The Lord is so faithful..He sent us a Mary Poppins!

We are so lucky to live right down the street from our very best friends. Seriously, can it get any better than that? Nothing is more fun than deciding we'll all do dinner together at the last minute or the girls will go for a nice long walk while the boys play Nintendo. It's the best. The excitement of finding out that we were having a baby was contagious and the Culvers are now expecting their second child. Again, how awesome is this? I get to be pregnant with my best friend and go through all of the fun (you may hint a bit of sarcasm here) pregnancy moments together. While we are super excited for Reagan's future playmate and/or husband to arrive, this put a kink in some pretty big plans. Amy was to always be our nanny, even when Reagan was only a hypothetical baby. So, now...what to to...what to do?

Plan B! I absolutely adore Ben's sister Sarah. She's an amazing mom and actually likes watching other people's children. Problem solved! Oh wait...one small glitch..you lives in Georgia. Well, with the recent passing of both of Ben's grandparents it looked like she may have been able to move back to TX with her family. Done! Plan B is a go! Hold on...not so fast. While I still have everything that is crossable crossed on my body that they'll hurry and move back, I don't know that it will be in time for Reagan's arrival. Okay..on to plan C.

Hmm...I have no plan C. Oh no! I have no plan C!!!! This realization came to me last week. As the beads of perspiration started breaking out on my forehead during dinner one night while Ben and I were eating, my horrific Type A personality started to rear its ugly head. Never fear though, this is why I married Ben. He had a great suggestion. Let's pray about it. Hmm...simple enough. I think I can do this. So, we prayed about it over dinner and then we continued praying about it individually all week. A certain name kept popping into my head during my prayer, so I finally decided to email her. I simply asked if she knew of anyone who might be interested...not her in particular. If she could pass on my contact information, it would be most helpful. Here's where I just want to give the biggest shout out to Jesus...He never fails. Little did I know that over in the Welnack household they had been fasting during the week and praying over some big decisions. Kathleen felt that she needed to be doing more but that that more should still be taking place in her home following what was already a part of her daily life....like perhaps watching someone's baby!!!! She went out for a walk to think and came back and low and behold...she received my email. Yes, He does work that easy. He is always so faithful and kind. So, while the Murray household was praying for the perfect person and the Welnack family was praying for an opportunity, the Lord was sitting back smiling finishing the final pieces of the puzzle. How awesome is He!?! Have I mentioned that I love Kathleen by the way? She and Matt have the sweetest little girl, Jackie that will soon become Reagan's little playmate. Oh..and have I also mentioned that Kathleen was my first boss out of college? It makes you wonder if the Lord didn't place me in that particular job just to meet her. Oh...and one last question. Did I also mention that Kathleen and Matt live a whoppin' 2 minutes from us? They just 'happened' to move to this neck of the woods a few months ago.
The Lord never fails to amaze me with his faithfulness and love. It reminds me of my current favorite song:
You give and take away. You give and take away. My heart will choose to say Lord blessed be Your Name.