Little Big Blessing

I had another ultrasound yesterday. It comes in handy that I used to work with the pregnancy clinic in town and know the ultrasound tech there! It had been about 5 weeks since I had seen this little bambino and when I saw those skinny chicken legs and cute nose and big lips I was blown away at how in just 5 weeks, my sweetcake had changed so much. You read about it and hear about how much they grow but to see it with your own eyes is something else. It was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO active and squirly! So cute. I am hoping that means I start to feel it soon. I feel weird things in my stomach but I can't identify it as a for sure kick or jab ye.  It's fun to imagine what he or she will look like.

Baby  has John's lips from what I saw.

And who knows what those skinny legs are about. Those definitely aren't either of ours!

Good thing it has about 5 1/2 more months to get some meat on it's bones.

:)

Anywho.

This tiny little person is my biggest recorded blessing to date.

#32: our baby

take a look at our pictures when we were little...

I hope it favors John and he hopes it favors me.

The baby is 13 weeks and 5 days in this picture.

We are both around 2 in our pictures.

Confused about what #32 is all about? Based off of the book, One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp, I am practicing the art of thankfulness. I am learning to recognize, savor and celebrate the things, people and experiences the Lord gives me.  Look HERE to follow along!

A word to the wise..

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Determine never to be idle. No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much can be done if we are always doing.

~Thomas Jefferson

Friday!

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1.   I am       a girl/woman who loves the Lord, my husband, family and friends. I am a mother of a sweet bun in my oven. I am someone who much prefers real friendship to e-friendships and texting friendships. I am craving iced coffee  .

2.  The bravest thing I've ever done was   let it all go. and by that I mean not letting it all hang out but just not caring about things to the extent that they ruled my life = being out of control   .

3.  I feel prettiest when    I'm a little tan and dressed up   .

4.  Something that keeps me awake at night is   my back and hip a.k.a. - my baby.  I don't know what the deal is really. I hear it's common with pregnancy to not be a great sleeper   .

5.  My favorite meal in the entire world is     Every meal that isn't dinner lately .

6.  The way to my heart is     consistency  .

7.  I would like to    take pottery classes and be a potter  .

go HERE to play along.

Have a great weekend!!!!

Check me out!

I'm over at Jamie's blog, Inspired Mess, today.

It's sweet that she asked me to guest-post. 

Funtimes!

It's a little ode to my man.

I love him.

And we aren't done celebrating that fact :)

We tend to be a little mushier than some couples and this week is kind of a gag-me-with-a-spoon snuggle and smooch fest.  Well, gag YOU with a spoon, 

not me so much because I really enjoy said fest. What are you going to do when your husband adores the crap out of you? I guess kiss him a lot. That's what I do.

He  still sweeps me off my feet

Anyway..check it out!

go HERE

# 13

#13: The Sun

A leaf fluttered in through the window this morning, as if supported by the rays of the sun, a bird settled on the fire escape, joy in the task of coffee, joy accompanied me as I walked. 

Anais Nin

I sat on my porch with my cat and my 7UP basking in the sun, drinking the warmth and appreciating a preview of Spring this morning.
What a lovely gift the sun is!

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Based off of the book, One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp, I am practicing the art of thankfulness. I am learning to recognize, savor and celebrate the things God has placed in my life, big and small, sweet and sour.  Look HERE to follow along!

It's a Monday and I'm pregnant..

..'nuff said.

a. I slept on the couch most of the night which is always an adventure in attempting proper rest.

Lately at like 2 a.m. I wake up and feel like my legs "need" to do pilates exercises. I lay there and I do all of these bouncy, weird leg stretches because apparently my nerves are going crazy or my hips are expanding (oh, help me, Jesus) or something. So I do all of these weird yoga stretches, pilates moves and try to get my bones to stop annoying me. When the 20 minute workout I have memorized doesn't help, I move to the couch where always, my left arm falls asleep. But I don't so much..

b. I think I had my first for real hormonal freak out today.

