The One About Silas Philip

There is something about a son...that responsibility of raising him up to be not only a Godly man, but a radical man of God.  This is very much just as important with women, but women's role in the bible is a little different than a man's.  I am sure glad that I don't hold the burden of leading my family.  My burden seems easy compared to my husband's role as father/husband.  It's not a sexes thing, ladies, it's not a matter of superiority over us, but I do think that there is a divine calling and purpose of calling us to different roles.  I hope to honor my role as a woman, instead of demeaning my Creator and His vision by comparing. I will now step off that box....

Silas and Philip were great men who's lives were a showcase to what it means to be a true man, giving up themselves and letting Christ rule and be exalted through them. Philip was called an Evangelist, and some say that he was the only one in the bible with that title.  He went around proclaiming the Word of Jesus and in one story he actually teleports by the spirit?! Ya, I have no idea what happens...you should read it! (Acts 8:26-40) That can only mean that he was awesome.  Silas' most famous story was when he and Paul get thrown into prison while on a missionary journey and start singing and dancing! An earthquake shakes the doors open, and the sweetest part (my favorite)...oh..I'll just quote...
"When the jailer awoke and saw the prison doors opened, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped.  But Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!" And he called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas, and after he brought them out, he said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"  They said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household." Incredible. 

This is our prayer for our daughters and our son...that they hear and learn from men such as these and see the true joy and value in following Jesus in a bold way, not just hearing a bible story.  That wherever we, as parents, may fall short, they know to rely on His Word for guidance and Truth.  And most importantly, they see through stories such as these, that salvation is a free gift to those who believe in Jesus Christ. We pray that they treasure the Cross and long to proclaim it to everyone. For His death gave us life...nothing we can do to earn it and nothing we can do to lose it.  We are justified at the Cross. 

You should know, that Jesus has held this baby boy in his hands from day one.  It wasn't hard to get pregnant with the girls, and we had smooth pregnancies with no complications at all, other than morning sickness.  He had them in His hands too, always protecting. 
Silas, was somehow conceived in the same month we miscarried.  In fact, when we went to our first appointment, around 6-7 weeks (we still don't know) we were even told that it was a blighted ovum, where there is a gestational sac, but no baby.  We waited 10 days, came back to a strong heartbeat.  A few weeks later, after discovering he was a 'he', the doctor told us that he had cysts on each lobe of his brain and that we had to run more test because he could have deformities such as trisomy 18 or 21.  After a month, we went back to a follow-up ultrasound to make sure he was growing normally to find out the cysts had completely dissipated and he was in the 92 percentile on growth/weight!!!
I've learned how to pray all over again through this...there is nothing that we can't ask our Father for.  Although I was okay if the outcome wasn't my choice, I knew that He wanted me to cry out to him with my fear and worry. It's only normal to want your child to be healthy. When I submitted to that, I carried a peace.  I still asked for prayer from our family and friends, but I really rested in a peace I can't describe.  He loves us and wants to carry our burdens...because they aren't burdens for Him.  I posted on my facebook a quote from David Platt, where he spoke about Jesus being our sympathetic resonance...because Jesus was human too, He knows heartache.  He gets it.  So, next time, if you are like me and feel guilty for asking too many things, there's no such thing. 
He hears our hearts, and answers prayer.  It's not always our way or quickly, but He hears and "His Grace is Sufficient."

The One Where We Relocate

One of the reasons we even discussed induction, other than the fact my doctor would be out of town, was because Spencer and I were fixing to make a huge move and job change. We had been apart of the search for a new worship leader for First Baptist Church Marlow that started in December and we were in the final stages where we go to 'In View of a Call' at the church and are voted in by the church members. In order to get a date set, Leslie needed to be born because I was not going to travel 3 hours away from my doctor anymore nor was I about to relocate and change doctors and hospitals! Not that anyone was rushing us or this event, but there was a goal start date for all parties and we were very ready and excited to get it going! It worked out so well....well obviously! We had her (which was a big deal) and 2 weeks later, after another big birthday (my sister's son), a wedding, and the weekend of events in Marlow leading to the 'In View of a Call' that Sunday, we were voted as the new contemporary worship leader!! About 2 weeks after that we were newbies to Outlaw country.
God called us here and in every possible way He kept and keeps confirming our decision to be obedient to His call. Was it hard leaving a church family and what we called our home and family? Absolutely. At the same time one of the most exciting times of our lives. We have two children the the Lord has given us and this move/job was an answered prayer. He knew our needs and provided. It was a hurricane of insanity during those times and we knew it would be challenging and we also knew that because we were being obedient that Satan would most definitely be attacking. He did, but our battles were already overcome. Looking back, a new baby, a toddler adjusting to new baby, a move, a toddler adjusting to a move, and leaving everything known to enter into a new life of unknowns doesn't sound like something I would be interested in, but that is the beauty of our Jesus. It's so amazing how he takes care of us. Even in finding our house. Because we moved so fast, we didn't have time to look at homes and moved into an old 'dentists office' that is apart of the church's property. Not the best living quarters for our particular situation, but we only stayed there for 3 weeks and were very thankful that it was an option. Found a house the very day we moved that was being flipped and it just so happened it was in our price range and move-in ready! Met Jacinda, the owner, loved her, she was kind enough to let us move in before we closed!! Who even does that?!! The whole church family is like that! We have never been more embraced or loved on, which made the move 100 times easier! Now, we feel like we've always lived here and it's only been 5 months!
First Baptist Marlow is a small town church with the biggest heart! The senior pastor, Joe, is an obedient man of God and is great at being a pastor and also a wonderful speaker. The evidence is the growing number of members and the blessings the church reaps. It's very refreshing to be apart of a church that cares about being obedient to God's word no matter what. Come visit or visit us online! Just search First Baptist Church Marlow! You can even see the sexiest, sweetest, hunkiest music leader (but you can't say that about him)! He leads a mean worship time that captives a sinners heart to value true worship to our one and only Redeemer!! Amen!

