Sitting, Waiting, Wishing...

As time approaches quickly, Josh & I are eager to see the way the Lord provides for us.

So I'll back track and tell you that from the day we made the decision to move to Massachusetts, we prayed for God to keep us out of debt (no loans). We have officially made it halfway through our time here at Gordon-Conwell and so far, our prayer has been answered. We have made it through having a baby, getting in a car accident, losing luggage,  and now the birth of our baby boy in e-l-e-v-e-n weeks. There have been so many "things" here that could cause us to be anxious and worry, but we have seen [and believe] that Jehovah Jireh truly is what His name declares Him to be: Yahweh will provide.

Josh took a week-long class, Preaching in the Old Testament, this month. I loved seeing Josh come home so excited about this class. He would try his best to explain what he was learning, but being careful to not go overboard. Because let's be real, half the things he says that he is learning, I respond with, "....what?"or "...come again?"

Well one of his assignments was to choose a narrative from the OT from a list he was given, write a sermon from it, and then preach it.. He had to write the same narrative in first person (as if he were a main character), third person (as the narrator), and as if he were a minor character in the story.

I wish I could just copy and paste his manuscript into this blog. It. Was. So. Good.

I was thrilled to have found somebody to watch Abigail so that I could go to Josh's class and watch him preach. I mean...I've seen him preach many times before, but this was different. This was an assignment that came alive. It was beyond what Josh had ever done. It was something new. His professor is big on making a narrative into a story--but in a way that the audience can't help but sit on the edge of their seats waiting for more.

His text was from 1 Kings 17: 1-16.  [Go read it!!!] I know you see Kings and think it's got to be a boring text....this is going to be a waste of time...

I assure you, it's not. All Scripture is breathed out by God--there is a purpose.

So there is this prophet you may have heard of, Elijah, which means, "My God is YHWH." It had just been declared that there was a drought in the land. So the LORD took him on a journey. And the word of the LORD came to him: 'Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.'" Maybe you didn't catch that. God....GOD told this man that He is going to provide for Elijah through a bird. a BIRD. I don't know about you, but I'd start to doubt my God at this point. How in the world....Just picture this: He is in a hot desert, the sun is scorching, there is no rain. BUT God promised food and drink to him. Verse 5: 'He went and did according to the word of the Lord. He went and lived by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.' Okay....so God was right. He was right in such a....very, very strange way. Months go by and the brook dries up from the drought. Suddenly in verse 8 we see, "Then the word of the LORD came to him, 'Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold I have commanded a widow there to feed you.'" This is when you LOL. Why would God use a poor widow to feed Elijah? She was the poorest of the poor. She was lonely. She was most likely old. She was weak. She was saddened. Once Elijah obeyed the voice of God and turned and went to Zarephath, there was indeed a widow in the distance. Okay, at this point, I'd be freaking out. God says he will provide by the hands of a widow, and there in front of him, she stands. Elijah calls out to her, 'Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.' And as she was going to bring [the water] he called to her again and said, 'Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.' The audacity this man has to command this poor lady to bring him food... What about her? She needs food just as much as Elijah. Can't you just picture her? Leather-like skin, her face sagging, her eyes drooping, her hands shaky, her poor body like skin and bones....and she is supposed to be the means in which God provides for this prophet. The widow responds so honestly and says, "As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die." That last part is heart-wrenching. Right? She's telling him she is down to her last bit for her and her son. I mean, thinking of your jar being near-empty, how could you not just fear death?

BUT. Elijah responds so unbelievably and says (verse 13), "Do not fear, go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty until the day that the LORD sends rain upon the earth.'" First he tells her not to fear. He sees she is worried, but is comforting her with these 3 words: Do not fear. Then he tells her to bake him bread, and then for herself after. Honestly, if I were the widow, I would have said, "You're a nut. How about I bake for me and my son, and then for YOU after?" But this widow was selfless. Verse 15 says, 'And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.' She responded so faithfully. So lovingly. So graciously.

Josh told this story way better than I did, with way more vivid details, but I'm sure you see the point. His point was: The word of God never fails and we can trust him. Again, The Word of God never fails and we can trust him.

Before Josh went to class, we prayed  that God would reveal this Scripture to us personally. That it would intersect the core of every person who heard this sermon--and not for Josh's personal gain, but for the glory of God. We prayed that this story would become alive in all of our lives. That we would remember this story so vividly.

This all happened on Tuesday. The next day Josh and I were in the car talking about how many "things" we need before our little guy comes. In 11 short weeks, we will need a car seat, a double stroller, clothes, and so much more. But those are the main things before he is born. Oh....and a car. No biggie. Eleven weeks to find a car, that's child's play. After our conversation, I logged onto Facebook and had a message from a sweet, sweet friend. The message said her and her husband had been praying for weeks for Josh & I and want to buy us a double stroller. #areyoukiddingme Those are so expensive. I wasn't sure if I should cry from excitement, or cry from God answering our prayer that the story of 1 Kings 17:1-16 would become real in our lives. We trust God. We believe Him at His Word. He says He will provide. One day later, He provided. I don't understand. I can't grasp the concept that my God will supply our every need. My God is able.

20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. - Ephesians 3:20-21

So now, we anticipate something great. It excites me more than I can describe that He has gone before us and has planned it all. We just have to wait patiently and prayerfully. There is no doubt in my mind the God is all who He says He is. The Word of God never fails and we can trust Him.

Now, for a little Pool humor:

Josh has some weird fascination with us getting a van. #ainthappenin #dontthinkso #heckno. He jokes that we're gonna have a big family [this is not a joke. We will have a big family ;)] and these are his two options:

Honda Odyssey because it has a built in vacuum.

Or this. A "Ford Transit Connect."

Someone help my husband. He has just about lost it. It's between a van (because of a vacuum) or a flat-out-creeper van. And let's face the facts, if we can't afford a double stroller, can we really afford a Honda Odyssey [if I even entertained THAT thought...]? Yeah to the Right. It'd be like a 1990 Honda Odyssey. 

