A Family Vehicle

Well, the baby hasn't arrived yet, but we're definitely getting ready. We've been wanting to purchase a family vehicle for a while - namely a minivan. But, with the vehicle market the way it is, we didn't think that was going to happen anytime soon. Today, we just happened to drive past a parking lot with a used 1998 Pontiac Transport for sale (like the one above). It's the exact van that my parents own, only white. So, we decided to stop and check it out. After driving it, having it checked out by Auto Zone and a mechanic, we made an offer. Our original offer was countered and we accepted! Matt will go to the Secretary of State this week and we will officially be a minivan family. It also feels good to know that we're able to pay cash for a new vehicle. Thank you Lord for providing!

Rachael's Personality

A Sad Day

Today was a sad day - the day Bwana left us for his new home. We weren't sure what day or time his new mother would call to come get him, so it kind of took us by surprise. Within 10 minutes of the phone call, she was here to pick him up. I was a basket case. As much as I wanted to find him a new home, I didn't realize how difficult it would be. I have to remind myself, "he's just a cat." Those of you cat-haters that are reading this, are probably finding it hard to be sympathetic. But, those of you that have had pets you adore and lost them or had to get rid of them, I'm sure you know what we're feeling. So, as pathetic as this sounds, Matt went to get me a movie and ice cream. Seems like a grand solution to feeling better about anything.

We really did love him. I feel bad that he needed to find another home. But, I'm excited to welcome our new addition, a little girl that will bring us much joy and fulfillment. And I'm sure will keep us busy!

More Christmas Pictures

Christmas 2007

Christmas came and went this year with a flash!  I can't believe we're already approaching the New Year.  What a whirlwind.  Here are some pictures from Christmas Day at my parents house. What fun we had!

Making Christmas Cookies

Matt and I started a new family tradition this year.  It's the first year that he and I have spent Christmas in our own home.  It's also our last year as a childless couple.  So, on Christmas Eve we decided to make Christmas cookies together.  And yes, I mean together.  Matt helped in each part of the process and we really had a great time! 

Merry Christmas

Today is Christmas Eve.  I can't believe it's already here!  This is the first year that Matt and I will wake up in our home together on Christmas Day.  It's also the last year that we will spend Christmas childless.  2008 holds many changes for us - and we are anticipating them greatly.  But, this morning as I reflect on the holiday festivities we will take part in, I'm most grateful for the birth of my Savior.  I'm celebrating more than a virgin, miracle birth.  I'm celebrating my own personal salvation - that Christ came to earth, lived a perfect life, and died a death that saved me from eternal separation from God.  Because of Christmas, I'm able to have a personal, vibrant relationship with the God of the universe.  Thank you Lord!

FOUND

It looks like we found a home for our cat.  It's bittersweet, really.  Monday night was our school's Christmas concert.  As we were leaving, a parent of one of Matt's students stopped us and said she was interested in our cat.  She lives in Indiana and already has 3 cats and a dog.  She said when she saw his picture, she thought he was "beautiful."  We were proud parents at that moment!  She was hoping to take the cat with her that evening - but we weren't ready to cut ties so quickly.  So, she's coming back on New Year's weekend to pick up Bwana (its much easier if I refer to him as "the cat").  Now that its final, I'm having second thoughts.  It seems like in the past week, he's been the sweetest cat ever.  (Which was totally not the case before.)  He has let me hold him, pet him, even play with him.  Then again, maybe its all my imagination.  Either way, he'll be leaving us in just one short week.  We're sorry to see him go - especially Matt - but know that soon after he leaves we'll have an even BETTER gift in our baby girl.  I'm certain the distraction of parenthood will help us get through this.

Free to a Good Home

Baby will be arriving soon and the cat needs to go.

Male Cat - 2 years old in February 2008

He is neutered, declawed in the front and up to date on most shots.  He is a great companion and is used to being around an energetic dog.  We would love to keep him, but with the baby arriving soon, want to reduce the amount of attention we have to focus on our pets.  

Let us know if you're interested.  We'd like to find him a home soon!

Mom's Birthday

My mom (soon to be grandma!) turned 49 this past week.  Sh...don't tell her I'm announcing her age on the world wide web.  To celebrate, we had a fondue dinner at Matt & Emily's house.  It was a lot of fun - with great food!

Church Baby Shower

I had my first baby shower yesterday.  It was so much fun!  My Aunt Sue and cousin Angie drove over for it.  Angie is also pregnant - which made for some very fun "pregnancy" stories.  Here are some pictures you can enjoy.  I am 34 weeks - only 6 to go!

Oh, It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like...

