I never realized how big 8 pounds could seem until I brought home a 5 pound baby.

And now, two months later, the addition of just three pounds bring him to the weight that most babies are born at. The whole of his tiny body feels large in my arms.

And then I read this raw and sobering story of a baby born weighing “less than six sticks of butter.”

One pound and eight ounces.

Fingers the size of grains of rice.

 

 

I read it as I nurse my own, and I kiss his little head. I nuzzle his hair in desperation to know him, and to memorize him. Because before I know it, he’ll be nine pounds.

This story of this frail little girl and her mother who knows faith like I’ll never know it, it has shown me the reality that this could have been our own story.

It could be anyone’s. Because we are never guaranteed what our 936 pennies will look like, or even that there will be 936 of them.

Two and a half months ago my boy stopped producing amniotic fluid. It could have happened at any point in my pregnancy. He could have been like the 6-sticks-of-butter baby girl in this book. He could have needed evicting at 24 weeks.

But graciously God held his tiny hand. God held my boy. And told him each day to wait until it was safe to come out.

He was born one hour before he reached full term.

 

 

This book is showing me the hardship we were spared, and what God’s power looks like for those who must endure it.

This is one of the hard reads. The ones we can’t ignore, can’t fathom, can’t handle, and can’t put down. And every page is leaving me more grateful than the page before it.

Last week I attended a writer’s meeting. The speaker was talking on how to choose the right words and use them in such a way that will grab readers and keep them reading. One of her points was that using humor is a great way to keep readers engaged, especially in the midst of a sad story.

Immediately my mind was drawn to the book I’ve been reading this past week.

Kayla Aimee nailed this on the nose. Her book, Anchored, launched early this month. Upon reading Lisa-Jo Baker’s blog post featuring Kayla’s book, I immediately Amazon one-click ordered it.

 

 

Kayla’s story is anything but light-hearted. Yet she manages to balance out the heart-wrenching details of her daughter’s premature birth with candid honesty and humor. As she divulges her own vulnerabilities and shares the terrifying details of her story, she draws her readers near in such a way that they must face their own questions of how faith works in the midst of unexpected circumstances.

As soon as I began reading Kayla’s story, I couldn’t put it down. Don’t get me wrong—I wanted to.

Her and her family’s story is one of great shock, heartache, fear, and pain. Time and time again I wanted to set the book down as it overwhelmed my emotions, but I couldn’t. Kayla’s story exposes the raw vulnerabilities of a mother’s heart. She holds nothing back in her words as she wades through the big questions of how faith, prayer, and God work when everything you think is concrete begins to crumble from beneath you.

 

 

Kayla’s story is unique, but it communicates great lessons on life, faith, and motherhood. These are the lessons that will change how each one of us Mamas views our children, the gifts that they are, and the time that we have with them.

 

Click Here To Order Anchored Today.

{I think Amazon even has it at a special price right now}

 

{Note:  I am not receiving any compensation for this endorsement, I simply believe that Kayla Aimee and her precious daughter Scarlette have a story that needs to be shared.}