Post Pregnancy Pants

I don’t exactly fit my pre-pregnancy pants…and the ones that I do fit-they aren’t without that cute little muffin top-which means my tops are limited b/c that’s just not something that I want to accentuate.  Honestly, getting ready for church is one of the most frustrating times with that muffin top…it’s so hot in our house at that time of the day and most of the time I started getting ready too late. So it’s typical for me to feel hot, rushed and of course LARGE!

I have to say it’s been a grace of God that I have a friend who gave birth 6 weeks after me-so we feel gross together and I think it gives us a sense of normalcy-but what is it about not fitting into your pants that just really makes something go off inside of you?! It’s H-A-R-D! Post pregnancy body is not fun.

As I’ve talked with her it’s been so revealing. And I can see through my tears and frustration before church that I value so much of the way I look above more things than I’d like to admit. And as my friend asked…Is this something new? Or has it always been there? This vanity of mine- I can’t get away from it. Lord, help me! I think it’s always been there, but it’s post-pregnancy times like this that show me how deep it goes. And it goes deep my friend. Very deep.

So as I was reading from 1 Peter 1: 24, 25 last week I found myself relating to a verse that I thought I’d cling to more when I was maybe 60 years-old or so. Here is the verse:

All flesh is like grass, all it’s glory like the flower of grass.

The grass withers, and the flower falls,

But the word of the Lord remains forever.

And the word is the good news that was preached to you.

(60 years is not when your body really starts to wither…Haha apparently it’s 25.)

 So, Peter, what you are telling me is that my flesh is withering? Okay. For real I get it because when I grasp at it, it slips through my fingers. Note to self: Heather, it’s only down hill from here. Don’t grasp at it like it will last forever and bring you all your happiness, there’s only One that will do that.

Only the Word of the Lord remains forever. And what is the Word? The Good News that was preached to you! Oh man, Lord, help me to remember it and love it! 

Guest Post: Is motherhood all it's cracked up to be?

Doesn't it seem like there are a lot of new babies when you look at your FB friends? Well, I thought I'd ask one or two momma's I know to share their experience as a new mom and how it has pointed them back to Jesus. This is Ysabel. Besides being a good friend, she's also a stay at home mom, and wife to seminary student :) Their son, Adiah, was given to them December 28th 2011 looking just like his daddy. May you be encouraged by her post...

Ysabel & Adiah

Motherhood. It’s what I’ve always dreamed about. Well, to be a wife AND a mother is what I’ve always dreamed about. Now I’m just that, a wife to the most amazing man and a mother to a beautiful baby boy. 

Is it all it’s cracked up to be? Yes and no. 

I love being a wife! I’m married to a man who loves me endlessly, who reminds me that my righteousness is not in my ability to keep a clean house but in Jesus. Who encourages me to have dreams and to pursue them. Who is such an example to me by how he loves our Savior! So yes, marriage was exactly what I thought: pure bliss!! So why wouldn’t being a mother be the same?? That’s where I was dead wrong! From the time he implanted in my uterus, it has been the start of a VERY sanctifying journey.  

Being a mom is very hard work. It’s a round the clock kind of work. There are moments when I think, “I really wanted this??” or “if he cries another minute, I’m gonna cry,” “sleep. That’s all I want, sleep.” Then there are moments where I look at him and my heart feels like it will burst because I just love him so much that I can barley handle it. Or when he’s snuggled on me and sleeping so sweetly I think “Please, please don’t ever grow up.” I’m such a bag of mixed emotions these days.

But one thing is for certain, idols are being exposed! Like One. Right.  After.  Another. One of the many is my need for comfort. Pregnancy was the most uncomfortable 39 weeks. Recovery after having him wasn’t fun either and being sleep deprived hasn’t been a walk through the park. But what I’m learning and having to be reminded of is that I’m not promised a comfortable life nor am I entitled to one. There is one thing in this life that I am entitled to and that is hell (Rom. 3:23). When I think of that I’m reminded of my NEED-my need for someone bigger than myself and my lack of sleep. I’m reminded that I need something that has more strength to get me through the day than my tall iced coffee. One who will make my idols “fall to the ground on their faces” (1 Sam. 5:3-5).That One is Jesus. His life didn’t revolve around what made him most comfortable and if anyone was entitled to a comfortable life it would have been Him. He suffered a horrific death on the cross so that a selfish sinful girl (me) could be forgiven (1Cor. 15:3-5).  So motherhood may not be all that I dreamed it would be, no, but it is refining me and making me cling to the Gospel more than I ever have before, so I’ll take it! :)

