New cool website

One of the blogs that I follow is in the process of launching this website. Check it out, I already found several cool websites-and it's just starting!

http://www.sk-rt.com/

28 Weeks

This morning we were able to see our little girl once again via ultrasound. She is doing perfectly! She currently weighs 2 pounds and 14 ounces. Her femur bone (from hip to knee) is 2 inches long. We are officially in the third trimester now. It looks like she we will get to see her sooner than we thought. We were able to get another ultrasound because last time the placenta was covering a portion of the cervix (aka placenta previa). We were hoping that after a few more weeks it would have grown out of the way. Unfortunately, it hasn't, and the doctor wasn't very optimistic that it would any time soon. So what does this mean? a planned C-section. Basically, they don't want me to go into labor because of the risk, and if I do it would mean an emergency C-section. They would probably plan it around 37-38 weeks, which puts us around the first week of August.

At first I was disappointed, but I know that it is only my expectations of having a "normal" delivery. As long as my baby girl is healthy, then I am happy. After going through all of this infertility, I have long since given up the ideal of "natural" and "normal". Thankfully, I am well aware of the risks and the benefits of C-section, so I'm choosing to focus on the benefits (and there are some). I would much prefer to know that I'm having a c-section, than to go into labor and still end up with one. I hear that labor is overrated anyway.

Then I got home and did a little more research, all to find that I'm basically one step away from bedrest. No more traveling, no more exercising, and no more heavy housework (not that I did a lot of that anyway :) Now my biggest concern is keeping her in there as long as possible. As for prayer requests, please pray that there won't be any bleeding, if so then I end up in the hospital and end up on bedrest, but most of all pray that our little girl continues to grow and develop just the way she is supposed to and at least makes it to 36 weeks.

The best news though, is I thought it would be at least 12 weeks before I would see her beautiful face, and not it's only going to be 9-10. Wow! It will be here before we know it!

Savannah Grace

This week is 25 weeks, so I'm in my 5th month. Savannah is growing fast! She is about 12 inches long and weighs over 1 1/2 pounds. I feel her kick and move around often. It is the most amazing feeling. This past weekend while visiting my sister in Johnson city, I got to choose the bedding for her room. To describe it, it will have shades of pink and green with a vintage storybook print. The colors are richer than the typical pink and green you see for little girls rooms. Once it is made, then I will take a picture and post it. Anyway, I am just so excited to have a direction for the room. Although I don't have the actual room yet, it's nice to have a vision for what it will look like. I can't wait until our house is done, and we can move in and get settled. I think the first room that I will focus on is probably Savannah's. We have waited so long to bring a child into our home. We want it to be just perfect for her!

Zabs tag

1. What is your main source of news? Internet? T.V.? Newspaper? Do you care?
mostly television, then a little internet. I do care, but should probably care a little more. My tolerance for local news is on the low side. I find they often ask silly questions to people who don't really have an opinion. It also bothers me that the day someone loses a family member that the local news is sticking a microphone in their face asking them how they feel. Well, how do you think they feel? Sorry for the tangent, it's just my opinion.

2. Do you listen to music? a certain kind? All time favorites?
YES I listen to music! I really enjoy music. I have always loved an eclectic variety from classical to rock. Currently I love worship music, and artists like Corrine Bailey Rae, Michael Buble, the Fray, you get the idea.

3. Do you have myspace or facebook?
I have both, but haven't really gotten into facebook yet. I initially got into Myspace in an effort to communicate with Britt'Knee, but have found it to be a great way to keep up with distant friends.

4. Is your interent dial up, cable, DSL? Wireless, Laptop, Desktop? Mac? PC?
Cable, wireless, mac laptop


5. Do you have an ipod? Other MP3 player.
Yes, funny story. Christmas before last, Kyle really wanted a video ipod. So being the thoughtful wife, I bought him one (early because I didn't want them to be out) and even had it engraved. At the time, Kyle was working at Relevant and the staff had a door decorating competition themed Christmas movies, and the prize was a video ipod. Of course, Kyle didn't know that he already had one, so he was pretty enthusiastic about decorating the door and really trying to win. I had to be enthusiastic too, because I didn't want him to suspect that he already had one. We went all out and worked very hard to hopefully win. Everyone at Relevant is pretty creative, so I thought that our chances weren't that great. Needless to say, he won the door contest. We went home and I handed him his Christmas gift, he was so suprised! In the end, I won-so all our hard work was still worth it.

