"He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm,
and carry them close to his heart, and shall gently lead those that are with young." Isaiah 40:11

Sunday, July 10, 2011

On The Road Again...

We are off to go pick up our kids! It has been a wonderful week.  Our house has never been cleaner.  And the week was a great balance between getting work done and rest.  In fact, we had such a great time that Dave and I have been scheming about how we can postpone our trip out there;)  he he he....Thank-you so much Moms and Dads!!  

I am a bit cautious about posting our trip info on a public place like this.  But I would also like your prayers as we drive.  Rachel had a short spell this morning at 5:30 am.  I'm not nearly as nervous about this trip as I was on the first one.  Still, we know what can happen and we ask God for travelling mercies, health for Rachel, and for peace.  We believe that God knows everything about what will happen on this trip and there is no difference if we are here in Calgary or somewhere between Regina and Brandon.  He is with us.

Other than the spell this morning, Rachel has had a great week.  She's been so happy.  Some new things she is doing:
1. Shaking her head (her sign that she wants to play - we like to growl and shake our heads when we bite her...)
2. She is more agile with her fingers.  I can't leave her bottle sitting in her car seat anymore because she can grab it now and throw it around.
  
One project I was able to work on this week was Ethan and Abigail's scrapbooks.  Now, I am not a real scrapbooker.  I don't do anything complicated - it's all very simple.  I like to cram lots of pictures on one page. I also don't have much patience or an eye for color.  And so, I probably break all the rules of real scrapbooking.  I usually just do about four pages a year.  But I have fun nonetheless when I get to it.  It's been a few years since I have touched the kids books and I wanted to get past Rachel's birth pages.  

So, I'm cruising along, sticking in pictures of Christmas 2009, and pictures of summer fun, (planning to add the written stories in later) and then I get to Rachel's birth....I was just struck by the sudden thought - what will it be like for Abigail to see these pages years from now?  I didn't expect to feel sad.  But turning from this page.....


 to start work on this one...



was a a difficult moment for me.  I haven't felt that kind of emotion for a long time.  This beautifully captured moment - of Abigail's tenderness in loving her new baby sister tugged so hard at my heart... 

I love both my little girls.  I LOVE that they know each other now.  I LOVE that Abigail will grow up knowing that she has a little sister waiting for her - and she can anticipate being with her again.  I love that she can experience, even for a short while, the joy of having a baby sister.  God is so good to us! And at the same time, I know that Abigail will grieve the loss of her sister.  What a mix of feelings....

4 comments:

KarenKTeachCamb said...

What a wonderful post. You don't know me, but I've been following your posts for a while now, and I want to encourage you to keep on going! Thanks for sharing those simple scrapbook pages. Personally, I like them that way, and if you add a few words (or even have Abigail and Ethan tell you what to write) they will be even more special. Thank you for sharing your joys and struggles. Praying the road trip will be smooth, and Rachel will enjoy it too! Thanks again for sharing

Anonymous said...

Anyone who takes the time to scrapbook is a REAL scrapbooker. And, I totally believe there are NO RULES. Your pages look great and your kids are going to love looking back at the memories you've captured for them. I agree with the last commenter that the words also help it to be special. Don't wait too long to add them or you'll forget what you wanted to say. Or maybe your memory is better than mine. :) You continue to amaze and inspire me. Your blog posts have prompted much growth in my life. Keep trusting God and letting Him use you in this very unique way. Our whole family enjoys keeping updated on your sweet little family. My 5-year-old asks to pray for that little girl from the computer. :) We think of you often.

Alicia Friesen

fiona said...

kendra, i scrapbook just like you :D i stuff lots of pictures and only a few words. fast :D i cried too looking at how life changed for abigail in that one day, and how it will change yet again. we just pray for God's mercies, new each morning.

and - so happy to rejoice with you over the gift of a week without the older two. what a blessing!!! i was praying you'd be able to get some real respite (like days, not just nights) and i am thrilled to see how you were given this gift. lots of love!!!

Janet said...

Kendra,
I love your idea on scrap booking.It is right from the heart.That's what matters the most.It looks wonderful....Very precious moments.
Much love & prayers
Janet M