Weekend Warriors

Our weekends have been so exciting recently. This weekend's drama began early yesterday morning when a policeman knocked on our door to tell us that both our cars had been broken into. Nothing was taken from Erica's car (there was nothing to take unless they wanted baby toys and a car seat). From my car they stole my wallet (which contained three or four gift cards) but they removed the credit cards first! Rather courteous we thought. The weekend ended with a huge display of God's amazing grace.

Last weekend, we started landscaping our house. After three or four mosquito bites and only one decent blister, I broke my shovel and called it a day.

On Sunday we had dinner with Lance, Diana, and Evan Hilliard. Watching Evan and Norah play together was a blast.

Two weekends ago, Erica threw a baby shower for Valerie. Chris volunteered to help out in the kitchen. Here are a few clips from that experience.

Three weekends ago, Norah, Erica, and I traveled to Monroe, LA to visit Adam, Rebekka, Chris, and Valerie. We had a blast helping them register at Target for stuff for their expected babies. It was a great weekend catching up with old friends and taking in the sites, like standing water, "The Pentecostals" (a local church), Transformers, and swamp flowers.

Jeanne Marie

This week marks the 10 year anniversay of my mom's death. I didn't remember the anniversaries at first; I believe they were just too painful. But now, my heart won't let me forget. I've had a heavy sadness all week, and today it occured to me.
I am sad that many of my friends will not even recognize her name. Most of you, including Finley, did not get to meet her.
So this blog is going to be for me.
Please feel free to skip over it, but I need to remember my mom today and give myself permission to be sad.
These are just a few of my favorite pictures of her. My grandfather was an amateur photographer,
and I am so grateful to him for every box of photos. I thought these baby photos were poetic. Going back over them I realize how much my Mom and my Norah look alike as babies. Thank you, Father. I wonder if she will continue to grow to look like her Grandma. Mom, Norah and I have the same eyes. And norah has darker hair than Fin or I did, like my Mom. I, like many children, think no one was as beautiful as my mother, so I can think of no none I'd rather my Norah resemble.
We are going to the Cathedral this weekend to light a candle for Mom. Going into a Catholic Church is like entereing the heritage of my family. It's like going home, though I don't fit in as well as I did when I was younger. My mom loved going to mass. She said that no matter how hard our week was or how much we had argued, when we went to mass on Sunday, everything was somehow okay. The walls fell down and we were able to remember how much we loved each other and how for so many years we were all the other one had.

Hilliard's in space

My best high school friend, Lance Hilliard, lost his father, Matthew Earl Hilliard, to a heart attack on Tuesday. Please pray for Lance and his brother Richard as they mourn their father's passing. At his father's request Lance and his family plan to have Mr. Hilliard cremated. His ashes will be, funds permitting, launched into space!

Sweet Baby James

On thursday evenying Erica and I went to meet Lucy James. To my delight I got to hold her for a few minutes, and I think we bonded. She must have known what it took for us to get there. Here is the story.

Erica remembered Amy's comment that she was delivering at Doctor's Hospital next to St. Vincent's. As we drove up to the Doctor's Building Erica went in to ask where Amy was, but the information desks was vacant. We finally decided that she must have misunderstood, so we drove across the street to St. Vincents. After parking in the deck and walking in the door Erica picked up the phone at yet another unmanned information booth. We learned that Lucy James was in room 434 on the OTHER side of the street. Back across the street we went, laughing at our own ignorance. We parked and went to the fourth floor of the Doctor's Building. It was deserted. After a deep sigh, we spotted a janitor that told us we were in the "Doctor's Building" but needed to be in the "Doctor's Hospital". "There is a breezway" she said "on the fifth floor".

At this point I must add that if you are getting bored with the story please feel free to skip to the next paragraph. It won't hurt my feelings. I must also explain that even though I grew up only a few minutes from this hospital, and was actually born there, I had not been back until thursday. My family is loyal to Baptist Hospital to a fault. Anyway, back to the story. We took the elevator to the fifth floor, walked down a hall and found... a dead end. I peered through the window and saw the breezway on the floor blelow us. At this point Norah looked at me as if to say "you have got to be kidding me". We took that stairs (they were closer) down to the breezway and crossed over in triumph. "We're almost there" I said in a desperate attempt to keep my family's spirits up. At the other side we reached our destination only to find a locked door. "No!" someone in the family cried. By now we were feething like mice in a pshycology experiment. I looked around for some explanation or way out and found that we had in fact walked across the TOP of the breezway. Down another floor we went, through the breezway, through the door, up the elevator, and we saw a sign that said "NICU". "We must be close" I said feeling a little like John Edredge hunting elk in Montana. A few more turns and we entered the labor and delivery waiting room. "We're here" we exclaimed to everyone else in the room as if we had just discovered america.

It was worth it. If you have not met Lucy yet, I highly recommend it. She is in "Doctor's Hospital". Tell her I sent you.

Charlotte Mullhearn

Dear, sweet, Charlotte Mulhearn passed away early Friday morning. We never got to meet her, but after praying for her for so long, Erica and I had become quite attached to her. She will be dearly missed.