New Year

January 2012.  I know I am getting older when I start a conversation today with, "I can hardly believe that it's already January 10th."  I guess there was just nothing more enlightening to say this morning, but really, January is almost half-way over!!  And, I know I did all of us Hoosiers a favor by buying Whitney snow boots and a snow sled--because we've hardly had ANY measurable snow...so far!  Please, knock on wood after reading that sentence!

And, if I am keepin' it Jill, I'll have to say that this New Year has been a mixture of "Happy" and "Sad" thus far.  On January 2nd, I experienced a miscarriage.  This topic seems so "taboo" to blog about, but with this being our third experience down the unpleasant path, I feel more inclined to speak up.  We experienced 2 miscarriages in 2007 and, I'll have to say, I felt like my world was crumbling around me--especially after the first one.  There was a pain in my heart--in my core--that I had never experienced before. 

I digress, but I have been one of the millions of internet gawkers over the last couple of days reading about the rap/R&B royalty offspring of Jay-Z and Beyonce!  And, Ivey Ivy (yes, she's a real person), you were the first person I thought of when I heard the baby's name was Blue Ivy!  But, I was reading some of the lyrics to the song Jay-Z just wrote about his new daughter and he eluded to past heartache in the verse, "last time the miscarriage was so tragic." 

While tragic could have described our experiences in 2007, God has continued His work in me over the last (almost) 5 years and while the heartache is still there, He has blessed us with a set of beautiful blue eyes to look into that dull the pain in a second.  Whitney is a constant reminder of God's grace, power, mercy...and how fortunate we are to have her.

Besides rap lyrics (ha!), I have been totally inspired by the song "Lift Me Up" by The Afters.  If you scroll all the way down to the bottom of my blog, I have added it to my Playlist for your auditory encouragement.  But, part of the chorus reads:

You lift me up...when I am weak
Your arms wrap around me
Your love catches me...so I am letting go

I have truly felt the words to this song!  And, not to digress again, but over the past week, I have found a few other things therapeutic as well:

T.J. Maxx--Calvin Klein winter coat on sale for $48 (retail therapy)
Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Pie--and eating chocolate morsels with my daughter (sugar therapy)
"New Year's Eve"--movie night with a friend (chick-flick therapy)
Goodwill--cleaning out a closet is so freeing (organizational therapy)
Pink--dancing around the kitchen with Whitney until my head spin, hips hurt, and she was laughing so hard she couldn't talk (priceless therapy)

In 2012, I am doing my best to "let go...and let God"!  Looking forward to many exciting days ahead this year!!