Tip of the Day

Last night we went to a Christmas party for the neighborhood that we own a lot in. We didn't know anyone there and were excited to get to know our new neighbors. Unfortunately, when you are surrounded by people that you don't know, you are inevitably going to be asked the eternal question, "Do you have any kids?" Now, I don't know about your neck of the woods, but where we live, it is pretty much expected that you get married and reproduce- so this is the first question people ask you. I remember dreading this question when we were trying to get pregnant because people expect you to have a family and they look at you strange when you tell them that you are 30 and no children . You get a number of responses from, "oh, I am sure you will have kids soon" to "it is nice to wait until you are ready" to "good for you for not rushing into a family." It always amazes me to hear the responses because not only do they assume that I want children, but they assume that all I have to do is make a decision that we are ready and poof, a pregnant belly will appear!


Problem is that now, we technically do have children; they are just in heaven. So, how the heck are you supposed to answer that question???? You don't want to embarrass the person who asked by saying, "yes we had children but they passed away this summer." That would make an uncomfortable moment for everyone! But, Brooke and Alexcyn are a large part of our lives and I feel horrible dismissing them by saying "no, we don't have any children." So, my tip of the day is when you meet someone new, don't immediately ask them if they have children. Most likely, if they do have children, they will come up in conversation and then it will be ok to discuss their family further. There are currently 2.1 million couples that are suffering from infertily and for every 1000 people, there are 6.8 babies that die as infants. That means that you will most likely encounter an infertile couple or a couple who has lost a child at a Christmas party this season. I ask you to please consider this tip when meeting new people- you could really make a positive impact on their night if you just avoid that question!

Also, I wanted to mention a prayer request for someone from my church who has been an inspiration to me of how to lean on God and trust Him in difficult times. Her name is Kristi and I am not good with all the details, but she has cancer and was in remission and just recently she found out that the cancer is possibly back. She goes in for another appt on Dec 17 to find out if she must begin a more aggressive chemo again. As I read her blog this morning, I couldn't help but cry because I am exactly where she is... feeling down and struggling with so many questions. Here is an excerpt from her blog- you can click on her name above to go to her blog. If you have a lot of time on your hands, I would highly recommend it- she has been such an inspiration to me and has really shined a light in all of our lives.

Have you ever been so down you didn't know how you would get back up? How about put on a smile when all you wanted to do was cry? Told someone you were fine when really you weren't? Wondered if God really cared? Lost hope? Been surrounded by people and yet felt completely alone? If you have, you're not alone. I've just described the past couple days of my life.


Please keep Kristi and her family in your prayers this week.