my cup runneth over....

It truly does. You see, a little over two years ago Josh and I were eagerly awaiting the arrival of our daughter and attending a church I had gone to for 16 years. However, things weren't going well and after much dragging of our feet we made the decision to find a new church. We chose to postpone looking until after the baby was born. It was an extremely hard step for me because so many people there were like my family. With all the good things though, there were some not so great also. There were very few young families like us and the ones that were there were not great examples for us on the marriage and parenting front. When we decided to find a new church home our list of what we were looking for included many things, one of which was the opportunity to meet families our own age and hopefully develop some good relationships there. Charleigh was born in early May, we took her to our church on Mother's Day and then never went back.

On Memorial Day weekend we were driving down Stockdale Highway discussing where we might want to visit the following day. A few months earlier we had gone to Laurelglen and Josh had really liked it. He suggested going there again. I suggested we try Grace Baptist where we also gone a few times before. It was around this time that we passed BCHS. We saw the sign for the Bridge and I commented, "Hey, that church is somehow connected to Laurelglen. Maybe we should go there. It's close to home and I would love to be part of a new and growing church." And so, Sunday morning we woke up and tried it. It was the first church we visited and the last. After that first Sunday I tried convincing Josh that we should try more than one place to see which one felt right. His response? "This one feels right. Why keep looking?"

We jumped in with both feet because we were so eager to meet others and get involved. According to one person (who shall remain nameless), it was as if we pretty much walked in and said "Hi, wanna be our friend?" This is somewhat true. It is now two years later and I cannot believe how much our life has changed. We have met such amazing people who we are getting to know better and better as time goes by. I have had the opportunity to meet women who actually take pride in their position as wives and moms while still being incredible individuals themselves. Additionally, Josh is also feeling comfortable with more of the guys which is such an answer to prayer in our household.

This brings me to the event that brought on this heartfelt expression of gratitude. Charleigh's birthday was a few weeks ago (obviously) and we planned a playdate at the park. My mom was able to have the day off and so I invited her to join us for the chance to see all the adorable kids at play. She later told me that she had prayed when we got there, "God, please let people come. Please don't let them stand her up." See, this was not an irrational fear. Something along this line had actually happened in our old world. And here is what happened this time............

And this isn't even all of you. All I can say is thank you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your openess to welcome our family. Thank you for your willingness to let the new girl in, even if she does have odd hair color choices. Our prayers have been answered to a greater degree than we ever imagined.

My cup really does runneth over.....