Our Miracle: December 2008

Saturday, December 27, 2008

The Best Christmas Ever

Yes, it was...the best ever! I wish I could go back and relive everything again. Christmas Eve we went to church at 3 with my Mom and Dad, and then returned to their place for dinner. The 23rd was Frances' friend, Mallory, birthday, but we were able to stop by for cake and ice cream later Christmas Eve. Frances was exhausted by the time we got her home and went down in a blink of an eye. Santa came, and boy did he do a great job this Christmas. Frances was amazed by everything...played with it all...and loved every minute of it. The Elmo live was a bit scary to her, but she's gradually getting used to it. She has taken to a stuffed animal that's a puppy black lab...like our Fiona. She won't let go of it! She carries it around and loves on it all day. We spent time with our families and enjoyed watching our Frances take it all in. We even incorporated some Russian customs into our holiday, which will now become part of our Christmas tradition.Oh, it was wonderful! I have to pinch myself to know that having Frances here with us is real. It's finally happened!

Monday, December 15, 2008

Our first Christmas!

I can recall a Wine, Women, and Wonder Bible study ( notice the wine comes first) around this time last year. We were talking about the advent season, the anticipation, the waiting...We closed our eyes and listened to Dana (our Assoc. rector) recite some beautiful readings. Dana eventually asked my thoughts about being a Mom in Waiting and connecting it to the readings. This time last year, my thoughts were that even though I was not with my baby, that our baby was so far away, unable to see them, unable to connect to them; I knew that God was tending to her in preparation of when we could finally be together. I had to rest my fear and doubts, and take time to send thoughts of love to this baby I had yet to meet. Well, one year later...that baby is right here with me...celebrating this magnificent season together. I know exactly what anxiously awaiting means...with the doubts and anger that can sometimes accompany the wait. But now, I look at our little girl and am amazed! Miracles do happen!
Charles and I are so beside our self to celebrate our first Christmas with Frances. Our baby is finally with us..that's all that we ever wanted!

The Things We've Handed Down, by Marc Cohn

Don't know much about you Don't know who you are We've been doing fine without you But we could only go so far Don't know why you chose us Were you watching from above Is there someone there that knows us Said we'd give you all our love Will you laugh just like your mother Will you sigh like your old man Will some things skip a generation Like I've heard they often can Are you a poet or a dancer A devil or a clown Or a strange new combination of The things we've handed down I wonder who you'll look like Will your hair fall down and curl Will you be a mama's boy Or daddy's little girl Will you be a sad reminder Of what's been lost along the way Maybe you can help me find her In the things you do and say And these things that we have given you They are not so easily found But you can thank us later For the things we've handed down You may not always be so grateful For the way that you were made Some feature of your father's That you'd gladly sell or trade And one day you may look at us And say that you were cursed But over time that line has been Extremely well rehearsed By our fathers, and their fathers In some old and distant town From places no one here remembers Come the things we've handed down