Moments with Marri

My babies are taking leaps forward right now.  I love it and I don't.  I mean, wasn't it just yesterday that Calvin had that perfectly gummy grin?  He would lift his little pointer finger up and point at every light he saw. "Dat!"  He was little, lovely, fat and happy.  Now, he and Lydia talk to one another with their pretend phones (their hands) in the van as we drive.  They giggle and chat and call us in the front seats.  Lydia is talking so much now.  She makes sense too.  We are past Greek stage and have moved into semi-understandable most of the time.  She is so excitable!  She cheers for herself often.  "I did it!"  Knox is so close to walking.  He is Grabby Grabber and has a giggle quota every day.  At bedtime, if he hasn't met it, he waits with anticipation in his eyes for a tickle or a peek-a-boo then inserts his fingers into his mouth when he has met the quota.  He is so emotionally aware and conne...

As a Momma with three little beauties, when something is overflowing it usually isn't a good thing.  At all!  I can't count the number of diapers that have been overflowing or just how many times my dear daughter has emptied a cabinet or drawer that overflowed into multiple rooms in the house.  In my chaotic, insane moments when 3 kids want my attention all at once, I have even been known to leave the sink on to nearly overflowing.  This kind of overflowing, however, is different.  Absolutely delightful!  This is the kind that quenches the kind of thirsty that feels like you haven't had a drink in days.  This is the kind of overflowing that leaves you with a grin on your face and a whisper in your heart that runs deeper than mere words can relay. I had the great blessing of attending True Woman 2012 here in Indianapolis this weekend.  I went with utter expectation to meet Jesus there.  I was ready to drink deeply of Him knowing full well I ...

It has been a great day.  Mondays usually kick me in the gut but today has been sweet.  I have been listening to pandora all day which is just uplifting.  I have it on Sarah Groves station and it has played all sorts of folk, gorgeous instrumentals and has included some of my favorite artists right now.  I am dirty.  Mondays are usually dirty Marri.  I usually take a shower at 5pm.  I clean something or organize something.  It is a gritty day for me.  Today I worked in the garage a little while my kids played around me.  We had a little picnic in the front yard.  I took down the tent that has been up in the back yard for the last week.  My neighbors will be thrilled.  They may still think I am a redneck but I am sure they are sighing, "Finally!"  I don't really care.  The kids have thoroughly enjoyed their playtime in the tent.  Calvin corrected my grammar today.  I love that kid.  I could hardly b...

Has it really been ten years?  Really?  How did we get here so quickly?  I mean, there is beautiful evidence that time has past and growth has happened in our marriage.  We are more accepting of one another, more in love, more patient and forgiving.  We work more fluidly together and we are deeply entrenched in parenting our three little love bugs which is so very different than the early 20's version of J&M.  We were selfish, indulgent and always set on having loads of time together and lots of fun (which hasn't changed).  It has been so invigorating to reflect on ten years with my Jason.  We decided a couple of years ago we would go on a trip to celebrate this anniversary.  However, having three babies in 34 months time thwarted those plans.  Shipping breast milk on dry ice did not sound feasible or pleasant in any way, so we decided on a nice little something close to home.  My husband determined a few months back that he was...

Monday was our visit with Dr. R (ophthalmologist) here in Indy.  He is really fantastic.  I love him.  Jason loves him.  Lydia...well not so much still, but hey little chica has been through a bit.  She does relax and giggle at him occasionally.  He is so down to earth.  I chuckle every time I think about the way he addresses her.  Hey, Lyd!  It's okay baby girl.  He is bubbly and upbeat.  What a gift.  Okay, get on with it Marri! Lydia is doing great.  Really great.  We still notice a great deal of uncertainty in new places.  She falls more when we are out of her norm and her depth perception is not great.  However, she is full of sass.  She loves trying out new words, nurturing her babies, giving kisses and saying buh-bye.  She loves to make mountain-sized messes at meal time because the girls loves to EXPERIENCE  her food!  Dr. R is really happy where she is developmentally.  He...

Here goes the rewrite.  …after losing probably 1.5 hours of work.  Boo. I want to give a bit of a back story to bring those of you up to speed who may not know what has been going on with our family, more specifically our little girl Lydia.  She is 20 months old.  Last September-ish we noticed that her right eye had some nystagmus, basically her eye bounces back and forth when she tries to focus on something.  She has always had nystagmus but it got worse last fall.  We saw one of the pediatricians in her pediatrician’s practice in October.  She recommended that we see an optometrist.  We did that.  He was really great and worked diligently to examine Lydia.  We had to visit twice to get a complete exam but he threw around the idea that she may have ocular albinism.  He talked to our pediatrician after her return from maternity leave.  They both decided that we needed to have an MRI done to ensure she didn’t have a brain ...

I heard a sermon this past summer at an A29 conference for pastors and wives. It spoke about the gap between what we are capable of doing and what is actually demanded of us in this world as lovers of Jesus. I am feeling it, wearing it. Lump in my throat for more reasons than one. My heart just feels heavy, burdened. Gotta deal. No more running. Truth is, I have traveled down many roads to make sense of the weight of things. Sometimes the sorrow I feel is so encompassing, it is difficult to see past it. Other times, knowing the gravity can consume me I refuse it the warranted attention. I have found that the easy road for me has been anger, bitterness, pride, criticism, and fear. I like walls between me and anything or anyone that makes me deal with how completely inept I am at doing the holy life. The truth is, the gap I feel sometimes feels like oceans to me. But, oh the glory and majesty of Jesus is my great reminder that He has made a way for me. He has bridged the ga...