a name

This little girl of ours has had a name for a few years, now. I can't remember when it first came up - when Stephen and I were dating, engaged, first married? - or how, but "Ezra" fell in our laps and it was a done deal - we were in love. Traditionally a boy's name, but I immediately saw a blue eyed, curly blonde girl named Ezra in our lives and I have been (in)patiently waiting to use it ever since.

Even still, over the years (especially when I was pregnant with Uriah) I kept looking up girl names. When I got pregnant this time, I spent more time researching boy names - sort of thinking I was bound to have a boy, but also because I had already used my favorite one! I now have a long list of favorites, but have always kept 'Ezra' at the top. When we found out it was a girl (a little to our surprise!) I realized I would actually be able to use the name we picked out so long ago.

It was a name Stephen and I cam across together, maybe I don't remember how or when we first thought to use it, but we both immediately loved it. We didn't even really question it - that was going to be our little girl's name. It's been it wanted and planned and we've been waiting to use it - just as our little girl has been wanted by us and waited for by the whole family and planned by God. Maybe God put that name in our hearts and the desire to use it for a little girl because He knew we would get the chance to. Maybe I'm just making stuff up to try and portray just how special and meaningful this name is to us ;) Either way, when we found out it was a girl there was no question. She had a name waiting for her.

Ezra Lee Wall 

Ezra means "helper" and Lee is Stephen's middle name (as well as his Grandma Brown's and his Great Grandpa Brown's) and means "healer" - maybe she'll be a doctor like her daddy and namesake :) And Wall is a name she will share with us, for a limited time, but it will always been who she is deep down, who she was first.

We can't wait to meet you, Ezra. I can't believe you are ours... We love you already more than you will ever know.