Just a bit of an update on my pregnancy so far.

On Tuesday i went in for a blood test to check my HCG levels and got a call back from my doctor on Wednesday who said they looked great. So that was very encouraging and so then on Monday (being yesterday) i went in again for the same test to see if the levels were increasing and they are! They're not doubling every few days like some of the sites i've read say they should but i know that that doesn't necessarily mean anything and that the Lord is in control, He has this child in His hands and I trust in Him...

...and so as long as i continue to feel well, i won't be going in for any more tests or ultrasounds or anything until my 13th week when hopefully the doctor will be able to hear the heartbeat!

I sincerely want to thank you all for your prayers of health and safety for the baby and peace for me. i am feeling very good and am getting excited about having a really healthy pregnancy.

Lots of fresh, cool, colorful smoothies and salads throughout the summer months! And lots of walking and relaxing out of doors. I want to enjoy this pregnancy to the full and if being healthy keeps me energized and joyful then i'm gonna do my utmost to eat as best i can and to be as active as possible.

I am so deeply thankful for the chance to experience another pregnancy, all of the good and even the sometimes not-so-good aspects of it all....

Photo credit here

Poetry... to me...

What is poetry?

Seeing your child dancing in drifts
of winter white and joining him
Laying side by side, together,
on the floor, doing puzzles

Laughing, heads thrown back
in absolute surrender with joy
Sobbing, heads together,
arms around close, with sorrow

Moments strung together
along this thread called life
Relationships in happy chaos,
aching beauty, ...pain

This is poetry...
Being one with each other.
Us, united,
in this glorious wonder.

In all things...

"Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I five to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.]" John 14:27 Amplified Bible


"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 1Thes.16-18 NIV


And so i give thanks:

For joy over new life within,
For peace that He has given,
For His Word that chases away fear,
For quiet hope in the Lord
And for faith that His promises are true.

For health and strength,
For beauty in the every day,
Streaks of crimson against morning sky,
Little boy voices talking together, playing contentedly,
The opportunity to raise these young ones for the kingdom,
For worship music in the home that calms the soul,
And for the ability to learn new things.

So many endless gifts bestowed upon us, i am humbled by His grace.

I've got something to tell you...

I'm pregnant!

"Rejoice in the Lord always, and again i say, REJOICE!" Philippians 4:4

This has been such an amazing answer to prayer. After my miscarriage in October, i prayed and i know others prayed that i would conceive again soon and that i would have hope and peace about the future. And God gave me those things... a quiet hope that i would have another child again someday and a peace that He loved me and cared deeply for me. And now i have conceived again just two months later!

"I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me." Psalm 13:6

After having two miscarriages, i admit that i am a little nervous but...

"it is good for me to draw near to God; i have put my trust in the Lord God and made Him my refuge, that i may tell of all (His) works." Psalm 73:28

So i continue to pray for peace and for the strength to put my trust and hope in the Him. When i can't seem to find the words, i turn to His Word and have been dwelling on this promise:

"You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You.

So trust in the Lord(commit yourself to Him, lean on Him, hope confidently in Him) forever; for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages]." Isaiah 26:3&4

Normally i would never tell my friends that i was expecting until i was at least 12 weeks (i'm almost 5 weeks now) but i have really felt strongly that i need to let others hold me up in prayer as well and so i am letting you know so that we can rejoice together in His faithfulness and pray that He will guard and protect this new life within me.

And i feel such a confidence that no matter what... He is good and i will praise Him.

Embarcing a Change...

"And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight in the bud
was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." ~ Arais Nin

:::::

It's time for a change, dear friends.

As Spring is here and the weather warms up I am finding that it is time again for me to reassess my priorities. Slowly moving from indoors to the wonderful world outside, I am realizing that this computer is again taking over too much of my life and I need to simplify.

My desire for this season and for the coming ones as well is to live life to the full. To intentionally plan my days in order to have order and routine, and as many outdoor hours as possible.

I am finding that if I don't plan my days ahead of time, the hours just get frittered away and I continually have the feeling that I am wasting my time. I don't want to look back on this time in my life with regret, realizing the wasted hours.

And so I am moving to a simpler way of blogging... through pictures. I absolutely love photography and though I really don't have a clue as to all the proper lingo and camera's of "real" photographers, I am still no less enthralled with the exquisite beauty that can be captured by the click of a button.

So please, if you'd like, come by and see...the link is here and in my side bar. I may post words once in a while but it will mainly be pictures with a brief description in the comment box.

I hope you enjoy the beauty of his creation in the way I have chosen to capture it.

I'm still learning...

Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift...
Live simple... Love generously... Care deeply... Speak kindly...
...and leave the rest to God.

~ author unknown

:::::

Raining this evening... for the first time in months...after a beautiful sunny and warm day of 18C.
I love the fresh scent of it and how it seems to be washing away the "yuck" of old winter... so fitting for the second day of Spring, don't you think?

Photo: Jacob's ladder after the rain. (Summer 2008)

Live in the Present Moment

"Live in peace without worrying about the future. Unnecessary worrying and imagining the worst possible scenario will strangle your faith.

God alone knows what will happen to you. You really don't even own the present moment, for even this belongs to God. So live according to His will.

Each day there is just enough that God gives you to take care of - nothing more or less is expected of you.

Who are you to ask the Lord, "Why are you doing this to me?" He is the Lord- let Him do what seems good to Him. You certainly don't need to add your wisdom and your plans to His wise and good plan. [...]


The future is not yet yours - perhaps it never will be. And when tomorrow comes it will probably be different from what you had imagined.

It isn't enough to separate yourself from the world's ways. You also must allow humility to be formed in you, then you will turn away from your own self nature.

Every trace of pride must be conquered. Your pride in thinking you know much about spiritual things is more dangerous than being very rich. Pride helps you believe you are something important in a much more subtle way.

Put aside your self interest and simply let God's will unfold around you. Everything He does for you is for your good. Worship Him without having to know and see everything. [...]


Above all, live in the present moment and God will give you all the grace you need."

Excerpt from "The Seeking Heart" by Fenelon

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"The Seeking Heart" is a collection of letters written by Fenelon and rewritten in modern English by Rose Marie Slosek.

I am really enjoying this book and some of the letters ring so true for me in certain times of my life that I have decided to record a few of them here as I come across them... to help me remember and for future reading.