a lime, a peach and a lemon oh my!

Go Big Red!  a onesie from Aunt Elsie and Uncle Al! 

Grammy and Papa sent jammies and a book after we told them the big little news :)

June 27, week 12: baby is 2 1/2 inches "crown to rump" - the size of a lime 

July 4, week 13: baby is approximately 3 inches long, the size of a peach :)

July 11, week 14: baby is approx 3 1/2 inches long, the size of a lemon

the food comparisons confuse me because the shapes are all different, but they're kinda cute.
i get a little email each week telling me all kinds of details about baby's growth.
in one way January 9 (d-day... "due day" that is) seems far away.  on the other hand, i can't believe it's already been 14 weeks!!

i officially couldn't button a pair of pants today. not as in uncomfortably tight. couldn't button a pair of pants as in they absolutely wouldn't button.   pulled out the old rubber band trick.  turns out it's rather uncomfortable to wear pants unbuttoned.  on the other hand, it makes me feel legitimately pregnant :)

growing,
ren

rice

3 weeks after we found out we were pregnant, we just weren't quite sure how far along we were.  i felt more sick than i thought was "normal" for 5-6 weeks, and if we did the math right, that pregnancy test would have showed up positive WAY too early.  so we decided to do an ultrasound to date the pregnancy.  i was secretly hoping i was magically a month further than we thought, but alas, just a few days.  

getting ready.  the ultrasound tech thought there was 2 babies at first!!!!! but, she confirmed there was just 1. 

6 weeks-ish

this is the ultrasound she gave us.  it was fun to get one done, but that baby looked like a grain of rice!! the cutest grain of rice i've ever seen if i do say so myself.  

at our 11 week doctor appointment, we heard the heartbeat. wow! so speedy. 

B is for...

baby :)

considering most people who read this blog are people i know, this is probably not new to you.  but this blog is an outlet for me to write about life, faith, teaching, family, whatever....

and now, life includes a baby.  well, a baby-in-utero currently.
so along with the rest of my random thoughts, you get random baby thoughts!

this moment was so exciting. i just kept blinking and looking at it to MAKE SURE there were 2 lines.

we found out at 3 in the morning... need i say more?

daddy.

well there it is folks.

more to come. 

compassion

Like I said yesterday, I'm reading through the gospels chronologically right now.  Many of the stories, I've heard time and again, and yet God is always teaching me something new through His Word.

One thing that has really been apparent to me in a new way is Jesus' compassion.
Sure we hear that Jesus was loving and compassionate, but his compassion is being illuminated for me in a new way.

For example,

"Herod sent and had John beheaded in the prison, and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother.  And his disciples came and took the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus.  Now when Jesus heard this he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself.  But when the crowds heard it,t hey followed him on foot from the towns.  When he went ashore and saw a great crowd, he had compassion on them for they were like sheep without a shepherd.  He began to teach them many things and heal their sick."  (From Matthew 14:10-14 and Mark 6:27-34)

So here's John the Baptist, whom Jesus has recently called the greatest man born of a woman.  He's also Jesus' cousin, close in age as we know from Luke 1.  After however many days it takes to bury John and travel to where Jesus is, John's disciples tell Jesus that he's dead.  I wonder if they told him the details of how?  Probably... (details in Matthew 14:1-12).  So then, Jesus wants to get away by himself, understandably.  He gets on this boat to go somewhere quietly by himself, but when he gets to the other shore, there are crowds of people waiting for him.  He doesn't turn the boat around, he doesn't get out and make a bee-line for the nearest mountain top.  He feels compassion for them because they want to be lead, so he begins to teach them and heal the sick. 
 
That really nudged my heart. 
How selfless.  How caring.  True compassion.

How often I am selfish in what I'm willing to give to others - selfish with my time and energy.  Somehow i've adopted this idea that I can only give so much of myself.  That wasn't Jesus' attitude. 
Lord, help me to become more compassionate!

Growing,
Renee

petty

My chronological reading-through-the-bible plan has me studying the gospels right now.

"John answered, 'Master we saw somene casting out demons in your name and we tried to stop him because he does not follow with us.'  But Jesus said to him, 'Do not stop him for the one who is not against you is for you.'"  (Luke 9:49-50)

What came to mind when I read that, and stopped me in my tracks, was this question - is that what Jesus would say to our petty denominational disagreements today?

John's statment - he doesn't follow with us - sounds like their version of "he doesn't listen to the pastor i listen to" or " he goes to a lutheran church, not an evangelical church."

