The Gene Pull

I think it's pretty safe to say that Luke and I are catching up for all the sicknesses we've skipped out on in the last year and a half! We both came down with the stomach bug yesterday evening.. Luke got to experience another first: throwing up! Poor baby. We had just been back to the doctor on Friday, too, to find out that he had a double ear infection. He ran fever through the weekend, and then got the tummy sickness! His doctor thinks he never really got over the last ear infection because of his reactions to the medication and never finishing a full round of antibiotics. So, we're trying a third one... it's seemed to help with that end of the deal. Oh, and I was really proud of Heath again yesterday when he scrubbed Luke's strawberry throw up out of the carpet while I was throwing up in the bathroom. Anyone who relatively knows Heath knows that these things are HUGE tasks for him with his weak stomach. He gagged a few times, but other than that, he did a good job. (TMI for anyone? haha... sorry.)

I'm inevitably going to worry about the health of this growing baby when I come down with any type of sickness. We're in recovery mode now, thank goodness. I'm just waiting on some energy to build so I can get to cleaning..... Pretty sure my house wreaks of vomit. So, in my down time, I thought a lot about being pregnant and the things I've thought about with Luke and this baby. One thing in particular - Heath and I wanted our kids to get the best of both of us. We both recognize our weaknesses and hope that those genes get bypassed to our children. I think Heath and I compliment each other, in terms of those strengths and weaknesses, but to be able to "pull" our own genes and place them in our children would be awesome! So, here's some specifics on what I hope our kids take, and don't take, from us.

- Heath has the most simple way of thinking. I love that. I think I naturally complicate and over analyze things.

- Heath's faith is also simple. He loves God, God loves him. I've beat myself up over the years for mistakes I've made and allowed them to separate me from the Lord. I make myself suffer consequences God doesn't intend for me to. I've tried to live by works and not by faith - Trust me, it got me no where. I've learned a lot from Heath and his simple, steadily growing, relationship with the Lord.

(These are now turning out to be Heath's strengths... it's easier to find someone else's strengths! I'll eventually list a few of my own, too.)

- Heath naturally likes healthy food. Don't worry, he'll also eat a whole pan of blueberry muffins in one sitting. But, in high school, he'd choose strawberries over cookies. Me, on the other hand... I'd put strawberries in ice cream to make it "healthy". haha. Now, he's developed an allergy to most raw fruits (started when he started farming... supposedly it's stress induced). I didn't develop good eating habits until I started my nutrition degree.

- He's pretty tidy. He takes good care of everything he spends money on. He likes his truck clean, his tractor, the camper, etc. I like things clean, but it just doesn't come as natural to me. Sometimes, I feel guilty when he gets in my car and it's messy... I always feel like I could do a better job at keeping my car clean.. again, to show him my appreciation for providing for us like he does.

- Here's one for me! I've always stood up for myself. Do me wrong, I probably won't just brush it off. Heath sometimes goes overboard to avoid conflict. At times, he's let his heart be bigger than his brain. He's a lot better than he used to be. I've even been guilty (in early years of dating) of taking advantage of the fact that he rarely had a backbone.

- A strength that both of us share is how much we care about other people. I think we both have an awareness for other peoples' needs. Examples are anything from helping out an elderly person in the grocery store to having the heaviest hearts for others' misfortunes.

- I always did good in school. I enjoyed it. I love reading. Heath...... not so much! He'd sign his own progress reports. He's said he was afraid to ever actually have his Mom sign it because the signature would've looked different than all the other ones he'd turned in.

- Heath is the same no matter who he's around. I'm not necessarily a "social chameleon" (I found that randomly on urban dictionary the other day. I liked it), but I tend to be reclusive around people I'm not too familiar with. I think any one person who comes in contact with Heath would say the same things about him. I like that.

- I have a touch of athleticism. Not that it really matters in life, and let me emphasize "a TOUCH." I think the importance of high school sports is a bit too much... but I think it's fun to go out and play a game of PIG with just about anybody and stand a chance. I think my kids could miss out on some fun if they get Heath's athletic gene. haha :) I love you, babe, but you can embarrass me with your bank shots in Tony's front yard.

I think that's about all of the big things. Don't think I haven't hoped for our kids to bypass petty things like cow licks (that one didn't work out) and bad toenails... Not that I want them to be perfect. I just want their lives to be as easy as possible. I don't want to see them struggle with trying to hard please people, or please God... I don't want Luke to let a girl break his heart just because she can! But above all, we hope that our kids will seek the Lord with all their hearts... because in the end, that's all that really matters!