any grand ideas?

I'm going to be leading a bible study for high schoolers on Sunday night - talking about what it means to live like Jesus and to follow Him. There's obviously a LOT of ways I could take this "talk" - but I'd be interested in any insights y'all might have about how to approach this.
(Mark is in Georgia this weekend, so that "y'all" is my Southern tribute).
Anyway - I have about 45-55 minutes - ideally, it would be broken up into an activity, group discussions, me talking, illustrations, etc... The worst thing would be for me to talk. at. them. the. entire. time. No one wants that.
So give me some ideas - verses, passages, attributes - things that stick out to you personally! I'm open! :)

slightly different

This is the *slightly* different view out my window this morning, at 7:41am. You can't tell very well from this picture, but there is a lovely pinkish tinge to the horizon. Now, my WeatherBug says it's only 18.8 degrees right now - but it's still a lovely morning.
This sight was good for my heart this morning - I've had an emotionally rough couple of days. And not in the sense that anything bad has happened - just in the sense that my emotions seem to have gotten the better of me, and thus my behavior has been characterized by grumpiness and a lack of grace more than I'd care to admit.
But the sky has always reminded me of God's character - a beautiful, awe-inspiring entity that covers everyone and everything. Even me and my poor attitude.
Thanks, Lord, for the reminder that You are in all things, and that it is only in You that all things hold together. My life is not my own, and this world is not about men. My life is Yours, and this world is about Your power and glory. May I remember that today and everyday.

office with a view

Exhibit A: A lovely (I mean blurry) picture of the view out my window at work. Right. Now.
It's a crummy picture because (A) my camera phone has lousy photo-capturing abilities and (B) IT'S SNOWING BIG FAT FLAKES ALL OVER THE PLACE. Which makes things a little hard to distinguish. Oh and (C) it's a picture taken through 2 panes of university-quality glass windows.
I just thought you'd like to know what Mid-Michigan looks like today.
Weatherbug says it's 32 degrees right now.
In all honesty - it's really pretty. I'm not ready for it to actually be actively snowing yet, but the snowflakes are sort of fairy-tale-ish, and the trees look positively artful right now.

a turkey, a parade, bowling & movies

Had a GREAT weekend. We traveled to Chi-town on Wednesday (and miraculously avoided traffic until the last 5-8 miles of our trip -praise God!) I baked a cranberry-apple pie Wednesday night, and on Thursday, all manner of culinary goodness broke free in my parents' house. Turkey, stuffing (with apples, raisins and sausage - SO GOOD), green beans, mashed potatoes & gravy (gravy made by Yours Truly - bow before my INcredible chef-ing skills), cranberry conserve... followed by desserts. Then our Thanksgiving 2nd Meal Ritual - turkey nachos. Let me tell you - this is a fabulous way to use up some of the leftover turkey, have a lighter meal (because no matter how much you eat, you'll still be hungry later in the evening), and get some peppery, cheesey, salsa-y goodness.
Back to MI on Friday, just in time to catch Mason's Tree Lighting and Christmas Parade Extravaganza. Cold, to be sure - but so much fun to walk around our little downtown and run into a couple dozen people you know. Hot cocoa, christmas lights, and dinner in the town's little diner. Doesn't get much better. We wrapped up the evening with a movie - watched from our comfy sprawl on the living room floor.
Saturday brought some productivity, followed with bowling, a visit from our Dear Friend Dave, and some delicious pizza.
Yesterday - church was awesome, we watched another movie (I'll confess that somehow, Mark and I hadn't seen High School Musical - the first one - until then. Our lives are now completely changed), bought some stuff for the basement at Lowe's...
All that delightful time off just makes me want to stay at home forever. Enjoying people, relaxed schedules, taking things as they come, and finding joy and peace in quiet, regular moments.

raining, pouring

My first of four baby showers was held this weekend at Carrabba's (a YUMMY Italian restaurant). Before you judge, here's the breakdown of FOUR showers:
1. This weekend - thrown by my mom, sister & sister-in-law for my Lansing-area friends
2. Early December - thrown by Kelsey & Dana for the YoungLife college-age leaders in our community
3. Mid-December - at work, a co-shower for Shannon (due late January) and I
4. January sometime - thrown by Mark's family, for Mark's family
Since our families and friends are so spread out, it's hard to just have *one* shower for everyone. And we know a lot of people. It would have been a BIG shower - and a huge headache and burden for the planners. This way - we have showers broken into small, bite-size pieces.
ANYWAY - it was GREAT - I got to see some people I don't see often enough, and some people that I see regularly - all of whom I love dearly. I was overwhelmed by the generosity and support of everyone, and need to shout out a huge thanks to Mom, Meg and Melissa - who traveled far and did a LOT to make this weekend fun.
I'll post pictures as soon as I get some from my family (my camera did not come along for the trip).
Also - I am a mechanical genius. I put our crib together this weekend. By myself. Without directions. (I asked Mark 1 question).
And it's still standing.
The nursery is starting to take shape!

