Birthday Pie this Thanksgiving Eve

Is this a Thanksgiving pie?  No... and Yes.  It was my birthday pie in September.  I often prefer pie over cake to celebrate my birthday. Following the lead of my 2.5 year old, it transformed from birthday pie into a pie of thanksgiving in a moment of Holiness. ("And a little child shall lead them.")

How fitting, as my little child loves to pretend with magic wands and poof one thing into another thing, transforming the first thing into a second, more awe inspiring thing.  

With delight, and with the help of her Daddy, she placed a birthday pie in front of me.  I took a deep breath, ready to blow out my candles, then paused... "Ummm, I don't know what to wish for!" I said dramatically, for her sake, yet sincerely asking the question in my own heart.  I continued aloud, "In recent years I wished for Samantha. Then I wished for Annabelle.  But I have both Samantha and Annabelle now and I don't know what to wish for now..."  A loaded silence filled the room, Chris, Kellie and Bryce, all witnesses to this scene.

Samantha stared at me thoughtfully for a minute. Then, with an air of sweetness and confidence that only a child can possess, she said, "You have to say thank you."

Jaws all around the room fell open.  Kellie sucked in the dramatic intake of breath representing the awe everyone felt.

I paused for a moment, my flesh struggling for only an instant.  "Do I give up my only opportunity all year to choose one important request in the presence of Whoever makes birthday wishes come true?" I silently asked my heart.  In the next instant, I smiled, the answer peaceful, obvious and wonderful, filling my soul.  "Yes, I said aloud, "My wish, this year, is to simply say Thank You."

And I blew out the candles.

The candle of  want:  GONE... "the Lord is my Shepard, I shall not want."

The candle of  worry:  GONE... "He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside quiet waters." ("Be still and know that I am God.")

The candle of  work:  GONE... "He restores my soul.  He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake."  

The candle of  fear:  GONE... "Yes, even though I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.  Your rod and staff, they comfort me. 

The candle of  hunger, sickness and thirst:  GONE... "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  You anoint my head with oil.  My cup runs over."

The guiding light of all five candles, gone cold.  Warm darkness envelopes. 

The New Candle, visible only to the Eye of my Soul, comes into focus.  This eye opens, awakens, welcoming my 37th year of life.

Thanksgiving for Christmas - thinking outside the box

No one wants sickness right before Christmas. Especially not the real and actual flu. And especially not in a toddler. Yes, today my two year old tested positive for the real and actual Influenza virus. We often throw the word flu around anytime we have a cold and body aches and don't know the name of the exact bug we've caught. Most cold viruses are not super dangerous, but the Flu can be life threatening, especially in children and the elderly.

Today I am giving thanks for our current medical system. I'm giving thanks for our ability to look into a drop of blood, or a swab of mucus, and read critical data. Hundreds of years ago we did not know the difference between the common cold and the Flu and we didn't have a specific medicine for the Flu. Now we do, and if it's given within the first 48 hours, it can save lives.  I'm also giving thanks for the Mommy gut instinct God gave every Mommy. It is often confused with Mommy FEAR, our other, not-so-good, tendency. I often doubt myself, unsure of the difference. But today I am thankful that I got it right. I normally wait the recommended 3 days, when a fever shows up, before taking my baby to the doctor. Sickness strengthens the immune system and I don't want to throw medicine at her every time she is sick. But today something felt wrong. And as it turns out, I was right. If I'd waited the usual three days, there would have been no medicine to help her win this fight.

This reminds me that there is no black and white answer to rely on for every single circumstance. There are always exceptions to the rules we live by.  I am reminded how dependent we are on Divine Wisdom to guide us.

As Mom's, we are especially prone to grasp for formula's to make us feel safe. And for good reason. We love our children more than anything in the world and will do anything for them. There are many blogs out there, and Mom's on playgrounds, with loud voices, telling us how to raise our kids, giving us only one rigid view on anything we might encounter as a parent.  I like to think of myself as independent, strong minded, and confident. But I'm not above getting stressed out by the comments of another Mom on the playground.  So today I want to remind all of us that rules-of-thumb are fantastic on most days, but let's relax and be free of the harsh sensation that there is always only one right way to do things, whether it's diet, potty training, discipline...you name it.  Let's remember to look upward, to the One who is leading us, and follow our gut in an unusual direction if that is the way He leads us.  We have all heard that some children don't follow the usual pattern and every situation is different. This principle does not just apply to Moms. LIFE rarely follows the same pattern every time. Let's be ready to think outside the box.  

