Kit Kat

Today, I was reading several articles about being 15 weeks pregnant online (I know, as if the "What to Expect When You're Expecting" didn't have enough information)!



One article stuck out as it said that my baby is about the size of a Kit Kat (and went on to further explain that it was the normal size Kit Kat-- not the King Size one!) :) I like to think of my baby as a Kit Kat... Yummy! In fact, I ate one afterwards. (It was just a mini one-- so no worries just a couple of calories-- and a baby can always use a little chocolate, right?!)

I am still fighting the morning sickness (and sometimes all day sickness) some... It has definitely been better the last couple days, so I am hopeful that I am on the tail end of it! YEAH! **Fingers Crossed**

In another note, I have been reading the book, "Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper.



Man, this book is convicting... I mean, how many hours do I sit around doing nothing?! I am a firm believer that when I face Jesus some day, He is not going to judge me for all the sins I committed... He already took care of all those-- but I do believe that I will be asked how I spent my time... And I would say that most of my time is a WASTE! I mean here is what it would have sounded like yesterday: "Hey, God... so today, I babysat, then we went home and I went on facebook for a little bit, then I watched Pinocchio and took a nap, cleaned the bathroom, and had my family over for dinner..." What time did I spend with Him? Umm... prayer when I got up-- asking Him to not let me throw up! Prayer before dinner... That's it... What a sad waste of the rest of my day!

Encouragement-- yesterday is done... Today is a NEW day... And I definitely got off to a better start!! :) Prayer and reading Matthew Chapter 3... Man, what a difference I feel! My days are really so much better when I start them out with Him.

Prayers for this week... Please keep praying for my anxious heart! My high risk appointment is 2 days away... and I am worrying still. I cried last night... But Damon reminded me, once again, that I have responsibility to do the best I can. The rest I have to leave in God's hands.

Pray for my brother. He is in another transition phase... and I want to help him the best I can. God keeps giving me chances, right?!

That's it! Now, I am headed home... to spend some time with my sweet hubby. I am trying to learn to really value these last few months we have together-- just being the 2 of us!

Fears

Romans 8:14-16 "Because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba,Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children."

As I am sure many of you moms can testify to, there are times that I am almost overcome with fear. This morning was one of those... I kept thinking "Can we financially do this?" Babies are expensive... That along with knowing that I will not be getting paid what we have been accustomed to... That is going to be a BIG change! I talked to Damon about seeing a financial advisor... I know that we can do it on our own, but I feel like we would both have more peace if we talked with someone else as well.

I have a fear for my baby's health. I have been doing my very best to manage my diabetes... believe you me, I know, now more than ever, that these readings aren't just effecting me, they are effecting my baby. But any of you who are diabetic or know diabetics, should know that diabetes, type 1, is like a guessing game... Your food, hormones, stress level, sleep, what you do during the day, exercise... all effect your blood sugars... And as you can imagine, I have just a few hormones flowing through me... and just stress a little bit!

I am trying to remember the verse above... I am not a slave to fear because I am a child of God. And so is this baby! I have my high risk ultrasound scheduled for next Wednesday, September 1st at 8:00am. While, I am really excited-- we will probably be able to find out the sex of the baby-- the reason I am having this is to check for anything that might be wrong because of my diabetes (there is an increased risk for complications with any disease). I have to remember that no matter what, I am going to LOVE this baby! I know that this child is first and foremost God's... and will be grateful for every second that we will be able to be his/her parents!

Please pray for my anxious heart, especially as Wednesday approaches. Please pray for a happy, healthy baby. Please pray for consistency in my blood sugars-- they have been pretty good for the most part, but those days when the hormones are flowing, my blood sugars, rise! I covet all those prayers. And I trust that God hears every single one of them! :)

Good night for now!

Appt. #2

The excitement I have about having a baby cannot be overshadowed by much... even sitting in the doctors office for 2 hours-- just to hear the baby's heartbeat! :) I LOVED IT! Though, I do have to admit that I was a little frustrated that it took 2 hours to pee in the cup, get weighed (no weight gain yet), and then hear the heartbeat... which as you know, only takes about 5 minutes! So I sat for about and hour and 45 minutes... Good thing I brought a book!

Good book too... I know, I know, some of you are going to roll your eyes, but I am reading the newest book by Stephanie Meyer... The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner.



I was skeptical at first... because I thought, there was no way that I would like something that was not about Bella, Edward, and Jacob! However, it was quite interesting to read from the perspective of these newborn vampires...

I have a feeling that with as exhausted as I have been, I will be doing a lot of reading...Any suggestions?!

