a little pregnancy update

37 week today = longest pregnancy to date!  Praise the Lord!

And according to the OB late last week, things are looking healthy for both mom and baby.  Friday was the last day of the progesterone injections, a fact that neither Drake nor I are mourning.  I'm only dilated to 1cm and not effaced at all, so it's likely that we've still got some time until her arrival.  She's head down (and likely to stay that way), and the OB estimates that she's in the high 5's for weight right now, giving her an expected birth weight of 7+ pounds - we'll take it!

And now my tasks (among many others) include: finding that darn camera charger which we still haven't unearthed since our move, finalizing some things with our diapers, getting the admitting paperwork to the hospital ahead of time so that it's one less thing to do when we're there, cleaning out the van (not necessarily a priority, but it's something I'd like to have done before she arrives), and making myself a nursing cover.  Whew.  

this is on in our car 95% of the time or more

Relevant Radio

Drake and I are in love with this Catholic talk radio station - it's so solid and never came in very well when we lived in Urbana.  But now, we listen to it almost all the time!

The station is excellent for numerous reasons, but one thing we really like is that they're not afraid to "go there."  They face the controversial issues head on, arming themselves with the Magisterium, papal authority, and Scripture.  Some of our favorite programs include the Drew Mariani Show, Go Ask your Father, and The Inner Life.  I get genuinely excited about car rides now because of this radio station, especially on those days that life as a Catholic in this world seems more daunting than exciting.

AM 950 - check it out for yourself!  You can even listen online or on your fancy iPhone!

counting our blessings

I had a great confession last night with the priest at our new parish, and I was reminded of something critical: the need to keep our blessings at the forefront of my mind.  I personally have to make a very intentional effort to remind myself of how blessed I am in the midst of heavy crosses.  So I'm listing a few for my own sake.

• Drake and I have a ridiculously strong marriage - I'd be completely lost without him.  Being married to the person with whom I converse most easily and honestly, the person who understands me to my core, and the one who desires the holiness of our family above all else is a complete gift from God.
• We've been blessed with two beautiful children - Thomas fills our lives with joy, and we cannot contain the excitement we feel over meeting our daughter in a few short weeks.
• We have a nice place to live, a solid parish, and live near other family support.
• We have food on the table, clothes on our back (and in our closet!), and have been blessed by the generosity of family and friends.
• We have access to medical care and have been abundantly blessed by the competence and kindness of our new OB office in particular.
• We got a great deal on a van and live near the train station, both of which allow our family to get to the places we need to be.
• Drake feels a great deal of peace about his academic program; we both feel tremendous peace about taking this next step for our family.

Father Tom also gave me an effective visual last night in the confessional.  He talked to me about the story of Peter's attempt to walk on water to go meet his Lord.  Peter was thrilled to see Jesus and began to make his way to Him...but then he got lost in his own mind and convinced himself that it didn't make sense for him (Peter) to be walking on water...that's when he began to drown.  When Peter fixed his gaze, his attention, his complete focus on Jesus, that was when walking on water was possible.

Receiving the sacrament of Reconciliation last night reaffirmed my conviction that God desires to sanctify our family through the joys and crosses of this new journey, one big transition that is filled with smaller transitions.  Holy Family, pray for us!

PS. I apologize for the recent lag time in my blogging, though I'm confident that you've found other ways to spend your time :)

frozen meal suggestions?

In the next couple weeks, Drake and I are hoping to cook up several meals that freeze well that we can have ready to go for when the baby arrives.  It's going to be a really chaotic (beautiful, but chaotic) time, and I don't want to have to do much for meal prep those first few weeks as we're adjusting. 


Any recipes/meals you might recommend that freeze and reheat well?

so. many. blessings.

We've recently moved.  It was a ton of work both packing and unpacking (which is still something we're working on since we've been here a whopping 7 days), all the cleaning, organizing, etc.  But we were so thankful to have so much help from family and friends -- many thanks to each of you!

This new place feels so much more like our home already than our apartments in Urbana ever did the last two years.  And the more we get organized and settled in, the more I love it!

