Finally!

Remember that 3L paper I didn't write over Christmas break like I wanted to but finished soon afterward? I just got the grade today. Almost 3 months later (the prof is on sabbatical and the registrar never received it though she turned it in long ago... she re-submitted it...).

I am so glad that's over. AND it was my best grade in law school. My first-ever unqualified vowel here. It feels good. But I'm not getting used to it - I'll be back to sadly qualified bumpy letters in no time, I assure you. :)

Another picture of Eden

As you know, we had an ultrasound on Monday, and of course we got more pictures of our precious baby girl! I just wanted to share one with you! We can't wait to see her in person!!

Babymoon!

We had a great time this week on our babymoon! We went to Kennebunkport, Maine for three days, two nights. It was so relaxing. It was great that our spring breaks overlapped this year (for the first time!) so that we could do this, and have one last trip before little Eden makes her appearance!

Without further ado, I know you want to see the pictures, so here you go!

Bryan on the rocks beside the ocean:


Me (and Eden!) on the rocks by the ocean. In the background is the Bush compound - the summer home of George H. W. Bush.



Here's the outside of our inn, which was built in 1814:

Our room was awesome! It was decorated in a Federal period safari theme. (That bed was really tall - we had to climb into it using steps, and even then it wasn't always easy to get The Belly in and out. Thank goodness Bryan was there!):


There was a little seating area as well - the bench there was great for reclining and reading. I did a lot of that. In this picture you can also see the setup they had for us - it was really sweet. They left us chilled sparkling cider, chocolates, a sweet little note saying basically "happy babymoon" and a gift for Eden (a cute little tooth keeper). Little touches like this were all over the place at this inn - we loved it.


Another awesome thing about this room was the bathroom. The floors were heated marble - so no cold feet! Actually, when we were cold we'd just go and stand in here. It was huge, so there was plenty of room!



Apparently this room is famous for its shower, and I can tell why - it had a fixed shower head, a personal shower head, four body jets, and eight back massage jets. Oh, and it doubled as a sauna. AMAZING!


OK, I promise we did leave the room. The first night we had dinner at another inn right across from the Bush compound - we got all dressed up and had a great time. The food was absolutely amazing. Bryan had a seafood combo, and I had chicken. But don't worry - I had a seafood appetizer which was to die for. The second day we walked around the village a bit - it was really adorable. But almost everything was closed - it's the off season. The signs on the shops were really fun though. "Open by chance or appointment" and the like.


We liked the sign coming into the village:


And, of course, the obligatory kissing on the bridge picture (can't get away without that one). This was taken on our way to dinner the second night at the home of Shipyard Ale. Eh, the food was OK, but Bryan enjoyed his beer, and it was right on the water... so we let it be.



All in all, it was a very relaxing time. We both did a lot of reading, relaxing, and not worrying about what's going on in the rest of our lives. We thought and talked a lot about our little girl, anticipating her arrival with eagerness and joy. We kept saying how we'd love to bring her back with us in a few years, during the summer, when she can run along the beach and collect seashells and we can all relax together as a family. We'll certainly miss our time being just Bryan & Katie, but we really can't wait to meet this little person and make memories that involve all three of us.

Quick stats for Eden

We had an ultrasound today. Here are some quick numbers:

• New chance that Eden is a girl: 99%
• Estimated current weight of our baby: 3 lbs 5 oz
• How big is that exactly?: 96th percentile. Wow. Overachiever. :)

And by the way, she is amazing. And completely adorable. We got to see her face today - her nose, her mouth, her closed eyes. She was very cooperative for the most part. And let's just say we have pretty good visual confirmation of her gender. :)

The apartment fiasco

We've made a decision.

First of all, we want to say thanks for everyone who put in their two cents, on and off the blog. I got lots of comments from trusted friends, and several emails of craigslist ads from one special lady who really wants us to live near them. :) It makes me feel really loved when so many people are so invested in our lives, and want to help us make the right decision here.

OK. So, we decided to go with option #3. We contacted the leasing office this morning, and they removed our apartment from the list of available units. We filled out a new termination request, and they're going to put it forward when we give them a firm date. They're being really great about the whole thing. And the owners of the unit are getting several estimates this week from contractors. We're hoping that they find a great contractor who will be able to do the work quickly. We've heard it can take 1-2 months to delead. That's a bit scary, but we know that we'll be fine no matter what. God's taking care of us.