one car, two car, red car, blue car

I know many one-car families. I salute them. It's not easy to balance multiple lives & schedules with one car - but they make it work.
Mark and I have always had two cars - and this week has been an example of why our lives just wouldn't work so well with only one car.
Mark's Highlander has been in the shop since Monday (minor body work) - and may be there until Friday. All week, we have been operating as a 1-car household. In some ways, it's nice - because one of my biggest pet peeves is when we wind up driving two cars to the same place, just to wind up following the other person home. And we get these nice, *early* morning chats as Mark drives me to work in the morning.
HOWEVER - today (the day I usually work until noon) - Mark has a work commitment over 2.5 hours away. And he won't finish there until after 1:00pm. So I'm stuck - not a big deal, by any means, and it's a lovely day, so I'll probably take a walk to the bookstore on campus and hang out there for awhile. But it's inconvenient, to be sure. And on Wednesday nights, we'd normally go our separate ways and hang out with friends... but there's only one car. And poor (cough) Mark has had to wake up at a Set Time all week long (because my work schedule actually IS a schedule). I know he'll be happy to have his car back.
I'm sure we don't NEED two cars, and would certainly find a way to live with just one. But this week has made me grateful for the ways the Lord has provided for us - what a blessing it is that
we have two quality vehicles to drive around! It frees us up a lot more to spend our time working for Him.

all in the shake

I shake a lot of hands throughout the day. Pretty much every student that comes into my office is greeted with a handshake. And one of my biggest pet peeves is the Wet Noodle Handshake.
Really - why bother offering your hand at all if you're just planning on laying it limply in my hand?
Today - I had a couple of disappointing Noodle Shakes... but the student who *just* left my office shook my hand so hard that I heard a sound similar to knuckles cracking. Except that it was my hand.
Maybe there is a happy medium.
In other news - my weekend of Nesting was fabulously productive - I hope this energy level keeps up! My house will be cleaner and more organized than any other time in the almost 4 years we've been there!

mama bird

We are finely wired. Humans, I mean. God really knew what He was doing when He strung us together. Being pregnant is one of those HUGE, life-altering, clearly-God's-design-is-amazing kinds of experiences. I mean - my body is knitting together another whole person right now - that's incredible!
Sometimes, though - I'm reminded of God's fine wiring through little things. Like the crazy-uncontrollable nesting instinct that took over my mind last night.
I left work, went to the gym, came home and had dinner (a salad) and a snack (1 or 2 or 4 of those little Halloween leftovers... ahem). Then I caught a little catnap on the couch. Probably no more than 10 or 15 minutes. But when I woke up, I was filled with energy. I hand-washed the new dishes I ordered (glass and ceramic - no more poisonous plastic in the microwave for us - I don't know if it's really true or not, but it doesn't hurt to be careful).
By the time I went to bed, my mind was buzzing with the list of "things" I wanted to get done before Baby comes. From the very minute to the grandiose and virtually impossible - it was all I could do to keep myself from getting out of bed to get started. I knew once I left our flannel cocoon, I would be unstoppable until the wee hours of the morning. And then I'd be a very sad camper at work today.
But all day - my nesting energy is near-to-bursting through my skin. I'm gonna go bonkers this weekend, folks. I can just feel it. And I'm actually excited to scrub my baseboards, wipe down my kitchen cabinets, and sort through the untouched pile on the floor of the hall closet.
Look out! This kind of energy only comes from the Lord, I think.

