by Bethe

I’m still here

First off – I want to say thank you to everyone who has been so faithful to pray for us these past few weeks. I have some great news – my nausea is improving quite a bit! I still have my moments (and am still fully reliant on some heavy-duty nausea medication) but my appetite is returning and most days I’m feeling much better. I went from living on Saltines to expanding my diet to include Pei Wei (crazy, right?), a burger from In-N-Out, and chicken fried steak. I won’t be winning any awards for healthy eating but I’m just so happy that I can eat normal food with protein. It’s amazing how much better I feel after a good meal.

Tonight Mr. Right is bringing me Indian food (chicken tikka masala). Apparently this baby loves ethnic food. However, this baby still HATES sweets. So strange.

I also faithfully continue my mega-resting on nights and weekends. It broke my heart to miss my ESL end-of-semester banquet, along with more Christmas parties than I’d care to count, but I’m determined to do my part to keep this bun in the oven. Thanks to some wonderful family, though, I’ve been able to squeeze in a little fun while keeping my feet up.

Like, when my sister brought me dinner last week, and stayed for awhile to chat. It was good for my lonely soul, and even better because she brought that cute nephew of mine – I got my cuddling quota in for the week.

My aunt from England came in this week to spend Christmas with us. She stayed with us Friday night, and Mr. Right loaded us up in the car and took us on a tour of Fort Worth’s best Christmas lights. Then Saturday she spent the day sitting around with me, chatting and catching up in front of a fire in the fire place.

Saturday night, my sweet in-laws hosted my side of the family at their house for a big dinner. We wanted to let my aunt ride their horses and enjoy some “country” time. It was so nice to be surrounded by my favorite people, enjoy some fresh air (while relaxing in a lawn chair), and not be cooped up in the house.

Of course, we had to take a few pics of a baby on a pony. I think my nephew Luke is a natural.

Today it was back on the couch for some good resting (and napping) and movie watching. I managed to wrap our Christmas presents (first productive thing I’ve done in ages), and now I’m back on the couch, giving Freaks & Geeks a try thanks to my blog readers’ recommendations.

Please keep those prayers coming. Three more weeks ’til I’m off the high risk list and back to normal.

by Bethe

Some favorites… and a shop update

I don’t want this blog to be all baby talk, all the time, so here’s a little bit of Friday Favorites… on a Monday. I’m either really late, or really early. I’m choosing the latter.

You can click on the picture to be taken to the original source.

I remember back when pink was the new black. And then it was gray. And brown. This year, Tangerine Tango is the new black.

Actually, it’s just the 2012 Color of the Year. You can read more about what’s hot for 2013 here. My first print of 2013 may need to incorporate some of these colors – a girl’s gotta stay hip.

If you’re an Instagram addict like me, you probably need something to do with the million photos in your account. Here’s a way to put those pics to good use, by creating a calendar – a new picture to enjoy every day.

As soon as I’m off this couch and back at my sewing machine, this is going to be one of the first quilts I tackle. I love the simplicity, and the scale of the pattern. I think I could whip this out in one or two Saturdays.

And speaking of sewing – if we end up with a little girl, these skirts will be one of the first clothing items I tackle. The cuteness is overwhelming.

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And a little shop update – If you’d like to purchase anything for Christmas, you’re about to run out of time. At this point it’s too late to order a custom print unless you’re willing to print it yourself. If that’s the case, we can still work something out.

If you want your print mailed before Christmas, Wednesday (two days from now) is the deadline to order. If you’re willing to print yourself (or if you’re a local friend and can pick it up in person) then you’ve got until next Tuesday, December 18.

Here’s a link to the shop… Thanks to everyone who has supported us. And thanks also to everybody who is praying for us. We are very grateful.

by Bethe

Calling all prayer warriors

My friends, this morning we had a bit of a scare. The good news is that I got a third ultrasound in as many weeks and our little blueberry seems to be fine. However, I’m having some complications that now bump me into the high risk category. My doctor says if I can make it another four weeks, then I’m out of the woods. In the meantime, I’m on more meds and got a stern lecture about not overdoing it, which I totally needed, not because I’ve actually done anything besides go to work and then lay on the couch all evening/weekend/anytime I’m not working (heck, I’m the girl who wore the same shirt last Friday night through Monday morning… I’m such a trophy wife), but because I was starting to feel a bit guilty about it. I hear motherhood comes with all sorts of unnecessary guilt, and I guess that happens when your baby is in utero.

I’ll admit, I’m kind of terrified. And yet I am fully confident that I serve a God who saw this coming, who knows the outcome, who loves me and my baby (and Mr. Right) and who has the ability to work miracles. And so I will pray with reassurance that my God can handle this. I ask you to join along with me.

by Bethe

Food

I’m sorry for the deluge of baby-related posts. But since right now I’m not doing normal things, like quilting, crafting, socializing, or say… leaving the house, there’s not much to write about. I promise I will regain at least some of my normal energy as soon as I put this first trimester to bed.

In fact, the biggest drama in my life the past three weeks (besides a little visit to the ER where we found out that baby Wright is fine), was when my doctor wasn’t available to refill my Zofran (nausea meds) and I almost ran out. The desperation I felt yesterday as I tried to stalk anybody who could help me out (or write me a prescription) was sort of at epic proportions.