...Christmas!  We decorated for Christmas two days after Thanksgiving.  Matt's mom was here and she helped me do it all in under 2 hours.  It was so much fun to decorate the tree with her. Definitely more interesting than decorating with Matt - but don't tell him I said so.

An Eventful Day

We usually say we're going to "relax" on Saturday - which rarely happens.  Here's what we did today:

1 - We woke up this morning planning to clean out the garage and put up a new garage door. Both of which actually happened.

What we didn't expect was our car being vandalized!  Because we have a one stall garage and two cars, Matt parks his car in the driveway each night.  Someone decided late last night to throw a beer bottle through his back window.  They must have thrown it pretty hard, because we found the bottle in the front passenger seat, with frozen beer everywhere.  We live in a nice neighborhood, just one block from the police station downtown, and rarely have any trouble with people who are up to no good.  Needless to say, this was a kind of discouraging start to our day.  We bought a nice piece of plexi-glass from Menards and duck taped it in place.  That'll do for now.

But, we have a new garage door and experienced the year's first snow today, so there's something to be excited about!

Cravings or Gluttony?

I can't believe I'm even blogging about this, because I feel so ashamed, but here goes...

So, I've been working really hard on a power point for my boss (aka dad) for a board report he is giving today (as I type in fact).  The board meeting was set to begin at noon, with the kitchen delivering food shortly before.  Noon rolled around and still no lunch.  I had just finished putting the final touches on the power point and ran down to the kitchen to find out where the lunch was. They forgot!  Fortunately, we have a Little Caesar's Pizza right down the road, offering $5 hot and ready large pizzas.  I jumped in my car (literally) and drove down there to grab a few pizzas before the meeting got underway.  During my short jot there, I realized that Matt and I applied for new life insurance and are having our blood drawn at 5pm today, which means I have to fast after 1pm.  That means I had 20 minutes to figure out what's for lunch and eat it!  I decided to grab a bag of Crazy Bread and a Diet Pepsi as a last resort.  With time limited, this seemed like the best and most efficient option.  Here's the shameful part...by the time I got the food set-up for the board, I was starving.  You know that feeling where you go from "yeah, I could eat" to "yeah, I need to eat everything in sight now!"  I retreated to my office, locked the door and dug into the Crazy Bread.  Before I knew it, I had eaten the entire package!  (Yes, it tasted heavenly, but that's besides the point.)  Now I'm wondering - could this have been a craving?  Or maybe pure, sinful gluttony?  Or maybe cravings are gluttony and we just call them cravings because it makes it sound better?  Either way, I feel ashamed of eating the whole bag - which is normally meant for 4 people.  The saddest part, I don't even feel full!

Christmas Comes Early

Take 1

Christmas came early at the Neal house - thanks to Black Friday.  Yes, I got up at 5am and went shopping in order to purchase this new video camera.  Our little girl will be arriving in January and we'd like to be able to video take her for Grandma and Grandpa Neal in Kentucky.  Plus what a better time to purchase an item that can capture the most precious moments in life than when you're expecting your first child.  So, even though this video is very lame, hopefully we'll be able to post more interesting videos of our baby girl in two months and counting!

Thanksgiving

Matt's parents arrived on Wednesday afternoon to spend a long holiday weekend with us.  We so enjoyed having them around for a few days.  Here are some pictures of Thanksgiving Day with the two families combined.

Giving Thanks

I must admit, I read Pam's blog and was inspired to also note what I'm thankful for:

1)  My Father - heavenly that is.  He sustains me, loves me, chastises me and teaches me each day!

2)  My husband - who loves me unconditionally, serves me faithfully, and is committed to being holy as God is holy.

3)  My baby girl - who reminds me of her presence often these days.  Soon, I will hold her in my arms.

4)  My family - who never cease to make me laugh, cry, and pray - and seek God whole-heartedly.

5)  My "new" family - in-laws I mean.  They treat me as their own, love us better than we could ever love them in return and follow hard after the Lord.

6)  My ministry - aka job.  I'm forever reminded that we are all poor in spirit and God has commanded us to help those that are in need.  I'm amazed that I get paid to obey Scripture.

7)  My church - who is committed to the truth of God's word, the building of the family, and reaching out to a community steeped in religion desperately in need of a relationship with God.

8)  My home - where I can rest in the provisions of my Savior.  What a blessing to have heat, a warm bed, groceries in the kitchen and clothes to wear.

9)  My babies - Booga and Bwana.  At times I hate them - their shedding hair, hyperactivity and dirty feet.  But in the end, they love me unconditionally and remind me that children can be far worse.

10)  And last, but CERTAINLY not least, My friends - who make me laugh, encourage me and remind me that life is not all about me!  Those are true friends.

