Compliments

These are the comments I heard immediately upon arriving at church Wednesday night...

• You are huge!
• I can't believe how big you are!
• You get bigger everyday!

And I loved every one of them!  Perhaps some people would take offense to such statements, but when you waited 2 years for a baby belly, you don't mind them one bit.  In fact at work the day before someone told me I was hiding my pregnancy very well and it almost made me sad! 

Don't get me wrong, some days I do struggle with the weight gain, but overall I'm just so happy that my pants don't fit anymore!


                                                                           21 weeks!

Feeling Crafty!

If you know my mom, you know she is a pretty amazing woman.  She can do EVERYTHING crafty, or so it seems to me and she does it all so well!  If you have every seen my wedding pictures, the gorgeousness of it is all to her credit.  She did the flowers, sewed the tablecloth, made the napkin holders, designed and figured out how to etch the glasses, and just added amazing touches to everything we had.  I have inherited her desire for crafts, but I feel I may be a bit lacking in the talent department.  This has not stopped me from trying, but I have often been dissatisfied with the finished product.  However, now that I have a daughter on the way, it has gotten my creative juices flowing again.

My super great sis-in-law pinned (on Pinterest) this really cool rag rug that I am about to start working on.  It has taken me a bit to get started and I will post pictures as soon as that project is underway!  So that is something I am excited about getting started.  Last week while at that Munchin Market I found some of the cutest tutus.  I was a bit shocked by the price tag, because as I mentioned before everything was super cheap there, some of them were still $25.  Then I noticed the tag that said homemade...my mother came out in me and I quickly began to look at the details of how it was put together and dissect just how they did it.  I realized it was simply an elastic band with tulle tied around it...I can SO do that!  I looked on pinterest for a quick tutu tutorial to make sure there wasn't anything else important I was missing and found a few good tips, but it really is that simple.  So today while out I stopped at Hobby Lobby and picked up some 1/2 price tulle and an elastic band.  Within an hour I was done and the total cost was less than $4!  I am totally thinking about selling them now that I know how simple they are.  Or at very least I'm going to be giving them as gifts to all that I know with little girls!  This one is going to a friend of ours that just had a baby a few weeks back and Joey and I will be going to see her this weekend, her colors are purple and green!  I know my mom will be proud!

           It turned out a bit bigger than I was expecting because I stretched the elastic to make it.

Halfway!!!!

Sorry it has been a little bit since I have posted, been a busy week for sure! We had stuff going on every night this week and then I had a girls sleepover for the teenagers at church.  Though Joey and I never saw ourselves as youth pastors, we are so thankful that God has brought us here to minister to these young people, we really love them!

So, lots of exciting things happening this week.  First, I felt the baby move for the first time last Sunday night!!  Everyone has been asking me and telling me that I probably have felt her but didn't know that is what it was, and they are probably right.  But I know that it was her this time.  I was lying still trying to go to sleep and then I felt this teeny tiny thump on my lower left side!  4 days later I felt that distinct "flutter" everyone talks about!  Then today I have felt her probably 4 times already, this is all so exciting.  It's also such a relief because I'm sure all moms fear that something may go wrong and not know it, so having her be active sure helps! 

Also this week I hit the halfway mark of pregnancy, 20 weeks!  It is so hard to believe that I am half way done.  The first trimester did go a little slow since I was quite queasy throughout and it seemed like the second trimester would never get here.  But then once it did, everything has started moving quickly.  Joey and I went to visit some friends of ours in the hospital with their newborn baby girl and it was so incredible to think it won't be long til we are the ones holding our teeny little baby girl! 

This week there was something called a munchkin market in town that had tons of baby stuff moms were selling, most of it was nice stuff and some with the tags still on it. I didn't buy much because I don't know what I need, in fact I was a bit overwhelmed by it all when I first got there, but then I found... the shoes.  They had the cutest little baby shoes and I couldn't pass them up.  I definitely would not spend much money on baby shoes in the store because let's be honest, babies don't need shoes!  But these tiny Converse, Nikes and boots were just too cute and I had to get them.  They came in bags of several pair and I only paid a little over a dollar for each pair.  I couldn't wait to get home and show Joey how small they were.  I also had to fight the urge to put the boots on Nacho!

                                               Here are some of the shoes, look how tiny!

Speaking of Nacho, I got him groomed and he is like a brand new dog.  I am not sure if it's the bandana they put on him that perhaps he confuses as a cape and makes him think he is superdog.  He has been running through the house at lightening speed and making extra long jumps onto the couch and the bed! This week I got to babysit again that cute little girl from church and Nacho warmed up to her much better than last time.  Last time he took one look her and told us, "I don't like this, I'm going to my room, let me know when she is gone!"  He stayed in his bed almost the whole time.  This time though, He came around and ventured a little closer.  At one point she was sleeping in my arms, and he was sleeping at my feet.  This makes me happy because we told Nacho if he doesn't get along with the baby then he has to go live with aunt Christy!   