a good day for friends

Well - if you want to be picky, it's always a Good Day for Friends. But yesterday, I personally did very well.
I got to have lunch with my friend Dana. I would link to her blog here, but she hasn't posted in almost a year. I totally forgive her, but what a slacker! Instead, I've included a picture from our trip to Atlanta. She is behaving herself, whereas I cannot. I think I was making up for the fact that all weekend, I had to pose in pictures with lovely, young, NOT-pregnant women... so I just made funny faces.
Anyway - Dana and I ate at Lucky's Pub in Fowlerville. For all of you who've never heard of Fowlerville - well, there's a reason for that. BUT - my burgers (yes, there were two "small" burgers) were great and we both agreed that they serve excellent french fries. If you're ever driving the stretch between Lansing and Detroit and just need some small-town atmosphere with a side of fries - Lucky's is the place to be.
And last night I joined a group of gals from our church - there's a group of men that get together to play poker every Wednesday night, and the gals gather to watch America's Next Top Model. I can't say I'm overly concerned with the show - but the company is fantastic. Plus, 4 of the 5 women there last night are pregnant. I think I'll try to make attendance a weekly thing (I always have good intentions, but sometimes my couch overrules my ability to get in my car and drive 6 miles).
AND - I have fun FUN lunch dates both today and tomorrow - with wonderful women I love.
Bless God for good friends. (And food!)

shouldn't there be a warning label?

Last night was the first of six childbirth classes for Mark and I. Although (more than a little) intrigued, I'm not quite ready to go ahead and have the baby there - but we are taking a natural childbirth class offered by the birth center.
Our class is small - only four couples total - although last night, two of the women were husband-less for the evening. It's an interesting group of people - one gal already has 2 kids, we're in different life stages, and some different personalities. It should be good - all differences aside, you can tell there's a common goal in the group. Last night was kind of introductory, but I'm looking forward to soaking up as much information as I can in the next month or so.
Childbirth class is a very female-type of experience - Mark was a trooper. I think it will help a little when the other husbands show up and even out the ratio a little bit.
To quote (more or less) my husband in his review of the evening (which included 2 fairly graphic videos, a flipchart with real-life pictures, and a demonstration that involved a baby doll and stuffed pelvis & placenta):
"It's childbirth class, so I know you're going to be seeing that stuff. I just didn't think that by the end of the first week of class I wouldn't even notice that we were looking at another woman's (parts)."
I did feel a little bad for him - but I'm loving the fact that he's right there with me. I've got a good one.

because I'm a sucker for free shipping

These are the new shoes that were waiting for me when I returned from my weekend travels. (Well, there were 2 of each - not one oddly mismatched pair of shoes). I found them at Land's End - and I may never buy shoes from anywhere else again.
Okay, that's a lie. But I do *love* them just a bit. My logic for purchasing 2 (two!) new pairs of shoes at once:
1. There was a free shipping coupon for Land's End in my email inbox. I detest paying shipping costs - but when cute shoes are combined with free shipping, what's a girl to do?
2. I haven't bought new shoes in a long time. I figured these are versatile enough to last me a lo-o-ong time.
3. It's been getting increasingly more difficult to wear my other black & brown shoes, for varying reasons, all related in some way to pregnancy. Not enough cushioning, heels are too high, one pair laces up (and that's just way too much time to spend trying to reach your feet around a 6-month pregnant belly).
4. I had some birthday money burning a hole in my pocket.
I could go on with my list, but you all get the point. The shoes are extremely comfy, very cute, and versatile.
I know you're all happy that I'm happy with my shoe purchase. And I appreciate that.
In other, much more real-life and important news, my bloggie friend Ashleigh had her second baby boy last week! Congrats to their whole family as they welcome their precious new member! He's absolutely beautiful - go check it out!

costumes and candy

Since most all Halloween costume stores only sell slightly (or dramatically) risqué costumes for women - none of which I would wear under NORMAL circumstances, let alone being 25 weeks pregnant... I had to improvise last night. Baby B helped me with my Pumpkin Bump costume. It turned out pretty cute - people seemed to like the general idea, and I still felt festive. I've GOT to dress up for Halloween - it's just not an option!
We handed out candy to over 180 kids last night (yup, I'm weird, I keep track) - which was actually a slow Halloween for us. Felt almost lazy. AND I have candy left over (not a good thing for my willpower).
All in all - it was a good day. Lots of birthday wishes from family and friends - phone calls, emails, e-cards and Facebook messages - very fun. I made chili and cornbread for dinner (which was a great pre-game meal for handing out candy in chilly, drizzly weather), spent 2 hours enjoying trick-or-treat time, and went to bed early.
I think I can deal with being 27. It's not bad so far!

an epidemic... at least it'll be a cute one!

