A poem for the new year

2020 taught me... 

I learned how to be careless 

without caring less 

about that which matters most. 

I learned to be full of care 

instead of fear 

when being careful. 

I learned that everyone 

needs grace. 

And I learned the importance of making space 

Literally and figuratively. 

I learned to listen to my heart

In new ways

And how to feel peace 

During uncertain days.

With this year nearly over and done, 

I reflect on the bitter, sweet, and fun. 

Throughout these memories one thing is clear: 

help from God is always near. 

written December 27th 2020

What Did Mary Know?

"You're pregnant." These two little words really pack a punch, don't they? Even if we add the words "going to be," pregnancy is an emotional roller coaster as everyone knows.

Painting by Mary Ellen Diedrich

Not everyone knows what it's like to struggle to get pregnant. Knowing about "the birds and the bees" and acting on that knowledge, whether it results in pregnancy or not, doesn't mean you'll know the gender of the baby or the significant details of its mortality. There are some things we simply do not know.

When the angel Gabriel leaves after his conversation with the virgin Mary, there are still a lot of unknowns. And frankly even the certainty of her pregnancy might not have been very reassuring. 

In the writings of Luke, we read what is known as the Magnificat. It is Mary's testimony to her cousin Elizabeth, and it begins, "My soul doth magnify the Lord." It is a beautiful witness of what she knows. She emphasizes God's mercy and power and concludes with her knowledge of the Abrahamic covenant. She is leaning in to what she knows. When her fiancé Joseph receives an angelic message in his sleep, he chooses to act on the knowledge by supporting Mary through her difficult pregnancy and ultimately raising the Son of God as his own. What beautiful examples of faith in the face of uncertainty!

One chapter later, we read of the testimony and prophesies of Simeon and Anna at the temple. They emphasize the central role of baby Jesus as the promised Savior of the world. 

As young teenager, Jesus goes missing for a few days. When his parents find him in the temple learning and teaching, Mary confronts her son. He responds with a question that shows his growing knowledge of His own role in His Father's business: His work and glory is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. (Moses 1:39)

Many feel understandably uncomfortable with uncertainty and opposition. It is, however, part of the universal experience of mortality. Some mock the faith of others as blind. Others forget that even the faithful have doubts or questions they're choosing to live with.

When Mary asked, "How can this be?" the angel's answer certainly left room for faith as this saintly young woman bravely replied, "Behold, the handmaid of the Lord."

Yes, Mary knew the prophecies concerning the Messiah. She knew "this child that you delivered will soon deliver you." She couldn't have known all the miracles He would perform during his mortal ministry. She couldn't have known that magi would travel from afar bearing royal gifts for the toddler Prince of Peace or that these gifts would aid her family in their imminent relocation to Egypt.

The scriptures don't tell us all of her thoughts and feelings. But we do know that she treasured and pondered much. (Luke 2:19) For me the song "Mary, Did You Know?" is not a patronizing example of mansplaining. It's an awe-filled study of how she lived with what she didn't know by treasuring the truths she knew and the truths others shared. Even knowing who Jesus was and is doesn't mean you know all that He did and we yet do or how He does those things. That is, in a nutshell, the celebratory power of faith.

And He shall be called Wonderful

 Nombre

One of the first conversations most Spanish students learn is how to ask someone what their name is and respond. The literal translation is, "How are you called?" and "I call myself..." Christmas is a time when I ponder the many names of my Savior, especially last year.

Me llamo Danielle.

My name is based on an ancestral surname, Daniels-Brown. It was one of the top 3 choices and the second favorite of both my parents. (Michelle and Nicole were the other top choices if you're curious.) My name therefore reminds me of my family. I love my name for these reasons, but most of all for its Hebrew translation: God is my judge. It reminds me of the person I hope to become, someone with integrity who always cares most about what my God thinks of me

He or She?

Last Christmas as when we chose to discover the gender of our IVF baby who would join our family almost exactly two months later. By then we were already narrowing down our list of names. We wanted to take a list of our top names to the hospital and try them out after the birth, like we did with our now 8 year old daughter. We liked the idea of using a classic name, a scriptural name, a family name, a meaningful name.

