Beginnings of a New Nursery and a New Outlook on Life

Update on everything!

Truck: Well, it turns out it is about 4,000 dollars worth of damages (or worth of fixing really). The labor and parts cost more than the damage done to the truck! Waiting to hear back from the guy's insurance company- a local Lawton insurance company. Hopefully, that is not going to be a bad thing.

26 weeks 5 days

Goodbye arms- my cut college athlete arms have been replaced by mom arms- sweet! The goal is to get them back along with a smaller waste-line and then try to get rid of my toddler-like chubby cheeks (courtesy of the pregnancy fat face) once Baby Darling gets here. I plan on going through our summer work-outs that we give our team and come back in (having had a baby) and still kick all of our players' butts. Stay tuned...

Goodbye feet. Getting to the point where vision of my feet has become a little bit harder.

But- most importantly! The beginnings of a nursery...... I know I have a baby shower coming up, and some people are visual people (allyson!) So, here are the nursery plans....

This is what it looks like as you enter the doorway
A glider will go in the far corner in between the swing and the small side table.
We both know that the swing will migrate out into the living room once our addition arrives, but for now it can stay in the baby room.

The gorgeous dresser that my poppy fixed up for me and ally when we were babies (and now repainted by my mom to match the baby furniture) is where all of the newborn clothes will go. Zach and I got a few little things at babies r us (my valentine's present was a baby shopping spree- woohoo! I had so much fun! :-)


Eventually the car seat will be moved into our cars and so the corner between the changing table and the dresser will be for the diaper genie (which better work its genie magic!) and perhaps the hamper.

The changing pad cover and diaper stacker are so cute! Underneath the changing table will be some storage bins for all things baby and then up top will either be pictures or more storage bins because mom has already taken over the baby closet. (I have too many clothes and shoes to share a closet with Zach- sue me!)

As you can see, the crib is totally functional. It holds lots of things- we will just have to move those things out once the baby gets here or he can just sleep on the floor with MJ. Totally kidding, don't turn me in to child services yet! The little hamper by the door is either going to be for dirty clothes or for toys.

Thank you Ally for the cute little picture frame- Baby Darling's pic has been put in the frame (although I probably could have left the other one in there- it looked like the exact same picture!...weird)

Grammy, the license plate matches the colors of the room perfectly and we are definitely going to put it up on the wall so Baby Darling will remember Papa. Now all we need is a big FORD sign!

With all of the money that goes along with all things baby, it is easy to get overwhelmed and stressed- "how are we going to pay for this" or potential job stress for next year (I will not be able to work in the fitness center because of the hours- so we will lose that section of money). So to ease our fears and stress, God called us out on Sunday.

Philippians 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

This was part of our Sunday school lesson and God totally called us out- especially me- by saying "seriously? you don't control anything, I do, remember? I will provide- you just need to sit back and chill out." I'm sure he said it just like that :-)

So, a new outlook on life: I will stop worrying. Everything will work out just how God wants it, whether that's the way we want it or not. He will provide, and my efforts to control every aspect of everything are futile anyway- so stop worrying!!! Easier said than done- but that is my goal- especially over the next few months.

Fender Bender

Well this weekend was pretty nice and uneventful until..... Sunday afternoon. Zach and I went out to eat at after church and then I dropped him off at the house so I could go get some more hangers at Walmart (because we have WAY too many clothes). So I took his truck and on the way, there was a light that was blinking red- which means stop sign! So I slowed to a stop like a NORMAL person would do....

You can't really tell in this picture but the bumper is resting on the exhaust pipes= not good

And then I got hit from behind by a big Dodge truck (equivalent to an F-250. Not sure what dodge calls it). It scared the crap out of me because he hit me really hard and knocked me forward. It wasn't bad enough to deploy the airbags or anything, but it hurt my back being whipped forward. It's ok today, just a little sore.


The guy was really nice and apologetic. He was very adamant that it was totally his fault because he was not paying attention. After dealing with all of that, you think to yourself- if only I had gone inside to go to the bathroom first. Or, if only I had gone down Gore instead of Ferris. All these things go through your head. Even if it wasn't my fault at all, this is still something that we have to deal with and put time into.

But then you think- well, if I had decided to take my little car instead, it probably would have been annihilated by his big truck. I could have actually been hurt and the car could have been totaled which would have been the worst thing ever! Zach's truck is pretty indestructible because it was quite an impact and it really only messed up the bumper, the bumper mount brackets, and the tail pipes- so not too bad considering how hard he hit me.

So, all in all- God knows best! We got an estimate at the Ford Dealership which came in close to 3,000 and I will go get another estimate later this afternoon.

