We're having a. . .

Last Thursday, I had my ultrasound and we found out what the gender of our little baby is. Before I say what that is I do really want to say that the ultrasound was one of the  biggest highlights of being pregnant (thus far). Oh my goodness, I feel like a completely different person since then (in relation to being pregnant that is). Some women are able to be in love with their baby from day one, heroically facing the morning sickness, and so on. That wasn't really me. Don't get me wrong I was absolutely ecstatic when I found out I was pregnant. But then I got sick. Ended up being sick for a lot longer than I thought I would and I really lost my excitement. Last week, I got to see pictures/video of my precious little baby and suddenly it felt real. I wasn't just gaining weight, I was really sharing my body with a new tiny little life. I suddenly understand why these black and white, seemingly shapeless little images are so special to moms. I don't know much about reading these images so I picked the pictures that made the most sense to me. Seeing this little person kick and move around inside of me was amazing. I can't explain that moment. But let me tell you I AM EXCITED about this little GIRL, Clint and I get to be parents to!!!

saying 'hi'

her little face

Coblentz Family Pictures

This is why our personal family pictures are so stressful--

Kelly just loves this expression of Sean's. . . (not) 

I don't know if Clint was looking at a bird or trying to be artistic???

Here Mom is trying to fix Dad's double chin/constipated expression. 

Skyler was very cooperative, so we have no odd pictures of him. 

The rest of the men made up for him. Sigh. I love my family. :)

To make a shelf or three. . .

Earlier this year, I decided I wanted to make some shelves. Mostly to prove that I can actually use a drill and comprehend the basics of constructing something. ***clears throat*** I discovered how little I know about putting something like this together and how wise my father and husband really are when it comes to such things. But I did get it done. YAY! It was a great feeling, and a pretty good learning experience. 

This was my inspiration and the lady had the tutorial for the making of a long version of my three shelves. Unfortunately the link has disappeared on me and I can't find the original tutorial.  So I guess I will just tell you how I did it. :)  Obviously you buy those boards and just use screws to put them together, I won't bother with those steps just tell you how it went for me so you can learn from my mistakes. ;)

First off, I went to Home Depot to get my boards. Because I don't have a way to cut them or a way to transport full size boards,  I got the the guys at Home Depot to cut them for me. I really gave them some hardships. The poor guy totally didn't get what I was trying to do. So, thanks to the wonderful smart phone, I showed him the above image and he finally understood what I was trying to do. ;) Poor guy.  

I wanted 3 shelves, one 3 ft, one 2.5 ft, and one 2 ft.  So we finally got that all figured out and I was ready to build some shelves. :) 

I took all my dad's tools and such to (my real) work with me. And supplied myself with some coffee somewhere along the way, essential to completing any project, you know. Anyway moving on. The lady who created the tutorial I was following said to pre-drill the holes. I thought that sounded dumb so to drilling I went. Needless, to say it didn't  work out so well. I ended up with what you see in the image below.

I was not pleased. I also discover that my dad's battery was not charged. I had some handy wood glue/filler stuff so I plugged in the battery/charger deal and went to fixing that split in the wood. 

Above you see how I fixed it. Please don't laugh. I told you this was a learning curve for me. I called my dad and found out that's not really how you are supposed to fix a split like that. You actually are supposed to take the screw out, put the filler in the split, clamp it and let it dry, then start over. 

**clears throat** Oh well. 

I also covered the backs of the screws to prepare it for a smooth paint job. I also thought this was a waste of time cause I mean really who's gonna see it so I skipped it on the next two shelves. However, this looks much better!! If I do it again I will for sure cover the screws. Especially on the front. It can look cool to see the screws if you make it look like you did it on purpose but I like it covered better. :)

Battery was charged up a bit so I moved on the next shelf and ^ that ^ happened. It spilt far worse than the previous one. I was very angry. I called my brother and my dad, they both have experience in such things. Alas, they suggested I go get it a drill bit and pre-drill. Aha, the lady did know what she was talking about. My dad told me of a nifty way I could fix that very destroyed board so I didn't have to buy a new one. I went and bought a drill bit. Back in business we were. 

That beautiful curly thing up there ^, yeah that's my new best friend. 

