Adventures in Nicaragua

We've been gone for 10 days! Our last vacation was close to a year ago, so we were ready for the time away - it was a lot of work to get ready for the trip, but very well worth it! We arrived home just after midnight last night after our babymoon excursion to Nicaragua. Tim, baby and I all had a great time... we're spending today trying to recuperate from vacation (funny how that happens) and slowly get back into the swing of things... but oh, how wonderful it would be to relax in a hammock with a good book or a daydream for days on end! We are very thankful for the time to be away, and I'm sure eventually we'll be glad to be back to our regular routines. Probably the highlight of our trip was staying at Finca Esperanza Verde which is a coffee plantation in the northern highlands of Nicaragua. It's an ecolodge that grows organic coffee and has an organic farm, where they grow all the food they serve at the lodge. We did quite a bit of hiking and relaxing, which was great, but most of all we enjoyed learning about the in-depth process in growing and producing coffee. We have a much better understanding of what goes into every step along the way to our delicious java brew, and now have absolutely no reason to gripe about the cost of a cup of coffee. The baby even had its first sip of real coffee here in Nicaragua - how could I resist, when we were staying on a coffee plantation?!? It was delicious - truly the nectar of the gods - and the baby seemed to be pretty excited about the experience too - which was rather energizing (so to speak) for the growing one inside of me. We also spent Valentine's Day at an organic chocolate factory, El Castillo del Cacao, also in the northern highlands of the country. They have just recently converted the house portion of their facility to a bed & breakfast, and Tim & I were the very first guests to stay there! We were surrounded by chocolate, which seemed divine for Valentine's Day! Here, we learned the step-by-step process of making chocolate... the chocolate they make at El Castillo is much more like an artisan form of chocolate, as they do most steps by hand, and they only use cacao and sugar... plus for some of their varieties add a few other ingredients like cacao nibs, coffee bean pieces or nuts. Delicious! And we brought some home to share :). There are so many stories to tell from our time away... but there are also things to be done around here, now that we're back home and back to reality... Here are a few highlights!

From the top of the Cathedral in Leon... a view of one of the 16 other churches in this very historical city...
A common site in Nicaragua - these guys can carry anything and everything! Sure saves on gas prices!

Laguna de Apoyo, a lake formed by a crater that erupted from a volcano about 200 years ago - supposedly has the cleanest water in Nicaragua! We stayed at a resort here, and shockingly were the only guests in the entire place! It was a nice, tranquil stay between two stops at busier cities.
Timmy outside one of many churches in Granada, another historic town. There was a poetry festival going on while we were there - not surprising since Granada is considered the literary/cultural center of Nicaragua, not to mention the birthplace of Ruben Dario, Nicaragua's claim-t0-fame poet.
Warm beautiful colors of Granada, with the Cathedral in the background.

Kirsten along the edge of the Masaya Volcano... we had a great whiff of sulfur at this spot!

The beautiful beach on the Pacific Coast of Nicaragua. We stayed in a nature lodge here called Punta Teonoste, and had a long strip of gorgeous beach to stroll and turn into lobsters ourselves! The perfect sunset at the beach... and a wonderful end to our trip, before heading back to Managua to catch our flight back to cold, wintry weather here in the States!

Dear Baby

Dear Baby,

I figured it was due time to write you your first "letter." I've been thinking about doing it for a long time, and have decided that the time has finally come. Your daddy is out playing basketball, so I'm enjoying a quiet night, resting with my feet up, and enjoying some time alone with you.

It's a truly amazing feeling to carry you in my womb. With each new day, I feel more and more of your kicks, punches and rolls... it is such an awesome sensation - sometimes it makes me giggle, at times I just saw "whoa!" and occasionally it brings a tear or two to my eyes. I can't wait to meet you, but at the same time I love knowing (and feeling) that you're safely inside of me. I certainly don't want to rush this process, but I'm sure we'll be ready to warmly welcome you anytime after April 20th (when I turn 37 weeks). My belly continues to grow, and each week it seems to "pop" a little more. I find it interesting, however, that most of my patients tell me how small my belly looks when they find out how far along I am. Just in case you were wondering, I'm measuring right on, and when I had my last ultrasound, your growth was perfect.

This is a picture of my belly today, when I'm 23 weeks and 1 day!

