Thursday, October 23, 2014

Answered Prayers

Maddox Ren asked for a baby sister many times.  She longed to hold her and sing to her and dance with her.  She prayed for her and dreamt of what their life would be like together, all of the things they would do together.
Behind the scenes, I worried.  Maddox fit so well into the baby-of-the-family role.  She relished in being the center of attention.  Being held was her preferred method of transportation with being pushed in a stroller a close second.  She  was (is) a mommy's girl in every sense of the word.
The day came when we held Maryn for the first time.  Maddox was so taken with her, she was quick to offer her anything that would possibly make her happy, she would not leave her side...she adored Maryn and her new big sister role.  
Not long after we arrived home, Maddox began to regress.  She was never ugly to Maryn and never said anything hurtful about her but she struggled.  She struggled with the fact that Maryn wanted and needed to be held by Mommy.  She struggled with the fact that the boys were smitten with their newest little sister.  She struggled with the fact that MK was such a caretaker in Maryn's life.  There were tears.  And thankfully, my patience won and I prayed fervently for both of their hearts to open up to their new family.
Early this week, Maryn awoke and Maddox came bouncing into her room.  Maddox jumped onto Maryn's bed exclaiming, "You are so adorable, aren't you? Mommy, she is so beautiful!"  And then she began to whisper into Maryn's ear.  Maryn giggled.  Maddox looked at me and asked, "Do you know what I just told her?"  I told her I didn't.  She replied, "I told her that I am so glad that she is the baby sister!  I wanted to be the baby but I am so happy she is the baby sister and I am the big sister now!"
Answered prayers are the best when they speak directly to your hearts desires!  

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Florida 2014

Two or more years ago, my niece, Emma, wrote a letter to our family stating that she was planning her 10th birthday party and would like to invite us to attend.  We were thrilled that she chose Disney as her venue to celebrate her big day.  One thing - at the time, she had just turned 8!  
 My, how time flies!  In what seemed like no time at all, Emma grew up and Disney was our destination for a quick family getaway to celebrate our special 10 year old!  Our first stop, Sea World Orlando.  (Note - I did not take my big camera along for this trip so we solely depended on our phones for photos!  Definitely a wise decision in a packing sense.)  
 We jetted from show to show and we were all amazed at the sites we took in....the dolphins flying through the air, the killer whales splashing the audience and gliding through their tanks, the baby alligators, the acrobats, and especially the rescue animals that performed in Pets Ahoy!  Maryn spent the majority of the day with her eyes as big as saucers and saying, "ohhhh....ahhhh!"  
 After a fabulous dinner at our beloved Cheesecake Factory and a restful little nighttime slumber, we awoke and made our way over to the Magic Kingdom for a magical day.  
 We dashed from Peter Pan to It's A Small World to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train to Buzz Lightyear....
 to Dumbo to Space Mountain to the Haunted Mansion....and so forth.  There was no slowing us down!  We literally went from sun-up to sun-down and we loved every minute of it!
 Some of us were a bit competitive during a few rides:)
 While others just took it all in!
 And this crew was the best!  We laughed and laughed some more as we darted from ride to ride.  
 Our sweet Maddox found Tweetle Dee and Tweetle Dum and cozied up with them for a quick photo-op between her roller coaster rides.  She was in heaven our entire trip!  
 Dinner at Rainforest is always a treat....and waiting to be seated provided a few moments of entertainment!  
 This is such a telling sort of picture! 
 So thankful for this time we were able to spend with our little family!  My kiddos are my world and I love every moment that I am given with them!  It isn't always perfect....
 but I would say it is pretty darn close!  So thankful for each of them and the joy they bring!
 This sweet girl was a trooper!  She went with the best of us and smiled the whole way through...
 We were all sad to see it end.  But, alas, all good things must end and our Florida trip was no exception....
we all woke up Monday morning mumbling about how we wished we were standing in line to ride some incredible ride at Disney.....and there was one certain 5 year old who mumbled quite loudly about her plans to spend her 6th birthday at Disney!  Oh dear!