Liam Isaac: 24 Weeks!

I am almost a week behind in posting this 24th week post (seeing that as of tomorrow, we'll be 25 weeks along). But it's better late than never...so here you go! :)

The past couple weeks have been very eventful! At 22.5 weeks, we went in for our 6th month doctor's visit. We got to see our precious Liam again, which was such a happy time. Here are a few of my favorites from that day...

Hehe...even though this next picture is a little lumpy and not as clear...I absolutely LOVE it, because he's giving us a big smile. I know he's going to be such a joyful baby!

We love this little guy so much already!

The past few weeks have been very busy for us...we've had lots of events going on for our students and our church, and last week we went to Atlanta for the National Youth Leader's Conference (which was incredible!) In the midst of all the crazy awesomeness that's been going on, I came down with a really bad cold and it's stuck with me for the past 3 weeks. And then on Wednesday we had a little bit of a scare, because I had an allergic reaction (hives + swelling up + all that fun stuff) to an unknown something. I went to my clinic and had them check everything to make sure Liam was okay. His heartbeat was strong, and he was kicking like crazy during our visit, so all is well with him! Even though we weren't able to pinpoint what the reaction was from, they were able to give me some medication to help stop it from progressing and to help me get over it.

I still have a bit of a cough and sore throat, but I am finally feeling like I'm beginning to get over this cold (praise God!) and my hives are almost all gone now. :) I'm excited to get my energy back so I can start being productive again!

Even through the sickness, it's been a very good past few weeks. While we were in Atlanta last week, we were able to connect with some great friends...AND we went to IKEA to pick up most of the furniture for Liam's room! I cannot even begin to express what a great feeling of relief it is knowing that we now have his crib, dresser, etc. He now has a place to sleep! (Once we put all the furniture together, that is). I'm excited to start getting his room together now.

Here's an updated baby bump photo...

Don't be fooled...looking at the picture, it seems like Liam has shrunk between week 22 and week 24...but I really don't think that's the case. I think most of it has to do with the placement of the stripes on my two outfits (they're like optical illusions!) If there's one thing that I've learned while doing this photo series, it's that I really love stripes. I didn't realize how many I had in my wardrobe until I start picking out what to wear for my next photo. :)

Liam is growing! He weighs about 1.5 pounds and is about 9 inches long. 

I can tell he's getting bigger too. His movements have been bigger and I feel him throughout most of my day. I love looking down at my tummy and seeing him move from side to side at times. I've been having dreams of holding him almost every night this week, and I am so looking forward to that dream becoming a reality!

Thanks to all of you for your constant love and support throughout this journey of ours. We are so thankful for all of you, our family and friends!

Hope you are having a very blessed weekend!

-Tiffany

Liam Isaac: 22 Weeks!

Hello friends!

Well, we are 22 weeks along now! As always, these past two weeks completely flew by...and looking at our calendar, I don't think time is going to slow down anytime soon. I'm pretty sure our little Liam will be here before we know it, and I'm perfectly okay with that. :)

The past two weeks have been good and busy, but we've still had time to get some much needed rest. There are nights when 7pm rolls around and I turn to Jonathan and say, "Is it really only 7?! Is it too early to go to bed?" I've always needed a good night's sleep to function well, but this pregnancy has taken that to a whole new level. I'll get 10 hours of sleep one night, and still be exhausted come lunch time. Growing a baby is hard work!

Liam has been getting stronger and stronger. A couple weeks ago, Jonathan felt him kick for the first time and it made me so very happy! He's felt him move a bunch of times since then, and it makes us smile. It's gotten to the point where we can just watch my tummy and see it twitch right where he's kicking. It's the coolest thing ever!

On Friday we were under tornado watches and warnings for the afternoon/evening. Storms are not my favorite, but God reminds me to trust in him and he gives me peace in the midst of it. Growing up in Maine, tornadoes never happened (although they had one last year, which was completely bizarre)...so it's not something I'm used to at all. We blew up our air mattress and camped out downstairs while praying and waiting it out. Thankfully, a tornado didn't touch down near us...but my heart goes out to the towns and households who were affected by last week's storms.

Even though no major damage occurred near us, there was still quite the storm. The rain was coming down super hard and the wind was howling outside. During most of that, Liam was kicking HARD. And he was keeping a beat! I couldn't tell if he liked the sound of the storm, didn't like it, or could just sense my stress about the situation. Jonathan was convinced that he was just keeping time with the raindrops and that we have a future drummer on our hands! haha. His kicks made me smile, and definitely brought joy in the midst of the storm.

Now it's time to share an updated baby bump picture. I warn you, your jaw may drop when you see this. Liam had quite the growth spurt these past two weeks!

BAM! I promise you, I did not use any Photoshop tricks to make my tummy look bigger than it is. This is real life, people! Right now little man is measuring at about 11 inches long and weighing about ONE POUND! We are now into pounds and not just ounces! CRAZY! 

I also feel like my hair has grown two inches in the past two weeks. Is that even possible?

I'm starting to feel like a real pregnant woman now. Now I'm having difficulty bending over to pick things up...getting up from a seated position...and I've randomly pulled a couple muscles (ouch!) doing normal activities such as laundry and turning off the TV! Really? haha. I'm having to learn to adjust to this changing body of mine and remember that I can't do things exactly the way I used to before. And that's alright. I'm carrying a child. 

We have our next doctor's appointment later this week, and I can't wait to see our little guy's face again (we get to have another ultrasound!) 

Have an amazing week, you guys!

Love and blessings,

-Tiffany

There is no one alive who is youer than you!

Today is Dr. Seuss' birthday! Happy Birthday to one of the greatest children's authors ever!

This quote is one of my favorites from Dr. Seuss: Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you!

When I read this quote today, I started thinking about how sad it is that often we try so hard to be the opposite of who God has created us to be. I think it's amazing that out of the billions of people on this earth, no two people are exactly the same. He has made us all with different features, personalities, talents, and fun quirks. We were all created to be unique and to stand out.

But how many times do we try to blend in. How many times do we try to be "normal" and attempt to be like everyone else. I think we're all guilty of this from time to time...I know I have been!

Too often we look around and compare ourselves and our lives to other people. This is not healthy, and we need to bring an end to it. Comparison is the thief of joy. We are robbed of our joy when we spend our time and energy focusing on how we compare to others. Our looks, our bodies, our talents, our financial situations, our gadgets, our toys, our marriages, our families, our parenting, our relationships, our popularity...the list goes on.

No good can come from comparing ourselves to others.

When we begin comparing ourselves to those around us, we enter a slippery slope. We begin to become discouraged with ourselves and our situation. When we're feeling down about ourselves, we often try to look and find someone who is worse off than we are so we can think to ourselves "Well, at least I'm better than they are!" And sometimes we try to put others down just to make ourselves feel better. It's a viscous cycle.

We need to stop this awful cycle of comparison. 

Let's stop wasting our energy comparing ourselves to others, and instead focus on who God has created us to be...focus on the blessings, the strengths, the talents, and the unique personality and traits he has given us. There is NO ONE alive who is YOUER than YOU! So be the best you that you possibly can be! :)

Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that...Don't compare yourself with others. - Galatians 6:4 MSG

To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting.  - E.E. Cummings, 1955

Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.  - Judy Garland

So, let's be ourselves and encourage others to do the same! :)