Wow! It is officially the middle of February! Where did the past month and a half go?!
So far, 2019 has been an insane whirlwind. Here’s a little recap on what we’ve been up to around here and why I’ve been so absent from the blog since December:
- Week 1 – This was our first week home after the Christmas holidays. I had not officially started back at work yet, but the girl covering my maternity leave had already worked her last day. Some of our kids ministry space at FBC was undergoing a massive renovation at the time, and there was a lot to get done in order for our programs to reboot on January 6th as planned. This culminated in a premature return to work for me. Additionally, this week Avra started weaning and I hopped on board the Standing Strong Wellness January Reset.
- Week 2 – Oh my. This week was crazy. Ryan was away at school for the entire week, Avra weaned completely from nursing (which was way harder for me emotionally than I had anticipated), and I officially went back at work with a huge project on my lap that was due immediately—to plan and run a training night for all of our FBC KIDS small group leaders and coaches. On top of that, Avra was coming down with a bladder infection and her mood steadily deteriorated throughout the week.
- Week 3 – Avra’s bladder infection became obvious when she woke up with a crazy fever on Monday morning. We had a sick baby all week, but luckily daddy was back at home by this time. We spent most of week three nursing our little sweetheart back to health. That weekend, Ryan and I participated in a two-day consultation with the church staff and board.
- Week 4 – Avra was finally feeling better and our little family of three packed into our van for a nine-hour road trip to visit my family in Manitoba. We spent three days at a lovely resort—hanging out, swimming, laughing, and enjoying a little break.
- Week 5 – We didn’t really think about how quick this turnaround would be when we planned all of this… but five days after getting home from Manitoba, Ryan and I hopped back into a van with a few of our co-workers and headed down to Canmore for a weekend Pastor’s retreat. It was my first extended separation from Avra—she stayed at home with her auntie and great aunt who came to spoil her rotten for three days and three nights.
- Week 6 – Yikes. We found out that Avra was NOT okay with us leaving her for the weekend! It seemed like she’d had a great time with the aunties, and our first morning back together went relatively smoothly, so we hoped that things would quickly go back to normal. But boy oh boy, when it came time for that first nap after our return on Monday morning… her world came crashing down. I’ve never seen my child so inconsolably distressed. We spent most of week six focused on two things: figuring out how to get our previously perfect sleeper to sleep at all, never mind at the appropriate times, and trying to convince her that we weren’t going to disappear and abandon her.
- Week 7 – Here we are. We are still picking up a few of the pieces from last week’s escapade, but for the most part, things have leveled out quite a bit. Daddy left again today for another five-day trip, but judging by how this year has been going so far, I know the rest of the week will just fly by and he’ll be home in no time.
I came into 2019 feeling hopeful and energized. I was ready for new challenges and excited to discover what God had in store for me this year.
I’ll be honest. So far, most of it seems like a blur. So much has happened in these past six and a half weeks, and looking at this list now, it’s easy to see why I feel like the days have been moving at lightning speed.
But I am still feeling hopeful… and surprisingly energized! We have had our share of challenges already in 2019, but we have learned from all of them. And I’m so thankful to finally be enjoying this moment—where I can slow down, reflect on what 2019 has brought into my life so far, and remind myself how important it is for me to be intentional with every moment.
When the days fly by this quickly, it sure would be easy to miss them. But I don’t want to miss them. I can’t afford to miss them. My life is just to precious of a gift to let pass me by in a haze as I try to simply keep up with the ticking of the clock.
And that’s why it’s so important to slow down sometimes. To take a little breather. To reflect. To think. To process. To write. To appreciate the moments. To evaluate the tensions. To learn from the challenges. To reconnect with the non-negotiable qualities at your core that make you who you are. To remind yourself that there’s a bigger picture—one that someone else is painting, but that we’re all a part of—the beauty of which we’ll miss if we’re not paying attention.
Braver Than Before 