In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation. Psalm 5:3
You are teaching me to wait upon you day by day with great expectation. Thank you for your great patience and kindness to me. You are a God who is with me always. You never let go of me. My desire is to follow hard after you all the days of my life. It is only by your grace this can be accomplished. Guide me and lead me in your truths Lord. You are faithful and I will put my trust in you.
When I woke up this morning, I had no idea the blessing that awaited me today. Earlier in the week, my friend Jessi had sent me a somewhat cryptic message saying she was planning some last minute pre-baby adventuring in Rockford. This invitation included something about low-impact walking and reservations. I put off committing to this intriguing offer not knowing if I’d be up for any activity or if my parents would be up for more babysitting. On Thursday or Friday, my parents informed me that they would pick up the boys and take them Saturday morning so I could rest up a bit. Great news! I guess Jessi and I were on!
Long story short, I very unexpectedly walked into a surprise baby shower! I had absolutely no idea that all this planning and sneaking around had been going on for some time now. For my own remembrance of this very special day, I want to share a few snapshots of the morning…
Jessi’s sister Bethany traveled all the way from Lake Geneva to help with the decorations. It was unbelievable! From lights and etsy-worthy baby items strung from the ceiling to sunflowers in pale blue painted jars and a burlap table cloth, I could barely take it all in.
I began looking through the crowd… my mom, Junior and Senior High staff women (Katie, Dara, Chelsey, Rachael, Gayle, Jenny, Laura, Maria, Cherice), some of my Bible study girls (Rose, Laura, Tona), my mentor Pam, my good friend Laura, a new friend Bethany and of course my friend and head schemer Jessi.
The food layout was just as impressive. Many of the women had contributed a variety of delicious breakfast foods: fruit, egg casseroles, French toast, pigs in a blanket with yummy pecans (thanks mom!) and pastries! At the table we each had these cute little glass jars filled with orange juice. So fancy!
My mom stepped out of her comfort zone and offered a beautiful prayer to start our meal. We all enjoyed some wonderful food and conversation. Then came the announcement. Jessi introduced my mentor Pam MacRae to share a message with us. This might not be a traditional baby shower agenda item, but it was perfect for me! I love hearing from Pam and always gain so much from her teaching.
Pam shared the story of Hannah and her long awaited Samuel from 1 Samuel. The main verse she had been impressed to share was 1 Samuel 1:27, “I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him.” Many of us commented the only thing missing was paper and pen to take notes on this amazing message from God’s word. Pam encouraged all of us to remember that our purpose (and our children’s purpose) is to love God and serve Him with our whole lives. The world emphasizes that childhood should be a time of fun and safety. As Christians, we know that childhood is a time to prepare our children for the spiritual battles that loom. At the age of three, we see Samuel worshipping God at the temple. Hannah was doing something right!
Next, Jessi shared the story about a special song that Miles and I would often sing at bedtime… “There’s Something About that Name.” Cherice and Maria played and sang the song for us and then we all joined in singing the song together. What sweet memories I have of rocking Miles to bed as a baby while singing this song and later listening to Miles sing the song all by himself.
We ended our time together with a special time of sharing. Jessi had asked each woman to share a passage of Scripture along with their thoughts/encouragements for me. Yes, there was a fair amount of crying throughout this portion of the shower, but there was laughter as well. I think I will post the different Scriptures that the women chose to share in another post. It was a wonderful gift and encouragement to me.
Another fantastic element of this shower was the theme: diapers! Knowing that we have many of the needed baby items stowed away from use with Owen and Miles, Jessi asked the women to shower me with diapers! Target is losing out on some major business from the Early family for baby’s first few months!
I can not even find the right words to express how blessed I feel after today.I don’t think I could have dreamed up such a perfect morning. I have spent a lot of time praising God in the storm and am now remembering the importance of praising him in times of joy as well.
Psalm 34:8
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
Brandon-My incredible shrinking husband! Brandon has lost quite a bit of weight in the last year or so. Our family has learned to love Subway and Tuesday night Panini night as we try to eat a little healthier. Brandon writes about technology for a popular youth ministry magazine and is doing an amazing job forming a student leadership team with the students at church. He keeps getting better and better at being a dad. Just a few weekends ago, Brandon took both boys into downtown Chicago for an overnight. What a blessing to have such a loyal, devoted and fun husband!
Owen-He has started 1st grade, which means… homework! Owen and I are both getting into the routine of doing a little homework each night. He has also started doing Awana on Wednesday night at church. He came home the first night with most of John 3:16 memorized and some crazy stories about the hilarious puppets that throw toilet paper. Although we have our moments, Owen is a super sweet kid. He is great at sharing and helping, now if we can just add listening to the list…
Miles-Miles has started preschool at Mom’s Day Out again this year. Just today he was showing me the faces he makes at school to make all the girls laugh. Miles has turned a corner in the behavior department. He is really catching on to “immediate obedience” and he will actually clean up after himself without crying! Miles definitely has his dad’s creativity gene as evidenced by the gum necklace he attempted to make yesterday. Let’s just say Curly Early lost a few curls that day. Most of all, Miles is still my “lovey.” He loves to cuddle and snuggle with me and tell me he loves me.