I love my ipod-listen to it in the car, on walks, in the house. I love having all my music easily accessible to me.

6. Are you addicted to the internet? How long are you on? What are you on for? work? social? research? news? all?
I am not addicted to the internet. Although recently I have spent more time on it then I used to. I don't really even know how long I'm usually on. I mostly use it to keep up with blogs, shopping, the occasional research when I'm interested in something.

change of plans

So the latest news is that Britt'Knee has decided to visit her sister in Hawaii for the summer with Elizabeth. It's been quite an emotional roller coaster, but the Lord has given us such peace about it. I have been willing for whatever it is that God would have for our family. There is a scripture that my husband often reminds me of, Proverbs 16:9 "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps." We made plans for them to move here at the end of the month, but obviously the Lord has determined otherwise. Is the story over? Not sure, but at the moment, I am not planning either way.

the craziness of life

Yesterday I had one of those days where the world seemed completely overwhelming. So today I slowed down and spent some time with the Lord which is what I needed for the world to seem more manageable. So you may wonder what seems so overwhelming in my life right now? Let's see where do I begin?

Kyle's business is going very well, in fact we just hired our first employee. We are very excited about the growth, but with growth comes growing pains. We are in the process of figuring out all the details.

Our house is coming along-they finished putting up the brick yesterday and will put the insulation in this week. We are still on target for it to be done by August-just in time for baby's arrival. It's fun to build a custom home, but there are a lot of decisions to be made every step of the way.

I am loving being pregnant-baby is growing, and is reminding me that she is there quite often. It is the most amazing feeling inside-one that I have longed for a very long time. It is a true joy! So her name is (drumroll please.....) Savannah Grace! God's grace has been an open plain for us and continues to be-which is what her name means. We've come up with several other names that we like, but we feel like this is her name.

I've been working on the registry stuff, and I'm close to being done. I've decided to register at Babies R'Us and Amazon.com I figure between the two I can find just about anything. I finally picked out the crib-which was harder for me than I thought, but I'm excited about the choice. Whenever I get it and get the room ready (which won't be until the house is done) I will post some pics of the nursery.

We are living in a house that is on the market. We hope that it sells quickly (for my dad's sake). It's always fun trying to keep a house in a constant state of "ready to be shown in a moments notice". The house itself is a true blessing though. It's more house than I think I ever want, but for the 3-4 rooms that we use, it is nice to stretch out and I get to sleep in my bed!

The most exciting thing going in our life is this in a nutshell--Britt'knee and Elizabeth.

So if you haven't heard about Britt'knee and Elizabeth I will try to give you a quick run down. Last November we started looking into the adoption process, which included a home study and looking into adoption agencies. Then a girl in our church contacted us about Britt'knee. She is an 18 year old girl that has a 3 year old girl named Elizabeth. Britt'knee was looking for someone to take care of her daughter, because she (Britt'knee) has leukemia and was given a very poor prognosis. When we heard the story, we immediately responded with a "yes" we will take her. Then for weeks we heard nothing. In the meantime, we got pregnant and made plans to move to Nashville. On the day our house sold, we received a call that Britt'knee was ready to talk again. We called her and then followed several e-mail conversations with no concrete time frame as to when we would meet. Then in the middle of March, Kyle and I drove down and spent the day with Britt'knee. Since then we talk to her almost everyday, and she has agreed to move in with us with her daughter as soon as school is over (which is May 22). So what does that mean? Our life is about to turn upside down! Taking in a 3 year old and her mother sounds crazy, but for some reason (it must be God) I am excited and peaceful about it. There are so many questions and uncertainties about what this is going to look like-when I think about them or when people bring them up, the only answer I have is "I don't know" but I am learning to trust. God reminded me today that His grace is sufficient, and it will be for us too. God has brought us to this place, and He is not going to leave me hanging. Will it be hard? Absolutely, probably the hardest thing I've ever done, but will it be worth it? Absolutely. We are looking forward to welcoming Britt'knee and Elizabeth into our family.

