Thursday, November 8, 2012

Then Sings My Soul

So... here's where I'm at...

I've been struggling with some intense anger and bitterness. 
{gasp... I said it}
While I'm fully aware that there are others around me that
"understand"
my grief and my pain, 
I am feeling all kinds of alone in this. 

I will say this to preface my following statements:
"Sin is not logical."

I've found myself
comparing my pain to others.
I've found myself
having a severe lack of compassion for other's faults.
I've found myself
totally and utterly
{ticked}
for really no reason at all.

And most of the time...
I justify it with a pitty party.

After all...
Nobody really get it.
Nobody really cares.
Right?

Yeah... like I said...
{Sin is not logical}

And as a person who is prone to sin
{who isn't?}
I often act in an illogical manner.

Are my acts and attitudes justified?
By no means.
A few weeks ago at church we sang an old hymn that I hadn't heard in a long time. 
Since that weekend, 
I haven't been able to get that hymn out of my mind.
"How Great Thou Art" 

"For when I think that God, his son not sparing, sent him to die, I scarce can take it in.
And on the cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin."

Here's where God has started chipping away at
mhardened heart.
my anger.
my bitterness.

"God, his son not sparing, sent Him to die..."

{WHAT?!}

This really has taken on a whole different context for me. 

Not only did God suffer the death of His Son, He did it willingly
that I might know Him.

{THINK ABOUT THAT!!}

Not only did Christ lose His {earthly} life in terrible and brutal way, 
but he suffered willingly, that I might know Him. 

In January a family very dear to us suffered the loss of their 23 year old son.
He was dear to all of us and it was devastating. 
Two nights after the accident the father was comforted by God's reminder
that He, too,  knows the pain of losing a child. 

That has resonated with me since. 
And now that I know the pain as well, 
I am filled with comfort at the reminder that
God truly knows my pain. 

I often fall into a rut of self pity and bitterness. 
I think that nobody knows...
Nobody cares...

But I am so wrong in that.

"Then sings my soul, my savior God, to Thee, how great Thou art."

We are never so far away from God that He can't reach us.
He knows our pains.
He knows our hurts.
He knows our deepest wounds. 

No matter where you are,
No matter what you're feeling,
Our God is so good. 
He is great and mighty to save. 
Rest and be comforted in Him. 
Let us allow Christ to be our first and greatest comfort. 

Monday, October 15, 2012

Remembering Our Babies

Well...go figure...
The weather man had it right when he said it was supposed to rain.
I was a little nervous.
And I can't lie...
I wasn't sure anyone would come because it was raining to hard.

But they came!!!
It's so hard to be excited about an event like this
because we are all there for such hard reasons.
But what wonderful blessing it is to be able to share in this
with people who have felt the same feelings
and  have had the same thoughts. 

I started praying (Eden too) this afternoon when the rain started.
I know that we need the rain, 
but I just wanted a 10 minute window to get the balloons up and on their way.

And the Lord was faithful :)

By 5:30
when we released the balloons,
there was hardly a drizzle.



Within about 10 minutes of the release the rain picked up again. 

It was perfect. 

Thank you, Lord for your timing and provision. 
Thank you for the faces that we saw today.
Please comfort the hearts that are aching today for their angle babies. 
Thank you, Lord, that you truly know the pain of our loss. 




I have a feeling, that today is just the first of many...
I am blessed.
I am thankful.

I couldn't get this song out of my head after I left the park.
Thought I'd share :)

Blessings, sweet friends.
Thank you for loving us. 

Today....

Today is the day.

The day that nobody knows about. 

That is, unless you do know. 

And if you do know,
I'm sorry. 

Today is October 15th.

The day that families who have lost precious life
long before it was time
get to be a voice for those little lives.

If you're part of one of those families,
I'm so sorry.

Today, millions of families all over the world
stop and take time to remember these
lives lost.

To remember
These beating hearts that stopped too soon.

Will you remember with me today?

Every life is beautiful.
Every life changes those around it. 

Remember the beautiful, amazing, blessings,
that God has given to us. 

Remember the sweet, sweet beauty of new life. 

