and the belly grows...

okay...they weren't kidding when they said that your belly grows exponentially at the end... just 38 days to go! hope i still fit into some of my clothes by the end of this! :)

Another little note...

I got to download a couple of pictures today, so thought I'd get one posted! Both of these are from Joel's sister's wedding last weekend! It was SUCH a beautiful day and the wedding was as perfect as could be. My only regret is that I did not get a picture with the bride!!!

Below is a picture of Joel and I... He had the privilige of preaching the wedding and he did a wonderful job. The one below that is of my friend Michelle, who is due two weeks after us, and I right before the wedding began showing off our tummies!

34 weeks...

Hey everyone! First of all, sorry that it's been so long since I posted... and sorry that there is no picture on this post! We are in Jacksonville, Florida at our Summer Training Program and are having a great time! And though I have my camera, I don't have any way to upload them to my computer right now, so I'm pictureless for the time being...

It's definitely hot down here! I'm kind of missing the beautiful time of year that it is in Kansas right now, but I think my body is adjusting to the heat and humidity... :) I can tell that my temperature gauge has changed now that I'm "big" pregnant! I'm always trying to turn the thermostat in our room down, while poor Joel is always freezing. :) It's such a funny change cause it has always been the other way around!

We've been keeping VERY busy, but "Lucy" has been great to roll with the punches... She has been so easy on me! The trip down was a breeze. I wasn't uncomfortable at all and I've been sleeping wonderfully in our dorm room bed! I was a little nervous about that, but it has not given me any problems at all! God's been really gracious.

It's so hard to believe that our due date is only 42 days away... According to the websites, baby J is now almost 5 pounds and 19 inches long. I believe it! She's got to be running out of room in there!!! I see my tummy moving from the outside almost constantly... ESPECIALLY when Joel is speaking! He's been doing a lot of presenting and teaching the last few days at the training program and every time he's talking, she goes crazy. She already loves her Daddy...that's for sure! And he's already very smitten with her! I can't imagine what it will be like when he actually gets to hold her in his arms. She'll have him wrapped around her little finger in no time!

The training program is going great! There are about 50 of us here so far and the other 150 arrive tomorrow... We've had very full days, but we're enjoying every minute of our time here! Just two more weeks and we head back to Kansas!

That's it for now. Just wanted to check in since it had been a while. Hope you had a great long weekend!

jen

32 weeks

As you can tell from the above picture, we're having a lot of fun with this pregnancy!!! The girls I disciple have been such a blast to walk through this season of life with. The girls in the picture above are Jena and Macie...two of the women I have mentored for the last 4 years and who will both be coming on staff with us next year at KSU. We have a blast together and they will both be "Aunts" to little Lucy! We're all so excited to meet her!

Well, the school year at KSU has officially ended for us. We packed up and left town this morning. Whew. What a whirlwind! It's crazy to think that the next time I see my little house, I will only be a little over 3 weeks away from my due date with this baby!!! Where has the time gone?

It's been such a great year. Probably the busiest of my life, but God has done so many incredible things... from answering our prayers for a child, to continuing to see many students experience "new life" in Christ on campus, we really couldn't ask for me. I feel blessed beyond words.

We're halfway to Kentucky and so excited to see Joel's sister get married on Saturday! It's supposed to be in th 70's and sunny for their outdoor wedding! How perfect! Then Sunday we start the trek to Jacksonville!!! Dorm room living, here we come!

Thanks for checking in! love, jen

More blessings...

Last weekend we headed to Iowa for Baby Shower #2 hosted by my Aunts and my sweet Mom! We were incredibly blessed... It was so much fun to see so many people who mean so much to me. We had family travel from all over to come, as well as several really good friends. Thank you to everyone who made the trip. It made the day incredibly special. Here are a few pictures from the day... I wish I could include all of the ones I took, but this limits it to 10. :(

chatting with friends and family

My Aunt Phyllis made this precious baby blanket!
My good friend and college roommate Darath made the beautiful cakes!!!
Here is one of the cakes that she made. Isn't it gorgeous? I loved it! My good friend Renee made the trip from Minnesota.
My two beautiful Aunts...Rosie and Linda! Linda made this little sweater!
My cousin Gabi and Mom help me with opening the gifts!
My sweet Mom who put a lot of thought and work into this day! Thanks Mom!
My cute little Grandma right before we left for the shower...
One of the group shots...

So as you can see, it was a very special day! Hard to believe that was a week ago already... Time is just flying by. I was in Baby J's room this morning trying to start to organize things. I'm doing her first load of laundry today!!! It's so fun to see all of her little things and knowing that she'll get to use them in less than 60 days. :) Do you like that I'm always counting down? :)

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We leave Manhattan in a brief 4 days... There is SO MUCH to do before then! I'm hoping this weekend will be productive. We'll be on the road quite a bit over the next 4 weeks... We drive to Kentucky and then fly to Jacksonville for the Summer Training Program... We're so excited for all of our travels and what awaits! We're just hoping baby will stay put until early July so we make sure to make it home before her arrival! So far, so good! I'm still feeling great and enjoying every day...

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Thanks for checking in...

Awaiting our little miracle!

jen