when the world says it is impossible...

"In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." Proverbs 16:9

It's hard to believe that seven years ago, Jeremy and I began our journey of starting a family.  In that seven years I would have never imagined the roller coaster of emotions that was awaiting us.  Many of you have been on that journey with us.  You have shared in our waiting, cried and questioned with us, spent hours in prayer, supported us, loved us, and celebrated with us. You have reminded us often that God is a loving and faithful God, even when situations seem to prove that wrong.  

As I take time to reflect on those years, I can understand clearly the verse above.  We planned the course that we thought was best and while you can plan all you want, the Lord determines the way that plan carries out.  At the time, we did not understand why becoming pregnant was not happening for us...it was happening for those around us.  As you tend to think, what had we done to deserve this?  But it was nothing we had done...God had a different plan for us.  One that opened our hearts to adoption, clearly God planned for Maryn and Theo to be our children.  That while at the time I couldn't not become pregnant, two amazing women would be carrying the children that we would love and adore from the moment we set eyes on them.  

Through those years, our hearts and minds have be opened to His will and while you may not understand, He is a faithful and trustworthy God.  We have been blessed to have hearts that are sensitive to situations and to have met and shared with other families that want to adopt or have struggled with infertility.  We had become content and fulfilled with knowing that this was the path God intended for us to take in growing our family.

But as the title of this entry says, "when the world says it is impossible...", we were quickly reminded that with God all this are possible.  In late May we were shocked, overwhelmed and thrilled to discover that we were pregnant!  After multiple pregnancy tests and blood work to confirm, it wasn't until the first ultrasound with such a tiny image and the sound of a beating heart that we could truly believe it was true.  What a miracle!  I still think it took awhile to really sink in and for us to truly grasp this precious gift that God had given us. Some of our greatest joy came in sharing the news with family and friends...their reactions were priceless :)  It was a rough summer with me being sick most of the time, but thank goodness for family and friends that helped out whenever needed.

I am now 30 weeks along and due January 14th, 2012.  Everything is going well and we are so excited to meet our little BOY in January!  While we still are not sure what Maryn thinks about all this and what she really understands, she does keep talking about her new baby brother.  It has also provided some great opportunities for us to talk about her and Theo's birth story.  And while Theo has no idea what is going on, having a brother just 15 months apart in age is sure to be lots of fun :)

Our lives are about to change in a big way and while we are a little overwhelmed at times by that thought, we could not be more excited and thankful for this precious gift. As we move through this final trimester, we would truly covet your prayers for our family, a safe delivery and healthy baby.  As we fully know, God is faithful, trustworthy, loving and the giver of all perfect gifts...and with prayer all things all possible!

Our precious baby boy in late August!!!

Definitely showing a baby bump in August :)

Just this past weekend...30 weeks