Adventures in La La Land

1. Today, we hosted my Grandpa's 90th birthday celebration with my Dad's side of the family. I get my introverted genes from my dad and his family, so it's no wonder that we only see each other once every few years. Haha. It was great to catch up with everyone. 2. As a result of the big party today, all I did this week was clean. I'm a lazy housekeeper and at least attempt  to surface clean during the week - vacuum, wipe down counters, clean the bathroom, etc. But I never do the nitty gritty cleaning. I actually dusted this week. If you were thinking of stopping by for a spontaneous visit, now would be the time to do it. (Just kidding. Remember those introverted genes I was just talking about? Spontaneous visits give me anxiety.) 3. I've been forcing my way through the grace-based parenting book. I only have three chapters to go (and 6 days to read them!). My overall impression so far is that it's a great idea. I think it has Biblical backing. It makes sen...

Dressed up for church. Baby is the size of an avocado this week. How Far Along?  16 weeks Total Weight Loss/Gain : I was down a pound at my last appointment. Up 1 lb total. Maternity Clothes?  I've finally given in to maternity jeans. I bought a pair from Target last Monday and have worn them every day since. Haha. I also ordered two more from Kohl's that should be coming soon. A few maternity shirts here and there, but mostly regular. Sleep : Pretty sure the exhaustion is never going away. I've been having trouble falling asleep and staying asleep at night, so I tried to go without my afternoon nap one day this week. It was a disaster. I was so tired and ornery all day. I did sleep great that night, but it wasn't enough and I was still exhausted the next day. Missed my nap again today and am not doing well.  Best Moment This Week : Feeling movement, another ultrasound Movement : I'm definitely starting to notice the little taps ...

1. Justin decided this week that we're going to start enforcing "You eat what I make" for dinner. It's not going well. On Monday, I made chili. Lena took a few bites. Lucy took none and went hungry the rest of the night. On Tuesday, we had pork and fresh-from-the-trees stovetop applesauce. Lena ate one bite of pork and licked the applesauce. Lucy didn't take a single bite and went hungry the rest of the night. On Wednesday, I made oven baked homemade mac n' cheese with ham. Lucy watched me put a whole pound of cheese in the sauce, but when it was done she took one bite then went hungry the rest of the night. (Lena actually had two helpings!) Thursday, I made chicken nachos . All I put on them was seasoned chicken, black beans and cheese. Lena licked it and declared she didn't like it. Lucy refused to even try . . . and went hungry the rest of the night. On Friday, I rewarded myself for cooking all week and we got Subway. I got the girls a foot long (btw - ...

Baby is the size of a navel orange this week. How Far Along?  15 weeks Total Weight Loss/Gain : Up 2 pounds total. Maternity Clothes?  Down to about one pair of jeans - my loosest ones. Still stretching out my regular shirts. Sleep : I've started randomly waking up in the middle of the night for no reason and having trouble falling back to sleep. Best Moment This Week : Feeling movement! Movement : I noticed this week that when I lay flat on my back and suck in my stomach, I can clearly feel my uterus. So a few nights ago, I decided to start poking at it to see if I could make baby mad. I poked a few times and felt a strong *thwack*. I did it a few more times and kept feeling it! Poking my baby is my new favorite activity. Haha. I'm anxious to start feeling movement in my day to day life, though. Food Cravings : Burritos, Swedish meatballs, restaurant food in general Food Aversions : Nothing. Finally feeling better and eating everything in sight! Gen...

1. When we were camping last weekend, we had a couple large family meals where everyone brought something to pass. I brought things like store-bought potato salad and bags of chips. But Justin's cousin brought homemade salsa one night. I'm usually not a big salsa eater. And I'm certainly not a big vegetable eater, but it just looked so good that I decided to try it. I loved it so much, I got the recipe from her and made it myself this week. I was so proud of myself for snacking on vegetables all week! Haha. Here's the recipe if you want to try it yourself: Thanks, Kara (and Betsy - since I think she actually got the recipe from you) 2. My mom bought my dad a Keurig for his birthday last week and I've been greatly enjoying it. The coffee is definitely more expensive, but the convenience is worth it. And I love how fast it is. #murica 3. After a rough second week of school where Lucy cried every time I dropped her off, she did much better this week. She's g...

I just read the first chapter of Give Them Grace  by Elyse Fitzpatrick and I can't wrap my mind around it. Somehow, I have a mental block when it comes to grace theology. Pastor Chris spent all summer on a grace-themed sermon series, and I didn't understand that either. My brain is so deeply entrenched in a legalistic outlook that I cannot fathom anything else. I process by writing, so I'm going to attempt to do that here. This is the part that gets me: The promises of life for obedience are not meant to build our self-confidence. They're meant to make us long for obedience and then, when we fail again , they're meant to crush us and drive us to Christ . . . Again, that doesn't mean we don't teach our children God's law. We are commanded to do so but not to make them good . We are commanded to give them the law so that they will be crushed by it and see their need for a Savior. The law won't make them good. It will make them despair of ever bei...

Baby is the size of a lemon this week. How Far Along?  14 weeks Total Weight Loss/Gain : Up 2 pounds total. Maternity Clothes? Surprisingly, I'm still going strong in my regular clothes. I have a couple pairs of jeans that were too big pre-pregnancy, so they're serving me well. I need to go buy a couple pairs of maternity jeans. Mine are all stretched out from wearing them to the end of my previous pregnancies and don't fit yet. Sleep : I can't get enough. In my babycenter email this week it said the 1st trimester exhaustion has probably started to abate. Not true for me! No abating here!  Best Moment This Week : Seeing the adorable little baby on ultrasound. Isn't its little nose the cutest thing ever?! [13 weeks, 4 days] Movement : I'm starting to wonder if I can feel it. Especially when I lay on my belly, I feel little taps in one concentrated area. But I might just be making that up. Food Cravings : Fruit, popsicles, fizzy drinks, restaurant fo...