31 Weeks Along - Only 9 to Go!

Hello Everyone!

This post is a little late but I am still 31 weeks along with only 9 weeks left in my countdown! It's crazy! I know I said that last time too, but seriously. Another countdown I have going on is to my last day of work :) Only 7 and 1/2 more weeks! I know these next weeks will go fast but they surely feel like they are dragging a bit at this present moment. It could be because I have a tendency to round weeks and months down when I am doing a countdown and then feel stuck in the same place for a while haha, I am really trying not to do that anymore at this point. The countdown I lay out above is legit, and not rounded down :)

These days it is fun to see little body parts moving along my stomach and I am even enjoying the little nudges under my ribs (I know this will probably get old soon, but for now I am enjoying knowing our little baby girl is actually in there stretching and almost ready to come out and meet us all!). Not so pleasant parts of life are having little swollen hobbit feet (without the hair) by the end of a day at work, and without exaggeration, having to pee 2-4 times between the time I get into bed and the time I actually fall asleep. Sheesh.

Anyhoo! Here is how we are looking these days:

The other big thing going on in our lives mainly involved Ian :) He has been finishing our backyard so that we might be able to enjoy the last little bit of summer outside but still at home. He put a little planter box in so that we can attempt to grow veggies NEXT summer:

He also made a beautiful patio for us to lounge on (it's handy having a certified journeyman Concrete Finisher in the house!):

And we planted a little apple tree! Which we hope will actually yield good fruit that can be eaten and baked with :) :

That is kinda what has been going on this week. I hope you all have a great day! 

With love.

It's the final countdown..

Hello All! 

I cannot believe that I am at 30 weeks in my pregnancy! It is crazy! People kept telling me time would fly by and I truthfully did not believe them but here I am and time has flown by so wha'd'ya know! I only have 10 weeks left (yes, I realize these 10 weeks could turn into 12 BUT I am still calling it 10 and excited for it!) and am calling it my final countdown! And yes, I do have the song in my head ;) 

I hope to post a picture for every week until she comes showing her growth, so here you go. Us at 30 weeks: 

There you have it! 

With love.

Yummy EASY Ice Cream!!

Hello!

I just thought I would share a recipe that turned out to be the easiest Ice Cream recipe ever! No waiting around for flavours to meld and yada yada..

Combine in blender:

1 can coconut milk
1 cup each strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries
1/4 cup honey

Blend until smooth and pour into ice cream maker! Voila! You have delightful ice cream!

I was inspired by a recipe on pinterest but changed quite a few things just to try it out. Originally it was just a Strawberry coconut ice cream recipe.

Yum Yum Yum!

With love.

New to our world.

Hello everyone!

It has been a reaaaaally long time since I have gotten on here and posted anything, it might even seem that I had abandoned this blog but that was never my intention and I hope to be on here more in the weeks and months to come!

So, not that I want to make excuses but one of the major reasons I have not blogged in over 8 months is because I am pregnant!! I still cannot believe it, but it is the most exciting thing ever! Ian and I could not be more thrilled!

I am now pretty well 21 weeks along, with our baby girl, YES baby GIRL, due September 25th 2013 :) Just over half way! So really, I only have an excuse for the past 5 months of why I haven't been on here but we will just have to over look that!

Last night was a very very exciting one in our house. I had been praying in the morning that I would feel her move as, even though every time I have a checkup I hear that both baby and I are perfectly healthy (praise the Lord!), not feeling her has left me to worry some days. Ian got home from work late last night so I was already in bed, but as for our tradition he said goodnight to our baby girl and listened to the rustling in my stomach for a little while. It was then that we both felt and almost saw my stomach move and there was no question that it was her. SO praise the Lord he has answered my prayers! It was such a special moment, especially since we were both there to experience her first official, no question in our minds, kick! She must already be a daddy's girl is all I have to say about it!

Here she is:

With Love.

Homemade Pumpkin Spice

Yesterday I had the day off, and since it is getting chilly out here in Airdrie my mind was in the fall already. I decided to make pumpkin spice syrup so that I won't need to go to Starbucks to get my pumpkin spice latte and so that it could be a bit more healthy as well. So this is what I cooked up:

1/3 cup agave syrup
1 cup water
2/3 cup pumpkin purée
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves

I just put it all into a saucepan and stirred it till it had boiled down a bit and was a little thicker. (I sort of changed it a little based on the first pumpkin spice recipe I came across when I googled it.) it doesn't make my coffee taste much like pumpkin but it is a nice fall spiced drink, and maybe if you tried it you would taste pumpkin and maybe I am crazy. I put it in a nice glass bottle and stuck it in the fridge :) yay fall!

With love.

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!

These are my parents on their wedding day, 35 years ago yesterday!! They were beautiful then and they are beautiful still. My prayer for them is that God will continue to bless them in their marriage and guide them in life. I am thankful to have had them to look up to as I entered into marriage myself, and for all that they have taught me, sometimes without even doing so intentionally. I love you Mom and Dad! I hope this 36th year will be full of joy and exciting new things for you!! With love.

Love.

Does anyone else find the call to love so simple and yet so daunting? I find myself constantly struggling with its overwhelming simplicity and difficulty. When I call out to God asking what He requires of me it's as though I expect some new specific task that He will lay before me, but the answer remains the same: love. He requires me to love. To love Him above all else and to love others as He loves me. To love without regard for myself.

1 Corinthians 13:2 says:

"If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God's secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn't love others, I would be nothing."

It is as simple as that, and yet why so difficult? When God's answer comes back the same as before, always gently reminding me to love, I don't know why I always feel overwhelmed. What does it mean to love? Well, I know it sounds silly but that is just how I feel, over and over again. But thank the Lord, He has laid it out for us. Throughout His Word we read of His love and see examples of love. But it is never written out as clearly as it is in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. Here love is defined.

"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." 

So I read this again this morning and I searched for something I already knew, and though, wow! I am not always loving the way I should. But I am thankful for Christ's spirit within me giving me the grace and guidance I need to be a bit more like Him today. 

God is good. Love is... Simple?? Ha. I hope you all have a wonderful day and know that even if you struggle to love completely, as I know I do quite often, God loves you completely every moment of every day. His love is perfect and His grace is sufficient for us. 

With love.