Today...
October 15th...
Remembering Our Babies.


Thursday, October 4, 2012

Is This Important Yet?

Did you know that more lives are lost every year to
miscarriage, stillbirth, and neonatal loss than 
all forms of cancer combined?

Over 500,000 families each year in the United States
suffer the loss of a child before the age of 1. 

{Is This Important, Yet?}

Billions of dollars are spent on research every year to find a cure for cancer.

There still isn't even a sure known cause for the astronomical rates of death in infants. 

{Is This Important, Yet?}

If we continue to ignore the loss of babies
and continue to turn a blind eye to the growing number of 
pregnancy and infant losses
because it makes us uncomfortable,
we will have no population to save. 

We all agree that a cure MUST be found
to treat those we love that are battling cancer. 

We all agree that thousands of lives are shattered every day
by news of a loved one with a new diagnosis. 

Cancer is a terrible thing that is taking this country by storm!

Can we all agree that we MUST find the cause behind
the loss of our children?

Can we all agree that thousands of lives are shattered EVERY DAY
by a pregnancy loss or infant death?

Pregnancy and Infant Loss is a terrible thing that is taking this country by storm!

The difference between the two?

Cancer brings people together and people fight for an answer. 

Pregnancy Loss and Infant Mortality makes people uncomfortable because nobody knows what to do. 

There are many organizations that are building up resources to
inform our nation about the fight for our babies. 

Still Project
is a documentary film campaign
that is working to break the silence surrounding
Pregnancy and Infant Loss.

Face of Loss, Faces of Hope
is an amazing community
of families and mothers who have
suffered the loss of a child
from many different causes.

The March of Dimes
is a wonderful educational and research
organization that reaches out to families
with premature and severely ill babies.


This month of awareness for Pregnancy and Infant Loss is not to make noise or 
to have people feel sorry for those that are journeying this path.

This month of awareness for Pregnancy and Infant Loss is to break the silence.
Mother's and Familiesneed to know that it is okay to speak about their babies without shame or guilt.
Mother's and Families need to know that people are fighting for answers along side them.
Mother's and Families need to know that 
{THEY ARE NOT ALONE}



Monday, October 1, 2012

October

October is
(along with other "awareness'")
Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month


To start off the month I want to share this poem.

I really don't have anything else to say tonight
{shocking, I'm sure}

so I'll just leave you with this.
I will share more this month,
but tonight, 
just this.

A simple reminder that
these shoes are on far too many feet not to be talked about.



THESE SHOES

I wear a pair of shoes
They are ugly shoes
Uncomfortable shoes
I hate my shoes

Each day I wear them and each day I wish I had another pair
Some days my shoes hurt so bad that I do not think I can take another step
Yet, I continue to wear them

I get funny looks wearing these shoes
They are looks of sympathy
I can tell in others eyes that they are glad they are my shoes and not theirs
They never talk about my shoes

To learn how awful my shoes are might make them uncomfortable
To truly understand these shoes you must walk in them
But, once you put them on, you can never take them off
I now realize I am not the only one who wears these shoes

There are many pairs in this world
Some women are like me and ache daily as they try and walk in them
Some have learned how to walk in them so they don't hurt quite as much
Some have worn the shoes so long that days will go by before they think about how much they hurt

No woman deserves to wear these shoes
They have made me who I am
I will forever walk in the shoes of a woman who has lost a child

-Author Unknown
Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Your Wish Is My Command

Desire: To long or hope for.
To ache, crave, yearn, or wish for.

Let me ask, 
{What is your heart's desire?}

let this settle. simmer. 

Psalm 37:4
{that oh so famous (and abused if I may say so) verse}
"Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart."

Oooohhhh...
so, we pray, we worship, we do good things that bring God glory...
Then we get what we want, right?!

Seriously though, raise your hand if you ever prayed for a new car
or a boyfriend or girlfriend
or an A on the test you didn't study for...
{you don't actually have to raise your hand}
How many times did it happen?
Maybe it did.
But was it because you
"did good stuff for God?"

Uhhh... No. 
God is not a magic genie!
Your wish is
{NOT}
His command. 

