Thankfulness Day!

Thoughts for the Day

Morning Play Time

Today I am 34 weeks and 2 days pregnant.  I have only 40 days to go until my due date on March 8th.  Adrian seems to have flipped head down and is generally comfortable with his bottom pushed up against my ribs.  It's funny how I used to catch my breath every time I felt him move, and now I can touch him directly and he responds to my touch.

Recently, we've discovered a way to "play" with him.  I'm laying on the couch, and Nick is laying next to me, head on my belly, both hands on top of Adrian's bulging form.  Right now, Nick is warning Adrian of the ups and downs of life, often stopping mid-sentence to kiss Adrian, "I love you son, I miss you already son, I can't wait to see you..." (these moments make me cry). Adrian is a very obvious pointy bulge under his daddy's chin...he doesn't move while he's talking.  I think he can already recognize Nick's voice.

We found a wind-up music box that plays the familiar typical lullaby.  We've wound it up and place it on top of where Adrian is.  He kicks strongly.  We both laugh at my shaking belly and move the music box.  Adrian follows it and my stomach bulges out under the music box's new location.  Pre-born hide-and-seek.  How fun.

Seriously, how can anyone say that life begins at birth?




**Random Note - I had another pregnancy moment yesterday.  I was leaving my house and got distracted by the neighbors across the street who had apparently called the police (oh yes, the joys of living where we do).  My keys are usually hanging on a hook next to the door, but instead of grabbing them, I left them on the hook, and waltzed into the rain, leaving my keys on their lonely hook.  Way to go me.  So, I found myself locked out of the house, standing on the porch in the rain, surrounded by my scary neighbors (who thankfully were all in their houses).
It all worked out though because I apparently had another pregnancy moment by leaving my car unlocked (something I never do, which you should know by the amount of times I've left my keys in my locked car - something that wouldn't happen if I wasn't OCD about locking it). So, I sat in my car for an hour and a half until Nick came and rescued me. 


The end.

Your "Rain" Moments (Continued from Yesterday's Post)

Yesterday I talked a little about "rain" moments with the Lord - how God sweeps in, overwhelming and all-encompassing like the rain to prove His love to us.  I asked if you would share your moments with you, and here are a few of the responeses I received.

If you still want to share (please do!) I'll update this as necessary :)

My cousin posted on her blog yesterday about having the same sort of day, and how God used this song to speak to her.  It is by the band Considering Lily, "come and rest"

My friend Kelly shared:

"Hmm, I think whenever I finally really understand a "God" concept clearer something that God has opened my spirit to, those are the times I just feel so close to him. Like I finally understand what I've been misunderstanding this whole time."

Isn't God GOOD?

This post is called "My Morning Cup of Coffee" because that's what I've decided to call any posts that have a more "devotional" feel.  The purpose of this blog is not to be a devotional, and I am in no way suggesting that I have anything to share that is more valuable than what you are going through in your own lives, but when the Lord lays things on my heart, I will put them here.

Today I'm sitting here, determined to get over this week-long cold I've been struggling with.  I should be doing laundry and cleaning, but I have some things on my mind so I'm giving blogging the "productive" label for the moment.

It's raining outside.  I love rain.  I love the sound, the feeling of peace I get as I watch it come down, and the fresh smell it leaves after it's gone.  Yes, rain is a good thing.  I also love rain because it is probably the one thing that reminds me the most of the Lord.  To me, rain is all-encompassing, touches every sense, overwhelming, and out of our control.  Rain reminds me of God's love.

I have had a few "rain" moments with the Lord that have still left a "puddle" on my heart that will stay there forever I'm sure.  Those moments where I am stopped in my tracks, drenched from head to toe, full attention at the sky as those clouds part and I feel the Lord touch my heart in the way only He can to say, "I love YOU".  What else can you do then but open up your arms, feel your clothes get heavy with the weight of the water, throw back your head, open your mouth, and drown in that moment?