Let's be ready to think outside the box even when thinking about "the perfect Christmas."

No one wants sickness right before Christmas. Especially not the Flu. But I am giving thanks for the silver lining.  I've spent a lot more time this year, than any other year, staring at the beautiful lights on my tree while I hold my baby. Which leads me to give thanks for a busy toddler who is actually snuggling me in the middle of the day. What better Christmas could I have?

Small Thanksgivings - A Delight All It's Own

Scattered all across this land today, my family is celebrating Thanksgiving together in spirit, but not in body.  Gatherings of 20-30 persons, that we all love so much, are dwindled to smaller numbers when life circumstances keep us from traveling.  This year it was going to be 8 of us at my house, but then strep throat struck and our number dwindled down to 4, including the toddler.
But there's actually something special about a Thanksgiving gathering of 4.  After all, "where two or three are gathered..."

An Alabama Snow Story

It was another unusually cold morning in Alabama.  I'm not in the habit of checking the weather every day, so I had no idea what was coming.  We were spending an hour in the bathtub, steamy, cozy and snug, far away from the chilly drafts of the living room when we got a text from her Daddy. 

"It's snowing," he announced.  I ran out of the bathroom to look out the window.  Oh man!  I just put her in the bathtub for her turn. (We were taking turns.)  "I hope it's still snowing when she's done with her bath," I thought.  Little did I know, we had plenty of time.

View from my bedroom window

She enjoyed her bath and 30 minutes later I bundled her up to introduce her to snow for the second time. (Thanksgiving in the Virginia mountains was her first taste of snow.) 

It was so exciting as we walked outside to check it out.  We didn't think we would see snow in Alabama this year.

Our hands got super cold, super fast, so I reluctantly took her back inside.  We ate maple syrup on snow and slowly began to piece together bits of news.  The weather forecast had been wrong.  This storm was expected to hit southern Alabama. School was cancelled down there and Northern Alabama sent their few snow clearing trucks down south to help out.  Little did they know, we'd be in dire need up here.  As the morning progressed it became obvious how icy it was becoming. Schools let out and families tried to reunite, many without success.  The fortunate children spent the night at school and day care, warm and cared for by teachers, while parents spent the night on the floor at work. The unfortunate ones spent 9, 16 or 24 hours on the road, just trying to drive a few miles.  Roads were clogged by stand still traffic, accidents and cars slipping and sliding into one another. Even the best snow drivers in America couldn't drive on this rare sheet of ice. Many were forced to abandon vehicles and seek the nearest shelter.

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The view turned whiter as the day progressed.  Husband/Daddy made it home safely at noon.  He works only a mile away with no steep hills to travel and has a four wheel drive truck.  No trouble for us.  

Indeed, this sort of trouble with two inches of snow is a foreign concept to us.  We both grew up driving in deep New England snow, the sound of massive snow plow trucks never far away, constantly clearing the way, wherever we wanted to go.

Late in the afternoon, after nap time, we headed back outside to play in the snow, this time with several extra layers and mittens.

I've never been so thankful for my warm house, and family in it with me, as I was these last two days.  As I write, temperature is rising, snow and ice are thawing and stranded motorists make their way back to cars to untangle the roads, no doubt looking forward to stepping foot inside their homes again, never more grateful for the warm shower coming to them this afternoon.

Another Child - Another Birthday Celebration

Here in our home, the glow of Samantha's first birthday still lingers as we prepare to celebrate another birthday and another child, the Child Who's presence brings Joy not only to His parents, but to the world, to all who have eyes and hearts open to see His significance.

And again, I find myself hoping God looks down and finds two hearts overflowing with gratitude for the Child He sent into our lives, His own Son sent with Love from His Family to ours, to give the greatest gift and make the greatest sacrifice of Love the world has ever known. 

I hope He finds us full of Gratitude and Peace.