It's because God is gracious and merciful. 

Otherwise, 
we'd all get a whole lot worse that coal in our stockings.
{amiright?}

Let's continue down to the more important {in my opinion}
and frequently ignored subsequent verses.

Psalm 37:5-7
"5Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will act. 6He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. 7{here's the kicker!!!} Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!"

Be Still?

Wait Patiently?!
{anyone else shiver when they read that "P" word?}

Want to know my desire?

I really, really want to have another baby.

Surprised? Probably not. 

I've "delighted myself in the Lord."
I've praised Him in the "good and bad".

WHY. AM. I. NOT. PREGNANT?!

Am I being punished?
No.
Am I unworthy?
No.

I've become SO obsessed with all the ways to "ensure conception"
{betcha didn't know you could do that!}
I've done all the tricks to try and time 
{things}
just right...
No Success. 

I've pleaded and pleaded with God to just fill my womb with life.
I've been good! I read my Bible. I pray!

But...
Where is my focus?
Am I reading and praying so that I might grow with the Lord?
Am I seeking that His will would be made real in my life?
Am I allowing myself to be
{delighted}
by Him?
I mean true delight.

Delight: A high degree of gratification; 
extreme satisfaction.

Am I delighted?
Am I
{Extremely Satisfied}
by God?

Usually? ... no.
And it's usually because I'm distracted by what I want and don't have. 

We've stopped "trying" to get Pregnant. 
We've decided that there's nothing we can or cannot do
to make this happen.

The Lord knows when He
{if} He will bless us again. 

I'm learning to let my heart and my yearning be
{delighted}
by the God who has been so faithful to us. 

Am I perfect?
Most certainly not. 
I fail daily.
But I'm learning. 

So let me ask again...
{What is your heart's desire?}




A beautiful song. A great reminder. 
Blessings, dear friends!


**I want to clarify that in no way do see having another baby as replacing Daphne. I know that most don't understand this concept. But please know that our loss of Daphne will forever be that. We lost one child and she can never be replaced. Just like Eden cannot be replace.
We've prayed long a hard and feel that the Lord has put us in a place of trying to conceive and waiting.
We feel and have been encouraged that this will bring a great deal of healing to our little family.
But this post really isn't about babies... it's about allowing Chirst to fill our hearts and then everything else follows. **



Monday, September 10, 2012

It Comes In Many Shades...

Here's to stirring up the pot...


I will start this post by stating that
 this is not directed toward anyone in specific
{my thoughts have accumulated over time}
I simply want to ask this question to get thoughts moving and start some inward inspection... and perhaps change.

"What example are we setting?"
I'm really overwhelmed and discouraged at the number of women
I know that are absolutely wrapped up in the
"Fifty Shades"
drama. 
Women who
{boldly proclaim their faith in Christ}
Women who
{are openly opposed to men viewing pornography}

Women who
{are saving their sexual purity for marriage}

Women who...
{Are Married} 
 
And the open dialogue of how "amazing" the books are.
Or better yet,
the excitement surrounding that fact that it's going to be a movie!!
{seriously?! You're going to to go to the movies}
{IN PUBLIC}
{and watch this?!}

I just can't handle it...


As Christians, 
we are called to live a life that is pleasing to God. 
And to glorify Him in all we do.
I'm not here to say
"You Sinner's! Stop and Repent!!!"

My cry is that you consider the costs. 
If you were to walk into a room and see your Husband, Fiancee, Boyfriend, Brother or {SON} even
flipping through a nudy magazine, 
Lets be honest...
You'd be ticked!
{I know I sure as heck would be!}
And chances are you would feel like you aren't enough.
You would feel like your husband wasn't satisfied by you.
Or for those of you that aren't married yet 
you would feel that you aren't worth waiting for.
Or that you aren't a good enough example of a woman for the younger men in your life to keep their eyes pure.