                              Here is Nacho in his cape, he is not the most photogenic dog!!

                                         Here is me at 19 weeks before church last week!

Happenings

Last week I was soooooooo excited because someone in our church asked Joey and I to babysit for their little 2 1/2 month old girl.  It was so fun having her around and watching Joey play with her and hold her and take care of her.  I did try and see if I could get him to at least witness me changing her diaper to prepare himself, but he said no he would just wait til it was his kid!  He has never changed a diaper in his life!  Having her around and holding her and cuddling her made me so anxious to see my little one coming in February.  It also gave me a little insight into how Nacho will handle our baby,  he did just what we thought, he sulked and went to his room til she left!  I didn't think he would be aggressive, he just likes the attention to be on him! 

Me and the little cutie!

This has been a very busy and very significant week for us.  Joey was asked to preach his first revival in a nearby town.  This has long been a dream of his and it was so exciting to see it coming to pass.  We have been out late every night this week and I have been so thankful that I have not been trying to work a full time job in the midst of all this.  He will go to school this weekend and I will be speaking at a Teen Challenge chapel service and then Joey will be preaching at another church Sunday morning and at our church youth service Sunday night.  The Lord has really been opening up doors of ministry for us lately and we are so excited about that, we are constantly praying that we would just be vessels that the Lord can use to further His kingdom.  When I think about where I have come from and how far into a pit the Lord reached down to save me, I am constantly amazed that He has brought me to a place where I can be used by Him. 

We have a lot of stuff going on for the next few months, lots of activities, traveling and ministry.  This baby will be here before we know it! 

In other news, I cut Nacho's hair...he looks hideous.  Nacho is an extremely low maintenance dog, he requires very little attention and eats very small amounts, and he has NEVER once gone to the bathroom in the house.  But he does have to be groomed, which can be expensive.  The last time I took him to a place, they butchered him pretty badly, it looked like they had waxed his eyebrows!!!  We want to take him back to another place that is more costly, but were waiting til the end of the month.  I just couldn't stand looking at him all fluffy any longer, so I cut it myself.  Now we have to wait for some of the bald spots to grow in before I can take him to the groomers so when they cut him it won't still be uneven!  Here are a few pictures of my little Nach, Nacho, Choncheeto, Reverend Choy, Bud-tee, John G and the list goes on for the nicknames this dog has gained in his short stay with us!  I am still amazed that I can have affection for a dog because anyone who knows me knows I am not much of an animal person!

Our first family photo right after we rescued Nacho!

 

 

Nacho and Joey are buddies!

Crazy Dreams

When you hear people talk about pregnancy, you know about the common side effects of morning sickness, fatigue, hightened sense of smell and cravings.  What I have never heard anyone talk about before was the CRAZINESS of dreams that pregnancy can induce.  So in order to help me remember some of the hilarity (is that a word???) I have decided to blog about it.  And perhaps someone who may stumble upon this can enjoy the ridiculousness that occurs during my REM cycles!

Below are several dreams I have had, but this one is the one that tops them all.  I was getting ready for a friends wedding in Mobile, AL and I was a bridesmaid (in real life this friend is already married and i was not a bridesmaid and she got married in San Antonio.)  I showed up and all the bridesmaids were so mad at me because I did not have my hair done or my makeup on.  I got ready and we went to the church for the wedding.  As Joey and I were walking the several blocks to the reception, I spotted a note lying in the railroad tracks. I went and read the note and it was from my mom!  I turned around to find two marine biologists standing there and they led Joey and I around the corner to a giant pool that had dolphins and whales.  They said they had set it up for us to swim with dolphins!  I was soooo excited because I have ALWAYS wanted to swim with dolphins and Joey jumped straight in.  But then I realized all my friends were going to get mad at me for getting my hair and makeup wet because we still had to take wedding pictures.  As hard as it was, I turned down the opportunity to swim with the dolphins and left to go find the bride and take our pictures.  When I got to the reception it turns out she had already left to go on her honeymoon and I wasn't needed for pictures any way!  I was soooooooooo mad I didn't get to swim with dolphins.  But then I got really upset because I went to get something to eat of the food from the reception, but I couldn't eat any of it because EVERYTHING was made with either tequila or jalapenos!!! When I woke up, all I could think was, "I can't believe I missed an opportunity to swim with dolphins!"

