Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a wonderful day celebrating with friends and family!

I Am Alive.

Medicated, but alive.

Those pills that Kurt called in right before we left are AWESOME. I realized how awesome they are because they got me through the 3 1/2 hour car trip with little to no problems. However, once we got to Ripley, I waited too long to take my third dose. Let me tell you: I had a new appreciation for the pills' awesomeness. I took my dose and within 20-30 minutes was feeling relief again. Now my main worry is getting through the night. But I have my pills for tomorrow, so I'm good. I know everyone is sick of hearing about this stupid infection, but it's literally an all-consuming thing. Thank you for your thoughts and encouragement! :o)

On the much brighter side: THE NURSERY BEDDING IS DONE!!!!!!!!!!! It looks incredible. I don't have my camera cord with me (I know, I'm a failure), so I'll have to post pictures after Thanksgiving, but it is just beautiful. My changing table came in as well, and the crib only has a couple more coats of paint to go. This is really happening....wow. Kurt's mom is literally a sewing rock star. Stay tuned for pictures!

I'm Thankful For....

....a husband who can CALL IN PRESCRIPTIONS!!!!!!!

He is the best. I woke up last night about every 3 hours, and was up and going around 8 this morning (I never wake up like that on my own). He had just gotten home and was getting things together for the trip. I immediately had to say goodbye again and spend some quality time in the bathroom. When I came out, I saw him researching drugs online for me. I am SO excited, because he is getting me a medicine that works in conjunction with the antibiotic, but deals with the symptoms (which is what is the most frustrating and hindering right now). It's pretty sad that when I heard "This is Dr. Kurt Lancaster, calling in a prescription for Ashley Lancaster..." I felt like he had just done the most romantic thing in the world :o)

Update

Okay, friends. It's 12:33 am and I am feeling (kind of) better. As in, not excruciating, I-won't-be-able-to-sleep pain. I got so desperate after posting the first time that I went to the grocery at 10:30 pm to get cranberry juice and tablets. I must have looked so sexy.

As far as packing goes, I threw things in my suitcase in between bouts of pain and am hoping for the best. I think my family will understand if I look like the unfortunate pregnant person over Thanksgiving. I'm going to try and go to sleep, and I'm hoping that lying down won't be uncomfortable (it was when this all hit, towards the end of Dancing with the Stars...).

I'm still hoping I can manage the car ride tomorrow...and Wednesday. I'm taking my jug of cranberry juice with me. Watch out.

Uuugggghhhhh

I am miserable.

I have a UTI (urinary tract infection), and I am miserable. I normally wouldn't share something personal like that, but I'm literally asking for your prayers. We're supposed to drive tomorrow and then Wednesday for several hours at a time and my body is just messed up. I have been trying to pack off and on, and even took a shower to see if that would help take my mind off of it, but I just need it to GO AWAY. I had one several months ago (not anytime recently) and thankfully we still have the medication on hand, but you know how that goes...you need immediate relief and it takes FOREVER. I'm drinking lots of water and am just going to pray myself through these car trips. Hopefully I'll have a happy update soon :o(

Weekend Rest

Let's see...this weekend has been pretty low key. Saturday Kurt was on call, and I woke up not feeling very well. Kurt told me that instead of stressing about what I SHOULD be doing (a common occurance), I should just get on the couch and relax/rest. Somehow, I spent most of the day doing that. I ended up falling asleep for an hour and a half---I never do that! I always enjoy the time to myself when Kurt's gone...for about 2 hours. Then I'm ready for his company again!

Sunday was a great morning at church. I worked on Christmas cards all afternoon and then started feeling crummy again. I think it's a lot of late-pregnancy symptoms mixing together. Stomach issues, the fatigue is back, etc. So we ended up staying home that evening and resting. Plus, I think Kurt is on borrowed time before he collapses. He's just working so hard for such long hours. Pray for his endurance at this point!

