Saturday, July 2, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
The Answer and the Offering
Watermark - Elliana's Song
"Baby woman, tiny in stature now
But your heart is a treasure
Little princess come follow behind me now
I am reaching for you
(chorus)
Elliana, God has answered my prayers
Elliana, God will conquer my fears
To mother a daughter, to look you in the eye
To know that I had everything, to walk with you in life
To give you to Jesus that He would impart
The wisdom that I'm longing for to mother your heart
Elliana, God has answered my prayers
There will be others to lead and to guide you girl
But only one you'll call Mother, the honor is all mine
To show you what a woman's like
I'm so glad you're mine
(chorus)
Tenderness of God is twirling around
In our living room tonight
Lighten up your daddy's eyes
And know that he just wants to freeze you in time
(chorus)
(© All lyrics are copyright of their owners.)
In the fall of 2009, Adam went on a personal retreat to get away and be with God. During that time, he felt God encouraged him that very soon we would have a child. As he played some praise music, he heard these lyrics. Though unable to decipher the name the artist used for the little girl, he shared the song with me that one day God would answer our prayer for a child.
That same fall we heard of someone naming their daughter Eliana, which was Hebrew for "God has answered." I had never heard it before, but immediately I fell in love with it and the truth it states. So, I tucked it away in my memory bank.
I was still dancing that fall when I begin to wonder if I would ever be able to get pregnant (due to my dance background I had developed a hormone insufficiency). Adam was in the middle of a crazy 3rd year of medical school and busy preparing his away rotations for the following fall. We decided that we should wait till late spring to begin thinking about a baby. For what would we do if for some amazing chance I got pregnant sooner?! Adam would be away on rotations during its due date. No, we were planners and we were going to wait.
Funny how God works! Miracles can happen!
Four weeks later--Hello, baby Hines was on the way. And Adam got the fun part of canceling all his rotations and moving them up to the summer.
We were going to wait to find out the gender, but I couldn't. We tried several names, but we both just felt that for some reason the baby's name was to be Elliana. (Bummer if it was a boy). One day we replayed the song from Watermark that Adam heard but this time actually read the lyrics. We were blown away that it was the exact name we felt led to call our child. The sonogram confirmed FEMALE and it was settled.
So, exactly a year later from Adam's personal retreat with God and the song he felt God gave him as a promise, Elliana Belen was born.
God had answered our prayer. But more than that, this name was a statement about His character. His attribute. Who He is. He does answer. He answered the ultimate cry of mankind--to be saved, forgiven, redeemed. He answered by sending His Son to die on the cross. We wanted our little girl to know that God is the answer to ALL things and He will answer.
"I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation"
Psalm 118:21
On Sunday, March 20, 2011, we dedicated little Elliana Belen Hines back to the LORD. He is good. He is faithful. He hears us, and He has answered.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Hello February, where did January go?!
Well here is what we have been up to . . .
Below is the like ONE day in the history of San Antonio when it snowed. Go figure! It just happened to be during the last winter we are here before we go live on an 80 degree island for five years. Needless to say, we took a ton of pictures of our 1/2 inch of white frost. :)
Ellie's attempt at a snow angle
Life with Ellie has been a blast! She is more and more responsive when she sees us--kicking, smiling, cooing. She loves looking in the mirror and laughing at herself out of pure joy, (unlike the rest of us who laugh at ourselves in the mirror.) She also is into making faces and expressing herself when she is not exactly enjoying the moment. She is into the "don't you even think of putting me down" stage and the "I want to be held and carried All the time" phase. Truly though, it has been wonderful looking into the fresh face of a little life and discovering that you are totally and completely captivated by her love.
CLEANING!!
Oh, yes. We are trying to sell our condo before we leave the mainland (anyone interested? :)). So, these days I am up to my elbows in pretty much every type of liquid purification Lysol makes. And shall I add that it is Amazing how much stuff you acquire in so little time! Seriously! How do we let this happen?
In the meantime . . .
Adam is for the first time in 4 years having a life while in medical school. He so front loaded all his courses at the beginning of 4th year that now he is just enjoying chilling . . . somewhat. Me, well, cleaning.
Ok, that is it for now.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Aloha!
All that being said, we ranked Tripler first on our list knowing how difficult it might be. We did so because we really did love our time there, we felt the residency was the best fit for me, and we felt that Hawaii was the best place to begin raising our family. We did not want to shrink away from what seems difficult because of fear. We believe that our faith will be increased during this time - our faith in God's provision and his perfect plan for our lives. We will learn to be dependent on Him for our needs in a deeper way. We have prayed to learn this dependency on Him, as opposed to dependency on ourselves or on our family/parents. We will probably learn more than we bargained for, but we cannot wait to learn and grow. Laura and I cannot wait for this new adventure!
