catch up...

Rewind to March 20-22...
I spent two nights in this lovely cabin with
6 of the girls I work with!
Lots of good conversation, food, laughs, and fellowship.
I feel very blessed to work with other Christian girls
that share the same morals and values.
I have prayed for Christian co-workers since
we moved to Athens. I used to feel so alone there.
God answered that prayer when he brought us back to Macon.
I thank God for the friendships we share!

I wanted to share a recipe that I made for our trip.

Apple Toffee Dip

(2) 8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened
1 cup of brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon of vanilla
(1) 8 oz. pkg of Heath Toffee Bits O' Brickle

Mix together first four ingredients with a mixer until well blended.
Add pkg of toffee bits. Mix well.

Serve cold with Granny Smith Apple slices.

To prevent apples from browning sprinkle slices

with pineapple juice.

The Pampered Chef apple slicer/corer makes perfect slices!

Yesterday I spent most of the afternoon and evening

sewing little Rowan some burp cloths.

Here they are!

My plans are to leave them plain.

Meaning I don't plan to add ribbon or rick-rack.

I feel like these will wash easier and hold up better.

Plus they are much easier to sew!

The one pictured below is my favorite.

It was especially challenging to make.

Trying to get all those pieces of ribbon straight and

pinning them individually.

I want to get this one monogrammed.

(Side note: I found some heavier weight burp cloths

at Target. They didn't "ball up" when I pre-washed them.

Plus they seem more absorbant. They are a little

more expensive than the others, but totally worth it.)

Mom, Paige and I made these a few weekends ago. We monogrammed them too!

We also monogrammed a set of three little layette gowns. This is my favorite.

It's navy blue and kelly green (kinda hard to see).

It's going to the hospital with us!

I picked this newborn outfit up when we were in

Alabama. Inside the little square is a frog that is embroidered.

I bought these cards plain and monogrammed

them myself. I will be using them as thank-you's

after Rowan is born.

And finally...

today is my mother-in-law's birthday.

I made this springy arrangement for her front door as

part of her gift.

I have been feeling great other than some swinging moods. My poor husband. I can't believe tomorrow starts week 24! It is flying by! I have so many more projects I want to complete before Rowan arrives.

We ordered his coming home outfit last week. It should arrive tomorrow! I will take pictures when it arrives...until then you can click on the link!

Still waiting and praying for our house to sell. Trying to be content in the waiting!

Hope

Continue in the fear of the LORD all the day.
For surely there is a future,
and your HOPE will not be cut off.
Proverbs 23:17-18

Today I'm...
So thankful for this baby in my belly.
So thankful that Alan and I have good jobs.
So thankful we have a house we are trying to sell.
So thankful for loving friends and family.
So thankful for a warm sunshine-y day.
So thankful for a pedicure and new sandals.
So thankful for health.
So thankful for my husband.
So thankful for a God that loves me no matter what.
So thankful for peace in economic hard times.
So thankful for blooming flowers and springtime.
So thankful for the Cross.
So thankful that God is still in control even
when I doubt Him. Everyday.
So thankful for Hope.

These past few weeks I have started asking
God to teach me what He wants me to learn from this
stressful time. Honestly, I have become angry that
we are here. That our house hasn't sold.
I know God has a plan, but I am so frustrated.
I cry alot. I feel overwhelmed everyday.
I pray for understanding.
I pray that God will help us endure.

Our "problems" are so small when it comes
to what other people I know are going through,
but right now they seem so BIG!

Please pray for us.
That God will give us wisdom to make
the right decisions when we are faced with them.
That I will have understanding about why I'm here.
That we won't lose hope when everything seems so gray.
And that through all of this we will grow to be better.
That my attitude will be positive.

He promises to never leave us or forsake us...
I'm clinging to that.

That is the ultimate hope.

added to the collection...

We bought Rowan this precious little gown this weekend!

It will definitely be going in the "hospital" bag with us!

Not saying I'm crafty...

I just thought this was hilarious when I saw it!

I always tell Alan I am manufacturing a baby

and I never get a break!

No news on the house!

Still praying...hoping...and praying some more!

another great report...

at our doctors appointment this morning!
We had our 20 week ultrasound and
everything looks great.
Baby, fluid, and the placenta!

Rowan is indeed still a boy and he already weighs 1 pound!

SO thankful that he is healthy!
It's still just a miracle to me.

Alan took the pictures to work but I'll try to
scan them in later!

Alan's "birth" day!

Alan texted me today when I was at work.

"Do you know what today is?"

I say to myself...March 1oth!
And then I remember...

Alan got saved on March 10, 2002.

I appreciate that he remembers that day!
And my, how God has changed him!
He is a very different person than he was B.C. (before Christ).

So thankful that my husband is saved.
So thankful for His amazing grace.

what's going on...

Home sweet home...it should say "buy me please"

Really, really wanting our house to sell.

Just tired.

Ready to be at home all the time.

Praying that this is the week!

Having some serious heartburn.

TUMS are my friends!

Our bumper came in today!

It is so cute!

Got a letter in the mail today...

"To the mom-to-be"...

Who me?

It still doesn't feel real!

We go to the doctor on Thursday.

Going to Alabama for the weekend.

Cade is turning 8!

It was lovely driving home from work tonight.

It was still light outside.

Karen Kingsbury is my new favorite author.