In all seriousness though, we've been looking and have some possibilities! And none of them are vans. :) #highfive 

Life is so fun awaiting the unknown! 

Week 28

Today marks the third trimester. WHAAAAAAT?! No it's not....No it's not... It can't be!

But I've come to terms: It is officially the beginning of the end.

This is flying by! I know I said that last week, but seriously. It's basically February, which is one month from March...and then we could expect this little guy at any moment. Twelve weeks to go. I'm. so. excited.

This week was pretty typical. Nothing new really happened, except for him beating me up from the inside. It's the strangest thing. I was in church this morning and all of a sudden out of the corner of my eye, I would see my shirt flickering and shaking. The feeling is so surreal. After I have him, I'll forget what it's like. I'll probably just get pregnant again. :) PSYCHE. 

My body needs a break. And frankly, I would love a glass of wine. Yeesh. I feel like I haven't had one since we got married. Am I always pregnant? #wellhave2kidsbeforeour3rdanniversary

Don't get me wrong though--I wouldn't trade it for the world! Being a mommy is the absolute best gift next to marriage. 

Josh plays in the band at church, so Abs and I sit in the crowd. I keep her with me for the beginning of service during worship (she LOVES music) and once the sermon starts, I'll bring her back to the nursery. Then I'll go and grab her for communion to pray with her and listen to the band once they start playing again. The second we walked in from the foyer (gag me....I hate that word.) to the sanctuary, she immediately spotted Josh on stage and yells in her high-pitched voice, "DA-DAAAA!!!" With the biggest grin on her face. I don't know how she spotted him...the lights were so dim. Anyway, she was totally distracted by everything. We were in line for communion and she was waving to everybody, still saying, "da-da!!," and then reaches out for a lady to hold her.....So my whole point in getting her from the nursery to take communion with her: #fail. I ended up there alone. Once I get back to my new seat (since my daughter was now three rows in front of where we were sitting), I turn to look at Abs and she's got a big smile on her face looking around the room and raising her hands. I know, she has no idea what she's doing, but it's so sweet to see her during worship with a room full of believers worshipping the One true God, the only God. I'm thankful for having a church here that genuinely seeks the Lord. And I'm especially grateful that our church has welcomed our family in and loves our little girl almost as much as we do. 

I'm so excited to meet our little guy (in 12 short weeks!!) and see what fun, quirky things he will do.

How far along? 28 weeks

Symptoms: HA. Because it has been so cold out, I was layered up. So I had a pair of leggings on under a pair of maternity jeans with a long sleeve shirt. I legitimately could not wash the soap out of Abigail's hair because I couldn't bend forward any more. I had to pull both pairs of the maternity band part on my pants down and take my shirt off just to rinse her head. #help

Total weight gain/loss: +14

Sleep: Yes

Food cravings:  I really wanted strawberry bubbleicious gum this week and nowhere sells it. Rude. Also, I ate all of Abigail's goldfish during church this morning. She was in the nursery, so she has no idea.

Best moment of this week: Our 2D & 3D ultrasound! 

Movement: soooooo much

Labor signs: NO

Gender: little guy :)

Belly button in or out?: In

What I miss: a glass of wine?

What I am looking forward to: Appointment Friday! I go bi-weekly now ahhh!

Milestones: Third trimester, baybeh! 

Weekly wisdom: Don't bathe your child while pregnant. They can go 9 months without one.

Florida captured

Oh Christmas break, you were so fun. We awaited for your arrival and were saddened by your departure. Here's some very terrible, random pictures taken while being home:

My sister got a bow & arrow for Christmas. And of course, my dad had to show her how it's done...

and I'm pretty sure these two are laughing their butts off because my dad had nothing to offer...except how to NOT hit the target :)

After witnessing THAT, Hails is gonna do it any way other than my dad's :)

Here she is. My sister. She's 11. and she's a beaut.

Mom getting attacked by the monster

And then my girl fran, Taylor came for a visit. I hadn't seen her since Abs was 6 weeks old! And Abs literally woke up from a nap while Taylor was over, Josh picked her up out of bed, came out in the living room, and Abs reached her arms out for Taylor. What a gem.

Just like normal :) 

And then we saw two more great friends! Katrina on the left, she's hard to see. #camo. Danielle in the middle (AND SHE'S PREGNANT NOW!!!!!!!) 

And then we saw my best gf, Casy with her little sweetiepantz, Aria.

Abs loves Aria. Giving her a little pat on the back.

 Aria loves Abs, giving her a smooch on the cheek.

Abs loves Aria a little too much. 

& Now they're ticked.

Oh how I love you, so!

Typical :) 

And then we visited the beach. Oh my heart.

Okay....If you've never played this game, you're in for it. It. Is. So. Funny!!

So this is what you do:

Step 1: Write your secret word in the bubble

Step 2: You have one minute to draw your word on the next page.

Step 3: Pass your book to the left. That person cannot look at your word. You can only look at the page prior. In this case, she saw my dad's drawing of "cuddle....."

Step 4: Pass your book to the left. You have one minute to draw the word that is on the page prior.

So now you get the point of the game....It went from "Cuddle" to "Conjoined twins"...And look at that drawing...a 12 year old drew that. #talented

And then we played Ellen's game of "Heads Up" Josh's mom trying it out!

Abs and mom wearing shower caps. So silly

Abs and Pop taking a nap

And then I come outside and my dad is attempting to teach Abs to ride a bike. #notthrilled

And now he's attempting to teach her to walk...

And here's my family, minus 2 older brothers.

And then our families had our "last supper" (har har har) at McGuires.  Missing my other brother though!

And now, everybody. The classic faces of Abigail:

Abigail makes life so much fun. I can't wait for our little boy to be in the pictures next year. :) 

Good day with good news!

Today went better than expected!

