The journey continues…

Guess what?

Yup.  Bundle of Joy # 5 will be arriving in July!

I find it quite hilarious that my last post was titled Not As Planned.

Why? Because that’s where we’ve been dwelling the past month.  Not As Planned.

You see, I had just given away most of my baby gear.  And I had just come to terms with the thought of not having more babies. We reasoned that, with Micah going back to school, we’re probably at max capacity for a while.  At least our minivan and 3 bedroom/1 bath home are!  And though I shed more than one tear as I packed away baby clothing and wondered if a chubby little baby would ever wear them again, I had found peace.

Peace that got blurry real fast (along with my vision) when I saw two lines.  Two lines?  What does that mean??  I don’t remember???  You’d think I’d remember seeing as I’ve done this a few times!!! And how have pregnancy tests gotten so high-tech in the past 3 years????

So I did the only thing reasonable: shoved my head out my second story bedroom window as I cried and let the cold rain slap the panic out of me.

Two lines.  A fifth baby.  A strong-willed fifth baby who apparently would not take NO for an answer.  No surprise to those who know our children.  Or us.  A baby who’s determined to be in our family.  Even when we were determined to ‘be done’.

Apparently God has other plans.

And then I began to remember.  Remember the gifts each of our babies brought to our family.  The support showered upon us.  The people who smile/laugh rather than cringe when we inevitably announce we’re pregnant.  I remember how I’ve matured each time I welcomed a baby into my arms.  I remember how I’m learning to nurture myself as I learn to nurture my children.  How Micah and I work hard at working out the kinks of marriage so that we’re a more authentic couple.  And consequently a happier couple. (I also remember the joy/agony of childbirth and have made a mental note to do some praying and positive thinking on that one!)

And so the journey continues…