1/2 There!

Today marks 20 weeks of pregnancy... which I find ironic because you're not actually pregnant for the first 2 weeks from when they start counting. But who really cares about 2 measly weeks? Well, most women around 38 weeks gestation do, but I won't be there for, what, about another 10 years, right?

It is nice to know there are (hopefully) less weeks ahead of me than behind me for the rest of my pregnancy. This first trimester was surreal. Fred was gone for almost the whole thing. More strange was the absence of morning sickness. *I AM NOT COMPLAINING* It was just a little disconcerting, since I had varying degrees of it with my other pregnancies (I sound like a baby factory).


We had our big ultrasound on New Year's Eve day. Gregory's been excited about this baby, so we made sure it was ok, and brought him with us. We showed him a few sonograms on YouTube, to prep him... those alien shots weird ME out. When we got there he actually was quite interested... until he saw the screen saver on the computer across the room- it was of fighter jets. How could a fuzzy shadow of a boring baby possibly EVER compete with THAT??

(I love the cute little tummy pooching out)

We told the tech we don't want to know the baby's gender so she was good about telling us when not to look. Unfortunately, that meant we missed about 1/2 the ultrasound, which aggravated me. Still, she gave us a couple nice shots of the baby. Afterward we got the girls from our wonderful babysitter and treated the kids to Burger King.. well, more to the Burger King play area.

SO, with my ever expanding belly (for the record, she looked around thoroughly and confirmed there is only ONE baby in there... just for future reference as my pregnancy progresses and I am brave enough to post pictures of myself) we just resume life, with the exciting prospect of our last addition half way here!

They wouldn't let us film the sonogram itself. This is a video of Gregory watching wide-eyed, with his mouth wide open the whole time. It was dark in the room, but I think I'll try re-loading this because it doesn't look like the video processed at all.

My Family of Scrappers

I went through my mega- scrapbooking phase several years ago. I just don't have the time for it now, but I still have a vast collection of supplies for the obsession. I finally got to justify making the military move my stash with us by dusting it off for FHE last night.

Being our first Christmas away from home, I'm ACTUALLY making sure we get our thank you cards out this year. In the past we could say "thank you" right to our generous family.

I put Fred in charge of helping the kids with stamping while I cut out the parts of the card for the kids to decorate and then for me to assemble. It was actually really fun! Fred was a great sport and the kids really had a fun time "Stamping it up."

(Man, he's such a good lookin' kid)

Like what usually happens with scrapping, time went by fast, so we had to stop before all the cards were done. Gregory made me PROMISE he'll get to finish his after school today. I love watching creativity flow in my home!

Blah.

The stomach flu has swept through our family this weekend. Luckily we went mostly in pairs, starting with the girls, then just Fred, ending with Gregory and I last night. So HOPEFULLY it'll stay away for a while...

Anyways, most people probably don't want to hear about us being sick, but you needed to know that so I could share what Gregory said this morning.

Life had pretty much fully returned to him (I wish I could have said the same), so I asked how he was feeling. He responded with,

"Well, the food in my tummy is mostly not killing me anymore."

"Killing" was a good descriptive.

"The Nativity"- performed by The Olsen's

For FHE yesterday we carried on a Jensen family tradition. Every year, for as long as I can remember, the family has acted out the Nativity story right before Christmas. All three of my children have played the part of baby Jesus, since they were still infants for their first Christmas.

I was surprised how much our little ones enjoyed acting out the story. Even Leora was enthusiastic, just following everyone around.

Cast:

Fred - Donkey, shephard

Debbie - narrater, inn keeper

Gregory - Joseph

Charla - Mary

Leora - Angel

A long, long time ago Mary and Joseph had to walk a long, long way to Bethlehem. The Baby Jesus was in Mary's tummy, and was almost ready to be born, so she had to ride on a donkey.

When they got to Bethlehem, it was very busy. When they tried to find an inn (or hotel) to stay at, all the inn keepers told them that all the rooms were full. One nice inn keeper took them to a stable to stay. It was smelly and there were animals, but it was warm.

That night baby Jesus was born. Mary wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger. Joseph watched out to keep them safe.

Not far away, there were shephards watching their sheep. Suddenly, an angel appeared to them! She told them not to be scared, but that she had great news that would make them very happy. In Bethlehem a king was born named Jesus Christ. She told him where to find Him, and then there were hundreds of angels who were so excited that they were singing.

The shephards went to see the baby Jesus. They loved Him and then went back to Bethlehem to tell everyone what they had seen.

(Gregory refused to switch roles from Joseph to Wise Man, so we just told about the 3 Kings finding the baby Jesus by following the star).

They were all so reverent and cooperative! It was a great evening :)

Shout-Out to Uncle David

Gregory's class had its "Winter" party today. He came home with a backpack full of goodies. The first he insisted eating was a package of Lego fruit snacks. As you can see, he put them to good use before scarfing them down.

Another cute thing he brought home was a baggie of oats mixed with some red and green sprinkles. It came with a note that instructs to sprinkle the "reindeer food" on your lawn the night before Christmas, so Santa's reindeer can enjoy a snack while he makes his delivery.

Reverent Baby

About a month ago, Leora started kneeling with us at family prayer every night, all on her own. It's so cute- she looks so tiny!

The other night Leora ate dinner early, so she was wondering around the table when Gregory sat down to eat. As always, I announced that we needed to bless the food.

Without missing a beat, Leora stopped and dropped to her knees, her little hands folded on her lap. It was adorable!!

Salt is My Best Friend

I always laughed at the signs in Tucson before the bridges that warn, "Ice forms on bridge first." I always thought, "WHAT ice?" Let me tell you, in Ohio you don't need bridges for ice... driveways, sidewalks, parking lots, door mats, grass- they all work, too.

We had steady rain yesterday. Instead of absorbing or evaporating, it steadily formed a 1/2 inch layer of ice by the evening. I didn't discover this until I sent Gregory to put the recycables out by the trashcan outside. I always challenge him to run as fast as he can, so he won't get too cold. Well, he took one leaping step out the front door and ended up slipping and skidding several feet, all sprawled out- wipe out! He was first in shock and then cried... poor lil' guy.

I had an appointment at 9:00 this morning at the church. I was TERRIFIED to drive there. I called ahead and was assured that the roads were well salted, but they warned that the church parking lot was a solid sheet of ice. Well, they were right about both. Driving there was fine, but navigating the parking lot was a trip. Even more entertaining was watching people walking on it- me included. I never wiped out, but by the time I was done, my nerves were shot!

I wanted to lock myself up in my house for the rest of the day, but I had promised to go to a cookie exchange up the street. Driving 5 houses up seemed silly, so I bundled my girls and buckled them securely in the stroller. We somehow made it there, and later back, without falling, but I slipped often, even on the grass.

I still don't mind the cold, but I can live without the ice. When it melts I'll be making a visit to Walmart to get ice for my driveway.