A Funny 6 Year Old

So, today was a nice Sabbath day. We went to fellowship, then came home and while the two little ones napped, Gary, Bekah and I watched a movie til the girls woke up. We were able to rest and get some things done around the house. The girls all played outside while I trimmed the hedges and Gary mowed, then we just did yard work and odds and ends around the house. After the babies went to bed, we played Hullabaloo and then had dessert while playing Yahtzee together.

Bekah asked for sprinkles on her ice cream, so she got them out and put some in the lid of the jar to sprinkle on her ice cream, but accidentally spilled them all over the floor. We were like, whoops...now they have to be picked up. She proceeded to get down and pick them up one by one and then said..."You know, I could use some help here. And God really likes when people help each other." Gary and I just busted out laughing...while helping her clean them up, of course. Stinking funny.

That was a nice way to end the day. Especially after having some rough inner battles with things. I was an emotional mess this morning...nothing bad going on, just very pregnant and overwhelmed. Well, I don't even know if I can explain it. Except that mix hormones with a very already passionate personality and I just cry sometimes. Really, there are some very important things that I'm burdened about that I shared with Gary last night til the wee hours of the morning that I had on my heart on the way to fellowship this morning. We talked more about them on the way there, then of course, people ask how you are, and...yeah. Then you hear about 6 week old babies diagnosed with cancer and people struggling with different things during prayer requests that just sends you over the edge to a big sobbing mess. Sometimes, like this morning, I just really wanted Jesus to come take us home. Or at least me. But it's okay. He's sovereign. So I'll be okay. As long as I run to Him. Thankfully, a friend sat and just listened to me and my concerns and my attempt to explain the tears and she committed to praying this week. It's so good of God to give us the Church. 

There's much going on within my heart and mind that I don't have the time or energy to type out right now...but maybe in snippets. I'll share them as words come. In the meantime, pray with me. And watch God do His thing. He is so good!

Happy 4th of July!

Ffffrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeedddoommmmmm!!!!!!!  (said in the most Braveheart way possible)  That's what we celebrated on the 4th, at our home, with close to 60 of our family and friends. It was bittersweet for me, and I got kinda emotional during the afternoon preparing for the party, as I realized that this may be the final big party we host in this home. (more to come on that later)  It's not that the house itself is what I treasure, but the house represents a LOT of God's work within our lives this past 4 1/2 years. I really need to post on this...there is so much I've been wanting to say, but cannot think how to condense it all into words. I promise, I will post on this next week.

So back to the party...We had a good time of fellowship, yummy food, reflecting on true freedom, and of course, fireworks. Gary prepared a little sharing time on what freedom really means, why we celebrate as christians- freedom in Christ, being set free from the bondage of slavery, and free to serve Him. As well as the appreciation of those who sacrifice and serve our country to preserve the freedom we have in the US to worship freely. 

We have a friend who re-enlisted in the National Guard to go into officer training. He has a wife and three children. He's currently in the States receiving training that is apparently pretty tough. He's gone for like 9-10 weeks for the first phase, and has two more phases after this to complete his training. He's not overseas, but to see the sacrifice of the whole family in just this amount of time has made us much more aware of what those who serve in the military go through. It is tough. Everyone brought snacks for a care package to send to him- we hope it will lift his spirits to know that we're praying for him. 

So, this 4th of July, Gary and I are grateful for the freedom we have in Christ. There's a renewed sense of gratefulness and joy in the God who has enabled us this freedom. We are humbled to know that there are those who serve our family with great sacrifice to preserve the freedoms we enjoy, and often take for granted, in this country. We are made aware of our other brothers and sisters in Christ around the world who do not have the same freedoms. And we are made to pray. To not be so self centered, consumed with just our "little world", but again, to seek the Lord and allow His Spirit to move us to acts of love in His name. Freedom!

