Sneak Preview

We went in for our check-up (32 weeks!) on Tuesday. The nurse took my blood pressure, as she always does, BEFORE we hear Asher's heartbeat, so it is always sky high. Then I hear it, I'm fine, and the BP returns to normal.

But this day's visit went a little differently. The nurse said she would just let Dr. Schroeder check my BP again when she came in. So Dr. Schroeder comes in and asks me how I'm doing. I mention that I was a little worried because all day Monday and then on Tuesday morning, I hadn't felt any movement. I told her I felt a little that day, but definitely less than I had been feeling. She got this really concerned look on her face and told me that she thought it would be best if I went down to the hospital and got checked out. She is an "err on the side of caution" kind of doctor, which is fine with me! She looks at my feet and notices they are really swollen and then asks me if I have been seeing spots, which I have. Then she takes my bp again, AFTER saying she wants me to go to the hospital. It was 160/90! Like it is going to drop after she tells me that.

So Kris and I drive down to Women's Hospital to be monitored and have a complete bio-physical profile done on Asher, which consisted on blood work and a thorough ultrasound. We were put in a room and I was hooked up and poked and told to lay on my side. Eventually, the nurse, who was super nice, came and got me to take me to get the ultrasound. The technician did the ultrasound and told us that Asher was behaving very well and doing all the tricks she needed him to do to know that he was OK. It was so amazing getting to see his little face. The image is grainy, but we could tell what he looks like and that he has chubby cheeks! The doctor that came in to check Asher out also said things looked good and that he is weighing in at a hefty 4 lb. 4 oz. right now. They assure me that that is not overly huge (58th percentile) but considering I still have roughly 8 weeks, I'm a little nervous!

Then we go back to the room, they discharge me, tell me everything looks good, and send us in our way. We were so thankful that Asher is doing well and reminded again how we are completely dependent on God to supply each heartbeat. We can do nothing on our own. We must look to Him to supply what we need, from heartbeats to salvation. So after our little "sneak peak," we are beyond excited and so anxious to meet this little guy!

of frogs and hippos

My in-laws gave me a gift card to Pottery Barn for Christmas. So far, I have purchased one $6 item at the PB Outlet for myself (one of those stainless steel bars in the shape of soap that is supposed to get the smell of onion or garlic off of your hands after you chop it) and 3 things for Asher. My friends with kids always used to tell me that once you have kids, it's more fun to get them things. It is so true!

I bought a monogrammed stocking for next non-specific Winter Holiday (some of you may call it Christmas,) a combination diaper/wipe/changing pad thing that is in his very cute colors of chocolate brown and light green, and a frog towel (also personalized.)

I liked the hippo towel. But I am boycotting all things hippo. I was recently traumatized by watching the National Geographic Channel. On it, they had a show in which a sweet little baby hippo got brutally murdered by a big mean man hippo for no good reason. It was awful and I cried. And now I do not care for hippos.

But I really like these towels and I wanted to get one for Asher. The pink bunny was out and the lamb looked more like a brown pig to me, so I went with the frog. What is strange about this is that if I ever see a live frog, I freak out. I have gotten in trouble on several occasions by my husband for screaming when I saw a frog. He gets mad at me and tells me I am only allowed to scream like that if I am being attacked, but I just can't help it. So the fact that I ordered a frog towel is really uncharacteristic of me.

The towel is really cute though. The only bad part is that instead of being just a regular hooded towel, it has frog feet and hands attached to it. It looks a little like a terrycloth frog pelt. If I would have seen the feet and hands that are spread out ready to suction on to something, I probably would not have purchased this item. But it's here and it's got his name on it, so it is ours to keep. And one day I will post a very cute picture of my little boy in his frog towel.

Cooking and Entertaining...Jamie-style

Tonight I hosted a Southern Living at Home party. I had a good turn-out and a lot of fun hanging out with good friends! I have had this party on my calendar for several weeks now. So that means I planned what to serve and went to the grocery store well in advance and then prepared everything yesterday so all I would have to do is lay it out today...right?

Wrong.

I was on the internet searching the Food Network's website at about 11 last night trying to find some good dips to make. Then, during the workshop I had to go to today, I made a grocery list. Then, I went to HEB when I got out at 3. Then, I went home, scrambled to make it all, cleaned up the house, and sat down on the couch to rest because I am in the process of making a human. Then, the doorbell rang and my friend Susanna was there ready to set up all her Southern Living paraphenalia. She got set up, friends showed up, and a good time was had by all (I hope!)

