Hey babycakes,
We got to hear your heartbeat last week! It was by far the most joyful moment in pregnancy thus far.

This last twelve weeks have been some of the most nerve-wracking I’ve had in a long time. I’ve been so worried about you! Worried about how you are growing. Worried about how safe you are in there. Worried about how you’re feeling with your mama worrying so much! Yes, your mama worries a lot and I sure hope you don’t inherit those genes!

You, my love, have grandparents and a whole slew of aunts and uncles that are very much looking forward to having you out here enjoying the world with us. And they were thrilled to hear that your heartbeat was so strong and steady. Alex had no trouble finding it at all, and it beat loud and proud at 170 beats a minute. What a beautiful sound! I could have jumped up off the bed I was so excited!

With a positive appointment and the knowledge that your heart is beating steady, your daddy and I prepared to start telling family about your upcoming arrival. And what a process it was…. full of joy… and some extra effort. You see, babycakes, our family lives all over this planet. Literally!

We started with the Fain side of the family because we had organized a family dinner with Grandpa, Grandma, and Uncle Luke (or Uncle Jesse as he’s decided he wants to be called.) With the five of us all together here in South Carolina we asked David and Courtney, who are in Ohio, and Mom, Dad, and Aunt Kristi, in Thailand, to get online so we could all talk together. With the wonders of technology we had the whole clan together “face-to-face” to share our happy news. There was much chaos, technological difficulties, and a whole lot of fun.

Coordinating with the Stevanus side of the family is a bit more complicated due to the time difference difficulties. We were finally able to arrange a call with your Nonno and Nonna in Italy on Sunday afternoon as we drove home from Washington DC after July 4th weekend. Once we had been able to tell them we made our rounds through the rest of the aunts and uncles spread throughout New York and Virginia. A memorable part of the evening was sharing with Yia-Yia that she’s a Pro Yia-Yia. You’ll have five great grandparents, kiddo!

And quite the cultured bunch they are TOO. Pro Yia-Yia is Greek, Grandma Marge is Italian, and Grandpa and Grandma Scovill spent over 50 years in ministry in Indonesia and among the Dani. You’re coming into quite a heritage my love. Dad already dreams of teaching you at least 5 languages to get you started. In all seriousness we plan to speak Italian and English in our home so you’ll learn early and quickly, and be able to speak with family and friends in Italy. And Uncle Ozgur will teach you Turkish so you can speak with those cousins. You’ve got so many adventures ahead of you! Many of them will be so very fun, and many of them will be hard too…

Your daddy and I feel acutely the reality we’re bringing you in to, as we continue following God on the journey He’s asked of us. We’re so excited to love and serve others by sharing of Christ’s sacrifice for us in a cross-cultural ministry context. Growing up in a similar way we are thrilled for the broad worldview you’ll develop from an early age. And we can’t be more excited to help you learn how God has designed YOU to share His love with the people around you, wherever we serve as a family. Yet, we also know how hard some parts of it can be. The good-byes and the distance are always going to be hard. It’s never going to be fun to be far from our family and friends. We can hope and dream that we’ll all end up in some semblance of close, but we just don’t know yet. And that’s all part of the leap of faith God asks of us.

If there is one thing I want you to start learning, even now, it is that trusting God is so very worth it. Sometimes He asks things of us that just don’t make sense. Sometimes life seems so much harder than it needs to be. And yet, God is so very sovereign. He works out the fantastic and painfully difficult things that this world throws at us, and makes them into what is very best for us. He teaches us so many incredible lessons through the big and small details that make up our lives. And sometimes He asks us to sacrifice things… and we can trust that the sacrifice will be all worth it. Your dad and I are so looking forward to continuing to learn what it looks like to follow God’s leading on our lives, and through His grace and mercy, teaching you to do the same. He’s the only thing that makes it all worth it, honey, and He is so very worth it.

Watch our announcement video here! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTIRBpbfAJU