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| Newborn photo |
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| One month old |
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| 3 months |
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| 8 months |
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| 9 months |
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| 1 year old! |
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
A Year of Photos of Jeremiah Michael Lyons...
A Year Ago Today...
Jeremiah Michael Lyons
February 7, 2011, 8:00p.m., 7lb. 10 oz. 20 ¾ inches
Jeremiah… “Yahweh exalts or lifts up”
God has been molding and shaping your form,
And brought forth this day when you would be born.
We choose the name Jeremiah for you,
That God may sustain and lift you up in all that you do.
Jeremiah was a man of God-sent to speak boldly God’s Word,
To a people that did not heed the word of the Lord.
We pray for courage like Jeremiah to stand against the foe,
Not fearing prison, persecution, the sword or arrow.
We pray your life will glorify Him in all that He sovereignly brings,
Bringing glory to Yahweh even amidst pain and suffering.
Michael… “Who is like God? No one!”
Your middle name Michael lifts up the uniqueness of our Lord,
There is no one in heaven or on earth like Him- no one in all the world.
This name also has a special family meaning,
As we named you, our firstborn son, after your daddy.
We pray you would follow your daddy’s footsteps in this life,
By looking to him as he follows the Lord Jesus Christ.
We pray you would love and serve the Lord with all your soul and being,
And we pray Christ and His Word may be sweeter to you than honey.
Lyons…
Though we decorate your nursery with lions and jungle themes,
May they remind you of the Lion of Judah- the King above all Kings!
Your heritage is not in riches nor gold,
Not in money or possessions in this life to behold.
Your heritage is a life that brings honor to the King,
To praise glory and honor Him with all your heart, soul and being.
We pray for you, our son, as we bring you into our family,
And pray that your life would honor Jesus- the King of all Kings!
Jeremiah 17:7-8
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD.
He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
Memories From A Year Ago:
Jeremiah Michael Lyons was born into our home on Monday, February 7, 2011 at 8pm. He weighed in at 7lb. 10 oz. and was 20 3/4 inches long. I was thrilled and overjoyed that he had little dark hairs- I just love little hair. We are so thankful to the Lord for this special gift and for the Lord's grace throughout the process and for our amazing doctor who goes to our church Dr. Grim who was a huge encouragement!
It was quite the labor and the Lord sustained me even though I admit at times I was quite discouraged. I began having some contractions in the middle of the night Saturday night (3am). Well I have to admit that I think my mother-in-law helped the labor process as she went for a walk with me on Friday at Northgate and she was a “fast” walker! Saturday night I didn’t know if I was having contractions, I just felt sick and felt like I had to go to the bathroom. By the morning, I saw the first signs of labor (I’ll spare you the details- but passed the plug). It was Sunday morning and the contractions seemed to come every 5 minutes pretty quickly. Michael began timing them while I got a shower. They seemed to come pretty quickly and so we did what every first time laborer did, follow the rules and call the doc when they were 5 minutes apart. He told me to go on down to the hospital so we went down around 11am. They sent me to triage and checked me and I was only 1cm. At least I was dilating, the week before I had not even dilated on my own. They let me stay and walk the halls hoping that would progress things and then sent me home. I was a little discouraged as we left the hospital. We called our parents and went to meet Michael’s parents at O’Charleys for lunch, of course I was still having contractions through it all. We went back to Michael’s parents’ house and I told Michael I wanted to go home- I was in tears as they prayed for me and we left.
It was quite the labor and the Lord sustained me even though I admit at times I was quite discouraged. I began having some contractions in the middle of the night Saturday night (3am). Well I have to admit that I think my mother-in-law helped the labor process as she went for a walk with me on Friday at Northgate and she was a “fast” walker! Saturday night I didn’t know if I was having contractions, I just felt sick and felt like I had to go to the bathroom. By the morning, I saw the first signs of labor (I’ll spare you the details- but passed the plug). It was Sunday morning and the contractions seemed to come every 5 minutes pretty quickly. Michael began timing them while I got a shower. They seemed to come pretty quickly and so we did what every first time laborer did, follow the rules and call the doc when they were 5 minutes apart. He told me to go on down to the hospital so we went down around 11am. They sent me to triage and checked me and I was only 1cm. At least I was dilating, the week before I had not even dilated on my own. They let me stay and walk the halls hoping that would progress things and then sent me home. I was a little discouraged as we left the hospital. We called our parents and went to meet Michael’s parents at O’Charleys for lunch, of course I was still having contractions through it all. We went back to Michael’s parents’ house and I told Michael I wanted to go home- I was in tears as they prayed for me and we left.