As soon as we woke up, Josh got Abs out of bed and fed her breakfast while I stayed in bed with a cup of hot tea reading my John Piper devotional. The chapter I read was on Hebrews 4:12

"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piecing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." 

&

 I love what Piper says: "The Word of God is not a dead word or an ineffective word. It has life in it. And because it has life in it, it produces effects. There is something about the Truth, as God has revealed it, that connects it to God as a source of all life and power. God loves His Word. He is partial to His Word. He honors His Word with His presence and power. If we want our teaching or witness to have power and produce effects, let us stay close to the revealed Word of God."

So after reading this, I picked a Psalm to read through. I randomly chose Psalm 103. The whole Psalm is praising God for who He is. And two things stuck out to me, even though many of these verses are so well-known.

• As far as the east is from the west,

so far does he remove our transgressions from us." (vs 12)

• "Bless the Lord, O you his angels,

 you mighty ones who do his word, being the voice of this word! (vs 20)

Seriously. So thankful for a forgiving God. A God who says, 'Beloved, I love you. You are mine.' When we fail, he forgives. A God who loves. A God who is merciful.

And then I read verse 20.   It was so cool to read this and it connect to Hebrews 4:12.  "You mighty ones who do his word, being the voice of this word!" SERIOUSLY. Piper just said if want our teaching or witness to have  power and produce effects,  let us stay close to the revealed Word of God.  

I love mornings like this. Mornings where you feel so close to God. :)

Then we went for a little walk and took a few pictures of Josh & Abs. 

Look at that beaut.

I have no clue what happened to this picture, but she apparently has 2 pupils in each eye.

After our family fun in the woods, we went for our check-up to make sure our little guy is safe and healthy. Sure enough, prayers were answered and things look great! The ultrasound technician was so sweet! She was only supposed to do a quick check-up and see if the dare I say it, placenta, moved. It took her a whopping 3 seconds for her to see that it had definitely moved. Yippee! And then she surprised us with doing a belly ultrasound to see our lil man. :) We had to make sure he was in fact... a little man. We saw his heart beating so smoothly....and then we saw....well, we saw his hand...holding his little part. Good boy. He's modest. It's sure that we're having a boy! Josh was holding Abs while we did the exam and she was so cute! She was pointing to the screen with her jaw dropped. 

One of the best things about having a child is their innocence and the way they bring things to your attention. I know she has no clue what was happening, but it was so sweet to see her light up at seeing something new. The way life should be, ya know? You experience new things, some good, some bad, but you have to see the light in it all. The way a child sees the world. Innocent and Pure.

And thennnnnnn she surprised us AGAIN and decided to show us a 3D scan of him! 

If you're wondering what that lumpy stuff is...I forget what she said. I thought it was his hand. I was just in amazement of seeing a living being in my belly. He is so cute. Cute lil button nose he has! 

And that was our day. :) So perfect. It started out beautifully and ended just the same! 

I love having a family. :)

27 weeks

#Ohmagaw

I'm 27 weeks pregnant.

I'll have a sweet baby boy in my arms in 13 weeks or less.

Or more if he is a procrastinator like his big sister.

Please be less. I wanna see your face!

Speaking of. Tomorrow we get an ultrasound and see his face! YAY!

Hoping & praying things have fixed since our last ultrasound! If you don't like the word "placenta" (who does?) stop reading.

If for some reason my placenta did not slide over, then I'll be having a C-section. And that scares me. To know I have no sort of control of delivering this little buttoncake. It scared me half to death delivering Abigail and the nurses putting an oxygen mask on me while pushing. #ThoughtIwasdying Plus, experiencing what I did while having Abs was one of the neatest things I've ever done. And my mom and Josh were right there next to me. Soooo we will find out more news tomorrow!


Sweet son,

The past few weeks have been nuts. We have been so busy around here, namely flying Delta. (#neveragain) And with Abs movin & groovin, I feel like this pregnancy is fLyInG. Daddy & I were shocked to realize I'm already at 27 weeks. That means THIS semester we will be meeting you, baby! Before daddy even takes his final exams, we will have you!
I have to tell you, you have the sweetest big sister ever. Although she doesn't fully understand what a baby is, she seems to get that you are in my belly. She says your name throughout the day. And when she says it, it's the cutest thing! She whispers it so softly with a smile. When we show her your pictures from the doctors, she says it too. And every time we ask her where you are, she points to my belly and kisses it. Daddy & I pray for you two to have a special bond. One where you love and respect each other. One where you play together and enjoy it. One where you pray for each other. One where you experience God together. One where you push each other in the right direction. We love you so much already and are so ready to hold you. Our lives are about to change drastically with you here, but we will embrace it! You are more than a blessing to us--you are a gift created by the Maker of Heaven and Earth. And because of that, Daddy & I will do all that we can to lead you and your sister in the ways of the Lord. We promise to raise you with Scripture all around our home. We promise to love you always.
We look forward to your arrival, baby! As for now, keep moving around. I love when Daddy can actually feel you. Sometimes I feel like you play games with us. I will feel you kick me a few times, and as soon as I tell your dad to feel, you stop. You little comedian, you. Keep growing and kicking me. I love it...even when it hurts so bad that it's hard to breathe.

Love you always. Love you more,
Mommy

And there you are. Right smack, dab in the center of the picture. You're apparently a camera hog, because look how much room you are taking up. Yeesh. 

How far along? 27 weeks

Symptoms: Nose bleeds. Every. Single. Day.

Total weight gain/loss: +14 #noshame

Sleep: Not bad. Although when I wanna turn over, it takes like 45 seconds.

Food cravings:  Well, my friend bought chocolate covered caramels the other day...#thankswhitney 

Best moment of this week: Getting back to Massachusetts safely. 

Movement: Every day! Yesterday was the most frequent I have felt you. Ooooh I love you! 

Labor signs: Heck naw

Gender: BOYYYYYYY!

