Porter's Story

In October 2011, Seth and I learned that our unborn son, Porter has a condition called Trisomy 13 or Pateu's Syndrome which is not compatible with life. We chose to let God decide when Porter's life will end. These are the lessons we've learned from our Heavenly Father through the life of Porter Gray.
Isaiah 46:4

Sunday, February 19, 2012

A time to be born and a time to die...

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens.

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

...a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2,4

I don't understand how one man can have 95 years of life and another, like my Porter may only get 95 seconds. I also don't question why this is. I do question what we will do with the time we are given. The key word here is gift. Life itself is a gift from God. It is up to us to live it victoriously no matter what the world brings us or live as if we are broken and defeated by the things this life brings.

Today, my granddaddy went to be with the Lord. He had 95 years in this world. He was married to my grandmother for 73 years, had two boys which are now grandfathers themselves. He worked hard, knew how to grow a garden, how to fix cars, and dabbled in inventing.  He wasn't perfect, but he loved Jesus in the best way he knew how. He taught himself to play piano to old hymns that he loved. He could build or rebuild about anything. He loved his grandchildren and his great grandchildren.



What I do know is that God is sovereign. In the book of Job he reminds Job of who He is! He says to Job, "Where were you when I laid the Earth's foundation? ...Who shut up the sea behind doors...when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness...Have you ever given orders to the morning or shown the dawn its place...?" I am in awe of Him and his power and majesty and then combine that with an explosion of His extreme love for you and for me...how could I question him? He is God. He knows the number of the hairs on my head and gave me life. Not because I am worthy of it, but because he loves me. I hope you know how much he loves you. And if not, my prayer is that he will show you in an intimate and real way how much he loves you beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Yesterday, we went to Storkvision Atlanta to see our precious baby Porter on ultrasound. Seth and I took the grandmothers, and my best friend Kristin to get a glimpse of this sweet boy worth all of our love and tears! Porter did NOT cooperate of course. He would not let us see his face. He likes to suck on his hands and arms and rest his head on them so we couldn't get a good look. He was curled up and cozy in momma's belly safe and sound like any baby would be.




Playing peek-a-boo behind his arm. You can see half of his face, his nose and tiny bit of mouth.

You can see his hands on his knees really well in this picture. This is about as much as he would let us look at this day!

Monday OB Appointment Update (32 Weeks):
Saturday was the first time we've seen Porter since he was 15 weeks. We want to see him so badly now, but because of his diagnosis, the OB we have been seeing has said that there is no reason to follow up with ultrasounds (at least none that would be medically covered). However, today we met with a physician that felt ultrasound would be of value and immediately called for our referral! Praise God! We'll get some more information about our little Porter. Soon I hope to know how big he is! Seth and I also plan to see a genetic counselor tomorrow afternoon to talk about and possibly have testing to see if there is a medical reason for all of these losses or if it's just bad luck. Good to know for future family planning. Seth and I have always planned to adopt, but the answers to these questions could change our course of action. For now, one thing at a time! Loving Porter!

After the ultrasound, I went home and snuggled up with Campbell on the couch. I told him his baby brother is in my belly. He looked at me and then my belly trying to make sense of it, then lifted my shirt so he could try to find him! I told Cam that his brother was growing inside and that if he wanted he could give my belly a hug and a kiss. He gave my belly a big kiss, laid his head down on it and wrapped his arms around it and gently "patted" his baby brother. It was so sweet. I think Cam will love meeting his baby brother when the time comes.

Yesterday, I was assured that we made the right decision to carry Porter. He is a precious living baby boy. If God chooses to perform a miracle for his life, then we welcome that, but if Porter goes right back into Jesus' arms, what a better place to be? We are given one life. Live it well...



Prayers for the Peabody's:
~Praise God for a doctor who is proactive and listening to our wishes for Porter and our time with him!
~Praise God for comfort and peace during the ultrasound. I was so worried that seeing Porter would stir up emotions of losing him and missing him, but I just felt joy in seeing him that day. So glad the grandmothers were able to "meet" him too.
~Pray that Porter's life, no matter how short will impact many.
~Pray that Seth and I will continue to feel God's presence and rest in Him.
~Pray for those that don't know the Lord will find him in some way through what God is teaching us and urging us to share with others.
~Pray for my grandmother, father, and uncle and the family that grandaddy leaves behind. When one has lived such a long life and goes to be with Jesus, I think that is a time to dance.

Love Jeannie (and Porter of course)!

3 comments:

  1. Treasure these moments of joy with Porter....they count every bit as much as the moments you will share with him once he is born :)

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  2. I admire your family strength and I absolutely enjoy Porter through your testimonies. It's an "Honor" for me that you let us be a part of this "Precious Life of Baby Porter." 1 Thessalonian 5:11 Blesses to The Peabody family

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  3. Stumbled upon your blog from the The Little Green Family blog. My husband and I just had some genetic testing done at Emory and had a as wonderful experience as you can get. You know when you walk through the doors your not going to get good news. But having some answers helped my husband and I. I had a miscarriage at 13.5 weeks where my water broke and then finally had a baby last March but found out she is a carrier of Cystic Fibrosis. But the genetic testing told us way more than just if we were carriers (which we both ended up being). But Emory is a great place to go. Even though I don't know you I am praying for a safe delivery for you and for Porter.

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