Zach's 2 week update

I guess I should preface this with the fact that I know every mom thinks her child is THE smartest, cutest, and best baby in the world! And I am no exception! So this is my chance to brag on my little boy and keep record of the neat things he is already doing...at only 2 weeks old! So here it goes!

Zachary-

We are amazed at how expressive you are! You have been smiling from the day you were born. You are especially happy after a good meal or a good poop! You must take after your parents! Your toothless grin warms your mom's heart. You also make the funniest little expressions with your eyebrows and little mouth. You were NOT happy after your circumcision and definitely let us know with that little pouty mouth and serious brow! You wear your emotions all over your face and we never are in doubt of how you feel! Something tells me you will be like your mom in this!

You are a WONDERFUL sleeper! We are already getting two 4 hour segments of sleep at night and couldn't ask for any more! You like to sing to yourself as you fall asleep. It's precious! You also really like to be sung to. Your mama LOVES to sing to you and we are still working on your daddy! You always enjoyed music in utero and it has remained true once you came into this world. Some of your favorites are: Midnight Cry, When I think about the Lord, I Love you Lord, and Lord you are more precious than silver, just to name a few!

And if we didn't already think you were the smartest and strongest little guy in the world, you decided to roll yourself over today! Yes, I know it is WAY to early for this, but we had you on your belly finishing your bath this morning and the next thing we knew, you were pushing yourself over from belly to back with those strong little arms! We caught you just as you were headed into the sink! You grinned and cooed and were mighty proud of yourself! I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You were wiggling and rolling all around in my belly up until the day you were born!

I guess that is it for now. You weighed 6 lbs. 9 ozs. at your 2 week checkup putting you a little ahead of schedule on weight gain. We know you are gonna be a big strong boy one day! We love you!

Our Little Turkey

We have so much to be thankful for this year. Our little Zach has been such a blessing. We are so thankful to our Lord for this gift. He is so perfect and came to us at the perfect time. God is sovereign and we look forward to seeing His plan for our little man.

Our baby boy

Here's Zach right after he was born. He was 6 lbs. 3 ozs. and 19 1/2 inches long. We are all doing great, but exhausted!!! :) We'll post more pictures sometime later but here's one for now. Thanks to everyone who has called, texted, emailed, etc. Our little boy is so loved! We will enjoy seeing each of you sometime in the near future, but for now we are enjoying getting used to being parents! Thanks also for all your prayers. He came out a "small, but mature" according to the doctor! He is already such a strong and healthy little boy! Praise the Lord!

It's almost time!

The time is almost here. We have one week left til we meet our little boy! My emotions are going crazy right now. I am excited, nervous, anxious, and skeptical all at the same time. This has been such a surreal experience and I don't know that I have completely accepted that it is going to happen. I think it won't hit me until I'm holding my son in my arms, and I wonder then if it will still be strange. I'm excited to see him and enjoy looking at him and holding him for hours! I'm nervous about being a parent. I'm anxious to see how Zach changes our family dynamic. I'm kind of fond of my Scotty and the time we spend together. Part of me is nervous as to how another person fits into our family! And what will Maggie think? I worry that she will feel left out and neglected. She's been an only child for 12 years now. That's a LONG time! :) It's going to be a(insert all emotions here) experience! Keep us in your prayers.

Waiting on Zach...

Here are pictures of Zach's nursery. Other than the curtains, it is pretty much finished. I was happy to get things sorted and put away this week. We also got the new air conditioner in so the room is finally cool! Now all we need is Zach! 6 more weeks... :)

The Story of Zach

I've been working on trying to get Zach's room finished lately. I hope to have pictures posted on here soon! The idea for one of the projects I have recently finished came from a good friend of mine, Beth. In both of her kids' rooms she has a frame that has their names with the meaning as well as a Bible verse that represents that name. Zach's name is really special to us and we wanted to do something like that to remember the story. I thought I would share the story on here as well!

After our miscarriage in October of last year, Scott and I both knew God was telling us that He was going to send us another child. He did this through several separate avenues; however, it was all finalized through some scripture. Psalms 105:42 says "For he remembered his holy promise given to his servant Abraham." Throughout our trial with our first pregnancy, God had revealed the story of Abraham and his son Isaac to us. He walked us through this journey and brought us to the point where we had to lay our child at the altar and give him up to the Lord. We later found out he had literally taken him to heaven on that day. His name was to be Isaac. In the week following the miscarriage, God led me to that Psalm and we knew he was telling us that he was to give us another child. We didn't know how, when, or in what context, but rested in the peace of knowing he had promised us this.

Several months later, Scott and I decided we "might" be ready to have another child but were very guarded. We wanted God to show us what He meant in his promise, and not us. I found out a week or two later, much to my surprise and disbelief, that we were pregnant already! Scott was on call at work at the time so I grabbed a card and scribbled something inside and slipped a piece of paper that had Psalm 105:42 on it. I headed to the hospital to give it to him, but he got off early and met me at home instead. When he read it, he knew! He kept saying "Are you serious?" We were amazed at what God was doing, because this was definitely not our timing, but His!

The next day, I sat at my computer on one of those baby names sites. I typed in things like "promise" and "God-given" and found very little. Then, I happened upon the name Zachary. The description said "The Lord has remembered". I stopped. That was to be our child's name if he was a boy. I just knew it and needed no further explanation!

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I need journeys to solidify things. God took me on that journey over the next few months. Scott and I toyed with girl names, even to the point where God said "You will name her this...quit running." When I FINALLY, legitimately agreed, we found out it was a boy! It was almost as if God said, "Listen to me. Trust me. Show me your faith. (But it's gonna be a boy!)" :)

So Zachary was named by God. His name represents a spiritual journey that God has taken us on over the past year. This little guy was promised to us, long before we ever knew. He wouldn't be here if we hadn't willingly given up Isaac last October. I know God has big plans for this little guy. I pray that Scott and I will be parents that help him to know God and how special He has already been in his little life. I also pray that we will also willingly give Zach to God like we did Isaac. I have a feeling it will be even harder than it was the first time.

31 weeks and counting

I am 31 weeks 5 days in this picture! This picture became much "squattier" when I rotated it so I really don't think I look THAT squatty! Zach is growing bigger everyday and I know getting off my feet was the best thing for him. He has continued to be so active and have such a little personality. I can't WAIT to meet him! Scott and I started our childbirth classes last night. This is something I think everyone should do at least once. I can't say that I really learned anything last night but we laughed a lot and the "relaxation and breathing" part at the end was wonderful! But even better, it was nice to have a date out with Scott. We are so thankful for life right now. It's been an amazing journey over the past year. I have spent this week reflecting over a lot of what we have gone through as a couple since this time last year. Although I wouldn't wish a miscarriage on anybody, I can say now that our marriage is so much stronger, so much deeper, and so much sweeter than ever before. God is so real in our lives and our marriage and for that I am blessed! I've learned this week about journeys that God takes you on. Although they can be painful, looking back is so sweet. And I honestly wouldn't change a thing. I feel I am blessed for having been on that journey. And what a sweet Thanksgiving we are about to have, with our little blessing from above!