Nate's Butt Farm?

No Bates Nut Farm! Marc and I, with both his brothers and their families along with his parents took a trip to Valley Center, California for a day on the farm. Marc snagged some giant pumpkin seeds from a smashed pumpkin in hopes that we can grow our own giant pumpkin patch next year!

http://www.babycenter.com/0_carpal-tunnel-syndrome-during-pregnancy_234.bc?page=1

Please refer to link to learn more about what they (who's they?) don't tell you about pregnancy.

Besides needing a little snack, the above is the reason I am up on the internet at 5 AM on a Sunday morning. More to come.

Recent photo

29 weeks

Psalm 139

One of the many scriptures that have comforted me in the midst of difficult circumstances has been Psalm 139. Verses 16-17 in the NKJV read "Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them. How precious are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them!" When I found out that I was pregnant I turned to this verse and took in the words of God's creation and His miraculous involvement in the conception of our baby. As soon as I knew the baby could hear our voices, I read this psalm out loud wanting her to hear God's word even before she is able to understand it's significance for her life. It was my goal to have this passage up in her room. I want her to know that even when she was a tiny embryo barely fitting in the palm of a human hand, God was covering her with His as she continued to grow and develop into a fetus and onto an infant. I want her to know that her entire life has been planned by a loving and sovereign God for a purpose. I want her to lean on these truths when life is hard and find them empowering when life is not.
Only God truly knows the challenges that she will face in her life. Only He knows the blessings and impact her life will have on those who know her. But I take comfort in knowing that they have all been planned out in the most loving and precise manner and that He is the one in control. I am blessed that I am not only being given the gift of having a child, but the awesome responsibility of being a part of God's plan for her life. I constantly pray that Christ would remain center and fill us so that we may be the parents that He desires us to be.

Bigger than my belly.

For most of you who have seen the movie "Juno", this image is familiar. It is not a real comic book character, only one made up for the movie, but I find it rather humorous as my physique changes to resemble that of "Yuki" (only her legs are much shapelier!).
As I continue to grow and change, I continually ask myself how I'm going to start working full time again with the new school year. How am I going to keep up with my responsibilities when I move that much more slowly (although I wish I could accomplish gymnastic feats with a sword in hand). At the same time I do have an overwhelming sense of peace in the midst of my questions, that things will work out, I will get things done and my God will take care of me and my family. Its a new sense of trust that I rest in. Its a sense of trust that I often have to pray for and find in scripture. My God is bigger than my belly; and so much bigger than all our obstacles, needs, and fears.
When the baby is here I will definitely be back at a place of building trust and confidence, taking one new day at a time and trusting again that everything will be OK, God WILL provide and He will help us parent and love our child the ways in which He loves us. I'm thankful for the 18 weeks I have left to prepare..as much as one can prepare.
I also look forward to the day that my belly is no longer big.
Thank you for your prayers and friendship!

With love,

A Perfect 10

This is the first blog in an attempt to once again connect with friends and family over the web and share what all has been going on in our lives.

2010 has been a year of many surprises, first time events and unique experiences. I remember once reading that the number 10 holds biblical significance as a number of completion. In no way do I feel that I have completed my formation as a human being spiritually, intellectually or what have you, but I do see God's hand all over my life in many different ways and I give Him all the glory and honor and praise for Who He is and for His works in my life.

For those of you who know us, we were married this February, got pregnant in March (our baby girl is due this December) and have just purchased and moved into our first home. We look forward to the tax right offs :) Not bad for one year! If anyone were to ask me last July where I would be in exactly one year I would not have been able to answer with any of these possible predictions. My times are in His hands. Even though the year is barely half way through, and many more possibilities and exciting adventures lay ahead, I can testify that this has been a year that God has completed and fulfilled many promises and long awaited prayers for this follower of His.
In Christ we live.