My First "Moms" Event

Today I got to have lunch with Judy Douglass (wife of the president of CCC) along with 3 other pregnant women during our day visiting the national headquarters of CCC. She wanted to meet especially with us to talk about being a mom on staff and what our role might look like as we transition to staff as moms with kids. I was so grateful because I have been thinking about that a lot lately!! (And apparently it is rare to get such a small audience with her!)

It was super fun to meet and talk with her and get a vision of what life will be like with children. I love being a part of CCC because of the high value of family and the high value of the mission: to see lost people turned into Christ-centered laborers. What I took from the meeting today was this:

• That I need to be walking in the Spirit, willing to do what God wants me to do.
• That my home is a base for ministry.
• That I need to be involved in the campus ministry in what ways I can (I am still in the process of getting lots of ideas from other staff moms of what they do each week.)
• That I can be in the mission in other ways through my church, school groups, with neighbors, etc.

I'm excited to see what the Lord has for me as I transition to motherhood. I've loved being a part of campus ministry so much for the past few years (as a student and intern), so I am also looking forward to continuing to be a part of that in the way He leads at our new assignment in Central Illinois.

32 weeks- sorry its been so long!

So sorry we haven't posted in awhile! We have been busy studying, reading, doing projects, and doing homework! Although it was fun and we feel as though we learned a lot, we are both glad that the 2 weeks of classes are over.

Updates on baby:

• She kicks a lot! And sometimes the jabs are pretty forceful. Its really fun to look down at my belly and actually see her moving.
  
• She is over 4 pounds and about 19-20 inches long.
• She has opaque skin now and her fingernails are grown out to her fingertips.
• We can't wait to meet her, and the date is fast approaching!
  

Here are some pictures from earlier today:

30 Weeks

Above is a picture of me at 30 weeks. Different people tell me different things about what they think about my size- some say I don't look that big yet, others say I look huge. Personally, I feel big and can't imagine what I'm going to look like after 10 more weeks.

Funny Story: My mom and I went out for lunch to a Mexican restaurant over the holidays and the waiter asked if I was due any day. Laughingly I told him I still had almost 3 months left, and he actually laughed at me and asked if there were two babies inside. I said no and he just kept on laughing and pointing at my belly. That was the first time somebody has laughed at my size... I'm wondering if that will be a normal occurrence in the next couple of months.

Baby has been kicking up a storm lately! She is apparently almost her full length that she'll be at birth, and now just needs to pack on the pounds. It definitely feels more cramped in there as the days go by.

Florida

Well, after a whirlwind of holiday activities, we finally made it to Daytona Beach, Florida where we have already had a couple days of training and look forward to 4 1/2 more weeks here. We hope it warms up here soon because it has been in the 30's. But we really can't complain because its -7 degrees in Normal.

Fun fact: So far I've discovered 3 other staff women that are expecting! I'm by far the farthest along though.

Here are some prayer requests for our time here in Daytona:

• A healthy baby/no pregnancy complications while we're here.
• That this would be a time for both of us to rest physically and be refreshed spiritually as we await the arrival of our baby.
• That I (Michaela) would be able to feel great while I'm here in order for the previous prayer request to happen- sleep, exercise, nutrition... minimal leg cramps, swelling, headaches, and other stuff that has been lurking and probably urged on by our trips to the Outback Bowl and Disney last week. :)
• That God would prepare our hearts for parenting, and bring us closer together in our marriage.

Right before the Outback Bowl Jan 1st, 2010
NU should of won!

At Disney World on Sunday Jan 3, 2010
It was unexpectedly chilly!