Luke, right after birth on 1.7.11, hooked up to CPAP and monitors
Amelia, who weighted 3lbs, 9oz, right after birth
Luke, one year later ... thriving!
Miss Amelia, happy baby girl who is about to turn ONE!
In just a few days, Luke and Amelia will celebrate their first birthday. That is amazing to me for so many reasons. The last year of life has taught me more than any other about joy, love, patience, perseverance, pride, forgiveness and grace. Who knew that a 3lb and a 4lb babies could teach their mama all those things. Parenting has stretched and challenged me more than anything I've done in my life up to this point. It is constant and it is exhausting -- their needs are around the clock, seven days a week. It is also deeply and profoundly rewarding and fills me with such joy. Whenever we learn to put someone else above ourselves it is both a painful and beautiful process. This year has taught me a lot about being okay with living in the space between ideals and reality. Ideally I would have been able to bring my babies home from the hospital when we went, but by the time we got there I realized just how thankful I should be that they were healthy, period. Ideally I would have still been breastfeeding (I still feel guilt about this) but in reality, my babies got the benefits of breast milk for six months and that was the best that I could do for them at that time. Parenting means that you do the very best you can and pray for grace when you fall short (which I find is very often!). I've learned that it is possible to feel guilty about all sorts of things -- mama guilt is for real! Guilt that my babies don't get enough one-on-one time, guilt that they were born too early ... but there is tremendous freedom in grace -- in undeserved blessings.
Luke and Amelia -- Happy First Birthday! You are absolutely blessings to us -- gifts of grace from God for whom we are overwhelmingly thankful. You bring such joy to our home and we are so excited to get to see who you will become. Love, Mom and Dad
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