Thoughts on being a wife a mother and a friend

Sometimes I'll put on some music or be doing something that reminds me of life before the loss of Nate. The innocent blissful world I lived in. Not that I wasn't aware of pain or loss or challenges, they just hadn't hit so close to home or been this big. The pain wasn't this raw. Sometimes it's so overwhelming. It's crazy to be able to feel so full and satisfied and fulfilled, yet so much pain with that hole in your heart that my sweet baby Nate left. I know it will not be filled until we meet again together worshiping at the feet of Jesus. So until then we learn to cope in the healthiest ways possible. Celebrate, cry, meet new people that didn't know Nate and have no idea what my past holds. Sharing our story. Watching our children reach new milestones. Like Evan crawling like a mad man and just the other day I taught Ella to read a book. We are also in this holding place of uncertainty of what our near future will hold. With Phil changing jobs and starti...

I remember when I was maybe 12 and my friend and I were swimming at a public pool. At some point we noticed that another girl our age was wearing a white swimsuit that was a little 'see through'. We decided that she needed to be aware of the situation. Now there are so many things that go into this. While you would want to know of 'said problem', hearing it at a public pool, from two girls your age when you are already wet, surrounded by your friends (who haven't said anything) ... Let's just say she wasn't thrilled or thankful to hear what we had to tell her. Looking back on that event I see that while our intentions may have been good, our timing and delivery were not so good. There are often situations in life that I need to decide if, how, and when to address the said 'issue' with others. That's when discretion comes into play. Discretion: 1. the quality of behaving or speaking in such a way as to avoid causing offense or revealing priv...

I should have a two year old. I don't. I wish I could be throwing a little party for him, sing Happy Birthday. One of the most frustrating things for me is I don't know how to handle it. I want to celebrate his life in some special way, but I don't know how. I didn't have enough time with him to know what he would like, I'm left to guess, imagine. Some moments I just want to be alone. Others moments I want to have a huge party. I have a lifetime more to figure this out. I don't want it. But that doesn't change it. I want what I can't have. Keep the prayers coming guys, cause I'm a mess. Happy 2nd birthday my sweet Nate. 8 months wasn't enough.

Every so often a picture/quote along the lines of this shows up on my news feed...  I'd be lying if I said it didn't sometimes cut at my heart. I'd also be lying if I said I wouldn't change anything or do anything different the 8 short months we had sweet Nate in our lives. If I knew I'd only have him for such a short time, sure I would've held and kissed and cuddled him even more. Many of you know that we practice a parent lead schedule in our family. Sleep train from a fairly early age and don't co-sleep. I bring this up because sometimes there is crying involved. Not neglectful, emotionless (on the parent's part) hours of crying. More like intentional minutes here and there. Needless to say the quote stated above does bring Nate's sweet face to mind and a pain of guilt. But when I really sit down and think about why we choose to parent the way we do, and if there are things we should change ( there are always things that we adjust ...

*This is a little late, seeing that baby was born in August and I'm posting in December... but I wanted to go in chronological order with my thoughts... Ella had me convinced. Since the moment that we told Ella that she was going to be a big sister again she was confidant that it would be a girl. Sara. end of story. We like to wait until baby arrives to find out the gender. The first two times it was so much fun. We told Ella that we didn't know. It COULD be a brother, but we also didn't push the subject one way or another. She talked about 'Sara' so much that near the end I would catch myself referring to baby as, her, or even 'Sara'. People would ask what I thought, or which gender I would prefer. I had a girl, have had a boy.... I had feelings about either, but mostly said, 'I'm so glad I don't get to pick.' You see, having a girl seemed a lot easier. Ella really wanted a sister. They would have so much fun together. I felt like it w...

So,  most of you may be surprised to hear that I'm really not that good at planning parties, starting traditions and doing all those fun extras for all the little holidays. Don't get me wrong. I love having friends over, I love decorating. But I'm not very motivated to to either for a 'special' occasion. I can rise to the occasion, but I prefer not to. It may be because I'm a procrastinator. I generally know about birthday parties, holidays, and weddings in advance... but most often I'll be getting the present the day of, on the way... or arrive and think, 'SHOOT!! I forgot a card!!' But.... this Father's Day was different. For some odd reason I planned ahead. Bought and made presents, taught Ella how to write 'dad' for the card and planned a special meal. All that to say. We had a wonderful day and I thought I'd share some of it with you. It probably wont be like that next year. :) 'Mad Libs' card from Ella Fun lit...

Today's sermon was good. The title was 'Wisdom vs. Lies'. There were a few things that were said that hit close to home. Things that Phil and I have talked about as we've gone through this journey of having our faith and trust in God challenged more then any other time in our life. Why we do the things we do. Why we make choices not to do other things. Standards we have set in our life. It has been something that has been challenging to me my whole life. I've been excluded from plenty. At times it hurt, other times I didn't care. But back to the sermon..... Our pastor talked about the peace and happiness that only God can give and how it is manifested in people's lives. Jesus is that source, and it's different that what the world can offer. It reaches much deeper and fills much fuller. Now that doesn't mean life wont have troubles. That there wont be great pain. He shared a story I've known for quite some time. A story about Horatio Spafford, t...