I kept thinking, as I was at HEB, "Rebecca would not be here now. She would have made all of this yesterday." But I managed to pull it all together, in spite of my lack of preparation. Maybe one day I'll learn or maybe not ;)

Let's just say that my giftings lie elsewhere...I'm not sure where, just elsewhere!

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

I have to admit, I do not know much about this man. I have heard positive and negative things about him, but have never really looked carefully into who he was or the approach he took to provoke change regarding civil rights. But as I was reading some articles on Desiring God, I ran across one Piper wrote about his church's focus on racial harmony. In it, he referenced Dr. King's Letter from Birmingham Jail, written on April 16, 1963.

I have to say, it is probably the most concise and well-written commentary on civil rights issues that I have ever read. The letter was addressed to the clergymen in the South that were either attacking him for his position or encouraging him to back off a little, even though they agreed with his stance, and give it some time. It honestly made me think, if I were living with the choice to either be ostracized for associating with black people or to just lay low enough to where I never had to take a stance either way, what would I have done? I found it interesting that he was more critical, not of his the overtly racist people who hated anyone not white, but the average person who simply did nothing, namely the average Christian.

I would encourage you to read this letter. His remarks about the church are especially convicting. Like most great thinkers, he hit a lot of things spot on, and fumbled on some major things as well. I think God purposes that so that we can keep the right perspective of these men...simply, that they are men, sinful and imperfect, but granted a perspective that the rest of us do not see in order that we may be encouraged, corrected, or informed. All this to say, I liked the letter and I would love to hear your thoughts on it, too.

Fun Book Meme?

Robin tagged me to participate in a "Fun Book Meme" (I'd never heard of it either.)

Here are the rules:

1)Grab the book closest to you
2)Open to page 123, go down to the fourth sentence.
3)Post the text of the following 3 sentences on your blog
4)Name the author and book title
5)Tag three people to do the same

However, I must offer this caveat. I teach second grade and am on my lunch break (the whole, fabulous 25 min.) so the book closest to me right now differs from what it would be if I was doing this at home.) But here goes...

"After a brief shower of orange juice, low clouds of sunny-side up eggs moved in followed by pieces of toast. Butter and jelly sprinkled down for the toast. And most of the time, it rained milk afterwards."

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett

This book does not have 123 pages, so I went to page 12. (Is that OK, Robin?)

So now I tag anyone else who read this blog who isn't Kathy, Rebecca, or Robin :)

Mookie-sitting

We are dog-sitters this week. Our good friends, the Sokolowskis, have gone out of town and we are watching their 4th child, Mookie for them. Mookie is an interesting little guy. He loves to lay on the couch, so he and I are getting along quite well. He was a little disoriented yesterday, trying to figure out why he had just been abandoned, but this morning, (at 4am!) he was back to his old self. Apparently his day gets started a little earlier than ours. Kris (much to my delight as I hope it is a reflection of things to come) got up with him and let him out and back in. He was wide awake at this point.

He even enjoyed a little quality time playing with his latex chicken.


In Mookie's mind, the chicken has been bad and he likes to correct it.


There is also a "bad chameleon."




We are told that every once in a while, Mookie works up the courage to play with it, but not often. The bad chameleon makes a scary noise and sticks out his tongue, where as the bad chicken just takes it without retaliating--much more Mookie's speed.

When he's not sleeping or disciplining his latex animals, he is staring at the door waiting for Laurie to come through it. I keep telling him only 2 more sleeps and then she will be here, but he doesn't care.

But all in all, good times at the Rives' with our friend Mookie.

This really isn't a "baby blog"...

...all evidence to the contrary. But it's where I'm at now, and I figure that since I am only remembering about 43% of what happens on any given day, it doesn't hurt to have a record of these things to look back on later. So here's the update...

We went to the doctor today, where we ran into Josiah's mom and dad. I weigh more than I ever thought possible (I'll spare you the number) but everything looks good. Asher is in sort of a "C" position, where his head is downward, but to the left and his bottom is against the right side of my uterus. He still has a nice strong heartbeat. It always really good to hear the sound of it beating! I measured at 31 weeks, but am just starting my 30th. So now I start going every two weeks up until week 36. Then I will go each week until he finally is here! We're getting closer!!

Asher's Room (and new bed)

I have decided that Asher's room will be in these shades of green and brown. I registered for everything at Target in this line that DID NOT have an elephant on it, with the exception of this pillow. I can handle one elephant, not a room full. There is such a thing as too much elephant, believe it or not.