Having all of this in mind, consider this...
Sitting in your room, 
enjoying the steamy, erotic, pages of a
Fifty Shades book
and in walks your Husband, Fiancee, Boyfriend, Brother...{SON}...
How is your husband going to feel?
Will he feel like you aren't satisfied by him?
Your Fiancee? Boyfriend?
Are they not enough for you to wait for to experience these
things that are intended to be shared in your marriage?
Your brother? Your Son? 
What are they to think? Here you are reading
{in detail}
about other people having sex...
{Pornography}
What example are we setting for the men in our lives?

I think this is something that Christian and Non-Christian
alike should be considering. 

{and side note ** it's a total slap in the face that the main character of this series is named "Christian"**}

We all want to set a solid example for our loved ones, 
{right?}

"I think I want to encourage my children to sexual frivolity"
{said No Parent Ever!}

What is it going to take to wake us up to the junk
that is infiltrating our lives?

What image of sexual intimacy are we painting for our children?
I pray that this be a question that you ask yourself. 

What example is set before your children, your siblings,
Your Husband/Fiancee? 

Please hear me, 
{Sin. Is. Sin}
We cannot judge and say that one sin is greater than another. 
We all sin. 
We all struggle with right and wrong. 
But that doesn't mean we go on doing it because it's fun
or because
{it feels good.}

Sin comes in many shades
and apparently this
"Fifty Shades of Grey"
is a stumbling block for a lot of women. 

I know that many of you who read this aren't necessarily 
self proclaiming followers of the Christian Faith.
I appreciate your thoughts and input in my life, 
so please understand that I find this crude and wrong even outside of my beliefs of Christianity.   

For my fellow believers in Christ,
I'm going to leave you with this challenge...

Romans 6:
1 Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more kindness and forgiveness? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? 3 Or have you forgotten that when we became Christians and were baptized to become one with Christ Jesus, we died with him? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. 5Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised as he was. 6 Our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also share his new life. 9 We are sure of this because Christ rose from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. 10 He died once to defeat sin, and now he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you should consider yourselves dead to sin and able to live for the glory of God through Christ Jesus. 12 Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to its lustful desires. 13 Do not let any part of your body become a tool of wickedness, to be used for sinning. Instead, give yourselves completely to God since you have been given new life. And use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Ch-ch-Changin'

Okay...
It's been a bit, yeah?
Well that's because
{A LOT}
has happened. 

We moved
{again}
We have
{kind of}
gotten back into a regular schedule
and
We've made some pretty major
life shifts. 

Wanna know what's up?!

Good!
'Cause I'm gonna tell ya. 

As of tomorrow, 
Thursday August 9th,
Evan will no longer be employed by the
Gospel Rescue Mission of Grants Pass.

This is a very bitter sweet move for us.
His position there for the past three years
has blessed our family in ways that truly
only God knows.
It has been an incredible journey
and
a wonderful growth experience for both Evan and I. 

While we are sad to leave the Mission, 
we are very excited to announce that
Evan has been offered a more
"permanent"
position at
GPHS working with the band
at a deeper capacity than he has over the last several years.
He will be the Percussion Instructor and
help Travis with other things that need to be done. 

We've been praying for the Lord to make clear
where He wants Evan and we're confident that this
is where we've been lead.

This new position will also work very well with Evan's school schedule that will begin in the end of September.
He will be attending RCC to finish his Associates Degree
and later move onto a Bachelor's program elsewhere
{don't worry, it'll likely be online so we're not going anywhere}
{yet}

As for me,
after a lot of prayer and
"soul seeking"
I've decided to start a program to become a
Perinatal Health Educator.
I'll start in September and hopefully by February
will be a certified Labor and Postpartum Doula as well as
a certified Childbirth Educator and Lactation Counselor. 

I'm very excited that I've landed here and can't wait to start learning more about something that
I'm already so passionate about. 

As for Eden,
well,
I swear she is getting smarter by the second
and I still am in awe of the blessing that she is to us.
We are excited to watch her grow and learn and see
what the Lord has in store for her sweetness. 

We are still fighting the battle of everyday grief
and missing our Daphne deeply.
Eden asks daily if there's
"a new baby in mommy's tummy yet".
I have to fight back tears and frustration
each time I tell her
"no, not yet, but we pray it will be soon."