Well, even though I feel like I am a wimp with pain, they kept coming harder and I felt like I needed to go back that evening. They sent me to triage again and as I laid in bed and had not dilated any more, a sweet nurse talked to us more about what to expect and how we will know when to come. They agreed that the contractions were 3-4 minutes apart. The sweet nurse talked to Michael about when he should bring me back and talked to me about breathing and relaxing through the contractions, which was so hard to do. They sent me home with some “Ambien” to help me sleep. I slept a few hours that night and woke up again with contractions. Finally Monday morning I told Michael that I needed to go back- so we called the doctor and he saw us early at his office and said I had dilated to 3cm and sent me to be admitted- I was crying tears of joy- finally!! I do remember getting to the hospital and feeling a little funny as a lady in front of me was being wheeled in as her water had broke and she was having severe contractions. They took me to a room and admitted me and checked me in at 11am and I got an IV of antibiotics to help prevent Jeremiah from getting sick. After they checked me in, they had me walk the halls which was getting hard to do with increased contractions. After a little while, Dr. Grim came in and checked me and broke my water which he had trouble doing because it was so tough. I thought that was humorous as my whole pregnancy I had worried about my water breaking and then Dr. Grim could barely break it!
I liked the hospital but struggled with how to breathe and handle the contractions and wish I had had more preparation of what to expect. Michael was a wonderful coach and we both were very tired. I remember talking to Sara Fillmann on the phone and she helped coach me some. I am very thankful though that the Lord allowed me to go into labor on my own- even on my due date though it seemed so long. They gave me the epidural and I could still feel pressure in my bottom and asked if that was normal so she had me lay on my side some. She then decided to redo my epidural. I felt such relief afterward and was able to rest some. I was a little nervous I remember because I felt it going up into my chest. After the epidural, I dilated quickly and around 7pm was basically at a 10cm. Dr. Grim said in a half hour he would come back and I could push. I loved the epidural in that it numbed the pain but I could still feel the pressure telling me to push. I had been worried that I would know how to push but thankfully I really did know how to push. I remember trying to push with all my might to get this thing done! I was surprised after his head was out, that I still had to push out the shoulders. So after 30 minutes of pushing which did not seem that long, Jeremiah came out. I could hardly believe as tears filled my eyes that he was finally here and what a cute little one with dark tufts of hair. As Dr. Grim stitched me back up- I held the little guy. I did feel him stitching me up and it was a bit uncomfortable, but so thankful Jeremiah was born!
We are thrilled with this little gift from God. We are both very tired and exhausted but overjoyed with the Lord's goodness. Some pictures and a bit about his name. Thanks all for your encouragement and prayers!!! Afterward, we called my dad and mom and Michael’s mom. She had come in to see me after the epidural and waited in the waiting room. Jordan Jones also was waiting in the waiting room to see us.
Funniest Moment: One of my funniest memories of the time was after Jeremiah was born, Michael’s mom and him went to get our things from the car and Michael was so tired he told the security guard that his wife was in labor. Mom Lyons was with him and gently reminded Michael that she had already had the baby! Monday, February 6, 2012
Last Year.... February 6, 2011
I am sure Mamas tend to do a lot of reflecting around their children's birthday. Last year on this day, I started going into labor and ended up going to the hospital 2 different times before they finally admitted me. After being in labor for 40 hours or so the Lord graciously gave us our little boy. At times my labor was really discouraging as I did not know what to expect or when I should go to the hospital. I do remember some of my thoughts though from last year- I was thinking, I am such a wimp at this labor thing and I remember thinking how do women do this and I remember thinking these labor pains are such a result of sin! :) Also, I do remember my family praying for me and Michael being a great encouragement during that time. The Lord is so good and it is so hard to believe we have had almost a year tomorrow with this little boy. He is a blessing indeed. My parents and sister left this morning after spending the weekend partying with us- more pictures to come! :)
Friday, February 3, 2012
Give Them Grace
I am facilitating a discussion at our church on the book Give Them Grace by Elyse Fitzpatrick and her daughter Jessica Thompson. It has been very thought provoking for me and has been a great book to think through in how you apply the gospel to parenting.
