baby girl update

i am 30 weeks pregnant today, and it hit me that i never did announce our baby girl's name on here!  this little kicking machine is sweet baby


hallie!

we can't wait to meet her in 10 weeks.  we are still deciding on a middle name, but at this point, i'm just glad we have a first name for her!  we were able to have another sneak peek at her this morning, and wow, does she have some cheeks!


according to the sonogram tech, hallie also has a ton of hair. apparently, it is uncommon to see a baby's hair this early on the sonogram, but she could see hallie's hair very easily at several different angles. she also pointed out that hallie was practicing breathing, and we also saw her sucking her thumb (not surprised at all by that one!). the tech also told us that i have a lot of fluid... i didn't remember this before, but after reading old pregnancy posts, my body apparently did the same thing with amelia.

and as she was squirming about, contorting her little body in all kinds of positions, something popped on the screen that my kids would've picked out immediately...

a hidden mickey!


can you see it?? it's her belly and perhaps her elbow and foot or something... not exactly sure. but i had to giggle when i saw it... and the kids cracked up at seeing the hidden mickey inside mommy's belly.

speaking of mommy's belly... here's the latest picture of me and hallie, taken yesterday.


yes i have 10 more weeks to go... or let's just say 2 months, shall we??? i decided rounding it out to "2 months" sounds a whole lot sooner. :) i must admit that i cringe when people ask me how much longer i have to go... i think they expect me to say "2 weeks", judging by my big ole' belly, so when i say "2 months"... i get all kinds of shocked expressions in response. now i should just respond by telling them it's all my amniotic fluid. :)

so as my belly has grown, my lap has disappeared. this has not discouraged amelia from trying to snuggle with me, though.... she is by far my most snuggliest child, and she never gives up a chance to sit with me. well... over the last several weeks, i've tried to explain to her that i just don't have a lap anymore! yesterday during church, she was sitting next to me and then climbed up in my lap (really, onto my knee). she tried to get comfortable, but it just wasn't happening. she looked at me and whispered, "you don't got no wap!" i think she finally understood.

something that is new this time around is pretty persistent back pain. i've experienced back pain in my previous pregnancies for sure... but with hallie, i can't sit down on any comfy chair or couch without the top left side of my back burning. if i'm standing for too long, the same spot hurts too... and i usually wake up a few times a night with the same back pain, no matter how i position myself to sleep. the other night, i woke up screaming, and i really scared brian! i don't expect to go through pregnancy without aches and pains... it just comes with the territory of a precious child growing inside you. i am thankful that i am not fighting early contractions or on bed rest because of placenta previa or something serious. while the back pain is annoying, and i would love to just get a good night's sleep, i remember the admonition in 1 thessalonians... "give thanks in all circumstances"... and OH, how much do we have to be thankful for!!

we are thankful that everything looked fine on our baby girl today. it never ceases to amaze me how intricate and detailed everything already is on this child, being knitted so fearfully and wonderfully inside me. to see her little heart beating, to see her legs kicking, and to see somersault after somersault on the screen as i feel her poke me all over... it causes me to just stop and to praise my Father in Heaven. He is so gracious and merciful to us! He showers us with loving-kindness that we do not deserve. when i consider all God has done for me and the ways He continually blesses me, my back pain just seems insignificant.

the next two months are busy ones for us, so i'm praying they fly by quickly. before we know it, hallie will be here and i'll have my "wap" back! and hopefully by then, she'll have a middle name!

yay caroline!

caroline has been asking and asking for daddy to take the training wheels off her little bike... and we sadly have not taken the time to do it. well.... today, in the midst of a bathroom demolition project (not the best time), she asked daddy again, and he said, "i'll take them off but i just don't have time to teach you right now, caroline."

well, that didn't stop miss caroline! she just tried and tried over again in our little driveway (with a little help from big brother), and before long, she could ride without her training wheels! to say caroline was excited would be a huge understatement.

we were already planning a family walk tonite, so this was perfect timing. she did great on the long stretches, and she especially loved the big hill down the street. :) here she is on our walk...


i have a feeling lots and lots of bike rides are in our very near future!