This works out because I think our current apartment will re-rent better in May than April, and we're saving money on rent (our place now is really cheap) and utilities (included in our uber-cheap rent). And, hey, we're already half-packed! :)

Congratulations

Congratulations to Troy & Amy on their new little displaced Texan (no matter where they are, these two will always have Texan children!). She's adorable!!

Bad news

So the slight snag in our new apartment might unravel the whole thing after all.

The lead paint is apparently everywhere. And since the owners live in China (and since everyone but Katie (for once) had rose-colored glasses on in this situation), they probably won't be finished deleading it for at least 6 weeks, and they said probably more likely 8-10. (Apparently they have to interview deleaders, get permits, and then do the actual work.) Um, hello, I'm 28 weeks pregnant, almost 29. 10 weeks from now I will be 38 weeks pregnant, almost 39. Yes, folks, we're talking baby time.

Right now we're trying to decide what to do. We have identified three possible options:

• #1: Get out of the lease (the owners have offered to refund all the $$ we've paid them, etc) and find a new place, either now or later.
• #2: Move in next weekend anyway, and move out (meaning sleep on friends' couches) while the actual work is being done.
• #3: Keep our current apartment (as of this morning it hadn't been re-rented, but who knows what will happen over the weekend) and then move into the new place when the work is done. Possibly after Eden makes an entrance. (EEK!)

So right now we are accepting counsel regarding the wisdom of these three options, relative to each other. And we're also accepting other options. And we're also accepting suggestions for other apartments which we might rent. Please comment with your ideas...

God is Amazing - Portia's version

My friend Amy just posted a top-10 list of the things that have amazed her about God during her pregnancy, and then challenged her pregnant/new mom friends to reflect on that too.

My first thought was about how alien it is that there's a little person inside me, moving around and becoming more herself every day. But at the same time, it's so un-alien, so natural, so how God created things. I'm amazed at how He designed this whole process. My body is unrecognizable at times, but it's still my body, and it's being used for such an amazing purpose! And I never knew it could do these amazing things it's doing, but it's such a testament to a loving Creator-God who ordered the world so perfectly.

Another thing I think about all the time is just how much God knows Eden already. Just as He knit me together, He knit her together. He knows everything about her just as He knows everything about me. And she is His just as I am His.

I'm amazed that God is using my body to bring a beautiful little person into this world. And He is trusting Bryan and me to bring her up. It's an incredible sense of responsibility and an an incredible excitement at the same time. What a stewardship!

Anyway, I hope that this was encouraging to you! I'd be interested to hear from all of you! What about this subject amazes you about our Creator?

Slight snag

Well, it turns out our lovely new apartment is full of lead paint. And, under Massachusetts law, since we've got little Eden, the landlord has to de-lead it. No word yet on how long that will take, but it certainly does mean that painting this weekend is out. Hopefully it will be done by the time we were planning to move... but that only gives them two weeks. Including Easter weekend. If it's not done by the end of the month, though, we're pretty screwed - we're out of this place as of March 31. Not sure what we'd do with ourselves, our cat, and all of our stuff at that point. I suppose we'll just cross that bridge when we get there, as they say.

The good news is, they might have to remove the bright orange and green paint from the moldings (which the landlord said we couldn't touch...). Nice!

First official thrid trimester photo

Here's The Belly at 27 weeks!! Thought you might want to see it... (Dad wanted me to take a pic and post it on our family message board so I thought I'd post it here as well...)

Poetry for Eden

As I was relaxing lazily in bed this morning, thinking about getting up, little Eden was kicking me like crazy, and I was getting a little bit emotional thinking about her… and then I started thinking in poetry… (I wanted to share).
__________________________________________

Tiny feet
smaller than my fingers
smaller than my nose
kick my belly,
make it rock back and forth

Tiny toes
like little rosebuds
like tiny candies
wiggle and squirm,
learning how to move

These same feet
I’ll soon be kissing
These same toes
become little piggies
__________________________________________

She’s all alone right now in her warm, watery world
She hears our voices but she can’t see us
She feels me move but she can’t cuddle

I hope she knows in spite of this how adored she is
I hope she knows how much I’d do for her already
I haven’t even met her
I just feel her hiccups
kicks on the mattress
and I love her so much
__________________________________________

Save this date instead!!

