Gifted

Isaiah is 13 months old.  

This is the longest I have not been pregnant (by about 4 months) since December of 2005.  I've been thinking of what a privilege and joy it has been to first carry, then care for, each of these that God has entrusted to us.  

First, there was Wally,

who became Alexandra Ruth,

born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on August 27, 2006.

Then Freddie,

who became Aletheia Miriam,

born in Alexandria, Virginia on January 23, 2008.

Next up, Yanni,

who became Aliyah Charis.

born in Silver Spring, MD on March 3, 2009.

Fourth in line was Quincy,

who became Joseph Andrew, 

born in Rockville, MD September 11, 2010.

Number five was Clancy,

who became Tikvah Elise,

born in Fargo, ND, March 2, 2012

Sixth was Yoshi,

who became Isaiah Timothy,

born in Fargo, ND, June 19, 2013.

Carried in Connecticut, Minnesota, Maryland, and North Dakota.  Delivered in five different hospitals with six different doctors/midwives.  

Six healthy pregnancies.  Six good deliveries (three with epidurals; three naturally).  Six healthy babies.

One blessed mama.

Thank you, Lord, for each of these.  For the beauty of their life, the wonder of each pregnancy, the privilege to be their mamma, and the gift it is to watch them grow.

And Growing

Five months.

And growing.

Let It Begin

Let the plotting begin.

Secret

There is a secret code written in these blocks.  

Something about a birthday.  B-I-R-T-H-D seem very clear.  It gets blurry after that.

I guess it's a good code.  If we can't figure it out, no one else will be able to either.

Same Effect

These pictures remind me of one of those flip books where it looks like there's motion if you fan through the pages quickly.  Maybe if you scroll your mouse down the page very quickly it will have the same effect.

In Hiding

Memorable

This Thanksgiving was different.  It was just us.

I pared down the cooking a little bit, but we still had turkey and gravy.

We didn't set as many places as in years' past, but we did have a full and beautiful table.

We didn't have to wait for guests to arrive, but we did have to wait for the food to cook.

We didn't make as many side dishes, but we did use both ovens.

Isaiah didn't sit at the table for dinner, but he did get some practice before hand in his Bumbo.

We didn't have a guest to carve the turkey for us, but Joe did a great job himself.

We didn't burn the rolls, but I did set the entire pan of sweet potatoes on FIRE!  Yes, there was fire shooting out of the oven.  Evidently broiling the sweet potatoes on low still cooks the marshmallows extremely quickly and sets them on fire before you even think to check the oven.

Despite all the differences from years' past, one thing was the same:  it was memorable.  Setting sweet potatoes on fire has a way of burning an event into one's memory.