Evotion about Life

I still get weekly evotions from our old pastor Rob Hutchinson.  I think he has a good way of putting things sometimes and this week his evotion kind of hit home. This is not the whole evotion but this is the meat of it.  So I hope you enjoy!  

Life delivers us many blows that are unexpected, frustrating, scary, and certainly painful.  Sometimes it is the result of our own decisions; other times, we are simply victims of the circumstances that surround us.  We get hit by cars, laid off from our jobs, get tripped, get ripped off, and sometimes told off.  Our expectations are not met, our dreams are shattered, friends betray us, spouses abuse us, and our love ones pass away.

None of us is immune.   Psalm 38 is full of deep human emotion – grief and pain. 

I am bent over and racked with pain.  All day long I walk around filled with grief… I am exhausted and completely crushed.  My groans come from an anguished heart.  (Psalm 38:6,8, NLT)

            Because of the freedom of choice God created in us, when faced with the pain and hardship that life throws at us, we can choose the “Woe is me!” response.  We can seek revenge, hold a grudge, and withhold our forgiveness.  We can curl up in a ball, complain, and/or curse the world and everyone we think is responsible for our plight.  Or… we can choose the way Jesus modeled for us.

            In Acts 14:19, the Apostle Paul was attacked out of nowhere by an angry crowd and they stoned him.  They dragged him out of town thinking he was dead.  But when his followers gathered around him, he got up and went back into town, then continued on to another town the next day to preach the good news. 

   Paul and Barnabas returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch of Pisidia, ²² where they strengthened the believers. They encouraged them to continue in the faith, reminding them that we must suffer many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God. ²³ Paul and Barnabas also appointed elders in every church. With prayer and fasting, they turned the elders over to the care of the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.   (Acts 14:21-23, NLT)

God wants all of us, even our pain and grief.  He is ready to take it on, help us carry it, learn to live through it, and discover that, in Him, there is much more to life than our circumstances.  Our Heavenly Father wants us to let go of the fear, pain, anxiety that we try to hold onto and control.  He encourages us to cry on His shoulder when we are hurting, and to allow His grace and love settle over us so that we can prepare ourselves to respond in ways that bring Him honor and glory.

What is going on in your life that is uncomfortable, or painful, and that you need to give to God?

How can you be an instrument of God’s love and grace to someone else who is in the midst of pain or crisis?  How can God use you in a tangible way to enable them to experience God’s presence?

31 Week Growth Scan

Well today I had my 31 week growth scan and I am happy to announce that Lacee weighs 2lbs and 8oz.  This means she has gained 10oz in 2 weeks!  Over all she is still measuring 2-3 weeks behind but she is still continuing on her own curve and as long as she continues on her own curve then as Dr. Grandis says "we are good!"  Dr. Grandis gave me a copy of the growth curve chart today and I scanned it so you can see what I am referencing.  She is hanging right under the 10th percentile around 9%.  If you click on the chart you can see it bigger. 

Fetal Weight Chart - Lacee is the Squares!

 
She also scored 8 out of 8 again.  Breathing was harder to catch this time because she wasn't already doing it when we went in.  All of the last visits she had been doing it when we went in and was doing it the whole time.  This time she started near the end and kept going.  Once she started they had no issues getting her 30 second video of her breathing.  I think she was just showing her stubborn side!  She also got me some 3D pictures.  Lacee had her hands up around her face so they aren't the best but I still LOVE them of course! With the 6 pictures she gave me today we are now up to 64 ultrasound photos of our little cupcake!  

You can really see her hands here - Lacee 31 weeks

Can see a little face and again hands - Lacee 31 weeks

You can see more of her face here - Lacee 31 weeks

We are just so glad to have made it this far with this much hope and we just continue to pray for more good results each week!  Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and prayers!!!

Prayer request for some dear friends!

Some friends of ours got the worst news imaginable today.  They went in for 27 week check up and they could not find the heart beat.  Their little boy went to heaven today and  my heart just breaks for them. I learned of this today while at work as I was leaving for lunch and I spent most of my lunch break just crying.  I am sure my own pregnancy struggles have made this hit much more close to home right now but I just cannot imagine what they are going through.  I ask that you please keep the Shores family in your prayers because they really need God's love and strength to see them through this! 

A little more about Lacee's Nursery

This past weekend we went to Michaels Craft store and we got letters for Lacee's room to spell out her name!

August 9th and 11th Doctors Visits Updates!

Tuesday August 9th I had my regular OB visit with Dr. Dorton.  We talked about how well Lacee is doing on her BPP's and the fact that while small she is still growing and staying consistently 2-3 weeks behind.  He also talked in terms of 37 weeks for delivery.  Her heart rate was great and while she is measuring only around 27 weeks my belly is measuring at 29 weeks. 

Today I had my weekly scan where we did the BPP and dopplers.  Her dopplars were great and she scored perfect on her BPP.  I am not sure if I have ever said how the BPP scoring works.  You get 2 points for each of the 4 things they look at: fluid, tone, motion, and breathing.  I am happy to say Lacee got a perfect 8 today and that she has gotten a perfect 8 every time since the 1st time we did a BPP at 24 weeks!  I think it is because she is like her Mommy and likes to get good grades! Hehe! Growth Scan will be next week and we just hope that this good news continues!

They gave me like 8 pictures this week so now I am up to a total of 58 ultrasound photos of our little Lacee!  Here are few of the pictures they gave me!

