It seems lately that I have the start of several really good blogs, but then can’t manage to make them last. So, in an attempt to rid myself of bloggerblock, I just figured I’d through together a random post of all the things I’ve been thinking.

– Last night Jonathan and I went to see Marley & Me. Seriously, this is one of my new favorite movies. Granted I cried through the last half, it was still so sweet and reminded me a lot of my two puppies. Oddly enough, I really thought that I would be more sad because of Judah, but it turned out to pull at my heart strings with Jack and Mabel. See, I find in Mabel the same enthusiasm, the same love, for Jack that I had for Judah. So, when Marley passes away and the oldest son mourns his loss, I saw what life will be like for Mabs when Jack passes on. I know that it’s inevitable, that all living creatures die, but it doesn’t make it any less painful, any less sad. But, I take comfort in knowing that her life will have been forever changed because of Jack.

– I’ve started to feel Dubya Dos pretty regularly now. I’d say at least twice a day, if I sit still for a few minutes, I get a few jabs and kicks. This is by far my favorite part of pregnancy. However, I’ve become increasingly less comfortable at night and have started sleeping with a gazillon pillows – which makes me thankful (or maybe it makes Jonathan thankful) that we upgraded to a king size bed last summer. 

– God’s been dealing with me on some personal issues. I guess you could say I’m being refined by the fire. Some of it seems easy enough, but there are some deeper tougher issues that I’d like to just ignore… forever. Alas, it doesn’t work that way, and I find myself daily being challenged to surrender my thoughts/feelings over to Him in order to gain truth. It’s like eating something healthy that you don’t like – you know it’s good for you, you just don’t like doing it. 

– My sister-in-law and I had a conversation this past week about motherhood. More specifically about joy in motherhood. I find that often I can say and act like being a stay at home mom is this sacrificial act. Now, don’t get me wrong, it is, but it’s also a privilege. I don’t think I stress that last part enough. God has given me the ability to bare a child, to stay at home in order to be her primary caregiver. That’s pretty much amazing. My heart, my attitude, my demeanor needs to reflect that more. In Marley & Me, Jennifer Aniston’s character gives up her job to stay at home with her children. In one scene she’s at her breaking point; everything is going wrong, her youngest has colic and she’s ready to give up. But then she says something that hit me: She made a choice. She chose to stay at home, she chose to leave behind her career for her family. And while it was harder than she ever imagined it would be, she still signed up for the job, and if she could do it all over again, she’d still pick her kids. Amen sista!

– I think I’m ready for spring. I love the winter, but I’m at a point where it sure would be nice to take Julia to the park and enjoy sitting in the warm sunshine.