If Nicole and I had a theme for week 17 this statement would sum it up: "I Believe, but Help My Unbelief".
In the bible, Mark tells a story of a dad who comes to Jesus to heal his son. The dad asks Jesus to help if He can do anything. Jesus responds by saying everything is possible for him who believes. To this, the dad tells Jesus, "I believe; but help my unbelief!"
Throughout this journey Nicole and I have been on what has felt like the old Texas Cyclone roller coaster at Astroworld. We have and continue to experience twists and turns, highs and lows, and falls that make you light headed. The Bible tells us that God will not give us more than we can bear. While I am not disagreeing with scripture, I think we will often deal with things that we cannot handle on our own. This makes us lean into God, our families, our friends, and our church for support and encouragement to get through the hard times.
We haven't talked much about the first few days after finding out Nicole was packing 6 babies, but let me tell you, the support we received those first few days set the tone for our journey. Once we found out Nicole was pregnant with "The Sixlets", I think Nicole and I sat in silence that first night sniffling and wiping away tears. We started to make plans to tell our parents (the cool youtube pregnancy reveal we planned for Mother's Day went out the window...) because we needed their support, encouragement, and prayers. The next call was to our church. After speaking with our doctor, Nicole and I were going to have to make a decision whether or not we were going to keep all 6 babies, or if we wanted to "reduce" the number to a more manageable and more safe pregnancy. We needed guidance. Turns out reaching out to the church and talking to Linda and Ashley was the absolute best thing Nicole and I could have possibly done. I think Nicole and I both cried through the entire first meeting. It was a hot mess. We were both emotional wrecks to start with and then to see the love they had for us and our 6 unborn children took the emotions to an entirely different level.
Fast forward 10 weeks and we are still on that roller coaster. We wanted to meet with Linda, and this time Sarah, again because Nicole and I kept catching ourselves "stinkin thinkin" (it means your thoughts stink...) and just struggling to stay strong in our faith in God's plan for our family. We would start to worry about the health of the babies, I would worry about Nicole's health, then the ultimate new parent worry, how the heck are we going to pay for this? How are we going to night feed 6 babies? How are we going to go on a vacation? and further down the rabbit hole we went until we were both in bad moods, or exhausted from trying to get the other person in a good mood which leads to the roles flipping. The advice Linda gave us was amazing. The first thing she told us was to make a "Think List" to go through when the "stinkin thinkin" starts. Verses like I Corinthians 10:13, II Corinthians 10:3-5, Psalm 139:16, and a few others will help to build that faith in God's plan that has been waivering for us a little bit. The big nugget of wisdom I walked away with was "Trust me for tomorrow, I have you for today." How true is this?!? Nicole and I started looking back at all God has provided for us since the news of the babies and when you look at the loooong list, you start to realize you aren't following blind faith, rather you are trusting a God who has delivered and provided time and time again.
Everything that has happened has all been a part of God's plan.
We are beyond grateful for the support from friends, family, and especially our church.
In the bible, Mark tells a story of a dad who comes to Jesus to heal his son. The dad asks Jesus to help if He can do anything. Jesus responds by saying everything is possible for him who believes. To this, the dad tells Jesus, "I believe; but help my unbelief!"
Throughout this journey Nicole and I have been on what has felt like the old Texas Cyclone roller coaster at Astroworld. We have and continue to experience twists and turns, highs and lows, and falls that make you light headed. The Bible tells us that God will not give us more than we can bear. While I am not disagreeing with scripture, I think we will often deal with things that we cannot handle on our own. This makes us lean into God, our families, our friends, and our church for support and encouragement to get through the hard times.
We haven't talked much about the first few days after finding out Nicole was packing 6 babies, but let me tell you, the support we received those first few days set the tone for our journey. Once we found out Nicole was pregnant with "The Sixlets", I think Nicole and I sat in silence that first night sniffling and wiping away tears. We started to make plans to tell our parents (the cool youtube pregnancy reveal we planned for Mother's Day went out the window...) because we needed their support, encouragement, and prayers. The next call was to our church. After speaking with our doctor, Nicole and I were going to have to make a decision whether or not we were going to keep all 6 babies, or if we wanted to "reduce" the number to a more manageable and more safe pregnancy. We needed guidance. Turns out reaching out to the church and talking to Linda and Ashley was the absolute best thing Nicole and I could have possibly done. I think Nicole and I both cried through the entire first meeting. It was a hot mess. We were both emotional wrecks to start with and then to see the love they had for us and our 6 unborn children took the emotions to an entirely different level.
Fast forward 10 weeks and we are still on that roller coaster. We wanted to meet with Linda, and this time Sarah, again because Nicole and I kept catching ourselves "stinkin thinkin" (it means your thoughts stink...) and just struggling to stay strong in our faith in God's plan for our family. We would start to worry about the health of the babies, I would worry about Nicole's health, then the ultimate new parent worry, how the heck are we going to pay for this? How are we going to night feed 6 babies? How are we going to go on a vacation? and further down the rabbit hole we went until we were both in bad moods, or exhausted from trying to get the other person in a good mood which leads to the roles flipping. The advice Linda gave us was amazing. The first thing she told us was to make a "Think List" to go through when the "stinkin thinkin" starts. Verses like I Corinthians 10:13, II Corinthians 10:3-5, Psalm 139:16, and a few others will help to build that faith in God's plan that has been waivering for us a little bit. The big nugget of wisdom I walked away with was "Trust me for tomorrow, I have you for today." How true is this?!? Nicole and I started looking back at all God has provided for us since the news of the babies and when you look at the loooong list, you start to realize you aren't following blind faith, rather you are trusting a God who has delivered and provided time and time again.
Everything that has happened has all been a part of God's plan.
We are beyond grateful for the support from friends, family, and especially our church.
Now for an update on Nicole and the Sixlets:
Nicole's belly grew another inch getting her to 40 inches! We didn't have a doctors appointment this week but we do next Friday (week 18) so stay tuned for a more detailed update on the babies. I can tell you they are growing, Nicole is moving a little slower, and still cramming down those calories. I'll be honest I haven't minded all the cookies and carbs around the house.
We are both off next week and plan on relaxing at my in-laws beach house. I'm hoping Nicole can put up her feet, rest, eat, and enjoy time with her family and friends. It will be our last vacation as a small family before these sweet babies get here. Our next "vacation" will be in August when we check her in at the hospital until the babies are born. The days seem long but this journey has flown by! I cant believe she will be at week 20 soon.
If you missed our meal train link in our last post, you can find it here: https://mealtrain.com/dl681l
Nicole's belly grew another inch getting her to 40 inches! We didn't have a doctors appointment this week but we do next Friday (week 18) so stay tuned for a more detailed update on the babies. I can tell you they are growing, Nicole is moving a little slower, and still cramming down those calories. I'll be honest I haven't minded all the cookies and carbs around the house.
We are both off next week and plan on relaxing at my in-laws beach house. I'm hoping Nicole can put up her feet, rest, eat, and enjoy time with her family and friends. It will be our last vacation as a small family before these sweet babies get here. Our next "vacation" will be in August when we check her in at the hospital until the babies are born. The days seem long but this journey has flown by! I cant believe she will be at week 20 soon.
If you missed our meal train link in our last post, you can find it here: https://mealtrain.com/dl681l
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