The One When Leslie Was Born

Okay, okay, I haven't written in almost a year! That went by fast! So many things happened, so I'll start from where I left off...

The last post was in January and I was still pregnant with Leslie (which her name was still a secret), and I was due in April. Well, she was born a week early on the morning of March 31, 2011 at 10:13am. Completely perfect weighing 7lbs 10oz (Audrey was 7lbs 9oz) with a ton of jet black gorgeous hair and a tan. She did resemble Audrey, but was also so so different! She has tiny features and is very elegant in her motions.

The labor and delivery was amazingly smooth....here's the story.

For reasons I will talk about in another blog and the fact that our doctor would be out of town, we discussed inducing at 39 weeks (side note- I don't agree with inducing just to induce and neither does our OB, but he has a different school of thought for 2nd babies and it can only be a week before due date and you had to be at least dilated to a 3.) But, we agreed to be induced and of course I couldn't really make up my mind. I didn't like it. So, I called our sweet nurse and told her to cancel our induction for that Thursday. We went in that Wednesday for a regular appointment and I had changed my mind again...thankfully the nurse knew me and disregarded my request and we still had our induction date. He checked me that day and we were at a 3, so all was good to continue! After the appointment, I went with Spence to his 2nd job (Parview Baptist) to help him get things in order, then we were going to get dinner before the normal Wednesday church events. I started having contractions. They started as soon as we got to the church and intensified enough to pay attention to how far apart they were. I was so thankful because I didn't like the thought of being induced. So, they were about 20-30 min apart. Spencer told the guys we were gonna leave to eat and that I was contracting and we went to Red Lobster per my request of a last stuffing and while we were there, they shortened to 5 min apart. We were excited and calm at the same time. I wanted to finish eating, and we got our waitress involved in our excitement until my sister told me to get to a hospital!! No dessert for us, we is gonna go have a baby!
We call for grandma to come stay with Audrey and grab our bags and head for St. Francis South!
It's always awkward walking in...especially in a calm manner. Not at all like the movies where it's obvious I'm in labor, so I say, "Hello, I know you're probably busy, but I think I'm in labor." and then you go sit in a waiting room until they get you a room ready. It was like that with Audrey too. It just feels like people should be screaming and rushing and that you shouldn't have to wait in a waiting room for your turn. Crazy!
I really didn't have to wait a long time and they got me settled in our room and the monitors on the baby and sure enough I am now contracting every 2-3 min! Looks like we're having a baby tonight, right?!! WRONG! After about an hour of contracting and not moving from a 3 it just stopped. They had me walk the hospital and it just wasn't happening. But, remember I am already scheduled to be induced that next day, so they just kept me overnight and started Pitocin at 6:00am the next morning. Of course, I didn't sleep at all. At 6:10, the contractions started again, this time they hurt pretty darn bad and progressively worsened for a good 2 hours! Finally got the good stuff and it was easy breezy from then until she was born a little over 4 hours later. With both girls the delivery went way to perfect and quick, which I am very thankful for. Now, I have TWO precious, perfect, sweet girls! I love that the Lord had us in his timing. I was anxious about inducing and going into labor the night before gave me peace that she was ready.
Giving birth is one of the sweetest gifts we can have as women! That's why we love to tell the stories!

Is this it? I don't know...we'll have to wait and see!

Baby Girl Shaw Check-in

Well, I am 28 weeks and a few days now only 12 more weeks til go time! I keep saying how fast this has flown compared to Audrey, but I can't even keep track of what week I am on most of the time, I have to rely on my calender! It does help to be consumed with a toddler, work or school for most people. I didn't have either with the bulk of Audrey, so maybe that's why I am surprised.

