22 Weeks

Here are a couple pictures of my belly progress in the last week and a half. I really don't feel like I'm growing but when I look at pictures I'm convinced otherwise. Nothing really new to report in the pregnancy. Everything seems the same, I'm gaining weight and I'm feeling hungry:)

I decided I needed a Christmas tree belly picture so here I am in front of the tree.

My friend Kortny (due April 5th) and I. She is also expecting a girl so we are super excited to let our little ones play together and force best friendship upon them:)

Final Exams

Ah, the last 2 days before break in complete silence. What a treat. I always love that we have finals right before Christmas break and I have to force the kids to be quiet. They are generally pretty burnt out too so they're subdued. Anyway, I always let the kids fill out a notecard for the final with important formulas and such. The best notecard I've ever seen is one I got today...

"You will do good on this test. Focus. Stop tapping your pencil. This is your last final of the first day. Your going to pass. Your going to pass. Your going to pass. Oh yea tie your shoes.

10x^3-40x
10x(x+2)(x-2)"

This notecard was not edited for spelling errors. The kid will do fine on the test and is doing fine in the class overall, but I loved the pep talk he gave himself.

Competition

A few of my students have been having a friendly competition playing the game Brickbreaker on their cellphones. I guess all Blackberry cellphones have this game so when my students found out I was a proud owner of a Blackberry (just the phone and not the fancy Blackberry services) they convinced me to try out the game. So, I tried it a couple times and thought it was ok. I'm not really into playing electronic games so I'm not very good at it but it wasted some time. Anyway, my students decided to keep track of high scores on my chalkboard. Here are the results so far....

BRICKBREAK HIGH SCORES*

1. Ethan - 30,170

2. Austin - 27,090

3. Aaron - 25,980

4. Mrs. Ahrens - 910

Ummmm, I have a long way to go! Yikes!

*I never let the students play Brickbreaker in class. It is just a place to record their high scores.

21 Weeks

Well last week we reached the halfway point in pregnancy. I can't believe how quickly things are flying by. It seems like every week there is something new to think about and learn about how our baby is developing. I'm amazed at how God grows these tiny little people. I am really excited about Christmas this year and can't help but think ahead to having Christmas with a baby next year. But then I get overwhelmed with all that has to be done to prepare for a baby to arrive in our house so I decide to just enjoy the stage I'm in now:)

Time for the FAQ section...

1. Have you decided on a name?

We feel very emotionally attached to the name Grace . The middle name that we are strongly leaning towards is Elizabeth but I'm not sure that we've made a final decision on that yet. I feel pretty confident we'll sitck with Grace as we've been calling my stomach that for at least a week now. So feel free to call my belly Grace. We love the meaning of the word grace - unmerited favor and love of God.

2. Have you had any new or weird pregnancy symptoms?

Not really. I still get sick some mornings and feel ok the rest of the time. I'm just convinced I will get sick in the mornings off and on throughout the whole pregnancy. O well. I've also had a little bit of heartburn which is annoying but nothing compared to how I felt before.

3. Have you registered yet?

I'm feeling at a loss regarding this topic. We are planning on registering because we know that it is helpful for people who want to buy us gifts. And we really really appreciate that people want to do that for us. But I just don't know where to start. I checked out a book from the library called Baby Bargains and have talked with a couple people who have recently gone through the process but it is confusing. Most of the time I think stuff is uneccessary but that's because I don't have a baby right now and it would be silly to have a high chair for Matt or me. I have to wrap my brain around what I need for a baby. If you have any suggestions as to what NOT to register for let me know. I just don't want excess junk around my house.

Stack The Memory

Welcome to my world.

Cost of Living

If you're interested in moving or you just are curious how much you'd need to make in your current profession in another town to maintain your current standard of living check out this website...

http://www.payscale.com/cost-of-living-calculator

It's kind of fun to see the differences in cost of living in different cities around the country.

Thank You IDOT

After the gloomy day with not so favorable driving conditions yesterday I was thrilled to drive to school on clear roads this morning. I just want to say thank you to the Illinois Department of Transportation for working hard to clean my roads. What a great use of tax dollars.

My favorite website during the winter is IDOT - Winter Road Conditions. It is a great source concerning the state of county roads and interstates.