And indeed we pray.
This journey has been one that has grown us in ways
we never could have imagined
but we are blessed in the midst.
And I have to let go of my control issues
{surprised?}
and trust that in His timing
the Lord will bless us with another sweet baby.
{please pray for me in this regard.}
{this has been a deep struggle for me} 

Please, 
pray with us as we make yet another transition
in just a few short months. 
We know that our God is our provider,
our protection, and our comfort. 
And all these paths in life that He leads us on are
For His glory and our good. 

Blessings, dear friends, 
P.S. I heard this song today and it definitely was a wonderful reminder of how awesome is the God we serve. 

Enjoy!
Tuesday, July 3, 2012

The Beginning Of Our Lifelong Journey {Birth Story of our Daphne Grace}





This is the story
of our journey so far.
I will start from the day our sweet Daphne's heart
stopped beating. 

February 26, 2012:
A typical morning.
I was woken up at 6am
by Daphne's tiny toes doing an Irish Jig
{in my ribs!}
This was a day I had been looking forward to for weeks. 
Today was my baby shower!!!
Which meant, I finally got to get up and about for just a little.
I was SO over
being on bed rest!

I got up, did my hair, got my outfit picked out.
Woke Evan and Eden up, got them ready, and we were out the door.

10:30am
A maternity photo shoot to start the day.
It was cold.
But I couldn't have been happier. 
I had the three most important people in my life
right there with me. 

SHOWER TIME!!!
:)
2pm
I was so blessed by my family and friends
that were able to come and join us
while we celebrated the highly
anticipated arrival 
of Daphne. 
We had a wonderful time and officially had
all the clothes this little lady could possibly need. 

{throughout the day I was noticing that D's movements were less}
{than normal but I thought being this my first time up and about}
{in a few weeks, she was probably comfy, cozy, sleeping}

The party ended and we headed home.  
5pm
I was so worn out from the day.
I needed a nap!
I laid down in bed to rest a bit and my fears kicked in. 
On a typical day just laying down would
get Daphne doing somersaults in my belly.
Today... nothing. 
So I rolled over to coax her to move.
Nothing.
I rolled again.
Nothing. 
Evan could sense that I was uneasy so he got out
our heartbeat doppler to take a quick listen.
We couldn't find her. 
I tried with all I had not to panic. 
I called Dr. Covey
who very sweetly encouraged me to just go to L&D
and have them monitor me.
Knowing how insanely active Daphne always had been, she assured me that she had just squished into a funny spot so we couldn't find her.
 5:30pm
As calmly as we could, we got E up from her nap and headed
to the hospital. We called for someone to meet us there to take Eden. 
5:45pm
First triage tech comes in.
First monitor, no heartbeat.
"Don't Panic" she says "I've had bad luck with this all day!"
First Nurse comes in.
Same monitor, no heartbeat.
Doppler, no heartbeat.
{they wanted it to be there just as bad as I did}
Second nurse comes in.
New monitor, nothing.
New doppler, nothing.
"We're going to go ahead and call Dr. Covey so she can do an ultrasound."
Dr. Covey rolls in with U/S machine. 
The moment she placed the wand on my tummy
{I knew}
No. Heartbeat.
She looked and looked and looked
for what felt like an eternity. 
Her head lowered.
She removed the wand.
Then she said it.
"I'm so sorry..."
I felt like everything inside of me
was outside of me.
I felt like I was in a movie.
Watching some poor woman as she learned her baby had just died.
But, it was me.

~Thus begins the worst week of my life~

Monday:
Basically I was in bed all day.
I wanted nothing to do with anything or anyone. 

Tuesday:
We saw Dr. Covey
and decided
that I would be induced the next day.
That night I had to figure out how to pack a hospital bag
that didn't involve all of Daphne's baby stuff.
~And my Mommy came. Such a wonderful blessing.~


The last picture of Daphne in my tummy.
Tuesday Feb 28, 2012





Wednesday February 29,2012
{Leap Day}
6am
Evan and I woke up to head to the hospital
for what we knew would be a very difficult day.
We prayed that morning that the Lord would meet us there
and make the entire process a smooth and quick as possible.

