Preparation

Hi little one. I miss you so! Are you having lots of fun with your friends up there? Are you getting excited for your birthday next weekend? I bet you are. You are after all my son, and I get REALLY excited for my birthday! I would expect nothing less from you!

Next week is going to be a week of major preparations. I think it will probably fly by as a result. The funny thing about all of those preparations is that last weekend at church, Preparation was the title of the sermon. It was a really good one for me to hear and it helped me get my head on a little straighter which is always a good thing.

There were seven points that our pastor made about preparation and I’m probably going to really screw them up and oversimplify them but here goes nothin’!

When we prepare for anything in life, whether it’s something in our spiritual walk or our day-to-day lives we need to prepare to be:

Amazed
Challenged
Empowered (by God)
Stretched
Enriched (Shown how to have more gratitude)
Mystified (We will learn not so much about the answers to our “whys” but rather on the “what’s next” and that we need to look for guidance as we go.)
Adventure

So there you have it! That sounds a LOT like my life has been over the past year. Every single one of those things I have felt at some point in time or simultaneously with others. And hearing that sermon as we prepare for your birthday and the birth of your little sister was perfect timing.

This week I have been concentrating on preparing for a few things. I have made plans to have a pedicure and a massage next week so I can get some “me” time in before your sister arrives. I have also been working with a friend from church on our mission in your name. I am really excited about it and we are going to present it to the congregation on your birthday. I’ll be sure to tell you all about how it goes and what’s behind all of it! I’ve packed pretty much everything for our hospital trip and prepared your little sister’s nursery this week too. I’m planning on installing car seats this weekend. Everything is falling into place and I can’t believe she’ll actually be here in less than two weeks.

Next week, besides the “me” things I have planned I will be getting everything ready for your birthday party. It’s going to be a lot of fun and I am looking very forward to celebrating you. That reminds me, I need to call about getting enough balloons for your balloon release!

Well Carter, I suppose I should get some more things done at work in preparation for my coming departure. ;- ) I was pretty excited earlier this week when I actually got through all of my work files so I could update my co-workers on the projects. That may sound simple, but that was the last thing I did at work before we found out we had lost you, so getting the nerve to take that step was HUGE for your mommy. And then when I got up the next morning and your sister was moving around like crazy in there, it was a big relief.

All in all I’m in a pretty good place again. I told a friend of mine just the other day that I think I'm living in a world where I've completely sheltered myself from a lot of the reality of it all, but that's ok by me! I’m not able to really feel excited about your sister coming, but I’m not freaked out by it either and I’m very grateful for that. So, day-by-day I’ll get through these next couple of weeks of not just big, but HUGE events – your birthday and Abby’s arrival. With lots of prayers, deep breaths, love and patience, I’ll make it!

I love you, Carter. Talk to you again soon!