Baby Diaries #8

How far along? 22 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: 14 lbs

Maternity clothes? Most definitely a necessity at this point!

Stretch marks? Nope :) 

Sleep: has been deep and restful.

Best moment this week: Being able to go to an out of town wedding and see a bunch of old friends.  Although it can be a bit overwhelming being fawned over, I love that my belly is finally starting to show and draw attention to itself!

Movement: On the car ride to Missouri I was laying in the backseat and she was moving up a storm.  I really think she was doing backflips in there....I can't wait until Bud can feel!

Food cravings: Nope!  Maybe I won't have any!!!

Gender: It's a Girl!

Labor Signs: No...no...no.

Belly Button in or out? A little more flat this week than last.

What I miss: Having a plethora of outfit choices.  Even though I am guilty of saying "I have nothing to wear" prior to pregnancy it seems now that I have to rotate my outfits even faster!

What I am looking forward to: Anther short week at work leading up to another wonderful wedding!

Weekly Wisdom:  I have yet to be offended by people, but I think it's because I realize that people speak without thinking.  "When are you going to start showing, you look like I do when I eat too much at lunch"....that was my favorite statement of the week, haha!  I feel like I'm showing just fine.  Plus I think people forget HOW skinny I was pre-pregnancy.

From whattoexpect.com

Your Baby in Week 22 of Pregnancy 
This week, your baby weighs in at a whopping pound and measures nearly eight inches, about the size of a small doll. But your little doll (who now has eyebrows, eyelashes, and maybe even some hair on that little head) is a living one who can now perceive light and dark. She can also hear your voice, your heartbeat, your gurgling stomach, and the whoosh-whoosh of blood circulating through your body. And as her brain and nerve endings develop, she may reach for her face (or whatever she can reach) just to experiment with her newfound sense of touch.

Baby Girls weighs about 1 lb this week
and is 8 inches long!

Bride & Groom #1 of the Summer

This was my first wedding of the summer and the furthest away!
Each wedding from here on out will be closer and closer to home.
Thursday I worked only 1/2 a day and then headed up to Dallas to meet up with my 1st set of carpool buddies MP & JP!
We had a lovely sit down dinner before hitting the road that evening for Kansas City!
The first 6 hours were filled with lots of chatter and laughter!
The last 3 though were quite the opposite...from midnight to 3 a.m. MP drove diligently, while JP & myself were passed out!
When we arrived in KS/MO area we discovered that we were far from our Texas weather, it was COLD.

Friday was a day full of festivities!
Rehearsal and Rehearsal dinner....which all equals a mini high school reunion!

The Groom-to-be!  JB

1 of the groomsmen, JA

High school friend, NM

Anther high school friend, CW

Groomsman #2 and creator of washers game, MP

Saturday was the big day!

Although the wedding was originally planned for an out door venue, the on and off sprinkling cause us to move indoors.

No worries though, it was a beautiful wedding filled with beautiful people!

The beautiful bride-to-be KG...
soon to be KB

..

Time for the vows. 

Mr. & Mrs. B!!!!

It was a lovely ceremony and I couldn't be happier for JB!

I've been friends with him for about 10 years and I can honestly say KB is his perfect match!

And of course after any wedding ceremony...

comes the dancing and fun!

Mother/Son & Father/Daughter Dances...

My picture WITH the bride and groom!
Congratulations you two!!!

And would you like to know what happens when you set your camera down?

It gets highjacked....

The result....

It was a lovely day.
A lovelier wedding!
And a GREAT time with friends!
Congratulations....

KB & JB

1 wedding down and 2 more to go ;) 

I hope you had a Blessed Saturday!

Bible Verse Friday #23

"We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know they help us develop endurance". ~Romans 5:3

I've been working through some hurt lately.
A hurt that seems to return just when I think it's been resolved.

I want so badly to find a quick and easy answer for this complicated situation.
Yet I know that there isn't one.
The only way to work through the issue is to address it directly.
Still, I can't seem to find the words that I need to do so.
I fear that the words I choose will be misread and mistaken for something they are not.

