Headboard

I mentioned a few blog posts ago that one of the main projects I wanted to accomplish while Brian was gone was to design and build a headboard. We have a California king size bed and unfortunately here in the Southeast, stores don't carry or sell many California king size headboards. I also did not want to spend a lot of money and the ones I really liked were between $800 and $1,500. So the solution was to make my own. However, I only wanted to do that if we could make it look like we bought it from a store. I saw too many DIY headboards on the internet that looked homemade. To me, that's pointless. I didn't want a headboard that looked like my 5th grade science project.

Over the last few weeks and with the help of my parents, we created our first headboard! It was hard; much harder than I anticipated, but it was also really fun. I think I would enjoy designing and building furniture for my house in the future if I possessed the necessary tools and knowledge. I don't think I'd mind the work, there is such a strong sense of accomplishment after you finish a project and get to display it in your home.

I absolutely love the way this headboard turned out! And I am especially proud of my very handy father who did most of the "grunt work." Mom and Dad, thank you so much for helping me with this project! So without further ado . . .

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy early Thanksgiving everybody! One thing I really look forward to during the holidays is cooking/baking. Since we celebrate with both sides of our family this year I get to make twice as much food, which I really don't mind doing. I actually enjoy it, especially if I have plenty of time. I wanted to try a new recipe for Pumpkin cream cheese pie, but it looks like time won't allow for that since I have to work the day before and after Thanksgiving. So I'll have to stick to the items below. The thing I love about all of these recipes are the people I got them from

Twice Baked Potatoes - my family has been making them for years but I don't go by a recipe. I just watched my mom make them years ago and copied her. A little butter, sour cream, salt, pepper and lots of cheese on top! What can be bad about that?



Crock Pot Macaroni and Cheese - this is a Thanksgiving staple for sure! I think my mom originally discovered the recipe. It is delish!



Reese's Peanut Buttercup Bars - got this one from my friend and former co-worker, Natalie.



Turkey-shaped Sugar Cookies - the recipe I use is from my host mom, Kari, in Fargo, ND (we lived with them for 2 summers)



On a different note, I must say that the thing I'm most thankful for this year is to be pregnant with a healthy baby! While I miss Brian to pieces, I'm also extremely thankful for the job God provided for him in Mexico this fall. Update on that front . . . Brian was pitching very well until he came down with a nasty virus (I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say we're not talking about a little cold here. We're talkin' hanging out in the bathroom for 48 hours, take every ounce of energy out of you kind of virus.) Thankfully he's been on the mend and feeling much better lately so we're praying that his strength and stamina return in full force. What I know is that my Lord is in full control of the situation and I am thankful He watches over my sweet husband.

The Crib Is Here!!

The nursery is slowly coming together. Colors have been selected, fabrics chosen, and (thanks to my parents) the crib is here and already put together! It is truly a beautiful crib. I really like it! Below is a picture I found of it online. Since we're having a girl, the color scheme (walls and decor) will be different from what you see here, but it's nice to know that the crib looks good against blue walls in case our next baby is a boy.




There are still many things to paint and sew before the project is complete, but we are well on our way! It's so fun to envision our sweet girl in what will hopefully turn out to be a very sweet but sophisticated nursery.

My Fun New Job at . . .

So when I got back to Charlotte this off-season my old job wasn't waiting for me like normal. The big ministry project I have been in charge of every year was (and still is) in danger of not being produced. Long story short, since this project was my main responsibility my boss wasn't sure he'd have enough work for me to do outside of it, and therefore could not commit to re-hiring me right away. Since I need to start making some money to prepare for our little one arriving in early March, I went ahead and pursued other job opportunities. After a few weeks of weighing the possibilities (which weren't many), I am actually very excited about working part-time retail for "HandPicked," a beautiful, yet affordable jewelry store with 3 locations here in Charlotte.

HandPicked began in my home town of Columbia, SC so I've grown up shopping there, and have always loved the store! It's such a fun, classy, yet very hip place! I also used to make jewelry and am so excited about getting back into the world of jewelry design, sales, and repair! I will mainly work at the Arboretum location which is only about 2 minutes from our house! I could literally walk there every day. So come by and see me some time and pick out some gorgeous jewelry for Christmas!!