I can remember the biggest moment like this I had.  It was during this time that I could do nothing but accept His love as I felt Him peel back the hardness of my heart and He became my Rescuer, my Redeemer, my Rain!  That moment changed me forever.

You, O God, sent a plentiful rain,

         Whereby You confirmed Your inheritance,
  When it was weary


Psalm 68:9

   

Now it's your turn.  I know there are a few people who have been reading this blog (according to my stats at least), so if you have a "rain" moment or another example of how God has quenched your soul, I'd love to read them and I'll post them so all our stories can be an encouragement to others.

Have a good day!

Being pregnant, carrying a child, and eventually becoming a mom has always been one of those "eventually, in the future" type of things.  I am feeling a lot of the same things I did before my wedding day...lots of love, excitement, fear, expectations, and the realization that the "before" period of this huge time in my life is about to be in the past forever.

That's how I feel right now.  For 22 years, I've been just me.  Abi.  I've had labels like anybody else (daughter, student, Christian, wife, etc.) and now I'm about to add a new one.  For nearly 9 months, I've studied about pregnancy and babies, loved on other's babies, felt Adrian grow inside me, and become closer and closer to the "big" day: Adrian's birthday.  I feel like I'm on stage, waiting in the wings, and very, very soon...it's GO time!! No turning back or pushing the "pause" button.  We'll be parents.

And now as I'm counting down the days until Adrian should be here, feeling more and more that I can't wait to not be pregnant and actually have him here in my arms, I want to write about my very favorite things about being pregnant (specifically with Adrian, obviously).

1.  The very first moment of finding out I was expecting a baby for the very first time.  I felt an instant overwhelming sense of responsibility that was astounding, and was immediately aware that my body was not only "just me" anymore.  As I touched my stomach, I felt completely in awe and couldn't help but think, God is making a precious baby for me to be a mother to.  This is the most amazing gift!

2.  The first time I saw Adrian on the ultrasound.  I was of course super careful in those first few weeks, thinking that any sudden movement or anything would hurt my baby.  However, it didn't cross my mind until the night before our ultrasound appointment that something could really be wrong with my 13 week old child.  I broke down as Nick and I prayed for peace for me and safety for our baby.  The next day, when I saw Adrian flipping and spinning in every direction, his spine twisting and arms and legs waving, I couldn't help but burst into tears of joy.  Again, I was reminded that I was receiving the greatest gift.

3.  Feeling Adrian move the first time.  I had felt tiny flutters that I couldn't positively chalk up to movements, but one Monday afternoon at 15 weeks, I felt positive movements that I knew were Adrian. I felt what I thought were little hands and feet, tapping on my belly right under my belly button.  All I could do was touch my belly and smile.

4.  Finding out we were having "Adrian".  Nick and I didn't care if we had a girl or a boy, but I personally had always thought that having a son first would be nice.  It was an unimportant prayer that I would not have been disappointed if God did not answer.  In the ultrasound room, Nick and I kept referring to the baby on the screen as "he/him/his" out of habit, and the tech asked us if there was a reason behind it.  We explained there wasn't, we just didn't like him/her or switching back and forth.  "Welp, you're right!" she said, "it's a boy"! I couldn't stop laughing and crying at the same time.  We were having a son!

5.  Communicating with Adrian.  Through the different websites and books we have read, we learned that an unborn child can hear outside noises early on in pregnancy.  As soon as we learned that, we started singing to him.  I chose "you are my sunshine" early on because it was easy and hopefully easy to remember (there are theories that an unborn baby can eventually recognize and remember a certain song if he or she is sung to often enough).  Now, as I lay on the couch, watching my belly morph into odd shapes as Adrian moves, I sing softly (and not well) and smile as he responds.  I don't know if he'll love music when he's born, but I love that it connects us now!

Thank you for letting me share with you my favorite moments...the things I'll want to remember most.  Soon, he'll be here with us and we'll make new memories and I'm so excited about that.  God has been so good to us.  The blessing of a child is wonderful to feel before he even arrives.

What's in a name?

