Isaac's Name

Our sweet Isaac... Some people have asked how we chose the name Isaac Anders...

As most of you know, we picked out one boys name (Reily) and one girls name (still a secret--in the very unlikely chance we have another baby and it's a girl...) when we were in high school and thought that we might get married and have kids one day. Fast forward 9 years later--we found out we were having a second boy and we didn't know what to do!

Because Reily is such a strong Irish name, we wanted to honor Hans' Swedish heritage, so we tried to think of Swedish names and really liked Anders. We also liked that it honors Hans' grandparents--their last name is Anderson. We decided not to use it as a first name because we thought everyone would mispronounce it--(which they do...even as a middle name!).

I don't remember exactly when we first thought of the name Isaac, but we liked that it was well known but not very common, and most people know how to spell it. We've also always tried to have a biblical attitude toward our role as parents--both with Reily and this new baby. We know that we are so blessed to have them as our children, but that they aren't really "ours" and we are just privileged to be their Mom and Dad and try to raise them to be strong men in Christ.

When we first found out we were expecting this baby and the doctor told us we had a 90% chance of losing the baby due to complications, we didn't know if he would even make it to birth. We were devastated, of course, but we knew that the baby was in God's hands and His will would be done, and we knew He would give us the strength the get through whatever trials were to come.

We were reminded of the story of Abraham and Isaac, both of Isaac being a "miracle" baby and of the faith, trust and obedience both Isaac and Abraham showed when God commanded Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. While we weren't in the same situation, we could clearly see the lesson in the testing of Abraham's faith, and his love for his son v. his trust in and love for God, and we prayed for faith to trust in Him just as Abraham did, all the while hoping it wouldn't mean that we would lose the baby.

It was definitely a time of growth for us as a couple and the name Isaac is a constant reminder of how joyful we are that our little miracle boy is here and that no matter how unbelievably much we love our children, we love the Lord more and will live to put Him first in our lives.

Here's a picture of Reily wearing the shirt Isaac gave him at the hospital...I was a slacker and put off making it until the night I went into labor, so I was ironing it on while I was having contractions! :)