“Ricardo”- The littlest Early boy is set to make his appearance in a little over a month. At our last appointment, we learned that Little Buddy weighs about 5lbs 2oz and at this rate most likely won’t follow in his big brother’s footsteps as a 10lb newborn! Everything looks good, except this little guy is doing summersaults. We are hoping he will complete the cycle and get into position before our next appointment. Otherwise, we are all ready for this little guy. The boys have taken their sibling class, Brandon has done the muscle work of setting up the nursery, and I am feeding this child apple cider and pumpkin donuts every chance I get!
Me-The word I chose as my theme for the year is “move.” Pretty sure I am living up to this concept. I have “moved” up to high school ministry after 11 years in junior high. Although I miss junior high, I am enjoying the opportunity to go deeper with high school students. I have “moved” into a new job. As the Assistant Director at Mom’s Day Out, I am able to do what I love (plan, organize, think, research) and I get to openly share the love of Jesus with those around me. The next big “move” we are looking forward to is being a family of 5. It has been a long journey and we are so looking forward to welcoming this new little boy into the world.
He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.
You are loved. You have a name. We are starting to get things ready for when you come. Here are a few things you need to know . . .
You were kept a secret for a long time, not because we didn’t want others to know, but because mommy’s heart has been through a lot and she was trying to protect it. That is pretty silly, because God is in control and He can be trusted with all that we have and all that we are. God has taught me so much, but I still have a lot left to learn. I can’t wait to teach you all about God and how much He loves you. You are a precious gift from Him. He created you and is with you always. He loves you the most of everyone, even me! I don’t even know how that is possible, but it’s true! Oh, and you will also learn about weird stuff like vocabulary, grammatical morphemes, and prepositions from me. Sorry about that.
Owen and Miles are excited to meet you. When daddy and I showed them a picture of you in my belly, they thought you were a baby dinosaur! I’ll show you the picture someday and you can see for yourself. Owen loves babies and has been asking for a baby at our house. He is helping Miles learn how to be a big brother. They put on their capes and do big brother training. One more thing, for now your brothers have named you “Ricardo,” but don’t worry because that’s not going to be your real name!
You are so lucky to have daddy for your daddy. He is so fun and crazy and he will swing you around and make mommy really nervous. Daddy will take you to Starbucks and even teach you how to make his coffee. Also, be ready, because daddy likes to record everything and put it on the internet. He will make you the star of the show! Daddy will also teach you how to pray. He will pray with you before bed each night and then maybe throw in a puppet show if you’re good!
Oh, I just saw my belly move! You are becoming quite the mover and shaker. That makes me so happy and excited when I feel you moving. You move a lot at night and also when I eat. You seem to like hand-dipped ice cream like Baskin Robbins, or maybe that’s just me. Keep kicking baby. We will keep getting things ready for you here, you just relax and grow a little more each day. You are loved.
-I love the way he comes in my room in the morning and whispers, “Mom, I gotta tell you something—I love you.”
-This boy has about a million different facial expressions—happy, silly, mean, mad—he is so animated and is constantly making people laugh.
-As a speech pathologist, I thought any sort of articulation errors in my own children would drive me mad, but I’ve come to yove Miles’ yittle “l” sound.
-We always end our bedtime routine by singing “Jesus Loves Me.” Miles closes his eyes and smiles as I sing the last few words.
-Miles is all boy. He loves swords, guns and now his new light saber. I’m trying to channel that into raising a warrior for the Lord!
-Sometimes when he is tired, I catch him twirling his curls with his fingers.
-Whereas Owen could care less about being in timeout, Miles always cries his loudest cry when he is sent to the naughty spot.
-This is kind of gross, but we are talking all things Miles . . . the kid leaves a trail ofboogies (aka boogers) wherever he goes. We are working on this.
-The boy is a pack rat. Everything belongs to his “collection.” You would not believe the weird stuff I found while cleaning out his room the other day.
-Miles for sure loves his dad, but he is definitely a mama’s boy. He loves to sit by me and hold my hand. I know it won’t last forever, so I’m enjoying every minute of it now!
“Miles Lee Early, I love you. Miles Lee Early it’s all true. Miles Lee Early what a joy! Miles Lee Early you’re my boy.”
1 Thessalonians 3:9 How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?
Back in February (notice the huge snow drifts in the window), Owen secretly set out to brighten my day by dragging out his Crayola floor pad and some markers and making a special picture just for me. I don’t think I’ll ever forget what he said when he gave it to me . . . “Mama, this is for you to remind you spring is coming.”
My eyes filled with tears as I wrapped him up in a mom-sized hug. What a blessing that the Lord had used my sweet 6 year old to encouraged me in such a deep and meaningful way.
Steven Curtis Chapman’s Beauty Will Rise CD has a song entitled “Spring is Coming.” This song begins with seeds being planted “while the tears of our grief soaked the ground.” Winter takes its toll, yet beneath the ground the seed is beginning to rise and there is a hope that tells us “spring is coming.” Eventually, new life breaks through and we know that “it won’t be long now, it’s just about here.”
When Owen gave that picture to me in February, the ice was already beginning to melt away. God has been so faithful to give me continual signs of spring—not only as I look forward to eternity, but also as I see new life springing forth here on earth in so many ways.
2 Corinthians 9:15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
