Will I Make It?

today was my weekly check-up (yes, i'm finally on my weekly schedule!). today marks 33 weeks...and boy am i feeling it :-) so, lets just get to the facts: baby girl is still measuring a few days ahead of schedule. my tummy is measuring a whole week ahead..that should give you a good heads up that my tummy is STILL growing. i've gained a whole 27lbs...but like i said before...she's worth every pound. (i just sure hope it goes away!) as for labor in the near future...well, lets not hope too near. i am 70% effaced and 1 cm dialated. my doctor said that whether we make it to the amnio at 36 weeks or not; baby will probably be here by then! i think today was the first day that joel and i actaully believed that WE ARE HAVING A BABY! there is a light at the end of this ever-so-long tunnel. she's almost 4 1/2 lbs, so we are guessing about 5 1/2 lbs at birth...but lets just keep our fingers crossed. i had to make a trip down to the hospital today (and will have to go back tomorrow) for steroid shots to help speed up baby girl's lungs JUST in case we meet her earlier than scheduled! We are getting soooo close!

tossing and turning...all night long

another sleepless night....and only about 5 more weeks to go. it's 1:15 in the morning, and joel is sleeping soundly next to me. i'm up because of the non-stop heart burn (from i don't know what!), the pressure in my lower back from baby girl weighing down, the stomach ache and soar ribs from her pushing off of me to swim around more; not to mention the many, many thoughts running through my head about her soon-to-be arrival day! what will it be like when that day finally arrives?! even more than that, what will the NEXT day be like? i picture myself getting up early, taking a shower...of course, and rushing off to see my new daughter in the nursery :-) i picture holding her ALL DAY LONG as people come in and visit (and bring her presents!) what will her noises be like? what will be her favorite spot to lay on? daddy's chest perhaps?! will she have a lot of hair? (she better with all this heart burn i'm having!!!) so many things i'm curious about, and that will remain a wonderful mystery until she's safely in my arms. and until that day, i think the anxiety will remain. i am feeling so close, but yet so far away from that highly anticipated day.

6 weeks left!

so, 30 weeks along....and only 6 to go. we scheduled our apt. for an amnio in october. they will be checking to make sure baby girl's lungs are developed enough to deliver. and once those results come back that night, we will go back in to meet our second daughter! it's so crazy to look back at this point in my pregnancy and feel like we have almost made it to the end. when it was just a few months ago i thought i would never make it through! i think having a busy summer helped that a lot!

total weight gain thus far...22lbs. not too bad. as much as i CANNOT believe that it is still ok to gain weight when you are preggo, i just remember that 1. i lost it all last time, and 2. she is SO worth it!

we had a check up yesterday with dr. golden, and all is still going so well. baby girl is head down (since week 20!)with her body on my left side, and her booty pushing against my stomach right above my belly button. i can't believe it hasn't popped out yet! she pushes hard! her little legs and knees are on my right side, and her feet are nicely tucked away under my RIBS! her movements have been so strong lately...enough to take my breath away. not to mention the many braxton hicks i continue to experience throughout every day :-) do you think she will be here sooner than 6 weeks? well, the longer she stays in my tummy, the healthier she will be, so for that reason, i'm ok with not meeting her yet....but boy is it tempting!

27 weeks!!!

only about 76 days left until we get to meet this little girl! and boy, are we excited :-) look how big my tummy is getting!!! so far, i've gained 16 lbs...hmmmm, i wonder if she weighs 16 lbs?!?! yeah right....only at about a little over 2 lbs i believe!

All the way from Africa...

Just wanted to share this email with everyone....
it's from an old friend of mine from highschool that is a missionary in africa with his wife and 3 kiddos! Just another example of the support our 'family' has given us through Rhema's passing to the new little blessing inside!!!

Val,
Hope this email finds you doing well! I just thought I would send you this quick email to encourage you and Joel.

We had (at least tried to have...) a film service in the village of Roigrond. (pronounced "roy-ha-ron-d")

About 250 people squeezed into this tiny tin building to watch the Jesus film. Everything was ready and we were singing praises, when BAM...our generator won't start. No biggie...just get another one...

Long story short, we are looking everywhere for a generator as these precious people sit in the total dark and it was cold too...

I decided to make a run for the town of Jaggersfontein to try and get a generator and make it back before everyone left...

On my way I stopped at one of the national believers homes to ask for directions. He could tell I was in a hurry....and just as I went to close the door on the car and fly off to the next town, he said, "Hey, how are Valerie and Joel doing? We are really praying for them..."

Wow, I was pretty shocked myself seeing he remembered both of your names. I told him that I would be telling you about their faithful prayers.

Then, just yesterday I was sitting with another missionary in Mafeking and he asked, "How is that couple doing...Joel and Valerie?"

While we are 8,500 miles away from you both, we are certainly praying for you and want you to know we love and care for you and can't wait to see God's plans for your lives!

Oh...never made it back in time to the church with the generator...the devil sure thought he had won the victory...LOSER!!! The next day (last Sunday) we had our first service in the new church building in Roigrond and Praise the Lord, 210 people came to hear the service and 10 accepted Christ. We also saw another 6 accept Christ this morning and one young lady, Palesa Mothupi came with her 1 year old daughter and accepted Christ. She asked if we could come on Saturday and teach her more about the Bible.

Satan had his tail between his legs.

God is good,
Adam

12 weeks left! (or less!!!)

it's so hard to believe that Rhema has been gone from our arms for 27 weeks...well, 26 1/2 actually. she would be turning 9 months old on Aug. 3...in just 3 days. my heart hurts at times more than usual just thinking about her, wishing she were here with us. wishing that we could have watched her get her first tooth, take her first step, start her first day of school. sometimes i miss her so much, i just want to go to sleep and dream about her- i know...a bit silly. even with all the excitement and anticipation there is with our newest little addition (who i wouldn't trade for anything either!), i will always know that one is missing from the table, from the family photos, and from the house.

but now we have this amazing little jem to add to our family...so hard to believe that only 12 short weeks she will be in our arms. i anticipate such a different experience delivering baby #2...cutting the cord, holding her as soon as she's cleaned off, and having her sleep in the room with me in the hospital. joel and i look forward to a totally different experience. we look the most forward to celebrating the new birth, and sharing with our friends and family just how wonderful our God really is!

i wonder what she will look like? maybe her big sister just a bit :-)

m-i-s-s-i-s-s-i-p-p-i

so...my friend and i have agreed that the next time we decide to cross the mississippi it will be by airplane....and not with 2 vans full of middle schoolers! ha ha!! but this pic is joel and i and baby girl sewell(of course) overlooking the mississippi. within minutes of this picture, it down poured, so we're glad we got just the slightest memory :-)