In 1977...

Jimmy Carter becomes president of the US Most of the 10,000 Vietnam War draft evaders are pardoned by President Carter Elvis Presley dies in his Graceland bathroom Congress creates a Department of Energy New York Yankees win the World Series Oakland Raiders win Superbowl XI Montreal Canadiens win the Stanley Cup Swedish music group ABBA passes The Beatles as having most records sold Star Wars is the top grossing film The Shining by Stephen King is published "You Light Up My Life" by Debby Boone spends the most time at the top of the US charts Three's Company premieres Orlando Bloom, Shakira, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Liv Tyler, Ludacris, and Josh Patterson are born

Today, Josh celebrates his 31st birthday. Lily must have been extra excited cause she got up a whole hour early this morning! We let Josh sleep in and Lily and I made his Breakfast Cake (recipe below). Tonight we're having the Birthday Feast at Babe's Chicken with his mom Carolyn (also her b-day!) and brother Jared. I must say, this pregnant lady is looking forward to some good southern cookin'! If you can, leave Josh a comment on his big day and check out last year's post for some pics of him growing up. Love you, babe! Happy 31st!

Breakfast cake

Mix together until the texture of meal:

2 c. flour 1 tsp. salt

1 c. sugar 1 tsp. baking powder

1 stick butter, cut into 5-6 pieces

Remove handful (1/3 to 1/2 cup) of this mix and save for topping.

Mix together in large measuring cup or bowl:

1 c. milk

1 Tbs. vinegar

1 tsp. baking soda

Add liquid mixture to dry mixture, along with 2 eggs

Mix well and pour into greased 9x13 cake pan or 10x15 jelly roll pan.

Sprinkle with topping.

Topping

Mix together:

Reserved dry ingredients

1-2 tsp. cinnamon (optional)

1/2 c. flour 1/2 c. brown sugar

Lump of butter the size of large walnut (2-3 Tbs.)

Bake for 25-30 minutes at 325 degrees.

This recipe comes from Noel Piper's Treasuring God In our Traditions (a great read). I've been making it for every special day in our family: birthdays, big holidays, etc. and it's already something that Lily looks forward to. It turns out kind of like a coffee cake. Enjoy!

hilarious

i saw this on Bleecker's blog and thought it was soooo funny. 

 

Happy Father's Day

Here's a video Lily and I (and Baby Luke) made for Josh on Father's Day. I'm so thankful that, like the verse says, he is committed to passing on the works of our Lord to our children. Thanks for being such a great Daddy (and husband). We love you!

answered prayer

Well, I can't believe it, but I'm no longer on partial bed rest! Thank you so much for your prayers and offers to help over these last two weeks. I am still floored that in that short amount of time my placenta has moved up and away from the cervix and no longer presents any danger for me or Luke. I wasn't even scheduled to go into the doctor until later this month, but I called the nurse on Tuesday complaining about some discomfort. She said the doctor would want to see me and just make sure everything was still OK. He said that the discomfort was just normal pregnancy pains (the lovely loosening of the ligaments preparing for delivery), but in the process discovered my placenta had moved. He said there was hardly any chance that it could get worse again, so I could resume my normal activities. Just like that. Wow.

I am SO grateful and humbled that the Lord decided to do this. I don't understand and almost feel like a bratty little kid who was throwing her fit about the way things were. And now I feel silly for fussing cause the bed rest only lasted for two weeks rather than the 3 months I was expecting (I tend to be fatalistic). I just feel like there are so many people who are in much harder places than I was. And I feel like I don't deserve to have this happen even though it's what I wanted all along. But for whatever reason, probably for His Glory, the Lord decided to move my placenta up and put me back on my feet in just two weeks. So I want to make sure that He does receive ALL glory for what He has done. I know that lots was revealed to me about the state of my heart through this, so I want to continue to press into Him and be refined.

