We are ready to meet Zoe Lynn!

      Happy New Year Everyone! I know it is January 8th already, but I am excited for the new year, even with all the unknowns of the days ahead. The Bible tells me time and time again that God is author and creator of everything and He specializes in making all things new.
     The past week has been a hard one in every way. Physically, I am so ready to have a baby. I am huge and miserable in the sense that I can't sleep well and have been having contractions. Emotionally, I have been up and down. Last Thursday, we had a final ultrasound appointment at OSU. Basically, they wanted to do some final measurements before the C-section, so the Dr. had as much information as possible. We were fortunate to meet with our Dr who will be doing the surgery. He explained many things to us, including some very graphic details of my upcoming surgery and made some comments about our little girl that, to be honest, got us very discouraged. It is his job to give us the details, and I don't want anyone to get the impression he was mean or had a horrible bedside manner. It is his job to prepare us and to do what is necessary to deliver our little girl safely. He told us repeatedly how large Zoe's head is, something we knew, but I guess the reality of it just sunk in at that time. He also told us about how the corpus callosum in Zoe's brain is not visible on the images he has seen. This is a group of nerve fibers that connect the left and right side of the brain. He told us that there are many people in the world who do not have this, but after doing a little research, I found that life can be extra difficult for people who do not have this in their brains. To put it bluntly, we felt like crap when we left there. We felt very beat up and discouraged and fearful. I already have been thinking too much about my c-section, so that wasn't good and then hearing things about your little girl that you don't want to hear just made it worse. The past few days however, we have been fighting the fight of faith and getting ready to meet our little girl, no matter what happens. We have been so encouraged by the prayers of our family and friends and we have been reminded that God has the final say about Zoe...He made her and sustains her. We choose to believe in miracles and the power of prayer, not the Dr's report. So spiritually speaking, I am doing more than great. The Holy Spirit is the comforter and peace giver and this is my time to stand strong in my faith and I will not give up. I will speak life and purpose into my daughter's situation and expect great things of my God, no matter what!
    Today, we had such an outpouring of love and prayer at our church. I love our church family...they have walked this journey with us so far and Troy, Emma, and I have been strengthened by their prayers today. Our Pastor's message  gave me a great word to carry with me this week from Matthew 24:13 "But the one who endures to the end will be saved." Now I know this is in the middle of a passage where Jesus is talking about the end times, but the message in general was about standing firm when things are tough and the spiritual battles we face. I was thankful for this word that God gave me that enduring is always easy, but it is worth it! Zoe Lynn will be worth it and we can't wait to meet her and start the new part of this journey. 
     I want to thank everyone for their prayers, support, and words of encouragement. We have been strengthened and prepared for what is to come by you all and we are thankful that in the days to come we will have you praying for us. We are all packed and ready for the hospital and for a stay at the Ronald McDonald House. Emma will be spending some time with Grandma and Papaw and her Auntie Ann and be loved on by lots of friends and new friends to come. We are so BLESSED! I can't even put into words how wonderful it feels to receive such an outpouring of love from our family, friends, church, and Tri Valley School community. Thank you Thank you Thank you! We will do our best to keep everyone updated on Zoe and how we are doing. We will post pictures when we can. We just have a lot more questions than answers right now about how things are going to play out. We are thankful to be in the hands of people at OSU and Nationwide Children's Hospital. So far, they have been more than awesome!  On Tuesday morning, around 10am will have a new little girl to love and cherish and I praise God for bringing her to us. My heart is bursting with anticipation and love more than fear. Thank you again for your love and prayers!!!

Worth It all by Rita Springer 

I Asked You For Life by Kim Walker