Blessed? Oh yes!

   I think that I have written about my struggle with change before on the blog, and now I guess I am going to do it again. It seems that I always get around to blogging when there has been a change in our life or something has not worked out exactly as we had planned. Again, the Lord is using the uncertainty of change and circumstances in our life to teach me patience and reliance on Him. I guess I still have much to learn in this area of my life!

   So we are currently in Lima. Lima is a really large city, with 8 million people. There are fun things like parks and food courts! There are movie theaters. The grocery store is like walking through the mall, as I look at every item on every shelf in awe of the fact that you can actually buy so many foods from the US. It is definitely the closest thing to the US for us right now. So, you would ask, why are we in Lima?

  A few weeks ago we saw our obstetrician in Cusco and an ultrasound revealed that, at 34 weeks, our sweet baby boy was very small on the growth curve. After further testing, which thankfully was relatively normal, we were advised that it would probably be best to have the baby in a larger city. The doctors thought that one of the problems with the growth of the baby was because of lack of oxygen at high altitude.  For weeks I had been waking up in the middle of the night unable to breath and gasping for air. Breathing for two can be difficult at times in 11,000 feet above sea level. I also had a bit of anemia combined with this difficulty, and that made things even worse as far as getting oxygen to the baby. So I started using oxygen at night, which other than being a bit uncomfortable, helped tremendously. That really sealed the deal for the doctors that we needed to not only get to a big city with a well-equiped NICU in case the baby was born small or underdeveloped, but also to sea level where I could breath better and hopefully the baby could develop better for a few weeks.

Almost 37 weeks

   Thankfully we have dear dear friends from the United Kingdom that have a friend with an apartment in Lima that we are able to use, and our dear friend Anjanette came with us to help take care of Luke. And that is the best part of it all: Luke is with us! We have been to Lima several times over the last year  during the long process with him and have dreamed of a day that we might take him to the park or stroll next to the ocean with him.....and here we are! It is like a dream come true. The Lord allowed him to receive a birth certificate from the judge 4 days before we decided to travel to Lima. Without this birth certificate it would have been impossible for him to have travelled with us. The Lord continues to provide.

Our sweet friend Anjanette who is here with us in Lima

    So, our days are a bit slower right now. Of course Nathan can always find things to keep him busy, like Peruvian ophthalmology society conferences, or interviews with medical schools, or keeping up with medical contacts here in Lima, but overall we are really enjoying the rest and precious time with Luke. We have now had two appointments with a really kind obstetrician here in Lima, and it seems that the baby is growing ok and that the circulation from my placenta is sufficient to continue the pregnancy for now. We are evaluating this weekly, but feel very thankful that we are right where we need to be if the baby happens to decide to come! We will be here in Lima until after the baby is born.

    Once again we are faced with a big change, with a good bit of uncertainty, but as we have always seen....the Lord continually provides for us, in ways that supersede our expectations. I was thinking last night about how blessed we are for a rest, for unforgettable time with Luke, for time with sweet friends and family, for walks and ice cream in the park. I have to pinch myself and remember that the Lord has given me a family, one that I don't deserve, but that I am so grateful to have.

   We will keep updating as we have more details about our newest little one.

Luke's first plane ride

Playing with daddy

Loves to swing!