I was in the store the other day for an interview and saw about 10 pieces I'd love to have. Here is a little preview of some things I like from the store. Many items available in the store are not listed online, so I couldn't include pictures of those. This first necklace is called, "Tree of Life." I love that!

Our Baby Is a . . .

GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

From week 12 to week 18 of my pregnancy Brian and I really thought we were having a boy. We talked about nothing but boy names, thought about how to raise a boy, and looked at boy bedding. The reason? The ultrasound technician at my doctor's office in New Jersey was pretty convinced it was a boy, and I saw exactly why she thought that. However, we've learned since then that girls can be very swollen "down there" making it difficult to determine gender as early as 12 weeks. So today I had my 20 week ultrasound and sure enough, there was no denying it! We are definitely having a little girl!! I should have listened to all the people who told me we would have a girl. Two people told me they had dreams we would have a girl. Two other people told me (right after I got pregnant) that they had strong feelings we would have a girl. No one predicted boy. Pretty cool huh?

I am so relieved to know the gender of our baby! Now I can shop and register for gender-appropriate items (and be confident that I'm shopping for the right things). My most favorite thing to look at of course is clothes, but I've refrained from buying anything . . . yet. The only thing I've found frustrating so far is that a lot of girl stuff is super frilly or loud/busy. I'm sure I'll find things I really like though!

Here are the best pictures from today's ultrasound. I can't wait to meet this sweet girl!!

Where in the World are Brian and Lindsay?

Remember when Matt Lauer did that series on the Today Show called, "Where in the World is Matt?" Sometimes I feel like Brian and I could do something similar because there's just no telling where baseball will send us! I dropped Brian off at the airport this morning. After several layovers his final destination will be Navajoa, Mexico. He was given the opportunity to pitch for the Navajoa Mayos, and since winter ball pay is good (much better than substitute teacher's pay), and since we have a little one on the way, he decided to accept. Mostly, we felt like this was an opportunity the Lord provided and wanted him to do. I plan to take comfort in that fact when I'm tempted to wallow in my sadness because I miss him so much. He could be down there for 2 days or 2 1/2 months - turnover rates are high and the season lasts through December, so who knows for sure how long he'll be there.

My plans are to stay back in Charlotte and work until Baby Adams makes his/her debut! I would have liked to have gone with Brian, but it's just too risky being pregnant and all :) Speaking of Baby Adams, we should be finding out his/her gender soon! My wonderful sis-in-law performed an ultrasound the other day but can you believe the umbilical cord was running right between Peanut's legs blocking our view??!! I'm so excited to find out, and was really hoping we would before Brian had to leave, but it looks like we'll have to wait a little longer before we'll know anything.

I have plans to keep myself busy and occupied while Brian is gone. My list of house projects consists of the following:

1.) Build an upholstered headboard for our bed (with the help of my Dad). Something like this


OR THIS



2.) Clean out the guest room that will eventually become the nursery. This task will also involve selling the couch that currently resides in that room.

3.) Plan the nursery decor and layout.

4.) Shop for and hang curtains throughout the house. We have NONE and they would really warm up our space!

5.) Go through old Southern Living magazines, save any good recipes and decorating ideas, then get rid of the oldest ones.

Nursery Woes

I have scoured the internet looking at nursery designs, crib bedding, etc. (mostly Pottery Barn Kids, Restoration Hardware and Babies R Us) and the options seem to be endless! This is not necessarily a good thing for an overly analytical person like myself. I have difficulty making decisions. I do know that I definitely prefer more classic fabrics rather than cartoonish styles. Below are some examples of what I like. It doesn't help matters that I'm considering picking out fabrics and having the crib bedding made by a seamstress. This opens up even more options!





And I love this little boy's room (below)



I am leaning towards registering for a white crib. A dark wood color is runner-up. I'm blogging about my nursery woes because I'm wondering if any of you have nursery designs or crib bedding that you'd be willing to share pictures of. Maybe it's your own child's nursery or a picture you found in a magazine or on the internet. In any case, I'm inviting you to either email me pictures, post them to your own blog, or leave me a comment letting me know the web address where the pic can be found. I like gathering lots of ideas in hopes that one will strike me as the perfect style for me and my baby!

