Portia~an answer to prayer

Doesn't she have such a distinct look?  Sweet Portia, my 4th child.  A baby I thought I would never have.

I started having my children when I was 18.  I had always wanted to be a young mom.

My goal was to have all my kids by the time I was 25 so I would still be young when they were old. 

 I thought that was a brilliant plan.

And I did, I had my 3rd child, Lauren, when I was 24.  I wanted more kids, but hubby didn't and he wanted me to get my tubes tied.

So I did.  That was in 1996, the year my mom passed away.

It was very agonizing for me to do, I should have known that was God telling me not to do it.

But I really didn't talk back to my hubby back then, we had only been married 3 years.

Ha ha, boy how things have changed :)

So I did it because I thought well what more could I ask for I have the daughter I've always wanted and I am almost 25.  But after a few years I had such remorse over it I would just sob.

I couldn't believe I did that and I couldn't take it back. 

So I started praying.

I prayed for a couple years, Lord please let me have another baby! 

 Well one summer, it was 1999,  I got a phone call.

  It was from a lady from my church.  I knew who she was and had said hi to her maybe once, but I didn't know her.

She called and said I have something to tell you, but your going to think  it's wierd and I'm really scared to tell you this.

I was thinking what in the world???

So after hemming and hawing she said:

God told me to give you a maternity dress.

I still get chills and tears to my eyes when I say that.  I think I said something like

Shut up!  Really?  and then I said well when do you think I'm going to have this baby????  Of course she didn't know.

This photo was just days after we moved to Oregon.  Portia was just 6 months old.

So that marked the beginning of an exciting time for me.  I thought well  how is God going to accomplish this?  I wanted it to just miraculously happen.

It didn't.  

 So, I started researching tubal reversals online.

I was so sad that they were so expensive, I knew I would never be able to get one.

But why would God give me that maternity dress then?

I found a dr. in Texas whose mission it was to help women who wanted reversals.  His fees were way below other dr.'s.  After much begging and tears to my hubby, he sold one of his cars and gave me the money.

Here's the crazy part.  In the spring of 2000 I flew to Texas ALL BY MYSELF to get this surgery.

I flew in, had it done, and I got a fever after the surgery and I was distraught.  I knew I couldn't afford another night in the hospital, but they let me stay at no extra charge. 

The nurses were like mothers to me, they prayed for me on the way into the operating room because I was scared and crying.  They took care of me like I was their daughter.

So the dr. said well you really had those tubes fixed good to not have any more kids!  They had been cut and burned and there was just a little bit of tube left by the time they reattatched them.  But he gave me a 70% chance of success.  It didn't matter to me what he said, because I know what God had promised me!

When they released me I took a taxi back to my hotel, and hobbled around, I hurt, I was sick and alone.

  The next day I flew home.  It was exhausting, I still can't believe I did that alone.  But when I go after something I want, honey watch out!

It took almost a year and I will confess I did doubt, but fnally the night before mothers day in 2001 I took a test and it was positive!

Hubby was shocked, he didn't think it was really gonna work!  It was a good pregnancy.

I cherished it.  I didn't find out if it was a boy or a girl, I wanted to be suprised.  But I had been praying for another girl.

Portia is just the sweetest little girl, she is so quiet and shy, well she was when she was little. 

Now she can talk up a storm.  At times I have to say, Honey it is time to stop talking now.

Portia loves mermaids and wants to be one when she grows up.

She loves to be like her big sister.

Portia is so tender hearted.  She cried for days when we came home from Hawaii because she missed her grandparents and uncle.  She writes letters to her cousins in Minnesota all the time. 

She loves washing dishes by hand.

Feeding the sheep.

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She love going on date night with her daddy.

Portia is a good big sister to Sophie,  playing with her and taking care of her.

Portia is silly.

She loves the beach, building sand castles and boogie boarding.

I love her with all my heart. 

And she is truly a miracle.