update:
the next morning, i awoke to a still-grinning little girl finishing up this picture...


she couldn't wait to give aunt kristie this picture of her riding her bike without training wheels... the house is its own separate piece, but i had to stick it in the picture somewhere. :)

clayton update: answered prayers!

last week, i asked for prayers for our little friend, clayton. his heart surgery was last friday, and i am so so very thankful to report that he is doing well! his mom, wendy, has been posting updates on her blog, and the one this morning was very positive. it's a blessing to read about how well his body is recovering from such major surgery, and i'm gaining a little medical knowledge at the same time! ha! thank you for the prayers for our friends. they were most definitely answered. we are continuing to pray for clayton's healing and for wisdom in all the medical decisions that are made during his recovery.

celebrating Love

we had a fun little valentine's dinner at home on tuesday night! in past years, brian and i have done the usual valentine's dinner out, but i think we may have a new tradition on our hands. the kids really thrilled on celebrating with us, and caroline especially loved helping me get the table all "loved up". decorating in red is always easy for me. :) and the beautiful tulips that brian brought home the night before made for a perfect red centerpiece!


at each place setting, there was a bible verse about love and a little package for later. (the mystery of that little package drove the kids nuts during dinner! they are my children!) the girls loved eating off these cute plates that we've had for awhile.


sort-of heart-shaped eggs and strawberries!


your dinner is served... .just pretend that the sweet potato is actually heart-shaped!
 
our valentine's dinner was a great excuse to pull out the fancy little punch glasses for the kids.
 
and the kool-aid was a major treat for them this night!
 
my valentine and i enjoyed some kool-aid in our special glasses from our wedding, too!
 
i am pretty sure you can see the kool-aid moustaches from here.
 
for dessert, i turned some ready-bake cookies into little valentine sandwiches. they were as delicious as they are cute!
 
ethan was a teeny bit excited about his dessert!
 
i love my girls!
 
after dessert, brian read 1 corinthians 13 and 1 john 4:7-21. then ethan read the bible verses that were at everyone's place setting.
 
i'd planned on us going around the table to say one thing we loved about each person, but i forgot. :( perhaps this little girl and her tattered bag were distracting me. amelia was dying to open that bag!
 
their little bags were full of sweetart hearts, which we used to play valentine bingo. (no chalky conversation hearts around here... yuuuuck!)
 
i worked out a trade for my favorite blue ones... yum! those are good. :) and i won the first two games of bingo! here we are in between snacking on our bingo hearts.
 
i turned over the game responsibilities to ethan, who then won. ha! it seemed kinda rigged, but it wasn't. he was pretty happy about winning!
 
the kids have talked about our dinner all week. it's so easy to please them.... heart shaped pizza and kool-aid in fancy glasses! here are my little valentines that i do love so very much...
 
i know some people hate valentine's day. i have never really gotten all wrapped up in the commercialization of the day.... but this day to celebrate love is a great chance to remind ourselves and our children that we can only love because God first loved us (1 john 4:19). and what an amazing Love He has given us! (rom. 8:38-39)

we are so undeserving of--and so grateful for--God's Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love! (as my favorite bible storybook calls it.)


happy valentine's day!!

a heart on my mind...

today, i'm thinking about hearts... most of us are, since it's valentine's day. but i'm talking about an actual heart.. the very vital organ inside your body. this friday, a precious 5 year old boy will undergo heart surgery, and i am asking you to pray for clayton and his family. here is clayton (left) with his two brothers, eli and aaron. aren't they a handsome bunch? (wendy, i hope you don't mind that i stole this picture off your blog!)


we met wendy and ryan when they lived here for a short time back in 2006-2007, and clayton was just a baby (he is 7 months older than caroline). i remember eating lunch with wendy at chick-fil-a when they first moved here, and she told me all about clayton's heart condition, HLHS (hypoplastic left heart syndrome). he underwent surgery immediately after birth and then again before his first birthday. they were all too familiar with this routine because their first-born son, colin, also had HLHS... and sadly, he died in 2005 when he was 7 1/2 months old. it was incredibly sobering to be sitting with wendy and to listen to her story... to have had not one, but two babies with this congenital heart defect?! God has surely given them the strength to bear this reality and the accompanying uncertainties on a daily basis.

