Gift of Hope

Of all the gifts I've received this year, Lillian Hope is by far the greatest. Still, after 10 months, I just cannot believe she is mine. She is without a doubt the sweetest, funniest, most precious little girl. When I think about this year and the goodness of the Lord in giving me such a laid-back sweet-natured baby in what would be one of the most stressful years our family has known.

Lillie can bring a smile to the face of the most sour-faced stranger. She loves nothing better than to catch someone's eye and flash her toothy grin from one ear to the other. In fact, she stopped the whole parade at Disney World because the characters could not waving at her and even coming over to meet her! I won't be a bit surprised if she doesn't grow into an amazing encourager because she seems to love to make people happy. And she has lived up to her name by bringing hope to our family during a year when we so desperately needed it.

The other night as I was rocking her, just thinking about what a gift she is, I realized how perfect it was that God sent hope in the form of a baby. Strange that a baby, on the one hand needy, is on the other hand a source of courage. As I rocked my precious bundle of hope, I thought how incredible it was that Mary rocked the Hope of the world. Hope may be the best gift you can give, and a baby really is the best way to give it.