On our little corner of the world.

Nine has always been my favorite number.
And though I am not much for superstition or luck, I find something poetic, possibly in this number.
Or maybe it's more that this number just tends to show up frequently in my life...

But none the less, I like it.
I have spent the last couple years counting my time in nines.
Nine months of pregnancy. (approximately) nine months of labor...
Sequoia is nine months.  For some reason unknown, this means a lot to me.
Six months came and left, a big milestone.  Half of a year.
But it didn't phase me nearly as much as the nine month mark.

She has now been alive, breathing, living (outside of the womb)  for the same amount of time as it took to grow her.  For the amount of time I spent totally (not)  enjoying my pregnancy, my daughter has now exceeded this.
I have always wondered why pregnancy is 9 months.  Why God picked that specific amount of time for a Human to fully develop to the point of no longer needing constant life support.  I mean it could have been a year, that is a solid time frame.  It could have been six months, two months, a weekend.
And I think maybe I have realized His thinking.  Nine months is just long enough for you to get used to the idea that maybe having a baby isn't the end of the world.  It's long enough to prepare yourself for what is happening to you. It's the perfect amount of time to naively convince yourself that you know exactly what you are doing! But He knew any longer, and a woman (or her husband) would most likely go insane.  That nine months is pretty much the max time anyone can have their body taken over by a foreign organism.  In my opinion, He was pretty smart. Then again, He is usually right...

My nine month old laughs.  She cries, loudly.  She rolls, wiggles, slides, walks with support, has invented her own form of crawling, listens, eats completely meals by herself. She has two teeth that she is very proud of. 
 My nine month old enjoys sitting up and watching people.  She sleeps through the nights.  She throws fits when she is not getting her way.  

My nine month old plays games, she has friends, sings when a song is playing.  My nine month old is silly, and likes to make funny faces with her dad.  She has figured out how to strum his guitar and prefers alternative music and worship.  She loves avocado's and banana and kalamata olives.  



It amazes me, in just nine months how much can change.  How much beauty comes from everyday, ordinary life decisions.  How much of God's grace fills my heart, and how amazing it is to watch His promises unfold before my eyes.  It amazes me what I think I know, and actually don't know.

And as I look back at the last nine months, that last 18 months.  The last three years, all I see is what God has done, and what little part I had in it.   I see how little faith I had, and how much He came through anyway.  I walked into a new year, a new season, and new age with an amazing partner, and an incredible girl.  And when we step off the plane in two weeks, into Panama, I get to do it with the best!






Until next time --  Ciara


Please also donate to our move, its only weeks away!  Help us complete this goal, and ensure that our family gets to eat next month!