The name we ended up choosing for our son is Jonathan Eugene. Jonathan is for my little brother and my uncle, as well as the biblical prince and loyal friend to David. All are examples of meekness, an attribute of Christ I hope my son will embody. The name Jonathan means "gift of God" and therefore especially celebrates in gratitude the 8 year wait for our IVF baby. Eugene is the middle name of my paternal grandfather who passed away two years ago. It is my understanding that the name means well born, which is saying something given Jonathan's birth story and even the miraculous birth of my grandfather two months early.

As I take this month to reflect on the many names of Jesus Christ, I love what each one teaches me. He life, death, and resurrection truly are "a great vicarious gift on behalf of all who would ever live upon the earth." As I look back on 2020 and as I look forward to the coming year, I sing:

He gives us hope when hope is gone. He gives a strength when we can't go on. he gives us shelter in the storms of life. When there's no peace on Earth, there is peace in Christ. #givehope

Gratitude and Unity: Lessons from 2020

I am grateful for my body and its limits. I often feel my healthiest and most balanced while pregnant. Getting back to pre-pregnancy weight isn't one of my goals, though it happens naturally enough as I have been blessed to breastfeed both my babies. Exercising and being grateful for my body comes most naturally during pregnancy and is often most difficult for me post partum.

I am grateful for my rapidly growing baby boy. Because my 9 month old has almost outgrown his infant car seat in height and has been more than 20 pounds for several months now, I am developing arm muscle and definition I haven't ever enjoyed in my previous 32 years of life. I am also developing shoulder and hip injuries from carrying him outside my womb, and so I give thanks for my massage therapist, chiropractor, and personal trainer and for the financial means to afford such excellent care and treatment.

I am most grateful for my friend and personal trainer, Gretchen Weise, teaching me how to listen to my body. From our joint discoveries I have been reminded of life lessons I learned from my former voice teacher, Cynthia Haymon Coleman. Sometimes in singing (and elsewhere in life) I try to use part of my body to be helpful by doing things it wasn't designed to do. If I couldn't have that favorite muscle group do it all then I condemned all its behavior as bad. 

But lately I have been learning to listen without judgement and for that I am grateful. For example, it's easier to feel supported and connected when I think about using my whole body to do whatever I'm doing. I used to consciously try and only use certain parts of my body or compartmentalize and consciously cue each individual muscle group I wanted to use rather than just drop in and say "hi, I want to sit," and let my whole body effortlessly respond, "I got this."

That led to realizations about how as a member of one body, say my family, I sometimes try to do it all or do something that isn't inherently mine. When instead I could trust the other members of the body to work together as one with me to clean or build unity or whatever we choose to do.

Oneness of purpose really does bring ease. And God only knows 2020 could use some ease.

I am also grateful to find such teachings in the scriptures. For example, this scripture written by the apostle Paul:

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body.

How are you achieving unity and oneness of purpose in your home? In your neighborhood and online communities? I want to know. 

Here's one last bit of food for thought: By Union of Feeling We Obtain Power with God

'Tis the season: Focusing in on What Matters Most

It is 39 days until Christmas! This afternoon I showed Jonathan his first Christmas music video and he was in awe. Christmas for me is filled with traditions celebrating light and service, modeled after Christ's birth and life. We usually do a lot of reflection and service as part of our countdown in addition to the annual nativity reenactment on Christmas Eve. We don’t listen to much non-religious Christmas music, and we study the miracles of the first Christmas as we recall miracles from our own lifetime. 

So in the debate about "when is it too early to celebrate Christmas?" I personally prefer to find ways to celebrate like this year-round! No, I wasn't asked to preach about an early Christmas this year or even the very first Christmas. 

I was asked to speak about coming to Christ by centering on Him and His teachings. The famous wise men of old traveled far looking for the young Christ child; they knew how to come unto him because they recognized God's promises and followed the star. Another wise man is spoken of in scripture and song as building his home on the Rock. We can be like both types of wise men when we build our homes and lives on the teachings of Jesus Christ. 

In this past general conference Bishop Wadell taught: “Everything, then, points to Jesus Christ as the foundation upon which we must build even our temporal preparedness.” In scripture, Jesus is known as the Rock or Chief Cornerstone. "A cornerstone (or foundation stone...) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure." (Wikipedia) 

Finding Center and Building Focus

Now I haven't ever tried to build something like that but I'm guessing that most of are like me in that you have drawn a circle! When you want to draw a perfect circle, you measure every point an equal distance from the center. In the October 2015 general conference, there was a story shared of a Japanese potter teaching youth about the importance of centering the clay exactly on the wheel in order for it to be molded into anything. This reminds me of a beautiful hymn and scripture which reads: 

Have thine own way Lord, have thine own way. Thou art the Potter; I am The Clay. Mold me and make me after thy will, while I am waiting yielded and still.

