22 Weeks

22 weeks already! I really can't believe how fast time is flying.

Our little tree this year :) We still haven't gotten around to putting ornaments on it :/

Pregnancy Highlights

How far along: 22 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +8 pounds total

Maternity Clothes: The shirt I'm wearing in that picture is the first maternity shirt I've worn. I LOVE it! I also got a belly band so I can wear my old jeans that don't button anymore and it holds them up and in place. I have a feeling we'll be buying a lot more maternity shirts in the near future :) Happy birthday and Merry Christmas to me!

Best Moment this Week: Starting to look REALLY pregnant no matter what I'm wearing :) 

Gender: Girl! Little Addie :)

Movement: Depends on the day. Some days I feel her ALL day long. The other night I was having a really restless night and I swore every time I was tossing and turning, so was Adelyn. Some days I only feel her a few times. I read around week 28 is when you should start to feel consistent movement and I can't wait!

Food Cravings: Eh. Whatever sounds good in the moment.

Food aversions: Nothing new. This week I've actually been feeling AMAZING so I even got a Dr. Pepper one day and kept it down! I felt kind of sick the whole night though so I probably won't be trying that again anytime soon.

Symptoms/Changes: This week I've been waking up not feeling nauseous and I'm able to get out of bed and get my own breakfast without getting sick! Yay! I've also had a lot of energy. Of course I've been going non-stop since Monday and today I'm starting to feel all yucky and achy and my head is pounding...so I'm taking it easy again today. 2 nights ago I was having horrible cramping around my belly button and then later that night up under my ribs. I woke up yesterday and my belly had moved up a considerable amount. It's down a little bit again today. I'm ready for it to start growing OUT and not moving up and down my torso...there's not enough room in me for that!

Sleep: Tossing and turning and waking up a LOT. Just preparing me for life after April I guess!

What I am looking forward to: Still waiting for Jake to feel her kick.  I'll feel her once and then put my hand on my stomach just to make sure and I'll feel her kick another time on my hand so I'll tell Jake to put his hand on my stomach and then she stops moving. He's ready to feel you move, Adelyn!

21 weeks!

So I was technically 21 weeks yesterday but I felt like I got run over...needless to say, a bump picture did not get taken since I barely got out of bed all day. Ugh. Anyhow...it feels like this is all going so much faster now that we're past that halfway point! Only a few short months until Adelyn joins our crazy family!

More sweatpants! One of these days I'll feel good enough to shop for maternity jeans.

Pregnancy Highlights

How far along: 21 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +6 pounds total

Maternity Clothes: I need maternity jeans but not shirts yet.

Best Moment this Week: Feeling Adelyn move so much :)

Gender: Girl!

Movement: Lots! I'm feeling her move more and more every day. Yesterday wasn't such an active day but I was laying in bed sick all day so that's not too surprising. I've been able to feel a few of the kicks on the outside when I place my hand on my stomach :) She's a strong baby!

Food Cravings: Salty and spicy foods. However, my tolerance for anything spicy is declining the longer I'm pregnant :/

Food aversions: Chicken noodle soup. I can NOT keep it down. Which is a pain since it's all I want when I'm feeling sick.

Symptoms/Changes: My back has been hurting and since I can't just stretch out on my back, it's hard to get relief. I've had some chest pain/arm pain today that I think is due to everything kind of rearranging itself to make room for the baby.

Sleep: I still toss and turn a lot. There's maybe one night a week where I wake up only once or twice for a few seconds. Every other night I feel like I'm awake and rolling around more than I'm sleeping.

What I am looking forward to: Jake to be able to feel her kick. Every time he puts his hand on my stomach, she stops kicking. Stinker :)

20 weeks!

Halfway there already! It seems like forever since I posted since I missed last week's update and at my doctor's appt. on Tuesday they moved my due date back to the original day of April 11th. So we're 8 days ahead of where we thought we were.  But they did an ultrasound and said that our baby GIRL looks perfectly healthy! So excited to meet her in April!

Forgive the sweat pants and t-shirts. It's about all that fits comfortably. I feel like Regina George.

