We are pleased to announce the birth of our newest child, Andrew Steadfast.
Andrew means courageous and enduring. Steadfast means firmly fixed, devoted, and loyal: not changing. We are praying that this little guy will grow into a courageous, Godly man who is not swept about with every wind of doctrine, but is firmly planted and loyal to His Savior, Jesus. "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" Psalm 27:1
He was born November 29 at 3:50pm, weighing 6lbs, 8oz, and 19 inches long...our 2nd smallest baby.
Though Andrew did fine throughout labor and delivery, I had a couple of issues with extremely low blood pressure, which they medicated for and put me on oxygen. This one was probably the hardest on Michael, who watched helplessly as my BP bottomed out. After watching things happen with William just a few weeks ago, he had a very difficult time with this. But, praise the Lord, all is well and we ended with a healthy baby, healthy Momma!
Of course, the children are excited, as usual!
Everyone is so happy to have a new baby in the house again! The Lord knows the joy is needed! Sydnee, Sherrod, and Selah were able to be at the hospital during the birth...
while Elly was able to come up later.
Everyone else had to wait until we got home to see him and they were nearly bursting through the door when we came into the house!
Titus was a mess! He was so excited to see "Baby Ru" and all he wants to do is hold him!
Life is so different now. It's hard to get used to. It was so simple before. Joy was joy, sadness was sadness. Now every joy is mingled with sorrow. I don't know that that will ever change. As thankful as I am for this beautiful child the Lord has given, I cannot help but think about the one He took home and how much I miss him. It is so strange to feel so empty. I look at the pictures and our family suddenly seems so small. Though there are 12 children in the home again, it seems bare. Even through the great joy, there is an emptiness. It does not mean I am less happy or less thankful for this child...I am not. I love him dearly and am VERY blessed. But it is strange to have such a deep, deep sorrow mixed into that.
For those who have not heard the story behind Andrew's nickname...
We always spend time as a family coming up with names. This time, none could be agreed upon. We had several ideas for the first name, but nothing seemed like
IT. The middle name was set all along. William wanted to name the baby Rupert after a favorite character in the Millie Keith books. I told him we weren't naming him Rupert and he smiled his ornery smile and said, "Well, I can still CALL him Rupert."
"No," I said. "You'll need to call the baby by his name."
He thought about that for a moment. "Hmmm...Well, maybe I'll just call him Ru."
I'm not typically big on nicknames. But one night after William passed into glory, we were sitting around the table, talking about the upcoming birth. Michael asked if we were going to have a nickname. I don't know why, knowing that I'm usually pretty adamant about calling them by their given name. "Andy?" he said..."Drew?" Someone said, "Ru." Yes, that's it. Little Ru, you were so loved by your big brother. He looked forward to your birth. Everyday he would pat my tummy and ask how many more days. He would put his head on my tummy and listen for you. He would wait patiently with his hand on my tummy, hoping to feel you move. How he longed to hold you. He always LOVED holding the baby. He would do it for as long as he could get away with it. And he was always so gentle. He loved you dearly and looked forward to your coming with great anticipation. He was so proud to be your big brother! Though you will never know him this side of heaven, may you ALWAYS feel his love... "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God." 1 John 4:7