The authors say that a lot of times we think "good parenting in, good parenting out." We want to see the result of all the hard work we are putting into parenting- but that is not always the case. Just because we raise our kids in the gospel does not believe they will be believers. We need to give up trust in ourselves and in our efforts! We are to be faithful parents and let the faith of our children in the Lord's hands! "Works righteousness is motivated by unbelief, it is a reliance on our abilities and a desire to control outcomes." We can want our kids transformation so much that it can become an idol-something we long for more than Christ. I love the statement she says, "We simply don't believe that God is good enough to entrust with our children's souls or that he's wise enough to know what will make us ultimately happy and satisfied. We have far too high a view of our ability to shape our children and far too low a view of God's love and trustworthiness." I need to remember in my parenting that good parenting does not produce righteous children- we are only dependent on the grace and mercy of God. And so I must rest myself in His saving work for me on the cross and His finished work for my children and trust and pray for His grace in this parenting journey and wisdom for day to day! (Chapter 3)
The authors say that a lot of times we think "good parenting in, good parenting out." We want to see the result of all the hard work we are putting into parenting- but that is not always the case. Just because we raise our kids in the gospel does not believe they will be believers. We need to give up trust in ourselves and in our efforts! We are to be faithful parents and let the faith of our children in the Lord's hands! "Works righteousness is motivated by unbelief, it is a reliance on our abilities and a desire to control outcomes." We can want our kids transformation so much that it can become an idol-something we long for more than Christ. I love the statement she says, "We simply don't believe that God is good enough to entrust with our children's souls or that he's wise enough to know what will make us ultimately happy and satisfied. We have far too high a view of our ability to shape our children and far too low a view of God's love and trustworthiness." I need to remember in my parenting that good parenting does not produce righteous children- we are only dependent on the grace and mercy of God. And so I must rest myself in His saving work for me on the cross and His finished work for my children and trust and pray for His grace in this parenting journey and wisdom for day to day! (Chapter 3)
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Dishes & Haircut
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Ponderings
This past weekend, Michael allowed me to go to a counseling conference Friday night and Saturday morning at Clearcreek Chapel near Dayton, OH. He did a great job taking care of Jeremiah, Grandma Lyons only helped him a little on Sat. morning. I had a wonderful time getting to know better a few really neat couples at our church. Lou Priolo was the speaker and it was encouraging to my heart to ponder some of the different topics he talked about- crippling fear, jealousy, envy, rash judgments and contentment.
A few memorable things I walked away with from the conference:
* Lou said that often in reformed circles, we often know and rely on the Sovereignty of God- but often it is the goodness of God that we question in times of fear, worry and anxiety. I realized in my own heart, when I am struggling with fear or worry, often I am not trusting and relying on the Lord's goodness- oh I know He is in control of all things but I do not think upon the fact that He is good and His good for me is where He has placed me right now no matter what the circumstance. Fear is sinful when it proceeds out of unbelief or distrust in God.
* The second thing I took away with from the weekend was thinking about love vs. self. He noted that fear is sinful when it is rooted in selfishness rather than love. Love is giving, selfishness is taking. I realized that one commonality of all sins is that is focused on self (me) and not loving another person. What will happen if "I" loose my child or husband? (fear) Why can't "I" have a house right now? (jealousy) When will "I" be able to have another child? (contentment) All these things focus on "ME" and keep me from loving my God and others selflessly. All these things are a misplaced desire- I am desiring something ABOVE desiring God! My prayer is that I would desire Christ above all else!