Ouch!

In the words of Shakira, "My hips don't lie."

I've been waking up frequently between 7 am and 8 am with my hips just aching. I guess it's just a side effect of pregnancy - my body expanding and preparing to nurture a big baby.

Last Monday I went for my 16 week doctor's appointment and officially received the "weight gain" speech. Looks like I'm putting on the pounds a little faster than I should. (Maybe that's another reason for my hips hurting, ha ha.) I've put on 10 pounds in 16 weeks. My doc said I'm perfectly healthy, but he wants me to be happy with my body after I give birth and not have a lot of extra pounds to lose. I like that idea too, and while I'm exercising every day, food just tastes entirely too good right now to hold off on the pastas and breads (like he suggested). Instead, I'll just try not to stuff myself silly and make sure I'm getting a healthy variety.

Here are my first 2 "belly pics." The first one was taken at 12 weeks and the second at 16 weeks. Maternity clothes are definitely in the near future!

Things I don't want to forget . . .

Not sure how many of you will find this post particularly interesting, but I wanted to jot down some things about being pregnant that I never want to forget . . .

like the first day I could truly tell how excited Brian was about having a baby. Initially, he was overwhelmed with the responsibility of providing for another person. But as the weeks wore on I could tell his anxiety was beginning to wane. When we went for the second ultrasound (I was exactly 12 weeks pregnant), the baby was moving like crazy - jumping up and down, even waving his/her little hand at us as if to say, "Hey guys! I'm doing great in here!" I didn't even have to look at Brian's face to know that in that moment this little person growing inside of me became incredibly real to him and he was suddenly in love. I guess that's a perk to marrying your best friend, you just sense those things instinctively without either one of you uttering a word.

I also don't want to forget all the nicknames Brian has come up with for our baby. I usually refer to him/her as "Baby Adams" since we don't have name yet. However, during the nausea stage of my pregnancy Brian decided that "fire monster" was a better term. I guess he felt like it was more fitting given the way he/she was making me feel. However, since recovering from the sickness and getting that second ultrasound we now affectionately refer to our baby as "peanut." Even though he/she is much larger than a peanut at this point, it seems fitting for it's precious little life. I am sure that there will be many more names to come. Brian is the master of nicknames! If you recall, a long time ago I wrote a post about all the different names he's called me over the years :) They are all in love though, just like they are with the baby.

So . . . there's one more thing I'd like to write, or maybe I should say admit. This statement will by no stretch flatter me, but I think it's important to be honest. One of my biggest concerns is that I will be jealous of Baby Adams. That I will envy the love Brian gives he/she and will wonder if he loves it more than me. There, I said it. I told you it wasn't pretty. Brought to you courtesy of my sinful heart. I am, however, comforted by the fact that a good friend of mine has a similar concern . . . that her husband will pay more attention to the baby than to her. Ahhhhhhhh. Relief. As twisted as it sounds, I am glad to hear that I'm not completely abnormal and similar thoughts have crossed someone else's mind too.

There's no doubt in my mind that the marriage must come first; that putting the marriage first is truly the best thing for the child. I know that Brian and I both know this full well. But I also know that we have no idea how much we're going to love this little baby, and how difficult it might be to put each other first sometimes. In any case, I'm sure we'll make plenty of mistakes but figure it out with the help of our loving heavenly Father.

Ok, so that wasn't the last thing. There's one more thing that I have to mention . . . something I'm really excited about. I cannot wait to worship God with my children. I seriously cannot wait to teach them about worshipping God in freedom and truth. I want them to know what it feels like to lift your spirit in praise to the Lord! My hope is that it will be constant in our home. That stopping to listen to praise music or making our own worshipful music will be like second nature to my children. That lifting their hands in awe and praise to their heavenly Father would be reactionary. Of course, I simply want them to feel the freedom to do that, if they choose not to that's ok, certainly. I'm just excited about worshipping with them.

