Faith,  Marriage Confessions,  Pregnancy

And She Shall Be Called…

When we found out we were expecting again, by far the most common question we were asked was, “What are you going to call this one?” Not “what will her name be?” or “have you thought of any names?” Oh, no. People wanted to know what nickname we were going to give this baby.

I mean, let’s face it, Bean set the bar pretty high as far as nicknames go.

New Guy was a nice little name place holder until we found out the gender, but now that we know it’s a little girl, that nickname obviously won’t do. So, Chris and I began to try out other nicknames. Sweet Pea (which neither of us liked), Sugar Boo (which Chris didn’t like), Lady Bug (my personal favorite), and Sprout (the opposite of my personal favorite). But nothing seemed to fit. Nothing felt natural.

And then I got to see her.

baby2

After that 3D ultrasound my sister gave me for my birthday, I just couldn’t call her something like Spud Head. She was too sweet. Too small. Too perfectly feminine for me to call by any other name besides her own. I can’t explain it any other way. She just didn’t fit with a nickname.

So, we cut through the nicknames and gave her a name. A beautiful name. A name that makes my heart feel warm whenever I say it.

Grace.

Her name is Caroline Grace Brown, but we’ll call her Grace. Actually, we’ve been calling her Gracie. Even Bean can say it, though it sounds like, “Gayce” when he says it and that makes my heart even warmer.

Caroline has always been a favorite name for both Chris and I since we were pregnant with Bean and didn’t know if he was a boy or girl. I just think it’s so Southern. So sweet. Every Caroline I’ve ever known has been a sweet person.

But Grace was the name. THE name. I wanted a little Gracie Girl.

In the past year as we have gone through all of these changes and adjustments, it has been God’s grace that has seen us through. He’s seen us through hard times and celebrated with us in good times. But more than that, in these past few months as I have struggled with my faith during the middle of this dark time, He has continued to shower me with his grace and with his patience as He sits and waits with me until I’m ready to move through this.

We don’t have much right now and I’m adjusting to that. But we have God’s grace in abundance.

And in April we will have God’s Grace right there in our arms.

With a name like that, how could we ever call her something else?

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