1 Corinthians 13:4-7- Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
* The third thing I have been thinking about lately is how sin can so easily take root in one's life. John Owen's statement is true- "Be killing sin or it will be killing you." Michael and I lately have had a wake up call in our marriage and own lives of the importance of killing sin and praying that God would keep us from temptation. A week ago, we visited some friends dealing with the serious effect of sin that has damaged their family severely. This has been a wake up call in our own lives to pray that God would be our focus and our love and that He would keep us from giving in to sin and not obeying Him. I have realized again how Satan loves to prowl like a roaring lion seeking to devour esp. believers and their marriages. It is a reminder to me to be sober, watchful and alert! As much as we might think how could sin harden believing couples, we know it could happen to us if we are not submitting to the authority of the gospel and being alert and watchful. And so my prayer lately- "O God, keep me reveling in the gospel and obedient and submissive to Your Word!" I have been comforted in reading Psalm 139 that the Lord sees my friend and knows all of our ways. The Lord is still on the throne and in control!
A few memorable things I walked away with from the conference:
* Lou said that often in reformed circles, we often know and rely on the Sovereignty of God- but often it is the goodness of God that we question in times of fear, worry and anxiety. I realized in my own heart, when I am struggling with fear or worry, often I am not trusting and relying on the Lord's goodness- oh I know He is in control of all things but I do not think upon the fact that He is good and His good for me is where He has placed me right now no matter what the circumstance. Fear is sinful when it proceeds out of unbelief or distrust in God.
* The second thing I took away with from the weekend was thinking about love vs. self. He noted that fear is sinful when it is rooted in selfishness rather than love. Love is giving, selfishness is taking. I realized that one commonality of all sins is that is focused on self (me) and not loving another person. What will happen if "I" loose my child or husband? (fear) Why can't "I" have a house right now? (jealousy) When will "I" be able to have another child? (contentment) All these things focus on "ME" and keep me from loving my God and others selflessly. All these things are a misplaced desire- I am desiring something ABOVE desiring God! My prayer is that I would desire Christ above all else!
1 Corinthians 13:4-7- Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
* The third thing I have been thinking about lately is how sin can so easily take root in one's life. John Owen's statement is true- "Be killing sin or it will be killing you." Michael and I lately have had a wake up call in our marriage and own lives of the importance of killing sin and praying that God would keep us from temptation. A week ago, we visited some friends dealing with the serious effect of sin that has damaged their family severely. This has been a wake up call in our own lives to pray that God would be our focus and our love and that He would keep us from giving in to sin and not obeying Him. I have realized again how Satan loves to prowl like a roaring lion seeking to devour esp. believers and their marriages. It is a reminder to me to be sober, watchful and alert! As much as we might think how could sin harden believing couples, we know it could happen to us if we are not submitting to the authority of the gospel and being alert and watchful. And so my prayer lately- "O God, keep me reveling in the gospel and obedient and submissive to Your Word!" I have been comforted in reading Psalm 139 that the Lord sees my friend and knows all of our ways. The Lord is still on the throne and in control!
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Under the Weather...
The past few days, Jeremiah has been feeling sickly. He has had a runny nose, cough and on top of that I think he is getting more teeth! Last night, he had a 102.5 temperature which is the worst I have seen in his little body. So basically while daddy was gone working, we read books and snuggled. I know the little boy is sick when all he wants to do is sit with me on the chair and lay his head on my shoulder. So we rocked and sang some songs. This morning, he would only sit on the floor and fuss and cry. So in order to distract the little guy, I took him for a ride in the car and a walk in his stroller. It seems to have worked because his spirits seem up. Now we have heard news that Dad & Mom Lyons both have the stomach flu. Hopefully, I am not next. Even when the little man is sick, he still likes his moo-cow and was able to get out a little smile before we left.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Uncle Manny...
Last Friday night, our neighbor (from our Louisville apartment days) came for a visit. He is studying at U of L to be a doctor and had an interview up in Cincinnati. We secretly hope he would move to Cincy soon. We would love to have him as a neighbor again. Manny is our Ethiopian friend and cooked us an amazing Ethiopian dish when we were in Louisville- he is a good friend! This was his first time meeting Jeremiah. And he brought two very cute sweaters for Jeremiah as we all know Manny hates the cold weather- definitely not like Ethiopian weather! All I have to say is Manny, you did a great job picking out the sweaters and we hope you can move to Cincy soon (hopefully!).
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