A Beautiful December Thursday!

Good Afternoon Everyone!  What a blessed day it is in North Texas!  The sun is out and the air is crisp.  What a great day to be alive and celebrate the birth of my son 36 years ago.  I just called him and left a message on his voice mail ... I call my children on the day, hour and minute they poked their little heads out into this world.  This mom was sooo excited to greet them!

I don't know about yours, but my children love to hear about their stories of when they were born and photos are treasured keepsakes measuring growth and milestones.  They were wanted, prayed for and cherished from the moment of conception!

My son has an unusual story.  His father and I had two daughters without much "trying" ... however, when we decided that a third child would be a wonderful addition to our family, Mother Nature wasn't cooperating.   We met with my doctor who prescribed Clomid and prepared us for the possibility of multiple births.  We followed doctor's orders exactly and were so lucky to conceive on the first go around.  My daughters were with me when the doctor confirmed the pregnancy and by 5 that evening everyone on the street where we lived knew that they were going to have a baby brother or sister.  Believe me...it was a long nine months!!

This pregnancy was different than my previous two ... about six weeks into the pregnancy, I was cooking dinner and started bleeding.  My neighbor took me to the hospital where the doctor gave me the grave news ... I had less than a 50% chance of keeping this baby.  He also said that if the baby died, it probably meant that there was a reason.  My baby fought for his life and I prayed that he would be okay in every way.  I only gained 15 pounds but I looked like I was carrying three babies not just one.  Close to the end of my pregnancy, I started bleeding again and the doctor decided to induce labor.  We had three Christmas parties to attend the weekend before and I was the butt of many a joke.  I didn't need a tray.  I could put my plate quite easily on my tummy and have at it!!

We arrived at the hospital and things proceeded quite normally.  At that time, the nurses took bets on whether the baby was a boy or girl ... odds were that I was having another girl which was okay with me.  I was given an epidural and from there things went downhill quite quickly.   The nurses were slapping my face and telling me to open my eyes ... there were bright lights and they were drawing me to them.  I heard a voice saying it wasn't time ...  My doctor was trying to talk with me and I couldn't focus.  I was being placed on a gurney and being taken to surgery.  I remember two nurses getting up on each side of me and hearing the doctor saying, this baby and mom are in trouble, work fast!!

I woke up around 6 that evening in a panic.  My tummy was flat but where was my baby?  I rang for the nurse and she assured me that my "son" was fine.  I wanted to see my baby and they did bring him in for a short while ... I undressed him and checked him over from head to toe.  He was beautiful ... he was almost 7+ pounds with dark hair and blue eyes.  This was the child we had hoped for ... the child I prayed for ...  It was almost Christmas and there was celebrating to be done!!

We stayed in the hospital for a week and then came home to some pretty excited little girls and a houseful of friends.  Tommy was bundled up in a red Christmas stocking and the girls wondered if Santa had dropped him off at the hospital.  The girls put him in their doll buggy and pushed him around the house.  I would anticipate his cries at night and rock him for hours thanking God for this little boy he placed in our home and in my heart. 

My son struggled as an infant ... pneumonia at 5 weeks, chicken pox at 4 months, hospitalized at 10 months with cellulitis...  But, there was just something about this little guy that made people smile and gravitate towards him.  The doctor he had at 10 months, set a broken bone when he was a teenager and would you believe ... he remembered Tommy and that he had taken his wife to meet him at Childrens Hospital.  At 4, we discovered that he had no depth perception and needed glasses.  It was so funny ... the moment he put his glasses on, he refused to take them off.  HE COULD SEE!!  The eye doctor said he would always have trouble with depth perception especially with driving, playing spots, etc.  But, you know what?  He learned to compensate and he became the star goalie on his soccer team, the receiver on the football team ... he was amazing to watch because he would take time to eye the ball then once he got it, he really got it!!  He wasn't just an okay player, he was an excellent player!  Driving?  Well, let's just say that he went through a lot of tires going around corners!!

Tommy has always had such a warm caring spirit and the strength of a warrior.  Like most teenaged boys,  he had a way of getting himself into some situations that warranted some discipline.  Yet, one thing that I have always liked about him is his sense of responsibility and determination!  In high school he did a term paper on family and it was published in the local newspaper.  He was a child whose parents were divorced yet he looked at that time as one of growth and knowing what he wanted in life ... a home, wife, 5 children, a good job that he enjoyed.  He was stubborn and deep in his thinking...  Adversity is a spring board to new opportunities in his book!

My son, like me, has had some struggles in life but I am happy to report that he is facing his dragons head on and doing what he needs to do.  Today, Tommy is married and has two sons of his own.  He's a man who loves the Lord and who wants to do the right thing in life.  He has been and always will be wise beyond his years and I admire that about him.  He is his own person ... still a little on the shy side but always first to offer a ready smile.

Yesterday, I found two long lost cousins on Facebook, Gary and Jim.  My cousin, Jim, lost his 36 year old son in Afghanistan last year.  My heart goes out to him.  A reminder for all of us to keep that love line going and make each day count.  Greg left a 4 year old son, Jack.  It is so sad to me that my father's family was so close for so many years and since my grandmother's passing, we've simply lost touch.

Today, I read 1 Peter 1-5.  It was very appropriate reading for today.  There are no roses without thorns and no victories without battles.   Pain has a way of shaping and refining us, no doubt!

Toby loved a walk in the Winter Garden this morning!

The countdown continues to Christmas ... "...the mercy of our God is very tender, and heaven's dawn is about to break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and death's shadow, and to guide us to the path of peace." ~~ Luke 1:77-79

Always remember you are loved and prayed for ... YA YOU!!