It's a GIRL!

The Big Ultrasound - What Is It?

We had our anatomy ultrasound today to find out the gender of our little one. "What is it?" you ask. Well, you'll have to wait and see! We're giving the news to our family tonight and then we'll post more information. So stay tuned...

In the meantime, you can enjoy these new pictures. The top one shows the baby laying really straight - the black hole in the center of the abdomen is the fast beating heart. The second picture of is the baby waving "hi". It was so fun to watch the baby move on screen and feel it in my stomach at the same time. What a miracle.

Senior Retreat

This past weekend, Matt and I took the seniors on their first ever FastForward Senior Retreat. It was a fun couple of days. Matt did a great job planning it too!

A New Belly Picture

Here's a new belly picture. It probably doesn't look like I've grown that much, but it sure feels like I have.

New Baby

Congrats to Lee & Candace Nordine on their brand new baby girl, Isabel Lorraine Nordine. She was born August 19th at 11:51am weighing in at 7 pounds 8 ounces and 20.5 inches long. Lee and Candace have been good friends of our for a few years. Matt and Lee were on the same floor at college, roomed together in Kentucky before we got married, and both of us got married two weeks apart. We spent a lot of time together through small group, church and of course at Chipotle!

We love you guys and can't wait to meet your daughter in person. Congrats Mom and Dad Nordine! Look at that hair...

Rainy Days

The rain is pouring down here in Holland, Michigan and its quite a refreshing change from our hot, humid summer! The weather has been cool lately - which reminds me of fall and excites me for the months ahead. Although, I know that once fall comes that means winter is inevitable.

The seasons changing always causes me to reflect on how awesome our God is - how creative - the way he has formed the clouds to drop rain when they are too full. And how the rain gives us green grass and fresh flowers. I'm in awe of our God and can't wait to meet him face to face someday!

I Gave In

I know, I know. Call me weak, spineless...I prefer to be called submissive, gracious (although my husband would rebuff that statement)! I gave in to Matt's spelling of the name. Definitely not because I was persuaded to believe him. Moreso because I was tired of arguing about it - and quite frankly, I could tell victory wasn't in the near future. So, to save my marriage (boy, that sounds extreme!) and my sanity, I gave in. The good news? I like the name.

Baby Name Game

I went to the doctor today for another check-up and she listened to the baby's heart. We won't have an ultrasound for two more weeks, but she said the heartbeat sounds like a boy. I'm not sure what that means, but I was excited. We'll find out in two weeks if she's correct or not.

So, this doctor's visit prompted a series of events that led to Matthew and I "talking" about baby names. Most couples have a hard time agreeing on names - not us. We're more concerned about sweating the small stuff - like the spelling of the names. Oh yes - you're not mistaken. As if we haven't had enough to argue about over the years, we chose to argue about the spelling of the names we chose. And to make matters worse, both spellings of the name we like are used - so neither one is necessarily "wrong" - although Matthew would fight to the death that mine is the wrong one and his is the right one. Has anyone else had this issue?

And lest you think that I am unwilling to comprise - know first that I married into this name that was chosen. My husband has adored this name for YEARS (literally!) and all but demanded that it would be used for our first child of this gender. My only comment was that maybe we could alter the spelling to better reflect the correct pronunciation. You would have thought I started World War III or something.

Anyways...any thoughts about this dilemma? I'd really love to solve this.

My Brother's Wedding

Congratulations to Matt and Emily! They exchanged marriage vows on the lawn of a golf course and held the reception indoors under a glass dome. It was a gorgeous wedding - very symbollic of their relationship. We're thrilled to welcome Emily into our family. May God bless them with many years of wedded bliss!

More Wedding Pictures

More Rehearsal Pictures

The Rehearsal

4 months pregnant

I just couldn't resist adding another blog about my pregnancy. I'm officially 4 months pregnant this week and boy am I feeling it. Most of my pregnancy books say "At this point, people might start wondering if you're pregnant, because your belly is starting to pooch out." Well, let me tell you, my belly is more than "pooching out." I feel like I could be mistaken for 8 months pregnant at times. And for those of you that haven't been pregnant before, you'll be surprised to know that your bely can actually be much bigger at night before you go to bed. It's the strangest thing. I'm still waiting to feel the baby move. I can't wait! It could be several weeks before I feel anything - and I'm anxiously awaiting it. And lastly, I got for a check-up next Wednesday and will schedule an ultrasoud to find out the gender of our little one. We're hoping for a boy, but will be happy with either. We'll keep you posted.

Grace SL

This weekend Matt spoke at "Grace SL" a senior high camping trip at our church. We spent two nights in the woods - roughing it! It was a lot of fun. Here are some pictures!

More Belly

I've procrastinated on blogging...mostly because we've been too busy, but also because I'm not sure what to blog about. I know most of you are interested in the fact that we're having a baby - but do you want to read about it in every post? Probably not. So, here's another set of "belly" pictures. The belly seems to be growing at a rapid pace. In one week I've grown out of normal clothes, but am not yet into maternity clothes. As much as I hate to admit it, stretchy pants and mumus sound like the most comfortable option. No worries, the mumu won't see the light of day - and I promise my stretchy pants won't have stirrups on the end. Haha!