Key West Mini Vacation

Tim and I left Sunday and got back late last night from a little mini vacation to Key West, Florida. It was so nice and wonderful to be able to spend some time in the sun. It was almost therapeutic!! And of course, highly recommended. :) Hopefully spring will come sooner rather than later here in Ohio!! This is the view from our hotel room that we ended up getting almost $100 off! The ocean is to the right and beautiful pool in the foreground.

If any of you have ever been to Key West, you know that there is really not much to do. It is very pretty and of course warm and sunny, but the beaches are NOTHING to be bragged about as they are pretty much nonexistent. So, mostly, there are just historical landmarks and different museums to go to as well as shopping. This is a a picture of the original southernmost house in the US...it lost its award by 18 inches to a not as big and beautiful house, but this one still gets all the glory. :)

And of course, the southernmost point of the US...

the southernmost beach...

They had the "southernmost" everything...we stopped taking pictures after awhile.
The water was beautiful as well, but a little too chilly to spend much time in. We put our feet in and that was enough for us. :)

We spent most of our time by our pool watching these birds and just being able to relax, enjoy the sun, and be together.

The one thing that Key West is known for is beautiful sunsets. I will say that the ones we were able to see were beautiful, but from pictures I have seen, we didn't see anything. Here is a picture of the one we DID watch.

And of course, since I am now just one day shy of 28 weeks, I figured I should post some belly pictures, taken in Key West of course. :)

When my mom saw these pictures, she said "Wow, you look HUGE!" I wasn't sure what to think about that, but I guess I should take it as a compliment? She also said "it looks like you are carrying a boy...or a girl." Oh mother...ya think?!
And of course, a picture of my oh so handsome husband who needs a haircut but says his long hair keeps his head warm, so he is waiting till spring. He does work outside when it is -20 outside...I guess I can live with it. :)

Some cool scenery pictures compliments of my husband...

So there you have it, pictures of our little mini vacation to Key West, Florida. We had a great time and were so thankful to be able to go. Other than a trip to California in a couple weeks to see Tim's family, this was our last trip before the baby is born. But believe me, we won't stop traveling, not with these free flight benefits!! It just might slow down a little. :)

Painting the Baby's Room

So although, this is not what others view as a baby's room because its not pastel colors with little lambs or whinnie the pooh or anything, I absolutely LOVE it. It is exactly what I wanted and Tim did a great job painting today while I was at work. Thanks to Tim's family for providing all of the baby bedding. I can't wait to get the crib to be able to finish the room!
Doing the pre-taping part

I love this man and can't wait to see him as a Daddy!

Halfway done...Tim was really worried about the color at first...he thought it had a lot of peach tone to it and it was supposed to be "barley." Good thing he didn't give up because it dried beautifully!

The semi completed project...He still has to paint the white in the middle white, and possibly add another coat. But I LOVE it!!! This makes me even more excited!

My Thoughts on Motherhood

I am just a few short weeks from the so called "dreaded" 3rd trimester. The baby is now big enough to where I am feeling it move I think almost all the time. It seems to like to move the most when I lay down to sleep at night, preventing me from sleeping. :) And definitely doesn't like to move when Tim is trying to feel it kicking. :) But it is interesting that the baby has reacted to Tim's voice, or maybe it was just a coincidence. Either way, I thought it was special. :) While I have enjoyed this second trimester a lot and thank the Lord for this precious gift every day, this third trimester brings about what I am most scared about...motherhood. Its something you hear talked about by so many women as being the best thing in the world. Its something every little girl dreams about, including me as a child. But I am scared to death. I feel I am too selfish for this position. How will I manage my time to get the necessary things done as a wife and be a mom at the same time? I know others do it all the time, but I don't think I have ever had the greatest time management skills. Will I be able to love this child selflessly, regardless of what he/she may choose to do with their life? Will I be able to teach this child to grow in the Lord and fear Him and love Him with their whole heart when I myself don't do what I should in my daily walk with Him? I've always had issues with tiredness (since Mono in the third grade) how will I manage that with being a mom? Especially in the first few months of during the night feedings. This whole breastfeeding thing is weird to even think about, how am I going to be able to do a good job? What if I can't do a good job? Formula is really expensive. What if I can't provide the way I want to? My parents gave me so much as a child. And by that, I don't mean toys and clothes and meaningless things like that. (Although, I was spoiled in this area too) I wouldn't be opposed to the only toys my kids having is a slinky, wooden blocks, coloring books, and play dough. Let their imaginations come up with the rest! What I mean is that my parents were so selfless with their own lives and wants and desires that they saved and paid for my ENTIRE college. All 4 years and summer classes included. And not just mine, my 3 sisters as well. Not to mention the Christian school I went to from 6-12th grade. My parents understood that an education was important and instead of remodels on the house or new fun gadgets, they provided for our education, our future instead. I want to be able to do this for our children but at this point in time, I don't think I am selfless enough. Plus, Tim and I both agree that I should be a stay at home mom as much as possible...is that being selfish already? Should I work to help provide for my child's future? All of this is so overwhelming to me right now. The baby's movement lets me know on a regular basis that it is growing and it is coming and there is nothing I can do about it! Again, I am excited, scared, happy, overwhelmed, nervous, all at the same time. Many of you know as you watched me go through losing a baby that I don't handle not having control very well. And, I think as a mom, I am going to have to realize that I can't and won't have control all the time. It is so hard for me to "let go and let God." I pray that I will be the woman, wife, and mother that the Lord wants me to be, the one that is so beautifully described in Proverbs 31. But I have such a long way to go, and I am running out of time! or so I feel...I know its a lifetime of daily surrendering myself to God but I wish there was a quick fix for my selfishness TODAY! The main reason I wanted to write this was because I want to be able to go back to it to remember my heart and what I truly desire when life comes at me fast and all I want to do is think about me. Hopefully some of these thoughts will help direct my steps a little over the next few months and of course come May when Tim and I's lives change forever. But also, I want to ask you as my family and friends to be praying for me, especially in this area of selfishness. I want to grow in the Lord and put Him FIRST above Tim, above this baby, above anything else in my life. Thank you for reading, if you've made it this far, and for your prayers.

Baby belly?

I'm not really sure if I would really call it a "baby belly" but this is all I have at 25 weeks. I guess I should be thankful that I'm not bigger yet but at the same time, I only have 15 more weeks left, I want to have a least SOME belly!The doctor said everything is looking good so far. I'm measuring pretty much right on target and the baby's heart rate is good and steady (it was irregular last visit after my accident). Next visit is the glucose test to see if I am diabetic...should be fun stuff :)