So, thank God today for the blessings he has bestowed upon you - because they are many!  May you have a wonderful Thanksgiving, filled with family, friends and lots of turkey.  

As big as a...

1st Trimester

3rd Trimester

Here we are folks - in all our glory.  31 weeks.  Thank God we only have 9 to go.  My stomach is growing ever so quickly, I suppose because the baby is gaining weight rapidly during these last two months.  I can't believe how quickly time flies.  It seems like yesterday I was only a few weeks along and showing.  Now I'm close to the end and SHOWING - if you know what I mean.  So, enjoy these two photos, side by side, showing just how much your body can change in a matter of months.  

Funny Pregnant Things I'm Doing:

1)  Walking with my back arched, so as not to tip forward from the weight of my stomach.

2)  Rolling over on all fours to get off of any piece of furniture: couch, bed, rocking chair.

3)  Holding my back at the waist - I always though pregnant women did this for effect - now I know its so you don't lose your balance every 2 seconds.

4)  Talking to my stomach like the baby is talking back.  If you haven't done this, then maybe I'm crazy.  But, I feel a real bond with her right now.

5)  Taking at least 2 showers a day.  Maybe this is to make up for the days when I won't have time after she arrives.

6)  Going to the bathroom 100 times a day - and a few times at night.

7)  Eating in the middle of the night.  Who does that?

8)  Crying on the drop of a hat.  I even warn Matt sometimes.  "Um, honey, I'm going to start crying now, there's no real reason, I just feel like I need to."  Followed by his snicker.

Needless to say, we can't wait for our baby girl to join us in the world.  Daddy is getting excited to see her, hold her, and kiss her!  

A Trip to the Windy City

Today, we're taking 5 students from Calvary to visit Moody in Chicago.  It should be a fun time - visiting the city again - and helping these students find some direction for life after high school.  Other than visiting the school, we plan to eat at Giordano's Pizza, Ed DeBevic's, shopping on Michigan Avenue and hopefully a quick jot into H&M.  So, don't be too jealous. :)  We'll only be there until tomorrow night.

UPDATE: Birthing Class

Yesterday's birthing class made for a long day.  What is typically a 6-week class was crammed into 9 hours on a Saturday.  But - it went very well!  Despite being exhausted throughout the morning lecture, the videos were very helpful in somewhat preparing Matt and I for the delivery of our baby.  We went out for dinner last night and I asked him if he had learned anything in the class.  He said, "Well, I didn't realize how much I was going to need to support you during labor.  Those women on the video looked like they were in a lot of pain."  He continued by telling me that he wanted to be a good "coach" for me - to help me breathe and work through the contractions.  WHAT A RELIEF!  If nothing else, this birthing class reiterated a lot of what I already knew, but also helped my husband to see how much I need him to be my partner during labor.  So, was it a success?  Well, I would say that even though the 9-hour class could probably have been a half day and just as profitable, it was a total success in our particular marriage and birth of our baby.

Birthing Class & Frustrations

Tomorrow is our birthing class - 8am-5pm.  Yes, you heard me - ALL DAY on Saturday!  Personally, I'm excited about the chance to spend a day learning about the birth of our little girl.  I figure I've carried her for 7 months, its time to learn how to get her out!  But, Matt is less than thrilled.  He even asked me today if he "had to go."  ARE YOU KIDDING ME??  Yes, you have to go!  I told him that he was 50% of making this baby and so far has had to do 0% of the work.  Maybe I was a little harsh.  Before you decide, consider that since we conceived Matt has frequently told me that he plans to be no where near the birthing room when the baby is born.  In fact, he said I could find him in the lounge, feet propped, watching ESPN.  Oh, and he said "Tell them to come get me when she's born."  Needless to say, his comment today irritated me greatly.  Those of you that have had children or are expecting will understand how lonely it can be at times to be carrying a child.  There are days when I feel like my husband can't understand what's happening to my body and my emotions.  I figured a birthing class would be a great way for him to take some ownership of this baby and the process of bringing her into the world.  Instead, he sees it as nothing but an inconvenience.  I could say I'm mad, but mostly just hurt.  I feel like this would be the perfect opportunity for him to show his support of me - and our baby - and it has been anything but that.  I do recognize however that we could wake up tomorrow morning, go to this class and enjoy every minute of it.  Matt could supersede my (extremely low) expectations, and everything will be dandy.  So, pray that happens!  I'll update when we get home.

Cake Smashing

Ok, so the Wedding Cake Question was posted by a friend recently and I thought I'd post a picture of our cake smashing in response. If you know us, you wouldn't expect anything else.

