Sweet blessings

We continue to receive so many blessings from our sweet Jonah. 

 I love how having him has drawn Josh and I closer, and just by looking at him we 

see the goodness of the Lord. 

Oh...Josh is an amazing father. 

More posts to come of nursery pictures and of course lots more of Jonah. :)

He's Here!

Jonah Leyton
Born November 22, 2010 at 7:56am
7 pounds 5 ounces & 20" long


We are so in love with this beautiful boy. A precious gift from our Lord.

Hoping to post more pictures soon. Picture taken by my good friend Brooke. Thanks Brooke for capturing these beautiful moments for us.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Clinging to His Promises

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.  Deuteronomy 31:8

Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9:10 

The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid? ... I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.  Psalm 27:1, 13-14

We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you.  Psalm 33:20-22. 

Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him.  Psalm 37:5-7a

Whom have I in heaven but you: And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.  Psalm 73:25-26

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust."  Psalm 91:1-2

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us...And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who live him, who have been called according to his purpose...No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 8:18,28, 37-39 

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us...Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen in temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.  II Corinthians 4:7, 16-18

38 Weeks

Well, I'm up because I haven't been sleeping well this week. I fall asleep and wake up half way through the night wide awake with my mind racing. So I figured I'd stay up for a bit to get organized and straighten up my house. 

Anyways, I've made it to 38 weeks! It's pretty wild to think that on Monday (good Lord's willing) we will be meeting this baby. I wanted Josh to take one last picture of me before the big day. I'm off by a couple of days but that's ok. 

Looking back I can remember everything I was feeling a year ago with the holiday season approaching and just over-come with sadness and fear of having to face my first holiday without Leyton. Those feelings certainly aren't gone as I miss my sweet Leyton and new feelings are arising as I think about actually meeting and holding this baby.   

But it is amazing to see how the Lord has brought me to this point at the end of my second pregnancy. As nervous and anxious as I have been throughout these past 38 weeks, I have to thank the Lord for how He has kept me close and has walked with me every single day. He has been faithful in all of his promises and has given me beauty for ashes. He deserves  all of the glory. 

And I can't say thank you enough to all our friends and family who have walked with us through this. We have been so blessed by your love and thank the Lord for each and everyone of you. 

I'm not spoiled but...

I'm not spoiled but 

someone should spank grandma.

I saw this written on a sign this Sunday when Josh's mom and I were at the Country Christmas craft show at the Bayfront Convention Center. It pretty much summed up the two days I spent with my mother-in-law. 

Josh had in interview for residency this past Monday in Toledo so his mother came and stayed with me while he was away. Josh was only gone for one night and I felt bad that she had to drive 6 and half hours just to stay with me, but she really wanted to and I'm so glad she did. We had a great time together and she helped me get some things done around our house.

She didn't come empty handed. Not only did she come up with a frozen lasagna (Josh's fave) and frozen chicken pot pies for us, but she also brought a Radio Flyer wagon full of gifts for the baby! Which is totally wild that she gave us this wagon because just last week Josh and I were talking about getting one for the baby! 

I continue to be blown away by how well his parents love us and bless us. 

Thanks again mom for steam cleaning my carpets, treating me to a pedicure, getting two more sleeper outfits for the baby, and all of the meals. Thanks also for coming with me to my over two hour long OB appointment. I'm so glad you got to experience seeing your grandson during my sonogram, what a great bond you already have with this little baby. Love you and I can't wait to see you and dad this Sunday! 

Pregnant Pics

So I definitely wasn't as good about taking pictures of my pregnant self this time around as last time. I really wanted to do comparison pictures from my first pregnancy and this one but of course when I did manage to take a picture, I couldn't find that same coordinating week. But I did find two to show you though nothing really too special. 

And this was me on Monday but today I'm 37 complete weeks! 

There were times when it seemed like this pregnancy was taking forever but thinking about it now it has flown by, PRAISE THE LORD! Overall, I've felt great. It hasn't been super easy but I'm so thankful for the grace the Lord has given me throughout this pregnancy. Working out definitely helped and not living on Chick Fil A was probably a good thing too. I have been loving food with a little bit of a kick, soooo thankful a Chipotle has opened up here in Erie to help satisfy my Mexican food craving. I've also been craving CARBS, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (or anything with peanut butter), pumpkin spice lattes, and soft pretzels from the mall...yum! So far I've gained HALF of what I gained when I was pregnant with Leyton, which is crazy I think. We had a sonogram on Monday and they have estimated the baby to be weighing about 6.4 lbs. So this little one might be a bit smaller than his brother, we'll shall see good Lord's willing. 

