For those of you who are not facebook friends with me (which I'm pretty sure is no one)
WE'RE HAVING A BABY!!!
We just announced it to the world on Wednesday. I'm almost 16 weeks along, due June 1. We have known for 8 weeks but didn't want to tell people too soon. When we lost our baby Micah, I was 17 weeks along and she measured 14 weeks. So I wanted to wait until we got past that 14 week point. I've been going to the doctor every two weeks to check the baby's heart beat and make sure everything is ok. Up until this week, I have been very nervous, while trying to stay calm and not stress over things. But now I feel like we can be excited! I fully realize what a miracle babies are. A million different things have to go perfectly so a healthy baby can be born. I am so glad to have 3 miracles of my own and look forward to adding a fourth!
Friday, December 14, 2012
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Blessings
Sometimes it's hard to see the blessings in life when everything on the surface seems to be falling apart. Sometimes it's good to dig down deep and take a look at things we take for granted. Things we often forget about.
I'm thinking about this today because I watched the news this morning. The story that brought me back to the actual reality (not the reality of my own life) was about Syria. Right now there is a war raging in Syria. I don't understand all of the reasons for the conflict, but I understand it's affect on people. People stand in line for hours for bread. Just bread. Not butter or fruit or steak. Bread. Gasoline is scarce, and expensive. There is no electricity, no school. One little boy said he only eats one piece of bread a day. Can you imagine?
This is just one example of life outside of Kansas City, MO. Or whatever town you live in. People scattered all over the world face similar circumstances every day. It is sad.
And then I realize that I am blessed. Here are some things I see as blessings in my life. They are things that I don't think about every day. Things that are just a way of life. A habit. The way things have always been.
-We live in a free country, our government takes care of us, we have rights, we have a voice (no comments allowed about the bad parts of our government, we don't all agree on the issues, but we are fortunate to have the voice that we have) We have religious freedom, freedom of speech, the right to bear arms...the list goes on.
-For my family, we have a strong Christian heritage. It's a truth I have known my whole life. Freedom in Christ is a blessing.
-We have a pantry and a refrigerator full of food. It's not always full. Sometimes we eat whatever's left, but we eat and are full.
-We belong to a loving church family. People care about us and take care of us. And we get to return the love!
-We have jobs, health insurance, good medical care. If one of my babies gets sick, help is just a few minutes away. And medicine is available for whatever ails us.
-My kids go to great schools. Asa is learning to read. I know that there are problems with our education system, but we have one. Most of the teachers in our country love kids and love teaching.
-We have cars that work and help us live a comfortable life.
-We have electricity! Heat, air conditioning, hot water, indoor plumbing...
-We have the ability to communicate with our family and friends all over the country with the touch of a button.
-I have 3 healthy and smart boys and a husband who loves me and loves them.
This is not an exhausted list of the reasons why I feel blessed this morning. It's just what I came up with in a few minutes while sitting at my kitchen table. I understand that we all face things that are sad, difficult, frustrating. But we must always remember that we are blessed, sometimes only by chance. When the car is broken down, you can't afford the awesome Christmas presents, your sleep is interrupted, the kids break something expensive, you deal with a difficult person at work...just take a break and count your blessings. They will always outnumber your curses.
I'm thinking about this today because I watched the news this morning. The story that brought me back to the actual reality (not the reality of my own life) was about Syria. Right now there is a war raging in Syria. I don't understand all of the reasons for the conflict, but I understand it's affect on people. People stand in line for hours for bread. Just bread. Not butter or fruit or steak. Bread. Gasoline is scarce, and expensive. There is no electricity, no school. One little boy said he only eats one piece of bread a day. Can you imagine?
This is just one example of life outside of Kansas City, MO. Or whatever town you live in. People scattered all over the world face similar circumstances every day. It is sad.
And then I realize that I am blessed. Here are some things I see as blessings in my life. They are things that I don't think about every day. Things that are just a way of life. A habit. The way things have always been.
-We live in a free country, our government takes care of us, we have rights, we have a voice (no comments allowed about the bad parts of our government, we don't all agree on the issues, but we are fortunate to have the voice that we have) We have religious freedom, freedom of speech, the right to bear arms...the list goes on.
-For my family, we have a strong Christian heritage. It's a truth I have known my whole life. Freedom in Christ is a blessing.
-We have a pantry and a refrigerator full of food. It's not always full. Sometimes we eat whatever's left, but we eat and are full.
-We belong to a loving church family. People care about us and take care of us. And we get to return the love!
-We have jobs, health insurance, good medical care. If one of my babies gets sick, help is just a few minutes away. And medicine is available for whatever ails us.
-My kids go to great schools. Asa is learning to read. I know that there are problems with our education system, but we have one. Most of the teachers in our country love kids and love teaching.
-We have cars that work and help us live a comfortable life.
-We have electricity! Heat, air conditioning, hot water, indoor plumbing...
-We have the ability to communicate with our family and friends all over the country with the touch of a button.
-I have 3 healthy and smart boys and a husband who loves me and loves them.
This is not an exhausted list of the reasons why I feel blessed this morning. It's just what I came up with in a few minutes while sitting at my kitchen table. I understand that we all face things that are sad, difficult, frustrating. But we must always remember that we are blessed, sometimes only by chance. When the car is broken down, you can't afford the awesome Christmas presents, your sleep is interrupted, the kids break something expensive, you deal with a difficult person at work...just take a break and count your blessings. They will always outnumber your curses.
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