I wasn't mean. It wasn't that kind of freak out. It was more of a uncontrollable crying about things that are out of my control freak out.

c. NOTHING fits correctly. Only the over-sized underwear I bought on accident 2 months ago is not so over-sized anymore. So that's a good fit but unfortunately that's not acceptable public appearance wear. Darn. Maternity clothes are way too big but my clothes are making me look like a tightly-wrapped overstuffed burrito. I am not complaining. This is a great predicament to have. I'm just saying  I am running out of cotton pants to wear.

wait! hold on...

d. as I am writing this, God shows up (per usual)

   1. John comes home with a rose for me and a rose for PJ (that's what we call the baby). How sweet is that?!

 2. after he leaves and I resume writing. 5 minutes later I get a knock on the door and a delivery of flowers  from two dear, dear friends. What?! You're kidding, right?!

I LOVE flowers AND friends!

 LOVE

 LOVE

 LOVE

them

I think it's time for me to chill and rest and know I am loved by God, my family and my friends. All the rest are minor details that He has under control. 

Let's look at the facts, shall we?:

*I was treated this morning to a lovely breakfast made by my chef of a husband. 

*I have flowers of all different kinds gracing my home.

*I am carrying the sweetest Valentine of all in my belly and

*I get to spend this evening with some of my dear Bible study friends.

So it's Monday and yes, I am pregnant but it turns out that neither of those is a bad thing at all! On the contrary! They are both ways where God showed up and treated me with something amazing:

 lots of love.

..in Lunch Lady Land

I've become the resident lunch lady.

{hopefully I'm a tadge cuter..}

John works close to home and likes to come home for lunch.

I like to cook.

Thus,  I cook him lunch.

I've been trying to get creative and healthy with my kitchen offerings.

soooooo..

This is what's happening in "Lunch Lady Land":

Today I had a hit!

I used lots of my favorite ingredients shown 

HERE

cilantro and limes are two of my favorite smells and tastes ever. I don't think you can ever have too much of either!

I had some leftover peppercorn pork loin from the other night and so this was a nice way to reuse that.

And it took maybe 10 minutes to do all of it. Having the pork done was the key.

It would be good with turkey or chicken too! In my lovely town of no ethnic  grocery food options I had to forgo the chipotle chiles but I replaced them with fresh cut red pepper. And I made my own salsa.

Also, I added black beans because  a.) extra protein and  b.) they're delicious.

John, who is a fan of all things mexican, loved it.

It's easy. Try it!

Your mouth and your husband will thank you.

{He doesn't like participating in blog pictures, as you can see..}

Chipotle Pork and Avacodo Wraps

Ingredients

• 1/2  cup  mashed peeled avocado
• 1 1/2  tablespoons  low-fat mayonnaise
• 1  teaspoon  fresh lime juice
• 2  teaspoons  chopped canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 1/4  teaspoon  dried oregano
• 4  (8-inch) fat-free flour tortillas
• 1 1/2  cups  (1/4-inch-thick) slices cut  roasted pork (about 8 ounces)
• 1  cup  shredded iceberg lettuce
• 1/4  cup  bottled salsa

Preparation

Combine the first 7 ingredients, stirring well.

Warm tortillas according to package directions. Spread about 2 tablespoons avocado mixture over each tortilla, leaving a 1-inch border. Arrange roasted pork slices down center of tortillas. Top each tortilla with 1/4 cup shredded lettuce and 1 tablespoon salsa, and roll up.

Nutritional Information Calories:239 Fat:5.8g Protein:13.9g Carbohydrate:32.8g Fiber:2.6g

Annnnnnd this is what I had for lunch:

Today isn't the best appetite day for me.

I didn't sleep well and when I don't sleep well, my blah-ness increases.

So Cocoa Krispies it is for the next few meals.