One sweet thing that has come out of this is my renewed passion for my role as a wife and mom. The once mundane tasks of laundry, vacuuming or running errands, have brought joy to my heart these last few days because I feel blessed that I get to take care of our household. I see the beauty and importance of my God-given responsibilities in a new light. And it's been great to be chasing after Lily again. I just want to take away from this all that the Lord intended me to, praying He will continue to reveal His purpose. Thanks again for being such wonderful friends and uplifting our family in prayer. And now may we rejoice together in what the Lord has done, with a full understanding that He would still be just as good and loving even if I were still laid up on the couch. We would still covet your prayers as I start this last trimester...crazy to think in 3 months we'll have another member of the family! Love you all.

pregnancy update

Last Thursday marked my 25th week of pregnancy. I had an appointment that day with my OB for the glucose test and a sonogram to check my placenta previa. Not sure if I mentioned that in an earlier post, but it's basically when your placenta grows in the lower part of your uterus, sometimes covering the cervix. My doctor diagnosed it early on and we've been checking every few visits to see if it corrects itself. About 90% of cases found in the first trimester do, meaning as the uterus grows, it pulls the placenta up and away from the cervix. But if it doesn't, it can cause bleeding and could put the mother and baby at risk.

Here's a visual.

About two months ago when my doctor checked, he said it looked like it was moving up and away like we wanted. But this time, he saw that the placenta was right up against the cervix. There's still a chance that it could correct itself since the uterus will still expand greatly before Luke is born. Right now he's about 2 pounds, and he'll probably be around 7 at full term. BUT, until it does, I am on unofficial bed rest. Doc said it probably wasn't necessary yet for me to be restricted to my bed, but I have to stay off my feet as much as possible. So no more exercise, long walks (including shopping), vaccuuming (hallelujah!), lifting Lily or really anything for that matter. I'm still trying to figure out how this works with my very active toddler. Thankfully, we already switched her to her "big girl" bed, and she can pretty much climb into her carseat so I won't HAVE to lift her really at all.

As I was on the way home from the doctor, I broke down on the phone while telling Josh the news. How am I supposed to abide by this 1) with a two year old and 2) for the next 3 months! How can I be a good mom to Lily when I can't pick her up or race her down the sidewalk? I know there's more to being a good mom than that, but i guess it grieves my heart a little to think these are the last few months I'll have with just her and that I'm limited in what I can do. Or my sweet husband whose love language happens to be acts of service...how will I fulfill my role as wife and take care of the home when I can't do some of the most simple house chores? And then not to mention, the fear in the back of my mind that I could start bleeding at any time. Or that I might have to have a C-section if it doesn't improve...

This all may come across very ungrateful and some of you may be thinking: it could be a lot worse! And I realize that. Maybe this is just a pity party for myself on losing out on what I want to do. I am grateful that I do have a healthy baby boy and that I'm only on partial bed rest. I know that this is just for a season and that we will make it through. I know that this will all be worth it and that the end goal is to have a healthy baby. And ultimately, I know that the Lord is Sovereign and in control of this situation. And that He cares for Lily and Josh and Luke more than I ever could. Something I've been learning in Recovery and in my Bible study, is that I've got to be honest with what I'm feeling rather than telling myself what I should feel. Even though I know these things and SHOULD be able to rest in them, the honest truth is that I'm still a little sad that it has to be this way. I want to acknowledge these feelings before the Lord, but then also ask Him to allow me to rest in who He is. My hope and prayer is that through this, I will get more of Him and that He will be my joy regardless of my circumstances.

It's interesting too that my Bible study is going through the fruits of the Spirit over the next year, and right now we happen to be focusing on love. I'm realizing that on some level I still feel like I have to earn love or prove that I'm worthy to be loved. It's hard for me to accept that I am loved just for who I am, without the "doing." That Josh would love me for who I am, just as I am and not what I can offer.  And I'm sure this also plays into how I receive God's love for me too. Whew. Still got a lot of processing and praying to do on that one. But I can definitely see that He's going to be refining me a lot over these next few months. And Praise His Name for that. So if you think about it, please pray that my placenta previa would correct itself. But most of all, that I would be content in Him and His love for me regardless.

fountain fun

Lily and Noah enjoying the fountains

beware

Happy Belated Cinco de Mustache!