As I've mentioned in previous posts, this past year has been a trying one as God has allowed us to go through circumstances that are less than "comfortable". Of course, we cherish the lessons learned, but there have been many times we have sat with hands clasped together, praying for God to help strengthen our weak faith. He has NEVER come short. One way (of many) that He has proven His love to us is in the way He has provided for Adrian. We have wanted for NOTHING when it comes to this baby. We have experienced overwhelming humility as God has come through in the way of insurance, health care, prenatal care guidance, material needs for both Adrian and I, and many other ways. If Adrian's existence in itself wasn't enough, God has reminded us over and over again through his provision for Adrian that He loves this baby already and He has used him to remind us that He will be glorified in our weakness!I am in no way ignorant of the fact that Nick and I have been really really blessed during this pregnancy in the way of having a healthy baby. I have been broken-hearted over hearing stories of my friends and friends of friends who have had to walk through extremely painful miscarriages, pregnancy complications, and other unexpected trials during their pregnancy. I have cried with them, and found peace in the fact that God knows what He is doing and even in the pain of these parent's, He is sovereign. It has been sobering, and it makes me realize how extremely blessed we really are.

For us, finding a name to fit our child...OUR...child, was really difficult. I tend to like names that are less-popular, not trendy, rare-but-not-weird names. Nick, on the other hand, likes names that are simple, normal, has-worked-for-hundreds-of-years type names. Ironically, we have had a girl's name in mind since we were dating, but finding a name for a boy had us quite stumped.

 I was really surprised that Nick agreed to Adrian for a possible boy's name. It seemed that every name I threw out, he would look at me like horns were growing out of my head and shoot it down. Honestly, I would do that to most of the names he offered as well (John....really?), so you can imagine the many conversations we had trying to come up with something. To add to the drama, I really wanted to have a name picked out by the gender ultrasound so we could start calling him/her by their name and bond with our baby on another level. Having that deadline helped. The night before the ultrasound, we decided on Adrian Paul. Paul is Nick's middle name and there is no other person I would rather my son be named after than my precious husband.

So, that brings me back to the reason behind this post.  As I've reflected over the Lord's goodness and sweetness towards Nick and I, I've fallen in love with this verse: 1 Samuel 1:27-28 " I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him.  So now I give him to the Lord.  For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord".

I love this verse because I identify with praying to the Lord on my child's behalf.  I've (we've) prayed for Adrian's health during this pregnancy, his heart for the Lord, his future walk with the Lord, his relationships, his life, everything.  Of course, Adrian will make his own decisions that will affect how these situations are concluded, but we pray.  It is truly my heart that my son will have a raw, genuine, life-long love for his Lord.  I want God to take him and do with him whatever He wants with him.

That got me thinking further.  I wanted to give Adrian something that would represent what the Lord has done for him already before he even entered the world, and what our prayers are for him for his future.  This sparked the conversation, "babe, I'm thinking of changing Adrian's middle name".  Nick was wary at first before I told him the name, but when I suggested "Samuel" and explained why I was thinking about changing it from Paul to Samuel, Nick agreed.  I knew he really did agree with what I was thinking, because I know he most certainly would have told me if he didn't like it.  Samuel means: 

 

So. Adrian Paul is now Adrian Samuel. He will still have his daddy's last name, but now he will have the stamp of who he belongs to, and who loves him more than we ever could...his heavenly Father.

Happy Birthday, Nick!

Today is my very sweet husband's birthday!!! He is 28.  I've been looking forward to this birthday of his all year, because last year we had just moved here to Jacksonville and we were both so stressed and overwhelmed that his birthday kind of lost priority.  So, I've been challenging myself this whole year to do a better job for his 28th.  Plus, it's his last birthday before Adrian comes!