From October to April - here are the people currently in my life, expecting babies. I think we're in for a busy few months!!
Katie (friend)
Desi (cousin)
Nicole (friend)
Heather (cousin)
Jessica (cousin)
Heidi (friend)
Kelly (friend)
Shannon (co-worker & friend)
Me
Suzanne (friend)
Kaycee (friend)
Shannon (colleague)
Niki (colleague)

swap-a-roo

I decided this weekend that I want to reverse Saturday and Sunday in the Weekend Lineup. Sunday should come first. Here's my two fabulous, flaw-proof reasons why:
1. I'll start off the weekend with church - which is always a good thing.
2. Sunday is inevitably busier than Saturday. This would allow me to END the weekend with a relaxing day. (And don't even try to rationalize with me that whichever day is the last day of the weekend will be the busiest. I'm not a procrastinator. At all. There's just something about the VERY character of Sunday that makes it busy. Has nothing to do with me and my ability to plan or get things done).
ANYWAY.
Had a great weekend - got a bit of progress made on The Kid's Room - which is now home to an unassembled (but free!) crib and crib mattress. Looks like this:
I don't think that's exactly like ours - but it's real close. Thanks to extended - extended family for their incredible generosity!!
And I got a back-up wedding band... my real rings (lovely as they are) are starting to be tight on my pregnant hands by the end of the day. Since I don't want to have them cut off - I just opted for an oh-so-glamorous 10K 2mm plain band - a whopping $35. We definitely underwhelmed the nice lady at the jewelry store with our style. Oh well. At least I don't look like an unmarried pregnant teenager. I look like a pregnant (and married because of her daddy's shotgun) teenager. Sometimes I just want to wear a sign that says: I've Been Married For Over Five Years. Really. It's OK That I'm Pregnant.
I wonder if that would help.

cheap entertainment

Last night I talked to my mom, dad and sister on the phone (we're all big fans of The Speakerphone. Don't have to tell the same story to multiple people). I had st-r-e-t-c-hed out in the recliner in our living room (a lovely place to sit).
As a multi-tasker, I often like to have something else to "do" while on the phone - usually just something for my eyes to watch (sometimes it's a muted TV show, other times it's watching the neighbor's funny little fluffy white dog run and yap around their backyard). Last night, I found a new "hobby."
Who knew that placing a nearly empty Aquafina water bottle on my belly and watching it bounce as my baby wiggles and kicks would be so entertaining? I was tickled by the fact that it would just rest solidly on my belly anyway (that's one of those things that you always see pregnant women doing on TV or in the movies or something). But when my (VERY ACTIVE) baby would shift, wiggle, kick or poke - I watched the water splash and the bottle teeter back and forth on its "shelf."
Of course, the second I took the bottle off my belly and told Mark to "get over here and feel your kid move!" Baby B settled down. Then, Mark goes to sit back down on the couch, Baby B kicks again. Stubborn kid. :)

some things are inevitable

I've been slowly realizing over the past few weeks that my pregnancy weight gain is not (despite what others try to tell me) limited to my belly. It's actually quietly leaking all over my body.
I can handle this - my baby is healthy and growing, and I'm trying really hard to not be vain or self-conscious.
But I really don't like the chubby-faced look.
When I look at pictures, I see this puffy face - and it doesn't look like me. (Actually, it looks a little like me about 3 or 4 years ago when I was 15 pounds heavier than my pre-pregnancy weight). But that girl has been gone for awhile now.
*sigh* I know these things are unavoidable, and I know they'll go back to normal (ish) post-pregnancy. But man, some days it IS tough to feel in any way attractive.
Good thing my husband promised to love me no matter what. :)

busy little bee

My lazy Thursday was followed up by a rather non-lazy weekend. I've given myself an award for being a Very Productive Pregnant Woman. I think my nesting instincts are kicking in!!
Friday night we went to Mason's home football game (a rather chilly, drizzly evening it was - but we WON, which almost never happens). I don't watch much of the games when I'm there, but there are many students there who I've grown to love dearly in the past few years with YoungLife, and it's always fun to be with them.
Saturday - Mark and I went to breakfast, then he set about packing and departing for PA for the weekend. After he left, I set out for Lowe's (because where else would expect a pregnant woman to go by herself on the weekend?) Got a few funny looks while I was there, and more than one "Can I help you find something, ma'am?" But I managed, all by myself, to pick up all the supplies I needed to turn an old (free) dresser into this (please ignore the icky garage and trash bins in the background):
That's chalkboard paint on the drawers, so this little piece of furniture will be:
(a) a place to store clothes
(b) the changing table for our little one
(c) a work of art
I'm proud of myself, folks. I'll come right out and admit that.
When I wasn't painting or cleaning the paint off myself - I went grocery shopping (the shopping trip delayed by my lazy Thursday), made pumpkin bread, did 7 or 8 loads of laundry, cleaned the kitchen... and still had a bit of time to relax with a book and/or my DVDs of Friends!
Working on projects at home all weekend made me feel like I had just the teeniest bit of a glimpse of what it might be like in just over 3 months when I Stay At Home Full Time. Of course, there was no child to look after (and I'm betting that will make JUST a bit of a difference *wink*) - but I do really enjoy being at home and taking care of my home. And I find it's much easier to do (and enjoy) when I'm around more often, so that things don't pile up to intimidating levels.
Because it's hard to get excited about the pile of laundry that's as tall as you are. Or the mound of dishes waiting in the sink (because you haven't emptied the dishwasher yet). Or putting away the pile of clean, non-maternity clothes that you just don't care about because right now, that shirt would barely fit over your head, let alone the rest of your body.
Not that any of those things would ever present itself in my house.
So I raise my glass (of ice cold skim milk!) to a weekend of productivity.

