October 11th, 2025, we found out I was pregnant with our first baby. My husband Chase and I were living in Irvine, California, both born and raised in southeast Michigan. We were dreaming and planning to raise our babies in Orange County, California, until a few short weeks after our precious discovery of my pregnancy. My heart quickly changed before I even had time to grasp it; I wanted to move back to Michigan. Most people automatically assumed it was to be closer to extended family: grandparents, siblings, aunts and uncles, etc. To put it bluntly, this was far from the truth.

Our familial story isn’t the American blueprint of what a family should be. Most families are lovingly tight-knit. Everyone enjoys being around each other; they respect, love, and genuinely want the best for each other. The unfortunate fact is that it is not our story (and that's another story for another time). So Chase and I moved away to find a healthier lifestyle and mindset than what we grew up with, landing us in California. We deeply loved our little life in the Laguna area of Orange County. Surprisingly surrounded by a beautiful and vast Christian community, healthy-minded individuals, and the peace of knowing we were far away from the trauma & people of our troubled childhoods. So when I received this HEAVY conviction (what felt like a whisper from the Holy Spirit) to move back to Michigan, my husband and I were both shocked. But I couldn’t ignore the bizarre pull on my heart, and financially, it made sense to him.
So, at 10 weeks pregnant, we packed up our quaint coastal apartment, two small dogs, and with heads full of confusion yet hearts unequivocally sure, we drove ourselves back to Michigan.

All of our extended family lives in Southeast Michigan, except my mother, who lived on the upper west side, in a small town called Hart. My mother and I are very close. She lived alone in a 3-bedroom home, so she graciously welcomed us to stay with her as a landing pad to ease the transition of finding our forever home back in the mitten. What started as a simple landing pad quickly turned into what I now call Godly dominoes.

 

My husband and I always dreamed of a home birth, but this being our first baby, and I suppose the way the secular culture has twistedly painted the idea of birth, we were scared. So, we found care at the local hospital ~20 minutes away. They didn’t take our insurance, but they had one midwife, Angie, who we came to dearly love & was the only medical professional there that made us feel comfortable. However, her availability for the time of my labor and delivery, of course, was not guaranteed.

As our appointments went by, we were inevitably scheduled with the only OBGYN, who happened to be male (my biggest discomfort), and a nurse practitioner who happened to be his wife. Chase and I having the dream of a homebirth in our hearts and a holistic, biblical approach to everything in life, you can imagine the misalignment we had with the protocols of the hospital. I actually vividly remember watching and hearing the nurse practitioner mock my dream of having a homebirth, and wanting to go unmedicated. “I hear that all the time from you new, young moms. *I want unmedicated, natural birth*” she mocked with eye rolls and jazz hands. “Keep your options open. You’ll change your mind, trust me.” she slithered, almost demonically confident, if you ask me.

 

By God’s grace and good stewardship of my body, I had a low-risk, very healthy pregnancy. Yet, there was still talk by these medical professionals of scheduling an induction, a C-section, passive-aggressive remarks, and belittling facial expressions & bedside manner
when I declined all vaccines. Very soon, my husband and I started to get uncomfortable, but what could we do? It was the only hospital close, so we kept persevering in faith & prayed Angie would be available when I went into labor, as she was the only one at the hospital who lovingly respected all of our decisions about my birth and for our baby girl.

 

Meanwhile, things at the house quickly started to change. My mother was becoming increasingly worried about my grandparents who lived 2 hours away in Houghton Lake, as they were getting very old and needed her constant assistance.

Godly Domino #1: A job opened up in my mother's exact line of work, just minutes away from my grandparents' house. So, without question and with excitement, she changed jobs and moved in with them, leaving her house in our care. As much as we loved living with my mom & were overfilled with gratitude, looking back now, her move to Houghton Lake opened the door for us to have a perfect, more private home birth, though we didn't know it at the time.

 

I was now about 28 weeks pregnant, increasingly feeling so nervous about my upcoming labor/delivery at the hospital. One early winter morning, over coffee and time with Jesus, I had a thought (another Holy Spirit whisper) to research a possible doula near me, thinking to myself, “maybe it would help to at least have her at the hospital to advocate for me and bring me comfort in that unsettling atmosphere.”
As I was typing the search in Google, I felt discouraged thinking, “there’s probably a low chance I’ll find one out here in this small quiet town”. Coming from busy Orange County, California, everything out here seemed scarce. I hit enter anyway. BOOM..

