Spring Fever

I grew up in upstate NY and Spring seemed to start later every year and it was so short of a season you were likely to miss it if you weren't paying close attention. And the winters, forget about it, they seemed to go on forever. In contrast, I now live in the south. Although not officially until March 20th, it is spring here and it is beautiful! This year I am extra excited about spring because we have been very busy preparing for it's arrival:

We planted a butterfly garden




We also planted herbs: Italian parsley, fennel, rosemary, basil and thyme:


A Vegetable Garden with tomatoes, lettuce, peppers, cucumbers, and a pumpkin (on a whim after making a pumpkin pie):


I even tried starting new planters from my existing inpatients (my Valentine's Day present from my amazing husband)



We are also enjoying the beautiful azaleas already established:


Even the flowering weeds caught our attention today:

Ah, Happy Spring!

Whirlwind

This week has been a whirlwind of emotional, physical, and even spiritual challenges. On Sunday we were still secretly celebrating our recent discovery that we were pregnant. I had an appointment set for Friday where I would have been only 6 weeks pregnant. Monday morning I was bleeding. Wed. I was being prepped for surgery for an ectopic pregnancy (an abnormal pregnancy that occurs outside the uterus. The fetus cannot survive in this type of pregnancy).

Although my prayers were not resulting in specific answers or direction, I do know that my prayers were being heard and He was, and still is, caring for my needs. Despite the emotional and physical pain and turmoil, I continuously have felt that all things will work out for good. I do believe that, despite my feelings of loss and physical discomfort.

I know that I can trust in Heavenly Father and in our Savior Jesus Christ. I am grateful for loving and supportive family and friends whom He has provided. My favorite scripture is certainly applicable here as well:

"And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall." Helaman 5:12