Grow, baby, grow!

Happy Eating Everyone!

Let's celebrate

#22 Friends who celebrate our differences rather than letting them separate us.

Last week I started something new.

Based off of the book, One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp, I am  being more intentional about thankfulness and am learning to recognize, savor and celebrate the things God has placed in my life.

Look HERE to keep track of the gifts I have been blessed with!

Sweet dreams

I've been waking up thinking about breakfast food.

I go to sleep thinking of breakfast food.

I dream of it...always.

It's all that really sounds good right now.

Wednesday we had biscuits and gravy for dinner..

Last Saturday I dreamed of donut holes all night long.

And this week it has been cinnamon rolls.

{Side-note: the pregnancy dreams are out of control. Yes, I dream about breakfast food but I am usually scaling a mountain with my monster baby in tow or something to get to the land flowing with Biscuits and Gravy. And I  am truly more concerned with the food than the monster baby. }

So I forwent my nap today and committed to making cinnamon rolls for 4 hours.

The mixing, the rising, the kneading, the rising, the rolling, the rising, the baking the icing and FINALLY...

Voila!

2 minutes of heaven in my mouth.

Worth. the. naplessness.

Happy weekend and happy blank reading!

1.   If I could only read one magazine publication for the rest of eternity, I would choose   Whole Living or Real Simple. I can't decide.   .

2.  If I were to run my own magazine it would be    celebrating simplicity,art and the unique  .

3.  I buy my magazines (at the grocery check stand or via subscription)     subscription! I'm at the point with some of my magazines where I get 2 full years for like $5 and then get to add a friend for $1. It way pays to subscribe .

4.  I prefer my magazines (in print or online)  in print. I get too ADD when things are online and I don't care as much  .

5.  The number of magazines I buy each month is    I get 3-4 sent to me a month. I rarely ever buy unless it's a historical event issue. I bought Time when Sadam was found, People when Michael died, you know, stuff like that .

6. My favorite magazine genre is (lifestyle, gossip, home, etc...)    home. I love my home the most. Fashion is fun but I am never that "on top" of the fashion industry. I appreciate it for sure but it's not my jam   .

7.  The magazines I read regularly are       Better Homes and Gardens, Whole Living, Healthy Cooking, Real Simple and for the next few months, various pregnancy magazines that everyone gives me     .

Hopefully the sunshine and warmer weather finds you but if not, cozy up and thumb through your favorite magazine!

Diamonds in my trees

Have you ever heard what the ice does to the trees? 

It makes them noisy. It's like they are talking or singing in harmony. It's the coolest thing ever.

Yeah, yeah, it makes branches fall and roads slick but ice+sunshine= amazingness.

I was captivated by the prettiness of the "gross weather" and walked out into it yesterday and this morning.

Everything sparkles and shines...and talks!

And while the trees look heavy and sad, I am grateful for:

#5 cold, harsh winters that make everything sparkle, shine and talk

#6 seasons changing ( I wouldn't quite value spring without these harsh weeks of freezingness!)

#7 paw prints in the snow

#8 a furry companion that enjoys nature as much as I do

If you don't understand the #5,6,7,8 thing look here to get caught up :)

Time to wake up

A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all other virtues. - Cicero

After a year of below-the-belt blows at our house, we have entered into a season of rest. Maybe.

Until about 6 months ago, I assumed a "season" or an attitude of thanksgiving was something that came after a series of trials or it came post-desired prayer answer. I don't know that I walked around actively thinking that but now, after some hard lessons in "being thankful in all things", I am now more aware that my mindset of 'thanksgiving after the blessing' was completely wrong.

There have been a few people, books, inspiring words, verses, songs and words from God to my own heart that have gradually brought me to a point of realizing that being thankful in all things means being thankful at all times.

Easier said than done... for me.

It's embarrassing to admit but it's kind of a foreign concept. Even to this Christian.

