Six Months and Counting!

Last week we reached the six month mark!

Sorry, Blogger does not want me to be right-side up with this one!

At our last checkup, Baby was fine with a good heartbeat, although I am measuring a little ahead. They said it should even out over the next few weeks, so I'm hoping for a break in this growth spurt! :)

Last week, I finally took the plunge and donated eight inches of my hair--which I had been planning to do anyway. My hair is growing even faster than usual, so I think it will be less drastic by the time the baby comes.

Ta da!

Twenty-five!

Sunday night, Jordan and I hosted our third annual Elf Party. This year's theme was one of the elves' four favorite food groups:  candy canes! 

I made peppermint hot cocoa and mint chocolate chip cookies:

Cranberry chutney (I love the Ritz snowflake crackers!):

I had some leftover pico de gallo from another Christmas party with some festive tortilla chips, and I also made some peppermint "fudge":

And for some healthy grains, a cranberry orange loaf in a "b-b-b-b-boondt":

We had so much fun! I always forget to take photos with people in them, though, because I get too caught up in running around and conversing. :)

Last night we had a great time with one of my best friends, Ruth, and her husband, Matt, and had our first Buffalo Wild Wings experience. Let's just say the Asian Zing was my favorite (I need that recipe, Chris) and the Mango Habenero was yummy but hot--it made the baby dance! We are looking forward to spending time with friends from Michigan this week, then Christmas with family. There is absolutely no snow on the ground in our area and our chances of a white Christmas are not looking good. ...No matter...we rejoice in our Savior and His unending grace in our lives.

Happy Christmas!

"That Was Totally...Wicked!"

I thought that maybe I should mention that the day before we left for vacation I made a trip to Des Moines with some friends to see...................................Wicked!

I had friends who had seen this and really loved it, and I so wanted to go to a professional musical, since I feel like I got shafted by seeing Rent in high school (no one told me the story line on that one). It was amazing! I was familiar with the story and had been listening to the soundtrack, but, truly, nothing beats live performances. Theatre will always live on because it delivers something cinema never can--a magical feeling that you are actually getting caught up in the story.

Anyway, my favorite songs, "Defying Gravity" and "For Good", were just as spectacular as I expected, if not more so because of the live sound.

The song, "Popular", was not my favorite of the night. In the soundtrack, Kristen Chenowith interpreted the song more melodically than this actress did. She went for flirty/ditsy/annoying, which works, but wasn't my favorite. 

Of course, I cheated and took these pictures off of Google, so they're not even the Civic Center cast--I wouldn't be rude enough to actually be taking pictures during the show. :) It was so much fun to dress up, go out to eat, and "take in a show", like it was something I did everyday!

What a Wonderful Maker

So, it's been two-and-a-half months since I last posted.

Have you missed me? I've missed you guys. :)

In my defense, there has been a lot going on lately. For instance, we just got back from visiting my dad's family in Florida.

"Picnik Show"

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We drove down there this year, a first for us, and stopped about half way to see my mom's mother and sister and her family in northern Alabama. It was so good to see everybody, but it's good to be back home!

But that's not all that has been going on in our household:

I am five-and-a-half months (or 22 weeks) pregnant! It was hard keeping a secret like this from all of you, but I really wanted to tell my dad, stepmother, and sister in person, so I had to wait. Once again, Jordan guessed at it before I did because I was feeling consistently sick starting at about week six. Imagine our surprise when we discovered that we are going to have a baby 10 weeks after our first baby should have been born. It was a lot for us to process, but we are thrilled that this little boy or girl (that's right, we're not finding out which it will be) will be joining us sometime around March 31st!

We started telling our family over Labor Day weekend with this announcement:

The announcement says April 2012 because our due date is actually April 1st, but when we went for our 20-week ultrasound, the technician told us it was measuring one day earlier. I've been going off of that day now, so I don't have to field all of the "April Fool's" comments. ;)

I announced it at work a couple of weeks later when Jordan came by and brought me flowers, the sweet guy that he is:

He thought of the blue and pink theme--so cute!

And, although we've missed the last couple of weeks with our vacation and all, we have tried to keep up with taking weekly pictures. It's hard to take good pregnancy pictures!

I'm not sure exactly what I was going for in this picture.

