It's Simple. Be Kind

“The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new.” - Osho In my younger years, I was never really the type of woman that wanted to have children. I was never good with babies and I sure as heck didn’t like to baby sit! They cried too much! They made me nervous. But, when we had our son, things changed. He became my world... and my world became brighter. God never surprises me; He knows exactly what we need... and when we need it. I cannot thank him enough.      I’ll never forget - after 17 hours of labor and three hours of pushing - our perfect little baby boy entered the world. They placed him on my chest and what happened next, my husband and I will never forget. He actually lifted his head, looked at his daddy, looked at me, and then snuggled back down and fell asleep. I will never forget that moment as long as I live. It was s...

"It is understood that the beauty of a rainbow does not negate the ravages of the storm; when a rainbow appears, it does not mean that the storm did not happen or that we are not still dealing with its aftermath. It means that something beautiful and full of light has appeared in the midst of the darkness and clouds. Storm clouds may still hover, but the rainbow provides counterbalance or color, energy and hope." *** We didn't know a head ultrasound was on her agenda for the day. But we were used to all the hospital visitors from all different parts of the hospital coming and going, taking the samples they needed from her, not to be seen again. So it wasn't alarming to us they were going to come in for a head ultrasound (U/S). Poor thing was only 7 days old- but it was just one more thing to check off our list. The whole scan lasted about 15 mins in total and that was it. She barely even woke up for it. Easy and done.   It was early morning an...

I don't think anything can prepare you for seeing your tiny angel laying in a plastic bassinet connected to an unlimited amount of wires and cords...I hated those cords. I hated the noises the machines made. I hated all the sounds of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). I hated the fact that I had to ask a stranger for permission to hold my beautiful baby girl. I hated that I was scared to hold her. To this day, I still hate seeing the nursing bottles I had to take back and forth from the hospital to our home. I can't even stand to see the "kangaroo care" shirt that I wore to "bond" with my baby. I hated seeing the NICU phone number pop up on my screen when I wasn't there. I hated that I couldn't be there as much as I wanted to be. But... my daughter is ALIVE because of the NICU.  The NICU is one of the most horrible and beautiful places I have ever been. There is no doubt in my mind that God lives in the NICU... and the nurses are ...

It's easy to be a happy person and give praise to God when things are going great in your life. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping. Nordstrom is having 40% off of EVERYTHING!! Things fall perfectly into place for you- "Thank you God for such a beautiful, easy time. Whoo hoo! My. Life. Is. AWESOMEEEE!!" Then... the clouds start to slowly roll in. It gets a little bit colder and darker. People run away and scatter to take cover. Your storm arrives. There you are smack dab in the middle of a terrible storm getting soaking wet. Things that always came easy to you are a little bit harder in the rain. It takes so much effort to just smile..to be happy...to laugh. To be the amazing mom you were just a few days earlier. The anxiety and not knowing when or if the sun will ever come out is enough to send you into a dark place of despair.  It's in these times we have to make a choice. We can allow ourselves to be swept away by the strong winds or we can anchor ourselves...

"Be still, and know that I am God."  - Psalm 46:10 Well, here we are. Almost a year later! And I'm back!! Not much has changed...except for everything! It's been quite a journey this past year- one that I would like to share...not because I have it all figured out - not even close, but more because if me talking about our journey helps just one person- even if it's myself, then it's all worth it! I guess I will start from the beginning. Our lives are full of choices, thousands of them from the time we wake up, to the time we go to sleep, and then we do it all over again the next day.  For the most part I would say that I am someone who chooses to look at the bright side of things. I choose to be happy. I choose to celebrate life and all it's beautiful chaos. I may take the long route sometimes, but eventually I end up there. I believe happiness is a choice...and we all have that option. But what happens when things in our lives are chosen for...

Some people will never let you grow, or allow themselves to recognize your evolution or progress. It seems like it’s in our DNA to be suspicious or skeptical of people. If they are nice- "Hmm I wonder what they want." If they are kind- "Well, they must want a favor in return." Sometimes our tendency is to see the faults in others first, maybe to feel better about what's going on in our lives, or because they have what we want. Or maybe because that is the way we have always been. But ask yourself this: Would you want to be labeled the way we may label others? Would you want all of your motives questioned all the time? It all goes back to the golden rule: treat others the way you want to be treated. We've all made mistakes.  We all learn from our mistakes. Even though it may be hard to see past someone who has done you wrong, I think that all goes along with creating an atmosphere of kindness and empathy. It's about changing the way we have be...