Finally!

I'm back...I hope. My computer has been giving me fits. I'm going on faith that everyone but me can see my blog. Meanwhile, so much has happened in the last month, I'm not sure where to begin.

We started out the month of July by packing up the whole family and spending a week at Palisades. We swam, we fished, we paddled. Some of us sailed, golfed, and caught frogs. But we all had a great time! (Except for JP who was sick, and Cindy cuz she's the mom and that's the way it is when your child is sick)

When we got home from camping, Tary discovered a message on his phone. Would we like tickets to the Paul McCartney concert? Uh, let me think about it for a minute...HECK YES! It was amazing! The guy sang for 2 1/2 hours straight! No warm up band, no intermission, no potty break, and 3 encores! It was the best concert I have ever been too, although Buble' comes in a close 2nd, possibly a tie. I think I'll need to see Michael again to make a accurate decision.

And just when you think the month couldn't hold any more surprises, last Sunday we woke up the call of our daughter who announced she is in labor! Contractions were strong, but not very close yet. But by the time church was over at 4pm, and the road blocks and detours led us past their house, they were just pulling out to head to the hospital. 2 hours later they were back at our house, starving and discouraged. She was dilated to a 3, but hadn't progressed after an hours worth of walking the hospital halls, so they sent her home.

I was expecting a good half-nights sleep, just knowing the call would come at 3 am that she was back at the hospital. But my daughter was more considerate to me than I was to my mom, and let me sleep till 6 am before she made the call. They were back at the hospital, and this time they admitted her for the duration, seeing as how she had progressed to a 6! Holy cow, I had better hurry, she could go at any time! So without so much as a shower or a dab of mascara (I would just cry it off anyway), I woke up my lamaze partner (Kayla) and we rushed to the hospital. By the time we got there, she was at a 7 and progressing nicely. They had just given her an epidural, so things slowed down a bit....

....fast forward to 10 am. Chelsea was now dialated to a 10 and ready to go. Only one problem, the doctor was delivering another baby, C-section. Not to worry, the nurse told us, pushing could take hours. Shall we give it a try? Here comes a contraction...P..U..S..H..again...P...U...S...H...nicely done. Chelsea is a good little pusher. Here comes another contraction, knees in...P...U...S...H...good job, again...P...U....S...H...very good, in fact, too good. Maybe you should cross your legs for awhile, the doctor's not quite ready. So, for the next 30 minutes, Chelsea had to literally suck it in everytime a contraction would come.

Finally, the doctor arrived, the epidural had worn off, and the pushing could continue. 2 pushes later, and our sweet little Paisley joined our family!

What a beautiful little girl she is! As they laid her on Chelsea's chest, I couldn't contain the tears, (although I thought I did a pretty good job of hiding them behind the camera). Funny, I didn't cry when any of my children were born. I think I was in shock, I was relieved, I was too busy trying to get a look at their faces and determine who they looked like. This time around, I was an observer. I was able to watch the miracle of birth without going through the pain, yet it hurt to see my daughter go through the pain. This time the relief wasn't physical, but a mental relief that both my babies were all right. It was a beautiful experience, I'm so grateful Chelsea and Joe allowed me to witness their little miracle.

I stayed long enough to make sure all was well, then after a tearful good-bye, I was off to girls camp for 5 days. I knew they were in good hands, I knew there was nothing more I could do, and I knew I had a responsibility and a commitment that I had to fulfill. I knew the Lord would bless them while I was away, and I was right. I remember after I had Chelsea, I could hardly walk or sit I was in so much pain, but Chelsea was blessed with a quick healing. And just when I thought the month of surprises was over....on wednesday, as I was cleaning up the craft for the day, I turned around and...

...SURPRISE! Standing in front of me, Chelsea, Joe and my sweet little Paisley! I was flabbergasted, shocked, stunned, excited, and a whole bunch of other adjectives! I know not all blessings are immediate, as some blessings are reserved for the next life, but I will be forever grateful that I was able to enjoy the blessings of my sacrifice for the next few hours as I held my sweet little grand-baby for the first time!

A busy month for sure. A month full of fun and surprises. Ask me what the highlight of my month was, I'd have to tell you that although unexpected concert tickets were awesome, flushing toilets and hot showers while camping was divine, rain in the middle of the night instead of the middle of the day was timely, the highlight of my month came in a surprise visit with my grand-daughter. Finally!