Belly button in or out?: Innerz

What I miss: feta cheese. #getinmybelly

What I am looking forward to: Ultrasound tomorrow!! 

Milestones: Entering into the third trimester this week! Woah. Baby.

Weekly wisdom: Chocolate Molten Lava Cake @ Chili's. That is all.

Friday I had my regular check up to hear his heartbeat. It always scares me at first because it takes a few seconds to find it! Every appointment, it's always been down low on the right side and this time it was on the left. I was shocked because I've only felt him on my left side twice so far. Then I had to do the sugar test. Ew.

I walked over to the lab and the lady greeted me with, "Here. Drink this. You have 5 minutes. Go." And people say the Northeast doesn't have kind people............

My friend came with me to the appointment because Josh had class all day. Thank God for her. She took care of Abs while I drank this crap. Sorry. Bad word. But it. was. gross. You know, it tastes like Freeze Pops when they melt, except way more sugary. I mean, I was so tempted to give Abs the whole dang thing. She was smiling at me and signaling "more, please" to me. Oooooh that face! Those manners! She was too sweet not to give her my juice.....Kidding. I didn't. But I mean I was THIS close. I'm pretty sure the lab lady was eying me like a hawk though. So here I am, plugging my nose while drinking it. Lookin like an idiot. And I get up to tell her I'm finished, and she says, "No you're not. There's still a little left. Chug it and come back."

WHAT. 

Guys. The amount left was like when you drink a soda and you have to tilt your head back 180 degrees (yes, a straight line) and it takes 2 minutes to reach your lips. 

Was she really this brutal to her patients? Or maybe it was my hot baby bump she was jealous of. Who knows. Who really knows.

I can't wait to share his name when he gets here! It has so much meaning to us. A few people that we have told dont like it. You know, where they ask you what his name is with a smile on their face, and then you tell them and they crinkle their nose? Or they say, "Ohh...wow" I dont mind opinions, but get real. It's our son's name. And its nothing Crazy like North West or Apple. Just a very simple name with a lot of meaning.

Airport madness.

Twenty-three days ago we made our journey from Boston to Niceville.  I say journey because it sure as heck wasn't a quick trip.

Let me explain.

The anticipation was building as December 17th approached. This was the day our flights were booked to fly home for Christmas. We woke up that morning needing to de-ice the car and shovel it out. If you remember, we own a Scion. It's about the size of your fingernail. So it took a while for us to actually leave our home to head to the airport. We were driving to our pastor's home and he was going to drive us to the airport so we could leave our car there.

Little did we know, there was no reason to rush....

Our flight was at 12:15. When we booked the flight, we obviously had no idea that a snow storm would be come around 4:00 that same afternoon. So when we realized our flight was at 12:15, we felt pretty fortunate that our plane was leaving before the storm would hit. We wanted to be at the airport by 10 at the latest because of the holidays. We rushed to our pastor's house and switched our suitcases over to his car. Around 9:30 we made our way. We walk in the doors, and they ask where we're headed. "Atlanta," we said. The very sweet lady replied with, "Step right over here. There's an hour delay." WHAT? Okay cool. Knowing we had a two hour layover in Atlanta, and hour knocks it down. Okay, we can work with that. Less time sitting down in one of the busiest airports in America with a one year old. Yeah, we'll be fine. Psh.

We get through security quickly since we had a baby. [If you don't have one, you should. #justsayin] They let us through the first class line just to pass up all of the crazies traveling. We felt like we had so much favor [at this point...] We got through security in about five minutes. We scurried our way to our gate. A baby and diaper bag in one hand, a carry-on suitcase in other hand. Josh had a back pack on and was carrying the carseat. We got to the gate as fast as we could just so we could sit down and relax.....and get Abs to nap.

She wouldn't nap at first. So I took her to the play area:

Taking mini naps in the play area.

Knocked out :)

So we are at our gate by 10:15 and wait until our newly-expected departure of 1:50 PM. Abigail took a snooze on Josh while he knocked some reading out of the way for his January class as I patiently waited for her to wake up so we could get some food. Doesn't she know I'm always hungry? Get a grip, Abigail. Stop being so selfish.

Airports are so expensive. Get this: We got a grilled chicken sandwich, a hamburger, two fries, and two drinks for $24. Okay, would you like my arm and leg too? I almost don't even care because I'm so hungry and tired of waiting. At this point we had only been waiting for 2 1/2 hours. 1:20 comes around and it's the supposed time to board. Can I get a hallelujah? Once again, having a baby kicks into gear. We board first. We sit on the plane. We wait. We wait. We wait. It was us and some elderly ladies sitting on the plane. The rest of the plane hadn't boarded yet. Abigail even made some friends. I put her down so she could move around. There were only about 5 other people on the plane with us. Abigail makes her way a few rows up and starts giggling at this lady who seemed to be in her 80s. I walked over and scooped Abigail up and the lady asked me to sit down. We chatted for a few minutes....and then it happened. That's right people, she peed on my leg. Before you go assuming, it was Abigail who peed. Not the sweet old lady. Through her diaper. Through her pants. And now...through my pants. The day is beginning to feel a bit unfavorable....So far we have  an hour and a half delay (and continuing...), an empty wallet from airport food, and two pairs of urine pants. I politely excuse Abigail and myself from talking with this lady and ask Josh for help. [He was befriending a man in the seat behind us with his little girl] Thankfully, I packed one extra pair of clothes for Abs that was in the carry-on bag.

Abs holding her old clothes while wearing new clothes.

I know, I know. I'm supermom.

