Random Thoughts and Updates and Pictures

Hello, there.
Blogging for me has been few and far between. I'm ok with that. Changing seasons, things to do, tackling projects, etc. Anyways, here we go with an update, pictures and some random thoughts on this mind.
*Baby update - Went in Monday for the ultrasound (I'm 20 weeks today) and everything is checking out great. We thought we were going to have to leave not knowing the gender, which, surprisingly, I was having an easier time coping with than Tim. The "area" was under my belly button and so all we could see was a black spot for awhile where there should have been some kind of parts going on - male or female. Out of the blue the baby moved, actually, it probably was from the technician pressing so hard all over the place and annoying him. That's right, I said HIM - we are expecting a baby boy...an active one at that. He did not stop moving the whole time we were peeking in at him. Hiccups, yawns, arms waving about and kicking feet. I hope he gets it out of his system now so he can come out calm for a bit. Anyways, yes - we have a first name picked out (middle name is still being decided by Tim) and yes, we are the kind of people who share it, so - our boy is going to be named Caleb. (Sorry, Lacey - we're seriously NOT stealing your son's name!) We picked Caleb for a couple different reasons: (a) It's pretty much the only boy name we can agree on and (b) We both think the Caleb of the Bible was a strong and godly man; loyal and obedient, and we would love for our son to have him as his namesake. Over the summer I was listening to "Revive Our Hearts" and Nancy Leigh DeMoss (not sure if I spelled that right) was doing a study on the life of Joshua and one of the days was about Caleb. It is one of my favorite shows I've heard of her's and has stuck with me since. You can read about Caleb in chapters 13 and 14 in the book of Numbers.
*Played at the GR Children's Museum last week with the Nashes. We went to Yesterdog beforehand for dinner and later that night I kept wondering to myself, "What is it about Yesterdog that makes it so awesome? The dive atmosphere? The graffiti on the walls and tables and duct tape holding together parts of the seats? The soggy hot dog buns? The lack of plates? The mix of classic rock and alternative '90s music? The way you feel like you can't get your hands clean enough after you leave?" When I was thinking over all these things, all I can come up with it is that's it's a combination of all the above. The place sounds horrid when you break up all the characteristics and yet when it's all combined, it's addictive. And delicious. Tim and I think Guy Fieri should feature it on "Diners, Dives and Drive-ins." Grand Rapids' gem, right? We love it along with probably everyone else in West Michigan.
Anyways, the Children's Museum was a blast. My kids could not get enough of it. My parents are getting the kids a family membership for Christmas this year so we'll be able to go as much as we want. It is so fun.
*We've been doing projects around the house. We made a toddler bed for Ellie. We wanted to get her out of her crib and get it put away with lots of time before we have to get it out again. She has a jealous nature to her and we can see her being the type to crawl into the crib and try to take it back if it's still fresh in her mind. Tim and I (and Noah, as a "helper") made the bed and we love the way it turned out. So cheap, too. It's great. We start the next project tonight: painting the dining room. I want to paint the walls a tan color (I need a break from the green that's on there now and am in need of a neutral.) Tim said that was fine IF he could paint the ceiling red. So we'll see how this is going to turn out. I will admit, though, I trust his taste in colors completely and when it comes to paint projects, he has more knowledge than me so I can't always see the vision of what he is seeing. I'm trusting him on this one...

*The knitting needles and crochet hooks have found their way out of the basket and into my hands as the weather turns colder. I made Ellie a winter hat, Noah a hat, have one in my queue at Ravelry for myself and have two requests for hats like Ellie's from some other women. I have to say, every year I forget how much I enjoy crocheting. You can turn out a project so much faster than knitting.
*I found a website I am very excited about. It's for once a month freezer cooking and is called Once a Month Mom. I'm getting more into the freezer cooking/baking. What a great way to save money and time!
*A family from church invited us over to their house Saturday night for dinner. They have four girls - the oldest is five years. Can you imagine? We enjoyed getting to know them and had some great discussion. Another family invited us over Monday night. They have three kids and just found out they are expecting #4. Their oldest, Jack, is the same age as Noah and they play together great. Outside of preschool, Noah doesn't have any boys his age to play with so he loved being at a house with a friend his age that plays the same way he does. They also have a daughter just three months younger than Ellie and another girl who is three years old, so Ellie had fun playing with their baby dolls and girlie toys. Tim and I clicked really quickly with the parents and we ended up staying way later than we anticipated. Thankfully, we are able to put our kids to bed easily at other people's houses and they must have been so tired from playing that they were almost instantly asleep. We're enjoying getting to know people from the church and the ones we just spent time with are less interested in playing games and more interested in conversation and getting to know people on an intimate level so it leads to good discussion on what God is teaching everyone.
*We received some great news that some very good friends of our's from college may be moving back to Michigan in the next year if the husband gets the job he's applying for (please, God!!) It's looking really positive so far. It wouldn't be West Michigan, but they would be only about 2 hours away as opposed to 5, so we'll take it!
*I'm very much excited for the holidays this year. We're simplifying everything in order to focus more on what it's really about and not having the pressure of Christmas shopping and fighting the crowds in the stores is so freeing. Tim and I do have to go on Saturday and get the gifts for the Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes we're putting together, but we're planning on doing that without kids so we can get through faster and be able to focus. Plus, that one is just fun because you're providing children with something they won't be getting otherwise. I know that my kids will get gifts from family members and even the nieces and nephews we buy for will also be getting lots of other gifts as well from other family, but I don't think the shoebox kids will so it's just as fun for us to provide some fun for them. We'll have Noah and Ellie help us assemble and wrap the boxes when we get home to involve them in the experience.
*I'm looking forward to getting out my "2009 Goals" list out and seeing what I actually accomplished and then making one for 2010. My friend, Bekah, recently wrote a blog post about making a list of 30 things to do before she turns 30. She found it on someone else's blog and I think I might do it as well. That means I should start thinking because I only have about 13 months to go.
And if you're wondering how big the belly is getting, then here is a little update on that. I actually feel smaller than my other pregnancies so far, although I felt I started getting bigger much sooner.
This is actually me at 6 months pregnant with Noah (this is actually the first picture we took of me pregnant with him. Is that sad?)

This is me pregnant at 5 1/2 months with Ellie. I'm not sure why this writing is funky right now.This is me at the children's museum last week at 5 months pregnant. Yes, the sweater is the same. I'm limited right now on the clothing options when it comes to maternity. And it's so stinkin' comfy, too.