Grateful to be "Here"

See my play list to the right of this post? If you can't see song #18, click on the forward button until you get to song #18. (As long as you can see it, you can click on #18 and it will start playing.)

The song is called "Here" by Rascal Flatts. They happen to be one of my favorite groups and I love their music. (Bear with me if you're not a country music fan.) I'm pretty sure this song was written to express the gratitude one feels after finally falling in love with "The One." But when I heard this song (especially the chorus), I immediately thought of the journey we had to take to get Wesley.

There's a place I've been looking for
That took me in and out of buildings
Behind windows, walls and doors
And I thought I found it
Couple times, even settled down
And I'd hang around just long enough
To find my way back out
I know now the place that I was trying to
Reach
Was you, right here in front of me

And I wouldn't change a thing
I'd walk right back through the rain
Back to every broken heart
On the day that it was breakin'
And I'd relive all the years
And be thankful for the tears
I've cried with every stumbled step
That led to you and got me here, right here

It's amazing what I let my heart go through
To get me where it got me
In this moment here with you
And it passed me by
God knows how many times
I was so caught up in holding
What I never thought I'd find
I know now, there's a million roads
I had to take
To get me in your arms this way

And I wouldn't change a thing
I'd walk right back through the rain
Back to every broken heart
On the day that it was breakin'
And I'd relive all the years
And be thankful for the tears
I've cried with every stumbled step
That led to you and got me here, right here

In a love I never thought I'd get to get to
-here
And if that's the road
God made me take to be with you

And I wouldn't change a thing
I'd walk right back through the rain
Back to every broken heart
On the day that it was breakin'
And I'd relive all the years
And be thankful for the tears
I've cried with every stumbled step
That led to you and got me here, right here

And I'd relive all the years
And be thankful for all the tears
I've cried with every stumbled step
That led to you and got me here, right here

When you're in the middle of a major trial, it's sometimes impossible to see how there will ever be a happy ending. The despair can be overwhelming. But thankfully there is almost always a light at the end of the tunnel. I think it's that hope that helps us push through, even when it seems too hard. I'm thankful for a loving Father in Heaven who is always there, to remind us of that light and to nudge us towards it.

Beach 2008

So we went to Ormond Beach back in July, but I just got the picture CD from my dad.
Wesley "inherited" Aaron's love of the beach. (ie--They tolerate it because they love Maddie and me.) They spent most of the day inside so Wesley could nap and Aaron could eat ice cream and watch ESPN. Actually it worked out perfectly, because Maddie and I could stay on the beach for at least 10 hours, so I was grateful to not have to give up my beach time to sit in the room while Wesley slept. We have decided that when Wesley's older, they'll probably end up playing golf the entire time Maddie and I on the beach. Sounds good to me! :) As long as I have a good book and some good SPF!!

My grandmother very generously lets us use her week at the beach. (Thank you, Grandma Charles!!) We went to the beach for the third week in July and my parents came the next week. Our times there overlapped, so we got to spend time with my mom and dad before Aaron, Wesley and I left to go home. Maddie was a lucky duck and got to stay an extra week with my mom and dad. Aunt Corie, who lives in Athens, was there with her boyfriend, Josh. They were going to bring Maddie home when they left at the end of the week.

Aaron--being a very good sport--with Maddie and my cousins, Nicole and Natalie (He will only do this one the last day we are at the beach, right before we go in for the night. He HATES the sand.)


Sweet, sweet!

My Aunt Charlotte, Uncle Jamie and cousins, Nicole and Natalie

Wendi, Aaron & Wesley on Poppa's dune buggy (This thing is famous! Seriously! People will stop us and ask to take pictures when we're riding down the beach.)

The little fish.

Wesley LOVES to swim! Once we figured out he could float with the swimmies, he was a happy little boy! He's in the baby pool here, but he loved the big pool too.

Sassy pants

Wesley, tolerating the sand, sun and salt water

Since Wesley was still crawling when we went to the beach, he developed his own kind of crawl--the crab walk. His poor little knees couldn't take the sand, so he starting crawling on his hands and feet. He's been doing it ever since. (That kid is FAST!!)

My family is BIG into the beach. My parents bring nice patio chairs to lay in, big umbrellas to provide shade, coolers, a boom box, a dune buggy that acts as a fun way to cruise the beach and a way to get everything down to the sand every morning. My dad also has an icee machine that he hooks up to the dune buggy's battery to make shaved ice on the beach. No need to run upstairs! Maddie LOVES going to the beach and she loves going with her Poppa and Nonna!

Silly girl!

Not happy with sand on his face. :)


Playing

Maddie and her beach twin :)


Maddie, on her way to becoming a professional surfer.

Flying a kite--it's hard enough with one spool of string, but two?
Playing Bocce ball--Maddie's telling everyone which ball is closer to the target ball


My youngest sister, Corie, and her boyfriend, Josh, drove down to the beach. Josh brought his skim board and Maddie tried learning how to do it. It didn't quite work, because she ended up stepping in front of the quickly moving board and it smacked the side of her foot. She was pretty upset and ended up falling asleep from the exhaustion of staying up too late, playing too hard and crying because her foot hurt so badly.


Maddie, the budding actress, pretending to be scared of the cemetery at the pirate-themed mini golf place.

My little beach bum.
If she ever runs away, we know where she'll be!!

Little Man

In case anyone was wondering, Wesley is doing really well! He continues to get taller and taller. He looks so much more like a little boy than a baby. :( He's crawling around and starting to get into everything! He has two teeth and it looks like he's working on a third. Here are some pictures I took a couple of weeks ago. He is the cutest little thing ever! :)

(Not the cutest picture of Aaron, but it shows Wesley's cute laugh. I wish y'all could hear it!)