17 Week Belly Shots

Ok - well, since everyone has been bugging me to put up some belly shots - I had tim take a few. I have to admit, I love seeing everyone else's belly shots - but it was so hard to get a good shot that didn't make me look HUGE - ha!

Anyways, here they are :o)

Kids Say the Darndest Things!

In summer camp, my kids have been saying the most hilarious things about my pregnancy. I just had to post some of those comments.

1. One of my first graders rubbed my belly and said, "Nice baby Mrs. Baylor!"

2. One of my 3rd graders asked me for one of my goldfish crackers and I told them "no honey, I don't have enough for everyone"  and another boy watching (5th grader) said, "You know, you just really shouldn't ask for a pregnant woman's food - it's not smart!" he went on to say - " and you definitely shouldn't get a pregnant woman angry!"  I was just dying laughing!

3. One of my girls going into 6th grade said, " Mrs. Baylor, every time I see you - you are eating something" (I usually spread my meals out throughout the day- yogurt, cheese, an apple, etc..) I responded, "The baby needs food to grow." She said, " I never seen a baby who needs that much food!  That baby gonna be BIG!"  sighh.... one of those times, you just can't take kids seriously.

I hope you enjoyed :o)

I am sure there will be more to come!

A Hilarious letter about pregnancy

I stole this off of my friend's blog because I thought all of all of you ladies would enjoy this one!

 You'll have to tell me if you found this to be true while you were pregnant :o)

  Dear Non-Pregnant Person,

I hope you find these guidelines helpful in your interactions with pregnant women as failing to follow them may result in serious physical harm. If you are thinking, surely she doesn't mean me- then you should probably read this twice.

1) The appropriate response to a couple telling you they are having a baby is "Congratulations!" with enthusiasm. Any other response makes you an idiot!!! 

2) Through the wonders of science, we now know that babies are made ONLY by the mother and father- not grandparents. Unless the baby is in your uterus or you are the man that helped put it there, you may not ever use the phrase "my baby". 

3) On the same note, unless you made the baby as defined in 2, the pregnancy, birth and raising of the child are not about you. You do not have input. No one wants to hear your opinion unless they ask for it.

4) The body of a pregnant women should be treated the same as any other body. You would not randomly touch someone's stomach if they were not pregnant, nor would you inquire into the condition of their uterus, cervix or how they plan to use their breasts. Pregnancy does not remove all traces of privacy from a woman.

5) Likewise, no women wants to hear comments on her weight- ever. A pregnant woman does not find it flattering that you think she is about is pop, must be having twins, looks swollen or has gained weight in her face. Telling her she looks too small only makes her worry that she is somehow starving her baby. Making such comments invite her to critique your physical appearance and you may not act offended. The only acceptable comment on appearance is "You look fabulous!".

6) By the time we are 20-30 years old, most of us have picked up on the fact that the summer is hot. We are hot every summer when we are not pregnant. We don't need you to point out that we will be miserably hot before the baby comes. 

7) There is a reason that tickets to Labor & Delivery are not yet sold on Ticketmaster. Childbirth is actually not a public event. It may sound crazy, but some women really do not relish the idea of their mother, MIL or a host of other family members seeing their bare butt and genitals. Also, some people simply feel like the birth of their child is a private and emotional moment to be shared only by the parents. 

8) Like everything else is life, unless you receive an invitation, you are NOT invited. This includes doctor appointments, ultrasounds, labor, delivery, the hospital and the parents home. You do not decide if you will be there for the birth or if you will move in with the new parents to "help out". If your assistance is desired, rest assured that you will be asked for it.

9) If you are asked to help after the birth, this means you should clean up the house, help with cooking meals, and generally stay out of the way. Holding the baby more than the parents, interfering with breastfeeding and sleeping schedules and making a woman who is still leaking fluid from multiple locations lift a finger in housework is not helping.

10) The only people entitled to time with the baby are the parents. Whether they choose to have you at the hospital for the birth or ask for you to wait three weeks to visit, appreciate that you are are being given the privilege of seeing their child. Complaining or showing disappointment only encourages the parents to include you less.

Bring on the Second Trimester!

Well, I am officially 14 weeks today and I am feeling GREAT!  The sickness has ended and I am not so tired.  I am getting more excited by the day!  I can feel my belly stretching and getting a little harder,but it's not that cute belly yet - so no pictures yet!  I'm at that weird stage of not fitting into things and well, just feeling FAT!  I haven't really gained weight yet, so I am glad about that. I know there will be plenty of time for that at the end - so I'll wait until then.

Peanut (as we affectionately call it for now) - is about the size of a lemon this week. Here below is what it looks like already. I am just amazed by God's design and how intricate and well-developed this little one is already! God is so good! We will find out the sex of the baby at the end of July - so we will keep you posted :o)

A Good Experience at the DMV???

Oh you heard me correctly. I actually had a positive experience at the Chicago Department of Motor Vehicles.  I was floored! I have to admit, after Virginia I was used to going in - waiting 2+ hours, only to get to the front of the line for them to tell you that you have the wrong identification with you.  

Today I actually went into the DMV and got out in UNDER 20 minutes!  WOW! I complimented every worker I saw on my way out. I was so impressed!

My first year in Urban Ministry Completed!

Well, today was our last day of inservice at Holy Family Lutheran School.  I have to admit -It was a pretty hard school year for me and I am so thankful to the Lord that I was able to make it!

Here are a few pictures of my kids towards the end of the year.

These first three are of the kids making necklaces for their moms for mother's day.

These next ones are of my kids and their science fair projects.

