Life is Different...

At my last blog, I revealed the fact that I was pregnant and justly titled it...Life is Changing. At that point, I hadn't had a lot of changes in my life; only a picture of a little blob (my little blob), some "morning" sickness (so grossly misnamed), and a positive pregnancy test. I am currently 15 weeks (almost 16) pregnant.

Life is Different...I would totally agree with this statement. I went from spending the first 13 - 14 weeks throwing up at every movement and just feeling plain miserable. It makes it VERY hard to be the excited mommy I wanted to be when all I wanted to do was sleep and throw up. I had some type of virus March 28. I couldn't believe the toll this virus took on my body. I spent 2 full days in bed throwing up even more and running a dreadful fever. After this, I haven't thrown up since!

At the last doctor's appointment (13 weeks), we got to get another ultrasound. This is not normal, but my heartbeat and the baby's heartbeat were in the exact same place. So to be sure that my baby's heartbeat was okay, they hooked me up to the ultrasound machine. I didn't mind at all! We got to see that our baby actually has a head, 2 arms, and 2 little legs that were crossed! It was so much more exciting now that our baby looked like a baby! The doctor did a great job of walking us through what everything was - the beginnings of ribs, the heartbeat, the movements of the baby! I have to say, I left that appointment more in love with this baby than ever before.

It's still hard to believe that this is all real. I'm not showing a lot although I have started to wear some maternity clothes - they are just so much more comfortable. Overall, at 15 weeks, I have only gained 4.6 pounds. When you're as short as I am, there's not a lot of space for the weight to go. I was laying on the couch March 30 and felt this little flutter in my lower tummy. I had never felt anything like it before, but it happened again two more times in the same exact spot. According to everyone I have talked to and everything I have read, it was the baby moving!

Like I said before, this is still so surreal to me. I can't believe that there is life inside of me. It probably won't really start to sink in until I have a huge belly and know exactly what that little one is (girl or boy). Speaking of that, my next doctor's appointment is the 21st (17 weeks). They said we probably wouldn't try to see the gender then, but set up an appointment for the next week or next to find out what this little one is. So for now, we wait. Please continue to remember us in your prayers as we progress in this pregnancy. Pray that our baby is developing perfectly both physically and mentally. Please pray that Jake and I will continue to become the parents God wants us to be!

Life is Changing...

This week we released the news....I'm pregnant! We have known for a while and have kept it a secret until we went to the doctor. On Wednesday, Jake and I went to the doctor for the first time and got to hear and see our little one's heartbeat. We also left with 3 new pictures of our baby. It was so exciting! You can't really tell a lot from the pictures, but for me and Jake, it shows OUR baby! It's ours and it's healthy and that's really all that matters. I can't make out a lot, but I do know it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.

As of today, Friday, February 26, I am 9 weeks and 5 days. Our baby is the size of a large grape and only 2.5 cm long. I have been struggling with extreme exhaustion (at least one nap a day and going to bed no later than 10:00) and nausea/vomiting (at least once a day if not more). I haven't officially gained any weight yet - I've actually lost, but I know it's coming.

Jake and I are so exetremely blessed and we thank God on a daily (and sometimes hourly) basis for the amazing gift of life that He has given us. We count it nothing short of a miracle and praise Him for it. Jake has done such a great job of taking care of me. From changing the way we go in and out of the house (the dog's smell really sets me off) to going to places where I want to eat, he has been AMAZING. I couldn't have asked for a better person to share this experience with.

So many of my friends are pregnant right now and that excites me because we will get to go through this together. In fact, one of the ladies that I work with is due just a week after me! Please pray for me and Jake as God develops us into the parents He wants us to be and please pray for our baby, that it will continue to develop healthy in mind and body. I go back to the doctor in 4 weeks so I will update again after that!

Update

I realize that I desperately need to update my blog, but honestly, I haven't had the time! An in-depth update will be coming soon! Promise!

Passion - What will it take to make me stop?

In preparation for my lovely Pampered Chef party at my home on Friday, I was cleaning my office last night when I noticed some VERY unwelcomed guests. Near my dog's crate and his food was a steady stream of ants. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that not only had they taken over the wall, but they were on the floor and in my dog's food storage bin. I was ticked off! If you know me at all, you know that I like my stuff clean (not necessarily neat and tidy, but clean - no dust, dirt, and especially no bugs).
I immediately started killing every little ant I could see. They started scrambling for cover, but I wasn't finished yet. I continued to pursue these little creatures. I got out the broom and swept up as much as I could. Then, I got out the hand vac and went to town! I vacuumed EVERYWHERE in that office and took great joy in ridding my house of these little bugs.

Main Point: I was passionate about getting rid of what I didn't want in my house.