Itsa

Our 'itsa' party was a success! The weather was a bit cold, but we braved the snow flurries and still had our egg hunt. Friends and family came and were given instructions to find all the eggs, and then come in to open them together. It didn't take long to find the 9 dozen plastic eggs hidden in my parent's backyard. I think the cold was great incentive! We came back in, and everyone started opening up their eggs to see if they had the prize. Immediately, our friend Jim opened the pearly pink egg and found the message. He graciously handed it to my mom saying "I think you may want this." My mom read it and then shouted it to the crowd "It's a girl!" The whole room erupted in excitement. I hugged my mom as she cried with joy. Unfortunately, in the midst of excitement I accidentally turned the video off on my camera. But the moment will forever be etched in my memory. We then enjoyed a great brunch that included ham rolls, potato salad, fruit salad, and yum-yum cake (a Kitchell family favorite)! Thanks to all for making this moment memorable and exciting!

Attention all moms!

Ok, so I started just LOOKING at all the baby stuff, and WOW, it's really overwhelming. I can read reviews and look at must-have lists, but I would really like to solicit the opinions of my friends. I know many of you have done the research and have the experience to say--you have to have..... or this stroller is the best because....

So please friends, take a few minutes and really think about what things you just loved and wouldn't want to be without, and then what things that you bought and never needed. I would greatly appreciate all your input!

Thanks

unconditional love

This past weekend I was reminded of the human need to experience unconditional love. Can you imagine if you had never experienced it from another person? If your own parents didn't express unconditional love and acceptance, and then as you get older nobody ever challenged your warped idea of love.

It amazes me how far a little love really does go. When Jesus says, "love one another", he not only gave us a command but he gave us the answer. The answer to all of our hurts and fears is love. I am being challenged to reconsider how I love. Do I love only those that I know and love me in return? When is the last time that I have extended sacrificial love to someone with no guarantee as to how they would respond? Loving my husband, friends, and family is easy, but how about a complete stranger? I'm finding that loving a stranger is easy too, all it takes is me to open up my heart and allow God to love that person. To love someone whom I don't know and haven't even met is foreign to my flesh, but it feels like home to my soul. I know that God's love can move mountains, I guess sometimes I forget that He actually wants to use me to move a mountain or two.

So sorry!

I'm so sorry that I have gotten out of the blogging world. I finally broke down and dove into the world of myspace. It has been a lot of fun finding old friends. It can be a little addicting trying to track down people. But I'm back now-and hopefully won't take another sabbatical for a while.

I LOVE being pregnant! The baby is doing great! We are 18 weeks tomorrow, and so far everything is going as planned. We find out what we are having a couple of days before Easter. My mom and I had the idea to have a party to reveal what the gender is. Then one thing led to another and we named it the "Itsa" party!" The party is going to be the day before Easter, so for the reveal we are going to have an Easter egg hunt, but only one egg will have the prize information. It is going to be a lot of fun watching all the kids and adults out looking for Easter eggs :) Both my mom and my sister are asking for hints or to find out early, but NOBODY will know (except for Kyle of course!) I know it sounds a little cheesy, but we are going to make the most of every bit of this pregnancy! I'll have Kyle post pics of the Egg hunt-so you can find out too!

It took me a while to really embrace the idea of being pregnant. I think for me it felt extremely surreal. It wasn't until my husband took me shopping and insisted that I buy maternity clothes, that I finally broke down and did it. My aren't they more comfortable.

I have to keep reminding myself that for every child walking around, a woman was pregnant. For every pregnant belly around, a woman is going through the same thing that I am. But for some reason, it feels different. It feels like this is the most special thing that has ever happened. It feels like everyone knows how amazing this is. The truth is, it is amazing and special, but no more for me than any other woman. I feel so privileged and honored that God would choose me to carry this child. That he would give me the opportunity to feel life growing inside of me. To sum it all up, I am blessed. Kyle and I both astounded by how blessed we truly are.

to God be the glory

For those of you who don't know......

We are pregnant, and this time it looks like for good (well at least for 9 months)! Last November, we decided to do one more IUI (artificial insemination), and to both of our surprise- it worked!