Another Weekend Away

Matt and I went to Saginaw, Michigan this weekend for "my best friend's" wedding. Hannah and I grew up together and were best friends in elementary school. She got married yesterday. It was a beautiful wedding - with all the colors of fall. Very her. We spent the night with my cousin Angie and her family. What fun! Her 2 1/2 year old son Ty is adorable. And they are expecting a new baby in February. It was a lot of fun, but exhausting. So, I'm home today - recovering. Recovering = catching up on laundry, cleaning and groceries. Happy Sunday!

A Weekend Away

What a weekend! Matt and I traveled to Canton, Michigan to visit Ikea on Saturday. We got LOTS of stuff for the baby's room - which is really coming together nicely. We just need the crib and we're all set!




After Ikea, we went to the Melting Pot for dinner and then stayed the night at a hotel. On Sunday, we slept in, ate a late breakfast and then went to the Twelve Oaks Mall to shop. It was a lot of fun! On our way home, we stopped at the Tanger Outlets and did some more shopping - then headed back to reality. Though it was only a 24-hour period - it felt like a week's vacation away! It was just what we needed during a busy, stressful fall.

I PASSED THE TEST!

I just got a call from my doctor telling me that I passed my glucose tolerance test! Then, she told me to do what no other doctor has ever done before - "Go eat some ice cream." YIPPEE!! I'm so excited. Thank you all for praying. It's such a relief to know that I don't have gestational diabetes.

Our First Gift

We received a special surprise tonight on our doorstep. Our first baby registry gift! Thanks to Brent & Brianna - we now have our Graco Baby Monitor. (I couldn't figure out how to flip this picture, but you get the gist.) Thanks Leggs!

At the Hospital

What a pleasant surprise. They have wireless internet access at the hospital! So, I'm here - about halfway through my testing - and actually able to accomplish some work in the meantime. I've already been fasting for 14 hours - difficult when you're used to eating for two. I've also already been poked twice. YOUCH! As easily as I bruise, I'll probably look like a heroine addict before this is all finished. But, despite all of this, I'm in a remarkably great mood. I've designed two power point presentations and plan to work on a prayer card for my husband next. It's helping to pass the time quite nicely. And, since I have my MAC with me, you can actually see me in the waiting room. What a joy! I should have test results tomorrow, so I'll update soon. Keep praying!

Bad News

So, I went to the doctor today for my "normal" check-up and glucose screening test. Well, I passed the normal check-up, but miserably FAILED my glucose screening test. What does this mean? I'm not exactly sure, other than there is a high possibility that I have gestational diabetes. I'm not completely shocked, because my mom had this condition with all three of her pregnancies. But, I must say I'm a little worried. I don't know much about G.D. but plan to research it before my test on Tuesday.

PLEASE PRAY! I would love to have my test done on Tuesday and have the doctor tell me I do not have G.D. What a blessing that would be! But, if that's not the case, pray that God gives me the strength to deal with all the complications of this condition, including diet, insulin shots, monitoring and of course, labor and delivery.

Also, if any of you have had this condition or know someone that has, I would love some positive feedback. I'm hoping its more common than I think and not as difficult to deal with.

New MacBook Pro

Yeah! I got my new MacBook Pro today for work. It's an awesome machine that will allow me to do quality work from home. Plus, its got really cool features. And now I can take pictures of my prego belly without Matt. What else can we invent that negates the need for husbands!? Haha! That was a joke.

We're Still Here

Ok, so I just realized I haven't blogged in a while. I'm home today taking some time off to relax from a busy couple of weeks at work. Its amazing how hard it is to relax at home. I sit on the couch and stare at the "work" that I could be doing - cleaning, bills, laundry. So far, I've only done one load of laundry and no cleaning. It's been quite relaxing.

The baby is growing and so am I. We are 25 weeks and counting. We're ready for our baby girl to join us in the world!

Another New Baby

Yeah! Our friends Eric & Katie finally had their little baby girl - Evie Sophia Nuelsen! Katie has been waiting somewhat patiently for little Evie to arrive. We're so happy for them and can't wait for our little one to join the world as well! Congrats Neulsen Family!

Insomnia

It's 3:19am and I am awake. Not just awake, but sleepy - oh no - I'm 100%, ready to go to work, awake. I tossed and turned in bed for a while, then decided that was ridiculous. So, here I am, surfing the web and blogging at 3am. Hopefully this will make me tired. We'll see.

More Belly & New Chair

Ok, its been an extremely busy couple of weeks and it seems my belly is growing ever so quickly. Because our schedules have been so hectic, this is my lame attempt at taking some "belly" pictures on my own.

The "Covered" Belly

Happy Mama

The "Bare" BellyThe new chair we got for only $10 at a yard sale!