By the way, we're still on the plane waiting for the rest of the flight to board. We sat there for 45 minutes before anything happened. The flight attendants asked if we would like blankets because it was freezing on the plane. At this point, the snow had already started to fall and the wind was beginning to pick up speed. The flight attendant comes back to us and says we need to get off of the plane. They take our boarding passes back to show we are no longer on the plane. Abs has been a little angel-child so far. She hadn't cried or anything. Except pee her pants. So we're standing in the doorway where we are supposed to be boarding and they get on the intercom and say, "We're sorry for the inconvenience. Due to a maintenance problem, we will be delayed until 7:00 PM. We need a new part and will need to search the airport for an extra. Once we find it, we will take a test-flight and then begin to board." 

Seriously, who announces this sort of information over an intercom? And really....a test-flight?! REALLY FEELING SAFE OVER HERE.

Just to recap, we got to the airport at 10:00 AM and it's now 2:00 PM. We wait around.....Abigail takes another nap. 4:00 rolls around and Josh decides this is for the birds. Aint nobody got time fa dis. He gets on the phone to a "Delta Agent" and they immediately shoot him down. He calls again, and a different agent answers the phone and got us on a 6:00 PM flight to Atlanta. #husbandishero We were confirmed on the flight. We got the last two seats...but let the waiting continue.

Daaaaaaaang. Another 2 hours until this new flight. Well of course I'm hungry again...So Abs woke up and we went for some more rip-me-off-grub. Two men from our original flight saw us and asked if we got our food voucher for the inconvenience. We never did, so they gave us the remainder of theirs. #Sweetypantz. Then we realized we DID in fact get them (we thought they were something else), and tried to give them back, but they said to just keep them to feed baby #1 and baby #2. I had the exact same chicken sandwich for dinner that I had from lunch. I didn't even care. I just needed food.....and a bed. 

We go to the new gate, just a few down from where our first gate was. We sit down in the crowded and very loud area. Let me just sneak in a little tid-bit of information: Abigail has been constipated for days. DAYS. We look over and Abs face is spent-too-much-time-in-the-sun red....so Josh decides to take her to the bathroom. Next thing I know, I look over and I see my husband walking out of the airport bathroom with a baby in his arms that has just a diaper on. No, there were not any clothes in his hands. Please don't tell me....No, Lord, please no....He quietly sits down next to me with her and all he has to say is, "She crapped on my arm." Perfect timing Abigail. Flush out the good stuff on Daddy's arm in a jam-packed airport with limited supplies.

Eventually, Abigail settles back down and falls asleep in Josh's arms. #thishappenseveryday

Then all of a sudden this VERY southern (and loud) lady asks to take our picture. She says across the way, "Can I just take y'alls picture? I mean look at ya. Youre just so darn cute with your little baby boy. Is that a boy? Look at him sleepin' on your shoulder like that!" We chuckle, and politely state that our little boy is indeed a little girl. She was in a periwinkle, checkered dress. A DRESS. A minute later after getting our phone to take our picture for us (because we don't know what we look like #sarcasm), she says how darling HE is. Woman, open those southern eyes and ears. She's not a boy. She never was. She never will be. But now I know when our little guy is born in three months (whaaaaaat?!), he'll probably be the 'cutest little thing I've ever seen.' We heard this woman's entire life story, along with our entire gate-full of people. But boy was she a sweet heart. Little things like this made my day a little better. I couldn't stop giggling at her.  

Meet our son, Abigail.

Finally time to board our 6:00 flight! We knew we had confirmed seats, we were just waiting to hear where they were since we were just assigned this flight. By the time they called us up to give us our seat assignments, there were 42 people on the waiting list (because our original flight was looking like there was no hope...)

Everyone boarded and we waited 15 minutes. The pilot got on and said it'll be another 15 minutes. He did this three times y'all. After the third time, they said it was going to be "another 45 minutes...or more." The pilot said we couldn't leave the airport because of ice on the runway. Great. Our first flight had maintenance issues and this new flight has weather issues. 

And this is where I had an epiphany. Delta is like high school boyfriends: They change their minds at any moment. 

They told us we had an option to get off of the plane if we didn't want to wait. And at this point, we were ready to go home. (really...who would want to wait on a freezing cold air plane that was as motionless as Mt. Rushmore?) We'd been at the airport for 8 hours with a one year old. She was hungry. She was bored. And her bed time was an hour away. We decided, along with about 10 brilliant others, that we would get off the plane and check on our original part-less, unsafe plane. We check on that plane and it got pushed back to 10:45 for leaving the airport. A line instantly formed at the desk. Once we got up to the desk, we explain our issue. We tell them that we were given the option of getting off the plane, but our luggage and Ab's carseat was on the plane and we need it back. Long story short, (yeah right...) they said it was our poor judgement for getting off the plane when it would eventually take off. They said a big fat NO for getting our luggage and carseat back. And this is where I began to wonder if their hearts were made of stone. We explained the whole situation and asked about a hotel and they ever-so-unpolitely said the weather was not a valid excuse for a hotel stay.  HELLO? Woman, our plane has been delayed for the past 8 hours (and counting....) because it was missing a part.  She thought it would be funny to tell us, "What you should have done was stay on this flight and get a hotel in Atlanta." Okay. Yeah, we should have. Coulda, shoulda, woulda. BUT WE DIDN'T. DO YOU GET ME? WE. DID. NOT. STAY. ON. THE. PLANE. It was going nowhere....

See ya later, Abigator. 

Not impressed with Delta. Crawl away. Crawl far, far away from Delta, baby girl.

ANYWAY. My goodness it has been over two weeks and thinking about this makes my eye start to twitch.

Our pastor, the kind-hearted man that he is, braved the snow storm and picked us up at 9:30 PM. That's right people, we were at the airport for 12. straight. hours. He was the one that dropped us off. He was the one that picked us up.....and then eight hours later....he was the one who dropped us off...again.

The next day,we sat at our gate doubting the existence of DELTA. Will the plane even show up? I mean with our luck, the answer was clearly no... So instead of sitting at the gate looking all dirty, we decided now was the perfect time to use our vouchers that were given to us. I really wanted some of that hot apple cider goodness, but Starbucks was in some other concourse. Who were we kidding, we had plenty of time. So we walked down and hey made it apparent that they had never seen a voucher in their life...They told us they wouldn't work. 

what.

