On a very different, and equally (well maybe not equally, but pretty darn close) exciting note...today is MOVING DAY!! Yay! The man is downstairs packing up all of our possessions as I type. Chris is getting the keys to our new house, and we will no longer be residents of Red Lodge by this time tomorrow :) I'll post pictures as soon as I get to our new Casa...and maybe after I do a load or two of laundry in my VERY OWN WASHER!!!
Thank you....and Moving Day!
First of all, I just wanted to say a BIG Thank You to everyone for the outpouring of love and support that we received since I posted the last entry. From the comments that people left, to the emails that we received, we were overwhelmed by everyone's excitement and encouragement during this very happy time! Honestly, it was difficult for me to write my last post...to put the news out there when I'm only 10 weeks along, and to open up about the struggles that I faced while trying to get to this place. Reading all of your sweet words helped me to appreciate that I was not alone in my frustrations, and it reminded me again of the love that our Lord has for each and every one of us. So, from the bottom of my heart ~Thank You for all of your blessings and well-wishes, they mean the world to me.
1 Samuel 1:27
When I was a little girl, I would play "house" with all of my girlfriends, and we would all fight over who got to be the "Mama". From as far back as I can remember, I've wanted to be just that....a mother. As I've gotten older, my desire has only grown. I just love everything about children; from their sweet chubby fingers and toes as infants, to the precious way they have of making everyone around them smile as they grow into their own personalities. They are such a light to this world, and I have always dreamed of having one of my own.
Chris & I started talking about having kids right after we got married. Well, let me clarify...I talked, Chris listened :) In his defense, just like every good husband, he wanted to make sure that he could take care of me (a BIG job, let me just say!) before he could even think about bringing another life into this world. Eventually, we got to a point where we felt comfortable and ready to start talking about it seriously.
Well, it didn't happen immediately. In fact, being the drama queen that I am, I thought that it might not happen at all. I saw doctors, had tests run, became frustrated...okay, okay, I got a little obsessed. I thought that this was supposed to be easy. I mean, everyone else seemed to be having babies easily. (Hello post-deployment baby-boom!!) I was so excited for all of my friends, but at the same time, my heart was hurting. That's a horrible thing to admit, but it is my truth. Finally, my Dr. prescribed some medication. The first type didn't have any effect at all, and the 2nd brought with it some VERY not fun side-effects. It was at this point that I gave it all to God. I literally got on my knees and asked Him to take the hurt, frustration, stress, and doubt away from me, and to replace it with fruitfulness of my spirit. If a child was not in the cards for us right then, or ever, I asked that He let my heart be okay with that. It was hard to lay that desire down at His feet, especially for this sometimes overly-controlling girl. But I also prayed that He not let me pick that burden up again...and He didn't.
"Then Jesus said, 'Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest."' Matthew 11:28
At the first of January I had what I thought was a stomach bug. I missed a New Year's Eve party b/c of it, and I was honestly a little annoyed! On a whim, I took a test...you know the one. And can you guess how this story turns out?? It was positive! Tears of joy flooded down my face. I can't even describe what I felt that day, I don't think that my emotions can be put into words. I immediately (yet, sneakily) told Chris, who was equally as excited and overwhelmed with joy! We then set up a web-cam call w/ all 4 sets of our parents to share our news. We wanted to see their faces, and I must say, it was absolutely priceless!
Needless to say, our year has started out on a wonderfully happy note. We are expecting a little one on September 5th, and we are so thankful to have been given this amazing blessing!! Praise God, He is so good!!
"For this child, I prayed; and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of him."
1 Samuel 1:27
Praying for Harper
You might have noticed the bright, shiny new button on the right side of my blog today. If you click on it, it will link you to a sweet blog written by Kelly. Kelly struggled w/ infertility for 2 years, and finally found out that she was expecting a little one to be born in January. Little Harper was born on Jan. 16th of this year but shortly after birth, she was whisked away (by helicopter) to another hospital that could better care for her. You see, Harper's lungs had stopped developing too early, and then she got an infection that put her in an even worse situation. I've been following this families struggle for the past week now, and I am amazed at the miracles that God has bestowed upon this precious little girl. She is now, just under 2 weeks later, off all oxygen! This family thought that they would be in the hospital w/ baby Harper for well over a month! God has been working some miracles for the readers of Kelly's blog as well! To date, 4 people have written her to let her know that her faith & her love of Christ has shown them what they have been missing in their own lives. 4 people have been SAVED by the gentle grace of God! You truly never know how your life will touch people's hearts, and what God might be up to in the midst of a struggle. Check out Kelly's blog, and don't forget to Pray for Harper!!
