Merry Christmas!

What a JOY to celebrate Christmas with this sweet little fella...thinking back to 2 years ago when he was sooo tiny and we celebrated my very FAVORITE Christmas ever! I kept thinking about Mary as she got closer to the time when she gave birth to our Lord. Even though she may not have had any idea that she would have to watch Him die, she must have known there would be things about her son's life that she would need to trust the Father about, even as she had trusted Him with the circumstances of Jesus' conception... There are so many examples of faithful men and women who have trusted the Lord with their children in all kinds of different circumstances...I have been so awed by the things the Lord has done for us and so many others, it inspires me each day when I am tempted to worry with that CRAZY-mother-worry drive that kicked in at some point during my first pregnancy :)  Instead of letting it consume me I can turn to the Good Father Who has proved Himself so many times before and choose to trust...just in a different way than I did when he was so small. Now he's a little leprechaun who climbs and leaps everywhere constantly, falling, throwing, bumping into things...very active little man.

2nd Birthday!

So many times when he was wiggling around inside I would think about what it would be like to see him toddle around, hear his first words, watch him play with his sisters...mostly I thought about what it would be like to have a cup of coffee with my son when he's 21 or so and smile together as I share with him the story, once again, for the hundredth time...how the Lord held him in His hands, his little life, and brought him into being at the perfect time, and shielded him from so many things that might have been...what a miracle! Every child is a miracle and its huge...but this boy and the circumstances of his birth have made me realize how the Lord feels about each life, a pregnancy of any length is not to be taken for granted, life should never be taken for granted, a healthy baby is fragile and delicate and strong and powerful and all are held in His hands, so precious!! And He cares for each of us THAT much...Isaiah is no more or less a miracle than my other children, or you or me...but the circumstances of his birth speak a message...I am humbled to play a role in sharing it here at the start but as he grows I imagine the Lord has this and many more things in store to speak through his life...I'm excited about that cup of coffee we'll share one day, talking about our Lord and His shameless and limitless exhibitions of His Glory! And we have just one of so many stories...how blessed we are!!

A beautiful day...

My sweet husband and a couple other friends had mentioned praying for the results of the mammogram to be negative(in a positive way) and I got to thinking as I went through the motions of getting ready to go to the appointment for my doctor to give me the results, about what if this sends us into another step on this journey...I don't mean to sound overly calm...I was a little bit like a child when they feel uncertain, or their footing is slipping a little and they say "maMA?!" where their voice goes up at the end a little bit...I said "LorD?! What if...and I'm at this appointment by myself and Lord what if I have to call him at work and that would be sad for him, and what if I have to go and be tired again and now I have 3 kids..." and then He took my face in His Hands and said "Laura..." and I thought, "Oh yeah... :)  sorry..."  So then we had a good little time of smiling into the uncertainty and singing together(quietly in the cold little exam room with that little scrap of a gown that offers no warmth) about how He's good. Period. and He knows. and i know i don't. But that I trust Him...and that's just it. It was a BEAUTIFUL time, He was THERE and...I think maybe the enemy might have been a little ticked off, which is good. But what I really care about is that there was no other comfort in those moments together...so often I have reached out to other people, or knowledge, or chocolate...but it was all Him and it was sweet. And that sweetness was not diminished or strengthened by the fact that the mammogram was clear...it was just what it was, and that didn't have much to do with my efforts or great focus or positive attitude or "strong religious faith"...just my Friend.