I had my last visit a couple of weeks ago and had to take my glucose test. I always skip the explanations and such in the books because I've always been confident I would pass. Well, I didn't. I failed by one point. After I got the phone call, I was pretty upset for a good part of the day, it really scared me. I was instructed to come back to the office asap to do the 3 hour testing, which is more extreme and accurate. When Spencer got home that day I fell in his arms to seek comfort and guidance, I felt like I had hurt her. The entire visit was off for me that day. My blood pressure was high, for me, not high as in dangerous or alarming, but still not normal for me and I couldn't catch my breath. Our visit with the doctor was cut short because of the testing and it was time for me to get my blood drawn. So, I didn't really get to focus on the ultrasound b/c I had a question and he had a PA shadowing him that day. Needless to say it was an awkward visit and to get a call that I didn't pass was upsetting and left me anxious. We thought back to the entire day leading up to the visit...I workout on MWF with a skilled, trustworthy, and experienced (with preggos) trainer, it was a Wednesday and I worked out a little longer than normal and rushed home to feed Audrey lunch, get her in bed for a nap, take a shower, get ready, eat lunch, and I had to drink the glucose drink 45 min before we came to the doctor. I had all this to do within a 2 hour time frame. So, I think it was a combination of running around, working out, hot shower, fast lunch, and taking care of a toddler that got me all screwed up. I had also drank a Gatorade that morning, which I never do, but it contains a lot of salt, which could raise my blood pressure. Anyway, I felt better after analyzing the day and went back to feeling confident that I would pass the 3 hour test, which I did with flying colors. I later found out that a lot of women fail the first test and pass the second, because it is more accurate and has you to fast. So, I am calm, cool, and collected. We go back on the 26th of this month and start going every two weeks! I am due April 7th and I bet I am right on...I was only a day late with Audrey and I went into labor on my own. I am hoping and praying for a delivery like Audrey...it was quick and easy.

We are on the downhill now! I am so excited and I am excited for my sister and all my friends who are pregnant! Motherhood is amazing!!

Christmas/New Year

I am just now getting to sit down and write...it was a very busy holiday season for the Shaw's! This year was a little different for my little family. Spencer and I wanted to start our own traditions and be at our own home for Christmas Eve and Christmas day, especially since we are always on the go anyway, we want the season to be calm and centered around the 'true' meaning of Christmas and acknowledge the blessings of having a family. So, we did just that! Our little family of 3 packed up on Christmas Eve and went to the service our church offered and celebrated with our church family. We later went on home to enjoy each other and prepare for the next day! I think I was way more excited for this year, because of Audrey, than ever before. I was thinking she would flip out when we got her up and walked her in the living room where all her presents were stacked from Santa, but she went straight to an old toy and I knew she had absolutely no clue what was so special about that day! I ended up opening all her (and sister's) presents she got from us or anyone else. I think this next year will be much for exciting for her and it will only get better and better as we teach her about Jesus! We did end up going to see Spencer's mom and dad in Owasso later that night (kind-of spontaneous). It was one of the best visits we've ever had. Spencer's brother and his family also came (since they live in Oklahoma now!!!) and it always makes it loud and goofy! Jim (Spencer's) dad, lives at Baptist Village there in Owasso, and his mom lives on campus, so it is always special when we can all get together for him to see the babies and be involved. There is an adorable room that we sometimes go to there called the "tea room" when everyone is here, or we know there is a party to be had. Very special memories for us all! We are thankful that we can do that!

The day after Christmas was a Sunday, so a work day for Spence, but after church we headed to my parents house to have Christmas with my family in Seminole. My sister and her hubby, Curtis, joined us for an evening of food and laughter! I posted a few of those pictures on my facebook. It was a short visit sadly, but we are grateful that we got to go. We didn't have 'real' Christmas with Spencer's family until the 1st so that his sister and her family of 4 would be here. They live in Houston. This would be one of the occasions that we all gathered in the 'tea room'! It is always a riot when we all get together! The kids (5) all run around or dance to music and the adults chase and eat and dance too. The pictures I posted on facebook show some of the chaos that makes our hearts cheer! Oh ya...we also had a special visit from Santa! Yep! He made a special trip just for us after Christmas! The only ones that actually sat on his lap without fear were Audrey, Jeb and Sydney. Jo and Brooklyn were not so sure about this strange man with his jolly laugh!

We rang in the new year with a trip to Zios and to see the Rhema lights in BA and back to Owasso. My parents stayed with Audrey at our house that night to spend some extra time with her since our Christmas trip was too short. They are the sweetest grandparents ever and she has a blast with them!