Today, we had our first appointment with the OB, as well as an ultrasound. At 12 weeks, the baby looks great! Peanut measures perfectly, the heart is beating at 163 bpm, and it's moving around. It was so amazing to see it moving around on the screen and see it's little body forming. It's only about 2 1/2" now, but already you can make out all the body parts. I've been somewhat guarded this time. Our first ultrasound at 7 weeks was a major hurdle, but I still found myself holding my breath. Then our 9 week ultrasound was an even bigger hurdle, so after that I started accepting the idea more and more. Sidenote: I haven't as much as looked at a pregnancy magazine at this point. Today, we were able to officially get out of the first trimester, and statistically chances are much better if you make it to this point. After the appointment, Kyle and I celebrated by going to one of our favorite Nashville spots. Then my mom and I went and bought like 4 pregnancy books. Now I can officially say, I am excited!!!

This morning I read Romans 4:20-22, " He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened through faith, giving God the glory, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was able to perform, and therefore it was accounted to him for righteousness."

I feel like so much of this journey has been a lesson of faith for me. I feel myself coming out on the other side stronger in my faith, being fully convinced that He keeps His promises. My heart is overflowing with gratitude and joy to my Lord and Savior, for what He has done, and what He is doing in my life. I am humbled by His generosity and thoughtfulness, to go beyond my expectations. Truly, God is great!

Decompress

After weeks of stress between moving, selling the house, and finishing work, I find myself in a mode of decompressing or some might say 'destressing'. There are still several things in our life that remain uncertain, but God is continuing to teach me to trust Him. I've been a believer most of my life, so believing in God comes easy, but it has only been in the past year, that I have found a deep trust in Him. Trusting in His plan each step of the way is definitely getting easier. When you have been praying and believing for something, it's almost like reading a book, and there is a part of me that wants to know how the story ends. Sometimes God doesn't give us that word of confirmation that helps us know how the story ends. Sometimes He gives us just enough to turn the page and read the next chapter. One chapter at a time, each one requiring more faith. The closer to the end you get the more you hope that it all ends the way you want it to. Sometimes the ending isn't what we think it should be, but we learn to trust that God's ending is better than ours.

Now off the philosphophical note-so far my time has been spent unpacking and settling in. It's nice to not have an agenda, although I'm certain my time will be full. I will be helping Kyle with his business a few days a week, and then help my dad with his business some. In the meantime, my sister gets married in 2 months, so there are lots of final details to work out, and then we are building a house on top of it all. Although, I'm not using my master's degree at the moment, it's nice to take a little sabbatical and do something different, which also allows me a little more flexibility.

We are Nashvillians!

On Friday we loaded the first pod (portable on demand) system, which by the way is definitely the way to move when you're house isn't going to be ready for 6 more months. Then Saturday we had lots of friends who really love us show up to help us finish loading. The guys loaded all the stuff, and the girls helped me clean the house. We were completely done by 2pm. Thank you to everyone who came and helped us. It meant so much to us, and relieved a lot of stress as well. Since we finished so early, we decided to go ahead and get on the road. We made it to the halfway mark in Macon, Georgia. We then woke up Sunday morning and made it to Nashville by 1 pm. The entire trip went without a hitch. Even the dogs did great! They are extremely excited about their new surroundings, and are trying to adjust to their cousin "Lucy" (my parent's old bassett hound). Anyway, it's nice to be back home. It's strange being back, so far it just feels like we are here visiting, but somehow I have my car to drive around. I think after a few days of being here, it will set in that we aren't on vacation.

Our house sold!

So it is now setting in that we are actually moving. After weeks of house showings and trying to keep the house immaculate, we accepted an offer on the house last Saturday. What a relief it is to have sold our house! We have known for a while that God was calling us back to Nashville, but the timing has been the question. Selling the house was the confirmation that I was looking for to know that the time is now! Mom showed up today to help pack, and my last day at my job is Friday. (A little word of advice: when moving, let your last day of work be a few days before you move, not the day before :) I'll keep everyone posted!
'

We are moving!

Finally, we have a moving date! The last weekend in January (probably the 27th or 28th), Kyle, Kristy, java, & maggie will load up and head back to Nashville. Our house hasn't sold yet, but we are confident that it will. Our house in Nashville is underway, they are already framing. Until it's ready, we will be living with my parents. I will miss my friends in Florida, but I am ready to be back near family. I'm most looking forward to starting fresh. This past year has been so difficult in some ways, I am anxious to start a new year in a new environment. I'll keep you updated.