I do not think I have ever taken the time to explain why we named our sweet girl Anastasia Rose. Her name was never on our list of names; we really believe she named herself.
As you know, I had many miscarriages before Anastasia and was finally convinced our family was complete and God had shut the door. We gave away our baby things and worked on being at peace with God's will in this matter- He is the Author of Life and He knows best.
When I became pregnant with Anastasia we were thrilled, but cautiously optimistic because of our history. I was very sick pretty early in the pregnancy, and around 8 weeks we went camping with our friends at Tannehill. All my symptoms went away that weekend- it was a drastic change. I was getting very nervous. By Monday, I was having cramps and knew I was having a miscarriage.
I remember Marc and I going to lunch before my already scheduled ultrasound, and I cried the entire time. I was in deep despair about losing this precious child as we walked into the appointment. I told the ultrasound tech, "I am having a miscarriage- all my symptoms are gone and I am cramping- it's okay- I just want you to know that I know."
The poor young tech nervously put the sensor on and then gasped- "She's alive! She's fine!" I was in total shock and exclaimed, "It's a resurrection- she's Anastasia!" I don't know how I even knew that or why I said it. Anastasia is derived from the Greek word anastasis, which means resurrection. My only pregnancy craving this time was Greek yogurt- I had a strawberry Greek yogurt almost every night. I kept saying, "this baby is Greek." And Anastasia is one of the saints read in the Roman Canon prayer of the Mass- so I heard her name every single Sunday as I was on my knees begging for the baby to live:
To us, also, your servants, who, though sinners,
hope in your abundant mercies,
graciously grant some share
and fellowship with your holy Apostles and Martyrs:
with John the Baptist, Stephen,
Matthias, Barnabas,
Ignatius, Alexander,
Marcellinus, Peter,
Felicity, Perpetua,
Agatha, Lucy,
Agnes, Cecilia, Anastasia
and all your Saints;
admit us, we beseech you,
into their company,
not weighing our merits,
but granting us your pardon,
through Christ our Lord.
The next doctor's visit I had after the one I mentioned before they couldn't find a heartbeat with the doppler. They must have tried 20 minutes to find it and couldn't. They took me right over to ultrasound and she was alive.....again she scared us to death. I also had the flu twice while pregnant with her and flew to Europe. Through all of this she kept on growing and surprising us.
Through these circumstances I believed this baby wanted to be named Anastasia. We even had another name we loved and felt we couldn't use because her name was, in fact, Anastasia. Then we she was born with an emergency C-section all blue and on the brink of disaster and bounced right back we knew that naming her resurrection was apt indeed!
And as for Rose, it is in honor of Our Lady, the Rose of Heaven, and St. Rose of Lima, a faithful Dominican nun. Mostly though it is because this late-in-life, wonderful gift is just like a rose from heaven to us. She is an undeserved present that we cherish.
And today as we all take turns making her smile I think how her sweet little self has resurrected so much in our home that was lost. I am signing lullabies again, and rocking in the rocking chair. We are all much quieter now and more peaceful so as to not wake her. We are all united in a special way in our loving and nurturing her. We are a team in caring for her- so I guess you could say she resurrected some comradery among the children.
Anastasia Rose, we love you and thank God for you every day.
She met Shana's little boy this week, Samuel. He is 5 months old.
I have to say, she LOVES her bath time. It's the happiest part of her day!
And she sleeps well at night. Last night she slept from 9:30 to 3:30 and then again until 6:45. What a good girl!
She loves her playmat!
Thank you, Lord, for our little Rose!