none of the above

Or below, I guess.
By the time the workday ended yesterday, I was wiped. Barely awake, and nursing the headache that often plagues me on days when the weather does funny things (and we had quite the strange batch of storms roll through MI yesterday, to be sure).
So I went straight home (sorry, gym) and laid on the couch for an hour. It was the kind of nap where you're not really asleep, but get to lay very still with your eyes shut and it's glorious.
Got up, declared myself hungry - so Mark and I went about making ourselves a delicious dinner of blue-box macaroni and cheese, crescent rolls, and leftover pizza. Oh, the gourmet of it all.
Then it was back to the couch with a magazine, and eventually watched a movie with my hubby. All this before 9:00pm.
I am nothing if not efficient.
I DID fold some clothes, and this morning I loaded up the dishwasher (so I'm not a total slacker) - but there was no workout, no grocery shopping, and no Baby Room Progress.
That's what this weekend is for - Mark will be out of town, and I'm planning on cracking down a bit on The Kid's room - the next big step is to paint the old scratchy dresser to make it look lovely.
Maybe I'll workout too. Or at least drink another full glass or two of V8 Fusion (a full serving of veggies AND a full serving of fruit - which is healthy enough to be equivalent to a workout, right??)
At any rate - I am happy to have Friday and the weekend to look forward to - and am grateful God gave me the good sense to rest last night.
The Kid and I needed that.

hide and seek?

Oh, Bloggie friends - I know you've been so worried about my extended absence. Breathe easy - I'm back. I'll pretend it was a game of hide and seek... although I wasn't really hiding, and no one was seeking...
Actually, I was back on Sunday - I just had NOTHING. interesting. to say. on the blog... and didn't feel like regaling you with the boring tales of my mundane musings. (I might not have great stories to tell, but boy - can I use some alliteration!)
Any way - our trip to Atlanta was FUN FUN FUN - it's a long time in the car, but we had great company and lots of laughing. Pictures are forthcoming - unfortunately, my camera battery died almost instantaneously, so I am at the mercy of Dana & Emily to supply me with fantastic photographic memorabilia from the weekend. It all-around just plain lovely.
Since then...
Monday - I worked. From 7:00am (my normal start time) until 7:15pm (NOT my normal end time).
Tuesday - I worked. Then Mark and I went to a dinner meeting to help plan/organize our fall fundraiser for YoungLife. I ate four pieces of pizza. It was good.
Wednesday - I worked, but only until 11:00am when I found my husband in my office. His keys had been in my car that morning when I left at 6:30am - so he hitched a ride onto campus with our neighbor (who works VERY nearby) and needed me to take him home. So I left an hour early (Wednesday I usually work until 12:00) to take Hubs home. He left immediately, since he had been unable to work that morning. I ate lunch, took a short nap, and then set about conquering the monumental task of Getting Baby's Room Ready. Conquering is the wrong word. Perhaps I should say that I Put a Teeny Dent in the Paint Job of the monumental task of Getting Baby's Room Ready. But there's only so much furniture moving and bookcase rearranging a gal in her 6th month of pregnancy can do at a time. THEN, I headed back to work for a meeting. I just *love* evening commitments. And sarcasm.
But now it's Thursday - and I have big plans to hit the gym after work, and then somehow go to the grocery store, get laundry done, eat dinner, make the Teeny Dent into a Decent Sized Crater, and rest. Hmmm. It's possible I may have to change my expectations for the evening.

hiatus

We're taking a road-trip to Atlanta tomorrow - driving Thursday, visiting with our friends Friday and Saturday, and driving back Sunday.
We're crazy. I know it.
But I'm excited!
See you on the other side!