So I mull over it.
I pray that God will give me peace.
I start and stop this process over and over again.
Always stopping short for fear that I already know the end result.

A friendship lost.

However, I should not discount God's hand in this.
He is amazing and without trying and trusting I will not know for sure what his plan is.

If it is what I fear, I will remind myself that sometimes friendships have seasons.
Sometimes...those friendships were never meant to be life-long, but rather temporary so as to teach something valuable.

In reading the above verse I must remind myself that whatever the outcome I can rejoice.
I am learning endurance.
I am learning to lean on him.

Regardless the outcome, I have much to be thankful for.
As I prepare for this situation to unfold I will dwell  rejoice on the blessings that I have been showered with lately.

Do you have something you need to do.
A problem you need to face?
Something that hangs over you and brings you down?

Remember that if HE brings you to it....HE will bring you through it!
For that I am forever grateful!

I hope you had a Blessed Friday!

Bud's Graduation/Commissioning/Baby Shower Gift

Okay so I showed you a brief glimpse of the gift that Bud received from JP and her husband MP.
A washers game!

1 was UT & 1 was KSU

Me, "hehehehe"

Bud, "Hey wait a minute"!

Bud, "MP put the handle on the UT one on the wrong side,
that was an accident right"?!

Did I remember to mention that MP & JP are KSU alum?
I highly doubt that MP put that handle on that side accidentally!

An electric drill and 5 minutes later....

I do have to say though that the initial reaction was worth it!

Everyone loved the game.....

Thank you so much for this awesome gift JP & MP!

Home-made gifts hold a special place in our hearts!

Hope you had a Blessed Monday,

Baby Diaries #7

How far along? 21 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: 12 lbs

Maternity clothes? So happy to have them now as I'm definitely starting to show!

Stretch marks? Nope :) 

Sleep: Is a necessity.  It's hard for me to stay up late at all!

Best moment this week: Oh there were so many this past week!  Bud's family arriving in town, Bud getting commissioned, and revealing the gender to everyone....keep reading if you missed the previous post.

Movement: It still only happens after I've been sitting still for quite sometime.  I think I'm still too active to feel regular movement.  Although, we went and saw Pirates of the Caribbean tonight and the last 10 minutes really got Bitsy going!

Food cravings: Still none.  Which is convenient because I haven't really had the time to cater to eating anything special!

Gender: It's a

GIRL!!!

We revealed it at Commissioning.  

His mom pretended to tear up so BUD pulled a pink handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it to her!

Friday was also my Mom's birthday and since I don't live near her, we sent flowers.  

The color of the flowers (PINK) indicated the gender of her future grandchild.

Needless to say everyone is excited about our impending baby girl!

Labor Signs: Still too soon.

Belly Button in or out? We seem to be flattening out.

What I miss: I miss being able to go go go without the sudden feeling of exhaustion.  I don't like being limited in what I'm capable of doing.

What I am looking forward to: More time with Bud's family this week!

Weekly Wisdom:  I'm learning the hard way.  Know when to stop and sit down for a rest.  It snuck up on me the day of commissioning.  By the time of the party I was feeling off my regular game and thus I had to spend most of the party sitting and letting people come to me instead of mingling around myself.  

From whattoexpect.com

Your Baby in Week 21 of Pregnancy
How big is your baby? About the size of a large banana — and speaking of bananas, if you eat one this week, there's a good chance your baby will get a taste, too. That's because he swallows a bit of amniotic fluid each day (for nutrition, hydration, and to practice digesting), so he eats whatever's on your menu — and gets to put those developing taste buds to good use. So go ahead and nosh on those nachos (or crunch those crudités): Your baby may develop a taste for them when he’s older.

We are right on par according to the Dr.
10.5 in long and 12.5 oz!

Becoming a 2nd Lt.

Friday was the day!
The BIG day!
The day when Bud became a 2nd Lt. in the United States Air Force.
The same day we would announce the gender of our little one.
Bud had a secret plan.
The first family member to tear up during the ceremony would prompt Bud to remove a handkerchief from his jacket.
The color of the handkerchief would indicate the gender of Bitsy Hitzy.

