A LESSON FROM...EXTREME HOME MAKEOVER
Does anyone besides us still watch this show? Well, if you don't you should! It truly may be the only show on TV that has any sort of good message and meaning to it! For those who have been under a rock and don't know the concept of the show, each week a group of designers/carpenters/home builders basically build a whole knew house in 1 week for a very deserving family who, otherwise, would never have been able to afford it. Not only is it amazing that an entire house can be built in 7 days, but the houses are AMAZING!! They only do the best of everything. But the house is not the focus, the families are. And this week's family blew me away. Now, maybe it's the hormones, but I was SO touched by this family, I cried from beginning to end! The Llanes family immigrated to the U.S. from the Phillipines. The father of the family has a rare, genetic condition that I cannot remember the name of, but basically, sometime in his young adulthood, he lost his eyesight completely. Sadly, because it's genetic, his 2 daughters also have the disease. Both are legally blind and can only see if they look at things very close up. Both will eventually lose their eyesight completely as well. And if that's not enough, while the mother was pregnant with the son, she contracted German Measles and this caused him to be deaf. They also have Grandma living with them, who is also blind. What an amazing family!! Their sweet spirits touched me so much in so many ways! I can't imagine being able to see for so much of my life, and then suddenly never seeing again. Another thing was the father had lost his sight before his son was born. They never were really able to communicate directly, because dad couldn't see son signing, and son couldn't hear dad talking. Not to mention the house was a disablilty on it's own. Well, the team did not disappoint! They built this family an incredible house, filled with all sort of techno gizmos that they will use for sure, from braile computers to a program that Dad can talk into and it's signed on a computer screen for the son. They will be able to communicate directly for the first time!!

All of this to say, that I realize in situations like this that I am SO amazingly blessed!! I have a wonderful husband that I love so deeply. We have a home that is a healthy and safe place. Both of our families have been pretty healthy. No major problems. I have 6 nieces and nephews who have all been born healthy and remain healthy. And I could go on and on....

And now Beckham is on the way, and by all medical standards so far, he is growing healthy and just as he should be. PRAISE GOD!! Of course the thoughts have cross my mind numerous times, what if he's blind or deaf or disabled in some other way? What will we do? What will I do? But seeing families like the Llanes family reminds me that it could always be worse, and yet better at the same time. So many healthy families aren't as close as they are. So many healthy families don't love each other the way they do. So many healthy families don't rely on and support each other they way they do. And in this, and in the faith that the Lord is in control and has a perfect plan, I find strength and peace. Don't get me wrong, if we should find that Beckham has some sort of diablilty, I will probably cry and ask why. But I will always put my faith in the Lord! He has been SO good to me so far, and I know He won't stop!

So, catch an episode or 2 this season of Extreme Home Makeover. It really is a great show. It makes me count my blessings every time I watch it!

WHO KNEW??

These are some fun numbers I came across on a website I read everyday...


Dates and numbers:
There are 131 days until your due date on January 18, 2007.
You are 149 days pregnant.
You are 4.9 months pregnant.
You are in your 5th month of pregnancy. (huh?)
Your 1st trimester: April 14, 2006 to July 13, 2006. (0 - 12 weeks)
Your 2nd trimester: July 14, 2006 to October 26, 2006. (13 - 27 weeks)
Your 3rd trimester: October 27, 2006 to January 18, 2007. (28 - 40 weeks)

For any of you who may be or soon will be pregnant, the website is:
i-am-pregnany.com

It has great photos and a daily message board that I love to read. Just fun FYI

The fun begins!!

Ok, time for a little honesty. As thrilled as I was when I found out I am having a healthy, precious baby boy, I still mourned the fact that I'm not having a little girl. Does that make me a bad person? I mean, I knew from the very beginning I was having boy, I guess it was "Mommy's intuition." And of coarse, I prayed for a healthy baby, regardless if it was a boy or girl. But that little part of me, deep down, that always saw myself with pink and bows, was a little...well...sad. I'm just being honest here. Maybe men go through the same thing when they get the news they are having a girl? I don't know. But I am glad to say the saddest has past, and I have embraced the fact that I am going to be the mommy of a rough and tough little boy! So the fun now begins...the nursery. We spent most of the weekend cleaning out the closest, getting ready to paint. We are thinking a football/sports themed room. Let's face it, I married a sports nut! And truly, I enjoy sports,too. So why not try to pass that love on to Beckham? So here are a few pictures of what we want for bedding. I love it!

ALL IS WELL!!

Let me first say that Josh took the whole day off today. I forget how fun it is to have a random day off with my husband, not a holiday or a weekend! I love it! I wish we could do it more often!

Anyway, we headed to the "high risk" Dr. today. She was great! She did confirm that there are only 2 blood vessel in the umbilical cord, but that it is really nothing to be too concerned about. In fact, she didn't seem concerned at all! She took a good look at everything and confirmed that Beckham(she confirmed for sure it's a boy!) is growing exactly how he should be. His heart, brain, and spinal cord all look great. And she looked for facial abnormalities and didn't see anything. So PRAISE THE LORD!!! ALL IS WELL!! She said that she sees this fairly often and in only 2 cases has the baby's growth been affected. So, all it means is that I will have ultrasounds every 4 weeks until I deliver, and starting at 28 weeks, I'll be seen at my regular Dr. every week instead of every 4. So the fun part is we get to see Beckham alot as he grows! And growing he is! He's already gained 2 oz since Monday!!! So thanks for all of your prayers! We truly appreciate them!