The continuity of Life

My brother and sister-in-law are finally the proud parents of a beautiful baby boy.
His name is William Benjamin (we'll call him Benjamin), and he was 6lbs, 9oz, finally born on August 10th. He is beautiful and sweet and has that wonderful new baby aura about him that pulls at your ovaries a little.. He was born by C-section after all other attempts failed, and all are doing well, although definitely sleep deprived. He is a total blessing.

My sister and her husband visited us two weeks ago. Part of that visit was to spread the ashes of their lost child out at the lake, by the family cottage. What a wringer they have been through, physically and emotionally, and how very brave they are.
Our family gathered together at the cottage and shared a wonderful meal. My father spoke of love, loss, the eternal circle of life, and the love of family. After dinner we all went for a walk, then watched from the bluff as Ange and Mike climbed out on the rocks that jut out into the lake. They spent quiet minutes in this place of beauty, and said goodbye to their unborn child, spreading ashes on the lapping waves.
It seemed so fitting, to be in a place where crashing waves and total stillness are both possible, and the coming and going of the tides leave their fingerprints on the world. A place ever-changing, yet solid and steadfast. The perfect place to store a cherished memory. A piece of all of us rests there too.

Anticipation and Devastation

The anticipation: My brother and his wife, Nem, have been counting down the months, weeks and days to the arrival of their first child together. This week, the doctor decided that Nem's blood pressure was too high, stuck her in the hospital and proceeded to try inducing labour. Now, I've been through a couple of births of my own, and heard many a story from friends, acquaintances, and pretty much any mother I've ever met..(we do love to share that story, don't we!). But Nem is going to have a story to tell that will leave others shaking their heads in disbelief. Today is Saturday, July 31st. Nem was admitted to hospital on Wednesday, July 28th. There is still no baby. They have applied gel, inserted balloons, i.v'd her and poked and prodded until she's turning black and blue, but that baby is not coming. We wait, and wait some more, while she sits, all excitement and anticipation dampened by frustration. My advice was to run out of that hospital and go back after her water broke...not being helpful, I know... Hopefully, by the time I get to my next blog, there will actually be a baby to discuss! My heart goes out to them.
The Devastation:
My beloved baby sister was dealt a devastating blow yesterday, and I still find myself stunned and in tears of disbelief. She had an ultrasound of her 20 week old baby, and they discovered the baby has Spina Bifida. Not knowing much about this issue, I shared her tears on the phone, then hopped on the internet to learn how we can help. I cried for hours as I read stories of the multitude of issues families deal with having children with this disability. So many possible problems, and no real hope for any treatment, certainly no signs of a cure or reparation available. An appointment with a specialist on Tuesday will help determine the severity of the condition, and present her with her 'options', all of which I can only assume, are terrible. In-utero surgery or surgery within 48 hours of birth, which will not do anything to cure or lessen the effects of the disability, rather will only close the hole in the spine. Termination of the pregnancy through something called a D&E, which I will not describe here. The worry, regret, guilt and self-doubt...I can't even begin to scratch the surface. I am saddened beyond words for my sister and her family, and while I hope I can be of some support and assistance, there is not a single thing I can do to change this, and that is heart-breaking.

Roots

Well, since the title of my blog is based on a tree, it seems fitting I find the roots of that tree to ensure healthy, blossoming growth.
I'm thinking that this search for happiness that I find myself on has taught me something most people learn a lot earlier in life. Happiness comes from within! I've heard it a million times, but haven't really figured out how to internalize the idea. This month I decided to make an effort to do just that.
I started going to church again. Two weeks in and my kids love their sunday school, and I am reconnecting with a core part of my childhood years and the fundamentals that helped shape who I am. While I do recall complaining extensively about having to go to church when I was in my pre-teen and teen years, I still remember loving the early years, and all the friends I made.
I also have very strong ties to the people and memories from TEC (Teens Encounter Christ), which I attended at 16 years old and worked with for 4-5 years after that. Many of the people I met at TEC are still connected to me, and I can't discount the faith that carried us on that journey together.
Part of finding a way to grow happiness from within is finding a safe haven inside myself where I can inspect my spiritual and emotional needs. I don't need 'stuff' to be happy, that is more my husband's thing that I have adopted over the years...I need validation, self-confidence and a higher power to lean on when I feel like it's all crashing down around me.
The motivation to change all the things that need to change in my life, to make me a happier person, must come from me, and I can't always be self-motivating, so I will try to trust God to give me the right people and the right situations to bring that about.

I went to a seminar last week where a woman talked to us about listening. She conducted a 4-year experiment where she started a new job and just tried to be a listener all the time. She was the most popular person in the office. When she left the job there were 4 different going away parties held for her. Her co-workers all got together and bought $1000.00 worth of gift cards for the spa.
Turns out, this woman hates going to the spa and gave all the gift cards away!
What's the lesson here? For me, the lesson is a mix of needing to talk less and listen more, but also the need to find a balance between the two, because I don't want to spend my life surrounded by people who don't know me at all!
The search for joy continues....

Re-connecting

It has been quite some time since I looked at my blog, and it seems, also quite some time since I took a positive look at the joys in my life.
So, I'm going to list a few things that I need to take time to recognize more often, so I can look back on my list and remember when I need to most.
Things I love that give me the greatest joy:



My children
My husband
My family
My friends

Things I do that bring me joy:
Singing
Playing with my kids
Working - I have a great new position at work!
Spending time with my friends

Things I need to do for myself to increase my joy:
Get back to running
Date night!
Less time at work
Find a musical outlet that suits me better
Call my friends and make the time to get caught up
Extend myself out of my little circle
Get out of debt
Get back to my health care
Find out about my medical needs - dentist, eye care, physical

All good things.

Holiday Treasures

Jacob's first Christmas concert was a wonderful event, even if our seats were on the wrong end of the auditorium. Lesson one, ask your kid where they are going to be standing on the stage during the concert :) He, my little shy guy, was up there singing and dancing and having a great time. It was fabulous and he was so proud of himself.
Christmas was almost defeated by the flu, which went through 7 members of our family between the 19th and 23rd of December. Thankfully, we had a reprieve for a few fun-filled days before my sister was knocked down with it and had to delay her flight home because she couldn't get out of bed.
Regardless, Santa made his scheduled stop at our house and the kids had a blast.

Visiting with cousin, Deacon, was a real treat, and having the whole family with us to celebrate the holidays is a rare occurrence that will be fondly remembered.

Grace is such a caring little girl, she loves to take care of the little ones and had to be reminded regularly that she is not allowed to carry her baby cousin (who weighs more than 20 lbs.), around the house. She compromised by following him everywhere and calling his name like a puppy. Too cute.

So as we gear up for 2010 and get back into the swing of all our activities, jobs, schools et al., I am thankful for a holiday season full of love and family, and treasure the memories that these fleeting moments bring.

New Year's Resolve....

I find the last few years have been an exercise in avoiding resolutions.
However, I do think there is something to be said for resolve, of some kind. I'm feeling like I've let myself down over the last couple of years, starting and not finishing things that are of benefit to only me. I seem to be at the end of my priority list far too often.
I have a new goal. In addition to trying to find more positivity in my every day life, (and yes, I know I have not been entirely successful in this effort, but I'll continue to try!), I will endeavor to cut out the junk food and treat my body with more respect. It's not just about losing weight, it's about getting healthy, and teaching my kids how to eat and how to treat themselves. It's about learning to love myself as I am. (wow, that's a tough one). So. Hello, Goal, it's me, Lori.