Pregnancy Highlights

How far along: 20 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I was +4 pounds total on Tuesday. But I think I ate 4 pounds of green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, and turkey yesterday so that may change by next week :)

Maternity Clothes: Not yet. My new jeans are already getting too tight though so we're going shopping for maternity jeans soon.  I also need longer shirts...not necessary maternity or a whole bunch bigger..just up a size probably. Hello T.J. Maxx!

Best Moment this Week: Getting to see our ACTIVE baby! She would NOT quit moving the whole time we were doing the ultrasound.

Gender: Sweet baby GIRL! Adelyn Kaylee :) We both just liked the name Adelyn and my mom's middle name is Kay and Jake's mom's middle name is Lee, which is how we got the middle name. Love her so much already!

Movement: I've definitely felt some of her activeness. At first I wasn't really sure and the doctor said with my placenta being in the front (TMI?) that it would be like feeling them through a pillow and since she's only 10 ounces there's not a lot of weight behind the kicks yet. However, this morning I woke up and definitely felt 4 or 5 little movements while laying in bed. So exciting! 

Food Cravings: With Thanksgiving this week, all I've wanted is mashed potatoes and green bean casserole.

Food aversions: Nothing new.

Symptoms/Changes: My stomach and back and starting to feel like they're stretching...which was super uncomfortable combined with how full I was yesterday.  My eyes are drying out a lot so I've been sporting glasses a lot lately. Clothes are starting to get tight!

Sleep:  I wake up a lot throughout the night still just trying to get comfortable. This week I was so excited about the ultrasound and everything that when I would wake up I'd stay awake for a long time just thinking about seeing our baby and then knowing she's a girl :)

What I am looking forward to: Feeling more little kicks and movements :)

17 weeks!

17 weeks today! Only 11 more days until our ultrasound :) I'm starting to show a little bit and my stomach is getting hard...so weird!

Baby is the size of the palm of your hand

Pregnancy Highlights

How far along: 17 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Still just up 3 pounds according to the scale. I'm not complaining though...I know I'll make it up later.

Maternity Clothes: None yet.

Best Moment this Week: Probably Jake getting interviews...not directly related to the baby but it means he'll be able to provide for us :)

Gender: SOON!

Movement: Last week I was laying in bed and I swore I felt one little jab but I'm just not sure if the little bubbles I feel are the baby are not...one day...

Food Cravings: Pepperoncinis, pickles, hot dogs.

Food aversions: Nothing new.

Symptoms/Changes: My upper back is hurting a lot but I'm not sure if that's related or not. Feeling really weak if I'm standing up for too long...it's frustrating. Jake and I took a little 15 minute walk today and I was WIPED when we got back.

Sleep:  Not too bad...I wake up a lot but I'm usually able to get back to sleep. My nose has been really stuffed up which makes it harder to sleep.

What I am looking forward to: The ultrasound! Feeling movement :)

16 Weeks :)

Didn't get around to doing a 15 week update last week...not a whole bunch has changed.  We officially find out Baby's gender on November 20th...counting down the days!

Baby is the size of an avocado.

Forgive the sweatpants and tshirt look.  Jeans are starting to get a little uncomfortable. So this is what you get :)

Pregnancy Highlights

How far along: 16 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I was up 3 pounds at my last doctor appointment. I really need to remember to weigh myself before starting this blog.

Maternity Clothes: Nope.

Best Moment this Week: Hmmm...really getting a bump I guess. I still feel like I just look like I'm putting on weight but it's the very beginning of a bump.

Gender: 18 more days! Can't wait!

Movement: I poked around on my stomach one night in bed and I *thought* I felt a little something but nothing definite yet.

Food Cravings: Nothing new that I can think of. I can put down some cool ranch doritos though.

Food aversions: Nothing new. Chicken. Bananas. And dark soda. Buhhh. I was really craving a pepsi yesterday, too.

Symptoms/Changes: My back is on fire all the time. And more headaches.

Sleep:  Eh...I wake up a lot during the night. I got a body pillow so when I start to get a little bigger I'll have something for my belly to rest on. I'm just not used to sleeping with it yet.

