February 10, 2023 • 19 mins
Join Matt and Melissa Pisani as they discuss the joy of having their third child. Be encouraged with this intentional conversation about Melissa's pregnancy and birthing experience.
www.mattandmelissapisani.com
@puzzleisreal
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the Puzzle is Real podcast where we will be
discussing faith, family, andrelationships hosted by Matt and
Melissa Pisani.
This is The Puzzle is Realpodcast when you know, you know.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
All right, we're back.
Hey.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
Yay.
We are back.
We have a really awesomeepisode.
Personal, but also encouragingfor all you ladies.
Where my lady's
Speaker 2 (00:27):
At, yo.
This is family faithrelationship combo.
This is that value meal with thewpa, the cheese and the onion
ring on top.
Mm.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
And where my MA's at all you ladies who have babies
and well men too, but
Speaker 2 (00:43):
No men don't have babies.
Speaker 3 (00:44):
Men don't
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Have babies.
Don't get it twisted.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
But you know what I'm saying.
Yeah.
You know what I'm saying?
Women go through the experienceof having a child.
Men are just there for support.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Mentally tiring.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
So we would like to share the amazing news.
We have a daughter, we had ourthird child right before
Christmas and we did not knowthe gender.
We waited until he or she wasgonna be born.
And we were so surprised and soexcited because I'm wrong every
(01:17):
time.
We have not found out the genderon any of our kids.
This is our number three.
And I was wrong each time.
And this time I was true.
I was wrong.
That's true.
I was like, it's a boy.
It's a boy.
It's a boy.
Up until the last two weeks.
And I was like, maybe it's agirl.
And guys, we had a girl.
This is Magnolia Joy.
(01:37):
Yeah.
She is here.
She's sitting with me right now.
This little sleeping girl.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
This is the precious beauty end.
This is her second podcastepisode.
Attending
Speaker 3 (01:48):
It is.
And she was born December 21st,7:47 AM She was nine pounds,
five ounces, 21 and a halfinches long.
Beautiful, healthy, sweet, sweetlittle girl.
And it's just amazing.
I can't believe that we uh, havethree children now.
It's just, it's still blowing mymind.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Yeah, it's pretty surreal.
Especially cuz we had the boyand the girl and we thought we
were done.
Yes.
So this was a great surprise andwhat a joy it was to go through
it just all over again.
It was so cool.
It
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Really was.
And it's just really coolbecause I've always had this,
um, I don't know, I guess thislove for the South and I always
had this like dream of being asouthern bell, but I knew I
couldn't be because I was notborn in the south.
So now Magnolia was born in thesouth.
She's our little southern bell.
And now Mercy will be toobecause you know, she's gonna
(02:44):
pretty much grow up her wholelife down here.
But it's just so sweet and um,we're just really enjoying the
season.
And Mercy and Malachi are soexcited to be a big sister, big
brother.
And um, yeah, obviously women,I'm talking to you now.
It's not always easy gettingthem into this world, but we
know that God just redeems allof that and just gives you such
(03:06):
great joy, um, when you see thatbeautiful child.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
So how are you feeling?
Like what's this whole processbeen for you, like beginning to
end?
I know a lot of people don'tknow all your birthing stories,
but I know you've shared them indifferent episodes in the past.
But like for some people thatmight be curious, you know,
having a third child, a thirdcesarean c-section as it is
known mm-hmm.
(03:31):
give us some ofthat.
Like I'm really curious to hearsome of your like
Speaker 3 (03:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Experience there.
So
Speaker 3 (03:36):
I'll just run through the three, I guess pregnancies
and I guess births so quickly.
Mercy, great pregnancy, wentinto labor.
I was a week late, was in laborfor like 48 hours.
I pushed for five hours.
She couldn't come out.
She was stuck.
Ended up having an emergencyC-section.
She came out that was that um,you know, you only have one
(04:00):
child so it was pretty easy torecover for the most part.
And yeah, so that was good.
But it was very traumatic goingthrough the labor, going through
everything and then having tohave a C-section.
So Malachi, we opted for aC-section just because I still
had like PTSD from going througheverything I did with Mercy.
So I was like, you know what, Idon't even wanna have to end up
(04:21):
in a c-section after all thatwork, so let's just have a
C-section.
But Malachi was born high to thepandemic, very intense time.
Um, we were living in New York.
Mm.
And that was very hard recoverycuz we were not able to have
help.
No one was allowed in the house.
You know, everything shut down.
Matt ended up pulling out hisback right after he was born.
