Life is like a box of chocolates

You never know what you're gonna get. It's Friday night-kids just went to bed, hubby just mowed the yard and I'm watching Forrest Gump for the first time in many years. I forgot how good this movie is. It made me think about how true that statement is, life IS like a box of chocolates, you really never know what's going to happen next. I have a lot on my mind and I think a list is in order, just to help me sort it out a bit.
1. We ate at a local pizza place recently and during the meal, I knocked over my glass of water. (after I'd spent the meal telling my 4 year old to be careful with his water!) A different waitress than ours came to clean it up. She was a sweet, quiet, humble girl. She was talking and then she stopped when she saw my baby girl. She asked if it was a girl and I said yes. She asked how old she was and I told her 9 months. She told me that she had a baby. And then she hesitated. She then told me that her baby was born in December and died in February. I was speechless and heartbroken. She said her baby was born with a hole in her heart and it never got better. She said that she thought my Sophie was close to the age her baby would be now. I told her how sorry I was and we talked a few more minutes, then she left our table. I began to cry and asked God to give me words to say to her. Before we left, I went to her and told her I would be praying for her. Before I could encourage her, she gave me her testimony and told me that she is a Christian and she knows that God had a reason. God is so good! We hugged and I left. I have thought about her for several weeks now. She told me that she and her husband were going through a hard time right now. Her name is Violet, will you pray for her? Meeting her impacted me so deeply I can't even begin to explain it. I am so thankful for my babies. I have hugged them a little tighter every day since. I am so thankful to serve a God who is good. When things are great, He is good. And when things are awful, He is still good. We really can trust Him, no matter the circumstances.
2. My pastor released his first book this week, Sun Stand Still. It is amazing! I want to live my life with audacious faith. Not just waiting on hope, but living in faith. Not just settling for the ordinary, but trusting God for the extraordinary. I want to raise my kids to be world-changers, not just teach them how to survive. I am being challenged in ways that are stretching me beyond a mediocre walk with the Lord and I am loving it!
3. I have been attending a Beth Moore Bible study at a local church. If you know me, you know that I am very shy at heart and it is REALLY stretching me to share my heart around strangers. In fact, I had almost talked myself out of going to this week's class, but then I realized that was what the devil wanted. So I went. And it was AMAZING. The Lord just showed up and it was a really special time. I can't wait to see what the next 7 weeks of this study will bring.
4. I am dreading the upcoming holidays already and I hate that. There are some different situations and circumstances going on that are going to make this a very different Thanksgiving/Christmas season than I've ever had. Like I said, you never know what you're gonna get!
5. My children are growing so much everyday. I can't believe that my Sophie will be one in just 2 months from today! She is crawling everywhere, pulling up, cruising along the furniture, saying "hey" and "hey there", waving, eating all the table food that you will give her, and making our days so much brighter. What did we ever do before we had her?! Levi is almost 5, loving "CARS", enjoying reading everything he sees, talking, singing, learning more and more about the Bible, so sweet to his baby sissy (when he wants to be!), enjoying his last year of preschool, and making our days so much sillier. What did we ever do before we had him?! I am so blessed by my little family. My hubby is still job searching, working hard on his second to last semester of college, staying home with the kids and growing in his walk with God by leaps and bounds. He is the best! We are about to celebrate our 7th anniversary in the next month. Hard to believe. What did I ever do before I met him?! :)

To God be the glory, great things He has done!

Guess I'll go watch some more Forrest Gump. Maybe I'll catch the part with Bubba & Forrest. Coconut shrimp, shrimp scampi, shrimp burger, pineapple shrimp, fried shrimp, boiled shrimp...