A Day Well Spent

I had a Saturday off of work for the first time in months, so Luke and I were able to spend the entire day together. I haven't really seen him for more than an hour or two most days since starting this job. I woke up feeling quite sick, which was a bummer, but by the end of the day whatever it was started to pass. We went grocery shopping, had lunch while watching The Office premiere online, read a little, cleaned the house a little, washed the dog, cooked a fabulous dinner, and then settled down for the evening with a movie and dessert. Nothing too exciting, you may think, but to us it was the perfect day.

Curried Pumpkin Soup

Grape, Rosemary, and Asiago focaccia

Chocolate and Cherry Bread Pudding

Parenting

Luke and I have started our parenting philosophy discussions - these will be ongoing until the day God calls us home to him, since we'll never be done with the parenting process, but it's exciting to start them up. Of course, we had small discussions about parenting during our dating/engagement period, because who enters into marriage without talking about big stuff (ok, some people do, but those aren't the smart ones)? Now that we have a baby on the way, it has become real to us, and we'll actually have to put into practice soon what we are just discussing today.

So, we ran through a couple topics tonight, like discussing how our parents raised us and what we liked and/or didn't like about their methods, and how we can merge those ideas and bring in our own. My biggest fear has been discipline - specifically, being consistent in it. Kids are cuties and they can easily manipulate. A friend of mine gave me a great example tonight. She told the story of a little girl she knows who, whenever she's in the midst of her punishment or is about to be punished, turns to her dad and says, "Daddy, can we go talk about Jesus now?" That girl must win EVERY SINGLE TIME! Who can say no to that? And girls are smart - they learn early on how to work the system, while I'm not sure that boys every really figure it out. Granted, there are exceptions. Since I think we're having a girl, we're in for a whole heap of trouble here! Luke especially, because even our dog Molly knows how to push his buttons.

Thankfully I was reminded tonight by the same friend that though we may not always see it, God is working in us and through us, and we are free to enjoy relationships. So I'm trusting Him to work through us and in us as we take on this new role of parents. There is much grace extended, and though we will definitely make mistakes with our children, God is still working in their lives. Praise God for that!

On another parenting note, I found this fun website. It's a guy who posts a new rule every day or so, to his unborn son. It'd be fun to start a list like that for my son or daughter, with things that I've learned over my lifetime.

Look!

Luke helped me put this cute little countdown ticker on our blog page. Now you can see how far along I am.

Today felt like fall. I'm sure it's just a passing thing, but I was so excited when I stepped out of the house this morning. I immediately wished I had grabbed a sweatshirt to bring with me, but I'm not even sure where they are at this point! The forecast says it'll warm up by the end of the week, but at least we have some cooler evenings ahead.

On another note - Hurricane Ike has made it quite difficult for us to communicate with the family. Both sides are without power, for probably the next 3 weeks or so. Which means limited phone calls to preserve battery power. It's so annoying, since I'm used to talking to the family a few times a week, especially now that I'm pregnant, because Dave calls with the countdown most mornings.

I'm ready for a couple days off, which will thankfully come around mid-week. I'll actually make it to Bible study, although the way my schedule works, it might be the only time this year that I get to go. Sigh. I'm bringing Luke with me to my doctor's appointment this week so he can hear the heartbeat for the first time.

And - I have a project that I'll be starting on this week: a mobile for the baby's room.
(photo courtesy of Spool via Ohdeedoh)

Baby, Baby

I had my doctor's appointment today! I'm officially at 10 weeks and 1 day, due March 29. Time has flown by since we found out about the baby, and we are so excited about meeting our first child. I was also relieved to see that I'm not ginormously huge either according to the scale. Everything has shifted, so I feel quite large since the pants are fitting differently. I was able to hear the heartbeat - fast and strong, and the nurse practitioner had no problem finding it. Our baby is hanging out near the surface, probably waving "Hi, Mom!"

Mom - that word has so much new meaning to me these days. It's very strange, because I've been using that word for 25 years (well, less than that, since I didn't come into this world speaking). I've always had a mom, but now I will be a mom. No, really I feel like I already am one, even though my baby has yet to grace this world. I smile when I think about the baby growing, knowing that even though I can't feel him or her yet, she's safe inside of me. I panic when I think about juggling work and a new baby. I pray constantly for the safety of our child and that Luke and I would be good, Godly parents to him.

I've been blessed so far with a morning-sickness-free 1st trimester. I had a couple weeks where it was a little rough, but thankfully it faded so that I was able to keep up with work, and apart from eating all of the time and not having much energy, I feel pretty good! A friend of mine sent me an article stating that the sicker you are during your pregnancy, the greater your chances of having a girl. So, we must be having a boy. But - my grandmother never had morning sickness, and she had 3 girls, so I'm holding out for a girl still. 

And yes, I did have a craving for pickles for about 4 days.