It takes longer to pre-drill and then finally drill the screws in but it also takes longer to patch each destroyed board. :) The above picture shows them nicely put together. I was feeling very accomplished at this time. The next couple steps are ones I have lots of experience with so I wasn't as scared anymore. :)

Painting them whatever color you want. 

Sanding them to make them look worn. EXTREMELY, stress relieving, this step. :)

The last step is to put them on the wall. This step isn't exactly my forte. I tried several different methods. Finally, I gave up and let Clint do it. He ended up drilling them into the wall. It was the most secure way. Otherwise they were dangling precariously. I am quite happy with my little shelves. :) They added some color to a previously bland wall.


p.s. if the terminology to building supplies/the building of things isn't quite right. . . hopefully it brightens your day. I'm just a crazy little wifey who doesn't know what she's doing. :D

Because I love her and hate doing corn. . .

And because something about this picture reminds me of Agnes from Despicable Me.

No Good Thing

I believe in a peace that flows deeper than pain
That broken find healing in love
Pain is no measure of his faithfulness
He withholds no good thing from us
No good thing from us, no good thing from us

I will open my hands, will open my heart
I will open my hands, will open my heart
I am nodding my head an emphatic yes
To all that You have for me

I believe in a fountain that will never dry
Though I've thirsted and didn't have enough
Thirst is no measure of his faithfulness
He withholds no good thing from us
No good thing from us, no good thing from us

I will open my hands, will open my heart
I will open my hands, will open my heart
I am nodding my head an emphatic yes
To all that You have for me
-Sara Groves

Brielle Rylee

Hot off the presses-- She was a day and half old in these images. Such a precious new life. 

turning my eyes upon Jesus

I spent last weekend in Carbondale with Clint. There isn't a Mennonite church family there so I got stared at a lot. I look different. Usually it doesn't bother me, but it did last weekend. The being stared at isn't really what bothered me. It's the image given to me by fake Amish TV shows, the assumption that I am Amish,  and the misunderstanding of why I do what I do. I like to be understood. When people assume things about me, be it willful, or because of lack of knowledge, well, I don't like it. I don't think any of us do.  All of us like the innocent until proven guilty mindset, which interestingly enough very few people actually live out.

I guess, what really came to me over this weekend is how much I care about what people think about me/how they perceive me  and how that really boils down to pride, and pride boils down to sin.  

I want them to think well of me. I want them to look at me and understand me. I want to be loved. I want them to think I'm cool. I want their approval and acceptance.

I was really upset to discover that in myself because I have tried to conquer that so many times, I really thought I was living in victory. To discover that it's raising its' ugly head again. Well, it really upset me. It means I have once again allowed the world and its mindset into my life. I have taken my eyes off Jesus, turned them onto people and myself.  

Jesus was not well-accepted. The Pharisees thought He wasn't religious enough, other people thought He was too religious, or required too much. He said He was not of this world thus the world hated Him. Jesus promised that His followers would be hated and persecuted just like He was. 

People from His home town rejected Him, the Jews, his special people, rejected him. The Pharisees hated Him, twisted His words, plotted to kill Him. His own disciple betrayed Him for some silver.  He is God and was treated horrifically  Who am I to think I deserve any better? The early church welcomed mistreatment and hatred. They sang as they were sent to their death because they shared the suffering of their Lord. Why do I think that as a follower of Christ I should be treated better than He was? Ridiculous. 

The Gospel of Christ will look ridiculous to people who are of the world. I can expect to be hated and misunderstood when I take a stand for truth. I can expect to be stared at, thought odd, too conservative, or not conservative enough when I dress the way I feel God has asked me to dress. I will be persecuted if I follow Christ.

But I will have Christ. And that, that is worth it all.  If I keep my eyes trained on my Lord, the hatred, mistreatment, willful misunderstanding "will fade away in the light of His Glory and Grace."

one year

I can't believe it's been a year already!! At the same time I can't believe it's only been a year. It seems like Clint and I have been together for forever. It's wonderful really. The not knowing what life would be like without him. I can't imagine not living with him. It's really hard to comprehend that a little over a year ago I was living in my parents house, sleeping in my room, all alone, while he drove down the driveway and on to his parents place, where he was in his own room, all alone. It sounds awful.

I love belonging to someone. I love knowing that I never have to sleep alone anymore. I love knowing that bad dreams can't get me anymore.  I just love being his.