Today we are running a few little errands before he goes back on call at 3 pm. The happy news is that I get the morning with him...on a weekend call he's gone from 7 am-7am the next morning. So we feel like weekday calls are nothing....it's all relative. We will be leaving for Ripley (Kurt's home town) tomorrow morning, spend the night, and then head to Cape around noon Wednesday. I'm way excited :o)

I know that posts like this are boring...I need to be more creative in my next few. Maybe I'll have some nursery goodies to show once we're home from Thanksgiving :o)
I like this picture of the first Thanksgiving...I don't think we remember as much as we should about the origins of this wonderful day. Maybe that will be my next post...

Our Latest Glamour Shots

Here is little Evy at 28 weeks. She weighs 2 pounds 9 ounces and is in the head-down position. She was facing the camera!





I start going to the doctor every 2-3 weeks now, and at 36 weeks I'll start going weekly. So hard to believe! I feel like I have a lot to do before then :o) This was my last sonogram before she's born, unless there are problems. She's measuring 2 days ahead of her due date, but of course that's all subject to change! Just thought you'd like to see the little star of the show :o)

Pictures!

Here are the slideshows from the weekend!

It was a wonderful weekend with the baby shower and Branson trip. The shower was absolutely beautiful...I was so blown away! Many people stayed the entire time to watch me open all of my gifts (literally....there were a ton!). I felt so loved and I know for sure my baby already is. In another post I'll take pictures of some individual things that I got. I felt so blessed!

Branson was great too! My mom's parents went with us, as well as my mom's brother Kevin and his son Hayden. We went to two shows, Noah and Andy Williams. Our favorite restaurant of the weekend was the Moon River Grill, which Andy had recently taken ownership of. I will go back to Branson just to eat at that restaurant! We celebrated Poppy's birthday and had some really good family time.

Enjoy the pictures!

Lynwood Baby Shower

Branson, Part One

Branson, Part Two

We're Back!

We had a great weekend in Branson. Sister Lissie had to go back to college right after we got home (boo) but I get to spend the night and head home tomorrow. Mom and I are going to go through my wonderful baby shower gifts (that's truly a post in itself) and tonight we're having pizza and watching the Cowboys game---life is good. Except that my sweet husband isn't with me :o( But I'll see him tomorrow, thank goodness! Stay tuned for lots of pictures from the weekend!

Quiet Tuesday

Kurt is on call tonight, so I'm all to myself. Carrie and Aubrey were over until late afternoon (we had a wonderful time as usual!), and then I just kind of sat until now. I really want to sit some more, but I need to work on the office/Evy's room. Tomorrow Kurt is post-call (meaning off work) and this will be a good time to just move things out to get it ready for Baby. We are storing a lot of our things at Kurt's parents' house until we move in 2010. It's just easier, and we'll have more space in our next house. The hard thing that I'm having to do is decide what I want to keep and store here, and what I can do without for 1 1/2 more years. Decisions!

Our Christmas cards came in today, and they look good! I'm my worst critic, and I don't think I've been very photogenic lately, but I think the card actually looks pretty nice. I'm excited to address them (it means I get to sit in a rocking chair and listen to good music...I've never minded addressing Christmas cards).

Pregnancy wise, I'm doing well. I was asked at church on Sunday if I'm carrying twins (that would be a no). People are so weird. I go to the doctor on the 20th, and I'll get to see how big Evy has gotten! I'm very excited about that. :o)

Thursday I'll head to Cape! I'm getting my haircut and then some wonderful ladies at Lynwood are giving me my first shower! I can't wait to open things for the little princess. Friday morning we'll head to Branson, which will kick off the holiday season! Good times with family are ahead.

I need to just make it look like I've accomplished something in this room by the time Kurt comes home tomorrow morning....here I go :o)

Have a great night!

Happy Monday!

I took this quiz after seeing it at Tiffany's page. I think my result is incredibly accurate!

Your result for Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz...

You Are a Doris!

You are a Doris -- "I must help others."

Dorises are warm, concerned, nurturing, and sensitive to other people's needs.

How to Get Along with Me

• * Tell me that you appreciate me. Be specific.


