17 Weeks

Today, little baby has been inside of me for 17 weeks. It really is crazy to think that we found out about this sweet little love over 3 months ago. I am really enjoying being pregnant, and I am loving the fact that I am sort of starting to look more and more pregnant, not just chubby. This week the baby is about the size of a small pomegranate or your open palm. In the updates I get in my email, it told me that baby's ears are developed enough that baby can hear voices now. This is really exciting for Chris and me, and we have definitely amped up the talking and singing to the sweet pea! I just really love this whole thing, and it reminds me of just how miraculous this whole process is. I am just in awe of the creativity and power of God, and I know that will only grow as I get farther and farther along.

Another exciting thing about this week is that we went to the doctor yesterday for a check up. It was our first appointment with our new doctor's office in Rowlett. I saw the Nurse Practitioner to get established as a new patient and will see Dr. G next time, but Chris and I both really liked everyone we encountered at the office and feel good about our decision to use this doctor. The best thing about the whole appointment was that we got to hear baby's heartbeat for the first time! WOW!!! That was incredible and such a sweet, sweet sound. I can't wait to hear it again. We find out if baby is a boy or girl in just three weeks, and I can already hardly wait! We are just having so much fun and are so thankful for how smoothly the whole pregnancy has gone. We are blessed.

Here are the latest belly pictures. I think I am really starting to "pop" out now.

16 weeks

17 weeks


Blessings...

Catch Up!

Lots of catching up! Look for the following posts:

Happy Father's Day!
Remember the Alamo
Schlitterbahn: Field Family Style

Have a great Sunday!

Schlitterbahn: Field Family Style

Going to Schlitterbahn with the Field family has become a tradition, and it is something we all really look forward to. We stay at a place in the Schlitterbahn Resort that fits all of us (11 this year!), and we can just walk back and forth between the house and the park at any time. That definitely comes in handy for food and naps--two necessities for this pregnant girl!
Chris and I left San Antonio with all our bags and headed 30 minutes up I-35 to New Braunfels. Once we got there, Chris dropped me off at HEB with his family, and he headed to Rowlett to lead the Conversation Cafe that {he also traveled the 4 hours back to New Braunfels that night and got in about 12:40am...I was very happy to see him!} At HEB, we stocked up on food for the next 2 1/2 days, and believe me, we eat well while we are at Schlitterbahn. We then got all checked in to our little "house" and began what would continue for the next couple of days. Lots of lounging around, conversation, laughter, and fun at the water park.
I chose not to ride any of the rides this year after doing lots of the research about the risks during pregnancy. I just decided it wasn't worth it. Luckily, Chris's mom also couldn't ride anything because of her recent neck surgery, so the two of us enjoyed lazy days by the pools. We had LOTS of wonderful conversation, and I had the best time just hanging out with her. I seriously have the best mother-in-law, and I feel so blessed.
We had a great time at Schlitterbahn and enjoyed being with family, but come Saturday morning, Chris and I were pretty ready to be home. We had a great week, but there is just something nice about being at home!
Thanks to the Field family for the fun times at Schlitterbahn. We are already looking forward to next year...especially baby :)

Remember the Alamo

Chris and I got to spend the beginning of last week in San Antonio attending the Renovare Conference. The conference began on Sunday evening and finished on Wednesday morning, and every day was truly a blessing! We were able to hear from some amazing spiritual giants of our lifetime, and let me tell you, these men and women know their stuff. They are bold, Christ-seeking people that were truly inspirational. Among the speakers were Eugene Peterson {The Message}, Dallas Williard, Richard Foster, John Ortberg, and Chris Webb. One of the greatest blessings of our time at the conference was the ecumenical diversity. There were people from all denominations, but we all came together and worshipped--uniting in one common purpose and belief that Jesus is Lord. It was a great opportunity, and I am so glad I got to join Chris.

While we were in San Antonio, we stayed in a hotel on the Riverwalk which was just an added bonus to the whole thing. Even though it was very warm, the Riverwalk is still just a cool place to be. We got to catch up with a couple of old friends over dinner as well both nights we were there. It was great to see Brett Bishop and John and Kayla Fite. I always love reconnecting with old friends and hearing their stories.

