Nearing The End Of An Era

I met her in August of 2002.  I was nervous around her at first, but then I realized that I could trust her and that our relationship would last.  You could call her the love of my life until I met Anne.  She was there during my last days of college.  She was there during my college graduation, finding my first job, my start in the real world.  She was there on my first date with Anne and she wasn't jealous at all.  She was excited when I asked Anne to marry me.  She was there on our wedding day.  She acted up at times, but mostly the normal maintenance that comes with someone like her.  I'm going to miss her.  But I know that somebody else will get to enjoy her next.

My Kia Sephia is officially on the market.

First Shower

We had our first shower this past weekend and it was so fun. The shower part and getting gifts was cool but the best part was just seeing friends and celebrating the coming blessings. It was actually a joint shower for three couples who are expecting this spring. Matt was in fraternity with some really cool guys and they have remained close friends since college and three of the guys have pregnant wives. The tradition is for everyone to get together and have a shower for expecting families. I guess its pretty convenient that we're all expecting around the same time. So, this shower was extra crazy because almost half the people attending were guests of honor. It is just so special to have this group of friends who really care for each other deeply and would do anything for each other. I know without a doubt that any child who has been or will be born to this group of friends will be loved and prayed for by these people.

Mandy (due 5/30), Anne (due 4/22) and Lexi (due 3/18)

Super Prediction

America comes together for one night a year to celebrate the greatest sports league in the history of humanity.  And I shall predict the victor...you can take it to the bank:

Steelers 31, Cardinals 16.

I also predict I will enjoy my wife's delicious chili tonight.

28 Weeks - 3rd Trimester

I cannot believe that the 3rd Trimester is here. This is where things are going to start getting real. We are going to start taking some classes at the hospital where Grace is going to be born, friends are throwing us showers, the nursery will start to get finished up, and finally at the end of it all in less than 3 months we will be bringing a little baby home from the hospital. Unbelievable!

I went to the doctor today and everything looked good. I have gained about 20 pounds, passed my sugar test, and am measuring right at 28 cm. All that stuff is right on track and I am just thankful that God has taken care of me so far during this pregnancy. I'll take the normal pregnancy things like morning sickness and heartburn if it means the important stuff looks good. The only negative is this was the last time I got to see my doctor until after Grace is born. She is a family practice doctor who only sees patients up until the 3rd trimester and doesn't do deliveries. So, we made the decision to transfer to the midwives at our hospital. I've had several friends see the midwives and they have had great experiences. It seemed easier to me to go them than to actually pick a new doctor who likely won't be there for the delivery depending on when he/she is on call. I will meet with one of the midwives in two weeks as I start going to the doctor every two weeks now.

As far as the nursery goes, we only have one more week until we are going to take the TV off the wall and put it in our TV cabinet in the living room. We had to leave it up for the Super Bowl. I'm really getting excited about that for some strange reason (not the Super Bowl but moving the TV). I'm not sure how much progress my dad has made on the crib but we should be getting it in a month and it's about time to order the new dresser. It's been sitting in our Target Online Shopping cart for a couple of weeks and we just need to get around to clicking buy. I made one more wall decoration last weekend and the rest we're going to get from Target.

Wall art made with leftover curtain fabric and Old Maid Alphabet cards from a local teaching store.

25 Things

So there is this thing going around Facebook where you write 25 random things about yourself and then tag people. I decided to do it today since I stayed home sick from work. Then I noticed a friend of mine did it and posted her 25 things on her blog. So, I am copying. Here are my 25 things....


1. I love McDonald's, have since I could eat solid food and still crave Big Mac's more than any other fast food. When I worked there for a summer I wanted it more.

2. Thanks to D.A.R.E. I was afraid to even take cold medicine for several years of my life.

3. I have a mom, dad, and younger sister (and she has a cool husband).

4. My husband is awesome and I still can't believe we're married (we got engaged 2 years ago today).

5. I lived in Germany for a year after college working for Campus Crusade for Christ and was able to go back last summer (5 years later) with my husband for a great vacation.

6. My favorite month is June (birthday and anniversary month).

7. I had a guinea pig from age 10-13 and hope to never own a pet again.

8. My sister used to write LAURA, NO ANNE on everything she owned.

9. I love to clean and organize. It is like a drug to me and I can't sleep if things are out of place.

10. I have a weak spot for cheesy pre-teen movies like High School Musical.

11. Speaking of musicals I was in 9 church musicals from 2nd grade - 12th grade and can still sing and dance to many of the songs.

12. I love to read.

13. I have always checked out about 10-20 books at a time everytime I go to the library and then can't ever seem to get them back on time.

14. My mom always told me I have my dad's personality but ever since I got married and now that we're having a baby I see my mom in myself a ton.

15. I'm having my first child in April.

16. I wore christian band and soccer t-shirts almost everyday in high school.

17. I love all things poop...talking about it, actually pooping, thinking about it etc..

18. I make a really good goat noise which is especially evident when I'm in the goat barn at a fair. You wouldn't even know the difference between me and the goats.

19. I used to daydream that my whole yard was a swimming pool filled with dolphins and we were all best friends.

20. I only got one "check mark" in 4th-6th grade and that was because I forgot to put my name on a math paper. I'm still upset about that.

21. I used to get sugar cereal in the mornings if I practiced the piano the day before. I took piano for 11 years, have taught piano lessons since high school and had Lucky Charms for breakfast this morning.

22. I hate it when people touch my sheets. Matt is the only person who is allowed in my sheets' world and he even took some getting used to.

23. I'm really good at making nachos in the microwave.

24. I really hope that I can be a mom who teaches my kid(s) to love Jesus and other people and also to be really good at math.

25. I love Jesus more than anything else in the world.

Curtains

I had a ton of fun making curtains for the nursery over the past couple of days. Matt put the curtain rod up today and I LOVE them. I just want to sit in the room and stare at them. It was fun making them but I'm glad I didn't wait much longer because I had to crawl around on the floor cutting and measuring the 3 different fabrics and the lining. I'm starting to get a little bit uncomfortable for that. In the end it all ended up matching up pretty well. I had to keep repeating different numbers and measurements to myself and always went by the rule measure twice cut once. And here it is folks...

Closed

Open

My Sunday Morning Phone Call

I was relaxing this morning before church, reading a book while sitting on my recliner.  I got a phone call from a number I didn't recognize and this conservation ensued:

Caller:  Good morning, this is Laura from Family Video.

Me:  Hello.

Caller:  Hi, we notice that you haven't come in and rented with us for a couple months.

Me:  OK.

Caller:  What have you been doing the last two months?

Me:  Ah, I've just been living life.

After I confirmed that I still live in Champaign, the lady proceeded to give me a free rental for our account.  But the takeaway from the phone call is that I summed up the last two months of my life with the phrase "I've just been living life."  Well done, self.  Well done.