My Baby Sprinkle

The Lord has blessed me with an amazing group of friends here in Erie. Throughout this past year and a half of loosing Leyton and getting pregnant again, they have walked right along side with me and have been there for me for whatever I have needed. I am so thankful for each one of them.

Last Saturday my girlfriends hosted a baby sprinkle for me (instead of a baby shower). It was wonderful! It was a great time of being with my friends, enjoying delicious Mexican food (probably my main craving this entire pregnancy), celebrating this baby's life, and covering the baby and me in prayer. I asked for no gifts but they gave me a basket full of books (something that I actually needed), and I received a tin box full of notes to me and a note to the baby for the next 12 months. It was perfectly sweet and of course there were tears. Definitely not tears of sadness but truly overwhelmed by my friends love for me. Before I loose it again here are some pictures from the party.

Lindsey, Becky, Kristen, Tanya, Sarah, & me

Starting from the left we have Rashin, Tanya, Sarah, me, & Ashley

 This was one of the games we played. It was a race to see who could eat a jar of baby food the fastest by it being fed to you. Camille and I won but it was totally gross. Sweet potatoes and chicken, yuck! 

And I had sweet potatoes all over me. 

 I love this girl! Not sure what we were doing in this picture. I think we were trying to pose like cheerleaders. 

Brittany came and stayed with me for the whole weekend while Josh was away. I'm so glad she was able to be here with me.  

This isn't everyone who was at the party. I'm sad we didn't get a group shot. 

(Brittany, Brooke, Kristen, prego, Camille, & Sarah)

Thanks again girls for blessing me with an amazing sprinkle! 

not sleeping

I'm not quite sure why I'm not sleeping right now. I woke up at about 2:30am and haven't been able to get back to sleep. I woke up hungry but I often wake up hungry but I can always ignore it. I don't even want to go down the path of eating in the middle of the night because that could get dangerous. And I'm a little uncomfortable because my hips are sore but I don't think that is what was keeping me up. I felt for some reason the Lord wanted me to be up.

Often when I'm not sleeping, I pray in bed for whoever the Lord is laying on my heart or just go down my list of everyone in my family and my friends. But I didn't feel like this is what the Lord was laying on my heart. I started thinking maybe I'm up because Josh has a low blood sugar and I need to check on him, but he wasn't displaying the usual signs he gets when he's low. 


Then I start playing a game I have when I'm not sleeping...I'll give myself until 3am and if I'm not asleep by then I'll get up...3am rolls around I give myself 15 more minutes...and another 15 minutes. This can go on for a long time because I hate getting up in the middle of the night. But at about 3:30am I got a horrible urge to pee so bad I had to get up (this would have been my second trip getting up to use the restroom tonight). So I'm up, I quietly grab my pillow and head downstairs. And I did grab a yogurt because I was really hungry. 


I knew the Lord had something to share with me. I've been reading through John and when I saw where I left off at John 16, I knew this what the Lord was wanting to share with me. At about verse 5 Jesus is telling his disciples that He is going back to the One who sent Him but the Spirit of Truth (the Holy Spirit) is going to be with them. My girls' group and I just started a new Bible study on the Holy Spirit. We are reading The Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit by Francis Chan. We just finished his book Crazy Love and it was amazing and I highly recommend it.) Anyways...I've been trying to pay more attention to the Holy Spirit at work in my life, recognizing the Holy Spirit is always with me.


I kept reading the rest of the chapter but was totally stopped at the second part of verse 20, "You will grieve but your grief will turn to joy." 


