Slow as Molasses

When I was in kindergarten and getting ready for school in the mornings, my mom used to say, "Jennifer, you are slow as molasses." And I thought absolutely nothing of it. You see, I always thought she was saying that I was "slow as Lassie" and the only Lassie that I knew was a pretty fast dog who had a TV show. Maybe it was a trip to Lambert's (the only home of the throwed rolls) that made me realize what slow as molasses really meant. After tossing you your rolls from across the restaurant, they come by with a spoonful of slow dripping molasses for you to put on your bread. And man that stuff is slooow!

I'm not sure if my mom was exaggerating, but I really am slow as molasses these days. By this time with Graham, I was already on "modified bed rest." I could do things that didn't stress me out, and I was able to rest a lot. As I've mentioned before, Jeff called it "glorified bed rest" because I could do all the fun things, but I didn't have to clean or cook if I didn't feel up to it. I am so thankful to not be on bed rest, but I'm getting a taste of what it's like to carry on with normal life in your third trimester. I've still be going to the gym, but before I getting any applause for keeping that up, let me just tell you what that looks like. If I'm not feeling great, I just walk on the treadmill, but if I feel up to it, I still try the elliptical. While I'm doing the elliptical the computer often reads, "PAUSE." I wonder why in the world it is saying that I have paused when I'm still going, but then I realize that I am moving so slowly that the machine thinks that I have temporarily stopped. How aggravating! They need a pregnancy mode on those things!

So yep, I'm slow as molasses these days trying to keep up with a toddler who is anything but slow. But that's okay because he'll soon have a little sister who will be running around right next to him!

Our Filth, His Grace

In case you wonder where we live, we live in that house that has really, really tall grass. That is until a couple of days ago. Jeff has been so busy with work and a remodeling project to get ready for little Lucy that our yard has been rather neglected. But this week the weather wasn't quite as hot, and Jeff had the opportunity to cut the grass. Of course G was right there beside him cutting the concrete with his own little lawn mower. Because the grass was so high, there were tons and tons of grass clippings to rake. Yesterday, Jeff finished up the yard while I cooked dinner. I asked Jeff if he could take G outside with him so I could finish up without a baby hanging from my legs.

While I made dinner, I looked out of the kitchen window. There was Jeff sweating and working hard to get all the grass clippings up. And there was G who would come in right after Jeff and shuffle his feet through the pile dispersing the grass clippings. At times I laughed out loud at the scene. It happened over and over again. And then Jeff stopped what he was doing and bent down on G's level. "Oh no. A spanking is coming," I thought. But no, Jeff just bent down and gave G a kiss...just because he wanted to give him a kiss. They worked some more, and then Jeff took another break to push G in the swing. Finally, about the time dinner was ready, Jeff finished raking the clippings and had a nice pile stacked up by the street.

So this got me to thinking about God. It got me thinking how he has an overall plan for his people and how sometimes we get in there with our sin and just get dirty. Oh, our sin is still ultimately part of his plan, and he uses it to mold us and bring glory to himself, but he would like nothing more than for his people to be obedient. But we aren't. We jump in the grass piles. We even wallow in them from time to time. (Like when G just completely sat down in the grass pile). And God still bends down and gives us a kiss. He tells us that he loves us and shows us grace. This doesn't mean he never corrects or disciplines his people, but he is "slow to anger and swift to bless." And ultimately, despite all our sin, despite how dirty we get in the process, he accomplishes all things to his glory.

In a very in your face type of way, children expose us. They show us who we really are to God. We look at them and see their unknowing disobedience, we see their blatant disobedience, and we know that God sees the same thing in us. And just as we love and adore our children, so God loves and adores us...only our love is fallible and finite, and his love is perfect and infinite.

Go Fetch!

Check out my post on Lydia's blog!

Entrapment

I just got back from taking Graham on his first trip to McDonald's. Some of you are probably thinking,"Disgusting...why would you let your child in that place." Others of you are probably saying, "Why have you deprived that poor kid." But it is what it is. I have no aversion to McDonald's, but I do have this fear of the playground. When I think about playgrounds, my heart starts beating faster, my forehead begins to "glisten," and I anticipate every bad thing that can happen. So what's the big deal, Jen? I'll tell you what the big deal is. I have visions of my son getting trapped in some tunnel. I have visions of me being 9 months pregnant trying to free little G and then getting trapped myself. I have visions of the fire department coming out to rescue us and having to cut through the plastic around my big belly in order to free us. That's what I think about. So I guess it's really not G's safety that I'm concerned about as much as it is my own embarrassment. But we made it. Graham couldn't even climb up to the tunnels and slides, so we're all good. No entrapment, no firefighters, no embarrassment. G loved running around and playing in the "little kids" section, so I guess I can say our first trip to McDonald's was a success! And since I don't have a picture of his first visit to Mickey D's, I thought I would leave you with a picture of his first trip to Krispy Kreme. Healthy, I know. But, it was free doughnut day. How are you going to pass that up?

Well, it's a ...

Girl! Sorry to keep some of you hanging. Yep, Lucy Paige is cooking away in my tummy. At least that's what they tell us. We invited our families over for the reveal party. Jeff's parents thought it was going to be a boy, and my parents thought it was going to be a girl. The only reason my mom was 97% sure it was going to be a girl is because she analyzed everything I said from the time of my ultrasound until the reveal party!

So, I've been out to buy some pink things. It's so crazy looking at girl clothes. I had a hard time looking at boy stuff when I was pregnant with Graham because I didn't think any of it was cute. And now I am so boy minded that I think all the girls clothes are ridiculous looking. But they're growing on me. I mean, I love girly things, but some of the stuff out there is just over the top! I think I'm just too picky when it comes to clothes. I need something sweet, vintage, cool, classy, and soft. Is that too much to ask for? :) Sweet Lucy, I hope you're not a picky as your mother!

Secrets, Secrets Are No Fun!

Secrets, secrets are no fun. Secrets, secrets hurt someone. You know who that someone is? Me! I've got a secret, and I can't tell anyone. We were supposed to have an ultrasound this Monday to find out our baby's gender, but I ended up having it a week early. We had a "reveal" party planned for our families after the doctor's appointment on Monday. We were able to move the party to Sunday, but that still means I have to wait 5 days to share the secret. It's killing me. I don't like to keep secrets. I don't know how people keep it a secret from everyone else until the baby's birth. But since we planned this party, I feel like we have to follow through and at least keep it a secret for a few days. I can do it...just one more day to go. So do you think it's going to be a boy or a girl? A boy would be fun because Graham would have a little brother close in age, and they would always be best friends, right? Plus, I already have stuff for a boy. And I know what it's like to be a mom to a boy...and I love being a mom to a boy! But a girl would also be fun. I like to do fun, girly things sometimes, and it would be great to have a little girl around to teach how to paint her toenails and how to cook. Preferably not at the same time. Anyway, I'll let you know once the word is out. You can leave a comment and let me know what your guess is, because I know people feel so proud of themselves when they guess the right gender. I know I sure get excited when I've guessed correctly!

Check it Out!

So, I've started doing guest blogging on my dear friend Lydia's blog. She has an amazing business where she personalizes stationery, invitations, announcements and more. She made Graham's birth announcements, and she is doing the invitations for my sister's wedding that is coming up in just 8 weeks. You have to check out her beautiful work! And you can stop by there every Friday for a post from me.