All mama wants is some cider. Please, give to me for free. YOU OWE ME DELTA.

So we found Dunkin Donuts....and they said our vouchers didn't work either! If Delta thought they were getting another penny from us, they were sick in the head.

But the easy-goer that Josh is, I hear him say, "No problem. We'll just pay for it."

Jooooooosssshhhhhh. Did he forget that we'd been at the airport for like a decade?

Anyway, we boarded our flight, Abigail peed through her dang Walmart diapers for the sixth time (or something like that...we lost count) and ended up having to fly to Columbus, Ohio. What in the world...As we wait for our flight to board, another elderly lady approaches Abigail. This time, a little more opinionated. "How old is that little gal? Two?", she asked with an English accent. (I know you're saying this out loud for full effect... go ahead, I dare you) "She's 13 months," I told her with a boring Niceville-non-boggy-accent. "My, my, she's quite large for her age!" Big mama say whaaaaaat? She's only in the 10th percentile for her weight! I let it slide with a little snicker.

Next stop: Atlanta, Georgia.

At this point, we have been swarmed by people, some rude, some sweet. But our legs were exhausted. Our backs were hurting. And our souls, oh our souls. They were needing some encouragement because we about lost hope. We just needed a little laughter......We're now boarded and waiting for take off. I look over and Josh is laughing really hard...as quietly as possible. I'm over here wanting what he has. Gimme that laughter! "What the heck is wrong with you?!" So he pulls out his phone and texts me. Apparently the young man behind us (and when I say young, I don't mean 9 years old. I mean early-thirties) was with his girlfriend and it was his first time flying. Oh this is gonna be good....this is gonna be real good! Just picture this while you read: An athletic, lean, 6-foot, "swag," kind of guy has never been on a plane before. Just looking at him you'd think he was rugged and tough. The plane starts to move, I'd say about 6 mph....about to take off....and we hear, "OMG, OMG, OMG, OMG!!!! Slow down, slow dowwwwwn!" Y'all. We haven't even left yet! The poor guy is practically wheezing. Okay, it gets better. We immediately take off (wheels just lifting off of the ground) and the guy's girlfriend screams, "PRAISE JESUS!!!" Apparently he wasn't the only scared one. :)

Thank you, Lord for answering my prayer. I asked for laughter and encouragement, and I got it. I just didn't think it'd be through a wimpy man :) Kidding.

During mid-flight when seat belts are able to be taken off (Thank God, I'm dad gum pregnant), we let Abigail stand up and stretch her tiny, meaty legs. In the row next to us (3x3 aisles), the lady on the outside got up to use the restroom. So Abigail made her way over to the lady in the middle seat. I nudge Josh, "Uhhh....look at your daughter..." and he tells me that she doesn't speak English. Okay....cool. Five seconds later we see the lady putting her arms out saying a few words that mean nothing to me with a big grin on her face.And then guess what. Abigail. puts. her. hands. out. to. her.  Ole' Abs. 

The flight was smooth. As we're seeking to land, the plane tilts a bit as it circles the airport before landing. The guy behind us nervously (and I mean nervously....we could hear his legs stomping 50mph) says, "Man, is that really necessary?!" #daymade 

Now to Pensacola, Florida.
Then drive an hour to get home.

What a day.

What TWO days.

We finally arrive in Pensacola to meet Josh's dad. I told Josh it would just be my luck to lose my suitcase full of maternity and baby clothes. I know you are smart enough to figure out what eventually happened....They lost my luggage and Abigail's carseat.

PERFECT!! How in the world were we going to get home without a carseat? And let's be real here..how in the world was I going to fit into someone else's clothes to borrow? My belly is bigger than a beach ball and I still have 14 weeks to go.

We dealt with the Baggage claim for a while to try and track our luggage. They said there was a possibility it was in Atlanta, but weren't sure. Okay.................So we had to make a pit stop at Target (hello, favorite store! It never ceases to find me!) and buy REAL diapers, you know, the kind that actually holds some liquid, a pair of clothes for Abigail because we walked out of the airport with her in a diaper (Don't worry. It was 75 degrees outside), and a pair of pajamas for me. Remember how Abigail peed on me....Yeah

I had to keep reminding myself that this day couldn't get any better. It was as good as it was gonna get.

But then we met our mamas at Cracker Barrel. And that's when the day really did get better. Country fried chicken, mashed potatoes, dumplings, and some mac-n-cheese really hit the spot.

Fast forward a day. My luggage finally came in at 7:30 PM! Finally the end to all of this mess.

Or so I thought........

And here I am today.

Writing in the Panama City airport. January 5th, 18 days later. Sitting, waiting, wishing. (Jack Johnson, you da man) We should be landing in Boston right now. But instead, we're moping over plane delays, hanging on the edge of our seats, waiting for them to say, 'January fools!!' Y'all I'm so hungry. Airport food is dog food to me. Josh gets Abigail to sleep, and I of course, make my way to a concession stand. If you haven't been to the Panama City Airport, it's tiny. I'm talking one restaurant, and one stand with hardly any snacks. Enough with the complaining. I spend $4 on a sample-size cheez-it pack and some crackers. Not even enough to satisfy a baby. Not even kidding you, as I walk back to the gate, the attendant says, "We're sorry for the inconvenience of having to wait for our flight, so we have provided free drinks, snacks, and cross-word puzzles."

Are you kidding me. I could have saved $4 if my pregnant butt could have waited 2 more minutes. So you better believe I went over and got some snacks and drinks for us.

Probably equivalent to $37 in airport cash.