Read Summer in its entirety last Tuesday.

Fabulous book with lots of lines that were

written just for me... i.e.

"For who can add days to his life by worrying?"

"God is still God when things don't go your way."

Rowan now has a cradle mattress, cradle sheet

and a cradle bumper. It's creme and chenille.

So soft, I want to lay down with him!

Thanking God for...

Good health.

No nausea.

A healthy baby.

Lots of energy.

Good sleep.

Endurance.

His provisions.

Each tumble I feel in my belly.

Our JOBS!

Longer days.

Grace.

Night!

good customer service is hard to find...

Just want to say that I have been more than pleased with
the customer service we have recieved from
Restoration Hardware Baby and Child.

They have been very professional and friendly.

They personally called me to let me know the
date the bumper would be available and confirmed with me
that I still wanted the item.

They send shipping confirmations through e-mail,
even if you call to place your order.

They use UPS which has a fabulous tracking system.

Not only is their customer service awesome,
but their products are too!
The bedding is very high quality and very reasonably priced.

If you are looking for baby bedding,
look at Restoration Hardware Baby and Child first.
(And no I'm not getting paid to say this.)

I did e-mail them a thank you note though!

Also, the cradle we ordered is made by
Million Dollar Baby.
The board that goes in the bottom of the cradle
was cracked a little bit when we recieved it.
Alan didn't feel comfortable putting the baby in there
since it wasn't perfect.
So, he e-mailed them to tell them about the situation.
Without question and very promptly they sent us another board
free of charge.

Good customer service is hard to find!
When you do find it I think it deserves to be shared.

So thank you RH Baby and Child and Millon Dollar Baby!

Halfway there!

We are officially 20 weeks! Cannot believe it!

We are going to look at cribs this weekend.
Planning to order the glider in the next few
weeks as it could take up to 8 weeks to come in.

There is a store in Athens that carries

the adorable Pixie Lily clothing line!

I want to get Rowan the gown and blanket to match
for his coming home outfit!

Rowan is getting more and more active as each day

goes by. I'm looking forward to Alan being

able to feel him kick!
Yesterday we looked at him when I was at work
and he was sucking his thumb!

Can't wait to meet him!

a great weekend and nursery ideas!

Alan and I spent the weekend with Lauren, Chris and Gage.

We had a wonderful time.

Gage is an absolute joy.

He loves to smile and "talk".

I still marvel at what God has already done

in his short little life!

He will be six months old on Wednesday!

On Saturday night, Lauren and Chris hosted a

get together for their Sunday School class.
Which means...we got to see and visit with alot

of our old friends!
It was great to be around people who "know" us and love us.

Those are the people who celebrated our

salvations, our engagement, our wedding,

and who are now celebrating the arrival of our baby boy!

And alot of them read my blog! :)

When we left Milledgeville we left a great

church family! One that I miss dearly these days.

I'm praying for another church family like Sinclair!

Lauren always has some sort of surprise for me...

And on this visit she surprised me with

the Grobag Egg and a precious matching bib and

burp cloth that are both monogrammed.

Love them!

The Grobag Egg is a fabulous room thermometer

for the nursery. Gage has one too.

Lauren and I have thought they were the coolest

things since her mother-in-law got one for her.

It changes colors with the temperature so at

a glance you can tell if the room is cool enough for the baby.

A cool temperature decreases chances of SIDS in babies.

Lauren and I were laughing at Wal-mart

on Saturday as we ran into people we knew from

college or church.

We said they were probably thinking

"Those girls are still inseperable!".

She is my bestest friend.

At one time during the weekend she looked

at me and said I wish we could be neighbors.

Me too!

I consider myself so blessed to call her friend.

Lauren is an amazing person.

She has a great sense of humor.

She is so thoughtful and organized.

She really listens and can almost make

anything that's wrong, right!

On to nursery ideas...

So I had this dilemma about what to do about

curtains for Rowan's room.

I don't have a clue about where we will be

in a few months. I have no clue how many windows

will be in the nursery or how big.

The curtains that match the bedding are a

little pricey for my taste.

So guess what I did...

I found this bed skirt that matches the "child" size

bedding of our crib bedding.

I ordered a twin size bed skirt last week.

It was on clearance...

and I got an additional 10% off.

And...I am going to be making a curtain or

covering a cornice board with the fabric from the bed skirt.

I am also going to make a cute little monogrammed

pillow to put on the glider.

I am so excited about it!

For the light fixture in the room...

I'm going to buy a similar chandelier as the

one below and paint it blue or khaki (haven't decided).

I have already found 2 at an antique store in Byron.

Then I want embellish cute little white shades
with blue or khaki grosgrain ribbon around the top

and bottom rim of the shade.

Hopefully it won't look too girly!

I have always said that I wanted to paint our baby's

initials/monogram on the wall rather than

using the wooden letters to spell the baby's name.

I just want something different.

So I found this idea on HGTV's website Rate my Space.

I am gonna paint Rowan's initials on the wall...

and then frame them with a big chunky frame.

I'm not fond of the block letters shown in the picture...

I just love the frame idea.

Below...

Be still my heart!
I saw these on the front of the Belk sale paper today.
I love them all!
I cut out the 15% off coupon and
I will be making my way to Belk's on Tuesday
to buy some of this cute stuff!

Oh to have a house again...
I CAN'T WAIT!

Have a wonderful week!