Don't get me wrong - there are majors and minors - and I don't want to brush over the majors.  I'm not advocating some peace circle where we all sit around and sing kum-by-ah with every one that says "I believe in my God, you believe in your God, what's the difference?" 

That Jesus is God - major
What you wear to church - minor
That the music at church lifts high the name of Jesus Christ and the truth of God's word - major
The style of that music - minor
The style of the church building- minor

We need to know who's on our team, but be careful how we define who is on our side.

I imagine myself asking the question John asked... "Master, we saw someone                           [fill in the blank] and we tried to stop him because he doesn't follow with us."

put it this way...

Me: Jesus, I saw someone singing hymns instead of contemporary Christian music in church last week and I tried to stop him because he's not with us - you know, you, me, and contemporary Christian music.

or

Me: Jesus, I saw someone who doesn't go to adult sunday school after church and I tried to correct him because he's not with us - you know, you Jesus, me, and the way we do church.

I then imagine Jesus answering, "Don't stop him.  For the one who isn't against you is for you."

Let's agree that we'll always do the minors differently.  But we better be functioning in unity as the body of Christ and realize who is truly "for us."  How much more could God use us if we weren't busy fighting battles with those on the same team?

I am totally guilt of this!  John and I, we're in the same boat.  Lord help me to not get caught up on the minors, and to work together with other believers to accomplish your work here on earth.

In progress,
Renee

dos anos

The mister and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary this past week.  We decided it feels like 2 years have gone very fast, and at the same time, it's hard to imagine my life before Ben.  Not that I can't remember, but it just feels weird to remember life without him.  

Some random thoughts about marriage.

The oneness God gives to married couples seems like a miracle.  You are 2 separate people, even through engagement, though you might be inseparable.  But something happens when you get married - He knits your hearts together in a new way.  It takes time to adjust, yet it happens immediately. 

Our communication skills have grown exponentially since we said our I-do's.  I don't think we had any idea how differently we communicated until about 4 or 5 months into the first year.  Let's just say I process verbally, Ben processes mentally.  And that's just where the differences begin :) We've come a long way, thank the Lord, but we're still learning.

We read a book or 2 before marriage that helped us think through some things.  I think the most helpful things we discussed before marriage were expectations (in a number of areas of life) and finances.  Realizing we had expectations about various things (small and big) and discussing them made for less unpleasant surprises (and fights) these past 2 years.  Don't get me wrong... we're still discovering new things about each other frequently!  For better or worse :)

Finances - praise the Lord he's helped us be in agreement in this area and establish good habits early on.  While we aren't perfect at spending and budgeting, it is an area we are constantly trying to get better in.  Even thinking about it is a good start.  God has been faithful in meeting our needs and teaching us how to manage money. 

We're learning how to forgive and ask for forgiveness.

Marriage exposes the real you like no other relationship on earth.  I couldn't have realized that before getting married.

Ben says thank you for every meal I cook.  It makes me feel appreciated. 

Sometimes, I go a mile-a-minute and it overwhelms Ben.  I've learned to recognize it and slow down in those moments.  Usually the moment of realization goes like it this:

           me: am i overwhelming you

           ben: a little

           me: ok.  [slowing down]  then we both laugh.

   

It's fun to have a friend who shares all your secrets, good and bad.  A friend you can say anything to.  A friend where there's never any judgement.  A friend to tell you like it is, no walls or fences or barriers.  Marriage is a blessing.  



we celebrated with a picnic... a little sparkling lemonade for this pregnant lady.

Cheers to 2 years!

we spent the afternoon relaxing together then we pooped out for the 10:00 fireworks show across town.  we went for ice cream and watched our wedding video instead :)

in love,
renee

Copy Cat

I read a few blogs that regularly post pictures of day-to-day life.
Like this one, this one, and this one.
Sometimes from instagram, sometimes from their fancy DSLR cameras [insert hopeful sigh... maybe one day].
Well I love the idea of putting up pictures of this week's day to day happenings, especially since we live far from some of our friends and family. 
And the good ol' iphone makes it so easy to capture the every-day of life. 
So, I'm copying the idea... sharing ideas is what blog world is all about, right?
I've spent about 3 minutes trying to come up with a clever name for this weekly picture post, but I don't have anything catchy yet.  Today, we'll call it 'shots on a saturday'... since it's saturday and alliteration is always a win.  (Now that I think about it, it sounds like a college party invite. wah wah. title fail. maybe i'll have something better next time.)

for now, here goes my first edition of 'shots on a saturday'  :)

Real life.

