SAM...

When Richard and I were first married...we never thought about the future...It was more about how I would get through the week without killing him, and he was worried about providing food and shelter for our new little family... Little did we know that one day the Lord would entrust us to raise our next 2 children; making us a family of five in a matter of 5 years of marriage...

After 12 years my thoughts of murder have disappeared...While his thoughts of provision are now laid to rest in the hands of the LORD. Thankfully the Lord has changed us both...but we never imagined HE would change our hearts to add another child to our crazy home...and yet we are a day away from welcoming her...
From her conception to her arrival...every step has been different...

Last year in Africa... I was sitting in a church in the SUDAN, listening to a woman's study...A lady from our church was speaking to the Sudanese women...I was exhausted, due to the jet lag and just recovering from the swine flu and being hit by another stomach bug while there. The humidity was not helping out either... I was trying to focus my attention on the message but found myself with wandering eyes; praying for these women, desiring to chat with them. I wanted to hear each and every woman's story; why were they here, and where had they come from. What amazing thing had God done in their life? All my desires of the flesh for rest, home cooked food, and air conditioning seemed to fade as I began to imagine their tough and tired feet walking, some for many miles, to get here and hear the WORD of GOD.

It was at this moment, I began to write down some notes; trying to stay focused on the message while praying to stay focised and I heard a message distinctly..., "You will have a baby & and your house will be OK". Ummmmm.....
I looked up and paid no attention, figuring I was crazy, or had a moment of insanity due to dehydration or something. Then I heard it again...This time I remember Samuel and how the Lord had called him in the night. How it took Eli several times of Samuel returning for him to realize this was the Lord calling Samuel. When Samuel finally responded to the Lord...then He was able to speak freely to him. How I had desired to hear my Lord once again...How I had desired for so long for the HOLY SPIRIT to speak to my heart but I was wrapped up in so many other cares of this world, I left HIM no opportunity to speak to me. I sat quiet for a moment, wondering if anyone else could see me doing all this contemplating. Then I began to question... Did I really hear this voice? Lord, did you really say this? Lord, how do I know this is really you? I am trying to stay focused...and babies are the furthese thing from my mind right now...Again the SPIRIT of GOD told me not to doubt. How many times had HE spoke to me before and it had come to pass. So I trusted, and wrote down what HE had said on teh side of my notes and the thought left as I knew at that moment...things were going to change.
After not having any contact with Richard for 2 weeks, you can imagine his surprise when I had some down time and was able to share this news with him. We were in the beginning stages of figuring out what steps to take with our home, since we could no longer afford it, and a baby was the furthest thing from our minds. He did not share the same enthusiasm and comfort as I did. Every aspect made this "thought" one of the craziest things to ever have come into my mind. But the overwhelming comfort and peace I had surrounding these 2 situations could only have come from the Lord. So we prayed and left it in the Lord's hands.

Through time the Lord began to change Richard's heart. In the beginning of the year, I noticed warning signs, and sure enough we were pregnant. Of course we discovered this around week 3...I always know right away. Our hearts were overjoyed as we both knew, this baby was definitely from the LORD. Within a few days of finding out we had our first baby loss scare. So off to the ER we go. They could see the uterus and a dot that resembled the baby which was rare in such early stages of pregnancy. It was here they told us about 1/3 of all pregnancies end up in miscarriages and this is not uncommon. I was probably having a miscarriage and only time would tell. We gave this baby to the Lord that day; whether she live or die, may the will of the LORD be done in our lives.

We would soon find out what that meant as we visited the ER again and this time was prescribed vicodin for the pain because it appeared to be a miscarriage. I lay in bed for over 2 weeks, writhing in pain with every move. Several more visits to the ER and the doctors, followed by medication and bed rest. We were finally out of the 1st trimester and it looked as though all may have cleared up. The daily nausea and vomiting had subsided, and the pain had decreased marginally. I was still not able to walk much but she was alive and well. We continued these fun trips to the ER and the doctors and they finally diagnosed the issue...Placenta Previa...??????

It simply means the placenta attached itself in the wrong area during the beginning development stages and now could pose a risk to the baby and me if I were to go into natural labor. I would need a c-section if this did not clear up on its own. Oh...and by the way...don't walk around or do much for the remaining months of your pregnancy...I think she missed the memo about me begin a stay at home mom of 3 during the summer...but we did it. Through a ton of prayer, great friends and family, and an amazing amount of patience from my kids, we made it through. It was difficult for all of us; never knowing if today would be another day for the ER or the day we would lose her after this long battle. The kids would help me out and not allow me to do anything around the home. They would pray for her at every opportunity, "Dear Lord, please bless our baby. Help her to live and not die. Help her to be healthy. Amen" Every time they prayed, I knew the Lord's face was shining upon their innocent prayers.

The appointment finally came for the perinatologist to examine me once again...ALL WAS WELL!! The placenta had moved and she was out of harms way. I was no longer on bed rest and it should be pregnancy as normal...Except the pain did not leave. Apparently my body is tired and worn out from carrying so many babies causing tons of pain and pressure on my pelvis...Getting the belly band helped out tremendously and alleviated most of the pain. For the past 2 months, pregnancy has been enjoyable.

Her name has even been different...
In the beginning I was convinced this was a boy. We had boy names chosen and our hearts were ready for a boy. But upon our discovery the he was a she, we quickly changed gears. It took a little while but we finally began discussing possible girl names. When Richard came home with Samantha; it just fit. When we discovered it meant God with us, we were decided this little one would be our Samantha. Joy came later... I had a friend who enjoyed sharing blessings with me. She told me one day I should begin praying blessings over my children; even little Sam. This is when I realized we were going to soon be a family of 6. There are bound to be moments of tiredness and tension. This is when i began to realize all the hurdles we had come across and flew over with the strength of the Lord. What could HE NOT DO??? This is when I prayed for her to be a joy...a joy for all she comes into contact with, and may all who encounter her recognize the joy of the Lord in all she does. Thus it was decided...Samantha Joy Boveda...

An amazing friend of mine threw a baby shower for me a few weeks ago...So many women had attended bringing every single gift we needed to supply for this blessing. The entire time my heart was blessed because we got every single item we needed for Baby SAM, but also that we had endured and she had survived through this entire time, and would join our family in the coming month. My heart was also feeling a crazy joy as I realized, at one point, all these women have been praying for Baby Sam...they have all been waiting to see God's plan for her...just as our family had...

During the beginning of the month Richard was away on his first mission's trip to BOLIVIA. He had an amazing time and shared the Gospel with so many. How we knew the Lord had paved the way for a complete healing and restoration of my body so he would be able to go and share all that GOD has done for him, and what having Salvation through Jesus really means. During this week the Braxton Hicks started...and have failed to leave since.

Fast forward to now... we are starting to have real contractions...A few an hour, then they stop. So here she comes...entering this world by the Lord and making her mark as another blessing from God. We are only praying that this new life that has been entrusted to us, may we cherish it as we do our others, and may we raise her in a Godly fashion as the Lord desires us to. May every moment we have with her be sweet and may the Lord's will be completed in her life. Although she was different from the beginning, we have grown so much in the Lord through it all. Her life, has helped us trust HIM more.