Has it really been a week since my last post? Wow, I'm slacking aren't I? Well, let's see...what has happened in a week? Well, for one thing, my little peanut is growing up. Today she let out a full blown belly laugh. I was so shocked and happy that I cried. So far it's been the one laugh followed by a squeaky inhale when she gets really excited, fun and certainly cute but not an official laugh. So today, while I was kissing and blowing raspberries on her tummy...it happened, giggle central. What could be better? I demonstrated again for Ford tonight while getting her ready for bed, she did it again. He couldn't believe it either. Watching her grow and change and witnessing her personality emerge is nothing short of incredible. After what we have been through already in her short little life, these important moments feel like the greatest gifts, and maybe I am just that much more grateful. They are almost like little surprises, you never know when they are going to come and when they do, it's like God wrapped up a little box and left it on your doorstep. And the best thing is the little boxes keep coming.
There's not a day that goes by that I don't thank God for her and for healing her. Sometimes when the discussion comes up, the whole skin thing, I want to cut the conversation short and not talk about it, not remember it, not relive it. But then I remember, what an important happening it was and is in our lives. It was by far the hugest test of faith that I have been through yet. Which leads me to this story:
I joined a Bible study with my friend Elizabeth when Amelia was just 5 weeks old. I have never done anything like this before but in light of what I was going through emotionally concerning Amelia and her health, well, it just felt right. Plus I thought it would be fun and informative and a great way to meet some nice women my age.
We are studying the book of Luke. Interesting in itself as I learned Luke was a physician. Also interesting as he describes in great detail Jesus' ministry and the miracles he performed while here on earth. Many of these I read over and over again while Amelia was in the hospital and after we brought her home as they brought me much needed peace and hope.
A few weeks ago, I was reading the commentary before beginning that week's lesson which focused on the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert. In the commentary, it mentioned how the number 40 was used over and over again in the Bible (Jesus in the desert, Noah and the flood, and several other examples) and how the number typically signifies a period of testing. I thought about Amelia and the past few months, how grueling it was to wait, how desperate I felt and how hard I prayed. Something inside me made me jump up and grab a calendar. I counted the number of days we had to wait from Amelia's first dermatologist appointment (when he told us he could not give us any indication of her condition until she turned 2 months and that we would just have to wait), to her 2 month appointment when we found out she was healed.
Guess how many days?
40.