Some women have that perfect idea in their head of what they want their life to look like. They want to get an education, get married and then have beautiful little babies. My fiancé and I did things a little backwards. We had our daughter Avery when I was 17 and Josh was almost 18. We were not expecting to get pregnant especially since we were so young. We were planning on waiting until we got married before becoming intimate or starting a family. Josh and I struggled with the decision we made of not waiting until we were married. We knew we made a mistake and have worked very hard to live in obedience, making things right with each other and with God. We have now chosen to wait until we are married and are very happy with our decision. Having Avery at the age we did and still working on finishing high school brought a lot of extra work to being a parent but we wouldn’t have it any other way. Avery has taught me so many things and continues to be the light of our lives. Avery has taught me what selfless love is. How to find joy in everything. How to take life not too seriously. And how to be the best mom I can be. I can’t put into words how happy a hug from Avery makes me when she wraps her little arms around my neck and squeezes me so tight. She always tries to make everyone smile and loves to share her toys. I wish that I could take credit for teaching her all these things but it is truly gifts that God has given her. God knew Josh and I needed Avery and I can’t imagine anyone other than us being her parents. We have the most precious gift that I never want to take for granted. If I few years ago I would have known I would be an 18 year old mother of a 1 year old the first words that would have popped into my head would have been worried, stressed, busy, and tired. But now the words that come into my head when I think about being a mom are joy, patience, unconditional love and pure happiness. I wouldn’t trade being a mom for anything in the world.

“Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward.” Psalms 127:3