Your papa and I have decided to take one last vacation before you join us and change our world forever. We're going to one of the more special places I've ever visited. We'll be in Nicaragua for 9 days in a just a little over a month. Your daddy has never been to Nicaragua, and I'm very excited to take him there and share the people, history, food (gallo pinto, of course!), culture, language, beauty, geography, and so much more with him. During our time there, we plan to rest up in expectation of your arrival, but we also want to do some sightseeing with some mountains, beach and volcano time. We're also planning to spend a few days working with some missionary friends doing some volunteer work. My prayer for you is that you develop a similar heart for missions and a passion for culture, travel and language, like both your father and I have had for many years.

People have often joked that my mom (one of your grandmothers) must have been pregnant with me when she first went to Nicaragua in the early 1980s. This actually is impossible, because her first trip was when I was already in elementary school. But nonetheless, I have learned to love Nicaragua (and many other countries in Latin America and around the world), and I hope to share that with you as you grow up and are nurtured in our home, similar to the way it was modeled for me growing up with Grandma and Grandpa Johnsen.

One thing that your papa and I are thinking and praying about right now is whether or not to take malaria prophylaxis while we travel. We have consulted my doctor as well as many other doctor friends, and are confident that we'll be led to make the right decision. We still don't have our definite itinerary planned, and that may affect our decision, but we desire more than anything to do the best to keep you (and your mama) healthy and happy. Dear friends and family, we welcome you to partner in prayer regarding this matter!

The one thing I lament in preparation for this trip to Nicaragua is visiting coffee plantations and not having the opportunity to drink and taste some of the best coffee in the world, like I have done in the past. I have been caffeine-free for several months - even before I became pregnant with you - in anticipation of your conception. I guess I'll have to live vicariously through your daddy, who will have ample opportunity to enjoy the delicious nectar!

We were very excited to finally welcome your new cousin, Ryan, to the world on Sunday afternoon. Your aunt waited a l-o-n-g time to have him, and he came over two weeks late! But he's a beautiful, healthy boy, and we're sure you'll love playing with him. You'll only be four months apart, so we hope you'll grow up together and be great friends. He weighed 8 pounds, 12 ounces - he is a big boy! We only hope that you won't be as big, for your mama's sake! :) I keep rubbing my belly and telling you "6 pounds, 6 pounds, 6 pounds!" We'll see how well my tactics work - if you could at least stay under 7 pounds, I'll be eternally grateful!

Last night we took a tour of Babies"R"Us. We were given a parent's checklist. Eek! Mostly we just wanted to walk through out of curiosity - if I'm honest, it was me who wanted to do such a thing, not your papa. We've been working on a registry of sorts (our Wishpot), picking out things that we think will be helpful to have around when you arrive, but we're trying very hard to not get sucked in to the overwhelming baby craze culture that's out there. Your dad put it well when he said that just because it's on the checklist, doesn't mean we need to have it. Amen! We want your needs to be met (and our needs for caring for you), but we don't want things to get out of hand. We also are very interested in having items that are not harmful for you or for our environment. And we also would rather have fewer things that are of better quality with less of a carbon footprint than lots of "stuff" taking up space. We're thankful for those who have gone before us, who can help to guide us through this process. Thanks, Rachel and others, for the items you're sharing with us. We certainly appreciate it.

We are excited to prepare for your arrival, and are thankful for how fortunate we are to be able to gather things to raise you comfortably. Both of us have seen poverty and have lived among and worked with other children who are significantly much less fortunate than you will be. Our desire is to share with others some of the blessings that we have received. Your daddy came up with the idea of contributing a certain percentage of any money we spend on purchases for you to an organization that specifically works with children's ministries. We'd like other children to have a better chance at food, shelter, education, health, and daily necessities. We know there will always be much more that one can do, but we hope that we'll be able to make a small impact by sharing this gift with other children. We also pray that you will have a similar heart, and that we do our best as your parents to model giving and missions.

Just today, we received our first gift from our Wishpot! Audrey and Duane (cousins you'll adore) sent us a belly casting kit, so we can make a long-lasting impression of what you and I looked like together while you were growing inside of me! Thanks so much, Audrey & Duane - we're excited to tackle our belly project!

We have been thinking of several different options for names for you, and have a long list to narrow down and from which to choose. We have both girl names and boy names on the list, and hope that whichever name we choose will be one that you enjoy and that honors you (and that others can pronounce without too much struggle!). We'll welcome any suggestions - it would be fun to see if any of the suggestions are actually on our list (which we won't reveal at this time).