I spent the rest of Sunday cleaning and organizing to try to get this house ready to post pictures for those of you who haven't seen it! I promise, the pictures are coming! But, with only one day a week to work on the house, it is a SLOW process!

Kickin' it at LHS Senior Night

Last night was senior night at Lawton High School and apparently Baby Darling was either really angry about it or really happy 'cause he was kicking up a storm- there is a video of it below but unless you are me or Zach you probably won't think it's that interesting~

Zach is out in the middle presenting roses to the moms

Zach had a JV game that was supposed to start at 4:30. We had a recruit in from Corpus Christi but I had a little break from about 4-6 (she went to hang out with the team before we took her to dinner) so I was excited that I would get to see his game. WRONG! They were really far behind and it didn't start until 5:20 or so. I got to see almost all of the first half though. Unfortunately they lost... the other team was pretty good and rather large- not a good combination unless you are them~

Senior Night was done really well. I wish they would have announced more about each player instead of just their name and parents. At Woodward they announced important stats, where they are going to school, if they are playing in college, etc.

All of the seniors started- and I think all of them scored too

At about halftime I had to leave- I felt so bad! I was exhausted. I had the early 6am shift two days in a row, a big test yesterday afternoon, and lots of shmoozing with the recruit in town (it takes a lot out of you!). So I ended up heading home to get in bed at 9:30 and passed out! They lost to Broken Arrow that night.

This is a video of Baby Darling kicking me. There is a little flutter at 20 seconds and then he starts up a little stronger at 40 seconds. It's all on the right side of my stomach. It was the first time I saw him kick me through my clothes. (This is apparently what keeps me entertained during warmups- video taping my stomach!)

Disclaimer::: This is probably really boring to most everyone out there- sorry! But it's probably the strangest and coolest feeling in the world to be kicked by something inside of you - And I think its cool and I do the posts, so get over it! Big picture: I'm making a human in there and every little thing that happens along the way is pretty cool for Zach and me!

Pamoja Tunaweza

For those of you who want to help....

One of my good friends, who I played volleyball with in college was saved this past year and Jesus is changing her life one day at a time! Her name is Leah Thomson. It is a pretty awesome thing for her and right now she is working on going back to Africa this summer on a mission. She is trying to raise money to go and has started a blog in order to spread the word (http://leahthomson.blogspot.com/) . She is an amazing person and you can really see Christ working in her life. I told her that I would help spread the word by posting this on my blog. Please give it a look and if you would like to help her just leave her a comment on one of her posts to let her know that you would like to help.

Isaiah 6:8
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" If you can, please help Leah fulfill what the Lord is calling her to do!

Love Day 2010

Valentine's Day 2010-

Got up and went to Sunday School. This is the first time we visited this class and we really enjoyed it. Pastor Shane came and visited with us Thursday night and we absolutely LOVE him and LOVE this church. So, I think we have finally found a church home here in Lawton.


After church we got in the car and headed to "the city" (Oklahoma City). We have turned in to those people that are the poor lost souls of a small town who need the booming metropolis to get anything accomplished. It's sad that "the city" refers to the one and only Oklahoma City- there are no other big cities. It's also sad that Oklahoma City is a booming metropolis- especially when talking to Zach and me (one from Dallas and one from Atlanta)- it's a little different to say the least.

Zach is probably the easiest person to buy for. Dr. Pepper is the key to his heart- all other gifts are just icing on the cake. We both decided that we would much rather spend our money on eating out at a nice restaurant than on stupid Valentine's Day gifts like boxes of chocolate (I only like the ones that taste like snickers anyway- so why not just buy a snickers??)

M.J. got a bone for Valentine's Day.

Look at that sad face begging for some love.

25 weeks, two days.
I really loved this shirt- but now I see that I look ginormous in it! Awesome :)

We went out to eat at the Cheesecake factory and it was absolutely WONDERFUL!! So delicious! Then we went shopping at Babies R Us and got a few little things for Baby Darling.

Came home and then ate Cheesecake factory leftovers- but Zach wanted cheese grits with his. What is up with him and cheese grits? I swear he could eat them every meal of every day!

All in all, a success. Low-key, food, shopping, candy, and Dr. Pepper? Can't get much better than that!

Throw Back Night and Berry/Reinhardt

On Tuesday my dad had a big game against Gilmer Co. They decided to do a throw-back night. They had the SHORT shorts, sweat bands, tube socks and everything. Dad- I think you could have found some shorter shorts- I've seen pictures of you playing and they were much shorter!

As a coach, you always hope that these things don't backfire on you and you end up losing because the kids are totally unfocused. But, good news- they ended up winning 61-41, and drew a big crowd too!