We were told that our flight at 10:35 AM would be delayed until 12:20. Then 1:50. Then 2:40. Then 3:45. So we hung around, as if we had anywhere else to go, and prayed for Josh. The stress was about to eat him up. The whole reason we planned to come back January 5th was because he started class on the 6th. He has a week-long class M-F 9-5. By the way things were looking, we weren't going to make it, or at least get in to Boston very, very late Monday night. So we silently prayed throughout the morning and asked for God to make a way, whether someone in the class takes notes for Josh, or he miraculously doesn't miss anything. Josh e-mailed his professor to let him know that he may not make the first half of class the next day, and a few hours later he receives and email back from his professor.

It stated that his professor (who is a professor at Moody Bible Institute and was flying to Boston just to teach this class for the week...) was in Chicago and his flight had just been canceled due to the weather. So class on Monday would in fact be canceled.

WHAT.

What are the chances??

This relieved so much pressure........except we were STILL stuck in the airport.

We finally got on the plane, flew to ATL and then what was expected to happen, did. Yep. We missed the only two flights into Boston. And because it was weather-related, they weren't going to give us hotel vouchers. First thing is first: I have got  to use the restroom. My goodness. with a baby in my belly pressing on my bladder and a toddler who likes to sit on my lap and tap my belly, there's a very slim chance of me not peeing my pants. I come back and Josh hands Abs to me while he goes to see what the deal is with our luggage. He comes back with two thumbs up...and now to figure out what in the world we're going to do in order to sleep...since our plane ISN'T COMING 'TIL MORNING.
And this is where we brag about having the best friends, like.....eva. They told us to call them as soon as we found out if we needed a hotel or not, and hooked us up with a beautiful hotel.

We go as fast as we can to get OUT of the airport. I'm talking like....walking 57mph. I have Abigail in my left arm, her "diaper bag" (an excuse to have another carry-on...) and Josh has a small carry-on wheely suitcase (that might I add was so heavy, the handle wouldn't even come up without throwing your back out), a back pack heavier than a sack full of cinder blocks,  our camera & bag,  and the carseat. Two people carrying all of this. I'd say 3, but Abigail did a whole lot of nothing. Actually, I'll tell you what she did do. As we're walking full-force to exit the airport, my left hand and arm suddenly feel wet. Oh no she didn't. Did she seriously just pee on me AGAIN?! We threw those stupid Walmart diapers out! The girl was wearing Huggies this time. How. Can. This. Be. Happening.
My left arm is about to fall off at this point. Abigail is legitimately falling out of my arm. "Josh, I need a break. I can't hold her any more. And my arm feels wet." He replies, "Oh no, probably just pee. Let's wait until the hotel. We're almost there!" Then he checks just to be safe. Well, my jacket is black, so no matter what bodily fluids leaked out on me, I had no idea. All I knew was that my arm was wet. Josh hardly says a word. He smells his hand (sorry for all you visual learners out there) and says, "She pooped. Again." He takes her from me, I set the stuff down, including myself, and he takes the diaper bag and our child to the men's room. Four minutes later, he walks out with Abigail in his arms wearing a grey jacket that has two buttons (can you say #midriff?) and white stockings.

That's it.

It's 20 degrees outside. But we had no other clothes...She peed through all of them! I don't blame her though. I was so ticked at Delta, I almost peed my pants too.

Anyway, we make it to the Marriott. I so wish I could explain how beautiful it was, but we literally checked in, went to bed, and woke up at 5:00 AM to repeat this so called "adventure." We had a problem though. We had no clean clothes for our plane ride the next day. Abigail sure as heck had no clothes. It was too late to stay up and do laundry. So we wash our clothes in the sink. Like people from the 1400s did.

Have you ever washed clothes with hand soap and then had to blow-dry them? All I have to say is that our clothes were board-stiff afterward. I washed all 3 of our clothes and hung them in various places around the bathroom. #futuredesigner 

I'm trying to get Abigail to bed by reading her a story. She's smacking my belly saying her little brother's name, and then my nose starts bleeding. What in the world. Go to bed, child. Josh finally gets her to sleep by beat-boxing and tapping on her back while I finish washing the clothes...and stuffing toilet paper up my nose to stop the bleeding.

And then Josh is all like, "Oh my gosh. I need deodorant. Like a man NEEDS deodorant." And I'm all like, "call the front desk." And he's all like, "do you think the'll have some?" Josh Pool. Get it together. Call the front desk. So I overhear him, "Hi, just a quick question. Do you know where I could get some MEN'S deodorant or toothpaste?....Oh great! Thank you so much. If you don't mind bringing it up here and knocking quietly, our baby is sleeping." Five minutes pass and we hear a tiny knock. I go to the door and find the toothpaste and deodorant....But why is it purple? I turn it around and read the label and this is what I find:

Lady Speed Stick!!!!!!

I walked over to Josh to slowly break the news...but I couldn't get the words out of my mouth. Maybe I was just entirely too delirious. But I mean I was chain-smoker laughing. Look at the bright side, it's 24 hour hold! He's gonna be smelling good. 

So we're so exhausted, but there were awesome reading lamps hanging off the wall. What else to do other than act younger than your child and make shadow puppets?

But then we realized we needed to be awake so soon....So we decided the more responsible thing would be to sleep. Not make puppets. Dangit.

Josh's alarm goes off at 5:00 AM (he pushed snooze). My phone alarm goes off at 5:10 AM. Josh's phone goes off again at 5:15 AM. Ughhhhhhh. I don't wanna wake up. and I DEFINITELY don't want to get on a plane and get offered more peanuts and pretzels. Someone knock me out, PLEASE.

It was our goal to be walking out of the hotel by 5:45 because our plane was leaving at 7:30. But if you've ever checked in to Atlanta airport and gone through security, you know you have to leave early. We packed all of our stuff up and then woke Abs up. That girl is the happiest baby I've ever seen. She literally woke up, stood up, and started laughing at us. Maybe because we looked like idiots pacing back and forth making sure we had everything. Or maybe because I couldn't shut the luggage, I had to sit on it.

