Thursday, February 3, 2011

The Miracle of Love........

Most Physicians will tell a young woman that the nine months of a baby's development in a mother's womb are the most important of their lives!  Research shows that a baby develops at a rapid speed the first weeks in the womb. By the end of the first month the baby is around 6-7 mm (1/4 inch) long~about the size of a grain of rice.  Soon the baby's facial features continue to develop and tiny buds will be growing into arms and legs.  Fingers, toes, and eyes also form in the second month.  The brain, spinal cord, and other neural tissue of the central nervous system are well formed.  By week six, the baby's tiny heart is pumping blood!  Even more amazing to me is that by the end of the third month of pregnancy, a baby is full formed.  All of this happens sometimes before a mother even realizes that she is carrying this precious life!  A miracle!  


Mothering is a hot topic and has been since the beginning of time.  We all know there is no perfect way to mother a child.  Each family lovingly chooses what will work best for them and  so........as an advocate of early childhood, it thrills my heart when children are loved and cherished as they should and can be.  The intense connection  between a mother and child at birth is a wonderful opportunity for bonding and many psychologist believe will lay the foundation for solid family relationships.  Also this statement is amazing........" An area of the brain, situated in the lower part of the frontal lobes, is an area containing receptors for oxytocin, the neurotransmitter that's involved in the mother-infant bond."   so says Jordan Grafman, a senior investigator at the National Institute of Neurological Disorder and Stroke.  So it seems a baby and mother are wired by God's grand design to be together as soon as possible after birth.  The precious gift of a child is strengthened by the tender touches of a mother, father, siblings, and loving grandparents.  Dr. Marshall H. Klaus and John H. Kennell explored the concept of bonding in their classic book Maternal~Infant Bonding.  They speak of giving your entire self as a mother.   There is nothing quiet like a mother's love and the legacy and encouragement she is able to leave on a child's life.  


When my youngest daughter, Kara, was five years old and home from kindergarten covered in chickenpox~ I asked her, "What is Love?"  Clearly she looked at me and said....."Love is taking care of people!"  Her words were so touching that I wrote them down that day and have treasured the wisdom of that definition many times.  If you've been allowed this precious gift of a child the pages are being written for them each day~and for countless others yet unborn to women who hope to be a mother one day!  God is a God of hope and of miracles!!!


The month of February is a month I truly enjoy!  February  is all about expressing love directed toward others. Valentines Day is one of my favorite holidays!  It is good for us to love others and we can express our love in countless ways.  It might be something as simple as a tone of voice when we speak to our children or our spouse or "friend".  Perhaps there is someone that God has placed on your heart, time and time again to reach out to and give......giving is good for all of us!!!


The pictures below speak volumes to me of hope and promise and yes, love.  The first picture shows a house neglected and unloved for many, many years but in a moment of provision and delight someone found this house (bones still there) and poured their love, time, and devotion into each and every corner!  Look at the beauty in the next picture.  So, dear one, I hope you have been loved and cherished by your mother but  if you have not, it's okay, I promise ........God has promised that HE  loves you and has a plan for your life and it's a good  and beautiful plan. "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope."  Jeremiah 29:11  Yes....you are loved with an everlasting love!  He welcomes you into His love and His arms are open wide.  His mercy and love for you are endless!!!  Blessings to you precious one!!!


Truly beautiful but unloved for a long while~
~Loved dearly and brought back to original intentions!~