Thankfulness is not a magical equation or chant that brings a gift.

Thankfulness is a humble way to accept with joy, the small and the large blessings God has given me or will give me.
Having faith that He who started the good work will be faithful to complete it..and then offer thanks even when I don't see any signs of the completion.
Thankfulness is a state of worship in which I am supposed to be in continually.

The small things...

The seemingly insignificant, everyday things.

The things I've never cared to place a name on , "gift".

I am to be thankful before, after and during the situation. At. All. Times.

I wouldn't say I have been an ungrateful. But even as I type that I realize, yes, I have been ungrateful.

It's ironic that I had felt God working on me in this area in the past few months.. Simultaneously, I had been hearing about a book that was coming out called One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp. It was getting amazing write-ups and seemed to be all the rage. Last week, I bought it and this week, my perspective is different.

I'm reading it slowly.

Digesting each phrase a little at a time.

I usually love to speed through  a great read like this but after reading a few chapters I am finding that

reading slowly will help me more in the long run! I don't want to miss every lesson in this new way of walking.

I'm dog-earing and underlining like crazy.

Rewriting and meditating.

One of the many phrases that struck me was this

she writes:

‎"Do not disdain the small. The whole of the life -even the hard- is made up of the minute parts, and if I miss the infinitesimals, I miss the whole...There is a way to live the big of thanksgiving in all things. It is this: to give thanks in this one small thing. The moments will add up"

Uggg.

Really?

That got my number.

I think my preconceived notion was this: the blessing needs to be what I deem worthy of thanks before I value it.

I mean really, who values the depressing cold weather? Who is usually thankful for the months of unanswered prayers? When is it normal to even be joyful about a death or a family tragedy?
Be thankful in all things.

Should I be thankful that I have struggle?

I'm supposed to consider all things and be thankful in them??? ALL things? I mean, I know Paul was content in whatever state he was in but he was Paul.. I'm not.

Be thankful in all things.

So for me, personally.. the minute parts are sometimes very hard parts. Most times it's the insignificant parts. Coming out of a season of lots of significant "hard parts" I see now, in hind-site, the missed thankfulness in it all. I had my thankful days. And it's something that I am aware of but I'm not sure that I was purposefully looking for ways to be thankful to my God.

I resolve to not let it be so anymore.

And who is to say I am not headed into another season of "hard parts"?

From what I observed, life is mostly made up of "hard parts". But those hard parts contain bits of blessing and multiple opportunities to see my Heavenly Father really work  all things together for his good..

That's a blessing in itself, is it not?
Be thankful in all things.

In this book Ann talks about making a list of one thousand gifts that she is truly thankful for personally. A seemingly simple challenge made by her  friend. What a simple yet completely complicated thing to do!! Not complicated in the sense of it's hard to execute but hard in the sense of intentionally learning to recognize thankfulness and verbalize your thanks as a part of your moment by moment life.

Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18

It's time to wake up and be thankful. In. All. Things.

Not for the sake of marking "thanksgiving" off of my good Christian to do list  Not for the sake of following a trendy book book club assignment.

But for the sake of His glory and my joy.

The two go hand in hand. (Thank you John Piper for illustrating that liberating truth!)

So here we go...

I am going to commit to posting once a week on a gift (or two or three or five) that I am thankful for.

{Thank you, Lord, for people you gift in this area of writing and revelation to your children!}

I to want to find out more about my God and his goodness. To know more of what his Word says about this and live accordingly. I want to put down my agendas and my notions, my plans and just be with Him and learn thankfulness. 

 There are many following along and filling out their own lists. I believe God is really using Ann to wake up our hearts in this area. So whether you choose to follow along to the 'T' and do all of the assignments and want to join a book club, just WAKE UP AND BE THANKFUL.

Even when you don't feel it. Even when the excuses and distractions multiply and distract.

Give thanks.

I've just started my list. So I will be posting soon.

And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:20