The first birthday I celebrated with him was his 25th (I can't believe I've been able to celebrate four birthdays with him already).  I am so thankful to be married to God's perfect man for me.  Nick has a genuine heart for the Lord - the kind of heart that challenges me and encourages me daily in my own walk.  He is solid, patient, and loving.  He is a leader.  He is humble - Nick never has to be in the spotlight or first in anything.  He'd much rather be in the background helping out the underdog, and I know God has rewarded that about him.  Plus (as a bonus), he's my absolute best friend.  My life is a million times better since Nick has started walking through life together with me, and I can't wait to spend forever with him!

On Wednesday, our good friends started Nick's birthday celebration by surprising him with a cake and a song at Impact.  Thank you, Teague family! Nick felt very loved and special and the cake was yummy!

Today, Nick opened gifts.  He got a very nice polo shirt from my mom (which he keeps picking up and admiring, "oh, I love this shirt!"), and a model helicopter from me.  We bought each other mostly practical things for Christmas (ex. after shave and socks....blah) and so I wanted to get him something less "responsible" and more fun.  He's been playing with it all morning - it's a very cool little thing! I am happy that even though he's 28 he still likes fun things like that.

I am making a birthday cake (yay, fun!) and cooking a big dinner tonight and we're going over to our friend's house to celebrate.  I'm making pot roast (super easy).  I love my hubby! I am one BLESSED woman :)

                      

33 Week Doctor Visit

Nick and I went to the doctor yesterday for our every-two-week check up for baby Adrian.  Thankfully, there are no complications! I love listening to his heartbeat every time I go.  It's funny to watch him roll all around while the technician tries to find a good spot to listen to his heart.  It seems that he is going to be an active little boy!  I'm on track with the weight gain (thank goodness), and the doctor made my day by saying I was measuring a little small because there "wasn't any extra fluff to measure".  I felt a little less defeated :)


Thank you, Lord for a healthy baby!





In other news:
I'm going to be an aunt again!  Ben and Kayla (my sister and brother-in-law) are expecting a precious baby in Septemeber.  We've known since Christmas, but are just now getting to share the exciting news.  Our babies will be only 7 months apart!  I'm very excited as we've wanted our own kids to be close in age since we were little.  We're praying for an easy, healthy, happy pregnancy and looking forward to meeting the new little one in the family!

Thank you, Lord. My heart needed that.

Living the Christian life is not easy. It was never meant to be.
Last night, as Nick and I prayed through some things that have broken our
hearts, we asked the Lord for His confirmation in our thoughts and decisions.


It is precious to pray in the middle of brokenness!


I don't know how many times I've been unable to put into
words how I feel and God has given me just enough words to pray. Often our
hearts are broken by our own selfishness...pain caused by focusing on our plans
more than we focus on the Lord's. Sometimes I think God breaks it because it's
at that low point before the Lord that His words are heard the loudest. I'm
thankful for that!

This is what God gave me this morning as a reminder.
Thank you, David, for saying what I couldn’t say. I hope this encourages you in
whatever you’re going through as it did me!

Psalm 42
1 As the deer pants for the water brooks,
So my soul pants for You, O God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God;
When shall I come and appear before God?
3 My tears have been my food day and night,
While they say to me all day long, "Where is your God?"
4 These things I remember and I pour out my soul within me
For I used to go along with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of
God,
With the voice of joy and thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.
5 Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him
For the help of His presence.
6 O my God, my soul is in despair within me;
Therefore I remember You from the land of the Jordan
And the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over me.
8 The LORD will command His loving kindness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me in the night,
A prayer to the God of my life.
9 I will say to God my rock, "Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?"
10 As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries revile me,
While they say to me all day long, "Where is your God?"
11 Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him,
The help of my countenance and  my God.

Snow Day!

After a long weekend (we spent all day Saturday in the ER trying to figure out the cause of the intense pain in my side), we woke up this morning to see a beautiful blanket of snow outside our window!  We weren't expecting anything more than freezing rain and ice, so we've enjoyed spending time at home cleaning up and enjoying ourselves as the snow has continued to fall all morning and into early afternoon. 
We went out on the porch and made a miniature snow man family - it was much too cold for us to brave the yard :)  We couldn't stop giggling as we made them.  I LOVE being married to my best friend...he makes everything about my world wonderful. 