• * Share fun times with me.


• * Take an interest in my problems, though I will probably try to focus on yours.


• * Let me know that I am important and special to you.


• * Be gentle if you decide to criticize me.

In Intimate Relationships

• * Reassure me that I am interesting to you.


• * Reassure me often that you love me.


• * Tell me I'm attractive and that you're glad to be seen with me.

What I Like About Being a Doris

• * being able to relate easily to people and to make friends


• * knowing what people need and being able to make their lives better


• * being generous, caring, and warm


• * being sensitive to and perceptive about others' feelings


• * being enthusiastic and fun-loving, and having a good sense of humor

What's Hard About Being a Doris

• * not being able to say no


• * having low self-esteem


• * feeling drained from overdoing for others


• * not doing things I really like to do for myself for fear of being selfish


• * criticizing myself for not feeling as loving as I think I should


• * being upset that others don't tune in to me as much as I tume in to them


• * working so hard to be tactful and considerate that I suppress my real feelings

Dorises as Children Often

• * are very sensitive to disapproval and criticism


• * try hard to please their parents by being helpful and understanding


• * are outwardly compliant


• * are popular or try to be popular with other children


• * act coy, precocious, or dramatic in order to get attention


• * are clowns and jokers (the more extroverted Dorises), or quiet and shy (the more introverted Dorises)

Dorises as Parents

• * are good listeners, love their children unconditionally, and are warm and encouraging (or suffer guilt if they aren't)


• * are often playful with their children


• * wonder: "Am I doing it right?" "Am I giving enough?" "Have I caused irreparable damage?"


• * can become fiercely protective

Take Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz at HelloQuizzy

What do you think? Does that seem to describe me?


I'm spending the day getting ready for some visitors tomorrow!



I'm eating lunch with Carrie and Aubrey and then they are going to come over and see my decorations! Maybe I'll contribute to Aubrey's development---seeing bright sparkly things can't hurt, right? :o)

Have a wonderful day!

Cheer Around Here

Well, I finished up my big Mistletoe Weekend! I might have said this before, but I ended up going all 3 days with different friends, which made it extra fun. I do know the vendors backwards and forwards now, but I saw new things everytime. Kurt is probably going to limit me to one or two days next year---haha! We've been getting our decorations up this evening. The tree is about complete, and we just have to get a new string of lights for my mantle...something is wrong with the fuse, and it'll just be cheaper to buy a new strand. The stockings aren't hung by the chimney with care yet....but we'll get there. I know people think it's insane that I'm decorating so early (I think Kurt secretly thinks that too) but I want to be able to enjoy my once-a-year cheer for as long as possible. And when you consider that I'll be out of town this weekend (Branson) and then Thanksgiving week, I don't think it's too early at all.

I want to give Thanksgiving credit, though. I love Thanksgiving. However, I wonder how it will be with my parents living in a new house. I was always most sentimental about my parents' house here in Mississippi during the holidays. It was just cozy and perfect. I LOVE their new house, but we've never had the holidays there. So I'm wondering what that will be like. But if my family is there, I'll be fine. :o)

Still working on my 101 in 1001. I've gotten some things accomplished! One of them, ordering a new rocking chair for our den, is taking longer than expected. There seems to have been a back-order issue on the fabric I chose, so they are just now about to ship it (but no one was able to give me a definite date range....a Type A person's nightmare). Anyway, I'm anxiously awaiting our new rocking chair! And Kurt's mom is still working on nursery items...I can't WAIT to see it! :o)

Coming soon: another book review! This time it will be "Family Driven Faith." Get ready----this is the best book I've read concerning spiritual matters. Stay tuned!

Happy Sunday tomorrow :o)

New Layout

Do you like my new Christmas layout?! A special thanks to my blog designer, Jennisa, for a job well done. She's fabulous! We are getting things decorated here for Christmas (yes, I know it's not Thanksgiving yet, but I can decorate when I want to). It's all coming together, and I just love to sit in my den and look at my decorations. Just checking in with the blog world...have a wonderful evening!