Monday, December 6, 2010
Elliana Belen
I had no idea what to expect or if I would even know if/when my water would break. I was assuming it would happen in some random public place with lots of people perhaps, and I would have to run out backwards with a towel wrapped around me like a huge diaper. (We actually kept a towel in the car for that very purpose.) Fortunately, that was not the way God had planned it for me.
It was the night before her due date. I was in a not-so-good mood. I had been having mild contractions for several days "false labor" and being the drama queen that I am, I had concluded that she was never going to come. So, I went to bed early.
I awoke around 11p.m.because I thought I needed to use the restroom--I was used to doing that as all you pregnant women know. But before I could get out of bed I felt something "release" and water run down my leg. No, I had not wet the bed. This was different. It had begun.
Adam, half awake, encouraged me to go back to sleep (Really??), that it would be awhile till I really started having contractions. WRONG!!! Within 10 minutes I was curled up in the fetal position squeezing the pillow and wanting to slap Eve for ever eating that stupid apple in the garden!
Soon I was having 3 contractions in 8 min. and we were off to the hospital. However, Adam wanted to return the movie we rented first to avoid late fees--Ok, shall I say priorities were in question?
From water breaking to our little princess making her debut in all her glory was 12 and a half hours with pushing for only 10 minutes. I actually fell asleep during my transition time due to the epideral. I awoke to the doctor and nurses telling me to push. Thank you Jesus for such a blessed delivery!
8lbs 0.5oz. 19.5 inches. Born at 12:01 p.m.
Adam's parents drove all night from Mckinney and got there in plenty of time. My parents and Michael joined them. Heath and Lindsey, Adam's brother and wife, were able to come by the hospital briefly too.
It all happened so fast. All those months of waiting were over and now our little angel was in our arms at last.
The waiting game
A week or two before she was due, Adam was able to get Ranger tickets with his brother to a playoff game up in Arlington. No, I wasn't bitter that I was forbidden to travel and go with him, nor was I up-set at all that he was leaving his pregnant wife who could go into labor at any moment. No, not me, not at all. hummmm :/
So, I decided to have a little "girl" weekend on my own with some friends. I splurged and ate lots of chocolate.
Our 2nd anniversary kicked off the last week before her due date. Adam fortunately has finished his last medical orthopedic rotation and had the whole week free (YEA!). So, of course we took a "baby moon" and did all kinds of stuff just the two of us.
We were also trying to do anything that could naturally induce labor--like walking, and bike riding, and eating all kinds of spicy foods. The latter only gives heart burn, don't try it.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Washington
I was in starting my 8th month of pregnancy, but still feeling strong. So, we thought it would be fun to hike a bunch and take in the fresh air. The rains had not yet arrived, so there was plenty of sunshine the first part of our trip.
Adam also had weekends off while rotating at Ft. Lewis. So, in addition to hiking the country side, we toured the surrounding cities, like Seattle and Olympia.
Me, having a moment on the grounds of the Pacific North West Ballet. The baby bump accentuates the classical line.
Um, shall I say Beautiful!
Adam loved the program up at Madigan Army hospital. He learned a lot and really connected with the people there. My experience up there those 4 weeks was quite different. I was alone majority of the time and due to poor medical treatment for my gestational diabetes, I was having to go in for testing several times a week. Plus, the rains had come and I soon realized that I was not a fan of living on base. Regardless, we came away having made some amazing memories. Now, we were ready to stop living out of a suit case and return home to the high 90 degree fall Texas weather.
Hawaii
Though my time on the island seemed completely postcard perfect, It was not entirely paradise. I had just been diagnosed with gestational diabetes (an unusual case--not due to diet or lifestyle at all). So, I was beginning my treatment while in Honolulu. It was a rough adjustment since we were so far away and my dear doctors back home could not treat me. We were in limbo with such a short time there to really get started. Plus, I was having to see a new doctor pretty much every time I had an appointment, (hello military medicine). There was no consistency and huge chunks of important info was falling through the cracks with every visit. Not fun. Though I could not delight in the island cuisine per se, I did drink in plenty of sunshine.
Adam's interviews went well and we met some great people during our stay. The warmth and hospitality of everyone made us feel so welcome. We left Hawaii's sunshine and rainbows with hopes of possibly returning for residency. It had been our first real interview rotation destination and certainly not our last. Our adventures continued as we set sail for the mainland of Washington state. I was excited to compare the programs and experience life in the great north west.
Summer 2010
Spring 2010
I also made a guest appearance in Ballet San Antonio's production of Coppelia. I played the role of the doll Coppellia---a challenging role may I add. I had to sit and hold a book and not move for like 5 minutes, except for one moment when I stood up to blow a kiss. I was exhausted! :)