Thankfulness--Day 10, 11, 12, 13--Another Miracle

Day 10, 11, 12, and 13

We were out of town for the funeral, and then I had a little soiree at Casa Johnson, so I'm off a few days. How handy for me that my next series of thankfulness has four parts. :-)

The Husband and I were married six years before the God of all Comfort opened my womb and gave me the Wonder Twins: Elise and Elaina. They were born via C-Section, and the moment they officially arrived, I cried so long that the surgeon asked if I was okay, in pain, or just emotional. "Just" Emotional. I honestly thought before they came that it might not happen for us. When I finally had nothing more that I could do in this life to get pregnant, God took over and did His thing. You know, when nothing else can get the credit and it can only be God thing...Not only did He answer, but He showed out. Two for one. Girls. Both, the desire of my heart.

Day 10--Elaina--quirky, funny, smart. She stumbles through life, but always smiling and happy, just glad to be invited to the party. She's messy and a fountain of disorganization. She can eat her weight in snack food at one sitting. She is dedicated and helpful and has the distinct gift of empathy. No one can hurt in a 50 foot radius without that one knowing it. I am praying now that God calls her clearly and distinctly so that she can use those Gifts for His glory. She is beautiful inside and out. She is a multicolored marker with subtle flavors on canvas. She is silver and periwinkle and dark blue. She is the child of my heart.

Day 11--Elise--list maker, hair dresser, decisive, emotional, smarter than I am, wicked memory--don't say it in front of her, because she will never, ever forget it. Seriously. She knows the name of everyone she has ever met, knows how they are related to everyone else, and can get me back home when I don't know the way. She's driven and dedicated and demanding. She's in charge and everyone knows it. (If they don't, she's sure to clue them in rather quickly.) She is bright pink slashes on concrete. Fortified underneath by a powerful structure of stone, but flowers and rainbows and unicorns painted on the surface. Her imagination is frightening. She is the child most like me.

Day 12--Carter--We figured that that would be it. There would be no more

Johnson males to carry on the namesake, and then God smiled on us again in the form of Carter, the Number One Son. He is the spitting image of his father. It's like I wasn't involved in the least. (Which is a fitting tribute to Johnsons everywhere.) He is my snuggler and laugher and jokester. He is my inventor and my prayer warrior. He is empathetic and driven to pray for those in need. He gives from his heart (I'm talking financially) and has made me proud more than once by emptying his savings to give to someone in pain. He is the real deal and the child most likely to take care of me when I am old. He is subtle shading on soft cotton with a bright light behind it. It's not so much about the outside as it is about the inside, but both combined make him what he is. He is the child destined to be mine from the foundations of the Earth.

Day 13--And then there was Lilly...only twenty months behind her brother. The Twins taught me about the blessings and provision of God, that He is in control and will do more for me than I ever imagined. The Son taught me about the Grace of God and how He goes beyond our needs and fills our desires as well. But Lillian taught me that apart from God I am Nothing. He is in control. I am completely dependent on His will and want to always be fully in it.

A baby coming at 25 weeks will do that to you.

She was so sick, and now so healthy! She is sunshine and light and all things giggly. She is an artist and knows it. She is cranky and funny and silly and flips hot and cold so fast that sometimes it's hard to keep up. She will hit you and hug you in the same five seconds. She's going to be a grand adventure for the first boy who falls in love with her. She's got a spectacular sense of humor and will laugh at herself and laugh at you, even if someone is bleeding. She changed the spelling of her name in Kindergarten. (I'm not joking.) She's bright orange and magenta and all things on fire. She is fine details in ink and watercolor and oil at at the same time. She is my precious jewel and the child I never thought to ask for. She is the most mine.

Psalm 113

1 Praise the LORD.

Praise the LORD, you his servants;
praise the name of the LORD.
2 Let the name of the LORD be praised,

both now and forevermore.

3 From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets,
the name of the LORD is to be praised.
4 The LORD is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens.

5 Who is like the LORD our God,

the One who sits enthroned on high,

6 who stoops down to look

on the heavens and the earth?

7 He raises the poor from the dust

and lifts the needy from the ash heap;

8 he seats them with princes, with the princes of his people.

9 He settles the childless woman in her home

as a happy mother of children.

Praise the LORD.