We had our first appointment with our new OB yesterday - I was apprehensive at first because I really liked my OB in Urbana.  But I must admit that I think I like this OB even more.  And here's why:

• He walked in with a small St. Peter pin on his white coat...clearly Catholic.
• The nurse informed me before he came in that he and his wife are expecting their 11th child any day now.  Pro-life perhaps? :)
• His approach and personality are a perfect fit for Drake and I -- he's extremely down to earth and very intelligent.  He's not worried about this pregnancy at all and even disagrees with the diagnoses I was previously given (with compelling evidence to back it up) as a result of the complications I encountered in my first pregnancy.
• He assured me that the likelihood of my being able to carry the baby to at least week 35/36 is extremely high.

We've been able to go to daily mass everyday this week as a family - man oh man am I ever getting spoiled having my dear husband home all day everyday.  We registered at this parish yesterday and got the ball rolling with Baptism preparations for our little lady.

We've already had several dinners and fun time together with family and friends even in just the one week that we've been here.  It's so nice to have moved closer to many familiar faces.  We were able to celebrate Drake's birthday with family as well as his mom's birthday, welcome my brother home from Africa, have a couple meals and a morning at a local splash pad with some dear friends, and we have plans nearly everyday next week as well.

It's hard to not look too far ahead, but right now we're really soaking in the family time together!

It's been a while since I've posted...and despite my best intentions, I'm doubtful that I'll have much time to post in the next couple of weeks.  I absolutely plan to follow up on my most recent posts about teachings of the Catholic Church (one in particular) once we get our Internet up and running in our new place.

And speaking of, our major move is this weekend!  My dear husband has recruited plenty of help in loading up the truck on Friday night with 90% of our belongings, and we hope to be on the road bright and early Saturday morning to meet more help whom we've recruited and who have so graciously agreed to help us.  It's a bit of a tease, though, because we need to come back for another week so that Drake can finish up his last week of work.  And I wasn't interested in being apart for a week, so I'm coming back too.  We'll be "roughing it" in our apartment by sleeping on an air mattress (Thomas in the pack n' play), having only a couple of dishes, our microwave, a few books and toys for Thomas, just enough clothes for the week, etc.  And then we're at our new place for good, and many new adventures begin!

Please send up a quick prayer for our family -- God has truly blessed our journey so far, and we're relying completely on His divine providence through it all.  Thanks!    

some apologetics assistance needed...

I have quite a love/hate relationship with Facebook - I've gone on several "FB fasts," canceled my account on numerous occasions, etc.  I think it can serve a good purpose when used prudently and not as a means to "be in the know" about people with whom one never communicates with aside from exchanging Facebook status changes on the homepage.  But, I digress. 

Within the last week, there have been two bold claims made by two individuals, both of whom I would consider a friend (more than simply a "Facebook friend").  These claims were essentially the same, stating that the Roman Catholic Church needs to get with the times and start ordaining women.

Obviously this isn't the first time that people have expressed this view.  But as a committed Roman Catholic who loves and embraces the Magesterium, this is clearly a sentiment that I do not uphold.  Not even a little bit.  Nope.  Not at all.

And there are so many reasons, but a lesson in apologetics is not the reason for my post.  I do, however, need advice as to how to best serve people who make these claims on Facebook.  I feel like I have a few options:

1. Do/say nothing.  Pray for them, but take no more action than that.
2. Send them a link to some solid apologetics in text or podcast format, thus potentially starting (or continuing?) an open-forum debate on their profile page.
3. Send them a FB message or email (something sent only to the person making the claim) about why their view is flawed.  The intention here is not to be seen as better or holier than them but rather to plant a seed rooted in the fullness of the Truth.

When it comes down to it, I want to DO something.  I'm so sick of Church bashing, particularly among people who claim to be Catholic.  But on things like Facebook, I don't know how far I should go in terms of apologetics.  I want to be charitable without sugar-coating anything.  It's easy to paint a picture of our Lord as a peacemaker - someone who simply wanted everyone to get along, love each other, etc.  But Jesus was so much more than that, desiring nothing but our sanctity and bringing us closer to the Truth.  So how the heck do I convey that on Facebook?

Thoughts?  Suggestions?  Please give me some ideas!