a sparkly story

well...there they are:  three of the four gifts that just keep on giving

and even though i should be taking this time to sleep, our littlest (we'll call her sparkle) is snuggled up on my chest and i'm in the mood to relive the story of the day she arrived

so, here goes...

saturday, april 27th

i was exactly 39 weeks pregnant

we woke up, got dressed and decided to get a cinnamon roll at our favorite coffee shop

the girls wanted to go to the park and the library

it was a beautiful day and their wish was our command.

so, off we trotted, scoring some great books and a glorious morning of swinging and playing

little did i know it would be our last morning as a family of four

we headed home for lunch and naps

i laid down with the girls, snuggled in and soon i heard the rythms of their breathing turn slow and peaceful

i was just dozing off when i felt a mild contraction

i'd been feeling them off and on for a few days, so i tried to go back to sleep.

10 minutes later, another

and another 

and another

unable to sleep, i got up and washed a few windows

the contractions went from 10 minutes to 8 to 7 to 5....but still nothing terribly painful

i went out in the yard where J was working, to tell him what was up

he wanted me to call the hospital

they said to come in

i was a little skeptical...i didn't want to get the people who were going to watch Peach and Tulip to our house just to be sent back home

but, the contractions started to come regularly at 5 minutes and then 4....so we made the call

1/2 hour later, J's awesome teaching partner and her daughter were at our house, ready to love up our littles

i smothered them each with kisses, knowing that everything was about to change

i held things together until just before we left.

we couldn't find peach.

she was in her bed, covers up to her nose, crying.

when we asked what was wrong, she said, "momma, i'm going to miss you.  is it going to hurt?"

i had never experienced HER being worried about ME before

i crumbled

but j got me out the door and to the hospital we went

i wasn't progressing very far, but the nurse sent us on a walk.

it was 70 degrees and beautiful

walking with j and talking about this new baby was such a treasure

when we got back to the hospital, they decided to keep me

we called my parents and got something for j to eat

about 7 pm i was admitted

by 9 my contractions were constant and awful

i had about one really horrible hour, then the on-call anesthesiologist came and gave me my epidural

i had about 20 minutes of rest before the nurses decided it was time to push

10 or 12 pushes later, i heard the words "it's a girl"

and i can tell you that even though it was the third time hearing those words,....they were no less magical this time around

we sat and marveled at life with three healthy girls

and thanked God for this little jewel

we spent a few hours just looking at her, cheering her on as she nursed and trying to decide who she was

j went home around 3 am because he wanted to be the one to tell peach and tulip the big news

the next day, my hospital room was bustling with family and friends

i've got so much more to say about this little petunia

but tonight i'm tired and tomorrow there will be three perky little girls to wake up to

so, i'll save more pictures and ramblings for another day

blessed are we to have you in our family, little miss sparkle

yesterday

yesterday started like this....

 turned into this....

and ended like this...

a beautiful story that i'm excited to share soon.

welcome to the world, sparkle girl

still one

Well....here it is.

Today was the last day of ONE.

The last day of being one year old...on the brink of being able to valiantly hold up two proud, chubby fingers.

Two years ago tonight, I was feeling icky.  I crawled into bed with a headache, woke up an hour later and alerted J that we needed to go...like now

seven hours later, i was holding my spring tulip

fast forward 2 years.  tonight, j and peach are away at their wednesday night awana fun and it's just me and tulip.

naturally, we put on our galoshes and headed out to make a memory

just me and her

 

a few blocks away, we strolled up to our very favorite place in town. we were greeted by the owner, who told me to bring the stroller right inside.

we had some birthday ice cream, which the owners refused to let us pay for...you don't get that kind of lovin' just anywhere

i almost had to wrestle this kid to get her to share the monster cookie ice cream.

the girl knows what she likes

we sang "pop goes the weasel"

and she gave me sticky kisses while smearing ice cream all over one of the three shirts that still fit me

we had to fight some spitting rain on our way home...good thing we had the rain boots goin' for us

 once we got dried off and snuggly, her only other birthday request was games on the i.pad,

playing Elmo's Monster Maker to her heart's content without having to take turns with big sister...

when i think about where i was 24 months ago, i realize that tonight, i'm sorta feelin' the same way

i've got the "it could be any day...any hour now" feeling

and just like then...i'm excited...and sad

excited for this new person who will certainly open up a whole new space in my heart.

and sad that tulip is about to pass the torch of "baby" on to someone else.

very soon, this sweet baby of mine will become "big sister" and these 

wednesday night date nights will be shared along with a million other things

adjustments ahead for us all....

good, wonderful, beautiful stretching in our very near future

but tonight, she's still one

tonight, she's still my baby

so, i may just sneak upstairs and rock that one year old one last precious time before i open my arms to little miss two tomorrow morning

recipe for a good sunday

what are sundays good for?

new leggings for church...be still my heart

nesting....

washing up diapers for baby...

learning now to be a big helper...

glasses and pretend...

 and rest.

it just doesn't get much better than this.