Adam's care package:

The girls in their red, white, and blue:

Belle enjoyed the watermelon:

Gary sharing on true freedom:

Some of the kids making red, white, and blue prayer bracelets:

The annual picture with the flag cake (I left it in the oven too long and it got dried out. I may have to make another one for us to try again!):

Friends, old and new

This past weekend, we had a nice, though short, visit from some of our friends from Houston. They were coming in for their daughter-in-laws family reunion in Arkansas, so since they were so close, they came for an extra day to visit. It was nice to get to see them, even if only for a little while. We enjoyed dinner all together with my parents and the Igos on Saturday night. Of course, afterward, the men were piddling around, and Fred, having been in a vehicle for so long, just HAD to do some work. So, they cleaned out our gutters and took the antenna off of the roof, which was on our list of things to do. Fred and Karen were a part of the youth ministry at Spring Woods while we ministered there, and their son Shaun was in the youth group. Shaun wasn't able to come, but Chris and his wife Tori, who is pregnant and due only 1 day after me with their 1st baby, came and it was neat to get to know them. Karen's mom Ruby, is a sweet lady, so funny and has a lot of wisdom. We're so grateful for them, and for the reminder of what God did in our life through that time at Spring Woods. Every time we look back at what God has done, it encourages us for what is next, whatever that may be!

Karen, Fred, Ruby, Chris, Tori and baby  :)

The pregnant women, only 1 day apart in due date

Hirsch Wordle, January-June 2008

Here's a cool little thing to do...my friend Amber had it on her blog, so I did it for our blog too. It's from the very first blog we posted til now, basically January through June. It's a copy and paste, with the words sized in accordance to the usage. It's pretty cool. You can click on it to see it larger. Here's ours:

And the next Baby Hirsch is...

another little princess! Yes, we found out today that we are having another little girl!

So, being that we have to be tortured for our ultrasounds- full bladder, ready to explode, waiting to be seen, baby kicking bladder, having to move and actually walk to the table while praying that you don't sneeze and totally lose all contents of bladder in the process- well, today, my husband got to actually see how much this woman's bladder holds. I drank my two bottles of water. I was getting up to go to the bathroom, cause we'd been waiting for like 30-45 minutes already, and I was in serious pain, when she came up to get us. I get through the door and tell the ultrasound tech- there can be no small talk, I am seriously hurting here. So she's gracious enough to speed the process up and get going. She proceeds to put the wand on my belly and let's out a- oh my gosh!- and of course, Gary is like, what?! Are there twins?!  (now wouldn't THAT be fun!) And she told him- no, I have never seen a bladder this big on a pregnant woman. And then proceeds to give her apologizes to me and hurries to get the full bladder pics and, praise be to God, let me go empty it before finishing. So now there is proof that I really am not whining or being wimpy when I finally DO have to go to the bathroom.  :)

Anyway, so this baby...I am scared. She would not cooperate. She is breech (no big deal, Belle & Bethany were up til the week before delivery), but it doesn't give the best shot at taking a peek. And she had her heel right between her legs. Then, the tech said that she'd just go ahead and take the pics and measurements of the other parts she needed and try to see if she'd move at some point to see. Well, she was trying to get pics of a certain thing, and the baby would move. The tech would move the wand, get the area she needed, and baby would move again. Little booger. Gary says this is going to be another momma's personality baby.   :)   Lord, have mercy!  

One cute thing we got to see during the process was her yawning. We could see her mouth open up and close. It was sweet. It was like she was mocking us. This is taking so long...aaaaauuuuuuuuggggggghhhhhhh*yawn*  Funny.

But, finally she quickly moved her foot and you could see the clear markings of a baby girl. Yes, Gary is WAY out numbered. Pray for him. :)  He is excited. And makes a wonderful daddy to sweet little girls.