(04:45):
So now I'm taking care of anewborn and mercy.
So that was really hard.
And so I feel like Magnolia waslike the redemption of those
hard experiences cuz I ended uphaving a really good pregnancy
besides one little thing.
Um, in the beginning, I guess atmy 1820 week anatomy scan where
(05:06):
they just checked the heart andthe lungs and the brain and all,
you know, the ma major organs,they had noticed that my
placenta was low.
So they put me on high alert andthey basically told me all the
worst case scenarios where Icould die.
I could end up in a, um, with ahysterectomy with all these
horrible things.
So I had so much fear, um, Ithink for several weeks where I
(05:29):
was just unsure what was gonnahappen.
Cause if this placenta didn'tmove, I could have a big
problem.
So I just kept praying andpraying and praying.
And I remember there was one dayI was in the shower and I've
shared this, you know, withclose family and friends, but
now I'll share with you guys.
I was in the shower and I wasjust praying.
I'm like, Lord, just move thisplacenta.
(05:50):
Like, just let this not be anissue.
And I remember like dryingmyself off and we have glass
shower doors in our shower andum, the way that the towel hit
the glass, it looked like theshape of a mountain.
And I remember God saying loudloudly, like so clear said, if I
can move mountains, don't youthink I've already moved your
(06:12):
placenta?
And I literally just startedlike crying and just knowing
everything was gonna be okaybecause this was just, this was
crippling me for several weeks.
Mm-hmm.
like I was, I wascrippled by it.
Cause I'm like, oh my gosh.
Like I, you know, you pray for ahealthy child and you pray for,
you know, just the baby, but youdon't think about yourself
because you know, you thinkyou're okay.
(06:34):
But then the doctors tell youone thing and, but you know
what?
God has the final say and he'sthe one who is in control.
So that was just a, a very, thatwas a teachable moment for me.
And I, you know, I just declaredto the enemy.
I said, you know what, you haveno, you're not gonna take the
joy away from this pregnancy,this birth.
And I just remember having justa different train of thought
(06:57):
once God just gave me that peace.
So then I went through the restof my pregnancy and thank God at
25 weeks I went for another, um,another scan and the placenta
was moved and there was noissue.
And we just gave all the gloryto God because that was just,
you know, although I knew it, itwas just the, I guess the
affirmation of knowing mm-hmm.
that things are onthe up and up.
(07:20):
So then now I'm scheduled tohave a C-section with Magnolia
for December 21st.
And we go in and this was just away better experience.
My doctor was amazing.
Um, everything went according toplan.
She was born, she was healthy.
Only thing was after Igot very sick.
(07:41):
Oh yeah.
Um, I remember I was in therecovery room and all you ladies
who have had c-sections,everyone has different
experience, but sometimes theanesthesia from the epidural
will mess with you.
And I got very sick with Malachiafter I had him and then now
with Magnolia.
And I was so fearful going intoit cause I was like, I just do
(08:01):
not wanna get sick after I havethe baby.
So sure enough they're wheelingme out from the recovery room
into I guess our room wherewe're gonna be staying and they
stop right in front of like thedesk where all the nurses are
and they're like,congratulations.
And I'm like, oh my gosh, holdon.
I'm about to throw up.
Yeah, it came so bad.
(08:22):
It was so bad.
But once that was over I wasable to just enjoy this sweet
little girl and got to introduceher to my mom who was here and
Mercy and Malachi and got toshare that it was a baby sister.
So, um, and then the healingprocess was much better this
time than it was the last twotimes.
(08:43):
So I really feel like this wastotally the redemption Yeah.
Of the last two experiences.
And thankfully I had helpbecause Matt and my mom were
here and they took care of thekids and the house and I was
able to, to just sit on thecouch with little sweet Magnolia
and um, and heal, which was,which was great.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
Yeah.
I think the support of havingpeople to allow you to just rest
is huge for any mother out therethat has that opportunity, man.
Oh yeah.
That's a home run cuz Yeah.
It's such a difference.
I saw.
And even just like thestress-free idea of knowing you
don't have to worry about thekids, you know, trying to, you
(09:22):
know, jump on you or pick me upor, you know, you had Yes.
Like a buffer between your momand I and just, um, a lot of
things.
So I feel like, yeah.
And, and you know, we know thatthese things can easily go south
sometimes when you're goingthrough this.
Right.
Anything could happen.
But I just wanna thank everybodyfor praying for us during this
time.
Yes.
There were a lot of people, I'mtalking like probably I would
(09:45):
think at least a hundred or sopeople that probably were
praying Oh yeah.
