Occasionally

Spring is springing all around which means every day is one day closer to the June wedding we are anticipating. The mailman delivered the invitation this week. When I came in from work, it was lying on the
 dining
room table. I practically had to pinch myself to believe I was staring at an invitation to my Son's wedding. Barefoot and tussled haired is how I still see him in my mind. The days fly by, the seasons change and you have to embrace each day and every season that God has blessed you with. There were days I doubted, but the day has come when I now know that yes... He will wear shoes... Occasionally.

But obviously not today

The Quiet One

3 years and 2 days after the birth of my first child, we eagerly awaited the birth of our second child. This time around I wasn't leaving anything to happenstance, so I asked the doctor to induce labor on my due date. Things were so different when I was expecting my second child. I had to make arrangements for my Mom to be here to help with my daughter, and I felt like everything had to fit into everyone else's schedule... So being induced seem the most logical thing (Ha!). While the nurse got me settled in, my husband goes down to the gift shop to get some magazines and maybe something to eat. When he comes back, the drip is going, I'm hooked up to all of the monitors and everything looks like a go for the launch sequence to begin. Since the birth of my daughter went so smoothly and quick, I'm expecting the same will be true for this birth as well..... After all, I'm a pro now. My husband was way more relaxed this time around as well. In fact he may have been just a tad bit cocky about the whole thing since he survived the last birth with no physical injuries. He sat over in the chair next to my bed flipping through his magazines when the contractions began. When a contraction would come along, he'd watch the monitor, then casually go back to his reading. It didn't take long before the contractions started to hurt. It all started coming back to me about this point..... Somehow over the last three years I had forgotten that labor feels like someone has a vice grip around your middle and they are trying to squeeze you till your head pops off. I'm starting to get, well.. to get a little pissed off at this point. Hubby's over there reading his magazine like a king on his throne while I'm having the ever loving guts squeezed out of me!!! He is being way to calm about this and I'm just about ready to tell him just where he can put those friggin magazines when the nurse runs (and I do mean run)into my room. Her eyes are wide as she grabs the oxygen mask and slaps it on my face and tells me to breath deep. She throws the head of the bed all the way down and jacks the foot of the bed all the way up and runs out of the room only to run back into the room bringing more people with her. She seems a little frantic which is kind of freaking me out and she tells my husband the baby is in distress and they are going to do an emergency c-section. The anesthesiologist comes and with great urgency grills my husband about how many ice chips I had so far... hmmm, guess someone should have been paying closer attention. In what seems like a matter of seconds we went from calm and collected to praying desperately for our baby's life. Before I knew it I was in the surgery room as the lights began to fade and all I could think about was if my baby would make it....   I just have one question.... Why the heck do nurses scream at you when you are waking up from surgery. There you are in this nice dark place feeling so cozy and carefree and they walk over to your bed and is it my imagination, or do they say in the loudest possible voice.... MRS. PATTERSON!!!!! YOU NEED TO WAKE UP!!!!! YOU HAVE A BEAUTIFUL BABY BOY!!!! MRS. PATTERSON, MRS. PATTERSON!!! (When I get out of this fog I'm going to give that nurse a wake-up call!) Then I hear the sweet voice of my husband whisper... Jac, we have a boy. Wake up Jac, we have a boy. My eyes didn't seem to want to cooperate with me, neither did my voice, but I just had to know.... I had to know now..... "Is the baby ok? Is he going to be ok?" I vaguely remember being able to see my husband through hazy eyes as he held my son over for me to see for myself that he was Perfect.Perfect little fingers, perfect little toes and a perfect button nose. The next day I'm laying in the hospital bed watching my perfect little boy sleep soundly in the bassinet next to my bed. My husband comes in and asked "How is he doing?" I look up at him with a dreamy unknowing in my eyes and say something that he has never let me forget.... "He's going to be our quiet one."

My Little Ball Of Fire

I look at my children and wonder how on earth they turned out so amazing. It certainly has to be a God Thang(misspelled on purpose). My prayer for my kids has always been "Lord help them be everything you created them to be". I'll admit that although Motherhood is a struggle sometimes (especially in those early years), it certainly has it's payoffs when you see them grow into amazing adults right before your very eyes.

When my oldest son was small he had A LOT of energy!!!!! He was maybe a little hyper, but really it was more like a force field of energy that surrounded his whole being. This force field surrounded him even in his sleep. He would go and go and go until he literally passed out from sheer exhaustion. Wherever he passed out, that is where he stayed because I in no way, shape, or form took any chances of waking the little bugger up. Whether it was in the middle of summer or in the dead of winter he would roll (and I do mean roll) himself up in a sleeping bag and pass out under the dining room table, in the middle of the floor, or under the coffee table. He never really slept in his bed until around high school age. He was just his own little person. When he was in 2nd grade his teacher pretty much insisted we have him tested for ADHD.... and he tested absolutely positive for it in every way, shape, and form. He has always had the happiest disposition and that was something I really wanted him to keep which lead to the decision to put him on medication so school would be a little easier....hmmm for his teachers. I didn't want his little spirit broken because of always being fussed at or getting in trouble, and although it had it's side effects the medication really did help him especially through his elementary years. Now as an adult he simply amazes me. He still has the best disposition of anyone I have ever known. He still has an energy field surrounding him, although it's not as pronounced now as it was when he was little. But the most amazing thing about him as an adult is his wisdom. He has a God given wisdom about life that surpasses anything I could have taught him as a child. The way he lives his life, the way he plans his steps, the people he chooses to surround himself with and the forethought that he puts into his relationships is nothing more than a spiritual gifting of unusual proportion. Life to him is one big adventure! Every obstacle is absolutely looked at as a new opportunity to beat the odds in a new and creative way. He has adventure in his blood and truly believes life is best lived to it's fullest and best when lived in the fullness of Christ. I guarantee you that you will never laugh more than when around him and his friends.... The are just a hoot to be with and they carry joy with them wherever they go. When I look at him I can't help but remember when I carried him in my womb. My Mother was so terrified that he would be a boy because she just believed boys were hard to handle. One day after talking to her on the phone I sat on the bed with my hands on my bulging belly and I heard this small sweet voice tell me that this would be a very special child... That the one who formed him in my womb and knew him before he was born had very special plans for this little guy and I had nothing to worry about. To this day I still remember the peace that poured over my spirit like a healing oil. So even though I shouldn't be, every day I am still amazed at the things God is not only doing in him, but also through him. He lives a life poured out. What more could a Mother ask for?