We really had a great time and enjoyed our little stay at the home of the Alamo. After San Antonio, we headed out to New Braunfels for the Field family vacation at Schlitterbahn. More to come on that...

I sadly did not get any pictures except my 16 week belly picture, but blogger is not cooperating. So, I will post that picture with my 17 week post in the next couple of days.

Happy Father's Day!

I believe that there are very few roles in life that are more important than that of a father, and I am so thankful to have a day to celebrate fathers all over the world that have such a huge impact on young lives. So, here's to a few important dad's in my life.

First, to my daddy... Thanks for always being there for me when I needed some support and encouragement. I know that I can always count on you, and I am thankful for the godly example you were to me growing up. Thanks for instilling in me the need for Christ in my life and gently pushing me to always do my best. Now, I can't wait to watch you be a grandpa to my children! So fun! I love you!


To my father-in-law... Thanks for raising a young boy to be a servant. I know that Chris learned so many things from you about humility and doing the dishes :) He learned so much about how to be respectful, kind, and loving to me from you, and I am forever grateful. I couldn't ask for a better father-in-law! And, I guess I should be thankful for that sense of humor, too!


Now, to my precious husband... When I married you four and a half years ago, I could not have imagined how much I would learn from you and how much you would exceed my expectations as a husband. I had so many ideas about what married life would be like, and you have completely surpassed all of my wildest dreams. So, I can only imagine what it will be like to watch you as a father to our children. I love knowing with complete confidence that you will raise them to love Jesus and be compassionate to others. And, I know you will love them with reckless abandon. I cannot wait! Happy "almost" Father's Day, lovey!


To all the other fathers out there, Happy Father's Day! You deserve so much, and we are so thankful for you!

Colour My World

Since we bought our house, we have been able to do a lot of fun stuff to really make it our "own." We have painted, replaced fixtures and fans, changed out faucets, etc. As we are beginning to finish a lot of these projects, I will try to post some before and after pictures to document the changes we have made. Making a house a home is a big project but is lots of fun. Of course, my favorite part is seeing it all done and getting to enjoy it!

This morning, we tackled our flower beds. Our next-door neighbor is replacing the bricks around her flower beds and trees and is building a small stone "wall" around them. She offered her bricks, and we graciously accepted. The front of our house has some nice shrubs, and the flower beds are clean. But, it was lacking in color. So, we spiced it up with some colorful flowers too. Chris spent almost 4 hours working to remove the plastic border from around the flower beds, dig up space for the bricks, lay the brick border, and do all the normal yard work (I know, I know...my husband is a hunk :) I spent a little over an hour planting the pretty flowers. We are really pleased with the way it looks. It is always amazing how a little color and nice brick border can make such a difference! Enjoy the before and after pictures (you will need to click on the pictures and make them bigger to really be able to see the difference).

Before:


After:





Enjoy the rest of your Saturday!

fun discoveries in Rowlett, TX

Since we began living in Rowlett on a full-time basis, Chris and I have found a couple of fun things that will become staples in our household.

1. The Rowlett Community Center - This place has all the exercise equipment you would find in a gym, 2 raquetball courts, 2 basketball courts, and an indoor walking track all for $72 PER YEAR!!! That's right... for $6 each month, you can go get some exercise at a really nice, clean facility. I have only seen it from the outside, but Chris has already started doing his runs there because it is just so stinkin' hot to be running outside. We were excited to find this deal!'

2. The Rowlett Public Library - To some people, this might not be a big deal, and yes, almost every city has a public library. However, I LOVE public libraries! You can read any book you want, and you don't have to pay for it. I have really rediscovered my love of reading since college, so the public library makes me really happy. I went for the first time today and got my very own library card. I still remember getting my first library card and feeling so important when I got to sign my OWN name on the back. I felt so grown up. When I was in there today, I saw all the stuff for their summer reading programs. This brings back floods of memories! I can remember going to the library every summer to pick up my canvas bag, check out some books, and start earning my free personal pan pizza. Such great memories. I can't wait to take baby Field in a few years!

