilton


Mother, oh mother, come shake out your cloth!
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing and butter the bread,
Sew on a button and make up a bed.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking!

Oh, I’ve grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
(Pat- a- cake, darling and peek, peekaboo).
The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
And out in the yard and there’s a hullabaloo
But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo.
Look! Aren’t her eyes the most wonderful hue?
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

Oh, cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
But children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I’m rocking my baby. Babies don’t keep.