God is in Control of Rosie's Life

When you have a newborn it's almost expected that you keep her home from the filthy germs of the outside world for about month before bringing her into public places. (Actually the birthing class instructor recommended more than that). However, the more I read about it, it seems more like on old wives tale more than anything. My pediatrician and the classes I took from Kaiser never said anything about this. And the pregnancy bible (What to Expect when you are expecting) said that unless it's under 20 degrees , over 90 degrees, or during the flu season, there's really no need to keep a newborn indoors. BUT, for some reason I felt that it was the right thing to do, and seasoned mothers even praised us for it.

Our thinking was challenged by someone who loved our souls enough to challenge it. He asked us to search our hearts and make sure we weren't keeping Rosie home to give us a false sense of being in control of her life. Does that make sense? When our intentions were questioned it was hard but good. I just started crying to James and said "But what if she catches something and dies?" As I thought about it more, I realized she was home with me when James was at church b/c we didn't want people touching her yet, or holding her. I was home with Rosie b/c I thought thats what good moms do (I was also in quite a bit of pain). But the truth was that, she could have got sick at home, or hurt at home.

An encounter with a spider made this even more clear to me. I left her on the bed to nap for a bit.  When I came in to check on her, there was a nasty looking spider chillin by her head. I smacked it with my hand immediately and texted James about how Rosie didn't get a bite.  His text back to me was "I guess God really is control, huh?" Yea, I guess so!

We kept her home, as means to be in control of her health...but the truth is anything could happen to her at any moment. Whether it happens at home or out of the home, God is control of her life, not me. Whether you keep your baby home for a bit after she's born or not, remember God is control of her life, not you. May that sweet truth release you from the expectations of others, and worries of your mind.

Side Note: I don't look down on anybody who keeps their babies home! I know each situation is different and after you give birth to a baby just walking around is not an easy task-so home sometimes is just better. But it's so good for us to check our hearts or have our hearts checked by someone that loves us so that we don't think we are in control of the lives of our precious little babies. 

Praying with my baby

Today was my first time praying with Rosie. I think I never did it out loud with her before b/c my thinking is that she doesn't get it anyways. The truth is, she probably doesn't right now. But it won't be long before she does, and I want it to already be in place.

She's only 3 months- so I have to admit it was a little strange getting that "Dear God" out. But as I started talking, it was a really sweet time with Jesus and Rosie before putting her down for bed. I want that to become so much of an evening routine so that it's weird when we don't talk to Jesus before bed.

What did I pray for?

That God would keep her healthy, help her to sleep sweetly, and that He would bring Rosie to treasure Him above all. I prayed that James and I would always point her to Jesus. May God be gracious in our parenting with her, and save our itty-bitty sinner :)

2 women & 1 Man who loved their children more than life

I recently came across two stories of women who denied cancer treatment when they found out they were pregnant. Their stories do not end ideally. Both women died but both of their babies survived. I admire these two women greatly for the courage they displayed in denying their own lives for the life of their children. Also, their selflessness blows my mind! In a culture who would NOT have condemned them had they chosen an abortion or even chemotherapy, the ease of those options did not hinder them from choosing the life of their babies first.


Why do these stories move me so much? Initially, it's their selflessness & courage. But more than that, I believe they point us to a greater story. Christ, being God, took on the heaviness of all his people's sin. He denied his comfort, his rights, his perfect record and his life that His people might gain life. Jessica & Stacie are two stories that point us to Jesus who did the same thing but at a greater cost. That's why their stories are so beautiful. May their stories help you to see Jesus better.


Jessica Council-" In August of last year Jessica Council – a beautiful, 30-year-old mother of one – noticed that she had a sore throat. At around the same time, she also began to suspect that she was pregnant....Jessica went to sleep with a headache and nausea. 'She did not wake up.'... The following day Jessica was near death, and Clint [her husband] gave the doctors the go-ahead to deliver by C-section. On February 6, little 'Jessi' was born, weighing only 1 lb 3 oz."

Stacie Crimm:"An Oklahoma woman died of cancer last month after refusing chemotherapy that would have threatened the life of her unborn child...Her daughter, Dottie Mae, was born August 16th by emergency C-section after Crimm collapsed in her home"