It was amazing to feel the baby kick for the first time! Everyone, including the doctor, was asking me if I had felt anything yet, and I was starting to get impatient. Then, the Friday we left for vacation (the 18th), when I woke up at 4:30 a.m., I felt it--and I have been feeling it everyday since! I love how personal our God is and how I will be able to tell my child how lovingly he or she was made:  "For You formed my inward parts; You knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are Your works; my soul knows it very well" (Psalm 139:13-14).

An Interesting Take on a Classic

Today, I stumbled upon a blog about a food item you would think one would never need guidance on:  the simple, yet delicious grilled cheese sandwich.

In this post at Grilled Cheese Social, the tragically poor college student can get creative with a clothes iron and aluminum foil to make a delicious and economical dinner.

In this post, the author puts a whole lot of craziness into one sandwich...

...resulting in what looks surprisingly YUM!

And why make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, when you can have this?

I think I shall go start dinner now. :)

It Feels Like...

...FALL!


Fifty-nine degrees.

Football games.

That undefinable smell in the air.

Hoodies.

Bonfires.

And barn raisings?

Perspective

I haven't been writing very much lately.

I would say that's mostly because I haven't been inspired.

I would also say that it's completely my fault.

Life is interesting, in that, we can be surrounded by inspiration but be too closed off to drink it in. There is grace simply in waking up to a new day filled with new mercies. There is grace in the things we take for granted, thanklessly grumbling about the responsibilities in our lives. There is grace in the thousands of kindnesses we encounter that completely slip past the attention of our self-absorbed hearts.

What would my life look like if I woke up everyday humbled? If I didn't always try to take my life in my own hands but realized that I have been bought with a price? Perspective is so crucial to our joy. A lack of gratitude encourages us to become foolish, promotes pride, and is contrary to God's will for us. But its presence gives us courage and peace, honors God, puts a song in our hearts, and allows us to put others before ourselves. Gratefulness comes from the love of God, not our circumstances.

What circumstances are distracting you from living your life the way it was meant to be lived? Sometimes, we just need to remember how much we truly have been given.

The Best Thing

I have been wracking my brain all week trying to figure out how to bring you "the best of the best" of my week at camp.

Would it perhaps be the competition?

The zip line?

The intense water games?

The singing and the messages?

The...gulp...mud pit?

The friends?

Or might it be all of the above?

I'm so amazed by the maturity of our youth group and their desire to learn and grow in Christ! Really, the best thing of all was their attitudes and their willingness to change. It is awesome to see God working in hearts and knowing we will never be the same! "...That in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ..." (1 Peter 4:11).

Due to my camera being mostly broken, photos 1-6 are taken by Josh Huang; photo 7 was taken by my friend, Bekah. :)

Take Heart

Well, I just got back from another amazing week counseling at Sr. High camp, which I hope to tell you about in my next post. In the meantime, here is a song I have really fell in love with. In this case, I actually like the cover better than the original, I think. :) Enjoy!

Photo Friday

Here are a few photos from a baby shower I threw for my friend, Janelle, a couple of weeks ago. I will leave the "people photos" to her. :)

Calmer of the Storm

When everything is wrong

The day has passed and nothing's done

And the whole world seems against me

When I'm rolling in my bed

There's a storm in my head

I'm afraid of sinking in despair

Teach me, Lord, to have faith

In what You're bringing me will

Change my life and bring you glory

There on the storm I am learning to let go

Of the will that I so long to control

There may I be in Your arms eternally

I thank You, Lord, You are the Calmer of the storm

You rebuke the wind and the waves

Once again, I find I'm amazed

By the power of Your will

'Cause I'm a child of little faith

I feel the wind and forget Your grace

And You say, "Peace, be still."

Teach me, Lord, to have faith

In what You're bringing me will

Change my life and bring you glory

There on the storm I am learning to let go

Of the will that I so long to control

There may I be in Your arms eternally

I thank You, Lord, You are the Calmer of the storm

Oh, when the torment blows

The middle of the sea

May I never trust, never trust in me

'Cause there in Your arms I find

No tragedy

There on the storm I am learning to let go

The white wave's high, it's crashing o'er the deck

And I don't know where to go

Where are You, Lord, this ship is going down?

