This week, Alan attended his first bridal shower. Now, I know typically guys don't go to these things. (Just ask Chad and Scott, my coworkers who constantly get invited to these things since they work with a bunch of women, but somehow find an excuse never to come.) But for Alan, what actually happens at a bridal shower is a bunch of women pass him around and he gets constant love and attention for about 3 hours straight. I bet Chad and Scott would show up too if that's what they got! This particular shower was for Carol Huck, a third grade teacher at Maple Lake Elementary. Alan had a great time until someone told a hilariously funny joke while he was trying to sleep in Grandma Lucy's arms. The loud laughter erupted, and when it died down, all that was left was the howling of a startled baby. That's when we decided to go home.

On Friday, Dan and I got a night on the town while Grandma Gloria babysat. A couple of great finds at Savers that night were T-shirts - Dan's says, "My kids think I'm an ATM" and mine says "WHASSSSUP GRAMPS???"

I should have worn my T-shirt on Saturday, because Alan and I spent the day at Grandpa Doug's. Alan was exposed to two of the best movies EVER. The first, of course, was Napoleon Dynamite. Alan looked mildly interested, and my dad was shocked to learn that if you watch after the credits, Kip and LaFaunduh DO get married. The second was an old recorded-from-TV VHS tape from 1986 of Alice in Wonderland. Did any of you 80's children also watch that when it was on TV? A classic.

Sunday was a difficult day - Alan witnessed his first pet dying. No, not Kirby. Dan's prayers haven't been answered YET. Our family dog, Shadow, who was 11, had to be put to sleep that night. Although it was time for Alan's feeding, I needed to be with my mom at the vet when she let go of her long-time companion. So I prayed that God would give Alan a calm, even though he is normally fussy right before he eats. It was cool, because it seemed like God did just that. With a little bit of swinging, Alan simply sat in his car seat and looked around while we were at the vet dealing with losing Shadow. Grandpa Doug was there too, and it was added to the list of poignant moments we have shared as a family. Andy, we missed you.

Mommy lesson #5: God is with me in the small and the big moments of life. He has lived life as a human, and understands what I am going through. I know God was there when we let go of Shadow. He is also here in all my tiny moments with Alan that no one else sees. And not just the serious moments. I know God was there when the sadness of choosing to let Shadow go was overwhelming, and it was just closing in on us . . . and then Alan let out a great big toot, right in the middle of the vet's office. It provided some comic relief, which was just what we needed. God being with me might seem like a small lesson to learn, or one that I should already know. But it seems like I realize it again and again in different ways at different stages of my life. And now I see what it's like to have Him with me as I try to be a good parent. On Sunday I saw what it was like to have Him with us as we lost a pet. The strong way that I felt Him with me gives me assurance that He is going to be with me just as strongly through the future: on that dreaded first day of going back to work and leaving Alan for the first time, during each stage that Alan goes through that I have NO IDEA how to deal with, each evening as Dan and I patiently go through nights apart while he builds our house . . . God will get us through it all because "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength."