Hello there, Baby Christmas

See that tiny little life?

That's our precious Baby Christmas. :D
 
He or she is scheduled to arrive on March 7th -- our wedding anniversary!

Thank you Lord for such an amazing blessing!!!

PS: AHHHHHHHHH!!! I'm gonna be a Mom! :))))

We Made It!

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Just wanted to write a quick note to let you guys know that we made it to Atlanta! We have been settled into our new home since Monday and are loving it! :) Getting to see Keith every day is simply amazing and we are adjusting well to our new place. 

I'll keeep this short and sweet so that I can continue unpacking the 237957382 boxes that we have. ;) I hope you guys are having a lovely week! Tomorrow, we're heading to the doctor to see Baby Christmas. AH! I. Can't Wait!

A Letter to Chuck Town

Dear Charleston,

Where do I begin? For starters, let's be honest. This letter should be entitled "Dear Hanahan" but eh it's close enough. You and I have had a rocky little relationship, and to be honest I am happy that we are parting ways. While you always treated me lovely when I visited my then boyfriend/now husband, things just weren't the same once I claimed residency. Most people love you, but I'm not most people. ;) 

This letter will not be my opportunity to point out everything I despise about you, but rather what I loved while I was here. I have lived here for two and a half years and there is a lot to cover. Let's begin with the obvious...

This man. I met this sweet man on your stomping grounds back in 2008. This chance meeting absolutely changed my life, and I ended up moving to your town just to be with him. It was crazy at the time, but I just knew that he was "the one" and that we would be married one day.

That special day happened 2 years (almost to the day) after our first meeting, and it is my most treasured moment in Charleston. :)

Because there is so much that I would like to cover and I don't want to spend valuable packing time writing this post, the below are some of my favorite Charleston moments that were truly wonderful.

RiverDogs Games

Date nights with Chad and Melissa

Time spent at Folly Beach

Hanging out with Baby Joe

The time we almost flew this plane

 Sailing...

Visiting the Angel Oak tree

Swinging at the park

Birthday dinners with the family

Spending time at the Pineapple Fountain

Downtown Bachelorette Party

The day we spent with Kori and Jeramy

Our first Valentine's Day

Finding out that we're expecting. :)))

Working at ProPac, Inc...my job of 2.5 years

Obviously there are many more wonderful memories that I have from you, Charleston, but it would be impossible to list them all. I will say that I am happy that I moved here. BUT I am beyond excited to be leaving. This letter will not make sense to a lot of people, and that's okay. It takes knowing a whole lot of the bad that happened to understand why I am happy to leave -- but I don't want to "wash my dirty laundry in public." So, with that said...see ya later Charleston. It's been...interesting to say the least. :)

My Final Charleston Misc. Monday

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* This week is my final one here in Charleston. My husband and I are packing up our life this weekend and heading to our new home in Atlanta, GA. I'm not sure if I'm ready for this week...but I guess I'll have to be. My last day at my job of two and half years is on Friday. We say goodbye to our first home together on Sunday. BUT, we say hello to being together everyday again. No more weekend only quality time. And that is worth picking up and moving to a new city. :D

* We had three potential renters look at our home on Saturday. We've only heard back from one, but this one sounds promising and it's looking like we will have a tenant in our home for August!!! Thank you God!

* I recently purchased Colbie Caillat's new album, All of You and I must say that it is fantastic. :) She has a voice like an angel and I've been listening to her new tunes constantly. Her song What Means the Most really spoke to where Keith and I are at in our lives. 

No more days far away 

where I miss you 

No more nights trying to fall asleep 

without you 

From now on I’m always gonna be there

I won’t miss another day that we won’t share

*sigh* Ms. Caillat, you rock. :) 

* Last but certainly not least...as many of you know, little baby James of Jamesie Beats the Tumor went to be with the Lord on Saturday. I have been following this family's journey and words cannot express how much this news saddens me. I am truly rocked to my core. I do not personally know this family, but what I love about "blogland" is that when something like this happens, we all band together in prayer and offer support and love. This week and beyond, please pray for the Sikes family. 

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Rest in Peace sweet James

Class of 2012

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Two semesters. 10 classes. 31 scheduled hours.

That's how much is left for me to complete of my undergraduate studies. I mentioned earlier in the week that I wasn't sure if I should take my last year off and pick back up after the baby is born, or if I should jump in and finish this journey that began in 2007. (Yes, that's right folks. I'm on the 6 year plan) While each choice has its pros and cons, I think I know which way I am heading.

After talking to many people (including a fellow classmate who is currently pregnant) I have decided to finish my last year of school!!! YAYYYY!!!! In May of 2012, I will be able to scratch #5 (graduate from college) off of my 30 Before 30 List!

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Many things factored into making this decision, with the most obvious being if I could realistically complete these last two semesters with a) struggling with potential prego illness and b) my due date being right in the middle of my final semester. So many people have given me great advice, and I feel that this is the right choice. I would much rather find a way to finish my last couple of classes with a newborn than spend the first year of my child's life consumed with writing papers and studying.

So, I'm registered and ready to go! I'll be taking Research Methods, Data Analysis, Biology 102 (yuck!), Homeland Security and Theories of Criminal Justice. While this is my largest course load to date (hence the 6 year plan) I do have the advantage of taking all of my classes online. I am a distant learning student at Regent University, but even though I don't have to physically attend class, my schedule is very demanding and requires tons of self discipline. The semester begins August 22nd and I can't wait to tackle these classes. I'm am praying for the strength both physically and mentally to complete these classes with fantastic grades and to enjoy myself while I'm at it. 

While we're on this subject, I should probably confess that lately I have been thinking about law school.  A lot.

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Call me crazy, but I still feel like I am supposed to do this. I've already planned on taking some time off in between undergrad and law school, so I guess we'll see what happens now that our family is expanding.  This is another reason why I want undergrad finished. If I do decided to tackle law school within the next few years, I will have ample time to study for the LSAT and figure things out.

Last year I wrote about wanting to become a mother and a lawyer and maybe, just maybe this little dream of mine will come true. (Lord, thank you for placing these desires in my heart. Please help me stay focused on you so that your will, not mine, will be done.)

Wordless Wednesday

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:)))))))

Will Someone Please Rent Our House??

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I previously mentioned that Keith and I hired a property management company to help us rent our home in Charleston. Well, last week this company was fired. 

I was originally going to write a long, whiny post about how this company failed to meet our expectations, was very late to their first showing, and even entered our home without our knowledge...thus setting off our security system and prompting a call asking if we would like to dispatch the police. (Not to mention, they sent me an empty envelope that was supposed to deliver the extra to my house but instead they blamed it on the postal service. Now, they are sending us a check so that we can re-key our home. AH!) 

Okay, so maybe I whined just a liiiittle up there, but I've decided to sum up this sob story and move on. I am happy that we no longer have to deal with incompetent people, but now we have our home listed on Craigslist...AKA Sketchville. I am being very careful to not fall victim to creepers and scammers, but it just creeps me out to list an ad on this site. 

So, now what? We are moving in two weeks and we have no one moving into our home. We already planned on paying August's mortgage, but we really don't want to do this. 

Anyone in the Charleston area looking for a rental home or knows someone who is? If your answer is yes, please contact me and I will send you our ad! Currently we have our home on Rent.com and Craigslist...any other sites we should check out?

On the bright side, I am handling this pretty well. Before I found out that we're expecting this move was completely stressing me out. Now that I am carrying life inside me (which by the way is completely miraculous) things just don't bother me as much. 

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Yes, my hormones are on a rampage and I lose it every now and then, but I feel much more at peace knowing that no matter what happens in this move, everything will be okay. Lord, thank you for filling me with this peace in the midst of the chaos.

Insulted? Pray.

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I have written about this many times before, but I seriously think that Pastor Rick Warren is stalking me. Okay, maybe not really, but God is definitely using his daily email devotionals to open my eyes and awaken my heart. 

I received a devotional not too long ago from Pastor Warren's church. It was written by a teaching pastor by the name of Tom Holladay and focused on the scripture "Pray for those who insult you." (Luke 6:28) The opening of the devotional went something like this:

"When it comes to being insulted, there is something Jesus said in Matthew 5 that can make us scratch our heads. "If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other cheek also" (Matthew 5:39 NCV). Huh?"

This absolutely got my attention, because it's always something that I have had a hard time understanding. My husband and I talk about this a lot. He is a 100% compassion-for-all-I-can-see-your-side kind of guy. (And I absolutely love this about him.) I am a face-the-consequences-where's-the-justice?-oh-no-you-didn't kind of girl. (Talk about balancing each other out, eh?) I do have a heart full of compassion, but when when it comes to being insulted, witnessing an injustice, or just plain knowing what's right and what's wrong, I have a hard time "turning the other cheek." 

Reading this devotional helped me to truly understand what it means to turn the other check. It also helped me to realize that there is difference between injustice and insulted. I sincerely hope that when future situations arise, I will be able to pray for those who have insulted/offended/hurt me, and also that I will choose my battles wisely.

I hope you enjoy these wise words. :)

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When You Are Insulted, Choose to Pray

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When it comes to being insulted, there is something Jesus said in Matthew 5 that can make us scratch our heads. "If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other cheek also" (Matthew 5:39 NCV). Huh?

In order to understand this verse, we need to understand the culture of that day. In biblical times, a slap was not an act of violence. It was a backhanded slap indicating an insult. When you slapped someone on the cheek, you were insulting that person. Many times the person would slap back with another insult.

People insult you to gain control. If they can get you to insult them back, you've given them the higher ground and it puts them in control. What Jesus was saying in Matthew 5 is to just let it go. Don't play their game. Give the situation to God.

It takes a lot of strength not to insult someone in return. So how do you do it?

• Remember what God says about you. No matter what negative thing that person says, remember that God says he loves you. God made you, and he has a plan and purpose for your life. God's opinion is more important than any other person's opinion.
• Instead of retaliating, God wants us to break the cycle in a different way. "Don't retaliate when people say unkind things about you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God wants you to do, and he will bless you for it" (1 Peter 3:9 NLT). 

How do you return an insult with a blessing? Pray. "Pray for those who insult you" (Luke 6:28 GWT).

How do you pray for somebody who has hurt you? King David, a man after God's own heart, prayed for people who insulted and rejected him. You can find many of those prayers in the book of Psalms. What I love about his prayers is that he begins many of them by telling God his honest feelings about the people who hurt him. 

 

That's how our prayers should start. Don't pretend to be pious; God knows what is on your mind anyway. Tell God how you honestly feel. Admit you are struggling to pray for the other person, but then ask God to bless him or her. Honest and humble prayers have the power to make a difference in this world.

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Happy Randomness/Advice, please? :)

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Okay, I'm not going to lie -- I am kind of freaking out! I am one big emotional, excited and overwhelmed happy mess! (Please excuse the randomness of this post) First off, thank you guys so much for your kind words on my last post! Keith and I weren't expecting our little miracle to show up so soon, but we are beyond thankful to be blessed by him or her, and by all of the people in our lives. Seriously -- our family and friends have drenched us in love and we are forever grateful. :)

As you guys know, Keith and I are in the process of moving from Charleston, SC to Atlanta, GA. Now that we've got a baby on the way this adds a completely new dynamic to our move and life. (AH!!! YAYYYY!!!!) We literally have so much to do (um, like pack!!!) in so little time (we are planning on moving in three weeks) but we are hopeful that everything will get accomplished. 

Another thing that I am thinking about is school. I am a senior with only two jammed packed semesters left...I should be able to make it through the fall without too much trouble, but my little one is due during my final semester. What do I do? Jump in and hope for the best? Postpone graduation for a year? Decisions, decisions...any advice??

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To my Atlanta bloggy friends -- Can you guys recommend a great OBGYN? Anyone ever been to the Peachtree Women's Clinic? Also, any comments on Northside Hospital and Piedmont?