6:30am
At the Hospital getting checked in.
The nurse that admitted me
was the same nurse that delivered and cared for Eden
while she was a sick little newborn so that was a
very special God send.
Nurse Kim is wonderful.

7am
Dr. Covey came in to see me and visit for a bit.

Between 7 and 8 we had about 4 people come in just to pray with us. What an incredible feeling, knowing that we were being
covered in so much love and prayer that day. 

8am
IV Cath in. Pitocin flowing.
(at this point I was 80% and a tight 2cm) 
Spent as much time up and about as I could.
Was NOT looking forward to that epidural. 

10am
Dr. Covey came in to check on me. 
I was contracting pretty well but not really feelin' it. 
Still only 80% and 2.
So Dr. Covey decided to break my water to get D's head engaged and try to get some good strong contractions going. 

(I knew that as soon as this happened it was going to get) (painful but both Dr & Nurse were certain it would take a while)

10:15am
OWEEEEE!!!
Definitely feeling it.
Dr. Covey was adamant that I get an epidural and any other pain medication that I needed, as she did not want me to feel the
physical pain of the process. 
(which I was thankful for her wisdom)

10:30am
Called the nurse to let her know that I was hurting and needing something. 
Anesthesiologist was in surgery so it would be another hour and a half before he'd get there so she gave me a dose of
{Fentanyl}
Stuff. Is. Nuts! 
With only half a dose administered I was
{GONE}
Couldn't see straight.
Couldn't talk right.
My nose felt like someone was tickling it with a feather.
but...
the pain subsided. 
Then I fell asleep. 
(I have a very LOW tolerance to medication)

(SIDE NOTE: this only re-enforced my feelings on a)
(non-medicated labor and birth process)  

11am
Anesthesiologist was available and came in to give me the epidural.
OUCH!!! 
(Again... still in favor of natural birth!)

12pm
I asked the nurse to check me because I was
CERTAIN
that I was progressing!
...
Nope. 
100% (yay)
stiiiiil sitting at a 2.

I was discouraged and scared. 
My fear was that this delivery would end in a c-section
which would virtually end my chances of ever having
a natural birth ever again. 

But both the nurse and Dr. Covey assured me
that they were in no hurry and that
it would be okay. 

With the epidural set
I tried to get some more rest since I wasn't allowed to get up anymore and I figured it would take my mind off of the situation.

2pm
Woke up feeling contractions and pressure.
{So that means Epidural had worn off.} 
Called nurse to let her know
so she checked again. 
100% and 2.5cm.
SERIOUSLY?!

Scared and angry and everything in between.
I was losing my grace at this point.
I wanted to get off that bed, 
go home,
and forget that
{ANY}
of this had ever happened. 

3pm
Really feeling pressure.
Didn't want to call the nurse because I
didn't want her to tell me I still had made no progress. 
So I just stayed quiet, focused on my own through contractions, tried not to be obvious about how I was feeling, and didn't say anything to anyone. 

4:00pm
Apparently it was beginning to show on my face.
Mom, Sabina, and Evan all zoomed in and asked what I was feeling. 
I just told them
Lots of pressure, 
Kinda feeling like she's
{REEEEEAAAALLLLY}
low.
They all said
"Call The Nurse!"

{I swear it was like they rehearsed saying it in unison!}




4:15pm
Called nurse in.
I told her that I felt like I needed to push. 
She very kindly said, 
"I checked you only two hours ago and you were still at 2. I don't think you're quite there."
But she checked me anyway.

4:30pm
Then she said
"I can't find your cervix"
with a very confused look on her face. 
All the while with each contraction
my body was pushing. 
No stopping it.
No slowing it down.
It. Was. Pushing.
Nurse very briskly left and on her way out said to everyone in the room
"If you're not going to be in here for the delivery, leave now!"
{very kindly, mind you.}

4:40pm
I started to panic.
"I'm not ready. I can't do this."
"This can't be happening."
"I want to go home."

But it was time.
I had to do it. 
It
{WAS}
happening.

