Why Can't I be Original?

OK, so now Tracie had a really fun post on her blog...so again I copy. Life's been slow and relaxing this week. Hence the lazy, mean-nothing-but-silly posts.

10 Firsts
first best friend: Rachel Shaver.
first screename: MysticalAur0ra .
first kiss: Brooks Weinstein in first grade...for some dumb reason he "Eskimo" kissed me then stuck his lips out. It was no secret he liked me...but none of us like him.
first pet: 3 fish named Polka Dot, Checks, and Stripes.
first piercing: the lowest holes in my ears.
first crush: Patrick Lewis in kindergarten. Who didn't like him?
first music: Probably Michael W. Smith cassette tapes.
first car: White two door '93 Dodge Daytona with maroon interior...complete with spoiler.
first love: Matt, because I didn't really know what true love was until he appeared.
first date: If you count school banquets, Jordan Rosenbaum for 10th grade Christmas.

9 Lasts
last cigarette: 4 years old. My uncle threw his butt down and left. How did I know it was bad...until I got the mouth full of ash. Thank the Lord though because it severely turned me off. Not to mention the asthma troubles I have when second-hand smoking.
last alchoholic drink: Red wine taster at Olive Garden. Much better with twice as much raspberry lemonaid mixed in. :-)
last car ride: On the way home last night from Safeway with delish marshmallows for some homemade hot chocolate while watching Apprentice.
last real kiss: As Matt left for school this morning.
last movie seen: After tonight's date...The Legend of Zorro
last phone call: Umm....it's been a very quiet week for me. My mom calling to talk to Matt.
last CD played: Currently MW Smith's first worship album.
last bubble bath: A few days ago. I'm pregnant. Leave me alone.
last time you cried: Last night...ER was very emotionally intense.

8 Have You Evers
have you ever been arrested: No.
have you ever dated one your best friends: Matt and I were best friends for a year and half before I realized how I REALLY felt about him...and that he'd liked me for several months.
have you ever skinny dipped: No, but I want to if we ever have a pool or hot tub (fenced in).
have you ever been on TV: No.
have you ever kissed someone & then regretted it: No, but I've regretted to guys who kissed me without me wanting it. BLECH! Blake Hendrickson and Alex Constein. ::bitter::
::edited out::
have you ever snuck out: No, but I remember talking Autumn out of it when we were little.
have you ever been in a fight: Yes, a hair pulling fight with Angela Pascoe.

7 Things You're Wearing
5 little hoop earrings
PJ shirt
Matching PJ shorts
Maternity sleep bra (THANK YOU, Aut...so comfortable)
Underwear
Socks
Wedding Ring
...and believe it or not, I have NOTHING else on, so I'm glad it was only 7.

6 Things You've Done Today
Slept in until 8:00 when the bright sunshine filled our room
Had a bowl of cereal and cup of coffee
Watched the Today Show
Worked on the doll for Rachel
Checked my e-mail
Now posting to my blog

5 Favorite Things In No Particular Order
Studying Ecclesiastes
Chatting with Jaclyn, Momma, and Autumn
Cuddling with Matt in the morning while we snooze the alarm
The beautiful beach in Carmel
Thinking about all that has and will go on in my life

4 People You Can Tell Anything To
Matt & Jaclyn...and they are honestly the only two I know 100% I could tell ANYTHING to.

3 Choices
black or white: Black...it brings out the vibrancy in all other colors.
hot or cold: Cold...because that's what I am 95% of the time even though I'm pregant.
chocolate or vanilla: Vanilla for ice cream, chocolate for everything else.

2 Things You Want to Do Before You Die
Unrealistic...tour of major places in the world.
Realistic...see one person come to Christ.

1 thing you regret
Not exercising as often or eating as well as I should have in order to establish the habits BEFORE I got pregnant. :-P

A Fun Quiz

Thea had a fun quiz on her blog, so I thought I'd do some.

The Keys to My Heart...I bolded the ones I thought most interesting and true.

~ You are attracted to those who are unbridled, untrammeled, and free.
~ In love, you feel the most alive when things are straight-forward, and you're told that you're loved.
~ You'd like for your lover to think you are optimistic and happy.
~ You would be forced to break up with someone who was ruthless, cold-blooded, and sarcastic.
~ Your ideal relationship is lasting. You want a relationship that looks to the future... one you can grow with.
~ Your risk of cheating is zero. You care about society and morality. You would never break a commitment.
~ You think of marriage as something precious. You'll treasure marriage and treat it as sacred.

