A time to be silent

For such a words-lover as myself, the concept of silence is an incredible thing to grasp.


si·lence
[sahy-luhns]  noun, verb,
absence of any sound or noise; stillness.

I can honestly say that this past year has been a period where God has met me through my silence, and it has been an effort to remain still.  However, for a blog, it doesn't always bode well.  I sit down to write and there is no block, but there are also no words.  Nothing to share, not yet.  Jesus whispers into my ear, Patience, my daughter, patience.  And so I have sat.  Without much to say, with little to share.  And I have hoped, friends, that you would be patient with me.  My heart is about to burst with all of the things I have been learning, yet I still feel the urge to remain here, quiet, before Jesus, for just a few more moments.

And so I am waiting here quietly and learning in the process.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, for waiting here with me.

Love Story

It may be my pregnancy hormones or my hopelessly romantic heart, but I just melted at this story. True, lasting love... ahh.  So sweet. 

Taken from msnbc.com

An Iowa couple who was married for 72 years died one hour apart last week in the hospital as they held hands.

Family said the story of Gordon and Norma Yeager is a real-life love story.

On the day she graduated from high school, Norma Stock said yes to Gordon Yeager's marriage proposal. The couple got married on May 26, 1939 in State Center.

"They're very old-fashioned. They believed in marriage til death do you part," said son Dennis Yeager.

Dennis Yeager was the youngest of four children born to the couple. His sister Donna was first born.

"Staying together for 72 years is good, I'd say that's exceptional," said Donna Sheets.

The way the kids tell it, dad was the life of the party while mom kept everything together.

"Anybody come over -- she was the hostess with the mostess. She just seriously -- the more she did -- the more she smiled," said Dennis Yeager. "Dad would be the center of attention, like, 'Weee look at me,' and mom was like 'get him away from me!' You know we even got a picture like that."

Norma didn't really want the distance, and family said she hardly left Gordon's side for 72 years.

"They just loved being together. Everybody argues once in awhile, but they still, he said 'I have to stick around. I can't go until she does because I have to stay here for her and she would say the same thing,'" said Dennis Yeager.

Dennis Yeager said the couple left home last Wednesday to go into town, but they didn't make it.

At the intersection of Highway 30 and Jessup Avenue just west of Marshalltown, state troopers said Gordon pulled in front of an oncoming car.

"I rushed from Des Moines where I was working and saw them in the hospital," said Dennis Yeager.

In the intensive care unit of Marshalltown's hospital, nurses knew not to separate Gordon and Norma.

"They brought them in the same room in intensive care and put them together -- and they were holding hands in ICU. They were not really responsive," said Dennis Yeager.

Gordon died at 3:38 p.m. holding hands with his wife as the family they built surrounded them.

"It was really strange, they were holding hands, and dad stopped breathing but I couldn't figure out what was going on because the heart monitor was still going," said Dennis Yeager. "But we were like, he isn't breathing. How does he still have a heart beat? The nurse checked and said that's because they were holding hands and it's going through them. Her heart was beating through him and picking it up."

"They were still getting her heartbeat through him," said Donna Sheets.

At 4:48 p.m., exactly one hour after Gordon died, Norma passed too.

"Neither one of them would've wanted to be without each other. I couldn't figure out how it was going to work," said Donna Sheets. "We were very blessed, honestly, that they went this way."

"They just loved being together," said Dennis Yeager.

At their funeral on Tuesday, Norma and Gordon held hands in their casket. Family said they will be cremated and their ashes mixed together.

22 Week Update

How far along: 22 weeks

Baby size: About 11 inches from head to toe & over a full pound!

Sleep: Sleep was getting better.  I was almost getting through the night without getting up.  But the past week or so, I have found myself getting up again with an urgent need to use the restroom.  Last night I told Billy (who sadly awoke because of my getting out of bed) that I feel like Baby Liam is clapping his hands around my bladder.  Lovely, right?

Movement: This child moves ALL of the time.  My uterus is higher on my waist than it would normally be at this point because I'm so very short waisted.  The midwife said this along with, "This baby's going to have nowhere to go but out!"  This means that I'm feeling movement well up past my belly button and farther into my sides than I even thought possible.  Not that I'm complaining.  No matter how early or how late he is active, I'm loving it.

Food cravings/aversions: I craved chili the other night, so I made it.  And cheese... my goodness.  I want lots and lots of cheddar cheese. 

Pregnancy Symptoms: I get breathless when I try to read out loud.  My hips are pretty sore, and I think I can literally feel my bones spreading.  Oh, and I have this odd thing around my waist that keeps growing...

What I miss: The ability to be a bit more active.  We were moving things around in our house the other night (thanks to the nesting instinct of yours truly), and I couldn't do as much as I wanted.  And when I did try to do something, I found that I was off-center and off-balance.

What I'm looking forward to: Everything!  Though I am uncomfortable already, I am really enjoying this time of pregnancy.  I finally look pregnant, and I only get nauseated in the mornings or when I am starving.  I feel very blessed.

Milestones: I'm over halfway pregnant now!  That feels like a huge hurdle!

Best moment this week: Waking up to Liam moving.  This happens often, but it always makes me smile.

Moments with Billy: Yesterday was our 2 year anniversary, and Billy was incredible (as always).  We got to spend the entire day together, which was such a blessing.  He even wrote and recorded a song for me (swoon)!  I have the best husband in the whole world.  He is incredibly understanding about every pregnancy symptom, even the weird ones.  I can't wait to see him with our son!

Nursery Inspiration

So far, I have two things purchased for the nursery decor (from Etsy, of course).
The theme will be a non-theme.  I like vintage, but not too much pastel baby.  I want our little boy to have a boy room.  The colors will be beige, navy, red, and perhaps some browns.  I'm not limiting those colors, but those will be the main ones.
Ok, so the two things:

Print from PebblesPrints

Vintage 70's Children's Poetry Book (Recyclarama)
(I plan to take some of the pages and frame them in a series... 
I adore the bright colors and the precious illustrations!)

 There are more, but I'll show them when we actually get them framed and on the wall.

What do you think?  Any more advice on things for vintage decor?  I'm thinking some wire or wicker baskets on shelves and/or cubbies... I am going for something fairly eclectic.

I've never had more fun nesting and dreaming.