Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Early-morning alone time

I had the opportunity to go for an early morning run while visiting my parents this past weekend. But instead...





...I chose to catch the early morning sunrise at the beach.







Something I've been wanting to do for a while. A place I've been wanting to go.






Peaceful. Relaxing. And 37 degrees at 7:00am! Not exactly beach weather, but there's still something about walking around on the beach that I love!





I missed the sunrise by about half an hour, but being up to see this was still worth it!


Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Babies

Parker Kade



A little doll baby. A second handsome gift given to our friends this week.



Danae and I had the privilege of holding him and snuggling for a bit yesterday morning. It was sweet to see Parker's "newness" and take in his new baby smell!




Several of our friends are pregnant, and we are now entering the season of births. Beautiful little Violet, baby #3 to our friends Merle and Aimee, made her entrance almost two weeks ago, followed by Parker's arrival earlier this week.


Going in to meet Parker proved to be a little more difficult than I thought. I kept thinking that holding a newborn boy was going to be hard...when in reality, the problem was in the location.


I had not been back to the hospital where Josiah was born...until yesterday.


Seeing and holding babies isn't the problem. The gender of the baby isn't the problem. As soon as my daughter and I walked down the hall and into the maternity section, I lost it. The same halls, the smell, the nurses everywhere, the nursery...I walked my sobbing self to Julie's door and just stood there. The nurses probably thought I was nuts. My daughter asked why we weren't going in. And I just cried.


We took a little detour to a bathroom so I could dry my eyes and compose myself...during which time I told Danae what my problem was, and she responded with, "Mommy, you can't go in there crying." Ahh, the straight-forward advice of a five year old.


Seeing and holding little Parker proved to be easier than I thought it would be. I guess my objective, practical self just looked at him and said, "He's not your baby. He's not Josiah." The hospital is what caused the events of January 27 to replay all over again.


At least two more of our friends' babies will arrive at that hospital within the next four months, and while my reaction will probably be the same, deep down I know I can't avoid going there. I have been trying to sidestep those feelings and memories for the past few months now, and that has made me a sad, irritable person lately. I want to visit those friends and their babies, and going to that hospital was and will be part of the healing process.


Oh, the roads that God has us walk down. I know that this is all in the plan, and it will all serve a greater purpose someday. But it's definitely not easy in the moment, nor was it EVER promised to be easy.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Little Boys

I guess this is how little boys...






...watch Curious George...






...in their underwear.


Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Happy Birthday Curt!

Well, we survived the half marathon and are mostly back to normal, with no wobbly walking! ;o) My time: 2 hours, 6 minutes. (Not my best, but I'll still take it.) HUBBY'S TIME: 1 hour, 51 minutes! And it was his first half marathon! I am SO SO proud of him!




Enough of that, though...


because today we celebrate Hubby's 31st birthday!


Happy birthday, Curt!




It's been quite the year, and I've seen you endure a lot, both together with me and on your own. You are a man of God, blessed with wonderful talents and skills, and loved by many.




Enjoy your special day! We love you!

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

It's Fall, Baby!

Wow...the condition of my blog and the neglected condition of my house are very telling of how busy we have been lately! :o)


Life has included a weekend trip to see my family in NJ, followed by an annual weekend trip with friends (which involved 6 adults and 5 children...a little hectic, yes...but oh so wonderful!)...




We sprinkled in our town's Halloween parade with our neighbors, where the candy is practically thrown at the kids in full bags...




...some playtime in the leaves...




...some intentional dog-breeding (more on that soon!)...




...a liiittle bit of applesauce-making with the bestie (140 quarts total)...




...aaand maybe a little house project that involves a wall being knocked out. (I'll save those pics for another post.) But thank GOD we have little helpers to clean up the mess, or I'd be beside myself. ;o)



A full but ENJOYABLE Fall it has been so far!


This week, though, we are focused on the half-marathon that we have been training for since June. I can't believe it's on Saturday already! I haven't written much about training over the past few months, but it has been going well. Two shorter runs during the week, and a long run on the weekend. Let's see what happens this weekend! :o)