 

Domino #2: “Common Grace Birth Doula located in Hart, MI.” WOW. I clicked on it & immediately felt so inspired by their website. I remember reading Maggie Bowman’s “about me” and just started BALLING tears of relief. Not only was she 4 minutes from my home, but she was ROOTED in her faith in Jesus Christ, and aligned perfectly with my views about birth! I couldn’t send her a message fast enough.

 

We had our first meeting at Isaac’s coffee shop in Pentwater (a town I had been vacationing every summer with my dad since I was 5, ironically enough). As expected, it went amazingly. Maggie immediately felt like a sister I'd had my whole life. She was warm, smiley, calm, grounded, honest, full of wisdom & ready to answer every question. She thoroughly listened & validated my fears about our current hospital situation. I was due in June, and Maggie let us know she’s very busy that month, but was willing & happy to take us on as clients.

 

I don’t believe I mentioned homebirth to her as I didn’t see it necessary; I simply wanted her support at the hospital. But as our meeting was coming to a close, I thought to ask (another Holy Spirit whisper): “Do you happen to know any midwives that would be able to give us a homebirth? That’s actually our ideal labor and delivery.” Maggie’s face lit up. “I actually do! My sister-in-law!” she continued, but with hesitation, “she’s also extremely busy that month. I’ll give you her contact information anyway, and you can reach out to her. She may be able squeeze you in.”

Domino #3: Enter Dorothy Vandezande.

When our meeting was over, I couldn’t Google Dorothy’s name fast enough! (Between my excited, shaky hands & her last name, I was retyping multiple times LOL) Once I opened her website, seeing the cover photo of her holding a precious newborn with the
most satisfying smile I've ever seen on a woman, and my pregnancy hormones.. I BURST into tears. On the drive home, I read allowed to Chase her core values she had listed on her website. After reading just core value #1, I had to stop because his eyes started filling with
tears, and I needed him to get us home safely (lol).

 

“I fear God and believe that He establishes and leads me as a midwife, and that I am called by God to serve women and their families so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified through the work of my hands.”

Let me back way up to the beginning for a moment:

When we first found out I was pregnant in California, I scheduled an appt at a hospital near us that also had a midwifery ward. In conversation at that appt, the midwife we scheduled with stated she was also a Christian and a strong believer in Jesus Christ, as
was her whole team! WOW, how wonderful! That made me feel comfortable enough to tell her homebirth was truly our dream. I couldn’t even finish the rest of that sentence before her smile completely fell flat, her eyebrows pinched together, & her eyes went from open and sparkly to sharp darts straight at me.

 

“That is SO dangerous.” she said in a low-toned, almost threatening voice. My body froze, and my spirit shut down. The room went quiet until my husband stepped in, reclaiming authority after noticing my body's reaction to her dooming aura.

“One thing we do know is that we would like to decline all vaccines.” he stated. Putting an annoyed finger to her temple and thumb under her chin, she darted back at Chase in the same threatening tone, “If you do that, you can’t see our pediatrician here.” “No problem at all.” He fearlessly stated with a proud smile. The rest of the appt, the midwife stayed stern, cold, and abrupt. As if she was highly triggered and disgusted by our views and wishes for our birth/baby. I couldn’t seem to unfreeze my body, so Chase strongly led the rest of the conversation with her.

 

As we left that appointment, Chase put his arm around me as we walked out and made sure I knew he wouldn’t let anything bad happen. I felt so cold, anxious, and confused. I thought she said she was a believer? She bragged all about how she reads her devotionals every day, and everyone is “so filled with God” in her team. So why did my spirit feel like hers was afraid of the wrong things? In just four words: “That is SO dangerous.”, I felt nothing but condemnation & sheer fear about God’s greatest creation, from a woman who delivered said creation & claimed she was a “strong” believer; to me she was a walking contradiction.

 

So now, fast forward to when I read Dorothy’s first three words from her core values - a stark contrast between Dorothy’s three written words & the four spoken words I had previously been crushed by. These three words from a woman I’d not even met yet, and my spirit already felt so safe.

“I fear God”.