• One night I dreamed I was being weighed and I weighed exactly 317 pounds...yes 317!  Everyone in the dream was telling me that I was doing really well, but I couldn't be convinced that this was not an abnormal weight gain for a pregnancy!
• I dreamed that some friends and I were on a boat in Dallas and there were people parachuting all around us, as soon as they would hit the water, they would take off running and run on top of the water.  They were all wearing their business clothes cause that is how they were getting to work.  I remained freaked out the entire time we were in the boat that we would run over one of the people who were coming down out of the sky, but we never did, despite the fact that there were hundreds of them.
• One dream Joey and I were out of town and I was at Walmart (ok so this was a nightmare really!) I couldn't find Joey anywhere and I became very upset because I was afraid he had either left me there or something terrible had happened to him.  I finally found him across the street playing baseball.  I couldn't tell it was him at first because he was playing catcher and was wearing a fully padded suit and mask.  Upon waking I told Joey how upset I was at him for doing such a thing, he assured me he would never leave me in real life to brave Walmart alone while he played baseball!
• One night my dream consisted of me eating an oatmeal cream pie casserole!
• In one dream I climbed in the back of a van and it started rolling off a cliff, I barely escaped by climbing out the window. 
• I dreamed that I told Nacho that I loved him he barked back, "I wovf you!"  I was so excited I couldn't wait to tell Joey and when I did Nacho did it again.  But in this dream Nacho was an old man dog, with a long white beard!
• I dreamed my sister in law and her husband were wanting to go look at a house, but it was Wednesday evening and they were going to church.  Apparently I was a heathen in my dream and didn't go to church so I offered to go look at it for them.  When I got there no one answered the door so I just walked in.  I looked around the house and then realized I was really really hungry so I went in their fridge and got some left overs out.  I was eating their macaroni and cheese and chicken nuggets when the bedroom door opened and the owners walked out.  I tried to explain to them that I normally dont bust into people's houses and eat their food when they are not home.  They weren't too upset, and showed me around the rest of the house!
• We were at a retreat center with the girls from church and we were sharing the big bathroom with a bunch of cheerleaders who left their hairspray and hair products everywhere in the bathroom and we couldn't get ready.  I went to the pastor's wife to help me handle the situation and when I found her she was eating blue sour straws, the belt like kind and when I woke up that is all I wanted. 

Sharing Our News

We tossed around a few ideas of how to tell our families about the gender of our baby.  We decided with Joey's family we would all gather at his grandparents house to tell them and watch the DVD of the baby.  It was of course a different atmosphere than when we first told them we were pregnant because they weren't expecting that news, but this time they were all anxiously awaiting! 

We put a "It's a Girl!" balloon in a box and let Joey's grandma open it and then the whole family watched our little girl on the DVD.  Someone said, "it's so crazy that what we are watching is going on in your belly!"  It was a really fun moment.  I had a baby shower for a friend at church that I had to go off to and it was sure hard not to tell the people at the shower.  They all knew I found out that morning and were thinking they would find out that night, but I had to tell them to wait one more night because I had a surprise for the youth girls in my Wednesday night class.

I had set up Skype the night before with my parents (why am I just now discovering Skype?!?!?!)  and so I was able to "see" them and tell them and my brother about their little granddaughter and neice.  I then "facetimed" my sister and shared with her.  Everyone was so excited, it was so fun!

It was so great to share with our families, but as far as reaction goes, I knew the youth would definitely have the biggest!  We had already planned to have a little revealing party with them on Wednesday night.  I had a couple of sneaky girls trying to bribe Joey, his mom or sister to tell them first, but everyone kept their lips sealed!  This was the first and I'm suspecting the only time I will ever come into class ten minutes early to find all of the girls already there and seated waiting for class to start.  Joey had to bring some stuff upstairs for me and he said he could only last about 30 seconds in the room with all the girls cause they were so hyper and excited.

I knew better than to try and plan a real lesson for us to go over that night, so at Joey's suggestion I used the situation to talk with them about some stuff.  I pointed out the excitement and joy and peace that surrounded Joey and I during this time in our life and talked about doing things God's way.  It didn't just start with us waiting til we were married to have a baby, it started long before that when we totally committed ourselves to the Lord's will and waited on Him to bring us to each other and then waited on Him for this child.  I want each of them to feel the joy and excitement that we feel, and not the regret of doing things your own way and against God. 

They could only take a few minutes of talking before it was time to reveal boy/girl!!!! They were HYPER.  One girl yelled out, "How many of you didn't wear makeup tonight because you knew you would cry?!"  Several girls raised their hands!  I don't know why they had planned to cry, other than the fact that they are girls!  I made cupcakes and put pink filling inside and decorated the outsides blue and pink.  The girls wouldn't know what we were having until they got inside the cupcake.  Rather than tell you the rest, I'll just show you, but a bit of a warning, you may want earplugs!!!