2 scoops for Tulip

we had a party today...sort of

let me set the record straight by saying that Tulip is not actually 2....yet

she's still 1

for two and a half more weeks

and i'm totally not into rushing the growing up that seems to happen so quickly with these littles that i love

but, with her birthday falling on april 25th and my due date being may 4th

and the fact that both girls were born early...i knew i'd be taking my chances to plan a party for her during her birthday week

so, we decided to celebrate early

not ever imagining that april 14th would be TOO early

too early to count on spring

and good roads

and sunshine :(

after staying up way late getting everything ready, we woke up to phone calls and texts from the family this morning, saying that they wouldn't be making the drive due to freezing rain, wind and terrible roads

bummer.

life in minne-snow-ta

i'm all for winter, but this is getting a little crazy, even for me

 so, what's a girl to do with decorations, food, lemonade, ice cream toppings, presents and no guests?

celebrate, i guess.

open presents in jammies.

eat suckers for breakfast.

and invite over some friends that are just like family.

as with any good party, there was kissing...

and hugs for the birthday girl...

 candles and singing

the guys even got to watch the Masters

she was pleased as punch

at first, i was bummed that all my work was for nothing

but then i decided that we never really know how God is using our efforts.

and it wasn't about the guests...it was about her

the little one who has been my baby for the past 2 years
the one that is so very different from what i expected and infinitely more than i deserve

the wild, snuggly child who is worth every last minute i put into her special day

for whatever reason, i thought about an apple tree today.

i guess i've got autumn on the brain - weird

maybe we're going to bypass summer altogether and head right to fall???

anyway, there's a huge apple tree right over by the school where i work

and every fall as i go back to work, that tree sags heavy with apples that no one eats.

and i'm always struck by that - 

how i wish that someone would use them!

make applesauce

make apple juice

eat one for goodness sakes!

but today i was thinking that the apple tree isn't responsible for what happens to the fruit.

it's job is just to be fruitful

to make lots and lots of delicious fruit and not worry about how it is used.

God can use it to feed people, fertilize the ground, feed birds and other animals or just to make that block smell sticky sweet all fall long.

today was kind of like that

a day when i got to love a little person

and waste all my time and energy on her

and have no concern about who knows or appreciates it

even though it is dreary and cold and awful outside

even though the guests couldn't come

even though she's probably too young to really understand the decorations or the time or the effort

because i'll never know how God uses that fruit

my job is just to love

in big heaps

and let it be used in ways that i can see and ways that i'll never know

just because i can

so, spring tulip....

i wish the sun had been shining today

and that the beautiful tulips in the front yard that make me think of you were peeking through

but, amidst the snow and rain and cold, cold, cold

i'm so happy that you're mine

happy day to you

in big, huge wasteful heaps

i pour my adoration out

and pray that God will let it settle into your heart

and root you in His goodness forever

30 days to 30

In just 30 short days, I will be turning 30....yikes!  How did that happen?  Sometimes I can't quite wrap my head around the fact that I'm soon to be a mother of three...wasn't I just graduating high school?  Wasn't I just living in the dorms?  Wasn't I just planning my wedding?  Student teaching?  Moving into our first home?

 I guess time flies when you're having fun.  Regardless of how unbelievable it seems to me, I can't ignore the fact that 30 is right around the corner.

My husband, bless him, decided that with another big event just right around the corner, he'd plan something low key to celebrate.  So, today I opened the first of 30 gifts that he and Peach have been collecting and covertly wrapping. 

With 6-10 inches of snow on the radar, it seems crazy to be talking about planting our garden, but it sure was a sweet way to start out my day.

29 more gifts to open...29 more days of my 20's.

A sweet reminder to think of every day as a little gift to open.  I wont' lie...these past few weeks of getting out...rolling out...groaning out of bed in the mornings have been rough, rough, rough.   And I actually fell asleep standing just the other day.  But even when it requires more than the usual effort, greeting each day is a gift, isn't it?  Seeing, breathing, feeling, thinking....all presents.   May we unwrap them anew each morning.....