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I was about 28 - 30 weeks pregnant when I first met Dorothy. This was my first ever homebirth experience, as well as my first pregnancy! When my husband and I walked into our first appointment with her, I was already ready to sign papers and start pouring out my story about our uncomfortable hospital experience we were currently in. I’m a very excited/anxious person who really wears my heart on my sleeve. Thankfully, Dorothy is much more grounded & structured than I. She is the perfectly balanced mix of stoicism & femininity. Just 5 minutes into meeting her, I KNEW she was grounded in every core value she had written on her website. I was actually a bit intimidated by her, you could say, but in a good way! Some people say all the right things and never have any fruit that backs it up, including myself!
(We’re all fallen) But Dorothy is a very rare, highly convicted individual. She had said maybe five words, “Hi, nice to meet you”, in the most gentle tone, with the most gentle smile, full of grace, but with a spirit that immediately declared, “I fear God and God alone”. If she fears other things, you’ll live the rest of your life never knowing it. This is a woman who KNOWS this is her calling, and perseveres in that power
even if she’s exhausted (again you’d never know if she was, I’ll get to that later).

 

The first meeting went well. She sent us home with papers to review, and of course, we signed and had the check ready that evening.
The duration of my pregnancy & prenatal appts continued to go well, with Maggie and Dorothy there for all my questions with honesty and comfort along the way. Excitement was building each week as I got closer to meeting my baby girl. I hit 40 weeks, feeling certain I wouldn’t go into labor for another week or two as this was my first baby, until only 4 days later: June 18th, 2026 at 7 pm.

 

I had woken up from a nap with a mild contraction and light bleeding. Here we go; labor has started! I texted Dorothy the details, and she replied, “Very good! You know what to do!” and because of her thorough coaching during all my prenatals, birthing classes with Maggie, and by the grace of our God, she was right. For the first time in my highly anxious life, I knew exactly what to do! I got ready for bed as the mild contractions did their thing. I lay down to rest for the night, with the hope to get as much rest as possible. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t possible.

The contractions were getting increasingly stronger and closer together to the point that it was impossible to sleep. I contracted all night in bed, my husband staying up with me to keep track of the timing. At 4 am Friday morning, he decided to call Dorothy. I felt so bad about how early it was, but I knew Dorothy would be thrilled to hear from us, regardless of the timing. To no surprise, she answered on the second ring with a sleepy but cheerful voice. She wasn’t concerned that it was time for her to head over yet, just assured me these were all good signs and to keep doing everything I was already doing. She recommended we call Maggie, as this is where Maggie really shone.

 

This is where the story really comes together. This is where it’s clear that God shook the walls of hell when he paired Dorothy’s team together to bring the Father’s children into this world.

Maggie is an equal force as Dorothy. This is a woman who also walked in that same authority and fearlessness in Christ. Struggling with her own battle of infertility and hope for children someday, Maggie still chose to pick up the torch and march directly into the birthing realm to inspire & remind women like me, WE WERE MADE FOR THIS! While her dream to become a mother hadn’t quite happened for her yet, she chose to trust & serve God by using her gifts to pour into women the very thing she was praying for herself.

Maggie was equally cheerful and ready to come be with me. She arrived at my house around 8 am and started helping me through different positions we had practiced in her classes. The contractions were REALLY strong and starting to exhaust me. Maggie was right there as a strong rock to let me lean on, squeeze in the most violent, uncontrollable ways, and continue to coach me through the daunting but necessary contractions.

We worked together on this for the next several hours. Maggie’s encouragement is unexplainable. I was slowly starting to fade from exhaustion, running on no sleep. Maggie made me food & continued to inspire me through each contraction and stretch saying “this may be strong but it’s not stronger than you are” & “God will give you the grace you need for each hard moment”. Those words really shot power into my heart.

Dorothy arrived shortly after Maggie around 9 am or 10am. She hugged me and prayed over us before she settled in. I truly can’t tell you what was happening in my home, as I was completely focused on my own body, working with Maggie through the contractions, just moving around my house freely and intuitively to the motions that felt natural. As I turned the corner holding Maggie's hand, I entered my living room to the birthing pool, all set up, and Dorothy filling it with warm water from the stove while my husband turned on worship music in the living room right next to the birthing pool. The song “The Blessing” by Kari Jobe & Cody Carnes filled the room, and goosebumps engulfed my heart, flooding out onto my skin. Is it time, I wondered? Was I really close?