What a GREAT idea!

My friend Nikki alerted me to this, and I can't wait to participate!



Click on this button and read all about it. I think it will be so festive. A big thanks, Nikki!

Book Review: Passionate Housewives Desperate for God

As promised, here is my book review for Passionate Housewives Desperate for God by Jennie Chancey and Stacy McDonald:

I loved this book!!! The main objective of the book is to 1) Point out and praise God's calling for women in the Bible, 2) Give insight on how to thrive in a homemaker/mother role, and 3) Dispell the myths and lies that are Feminism.

Let me give a disclaimer: there are a lot of people that would read this book and be blatantly offended. However, if I may be so bold, the point of this book was not to be politically correct (thank the Lord). I related to this book because since I was a little girl, I've known without a shadow of a doubt that I was meant to be a homemaker and raise children. Period. I never had the urge or desire to pursue a career, or to climb the corporate ladder. Reading a book by women that acknowledge motherhood as a high calling was a breath of fresh air. One of the authors even tells her story of how she left the workplace and is now a full-time wife, homemaker, and mother. Meaning, she's been there, and is not just writing randomly about what she believes: she's lived it.

The authors' writing style is surprisingly not "goody goody" in the sense that you think.....Wow, that's so spiritual it's annoying. There was one moment in the book (the very last chapter) where I thought "I don't think I'd say exactly that or act exactly that way" but the point was good.

I came away with an appreciation for my mom and dad, who understood that this was my calling in life, and they allowed me to step away from my formal college education because of this. The book doesn't necessarily discourage higher education, but it promotes awareness that the feminist agenda is extremely prevalent in our education system, and it's rare to find people who find staying at home a woman's true and legitimate calling.

There are so many quotes in the book that I loved. Here are a few:

"Today, even in Christian circles, a homemaker's vocation is viewed as optional, replaceable, and more like a hobby to fulfill her own needs rather than as a vital asset to the family."

"Often, we don't view our daily activities biblically. We wrongly believe that the more mundane the task, the less significant it is to God. As difficult as it may be to believe, the hands that tenderly bathe your baby at night are no less holy than the hands that serve you Communion on Sunday. Every small act of love for your family---every diaper you change, every meal you prepare, every toilet you scrub, every errand you run, every fever you tend to, each tooth you pull----each is a holy act when it's done unto the Lord."

"Jesus made himself of no reputation. He did not seek after degrees or recognition. He was content to stay in a tiny area and minister to a miniscule group of people whom the world viewed as insignificant. Kind of like a homemaker, under the authority of her loving husband, ministering to the children who need her."

"When homes do not have creative, happy, intelligent mothers keeping them, their occupants go elsewhere to learn how to behave, to learn what music to love, to learn what art to imitate. Are you building culture in your home? Are you training your children to be image-bearers of God in this world? This is your calling."

I may be stepping on some toes here, but I'm going to say it: I am proud that my calling is to be a "keeper of home" and to raise a godly family. To me, there is no higher honor or responsibility that we as women have. I am not naive: I know that there will be hard days, long nights, and my patience will be tested beyond its limits. But I do not look ahead to these days as "drudgery" or being a prisoner in my home; I am excited about them!

I encourage you to read this book. You might find it challenging, but we need to be challenged in our thinking. Happy reading!

I Just Ordered....

Our Christmas cards!!!

I love doing this. Last year was my first time to do it, and I looked so forward to doing it this year! I picked one of the pictures that Mauri took (in fact, you can go look at the gallery...I forgot to mention it!). The picture I chose is #8 in our gallery. I decided on this one because it shows that I have a tummy but I don't look too huge. Some of the pictures aren't as flattering of me, but I expected that. Overall, I was really pleased. Unfortunately, the ones I liked the best ended up being with the pumpkins, which I didn't want to use for Christmas. So I'm ordering one of the pumpkin ones for the free 8x10 that we get. Let me know what you think!