Bud's Brother MH and I pinned his butter bars
onto his jacket.

His Father & Mother put his new epaulettes on his
shirt.

Bud's mom pretended to sniffle while attaching the new epaulette....

prompting Bud to pull the handkerchief:

In case you can't see that....
It's a PINK handkerchief....
We are having a GIRL!

After a moment we were able to continue with the Commissioning portion of the day...

Bud's brother who commissioned into the Army
a few months back was able to swear Bud in.

.....do solemnly swear....

Presenting 2nd Lt. Bud!

Directly following the Commissioning Ceremony is the First Salute Ceremony.

It's a tradition that the first enlisted member who salutes an officer will be given a silver dollar.

Bud was allowed to select who he wanted to give his first salute to on this special day, since we were making this day about all the people who helped him get where he is it only seemed right that his younger brother give him his first salute.

Having both of his brothers play such a big role in this day made it that much more special.

BROTHERS!
BH, MH, Bud, TH

3 Generations

The Brothers & their Mothership

And last but not least a picture with my wonderful husband whom I'm so proud of!

A college graduate, a 2nd Lt. and a
Father-to-be all in such a short period of
time.

All these new titles and yet my favorite is:
Loving, loyal, hardworking husband.
All the rest will be easy!

That evening we had a Commissioning Party for Bud at a local coffee bar our friend owns.

He let us use the entire backyard space to setup and hangout.

Despite the humid weather, everyone seemed to fully enjoy themselves.

Just as we were bringing the last items into the apartment after the party the sky opened up and the rain poured down.

God's timing was perfect, it always is!

I hope you all had a Blessed Saturday!

Bible Verse Friday #22

"But the wisdom from above is first of all pure.  It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others.  It is full of mercy and good deeds.  It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.  And those who are peacemakers will plants seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness".~James 3:17-18

Let's back up a little bit.
Sometimes when I read a verse I like to know in what context it was being used.
So let's review James 3:13-16

"If you are wise and understand God's ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom.  But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don't cover up the truth with boasting and lying.  For jealousy and selfishness are not God's kind of wisdom.  Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic.  For wherever there is jealousy and self ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind".

I just got goosebumps.
This tells us straight forward to be kind, loving, peaceful and gentle always.
NEVER selfish, jealous, boastful or dishonest.

Now this is not always easy, because not everyone holds themselves accountable to these requirements.
We are told not to judge as final judgement will come from our heavenly father.
This applies to Non-believers, believers are held to a different standard. 
We still shouldn't judge, but we can gently correct one another.
It can be so hard to be kind and gentle to non-believers as we see them do things we view to be hurtful.
But God tells us how we should act.
There is not gray area. 
It is simply stated: "peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others"

So as you progress through your weekend despite who or what you encounter be as God asks you to be.
You never know when you will be the factor that helps someone seek HIM as their own.
Be a light of God's love wherever you go and you will be blessed when that judgement day comes. 

I hope you all had a Blessed Friday!

Baby Shower

This past weekend my friend JM

 flew down from Colorado to throw me a baby shower with the help of JP & AT

AT, JM, Myself, Bud, & JP

In my eyes it was the perfect baby shower.  We only played the clothes pin game (words we weren't allowed to say included Baby, Mom, Dad, Bitsy).  It was a co-ed shower so the guys all showed up with packages of diapers and migrated to the grill, ladder golf, or the washers area...

Bud manning the burgers

KS prepping to throw

RC enjoying our washers set.
A gift custom made for us by JP & her hubby!
**another post about that to follow

There was a spot when everyone walked in for them to self address envelopes to stream line my thank you note writing process:

And because my hostesses know how much I love crafting and homemade items they set up two stations for people to do just that!

Sgt. B creating the letter "H" page of our first Alphabet book!

The other crafting station was my favorite and believe it or not the guys were just as into it as the girls, which totally caught most of us by surprise....(Warning a large number of pictures to follow)!

Gifts were opened....

And our collection of books began to grow....

It was the best baby shower we could have asked for!
Totally suited to fit our personalities: Calm, fun, Sun-shiny, and relaxing!

I hope you all had a Blessed Thursday!