Highlights from 2010 that pop in my head are...the trip to Venezuela, Audrey turning 1, and getting pregnant with our 2nd!! There were also many, many wonderful memories made as well as challenges, but I am so very thankful for a new year!

May our new beginnings be new beginnings centered around Christ and glorifying His kingdom, for that is our sole purpose in life.

Blessings from the Shaw's

2011 already?!!

I have not kept up with this blog as well as I thought I would! Time is flying! I have a draft saved from Thanksgiving, but now that it is Christmas I guess that will be moved into the trash bucket. One reason it is hard to keep up lately is sickness has hit our family hardcore and it actually started Thanksgiving night when my husband (who btw has never thrown up in his life) got a violent stomach bug rendering him useless for a good 48 hours. This is also not a characteristic of Spence, he has so much energy that most sicknesses can't keep him down. It was sad and I felt helpless. This bug then reached my brother and sister-in-laws home starting with their kiddos and rounding to them. After about 3 rounds with the kids it moved on to my mother-in-law and then on to my daughter and finally to me. It is awful. I bet after reading this no one will ever want to sit by us again. It was inevitable though, we see each other pretty much everyday so it makes it hard (especially with kids) to keep 100% disinfected no matter how careful and it seems to br going around period. BUT...everyone is well now, so fear not!

New baby girl update: My last OB appointment was at 23 weeks, we call this the 'big' appointment since the doc was checking on all her developing organs to make sure they are growing/functioning correctly. She was measuring a pound (I was measuring 15!!yikes!) and using the doctors words "growing perfectly"! Every mom loves pretty words at a check up and he used many! I have been feeling great which I am so thankful for! The only snag is sleeping, I am getting into the uncomfortable stage and since the air is dry and a pregnancy symptom is a stuffy, dry nose I am relying on breathe right strips and a humidifier...glamorous huh?! My hubs says I'm cutest pregnant, so I never get embarrassed. It is so funny how pregnancy makes him so much more lovey dovey and mushy! Not that he isn't otherwise, but pregnant Kerri sure gets a lot of attention, yes, even through the mood swings which only make him laugh. He is my hotbodhandsome pants.
Audrey isn't quite sure what is going on as far as my growing belly. She is in learning mode and I fear we have confused her by calling my belly a 'belly' or 'baby'. She lifted daddy's shirt the other day pointing at his belly saying "baby!" So, we've quit trying to explain. She knows what a baby is outside of the womb and her mommy instincts have already kicked in without having a baby around, so I am confident she will be in love with new baby sister! She loves to take care of her stuffed animals by sharing her food and juice with them and taking them on a stroll. They have to sleep with her and when she wakes up, they come too. I think this has been my favorite age. She can't talk sentences yet, but it is so fun to sort of communicate! She is naturally so tender and sweet. We love her and can't wait to meet new baby! (I wish I could scream her name to everyone, but I made a promise to my hubby! Only 3 more months!)

Well...Christmas is almost here and a new year! It is refreshing to see so many people preparing for Christs birthday and remembering that because of this special birthday we have undeserving salvation! Praise his holy name! Jesus!


Love all the Shaw's

17 weeks and counting!

Yes, another baby Shaw is on her way! We couldn't be more thrilled! Being pregnant is such a surreal time for me. I thought that with a second I would maybe lose that, but nope! I am just as much in awe that something is growing in me as with our first.
The only thing I can't stand about pregnancy is the morning sickness and I tend to be more sick than a 'average' pregnancy. When I was pregnant with Audrey, I ended up in the hospital 3 times, once over 24 hours because of the severity of my sickness. I lost 10lbs and couldn't keep water down. This lasted until about 6 months and I was even taking Zofran to help. This time around wasn't as intense, but I was pretty sick for the first couple of months. I never lost weight, but didn't gain. The hard part about being sick this time is that I have another little person that depends on me to take care of her. I was determind to mentally block out how awful I felt in order to have the strength to take care of her. I cried often. I felt like I was either neglecting Audrey or baby in some way by not focusing 100% on either one. I guess that is somewhat how it will go from now on...balancing my time with two babies that I love equally.
This pregnancy is also special because my sister is pregnant and due around the same time! It is fun to call each other and relay our hardships and perks to one another! It's like a dream come true for my mom too, she is going nuts! She has fallen in love with embroidery and is just waiting to start on about a million projects for her newest grandchildren. She is a wonderful nana! Spencer and I have decided to wait til our newest daughter is born to tell her name and this drives nana crazzzzy! hahaha! It's fun and a test for me because I tend to tell her everything whether or not I intended to or not, she has powers over me. *sorry mom you can't put her name on things til after her birthday!*
So excited that Audrey gets a sister! I loooved having a sister! 17 weeks and counting!