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Indiana, United States
Updates on our homeschooling family with ten children, a handful of chickens, a couple horses, three bunnies, and six cats. Visit our website at PeacefulHome.net

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Oct 2010 - $231.39


Nov 2010 - $998.22


Dec 2010 - $340.29


Jan 2011 - $855.15


Feb 2011 - $203.17



Mar 2011 - $916.52



Monthly Average $590.79


Weekly Average $137.85
Our family's website, PeacefulHome.net, is in the process of changing hosting companies and is currently inactive. Our plan is to move this blog over once construction is complete. Please stay tuned for updates!

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

"Are You Done?"

It's the question we've been fielding since the birth of our second child over 14 years ago. After all, we had a girl and a boy. "A girl for me, a boy for you. Thank goodness we're through!" And when we got married we certainly didn't plan on having enough children to field a baseball team!

But along the way, God showed us his truths. The first command God gave to man was to “Be fruitful and increase in number..." (Genesis 1:28) This command was never rescended.

Children are a blessing from Him. "Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him." (Psalm 127:3). If God handed me the reward of a bag of money, I wouldn't turn that down. Why should I turn away the reward of precious babies if He blesses me with them? Especially when people I love are crying out to God for children but their arms remain empty?

So when Bryan and I felt convicted to let God plan our family, it was "all oars in." Kind of like marriage: for better or worse. The conviction wasn't removed when finances were a concern, when we were tired, when overwhelmed, when people start looking at us like we're nuts, when we started being asked if we were trying to keep us with the Duggars. (For the record, we had six children before we'd ever heard of the Duggars. And, no, we don't know them. There is no "large family cult" despite the desire of some members of the press to portray it otherwise.)

And the conviction hasn't been removed even though I'm a "mature" mama looking at a 9th c-section in a couple months. Going into every delivery, I asked my doctor to evaluate the health of my insides and whether it looked like it could handle another pregnancy.

Babies #3 through #6 were all delivered by a wonderful Christian who was also a father of 7. Every time he gave me a thumbs-up. After he retired, I had to find a new OB. I have no doubt that my new doctor would have recommended a tubal during delivery #7, but,  as God would have it, I was at a Catholic hospital where it was against their policy to do so.

I found a new doctor for Baby #8 and now #9. I love this wonderful Christian practice so much that I drive an hour for my appointments. After he delivered #8, he was amazed at how good the insides looked. We'll have to see what #9 holds.

I'm not looking to put my health in danger, but I refuse to let fear alone be the reason to turn from what we feel God has called us to. If it doesn't look like I could safely carry another baby, we will take the appropriate steps. But if everything looks good, let it be a testimony to the fact that nothing is impossible with God!

4 comments:

  1. Good for you Lainie and Bryan. Way to show what faith really looks like. You have a beautiful family.

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  2. Praise God for your faith! And your beautiful, lively, awesome family!!! :) And yes, children are a blessing, even when our faith struggles to believe it during the difficult times!

    I just noticed that my blog has not updated on your sidebar in over 2 weeks. You may not have heard, but I have changed my address to http://yestheyareallours.com, if you want to change it in your blog roll! thanks! :)

    My blog roll was accidentally deleted on my sidebar. So, I have gotten way behind in reading my favorites!

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  3. Oh WOW!!! Yay!!!!!!!!!!! How very very exciting! I am so happy for you! So you will look a little bit different at the next 4H meeting that I will see you at!!
    We have continued to move forward with the adoption plans...our packet is safely at the bottom of the stack with other packets in Lesotho, Africa. Now we just have to wait! Hopefully, we will have one or two more little ones to add to our family by the end of the year. (Lord willing....)
    Blessings,
    Beth

    ReplyDelete