I'm so thrilled that the season is getting here. The world is finally catching up with what I've been celebrating all year :o) I'm going to Mistletoe this weekend, and Kurt promised we can put up our Christmas decorations on Saturday night. I literally can't wait. My house just looks happier, warmer, and cozier with Christmas things in it.

Tonight I'll be posting a book review for this book:

Now I'm off to unload some groceries and make an ice cream cake. It's been too long since we've had a tasty dessert at our house :o)

Proud to Say.....

While I am praying that there will be a certain result this evening, I'm so thankful that as a Believer I have the "peace that passes all understanding." God is in control! Like I've always said, I believe that we are called to be convicted in a world that has lukewarm standards and is so politically correct it's disgusting. However, I know that I've done my part. I cast my vote, and that's all I can do (other than pray!). What's so refreshing and wonderful about our Lord is that His plan is perfect. Our responsibility is to speak out when necessary, participate in our Democracy, and leave the rest to Him. I'm resting in that promise today! (Even though I think the Lord understands that my human side might take over for a little bit, and I'll be really upset if a certain candidate wins. Just a disclaimer, Lord!)

Weekend Recap

This weekend was actually pretty productive! We slept in on Saturday and then started laundry, unpacking, and straightening the house. Kurt decided that it would be a good day to wash all of the windows, inside and out (isn't that ambitious?). We only do this about once a year, so thankfully we don't have to do it again for awhile. I went through several stacks of maternity clothes that people have graciously loaned me, which is starting to make our bedroom look like less of a warzone. It wasn't the "lazy Saturday" that we anticipated, but things needed to get done!

Sunday was our usual church day, and we ate a Little Tokyo for lunch---yum! It's one of my very favorite places.

Today Kurt didn't have to go in until 3:00. He went to the gym and got his haircut while I ran some errands to the post office and to get some monogramming done. I've been at home this evening and I even vacuumed the living room (my proud accomplishment). I still feel like there's so much to do in my house. I don't know what it is. I think I'm doing so well and on a roll getting things done, and then it just seems to grow. But we're crossing things off the list!

By the way, I completed one of my books on trip: Multiple Blessings by Kate Gosselin. It was a very interesting read. I read the whole thing in the car over about 3 hours. I didn't necessarily learn anything new about their story, but she included a lot of how she was feeling through all of it. I wish she had written more about her and Jon's spiritual backgrounds. The whole book had a definite spiritual tone, which was great, but I would have been interested to know about when they were saved, etc. Anyway, this is a good book to pick up if you're the least bit interested in the Gosselins. I'm still working on my others, so reviews will soon follow!

Have a great night!

Disney: Thursday

We began our final day with breakfast at our hotel. I had to have a Mickey waffle, of course. It was so yummy!

Then began our crazy adventure to try and ride Toy Story Mania several more times. We arrived at the park right as it opened and raced right to the ride. There was already a long line forming, and there were already long lines just to get fastpasses. Kurt got in the fastpass line, and I got in the standby line, but we lost each other. I got OUT of line, then re-entered, and he somehow found me. We rode our favorite ride, and then had fastpasses to go on it again. Whew! But it was totally worth it. Also, the decorations while waiting for the ride are adorable. It's like you're a toy in Andy's room, so everything is giant. So cute!

Kurt waiting for Star Tours:

We park-hopped over to Magic Kingdom for our final stretch.

One of my favorite times during our vacation was when we got ice cream and just sat in the middle of Fantasyland, people watching. We were so interested in parenting styles and outfit choices. We knew we'd never get to sit for 45 minutes in Fantasyland ever again, so we took advantage!

Of course, we had to see the parade!

We went on the Liberty Belle Riverboat, which I had actually never been on. It was great, and there was a piece of decoration that had Cape Girardeau written on it, because it used to be a river-trading town! What a small world!

We ate dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern, which was really good. It was character dining, so we got some great pictures!

We headed back to the hotel for an early evening and watched the fireworks again from our room. It was truly a perfect vacation, and we loved every minute. We can't wait to take our little Mouseketeer back!