random story from england

So, this strange thing happened to Joe and I while we were in England on our honeymoon. There were so many fun things that happened on that trip that I'm not sure we ever told anyone about the "strange thing". 

This was maybe the 4th or 5th day of the trip. We had just left London, I think it was maybe our 2nd night in Oxford. We were strolling around and I was looking for an ice cream shoppe I had remembered being particularly good and I kept telling Joe he just HAD to try it. A short walk later, we found ourselves in a Ben & Jerry's (I said it was good, I didn't say it was original). 

We started to walk back towards the College and our hotel, on St. Giles Street and decided to stop and sit on a bench to eat our ice cream and talk. I have, below, a picture of this exact bench:

copyright: wikipedia

As we were sitting there, a car pulls right in front of us (see that little street cutting around the memorial?) and a black guy gets out and runs towards us, his car parked but still running. 

Now, do not think I am a racist because I was scared and immediately gripped my purse. Who wouldn't be scared of a man running towards you in a foreign country?! 

He stopped in front of us and said, "I have to tell you, you are so blessed. I can see it. You are blessed ones. I just, I see it and I had to tell you" and like that he turned around back to his car. I sort of mumbled thank-you as he started to drive off. Joe and I looked at each other and laughed about halos and glowing orbs around our bodies but I'm not going to lie, I was flattered. 

The thing is, the guy didn't seem that crazy. He didn't want anything from us, he didn't give us a religious pamphlet to study and he didn't even reference who his God was. 

When I found out I was pregnant a month later, I thought about this moment and how it had been 2 nights after we conceived. So... maybe he knew we were blessed with a baby? Maybe he knew that we were going to have the best baby in the world and that she would make our lives full. 

I'll never know if that guy was someone special, if he was in touch with God, if he believed in telling people that they were special, or if he was just bat-shit crazy. But I'll tell Emmy this story when she gets older, about how a man found us in a foreign country and saw how she would make our lives special and how important she is to God.

the personality of a name

Emmy & Grammy

For a while, I couldn't explain why I liked this picture so much. 

Emmy isn't exactly smiling and her outfit makes her look a little like a boy (don't get me wrong: I love this outfit). But then it hit me, I love that I can see in her eyes a preview of her personality.

Emmy is the sweetest baby in the world, this is a non-negotiable fact and I have no idea where she gets it.

I'd like to say that we are doing something as parents to make her laid back and sweet natured but I know that's not true. She is just a happy kid and every now and then, like in this picture, I lock eyes with her and I see that she is so much more than a sweet girl. She is going to be incredible, we know this because it's in her name

We gave Emmy two names because I think names have a lot to do with personalities. We chose "Emmy" in part because my boss's wife's name is Emmy and I adore her, everyone does. She is a sweet and strong independent-minded woman. Exactly the kind of woman I would want my daughter to be. But "Emmy" is a nickname and Joe was adamant that we have a "real" name too. I've always liked Amelia until a recent BBC America series of Doctor Who made me LOVE it. 

The Doctor's companion is named Amelia Pond and she is an adventurous Scottish ginger with a quick, witty sense of humor and incredible bravery. I love her character so much and we knew we would be arming our daughter with our hopes for her in her name: to be sweet but strong, brave and maybe a little witty too. 

Oh, and in case you think I'm crazy, I do understand that Emmy will be who she is. That doesn't mean I can't imagine what she might be like or give her the confidence to find the strength to be herself. 

Amelia Pond on the TARDIS.
Her real name is Karen Gillan, my mom's name is Karen so how perfect is that!?

sweet little hearts

There is nothing sweeter than watching your baby grow.


I used to babysit a lot and there was one family in particular (whom I still love dearly) that I babysat for 7 years, long after I needed the money and well into my pregnancy. I started when the youngest little girl, Caroline, was 6 months. I fell in love with that little sweet girl and as I sit here thinking of her I get teary with affection. Throughout my pregnancy I made little silent prayers that Emmy would be sweet and happy like Caroline. 


One time, I watched Caroline and a friend spend hours outside in the driveway selling lemonade. They live on a great street, with lots of walkers and the two were making off pretty well, running in and out to make more lemonade (it was at this time I realized it is good to buy lemonade from kids but not to actually drink it).


After a little while, a boy came up and asked if he could play too. Caroline and her friend clearly explained to him that he could play but he wouldn't be getting any money from them, they had already agreed to split 50/50 and they didn't need him (gotta love a girl who knows her mind). He agreed to their terms and when I called them in for dinner she came in and her friend split her share and left. The little boy walked home. 


After dinner, Caroline got really quiet and sad. I asked her what was wrong and she started crying. She said she had done something mean, that the boy had helped them and she should have shared her money with him. She was so filled with guilt that she asked if she could go to his house and offer him some money. I was so proud of her at that moment. I knew she had been raised well and that she had such a good heart so I let her go. She went to his house and came running back, grinning ear-to-ear. I asked her how it went and she smiled so big that I could see all her missing teeth and said "He didn't want it! He just wanted to sit with us!" and she ran off to count her money again. 


I tell her this story often, so that she knows that she has a good heart and like her parents, I'm proud of her too. When I look at Emmy I know my little prayers were answered. I am so proud of my own little sweet girl and I am so excited to find out who she becomes.