of babies and rejuvenation

ah, i know. it's been quite the long time. but i feel somewhat refreshed and rejuvenated, ready to once again lay bear my heart and my journey with Jesus, hoping that some little blessing finds its way to your own heart, dear reader.

so much has changed since june. so. much.

if you were traipsing along with me back then, you know my family suffered a terrible loss in march, and i am so grateful for all the love and support during my miscarriage.

God was so faithful to our family though, and blessed us with another pregnancy shortly afterwards. i'm now 30 weeks pregnant (!!!!) with another little boy. our little daniel is due february 2nd (though this mama's hoping and praying that maybe he'll be enticed into an early appearance in january). regardless, i'm so grateful. it's an unbelievable experience, carrying life in your womb. for those that cannot share in this joy, my heart breaks for you. it's such a tremendous cross to bear. for those that have not yet tasted of motherhood, hold on to your seats, because life is never predictable again.

sometimes, my heart trembles a little at the thought of two. two boys. oh my goodness. what's a mama to do, outnumbered in such a fashion? but my matthew is such a lover, so enthusiastic about life, so ready to taste of all life's joys, how could i not be excited to give him a brother to wrestle and explore and live with. clearly, God knows what he is doing. so i will brace myself and enjoy the ride.

my music is continuing to flourish in his time. i have expanded my ministry to several new churches, both in fort myers and naples. i have also been asked to reprise my role as "baby speaker" for the women of faith, women of action conference next march. i say "baby" because i shared the spotlight with such awesome speakers as colleen carroll campbell and brenda sharman this past february, and will join johnette benkovic and mary jo anderson this coming march. email me (gabriela@gabrielafrei.com) if you'd like more info on this fabulous conference as it progresses. we women need this occasional refreshment. i know i'm so looking forward to it already.

i'm re-learning too, how to balance life as mother and musician. that's been such a theme for this blog, and i seriously thought i had it all under control. all my balls were nicely rotating in midair, and i felt in control and on top of things. then God threw another baby into the mix, and all of a sudden, i felt somewhat precarious in my comfort zone. my hubby has been both my strength and sometimes my voice of reason, helping me through the occasional meltdown when i fear i can't do it all perfectly. and we sure know how gabi loves to do things perfectly.

but God doesn't demand perfection, as we know so well in our heads but grapple so much with in our hearts. at least i do. amazing how much he has taught me about that in this year. i have a lot to share, especially in regards to healing from my loss and moving forward from emptiness into the fullness of his love. i think that might be what i speak about at the conference in march, so i'll use this blog as a sort of dry run to collect and organize my thoughts. (you all should definitely still come though. johnette benkovic + mary jo anderson will be phenomenal!).

thanks for your patience. thanks for your prayers. i am where i am today because of the love and support of so many of you, who held my hand during a difficult time.

At dusk weeping comes for the night;

but at dawn there is rejoicing. (psalm 30:6b)

come along for the ride. the dawn has been marvelous, and it's looking to be a beautiful, beautiful day. 

ps: a taste of pregnant me :)

photo credit: http://pregnancyoutreach.org/