We want you to know how much we love you already, and that we can't wait to meet you. We're new at this parenting thing, so we ask for your patience and understanding in advance. :) We'll learn and grow together. What a gift from God you are and will continue to be! We're so thankful for you and for the opportunity to be your parents. Counting the days 'til your arrival!

Love, mommy (and daddy, too!)

The Miracle of Life

We ended up having a 3-D ultrasound of the baby done just before Christmas, and had a mini photo shoot with our actively moving baby inside my belly. When we saw these pictures, it really sealed the deal for us, and made it seem even more so incredible that God has given us the ability to make and grow a baby that will one day live among us outside of my womb. Even though I take care of pregnant women every day and deliver babies all the time, this first-time personal experience is taking the miracle of life to a whole new level. My mom gave me a book of poetry for Christmas called The Joys and Challenges of Motherhood, and I found this poem there, which I think is worth sharing, as we share the 3-D photos of our little tiny miracle.

"The Miracle of Life"
Life is precious
We hear it so often
it becomes
a litany without meaning
until the moment when
life explodes upon you
Pain and ecstasy at once
place within your arms
that perfect precious entity
The absolute realization
of an idea
that words keep in the shadow
of our consciousness
A kind universe
The smiling face of God
Good beyond measure
This tiny individual --
this proof of hope and truth
and all things beautiful
The wonder of creation that is your child.

-Danielle Morrison-MacNeil

These pictures were taken when our baby was 19 weeks and 5 days old inside the womb. Any guesses on whether it's a boy or a girl? Leave us a comment and let us know your guess! We had our eyes closed anytime the ultrasound probe was approaching the revealing areas. A big surprise awaits us!

Christmas JOY!

We had full days over the Christmas week, with something to do and somewhere to be every- single-day for 8 days straight! Fortunately we managed to squeak in some rest and relaxation time amidst some wonderful moments with our families.
Our nieces and nephews are such a joy to watch grow up, mature and develop each of their personalities a little bit more. They are each soooo different, and each wonderful. They're all loving and affectionate, well-mannered, and respectful (I'm sure this is how they are always behaved in their own homes, too!). Our youngest niece, Ella, is almost three, and really starting to come out of her shell and warm up to us now. She's so fun to watch and so full of energy! I don't know that my brother ever expected to have his sister reincarnated in his own daughter, but I see little glimpses of myself as a child in Lauryn each time I see her!
We had some time to celebrate Christmas while Jill & Daniel were still up north before heading back to Florida. We also had some time with my parents, and with Tim's family, including all the siblings and their kids. Before Christmas, we attended the annual "Zimmerman Family Christmas," which is Tim's maternal side's gathering of anywhere from 130-160 people (yowsers!). We had a much smaller gathering of the Johnsen family after Christmas, with my dad's siblings and just a few of the cousins.
I think we were both very thankful for the peace, quiet and soft-sung worship that we were able to experience (albeit only for an hour and a half), while we soaked in all aspects of the Candlelight Christmas Eve Service at our church. With all of the hustle and bustle of the season, it seemed like just what we needed to help us inch our ways a little more into the Christmas spirit... the real spirit of the season! We've celebrated the birth of our King and Savior - the greatest gift of all!
Here's a sampling of our photos to share the memories of our Christmas joy! We are abundantly blessed!

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?

A winter wonderland wedding

Jill and Daniel are married! Last night, Tim's sister, Jill, married Daniel. It was a beautiful wedding and reception, and our church had been magically converted into a gorgeous winter wonderland. It was wonderful to see Jill so happy and at peace - she was a radiant bride! We're thankful for how God has brought Jill and Daniel together and pray a special blessing on their life together.

I'm sure everyone, bride and groom included, are happy to have some time to rest before the next big events... we're not sure which will come first - a new niece or nephew (our sister-in-law is due December 25th) or Christmas! Either way, these are special times, full of joy and celebration.

A dancer or a soccer player?