Intentionally.
I'm sure more people werepraying and you know, but some
people really warn for us that,um, this would go smooth in
every, uh, aspect from thedoctors, the surgeons and, and
just the post stuff and, andjust so cool to see how God
(10:07):
covered us in prayer.
Yep.
Everything was so peaceful.
And, um, and just the, the fruitof this, you know, is, is
powerful for other moms and dadsout there.
And the verse that we put on our, um, card, our a card for
Magnolia to just a little bit ofan announcement Oh
Speaker 3 (10:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
That we had created for some people that wanted to
know.
And, um, just a, a way forpeople to know a little bit
about just what had been goingon.
Cuz you know, not everyone getsthe updates through social media
and whatnot.
So the verse was, uh, Psalm 127, 3, behold children are a
heritage of the Lord.
And, and that's a reallyimportant part of this episode
(10:47):
that we just wanted to focus onwas that man, children are such
a blessing.
And if you're on the fence aboutsomeday having kids or you're a
young married couple and you'relike, I don't know, we're
supposed to have it, don't allowthe enemy to throw any fear or
uncertainty or even just, um,maybe like worry about, oh, what
(11:10):
would this look like?
Cuz we've had such a greatadventure doing this.
And I feel like this one was themost fun because I think it was
unexpected and we've alreadybeen through it, so it was
almost like been here before.
We know kind of how some ofthese things turn out.
And since we had such crazyexperiences doing it, like this
was just such a great way to,um, I think culminate our family
(11:31):
to get to a point now wherewe're we feel complete.
You know, the Fab Five.
Yep.
And, um,
Speaker 3 (11:38):
The five
Speaker 2 (11:38):
Msms, the five msms.
And then, uh, of course shoutout to Nala, the four-legged
one.
And of course, you know, youhave like that dynamic and you
look and say, man, like this isreally, really cool now to watch
Mercy, Malachi and Magnolia growup together, the m and m minis
and, and they're the heritage,they're the future.
And, um, they're a legacy forthe Lord.
(12:01):
So we just really hope that thisencourages everybody just to
know, even again, been a littlesilent out there.
We've been a little busy now,you know, why.
But we are really excited aboutthis year of sharing things that
God has put on our heart withyou through these podcasts.
And just feel free to, uh, reachout to us.
Let us know if this episode hasministered to you or touched you
(12:24):
or inspired you or even, um, ifyou have any questions for
Melissa as a, uh, a mom or a momto be.
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (12:30):
There's, you know, so many things that you envision
and think about prior to gettingmarried and having kids.
And you have this idea of whatit's gonna look like and how
it's gonna go.
And let me tell you, none of itwent the way that I thought it
was gonna go.
I, it really didn't, you know,everyone was like, oh, you're
gonna have the easiest, youknow, deliveries the way that
(12:51):
your hips are.
I mean, my doctors were tellingme that and I had horrible
experiences and you know, when Itell people about the things
that I went through, they werelike, wow.
But I wanna encourage you momswho have either been through it
or who are going through it, orwho are going to go through it,
that just have faith and trustGod that he's gonna work out all
(13:14):
the details and that the endresult is the most important.
Like, we sometimes have to gothrough a battle to get to the
fruit of what he wants to justgrow in us from that experience.
And I've learned so much, youknow, from even like nursing,
some women have the easiestexperience, some people have a
hard experience.
I've had a mix of both.
(13:35):
So, you know, with Mercy, veryeasy.
Malachi a little challenging.
Magnolia is a littlechallenging, but you know, you
work through it.
And I just wanna encourage youmoms that you are amazing.
You're doing the best that youcan.
You were given that child, orgoing to be given that child,
um, for a reason.
(13:55):
And that just enjoy the processand don't get stressed and you
know that you are doing the verybest that you can and you can't
beat yourself up over, you know,the woulda, shoulda, coulda or
whatever that is.
So thank you guys for listening.
Um, would love to share moredetails, but I don't wanna
gross people out orwhatever,.
(14:17):
But that's the, that's thehighlights and the most
important part is that we haveour third little child and I am
feeling much better now.
We are, she will be six weeks,um, tomorrow actually.
And, uh, so thankful for thissweet little girl and that just
God, um, has given us thischild.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Last but not least, the name.
Speaker 3 (14:43):
Oh, yes.
So the name Magnolia.
This is really interestingactually.
It's a good one.
So when we were pregnant withMalachi, we didn't know if it,
it was a boy or girl and we keptthinking of, you know, boy and
girl names.
