Wave of Light

My candles were lit tonight...

Grief Work

This Saturday is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.  Like many of the amazing loss mamas I have met on this journey, I don't post here as often as I used to, but I have had my babies on my heart so much lately.

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I have also had the other families who have experienced this kind of loss heavy on my heart as well and I just wanted to share this quote by W. Graham Scroggie, in Billy Graham's book, Facing Death...

Let grief do its work.  Tramp every inch of the sorrowful way.  Drink every drop of the bitter cup.  Draw from memory and hope all that they can offer.  To see the things our loved ones have left behind will give us daily pain...but what would we be without those reminders?  Would we like quickly to break with the past in order to ease our grief?  Those who truly love will say that they have found in sorrow a new joy, a joy which only the brokenhearted can know.

 So as we all remember and try to raise awareness this week, let us draw from our memory all that it can offer and bask in the joy that only the brokenhearted know.

I know without a doubt, my brokenness has brought me (and my family) closer to God.  It has made our marriage stronger, our parenting better and our relationships more meaningful.  We may have known pain like no other, but we also live with a glimpse of Heaven in our hearts and know that the trials of this life are just a blink of the eye compared to what is coming....deep, everlasting, JOY.

Remembering with you....

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Two Years of Blogging

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Today marks two years since writing my first blog post.  I had no idea what I was doing (and still really don't), but I can say that this has been an extremely therapeutic way to heal, to remember and share with other's that you are not alone.  In the past two years, I have shared so much with my friends and (gasp!) strangers on this blog, but in the end, the support I have been given and have been able to give back has far outweighed the negative feedback or annoying spam comments.  Since that first blog post, I have shared so, so much in this space...

Remembering Shyla on my first Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day in 2009.

Why Dragonflies are so special to me.

Shyla's birth story.

The idea of Shyla's Stocking and then some of the amazing acts that were placed inside.

Our first Christmas with out her.

Our journey beginning with the March of Dimes, the newspaper article written about our family, and the March for Babies with our family the ambassadors in Shyla's name.

Oklahoma City and Shyla's pregnancy.

Reminders of her...

The announcement that we were pregnant again and asking for prayers for our Rainbow.

The Pregnancy and Infant Loss Training Event we organized for "first responders".

Shyla's first birthday and celebration of life.

Our Miracle Rainbow...when the Dr was wrong...

When something else was wrong...our boy's heart wasn't working like it should.

Jakin's ultimate healing and birth.

The service to remember and honor Jakin's life.

Our 2nd Christmas without Shyla and first without Jakin.

Our adoption announcement.

Jakin's Due Date.

The Amazing Women of Faith Event I had the privilege of attending.

Shyla's 2nd birthday.

I also shared some funny experiences...like this post...(well, it wasn't so funny to me...)

I feel like I have ran an emotional triathlon the past two years and I am so glad I have had this platform to get out most of my feelings and connect with other loss moms.  You all have given me SO much support and I thank God for you!