Back to the appointment... no news is good news! :) Heartbeat was about 150 beats per minute, which Dr. Sellers said was great. Everything looked good on my end as well... I still need to get my blood sugars a little more stable. As simple as this sounds, it is no easy task... and it is so frustrating when you are trying everything you know to. I am checking my blood sugars more frequently, but I am unable to feel my lows and highs like I used to. Lows, I am not feeling until I hit the 30's (I use to be able to feel them in the 50's) and highs, well, they make me nauseous... but I am nauseous all the time so... Please pray that I start to notice the little things that set these feelings apart from just the everyday pregnancy feelings.

Dr. Sellers also talked to me about having a more "high risk" ultrasound done. As much as I hate it, being a diabetic poses a higher risk for developmental problems with our baby. This ultrasound would show more detail and allow to see if there are any deformities, etc. Insurance will cover it, so I think that we will go ahead and have it done... What can it hurt? Please pray as we head into that process as well. This has been a concern of mine since Damon and I started talking about kids, but we are choosing to trust that God has a great plan for us and this baby.

Thanks for your prayers. We definitely appreciate them!

BIG UPDATE

Well... it has only been 5 months since I last updated this blog... but I do believe that we have an event SOO big coming up that it warrants an update... and a few more definitely following over the next several months...

I still can't believe this as I am typing it out... Damon and I are PREGNANT! We are expecting our first baby!!! AHH!! I am due February 19, 2011! So, just about 6 months away... and I know that this time is going to fly by!



So... I am sure that there are several questions that you are all wondering... because I and this are just that important!! Haha! :)

1) When did you find out? Well, I found out on June 16th. I was totally thinking that the test was going to be negative... seeing as we had been trying for 7 months and I had been told that I wasn't going to conceive without medication. I hadn't taken the medication, but I hadn't started either-- so one morning, out of the blue, I just thought that I should take a test... and see what happens! Thinking it was going to be negative, I didn't think about the fact that Damon had left to go out of town on business. So... I was home by MYSELF! When the test came back positive, I just kept thinking "OMIGOSH OMIGOSH!". So to tell Damon, I took a picture with my phone of the positive test and sent a text to Damon saying "Oh my gosh!". Well, he called like 2 seconds later, so I know he hadn't received it yet! (He calls every morning to make sure I am awake for my diabetic stuff.) He told me that he could tell by my shaky voice that my blood sugar was low and that I needed to eat... I told him it wasn't, but he insisted so I said, "Ok, but I just sent you a text, please check that and call me back!"... So he did... and he said "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" Ha! :) Then, I cried... happy happy tears!!

2) When did we tell the family? And how? Well, we didn't tell anyone for 2 weeks!! WHICH WAS SOO HARD!!! We told my family in FL on vacation through a newspaper article I wrote (which we actually pasted in a newspaper from SanDestin)! I have posted it below for you to see! We used the same paper to tell Damon's mom and sister when they came for a visit in early July. We had a harder time telling Damon's dad and step mom and little sisters because they were in the Dominican Republic for a long mission trip! So we told them via skype. We couldn't get them all together (crazy bunch of people wouldn't come together!), so we told Ellie that she should go get everyone because she was going to be an AUNT! She was super excited and got everyone else finally and we were able to let them know!



3) How am I feeling? Well, that is the question of the day!! And it definitely depends on the day! I have had some morning sickness (still having some 12.5 weeks in), but at least I am not throwing up every day! I had really bad headaches for awhile, but those have finally subsided... which I am EVER so thankful for!! My blood sugars have been a little crazy... it is crucial to my health and that of the baby that these get stabilized... I am working really hard to do so!

4) Lastly, things you can pray for:
- Blood sugars/health of Lindsey
- Health of baby
- Work... not sure what we are going to do right now... but those decisions definitely need to be made.
- Insurance-- we would love to be able to get my (Lindsey's) insurance through Damon's work so that I can work part time. It is a necessity being a diabetic-- so it really isn't an option... Please pray that Damon's company would understand and help us out!!
- God would continue to prepare our hearts and heads for what is about to change our lives!

We are so excited and glad to finally be able to share this news with you! Enjoy the pictures below... No belly pictures yet-- as I am not showing at all and still in my skinny jeans!!! :) Not for long, I am sure!!

Busy Busy

I keep thinking that at some point in time, my life will slow down... but I don't know that it ever will... because I have a problem with saying NO! I have not been home for 3 weekends in a row now... They were all fun reasons, but also a lot of work! GOSH! Weekend #1, WinterChill! Great time with my small group (this is the 4th year that I have gone with them) and I am looking forward to the next 3, but man, it is tiring! Weekend #2, Family Weekend at JBU with Jordan. So fun to see her and her friends and see her life there! We also got to spend some time with our sweet friends, the Kleppes. I cherish times with friends that you don't get to see very often! Weekend #3, Women's Retreat. This I was on the committee for-- doing decorations and gift bags along with 2 sweet friends, Courtney and Sarah! It was so great, but way more work than I think any of us thought it would be. It made it really hard to concentrate on the talks and what God was trying to teach me... and even harder to just RELAX! Oh well, I know I was right where I wanted to be and right where God wanted me. While I was away, the guys living in our house moved out. As much as we loved having them around, it was definitely time. We are looking forward to really experiencing our house by ourselves... especially before we start a family. It will be soo good to just be Damon and I for awhile-- it has been 7 months since we have had a place to ourselves.