back then in 2006, wendy told me that clayton's third surgery would take place down the road, when he was at a certain weight... and until then, they would count each day with clayton a blessing. that sounded so far off in the distance, at least a few years away. well.... fast forward 5 years, and it is time for clayton's third surgery. they have traveled to california and are awaiting the big day on friday.

i have tried to put myself in wendy's shoes, and i just about lose my breath every time. i know that God is sovereign and that He is in control of every day of clayton's precious life.... i know that ryan and wendy trust in the Lord for peace and rest during this uncertain time.... and i know that He does all things well. yet the weak-human-mom in me just can't stop thinking about friday.

so i ask that you pray for clayton on friday. pray for his doctors, for wendy and ryan, and for his two brothers who will be so very far away from their family during clayton's hospital stay in california. his life has already been a testimony to the grace and mercy of our God, and i praise God for precious, precious clayton.

ephesians 3:20-21
now to Him who is able to do FAR MORE abundantly than all we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. amen.

partyin' with play-doh!

it was almost a no-brainer when trying to decide what to do for amelia's third birthday party. give that girl a few cans of play-doh, and you won't hear a peep for a good long while! now most people looked at me like i was crazy when i said i was having a play-doh party for amelia, but seriously... it was the easiest party i've done yet. i kept it very simple. no games, no frills... just a bunch of play-doh and even more cutters and gadgets!

here's the little invitation we gave to amelia's friends. (that play-doh was brand-new just three days prior...)

here is the dining room, ready for the party.  the play-doh and gadgets kind of doubled for decorations. :) i told you i kept it simple. all these bright colors make me happy!
 
the table above was full of just a variety of cutters and things... and then we had two smaller tables set up with some specific play-doh kits. the first one was a deli, sandwich-making type kit (yay, target clearance!). you could make hot dogs, squirt mustard, etc... the coolest thing with this was the potato-chip maker. those things flew all over the place!
 
the other table was the sweets station, where i set up the "sweets 'n treats" kit that amelia got for her birthday. the girls made waffles, waffle cones, cupcakes, and ice cream galore. definitely a hit!
 
what do you give for a party favor at a play-doh birthday party??? play-doh, of course!
 
these "play-doh" cupcakes were so much fun to make. and i didn't mind eating them either.
 
as soon as everybody arrived, the kids crowded around the little tables...
 
then i turned around, and look what i saw....


my extroverted husband cracks me up! the kids eventually gave brian some company...

this is the last birthday party we'll have with these two girls here... their families are both moving, and i'm just not ready for them to go!
 
lola was so proud of her ring!
 
and then a minute later, i heard her gasp, "my diamond!" and we all went on a search for the missing play-doh diamond. :) you'd have thought it was 2 carats by her reaction.

annnd pretty much, for the next hour, everybody just played with play-doh. easiest. party. ever.

 
the chip maker   a green hand!
   
karina and her "popsicle" 
 
everybody joined in on the fun! 
 caroline made the cutest little funny face waffles, complete with potato chip hair. (i think she's pretending to eat it??)
 
(the "treats" in the first picture in this post were also made by the girls during the party... i told you i loved that sweets 'n treats play-doh kit!)

when it was time for cake, we just scooted all the play-doh to the middle of the table. the birthday girl had no trouble blowing out her candle!
 
here's a peek inside the cupcakes. don't they kind of look like they were made out of play-doh?!?!
 
we are thankful for these sweet friends!
 
amelia loved opening her presents from her friends and family, but that stinker hardly looked up during the whole present-opening process. she was on a mission! so i'm keeping this (fairly) short and am leaving out present pictures...

but speaking of gifts... we are so so thankful for our birthday girl! she is a silly little ray of sunshine in our lives, and we cannot imagine our home without her. she is going to be a great big sister in may, but for now... we enjoyed one last birthday party with her as our baby girl.
    
we love you amelia bedelia! happy birthday, baby girl.