And the girl name that we cameup with for some reason was
Magnolia.
And this was still living in NewYork, didn't have any, I idea
that we were gonna be moving toSouth Carolina and
Speaker 2 (15:06):
Wasn't even on the radar.
Speaker 3 (15:07):
Wasn't on the radar at all.
This was, you know, 2019 goinginto 2020.
And you know, Magnolia trees arehuge down here.
I mean, they're everywhere,right?
So we had thought that we weregonna name Malachi Magnolia if
he was a girl.
So obviously he was a boy.
So then now we're pregnant withMagnolia and we're thinking of
(15:29):
names and we're like, we have tostick with Magnolia because now
we're in the south.
I mean, it's so southern, it'sbeautiful, and just the meaning
is really cool.
Um, I mean there's severaldifferent meanings.
Obviously it's the beautifulflower from the magnolia tree
that, um, is like that big whiteflower.
(15:50):
And, but it also means, oh, Ithink Matt has the definition.
Speaker 2 (15:53):
Yeah, there's, there's like a couple of
definitions that we had lookedat when we were like, all right,
like, you know, he was lookingfor some type of symbolism with
these things or some type ofreason, a deeper reason than
just like
Speaker 3 (16:07):
A flower
Speaker 2 (16:09):
Name or flower, right.
You know, like literally, youknow, like, oh, that's no, again
, another one.
I don't wanna offend anyone bysaying that cuz you know, some
people are just like, Hey, thiswas a cool name, that's it, done
.
But with this we really werelike, wow, Magnolia trees
symbolize stability.
They also symbolize luck.
I don't really believe in luck.
I think that that's kind of justa, a thing that you say as a
(16:30):
generic term in, but stabilityis something that we all could
need and, and even rely on attimes through the Lord is
stability.
And just, again, the southernstaple of the tree is pretty
powerful.
And it's just, um, so importantthat, you know, when we are
looking at things through thelens of, um, you know, blessing
(16:51):
our children, you really wannalike bless them before they're
born.
And not just prayer and, andwords of affirmation, but
literally the name.
What is the name that you'regonna give this child and, and
what is God speaking to youabout with this child?
You know, one of the otherdefinitions that we had seen
with Magnolia was, um, nobility.
That was another, you know, areawhere
Speaker 3 (17:14):
Yeah, I think there was another one that was
deep-rooted, pure, um, yeah, ithad several different
Speaker 2 (17:21):
Security, perfection.
I mean, there were just a lot ofdifferent
Speaker 3 (17:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (17:25):
You know, um, even the, uh, the cool one that I
found recently was that pinkmagnolia flowers, right, are,
are defined as youth innocenceand joy.
Mm-hmm.
and, you know, soagain, health, there's a lot of
different things that, um,positive things that we thought,
wow, this is, this is unique.
And again, we are, um, we'rejust excited to see how God took
(17:50):
something from a symbolic, maybeeven prophetic moment in New
York of the name from even whenwe had gotten the magnolia plant
that Melissa's aunt and unclegave us years ago.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That, um, unfortunately I didn'tplant properly and uh, it
didn't work out, but just thathere we are, where we're called
to be and um, you know, God was,you know, just confirming this
(18:11):
name and, and just the thingsthat are gonna tie into it over
her
Speaker 3 (18:14):
Life.
Well, and it's so cool, likewhen I share this story, because
now I think about it, I'm like,man, God was already setting us
up for coming down here and gaveus that name when we were still
in New York, that it didn't, itwouldn't make sense until we
moved down here.
Right?
So it was just so cool how God'salways, you know, 20 steps ahead
of us and then when we finallycatch up, we look back and we're
like, whoa.
He was there back then, youknow, preparing us for this next
(18:38):
phase and this next season.
So I hope that just encouragesyou guys too, to say, you know,
wow.
And you look back on your lifeand you see all the signs that
we're leading you to where youare right now.
Like stop looking ahead andsaying, oh, I can't wait until
this year and I can't wait tillthis.
It's like, look at where you arebecause where you are is what
you've been praying for fiveyears ago, right?
(19:00):
So to be present in thatsituation and that phase, and
not to get ahead of what God isalready ordaining for your life.
So that's what I got for
Speaker 2 (19:13):
You.
Good word.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
.
Preach sister.
Just kidding.
Keep going.
But um, no, we love you guys andwe thank you for listening.
Please share with a friend.
We wanna encourage as manypeople as possible and, um, you
know, we're excited to keepdoing what we do.
Speaker 2 (19:30):
We will see you soon.