What I am looking forward to: Meeting our baby! I don't want to wait until April...but I know he/she needs to keep growing and incubating :)

The Only Doctor's Appointments I Enjoy

So yesterday was our 3rd baby doctor appointment. I wish they happened more than every 4 weeks. I love going there!  I actually got to have the appointment with my midwife, as well, and not the doctor, which is a great thing. My last appointment was with the doctor and I was just not feeling him. He seemed too busy to even care if I felt comfortable or had any questions or everything...I know it's not his first time doing this but it IS my first time and I'd like to enjoy it.  Anywho, it was a short but amazing appointment.  She likes to get the dads involved so she taught Jake how to use the doppler machine.  We wanted to record the heartbeat on our phones but this was SO much better.  He found the baby almost instantly and he/she had a heart rate of 155 beats per minute! Then we heard this loud pop, which the midwife explained was our little kicker showing that he/she did not appreciate the doppler pressing in on him/her. So precious.  So Jake moved the doppler around some more and found the heartbeat again. It was SO loud and fast. Just amazing.  There aren't words.  We were both so giddy the rest of the day.

However, it's kind of starting to set in that in less than 6 months we're going to have a life that we're responsible for taking care of and raising. Talk about scary. I've never felt so under prepared in my life. Here's hoping those momma instincts kick in.

Next appointment is our ultrasound and we find out if we're having a little boy or girl :) Can't wait!!  We'll also hopefully get an official due date since the first ultrasound put me about a week behind where they thought my due date was.  Sometime in April :)

14 Week Update

Second trimester is here...as of Friday! Better late than never with this post right?

Little bump!

Pregnancy Highlights

How far along: 14 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: up at least a pound or so...I can't find a consistent scale...so we'll see on Wednesday!

Maternity Clothes: Negative

Best Moment this Week: Starting to show just a little!

Gender: Probably won't find out until December.

Movement: Can't wait!

Food Cravings: Add green olives to the list. And candy. Lots of candy.

Food aversions: Bananas. I can't keep them down.

Symptoms/Changes: This week...a new one is headaches. 

Sleep:  Not sleeping like at all anymore. I wake up in the middle of the night because I have to pee and can't get back to sleep for hours. Miserable.

What I am looking forward to: Doctor's appointment on Wednesday :)

Week 13

So even with something to blog about I'm HORRIBLE at keeping up with this thing...ugh.  So I'm just gonna do some pregnancy highlights today. I don't have any bump pictures yet...I feel more bloated and fat than baby bump...maybe next week :)

Pregnancy Highlights

How far along: 13 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: not sure...at my last appointment I was down a pound and a half.  I'm sure I've gained a little bit by now though.

Maternity Clothes: Nope. I had to go up a size in jeans already though.

Best Moment this Week: Waking up one morning and not getting sick!

Gender: I really would be happy with either. I'd like to have a girl first but for some reason I have a gut feeling that baby is a boy.

Movement: None yet...

Food Cravings: Anything spicy. Pizza. Salad. Depends on the day really.

Food aversions: Some days it's chicken. Broccoli. 

What I Miss: Sleeping through the night and not having to get up at least once to pee.

Sleep: Since I haven't gotten a job yet I sleep a LOT. I'm napping almost every day on top of 8-10 hours of sleep at night. Baby's wearing Mama out already.

What I am looking forward to: Starting to show so I don't just feel fat!

8 Week Update

I've been trying to keep a journal with week-to-week updates since I found out I was pregnant but that happened...once...let's be honest. It's just so much easier to get on the computer and type it out now that it's officially public knowledge.  So today I'm 8 weeks and baby is the size of a large raspberry!  I know that in today's world, 8 weeks is kind of early to tell everyone but when I move in a week and a half and Jake stays in our apartment, that would look a little weird if we hadn't told people what was going on.

I just googled 8 week old fetus to see what baby looked like...and it's a little weird. But I'm going to post it on here anyway.

It's crazy that something so small can be so defined at the same time.

I was reading What to Expect on my phone and it's just crazy how much of the baby has developed already.  I think it said kidneys were in place and almost every vital organ is at least partially formed. So crazy!

I also want to document my symptoms so when I get baby fever down the road, I think twice before getting pregnant again....I mean...so that I can share this with the little baby someday :)

So far the worst symptom has been the nausea and vomiting.  Some days are totally fine and I'm eating everything I can get my hands on and some days I can't keep a single thing down. Just talking about most food makes me sick to my stomach. It's awful. But a good sign that my hormone levels are where they need to be. I could do without it though like some lucky women I know.

