"Morning" Sickness

We are so excited for this little life growing inside of me.  And I am also oh so nauseated.  I've been sick with all four of my pregnancies now (usually for the first 5 months) and each one seems to get a little worse and this one is no exception...it hit fast and furious and has by far been my hardest yet.  I spent the first two weeks trying to ignore it and just be thankful.  See, when we lost Joy I was still in the thick of the "morning" sickness and after it was all said and done I just remember thinking that I would give anything to feel that way again if only it meant she could still be with me.  I think about that often and it reminds me to be thankful for this as best as I can.  But a few weeks in I realized that I also have to be realistic...with myself and others.  The truth is that this pregnancy is kicking my butt.  I've never experienced it this bad before...the constant nausea, the total exhaustion, and other odd little symptoms.  I'm having a hard time eating (it generally makes the nausea worse), and I'm spending the bulk of my time sleeping or resting in the recliner.  As I write this Joe and my parents are in the kitchen having lunch with the kids and I just couldn't stomach anything right now.  The smell of my much loved Starbucks (and now coffee in general) make me want to loose my lunch.  There are some days I just want to cry...but I just keep reminding myself that it's worth it.  I KNOW that it's worth it.  There are so many women who would love nothing more than to be in my shoes...women who can't get pregnant, women who have lost their precious little babes...I have been there and I know that it is worth it...every single nauseated second.  

Our Christmas Present!

Many, many years ago God Himself came to earth to be with us...with us!  On that first Christmas we were given the most amazing gift we could ever dare to dream of.   What a joy to celebrate that gift each year!  And this Christmas our family has a little something extra to celebrate (as if Jesus weren't enough)!:)  Our Christmas present came a little early this year as we watched the sweet little thump thump thump of our baby's heartbeat on the ultrasound screen a week and a half ago!  That's right...I'm pregnant!  I'm about 11 weeks along and baby Cousins is due to join us July 14th...the 2nd best Christmas gift ever!

Cranberry Picking!

This year we picked wild cranberries for the very first time!  Joe found a great marsh that they grow in when he was out hunting one day last year.  So this fall we returned twice for wild cranberry picking. It especially fun because we have to canoe to get there. The first time though it was crazy windy and Joe and I paddled our behinds off (against the wind) trying to make it to the place where he knew the cranberries were.  But we made it and managed to pick some great berries.  But then on the way back we got curious about some spots that looked similar in terrain and discovered that there are cranberries growing all over the place along the marshy shore!:)  A little late, but at least we found out!  We meant to go back shortly after that to pick more, but somehow didn't make it until the end of October.  Sadly, because we got so much rain here this fall, most of the berries were under water by that point (there were a few floaters, but not many).  Joe and I were soaked from our knees down, Joe dragged the kids over and through the water in an ice fishing sled, and we only got a small container of berries...but it was another one of those shared experiences for our little family...good memories!

On that second trip Lily documented some of our little adventure with her camera.  She was taking pictures to do a presentation for her homeschool group (which she didn't get to do because we got sick)...but it's still really fun that she got these pictures (from picking to making cranberry sauce at home).  Her camera was used for all of the pictures and with the exception of the few she was in Lily was the photographer and did a pretty great job (in fact, some of those pictures of my paddle are pretty amazing)!

Soccer!

This fall we were a full out soccer family.  Lily played for the first time on a team (and really enjoyed it for the most part), Joe coached her team, and I was the rec center's soccer photographer this year!  It was fun to be so involved and it helped that we really liked all of the kids and parents on Lily's team.  They also really liked having Joe as the coach...though it may have been a little harder than he expected initially he did an amazing job being patient and supportive of all of the kids and really trying to teach them the skills.  We may not have had the most naturally talented team, but they were all such great sports...evidenced on the last day playing in the pouring rain!  We are looking forward to many years of soccer to come!

P.S. Our friend's little boy, Josiah, is 2nd on the top left and he decided this soccer season that he is going to marry Lily!:) He let his parents know and while I think we would all be thrilled with that match his mom did let him know that the decision would probably have to be up to Lily!:)