In that same session, Sister Neill F. Marriott taught: How do we, a modern, busy, competitive people, become yielded and still? How do we make the Lord’s ways our ways? I believe we begin by learning of Him and praying for understanding. As our trust in Him grows, we open our hearts, seek to do His will, and wait for answers that will help us understand. 

In practicing mindfulness, one learns to find and "hold center" in the midst of chaos. And 2020 has been chaotic. We need to hold space front and center for Christ in our minds and hearts. And when on occasion that seems to be more than we can do, we must remember that God is always holding space for us. 

"Hope in the Hands of the Potter "

For purchase here.

How do we "hold space" for God? 

In the most recent general conference, President Nelson shared a translation for the word Israel: let God prevail. Prevail doesn't just mean to be victorious against opposing forces; it means frequent, predominant, and persistent. If God is prevailing in our life, it means we are coming unto Him and being filled with His love and light. 

A friend of mine recently commented to me: What we fix our eyes on and fill our minds with truly influences our hearts. "Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not” (Doctrine and Covenants 6:36). So… what do you do when there's nothing to do? What do you think when you choose what to think about? What fills your mind and heart? 

Imagine you're holding space literally and figuratively as you hold a perfect cup of hot cocoa in your hands. What happens if I am in a hurry and bump into you as I rush past? What happens to that cocoa in your cup? Why did you spill it? Because I bumped into you? Well yes. And no. If there had been milk in your cup, you would have spilled milk. You see, life has given each of us a cup and we get to decide how to fill it. 

How Christ's Atonement Holds Space for Us

What can we do when life makes us spill our "cup of milk?" I believe it's okay to feel discouraged and maybe even "cry over spilled milk." But we must also remember what President Boyd K. Packer once taught: “Restoring what you cannot restore, healing the wound you cannot heal, fixing that which you broke and you cannot fix is the very purpose of the atonement of Christ.” It is enough and it magnifies our efforts so we can become enough. 

In our Stake Conference last week, Sister Caitlyn Cooney bore a powerful witness that “As we strengthen our testimony of Christ and his gospel, and as we trust Him and His atonement while seeking to do the Father’s will, we can use our hands to lift, love, and serve our brothers and sisters. This will bring joy in this life and the life to come.” I add my testimony to hers and to Sister Harkness when she taught last month: 

Regardless of our circumstances, we can intentionally make efforts to build and increase our faith in Jesus Christ. It is strengthened when we remember that we are children of God and that He loves us. Our faith grows as we experiment on the word of God with hope and diligence, trying our very best to follow Christ’s teachings. Our faith increases as we choose to believe rather than doubt, forgive rather than judge, repent rather than rebel. Our faith is refined as we patiently rely on the merits and mercy and grace of the Holy Messiah. 

“While faith is not a perfect knowledge,” Elder Neal A. Maxwell said, “it brings a deep trust in God, whose knowledge is perfect!”

What does being centered in Christ feel like? 

When we are centered aesthetically speaking, we are balanced. I believe when we are centered on Christ when we find balance in Him and are able to find peace and joy no matter our circumstances. Like the hymn promises: 

"There is peace in Christ 

When we learn of Him 

Feel the love He felt for us 

When He bore our sins 

Listen to His words 

Let them come alive 

If we know Him as He is 

There is peace in Christ 

He gives us hope 

When hope is gone 

He give us strength 

When we can't go on 

He give us shelter 

In the storms of life 

When there's no peace on Earth 

There is peace in Christ." 

His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come. Let him lead you, guide you, walk beside you and teach you all that you must do because "True faith is focused in and on the Lord Jesus Christ and always leads to action.” He has promised that if we come unto him--center on him--we will find an unearthly peace and rest. Matt. 11:28-30

How Secondary Infertility Served Me

As my due date of Valentine's Day is a mere ten days away, I find myself learning "how to savor every moment slowly." In many ways this pregnancy has flown by, but at the same time it has felt much longer than 9 months. Many already know that this miraculous pregnancy was 8 years in the making. While I have learned and appreciated familiar reminders and many new life lessons this pregnancy, I want to take a moment to honor God by talking about what I've learned from His walk with me these past years. Many of these lessons I believe I couldn't have effectively learned without overcoming the challenges I have.