During my rantful cleaning, God spoke to me. What if I was that passionate about getting things out of my life that didn't belong? The message this past Sunday at church was about submitting completely to God and giving Him everything. What if all of us as Christians did that? Imagine how blessed and open our lives would be!

So as I continue to work on getting rid of my ants (which is going very well), I will be examining my life and hope you will examine yours to look for a passion to get rid of what doesn't belong or even just to find a passion for what God wants you to do.

KidSpring

AMAZED! That's the only word that I can come up with to describe how I feel right now. A few weeks ago, I got to walk through the new KidSpring building at our church, NewSpring. It blew me away and it wasn't even halfway done yet. I went home and God spoke to me so clearly about having this amazing passion. On Tuesday night, we had volunteer training and got to see a pretty much completed building. However, still no kids yet. My anticipation grew stronger. Tonight, Friday night, we had our first look at KidSpring with actual kids. WOW!! God is so much bigger than any plan I have ever thought or any idea of what I could have imagined. All of these kids were running around and SOOO excited about their new building. Imagine...God is going to give us the amazing opportunity to take all of the excitement about the building and turn it into lives being changed for Him. It blows my mind that He would allow me to be part of something this huge. God is at work and I am so humbled by His grace. I don't deserve any of this, but He has chosen to bless me and my church. THANK YOU GOD!!

So, if you haven't checked out KidSpring yet, do it! Opening this Sunday!

One Year - A Tribute to an Amazing Grandmother

Tomorrow, or Feb. 12th, is the anniversary of my grandmother's death. I know that all of my blog rollers love me and understand me, so please bear with me as I use this as a way of writing down my feelings, regrets, and most importantly memories of a truly amazing woman.

My grandmother passed away a year ago. As the pastor said at her funeral, the biggest lie that was ever written about her was that she died. She is so alive right now and I believe that with all of my heart. She lived an incredible life. Everything she did was a testimony to her belief in an amazing God that she loved dearly. I believe that she is with that amazing God now. I wish that everyone could have known how precious she was. She lived through a LOT of rough stuff. Her mother died when she was young, she had a lot of siblings, she had her first baby while her husband was in another country and raised that baby for a year without him there. Can you imagine??

She was also one of the best grandmothers you could ask for. She took care of us when we were sick. She kept up with all of our toys that we left at her house. She fed us (and good too)! She prayed for us. She taught us Bible verses. She played with us and even went along with our jokes and pranks.

I regret so much not taking the time to talk to her and thank her when I had the chance. I know that I can't change that now and I know that she knew that I loved her, but it still bothers me that I didn't cherish EVERY moment, even when she bothered me (or so I thought).

So the top things that I miss about my grandmother....

1) I miss her smile.

2) I miss watching her fall asleep when she just meant to "sit down and rest a minute."

3) I miss her cards and letters.

4) I miss smelling her cooking.

5) I miss talking to her on the phone.

6) I miss her advice.

7) I miss her sewing and hemming....you have to understand that NOTHING fits on me the way it should.

8) I miss hearing her talk to the answering machine (Hey Kristy. It's Granny. How are you? I'm doing good today. Just wanted to call and tell you....Kristy, are you there? It's Granny.). LOVED that.

9) I miss calling her about cooking advice and her thinking it was the greatest thing in the world.

10) But most importantly, I just miss her. I miss EVERYTHING about her.

Don't get me wrong. I watched her suffer through a painful battle with cancer. I wouldn't DARE wish her back here for anything. She is in the most wonderful place that I can ever imagine and praising her Creator. I am exetremely happy for her. I just miss her. So please, take some time today and call up your family members, even the ones that annoy you. Don't take them for granted. And if you don't mind, please keep my family in your prayers today especially.

I love you all!

A New Year

Wow, I can't believe how awesome 2008 has been to me. While I did go through some "storms," God has blessed me in amazing ways that I couldn't have even imagined. What is the main thing that I have learned this year? NEVER sell God short! He has AMAZING plans for us and all He wants us to do is submit to Him completely. God has done amazing things in my personal life, but also in the life of my church. I pray for Him to do so much more this upcoming year!

It's hard for me to think that my life can get much better, but I know that God has plans for me that I haven't even considered yet. In light of the new year, I am going to post some resolutions and I expect for all my blogger friends to help me uphold them! (These are in not in order of importance!)

Resolution #1: Lose at least 25 pounds this year.
Resolution #2: Love my husband more passionately than ever before.
Resolution #3: Take a walk with Justice, my dog, daily.
Resolution #4: Train for a 5K (or possibly a 10K) and compete in one!
Resolution #5: MOST IMPORTANT!! Fall deeper in love with Jesus and become more of the person that He wants me to be.

I love all of my friends and family very much! Thanks for making 2008 a GREAT year!