14 days and counting . . .

Uh, i'm kind of surprised that i can still stand and walk upright. How does gravity not just take me down at this point? Although I'm still pretty nervous about delivery, I'm also feeling more and more ready to get the show on the road and get Maya out of my body and into the world. I keep telling her she can go ahead and come any time. So far, she's content to chill it inside. She just doesn't realize she will have so much more space to play out here! She is head down but at my last appointment I wasn't dialated at all yet. Still out walking several times a week, and the object of many many stares. For about the last week i've felt a lot more discomfort (not to mention having to pee constantly) and sleep has been more difficult, but I would take this over the early months of puking ANY day! My parents are getting all geared up to come and I am getting soooo excited to see them. They arrive here late on the 4th and Maya is due the 7th, so it will be interesting to see how the timing of it all happens. . . we'll keep you posted! :)

Not a Pound

After my most recent OB appointment (the one where I had gained 4 kilos and got scolded and laughed at for where I was tipping the scales) I was determined to do as the Doctor ordered and walk for at least 30 minutes every day and try to bring this mad weight gaining spree to an end. Well of course, every day was a little unrealistic (and on some days, 30 minutes was unrealistic), but I did manage to get a lot more exercise over the last two weeks than I have gotten in a long time, and today it paid off! At my Dr's appointment I was happy to see that I hadn't gained any weight. Based on the amount of food I have been eating, I am certain that Maya gained the weight she needed to over the last two weeks, (I'm acting like a hungry teenage boy!), it just happened that maybe I got rid of some weight that I didn't need! Anyway, i just thought I would share my victory with you. All looks well with Maya and the Dr. said she still has plenty of fluid that she's swimming around in. She is weighing in around 3.4 kilos now (that's 7.48 pounds) and the Dr. expects that she will go to term and weigh 8 pounds! I'm getting more and more uncomfortable and I keep whispering to her that it's okay if she wants to come early. . . . we've just about got everything ready for her. We still need to figure out how to put the base for our car seat into our car, but they don't exactly check your car seat out at the hospital here, like they do in the states. . . .

35 weeks and counting

"Holy Cow" and "God Wills It"

I need to post a new picture so you can marvel at how ginormous I have become, but just to give you a hint I'll share this little moment from my OB appt. on Thursday. There's one little nurse who is always moving at light speed, going from one exam room to the next, taking blood pressure and ushering women in and out. She's very enthusiastic, and I think she especially likes us because we are the token foreigners who can (sort of) speak the language. Thursday she had me step up on the scale and as she kept moving those little slider things further and further over, she finally blurted out, "Ma'sha Allah!" which is kind of a combination of saying "God wills it!" and "Holy Cow!". Then she said my weight out real loud, and then burst into giggles. We use kilos here and I had reached the 100 kilo mark (I'm too embarrassed to tell you how many pounds that is!). Apparently she doesn't weigh a lot of women of my size (women here are TINY!). The story goes down hill from here (i had gained 4 kilos since my last appointment, my Dr. kept saying, "I expect you to PUSH! This is gonna be a BIG baby!" and then my blood pressure was high (again) so i had to do (another) urine and blood test and go buy a blood pressure cuff so i can take my blood pressure at home twice a day). The Dr. also scolded me for not exercising ("You must walk AT LEAST 30 minutes EVERY DAY!) . . . but she did say that Maya looks fine, she still has the right amount of fluid around her, etc., etc. And, after taking my blood pressure 3 times during the visit, it was back down to normal before we left the office, so I'm still convinced it goes up just being in the hospital, surrounded by a waiting room full of irritated pregnant women who have had to wait way too long, and then hearing the nurse say "Holy Cow!" when she weighs me. . .

Baby Shower in Kansas

Do you know those ladies in your life (for me they are ladies from the church I grew up in) who have known you through every awkward developmental stage, every rebellious stage, every bad haircut and just about everything else? I think there is something really special about having ladies like this in your life. And my special ladies had a baby shower for me and maya on sunday via skype! There are several things that set this apart from the last (wonderful) skype shower we had. The biggest thing was just the blessing of getting to see ladies who have known me and whom i have known for many many years. ladies who took us to camp each summer (God bless you Debi!) Ladies who celebrated my high school graduation and my college graduation. Ladies who cried with me when I said goodbye and headed for East Asia. Ladies who squealed with delight when they heard about Matt and I getting together. Ladies who were there to see us get married (and blessed us in so many ways at that time of our lives). Ladies who cried again when we left for the Middle East. Even though I haven't seen these ladies in more than two years now, I know that these are ladies who have not forgotten about us. As each lady came over to the computer to say a greeting or share a special gift for Maya or share a word of encouragement, I was so blessed to be reminded (again) that I am a part of a BIG family.

Where we live, big families are the norm, and it's common for people to get together with their families every weekend. There are times when this has left me feeling very lonely, and very much like an outsider. But the Lord puts the lonely in families! Not only has he placed Matt and I in a group of people here in our city who really love one another like family, He was gracious and kind enough to remind me on Sunday of these wonderful ladies who though we are on the other side of the earth, remember us and pray for us and love us. They are the Body of Christ, and the way they loved and served us and just celebrated the excitement of our coming baby was such a blessing. Preparing to have our first baby in a strange culture, so far away has brought me to tears more than once in the last 8 months, but the Lord has been so faithful to remind me again and again that I am not alone, and not only has He given us His Spirit, He has also placed in our lives many many people who love and support us in so many unique ways.

Check out pictures of all the fun we had on my mom's blog:
http://thecedarsofpittsburg.blogspot.com/2009/10/skype-shower-for-kellie-and-maya.html

Thank you Debi, especially, for loving me like I'm yours and for planning the whole shower. I can't wait to see that sleeper with the tutu up close and all the precious socks you girls crafted for Maya. She is going to be one stylish girl. Seriously.

Vacation in Egypt

Our vacation in pictures

it doesn't get much better than bottomless chips and salsa

at "On the Border" in Cairo

Matt's eyes got really big when he saw his food come

and he got his usual chicken enchiladas

then we flew onto Sharm el Sheikh on the tip of the sinai penninsula where matt dove 9 times during the week and Maya and i snorkeled several times

we met up with good friends who love diving even more than mj

and we enjoyed the AMAZING artistry of God's creation under water

this was the view from our room up on the rocks

this is what the resort looked like

unfortunately our room was way up at the top--more than 120 stairs

more wonders under the sea

check out the red coral stuff! so cool!

these were some big daddy fish

this guy was ENORMOUS--doesn't he look grumpy?!

our group out on the diving boat.

THE END!

A Place to Lay Her Head

the best handyman ever

getting the lowdown

the finished product!