30 weeks.

Baby is growing fast...and so am I!

Baby is the size of Butternut squash and weighs about 3 pounds.

1. Listening - at childe care classes.
2. Eating - regularly. healthy-ish. 

3. Wearing - Neil's t-shirts and sweatpants. No more heels. My new cowboy boots :)
4. Feeling - excited! productive.
5. Drinking - Green tea.
6. Seeing - my belly move like waves!  
7. Craving - sweets.
8. Needing - to start on nursery sewing projects.
9. Thinking - that there is only 10 weeks to go! about the crib coming soon!

10. Enjoying -my students. my job. belly movements.

 

These past 4 weeks have been the best of pregnancy! Lots of energy, very little nausea, good appetite. There are only 10 weeks till the due date! It sounds so close yet more than enough time to get done what I have to. So the stress level is very low. We attended a child care class and it was so cute to see Neil soaking it all in :) this weekend is a full day childBIRTH class so that will be interesting. I have a couple of showers coming up so I'm getting excited about that, too. We are making headway on the nursery and I will start posting the DIY projects I'm tackling for baby. 

Home Remedies.

Neil has been having trouble hearing out of one ear. It started with a cold so we thought that it might be helpful to use "El Con". This is a home remedy that my grandmothers used all the time. I remembering being so scared of it. You roll up some newspaper into a cone and insert the tip in the hear. Then. You light it on fire!

I think the theory is that the heat takes out water or air. I remember it working most of the time. When the person feels the ear open (or pop), smoke comes out of the top of the cone. Neil didn't get to feel that but it did seem to loosen or open his ear a little.

 

It still makes me nervous.

 

For earaches my grandmother used to heat up olive oil, dip a cotton ball in it, and sprinkle it with pepper.

 

Any other home remedies for ear problems?

Happy Valentine's Day.

Hope your day is filled with love and laughter today and everyday!

 

Some special ladies in my life are getting a little Valentine's Day sentiment in the mail, today. I thought I would share a couple of DIY Valentine's Day projects.

 

These cute little magnets are so easy to make! Most craft stores sell small wood chips. These are about the size of a nickel. Take a sharpie or acrylic paint and you can paint anything on them. They would look so cute with the alphabet! I used a hot glue gun to put a magnet on the back, and voila!

 There is this cute store near campus called Harts n' Crafts. I was browsing and found these watercolor Postcards. I tried my hand at watercolors this summer and thought these are a good place to practice. Also, it helps with my resolution to send more snail mail. The back is ready to go with a place for the stamp and address. For $5.00 and 15 postcards, it seems like a great little hobby.

 

This is the most basic design but maybe I'll get better with practice!

Birthday.

On my actual birthday, I spent 4 hours in the lab drawing blood. Bad experience. I'm okay with needles but when you ask a pregnant woman to fast for almost 12 hours, its not okay! But, it was worth the piece of mind to find out the next day that I do not have gestational diabetes.

We celebrated in San Antonio with friends and family. First, we went crib shopping. After a whole ordeal, we ordered a dresser and crib with a mattress and changing pad. It should be delivered on the 26th of this month.

 

The crib converts to a toddler bed and then a twin bed.

 

 

 

Because we had the guys with us, we stopped for lunch and then went to BabiesR'Us to test out a rocker. Later that night, we had dinner with some Baylor friends and my family. We tried a new place called Mellow Mushroom. It was really good pizza but the wait was too long. We went home and celebrated with strawberry cheesecake, too!

This year, there were no clues for birthday presents :(

Probably because there was only one thing I asked for.

 

 

We got tickets to Wicked this month. I've never been to a musical so I am sooo excited!

Overall, it was another great birthday. Feeling blessed and on the verge of a new era!

 

 

Game Day in Stillwater.

I know this post is a little late but I was having trouble getting my pictures off my phone.

 

After a long travel day, we stayed at a hotel. Funny fact: Coach will not stay in the same hotel if we lose. We don't win in Stillwater often, so the pickings were slim. BUT, he stays in the same hotel until we lose there. So, at least they have a place to stay next time.