Maggie helped me into the birth pool and helped Dorothy continue to fill it with warm water. I lay there continuing to focus on my breathing, trying my hardest to let the contractions come with ease. Maggie knelt beside me, holding my hand & rubbing my back. I was feeling so defeated and exhausted, and it felt like the pain was taking over, and I felt my mind start to panic. As the worship music played, Maggie, my husband, and Dorothy quietly sang along under their breath. A certain lyric hit my ears: “And every fear, I’ll lay at your feet, Oh God, the battle belongs to you!” Time slowed down at that moment. I broke into tears and decided to sing along with them. As I sang that lyric with a shaky voice, an aching body & a desperate heart, I felt the Holy Spirit flood my mind to confirm those exact words to me: “The battle belongs to Him!”

 

I was sure I was close… It had been HOURS as I saw daylight slipping by. Little did I know the “battle” had yet to fully ignite.

Rachel and Violet arrived a short time later. These women are the completion of Dorothy’s beautiful team. I actually had no idea they arrived until Violet took over for Maggie, rubbing my back and applying peppermint oil, in such a seamless fashion I never felt the difference from Maggie’s hand to Violet’s. I lifted my sweaty forehead off my forearm and I asked Violet, “Am I close?” Violet smiled softly at me, “We wouldn’t be here if Dorothy didn’t think you were close.” She was such a great comfort for me like Maggie, always next to me with encouraging words & soft hands. 

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Having no idea what time it was or what was happening in my house, though it seemed so quiet, only hearing the worship music softly playing, I looked around and saw Rachel off in the distance with the most warm smile, hands open and ready to help with anything at any moment. I remember I was in the middle of another intense contraction when it was like the Holy Spirit directed my eyes directly to Rachel’s to say, “Don’t worry about anything. We’re all here for you - you're safe.” Rachel having 7 children of her own, I felt the nurturing motherly love from her - you can feel her heart just from her smile, & I believed her.

Dorothy then asked me, “Would you like me to check how dilated you are? I can give you an exact number, or I can give you a ballpark.” I replied, “I’d like to know the number!” I was so desperate.

She walked me over to my bed, and my heart pounded as she checked my cervix. She popped up with a huge smile, and with great confidence she exclaimed, “You’re at 7cm! That’s wonderful progress!” Oh, I can’t tell you how relieved I was at those words, and Dorothy’s excitement and confidence made me feel that much better. It filled me with so much encouragement to continue this challenging journey.

The hours continued as night fell upon us, and the contractions kept coming strong, one after another - I was most definitely pushed to the end of myself. Maggie, Violet, Rachel, and Dorothy all worked together to help comfort me, keeping the bath warm and helping me move around the house as I needed to. Dorothy checked my cervix upon my request, and we were all pleased to hear I was definitely progressing, just slowly. The contractions were one after another for quite a long time. Dorothy estimated Anastasia’s head wasn’t in the most ideal position on my cervix, and my body was trying to move her into a more centered position.

 

I was at 9cm when my husband called our best friend, Kaitlyn, a Chiropractor located in Southeast Michigan - about 3 hours away. I had no idea of this until she arrived about 10 pm and I heard her voice in the other room. “KAITLYN’S HERE!!’ I said in my head with joy and relief. I was so excited to see her but couldn’t speak at this moment as I was in mid-contraction. Kaitlyn is another fearless woman of God who has an irreplaceable spot in my heart. She immediately started adjusting my sacrum and BOOM! The contractions REALLY picked up, and Dorothy noticed a huge shift. Everyone was so thankful for Kaitlyn’s work here. Chiropractic adjustments are so necessary during labor, in my humble opinion. I can’t recommend them enough! Though it brought more painful, intense contractions, of course, only during labor is that a GREAT sign!

Dorothy checked my cervix again, and I was at 9.5 when she proposed an idea only a midwife with her kind of grit would propose - manual dilation of my cervix. I believe I was already on the birthing stool when she took a deep breath and said to me, “What I'm about to suggest isn’t going to be comfortable, but it will really help push you past this next phase and bring the baby really close.” I said, “Whatever it is, let's do it.”

Dorothy smiled and continued, “Whenever you feel a contraction, I want you to bear down and push as hard as you can. I’m going to manually assist your cervix open around the baby's head while you do that. This should really help bring you to the finish line.” And this is where I personally felt the power of the Holy Spirit fill not only myself, but seemed to surround that entire room because it was NOT by any power of mine (I had none left) but His bestowed onto all of us that allowed me to muster up the strength to push myself to point of sweat and tears, but with more hope and might I’ve ever felt in my entire life.

