Wednesday, October 16, 2013

40 weeks

Today is my due date.  October 16.  40 weeks, 5 cm dilated, and still pregnant. You can come anytime now little guy!

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

38 weeks. Feeling thankful.

After all that we've been through, it looks like now our little one is content to stay put, which honestly is perfectly fine with me.  As someone said recently, making it to full term is a blessing, and I completely agree!  I've joked for the last couple weeks about how I'm ready for him to come anytime now, but the truth is the longer he is in, the stronger he gets, and I'm so happy he's stayed in.  Today I am just feeling over-the-top thankful for the last nine months.  I pray that we will have future pregnancies, but it's a very real possibility that this could be the only time I carry a child, and words are inadequate to explain the depth of my gratitude for our God's faithfulness.  I have loved every minute of being pregnant, even all the uncomfortable side effects and medical issues we've dealt with are miniscule when I consider the magnitude of the miracle inside me.  Feeling my child kick and roll around in my belly brings me indescribable joy.  I know I will miss that sensation when he comes, so for now I am cherishing the last few days left before his birth.  Because of this extra time we've been granted, we were able to have a baby shower this past weekend, and Seth and I were both completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and generosity from our family and friends.  The support and encouragement we've received throughout this journey has kept us going through the difficult times, so for that I say thank you.  

I'm looking forward to my next post being a birth announcement!

Isaiah 54

New King James Version (NKJV)

A Perpetual Covenant of Peace

54 “Sing, O barren,
You who have not borne!
Break forth into singing, and cry aloud,
You who have not labored with child!
For more are the children of the desolate
Than the children of the married woman,” says the Lord.
“Enlarge the place of your tent,
And let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings;
Do not spare;
Lengthen your cords,
And strengthen your stakes.
For you shall expand to the right and to the left,
And your descendants will inherit the nations,
And make the desolate cities inhabited.
“Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed;
Neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame;
For you will forget the shame of your youth,
And will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore.
For your Maker is your husband,
The Lord of hosts is His name;
And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel;
He is called the God of the whole earth.
For the Lord has called you
Like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Like a youthful wife when you were refused,”
Says your God.
“For a mere moment I have forsaken you,
But with great mercies I will gather you.
With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment;
But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you,”
Says the Lord, your Redeemer.
“For this is like the waters of Noah to Me;
For as I have sworn
That the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth,
So have I sworn
That I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you.
10 For the mountains shall depart
And the hills be removed,
But My kindness shall not depart from you,
Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,”
Says the Lord, who has mercy on you.
11 “O you afflicted one,
Tossed with tempest, and not comforted,
Behold, I will lay your stones with colorful gems,
And lay your foundations with sapphires.
12 I will make your pinnacles of rubies,
Your gates of crystal,
And all your walls of precious stones.
13 All your children shall be taught by the Lord,
And great shall be the peace of your children.
14 In righteousness you shall be established;
You shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;
And from terror, for it shall not come near you.
15 Indeed they shall surely assemble, but not because of Me.
Whoever assembles against you shall fall for your sake.
16 “Behold, I have created the blacksmith
Who blows the coals in the fire,
Who brings forth an instrument for his work;
And I have created the spoiler to destroy.
17 No weapon formed against you shall prosper,
And every tongue which rises against you in judgment
You shall condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
And their righteousness is from Me,”
Says the Lord.