surprise

Guess what people ask when they find out I'm pregnant.

"When are you due?"

Guess what they ask next.

"Are you going to find out what you're having?"

And the answer, my friends, is a resounding NO.

Twice I've gotten this response: "You're crazy!" (And you know who you are...just kidding, love you both!)

But mostly, I get this one: "Good for you!" I'm not always entirely sure what they mean by that, but I choose to view it in a positive light.

I love surprises. Always have. Always will. Especially when I know they're going to be a good surprise. I don't care whether we have a boy or girl. I'm certainly not going to love either one more or less. Nor do I feel like I need to stock up on blue or pink outfits. It's going to be August and I will have onesies. Plus, I'm sure everyone else will go slightly crazy and supply me with enough clothing to last ten children, let alone one.

We also don't need to decorate anything; our place is small and the crib will be in our bedroom. I wasn't planning on putting up a border or anything like that. Every large item we purchase (i.e., crib, stroller, etc.) will be gender-neutral, because it will have to last through all our children.

So since I don't need to know, I don't want to know. I'm one of those people who doesn't like to know their birthday or Christmas presents. And I certainly don't open them up to peek! I love the anticipation of knowing something fun, something exciting, is going to happen, but not knowing exactly what it will be.

Best. Feeling. Ever.

Saint Paul Winter Carnival

Darren's parents came down to the cities two weekends ago and we went to the St Paul Winter Carnival.

The parade went on the entire time we were there! It was definitely over an hour long.

The ice carving area is in the back of this picture.

There had been hot air balloon rides earlier that morning.

We didn't go.

Watching the parade.

After we had enough of the parade we headed over to the ice carving area in Rice Park.

Darren and his dad.

My in-laws.

An ice bar.

We had seen on the internet that on Saturday there was snow sculpting at the fairgrounds, so we headed over there after the ice carving to check that out.

things I miss

There are a lot of things I miss now that I'm pregnant...

-I miss not waking up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom.

-I miss Diet Dr Pepper.

-I miss pants that used to fit right.

news

I have news.

I'm having a baby!

We found out in December that we will be parents this August. My due date is August 23rd. Last Friday we went to the doctor and were able to hear the heartbeat for the very first time. It was amazing.

I'm sure I'll have many pregnancy stories to share in the months to come. In fact, I have several already.

To be continued...

shortage

We are in the midst of a serious toothpaste shortage right now.

I'm talking dire.

This is the current status of our toothpaste supply:

Do you see the thinness of those tubes? (My secret is I use the soap bottle to flatten them like crazy.) Can you tell the toothpaste is nearly gone and that the outside of the tube is just about pushed all the way through where the toothpaste is supposed to come out?

Let me tell you, I have been following factory recommendations lately and using only a "pea-size amount" for brushing. But we are only days away from a monstrosity, people.

Running out of toothpaste isn't like running out of milk or bread. You can't just say, "Oh, I'll drink some juice" or "Oh, let's eat potatoes." No. When you are out of toothpaste, there are no alternatives.

Although I may have heard somewhere that back in the day people used baking soda? I would have to be pretty desperate to resort to that.

I'm almost there.

You know what this means? Do you know what horrible consequence running out of toothpaste will have?

I will have to go to the store. And I will have to pay full price.

love hard

Last week I was reading something on the internet - I can't even remember what it was now - and the phrase "love hard" jumped out at me.

I'm sure it was some sort of inspirational article regarding the necessary requirements of a happy life, or perhaps the top ten things you should do in 2011, or maybe even a short story about someone's personal experience with a murderer?

Who can say. In any case, it stuck with me.

But what does it mean to love hard? I think it means to love wholly and completely. To love so powerfully that you would give your life for someone. And to love so perfectly that you would be willing to forgive anything.

Like Jesus loves us.

To love hard is...well, hard. There are so few people in the word I would be willing to give my life for. In fact, there are few people in the world I would be willing to give up two hours of my day for. And that's a little bit sad. Actually, it's a lot sad.

What is the Bible without love? Matthew 22:34-40 says:

Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisses got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (NIV)

Answer: The Bible without love is incomprehensible. Similarly, our lives without love have no meaning. And I'm not talking about "I should do this out of pity" love, or "I bet I can love the sin right out of them" love. I'm talking about real love.

Imagine John 3:16, one of the most well-known verses of the Bible: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (NIV) How less wonderful would that be if the verse said, "For God felt such pity on the world..." or "For God so badly wanted to correct the world..."

What? What kind of gift is that when it's given in pity or with a desire to improve? That's not real love. Though sadly, it is the kind of love I often display. So not only do I fail to "love hard," but I fail to show a godly love in any substantial quantity.

So how do I fix this? The Bible school 101 answer is "love like Jesus."

Well, duh. Wouldn't that be nice? Unfortunately, no one will ever reach that standard. Instead, perhaps I can say a good start to the solution is to talk to Jesus. Ask Him to help me place others before myself. And not just when I put money in the offering plate, but all the time. Ask Him to teach me to love like He loves. Ask Him to help me love hard.

two years

Today my husband and I have been married for two years.

It's been a crazy two years, I'd have to say. Although this past year of marriage went much more smoothly than the first. There was a lot less yelling. And throwing of things. And breaking of pitchers. So, you know...progression. And all that.

I think once you get used to living with someone, and you figure out which battles are worth it, life definitely gets easier. And also, once he got used to me and my crazy ways (and stopped making me be productive when I just wanted to be lazy) things drastically improved. For instance, Darren now knows:

-cereal, nachos, mac 'n cheese, chocolate, and ice cream are all considered an acceptable dinner. You want something else, make it yourself.

-the bed is going to get made every day. Get over it.

-I will expect help around the house occasionally, so you'll save yourself a lot of trouble if you offer before I get mad.

-sometimes I just need to sit on the couch all day and do nothing. It's a fact of life.

-if you want me to buy you something from the grocery store, you had better write it on the list. I'm not a mind reader.

-if you don't want cookies, don't eat them. Stop telling me not to make them. I want cookies.


And, interestingly enough, I have learned the following:

-laundry doesn't need to be put in the basket. Instead, it's okay to throw it on the floor right next to the basket. What is with this, I'll never know.

-asking someone repeatedly if they're angry, will, in fact, make them angry.

-not mentioning that my car belt is squeaking or that my emergency brake light is on or that the car smells like it's about to explode is a grave sin...

-but somehow asking for an oil change is a big, fat joke.

-bad drivers are either women, old, or both. And it's useless to defend my own sex.

-football Sunday's are sacred. Don't ask to watch Pride and Prejudice during the game. Any game.

-frozen pizza is a staple. It's acceptable to eat it every other day. And death to the wife who lets the supply run low.

-Conversely, crazy is the wife who has ten boxes of Hamburger Helper in the pantry.


All I can say is it's been an experience.