I received so many birthday phone calls today from my parents and from various members of family that I was blessed with through marriage. I was sung to by both my father (He's so funny! -or should I be insulted that I "smell like a monkey and look like one too"?) and by my passel o' nephews - so cute! My friend invited me out to lunch, my husband & children took me out to dinner and my children had wrapped presents of Godiva chocolates hidden around the house which they were thrilled to whip out for me to unwrap and share. It was a good day. I'm actually thinking I may have a small get together with my favorite cake from Whole Foods bakery and a very few local friends next weekend. God loves me. Life is beautiful.

for a wonderful, loving, self-sacrificing husband.

Some of you know, already, how early he rises for work and how exhausted he is at the end of a day of teaching Lt.s. You may also know that in addition to his regular duties, he is training to run in the air force marathon - next weekend! This makes for a truly tired Daddy/husband.

Yet...
-every day, he plays with his children when he gets home and/or helps me make supper. After we eat, HE cleans up the food & dishes while I sit somewhere with my feet up (rediscovering my ankles).
-from the time he gets home, he makes it his personal duty to see to it that I constantly have water on hand and have any medications/vitamins on time.
-every night, he overseas toilet routines, reads to the children and sometimes rocks them, before tucking them into bed.
-frequently, last night being no exception, he does a load of his work related laundry and throws in anything of ours that we a)need done and b)are willing to have washed with his work out gear ;).

Last night, despite his exhaustion, he additionally helped me to catalog several boxes and bags of stuff that needed to go into the attic. Then, he dragged the ladder into the house and placed said items into the attic. He also put the ladder away so we wouldn't be tripping over it today.

The poor man fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow - after midnight. He was facing 5 hours of sleep before another active day of teaching which will include several hours out in the sun.

For the next hour and a half, his pregnant wife, who is finding her bulk quite cumbersome at this point, shuffled restlessly in the bed. I turned several times (a major ordeal, involving quite a bit of movement and the replacement of several pillows) and suffered indigestion including bouncy, not quiet, hiccups (I thought it was hiccoughs, but the spelling corrector claims I am in error.)

When my movements woke him, he walked around to my side of the bed, rubbed my back, sang to me and in general spent quite a few minutes solely in lulling me into relaxation.

I didn't even realize today's date until this afternoon.

Truthfully, I'm mostly ok with that.

It was a truly horrible day, as I'm sure you all remember. Any time I think of it in any detail, my eyes fill with tears. I think that signifies a pretty profound emotional impact.

The events of that day changed my life quite a bit, largely due to my husband's job in the service. I don't really worry so much about remembering the anniversary, because I am far from forgetting the event, or the resulting war.

Still, it's sad that as the raw sorrow has eased into a memory of sorrow, the flare of patriotism has largely gone with it. I admit that I miss seeing our nation's flag proudly displayed - EVERYWHERE. That was a beautiful thing. There was a feeling of kinship with other Americans. Patriotic music was heard often. I miss all of that.

That is all.

A couple of you have inquired concerning the pregnancy specifically, so...

We are due sometime around the end of December, give or take 2 weeks. ;)


I am hoping for earlier rather than later because it gives my mom more time to be with me after the birth -she has to return to teaching school right after the new year begins. (She's only 2 years from retirement though - yipee!) Dearest is hoping for sooner rather than later because he wants the wee one to count for this year's taxes :P. Given the stubborn nature of the mommy and the propensity for borderline tardiness that comes with the daddy's family name, I'm trying not to get my hopes too high! Due to complications that I developed at the end of the last pregnancy, my son was delivered 3 weeks early. So, I still don't know if I tend to gestate long or short.

So far, everything seems to be going well. Medications seem to be controlling the larger issues adequately (blood pressure, etc.) We are praying for (& would certainly appreciate additional prayers for) a 100% natural, smooth, complication free labor and delivery of a healthy baby that involves no necessity for further medical interference at any point.

Dearest is able to feel the baby move now. It will be so exciting when the kids are also able to see/feel the movements!

where is everyone? ;)

My little one woke me with his coughing fit and after administering lots of TLC, some fluids and some cough remedy, I'm awake. Fortunately, he dropped right back into sleep - poor lamb.

Isn't it neat that activity here actually seems to slow during weekends? There are only a few new posts on Saturday - most are busy with their families. There are even fewer on Sunday. I find that comforting.

It's really nice to think of the other families out there spending their Saturday together: baking together, taking the little ones to the park, working together to get the yard caught up or to accomplish some home repair, etc. It's also fun to picture others on Sunday: rushing around madly to get everyone fed, find MIA pieces of Sunday ensembles, gathering Bibles and shoving shiny faced children with tamed, damp hair into their car seats while singing the "Bible class songs". (Or is everyone else more calm & organized on Sundays?)

My Sunday mornings aren't calm, but they're mine and I've grown to love them. We start out by waking the children with the Sunday morning song, does anyone else know it?

Wake up sleepy head,
open your eyes.
Birds are soaring
through sunny skies.
It's Sunday morning,
Let's not delay!
We're going to God's house today!

I love the way it starts our day. Even the youngest knows what we're doing today because we start the day with the song. Today is Bible class!

Well, I've rambled enough for now. I'm going to see if I can get some more sleep. I hope everyone has a pleasant week.

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Update: I think the cough is with us for a while, but the good news is that I did manage to get back to sleep and then the children slept in. So, despite my little wakeful period, I think I got a decent night's worth of sleep! God took good care of me. :)