I used a bunch of scraps to make burp cloths for my sister (in-law) who is due with her first baby July 13!  we figured... you have to have burp cloths so why shouldn't they be cute?!

We went to the olympic swim trials (held in Omaha) - saw Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte race, amongst others.  Each race was SO exciting!  Very cool!

I worked on another baby blanket, using all fabric scraps i had already :) I'm considering opening an etsy (or similar) shop for baby blankets... we'll see if the idea pans out.

filled out paperwork for my new FULL TIME TEACHING JOB! woohoo!

my MIL (mother-in-law) made a nice American meal on the 4th... mmm fried chicken!

I cut out 24 ice scream scoops for a bulletin board.

I made the title on the right first, but then I don't think it's big enough... so  I made the title on the left. not sure which one to use. I like both...thoughts? 

a good way to start a saturday morning.  :) 

What'd you do this week?

Postmomdernism quote

"Postmodernism tells us there’s no such thing as truth; no such thing as meaning; no such thing as certainty. I remember lecturing at Ohio State University, one of the largest universities in this country. I was minutes away from beginning my lecture, and my host was driving me past a new building called the Wexner Center for the Performing Arts. He said, “This is America’s first postmodern building.” I was startled for a moment and I said, “What is a postmodern building?” He said, “Well, the architect said that he designed this building with no design in mind. When the architect was asked, ‘Why?’ he said, ‘If life itself is capricious, why should our buildings have any design and any meaning?’ So he has pillars that have no purpose. He has stairways that go nowhere. He has a senseless building built and somebody has paid for it.” I said, “So his argument was that if life has no purpose and design, why should the building have any design?” He said, “That is correct.” I said, “Did he do the same with the foundation?” All of a sudden there was silence. You see, you and I can fool with the infrastructure as much as we would like, but we dare not fool with the foundation because it will call our bluff in a hurry."     - Ravi Zacharias

The weirdest thing happened the other day!

So I was watching a basketball game (well, half-watching) and it's going along, everything as normal.  Back and forth.  2 points here, 3 points there.  Every other shot, there's a foul and a free throw.  But then... I heard the crowd go wild.  I looked up at the t.v. to watch the replay and I see the player with the ball (we'll call his team the Bulls) accidentally step out of bounds.  Of course he tried to save it and throw the ball to an "in bounds" teammate, but he was definitely out of bounds with the ball.  That's not the weird part.  The weird part is the ref blew his whistle and signalled it was the other team's ball.  The out of bounds Bulls player argued... not that he was out of bounds but that there should be a new boundary in this incident.  The ref thought about it and then okayed it.  The fans went wild.  The fans were ecstatic. 

Weird, right?  When have they ever moved the boundaries in a basketball game?  So now, the boundary was an arbitrary foot outside the real boundary.

Fast forward a few minutes later.  A player on the opposing team (we'll call them the Lakers) falls out of bounds by a couple feet, crashing into the court-side chairs.  The ref blows the whistle.  The player argues that previously the Bulls player had stepped out of bounds and the boundary had been moved, so why wouldn't they just move it again.

Lo and behold, the ref agreed.  They asked everyone with court-side seats to move.

This went on for the rest of the game until the boundary was a jagged line around the court jutting as far into the stands as 4 rows up the bleachers.

I had never seen anything like it.

..................................................................................................................................

Ok, but honestly, moral relativism.
We have an agreed upon boundary.
Someone steps outside said boundary.
So, instead of helping them back in the boundary, we make the boundary a little bigger and cheer them on.

The implications in a basketball game are so obvious.  Clearly, chaos ensues if you stretch the boundaries.  That's why it never happens.  There are boundaries on the court for a reason.
The implications in life - well, many people reading this would be ticked.  They would say who the heck are you to tell me where my moral boundaries should be?   

[I'm not saying MY moral boundaries are perfect... but there is a perfect standard, and that is God's.  His are perfect.]

The Bible says the law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. (Psalm 19:7)

Some would say, even to God, who the heck are you to say there should be moral boundaries?   On a much less serious, but equally absurd level, it's like the basketball player saying to a ref who the heck are you to tell me I can't step out of bounds? 

But if we stretch the boundaries, when do we stop?

It continues until... when?  Forever?



p.s. the other night at bible study, we were talking about the fall (Genesis 3).  A discussion about boundaries came up and my sports efficianto friend Trevor commented that there are boundaries around a basketball court for a reason.  He originated the analogy :)