Happy Surprises

Remember when you were little and mom went to the grocery store and she would announce...
            "Hey kids, I'm going to the grocery store, can you think of anything we need?" 

I'd always reply...

            "Bring me back a happy surprise!" 

I remember it vividly. There's not much I remember from my childhood it seems. Little tidbits here and there. But happy surprises. You always remember them.

And today I'm announcing our little "Happy Surprise"! I think I'll never forget this little happy surprise.

Pregnancy #3. Kid #5.

Meet Baby Plum. (He/She was named the week it was the size of a plum!)

Isn't it amazing? Every single time it's like the first time when you see the + test...

There's a little shock...

I mean really. We were done. DONE. D-O-N-E. Honestly. Done. 

Or so we thought. We had prayed about it. I was 95% done. Hubby was 100% done. Guess who was the one to "give in"...I remember distinctly..."The Lord's will be done". Mmmm hmmm. Women, never ever trust a man's percentage calculation equations on doneness. They can trip you up and the next thing you know.......hello positive dollar store test! You weren't done. We weren't done. I knew it. I tried to tell him. ;) 

And I'm so thankful!

Here is where I was a few months back...

Remember, I said I knew I wasn't done. Now, don't get me wrong. I was done with pregnancy. Just not with kids. I wanted more. I wanted to help. I wanted our family to understand this dynamic and the necessity that is "out there". The kids who need homes. The kids suffering through Foster Care and multiple "parents". The disabled kids who need real, true love. The boys who need a father. The girls who need a mommy and a sister.

Sure, our home isn't perfect. We've got a lot of learning to do on the topic of parenting. But there's one thing we don't have a shortage of, and that's love. I know it in my heart. And even with this happy surprise, I bet the void still isn't filled. In honesty, in the midst of hovering over toilets, massive headaches, kidney stones and every.other.imaginable.symptom...it has faded. But I bet it's still there. I pray it is still there.

Because the kids.....they are still there.

We are the church. We ARE the CHURCH. The orphans, the elderly, the poor. We have so much. They have so little. It isn't a charity case or a duty but a burning desire.

Until the end of June..... or July.

....here we are. Pregnant. Again. 

I freaked a little at first thinking it may be twins. Everyone thought it may be twins. I was big. Fast. I was freaking. But I knew that no matter what, God had us covered in His mercy and His plan is far more superior than ANYTHING I could write down on a sticky pad and check off! He's got this. He's got me covered in His grace and thank God, peace. There is only one. :)

This man knows when to "Let Go and Let God!". I trust him. He's my rock. He is the leader of this family and I am so very thankful. You are a good daddy. Just think.... two more little footprints on the t-shirt. Aren't we blessed?

I can't wait to hold this little bundle. 

I think it's a girl. I've never felt sure with the previous pregnancies. And I'm not 100% sure now. (You know me and percentages!) But all of the "gender prediction tests" say girl. It's kinda crazy.

But we won't know until sometime in July when he/she arrives. Another little "Happy Surprise"!

Either way, this child is blessed. And we are blessed because of this child. 

God's percentages are SO much more reliable. 

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To my friends who may read this and haven't received their positive test, or those who have suffered the loss of a pregnancy. Keep holding onto faith and to God's reassuring promise that He has a plan. I pray for you. I pray for your day. And in the meantime, I pray for your peace and patience and frustration and fear. I love you. 

"We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.  And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.  And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love." Romans 5:3-5