Foxholes, "Independence," and Sticking Your Neck Out

This weekend I celebrated our upcoming arrival (a baby!) with my church. Just about 7 years ago, they showered me with dishes, towels, kitchen utensils and Macy's gift cards in celebration of my marriage to a boy many of them had seen grow up. This weekend, they showered me with pink and purple onesies, receiving blankets, children's books and sundries for a baby girl they'll most likely watch grow up in prayer letters and via this blog.

Mostly, that makes me sort of sad. But I received a handmade quilt from sweet Jeri Ann, who taught Chris's Sunday School class, and a number of the ladies pitched in to buy the handmade quilt from Etsy. I am looking forward to sharing with our daughter why her girly quilts are so special to me: they were given to us by women who influenced Chris and I spiritually. I am confident when I say one of the reasons we are even capable of answering God's call to the mission field is because of the way these women prayed, nurtured and encouraged us.

The game we played at the shower was one of the most clever I've ever seen. When we arrived, we had to choose an animal to wear with our name tag. There was a huge pile of adorable clipart images of everything from kittens to worker bees to polar bears to dolphins. While we ate, we had to think of something about parenting to share that related to our animal. Here's a selection:

Phyllis chose a deer and reminded us to spend a lot of time outdoors with our kids.

Sally chose a turtle and pointed out that they are down low to the ground, where babies tend to be as well, and I should get down on the floor with my baby to enjoy her more.

Pam had lambs and she said it reminded her of the joy of sharing the Easter story with her kids.

Norma's dog represented the value of one-word commands.

Linda selected a cat, one of my favorite animals. She said that cats and children think they're independent, but they really need a lot of love, attention and guidance.

Siri picked a giraffe, which has a long neck: sometimes you have to stick your neck out for your child.

Rebecca had a crab, because sometimes mommies get crabby, but my sweet baby girl never will. Right.

My mother-in-law's bunny rabbit made her think of God's command "be fruitful and multiply." (yep, we all laughed too!)

I picked a fox, because I'm hoping to be a foxy mama! But when it was my turn to share, I said that I felt that God had given me some safe foxholes in my life, and Chris and I desired to have a safe foxhole not just for Susanna, but for whomever God gives us to protect.

And our host, Cheri, had the butterfly, with it's all-important meaning: instill the truth in Susanna so that she receives new life in Jesus Christ at a young age.

I loved how some of the insights were funny, some were practical and some were poignant. I will remember it forever, and I hope it becomes a regular part of showers at Eastgate!