I really like these colors together and most of the bedding is either a stripe, solid, or polka dot in the green and brown. The only thing that won't work for me is the bumper, which is way elephant overkill. So I am looking for a chocolate brown fabric with tiny white polka-dots and I am going to have it made.

We (and by that, I mean Kris) are going to paint his room with the light green at the top and then a light brown or taupe at the bottom with a white chair rail dividing the two colors. I want to do all white furniture. I think it is going to look really sweet once it all comes together. I'm excited!

And here is Asher's baby bed...


It's one of those convertable cribs that can be changed into a toddler bed and then a full size bed, but we are planning on getting some mileage out of this baby bed. It will be staying a baby bed for, Lord willing, seveal more babies.

Thankful Thursday #3

Since it has been about 5 months since my last Thankful Thursday post, I thought it would be appropriate to have another one. So here are 10 things that I am utterly grateful for this Thursday afternoon (as before, in no particular order.)

1. That Asher Owen Rives is making me look like this and that he is growing and kicking me and keeping me up at at night!

2. Reading through Ezekiel with my husband.

3. Our electricity bill being under $50 for the second month in a row.

4. A new compressor in our refrigerator.

5. The warm fellowship we have enjoyed with good friends over the past few weeks.

6. When I woke up this morning, there were new mercies.

7. The 24/7 Pregnancy Pillow that Laura let me borrow--it's fabulous!

8. Finally making something for dinner that tasted good (poppyseed chicken recipe that I got from Robin that she got from Rebecca!)

9. Prenatal vitamins

10. There are only 10 weeks until Spring Break!

State of the Union Address

Doesn't the president do one of these in January? I'm not sure, but either way, it's how I've decided to kick of my year on the blog. Here is where we are at as 2007 begins.

1. I am 29 weeks along today! I can't believe that in just a couple of months, Asher will be here (in the "out of the womb" sense.) It's still a little surreal but it continues to sink in more and more that in about 11 weeks, we will be, Lord willing, holding our little boy!

2. We have been in our new home on Knob Hill Lake Lane (that's right--4 words) for about 5 months now. And we just finished unpacking the last of the boxes a few weeks ago. It's a little overwhelming being homeowners at times...like when the refrigerator breaks and you go to call the office and then you realize that you are the office. That's fun. (The refrigerator is running nicely now though--we called a repairman and got it taken care of, you'll be glad to know.) Kris is in the process of painting our living room and we will soon be getting Asher's room together. But as fun as all of that is, we are constantly reminded that although this is where we live now, it is not home. Wood and bricks and super glue (and whatever else is holding this house together) are wonderful provisions, but are nothing to cling to. We are grateful, but we long for the day when we are home, in the truest sense of the word.

3. Kris is still working for his dad and running sound on Saturdays at Second Baptist's North Campus. I am still teaching (wrangling?) second graders. I'm hoping to work until spring break and then bid a fond farewell to the world of public education. So if any of you need a bunch of teacher crap, you can have mine...just let me know.

4. We have decided, through much prayer and a series of events, that the time had come for us to look for another assembly to worship with. There does come a time, we have learned, when the best thing to do is to part ways. We have a deep love for the believers who gather to worship at GRBC and continue to enjoy the fellowship of those to whom our hearts have been so closely knit. But it was time and if we didn't fully believe that the best thing to do was leave, then we would still be there. So we begin the new year looking for the place where the Lord would have us gather to worship Him and serve the Beloved there.

5. Kris is about to turn 32 (January 30)! I'm married to someone in his mid-thirties! I am still barely out of the cradle as I enjoy the last few years (ok...last 2 years) of my twenties. Seriously though...I am so grateful for the man God has given me to who proves to be more perfect for me than I ever could have dreamed someone could be. I am thankful for the years God has granted him thus far, and pray that many more will be given, because each new day brings a new reason to marvel at how good God has been in providing my husband for me.

So that's where we're at...no clear-cut future or solid 10 year plan, but trusting the one who clothes the lilies and feeds the birds of the air will give us what we need and withhold what we don't.

soli Deo gloria.

Honey Butter Biscuit in a Bag

Usually, I am not a big hot tea drinker. Kris is because of his time in England. He is very considerate and will occasionally offer me a cup of Earl Grey, but hot tea is something I could take or leave. Until this.

This tea, as the title states, is a honey butter biscuit in liquid form. When you take the first sip, your brain needs a moment to sort through the mixed signals because at first it goes "Yea! A honey butter biscuit!" But then it goes "Wait a minute! I'm not chewing anything, I'm drinking hot tea! What the heck is going on?" It is so delicious and we have our good friend Pez to thank for introducing us to so great a hot tea.

