Attitude of gratitude

I decided that it was time for another posting of thankfulness to my patient, longsuffering Savior and Father for the work that the Holy Spirit is doing in my life. Granted, there are many areas where I look and wonder if I'm ever going to "get it", but I am so thankful for the areas where I can say - "yes, by the strength and perseverence of the Holy Spirit - I am growing".

This may sound - ahem - childish - and I agree that it is - so that's why I'm so happy to say that there is growth. Mark and I are different - in that he would rather not "have to" go anywhere out of town/overnight. He is happy in his routine.
I, on the other hand, relish opportunities to "get to" go anywhere/overnight.

Considering the nature of our careers - even before we were married - I knew that Mark would "have to" go out of town several times a year for conferences, research and such. In nursing, unless you go to a conference - which is hardly ever, you don't get paid to go anywhere.

Let's just say, that I anticipated struggling with Mark "getting to" go places and me "having to" stay at home and work. And, I was right. I really did have pity parties - and no sympathy whatsoever for Mark's travel woes.

So, the good news is, I was okay with him going to Tulsa this week! Yes, I would have preferred to be able to go with - I've heard from several different sources that Tulsa is actually a cool little city. But, being in my third trimester, it was really out of the question to drive six hours away.

Praise God for growth - however small it may be to others - this was big for me!!!

Welcome to my third trimester

Here is proof that I am indeed very pregnant. I still feel yucky - in the afternoons and evenings. I still struggle with worry, though not as badly. We didn't buy a car seat/stroller because there was only a thirty day return policy. Some days I feel huge - but try not to think about it too much. I know that, Lord willing, I have less than three more months to grow our Matthew - and that really is a good thing.

You know you live in the South...

when you're listening to the radio and they say that it's 83 degrees and feels like Fall!

Autumn

Well, it's not in Arkansas, yet. Still in the 80's and humid - but I know that Autumn is coming! Autumn has always been my favorite time of the year - crisp days, lower humidity, changing colors, football, etc...
Living in Inidana, though, always brought a bit of dread, too. I knew that just around the corner was winter. Winter would be my least favorite time of the year, dreary, layers upon layers of clothes, wind chill factors, never being able to get warm where I lived because I never wanted big heating bills.
Not the case down here. Yeah, there made be some cold days, but not like North Central Indiana. I'm sure that in time I'll miss snow, but for now, I'm reveling in the thought of a mild winter.

Life is good!

Football season is underway!!!

GO COLTS!!

Shopping for gear

Mark and I made our first voyage out to Baby Depot(Burlington Coat Factory) and Toys R Us on Sunday to actually look at stuff. I had been doing research online, but this was our "hands on" trip.
Our conclusion? Most of it comes down to preference because it seems like most everything meets the safety requirements.
We have decided on getting a travel system (stroller and car seat). The practical side of me wanted to get a convertible car seat - so we wouldn't have to be buying one anytime soon, but that may not be what is necessarily best overall. Allowing a sleeping Matthew to continue sleeping when he falls asleep in the car seat seems to be the wisest decision. We did find a Graco system that allows the baby to be in it up to 34 pounds. I think that's where we're leaning at this point - most of the other ones only went up to 20-24 pounds.
We are happy to hear suggestions on this and other gear - it's a bit overwhelming to tell you the truth.