The mast is gone, so throw the anchor

Should I jump and try to swim to land?

There on the storm teach me God to understand

Of Your will that I just cannot control

There may I see all Your love protecting me

I thank You, Lord, You are the Calmer of the storm

Source

For The Good

Today, I had a conversation with a man who came into my workplace. I learned that his sister passed away recently in a kayaking accident. Her husband and adult son were with her and unable to save her. My heart hurts for these men in her life that wanted to protect her and care for her but could not; yet, it was so encouraging to hear him talk about her funeral. He said, "I looked up at the cross above her casket, and I knew that if Jesus could endure death on a cross for me--for all of us--then, what is this light and momentary suffering compared to what He suffered and the eternal joy she will have in heaven?"

Wow.

We were talking about how truly awesome it is to have a God that has experienced suffering and brokenheartedness (you will find this throughout the entire Old Testament book of Hosea). And how our sorrow--while we may have days or weeks that seem to overcome us--will never truly destroy us because we have a firm foundation and a hope (or confident expectation) of God's goodness.

While we were talking for a short time, something came to mind that I have been thinking about the last few days. It's something I said at the beginning of all of this:

I had told God that I would be content in whatever circumstances we were in, and He was helping me be true to that. I liked our life.

I think this is somewhat true. I was praying that God would help me to be content that we hadn't moved on to houses or having children like many of our friends had--and He was definitely answering my prayer. But I have come to realize that perhaps I was also content just to have a "peaceful" life. Not much in the way of change. "Lord, please don't bring any ripples into my life...well, maybe just enough to make life interesting, but nothing too serious." I was trusting in a false peace; I was trusting in my circumstances to give me peace.

Another of the names of God, Jehovah-Shalom, means "The Lord is Peace" or "The Lord our Peace". "Shalom is a derivative of shâlêm (which means 'be complete' or 'sound'). Shalom is translated as 'peace' or 'absence from strife.'" The only place this is found in the Bible is in Judges 6. The angel of the Lord appears to Gideon--the least of his father's house in the weakest clan in Manasseh--and tells him that he, a "mighty man of valor" will save Israel from its oppressors. In the midst of this message, Gideon asks some pretty telling questions:  "Please, sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us...?" Why are bad things happening to your people? Why have you abandoned us? Why me? Why now?

The angel declares to Gideon,  "But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man." Gideon, who cannot seem to wrap his head around all of this, asks if the angel will show him a sign that this message is really from God. He presents an offering to the angel of the Lord, who touches the offering with his staff. The offering is consumed by fire, and the angel of the Lord disappears. This, Gideon believes.

Gideon cries out, "Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face." The very God of the universe replies to him,  "Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die." Gideon was afraid that he, the least of men, would die for coming face to face with an angel of God. He encountered perfection and saw all of his imperfections. I wonder if he wasn't also afraid that God was asking too much of him. Or blinded by the enormity of his task. This mirrors Peter's reaction to Jesus in Matthew 14. Shortly before dawn, Jesus came to the disciples, walking on water while they and their ship were beaten by waves. 

But when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, "It is a ghost!" and they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid." And Peter answered Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water." He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me." Jesus immediately reached out His hand and took hold of him, saying to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"

Source

How often I long for still and calm waters when I have a Savior who can rebuke the wind and the waves! One who immediately reaches out His hand when I cry out to him as I feel the waters overtake me.

The song I inserted at the beginning of this post is one I have really been meditating on as of late. I could just give you a link to the lyrics, but they are so amazing, you are just going to have to forgive me for my obnoxiousness as I quote them here:

For The Good

When darkness is surrounding me

By Your Spirit Lord help me sing

That You are working all things out

Lord I really need to hear You speak

Remind me in the waiting

That You are working all things out

For the good of those

Who are called by You

For the good of those

Who are in love with You 

That's why we sing

Holy God of light

I lay down my life

Holy is the Lord

Even in the storm be glorified

We like to take the blessing from You

Shall we not take the trouble too

You are working all things out

We like to take prosperity

Shall we not take the suffering

You are working all things out

For the good of those

Who are called by You

For the good of those

Who are in love with You 

That's why we sing

Holy God of light

I lay down my life

Holy is the Lord

Even in the storm be glorified

Holy are You Lord

Even in the storm

Be glorified