jackson

we took a little trip recently. just the three of us. it was probably the cheapest trip i have ever been on...and also one of the most fun!

my husband and i met at union university, in dr. day's old testament class, fifteen years ago (we are getting so old!!). to celebrate such a momentous occasion, he surprised me with a weekend of reliving the good old days.

we drove to jackson, tn and spent the day retracing our steps, remembering the fun we had getting to know each other, remembering falling in love. we found our old classroom (if not for jeremy, i am fairly certain i would have ended up stranded on that campus, completely lost...he has the memory of an elephant). we found "the grill" where he first asked me out on a date. we found the steps nearby where we talked. we walked out to the baseball field, which is totally different now, but still full of memories for him. the sugar shack was gone, but we pulled out those memories too. it was so much fun. so romantic.

somehow, he also remembered how to get to the putt-putt golf place where we had our first date (and our first kiss). the girl working the desk took some pictures of the three of us. it was so perfect seeing all these places again with brooks. it was like being able to step back from our lives and see the full circle of God's plan. we had no idea when we met that we would be so blessed, that we would still be madly in love with each other and that we would have our sweet baby boy. we had no idea that we would go through the trials we have faced, and that God would bless us so tremendously with His grace and His perfect sovreignty and timing.

i have no idea where He will lead us in the next fifteen years. i can't step back and see all of that right now. but i hope that He continues to help me to trust that plan. this life He has given all of us is so precious. i can hardly wait to see what's in store for our family.

zoom

i know, i know...they grow up quickly. but this quickly?? i can hardly believe it. i feel like we just brought little brooks home from the hospital yesterday. we blinked, and now we're helping him shovel little chunks of chicken into his mouth (small enough not to choke on...don't worry, gigi) and clearing paths for him to practice his crawling/breakdancing (he lays on his thighs with his tummy off the ground and spins around and around with his hands...it's kind of a combination of the two). he has four teeth, pulls himself to a standing position, says "dada" and "momma" (it's more like mamamamama, but i'll take it...). tomorrow he'll be applying for jobs and getting married.

i pray every day that God would give us more time...more memories. and that He would help me to remember it all. i want to remember the things that make him laugh (daddy shaking his hat and saying "wacka!", peek-a-boo, elmo, "woo!"). i want to remember the times when he snuggles up close and just watches me with those big beautiful brown eyes. i don't want to forget his face covered in food, his hands grabbing at everything, the sound of his cries stopping the instant he's in my arms. i want to remember reading books, playing in flour, splashing in the bath tub, banging pots and pans. rocking and singing lullabies...falling asleep together...the way his face lights up when daddy comes home.

there's just so much. we can only cram so much into a day, and i don't want to take any of it for granted. i am so thankful for my times with him, for the memories. i don't remember being at home with my mom when i was little. but i know that she stayed home with me...and she has so many memories of the fun we had. i love hearing the stories of how much she enjoyed being with me. and i love that one day i can tell him the same stories.