In typical Bryan and Katie fashion, we double booked April 11 (though, to be fair, we didn't really know it at the time). So instead of saving that date, save May 9. We're pretty sure this one is sticking. And it works out better because it's the day before Bryan's graduation, so there will be some family in town, and they'll get to come!! Yay!

We're MOVING!!

Well we officially signed a new lease yesterday, and I just heard from the landlord that they're signing ASAP - hopefully one tonight and one on Wednesday (he's in Japan right now).

So exciting! We're moving at the end of the month to the next town over. We signed a two-year lease, and it's an amazing place. If they were thinking of selling we might consider buying it at the end of our term. But that's a long time from now. Anyway, thought you might like to see a couple of pictures.

Here's the view from the street (we'll have one side - it's a condo set up like a duplex):


The entryway stairs (colors are a little crazy in this part of the place, but we're going to make it work... Meg's on it):


The living room (check out the cute French doors!):


Finally, the kitchen:


We should be moving in around the end of March. Exciting! And the best part is, we'll have extra space for guests! (Hint, hint...)

News Flash...

I like to be in charge.

OK maybe that's not a news flash to anyone, but I was thinking about it this morning. I've been freaking out lately that this pregnancy is going by too quickly (apparently I've started the seventh month...) and I've been anxious about getting a new place (we have to move out of this place by June because it's student housing).

I say it's just because there's just so much to do (and there is) or because the new (amazing) apartment we found is not set in stone yet (it isn't - we sign the lease tomorrow evening) or because I'm worried about Bryan's and my schoolwork (which is sort of ridiculous, actually... we're both fine). But the truth is, I'm just not trusting God enough right now. It's so funny how in these times of craziness I always see how much I need Him, and how much I should be relying on him (because I can't do this on my own), but these are also the times I try the hardest to stand on my own two feet. I need to let it go and realize that things will be taken care of.

Sometimes I justify my anxiety by saying "I can't just sit around and do nothing; God does require action." And I think that's true to some extent, but it's also a cop out, because that is never my problem. It's not like I'm sitting here willy nilly not thinking about any of it, not planning any of it. I overthink and overplan. I think I need to table that counterargument until the argument becomes reality. If that makes sense.

Anyway, just a thought. Pray for me to let it go and trust the Creator of the Universe to be able to arrange my pitiful life.

Productivity, Part Deux

Since I have recently discovered the merits of productivity, I thought I'd share a bit of my recent bout with you... :)

• Friday: finished - and turned in - not one, not two, not four, but SIX papers that I had to finish by the end of the semester. Bonus: they weren't due until March 7 and 9! Man, I am on top of things! (Side note: When I turned in one of the papers to my professor's assistant, she commented on how early I was, and I laughed it off, saying it's really laziness that made me finish it early... then she asked me if I was expecting. I said yes, and she said, "That's not laziness, mama, you're just on top of things!" I thought it was weird that she asked me if I was expecting just so she could call me mama... but it was cute anyway and I thanked her for the complement.)
• Saturday: Did my reading through Thursday. To be honest, it wasn't that much, but I did have to catch up because I didn't ever finish last Friday's reading, so I think it is still impressive. :)
• Friday and Saturday: Packed all of my books (except for the ones I'm using right now...); random bathroom stuff from Costco; summer shoes (and belts which, sadly, don't fit me anymore now...). Also went through all of my clothes again and purged, and pulled out the ones that I won't be able to wear until after baby.
• Saturday: Started working on the rocking chair cushions!!
• Sunday: Sang at three services, took a nap, went out to lunch and dinner instead of grocery shopping (OK I can't be productive all the time!)
• Today: Cleaned my apartment for small group, went to class (I still haven't missed this one even once!), sanded the rocking chair for almost two hours.

I understand that this is impressive to very few, and almost no one cares, but dang it, I enjoy it. And it's my blog. Deal with it. :)

(Apparently on Monday I also picked up a bit of sass...)