Now, I have to start getting ready for Damon's family. They whole fam is coming down to visit April 2nd... and we now have 2 empty bedrooms to fill! I love decorating, so it will be fun... just more work and business!!

And to add to that, I am making some Wedding Programs (I will post pictures when finished) for a March 13th wedding!! This is really a true passion of mine, so I couldn't say no! And it is for one of the sweetest girls you will ever meet! :)

Through all this, I think the one verse that has stuck with me is from Romans 12:2 "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing your mind so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect". I HAVE to renew my mind to prove what the will of God is... I can't just sit and let it become mush... I have to continue to dive into His Word and see what He is telling me. Someone said it this way, our actions directly reflect God's word in our lives... Interesting enough, this was a verse from both WinterChill and the Women's Retreat... I think God might be trying to tell me something! :) AMEN!

Christmas Time

Well, Christmas has definitely come and gone... I hate putting all my stuff away... maybe that is why I plan to keep it out until... well... probably next weekend... after New Years! :)

I got some great gifts-- including Christmas dishes for next year! Wahoo! They are SUPER fun!! I got some clothes, some slippers, and Damon and I bought a TV for our bedroom for our gifts. (Though he definitely got the better end of the deal-- you see, since I am a planner, I had already bought him a wallet and shoes...) I am sure that I got my fair share of stuff throughout the year though! :)

Damon got a sweet video camera! My parents thought that he should go ahead and have once since we are talking about kiddos... a definite must to capture all the most crucial moments!

As the years comes to a close, I have been reflecting on what all has happened, from losing my job (a definite blessing in disguise), through tears for friends who lost their baby, joy for friends who had babies, buying a house, getting a new WONDERFUL job, and much more... I can't help but thank Jesus for yet another year... He is definitely the reason for the season and so often we forget that... Shame on us. Damon and I even talked about how we like to help others out at this time of the year, whether through buying friends a tree or putting an extra $20 in the offering bucket... but we failed miserably... gosh, how come we get so wrapped up in ME, that we forget everyone and everything else... I hate that!

All that to say, as the new year approaches, my prayer is that I will remember the true reason for the season all year long and remember to focus on others, not me!

November... what?

I mean really... I have no idea what happened to November and the first two weeks of December... they were here and now they are gone!

We celebrated Thanksgiving up in Minnesota-- which is always fun, though the driving is always a little much. We keep trying to get them to come here for a holiday, but it never happens! We got to stay with my cousins, who just had a little baby boy Tyson, which was so fun! The other part of the time, we stayed with my Uncle Brent and Aunt Michelle and their kiddos-- which was also a blast! To make things even more fun, Damon's little sister Ellie came down to Arkansas a couple days before Thanksgiving and made the treck to Minnesota with us! :) We came back to Arkansas and got to spend a couple more days with Ellie, setting up the Christmas Tree, etc! :) So fun... I LOVE this time of the year and wish that it moved so much slower.

I also celebrated my 25th Birthday! I still can't believe that I have hit 25 and I realized and said to my mom that I was closer to 30... my mom preceeded to tell me that I wasn't that close yet, but that she had thought about it and can't believe that she has two kids that are closer to 30! CRAZY!! My great husband bought me a Nintendo DSI for my birthday which has been so much fun!! :) The games are great! :)

I have been busy making more invitations and Christmas cards... which I LOVE!! I will have to post some more soon!

Oh, and Damon got his yearly review-- which went GREAT!! I am so proud of him! His boss told him that he was the only one out of 15 reviews that was getting a raise and he got an even bigger bonus that he anticipated!! YEAH! The owners told him that in 30 years of business, he had never given a review like this... and in a good way!! They just complimented him over and over again!! We also had his company Christmas party-- which was great!! It was at 1620! We had Butternut Squash Bisque Soup or Duck Salad for the appetizer (I got soup, Damon got salad) and then Filet Mignon for the main dish and Souflee for the dessert! AWESOME!! :) The company at our table was pretty good as well!! It was fun to finally meet everyone Damon works with-- you see, even though he has worked for them for a year and a half, I haven't really met people because the Christmas party last year was cancelled due to ice...so it is great to finally put some faces with these names I have heard forever now! :)

Well, it is about time to leave work (speaking of which, I still LOVE my job!!) and we have to get some Christmas shopping done... FINALLY!! Until later!

Lindsey