As we sat at dinner at Taj Mahal (one of our favorite restaurants, where we are "customers for life") on Monday night with several friends, I felt a rumble or a tumble in my belly... I said to my friend "I think I might have just felt the baby move." And she promptly replied, "Or that's the Tikka Masala you just ate!" I didn't feel anything on Tuesday, but Wednesday brought a few strange, yet fascinating sensations in my womb. Yesterday, however, was a day full of wonder and awe, as I sensed movement -clearly other than my digestive tract- several times throughout the day. This really is an incredible thing! I never imagined how amazing it would actually be to realize and feel that there's a tiny little human being developing and growing inside my body. It's indescribable, I think, and until you've experienced it yourself, you really have nothing to compare! I'm not sure if we have a dancer (salsa, of course) or a soccer player in there, but if this early movement at 18 weeks and 4 days is any indication of their energy level in the future, we'll be busy!

On another note, we finally got our tree decorated, and it looks beautiful. We had quite a time getting all of our lights to work... it's so strange how you can put them away one year, totally working fine, and pull them out the next, only to find that half the lights are out?!? Ugh! Anyways, my very patient and diligent husband got them all in working order, and we're a little more in the Christmas spirit every day.

The first belly picture!

I've had several requests for belly pictures, so I decided to finally take some today. This is the first official belly picture! All of a sudden, it seems this week my belly popped out of nowhere. I had a little bump before, but now some strangers can even tell I'm preggers. In one day, I had 4 patients ask me when I was due! Not so sure how I feel about that... But anyways, today I'm 17 wks and 4 days... only 22 wks and 3 days left to go!

Scrounging for dinner... a delicious meal.

Last night, I was at work late, so Tim prepared dinner. He decided to do his part to clean out some storage supplies of food... I arrived home to a wonderful aroma and dinner on the table. My dear husband made a delicious meal of some veggies that needed to be used up from the fridge, scallops that were in the freezer since when I lived at my old house (before we were married), artichoke hearts that came from a box of items in the basement from Tim's old house, edamame from the freezer that was probably from a Trader Joe's trip about 4 or 5 outings ago, and marinara sauce from our pantry. It was a surprisingly lovely blend served over rice! And so far, neither of us are paying gastrointestinally for the use of old(er) foods. My Uncle Bill would j-u-s-t die!
Tim's new idea is that we designate certain nights or weeks at a time when we can only use food from our pantry or freezer in order to proceed with the long overdue consumption of many great foods that linger on and on! And I keep saying I want a chest freezer! There are pros and cons to everything in life, but I just think that one should always have adequate storage for good ice cream. Spoken like a good Norwegian girl who loves her milky, creamy foods.
PS. Did I mention how important it is for all women, but especially pregnant women, to get adequate sources of calcium in their daily diet?

Full of Thanksgiving

We enjoyed a very full holiday and weekend, but it was great. I was the rounder all week at the hospital last week, and on call on Thanksgiving Day, but we managed to squeeze in two turkey meals with both of our families. We enjoyed a wonderful time with our parents, siblings and nieces and nephews. I managed to get a photo of the feasting table at my parents' house, but forgot all about it at Tim's parents' house. By the time we got to Tim's parents' house, I was very tired, and the tryptophan was kicking in - I think it took over my photo taking natural tendencies! Friday night we headed downtown to enjoy the Mayor's Christmas tree lighting, a tuba Christmas concert, a walk through Central Market, and a meal at one of our favorite locales - Spyro Gyro. Yummy Greek food! Steve, Isaac and my parents met us down there, while Traci and Lauryn stayed at home nursing a pending cold in my niece.

We had a fun outing on the Saturday after Thanksgiving with my parents, brother and sister-in-law and my niece and nephew. It's beginning to be a tradition now to go to Frysville Farms to get our Christmas tree. We pick out our favorite concolor fur, get some hot apple cider and meander in awe through the aisles of pointsettias. The kids spoke to Santa, ensuring him that they were very well behaved, and each getting a toy in return. And to top it all off, we had a horse-drawn hay wagon ride through the tree orchards. Now we can enjoy the aroma of our citrus-smelling tree as it pervades the living room!
We have so much for which to be thankful. It's so easy to forget that in the midst of how busy life gets, what's going on around us with war, bad economies, global warming, worsening crime, etc. and seeing the sorrow of so many others around us. We have a warm house, good food which is abundant, good secure jobs, wonderful family, health, love, education, our faith, terrific friends, a baby growing inside of me and each other. We are blessed! Thanksgiving shouldn't be just a single day, but a way of life... everyday.