On a more serious note, I was reminded again of God's sovereignty and His hand. Earlier this week I ran across Angie Smith's blog. If you haven't heard her story, be blessed in seeing God use pain for the glory of His name and check out her blog at audreycaroline.blogspot.com when you have some free moments and a box of tissues. Nothing extraordinary about her but the grace of God in her life. Part of her story includes finding out at her 20 week ultrasound/check up that their baby girl Audrey Caroline was not going to live. She had major complications that was going to keep her from living more than a few hours. Because of reading this whole story  (every single blog in one late night) right before my own 20 week ultrasound, I found myself before God, again laying down my "Isaac" and being reminded of what I treasure more than even this precious life within my womb. More than my most prized possession on this earth, my husband. I was reminded that God is good, regardless of what He chooses to give or take away. And again I was reminded to offer it back up to Him for His glory, and however He wants to reveal His glory. Even if that meant some "horrible" news at this 20 week ultrasound about the health and well being of our baby. I am grateful for how gracious God is to give me these reminders to keep my heart in check. The reality is, I didn't know it was all going to be fine. The reality is, He has every right to glorify Himself however He desires within our life. Even if it's not what I would ideally choose. The reality is, He is God. And that is enough. What a gracious God.

Baby Girl #4- we love you and are praying that your whole life- and eventual death- would continually remind those around you that God is enough. That even in the midst of hard things, hurtful things, and yes, joyful things, we would keep faith. Faith in a holy, gracious God that is wholly enough. Yes, your name will include Faith. We know that.  :)

Praising the Father for Fathers

Yesterday was Father's Day...and we celebrated after fellowship at a family friend's house, a combined celebration of Father's Day and my Dad's birthday which is on Wednesday. I wanted to spend a moment to thank God, my heavenly Father, for the ways He's manifested Himself through the different fathers in my life.

First, He is the ultimate Father. Abba. Daddy. More than just the disciplinarian- though He is VERY that too...He is also the one that comforts me in pain and that I feel secure with in the midst of it. He is very near. My comfort. My strength. The One who can do anything.

I've seen Him through these particular "fathers" in my own life:

1) My biological father- There is much pain and hurt represented there, but because of him, I ran to other things for a source of love, which then pointed me to my heavenly Father who has and continues to heal those hurts and uses them for His glory, my good, and the edification of His church. I am grateful for how God has chosen to use him in my life.

2) My step-dad- My Daddy, not always perfect, far from it, but used to show me the realities of a life that desires God and struggles through the flesh and gets to experience Him regardless. He probably has no idea how much Gary and I have learned because of him- only because, some of the learning wasn't "purposed."

3) My husband- My love, the Daddy to my children. He is SO wonderful, I don't even know what to say. He's not Jesus. Cannot and will never satisfy my heart. But because of our marriage, I am drawn to the One who does. He's so...mine. Perfect for me. The weird things, the annoying things, the hysterical things, the loving things- all designed to match mine and cause me to see God more. He's so patient with me, loving, teaches me much through the way he lives. He's such a wonderful daddy too. Comes home from a long day at work and doesn't retreat, but dies to self and gives of himself to me and to our girls, laughing, playing, doing work around the house. He is strong, firm, but so gentle, sensitive. Walks in truth. Stands for truth, even if alone. A sweet man with a peculiar sense of humor. He can make me laugh like no other. And cry like no other. And think like no other. I praise God for Him.

4) My father-in-law- Okay, can you say country man? Yes, this self professed "city girl" has a farmer of a father-in-law, and we get along very well. He needs a personal relationship with the Lord- regeneration- and that is what we pray. In these last couple of years, I have appreciated getting to know him more personally as we've both opened up and shared more with each other. He has definitely been used to refine me- his "I'll be there in about 5 minutes" is usually at least an hour later- but he's so friendly, funny, a hard worker, and wants to help others. He's got a lot of wisdom in the experiences of life he's been through. I am grateful to the Lord for him.

