Today's been a big day for a few "transformed moms"! God is weaving many blessings in the lives of Mandy and Cristi. They love Him! They desire to follow His Word. They know that He is the source of LIFE! In fact, they know that Jesus is who He claims to be when He says: "I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE and no one comes to the Father except by Me."
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- This morning at 1:48 a.m. Mandy gave birth to baby "Libby". Although Libby was due next week, she came fast and surprised us all.
- Cristi and her family left the DC area this morning for their new home in Little Rock. Their travels got them as far as Tennessee tonight.
Here is "Libby" today wearing a little cap that Cristi crocheted for Mandy's future daughter.
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God puts His children together just the way He wants to. He orchestrated eternal connections between the 3 of us in amazing ways. It's how our Heavenly Daddy does things.
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Here are Cristi and Mandy a year ago with Lauren, in Lauren's hospital bed, as she awaits (for the 7th month in a row) for a heart transplant.
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My niece, Vanessa, who was a good friend and neighbor of Cristi's in Virginia connected Cristi and I when Cristi came to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) with Lauren in January of 2009. I tried to make weekly or more than weekly visits to them over about an 8 month period. Our church family ministered in special ways to Lauren and her mama.
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As Cristi and her husband, Tim, and I would visit, we made many Oklahoma and military connections. Tim had grown up in Oklahoma. They both had gone to college at Oklahoma Christian. My husband, Steve had grown up in Oklahoma not too far from where Tim had. Steve's brother had been the youth minister where Tim went to church. We knew people who they had gone to college with.... small world.
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Then, one day I brought Mandy with me to visit. Immediate connection: Paragould, Arkansas! Tim's parents had moved to that area where Mandy had grown up... small world.
It was a year ago this past Wedneday, July 28, that Lauren received her new strong heart. Recently, she returned to Philadelphia for her almost one year check-up. Afterwards, there was a reunion at Don Pablo's when Lauren and Maggie (Libby's big sister) enjoyed each others company while their moms and dads did, too.
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Below is a picture of Lauren and mommy not too long after that special day a year ago. This week, Cristi has updated her blog with thoughts about that time and the past year. Inspirational!
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