Random Goodness: Pics and Thoughts

Baby E, taking a snooze. I love how infants sleep with their little rears in the air and feet tucked underneath. So sweet!

Miss E and Mommy with matching "Cabana Boy" painted toenails. Who says winter has to be BLAH?

AHHHHHH....Krispy Kreme donuts are so good on a cold winter's night.

Miss E kissing Baby E. SISTERLY LOVE!

More naps for Baby E, this time in front of the fireplace. Warm and cozy! We love our gas fireplace. A flip of the switch and winter becomes bliss. (Check out Miss E's fabulous, homemade, brown-girl stocking in the background).

I found some AA Christmas cards for $1.50 a box after Christmas at Target. I wanted to buy ALL of them, but I settled on one box. :)

Miss E on Christmas Eve---enjoying a White Christmas in our backyard.

Life around here is full. How could it not be? I have two, TWO (!!!), babies. Despite tears and tantrums that come at random times throughout the day, there is so much joy.

On the day we got the phone call from our social worker telling us we had been chosen to be Baby E's parents, I honestly thought, "Why us? Why are we so lucky?" Our wait was VERY short this time, and our adoption journey is going really well so far. We have an open relationship (which I'll talk more about in general in a post this month) with Baby's E's biological parents---which is exactly what we wanted. We only had to stay Baby's E's home state for five days, and we were blessed with the hospitality of Miss E's foster parents. They allowed us to stay with them, meaning we had a "home away from home" instead of a pricey, dingy hotel room.

It all just seems so easy. Too easy. And normally, I'm not a pessimist. But I'm frankly overwhelmed at the reality that we are this blessed.

I don't always get God's plan. Dare I say, I rarely ever get God's plan. I don't know why He does what He does. I don't know why I'm so blessed. Maybe I don't need to know why. Maybe I just need to shut up and enjoy the journey.

Staying at home full time is something I struggle with, if I'm being perfectly honest. I'm a typical type A girl---driven, determined, demanding. I worked my tushy off for my MA degree---and I didn't do it for nothing, I feel. So giving up a semester's worth of work and nesting with my babies this winter wasn't an easy choice. But now that I'm doing it, successfully (I think?), I know I made the right choice. These are moments I can't get back. And I realize now that God's timing was perfect. Baby E arrived with two weeks left of the fall semester, giving me time to carefully weigh the options of staying at home or teaching in the spring. Nanny C, my girls' rockin' nanny, told me, "Whatever you decide, it'll be the best choice." She was right!

I've had to chill out and stop stressing over plans. I really wanted to establish a regime, a set schedule for each week. Split chores among the weekdays. Library visit one day a week. Family reading night. Date night. But I soon realized that life isn't meant to be planned out to a T. The best things can happen when there's no plan.

I wanted to share these pictures with you, my readers, to give you a glimpse of God's glory in my life lately. And, in part, to remind myself that I don't have to figure it all out because God already has. And that's enough.