30 weeks Foot

30 weeks profile 1

30 weeks profile 2

30 weeks face picture

30 Weeks Nose and Lips

1 week complete

So I announced that Chad and I were both doing plans to read the bible in 365 days a week or so ago and I happy to say that we have both completed 1 entire week of reading!  1 week down 51 weeks to go!  But we have to start somewhere!  Next update is 1 month completed! 


On another note I will be going to the doctor tomorrow for another ultrasound so be looking for an update!

Getting Excited All Over Again!

Chad and I were so excited about this pregnancy in the beginning and while we didn't go all crazy but we did talk about what we wanted if it was a boy or a girl and what we wanted to do to the nursery and how we thought he or she would get along with Nisee.  Then the bottom fell out. We found out our baby was a she at 17 weeks but it was when I was about 21 weeks along that the news got really bad.  That was when the doctors were really worried because all signs pointed to something being wrong with the placenta and they didn't think that I would be able to get Lacee to viability age (24 weeks).  It was at this time that all those plans just go away because the only thing you can hope and pray for is your baby to live and to be as healthy as can be.  You don't have time to worry about bedding sets or baby showers or cute little outfits and if you do think about those things you feel like it is such a trivial thing to be thinking of that you scold yourself for giving time to anything other than urging your baby to be healthy.  Because the doctors were not 100% certain it was the placenta (they were like 99% sure) we were still in this limbo phase.  There was still hope that they were wrong and it could be something else like she is just a small baby. 

So while we waited and prayed to get to 24 weeks to get here so she would reach viability and so they could verify if it was the placenta or not via uterine artery doppler we see-sawed back and forth between if we should try to prepare and plan for our baby or if we should just wait and see.  We were afraid to not plan because we felt that would give more credence to the fact that she wasn't going to make it but we were just as afraid to plan as well.  Then my 24 week visit came and we got the best news ever!  The doppler was great and they no longer thought it was her placenta!  Then at 25 weeks more good news that she had grown well.  The good news has continued each week and now I am in my 29th week of pregnancy and we are starting to get excited about this pregnancy all over again.  Each time we got news we got a little more excited that all those dreams that had been tossed away were actually still going to happen!  It is the most amazing feeling!  After the 25 week good news we decided to plan just a little and we got her crib bedding.  It is cupcakes!  And I bought 1 outfit at about 27 weeks in a premie size and I wouldn't have got it but it was very similar to an outfit Nisee had when she was a newborn! 

Another reason I am getting excited is that now we can plan a baby shower for Lacee.  The shower is mostly a diaper and wipes shower but she is also going to be premature in size when she is born even at full term so she will need some premie size clothing.  However anything anyone wants to get us will be greatly appreciated.  Taking from her bedding the shower theme is going to be cupcakes and we are really playing up the purple in the bedding so purple is a part of the theme as well.  Also giraffes, yes giraffes!  I don't know why but I have been obsessed with giraffes since I got pregnant!   Her shower is August 27th at Hardison FLC and I will be 32 and a half weeks along.  We are doing the shower a little earlier because the doctors have said that once Lacee reaches 37 weeks they will deliver.  I am very thankful to my friends and family who are helping with this shower! Below are some pictures of her Bedding and the outfit I got her as well as a couple pictures of things I just thought were cute!

Cupcake Bedding 10 Piece Set

The cupcakes squares are actually wall hangings

Green Polka Dotted Sheets! I LOVE IT!

I loved cupcakes so we went with it1

I did not buy this because it was $20 but I just thought it was really cool very realistic cupcake pillow!

This is the little outfit that I got for Lacee that looks like one that Nisee had.  

Nisee in her newborn Monkey outfit!  I thought it would be cute for them to have similar outfits!

No I didn't get this but I thought it was just so Sassy! LOL

August 4th Visit

Today I had my Growth Scan and I am happy to report that Lacee now weighs 1 lbs 14 ounces!  That means she gained 8 ounces in the past 2 weeks.  She is still measuring behind of course but she is still growing on her own growth curve.  I saw Dr. Grandis again today and he did say that she is just a little below again this week but just barely so they will continue to monitor her and me.  The fluid, breathing, motion, tone and doppler were all great! Again the sonographer, Amanda said that Lacee was very good at breathing and that meant she was a smart girl!  She even remembered scanning her just 2 weeks ago.  We had a medical student in the room who watched her do the scan first and then he had to do it and she said Lacee would be an easy baby for him to see the breathing on.  My Daddy went with me today and he though it was funny that I knew all the sonographers by name!  But I mean I guess I should, I do go every week! LOL!  They scheduled me for visits through September 1st!  All I have to say is GO LACEE!!! 

Reading the Bible

Yesterday Chad and I started our journey in reading the entire Bible in 1 year!  We are both following different plans.  Mine is a chronological which is reading the Bible in the order that events happened historically.  Chad is reading canonical which is straight through as the Bible is compiled.  We will both complete reading the Bible on 8/1/2011.  We have been talking about doing this for a while now and just finally decided we better just do it!

Happy to Say

I am HAPPY to report that I do NOT have gestational diabetes!  I passed my 3 hour test with flying colors!  YIPPEE! I hope I never have to take that test again.  Getting your blood drawn 4 times in 3 hours is no fun.  It might be better if I had better veins but mine are hard to find so they had to use the same 1 each time.  Can you say ouch?!  Either way I am super happy that I am diabetes free!!! I have a growth scan tomorrow afternoon and hopefully we will continue the good news!