The Lord Keeps His Promises

1. It's okay to not understand how or when those promises will be fulfilled.
2. God knows and wants what is best for you. Sometimes He alone has the power to make it so.
3. Sometimes you won't want what God wants for you. And that's okay. This is one of the main purposes of prayer! In order to have our will come into alignment with the Lord's there will at some point be moments of discord.
4. Many of God's promises take time, because it's not just about the destination or end result but also about how we got there. 
5. Learning to love others means bearing their burdens and mourning with them as they mourn; empathy has allowed me to do this on a whole other level. Empathy has made me a better Christian covenant keeper.
6. Trials are blessings in disguise and we can learn to be grateful for them even while in them.
7. Patience, faith, gratitude, hope, and many other godly attributes take time to gradually develop.
8. Keeping a journal—even an irregular one—can provide much needed continuity and strength.
9. When you reach your breaking point, God can and will take your burdens if you give them to Him. Learn to surrender your worries and then not look back to pick them up again once you’ve turned them over to God. (See Matt. 11:28-30)

I didn't always view infertility as a blessing. I know it was a trial and a blessing for me but it is one that I can truly say I am grateful for. This gratitude came gradually but it also came long before receiving any medical answers or probabilities of pregnancy. Like years before. At first it felt like an emotional roller coaster of course, but not no more than half of these past 8 years felt like that. Reading journal entries in an annual fashion (similar to when Google reminds me of photos taken so many years ago) helped me remember this. Even as recently as 3 years ago I was still struggling regularly with depression and anxiety over certain things beyond my control. But getting pregnant wasn't one of those things. There aren't words to explain this gradual yet monumental attitude shift.

Patience is a Virtue

If this sort of shift sounds impossible in your journey please be patient with yourself. For me the song "Better than I" has taught me how to get there as well as become a summary of my journey.

I thought I did what's right

I thought I had the answers

I thought I chose the surest road

But that road brought me here

So I put up a fight

And told you how to help me

Now just when I have given up

The truth is coming clear

You know better than I

You know the way

I've let go the need to know why

For you know better than I

If this has been a test

I cannot see the reason

But maybe knowing I don't know

Is part of getting through

I try to do what's best

And faith has made it easy

To see the best thing I can do

Is put my trust in you

You know better than I

You know the way

I've let go the need to know why

For you know better than I

I saw one cloud and thought it was a sky

I saw a bird and thought that I could follow

But it was you who taught that bird to fly

If I let you reach me will you teach me

For You know better than I

You know the way

I've let go the need to know why

I'll take what answers you supply

You know better than I

President Russell M. Nelson taught: 

To be sure, there may be times when you feel as though the heavens are closed. But I promise that as you continue to be obedient, expressing gratitude for every blessing the Lord gives you, and as you patiently honor the Lord’s timetable, you will be given the knowledge and understanding you seek. Every blessing the Lord has for you—even miracles—will follow. That is what personal revelation will do for you.

You Can Choose

1. Not everything is beyond your control: You can choose to be helpful and hopeful rather than helpless and hopeless.
2. We don’t have to feel stress about things beyond our control: and frankly almost everything in life is beyond your control when you think about it.
3. Sometimes you will be mad at God. But you can choose not to be, and He will help.
4. Sometimes there are choices you cannot make (due to hormones, chemical imbalances, finances, whatever) no matter how much you want to. God can and will help with those!
5. God could have helped us conceive much sooner than the seven years it took, but I've learned not to begrudge Him those growing pains that I needed.
6. There may be a temptation to wait for happiness or fully living your life until the pregnancy comes: please don't wait. 
7. No matter your circumstances, you can choose a mindful—even joyful—life in the present that is full of hope for your unknown future.
8. Dream beautifully about your future. But also be willing to let go of certain dreams to make room for other dreams and realities.
9. Don’t be resentful of unsolicited advice. Try to feel the kindness of where it’s coming from even if it’s irrelevant or tactless.