Thank you, Father, for these men whom you've used to show me glimpses of You. Thank you for the ways you choose to reveal Yourself. They are gifts. Not all are always pleasant, but each does cause me to see more of you. And that is our desire. Whatever the cost, whatever...be our Treasure. 

Seeing God in the Every Day

So, life continues in the Hirsch home, as the busy-ness dies down just a little. Gary was gone on a business trip from Sunday afternoon til Tuesday evening, so we stayed out at my parent's house. We had a good time with Poppy and Gammy, Tia and ChiChi. Even got to go to the pool a couple times earlier this week, and met the Igos there. These past couple of days we've just been hanging around the house, getting house work done and errands run. 

In the midst of the "every day" things, I've enjoyed getting to actually ENJOY my children, observing them a little closer and cherishing the moments that I know will seem so long ago in just a short time. I'm even beginning to enjoy being pregnant. And THAT is a miracle, people! I HATE pregnancy. I LOVE the babies, but I am not one that enjoys the whole getting fat, stretch marks, feeling sick to my stomach, more tired than I've ever felt, etc...but, that's not the case in this pregnancy anymore, well, besides the fatness and stretch marks.  :)  Really, I think this is the best I've felt during pregnancy so far. Gary jokes- see, by the end of them all, you won't even be able to tell that you're pregnant...ha.

Anyway, so Gary usually prays with Bekah at bedtime. They have their whole little ritual thing, and it kinda gets messed up when he's gone. While he was gone, I was praying with her and she asked God to please keep Daddy safe and bring him home to us safely. When he got home, she was praying with him and thanked God for bringing him home safely. Gary prayed out loud then, and asked God for strength for the next day at work, to unload the trailer. After he'd said amen, Bekah looked at him funny and said- Daddy, why'd you pray that? He told her- cause Daddy's really tired from the trip and doesn't feel like unloading the trailer tomorrow. She said- oh, okay. So, the next morning at breakfast, after thanking God for the food, she prayed for Daddy for strength. He got home and she asked him right away how his day went and if he got the trailer unloaded. He told her- half way. (this is a 24 ft trailer loaded from top to bottom) So the next day, which was yesterday, she prayed for him again at breakfast, that God would give him the strength the get the trailer all unloaded. Last night she asked him again how it went at work and if he got the trailer done. He said- yes! She was so excited and at dinner she thanked God for giving Daddy the strength to get the trailer all unloaded. And my eyes welled up with tears. Something so simple, and so necessary. What is even better is that two nights ago, after the kids were in bed, Gary and I were looking through bills, at the work schedule, etc., and were a bit stressed about things. There is a lot going on within the business right now, and it seems like there is just so much within our life as a whole, that there isn't enough time to get everything done that HAS TO get done even. We argued a little, but came to the point of just talking through things. We prayed together and then looked at it all again. It was really good, and we went to bed with not everything figured out, but confident God will work it out. Tired, but resting in the strength God provides. The next day, God answered a very specific prayer of Gary's, which was very encouraging, and then that evening is when Bekah told him she'd prayed for him and then thanked God at dinner for giving Daddy strength. It blessed my heart to watch our daughter minister to the heart of her Daddy, my love, without even purposing or knowing that she was. She was just doing what she knows to do. And she has no idea just how much of a blessing that was to us both. 

That's what I think God wants us to be like. Not so much "purposing" to bless others, as much as walking in Spirit and truth, doing "what we know to do".  The blessings to others will come as an overflowing of doing what we're supposed to be doing, walking in obedience to Him. And we might not even know when we bless others. Life in the Spirit isn't dutiful. It's delight. It's doing what we know we're supposed to be doing, but actually ENJOYING doing it. That's why it's Spirit life. Cause we can't make ourselves LIKE it. So, Holy Spirit, would you please pour yourself out today on your church? Cause us to walk in obedience and overflow to others around us. Make us aware of opportunities to love on others and enjoy fulfilling those acts of love. Glorify your name.