He is gentle, where I am harsh. He is strong, where I am weak.

He makes me giggle when I am sad. Holds me tight when I cry. Listens to my rampages and sermons. Loves me even when I am a brat.

How did I get so lucky??

I mean, I get to spend forever in the arms of my best friend!!!

so so so so so blessed. I can't even describe how wonderful marriage is!

photo credit: Amy Graber

Together

"You gain confidence through knowing that I am with you—

that you face nothing alone. Anxiety stems from asking 

the wrong question: “If such and such happens, can I handle it?” The true question is not whether you can cope with whatever happens, but whether you and I together can handle anything that occurs. It is this you-and-I-together factor that gives you confidence to face the day cheerfully."

-Jesus Calling, Sarah Young

Thoughts on Weight and being Skinny

image via pinterest

I have gained weight since I am married and have had to rebuild my wardrobe in the last 6 months because none of my clothes fit anymore. I started at too skinny and now I am actually at a healthy weight but my culture tells me I am not skinny enough anymore. I should be about 10 lbs less than I am. So because I am at this weight and people ask/comment in some rather scary ways, I am faced with a lot of questions-- 'Do I have to be skinny to be beautiful? Do I have to be skinny to be loved? Whose opinion really matters?', just to name a few.

It seems like women spend their entire lives wishing they were just 5-10lbs lighter. If they could just get to that point they would finally be happy with themselves. Weight has become so important to us that we are constantly dieting, and/or working out, buying pills, drinking weight-loss shakes, spending our time being miserable so that we can reach that 'skinny' ideal we have accepted. It has consumed us. The sad thing is in most cases you will find that our husbands and friends don't care what we weigh, it's the 'world' telling us we have to be such and such a size, with such and such measurements. (I am not talking about from a medical standpoint, I am talking about the models, movie stars, and music aritists that we think are so perfect.) God has never had a weight limit on HIs love, so this must be coming from someone else, the being that runs are culture, Satan. Which makes me even more sad. We, women, have bought into Satan's lies all over again. We sacrafice some of the greatest joys of life because we are busy working out, dieting, thinking about working out/dieting, trying to make it to Satan's ideal.

What would happen if we would lay all that down. If we would worry as much about our spiritual fitness/shape as we do about our physical one? When we die it's not going to matter whether we were 300lbs or 98 lbs. It's going to matter who we were in God's eyes. When we stand before the throne of God, are we going to think about how skinny we were on earth and how much time we spent doing that, how worthy all that made us on earth? Is that going make us better people in His eyes? I don't think so. I think the only reason we would think about our weight before the throne of God, would be that we spent too much time being consumed by it. I think what will see in ourselves before the throne of God will break our hearts. I think we will see all the time we could have spent investing into our children, our family, our friends, all the time we could have spent developing our relationship with God but didn't.

Whose opinion matters the most? God's or the people around me? I hope that I can say God's and mean it. Not just say 'God's' because we all know that's the right thing to say. To really really say God's opinion of me matters MORE to me than the whole world combined. No matter what they say or suggest, HE is where I find my worth and meaning. I hope to someday be able to live that way, can you imagine the freedom and joy we would find if we really would be women who live that?!? Can you imagine how we would impact the world around us?!?

Little Alexandra

My Little Sunshine Girl

I love when she comes to spend time with me at work!

Jenna

this little sweetie is moving away, gonna miss her so much. . . 

Still my Daddy's Valentine (Valentines Day)

My Dad gave me chocolate covered strawberry's for Valentines Day. Melted my heart, it did. 

Babysitting (feb 2013)

I haven't been keeping up with my picture posts. . . so in effort to remedy that I decided to prepare/schedule posts on this day in which I have very little to do so that my blog will look like someone actually cares about it. :)

Clint and I babysat my little cousins. Afternoon, overnight, and the next day. It was very fun even though we were extremely tired for the next couple days. The children did really well. I was pretty nervous at first because they both really like their mama. They were VERY ready to see their mommy by the next day but like I said they did great!

Cole, after he was home again, informed his mother that Clint and I 'snore', and according to him, he didn't have anything to eat until I took him to McDonalds for his birthday (the day part of his stay). No wonder the poor chap was ready to go to his house. :)

What are these??

These are growing in my flower bed and I would LOVE to know what they are!!! Anybody know??