Yes.
[inaudible]
Speaker 1 (19:32):
Talk soon.
Hey guys, thanks so much forlistening to the Puzzle Israel
podcast.
Please subscribe today and sharewith a friend.
See you soon.
Welcome to the Puzzle is Real podcast where we will be
discussing faith, family, andrelationships hosted by Matt and
Melissa Pisani.
This is The Puzzle is Realpodcast when you know, you know.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
All right, we're back.
Hey.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
Yay.
We are back.
We have a really awesomeepisode.
Personal, but also encouragingfor all you ladies.
Where my lady's
Speaker 2 (00:27):
At, yo.
This is family faithrelationship combo.
This is that value meal with thewpa, the cheese and the onion
ring on top.
Mm.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
And where my MA's at all you ladies who have babies
and well men too, but
Speaker 2 (00:43):
No men don't have babies.
Speaker 3 (00:44):
Men don't
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Have babies.
Don't get it twisted.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
But you know what I'm saying.
Yeah.
You know what I'm saying?
Women go through the experienceof having a child.
Men are just there for support.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Mentally tiring.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
So we would like to share the amazing news.
We have a daughter, we had ourthird child right before
Christmas and we did not knowthe gender.
We waited until he or she wasgonna be born.
And we were so surprised and soexcited because I'm wrong every
(01:17):
time.
We have not found out the genderon any of our kids.
This is our number three.
And I was wrong each time
And this time I was true.
I was wrong.
That's true.
I was like, it's a boy.
It's a boy.
It's a boy.
Up until the last two weeks.
And I was like, maybe it's agirl.
And guys, we had a girl.
This is Magnolia Joy.
(01:37):
Yeah.
She is here.
She's sitting with me right now.
This little sleeping girl.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
This is the precious beauty end.
This is her second podcastepisode.
Attending
Speaker 3 (01:48):
It is.
And she was born December 21st,7:47 AM She was nine pounds,
five ounces, 21 and a halfinches long.
Beautiful, healthy, sweet, sweetlittle girl.
And it's just amazing.
I can't believe that we uh, havethree children now.
It's just, it's still blowing mymind.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Yeah, it's pretty surreal.
Especially cuz we had the boyand the girl and we thought we
were done.
Yes.
So this was a great surprise andwhat a joy it was to go through
it just all over again.
It was so cool.
It
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Really was.
And it's just really coolbecause I've always had this,
um, I don't know, I guess thislove for the South and I always
had this like dream of being asouthern bell, but I knew I
couldn't be because I was notborn in the south.
So now Magnolia was born in thesouth.
She's our little southern bell.
And now Mercy will be toobecause you know, she's gonna
(02:44):
pretty much grow up her wholelife down here.
But it's just so sweet and um,we're just really enjoying the
season.
And Mercy and Malachi are soexcited to be a big sister, big
brother.
And um, yeah, obviously women,I'm talking to you now.
It's not always easy gettingthem into this world, but we
know that God just redeems allof that and just gives you such
(03:06):
great joy, um, when you see thatbeautiful child.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
So how are you feeling?
Like what's this whole processbeen for you, like beginning to
end?
I know a lot of people don'tknow all your birthing stories,
but I know you've shared them indifferent episodes in the past.
But like for some people thatmight be curious, you know,
having a third child, a thirdcesarean c-section as it is
known mm-hmm.
(03:31):
Like I'm really curious to hearsome of your like
Speaker 3 (03:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Experience there.
So
Speaker 3 (03:36):
I'll just run through the three, I guess pregnancies
and I guess births so quickly.
Mercy, great pregnancy, wentinto labor.
I was a week late, was in laborfor like 48 hours.
I pushed for five hours.
She couldn't come out.
She was stuck.
Ended up having an emergencyC-section.
She came out that was that um,you know, you only have one
(04:00):
child so it was pretty easy torecover for the most part.
And yeah, so that was good.
But it was very traumatic goingthrough the labor, going through
everything and then having tohave a C-section.
So Malachi, we opted for aC-section just because I still
had like PTSD from going througheverything I did with Mercy.
So I was like, you know what, Idon't even wanna have to end up
(04:21):
in a c-section after all thatwork, so let's just have a
C-section.
But Malachi was born high to thepandemic, very intense time.
Um, we were living in New York.
Mm.
And that was very hard recoverycuz we were not able to have
help.
No one was allowed in the house.
You know, everything shut down.
Matt ended up pulling out hisback right after he was born.
(04:45):
So now I'm taking care of anewborn and mercy.
