Returning to Normal...

First I would like to thank you all for your prayers for my sweet little boy and our family during this last week. It was a little traumatic for all of us...most especially for Mr. A. He was able to come home on Thursday which was a huge blessing as I was desperate to have him home with me. He was still in lots of pain and it was so hard seeing him so sad. He has such a sweet and bright smile and really his joy is just contagious to all those around him. The first few days were hard for everyone as he was just so unsure of everything and was just scared that something would happen to his arm again. Sunday he started coming around a little bit and by Monday morning when he woke up, he was just like his old self...smiling, happy, and ready for a new day. What a blessing that was for this Mommy's heart. This was especially true since we were going to have to leave all day to a conference on Character and he would be staying behind with my friend Megan, who is also the nurse, and his best friend Cheste (not his real name but Mr. A's nickname for him). He ended up having a great day and we did as well. I won't go into a lot of detail because my posts always seem to be rather long as it is...but feel free to check out Character First for more information.

The conference though was at a beautiful hotel here in Guatemala called the Vista Real. Hubby and I actually spent our first night in that hotel as husband and wife. It was a beautiful hotel then, and it still was Monday when we went back. But, if I am honest with you all, it was a little bit hard for me. I have really been having a battle of the mind lately as things just keep happening lately in our family...thankfully nothing earth shattering or even family shattering but there have been a lot of little things that have made the days a little bit longer and a little bit less joyful. As I was sitting in that beautiful hotel, I just kept thinking about how I longed for some carefree days for this family. Days of just pure bliss for my family of 4...days to enjoy one another and enjoy this wonderful life we get to share together. Lately, though, it seems we are just getting by...and I hate living a life of just getting by. There is way too much to be experienced and enjoyed to just scoot by. However, as the husband and wife team was sharing with us about character, the wife took out a tube of tooth paste. She started squeezing it in the middle and of course tooth paste started leaking out. She used it as an example of how our true character usually comes out when life seems to be squeezing in around us. It hit home. Also, as I was walking the other day, one of my favorite songs came on by Chris Tomlin, "The Way I was Made." I will post the lyrics at the end of this post for you to reflect on, but it resounded with me as I was walking and even though I have a terrible singing voice (even worse with ear phones in my ears), I started belting out the words...not caring who could hear.

Sometimes life isn't always fun honestly...sometimes things just seem to keep squeezing in around us when all we want is "normalcy." I know that I often long for days of just drinking lemonade on a porch swing with my hubby and watching the sun set over the horizon as my children laugh and play together in the yard. But, really, most of life is made up of moments and situations that are hard and sometimes exhausting. However, if one looks closely, he could still find those moments of beauty and serenity...knowing that he has a God who loves him and that he can trust with his whole heart....a God who is good and loves us. So, I will leave you with the lyrics to one of my favorite songs as well as some pictures I snapped in the midst of all the "pressure" of the last week. My children are so beautiful...and I am so blessed!

My sweet boy with a smile even as they wheeled him out of the hospital and another one of him showing that even with a cast he can still strut his stuff!

My sweet girl proves that even if you don't have hair, you can still have style! So precious!

I love how much my children love each other!



"The Way I Was Made"
by Chris Tomlin

Caught in the half-light, I'm caught alone
Waking up to the sunrise and the radio
Feels like I'm tied up, what's holding me?
Just praying today will be the day I go free

I want to live like there's no tomorrow
I want to dance like no one's around
I want to sing like nobody's listening
Before I lay my body down
I want to give like I have plenty
I want to love like I'm not afraid
I want to be the man I was meant to be
I want to be the way I was made

Made in Your likeness, made with Your hands
Made to discover who You are and who I am
All I've forgotten help me to find
All that You've promised let it be in my life