Week 34: Dream Come True

34 1/2 weeks pregnant. That's a dream come true in and of itself, but it's not exactly what this blog is about.

My dream came true today when I entered our bedroom and found Erik on our bed, scratching our cat's head. That's obviously not the dream. :)

I wiggled my way onto the bed between them, angering the cat (as usual). After adjusting for a few moments, we settled into a comfortable position with me a little bit on my left side and Erik on his stomach with his head on my belly.

And this is where the dream came true!

My husband and I giggled (well, I giggled mostly. He maybe chuckled. Do guys giggle?), chatted, and just enjoyed taking a moment to chill. And then Bubba kicked. He kicked his daddy right in the chin! Erik continued to lay with his cheek to my belly while his son wriggled around inside me, doing his best to pelt his daddy with solid jabs with whatever appendage it is that he loves to slide back and forth on my left side.

Part of a dream come true.

The second part was when I asked Erik about his friend, Josh, who our baby boy will be named after. I asked him questions I think I've asked before, like, how long were you friends, when did he get sick, what did he have etc. But I also asked questions I'd never asked before. Like, was it hard, did he know Christ, how close were you really and did he quit school?

And Erik shared. His eyes kinda got this far away look--the look his eyes often get when I ask about Josh. And he answered my questions.

He and Josh played together every day from 1st-4th grade. They ran around, built forts, fought off bad guys--just the two of them, all the time. Then one day, the summer after 4th grade, Josh got cancer. (Erik mentioned that the family cat was diagnosed with cancer at the same time, which he deemed to be completely and utterly unfair.) Erik said it was explained to him that Josh had liver cancer, and it was really bad. There really wasn't hope. But they did chemo, and Josh lost all his hair. But Josh was confident, very, that he would be with Jesus. By the end of 6th grade, Erik's best friend was gone. And yes, Erik said, it was very hard.

And sometime in the years after that, Erik decided to name his firstborn son Joshua, in honor of his childhood friend. (I was told, when we first started dating, that if we were to marry and if we were to have a son, I'd better be okay with the name. :) I am.)

And so this is my dream come true: relaxing with the love of my life, with his head on my belly, feeling and seeing our son flexing his tiny little muscles, and sharing a tender moment, honoring the memory of Josh, and dreaming of the little Joshua who is to come.

In no more than 6 1/2 weeks, our little Joshua Lindeen will come to meet us--a miracle fulfillment of so many dreams.