I cannot even muster up the words for how funny this is! I love it! I totally wish I was there to see it!





Now...

if only I could have witnessed these boys in some throw-back outfits! That would have officially made my life!

Zach and Jake at Berry

Jake and Zach vs. Aaron and Adam (Berry vs. Reinhardt)
The Darling Boys

25 Weeks and Counting...

Well technically today I am 24 weeks and 6 days- but close enough. I figured I would post with the doctor's appointment I had today. We just saw the R.N. today because my doctor was called for jury duty! haha. I'm pretty sure that they should let her off the hook- I mean she kind of has a good excuse- "I deliver babies for a living, and they aren't exactly going to hold off their arrival because I'm on jury duty."

24 weeks 5 days

At our appointment, everything went well. I am measuring 25". It is generally supposed to reflect the number of weeks you have been pregnant- so I am on track. Baby's heart rate was 150, which is very good! Next time up, I have the glucose screening test (YUM!) and more blood work.

24 weeks 5 days

Sleeping has been a catastrophe lately. I have restless leg syndrome (which appears in like 20% of pregnant women- good news is that it goes away after the baby is born!) so I can never get comfortable. Poor Zach is having to deal with me tossing and turning and getting up and going to the bathroom, too. God's way of saying you two won't be sleeping for the next few years of your lives, get used to it!

February Madness?

Well, the end has come for Zach's freshman team (at least as of now). They finished their last game on Thursday against Eisenhower (the locals call it Ike) and ended up winning by quite a few. He only lost three games with his 9th grade team- because he is the best coach in the whole world! They had two games canceled because of the ice storm and the water "crisis" (it was announced that all of Lawton was "out" of water- enough panic ensued to create fighting in Walmart over bottles and gallons of water. Turned out nothing really happened. They fixed the generator and we moved on like nothing really happened.) One team in Oklahoma City said they do not want to reschedule but they are trying to reschedule with MacArthur- doubt it will happen since they aren't even practicing anymore.

(author's note: this is his JV team- just to clear up any false advertising about how big his 9th graders are)

Zach's 9th grade team is kind of his pride and joy. He had the most control over how he could discipline and run the team since they just played 9th grade for him. Only one of his freshman plays JV and Varsity too. They were a very good team- they listened to him, they ran what he wanted, and almost all of them loved playing for him (can't speak for everyone, but I have received many compliments on Zach's behalf from the parents)



His JV season is still going strong though. He has only lost two games with this team- both to Eisenhower- well he might have lost one at the beginning of the season, but they were playing a Varsity team so I'm not going to count it. This team is mostly lower level Varsity kids who need more experience and then some other Juniors and Sophomores. This team has some great talent on it. Zach always says that if some of these kids put in the extra time that he and his brothers did on their shooting that they could be AMAZING.

WINNA!

Attention family and friends! I am actually a winner! I won Ryan Kiesshauer's debut CD: hope lost/found in a blog giveaway from Keight (Vincent) Dukes. She used to play volleyball with Allyson at Woodward and then went on to play at Georgia Tech. I found her blog a couple months ago and have been following her ever since. (she has the cutest little boy by the way- who might end up being exactly one year apart with our little man depending on the time he wants to grace us with his presence!) Anywho, she had a giveaway on her blog and I won a Christian CD made by Ryan Kisshauer. I will make sure to update once I get it in the mail!~

Ice Storm 2010!

Well, last Thursday we got a huge ice storm here in Lawton, and then Friday it started to snow (not too much, but enough to stick and help keep the ice frozen in place!).

As of now, everything is starting to melt and hopefully we can start getting some of the debris out of our yard when it warms up- but it's too cold right now to go work outside!

This is our new house covered in all the ice.
As you can see, our cars are trapped in the driveway.

The view of the tree that kept us home-bound for a few days

It was really pretty though

Covering the driveway

Zach clearing a path so that I can go to work at the fitness center for 12 hours!

Still working....

What do you get in an ice storm?

Apparently, you get fed for the first time in our marriage!

With all the down time, and with us being home together at the SAME time, we actually had some meals together- crazy talk! Usually, I work or have class 'till 9 or 9:30 and usually on my day off, he always has a game that doesn't get over until 10- so eating together has become a rare occasion in our house.

So, I made buffalo pizza from SCRATCH- that's right, dough and everything. I had nothing better to do people!

It was actually really good- and I didn't kill the yeast (surprise, surprise!)

Well, as of now I am back in school and have been since Monday- but lucky Zach is still out of school today. This will be the completion of an entire week off of school. He had to take last Wednesday as a sick day and then he has been out ever since.