Graduation Day... of sorts!

Today marks a special day! I'm 35 weeks pregnant today, which for many is just a bit closer to the due date, being more uncomfortable, tossing and turning more in bed, feeling more tired, getting more excited... and anxious, etc. But for me, it's also seems like a day worthy of celebration! I'm sure this has a lot to do with my doctor-who-delivers-babies (mild) neuroses, but I'm jumping for joy because 35 weeks is the cut-off age for babies to avoid a stay in the NICU based on age alone. For this, I'm incredibly thankful! I certainly don't have any history or conditions that would have put me at increased risk for having a preemie, but one never knows, until you pass the date successfully. Of course, babies end up in the NICU for a plethora of reasons, and we hope and pray that our precious life growing inside of my belly will successfully avoid a NICU stay altogether. We trust our Father to continue to keep our baby healthy and safe.

Yesterday we took a hike with some friends at Tucquan Glenn - one of my favorite spots to hike in Southern Lancaster County. It was a gorgeous Spring afternoon, and it felt great to get out and get movin'! I certainly could tell that I had done more physical activity than usual, however, when I promptly zonked out on the couch shortly after dinner last night... and then proceeded to sleep all night long. Tim tells me I was more restless than usual last night, and that I was moaning and groaning lots, but I awakened feeling well rested and ready to start my Monday morning at the clinic after being away from the office for me than two weeks.

We're making big progress around here - we plan to be in our master bedroom by next weekend. We still have quite a bit to do (volunteers to help are welcome :) ), but we're getting sooo close! Many thanks to Tim's parents and to several friends who have already come to help us out a ton. All of our helpers have made the light at the end of the tunnel seem significantly closer. Next week, our general contractor (and my dear brother-in-law) will start framing out what is to become the nursery and our office in order to blow in insulation. That being said, we have to be out of our guest room (which is to become the office) and sleeping in the master bedroom by Easter. It's super exciting and super overwhelming all at the same time. We're also getting closer and closer to having a functional new powder room on the first floor. Yipee! Pictures to come soon!

Speaking of Easter - this year, the thought of new creation and new life takes on a hugely different meaning for me. I've never experienced this motherhood thing before, and I continue to be in awe of the fact that God has chosen me to carry inside my womb a growing human being that will breathe life in just a few weeks. He's gifted us with the honor of becoming parents. We realize that we may not do this perfectly, but we desire to glorify Him with our own lives, and also in our parenting. We pray that our child will grow to know and truly love his or her heavenly Father, who gave all of us His son, who amazingly died for all of us, so that we can enjoy life eternal and the riches of His many blessings that we experience every day. Wow! What a sacrifice! As I'm about to have my own son or daughter, I ponder what that must be like - sacrificing your child - and it seems incredible to me! I can hardly comprehend it...

I received an e-mail with the following slide show in it (A New Creation from Mennonite Central Committee) - I found it a powerful and wonderful reminder of how God has freely given so much, including His one and only son. May it be a blessing to you, as it was to me!

Our first baby picture!

Little baby Johnsen Martin was a bit finicky for the first photo shoot, not wanting to reveal her- or himself completely to the ultrasound tech... but Mama Kirsten took a break and made a visit to the bathroom, and then the baby seemed to cooperate a bit more. We had a hard time getting images of the head initially, but then the baby did a nice job of posing for some side shots, and we got this great picture! As Tim said in the ultrasound exam room, "this makes it official!"
It's never too early to be proud parents, right?

Duane & Audrey's Wedding - Slideshow

Finding the perfect Christmas tree...

It was a beautiful Saturday morning (a week and a half after Thanksgiving), when my parents called to find out if we'd like to join them for tree hunting... We said "sure" and finished up our lazy morning routine before heading out -- we don't get too many lazy Saturdays!

We all fit in my dad's pickup truck (Tim & I in the children's seats in the extended cab), and my parents in the front. We made the journey up to Frysville Farms, where we meandered through several trees, looking for the perfect one for our home, our first Christmas together as a married couple. We settled on a beautiful concolor fir, which comes highly recommended by my parents, because of it's lovely citrus smell and sturdiness of the needles, which don't fall off much (hooray!).

The tree stands beautifully in our living room, and it only took us about three weeks before we put the lights on, then another two weeks to put the decorations on. Fortunately, the Friday before Christmas we put the decorations on the tree - a moment of feeling as though we had accomplished something, but also a moment of sadness, as we were unable to locate Tim's box of decorations. We are living in chaos, surrounded by many boxes on all three floors of the house, the basement, and the garage. It's possible that Tim's decorations may be yet-to-be-discovered, but we fear that they may have been destroyed, and thus thrown away, by the restoration company that cleaned out the flooded basement at Tim's old house. We realize that they are just material things, but for Tim, they hold many memories of his childhood as well as gifts he'd received while travelling all around the world in his work with YES (through Eastern Mennonite Missions) and Global Disciples. We still hold onto the hope that one day, when we are at a much more organized time in our lives, we may locate that box of Christmas ornaments, to allow the memories to live on.

One last thing about our tree - I found a gorgeous tree-topper at Ten Thousand Villages, that seemed (at least to me) to be the perfect compromise for us as a couple, now living under one roof and blending almost 70 years of joint history prior to our marriage. It's a dove, made in the Phillipines, out of silver dollar-like pearly, iridescent glass with silver trim. Tim grew up in a star topper family, and I grew up in an Angel topper family, so this beautiful symbol of peace is just the perfect thing for us, our tree and our home!

Enjoy the photos of our tree hunting with my parents.