My sense of smell is also super sensitive....which doesn't help with the whole nausea thing too much.

I've also been EXHAUSTED. I take naps pretty much every day. It's awesome and so lazy feeling at the same time. Jake has been awesome at working two almost full-time jobs and keeping up with things around here because I just don't feel well or have the energy anymore.

My emotions have been going haywire.  I cry on a daily basis...usually while watching Grey's Anatomy...sad, right? 

I'm stuffed up and sneezing ALL the time which I read is probably my allergies on hyper-drive due to increased blood flow.

I've also had some abdominal cramping and discomfort but nothing unbearable or severe so we're ok there...just growing :)

I swear my stomach looks a little more rounded but Jake says he doesn't notice the difference...soon enough I guess :)

I think that's all the major things....but I need to go eat asap....the crackers and water I had almost 2 hours ago aren't cutting it anymore...I just wanted to get this all out and someday be able to show our son and daughter that although this wasn't in OUR plans, we're SO SO excited to meet you in a few short months :)

Oh, Baby!

That's right...there's going to be ANOTHER addition to our family :)

Those tiny Toms will be filled in April!

For those of you on Facebook, you may have already seen this but it wouldn't be truly official until I blogged about it :) I'll be 8 weeks on Friday and it's been a whirlwind so far.  We found out 4 weeks ago and it was DEFINITELY a surprise.  We thought I didn't have maternity insurance and then found out we did but through the hospital my parents work at, about 2.5 hours from our current residence.  So I'm moving in with the in-laws! Once Jake finds a full-time job in the area, he'll be joining me :)

I've had a lot of nausea and some days are WAY worse than others.  I've also been SUPER tired so I'm cutting this post short. Just wanted to let the blogger world know our exciting news :)

Randoms

So I was tagged by Beth to tell you all 11 random facts about myself and answer 11 random questions.  I'm also supposed to tag 11 people to do the same but I'm clearly a little late at jumping on the bandwagon and almost everyone I follow has done this already....soooo here goes:

11 Random Facts
1. I hate giving random facts about myself. I know I have my quirks but they obviously don't seem quirky to me so I have a hard time thinking of things...
2. I hate working out. The only working out I've found that I like is fitness classes and I'm broke as a joke so I'm not paying 60 bucks a month to go embarrass myself in Zumba. Sigh...
3. The older I get, the closer I get with my family. Every time we go home for a visit, it gets harder and harder to come back and be content with where we live.
4. I want a lot of kids. My mind may change once I have one of my own but right now I want like 5. And I have tons of baby names picked out already...as long as the 12340981 women around me having babies don't use them then we're good to go.
5. I made some homemade guacamole yesterday and it's seriously the best thing ever (these are sooo lame....)
6. I am not an outdoorsy person. As much as I try and want to be, I'm just not. Nature is not my friend. I think it's pretty but I like to look at it from inside.
7. I have the sweetest, kindest, most thoughtful husband. It's a fact.
8. I just found a bug crawling up my arm at work. My arm tickled and I thought a piece of hair had fallen out of my head and landed on my arm because I shed like crazy...nope it was a bug. I flicked it onto the floor and took a picture. Jake informed me that it look like a tick. What the french toast. I'm itchy everywhere now.
9. Uh...I'm still really freaked about that bug. Let's see....I love everything about Christmas. Christmas music, Christmas movies, decorating the tree, baking cookies, making Christmas lists (I may work on my year round...), opening presents, giving presents. I love it all!
10. I hope my kids are smart and athletic. I was really good at school but have no coordination or athletic ability whatsoever. It's depressing.
11. I'm way too attached to my phone. I have the most random, stupid, pointless apps, yet they take up a lot of my free time. That's a bad habit that I want to break.

Woo...that was difficult...and those are kind of lame. Lo siento.

Now for the questions:

1. Who's your BFF?

Well my husband is my absolute BFF but Hannah is my best girl friend. I don't know where I'd be without her.

