November 1, 2006

Transition

Most of you know that our house has been on the market for 8 months while Andy had been commuting an hour to Grapevine everyday. We desperately wanted to live closer to Andy’s job before the baby came. Andy was very content at his job, and we thought Texas would be our home for the long haul.

Three weeks ago Andy got a call from a ministry in Marietta, Georgia called Right from the Heart, an outreach ministry of Bryant Wright, the pastor of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church. They wanted to know if he was interested in coming to work there as their web site manager. We didn’t consider it since we had a house that wouldn’t sell and I was starting my 5th month of a pregnancy that was full of complications. The day after Right from the Heart called our house sold. We started to think about moving closer to home.

After much thought we decided to take the job in Georgia. We close on our house on Friday, November 10th. Andy will start at Right form the Heart some time that following week. Most of our belongings are headed to a storage building in Marietta. We are trying to find a temporary place to stay there while Andy starts his new job and we look for a house.

It is really with mixed emotion that we are leaving Texas. We have been really happy here, but we have missed home and seeing family more often. The traveling and saying good bye to family has gotten harder as Caleb has gotten older. I have been blessed with such good friends since Caleb’s birth. They are the hardest part of leaving. Andy has really loved working at Fellowship Church, but he’s more concerned about following God’s direction and doing what is best for our family. I know he’s going to miss the guys in his office.

We thought we could manage without family support nearby, but the last month was a big wake up call for us. I was in so much pain the last three weeks of pregnancy that I couldn’t care for Caleb. We had to send him 12 hours away to my mom’s house. He loved it, but it broke our hearts to send him so far away. Anna’s death last week made us long for family like we never had before. We just don’t understand why it is becoming such a trend to live so far away from family. The older we get, the more it doesn’t make sense.

Several people have asked if we are excited about the move to Atlanta. The answer is that there is nothing in life that we can feel very excited about right now. However, we do think the move is the right thing for us now. We know that God, not time, will slowly bring healing and make things a little easier. Also, a fresh start in a new city gives us something to put our energy into.

The days since Anna’s death have been very dark. It never crossed our minds that something would happen to her. Two weeks ago we certainly couldn’t imagine premature labor and the delivery of a stillborn baby. I don’t think I would be able to get out of bed in the morning if it wasn’t for the fact that I know Caleb depends on me.

Thankfully, we had never told Caleb that I was pregnant. All along, I knew that something wasn’t going right with this pregancy, so we delayed telling him that he was going to be a big brother. That means that we don’t have to try to explain why mommy is not going to have a baby. One day we’ll tell him about it.

Thank you to all of you who have sent flowers or cards, brought meals, offered to take care of Caleb, and prayed for us. We have felt such an outpouring of love and support over the past week.

Please continue to pray for us. Here are the ways you can pray:

1. Rest- Sleeping has been difficult since I’ve been home from the hospital. I have only been getting 2-3 hours of sleep a night. I admitted defeat and had the doctor call me in a sleeping pill yesterday. It helped last night, but pray that when the pills run out that I’ll still be able to sleep.
2. Physical healing – My body is starting to feel better. I was able to walk around the block today while Caleb rode his tricycle. It was the first time in weeks that I could walk without being in pain. I had a massive blood loss the three weeks leading up to the delivery. Then severe bleeding during the delivery made my anemia much worse. I am on a prescription iron, but the doctor warned that it would be a while before I felt normal again. Also pray that one day we will be able to have another child. After all we have been through it seems scary trying to have a baby again in the distant future.
3. Our move – Starting a new job, finding a temporary place to stay, finding a house, making new friends, etc. We hope to feel settled as soon as possible since everything in life feels so out of control right now. Pray that Caleb will make a smooth transition during all of the changes around him.

1. Emotional and spiritual healing – Right now it seems like we will hurt forever. Pray that we don’t end up bitter or filled with anger and resentment. Please remember that we will always miss Anna. She will forever be part of our family. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and her due date at the first of March seem especially difficult.

   Thanks for praying,
   Tiffany