An Extra Pair of Feet

There are another pair of little feet in the Powell household. Monday afternoon we welcomed our first foster placement. For the sake of this and future posts, I will just refer to this child as Z.

And, to be honest it has, thus far, been so much easier than I imagined. I had braced myself for lots of difficulty, but it has not been so bad. So much grace!

My biggest concern was sleeping. We have a two bedroom home and therefore Jude is sharing his room. However, the first night went without a hitch. We lay Z down first and waited for about 30 minutes to make sure sleep was deep.  Then, we told Jude it was bedtime and said, "You have to be quiet, Z is sleeping." He put his little finger to his lips and said, "Shhhh Z sleeping."  We then snuck into the room and Jude slipped into his bed. He went to sleep and we never heard a peep all night! Praise!

In the morning, Jude woke first. He began talking to his animals as he usually does.  I came in and said, "Shhh." His eyes got big as if he remembered something. He looked over at the crib, pointed to it, then put his finger to his lips and said, "Shhh Z sleeping."  We then quietly snuck out and let Z sleep a little while longer.

Nap time, on the other hand, didn't go quite so well today (our first try). I think I will play with it and figure it out after a few days.

I know foster children generally have a bad reputation, but Z has a sweet, mellow, and happy disposition. We have been very blessed by Z's presence already. This is a pleasant child.  I looked at Stephen the first morning and told him... this is not supposed to be this easy!

But, it is also difficult. Thinking of all that Z has been through, and has yet to go through, is tough. Figuring out childcare for my OB appointments is a little more difficult now - as are all errands - a small thing, but a thing nonetheless. And, just being real, I had a few teary moments the first evening mourning the loss of our family of three, realizing our routine and comfort has been "shaken up."

But, its worth  it. And, whatever difficulties lie beyond this "honeymoon phase" will be worth it. What a great opportunity to grow in love, patience, perseverance and, above all, Christlikeness. What an opportunity to pray for this child's salvation and that of Z's parents. We pray The Lord may use us to share the gospel with this family. We are thankful for the extra pair of feet the Lord has allowed us to care for. We are praying and hoping to see great things come from the time that Z gets to stay with us.

A Different Kind of Pregnancy

Here we are, with full hearts, celebrating 15+ weeks of pregnancy.

As if that weren't enough (and it is!), grace upon grace, I am just a normal pregnant women this time around. No high-risk pregnancy like with Jude, no twice daily injections of blood thinners or daily doses of progesterone hormones. Praise!

When we moved to Oklahoma, I spoke with my new doctor about what she thought was medically necessary for me to carry a pregnancy to term. I had some reasons to believe that the twice daily heparins shots and progesterone supplements on top of a daily aspirin and thyroid medication were not completely necessary. She agreed that I could most likely forgo the heparin shots and the progesterone supplements and just stay on thyroid medication and a baby aspirin. As soon as I found out I was pregnant she did some blood work to be sure.  I prayed that the Lord would allow these results to come back obviously positive or negative (not borderline as they had with Jude). He answered and we took the plunge - going heparin and progesterone free.

It was a difficult first few weeks! I mean, who in their right mind wants to "experiment" with a baby's life?  However, we decided to see it as an opportunity to put our trust fully in the Lord, realizing that HE is sovereign over my body and even over medicine. To see it as an opportunity to cherish the gift of conception and each day of pregnancy even if we don't get to hold a healthy baby at the end. An opportunity to believe that whatever happens, the Lord intends it for our good.

Praise God, he has graciously answered our prayers and those of those praying with us in these early weeks of pregnancy. Thus far, he has sustained this baby. I am watching a bump grow without any bruises or knots on it from shots!

And, yet more grace, we will be welcoming a foster baby into our home literally at any moment - We found out we were pregnant the same weekend we completed our foster care training!

I can not believe how much things have changed so quickly. But, my heart is full and anticipating much growth (family, physically, and spiritually) in the next few months!