Already this week I have seen clear evidence of the Holy Spirit at work in my life. I'm really seeking Him to continue to reveal His truth to me. I believe the Lord brought me to John 16 this morning to reveal something to me, but I don't want to read into anything or take it out of context. Just like I felt the Lord told me (through a friend) when we were going to get pregnant again, in the spring (and we did, we found out on April 2, Good Friday), I wasn't sure at first if that was the Lord or if I was reading into something. So I spent a lot of time in praying and seeking the Lord. And that's kind of where I'm at now with this passage in John 16:20-22. You better believe I'll be covering this too in prayer and seeking the Lord for what He has for me out of this passage. But that in itself is a beautiful thing, as I continue to draw  closer to the Lord I know He is drawing closer to me. 

Journal Entry: 10/21/2010

Disclaimer: this is straight from my journal and some of the sentences may not be complete sentences or make much sense. I just wanted to quickly get what was in my heart out and on to paper. 

___________________________________________________________________________

Thoughts on prayer...I'm struggling with how to pray. I'm asking the Lord for a strong and healthy baby. I'm pleading with him to protect this baby from all harm (in the womb and out). I'm asking the Lord for Josh and I to meet this baby on this side of Heaven. 

I don't know why but deep inside this doesn't feel quite right. 

I know I should be praying, "Lord, I want your will to be in done in my life." And in almost every area of my life I truly desire this. But regarding having this baby, I don't want his will to be done in my life if thata means this baby will die too. Is that horrible? How can I say, "Lord, I trust you with my life." (which I can), but still struggle to say I want his will to be done in my life?

Are my selfish human desires getting in the way of God's best for me? 

And I aslo start thinking of when I'm asking the Lord to protect my baby, I'm reminded that the Lord has fully protected Leyton. He never got to experience any pain or suffering. Wouldn't I want this for all of my children? 

Lord, how do you want me to pray for this baby? 

Lord, I desire for you to be glorified in my life.

___________________________________________________________________________

I recently got to talk with my dear friend Amy via Skype (who happens to live in Italy, so cool right?), I always feel refreshed after she and I talk. Amy is an amazing woman and a wonderful friend. She is always full of wisdom and encouragement for me at exactly the right moments always when I need them. She told me that the Lord wants me to be praying for my baby and encouraged me to do so (Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God. Philippians 4:6).

We also talked a lot about surrendering to the Lord's will for our lives, asking the Lord to help us to  align our will to His. I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way but this is so scary for me. I have seen first hand what His will is for my life when that meant that my son was called to Heaven before I was ever able to meet him and look into his precious eyes. But who are we to ever think we know what's best for our lives? I've heard this so many times and I know this (but often need to be reminded of this)...THE LORD KNOWS WHAT IS BEST FOR US. 

I'm still not 100% there yet but I am getting closer with each new day. I'm praying a lot for the Lord to continue to reveal more of Himself to me, praying I continue to feel His peace and grace daily as I am awaiting the arrival of this baby, and praying that what I want for my life is in align with what the Lord wants for me. 

Thanks again Amy for sharing your wisdom with me. I'll be calling again soon for another pep talk. :)

Also....we have a scheduled c-section for Monday November 22. Only two more weeks!

Halloween Pictures

Josh and I had the priveledge of attending our friends Sarah & Drew's third annual Halloween party this past Saturday. We had such a great time and but are sad that it is most likely our last Halloween party with our friends here. Sarah and Drew always throw a great party and have fun games for us all to play. This year they organized a Minute To Win It party, guys vs. girls. It was such a great idea and so much fun even though the guys did win most of the games. Here are some pictures from the party....

 This year Josh and I switched roles...he went as a woman and I was a man with a pot belly. Kind of hard to tell but I also have a bit of a beard (I made with some dark eye shadow).

 Two new friends Duke and Rashin, they went as hippies.

 Adam and Camille with their new son Elliot. Elliot was party animal and Camille was amazing for coming having just had a c-section on Monday. She is a rockstar.

 Freeland and Brooke went as a shot gun wedding and their son River was the ring bearer, so cute! Brooke even had a full on wedding dress with a huge train, such a beautiful bride.

 Kristen and Dan were robbers.

 Our hosts Sarah as a bear and Drew as Guy Fieri.

A little unreal how much he looked like Guy Fieri.

 Lindsay and Ryan were a pair of hooters.

Bill, Christie and their son Jackson had the cutest costumes! Bill and Christie even made their monster heads themselves to match Jackson's costume. Christie is super creative.

Kind of strange but Josh and Freeland looked like they came together as a couple.

Thanks again Sarah and Drew for another great party!