Family Matters

Mood:   blessed




Over the weekend I may or may not have (I did) welcomed Jeff into married life by doing the embarrassing wife thing:  matching outfits.


Let's clear some things up.  We didn't wear ONE matching shirt.  We wore (age appropriate) shirts depicting our love for the Chicago Bulls (Malcolm has obvs inherited this love).  


Mine was totally a girl shirt.  Jeff's was the shirt I got him for his birthday (customized with his fav number and his last name) and Malcolm wore one that Jeff got him last year.

Okay so you can't see us all (and our shirts) in this pic....but it's hard to take a family photo with an iphone and one arm with a squirming 2.5 year old.

That's not the point of this post though.

Tonight at dinner Jeff's (and now my) nephew mentioned how he wasn't going to have kids.  Ever.  Or at least until he was financially stable.  Jeff and I said we totally encouraged the plan...but life doesn't often care about the plans you make.

I was NOT going to date anyone with a child, or that lived over 50 miles away from me.  A month later I started talking to the husband.  Both a father...and somebody who lived way farther than I thought I was willing to travel.  I didn't want to marry a father because I knew I was ready to commit and I didn't want to have to say goodbye to 2 people I fell in love with.

Before our first date, Jeff and I agreed to not discuss "big things" until 6 months into dating.

We said "I do" on our 6 month anniversary.

And exactly 2 weeks later we woke up in bed, with his son and the awesome bulldog.  He chatted with us for a bit before standing up and announcing, very seriously, that "he has a butt."  

We all laughed for a good 5 minutes of this new found important declaration...and as I laughed and stayed in bed I felt....

well...

there was an immense happiness that I wasn't sure I would ever feel.  Honestly.  Did I see myself getting married?  Yes.  Did I see myself with a partner this perfect for me?  No.  Did I see myself in some kind of family environment?  Yes.  Did I see myself as a mother instantly? No.  Did I know I had a maternal instinct?  I'm not sure....

The point here is...

the whole weekend all I could think about was how lucky and blessed Jeff and Malcolm (and Yoda) I are to have each other.  And to love each other.

It's in this incredibly simplistic gratitude that I write.  I not only have my (CB) family, but I have my new (Lutjen/Lilland) family...and Malcolm (and Yoda....technically Lilland's).  

I write because quite honestly...as grateful as I am to have been raised by my parents with my brother and sister....I am constantly amazed every single second how fortunate I am to have a second family...and a family of my own.

The little things....a boy announcing (with a spank) a part of his anatomy...can without a shadow of a doubt be the most wonderful things about life.  These smiles, laughs, and (rarely) tears make living not only worthwhile...but enjoyable.  

I look forward to waking up next to Jeff and his back...or his smile...or him telling me he's leaving for work.  And while we plan (....life interrupts these....) on another child one day, for now, I'm beyond content with this amazing family I've managed to find.  And become a part of.

I am blessed beyond what I could have ever imagined.  

I hope that you have a family that reminds you that you are blessed....or that you find one someday...or if you're as lucky as I have been....that you have both.