How Weird am I?

30% Weird Not enough to scare other people, but sometimesyou scare yourself.

My Brain's Pattern (based on selection of a picture)

You have a dreamy mind, full of fancy and fantasy. You have the ability to stay forever entertained with your thoughts. People may say you're hard to read, but that's because you're so internally focused. But when you do share what you're thinking, people are impressed with your imagination. (I agree with the first part, but I always thought people could read me easily.)

Ok, enough with the addiction to silly quizzes. But, if you feel like having a break from the seriousness of life... http://www.blogthings.com

4 More Weeks of Waiting

Fine fine. They didn't do an ultrasound yesterday because they do a routine one at 24 weeks anyway. Sooo, perhaps we'll find out then which name we'll get to use for our baby. Everything went fine at the doctor. I haven't gained ANY weight in 5 weeks! Woo hoo! I was quite nervous since I've had sweets for two during the last several weeks (months?). (Dr. Goodwein said weight is so different for everyone, he doesn't worry about it unless the baby or mother look malnourished...and I certainly don't!) My next apt. is November 30th.

Jaclyn. Don't even THREATEN to pray again. Apparently God even hears your threats!

Two Weeks Later

Ok, so almost two weeks after my last post...

~ We have our stuff now! Praise the Lord for the abilty to actually LIVE life now!
~ My family has come and gone. We had great days - relaxing ones, touristy ones, busy ones.
~ We have finally learned that yes indeed we have insurance though we have no ID cards yet.
~ I have felt the baby kick from the outside...Matt is still waiting for his second time.
~ We have had our first non-family guests over for a Sunday lunch.
~ I've begun having creative thoughts about food combinations. Good ones though. Like garlic mashed potatoes with a little lemon juice (both Momma and I think it is delish! We tried it at Outback), strawberry peach pie, and this morning's first thought was to make mini-pumpkin pies using my mini-muffin pan.

Our apt. is almost completely normal now. We shoved the few upacked boxes into the nursery so we only have to look at them when we want to. Once we get a few items hung on the walls and things finalized, I'll take pics. Today is my first "official" prenatal check-up (as well as the mid-point check-up). Maybe my next post will be another ultrasound picture and I can tell you the baby's name! Pray they'll do the ultrasound and that Baby will not be shy!

Also, say a little pray for my congested, pressurized, itchy-eyed, sneezing head. It's miserable.

Lazy but Exciting Day

You'd think I'd post every day since I check blogs every day. :-P Here's an update...

~Matt and I both have developed a cough, mine accompanied by slight asthma. I think Matt's is more superficial than mine and at least it's ok for HIM to sound like a man. I'm tired of the rattling chest, junked up throat, slight difficulty breathing, and hoarse man voice. But an inhaler will arrive on my doorstep today. Pray it helps! I deserately don't want it to develop into bronchitis or anything. We're thinking maybe some of the smoke from the Cali fires has blown up and triggered it all.

~How is the inhaler arriving you ask? MY FAMILY! My dad has a conference to go to in Monterey next week, so my parents and Hope are flying in a few days early and leaving the 22nd (a few days after the conference). I'm so excited for them to see where we are living, even without all our stuff. They'll be staying in a hotel here in Salinas until they go to their hotel in Monterey (Sat I think). They should be able to stay with us in the days after conference because...

~Got a call from the moving guy yesterday. He said he thinks he'll be here next Tuesday. At least we were contacted and have an estimate. And it will be nice to have my mom and sister here if the mover arrives while Matt is gone. I've got a feeling my mom will know where I would want stuff so I don't have to be the only one in charge. :-)

~I'm so excited that Aut and Andy's house sold and that their move is beginning now! She got to watch me go through it, so now it's fun to be on the other side...and I guess to be relieved I had no kids outside of me. Whew! That's got to be SOME adventure moving with three little ones! But I see this as a great change for them, and a turn down a fresh path of life!

~ A couple pictures of the color present in our apartment now. It looks good, but will look AWESOME once the rest of our furniture is here. Peach/Tangerine is living room. Yellow is obviously bedroom. The yellow is much deeper in person, and brings out the embroidery in our bedspread. Don't worry. I didn't pick yellow randomly. It'll look beautiful if I could ever find fake palm fronds to attach to the wall as a headboard to really bring out the theme of Tropical Romance.