After the revealing I pulled out the laptop and showed them the video of the baby and reminded them about what we had just talked about weeks before, that God forms us in our mother's wombs and He is the giver of life.  It is so obvious to see the Lord's hand when you watch a child that is inside the mother's womb.  It was a wonderful evening ended by people at church just running around saying, "it's a girl, it's a girl"  I kind of felt like I was in a parade with all the excitment and exclamations. I am just amazed to be in this place and amazed at the work the Lord is doing. 

It's a........................

Sorry to any of you who may have anxiously awaiting the news of boy or girl.  Joey and I went for our ultrasound Tuesday to check out everything with the baby and see how Figlet is doing.  I have had 3 ultrasounds,but they were just with the portable machine that they bring in the room and they only last a minute, so I didn't know what to expect. 

At my last appointment my Dr. told me she thought it was a girl, and was 70% sure.  At first that sounded like a pretty high percentage until I thought about the fact that you have a 50/50 chance of getting it right start with, so all of a sudden 70 sounded more like 20% to me.  At first I wish she had not said that because Joey was not in the room and I was just not ready to know.  But then I was glad she said that because I had been so certain it was a boy and it gave me a whole month to prepare for the announcement of girl. 

I knew it was still kind of early in the development for the Dr. to say that so I wasn't totally sure what to expect.  I never really "felt" one way or another and it's not that I didn't want a girl, it's just that I always thought we would have a boy first or really I had thought before that we might have all boys.  Joey has been calling the baby "Figlina" a lot lately so I thought he was starting to lean toward girl too.  Still, in the back of my mind I was leaning toward boy.

So we go into the room with the big tv screen on the wall and all the lights off.  The ultrasound tech starts to look at the baby and examine every little thing.  She checked the brain to see if it was developing and the heart, the kidneys, all the fingers and all the little facial features.  Then she asked Joey if he was ready for a little "daddy's girls?"  and Joey with a grin and giggle said, "yes!" 

We are having a girl!  We were surprised, but oh so excited!!!  Everything looked good with the baby, she is developing as she should be, she is SUPER active!  I haven't felt her move yet, but I know when I do it's going to be pretty crazy.  She flipped over several times and was moving all around, at one point she started pointing her finger, maybe she was preaching!  Then she started doing some karate chops at one point!  She is so cute and stole our hearts right away. 

Here are a few pictures of me and the baby and a few other things.  I will post again about telling our families and the youth girls about the baby!  

This is the latest of me, I have some in that pink shirt, but again, wrong computer!!!

 

Here is one of my sweet little girl! 

This is the first outfit Joey and I bought the baby.  I had planned on getting something pink, but this just stood out to us and was sooo cute and to me it's pretty girly!

More excitement to come, including a video of me revealing the gender to the youth girls!

Cloth Diapers

I like to do research, I really do.  I have spent a little while now researching cloth diaper options.  I know you probably think I am crazy, most people do when I tell them I want to cloth diaper.  Most people have pictured in their minds the old diapers that had safety pins that would inevitably be stuck into a wiggly baby's leg and cause bloodcurling screams.  But I promise they are much more modern now than they used to be.  And they are way less expensive than disposables.  The estimates are that you can save about $2,000 by cloth diapering just one child and it becomes higher than that if you use the same diapers for other children you have down the road. 

I have always known that I would stay home if I had kids.  Joey and I have been completely committed to this since before we were ever married.  So from the beginning we have chosen to live below our means.  If we would struggle for just the two of us, how would we ever add in a 3rd and 4th and 5th if the Lord gives us?  Even when I went back to work a little while after we were married, we were committed to not get used to living on two incomes because then it would be difficult to adjust down to just one later.  So we used the money that I brought in to first pay off any debt we had and then to build our savings account.  Living this way certainly made the transition easier when I did come home from working full time.  I am working part time right now and because this job is super flexible with very low/work from home hours and what I feel like is good pay, if it does not interfer with my first priority of caring for my family, then I will keep it.

All that being said, I am on a mission to be a good steward of the money that we do have and want to find ways that I can save money.  Cloth diapering seems like an excellent way to save money and since I will be the one staying home with the child and will be the one changing the diapers and the one doing the laundry, I see no reason to choose other wise.  I don't look down on anyone who would use disposables, this is just what I feel like is a good choice for us.  My research has brought me to a few conclusions, there are a lot of options!  Who knew there were so many to choose from?  And who knew cloth diapers could be so cute?  Maybe the cuteness will distract from the messiness?!?!?!

In other news...only 2 days til we find out if Baby Myers is a girl or a boy?!?!?! I promise to post some new pictures with that announcement!