So that was really hard.
And so I feel like Magnolia waslike the redemption of those
hard experiences cuz I ended uphaving a really good pregnancy
besides one little thing.
Um, in the beginning, I guess atmy 1820 week anatomy scan where
(05:06):
they just checked the heart andthe lungs and the brain and all,
you know, the ma major organs,they had noticed that my
placenta was low.
So they put me on high alert andthey basically told me all the
worst case scenarios where Icould die.
I could end up in a, um, with ahysterectomy with all these
horrible things.
So I had so much fear, um, Ithink for several weeks where I
(05:29):
was just unsure what was gonnahappen.
Cause if this placenta didn'tmove, I could have a big
problem.
So I just kept praying andpraying and praying.
And I remember there was one dayI was in the shower and I've
shared this, you know, withclose family and friends, but
now I'll share with you guys.
I was in the shower and I wasjust praying.
I'm like, Lord, just move thisplacenta.
(05:50):
Like, just let this not be anissue.
And I remember like dryingmyself off and we have glass
shower doors in our shower andum, the way that the towel hit
the glass, it looked like theshape of a mountain.
And I remember God saying loudloudly, like so clear said, if I
can move mountains, don't youthink I've already moved your
(06:12):
placenta?
And I literally just startedlike crying and just knowing
everything was gonna be okaybecause this was just, this was
crippling me for several weeks.
Mm-hmm.
Cause I'm like, oh my gosh.
Like I, you know, you pray for ahealthy child and you pray for,
you know, just the baby, but youdon't think about yourself
because you know, you thinkyou're okay.
(06:34):
But then the doctors tell youone thing and, but you know
what?
God has the final say and he'sthe one who is in control.
So that was just a, a very, thatwas a teachable moment for me.
And I, you know, I just declaredto the enemy.
I said, you know what, you haveno, you're not gonna take the
joy away from this pregnancy,this birth.
And I just remember having justa different train of thought
(06:57):
once God just gave me that peace.
So then I went through the restof my pregnancy and thank God at
25 weeks I went for another, um,another scan and the placenta
was moved and there was noissue.
And we just gave all the gloryto God because that was just,
you know, although I knew it, itwas just the, I guess the
affirmation of knowing mm-hmm.
(07:20):
So then now I'm scheduled tohave a C-section with Magnolia
for December 21st.
And we go in and this was just away better experience.
My doctor was amazing.
Um, everything went according toplan.
She was born, she was healthy.
Only thing was after
(07:41):
Oh yeah.
Um, I remember I was in therecovery room and all you ladies
who have had c-sections,everyone has different
experience, but sometimes theanesthesia from the epidural
will mess with you.
And I got very sick with Malachiafter I had him and then now
with Magnolia.
And I was so fearful going intoit cause I was like, I just do
(08:01):
not wanna get sick after I havethe baby.
So sure enough they're wheelingme out from the recovery room
into I guess our room wherewe're gonna be staying and they
stop right in front of like thedesk where all the nurses are
and they're like,congratulations.
And I'm like, oh my gosh, holdon.
I'm about to throw up
Yeah, it came so bad.
(08:22):
It was so bad.
But once that was over I wasable to just enjoy this sweet
little girl and got to introduceher to my mom who was here and
Mercy and Malachi and got toshare that it was a baby sister.
So, um, and then the healingprocess was much better this
time than it was the last twotimes.
(08:43):
So I really feel like this wastotally the redemption Yeah.
Of the last two experiences.
And thankfully I had helpbecause Matt and my mom were
here and they took care of thekids and the house and I was
able to, to just sit on thecouch with little sweet Magnolia
and um, and heal, which was,which was great.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
Yeah.
I think the support of havingpeople to allow you to just rest
is huge for any mother out therethat has that opportunity, man.
Oh yeah.
That's a home run cuz Yeah.
It's such a difference.
I saw.
And even just like thestress-free idea of knowing you
don't have to worry about thekids, you know, trying to, you
(09:22):
know, jump on you or pick me upor, you know, you had Yes.
Like a buffer between your momand I and just, um, a lot of
things.
So I feel like, yeah.
And, and you know, we know thatthese things can easily go south
sometimes when you're goingthrough this.
Right.
Anything could happen.
But I just wanna thank everybodyfor praying for us during this
time.
Yes.
There were a lot of people, I'mtalking like probably I would
(09:45):
think at least a hundred or sopeople that probably were
praying Oh yeah.
Intentionally.
