miracles

{if you're expecting a baby announcement in this post, I'm  very sorry to disappoint you. There are no specifics to announce at this point besides the fact that baby and I are at 40 wks. and counting}

The definition of a miracle is, according to www.merriam-webster.com::

noun mir·a·cle \ˈmir-i-kəl\

: an unusual or wonderful event that is believed to be caused by the power of God

: a very amazing or unusual event, thing, or achievement

Miracles happen every day. 

Following are just a handful of miracles that I have witnessed in the last few weeks:

1. A little brother grows up into a fine, godly, handsome man.  Whoever thought the youngest in a family of 7 would eventually find his way into adulthood and become a peer of sorts?!? And would not only pursue becoming a teacher but develop as an amazing artist on the side?!? Of course all 6 older siblings attempt to take at least a measure of credit for this littlest brother who is standing head and shoulders above us. 

2. My 5 children sit down in a lovely  spot and ASK to have their picture taken together. I don't know how many times I have bribed, coerced or tried tricking them into a nice, happy sibling pose only to have them all mad at me in the end.  They posed themselves. Looked at me. And smiled genuine happy smiles.  The only bummer is that this picture is going to be outdated in hopefully just a few days when baby #6 joins the family.

3. In 5 minutes flat, we got some great shots of this little active one year old. His mommy said, "I don't know if I should even try to get pictures of him because he NEVER sits still."  Good job, Jayden!!!  It was very thoughtful of you to cooperate so nicely since I would've had a hard time chasing you around the yard this past week. 

And to add to the amazement, this little dude can whistle on command. Cutest trick ever!!!!

4. THIS! THIS! The Lord has granted me amazing grace in these last weeks of pregnancy. What an incredible honor to get to participate in this miracle with the Creator of life!!!

photo source: cafemom.com

5. These little people can still make me grin ear to ear even at 40+ weeks pregnant!!! From my previous experiences of going overdue this is a big deal!!!

6. My dirty house (thank you, dry wall dust) was miraculously  transformed by 3 amazing ladies in just 3 short hours. I have no pictures of the cleaning crew or my clean house. {I know how to take pictures of dirt, but I'm not sure how to take pictures of clean} Love that moves a person to this kind of service is another entire miracle of its own.

And coming up very soon....

I anticipate sharing the miracle of a new person entering my world....

of tanks and bunkbeds

A tank attacked my boy's bunk beds today.

I mean, my boy's bunk beds demolished a tank today.

Ok. What I really mean is I changed the sheets on my boy's bunk beds today.

Whomever it was who came up with the concept of a bunk bed really was quite clever!! What a great idea for maximizing small sleeping spaces for multiple persons.

I am fairly confident that this a fore mentioned clever person was NOT a woman and surely not a woman who was in her 8th month of pregnancy.

 I did just a little research and didn't find much  solid information about the origin of  the bunk bed.

It seems that we can thank the ancient Egyptians for, at least the idea and concept of bunk beds.

Bunk beds have been used for years in sailing vessels and the military as well as college dormitories.

So while I admire this clever person with his clever idea, I wonder if he ever thought through all the implications of maintaining a bunk bed.  

Especially a twin stacked on top of a double mattress with walking space on one side of the bed only.

{And what about pregnant women??}

Of course, maintaining a bunk would have been much easier before the day of fitted sheets.  

Maybe we should go back to the whole bed roll idea. 

Hmmmm.

So. I have this love/hate relationship with this clever person that I do not know at all. 

I would like to thank him for his ingenuity and goodwill towards large families.

And since he was so clever, I would like to ask him to come up with a slick maintenance package for his invention. 

Even in my frustrations with changing sheets  on bunk beds, I find myself very mesmerized by all the varieties and designs of modern bunk beds.

In fact, I dream of having some of these bunk beds in my house full of kids someday AFTER I learn of a better sheeting option or AFTER my kids are old enough to do a full sheet change on their own or AFTER I am through this child bearing stage of my life and AFTER I have a home with bigger bedrooms to house such amazing beds.

After which my home will likely not be filled with my own children but grandchildren!!!

Now would that be a party.....a sleep over with the grandchildren in these darling bunk beds!!!??!!!