I am headed to ladies LYFE. It's so weird! I know it's a good opportunity (tell you in a minute) but seriously...for a reforming tomboy like me...I don't know if I can handle the estrogen!

Let's start with how it came about. My neighbor across the street, Kandy, and her husband Matt are a little younger than we are and they are expecting their first baby a month after us. I have really been excited to get to know them but it just takes time. Well, the church in the area called saying they had some women back out and didn't want their money back...so I could go paid in full. Then we found out Kandy was going too. I'm really excited to get to know her more and it will be a cool time but at the same time...IT's Just Weird!!! I don't know if it's the staying in the dorms again or what but I don't know. I know the sessions will be great and my brother is going to come see me...It's just mixed emotions.

On the other side...I am actually staying down with my family after the conference so I can go to graduation at CCA and see my wonderful students! I am excited to get in some family time even though I will be away from Kevin for 10 days!

Sitting here smell the scent of lilac from the bush outside my window and missing friends but excited about some new ones I'm making. Enjoying the sun and that my garden is growing...good day for a picnic.

So this town in our area was having a town wide garage sale and my neighbor couldn't go like we planned so my husband decided to go to hunt for a grill. It is he who coined the title phrase. Now, to say this was a town is exaggerating. It is a bunch of spread out roads all intersecting somehow. Luckily they had a map of the area and a listing of what houses were participating. The only problem was my husband does not trust my map reading skills and did not look at it before we went thus insuing a discussion of "are you sure" and "where in the world are we?". It was not extremely spectacular but we did end up with some good finds - a large crock for $3, an old copy of The Praire by Cooper, some cloth napkins, a basket for the nursery, a bag full of baby clothes $5, an old stitched picture, a teenage mutant ninja turtle kite for my brother, some tires (every place had tires...so weird), a diper genie $3, and for my husband, a trumpet. Yep, a trumpet. He used to play and misses having one so we found one and bartered for $50. Not bad for a mornings work. I also taught him the need for early arrival. I'll train him yet.

Drew and our good friend Ty graduated on Friday!! Andrew graduated with Highest Honors!

We also stopped to visit Jim and Jean...he is doing ok...the recovery will be slow so keep praying!

Well, we have spent the last 2 days at the hospital and are heading down again today...nothing really changing yet...they are keeping him sedated so the swelling can go down.

Tonight we are heading down to my parents and Friday to BBC to see my brother graduate...10 years ago for us...how weird is that??? It will be nice to spend time with my family and catch up with people down there. Then we head back up here Saturday so we can be back for Mother's Day on Sunday. Maybe after that life will slow down?

Pray for a family from our church named Jim and Jean Fraiser. The huband was in an accident at their farm and sustained massive head injuries (I can't go into more detail than that) The other complication is that the wife found out a few months ago she has 2 tumors on her brain...they are monitoring them and they haven't grown but she has to watch her blood pressure as well. This has really shook up the family and the next few days are critical!

It's a boy!! He was not ashamed to show it and he likes to roll around alot too. Picked up some cute newborn outfits too!!

I leave in about 1/2 hour...off for THE sonogram...really excited...will post later!! I think it's a boy...

1. Having the smelling capacity of a blood hound...that sure adds excitement!
2. Brushing my teeth and the wonderful gag reflex inherited with it!

FYI...FFO (For Females Only)

What I have learned so far in my first pregnancy...the 20 week reflection.

1. Regularity...it is now an oxymoron unless you eat half a pineapple or your talking about gas.
2. Sex...it's an oxymoron too...along with the lack of regularity.
3. Fashion...moving from does this look good to does this make it look like my belly is actually pregnancy and/or does it look like I can house the 7 dwarfs in this getup.
4. The Milkers...now their own separate entity, there growing pains make me feel like I'm already a cow needing to come in for milking with sagging bags.
5. The Belly...one thing you used to try to hide as much as possible is now not only the attraction for others and a need to dress appropriately, but the new found exploration for the better half...who tends to talk to it and touch it more than the wife.
6. Emotions...the hit like a killer thunderstorm, especially when the better half makes a prize comment and you forget...oh yeah...I am taking things personally...as you remind him...hello, I'm pregnant...I can't handle joking around about my size.
7. Cute...hadn't heard that term for myself since oh, 3rd grade...it has now become my new label.
8. Food...let's just say...the stomach has become it's own schizophrenic entity in which one day something sounds so lovely (ie. pineapple) and the next day...no thank you but I would kill for some mac and cheese and hot dogs...can anyone say pb and j for breakfast?
9. The "Glow"...I think they try to just call it that so in your emotional state you don't freak out as much about the fact that you now have an oil field on your face that is sprouting more acne than a 7th grader.
10. Flutters...yep...I spend my time speculating if that was the baby moving or more gas...how pleasant is that?
11. Size...you start looking at everything little with the utmost reverence...shoes, sweaters, pine cones (seriously...our tree has cute little baby pine cones and my husband laughed when I got all cutesy about it)...and then you go to the other extreme...big....will these pants be big enough?
12. Sleep...yep...I now have to make sure I have my pillows to sleep with and they take preference...it's sad.

I know this is tongue in cheek and I love that I am having a baby but I have to learn to laugh over it or I'll cry...seriously...bawl like a...well you get the idea.