Saturday, May 31, 2008

May 30, 2008 at 2:41 pm


Here is a picture of Adele on her birthday (may 30th) taken at her exact "birth-minute" (2:41 pm).

Marbles Museum

For Adele's birthday we took her to the Marbles Museum in Raleigh.  It really has nothing to do with marbles, except for the big marble wall.  It is an interactive and creative museum for kids.  It was so much fun. We got there around 9:30 am and stayed for 5 hours.  When you walk in there are several "games" that are life size, like chess or connect four that you can play.  Then there is a area called "around town" that has different areas of play that represent different places in Raleigh like Wake Med., the post office, grocery stores and etc.  In these areas you can pretend to drive an ambulance, work in the post office, shop for groceries, fish on a boat, dress up in costumes and put on a "play" on the stage and lots more.   Then there is a "water area", craft table and a very large ship to play on.  Upstairs there are several interactive play areas such as legos, a work shop with tools and wood that you can really saw, hammer, nail and etc.  There is another area for creative movement.   In this area there is karaoke, instruments, dancing, crafts and so much more.  The area that was my favorite was the "japanese school".  It was set up so that you could visit these 5 japanese children's school and homes.  You could go in their "rooms" at home and see what their hobbies were and what they liked to eat.  It also showed there school room, their desks and what subjects they learn.   It was amazing.  

I know I am going on and on but I really thought this place was great and it was only $5 per person (we had to pay for public parking as well and we won't talk about how much that was).  I recommend this museum to everyone.  We plan to go back again soon.  I hope you enjoy the pictures.  

( if you double click in the middle of the pictures it will take you to "bubble share" and you can view them much larger


Thursday, May 29, 2008

Adele the Theologian

Ok, so there is this "tween" show on Disney called "Wizards of Waverly Place" that Adele has been asking to watch.  For a while we have just been telling her no because we felt like the show of course wasn't something we wanted her to see.   Well, she has gone on and on about it so last night I suggested to her that she and her dad should watch it and decide whether or not it honored God.  So, today she comes to me and says, "I just cast a spell on you."  Great..... so I say to her THAT is why you can't watch that show because it influences you to behave ungodly.  So she says, (now this is the reason I am blogging)  "If God doesn't like us casting spells and wizards cast spells, then WHY did God create wizards?"  I know that she didn't come right out and ask "why is there sin" but I must say that I was impressed with her reasoning and "thinking it out". Obviously, I told her that was a good question and that she should ask her dad as soon as he gets home from work!

Sunscreen - What kind to buy?


I was up late last night (too excited about starting my blog to sleep) and I was watching a late night show and they had a panel talking about consumer reports findings on which sunscreens work the best.  I thought it was very interesting, especially since I live in a house with 2 very "sun sensitive" individuals.  It said also that cost was no indicator of how well the sunscreen works.  It actually rated Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry - Touch SPF 55 the best but also said that No - Ad Sunblock Lotion Maximum SPF45 sunscreen came in very close to the top and that brand is pretty inexpensive (which we all love!).  So..... happy sunning!!!!

The story of Adele...