Whew. That was long, but I wanted to get it all down. I'm sure there will be much more to come in the next 6 months!

My friend Marti

Ok folks. Here's the deal. There's a new blog out there and you need to know about it. My friend Marti is the author, and I mean to tell you, this thing is going to be good. By good I mean challenging, engaging, and yes . . .heart-breaking. But please take my word for it, you do not want to miss this.

Marti's brother died a few years ago from skin cancer and the journey God has taken her on . . . well, there just aren't words. God is good and Marti is faithful. That combination makes for a remarkable story. Check out her first 2 entries at www.theroadtoephraim.blogspot.com. Just trust me and go read it. And then keep going back to read it.

Announcing . . .

The arrival of our first child! That's right, I'm pregnant!

Brian and I are thrilled at the prospect of being parents. Our bundle of joy is scheduled to arrive on my birthday, March 9, 2010! I'm already 12 weeks along, and it's hard to believe that the first trimester is almost over. Here is a picture of our last ultrasound taken just yesterday:



We do plan on finding out the gender. In fact, during the ultrasound yesterday the technician/nurse was pretty sure she could tell already! I'm not sure yet if I'm going to post it on the blog since we really won't know the gender for sure until my next ultrasound, which is 8 weeks away. However, if I can't control my excitement, I might just have to spill the beans :)

I've been feeling pretty good so far. The hormones do have their side effects though. I've been emotional, sometimes crying for no apparent reason other than just because I feel like I need to cry. I also had a couple weeks of nausea, and still have to eat often in order to keep from feeling sick. The only other unpleasantries are the breakouts. All of this is well worth it though! I'm not complaining!

So . . . on a different note . . . many of you, my faithful blog readers, have been pregnant before, and I am open to your advice, tips, and recommended products. In fact, I'm inviting them. Along with any hand-me-downs you may be willing to loan out. My good friend Shannon has already informed me of the best stretch mark prevention cream and sent me some in the mail! It's by Mama Mio and I can already tell I'm going to love it!

Proud of Him

7 innings

0 runs

2 hits

6 strikeouts


Those were Brian's numbers last night as he acquired his 10th win this season. This means he is now the official record holder for the most career wins by a Patriots pitcher! As the article in the newspaper put it:

"Patriots' starter Brian Adams (10-6) picked up the win, throwing seven shutout innings allowing just two hits while striking out six and walking two. With the victory, Adams sets a new Patriots career wins record at 36 wins, moving one win in front of Justin Jensen, and moves into the top ten in career wins in Atlantic League history."

Brian has had his fair share of ups and downs this season, but during last night's game, he was in full control, having fun, not over analyzing or worrying about much . . . and I'm thankful.

I Can Smell the Salty Air Now . . .

I'm getting so excited about our family beach vacation beginning in just 4 short days! As I've blogged about before, my extended family goes to the beach together every summer for an entire week. 1 Beach House, 14 people, good food, a little crabbin', a little putt-putt, some readin', some wave ridin' - I tell ya it just doesn't get any better. The only thing that would make it better would be Brian. He never gets to go because baseball season is in full swing and he simply isn't allowed to take a week off. One day though, one day.

This year we're going to Topsail Beach, in North Carolina. Over the years we've done our fair share of vacationing on the South Carolina beaches, but decided to go for the less crowded NC beaches this year. Topsail here we come!

Introducing . . .

The newest addition to the Adams clan: Joseph Fishburne Howell ("Fisher"). Brian's older sister, Lori, gave birth to Baby Fisher yesterday, July 20th. Brian and I are excited about our 4th nephew! However, I guess it's up to us now to have a girl since there aren't any on his side of the family or mine!

Fisher with his big brother, John Asher:

Lake Day!

We got to spend a day on the lake after all! It wasn't on July 4th (see previous post), but that's perfectly alright with me. We had a wonderful, relaxing time with Chip and Amy Nelson (Chip is the chaplain for Brian's team).






