Tornado Jaika turns 3

Well, tomorrow is the big day. Jaybird turns 3. My dad turns...whew-57? Is that right? We're going to the water park to celebrate the dual birthdays.

With a big sigh of relief, I think back on the last three years. If you remember, Jaika's birth story was full of adventure-a vaginal birth after C-section was planned, a police chase was not. She was born quickly on a Sunday morning, just before church. One of my best friends came in just in time to witness the delivery of the rest of her body and help with clean up (she's a labor & delivery nurse from that hospital) before running off to church to spread the news of new life. I'll never forget her words as long as I live. As soon as Jaika was born, Andrea said,

"God saved your baby."

Indeed he had. She was born with a true knot in her cord. God allowed her to grow for weeks with a knotted cord. It was never pulled tight, so she lived with no ill effects. Another nurse that day said in her many years of nursing, our baby was only her second with a good outcome. (I digested that later to mean all but two of her knotted cord babies died.)

Jaika is so full of life. Oh boy is she. Yesterday for example, she showed us as we were getting out of the car at the salon that she was not wearing undies. With her sun dress. I constantly remind myself that even though she has a BIG thing for making messes, we could have easily been without her. I'll take the messes!

Amazingly, her little sister shared a similar miracle story with a knotted cord of her own. God is good. He has plans for us all. If your life were spared for a purpose, how would you live? Well, guess what, friends? If you're breathing today, you have a purpose God wrote on your heart. If you don't know him, you gotta meet him. He's the only one who can reveal his plans for you. If you've forgotten how much he loves you, just ask him. No matter what you've done, it's no surprise to God. He know how much we'd mess up before he ever decided to save us from our mess. He knows all of it. And he loves you anyway.