2. What were you like in High School?

Too dramatic probably. I thought I was super mature but I had a lot of growing up to do (and I still do). I think I was fun though. A loyal friend, dedicated, smart, and mature for my age....just not as mature as I thought I was.

3. Any pets?

I have a cute little puppy and a cat :)

4. What's one website you check daily?

Hmmm....my email. Facebook. My work schedule...buhh.

5. Your best restaurant horror story.

I work in a restaurant...every day is a horror story but from the worker's point of view. You don't even want to hear about it...

6. Your favorite cartoon you used to watch growing up.

Mmm...I loved Rugrats. And The Animaniacs. :)

7. If you could excel at one thing, what would it be?

Hm...that's a really good question. I wish I was more outgoing and social. I love my alone time and just don't do super well in social settings. Jake is AWESOME at having super meaningful conversations with random people. He's also good at having deep, meaningful conversations about life and spiritual things with people and that's just NOT something I'm gifted at. I wish I was, though.

8. What has been your favorite birthday?

This last birthday was really good. I think my 7th? birthday was one where I had a dress up party and it was really fun. I kinda gave up on birthdays for awhile because the weather was always bad when I was a little kid, and then things just got too dramatic in high school, and it was always right around finals in college. Maybe now that I'm an "adult" they will get better.

9. How long do you take in the shower?

15-20ish minutes. And about 10-15 more to get ready after I'm out.

10. Your favorite TV show, current or past.

Oh gosh. I have a LOT (thanks, Netflix). I watch way too much reality tv. The Kardashians, The Hills/Laguna Beach, and Giuliana and Bill are my faves of reality tv. Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, Pretty Little Liars, and One Tree Hill are some of my faves with actual actors. I love a lot of different shows though :/ kind of embarrassing...lol.

11. What's your favorite event to watch during these Summer Olympics?

I LOVE gymnastics. I took tumbling when I was little and I wish I would have stuck with it. Since meeting Jake, I've learned to love watching the running, as well. Unfortunately, we don't get NBC on our little flat antenna that gets us like 4 channels so I only got to watch a little bit of the Mens' Gymnastics when I was at work the other night. I love it all though!

So there you go...now you know some useless information about me :)

2nd Anniversary

So long time no post...but about a week ago Jake and I celebrated our anniversary in a VERY memorable way so I thought I should blog about it. Last Monday, my wonderful husband decided that if he could get the night off of work we were going to go on an "adventure" for our anniversary the next day.  However, he had to be at work by 1pm on Wednesday so we didn't have much time.  He got the night off and rushed me out the door with luggage in hand. I finally convinced him to tell me where we were going (the airport) and guessed my way around until I figured it out. He was taking me to Harry Potter World in Universal Studios!  So we got on a delayed (thankfully) flight to Tampa that night! If it hadn't been delayed we wouldn't have made it. We got in to Tampa around 1am and drove to Orlando and pulled in around 3am. I NEVER do spontaneous things like this and I'm SUCH a planner. I was taking everything in stride until we couldn't find a hotel with someone at the front desk of any hotel at 3:30 in the morning in Orlando. We finally found a hotel and got about 5 hours of sleep and we were off!

It was such an amazing experience! We didn't do a whole bunch in Orlando because it was pouring rain every half hour and somehow the park was still SUPER crowded. We did go on a few rides and ate lunch in The Three Broomsticks and got some butterbeer. We also went to an outlet mall on our way back to Tampa that night and I got a True Religion jacket that was originally $200 for $30. We need an outlet mall like that around here!

We ended up staying at the hotel in Tampa's airport on our anniversary and had a romantic meal at Five Guys since Jake had never had it before! So lowkey and fun :) We were flying out of Tampa by 6am Wednesday morning and were back home by noon! It was spontaneous and crazy but I'm so glad we did it! And of course what kind of blogger would I be if I didn't have pictures?!

Entrance to the park!

We pretty much look photoshopped but I promise it's real and we were there!

The paintings talked :)

While waiting for food, my husband pointed out that the guy behind us had obviously just washed his shoes recently...all the rain made them foamy!

We got to watch the sunrise from above the clouds on the way home :)

So there you have it! An anniversary we're sure to remember for a long time :) And of course Happy 4th of July to everyone! I'm spending it with my sister who's in town for a few days!

