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meet Harper


Psalm 127:3  NLT

Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him.


We have waited for this day.  Literally we waiting for decades to hear those words.  “She’s here!”  Well we have at least waited since the day we were told, and honestly, I was skeptical at first.


Our daughter and her husband came to visit.  It was April 1st of this year.  Oh, we were excited they were coming to see us, and they had an announcement for us.  It was April Fool’s Day.  That meant people were playing games, telling lies, pulling your leg so-to-speak.  Ruth and Sean told Julie and me that they were going to have a baby.  


Excited.  Skeptical.  But it was true, and this really revealed this last Saturday at 10:42 pm when Harper Lauretta Markland arrived at UPMC Hospital in Harrisburg, PA.  She is gorgeous.  She is perfect.  You know the story.


We got in the car last Thursday afternoon in Collinsville to make our way to Pennsylvania thinking Harper was on the way.  But this little girl made her way in to the world a couple days later after we arrived and got to spend some time with our baby Ruth and her man Sean.  They are some precious to us.


You will be hearing more about Harper.  The pictures will be plentiful.  You know the story.  I’ll have the scoop for you no matter where we are or what time it is.


I am excited about the days ahead.  This is our first grand child.  We have three kids.  All of them are over 18 and loved.  Our girls are married and living grand lives.  Ryan is in college and doing well.  Daily Julie and I pray for them and know that God has grown them in to incredible humans that we are so very proud of.


The journey ahead will be littered with good things and tough things.  There will be opportunities for so many laughs and lots of joy, yet there will be many low days, difficult situations and minutes that will challenge our hearts, our calendars, our relationships and so much more.


So, how are we going to deal with the days and weather and so much more?  The way we will deal with them is this … relationships matter.


I am going to make the most of this time.  We don’t live in the same town as our grand daughter, but you know we will be making lots of trips and spending time with these people we love so much and excited to have in our lives.


Cherish the moments you have.  Several text messages I got this weekend said just that.  Slow down.  Enjoy the moments.  Capture the memories and make more.


Harper may be the first of our grand children.  She will experience life.  She will have her grandfather’s prayers.  There are so many great days ahead for this little girl.  And I cannot wait to walk with her, hold her hand and have much fun.  I cannot wait till I see her worship and have talks about how much Jesus loves her.


Proverbs 22:6  NASB

Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he grows older he will not abandon it.

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