Some Thoughts on Christmas from C.H. Spurgeon

THE GREAT BIRTHDAY

There is no reason upon earth beyond that of ecclesiastical custom why the 25th of December should be regarded as the birthday of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ any more than any other day from the first of January to the last day of the year; and yet some persons regard Christmas with far deeper reverence that the Lord's-day. You will often hear it asserted that "The Bible and the Bible alone is the religion of Protestants," but it is not so. There are Protestants who have absorbed a great deal besides the Bible into their religion, and among other things they have accepted the authority of what they call "the Church," and by that door all sorts of superstitions have entered. There is no authority whatever in the word of God for the keeping of Christmas at all, and no reason for keeping it just now except that the most superstitious section of Christendom [he means Catholics] has made a rule that December 25th shall be observed as the birthday of the Lord, and the church by law established in this land (the Church of England] has agreed to follow in the same track. You are under no bondage whatever to regard the regulation. We owe no allegiance to the ecclesiastical powers which have made a decree on this matter, for we belong to an old-fashioned church which does not dare to make laws, but is content to obey them. At the same time the day is no worse than another, and if you choose to observe it, and observe it unto the Lord, I doubt not he will accept your devotion: while if you do not observe it, but unto the Lord observe it not, for fear of encouraging superstition and will-worship, I doubt not but what you shall be as accepted in the non-observance as you could have been in the observance of it. Still, as the thoughts of a great many Christian people will run at this time towards the birth of Christ, and as this cannot be wrong, I judged it meet to avail ourselves of the prevailing current, and float down the stream of thought. Our minds will run that way, because so many around us are following customs suggestive of it, therefore let us get what good we can out of the occasion. There can be no reason why we should not, and it may be helpful that we should, now consider the birth of our Lord Jesus. We will do that voluntarily which we would refuse to do as a matter of obligation: we will do that simply for convenience sake which we should not think of doing because enjoined by authority or demanded by superstition.

[He then offers a lengthy exposition of Luke 2:10: "The angel said unto them, 'Fear not: for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.'" He follows that with a stinging rebuke against the London's holy day merriment: "I slander not our countrymen when I say that drunkenness seems to be one of the principal items of their Christmastide delight." He ends with an encouragement for Christians to "keep the day."]

. . . You may keep his birthday all the year round, for it were better to say he was born every day of the year than on any one, for truly in a spiritual sense he is born every day of every year in some men's hearts, and that to us is a far weightier point than the observation of holy days. Express your faith first, as the angels did, by public ministry. Some of us are called to speak to the many. Let us in the clearest and most earnest tones proclaim the Savior and his power to rescue man. Others of you cannot PREACH, but you can SING. Sing then your anthems, and praise God with all your hearts. Do not be slack in the devout use of your tongues, which are the glory of your frames, but again and again and again lift up your joyful hymns unto the new-born King. Others of you can neither preach nor sing. Well, then, you must do what the shepherds did, and what did they? You are told twice that they SPREAD THE NEWS. As soon as they had seen the babe they made known abroad the saying that was told them, and as they went home they glorified God. This is one of the most practical ways of showing your joy. Holy conversation is as acceptable as sermons and anthems. There was also one who said little, but thought the more: "Mary PONDERED all these things in her heart." Quiet, Happy spirit, weigh in thy heart the grand truth that Jesus was born at Bethlehem. Immanuel, God with us;—weigh it if you can; look at it again and again, examine the varied facets of this priceless brilliant, and bless, and adore, and love, and wonder, and yet adore again this matchless miracle of love.

. . . Come and worship God manifest in the flesh, and be filled with his light and sweetness by the power of the Holy Spirit, Amen.


——Charles H. Spurgeon (1834-1892). "The Great Birthday" from TWELVE CHRISTMAS SERMONS DELIVERED AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1976, p. 91, 101. ISBN 0-8010-8081-9.

I am currently reading...

Overcoming Sin and Temptation by John Owen. It is his original work but cleaned up a little (not that Owen was lacking; the shortcoming is obviously ours.)

It is not abridged or paraphrased, but the editors (Kelly Kapic and Justin Taylor) have cleaned up the punctuation, made the outline format a little more logical to a modern-day reader, translated the Latin he constantly throws in, and provided a glossary for out-of-date or uncommon words. I've only attempted to read pre-masticated Owen in the past (letting someone else do the hard work,) so reading the text as he wrote it, has been good. The editors went to great lengths to make Owen more accessible to believers today. Owen states that he wrote these volumes because in his day, even in the best professors, he observed a serious lack of seeing the necessity of constantly waging war against and mortifying the sin that remains within. Not much has changed. I see the absence of it in my own life to a discouraging degree.

