Next week, Darcy and Ellie, your family gets to meet you for the very first time!  Do you know how excited we are for that day to arrive?  There are simply no words for it!  James, our firstborn grandson, we have jokingly referred to September 18 as the #twinvasion; and I am sure that moniker will mean more and more to you in the years ahead!  How ecstatic we all are for these little girls, identical twins, to arrive!  Our family tree has two new little branches, and how grateful we are to God for His blessing us with your lives!

For months now, Darcy and Ellie, you have lived in isolation, closely together.  We have no idea what those months of development, side-by-side, have formed within your hearts, bodies, and souls.  You have shared raised eyebrows when Momma has eaten food that might have been a little too spicy.  You have made your presence known with a right hook or foot jab whenever you felt too crowded by one another.  You also shared the warmth when your brother James touched Momma’s belly or gave you a kiss through her shirt.  I don’t expect you to remember any of that, but I do know that it is all part of your preparation to meet this world.  James, you have been such a big boy to help Momma do things around the house.  When you bend over to pick up something she can’t reach or when you climb up on the bed to “talk car” while she rests, you were helping Momma immeasurably as she carries your growing sisters.  In your four years, you have already embraced what it means to share Momma with your sisters. It’s all about family.

And that is what I want to tell you in this first letter to you, my three grandchildren: It’s all about family.  Darcy and Ellie, you have a jump start on most babies.  You already know each other before you ever inhale your first breath.  I can’t wait to watch you grow into this world with a sister who resembles you at your very core.  Beyond each other, the first two people whom you meet in this world are the two who care and love you the most. They are Momma and Dadda.

As God molds your family together, you are receiving one of the greatest blessings of all.  God decided that you three would be born to two parents who will take care of you beyond all other cares in the world.  Your parents are deeply devoted to our Lord. Momma and Dadda are strong believers in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  They will share that with you as you grow into your understanding.  James, Darcy, and Ellie, you three are blessed by God to be born with the parents that you have; I hope you remember that always.  Please know that we are praying for you to come to know Jesus and have since the day we learned you were coming into the world.

You also have a wider family who loves you with all our hearts. You have grandparents who love and adore you.  That love is even creatively weaved into the fabric of your names, as you three share the names of your four grandparents. That is a connected blessing that we cherish.  You have cousins and aunts and uncles and great grandparents.  Family makes up the people who will always have your back, who will always guard your back, who will always take you back, and who will always nudge your back so you can be the best that we know you can be. Together, along with generations of your family who lived earlier, we are bonded together.  It’s all about family.

Your family tree goes very deeply into the ground of this world, and its branches spread out widely.  We will embrace you when you need strength, shade you when you need protection, and span out in all directions when you need to fulfill your dreams.  It’s all about family.

James, Darcy, and Ellie, never forget, even when some of us, your family roots, are buried beneath the soil, we will still be nurturing and supporting your branches.  When you can no longer see us, remember that our spirit is still part of you and our love will always be within you.  It always has been, and always will be, all about family.

I love you,
Grandad
September 14, 2017