Joy in the Waiting

This is one of my favorite depictions of Our Lady of Guadalupe and was one of the images I meditated on when pregnant with Charlotte along with the passage of "Be Still & Know". The image brings up powerful feelings for me, even now, as I ponder it. There is a sense of stillness and waiting as Mary looks down at her expanding belly. So many unknowns were all around her, yet there is a sense of serenity about her. I love how the light radiates from her innermost being as Earth quietly awaits and prepares for the birth of our Savior. It's so easy, during the holiday season, and well just in life in general to get caught up in the hustle and bustle and be swallowed whole by the "What ifs?" and anxieties. This image helps me to ground myself and recenter on what is really most important. May we all increase in accepting that which is beyond our control.

Mary, Mother of Life, by Nellie Edwards

Today is the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe who just happens to be the patron saint of the Students Serving Moms ministry and it is also my grandmother's birthday.

I can't let the day start without acknowledging the ministry and the impact it has had on me. Simply put, the ministry seeks to pair college students as helpers with university families to provide help with childcare and help around the house. In exchange, the college student is fed and provided access to use of laundry facilities. Relationships are formed and children, families, and college students are able to bond within our little community.

My family has been blessed so very much with having Sofia with us this past semester. She has helped us out in a pinch over the last couple months during a rather busy semester as Adam wraps up classes and I oversaw various clubs and ministries on top of my usual teaching load. Sofia has been such a joyful addition to our household which will make it that much more difficult to say goodbye this weekend as she prepares for graduation this month. While I first met Sofia as a professor, I credit the ministry with allowing our friendship to blossom thanks to her reentering our lives as Charlotte's helper back in Spring 2017.

I jokingly refer to Cassie as student leader extraordinaire but am not joking when I say that. Her selfless love and sacrificial leadership over the last several semesters has helped to shape and form the ministry into what it is today. So many families and helpers have had positive experiences participating in Students Serving Moms thanks to her dedication and forward thinking not to mention that I have benefitted from her top notch organizational skills as we transitioned to being formally accepted as a Works of Mercy student club. We are all going to miss her and it breaks my heart to say goodbye to her as she gets closer to graduation in May 2019 but what a future that lies in wait for her!!

This past semester, as I advised the ministry, my family made do without a helper as I had wanted all the families on the waiting list to receive at least ...until the middle of the second to last week of the semester when Katherine walked into our lives as a helper! This just goes to show you that you never know what God has in store for you!! In the short time since we've worked with Katherine, Charlotte has really enjoyed the one on one time with her and I've been able to make a dent in my end of the semester grading that looms over me. Her help is especially appreciated this morning as I had stayed up until 3:45am grading last night. She, herself, had stayed up until 3am studying for a final but still wanted to come and serve us in this way today...God bless her! I am so thankful for this ministry that helps mamas stay afloat, myself included!

Long ago are the days that I sat at my grandma's feet as she brushed my hair and I listened to stories shared of being a mother and fulfilling her vocation as teacher. I often wonder what it would be like for her to have met our little Charlotte whom she would have undoubtedly called her "Little Princess" as she did me. I know she is still with us in spirit and watches over us from Heaven but I'm thinking of my own mother in a special way today too. I am thankful for the mothers, grandmothers, aunts, and spiritual mothers in both Charlotte's and my lives...from college students who are serving as helpers through this much needed ministry, to family friends who are more like family than friends, to family members we don't get to see as often as we would like. May they all feel the special thoughts and prayers today on this most special feast day. Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us!

Welcoming in the Advent Season by enjoying Symphony on Ice with "Fia".

Helping out at the Bake Sale that was a wild success!  Hopefully more helpers will be able to join the ministry thanks to the funds that were raised.

Never too late...we are so thankful for Katherine's help (and willingness to fingerpaint) at the tail end of the semester!

My grandmother loved singing. One of her favorite songs to sing to us was, "I don't know why I love you like I do.....but I just do". The same could be said about our loving Father...He loves us despite our shortcomings. He loves us flaws and all. That doesn't mean we should not strive to live as better people than we were yesterday but isn't it so reassuring that He loves us? Let's all strive to love others for who they are...children of God. Mary, Mother of Life, pray for us!

Love and miss you every day, Grandma!