Fellowship & 15 Weeks

We had some friends from the church over for dinner last night, and we had some great fellowship. We not only shared a meal together, but we also shared communion together. I am always reminded of what a blessing it is to do that in the middle of a meal because it allows us to have conversation about what we are actually doing when we participate in the breaking of the bread. It was a sweet, sweet time! I hope we can make a habit of doing that more often. The family that joined us for dinner is just wonderful, and they have been a huge blessing to Chris and me since we made our decision to move here. It was fun to have them into our home for a change and to watch them love on our dog. If they treat our dog like they did, I can only imagine how sweet baby love will be loved on!

Yesterday, Chris and I received a package from my Momma. I had no idea what it was and was not expecting it. But, we were not disappointed! She made the cutest little door hanger/countdown calendar for the baby. She has been chomping at the bits to do something for the baby, and this was what she came up with {she is holding off until we know if baby Field is a boy or girl}.


Isn't it just adorable?!? The little hearts with the numbers will be changed each week until the sweet pea gets here. We already have it hanging on baby's door, and it is displaying 15 weeks because that is what I am today. I receive weekly emails about the baby's progress, and I don't want to bore you with all the details on here. But, it is pretty cool. What was really unbelievable to me is that baby is the size of a large navel orange!!! Holy cow! That seems huge to me considering when we first saw baby, he/she was the size of a raspberry. God is so good! I will leave you with the 15 week belly picture. I honestly can't tell any difference from last week, but I am sure it will really "pop" one of these days.

Seriously...

how cute is he?


I had been cleaning out the last few boxes that were stashed in closets, and I had a pile of things designated "give away," but Wrigley really didn't think this Pooh Bear belonged in that pile. Despite the fact that we had already taken it away from him two times and he's not allowed on the furniture, he really looks pretty stinkin' cute! So, this Pooh Bear now belongs to Wrigley.

Hope you are having a good Sunday! Peace...

Rabbit Ears of the 21st Century

At some point when Chris and I were living in Bryan, we realized that we had fallen victims to "our" shows. During one short period of time a few of years ago, I counted them up and realized that we pretty consistenly watched something like 10 shows on TV throughout the week. Now, we certainly did not lock ourselves in our house in the evenings as not to miss a show because we, like most people, had DVR capabilities. So, we could determine at what time we sat down to watch these recorded treasures. By the time we got to Bryan and started our jobs, we no longer had time for all of these shows, so we narrowed them down to the most important ones, which still was probably far too much. About a year ago, we had this realization that we did not want to be so tied to the TV, and if we are all honest, what is on TV is not always wholesome. So, we made the decision to cut the ties with our beloved DVR and go down to the basic cable package which meant we got about 12 channels. This was not easy for either of us at first...Chris missed his SportsCenter in the mornings, and I missed my Food Network time in the afternoons after school. We often forgot what time "our" shows were on and missed some important episodes. But, what we soon came to realize was that we could actually survive this. Not only that but it became liberating to not worry about the TV or any shows that might be missed. We were able to spend our time doing things that were more valuable for us.
Fast forward to Rowlett a few weeks ago... Chris and I were discussing cable/internet etc. I always assumed we would get the same basic cable here as we had in Bryan. Well, Chris had something else in mind. My husband loves to try new, out of the box things, so I figured I would at least listen. We have known a few people that have used an antenna to acquire the basic channels (4-5 of them) by placing a large antenna in their attic or on their roof. Chris thought we should try an antenna but wanted to find one that was as small and inconspicuous as possible so we bought this antenna off of Amazon. Here's the beauty:

Can't find it? Look closer...

Let me just tell you that this thing is great! We get about 15 channels, including ABC, NBC, CBS, and FOX, in HD and all for the one time fee of $37! It doesn't get much better than that. So, I will now enjoy watching TV, courtesy of this little guy, and with the freedom of no cable bill. Ahhh... wonderful!
Be blessed today!

Lovin' It!