Have you ever seen a pregnant woman shut a suitcase?

I failed to mention that we did not meet our goal of 5:45....We left at 6:02. #parenthood. #IblameDelta. #IwillalwaysblameDelta.

Anyway, we rush to the airport. Get on the Marta. Jump on the trolly. Go through security....It's like a mob of buffalos high on Starbucks in there. My goodness. There had to have been 12 lines for security. By this time, it's 6:30 and we still haven't gone through security. Lord have mercy. I'm starving and I cannot wait until getting to Boston to eat breakfast. Someone get me through security......And then a security officer opened a new line! So we got through super fast! #thereisaGod! #justkidding #butseriouslythereis

Yada yada yada, so we get to the gate and have a whole six minutes to eat a chicken biscuit the size of my belly button. We board the plane first (I'm telling you....have a baby. You go first :)) and wait for about 30 minutes until takeoff. There was a very nice man who saw us struggling with all of our things. All he said was, "I have 3 kids under 3." with a smile on his face. He gently took the carry-on that was hardly mobile, and helped us get on the plane. He was a few people behind us, so Josh waited for him and Abigail and I got to our seats first. As we're bumping seats trying to walk through the aisle, I notice a very, VERY chipper man. He's was probably mid-sixties. grey hair. dimples. cute little thing. sitting all by himself......singing VERY loudly, "Zipadeedoodaaaaa zipadeeday. My oh my what a wonderful day!".....but that wasn't all. He sang every. single. word. Immediately made me smile. Today's gonna be a good day.

A few minutes later, Josh sat down. I said, "YES. Finally. We'll be home in TWO HOURS!!!" 

And....I was wrong again. There were screens on the backseat of the seat in front of us. You can play games, request food, watch movies (All for only $6!...) and track our flight. Josh and I clicked the "Track your flight!" button and saw a bunch of cool information. It said how fast we were going, how high we were, how much time was left, and how far we have gone. It also showed a map of where we were compared to where we were going. As we watch the time decrease because we were getting closer and closer to home, we noticed the altitude was still the same. Next thing you know, the pilot comes on and says, "Folks, the tail wind has picked up at a speed where we're not yet able to land. We may be experiencing some 'rough air.'" Great. My favorite terms together. Airplane + rough air. The time keeps getting lower and lower....It says we have 21 minutes until we're landing. Pilot comes on again, "There's a back up in planes landing in Boston due to high tail winds. It may be a little while." Ooooooooookay. 

And then we notice this on the screen:

Tell me you notice something incredibly wrong here.

Boston is north. We are now going south. Time to destination says 0 minutes. WHY ARE WE GOING THE WRONG WAY?

".....*long drawn out sigh*....This is your captain again. It seems as though another plane attempted to land and didn't make it so they are back in the air flying to a different airport." I'm sorry but...did he just say they "didn't make it?" What is with these pilots? First we get a pilot who says we're going to take a test flight to try the new plane part out....and now we have a pilot who says another plane "didn't make it" (don't worry, they didn't crash. They just 'didn't make it.') Then get THIS. He comes BACK on the intercom and says, "Folks, as the tail winds are still to high to land, we have also run out of extra delay fuel. We're going to need to land at JFK airport." FOR THE LOVE. CLEARLY there is no exam on punctuality in order to become a pilot. I'm practically shaking because he just made me think that we're about to crash. My stomach is twisting from the turbulence and looking out the window seeing nothing but white. I mean NOTHING but white. I felt like I was in a dream. A really sick dream. Josh leans over to get the barf bag just in case. My sinuses are now all messed up. The seatbelt sign has come on 97 times because of turbulence. Abigail caught a cold while in Florida, so we've run out of tissues. We can't get up because that dang seat belt sign. There's a lady on the outside seat (who doesn't speak English) so Josh has to push the "attention" button for the flight attendant to bring us tissues. She brings us 2 napkins that say, "Thanks for flying Delta!" Which makes me want to really throw up now. A minute later, those 2 napkins have been used....So now what? My nose is like a water hose and I have nothing. And then I look down.

And I find something far better than a Delta napkin. Something that absorbs more than a Delta napkin. And something much bigger than a Delta napkin.

A Diaper. 

I had no choice, people.

We finally land in New York. And I just had to call my girl, Casy. All we could do was laugh. OF COURSE this happens. The pilot says "This could be about 45 minutes." I'm all like, "45 minutes?! I have a baby who needs to eat lunch!" We were supposed to be IN Boston at 10:03. It's now 11:30....in New York. Sidenote: Abigail slept the whole way, from takeoff to landing. And then we landed and she woke up. Her diaper is wet, so we need to change her....but I had to make sure it wasn't the diaper used to blow my nose. Right. So we ask the woman next to Josh if she could stand up so we could change her, except we had to use hand gestures because she didn't speak English. We get her changed, waste a little time, and then the pilot comes BACK on. "Well, there are some men in the cargo section of the plane. I'm not really sure what they're doing. I'll let you guys know when I know."

This man cannot be real.

Then he comes back on to tell us things are looking good, we'll be leaving within 3-4 minutes.

I knew what that meant.

3-4 hours sounds more realistic.

After spending an hour and a half in a state we had no intentions on stopping in, we finally take off. And by this point, I wouldn't be surprised if we landed in Uruguay. So my hopes weren't very high you could say. Forty minutes later, we land. IN BOSTON! THIS can't be real! We actually made it! All we had left was to make sure our luggage and ride was actually at the air port.

Fewf. It was. So thankful. So, so thankful.

And this was just a small portion of our long, very extended trip.

But really, despite this ridiculous chaos, we are so thankful to have been able to visit home. It was so fun bringing Abigail home to see all the people she only sees on the FaceTime screen. It was worth the stress and anxiety. But....I truly am SO glad to be back here in Massachusetts. Two days later and we still aren't unpacked.

Our life. Chaotic. Stressful. Exhausting. Amazing.