 

The next morning is breakfast at the hotel. They guys come down and sign their phone out. They have to turn them in the night before. LOVE IT! Breakfast is buffet style with everything from cereal, to pancakes, fruit, and chicken?!

 Shortly after breakfast, chapel starts. The chaplin is also a coach. Actually, he is a coach first. But, the head coach hired him largely because of his chaplain status, too. The message was a great one. He somehow tied in Michael Jordan and Peter. It was a message about how Peter was asked to come out in the storm. What does that mean for us? When we follow Jesus will it be easy? fun? no.

We also studied John 2: 1-2 and how Jesus is our advocate for getting into heaven. he will fight for us! His story was a hilarious one about his first encounter with Michael Jordan when he was in middle school. So relatable to the players. Our department has just begun a sports chaplain program, too! 

After breakfast, we were kicked out for the game plan :(

Eventually we all board the bus. This is quiet time. No one talks. I thought we were going slow but realized that the bus was broken and could not go more than 5 mph, literally! With all the travel issues, I was convinced that the state of Oklahoma was sabatoging us...

 

The players headed into the locker room and we tried to grab a bite to eat. Apparently, Eskimo Joe's is a famous place. I didn't know but we stopped in. Didn't get to eat but we shopped some.

 We showed up at the gym and flashed our front row tickets where our seats were reserved.

I was impressed with the gym. It is soooo claustrophonic. This picture does no justice but there is no room around the perimiter and it feels as if the seats are right above you.

 

Warm ups began and Isaiah Austin prays individually with a few players.

 The show begins.

 

 I took this picture for Neil. I knew he would love it and I was right! I studied that thing and tried asking me too many questions. What time out was this drawn off of? What players did he point to? What defense was running at the time? I dunno.

 

 I dunno. But it looks like he was handing it to me. He wasn't.

 

More game action.

 

 

 

We win!

At one point it got so loud in there. It's interesting to hear what the players hear. Lots of bad things :(
People are mean, cruel even. I know its expected but that doesn't make it okay. One of the players' moms was sitting with us and the fans right behind us were saying AWFUL things about/to him. It got to her, as it would have me. She only responded once when they asked why he had such a stupid name...oops. Even after knowing that it was his mom, that didn't stop them. With the recent issue with Marcus Smart, its hard to take sides. But it was a great experience to have. Learned a lot about student athletes, coaches, fans, and Baylor.

Stillwater Takeoff.

I was invited to joint the Men's Basketball team on a road trip to Stillwater, Oklahoma. I teach a lot of athletes and the advisors thought it might be a good idea to see how the student athletes spend their time. Having declined before, I had to say yes. There was no room for Neil but he was glad to send me on this adventure :)

We boarded the chartered flight and it was pretty funny to see 7 footers and broad shoulders manuvering their way into those small seats. There were gift bags waiting on each seat with sandwiches, chips, and a snack. In the pocket in front, there was Gatorade and water bottles. Every 15 minutes (literally) the flight attendant came down the aisle with something to eat - trail mix, fresh fruit, candy, grapes, ice cream, beef jerky. If you go hungry on these trips, you are doing something wrong.

I sat one row in front of the players and I have to say, I was thouroughly impressed. I grew up around athletics. My dad was a coach, I dated athletes. I watch sports. I know that locker room talk exists. I know that there is a culture in sports that can be less than desirable. That is NOT what I experienced. The guys were gentlemen and childish at the same time. They speak highly of each other. They speak kindly about women. They invest in each others futures. I witnessed a conversation where one player was asking the other, "what are your 5 year goals?" Not in a teasing way, not in sarcastic way. They thought no one was listening. He wanted to be able to encourage and help him outside the gym.

I know this culture starts with the coach. He surrounds these players with men that he would entrust with his own son's spiritual upbringing. He said that! We prayed at take off and landing. There is a no cursing policy. Coaches included. In a society where coaches push, tease, ridicule, and scream at players, it is so refreshing to see that there is another way. 

We had a hiccup and had to land in Oklahoma City due to ice. And while the trip was MUCH longer than expected, I'd prefer that to danger any day! Plus, it gave me time to chat with these guys. Check back later for "Traveling Chapel". A post about breakfast with these guys!