Whatever your infertility journey, it doesn't have to be a hellish state of limbo. You really can enjoy a full life given your current circumstances. Even if those circumstances remain. There were auditions skipped, vacations missed, classes I didn't take, talents I chose not to cultivate, all because of the possibility of getting pregnant soon. At one point in trying to conceive, my husband and I came to terms with the hypothetical that we might be a one-child family. Surprisingly, near the end of my first trimester I had a period of mourning where I had to let go of some of the beautiful dreams we'd created for our one-child family. This had to happen before I could move from denial to gratitude and daydreaming about a very different future.

I remember being at church and hearing another friend's happy news that she was pregnant. I remember washing my hands in the bathroom and having a really brief, candid conversation with God.

Lord, I want to be happy for her. I know whether or not she is pregnant doesn't limit or affect my ability to get pregnant. I have felt this irrational jealousy in the past. But right now I just feel mad. I think I feel mad at you. And I don't want to. Please help me to choose differently.

I'll never forget the next instant when there was an immediate change. God took away the anger I was trying to give away to Him and made space for the love and joy I wanted to feel for my friend! One night I had a similar, sacred experience with anger and depression directed at my husband. When I prayed for the overwhelming negativity to be lifted I felt Christ's arms literally encircle me like a parent cradling a sleeping child as He whispered, "It's going to be okay. I've got you." Ever since then I have not struggled with choosing to lovingly communicating with my husband; it's a choice that sometimes takes more effort than at other times, but I no longer feel unable to make that choice.

Gifts of the Spirit and of Health

I remember feeling the healthiest I had ever felt physically, emotionally, and even spiritually when Victoria was about to enter kindergarten. I was enjoying regularly exercising with a group of ladies from church, several of whom also struggled with infertility. I had the stamina to do anything and everything I wanted and needed to: last minute service opportunities were a regular occurrence and and the unexpected schedule changes never felt draining. I was meeting weekly with a therapist going on two years at that point, but now it felt like our visits were less about helping me survive and more about helping me celebrate successes and learn new tools to cultivate joy and readiness. I felt like I was living life to its fullest with hope for my unknown future.

For example, I mostly loved spending all day with my daughter but I was also excited to discover new ways to build our relationship and use my alone time while she was at school all day. We knew we would be moving at the end of the school year and yet even when we weren't sure where or when, I was at peace with not knowing. With that move we didn't know whether we would or could continue meeting with infertility specialists: and we were okay either way.

1. My body was designed to bear children. But it was also designed to do a great many other things.
2. Regular strengthening and flexibility training of your physical body will impact your social, mental, emotional, and even spiritual health more than you can imagine. 
3. Finding ways to regularly serve inside and outside of your immediate family doesn't have to and shouldn't burn you out: it can and will lift you.
4. You can be a mother without ever giving birth. Look for such opportunities.
5. You have eternal worth as a woman outside of your eternal destiny to be a wife and mother: find reminders of this truth and cultivate them. Grow yourself and step into that power of being a daughter of God.
6. Make time to be with your Father in Heaven and hold yourself accountable to Him for how you're using your time. This can even be done in part through regular appointments with a counselor.
7. Mindfulness activities are a must. They increase your emotional intelligence and help deepen the benefits of your physical exercise.
8. Learn to “worry with God” instead. Imagine your fear becoming a reality and then asking, “What if this worst case scenario happens and God shows up in a miraculous way?”

Relearning Faith and Hope

1. Faith and hope in God look & feel different at different times in your life.
2. People going through the same trial go through it differently; there is grace in acknowledging this.
3. Learn to ask for help. Let others minister to you.
4. Trusting in God doesn't mean feeling joyful no matter what but for me it meant a capacity to feel peace no matter what.
5. Make and keep covenants with God & feast on His written word.
6. God wants to share in our joy.
7. He also has many "love gifts" to give to us.
8. God's deliverance can be both immediate and take time.
9. Gratitude and awe can coexist with fear and disappointment but you’ll feel more stable if you learn to cultivate the “positive” emotions while acknowledging but not feeding or being overwhelmed by the less comfortable ones.

Since it was difficult for us to conceive and took so long the second time, I sort of lost faith in my ability to be pregnant, give birth, and parent. We had been trying different methods with Yale's infertility clinic including IVF. We were able to receive through the grace of God 6 embryos for freezing. In the midst of moving across the country I was able to delay my flight so I could be 2 days PUPO (pregnant until proven otherwise.) During the drawn out process of conception and confirming that my body wasn't going to miscarry, we had many angels help us in IL, CT, and WA. So many people were praying for us.

