Brief Memorial Day Thoughts

For whatever reason, Memorial Day becomes more and more meaningful with every passing year. Long before 9/11, and long before Pat and I had friends constantly deployed, we were remembering, honoring and thanking those that have served and are currently serving. We don't need to look too far to think of those we are proud to know. Whether it be both of our fathers serving for over 25 years or our grandfathers serving in wars before them or the men and women who are currently enduring the heartache of separation from not only the family and friends, but the comforts of home that they so deeply miss. Yes, Memorial Day is a great reminder to set aside time to think, reflect and thank those that have gone before us to make our country what it is. So many take the time to highlight the flaws of our country without ever realizing how incredibly fortunate we are to be a part of it. As a woman, there is no other country in the world that I could have been born in that would provide me with the same rights and privileges. How blessed am I? I still remember Pat returning from Afghanistan and remarking for days how wonderful it was to be home. Not just home in Hawaii, not just home with the friends and family he loved, but home in our great country. There are so many who would give so much to live where we live and how we live with the freedom to worship or not, to vote or not, to be educated or not or to protest. It is a luxury to travel the world, to witness and experience other cultures, some struggling while others are thriving. But the greatest luxury of all, is to be able to return freely to the greatest country in the world, flawed albeit, but still overflowing with a mass of different ideals, goals, pursuits and people that represent the best and worst of mankind. How thankful I am to all of those who have made it possible for us to call this home.

The Mystery of Rice Cereal

Just imagine eating the same thing for 4 entire months with no vote in what it is. Now imagine you have to eat it 5-10 times a day, throughout the night, whenever you feel a tinge of hunger. I can't imagine being hungry and screaming and having the same meal again and again and again. I imagine there were some disappointments at first, craving and hoping for something different only to be offered the same boring thing over and over and over. If only it could be explained, if only you could be encouraged to hold on, it will get better. Finally, one day, you feel that hunger pain, you exercise your right as a baby and you wail (at least if your Georgia, you wail, there are no whimpers or subtle indications of hunger) and then you wait for that gourmet bottle you have come to expect, but then, without warning you are put in a bouncy seat with something fresh and clean secured around your neck (its never been used!) and you realize something is definitely different. Mom and Dad are beaming and video taping! What?? Could it be something new and fabulous...with TASTE??? In great anticipation, you scream louder thinking "get that new meal over here!" And so, they do, with great joy and an audience of 10 friends no less, sit down and start the process. You wait and hope and then, "what is this? a thicker version of what I've been sucking down day in and day out for 4 months." You protest, spitting it out the first few times only to realize it really isn't getting better and mom and dad really aren't willing to give up...afterall, there is an audience and they, too, have been counting the days until they can give this variation of sustenance...this feast. Ultimately, you decide, there are no other options on the horizon and therefore eat and eat and eat and occasionally chew on the spoon(perhaps contemplating how far you can fling the rice cereal)and Mom and Dad are convinced you love it and vow to make it part of your daily routine for several more months.

She Rolled Over!!

Okay, some parents just think that they have exceptionally advanced, smart, adorable, etc. babies. And then, there are those of us that just know. I don't mean to brag, but at just 3 months and 5 days, our little peach rolled over. Not just onto her tummy, but all the way over. Yep. She's brilliant. And cute and perfect and...so I digress. Anywho, I know this is a record, only 3 months! (if you know of another baby who has accomplished this feat, keep it to yourself). You may think I have an enthusiastic reaction, but based on Patrick's immediate response you would have thought she yelled, "I love you, Daddy" in a foreign language. He proceeded to call everyone we know, sent out an email marking the milestone and even broke out into some weird ranting of "she's so very advanced, yes she is, she's so very advanced..." Anyway, we briefly lost our minds and are back to reality, knowing that still the greatest milestone accomplished was her sleeping through the night...at 7 1/2 weeks. She's so very advanced.

Where Have We Been??

Okay, so I started the blog thing to help keep others posted on the everydays of P & K. I admit it, I stink. To give you some idea of just how terrible at this we really are, the everydays of P & K are now the everydays of P, K & G. Yes, that's right, in the time it has taken me to figure this out (ie, find time to do this), we have added to our family. Georgia Kate arrived on January 24th! So, that would account for the lack of blogging since then (still pretty weak sauce), but still doesn't account for the 3 months leading up to that...anyway, we are back. And by "we", I mean me...georgia hasn't figured out how to use the space bar with her thumbs and Patrick is swamped at work. We have recently had a steady stream of visitors to the bed & breakfast. We have learned that since the arrival of the world's cutest baby, we are now virtually non existent. We have had both grandmas, a couple of great friends from hawaii and most recently the "circle of love" visit (my 3 best friends from college...suz, aim and tersh). Another girlfriend,Heather, arrives tomorrow...we are busy, but thoroughly enjoying the guests. So, back to georgia...great name, huh? Everyone and by everyone I mean everyone who can't figure out why we would name our daughter georgia has asked if it is a family name. The answer is no. While we have some variations of the name on both sides of our family, neither of us remembered that at the time of her arrival. It happened to be the name we both liked the best that we agreed on. Of course, it is a family name now and we absolutely love it. And her of course. The whole parent adventure lends itself to infinite blog postings, but spare time is an infrequent luxury, so let me just say that I speak for both Patrick and I when I say it is unequivocally the greatest experience in both of our lives. We have never experienced mind numbing joy like this and thank God daily for bestowing on us the greatest gift we could ever imagine. We try and remain mindful that she belongs to Him first and foremost and has been entrusted to us. With that understanding, we are doing the best we can to be honorable stewards of His amazing gift. To say we adore her is like saying cold stone creamery is decent ice cream. It is beyond adoration. It is beyond anything I have ever known. We have yet to find the words to adequately convey how we feel for her. I will say that we love her with an entire part of our hearts we didn't know existed. It is so full, so content and in complete awe of her. God gives us so many illustrations of His perfect love for us, whether it be in the unconditional love of a parent, the adoring eyes and love of a spouse or the ultimate sacrifice of His perfect Son. I can say I have experienced so many illustrations of His love for us, but it wasn't until I held her in my arms that I was given the clearest picture yet. Holding her and gazing into her perfect eyes, I began to understand the overwhelming magnitude of His sacrifice. It is something I cannot wrap my brain around...His love for us being so great that He would let His Son endure what He did. Surely, the love of our Father is beyond what we can fathom, His endless grace beyond what we can imagine. Yes, He is good. He is perfect. He is holy. He is love. We are forever grateful.