Dorothy, The Holy Spirit, and I worked at this for I don’t know how long, but I could feel the intensity in the room as everyone was quiet and started to surround Dorothy and me as we worked through this. Unbearable shooting pain ran through my hips and legs, and Dorothy encouraged me that this was a sign that the baby's head was in my pelvis! Kaitlyn adjusted me between contractions to keep me aligned - truly, between Kaitlyn and Dorothy, this was the ultimate duo that helped my body do what it needed to do!

At this point, I felt broken down to dust. I wasn’t sure I could continue. I flopped onto my bed completely out of energy and breath. Dorothy knelt down next to my bed to be there for me. The room was silent as everyone stayed still and calm. I sat up on my elbows, choking tears back in my throat. I mumbled to her in defeat, “Dorothy, I don't think I can do this anymore.” She put her hand on my knee, took a long pause, looked up at me, and gently said, “It’s okay to say you’re at the end of your rope. We can go to the hospital if you’d like. That is a valid option, but I want you to know, there’s not much the hospital is going to do. You’re making great progress, and you’re REALLY close.” I stared at her with tears welling up in my eyes, wanting to believe her but feeling so utterly defeated. It was these next 4 words she said with such conviction and certainty, in a voice and look in her eyes that felt like The Holy Spirit Himself said it to me.
“You CAN do this.” 4 words from Dorothy that immediately replaced the 4 words from the other midwife who said “that is SO dangerous.” And suddenly I believed Dorothy with every fiber of my being. I'm not even sure I said anything, but at that moment another contraction was hitting, and I jumped over to the birthing stool, Dorothy jumping back into position to push my cervix open, and we were at it again. She proposed another idea, “Okay. Another thing I can do is break your water myself. I don’t want to do that, but I can!” I just nodded through deep breaths. Another contraction, she kept pushing my cervix and guiding me where to push, and BOOM! My water broke!
“I didn’t do that!” Dorothy exclaimed with a huge smile. I felt everyone cheering in the background through the spirit, Kaitlyn witnessing this right next to me on the floor, her face LIT UP with excitement!

I believe it was the very next contraction after that, Dorothy pushing through with me to open my cervix around babies head. I asked desperately through winded breaths, “did we get it?” Dorothy with visible sweat on her forehead, stood up and removed her gloves. “We got it.” She declared with a large, satisfying smile. “OH PRAISE GOD!” I said as I hung my head in relief, but still not sure what that meant for how close I was. As if Dorothy read my mind, she said with gentle excitement, “Now, just push when you feel it. Baby is almost here.” WOW. Those words hit me, and I was stunned. I felt numb at that moment, but in a good way. With each contraction after that, I naturally felt the urge to push. Gaining energy with each contraction, I truly witnessed Isaiah 30:41 come to life around me. “But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint".

 

“Can I get in my own bathtub?” I asked Dorothy. “Of course!” She said. The room fell to a suspenseful but peaceful silence. My husband helped me into the bath, as everyone gathered in my bathroom behind and beside me. Getting on my hands and knees felt the most natural. It was like my mind shut off completely, and my body took over. Somehow I was able to fill the bath myself to just the perfect temperature.

The contractions took a dramatic shift from feeling it in my lower belly to now actually feeling pressure deep in my pelvis and that innate feeling to *push* was strong!! The adrenaline Maggie told me about hours earlier had made its appearance! All exhaustion was gone as I naturally beared down and kept pushing! I felt pressure lower and lower in my pelvis. This being my first baby I of course didn’t have the head knowledge to know this was her head I was feeling, but by God’s design of a woman’s ability to be so connected with her body, I didn’t need head knowledge; I had the Holy Spirit confirming for me. “I feel her head” I said out of breath to Dorothy who was sitting
gracefully and patiently behind me. Per her usual stoicism, she smiled ear to ear and just gently nodded with a slow wink as if to say “You’re exactly right. Keep going.”

