It’s hard to believe that it was just a year ago that our precious baby came into our lives. At the same time I don’t ever remember a year going by so fast as this last year did. It’s hard to believe that my little baby won’t be a baby anymore at the end of this week. He will be a TODDLER. I have very mixed emotions. I am so excited to see him learn and grow. But at the same time I just want to hold him in my arms and rock him like when he was tiny tiny. Today I was thinking about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They were given the choice to choose to stay in the garden and not partake of the fruit, but by doing so they would never have posterity. They would never know true joy or sorrow. They would not know good versus evil. They had the other choice to partake of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. By partaking of the fruit, they would be cast out of the garden, they would be mortal, but they would have children. They would have joy along with the sorrows and they would have knowledge. Today I was thinking that most of us are able to make a similar choice that Adam and Eve made when we are married. We can choose to put off children. Life could be easier/less complicated. We would have more money, more date nights, less student debt, less sleepless nights, but at the same time we would not know true joy. We can choose to have children, and life gets a little more complicated. There are more worries, more responsibilities, more trials, but along with that, much greater joy. My husband and I realize that if we didn’t have Jif when we did, we would have much less student debt, if any. We would have more money. I would be farther in my career. But could I be as happy? Absolutely not. Being a mother has brought me true happiness. There is nothing like seeing your baby laugh and wondering where he got his sense of humor. There is nothing like cuddling on the couch with your child. There is nothing that compares to seeing your child learn knew skills and become more intelligent. My life is so much better since Jif was born. My capacity to love has grown so much. I am so thankful for him. One of my husband’s friends from law school asked him “How can you have a baby? I am 35 years old and my spouse and I feel that we are no where near being financially stable enough to have a baby.” My answer to him would be, “how could I not have this baby? He has brought so much good to us. Yes, we may not have a fancy nursery, a changing table, I don’t have a rocking chair, and we don’t have the biggest selection of toys, but we have each other. And we have love. We are able to take care of our basic needs and that plus love is really all you need.
It’s hard to believe that it was just a year ago that our precious baby came into our lives. At the same time I don’t ever remember a year going by so fast as this last year did. It’s hard to believe that my little baby won’t be a baby anymore at the end of this week. He will be a TODDLER. I have very mixed emotions. I am so excited to see him learn and grow. But at the same time I just want to hold him in my arms and rock him like when he was tiny tiny. Today I was thinking about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They were given the choice to choose to stay in the garden and not partake of the fruit, but by doing so they would never have posterity. They would never know true joy or sorrow. They would not know good versus evil. They had the other choice to partake of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. By partaking of the fruit, they would be cast out of the garden, they would be mortal, but they would have children. They would have joy along with the sorrows and they would have knowledge. Today I was thinking that most of us are able to make a similar choice that Adam and Eve made when we are married. We can choose to put off children. Life could be easier/less complicated. We would have more money, more date nights, less student debt, less sleepless nights, but at the same time we would not know true joy. We can choose to have children, and life gets a little more complicated. There are more worries, more responsibilities, more trials, but along with that, much greater joy. My husband and I realize that if we didn’t have Jif when we did, we would have much less student debt, if any. We would have more money. I would be farther in my career. But could I be as happy? Absolutely not. Being a mother has brought me true happiness. There is nothing like seeing your baby laugh and wondering where he got his sense of humor. There is nothing like cuddling on the couch with your child. There is nothing that compares to seeing your child learn knew skills and become more intelligent. My life is so much better since Jif was born. My capacity to love has grown so much. I am so thankful for him. One of my husband’s friends from law school asked him “How can you have a baby? I am 35 years old and my spouse and I feel that we are no where near being financially stable enough to have a baby.” My answer to him would be, “how could I not have this baby? He has brought so much good to us. Yes, we may not have a fancy nursery, a changing table, I don’t have a rocking chair, and we don’t have the biggest selection of toys, but we have each other. And we have love. We are able to take care of our basic needs and that plus love is really all you need.
Jessica! I totally understand the mixed emotions about having your baby grow up. Thanks so much for sharing these beautiful thoughts about having a baby, it really is something I need to remember!
ReplyDeleteAgreed!! Well said.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully said. Amen to that post! Happy birthday to little Jif!
ReplyDeleteLoved the post! Thanks!!
ReplyDelete