Growing Our Family In A Whole New Way!

This was the amazing moment that I have been keeping quiet for over four months!

To get to "E" Day...(Engagement Day, get it?;)...I need to rewind to a few days before Thanksgiving. It was the Tuesday morning of Thanksgiving week and I was just about ready to leave for work. The only other person still in the house was Jon. Jon is a very faith filled young man and had spent several months discerning the vocation God was leading him to. As a mom, my heart was torn. I wanted Jon to walk the path that God meant for him. I was just very attached to Marisa, Jon's girlfriend of 3+ years...we all are!...and thinking about her not being a part of our family made me feel very sad.  Because Marisa has been a part of our lives for so long and fit into our family so well, it would be a true loss for all of us if she wasn't around anymore. However, choosing a vocation was Jon's journey, and it was very emotional for me to stand by and wait. It's definitely part of the "Art of Letting Go" as your children embark on the journey to become the person they are meant to be. As a mom, I have to step back and let go of my own hopes and dreams for my children and work to embrace who they are meant to be. It's definitely not easy! With lots of children, I will definitely get lots of practice!

That particular morning in November, Jon nonchalantly told me that he decided that he was called to the vocation of marriage and that he was going to propose to Marisa.  

I was certainly surprised! I was very happy! Jay and I love Marisa. She's been around our family for a long time, so hearing that she was going to be an official member just felt right. I may have cried just a little when Jon told me the good news. 

I'm sure I had a really big smile on my face at work all morning, but I had promised to keep the news a secret from everyone except Jay. We texted happily back and forth most of the day. 

Emotions are a funny thing....

That same afternoon I spent quite a bit of time crying! This time, there was quite a bit of grief mixed in with the joy. The realization that my son was ready to take this big step into independence and away from the fold of our family hit me hard. I was thinking how the house would feel once Jon didn't live here anymore: How I would miss hearing him play music in the shower, see him napping on the couch, sharing casual conversation as he sat in the living room, and not having his  silly/teasing personality interacting with his siblings. The grief I felt hit me like a tornado and then left just as quickly. I couldn't believe my yo-yo of emotions!

Thankfully, it was the joy and excitement that returned!(Jay just shook his head at me!)

It was really fun hearing Jon's ideas about proposing. Jon also asked me to go with him when he picked out the ring! That really made my heart SO happy that he asked me to be a part of something so special.

Jon is humoring me with my picture requests!

The entire time that Jon was shopping, I had the refrain line from Matthew West's song, "Day One", stuck in my head. 

It was such a momentous occasion....a defining moment for Jon that I understood the depth of in a much different way than my son. I had to keep reminding myself to just be in the moment that day.  I was trying to be a loving supportive mom...and not get stuck in the whirlwind of my emotions! There was a part of me that just kept thinking that it was impossible that I have a child who is no longer a child and is ready to branch off into his own life. How did this even happen?!? I still have no idea...but this post is not the time to delve into my current identity crisis!

Jon did a great job picking out the ring! Jon had consulted with Marisa's sister, Bridget, who knew the details of what Marisa liked. Jon had a budget in mind...which did increase just a tad once he saw the actual rings. Jon had a good balance of staying in his comfort zone and picking out a beautiful, classy ring that he thought Marisa would love.

And, once again, I had to remain silent! Argghh...it was SO hard! There were many times I almost slipped...especially in front of Sarah! It's hard to hold back something so exciting.

I'm writing this with a yet unknown number of days until "E Day".  It's a snowy day. Kids are headed off to school. I'm home with Peter who is recovering from 5 days of having a fever, and trying to figure out when I can fit in a trip to the grocery store and the bank. Everything seems to be just a regular normal day.

And yet, there's a countdown to one brief moment that will be the beginning of many changes and another stage entirely for our family. We're going to be growing our family in a whole new way...and I couldn't be happier about it!

p.s. I will share the details about the actual proposal and the Engagement Party we had for them in another post coming soon!
#SpoilerAlert...she said "yes"!

Jon and Marisa