Life moves so fast…
Almost 18 months ago, in a state of
grace-meets-panic-meets-medication, David and I brought a baby boy into this
crazy world. At what was no doubt a pinnacle moment, we realized a miracle, saw
God’s favor come to fruition, and had a lifelong dream fulfilled; the miracle
of Jericho’s birth will always be altered by how close we came at delivery to
losing our little guy (cord incident). I will never forget watching him turn
from gray to pink, and hearing those first cries…seeing my husband stand up and
cut the cord (he couldn’t, at Hannah’s birth—he was completely freaked out)…and
that first kiss…Getting to have my son in my hospital room with me…Gosh. Just
typing this makes me choke up. I can’t believe it’s been 18 months! I have friends who have had 2, 3, 6, 13
childbirths; I don’t believe birth is ever “typical.” Perhaps “routine,” from a
medical standpoint, but to a mother? Never.
Our little Teething Tyrant generally sleeps through the
night, but for the past two nights, he has woken us at 4am. This wouldn’t be an
issue, if not for the fact that my alarm generally goes off at 4:15 (with room
for 3 smacks of the snooze button), Those last 15-29 minutes of sleep are my
favorite, and losing them to a sad baby is…Well, it just stinks. Yesterday, I
tried comforting him in between hastily throwing on my work clothes and running
a comb through my mop of hair; I finally had to give up and wake up Daddy, so
that I wasn’t late for work. This morning, I stumbled into his room; David
actually woke up on his own and took over, telling me I could have my beautiful
last 15 minutes of sleep.
I love that man.
I didn’t fall back asleep.
Instead, I listened to a father comfort his son. I’m pretty
sure I heard the rocking chair (Old Faithful!)…a few softly-spoken words…maybe
it’s just the smell of the one you love, holding you tight…Within a few
minutes, he was back to sleep, and David was back in bed with me. I took advantage of the few minutes I had
left, and snuggled in next to him, myself.
Jericho’s on to something, there…there IS something wonderful about the
smell of someone you love, holding you tight…
It’s the simple moments in life that mean the most. We’ve
all heard it before—but think about your fondest memories. Sure, I have
wonderful memories of amazing vacations with my family, but it’s not the
location that made the impact: It’s the love. It’s sitting around a table and
laughing at the fact that your mom just got presented with the biggest crawfish
in history, on a plate of etouffee. It’s memories of washing dishes with my
sister while my single mother sang Larry Gatlin songs about Mogen David. It’s learning
to put brakes on my car with my dad, and laughing because I’ve somehow got
grease on my forehead.
It’s snuggling into the shoulder of the man you’ve spent the
last 13 years with, side-by-side, and still finding that he’s everything you’ve
ever wanted…It’s the old t-shirt, sheets-are-a-mess, can’t-find-my-glasses kind
of morning that you don’t want to end…It’s no alarm clock, because you know
your son will wake you up at 6:30 (on most days) with coos and laughs over the
baby monitor.
It’s sitting on the couch, laughing over The Office, because
you both have coworkers that match the characters on the show…
It’s BBQ on a Sunday afternoon…it’s ice cream on a Saturday
night. It’s “hey, I’ll take the baby so
you can get 15 minutes more of sleep.”
Time flies, and I find myself realizing the impact of the
Simple Things…I find myself asking God to make the impressions…don’t let me
forget…don’t let me ever take it for granted.
I love the developments Jericho is making; I love to watch him learn,
walk, run, climb…I wish I could press “pause” and watch him for an extra hour
every day. Slow down, little guy…Mommy wants to snuggle you a while longer…
Simple things…The Very Best Things…
9 ½ years ago, I married the Love of my Life (where it all
began)…Although it seems like a lifetime ago, it also seems like yesterday…moments
like remembering his expression when I started to walk down the aisle...finding
out David forgot his vows…laughing about my Dad forgetting to have people sit
down for the ceremony…that feeling of utter and complete panic before I left
the Ready Room…and of singing “Bootylicious” with my bridesmaids before the
ceremony in the Ready Room, not realizing that the ENTIRE congregation could
hear us…(that STILL makes me crack up!)…
Realizing after the wedding that I’d done it…I’d made the
greatest commitment of my life, and there was no changing my mind now…and realizing
that was okay with me.
I find myself taking pictures almost non-stop, because I can’t
get over how fast life changes…David is the photographer, but he’s taught me to
capture memories…I can’t get over how the time is moving. 18 months—really?!?
It seems like yesterday.
Two people…two babies…a dog, a small house in the country…jobs,
basic cars... a mortgage, some debt…Nothing fancy…
Everything I could ever want…
We’ve had our mountains and our deep valleys, but God has
carried us through…We don’t have much, but we have so much that can’t be seen…
And I am so
Incredibly
Thankful…
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