Much Movement

There's a reason no update has been given in over a month; our family has been on the move! We chalk it up to lots of visiting with family and friends, a move across states, and of course prioritizing our sweet baby girl. Some very scientific statistics from this past month:

• Miles traveled in the car by Mommy & Ellie (just this week): 1,400+

• Lost wallets amidst the travels: 1

• Hours Mommy & Ellie flew in a plane: 4

• Days on the June calendar without visits, events, or appointments: 3

• Grandparents who are ELATED to finally live in the same state as their grandbaby: 4

• Percentage of excitement about Ellie's feeding progress: 100%

So to fill in the stories behind the stats, one wonderful experience Ellie and I shared this month was travelling to Minnesota for a dear friend's wedding. I'm pretty sure everyone thought I was a little insane to fly with my 3-month-old alone for a four-day out of state wedding weekend in which I was a bridesmaid. Talk about an almost never-ending pumping/feeding/washing cycle. I have to say, though, that Ellie rocked her first trip on an airplane like a true champ! Seriously, this is her in line for TSA. Happiest human in the room.

We were blessed to be hosted by family friends of the bride who were just amazing hosts and provided the living space we needed and so much more. One of my favorite moments of the weekend was during the Bachelorette party. Ellie was graciously welcomed by the incredible bride and wedding party, so she came everywhere with us. At one point the plan was to walk around a gorgeous lake (think sunset, sailboats, and skyline) and Ellie had fallen asleep in her car seat. I planned to wait with her while the girls took their walk, but those sweet ladies took turns carrying her car seat with one other person so we could join the fun. I wish I had a picture to share that moment, but it encouraged my heart to think of how our little girl is carried by so many in prayer and in practical support for our family. It was a very sweet representation of that reality.

We had so much fun at the wedding!

The weekend after the wedding, we moved from Indiana to Pittsburgh, PA. We firmly believe the Lord has gone before us in preparing this next season. We are both originally from PA, but Chris's first job out of college brought us to Indiana; he wanted to use his engineering skills for missional purposes and has been blessed to do so for the past two years with New Life International. I remember expressing feelings of homesickness to Chris during our first few months in the Midwest, and he empathized but explained that he would need to feel very specifically called to something else in order to leave his job at New Life. Though we didn't know how long we would stay in Indiana, we lived as if it were our permanent home and invested deeply in our church.

Meanwhile, one of our pastors at Oak Park Baptist Church began researching cities in the U.S. as potential locations for a church plant. He kept coming back to Pittsburgh, and we actually challenged him a little bit on that, even though it's our favorite city in the nation. As our pastor continued to pray and seek the Lord for direction, it became clear that he was being led to this city because of its increasing post-Christian culture. It is also a "send city" within the North American Mission Board, which has officially endorsed our pastor as a church planter.

A few months later, our pastor shared his vision for a church plant in the Greenfield neighborhood of Pittsburgh with Chris and me. He asked us to prayerfully consider joining his team, and after about two more months of prayer and seeking wisdom, we committed to this effort! Not only are we excited about the ways we will be challenged and stretched in evangelism and ministry, this move would bring us much closer to our families while our baby is still very young. Chris felt that this calling was serious enough to pursue a different job and we both felt peace about moving away from the life we built in Indiana.

Over and over again we have seen the Lord provide for us and bless this decision. Chris has accepted an engineering position at Bechtel Plant Machinery, Inc. near Pittsburgh - we are so grateful for this opportunity. He needs clearances that take 3-6 months to process, so New Life has graciously allowed him to work remotely in the meantime.

We moved on Sunday, and everything went so smoothly!

As for living arrangements, researching those options felt like too much with everything we have had going on, so we are temporarily taking up residence with Chris's parents until the right house in Pittsburgh hits the market. Four generations under one roof is a sweet thing, especially because we have missed our families so much while living in Indiana.

While we are deeply content and at peace with this move, we are already missing our church family from Oak Park. With tears I drove away from this first home of our married lives and friends who have deeply blessed and impacted our family. During our time in Indiana, our faith has grown much in both our heads and our hearts, and our feet are increasingly compelled to take the gospel to those who don't know Christ. We have come to deeply understand the significance and beauty of the local church, and we have learned so much from those relationships as well as from serving in the children's ministries, teaching Sunday School, and taking on leadership roles. Thankfully we will be back next month for a wedding and a brief reunion!

Now for some absolutely amazing news. If you've followed our story up to this point, you know that one of the most significant aspects of Ellie's disability in these early months has manifested in feeding difficulties. While I was pregnant, I went to breastfeeding classes and took to heart advice such as, "Breastfeed within the first hour of birth. Don't give the baby a bottle, formula, or a pacifier because nipple confusion will occur and be the end of the world. Don't let the hospital persuade you to do any of those things or you will sabotage your breastfeeding journey. Don't use a shield; every baby can and will breastfeed. When in doubt, your lactation consultant will help you make it work."

Guess what? Ellie didn't breastfeed within the first hour. She would not latch or transfer milk, even with the help of a lactation consultant. The hospital staff urged me to give her a bottle of formula and I resisted at first, clinging to my training and dogmatic belief that breast milk was the best thing for my baby. When my milk wouldn't come in due to my hemorrhaging and Ellie showed signs of dehydration, I agreed to formula and cried as we syringed it into our poor lethargic baby's mouth. It has truly been an emotional journey trying to keep her fed ever since.

Our speech pathologist has been an amazing resource and I know she is a means of grace, but I have to give God the most glory for this one: last Tuesday I decided to try breastfeeding for the 50th time for no particular reason, and guess what happened? Ellie nursed successfully for a full half hour! At first I was guarded about getting excited, but after a week and a half of exclusively breastfeeding with no change in diaper output or her disposition and weight gain consistent with her growth curve, we can happily announce that she is breastfeeding. It is such a joyful answer to prayer and an incredible indicator of Ellie's growth and progress. When I think of the fact that many babies and children with Cri du Chat Syndrome are on feeding tubes, I am just amazed at the grace of God in giving this gift above and beyond what is normal or expected. Please join us in giving him praise and glory for this!

We celebrated four months yesterday!

As for prayer needs:

• Thank you to those who have prayed for travelling mercies for us; not only have we stayed safe across many miles of flying and driving, but Ellie has done an amazing job along for each ride and has grown much more tolerant of her car seat. She has even fallen asleep without any fuss at times, which never would have happened a couple of months ago.

• My wrist is still not really functioning without pain. I am wearing a brace and got a Cortisone shot last week, so hopefully that will kill the inflammation. Please pray for complete healing so that I won't need surgery!

• The Medicaid/insurance saga continues and grows evermore complicated as we have moved across state lines. Without going into all of the details, it is just really frustrating. Please pray we can get Ellie the coverage she needs!

• On July 8 we have an appointment at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh with Medical Genetics. Getting this appointment was a miracle in itself because they are booked out into January - praise the Lord! Please pray we will have a productive appointment and obtain referrals to great doctors and therapists who are knowledgeable about Cri du Chat Syndrome and Congenital Vertical Talus. What a blessing to live within minutes of a highly reputable children's hospital!

Thanks for reading and praying for our family! This is my prayer for you, our readers, from Ephesians 3:14-21:

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.