9 days later

It is 9 days after Amelia's delivery and I'm still feeling the physical affects. I'm having some cramps and am still sore. But it's a good time to take it easy - make Amelia's scrapbook and write notes to people. I'm pretty stable emotionally, but there are some days where a memory comes back, or I see a cute baby outfit...and the tears flow. It will take a while for God to heal my heart. So, I have blessed, joyful days, days where I'm not crying but just kinda gloomy, and then days where I need to stop and cry, to ache. But overall, my thoughts of her are filled with simple joy that she's with Jesus; that she's feeling absolutely no sadness, no pain, no hurt. Maybe God has a special assignment for her up there, I know there lots of preparations to be made for that Day. She's where Michael and I long to be...in heaven, in paradise. Wednesday marked a week after Amelia's departure. We went to her spot that overlooks Mt. Ranier and the valley, and laid some beautiful red, pink and yellow roses on her grave. We said a special prayer for our daughter, asking God to say "hi" from us. And remind her that we still love her greatly.

Meanwhile, we are still in love with our precious 2 year old, Brilla. What a delight she is. She brings tears of laughter to our eyes every day. Isn't God incredibly gracious to give us to her? She's getting extra hugs lately. Brilla knew that Daddy and Mama were sad and that we cried. It was good for us to not hide our emotions around her. She learned that we go through hard times, too. We are so thankful she has grandma and grandpas, and aunt/uncle/cousins who love her dearly and showered her with affection.

The latest thing with Brilla is that everything has to be just right. Ha. A perfectionist just like her mama tends to be. This morning, Michael handed me his ballcap to wear and we waited for Bri's reaction. Yep; she pulled it off my head and placed it on the correct head, Daddy's :) Bri's other favorites: being at the play area with other kiddos, drawing on her doodle pad and any paper her hands get hold of, reading books, eating yummies, listening to music, singing at the top of her lungs, and helping clean up. Ah. It's a hard life at 2.