~Amy
Things I've Learned
When I look back over the past two years that we've spent in England, I can honestly say that I've learned quite a bit! I thought I'd make a list of some of those little tidbits of knowledge so that if you ever find yourself living overseas you might avoid some embarrassment. And yes, as hard as it might be to believe, I've been in all of these situations!
1. In Germany, a purse is called a handbag. DO NOT, for any reason, attempt to explain to a flight attendant that you left your "purse" on the plane. You will get a very nasty look, and you could very likely lose your beloved purse to said attendant.
2. Never, I repeat, NEVER tell the BT phone customer service guy that you would like to talk with someone who speaks English. This seemingly understandable request will promptly get you hung up on.
3. Always stand to the right when riding on escalators...there is a distinct possibility that you could get trampled in the tube station if you do not follow this rule!
4. When the Italian police tell you (well, hand-sign in our case) that you need to give them money, go ahead and do it. Your friend might not be super happy with you, but losing 50 Euros is definitely better than ending up in an Italian jail!
5. If ever in Prague, make sure that you get actual Czech money back from the market vendors as change. It could prove to be quite embarrassing if you try to pay for a beer w/ money from another country.
6. Do NOT drink tea offered to you by a rug merchant at the Istanbul Grand Bazaar. You are likely to come home with a highly over-priced rug, and a strange light-headed feeling.
7. Stick w/ British food at British pubs (except at The Eagle), and when in doubt order the Sticky Toffee Pudding as your main meal. It's sure to be fantastic!
8. Norwich is pronounced Nor-rich. This language lesson might come in handy if you don't want to look ridiculous when you try to tell your British neighbors where you were last weekend.
9. When purchasing a car, stay away from all 1992 Land Rover Defender's...no matter how much your husband begs you to get it!!
10. When posing for pictures w/ Italian locals, try NOT to stand under a pro-Communist sign giving a thumbs up. As Chris would say, I had seriously low SA with that one! (This picture has since been destroyed!)
The sad thing is, I could list about 100 other little lessons that I've learned since moving here. I don't know if that implies that I'm a complete mess, or that God just likes to add a little humor here and there in our lives. I think I'll just smile and go with the latter!
Abundant Sunday...Making a Comeback!!
Yes, I know, it's been awhile! So, without further ado, here are just a few of the things that I am thankful for this week.
1. The opportunity to see the movie "Fireproof" this week. It was awesome! You can be looking for a post about it shortly.
2. A fun Saturday night celebrating Jason's birthday w/ friends.
3. Our new house!! Have I told you lately how excited I am about it??
4. My new "Esther" Bible Study. Thanks Steph!
5. Eddie Bauer's super fast shipping :)
6. A sweet feeling of peace about our next Assignment, and for all that is to come in our near future.
7. Our upcoming trip to Texas...I'm not counting the days or anything!
I hope you all had a blessed week!
Whiplash the Cowboy Monkey
Yes, that is a cowboy monkey riding a border collie. His name is Whiplash, and he has been riding for 16 years now. He is my absolute favorite part of the Ft. Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, which just happens to be going on as I type! Oh, the things I'm missing in Texas!! If you want to see him in action, just click here, or you can see him starring in his own taco commercial here. Because really, why wouldn't a monkey riding on the back of a dog help promote tacos?? Hope that brightened your day just a bit :)
~A
Movin' on up!
Hi Blog Friends!
I have some very exciting news to share...are you ready for it?? We're moving! I can't tell you how excited I am about this new development. Perhaps it is because our new house will not feel like it is constantly caving in on us due to it's incredibly small size. Or, perhaps it is because we'll be a little bit closer to a new "American" restaurant that Chris & I are dying to try. But, if I'm honest, I think it is because we will now have a dishwasher, a garbage disposal, closets (actual closets, people!), and lastly, and MOST importantly...a washer & dryer!! I will no longer have to spend exactly $9.25 every other week to do laundry at the really rather nasty laundromat! I will no longer have to waste hours of my day sitting alone, waiting for my clothes to wash and dry. Oh, think of all the wonderful things that I can do with my extra time now! The possibilities are endless!
I'd post pictures if I had any, because I know that you are all dying to see what I am raving about. Now, I can't say that it's the house of our dreams, but holy moly it is a VAST improvement from where we have been living the past 2 years. These plastic bins, that hold everything from clothes to computer gear, are just not cutting it anymore. There is only so much you can do to those babies to make them look decorative, and I'm afraid I've failed miserably in that arena! But now...now we will have room to use Chris's poor speakers who have made their home under our guest bed for the entire time we've been in England. AND, we have a full size mirror...I'm incredibly excited to see the bottom half of my body when I get dressed in the morning (or am I?? heehee!). We move in about 2 weeks, and I'm literally jumping for joy at this very instant.
I'll post more about it when it gets a little closer, but for now I'm just daydreaming about doing my whites :)
~A
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
