Today is my little Bubbles' birthday.  Five years ago, she came into the world at the Royal Surrey Hospital in England after 17-1/2 long hours of labor.  This was not the ordinary for me!  My first two children were born after 4-5 hours!

Bubbles was an unexpected blessing.  When I first found out I was pregnant, I was shocked!  We were living in England at that time, serving with a ministry that lived by faith.  We had very little money, and dipped into the income from the rental of our Singapore home each month just to make ends meet, and I wasn't sure how we would manage to feed and clothe another child.  Just before we moved to England the previous year, I had given away all of our baby things.  After all, my baby was 3-1/2 at the time of the move, and I had no plans to have any more.

With financial worries, and my youngest just getting ready to start school when he turned 5, I was looking forward to being able to have some freedom to work, when I discovered I was pregnant.  I went into a deep depression.  I confess: I did NOT want this baby.

But God began to work in my heart, and as my baby grew within my womb, I began to fall in love with her.  I knew that she was a blessing from God, even though I wasn't sure exactly what God was doing when He chose to give her to us.  By the time Bubbles was born, I was excited and looking forward to her arrival.  She was due right around Valentine's Day, but, being quite comfy where she was, she decided not to make an appearance quite so soon.  On February 26, around 10pm, my water broke at home, and contractions were 4-5 minutes apart.  Since my first two children were born pretty quickly, we made our way to the hospital, expecting her arrival sometime in the night.

But Bubbles had other plans.  She must have really liked it where she was, because when my contractions got to be about 1 minute apart, they stopped completely for a couple hours.  Then they slowly started up again, all the way back at 5-6 minutes apart.  This happened 3 separate times!!  I was beginning to think this baby of mine would never come out!  Finally, around 4pm, little Bubbles made her appearance into this world, big and beautiful!

And, yes, God did provide for all of our needs.  We never lacked for anything we needed, from car seat to stroller to crib, clothes and diapers, God supplied everything at just the right time, sometimes from the most unexpected of sources.

For a child that began as unwanted, I cannot thank God enough for putting Bubbles in my life and in our family.  She is such a joy!  This child is full of life and enthusiasm.  From the moment she wakes up in the morning, she is a ray of sunshine.  She keeps up busy, and she keeps us laughing.

I love her funny ways, and her "Bubble-isms" (her mispronounced words).  Even though she is starting to outgrow some of her mispronunciations, they are such happy memories of her early childhood.  One of my favorites is, "Blah, blah, black sheep," and "Carrots of the Bean" (Pirates of the Caribbean) is another family favorite.

So, Bubbles, happy birthday!  I am so glad you are a part of my life.  You are truly a gift from God!

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Posted by short

It must be a sign. I random blogged and saw your son's blog, then especially went to look at your blog and was going to leave a comment congratulating you on your daughter's birthday but didn't. I continued random blogging and came back to your blog! So, Happy Birthday to Bubbles! Blessings to you and your family

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