A Part Of Us

Half of Baby P.'s genes are mine and half are from Mr. Blessings.

Okay, so this is pretty obvious.  That's how babies are made.  That's the science of it.

I have clearly known about this even before I knew that Baby P. existed there in my tummy.

But, somehow, it just hit me again how absolutely amazing this is.  Our little bean is a real, live human that will forever connect us to each other in a way that is different from our marriage vows.

There are so many miraculous things about growing a life, but this one feels like the biggest of them all. 

I cannot wait to see how each of us (and our family members) are expressed in this little being.

I am thankful to God for giving me these nine months to slowly gather all of these thoughts into my brain and for blessing me with a husband that I love so dearly and hope my child takes after. 

♥ brooke

12 Date Nights in 2012

As a Christmas gift to Mr. Blessings and myself, I planned out 12 dates for us in 2012.

I made monthly envelopes and inside of each envelope I placed a card with an idea for a date night.

The first few months focus on things that will become more difficult for us to do once Baby P. makes his arrival.  Ex. February includes dinner out followed by a movie.  I don't foresee a lot of movie going in the months after his birth, so I figured that we better take advantage of this time!  :)

Many of the dates were designed to accommodate the addition of a little one to our plans.  I purposely made the first several dates after Baby P.'s expected arrival things that we can do at home or that are otherwise baby friendly.

Later in the year, I did plan a few dates that will require a babysitter.

I realize that life may be heavily focused on Baby for these next several months and that our family will soon consume us in ways that I can't imagine.  Still, I don't want our marriage to take a complete backseat to parenthood.  The couples I know that have taken the time to do monthly date nights or other regular couple-centered activities seem to have the strongest marriages and also the healthiest families.

I feel like a strong marriage is the best gift that we can give to our kiddo(s) and that it is really the best gift we can give to one another. 

♥ brooke

And Baby Makes Three - Fear of Change

My life, just now, feels like it couldn't get much better.

I have heard time and time again how parents don't remember what life was like before they had kids.  They wonder what they did with their free time, what they talked about at dinner, etc.  I know that Baby P. is going to bring us more joy than we can even imagine.

Still, I love this life that we have right now.

I'm not sure that I want to lose it.  I know for sure that I don't want to forget what it is like.  I love our quiet nights at home.  Our "coffee shop" time in the living room or actual coffee shops.

I feel like I am generally pretty good with accepting change (or maybe I just tell myself that I am), but this one scares me a little bit.  I keep thinking about the cliche, if it's not broken, don't fix it.

I know that God has a plan for us.  Also, Mr. Blessings and I have both longed to be parents for quite a while and I think that God instilled that desire in our hearts for a reason.  As we move closer and closer to the time when our lives will forever change, I pray more and more fervently for a smooth transition to parenthood and joyful acceptance of our lives as a family of three, rather than two.

♥ brooke