"Your life will never be the same"

This was a quote Brandon and I heard over and over and over again when we were pregnant with Rivka. We got so tired of hearing people say this to us. Finally, we just started looking at people and saying- really?! I didn't know that! Of course, this response was filled with some pretty sarcastic tones as I'm sure you can imagine!

Rivka just turned 16 months-old this past week. We found out we were pregnant with her on March 17th, 2005. That means that she's been a part of our lives now for over two years. I guess I hadn't taken the time to realize this until she turned 16 months-old. I don't think there is anything 'magical' about turning 16 months. I mean, she's not 18 months and she's certainly no longer just a little one year-old.

So, I have found myself reflecting on the past two years and where life has taken us. It's been quite the ride full of extreme highs (the birth of our daughter!) and extreme lows. Since we've known that we were going to be parents, I've graduated college, experienced a career change (of sorts... I wasn't really practicing as a social worker...), have become a mom, entered school (again!), moved to MD, am now working the graveyard shift (never thought I'd do that!) and am attending nursing school starting this Fall. This, of course, does not include the multiple changes Brandon has experienced as well.

So, yeah... it's true- we didn't know how much our lives would change. We had no way of knowing. I think what has struck me as odd is that most of the time when we were told "Your lives will never be the same" it seemed the commenter was indicating this was a negative thing. The truth is- I never expected to be where I'm at currently when I found out God had blessed Brandon and I with this gift two years ago. But- I wouldn't change a thing. Yes, our lives have changed immensely. My focus, thought processes, time-management skills, patience, and knowledge of boo-boo remedies are some examples of changes incurred these past few years. You know your lives have changed when you find yourself humming Veggie-tale songs to yourself when taking an exam concerning microbiology. Yes... Rivka is officially in the stage of watching tv and wanting to see the same video over and over and over...............................! :o)

So, for those of you who haven't experienced the gift of parenthood- your lives will never be the same! BUT- this is NOT a bad thing! Just realize your going to constantly be asking yourself- where did the time go?!??!