Ben and I, and our parents all were predicting a boy. Surprise, surprise!

IT'S A GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She is healthy, active, and adorable, of course. Oh man, motherhood is so real right now! I think Ben kind of loves that he is going to be surrounded by girls once July rolls around.

The grandmothers' immediate responses were something along the lines of, "I'm going to go broke buying for this little girl!"

It's snowing. AGAIN. Our weather man is calling for temperatures in the teens. AGAIN. I will put long johns on under my clothes tomorrow. AGAIN.

Ohio.

I just realized that I haven't communicated our future plans to many of you. After much time spent seeking God, we have sensed Him telling us to stay here in Ohio a bit longer. Ben will finish his Master's in Persian this spring and has been admitted into OSU's Ph.D. program in Persian for the fall. We were both really looking forward to getting back to NC pretty soon, so this all came as a bit of a surprise to us. However, we truly do believe we are following God. Now we are waiting for all the pieces to come together. Ben has been looking for a job for months now and honestly it has been a frustrating season. So much of our life together has been so easy and charmed. We know that lives lived out in faith are not purposed to be easy and fun. You know it's kind of funny, but we both agree that we feel like spoiled children finally be told to wait and obey. We are definitely experiencing the growing pains of being stretched in our faith, but we know God is going to bring glory to Himself in the midst of it all. And for that we are excited. We have been and still are truly blessed children.

If you think about it, please pray that we would patiently wait on God to provide a job for Ben.

Last fall, I began a program that equips missionaries to become childbirth educators, doulas, and midwives. What a joy it has been to learn more about childbirth as I am preparing to experience it myself! I'm thrilled to someday use these skills with women both in the US and abroad.

Tomorrow's the big day! Boy or girl?!? Any guesses? Waiting for our appointment tomorrow is like waiting for Christmas morning to arrive when you are five.



Another belly shot. Unfortunately, my baggy shirt doesn't show too much in this picture, but when we were at church on Sunday, the day this was taken, I had many a tummy pat followed by, "You're showing!" I, of course, loved it.

Thanks for all the advice about sleeping. Yesterday I finally bought a body pillow and slept pretty soundly most of the night. Poor Ben gets crowded out of bed with that monster of a pillow.

Yesterday Ben woke me up to a cupcake from my favorite bakery, some tasty chocolates, and a gift certificate to get a facial. Woo hoo!



I gave Ben a very Ben-like book. He loved it and proceeded to read me page after page of poetry. You see, it's a win-win situation.



For dinner we went to a restaurant called The Burgundy Room. There we had delicious tapas in a very cool part of town. We had a lovely Valentine's day. I hope you did too!


We are thinking the baby is going through a major growth spurt. My belly has popped out, seemingly overnight. I'm not joking here. People are beginning to notice that I'm pregnant. It's a little nerve-wracking when I'm talking to someone and their eyes drift down to my stomach. And then I wonder if they're thinking, "Too much Valentine chocolate for that girl!" I want to blurt out, "No, no...I'm pregnant."

I'm not sleeping much anymore and it stinks. I just can't manage to get comfortable sleeping on my side. I'm normally a back sleeper, but everything I'm reading says that's not a good idea during pregnancy. Something about it inhibiting circulation. Any pregnant or formerly pregnant women out there with any suggestions?

At 17 weeks, it not much of a belly, but it's something! We figured we had better get accustomed to taking pictures. We'll find out if we're having a boy or a girl on February 27th. Unless, that is, we have a modest baby that decides to cross his/her legs during the ultrasound.




She has been throughout the US and Canada and now she will retire...in Mexico. She was just dying to say that she had seen all of North America.

We recently sold my old Jetta, Annie to a couple that will be sending her to Mexico for their family members' use. It's truly the end of an era.

Goodbye, Annie. I can't believe that after all of our travels (ah RT04, the memories...Kate My Mate I hope you haven't forgotten!) you are no longer with us. You will be missed. You served us well.