Confession Friday - couple style

Hey there! Today is not only Friday (finally!) but it's also Jake and I's anniversary! 7 years ago it all started with holding hands :) That's almost a third of my life that I've spent with him. Crazy! So I'm going to try and do a confession friday about us...not sure how it will work out without airing all our secrets :)

I confess that I can't even remember life before we started dating...it was so long ago!

I confess that I see high school kids now and wonder if we were really THAT young when we started dating. It felt like we were so much older and mature.

I confess that this picture absolutely cracks me up. Taken 7 years ago! Bad hair pretty much sums it up. Our kids are going to have so much fun with this some day.

I confess that I don't like having our dating anniversary and wedding anniversary so close. We're already making wedding anniversary plans so today is just another day...but I really want to celebrate!

I confess that the last 2 years have been the hardest, most stressful but definitely the most rewarding out of the past 7.

I confess that I want to spend the day with my husband but we're both working ALL DAY and won't see each other until about midnight :( Boooooo

That's about all I got. Happy 7 years, baby! I love you and can't wait to spend the next 70 years with you :)

New Addition to the Family :)

No, no it's not a baby ;) For those of you on facebook you have probably seen the shameless number of photos that I've put up of this new addition....our puppy Trip!

He's a cutie :)

We've had him for 2 weeks today....I know, I've been slacking as a blogger! I finally have something to write about and I wait 2 weeks to do it. He's almost like having a furry, barking baby.  He wakes up several times in the middle of the night. He cries (whines, barks) when he wakes up and can't see us.  He's so affectionate and needy and cute. He's a red heeler mix and they think he'll be about 40-50 pounds. Homeboy has pretty much doubled in size since we got him....so we need a house with a yard pronto!

Car ride home after a long weekend

We went to the parents' house this weekend for a wedding/the long weekend and he played with Jake's family's dog all weekend and he is POOPED! We cuddled in the backseat the whole ride back home.  Nigel even joined us towards the end.  He's a lovable little guy....I'm just worried that our neighbors don't love him quite as much as we do :)

Becoming an Adult...Officially

So tomorrow is my last day of undergrad classes. I love how I say that like I'm going to grad school. Let's get one thing straight: Homegirl is DONE with school. Got it? Good.

I just got moved up to serving at work and sadly I'm making more there than I would with my degree so I think that's what I'll continue to do for now while I volunteer at places around town that may open up job opportunities. Jake had an interview for a graduate assistant position for grad school.  He also has a big boy job interview next week and then another one the week after that. Holy grown ups.  One of the jobs comes with full benefits and 4 weeks of paid vacation...holla!

I think the thing I'm most excited about (and I tell Jake often) is being a "normal" married couple.  When people find out I'm married and I tell them I'm 22 (because they always ask how old I am because apparently I look like I'm 16) they won't think that's outrageously weird.  We won't be in this weird limbo of student and adult.  We'll just be normal adult married people. Yay!

As excited as I am, I'm still anxious about the future. I pray about it daily.  I just want to make the decision that is going to allow me to glorify God the most. I have no idea what that is.  My heart aches for children, which seems almost silly to me because I still feel so young. On the other hand, I have been married for 2 years, which I've been told is about the time most couples get the baby itch if they don't have kids yet. However, I also know that I love sleeping through the night.  Part of me wants a family now and part of me wants to just enjoy the time that Jake and I have together without school for a little while. Who knows. I digress.

Basically those are all the crossroads we're at right now. But the major crossroads I'm facing right now: to study for finals or to watch season 4 of Giuliana and Bill since my amazing husband bought it for me on iTunes earlier this week....I think we all know which one I'm choosing.

Catching Up

 A blog post?! I'm not dead?! Nope...just really busy and really boring. Since it's Friday I guess I'll do a little Confession Friday to catch everyone up on my not so exciting life.

I confess I still get on blogger 2-3 times a week and read blogs like crazy. I just never have anything interesting to say!

I confess that Jake and I graduate in approximately 3 weeks and we have no idea what we're doing with our lives. None whatsoever. The trip to Africa is still in the air, as well as jobs and house hunting (eek!), and Jake possibly going to grad school. Decisions, decisions. When did we become such adults? I'm just waiting for God to start closing some doors and pointing us in the right direction.