PS–Disaster averted – I got my refill lat night – just in time.

So in the meantime, here’s a list of foods this baby does and does not like.

This baby likes: crackers, croissants, bagel chips, bread, dinner rolls. Basically any sort of bland carb.

This baby does not like: meat of any kind.

This baby likes: water with lemon or lime, ginger ale, and sprite.

This baby does not like: coffee. Gag me. (my old favorite drink).

This baby likes: green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, scrambled eggs, plain hash browns, and soup.

This baby does not like: vegetables, or any fruit except grapes.

This baby likes: chocolate fudgecicles.

This baby does not like: any sort of sugar except for chocolate fudgecicles.

This baby likes: Italian food – spaghetti and tomato/mushroom pizza (well, most of the time).

This baby does not like: anything else not mentioned on this list. And sometimes, some of the foods on this list. This baby is a bit high maintenance already!

by Bethe

Being pregnant is like being a supermodel

Your first trimeter is a lot like living the life of a supermodel.

I eat very small meals every two hours. And I only eat a few strange foods.

Okay, that’s where the similarities end. My first trimester is the exact opposite of glamorous. But I’m trying to maintain a sense of humor as I lie on the couch and stare at the TV, sometimes closing my eyes when the nausea gets too bad to keep them open.

Go hormones. Go!

This weekend I lived off of a tomato pizza, croissants, and Special K cereal. Basically, I’m carb loading – the idea of meat absolutely grosses me out. And I’m drinking gallons of water, because the minute I get the least bit dehydrated I feel horrible.

In the meantime, my TV and I are best friends. It’s the only thing I have the energy to do after surviving the work day. After finishing How I Met Your Mother, I’m now hooked on Law & Order SVU and Arrested Development.

Any suggestions of new TV series I should watch on Netflix? Or new/current shows I can watch on Hulu? I’m running out of ideas and I have several more weeks before I’m due to get my second wind.

by Bethe

Oh my word, I’m tired

I’m so glad I don’t have to keep that big secret again! If you know me, you know I stink at secrets, which is why we decided to go ahead and tell everybody. That, and we wanted to rally the prayer warriors.

So here’s the lowdown:

The basics

Turns out we’re seven weeks along. I thought I was a week further (boo) but after our second ultrasound today, the doctor has decided to push my due date back a week to July 23. I wouldn’t mind so much, except that means I’m one week further from finishing this first trimester (boo again). The good news is that the baby looked great on the ultrasound and we got to see that precious little heart beat. I’m in love with that tiny little baby.

How we told our parents

We told both sets of families on Thanksgiving day, which also happened to be my birthday. Both families responded with delicious squeals and cheering and it was so much fun.

By the way, I hate food now

That’s right. Food and I are no longer friends. It’s amazing how a baby the size of a blueberry can make you so very sick. I’m currently surviving on crackers, chicken noodle soup, and spaghetti (random, but I eat spaghetti at least twice a day, every day). I’ve been on nausea meds for almost a week now, but they’re not working very well so we just upped the dose. Fingers crossed that this time it will work. Anybody have any other secrets for me?

I’d write more, but I’m worn out (seems to be a trend these days). I’ll see you all in January when I find all that energy I seem to have misplaced!

by Bethe

Yea! Yea! Yea! A baby announcement!

We are so, SO excited! More details to come, but it’s 9:00 p.m. and that’s an hour past my bedtime these days. Gotta love that first trimester…

PS–We chose to announce it now because we would love your prayers for our baby. We’re just under eight weeks along, and due around July 15. I still can’t believe it… my heart is so happy! (and my stomach is so nauseous!)

by Bethe

Announcement & a free download

I am so glad I can finally blab my little secret!

When I opened my little shop last summer, I hoped to sell a few pillows. Little did I know that it would turn into what it has – an opportunity to bless others, and a blessing to my family.

Tonight, more than 800 women (including a group of our beloved ESL students) received a free Texas Lovely print at my church’s women’s dinner. There is nothing that makes my heart happier.

I’d like to share it with you too. Here is a downloadable PDF. This is for personal use only, not for resale.

by Bethe

Support your favorite small business

Today is Small Business Saturday. Who would have ever known that I would have a small business? But I do, and I am so very thankful for the people who have supported us through the last few months. This little shop has really helped us as we went down to one income to launch Mr. Right’s new career as a real estate agent.

In honor of Small Business Saturday (and Cyber Monday, which is a heck of a lot cooler than Black Friday), I’m running a sale in the shop. For every print you purchase, you will receive one print FREE (print must be a $15 value – does not apply to custom prints). This means you can knock two people off your Christmas list at once, or you can buy for a friend, and keep something for yourself. I’m happy to report that there are several Christmas prints framed and up in my house – pictures coming soon. Well, as soon as I finish decorating my house for Christmas… which I hope will be tonight, but to be honest, that’s debatable.

But back to the sale. You don’t need a special code, just purchase your favorite print, and in the comments let me know which print you want for free. Offer ends Monday night at midnight.

Now, back to finishing another Christmas quilt and finding a place for all these decorations stacked up in my garage…