 Today was definitely a day I'll be happy to remember.

For Your Information

As Nick and I looked back at 2010, we had to shrug and admit that, yeah, it wasn't a great year for us.  Of course, we have SO much to be grateful for and if I were to write a list of all that God has done for us and taught us, I would have far too much to write to fill one blog post.  Still, the Lord has brought us through a time of testing, stress, frustrations, and confusion.  What is the number one thing we've learned? HE IS SOVREIGN!  Our faith in him has been rewarded time and time again and He has only proven Himself to us over and over again.


Still, I look forward to 2011 with a fresh burst of excitement and optimism.  This is going to be a great year.  That saying, the reason I chose the title of my blog to be "To Sing While it is still Dark" is because I like the quote it came from:


(this image is mine, and I don't mind if you use it).  If you know me, I love quotes and I love being creative with them.  I really like this one because it sums up how I want to be this year...full of hope, optimism, energy, love, and absolute faith in the Lord.
The title of my blog comes from the verse: Proverbs 23:18 - "There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off".



(again, this is my image so feel free to use it).  Do you see my theme for 2011? Hope.  Nick and I are looking forward to so much (not in the least the birth of our son, Adrian Paul) and we're excited about what God is going to do.  I hope you find encouragement in this today!

Fractured Ribs and Heroes

My pregnancy is slowly reaching the end as today I am 31 weeks, 2 days.  I know I still have 8 weeks and 4 days left, but I know it will go fast!  I've had a pretty textbook pregnancy (thankfully), but this past week I definitely had a non-textbook experience.  I fractured my rib.  By coughing. 


I've decided that if I had to fracture any bone in my body, I would choose my rib because it's a fairly low-impact place.  I can do pretty much anything as normal, just with added pain.  No braces, wraps, or anything.  Of course, it's awkward feeling like a whale and now having more pain, but it could be worse!  Note to all you women who are/will eventually be pregnant: apparently there is a plethora of flu medication you can take even while pregnant.  Save yourself a fractured rib!


Other thoughts:
I think most of us have every-day heroes.  Those we look up to or admire for certain reasons.  I've been blessed with several throughout my life, but I want to highlight those in a certain category: the givers.  I always admired Pastor Johnny Hunt, pastor of First Baptist Church Woodstock, GA, for this reason because he is a humble and generous giver.  However, since Nick lost his job more than 2 months ago, I have had the honor of meeting so many givers in our church.


  Without them, I don't know how we would have made it.  These people, most of them anonymous, are my heroes.  Not because God is using them to temporarily meet a need, but because of their willingness and generosity to give without asking questions or needing reasons why.  If God ever blesses us financially, I want to be a giver like that. 


I don't think anyone here in Jacksonville will ever read this, but if you do, thank you so much!

The Journey Begins

My husband came into the room I was in, waving the pregnancy test into the air.  I had seen that look on his face before, and I laughed.  "Babe....did you take another one?" he asked, rolling his eyes at me.  My "need" to take pregnancy tests had been a joke between us since day one of our marriage.  I had taken one this morning because I had been feeling particularly different for a few days and was beginning to think that maybe this time there was a real reason to take a test.  I had left it on the counter and forgotten about it, expecting the single line I saw so often that proved that I, of course, was not pregnant (as usual). 


Still, I asked Nick how many lines he saw on the test.  "Two", he said, absentmindedly.  I could feel the blood rush to my face, mostly shocked that he didn't realize what "two" lines on a pregnancy test meant, but also because the reality of those two lines hit me instantly.  I jumped up and grabbed the test from his hand, taking in the two, very solid, bright pink lines.  "Do you know what this means?" I asked him.  Obviously, he didn't, and I started crying as I said, "I think it means we're pregnant". 


We both cried as we stared at the test and hugged each other.  That was the beginning of this book of Adrian's life, and his birth is only a chapter in it.