Finally after some more intense pushes in the tub, I heard Dorothy exclaim softly (only she can somehow manage to scream gently LOL) “I see her face! Keep pushing Courtney, you’re doing great!” oh my gosh a SYMPHONY went off in my head at that moment!! “Courtney reach down and feel your baby’s head!” and I did! “Chase look at your baby’s face!” She guided my husband. I heard him sniffling and he
later told me he couldn’t see cause his eyes were so flooded with tears LOL! Dorothy warned me, “Courtney get ready to catch your baby, she’ll be coming up between your legs!” One huge push and I felt her completely outside of my body and the room spun in
slow motion for me. Dorothy swooshed her up to me under the water between my legs and I saw her little face under the water. I felt like I was in shock. Dorothy exclaimed “Courtney pull her up!” I pulled her up with shaky numb hands, Dorothy jumped in just to pull her up more quickly because I was too in shock. Thank you Dorothy!

There she was.. My sweet Anastasia Grace. She let out one big cry and I pulled her to my chest immediately to console her and we both melted into each other. Just like that, all the pain disappeared, time stood still and I was absolutely flooded with pure love, agape love. I knew God loved me, but up until this moment I never grasped just HOW MUCH He loves us as His children - an unexplainable amount. If I will do anything to protect and love my baby girl, how much more will our heavenly Father protect and love us? I had no idea what time it was or what to do next other than to just sit there and embrace my sweet girl. Thank you Jesus.

I looked up at all these women surrounding me with smiles, tears and nothing but pure warmth so proud and happy for me. My husband just adoring me and his precious daughter with eyes pouring out tears. They all guided me and Anastasia to my bed. Anastasia wiggled her way up my body and found my nipple. She was able to latch on her own but needed a little help staying there, and I was still shaking so sweet Rachel helped me get more secure in my position and just like that, Anastasia latched more confidently and we melted into each other with a blanket wrapped around us.

Unbeknownst to me, all the women traded chores to clean up my whole house while my husband and I laid there with our beautiful girl. After our golden hour, Kaitlyn adjusted Anastasia and we all watched her little body take a big sigh of relief - the cutest thing. Rachel, Violet, Dorothy, Maggie and Kaitlyn all gave me a huge warm hug with words of blessings & love as they gathered their things and left me, Chase and Anastasia to bask in each other. My house fell silent as morning sunlight dripped in through the windows, and oxytocin dripped through my veins. Chase got up to get me more water and stated as he came back, “babe they left everything spotless. Even your laundry is done!” “stop it..” I gasped. We both started crying, thanking God & praying for each woman he blessed us with.

They talk about the village you’ll need as a mom, especially a new mom. Usually it's members of your family. People who care about YOU, your emotional, physical and spiritual well being. The family I was born into may have been a tragedy and unfortunately they can not be my village. But God always provides. These 5 women all individually hold a spot in my heart forever. My sisters in Christ - a true village with families of their own who chose to be obedient to God and also become that village for women to help bring their babies into this world, no matter how inconvenient.

 

I laid there in all my dopamine that morning praying to God & thinking to myself: This isn’t just a job or a passion of theirs. This is KINGDOM WORK they are doing here in earth for the Glory of God. These are women who not only know their identity rooted in Christ, but their authority in Him! They speak & live like it. These are women who make all of hell tremble the moment their feet hit the floor in the morning. These are women who don’t just simply deliver babies, but women of God who absolutely crush satan’s head with each beautiful child of God they help bring into this world, with each mother they encourage to trust God with the body He gave her, and every baby that takes their first breath of life beneath their mother's exhausted and joyous tears. You may see these women in a pretty skirt with a gentle smile, but make no mistake; in the spiritual realm, they are suited up and strong in the full armor of God, walking diligently in Truth and obedience to our Heavenly Father. Not just a midwifery team, but steadfast soldiers for Christ, walking in authority through Jesus in a fight for life making sure every mother knows, “YOU CAN DO THIS!”

 

Before the birth of Anastasia, my husband and I had planned to move back to California . That is, until the birth of Anastasia. Because of that experience, we have now decided to buy or build a home in or near Hart, Michigan so we can have this birth experience with Dorothy and her team for all the rest of our children, Lord Willing! The Lord has changed the desires of our hearts. What matters to us now is not so much having the perfect weather, or having the distance from what makes us uncomfortable in the extended familial sense, but birthing and stewarding our family right here where the Lord has planted us, and trusting Him with that. Just as I delight in taking care of & protecting my baby, so the Lord will do the same for us and our home. Thank you Dorothy, Maggie, Violet, Rachel and Kaitlyn. And most importantly, thank you, Jesus.