Adele turns 6 tomorrow and I thought it would be appropriate since I just started this blog to share the story of how she came to be..... the story begins far before September 13th, 2001 which is the day we found out I was pregnant.  We started trying to get pregnant about 16 months before that.  We had been trying for about 6 months when my doctor put me on clomid, a fertility drug.  So for the next year I made several visits a month to the dr. for blood tests, a pregnancy test and check up.  Each time with a negative pregnancy test and an even more negative attitude (it is hard to be so honest about yourself and your actions).  During this time my best friend, Tess had gotten pregnant.  Honestly, this was also very hard for me and it put a strain on our relationship because I wasn't at a place that I could enjoy it with her.  After about 12 months of trying my dr. told me that he wanted to do surgery to find out why I wasn't getting pregnant. And so he did and it was concluded that I have endometriosis.  So during the surgery they "got rid" of the endometriosis that was growing to improve my chances of getting pregnant.  During this time I wasn't really trusting God for his will and his timing in my life.  I was focused on WHY God, all these other people are pregnant, even people who don't want to be pregnant.  I just didn't understand. 
 My dr. had said that we would try for 3 months to get pregnant after the surgery and if I still wasn't pregnant after that he would want to do "artificial insemination".  So, the first month after surgery I still wasn't pregnant and I was sitting in the exam room waiting for him to come back in and I just let go and completely surrendered to God.  My prayer to God that day was that I wanted his will and his timing.    A few minutes later the dr. came in and asked if I wanted to go ahead with the insemination even though it was only the first month of trying after the surgery not the third.  Of course I said yes.  So, on August 31st, 2001, I had the artificial  insemination (for those of you who do quick math you have already figured out I got pregnant that month).  But let me back up a little.  I had been reading in James where it talks about having the elders of your church pray for you and I told Jason that was something I wanted to do.  Up until this point we had shared that we were trying to get pregnant with only a few people. So, we went to our deacons and they prayed over us. I will never forget sitting in that room while those men laid hands on me and prayed for God's will and also asked God to "breathe life into me".  Even now as I am typing tears have come into my eyes.  That was the first day of my pregnancy.  I think that is so amazing.  But that isn't all.  I mentioned earlier that my best friend, Tess had gotten pregnant early on in the story and how it was a strain on our friendship because I was having a hard time .  Well, during this time she was so patient with me and constantly prayed for me. A true testimony of what the bible says a friend should be.  Well....isn't this just like God, Adele was born on Tess's birthday!  Yup, they share the birthday of May 3oth  (not the same year of course).  I felt like that was God saying to me that he was going to restore my friendship with her and that this "season" in our friendship had been for his purpose and glory.  Ok, I have one more thing that God did to show me that this was HIS timing, literally.  My best friend Tess is also a labor and delivery nurse and so she has a watch that she uses to know the "exact" time babies are born ( it is set with some clock somewhere or something like that) and on our wedding day she gave us a napkin where she had written "pronounced husband and wife at 2:41 pm".  Well, a couple of months after Adele's birth I found that napkin and I was floored because Adele had also been born also at 2:41 pm.  I know, WOW!  

So, Adele Dawes Sessoms was born on Thursday, May 30th at 2:41 pm at Heritage Hospital in Tarboro.  She weighed 8 lbs. 2 oz., was 22 inches long and had a head full of dark brown hair. Every inch of her was perfect!!!  We were absolutely beside ourselves with joy and thankfulness.  

I feel like God used all those things to say to me "I have a plan for you" just like in Jeremiah 29:11.  I guess I could have just trusted in that from the beginning (but what fun would there have been in that?).  I am so grateful to God for Adele and what he has shown me through her life already.  I still don't know "why" God had me wait to conceive and go through that process.  I do know that I wished I had behaved differently, I wished I had given God more glory during that time with my actions and totally trusted in him.  I am grateful for that lesson and for my precious daughter.  Did I mention that Adele turns 6 tomorrow and that my dearest friend Tess turns....29 (you're welcome Tess).

Are they real, Mommy?

There are moments as a parent that you never want to forget...... Adele had her dance recital about a week ago and we were told by the other parents that the dads give the daughters flowers after their performances.  So we went to Walmart and bought roses for her.  I wrapped them in pink and white tissue paper and ribbon.  After her last dance Jason went to the dressing room to get her and bring her back out to sit with us so she could watch the rest of the show.  That is when he presented her with her roses.  When he brought her back out she had the sweetest look on her face.  She just kept starring at the roses like she couldn't believe they were really hers.  Then, (now this is the moment I never want to forget) she carefully took one finger and gently stroked the petal of one of the roses, leaned over so slowly to smell them and then looked at me and said softly, "Are they real mommy?" Trying to choke back the tears I replied, "Yes, they are real".  It really got away with me how those roses made her feel so special.  I mean, I know that it wasn't really the "roses" that made her feel loved, it was what the roses represented to her.  How much we love her.  But I started thinking, do I make her feel that loved everyday?  Do I do little things each day to make her feel that way? And do I let others around me know how much I love them?  I am sure I don't, but I want to.............


Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Newt News

So, a few days ago Adele and I collected some tadpoles out of our neighbor's ditch and as we were watching them I thought I saw a fish in the tank.  A few days later as I was changing the water I tried to catch the "fish" so I could show it to Adele. Well... the "fish" had legs and a tail!  It was actually a baby newt, a semi-aquatic lizard.  It still had it's external gills.  We kept it for a few days and Adele took it to school to show her friends.  It really was cool and amazing to see how small it was. Another thing that was cool but gross was that we learned that tadpoles actually don't eat just algae or decaying matter in the water, which is what I thought, but they actually eat worms and sometimes other tadpoles.  So, this was brought to my attention when I saw several of the tadpoles actually biting and pulling on this worm that was in the water. Honestly, they looked like piranha.  So be warned!  Do they even have teeth?