What to Expect...

It was October of 2005.  I had finally convinced Max  We had decided that we were ready to start our little family. We were both so excited and on a random trip to Walmart to buy groceries I immediately found myself in the baby aisle. Dreaming away. Soon, soon I would be shopping in the aisle frequently. Getting a nursery ready. My heart was racing. And then I saw the book that I had skimmed through repeatedly over the years at the homes of all of the families whose children I had taken care of..."What to Expect When You're Expecting". I grabbed that book and threw it in the cart. I mean, I was going to be needing it soon enough anyway! And when we got home I dove right into it. Preparing myself, so I would know just what to expect.

Fast forward 7 years to March of 2012. When the most beautiful, perfect baby boy ever imaginable was placed in my arms.

Nothing on this Earth could have prepared me for what that moment was going to be like. It was beautiful, took my breath away, seemed unreal, hurt my heart, and a million other emotions. And then there was the journey to get to that point. I was definitely not prepared for that! Now believe me there are a plethora of books on adoption, infertility, and every other subject imaginable available. And yes they are full of good information. But even if I had known back in October of 2005 that it was going to be a long journey to parenthood and had read every book to prepare myself I wouldn't have ever really known "what to expect". I am a unique individual and things will affect me in ways that wouldn't affect you at all. That is the beauty of us all being fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14)
And can you believe, I wouldn't change a thing? I love the way God uses the situations and problems in our lives to change us and glorify him. How amazing and beautiful. Bad things happen in life. We go through rough times. God didn't make those things happen to us, but he allows us to experience them so he can work through us. Those are the times that teach us to rely on him completely. So here is to the unexpected and the way that God will use it to shape our lives in a way that glorifies him!   
Ps...And what happened to that tiny baby in the above photo?!? Somebody figure out how to slow time down already!!