All is well

We had a doctor's appointment today, and we were able to see that sweet little Abby GIRL again! (That is now my THIRD time being told that's she's a SHE!...I feel very confident I'm having a girl!!) I wasn't really "worried" about this appointment, but I had a bit of anxiety going into it. The only reason I had this ultrasound was because my doctor measured me at my last appointment and said baby was measuring a little large. That doesn't seem like a big issue, but y'know, I just wanted to make sure everything was as it should be. She measured perfectly today, and she is weighing in at 2lbs 12oz. The doctor had told me before that when she measured me Abby may have just been really stretched out at that time, which is why she got a larger measurement.

Another great thing to note is that Abby has flipped herself, and she is now head down!! Yippee! I was glad to hear that! Have a look at her cute face :-)

Also, I wanted to include a picture of me in my 28th week. How time flies!!!! My very first baby shower is in just 2 weeks! I can't wait!

School is moving right along, and I still have students that ask me almost everyday "When is your baby due again?" One student asked me today, "How many months are you?" I told her 7, and she said, "Oh, my mom was as big as you are now when she delivered!" ha! That's nice! Kids say the darndest things, right?!?!? :-)

Friends and Baby Stuff

I decided to combine a few things into one on this blog.

First off, last weekend we were able to go visit my friend Alyson and her husband, Zach in Dallas. We had a really great time. We were able to do some shopping, and I found both my dresses for my showers while we were with them. Of course, I'm totally thrilled about that! I've tried on dresses earlier in my pregnancy, but wow--what a difference it makes when you actually have a belly to fill them out :-) Alyson works at Dave & Buster's, so we had some great food and got to play some games for FREE (she gets a certain amount of money per month to use! That's just beautiful!) Below is a picture of Aly and I.

The Monday following that weekend, the UPS man came and delivered our baby carrier and stroller. I'm so excited! The colors used are brown and red. We figured brown and red is fine for a girl, and it would be fine if a boy came along at some point, too. Sandy was very curious about this stroller, and she even hopped herself in the basket down below. I pushed her around the house in it! It's so fun! Thank you Brad and Lisa!!!!

For Abby's room, we got a green gingham chair that I could rock her in. It goes with her room really well. Our biggest thing right now is deciding paint. As of the moment, I have THREE different greens painted on her wall. Next weekend, things are getting painted though. So I have to make up my mind between now and then. Here is a close-up picture of Sandy in the green rocker.

Our Norwegian Friends

Last Thursday night, we had 2 Norwegian girls stay at our house. It's a long story, but the short of it is our friend, Matt and his family used to live in Norway. When the Norwegians visit us, they are just stopping through...they are on their way to Guatemala. Matt's mom helped organize their over night visit in Houston by finding host families that would house the students for an evening, rather than them staying in hotels. We did this last year, and we volunteered again this year. This year was truly amazing.

Josh and I had 2 girls stay with us named Camilla and Ingrid. They were so incredibly sweet and very talkative! I love how they asked so many questions and just wanted to chit-chat about anything and everything. When we were first driving into the neighborhood Ingrid said "Look! There yards look like they do in the movie Dennis the Menace." We all got a good laugh out of that one. Ingrid sat in our leather recliner, and we told her she could move the lever back to put her feet up. I don't think she's ever done this before because she wasn't quite sure how it worked. She kept saying "Whoa! Whoa!" Once Ingrid was lounged back in the chair, Camilla said, "She looks like Joey from Friends--how he lays in his recliner!" I thought that was too cute.

These girls were just wonderful, and I really had a great time with them. Here are some pictures I was able to get from their visit.

Caleb and Sandy

During the Super Bowl, our friends Matt and Kim came over with their son Caleb. My biggest worry, once Josh and I have Abby, is how Sandy will behave. Matt and Kim have been over on several different occasions since they've had Caleb, and it really seems like Sandy gets a bit more calm and almost "non-caring" towards Caleb each time. Now, I definitely won't say she isn't interested in his toys or wants to smell every single item in his diaper bag or on him, but she seems to a adapt a little bit better with every visit. Something I don't feel will ever change with Sandy is she is ALWAYS full of kisses! Caleb was blessed with a few good ones to the face!

We got a few cute pictures I wanted to share during Caleb and Sandy's "playtime."

