Often, I forget how blessed I am.  I forget that God provides for my daily needs, well, daily.  I forget that I don't have to worry or fret about what we'll eat, how we'll pay bills, when events will take place.  It's already taken care of.  I just forget that those things take place not in my time but in God's.  But, I AM, we are, blessed.  Abundantly.  We have a home that gives us shelter.  We have a vehicle that gets us where we need to go.  I have a job that pays the bills (and God often stretches my paycheck in miraculous ways). We have friends and family members and a church family who are so very precious to us.  My co-workers are gems, and I genuinely enjoy being with them during the day.  Our Bible study group is a group I think of as friends who have become like family, and I look forward to Monday nights because I know we'll be with people we love and who love us. I hesitated before writing this.  I don't want it...

Each Sunday, I'd like to do a  highlights post , including a picture, summarizing the differences in my pregnancy from week to week.  I totally "grabbed" this idea from  Kelly .  I did this with my pregnancy with Hadley, as well, and I still think it is a great way to jot down the things that I don't want to forget later on.  I'll probably write these on Saturday nights and attach the picture the next day.  That way I can stay semi-technology free :) Pregnancy Highlights: How far along :  17 weeks  Size of baby:   Baby Love is 5 inches long and the size of a turnip. Total weight gain/loss :  I weighed myself at the gym, and it said I had gained another pound.  I go back to the doctor in a week, so I'll have a more accurate measurement then.  Maternity clothes:   Comfy tops, maternity shirts, Be Band, jeans, pajamas. Gender:   Well, our OB couldn't get a clear enough picture (...

Once upon a time, in a small condominium kitchen, a bright and chipper young (and not-even- remotely -close-to-turning-30) girl had a marvelous idea for dinner.  She'd fix up some tasty pasta with a cheesy, sun-dried tomato sauce.  Sauté some shrimp in butter and garlic.  Mix it all together.  Add a little shredded cheese on top.  Put it in a lovely bowl for her prince.  Voila.   So, this worn-out, pregnant gal pulled out the bag of frozen shrimp from the freezer and set out to thaw it thoroughly.  She noticed that this 1-pound bag of frozen shrimp her prince had grabbed at the local market didn't say the hyphenated word de-veined anywhere on it.   She searched.   To no avail.   And, so (not truly understanding the importance of this word) she shrugged and moved on.   As she cooked up the pasta, she poured out the shrimp into a bowl of cold water in the sink to thaw.  This lovely and not-at-all-bedraggled...

Each Sunday, I'd like to do a  highlights post , including a picture, summarizing the differences in my pregnancy from week to week.  I totally "grabbed" this idea from  Kelly .  I did this with my pregnancy with Hadley, as well, and I still think it is a great way to jot down the things that I don't want to forget later on.  I'll probably write these on Saturday nights and attach the picture the next day.  That way I can stay semi-technology free :) Pregnancy Highlights: How far along :  16 weeks  Size of baby:   Baby Love is around 5 inches long and the size of an avocado Total weight gain/loss :  Ok, The Bestie told me that I shouldn't count all of those pounds and that I should only count starting at my pre-pregnancy weight.  So, with that being said, I've gained 1 1/2 pounds.  Haha, I don't really think that's accurate, but it makes me feel a little better. :)   Maternity clothes: ...

Each Sunday, I'd like to do a  highlights post , including a picture, summarizing the differences in my pregnancy from week to week.  I totally "grabbed" this idea from  Kelly .  I did this with my pregnancy with Hadley, as well, and I still think it is a great way to jot down the things that I don't want to forget later on.  I'll probably write these on Saturday nights and attach the picture the next day.  That way I can stay semi-technology free :) Pregnancy Highlights: How far along :  15 weeks  Size of baby:   Baby Love is 4 1/2 inches long and the size of a naval orange. Total weight gain/loss :  HAHAHAHAHA.  Ok, that was my sad laugh.  You know how I said previously that I had lost several pounds?  Well, not anymore.  Y'all.  I'm now a pound and a half over my pre-pregnancy weight.  That means....are you ready?  I gained 5 1/2 pounds in three weeks.  THREE WEEKS...

Each Sunday, I'd like to do a  highlights post , including a picture, summarizing the differences in my pregnancy from week to week.  I totally "grabbed" this idea from  Kelly .  I did this with my pregnancy with Hadley, as well, and I still think it is a great way to jot down the things that I don't want to forget later on.  I'll probably write these on Saturday nights and attach the picture the next day.  That way I can stay semi-technology free :) *Sidenote* , before we start this week's highlight's post:  Did you ever get a random song stuck in your head for weeks and weeks on end?  For most of this pregnancy, I've had that song "Baby Love" running randomly through my mind.  Mostly, it starts when I'm showering and soaping up my belly (TMI? Sorry...).  I start singing it and talking to the baby.  But, Y'ALL, the lyrics are terrible and should NOT be used in reference to an infant.  Nevertheless, because of this si...

A Year in Review I know it's a few days late, but I wanted to do a sort of year-end review of 2012.  You know--the high-lights and the low-lights.  So instead of typing something up, I created a photo collage of memorable moments.  One picture for each month last year.  Resolutions I've never been good at making New Year's resolutions.  And when I did make them, I'm pretty sure I didn't knowingly keep any of them.  According to the dictionary, a resolution is "a firm decision to do or not to do something."  It's the "firm" part that gets me.  And, if I'm being honest, the "decision" part gets me a little, too.  I HATE making decisions.  But, I do see the value in making a resolution or two.  Making them will require me to look back on this last year, you know, in order to actually resolve to do or not do one or two things differently this go round.  Ok, this is off the cuff, so it might take a little time and tho...