 Reading material anyone? 

Even though the hubs and I freaked out at Barnes and Noble and purchased way too many books, I still have a few questions. All of my lovely pregnant/mothers/knowledgeable friends...

1. I know that I can't get in hot tubs or take really hot baths...but how hot is too hot for a bath? I am used to taking super long, super hot baths, and while I've toned it down I still don't want to do anything that may harm Baby Christmas. Any advice?

2. Does anyone know over any safe, over-the-counter acne medication that I can use? I was using prescription strength topical creams, but I've since downgraded to a low percent of Salicylic Acid face wash and astringent pad -- can I use this? (I'm using Aveeno Clear Complexion face wash and Stridex Sensitive Face Pads) I am having one heck of a time getting a hold of my dermatologist and once again, I don't want to do anything that will harm my little one.

3. What about heavy stuff? Can I pick it up? Push it across the floor? Drag it??? We are beginning to pack up our house and it seems like every time I turn around I am struggling with a heavy box. 

*Sigh* I think that's all for now. :) I apologize for the random questions and thoughts...it felt great to get that out! 

Cheese Half Ink a Baby

A lot has happened since my last post. For starters, things with my Dad have definitely gotten better. He has moved from the hospital to a rehabilitation/assisted living facility and is sounding much better. As long as he stays away from the alcohol he could definitely win this battle.

But this post is not about my Dad...

I mentioned last week how my stomach and my Mother's cooking did not mix. I was miserable for a few days after that, but eventually got better. Well, it turns out it wasn't solely my Mom's cooking...

Ladies and Gents -- Cheese. 1/2. Ink. A baby. (Full House anyone?) And by that I mean that

I AM HAVING A BABY!!!!

Turns out that those tummy issues were pregnancy related! AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! Keith and I are beyond excited about this news and couldn't be happier and thankful for this blessing! Here's how we found out, but first a little back story.

At the beginning of the year I started to feel very convicted about being on the birth control pill. Due to my problems with Endometriosis and Interstitial Cystitis I've been on the pill for years to help suppress the pain during my cycles. As of lately, I was no longer experiencing any pain and felt like there was no need to continue taking the pill. Keith and I have always said that we were putting the growth of our family in God's hands. But, here's the thing -- how can we really  be putting this in God's hands if we are taking active steps to prevent contraception? (I truly hope this does not offend anyone, but this is my opinion.)

So after much thought, we kicked the pill at the beginning of April. Around the middle of last week I started getting anxious -- my period was a few days late and I started getting nervous/excited. Could I really be...? 

So, on Friday morning I decided to take a test. If I wasn't pregnant, I wanted to know now and stop getting my hopes up. I took the test first thing after I woke up and was still half asleep. When I saw those two lines...I felt my heart flutter. No. Stinking. Way. I AM PREGNANT???? :)))))

I immediately ran down the hall and woke up my little sister. (My husband works in ATL during the week) I had her come look at the test and confirm this news!!! We were both so excited, and agreed that maybe I should take another test just to be sure. I ended up taking two more throughout the day and YES they were positive! :) 

Since I was heading to Atlanta on Friday afternoon to see my sweet husband anyway, I decided to keep quiet about my wonderful news! I don't know how I managed, but I did not say a peep to him about our miracle!!! Instead, I went to the store and purchased a tiny baseball glove and ball, and put it in a bag with the pregnancy tests. 

When I got to Atlanta, I gave him the gift and he was ecstatic! WE'RE HAVING A BABY! Even though I'm only a handful of weeks pregnant we didn't want to wait to tell our family and friends. The outpouring support and love that we have received is seriously overwhelming and we are so blessed to have such amazing people in our lives! We cannot wait to share our journey with everyone! 

Between our move to Atlanta and the new addition to our family, life is about to get very interesting! 

KC and I at the Braves game this weekend! We are so excited to become parents!

(Anyone remember the Full House episode http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1TUlZ4WiNI? :) It's one of the first things I thought about when I found out I was going to be a Mom...definitely a child of the 90's.)