day 21

Today I'm thankful for BABIES.

I LOVE MY BABIES.

CONGRATS to Leslie & Brad on the birth of Jonah, the newest cutest bestest Twining baby! (My kids are the bestest right?)  He was born at 10:55 this morning!

The fun trivia for the Twining family is that my folks have had one grandbaby every year since 2007.

Kyler, born January 2007.
Wesley, born May 2008.
Leanna, born April 2009.
Ruby, born September 2010.
Laurel, born December 2011 (we barely got in that year!).
Spencer, born July 2012.
and now Jonah, born November 2012!


TWO BABIES in 2012! My lucky folks! I suppose that would mean it's my turn again in 2013, but ahem, that won't happen. In fact, I do believe the Seattle Gottula home is done having babies.

I'm grateful for the sweet smell of babies. I'm grateful for how they trust and rely on their parents completely. There isn't anything in the world as empowering (and humbling) as cradling a sweet little baby, calming it to sleep or nursing it to contentment. I'm grateful that life goes on. I'm grateful that God saw me fit to let me experience parenthood, to have stewardship over these little people. I'm grateful that babies come from love. I'm grateful for the love I feel in my heart, complete unconditional encompassing love that is unlike anything else I've ever felt.

I find it funny that I am quoting Desperate Housewives here, but one of the characters once said that in her life she had fallen in and out of love with many men, but she had never fallen out of love with her children. It's true. Adult relationships can come and go (hopefully not the spousal relationship, I will hold out hope that mine is for forever!), but being a parent is forever.

I tell Wesley all the time, "I will keep you forever." And then he looks at his big airplane and says, "Big Airplane, I'll keep you forever."

I love babies. They'll be my babies forever.