our big news :)

if you remember my post a few back where I mentioned that God is just so full of surprises...well I can now spill the beans! Let me just interject here that I would not have posted that blog and made so many of you question what was going on if i actually knew we had to wait this long & jump through so many hoops. BUT now we can let it out!! Here is an exert from our latest newsletter explaining everything...

We have been praying for God’s guidance about what should be our next step in this journey to France and continuing to build our support team. We have both sensed over the past few months that God had some kind of significant shift in mind, but we were not sure what exactly that might be. Now after much prayer and consultation with our church, pastors and leaders, we are certain that God is leading us to move to the Chicago area in January 2010, and for Daniel to enroll in course work at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) with the hopes that it will be a springboard to new support raising opportunities. Rest assured this is not a change of plans, but a further unveiling of God’s plan and will for our journey to France. Needless to say God’s will is full of surprises and turns that we don’t expect, but we embrace them knowing what He promises and what He has done in the past. We anxiously await to see what He is going to do next!

The wisdom in God leading us in this direction is already becoming very apparent. It will open us up to a whole new area and group of people to share our passion and desire to minister in France with both in the community and school. Daniel will have a unique opportunity to build relationships with pastors and others in ministry and to share with them about France. We will, Lord willing, have the opportunity to speak in many churches about the ministry in France. It will also allow Daniel to gain further training for the ministry in France while at the same time continuing to raise support.

so there it is :) we are just beside ourselves right now & ready to see how God is going to use this move. Daniel will be in seminary while I stay home with sweet little Eli. It's not going to be easy moving away from our family & friends with a 4 month old, but we want the Lord's will most of all & this is our next step!
Also..PRAISE the LORD that Daniel got a wonderful scholarship which is really going to be beneficial! I am so proud of my hubby. Thank you Lord for always providing for us.

In other news...we are down to the last 4 1/2 weeks until our sweet baby boy gets here. We have had two wonderful baby showers where so many friends have blessed us with little gifts for Eli. His room is ready, our bags are halfway packed & our car seat is properly installed. Now we wait...

34.5 weeks

Our weekly doctor appointments start on Friday and maybe just maybe we will find out a little more about Eli's size. Pregnancy has really been wonderful to me, but as we get closer & closer to the very end i find myself wanting it to be over. In fact...last week as Daniel & I were walking out of wal-mart in the 90+ degree weather, i turned to him and asked him to remind me that i won't be pregnant forever. He quickly responded in assuring me i'm almost done! I want to embrace these last weeks & really enjoy them because i can't get them back!

I will leave you with pictures from our showers.

Baby Tea:

the beautiful cake that Andi had made & the precious diaper cake Ellen & her mom graciously made...it was just perfect!

the hostesses-THANKS LADIES!!

best friends from high school (Ellen, Myself, & Andi)

the food was AMAZING

our gifts

Laura & Michelle

i love you Ellie Mae

our second diaper cake... :) loved it too!

Jessica..thanks for coming girl!

Our couples shower at church:

look at this cake Leann made! How amazing is that? Her first baby shower cake...i was impressed!

Barbie & I chatting it up :)

Daniel & I

playing the diaper game

opening presents!

our WONDERFUL hostesses Kevin & Leann

soon to be...Granddaddy, Nana, DeDe & Special K :)

Shaffer, Lindsey, Daniel, Myself, Leslie (Lollie) & Bradford

Ok I think that is enough catching up for now! I have lots of thank you notes calling my name. Until next time...

Mae

it's getting harder to...

• run & do weight training
• get out of bed
• bend over and pick something up
• find something that fits (and looks half way cute)
• shave my legs
• paint my toenails
• give someone a hug without my belly getting in the way

...i don't see how it is even possible for this belly to get bigger :)

mae

Updates updates!!

We had our first baby shower this past weekend & got SOOO many wonderful gifts! We both feel very blessed. The baby tea was just perfect & I could not have asked for more :)! We have our next shower (which is a couples shower) a week from Sunday!!!

I am leaving for the beach tomorrow. This is my last trip because I will be 34 weeks next week & your not suppose to travel after that. I'm pretty excited about the beach even if I do look huge :)

We went to the doctor yesterday & both Eli and I are doing great! He is measuring a week big now. Not sure how big they "predict" him to be. I think that is at our next appointment at 35 weeks!! I am feeling VERY pregnant these days & know I will only get bigger! As of yesterday I have gained 16 lbs according to the doctor (but more like 23 according to me :))! I'm not gonna lie I am REALLY looking forward to the challenge of getting this weight off. I feel pretty motivated since my sisters wedding is 6 1/2 weeks after little Eli's due date! We shall see though...

