The 26th

Seven months ago today, I went in to have a relatively routine surgery (except that I was 18 weeks pregnant).  As most of you readers know, things did not go "routine."  I delivered a beautiful baby girl named Norah Rose at only 18 weeks gestation and the last 7 months of my life have been such a blur.  At times the days have seemed to drag on and on, and today as I type this I can't believe how quickly the time has gone.  I keep wondering how long I will calculate these milestones in my head....for years and years?  Will I always stop in my tracks when I see the 26th come up on the calendar?

It just so happens that this week is Vacation Bible School at our church, and I am helping teach the music to the 173 (yes, that is right 173!!!) kids that have come to learn a little more about Jesus.  Whew....I am exhausted!  I forgot what it was like to teach a full load with no breaks.  The funny thing is, I totally didn't even think that today was the 26th because of how busy the week has been until a dear friend texted me this morning.  Tomorrow she celebrates a year since her son Barrett went to be with Jesus.  It is funny how God orchestrates all these little details of our lives, if for nothing else to just make it bearable to get through each day.  These dates will forever be engrained in our brains. 

I am not sure I even had an expectation of how I would be doing at the 7 month mark.  These last few weeks have been pretty hard on me emotionally.  Maybe I thought I would already be pregnant again, but that is not the case.  But I have been blessed this week with 173 kids all of whom are excited to be learning about Jesus!  I myself am reminded how I can use a little more of the fruits of the spirit--love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.

I was cleaning out my bag today and found the "sketch" the lady at the monument place drew to help me put my vision for Norah's headstone to paper.  Greg went to the cemetery over the weekend and said he felt like he was shopping for ideas by looking at all the other headstones.  I know this is a big step for us to get this ordered.  Just seeing her name spelled out makes me hurt that she is not with us right now.