I confess that I had one class cancelled today so I just skipped the second one and came into my job at the church early.  I'm definitely ready to be out of school and working.

I confess I'm typing this at work.  This job is so laid back and amazing.  I get a to-do list and when that list is done I hang out and answer the phone if it rings.  I've gotten a lot of homework done today and now some blogging!

I confess that two jobs and school doesn't leave a whole bunch of time for doing things I want to do like seeing friends, reading, going to visit my family....it's a rough life.

I confess that I started training to be a server at work last night and I was so nervous I felt sick.  Definitely not as bad as I thought it would be. I didn't spill anything and it was actually pretty fun.  There were like 4 people being trained and we all got free training meals so we had a big family dinner afterwards :)

I confess there are pregnant women and babies just about everywhere I look and baby fever is getting the best of me.  I just want a little one to cuddle with.

I confess that I also love getting a full 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep every night which makes me ok with waiting a little bit longer to have a baby.

I confess that I hate these stupid Wonka pictures but this one made me laugh. I just have to laugh at people that drive so stupidly and then end up like one car ahead of me.

I confess I've been watching a lot of The Hills on netflix lately. It's just so addicting.  No matter how many times I've seen each episode I just find loving it.  Guilty pleasure.

I confess that I kind of love that blogger tells me how many views each post gets but it makes me feel like there's an awful lot of creepers that need to follow me and comment! :)

Well...that's about all I've got. Who knows when I'll post again? I'm going to try to get back into this blog so hopefully my life gets a little more interesting :)

This will not be a happy post

I know I've been absent from blogger world for awhile...I've been reading blogs, I just haven't felt that I had anything to blog about. However, my heart is so full of a thousand different emotions right now and I don't know where to begin.

About a month ago, I stumbled across Katie Davis' blog. Warning: reading this blog WILL change your life. God is continually using her experiences to break my heart. I started reading through from the very beginning and quickly showed Jake. Within about a day we came to the same conclusion; we can't just sit here and not DO something. So we started looking into trips to Africa, first to Uganda just to visit Katie's ministry and let her know how God is using her. After talking to a few close friends, we started looking a little bigger. We're currently in the process of filling out applications with Africa Inland Mission to go somewhere over there for 6 months to work with orphans.

We're not sure where God wants us or for how long or what we'll do when we get back. Life's just one big question mark now but it means we HAVE to put our trust in Him. Today I had a rare day off (which I should be spending studying...but I haven't done much of that) so I decided to spend my afternoon reading more of Katie's blog. I read all of her posts from 2010. Challenging stuff. God is using it to majorly convict me.  I found a statistic from UNICEF that says there are between 143 and 210 million orphans in the world. Please don't just read that as a statistic. That's about half of the United States population. Orphaned. Alone. 143 to 210 million individual children. They aren't just a statistic.

I also found a statistic that said approximately 16,000 children die every day from hunger-related issues. 1 every 5 seconds. Katie blogged about Matthew 25 and Jesus separating the sheep from the goats. "...And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you sick of in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.' Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'

There's a little bit more to the passage but I think you get the point. Eternal fire = Hell. I can guarantee you Jesus did not say these things lightly. He fully meant just what He said. And all my head can think is "What am I doing RIGHT NOW? How am I picking up my cross and following Him in this moment?" Yeah I can say I'm going to Africa in January but how am I serving Him and the least of these today?" I'm not saying I have all the answers but I know I need to DO SOMETHING. In the time it's taken me to write this post dozens of children have died. That's not ok with me.

The best Jake and I have come up with is selling the excess we have (our tv, our blu-ray player, xbox, clothes and shoes we never wear, etc.) and giving the money to Amazima (Katie's organization) to help feed orphans in Uganda and reach them with the gospel. I'm writing this to bring awareness to her agency, to the need, and also to hold us accountable. Already as I'm writing this we're talking about how hard it will really be to live without the excess comforts of this world but how can it not be worth it? I don't want this post to sound in any way like we're trying to draw attention to the "good" we're doing. My best deeds are still filthy rags. We're going to prayerfully consider where God is leading us and what He plans to do now that He has so drastically changed our hearts. Please pray for us, as well.