{dillon with wife}: a name of joy

May 29, 2014. Little One's due date.

Everyone tells you that a due date is just a guesstimate and really, less than 5% of babies are actually born on that date. To mentally prepare myself, I anticipated a late birth, and prayed for an early one. But if you know me at all, you know that punctuality is important to me, and I strive to be on time... and I guess my little girl takes after me.

At 1:03pm on Thursday, May 29, 2014, our precious Avagale Lee was born; weighing just over six pounds (6 lbs 0.8 ounces) and measuring a very long twenty inches. Perfectly healthy. Jeff and I, instantly consumed by love.

Eventually I hope to share Avi's birth story. It was a beautiful answer to prayer. Although intense, it was full of grace and mercy, and was an experience I will always cherish. But until I find some uninterrupted time to recount it all in writing, this proud mama would like to share some sweet pictures of the six pounds that have captured my breath and stolen my heart, as well as share the story behind her name.

Naming a person. That's a huge responsibility. Honestly, a really intimidating responsibility. You are in charge of choosing a name that another human being will have to live with forever. Sheesh.

So as Jeff and I began to brainstorm name ideas for our little girl, we decided to start with a list of criteria. We wanted a name that...

1. Has Biblical meaning.
Particularly a redemptive meaning. After losing our first little "Bug", Jeff and I prayed that God would bring beauty from the ashes. Our little girl was the answer to that prayer, and we wanted her name to reflect that.

2. Is representative of Jeff and I.
I really wanted to honor my husband and choose a name somehow related to him. Jeff felt the same for me.

3. Starts with the letter A.
Well it didn't have to start with an A, but the type-A-person that I am just likes how it is the first letter of the alphabet.

4. Spelling approved by Jeff.
I didn't really have many opinions on how we spelled our daughter's name, but my journalist husband did. This was his territory.

So, on May 29th, minutes after meeting our daughter for the first time,

both Jeff and I looked at each other, and knew we would name her Avagale Lee.

1. The name Abigail comes from the Hebrew name אֲבִיגַיִל Avigayil, which means {my father's joy}. Avigayil was the wife of King David in the Bible and is described as "discerning and beautiful".
(1 Samuel 25:3 ESV)

2. Jeff's middle name is Galen. Mine is Lee. So we wanted to weave both names into her name.
(Side note: Galen means "calm" or "peaceful" and Lee means "healer". Another perfect description of our daughter.)

3. Obviously Avagale starts with an A.

4. We decided to spell the first part of her name a-v-a since Ava is Hebrew for "life." Jeff loved (and so did I) that when spelt ava + gale + lee, her name essentially was : life + gale (for Jeff's middle name Galen) + my middle name.

A beautiful picture of joy... her Father's joy.

"Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. 6 Behold, I will bring (to it) health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security. 7 I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, and rebuild them as they were at first. 8 I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me.