Sleepless in Seattle

This past weekend we took a trip out to Seattle with our friends the Engers to watch the Seahawks/Bears football game! It was great to get a chance to see family and friends in Washington too. We utilized every single moment out there to its fullest (hence the sleepless part!) and it was a fabulous weekend.

On Thursday, we hung out with our family outside around the firepit. Dad grilled an extravagant dinner of chicken, steak, and salmon along with many other delicious sides. On Friday we toured around Adam’s hometown of Olympia. We went to the Farmer’s Market and to Tumwater Falls.

It was the season where all the salmon swim UPstream to mate. Little did they know after they made it all the way up, these guys were waiting to harvest them…

It was pretty cool to watch. (But I’m glad I had tried salmon the night before seeing this, or I may not have had the courage!)

Saturday was a beautiful day, a perfect day to explore Seattle.

We saw the Space Needle, Pike’s Place Market, and the harbor. (I stole this cool shot from Derek and Jen)

And of course we had to stop by the very FIRST Starbucks!

After church on Sunday we headed back up to Seattle to see the Seahawks game!!!

It was Adam’s first ever Seahawks game, so he was VERY excited about it. His childhood hero is Steve Largent, #80. The stadium had paid great tribute to the man which was pretty special for Adam.

The Seahawks started out fairly strong, despite not having their first string quarterback, but the Bears came back for the victory. Adam was a bit bummed, but Derek and Jen were obviously thrilled about it!! And I was too, since my *second* favorite NFL team won the game!

Great times, Engers!! Let’s do it again soon!

a PhD candidate

So in grad school, one of the major requirements after getting the masters degree is to take the phd oral qualifier (or proposal) exam. Well, 6 months ago I attempted to take it and did not pass… What a rough couple of weeks that was trying to figure out what to do. Was this God’s way of saying I’m done with grad school? Did I go as far as I could and maybe it was time for me to move on? Well, after lots of prayer and great council from many family, friends and colleagues, I decided to give it one more try.

Fast forward two months and we discovered this! WOAH! Ok, maybe God’s whole plan was coming into view for us! Maybe I really am done with trying for the Ph.D and should just focus on my M.o.M. degree instead?!

Well, after all that I decided to go ahead and take the exam again and see what God’s up to with all this. If I didn’t pass, we could be sure that it was the end of the phd road and all would be fine.

[This is the poster that my advisor just presented at a conference Italy on the same day as my exam]

This past Wednesday was the big day. After 6 months of agonizing over it and 3 solid weeks of studying and preparation, I re-took the exam. I was calm cool and collected going in. I felt very prepared and ready to nail it. The first 15 minutes I presented my proposal. It went great. It was the best presentation I think I had done, I remembered everything I wanted to say and was able to say it at the right moment while staying within the allotted time. (And I KNOW all of that was because so many of you were praying for me! Thank you!)

Then came the questions. And right off the bat, the first one hit me so hard, I was almost knocked off my feet. It was something I hadn’t really considered and it just totally through me off for the rest of the exam. I gave some reasonable answers, but stumbled over several questions. What a humbling experience... AGAIN!

Well, yesterday I found out that I actually passed it! Maybe they were sick of hearing me come and talk every 6 months, maybe they noticed my pregnant belly and had pity, maybe I legitimately improved my thinking and defending skills, who knows! But we are sure that this is God’s way of letting me know that I’m where He wants me to be for now, and that I will keep pursuing this degree so that someday I can use it for His glory.

The next and final step is to defend the thesis (which will be well after the baby comes). I’m sure that will be another long and trying time while I prepare for that, but after seeing what God can do firsthand when I put my complete trust in Him and know that his plan is the ultimate best for me, I’m planning on fully relying on His strength to get me through that just the same. And just as I’ve said in the past, He has provided all these opportunities and abilities and grace, and He deserves all the Glory right back! So here you go, God! Welcome to my PhD candidacy! Please lead the way…

making room

In order to start making room for our little girl to enter our world (and our condo), we decided to find a bookcase to store all our books, magazines, college textbooks, notes, albums and craft supplies And believe it or not, we did it!

We got his huge bookcase from IKEA and we put behind the couch. It puts it out of the way and only pushed things into the living room by a couple extra inches. Adam built a bench to put it on so it has even more store behind the couch for things we don’t often use. (Don't worry, it’s secured well to the wall and it not going anywhere!)

I’ve finished some sewing projects: I finally made curtains for the living room windows…

and some pillows to match.

If you’re wondering what Adam is reading… he got a Kindle for his birthday last month! It’s a small and VERY thin reading device that looks just like a real book page.

It’s really cool- so compact and lightweight! Perfect for taking on the train and on long trips and he can store thousands of books on it. I wish they had these when I was in college so I didn’t have to lug all those books around!

Well- I’m off to make the weekend to-do list which will include finishing the last 3% of the bathroom (hopefully??), and then moving on to plan out the nursery!! Yay!!

A GIRL!

We’re having a little baby girl!

Monday’s ultrasound was so fun! She was moving around A LOT so the pictures aren’t super clear, but they are still great!

After the ultrasound, I had just finished telling the nurse that I wasn’t 100% sure I had felt the baby move yet…

Then while lying down waiting for the doctor, I felt a few jabs or kicks! I had Adam come over and put his hand on me, and he felt her too!! It was like she heard us- very exciting :)

One thing the technician and doctor noted was that my placenta is “slightly low” which means if I were to give birth right now, I may likely need a C-section. They find that in most women who have low placentas at 20 weeks. it moves up from there, so they will just monitor it again with another ultrasound in 8 weeks. So please pray that everything goes smoothly!

After finding out the news on Monday night, we called our family, posted it on facebook…

made pink cupcakes to bring to our coworkers…

and Adam went out and bought his first PINK shirt to wear to work the next day!

I think he looks terrific in pink, don’t you!?

****One thing I almost forgot to add! We saw her YAWN on the ultrasound too! It was so cute!****

finding out soon!!

My next appointment is on Monday, August 17th and we get to find out if it's a GIRL or BOY! YAY!!



So, just for fun, let's take a poll, what do you think we're having?!?! (Poll is above)
If you have any questions about my symptoms, cravings, etc to help you decide, feel free to leave a comment!

married 5 years!

Last Friday Adam and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary! On Thursday night, we decided to take a spur of the moment weekend getaway to South Haven, Michigan.

It's a cute little town on east coast of Lake Michigan which makes for awesome sunsets!!

This year, we have even more to celebrate as we await the little precious addition to our family! :)

 
One summer back in High School, I lived with my aunt and uncle in South Haven while I worked at their embroidery store and hotdog stand. It was fun going back and remembering all the sites, shops, and restaurants. Adam and I brought our bikes so we could ride into the downtown area from our hotel (only 1 mile away).

Across the street from our hotel is Sherman’s Dairy Bar, AKA the BEST ice cream we have EVER had!!!! We waited 45 minutes at 10pm on Friday for it and it was SO WORTH IT!!

And since we don’t live nearby, we had to take advantage of this delicious little find a SECOND night in a row!  (Hey- I’m eating for two, right!?) This is me holding our “baby size” (Mackinac island fudge- on the left) and “single size” (blackberry- on the right) ice cream cones!! So huge and so good!!

What a great weekend!

 

Happy Anniversary, sweetie!! I love you now more than ever!