So all this to say, if you have wanted to read Owen, but felt overwhelmed like I did, this is an excellent way to have the best of both worlds: easier to understand, yet Owen in his own words.

(I feel like LeVar Burton on Reading Rainbow)

No Christmas Tree?

This will be our second Christmas that we have been married and yet again, we do not have a tree. I'd like to say it is because I have really strong Puritan convictions and refuse to celebrate the holiday because of lack of biblical warrant. However, it's really just because it seems like a big hassle. So I put some garland on my mantle and a bowl of red and green M&Ms out and called it a day.

I'm sure next year we'll have a tree to plop poor Asher in front of (in some teetering-on-the-edge-of-feminine Christmas sweater) to take his picture, but until then, I'll just burn a fir scented candle and pretend.

Go to the Elephant!

I am not Solomon, nor have I been commissioned to add anything to Proverbs, nor do I want to, but if I were to write my own proverb, I would borrow from the "Go to the Ant, O sluggard" proverb in chapter 6 and write "Go to the elephant, O pregnant woman!" Here's why:

I watched a show on the National Geographic Channel the other evening about animals in the womb. It was so fascinating to see the growing process of the dolphins and puppies and elephants in utero. Did you know that an elephant's gestation period is TWO YEARS!!! And before it is born, that poor mama elephant has a 300 lb. baby inside her, kicking around with those big feet! So my 40 weeks of having a little single-digit (Lord willing!) pound baby in me seems very managable, to say the least! So that is my advice for all of you who have been, are, or will be pregnant...Go to the elephant!

And now for an Asher update...We went to the doctor yesterday and everything is looking good, we are thankful to report! I am 26 weeks today, but measuring 27 1/2 weeks, so either somebody has their dates wrong or this baby is a big 'un. I lean towards the latter. His heartbeat was nice and strong at 151 bpm and he continues to wiggle and squirm, much to my delight, because that lets me know he's OK! He can keep me up as much as he wants to.

Baby Tye is Here!

Congrats to Russ and Bethany on the arrival of their baby boy, Tye Maddox Leatherman! I don't have a picture to put on here (yet) but I want to share the good news and say how excited Kris and I are for our good friends!

Psalm 127

A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon.

1 Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.
2 It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives to his beloved sleep.

3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children [1] of one's youth.
5 Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

my new best friend

Let me preface this by saying, I love being pregnant. All the changes and discomforts are more than worth it, but I have reached a point where I would not dream of leaving home without a bottle of these little beauties in my purse.

But overall, I could not be happier. I am half way through my 24th week and Asher is growing and wiggling and making sure we know he's there! I love feeling him move around. It kind of feels like a big fish flipping around. Not quite as picturesque as the "butterfly flutter" that people say baby movement feels like, but way more accurate in my opinion.

More later...I need to go have some Tums!

My Pumpkins

I have looked forward to the day when I could decorate my porch with some mums and pumpkins for Fall. I have had these on display since October and have thoroughly enjoyed the aesthetic pleasure they have brought. But now, we are approaching the Winter months and their moment has passed. So now I think I will transition to a tasteful wreath hanging on the front door. Unlike my neighbors, I subscribe to the "less is more" school of thought. My neighbors are more of the "how many inflatable, lit-up, santa-reindeer-snowman monstrocities can I fit in my yard" persuasion. To each his own.

So to close out the fall decorating season, here is one more picture of my first porch pumpkin.

27 Going on 13

I still feel 13 most of the time. I am amazed that I am allowed to be married and have a job and own a home and have a baby because, inside, I so do not feel like a grown-up. Should I be worried? I mean, I am turning 27 in 3 days, but it feels like I am really just fooling everybody. Ha! You just think I am a grown-up! I'm really still in junior high worried about what people think of me and looking forward to the day that I can drive a car (It still amazes me that I have a license sometimes...just to show you the depths of my inner struggles.)

I look at my husband (and I look at my belly!) and I realize that, regardless of how it feels, growing up actually happened to me, but for some reason, it doesn't feel the way that I thought it would. I'm not sure what I was anticipating. Maybe that's part of the problem. Maybe I was thinking that you change from "you" to a completely different person when you grow up and so when I stayed "me," I got confused. I'm just an older, taller, slightly more informed version of me at 13. Scarlily the same, scarily different.