I'm sure more people werepraying and you know, but some
people really warn for us that,um, this would go smooth in
every, uh, aspect from thedoctors, the surgeons and, and
just the post stuff and, andjust so cool to see how God
(10:07):
covered us in prayer.
Yep.
Everything was so peaceful.
And, um, and just the, the fruitof this, you know, is, is
powerful for other moms and dadsout there.
And the verse that we put on our, um, card, our a card for
Magnolia to just a little bit ofan announcement Oh
Speaker 3 (10:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
That we had created for some people that wanted to
know.
And, um, just a, a way forpeople to know a little bit
about just what had been goingon.
Cuz you know, not everyone getsthe updates through social media
and whatnot.
So the verse was, uh, Psalm 127, 3, behold children are a
heritage of the Lord.
And, and that's a reallyimportant part of this episode
(10:47):
that we just wanted to focus onwas that man, children are such
a blessing.
And if you're on the fence aboutsomeday having kids or you're a
young married couple and you'relike, I don't know, we're
supposed to have it, don't allowthe enemy to throw any fear or
uncertainty or even just, um,maybe like worry about, oh, what
(11:10):
would this look like?
Cuz we've had such a greatadventure doing this.
And I feel like this one was themost fun because I think it was
unexpected and we've alreadybeen through it, so it was
almost like been here before.
We know kind of how some ofthese things turn out.
And since we had such crazyexperiences doing it, like this
was just such a great way to,um, I think culminate our family
(11:31):
to get to a point now wherewe're we feel complete.
You know, the Fab Five.
Yep.
And, um,
Speaker 3 (11:38):
The five
Speaker 2 (11:38):
Msms, the five msms.
And then, uh, of course shoutout to Nala, the four-legged
one.
And of course, you know, youhave like that dynamic and you
look and say, man, like this isreally, really cool now to watch
Mercy, Malachi and Magnolia growup together, the m and m minis
and, and they're the heritage,they're the future.
And, um, they're a legacy forthe Lord.
(12:01):
So we just really hope that thisencourages everybody just to
know, even again, been a littlesilent out there.
We've been a little busy now,you know, why
But we are really excited aboutthis year of sharing things that
God has put on our heart withyou through these podcasts.
And just feel free to, uh, reachout to us.
Let us know if this episode hasministered to you or touched you
(12:24):
or inspired you or even, um, ifyou have any questions for
Melissa as a, uh, a mom or a momto be.
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (12:30):
There's, you know, so many things that you envision
and think about prior to gettingmarried and having kids.
And you have this idea of whatit's gonna look like and how
it's gonna go.
And let me tell you, none of itwent the way that I thought it
was gonna go.
I, it really didn't, you know,everyone was like, oh, you're
gonna have the easiest, youknow, deliveries the way that
(12:51):
your hips are.
I mean, my doctors were tellingme that and I had horrible
experiences and you know, when Itell people about the things
that I went through, they werelike, wow.
But I wanna encourage you momswho have either been through it
or who are going through it, orwho are going to go through it,
that just have faith and trustGod that he's gonna work out all
(13:14):
the details and that the endresult is the most important.
Like, we sometimes have to gothrough a battle to get to the
fruit of what he wants to justgrow in us from that experience.
And I've learned so much, youknow, from even like nursing,
some women have the easiestexperience, some people have a
hard experience.
I've had a mix of both.
(13:35):
So, you know, with Mercy, veryeasy.
Malachi a little challenging.
Magnolia is a littlechallenging, but you know, you
work through it.
And I just wanna encourage youmoms that you are amazing.
You're doing the best that youcan.
You were given that child, orgoing to be given that child,
um, for a reason.
(13:55):
And that just enjoy the processand don't get stressed and you
know that you are doing the verybest that you can and you can't
beat yourself up over, you know,the woulda, shoulda, coulda or
whatever that is.
So thank you guys for listening.
Um, would love to share moredetails, but I don't wanna
(14:17):
But that's the, that's thehighlights and the most
important part is that we haveour third little child and I am
feeling much better now.
We are, she will be six weeks,um, tomorrow actually.
And, uh, so thankful for thissweet little girl and that just
God, um, has given us thischild.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Last but not least, the name.
Speaker 3 (14:43):
Oh, yes.
So the name Magnolia.
This is really interestingactually.
It's a good one.
So when we were pregnant withMalachi, we didn't know if it,
it was a boy or girl and we keptthinking of, you know, boy and
girl names.
And the girl name that we cameup with for some reason was
Magnolia.
And this was still living in NewYork, didn't have any, I idea
that we were gonna be moving toSouth Carolina and
Speaker 2 (15:06):
Wasn't even on the radar.