Supposedly this is Derek Jeter's lake house:

An Unconventional 4th of July

While I'd love to say we spent the day on a lake somewhere soaking up the rays, doing a little water skiing, taking in God's beautiful creation and grilling out for dinner, our July 4th celebration wasn't quite so conventional. So while I would have loved to have spent the 4th here:




Instead we were at a baseball game (of course) which is pretty July 4th-ish!



I also fixed blackberry cobbler with ice cream after the game, which come to think of it, is also quite July 4th-ish . . .




That's where the patriotism ends though because the rest of the evening was spent watching Lord of the Rings.


That's right folks. Brian, Matt and I watched Lord of the Rings on July 4th. I bet there aren't many people in America who can say that. But hey, Lord of the Rings is a good, all-american movie, right? I guess. I mean, if you ignore the fact that J.R.R. Tolkien was English, and we celebrate the 4th because we declared our independence from Great Britain. Ok, so maybe we should have watched the Patriot, but at least it's a clean, wholesome flick.

Our Life (during the last month) in Pictures

Rock Band is my new favorite hobby. Even Brian enjoys playing. I say "even" because he's a little shy about his music skills (or lack thereof). Once he warmed up to the idea, we had (and continue to have) all kinds of fun rocking out! You should see my "rocker profile" we created. She's my alter ego complete with tattoos, red go-go boots, and a kickin' leather motorcycle jacket. That's our wonderful roomie, Matt, on the far right pointing to Brian.



We went to NY City to visit an old friend of mine (Will Rogers) and his beautiful bride. While there, Brian and I ate lunch at Carnegie Deli. It was seriously the best cheesecake I have ever put in my mouth!




Of all the times we'd previously been to NY, Brian and I had never walked around Central Park. So this time, we did. It is truly a beautiful place!




We also went to see Ground Zero while in the city, but there wasn't much to see. They had it completely barricaded. The memorial has not been completed either, but it's going to be really nice. We saw a brochure detailing the finished product. I did get a glimpse through one of the fences and I couldn't believe how deep the holes are where the twin towers collapsed. It was breathtaking, and not in a good way.

Happy Belated Father's Day!

My parents traveled to Somerset on June 14th and were here for a week. I'm so thankful that I got to spend Father's Day with my Dad! That's a luxury we don't normally get. After a solid week of attending baseball games, I felt bad that Dad had to endure another day of baseball on Father's Day, but since Brian was pitching, the game was where Dad wanted to be anyway. I think secretly he wanted to eat the ballpark food one more time :) It's not every day that one has access to a jumbo hotdog, a sugary funnel cake, dip n' dots, and a little popcorn with your butter!

If there's one think I'll always remember about my dad, it's that he enjoys good food. (Good thing he's a marathon runner and works all those calories off.) When I was little I would always ask Dad for dessert after dinner because his standard was 3 cookies, while Mom's was always only 2.

While Dad was a stickler for manners and enforced a no whining policy, he did a fabulous job of always making me feel like I was beautiful and loved. In whatever I chose to do, as long as I tried my hardest, it was good enough for him. From my swim meets, to my grades, and even beauty pageants, I never once questioned my dad's high opinion of me. I look at young girls today and wonder why there is so much insecurity, why they try so hard to be something they're not and wonder if it's because they never received the love and support from their fathers that is so desperately needed in order for women to have a healthy self-esteem. As I look back on my up-bringing, I am so thankful for my father's love, support, humor, and grace.

Dad, you were, and still are a wonderful dad! Love you!

Zumba!

I'm on a quest for a fun, high-energy workout video. I need a good cardio DVD to do when a) the treadmill has bored me to tears b) it's raining out and c) when we're on the road and the only place to work out in is a hotel room. I've heard that Zumba is incredibly fun. For those of you that have not heard of it, it's a Latin flavored dance workout. It looks entertaining and I'm hoping it would really get my heart rate up. Has anybody tried this? If so, did you like it? Any other recommendations for fun workout videos? I've looked into The Firm, Hip Hop Abs, and P90X.

BLOG WORTHY

I'm sure many of you have seen this skit before, or some version of it. In fact, I emailed it to a few friends today. However, if you haven't seen it, please take a few minutes to watch it. First time I saw it I was moved to tears. It's what I like to call "blog worthy."