Right after we got married, we were faced with a life altering decision to move away from family and friends to start a life in Edmonton where we had absolutely no one. Before we had married J and I were both on the same page, had prayed about going, and both knew it was the right thing to do for both of us. But as the day loomed closer and others' opinions became apparent, our faith faltered a lot and there were times where I had to be strong for J's faith had faltered and times where J had to be strong because I was lacking the faith needed. But we made it after a long fought battle and the Lord has truly blessed us.
It was interesting as we looked for a place to live and out of the 15 places I looked at and had booked appointments all fell through at the last moment. J picked up the phone and the first call he made landed us in the apartment we have now. Some things I think the Lord leaves to the priesthood because they are the leaders of the home. Our apartment has been great in ways and not so great in other ways. One hidden blessing we have found is the ward we are in. While it has its struggles it also has hidden strength in it that has allowed J and I to know that what we are trying to achieve is right. We moved into a ward where there are a lot of stay-at-home moms with in-school dads and they have made it work. There were many who bore testimony to us either through telling their story or through example that as we live the commandments the Lord will always bless us.
Being the baby lover that I am it was easy to make friends with the moms my age and had my eyes open to different parenting options and methods. One big eye opener was the coolness factor here of cloth diapering, it is pretty much the way to go when you are in a financial crunch and are needing to save money. The other encouragement is breast feeding and the wonderful support of the moms in the ward for new moms or mommies again who struggle has been a real eye opener for me.
One friend in particular has been my light in a confusion of darkness who has helped me like a sister would in guiding me to products I have needed to survive my pregnancy, encouragement of wanting a natural birth and becoming my own advocate, and teaching me what cloth diapers are the best to use and why. The list goes on she is simply amazing and I admire her outpouring of love and for her taking me under her wing to guide me in understanding of what I want in life for my baby that will benefit our family as a whole. Today I went over there and visited with her and it is nice to have her as a support to lean on in the mommy world. There were things I had done that weren't so mainstream like not getting a travel system that matched and how that was a big mistake because my car seat would not fit in my stroller but she reassured me through her own experiences that it would work and not to stress. She is such an example to me because she is always out and about with her baby doing things, going for walks, attending baby sing and sign at the library, and so on. I hope to have the energy she has and her drive to make my baby experience a wide range of entertainment in a healthy non media friendly way.
The Lord blesses our lives even when we don't know his plan and I am slowly learning that more and more each day.
On another note today I went for my glucose tolerance test. I know I know what some of you are thinking... aren't you a week or maybe three behind?! Yes this is true, life has been busy (bad excuse) with school and family visits. Also I had to prep myself for this test do you know how gross that drink is?! It actually is better super cold than it is at room temperature... let me tell you but for some reason it made me feel awfully sick today. I don't know if it was just from how much sugar it had or what but I came home from my 2 hour wait and slept for a solid three hours and haven't been feeling so great since. I just felt bogged down and gross, but I did get lots accomplished today from finishing a paper, doing dishes, getting my test done, visiting with the fabulous Jess, and making a meal that wasn't sandwiches and soup... which sometimes happens when I am feeling the stresses of school. So all in all it was a good day, and it was made even better as I slowly took the time out of my "busy" schedule to appreciate all that the Lord has blessed me with :)
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