Speaker 3 (15:07):
Wasn't on the radar at all.
This was, you know, 2019 goinginto 2020.
And you know, Magnolia trees arehuge down here.
I mean, they're everywhere,right?
So we had thought that we weregonna name Malachi Magnolia if
he was a girl.
So obviously he was a boy.
So then now we're pregnant withMagnolia and we're thinking of
(15:29):
names and we're like, we have tostick with Magnolia because now
we're in the south.
I mean, it's so southern, it'sbeautiful, and just the meaning
is really cool.
Um, I mean there's severaldifferent meanings.
Obviously it's the beautifulflower from the magnolia tree
that, um, is like that big whiteflower.
(15:50):
And, but it also means, oh, Ithink Matt has the definition.
Speaker 2 (15:53):
Yeah, there's, there's like a couple of
definitions that we had lookedat when we were like, all right,
like, you know, he was lookingfor some type of symbolism with
these things or some type ofreason, a deeper reason than
just like
Speaker 3 (16:07):
A flower
Speaker 2 (16:09):
Name or flower, right.
You know, like literally, youknow, like, oh, that's no, again
, another one.
I don't wanna offend anyone bysaying that cuz you know, some
people are just like, Hey, thiswas a cool name, that's it, done
.
But with this we really werelike, wow, Magnolia trees
symbolize stability.
They also symbolize luck.
I don't really believe in luck.
I think that that's kind of justa, a thing that you say as a
(16:30):
generic term in, but stabilityis something that we all could
need and, and even rely on attimes through the Lord is
stability.
And just, again, the southernstaple of the tree is pretty
powerful.
And it's just, um, so importantthat, you know, when we are
looking at things through thelens of, um, you know, blessing
(16:51):
our children, you really wannalike bless them before they're
born.
And not just prayer and, andwords of affirmation, but
literally the name.
What is the name that you'regonna give this child and, and
what is God speaking to youabout with this child?
You know, one of the otherdefinitions that we had seen
with Magnolia was, um, nobility.
That was another, you know, areawhere
Speaker 3 (17:14):
Yeah, I think there was another one that was
deep-rooted, pure, um, yeah, ithad several different
Speaker 2 (17:21):
Security, perfection.
I mean, there were just a lot ofdifferent
Speaker 3 (17:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (17:25):
You know, um, even the, uh, the cool one that I
found recently was that pinkmagnolia flowers, right, are,
are defined as youth innocenceand joy.
Mm-hmm.
different things that, um,positive things that we thought,
wow, this is, this is unique.
And again, we are, um, we'rejust excited to see how God took
(17:50):
something from a symbolic, maybeeven prophetic moment in New
York of the name from even whenwe had gotten the magnolia plant
that Melissa's aunt and unclegave us years ago.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That, um, unfortunately I didn'tplant properly
didn't work out, but just thathere we are, where we're called
to be and um, you know, God was,you know, just confirming this
(18:11):
name and, and just the thingsthat are gonna tie into it over
her
Speaker 3 (18:14):
Life.
Well, and it's so cool, likewhen I share this story, because
now I think about it, I'm like,man, God was already setting us
up for coming down here and gaveus that name when we were still
in New York, that it didn't, itwouldn't make sense until we
moved down here.
Right?
So it was just so cool how God'salways, you know, 20 steps ahead
of us and then when we finallycatch up, we look back and we're
like, whoa.
He was there back then, youknow, preparing us for this next
(18:38):
phase and this next season.
So I hope that just encouragesyou guys too, to say, you know,
wow.
And you look back on your lifeand you see all the signs that
we're leading you to where youare right now.
Like stop looking ahead andsaying, oh, I can't wait until
this year and I can't wait tillthis.
It's like, look at where you arebecause where you are is what
you've been praying for fiveyears ago, right?
(19:00):
So to be present in thatsituation and that phase, and
not to get ahead of what God isalready ordaining for your life.
So that's what I got for
Speaker 2 (19:13):
You.
Good word.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
Preach sister.
Just kidding.
Keep going.
But um, no, we love you guys andwe thank you for listening.
Please share with a friend.
We wanna encourage as manypeople as possible and, um, you
know, we're excited to keepdoing what we do.
Speaker 2 (19:30):
We will see you soon.
Yes.
[inaudible]
Speaker 1 (19:32):
Talk soon.
Hey guys, thanks so much forlistening to the Puzzle Israel
podcast.
Please subscribe today and sharewith a friend.
See you soon.
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