Happy Thanksgiving

Real chefs don't make this just for Thanksgiving...

Happy Thanksgiving, all, and may you truly be thankful for all of your blessings.

God DOES bless America, our home sweet home!

6.) RAMBO

As a police officer, JB’s brother gets out of a lot of traffic tickets. I guess there’s this “fellow police officer buddy buddy” code that they get to share with each other, letting each other off the hook in their jurisdictions.

Shortly after arriving in the U.P., Austin got pulled over for going 80 in a 55. He of course did not get a ticket, but had a nice chat with Officer Rambo (okay, that’s got to be one of the coolest names you could have if you’re a cop).

A few days later JB, Olivia and I head down M-134 enroute to #4 on our Top Ten list. We just get down the road when JB spots the cop car coming the opposite way. JB lets off the gas, unaware that he was going 70. Too late. The cop does the “hit the brakes and turn around” thing that I’ve seen too many times to count.

“He got me,” JB said. He was already annoyed that his brother, who was going 80, got out of a ticket, but that he himself would get one for going 70. Then he realized that he didn’t have his license with him. It was in his wallet sitting on his nightstand back at the cabin. When he told me that I knew it was over. It’s one thing to speed, but if you don’t have your license you’re toast.

(Though I do have to say that one time, when I didn’t have my proof of insurance in the car, I did get out of a speeding ticket in favor of a “no insurance card” ticket. It was $30 and no points. A bit easier to take than the $80 ticket and 2 points.)

As JB pulled to the side of the road, I started praying that God would have mercy. His Mom, who passed us on her way to our destination, was also praying that God would have mercy.

The officer walked up to the car. I braced myself for an insensitive interaction, as is what always happens to me when I get pulled over.

Instead, a friendly voice said, “Hello! How are you today? Can I have your license and registration?”

JB explained his missing license. So the man asked for his full name and date of birth. After hearing JB’s full name he asked him if he got teased in school about it. And things just got nicer after that.

It was so weird!

He informed us that we were going 71 in a 55 and asked if JB was aware of it, noting the baby in the car. After noticing the tinted windows in the back, he asked JB to roll up the front one, because it’s illegal to have your front windows tinted. I explained that they were not, because I knew better.

“You get those tinted for the baby?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I told him (back in 2003!).

(Hey, they are important for the baby! I am ever grateful that we don’t have to drive around with one of those cheesy “baby on board” sunblockers in our windows. Those things block the driver’s visibility anyway. Very dangerous, if you ask me.)

Then he bid us a good day.

OMG!

1.) 16 miles over the speed limit; 2.) with a vulnerable baby in the car; 3.) no license; 4.) limo-black tinted windows. These are all things that annoy cops.

But Rambo isn’t just any cop.

The Lord had mercy!

Thank you, Lord, for Officer Rambo. Coolest cop I know (besides Austin).

No God

I don’t know how people who don’t believe in God can do it.

If there’s one thing that I learned after having Olivia is that I could not survive without God.

There have been so many moments with her when I have cried out to God in desperation (babies can be quite frustrating!) and he came to my aid. And even when I was waiting for an answer to my prayer, I felt great peace knowing that I was not the one in charge of this little baby—that God was. It is a wonderful thing to know, especially in scary situations. I mean, if Olivia were to choke or stop breathing, I think I would faint from fear, instead of taking action, if I didn’t feel I had someone else to help me in that situation. I think you’d have to have great confidence in yourself in order to keep your cool. And I am not that confident in my CPR skills.

For instance, when she was first born, nursing was not working out. I felt terrible because, essentially, I was starving my baby. The nurses all tried helping me, and even the lactation specialists came in twice to give assistance/advice. But it still was not working. If I hadn’t had God to lean on at that time, I would have had an emotional breakdown. Instead, I asked God to help. I had peace knowing that I wasn’t in charge of making it work and that God did not want Olivia to starve so he wouldn’t let her. After my emotional plea to him, Olivia’s pediatrician came to visit (he was JB’s childhood pediatrician, too! How neat is THAT?) and told me that it could take 1-2 weeks to get nursing down. None of the nurses bothered to tell me that! I instantly felt relieved. I believe that God sent Dr. Hoffman in to talk to me at that exact time. And you know what, it DID start to work! And I have a fat baby to prove it!

Last night I realized that I was starting to get JB’s head cold—he was sick all weekend and was able to kick it by sleeping it off. I do not have that option since I have Olivia, so I was freaked about it. It’s hard enough to take care of Olivia with JB returning to work today, let alone deal with a terrible cold to boot. I really, really wanted sleep, so last night I said, “Please, Lord, let Olivia sleep for 4 hour stints tonight, instead of her typical three.” (Typically she gets up after three hours, like clockwork.) That was at midnight. At 6 a.m. she was still sound asleep! I totally got some rest!

After I saw that “6:00” on my clock this morning, I knew that it was God who hooked me up with sleep, and I just couldn’t keep the story to myself.

There are several more instances of what I believe to be God’s hand in my life. And I know where will be many more, and I am so thankful.