I'm still running almost 3 miles every other day & then swimming or biking the days in between. I had a little accident this past week so I am now restricted to running on the tredmill. Not ideal for me but my balance is getting worse so it's for the best. And yes all you out there asking yourself if it is ok for me to still be running...we yet again asked the doctor yesterday was reassured that as long as I am not in pain then it is perfectly fine for me & Eli!

We have completed 2 out of 4 of our birthing classes. I honestly have enjoyed going & learning about labor & the whole process. I feel like I can better grasp what is going to take place. I however did not enjoy learning about csections (no fun)! But I guess we do need to be educated just in case. We are also going to attend a class on nursing & natural birth since YES I do plan to go naturally despite all the nose turns I have gotten from people. We shall see how that goes :)
ok I think that's all! Will post pics soon
mae

pregnancy joys

up at 2:00 am. can't sleep. hip hurts really bad. very hungry. hubby is snoozing. want to go back to sleep. watching some show about cheese. :( this won't last forever i keep telling myself.

mae

32 week

meaning Elijah's due date is 8 weeks away (and he could be here sooner). Right now i have so many emotions that it's hard to even put into words. I am so eager to see this little guy and to hold him while at the exact same time not ready AT ALL for him to be out of my stomach.

as the big day draws near, i find myself asking so many questions. will i be a good mother? will i know what to do to take care of this precious gift from the Lord? will i be able to make it through labor? how will i know i'm going into labor? will my water break? will this little boy look like daniel or myself...or i guess neither of us? will he be healthy & happy? and so on... i have so many questions and i have to patiently wait for the answers.

i know i already love him & i haven't even seen him face to face. I love feeling his movements (even when i'm trying to sleep). Daniel & I seem to always be guessing what part of the body is protruding from my stomach. I think our son likes to have his bottom up in the air (or at least that is what we think it is :)).

These days i'm definitely feeling pregnant. I think it is pretty humorous for daniel as i make so many sounds just trying to get out of bed. Hey you try to get out of your snoogle while your bladder is so full & your 7 1/2 months pregnant. My abs are definitely shot but it's worth it :). I do feel like a beached whale at times. Oh some of you have asked to see the snoogle so here is a pic i pulled from the Internet. most nights i like it...

Eli has hiccups pretty much on a daily basis.

my first baby shower is on Saturday!

last night we started our pregnancy classes. i think it is making it so real...not so far off. we watched the labor video...WOW! on our way home my sweet husband said "we need to get our bags packed". I smiled and said...honey we still have time. :)

mae

did i mention...

i love this man!
I came across this picture while actually looking for another pic and had to share. It reminds me of his love :) Thank you Lord for such a wonderful husband who first and foremost loves you & desires to serve you Jesus, but that he also loves me...for some reason.

***NEW POST BELOW***

Mae

4th of July

We had a busy weekend that was spent with family & friends :)

Friday...well I got my hair all chopped off. This was actually NOT my idea at all but rather my sweet husbands. He convinced me...wasn't very hard...to just get it ALL cut off. He was so cute. My appointment wasn't till 2:30 but all through out the day he would tell me that he was excited I was getting my hair cut. He was so giddy at the hair salon...he sat there patiently waiting, studying Greek while the lady began to do her thing on my hair chopping off 7 inches. He would peek around every so often and smile at me while she cut away :) Man I love this guy! When she was done...a huge grin came over his face, and he couldn't help but stare at me the rest of the day. I think he REALLY likes it!! I like it too :)

Saturday we went to the lake with my family & of course the puppies were there. Recap...in case you don't know who the "puppies" are..well our dog Madie has a sister Sadie (who my brother & sister-in-law own). Miss Sadie just recently had 5 puppies & here they are...

Una (the oldest) a girl

Darling (the smallest) a girl

Minnie Me (she look just like Sadie) a girl

Prince (the only boy!)

Miss Piggy (she eats ALL the food) a girl

then we headed back home to have dinner with Daniel's family. After that we headed to my parents to watch the fireworks since they have a really great view from their back porch.

our precious niece Mia

Andrew (Daniel's brother) Jen-Yu & Mia

(here i am at 31.5 weeks)

All in all it was a great weekend!

We have yet another fun filled week ahead..

Tuesday night we start our pregnancy classes (not sure what the technical name is) & then on Saturday is my first baby shower!!!! Pretty exciting stuff. That's all for now...

Mae