My Little Scoundral

A few weeks ago, Josh and I came home from eating out with another couple. We walk in the door, and of course, the first thing I do is greet Sandy. She was still laying on her back underneath her blanket, but her tail was wagging so much it was moving the blanket up and down. We begin turning on lights because it was dark in the house, and we notice in the hallway by the front door and into the dining room there is all this stuff on the floor. We couldn't make it out at first, and Josh and I were both thinking that Sandy had pooped all over! Obviously, that would totally be out of her character, and once we flipped on the light we saw what it really was. Sandy, in her new mischievous ways, decided to nose her way into this display I had done of a candle in the middle with potpourri all around it. She pulled out about a billion different pieces of the potpourri and had it dragged all over the entry way and under the dining room table.

Josh took her outside right way, in case she was going to get sick from it or really needed to use it because of everything she had digested, and he came back and seeing me on my hands and knees--thinking I was picking it up...but then said "What are you doing???" I wasn't actually picking it up, YET....I was wanting to photograph the moment. It was kind of funny. :-) I am also including Sandy's pouting pictures because we made her stay on her blanket and not sit by us for the mess she had made. She's just pitiful!! One of the pictures she won't even look at me when I call her name, and the other picture she is putting her ears down. Josh thinks it's mean I photographed her during her misery, but I just couldn't pass up the opportunity!

7 random thoughts

I have lots of things going through my mind (kinda scary) so I will just talk about all of them. I have man things (football) for Travis and girl things (paint) for Michelle so everybody should be happy.

1. I am very blessed and thankful that God has given me a wife and life long partner at such a young age. I was playing basketball Tuesday night and I was talking to one of the guys. When we got done talking, I said "I am heading home to my wife" and he responsded "That must be nice" and that got me to thinking. It is nice, REALLY nice to come home to a wife and a dog and a family that I love and that loves me back. To be given all this is an everyday blessing from God and lots of times I forget that Amy, Sandy, Abby, and everything else belongs to God and he has choosen to bless me with them. PRAISE GOD!

2. Clear Lake women are CRAZY! Clear Lake is a suburb south of Houston where Andrea Yates, Clara Harris, and the astronaut woman all lived. I told Amy if we are ever in Clear Lake don't drink the water. Please pray for these women and their families.

3. National signing day for college football was yesterday. According to the people who rank the classes, La Tech had the 4th best class in the WAC. That is actually pretty impressive considering we only won 3 games last year. Coach Dooley appears to be turning things around and is exciting the alumni, fans, and recruits. I can't wait for the fall and Bulldog football. The kid pictured below is the #1 ranked prospect in the nation and has already been named the Bulldogs starting QB for 2007. 4. Tonight we have 2 students from Norway staying with us. They are studying Spanish and are traveling to either South or Central America to study. They always have an overnight stop in Houston and our friend's Mom arranges for them to have homes to stay in rather than staying in hotels. We housed 2 kids last year and it was lots of fun. They always have interesting viewpoints. Hopefully they will bring some Norweigan chocolate.

5. We are trying to pick the color to paint Abby's room. We decided on green and I have painted 2 different greens on the wall. Neither one is the "right" green and each green cost $8 a quart. Please pray for us to get the find the right color and have peace about the color we pick.

6. We are really starting to have parent anxiety. We wonder whether we are spirtually ready to have this baby. We don't pray, read the Bible, communicate with God, live Godly lives, rely on God, etc. enough now. We are learning in our home group Bible study how difficult it is to be Godly parents and to raise Godly children. Keep us in your prayers.

7. If you think you have a dysfunctional family you have never meet Jack Bauer. If you watch "24" you know what I am talking about. If you don't watch "24" you should rent Season 1 and you will be hooked.

Have a blessed weekend. We are heading the Dallas to visit Amy's friend since kindergarten and her husband before little Abby arrives.

A MAN post for Travis

This weekend was our annual toilet bowl with our church. The Toilet Bowl happens every year on the day of the Super Bowl when our church's adults play our church's youth in a touch football game. During this years game, my friend Travis (who never shows up for basketball tournaments) said the Beasley blog had to much stuff about valances and gingham and twall and pink. I think there is a "Man Law" that requires a man post at least every 4 girly post so I give you the most testosterone filled post ever.
Ten sunrises past was Gladiator night at the church. Every winter solstice the young whippersnappers (youth) and the grizzled warriors (Mark, Matt, and I) gather in the coliseum (KUMC gym) to eat meat with our bare hands, drink blood (grape juice), and compete in warrior games (dodgeball, pushups, jousting, etc.). At the end of the competition the champion is knighted as the newest Gladiator. This event is really fun because it is a bunch of guys hanging out, celebrating our manhood and thanking the greatest Gladiator of all (God) for making us MEN - MANLY MEN.