Friends

 We all have them. I've had good friends, fair-weather friends,call you when I have nothing- better- to- do friends and true friends. It's the last type thats hard to find and even harder to hold on to. Not long ago I realized what a good friend is willing to do to be a friend. This friend went above and beyond the call of duty. She called in the troops and organized a plan of action to benefit me and my family. She took over my house, my cooking, my laundry and even my dogs. She made sure my WHOLE family was fed, cared for, loved, wearing clean clothes and had a welcoming shoulder to cry on. (And cry on it I did!) She lost sleep, she lost time, she even missed work for me.
Now some of you would ask "what kind of person does that?"
In the book of John scripture says this "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."
No my friend didn't die for me. But she did put her life on hold just to make sure i was OK.
So who have you been a friend to lately? I often think I cannot measure up to what MY friend did for me. What I DO hope is that I would recognize WHEN she needs me to go to bat for her.
She will start a new job this week, something I like to call an adventure. And I will be right there cheering her on and encouraging her at every turn. And IF just IF I can be half the encouragement she was to me just when I really needed it then I am willing and ready.
So I guess it's really up to us as to what kind of friend we are willing to be. I have a long way to go in that department. I'm not always the friend I should be.The good news is that there is always time to change that if your heart is willing. As I close out this post I have to thank that my precious friend for always loving me, protecting me, wanting the best for me and always being there for me. So...thank you Spammie. You are the Thelma of my Louise, the Ethel of my Lucy and one of the best gifts God EVER gave me. I love your guts!
Go call a friend, you won't be sorry. And that's what I've learned along the way....

Healing Time

In just a few short days we will come to somewhat of a "milestone" here.We will arrive at the date the twins SHOULD have been born. For most everyone else in the world it will be just another day. Not so much for us. It will be a day of sadness. We have been slowly trudging through the past 4 1/2 months. We laugh,we smile and most people probably think we are back to "normal".(Highly overrated state of mind) Normal will never be the same. As anyone who's  ever lost a loved one you know that you enter a "new kind of normal". Although we had the boys for only 9 or so hours they changed our lives forever. We choose to look for the blessings in their dying. Some days that is VERY hard to see. On other days it is blatantly obvious.
There will never be a more sobering memory for me than watching my daughter dress her babies to be buried. As she hugged and kissed them and handled them with the most gentle of care I held onto the TRUTH that this DOES NOT end HERE. My grandsons are resting peacefully in the arms of my Lord. I will see them again someday. And as silly as it sounds I am praying the Lord will see fit to have a very comfy rocker at the pearly gates for me to sit in for JUST a moment. I want those two boys to climb up in my lap and let me rock them for just a few minutes. I want to look at their faces and hug and kiss them. I want to sing to them and get down on the floor and play with them. I want to play with play-doh and ride bikes. I want to walk them on the beach (I know there HAS to be a beach in Heaven) and find shells and smell the ocean and watch them play in the sand.
Silly to you? That's ok. I've always been used to being thought of as a bit crazy. Still in all of this my Lord has proven faithful. He will get us through Anna's due date. And then He will get us through the next few months and years and time will go on and WE WILL BE OKAY. There will always be a place in our hearts for Tate and Liam. There will always be a sadness that they are not here to live life with us. But there will never be a doubt that the Lord will be glorified through their death.
So, as I close out this post I am hoping that SOMEONE reading it will see our hope. They will see how the Lord does allow life to "go on". They will see how maybe just maybe He can do the same for them. So for now...that's what I've learned along the way.

My VERY First Time

   So today I am starting out on an adventure. That's what I say when I take a wrong turn, try something new or just find myself in a new situation. I am entering the world of blogging. My neice does it and I love reading her posts. I am an avid fan of facebook and have been encouraged to try my hand at writing. Not sure what I have to offer but will see what happens. So here another "adventure" begins.