Milestone

This weekend, I did what I love most about my job. I helped orchestrate 2,150 middle school students along with over 450 small group leaders as they worshipped, had fellowship and grew in their relationship with Jesus Christ. It was awesome. Four campuses, three grades, all together to hear about why walking with the wise will make you wise, while walking with fools will bring you harm. We call it Walking Wisely Weekend and it is my favorite thing that we do all year. It's pure chaos but the most organized, well-done chaos I've ever been a part of. The team of people I work with to make this event happen is truly unbelievable in talent, energy and passion. This was my second year working on this event and having had one under my belt made it feel so much easier, even though we had about 300 students more than we had last year.

You're probably wondering why I called this post "Milestone." Well, when I found out I was pregnant and the doctor set my due date, I realized that I would be almost 37 weeks pregnant during my busiest and most taxing (albeit favorite) event of the year. I remember thinking about how incredibly far away it seemed and how I couldn't even imagine what it would be like to be 37 weeks pregnant, let alone 37 weeks pregnant during Walking Wisely. As time crept slowly by, we began to plan this massive event three months ago. My role is sort of the logistical point person for a lot of the details of the weekend so I knew that I would be slammed. As we drew nearer to the event, I started to think about how there was a good chance I could go into labor early and have to miss Walking Wisely, something that would've surely threw my team into panic mode. The flip side of that thought was that if I could make it through the weekend, I would only have 3 short weeks of calm and rest before welcoming my daughter into the world. So my goal became simply to get through the weekend without going into labor.

My coworker and dear friend Al pointed out about a week or two ago that Walking Wisely was sort of a milestone for me. It marked the beginning of the end of my pregnancy. I had thought about that, though I hadn't really put it into those terms. Its funny now as I sit on my couch, exhausted and worn out from the weekend, I realize I'm here. I'm at my milestone. Six or seven months ago, I thought this day would never come and now I'm here. Don't get me wrong, it still seems like 3 weeks is a long time some days. But I'm finally at a point where I realize that it really isn't that far away at all. Three weeks will be gone in the blink of an eye. And finally, what Parker and I have been waiting and praying for for almost three years now, will be in our arms. I love this day and the anticipation of the greatest life change I'll ever experience.