Saying Goodbye

So all of you know how much we love Emma's daycare and her Teacher Ms Stephanie.  Tomorrow is Ms Stephanie's last day at the center. This is an amazing teacher and person. I couldn't have imagined leaving Emma with a stranger, and Stephanie never felt like a stranger to us. She always treated Emma like she would her own child. She called if she had a concern, and if Emma was out sick (or running late) she would call to check on her.  Emma would do several handprint or footprint artwork a month, and Stephanie made special artwork for special occasions.

We were so blessed with Stephanie and wish her well.  We will miss her, but happy that she will be able to spend this time with her family.

We will miss you Stephanie!

Every day is a chance to create a memory

Looking back over the past year, I realize that while Emma may not remember what all she did I will forever treasure moments from her childhood.  I look at every day as a chance to make a memory.  The past couple of weeks we have had her Birthday pictures, family pictures, a cookout, had Emma's first birthday party, and just had a good time.

Also over the past couple of days we have dealt with Emma not feeling well.  She was sent home from daycare last Thursday, and had to stay out on Friday.    I had taken today off of work, and needless to say it became a Mommy and Emma day.  We played, cuddled, had a lunch date, and most of the day enjoyed spending time together.  I savor these moments because I know they will not last forever.

The other day I came home from a rough day at work and just hugged her extra tight.  That night as I laid down with her for bedtime she rolled over and put her face right up against mine.  I laid there crying telling her how much I love her.  She is often told how much she is loved, but it was as if she knew that I needed her close to me that day.

I believe that we all wake up with the choice of how we want our day to go.  No we cannot control all of the variables during the day, but we can choose how we respond.  When I walk in and she lights up my day with that smile and giggle all of my worries fade away.  She is my sunshine, my laughter after a bad day, my smile through the tears, and my heart.

I love watching Emma interact with others because I see how she changes them as well.  Of course our family and friends cherish her almost as much as we do, but watching their interactions is awesome.  At her birthday party she went around and gave everyone a thank you hug.  However, words cannot thank these people enough.  They have been there for me and Steve and now they are there for Emma.  Several people offered to help me get everything ready, and one awesome friend Amy came to help.  She had made decorations, helped with the planning, and helped me to keep my head on straight.  Wendy had to run a last minute errand to pick up pictures for me, Granny (my mom) made part of the food for us, and lots of family and friends came to make Emma's day special.

I can only begin to imagine what the future will hold for this special little girl with all of the love surrounding her.  As much as I see her impacting other people's lives, I know she is a blessing not only to me and Steve but to everyone.  The other night we went to eat at Wendy's and she sat at the window so she could wave at everyone who came through the drive-thru.  Maybe her smiling the face was the only smile that those people saw that day?

Thank you to everyone who has touched Emma's life because you have touched ours more than we can ever explain to you!

The tough decision to share this on Facebook

So several of you have asked why I have not shared this on facebook.  The answer - I don't know.  Maybe it is that I do not want to feel like I am asking for pity, maybe it is the fear of sharing something so personal, maybe I don't want to hurt other women who are dealing with infertility, maybe I just do not know.  I think it is a combination of all of the above.  I am not ashamed of my story, I am not afraid to share my story, but I am hesitant on sharing this on facebook.

However, I have decided that I will share it and see what happens.  Please do not look at this blog and think I am trying to hurt you if you are gong through infertility.  Instead I hope that you see this as hope for the future.  Our stories may be different but I have been where you are, and having the feelings that you have (or have had).  There are several of us who have been where you are, and we want to encourage you along your journey.  Stories are different, Dr visits are different, diagnosis are different; however, the hurt, pain, suffering, tears, and fears are the same.  Believe me I have been there, but I also knew that God had a plan for me.  Maybe it wasn't the plan that I had, but I had to trust Him and see what happened.  Steve and I did talk about, look into, and explore other options.  But in the end we received this wonderful gift from God.

So here it goes, I am shoring this on facebook and hope that you can gain something from my experience.  Feel free to ask me questions, or share your story on here as well.

So welcome to my world of Parenting After Infertility.  We live everyday Treasuring Our Blessing, and hope that you can find joy where ever you are in your journey.

Our Little Lady turns ONE!

It is so hard to believe that Emma is a year old.  In the past year she has changed our lives so much, and made our hearts grow.  It seems like only yesterday that we found out that I was pregnant, and it seems unreal for her to be a year old.  Where did my baby go?

We had a great party for her, and she had a blast!  Our friends and family joined us to celebrate this wonderful blessing that God gave us.  We had planned to party to be at my Grandparent's house, but with it raining every day and hot too we decided to move it to my Uncle's carport.  The theme was Our Little Lady turns One, and decorations were ladybugs.

Here are some pictures to show you the party in case you were not able to join us.