This pregnancy I have been praying to understand and receive God's love so that I can be more compassionate. I have yearned "to taste and savor His delicious love." (Song of Solomon 2:3-4) Trying to more consistently feast on His word throughout my pregnancy has given me a greater understanding and appreciation for the love of God and the unending source of strength and peace it can be in my life as a parent. (See Deut. 5:6-7 and previous blog post here.)

I hope in recording and sharing these examples of answered prayers and the Lord's undeparting kindness are beneficial for more than just myself. I can think of no better way to prepare for and celebrate Valentine's Day than to bear grateful witness of the Lord's love.

Bumpdate #2: Gratitude at 28 weeks

Birth, the Miracle that Keeps on Giving
My sister Rebecca just gave birth a little over a week ago and my sister Elizabeth announced recently that she'll be giving birth ~13 weeks after me! Several friends of mine are also pregnant, some for the first time and some after years of trying. Something about pregnancy seems to prepare us for the sacrifices ahead.

It's usually easier to find words for the difficulties and disappointments than it is to give voice to the transcendental goodness that comes from having a child in your life. No language I have studied or heard of seems to have found the words yet to describe the various emotional cocktails I've been drinking lately. Whether it's my eight year old happily volunteering to sing in church with me or begging to audition for the musical after school, Baby Peanut's active personality and consistent movements, the compassion of the midwives at Swedish, or the awe and delight in my husband's voice as he explains how impressive and distracting the baby's movements were rehearsal... there is so much goodness and grace to be had! I cannot help but be grateful that I was able to get on this roller coaster ride once again.

28 Blessings in 28 weeks
Since this is the month where everyone seems to express the most gratitude and we've entered the third trimester, I thought I would jump on the bandwagon and make a list from these last two trimesters. Thanks to Victoria for helping me find words for some of these!

1. That we could afford IVF
2. That we could do our frozen embryo transfer despite our cross-country move
3. That Greg's new employer covered moving costs like professional movers & airplane tickets
4. My mother in-law and countless CT friends who helped with that busy month of May
5. That my body accepted this pregnancy
6. Quickly finding compassionate and thorough medical assistance here in WA
7. Getting an earlier ultrasound to confirm the health and safety of me and the baby
8. Neighbors and friends but also strangers who were genuinely joyful at our news even when I was still struggling to believe it
9. New & dear friends who could help me get to the ER for treatments when needed (9.5 weeks)
10. Various artists on Youtube sharing their relaxing music to help calm my morning-sick nerves
11. Hypnobirthing breathing exercises & guided meditations to help calm my morning-sick nerves and rid myself of worries
12. A responsible and resourceful 8 year old daughter who often takes care of herself and me
13. Uplifting and edifying birth stories on A Heavenly Welcome and other websites
14. A rekindled love of scripture study as I ponder what God has to say and seek after promised blessings in pregnancy and parenthood
15. Having a bath tub and powerful hot water heater
16. Biocleanse (hypoallergenic magnesium & fiber supplement) from Plexus
17. Being able to teach voice and sing well Handel's Messiah amid the constant changes of my instrument
18. Priceless one-on-one yoga & pilates instruction throughout the rest of this pregnancy: thanks Gretchen Wiese!
19. Despite it being cold and flu season our entire household has been healthy and protected!
20. Weekly temple visits during the second trimester (and hopefully the third)
21. Lactose-free milk: easily consuming a gallon and a half each week I have been dubbed a "milk bibber"
22. Positive scripture-based pregnancy affirmations & guided meditations from A Heavenly Welcome
23. Being able to get the Tdap vaccine while pregnant so that my unborn baby can absorb my antibodies and be blessed with partial immunity to some fatal illness
24. A wood-burning fireplace for a beautiful source of warmth in our home
25. A flexible schedule for when my body decides to be less than flexible
26. Online classes like BYU Independent Study so I can renew my teaching certification from the comfort of my own home & at my own pace
27. Having enough money from Greg's new job & my voice studio to have our needs and wants provided
28. A supportive husband (whether it's leaving the car at home for me to use, doing the dishes and laundry, or being the patient parent and partner he is)