4:45pm
I can hear Dr. Covey
{literally}
running down the hallway.
She blasted into the room
put on a glove faster than I could say
{"hi"}
Tried to check me and said
"Oh!"

4:50pm
Threw on her face shield and cover and said,
"It's time sweetie. Give me a good push."
Contraction hit.
I pushed.

4:53pm 
And there she was. 
Limp.
Quiet.
Eyes (appropriately) closed.
In that moment all I could say was
"Look at her."

Those words had
{SO MANY}
meanings in that moment.

I was overwhelmed by her lifelessness. 
But I wanted everyone to see her.

She was immediately placed on my chest
where she stayed for the next
two and a half hours.

Daphne Grace Daggett
February 29, 2012
4lbs 11oz
19 1/2 inches long
11 1/2 in head
A head FULL of black hair
She looked more like her sissy than I ever expected.
 
We learned as soon as she was born the cause of her death.
She was an active little lady from day one.
The umbilical cord was wraped once tightly around her neck then stretched down her back to her left ankle where it was sutured so tightly that Dr. Covey could barely remove it.
Dr. Covey stated that in all her years of practice she'd never seen anything like it and was pretty baffled.
Between 2-4% of all stillbirths are caused by cord accidents.
We just happened to be the very unlucky few.
{the good news in this is that there were no defects with me or Daphne. That is a good sign for us trying again in the future.}

Our family and friends that were there
came in to see her.
To say hello and goodbye in the same breath.

The nurses took her to get her dressed.
We weren't able to bathe her like we had hoped
because her skin was already so fragile.

Nurse Kim
(who wasn't scheduled to work)
came in on her own time so that she could be with us and Daphne and be a part of this journey with us. 
We are
{SO}
incredibly blessed to have had the
{MOST AMAZING}
nursing team. 


Daphne looked perfect in the little outfit that
Evan and I had bought for her. 
The hat I made actually fit.
And her little sockies matched.

Evan and I had some quiet alone time with her for another 2 hours or so. I wanted with all my heart for her to just wake up.
To open her eyes and stare at us.
But she didn't. 

The nurse took Daphne
{when we were ready}
but assured us that if at any point we wanted to see her
that they would bring her to us. 

We tried to sleep.
I was afraid to sleep. 
My tummy was empty
my heart was broken
and I felt as though I had been robbed.

 Thursday:
A few more people came to visit. 
We did not have Daphne back yet that morning. 
The nurse came in and we decided that we wanted to say goodbye
one last time. 
I was so afraid to look at her face because I knew time would only make the appearance worse. 
Her small, lifeless hand was uncovered
so I held it
kissed it
and really didn't want to let it go.

About 10 minutes later the man from the funeral service
came for her. 
That moment gutted me. 
I was letting her go away.
With a stranger!
I wanted to run after him and take her back.

We slowly
and
quietly packed our stuff
and left the hospital
empty handed. 

I went home and went to bed.

Friday:
We had a small service with our close family and friends.
It was quiet.
It was small.
It was perfect.

We praised God for his blessing of Daphne.
We mourned deeply our loss of her. 
We spent our time being together.

I won't say
~the end~
because
friends, it's merely the beginning.

Daphne changed all of us.
People she never had the privilege of knowing
have been changed by her. 
The Lord used her
in all her
{tiny glory}
to move mountains that I never believed could be. 
My heart was filled by her. 
I long everyday to have her back but I know
that she is in the arms of a Father
that will care for her for all eternity.
And that makes my heart lighter. 

I want to thank each and every single person
who prayed/is praying for us.
Please continue.
We need it. 
Evan, Eden, and I
{and our families}
have been so deeply touched by the love and kindness
that has been poured out to us from all of you.

As we begin this lifelong journey
we trust that God will use us.
We trust that this experience will be used to glorify Him.
And that one day, we will get to see our Sweet Daphne
{dancing with Jesus}
















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Faces of Loss, Faces of Hope

Faces of Loss, Faces of Hope
If you have found yourself on the journey of pregnancy or infant loss, I encourage you to join this blog. A community of families that know the journey well.

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