Adventures in Motherhood

Smith Family's First Yosemite Adventure

My journey to motherhood, was not a flat country road.  It was more like the treacherous path up to a Yosemite waterfall.  Justin was conceived without much effort, but as the years passed no little brothers or sisters followed. 

Deep down we knew that God had a plan for our family. After much reflection Ken and I decided to start the adoption process.  Four months after we completed our home study, we found ourselves the parents of a beautiful baby girl. 

Since the process was unexpectedly quick,   a newborn Destiny enjoyed several adventures that had been planned before she joined our family.  When Destiny was just a few weeks old, we headed up to the Bear Valley to go skiing and sledding with friends.  The grownups took turns staying home to cuddle the baby while the others hit the slopes.

 A few months later, the Smith Family headed to Disneyland.   By the Disneyland trip, I had discovered that I was pregnant with Jared.  It was before my first ultrasound, however, so we didn’t tell Ken’s family.  I hid out in my room at my brother and sister in law’s house and snuck crackers to keep the morning sickness at bay.

That spring we joined my brother and sister in law  and their friends for a camping trip to Yosemite.  It was quite a time. Several families had multiple little ones.   My brother in law got the brillant idea to hike up to Vernal Falls.  Most of the adults were carrying babies on their backs.  Justin, age 5 was doing an amazing job hiking on his own.  I was several months pregnant and trying to keep up with the steep climb.  By the time we reached Vernal Falls, I was absolutely exhausted.  At the top, I decided to fess up about my pregnancy.  I wanted to make sure that my brother in law didn’t make us climb any higher! I think that this was the first time Justin learned he was having a new sibling.  We didn’t want him to share the secret before we were ready. The climb down was a bit of a nightmare. We got very lost.

As you look at the picture above, note that there are actually five people plus one crazy puppy.  We were all having a wonderful time!

Like all best stories, this one continued to be filled with suspense.  After I returned from Yosemite,  an ultrasound suggested  that the baby was not a baby, but rather a molar pregnancy.  A few weeks later, as the doctor prepared to perform an operation to resolve this issue, she discovered that I was indeed pregnant.  Apparently that was the moment Dr. Muir started believing in a higher power!   Six months later our third little adventurer was born.

I share this story with you to remind you that motherhood is an adventure. It is filled with tears, laughter, surprises…and yes even miracles.  Enjoy every minute of it! 

Our Happy Ending!

Happy Trails,

Bridget

PS  Hugs and prayers going out to my friend Deana who is fighting Burkitt’s Lymphoma.  Please join me in praying that next  Mother’s Day will be all about breakfast in bed with her boyz.

Tags: Disneyland, Motherhood, Yosemite