Catching up....Again

Well, for those that don't know yet - it's a girl! We are so excited, although I think I'm more excited about having a 3rd child than whether it's a boy or girl. I think I feel weird for being excited about it. Many give me more the impression of, Are you CRAZY? and Have you lost your mind?? than excited. My friends with 6 kids (or 4+ at the least) are beyond excited for me, which reveals to me how God makes us all SO differently. And that's okay. I have friends at every spectrum of life, and I think what God wants most from us is contentment - whether we don't have any kids or whether we have 10 - that we are exactly where we are supposed to be, because that is where He has put us for today.

I am missing blogging a little bit. But for the most part, I have been too busy to miss it. I barely have time to check my email right now, and I'm not entirely sure why. I think part of it is that all the kids are out of school, so while we are all juggling vacation schedules, suddenly I have more play date options than I know what to do with (not that my phone is ringing off the hook, but I know I can call people when I have time). Part of it is planning a birthday party. Okay, I am planning ONE birthday party for TWO boys, that really was meant to be very simple, and basically split down the middle for them. I still ended up trapsing all over town looking for cake or cupcake train decorations that do not exist in Charlotte except thru online resources. So good ol' Harris Teeter (our grocery store) is doing it for me. This week, I greatly envied those with creative talent, especially in the drawing department. What I wouldn't do to be able to create a train on a homemade cake with lifesavers or frosting. Believe me, if I tried, it would be unrecognizable. I am one of those people that need to tell me what pieces go where and give me a box kit with directions. I know my boys don't expect much; it's really protecting myself and making sure I don't have an emotional breakdown from the effort of creating a train from scratch for a cake.

What else? I had a BEAUTIFUL weekend with my college girlfriends in Pensacola last weekend. 3 days with kindred spirits, many of whom I lived with for 9 months one year or another, talking, laughing, eating - what else do women do? Without husbands, children, distractions. My favorite part (other than being with them)...? Not dealing with breakfast & diapers & getting dressed first thing in the morning with the kids. I am not a morning person, and I do not miss that part at ALL on vacation. Once we get past b'fast, I'm usually good to go. It's that they need EVERYTHING right at first. But back to the weekend...we had 10 out of the 12 or 13 of us. We have all been roommates with each other at some point - not that I've roomed with all 12 of them, but that I have roomed with 8 of them I think in my 4 years at Auburn. We agreed that living together creates a whole other bonding that you can't recreate (my husband has been baffled at how close I am to them despite the distances and time lapses). I am so encouraged every time we meet how God continues to work in each of their lives, molding them, maturing them, and challenging them. He reminds me that I am not alone in my ideals and values, and that I can go forth in confidence. They are living proof of the pressing on towards the goal. I pray that He continues to walk beside them, and they continue to hear His voice.

Tonight, I went to a Bible study with my church for the 2nd time. It has been a week of reminding me how God created us for relationships, first because of His relationship with us, or the one He desires to have with us; second, because He also created us to be in relationship with each other (hence, making Eve for Adam). God encourages us through His Word (the Bible), through prayer, and through each other. Many times, I am surprised at how He encourages me through a person I don't expect. And I have learned as a new(er) parent, how vital it is that we encourage each other as mothers (of course, I learned the encouragement for wives back when I first got married - yeesh! I needed a lot of encouragement then too). I am thankful for the church, the body of believers who hold me up, but also for my friends who encourage me because God is using them to show me His constant grace.

My weekend on central time is keeping me up; it is bedtime, else we will miss our last OT session (Lord willing!) for LJ. God is so good!