Maggie the middle child

In the months following Maggie's birth, I often heard the question "do you think that you will have any more children?" My answer was always the same:  "I think Maggie will be a middle child, just like her momma." It now appears that Maggie and I have something in common. I know that she is smiling down on me from heaven and is excited about her baby brother growing in my tummy. There hasn't been a day gone by that I haven't thought about Maggie and I will never seek to replace her. However, even while I was still pregnant with Maggie, I was confident that God wanted our family to continue to grow. I am past the halfway mark with this pregnancy and am excited to announce that a healthy baby boy will be joining our family in November. When I first found out I was pregnant, I was really excited but also struggled with fear. Again, I asked God for a covering of peace. He provided that peace by continuing to reveal ways that Maggie's life impacted the lives of others. I want to say thank you to all those who shared with me the ways that Maggie made a difference in your lives.

I am so thankful for the good reports I received from the doctor at my 20 week ultrasound a few weeks ago. Both Charles and I felt such a heavy load lifted from our shoulders when we found out I was carrying a healthy baby boy. The weeks leading up to the ultrasound were very emotional and I still have moments of sadness. Now that my "baby bump" is in full bloom, I often get asked by well-meaning strangers if this is my first/only child. At first, I had such a difficult time answering this question. I didn't want to have to explain about Maggie to those who didn't know, but I also felt like it was a betrayal if I didn't acknowledge her. The truth is she will always be a part of our family and I will never forget her. She knows that she is loved and that is all that matters. I found that the best way to answer the "how many children do you have" question is to simply say that "I have a four-year-old at home with me" and leave it at that. Carson, of course, is excited about the new addition to our family and continues to reference his baby brother as "the NEW baby in mommy's tummy" and sometimes still refers to "he" as "she." He is such a great big brother! We feel blessed that both Carson and our new baby boy will have an extra set of angel eyes watching them from heaven.