**A special shout out to Fabulous K Creative for the precious new blog design. I absolutely love it and all of her work! Thanks so much, Fabulous K!**

I cannot tell you how much I love the summer because it has always meant freedom for me. The kind of freedom that is just so refreshing. I can sleep in if I want to, fix my hair if I feel like it, wear make-up only when I have to, and get lots of things done that have been lingering on my to-do list all year...and to do them leisurely! I don't particularly enjoy the heat all summer, but I do love the relaxed feeling I have once June rolls around. This summer has been no exception, but it has been even sweeter--maybe because I know that this "summer" feeling will not be leaving me once mid-August rolls around. I just love it! I have been trying to get our house put together, little by little. So far, I have tackled the family room, kitchen, breakfast nook, living room, and master bedroom/bathroom. I have decided that I am going to take a room-by-room approach as not to stress myself out or start something that I don't get finished, which inevitably happens. So far, this strategy has proved effective. I only have the guest room to clear out and decorate, and then the baby's room will get de-cluttered. It has been lots of fun for me to decorate this house, and I think part of it is because I know we will bring our first child here! Too exciting!!! I will post pictures of the house once we get finished putting it all together, but I think it still needs to be seen in person :) I hope another thing I will love about this summer is all the visitors that will stop by the Fieldhouse!

Another exciting thing around our house was that our kick-off, celebration Sunday at Heritage was this past Sunday. It was a great day of worship in song, scripture, and prayer. We spent a lot of time just praising God and being reminded that we have SO much reason to celebrate! Chris, of course, brought a fantastic sermon. He has such a gift for challenging and motivating, and he is so diligent in listening to the Lord. His passion is contagious, and I am just lucky to get to witness it everyday. We are just loving our church family here and are so excited about what the Lord is going to do in Rowlett.

I am 14 weeks pregnant today, and an email in my inbox contained the words I have been longing to hear for a while: second trimester! Yay! It is crazy to think that I am 1/3 of the way through this deal. It has flown by, so I can only imagine how the rest of it will pass quickly too. I am just trying to enjoy every phase and soak it all up. This is such a fun and rewarding time, and Chris and I just love learning about our little baby and how he/she is growing and developing all the time. It is such a miracle! I will leave you with the latest belly pictures. Baby Field is definitely beginning to show up. So fun!
12 1/2 weeks {on the cruise...please ignore the weird look on my face and the crazy head tilt!}

14 weeks

Blessings and peace...

Alaska=Amazing

Summer is off to a great start. Chris and I got back on Monday from our last "just the two of us" vacation (although technically baby was there too). We went on an Alaskan cruise, and it was out of this world incredible. We had a wonderful time, and the scenery was nothing short of amazing! From the time we stepped off the {third} plane in Anchorage last Monday until the moment we walked in to the Vancouver airport two days ago, we were surrounded by breathtaking mountains, giant spruce trees, glaciers, and wildlife. For seven days, we relaxed, ate, and did whatever we wanted. It was perfect. If you know anything about cruising in Alaska, then it won't surprise you that we were some of the youngest people on the boat--BY FAR! The average age was probably 65...seriously. But, we loved every minute of it because if you know us, you know we tend to act like we are grandparents every now and then :)

We had some new experiences while in Alaska too. We went on a riverboat tour on the Chillkat River in Haines, Alaska, we went whale watching in Juneau, and we went on a floatplane in Ketchikan. We saw bald eagles, sea otters, swans, Canadian geese, humpback whales, sea lions, and a black bear. It was awesome! We had tons of fun and would highly recommend an Alaskan cruise. I will upload a couple of pictures tomorrow. {We took hundreds. If you want to see more, you have to come visit :)}

On the plane and excited to begin our vacation

The incredible scenery we saw the WHOLE trip...just a taste!

Whale watching...we saw lots of whales!

Glacier Bay National Park...breathtaking!!!



Flightseeing...this was awesome!

In other baby news, yesterday marked 13 weeks. I am feeling great these days and much more like myself. I am way less demanding when it comes to food and sleep, and I know Chris is thankful for that. I have been very blessed to have had a smooth pregnancy so far, but I am thankful to be feeling much better! I am starting to notice a little belly, and my clothes are definitely not fitting like they used to. So, the trusty rubberband and belly band are becoming staples in my wardrobe. I don't mind starting to see a little evidence of sweet baby growing in there, though!

Well, it is my bedtime. Hope everyone is doing well, and have a blessed week!