~And my MOST EXCITING news for today is what happened this morning. Matt pressed snooze a few more times than usual, but we were both awake. The baby started kicking a little, and Matt put his hand there as I was telling him the baby would stop if he did...because it always does. But, a few seconds later, the baby gave the biggest kick of all so far and Matt felt it!!! We were both joyed to pieces! I think it might have made his morning. I hope he feels more a part of this pregnancy now, and I pray that there will be more frequent times now that he'll get "in touch" with our baby. Goodness, I haven't even gotten to feel a kick with my hand yet. Good baby! Do it again soon!

A Glimpse in My Journal

I've begun a study in Ecclesiastes using Matt's study Bible. It is the first time I've used a study Bible in my devotions, and it is what I've been looking for in my walk! Ecclesiastes is a wonderful book...and I'm only halfway through chapter 2. Here are my thoughts that I wanted to share with you all because they hold rebuke and encouragment for ALL of us...

Thoughts about the book as a whole:

1) Avoid walking through life on human wisdom alone. Rahter, live by the revealed wisdom of God.
2) Vanity is the futile attempt to be satisfied apart from God.
3) The "Abundant Life" is obatined by seeing and accepting each day and ALL it contains as a gift from God.
4) The primary issues of life are to enjoy divine blessing and prepare yourself for the divine judgment.

Today's Thought:

2:11 "Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done and on the labor in which I had toiled: and indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun."

To expend God-given resources for human accomplishment alone is empty. This INCLUDES time and energy. If you only have enough time and energy to either clean the bathroom or spend time with the Lord, which would be more profitable for eternity? Do what is MOST profitable FIRST, then the Lord will show you time to do the rest.

So simple. So clear. And yet I still struggle with consistency?

Settling In

Well, today was the first day that I actually FELT like doing something around the apartment. I don't know if it was laziness, true pregnancy tiredness, or what last week, but I just was not myself as far as desiring to keep up with home tasks. I personally think alot of it has to do with not having our stuff which makes it feel like we're only here temporarily. Make sense? But, with our stuff on its way and the bit-o-painting we are working on, I feel a little renewed resolve to keep up with what I usually do.

Here are some pictures to show you all the "adventure" we're in right now. Such memories for years to come...and ones we can tell our little one. But we can't say we walked uphill in the snow. This is California, and though it is chilly, there will be no snow.


This was our "living room" before the new computer desk arrived. Now you see why I am much more comfortable at the desk!

I think I may be getting spoiled having our bed in here. It would be so grand and romantic to have a gas fireplace in your bedroom.






This is our living room now...post computer desk and borrowing a TV from some FRIENDS. Skip caught the part of that sentence I wanted him to the other night when he called. We have friends already! We met them through church. Moses and Kim are a couple a little older than us (32, 25) but in the same stage of life (minus baby-on-the-way). They are proving to be a lot of fun and kindred spirits. When Kim gets back from her Nebraska, the four of us are going to get together. Apparently Moses is quite the cook, and I'll be making dessert.


Our lovely BIG kitchen, compared to our Jackson kitchen. We just painted the shelves and drawer bottoms yesterday. Shelf paper...it doesn't work no matter how many times you try or how you prep the wood. So I picked a paint color called Muted Gold and it looks wonderful. I'll have to get used to the texture though. My fingertips have such issues with certain surfaces--the weirdest one being printer paper. ::shiver:: I'm still getting used to tile/grout counters. I hope the grout doesn't stain over time. And I still adore the "stone tile" laminate.



This is Matt putting together our computer desk. Yes, I did help, but he's the man. I'm really hoping that our dining room won't look aweful with the corner desk AND our dining table/chairs in there, but the baby's gotta have a room and Matt needs a space to study where he won't disturb the wee one.

This is the baby's room...so far. Fun Noah's Ark will be the theme. :-) And next to it is the master bedroom...so far. We are going to be painting it a muted golden yellow over the next couple days. Fresh Morrocan will be the theme.

And finally, this is our lovely dresser right now. My clothes, Matt's clothes, and our laundry basket. There are some clothes hanging in the closet...can't have a wrinkle clad grad student, now can we!

That's it for now! I hope you enjoyed the tour! We will DEFINITELY post pictures when all is said and done...and delivered to our apt.

Some little girl is meowing ferociously outside. Hope the kitty is ok...good grief. But I welcome the sound of wind blowing and children playing. Very soothing to me!

And the baby must have just woken up...it's kicking around a little. :-D