Crazily enough - I signed my contract for next year. They asked me to come back and teach 4th grade.  Which means that I will have the same kids - I had to really think hard about it because they are quite the handful. But my principal thought I did a good job with them and wanted me to stick with them for one more year.  

My due date is December 9th, so my last day of teaching (theoretically) will be December 5th and I will return March 16th to finish out the year.  This way, I can keep my insurance throughout the pregnancy. Please pray with Tim and I that we will find someone we can trust from church or Trinity that could watch the little one for those last 10 weeks that I finish up the school year (as Tim will most likely be working full time by then and finishing up his MDiv).

Thanks so much!

I am working at summer camp this year for the school. I will be working for 7 weeks 8am-4pm Monday - Friday. We are thankful for the Lord's provision over the summer months :o)

Happy Summer everyone!

Celebration in the downtown Chicago!

So Tim planned a trip into the city for our 5 year anniversary. Here is a shot of our hotel.


It was so quaint


We had to laugh because the room smelled like Old Spice - it was almost like that was their air freshener :o) It was a gorgeous room though!This was the lobby - I wanted to just hang out and read, but there wasn't time.
That night we went to the Pritzker Pavillion and watched Northwestern University play for us. It was fabulous!

The night was perfect - 60-70 degrees and just so relaxing!

I loved this close up - they have concerts all summer long - we look forward to hitting some more.


After the concert, we headed to Geja's cafe. It was so much fun!
It was so cozy and romantic!
They started with the fruit, bread and cheese
And then went to a small salad
Then came the Meat and veggies! It was actually really good. Although I purposely overcooked every piece - just in case!
We got to roast our marshamallows over the chocolate
Some great fruit!


Mmmmm - chocolate!!!The next morning, we woke up (late) and stopped by "The Original Pancake House" which is well known here. It was pretty amazing!



Tim got the house specialty - the "Apple Pancake" It as massive! He only finished about half. But it sure was good!
That afternoon, we headed to University of Chicago - Beautiful School!
Then we spent time jsut walking the magnificent mile and hanging out in Millenium park.

We had a wonderful time together - we probably walked 5 + miles, but it was worth it. It was nice just to see the parts of the city we hadn't seen before. And of course it was such a blessing just being together and relaxing!

The best 5 years of my life!

This was actually the night we got engaged  - I don't really have any wedding pictures on our computer (i'll have to work on that). But today is our 5 year anniversary! I can hardly believe it. Tim has just flown by! I love being married to my best friend. We have had a blast just living our lives together.  We had a wonderful four years in Virginia Beach where we made so many friends at Central Seminary and Greenbrier Christian Academy. We bought our first home, got a few years teaching under our belts, sold our first home... and then headed to Chicago. We have been here less then a year - there has been a lot of transition, but it didn't seem hard because I had my companion by my side!  HAPPY ANNIVERSARY HONEY!   

He was so sweet that he planned a little get away for us in downtown Chicago. We are heading into the city tomorrow morning after church, watching a concert at the pritzker pavillion, having dinner at Geja's cafe, staying the night at the Whitehall Hotel, and then just checking out the city the rest of the day on Monday.  I am sooo looking forward to it! I am so impressed that he made the time to plan this for us with as busy as he has been.  I love him so much and I am so looking forward to some time away with him.

Shrimp Stew

I was in the grocery store the other day, and there was this chef serving soup.  I tried it and about died it was so good!  He had cards with the recipe and I quickly grabbed one and then proceeded to hurry around the store to find the ingredients.  I made it for Tim the next day, and he LOVED it! So I wanted to post the recipe :o) 
* 2 T Canola Oil

* 1/4 cup each : Onion, Celery, and Carrots(chopped small)

* 1/4 cup Blackstone Chardonnay Wine

* 2 bottles (8oz.) Clam Juice

* 1 Can Fire roasted diced tomatoes (undrained)

* 1 T Creole Seasoning

* 2 Pounds large shrimp (raw, peeled, deveined) ( I only used one pound)

* 2 T basil

1. Heat a large tock pot over medium - high heat for one minute.

Add oil and vegetables and saute for 3 minutes. Add wine, clam juice, and canned tomatoes, and Creole seasoning, stir to combine.

2. Place lid on pot and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Remove the lid and add raw shrimp and basil. Simmer for 4 minutes, stirring often. Serve immediately with crusty bread and Blackstone Chardonnay.

We loved it and I hope you do too!

Baby Baylor - 9 weeks

Well, here are our first pictures of little peanut.  They didn't scan super well, so it is hard to see, but we could see little arm and leg buds swimming around the screen.
The technician said that the little one wouldn't hold still - just kept squirming across the screen.  It was so special - even though he/she is sooo little - it was so nice to see that he/she is healthy.  We saw and heard the heartbeat. Everything is great.  And there is only ONE (which since I am a twin, was good for us to know :o)  

My due date was changed to December 9th.  

We are just so thankful for the Lord's grace and goodness.  

Happy Mother's Day!

I just wanted to take a moment and wish all of those mothers and mothers-to-be a HAPPY day!

Tim woke me up before church and gave me a very sweet "First Mother's Day" card. I didn't even think he had time to remember with the end of the semester coming on Friday.

And then he took me out to T.G.I.Fridays. It was nice just to spend time with him. He is such a sweetheart!

I hope the rest of you moms were spoiled today (and got to take a NAP!)

Have a great day with your family!

Burnt Ham

So I decided to make a ham the other day.  I have only made one in almost five years of marriage (and that one didn't turn out so hot).  Well, I found this recipe on the internet. It's kind of weird, but it sounded good. It consisted of butter, brown sugar, coke, and pineapple. 

 Anyways, the directions were to cover the ham with all said ingredients and then bake for 3 hours at 450 degrees. I mean, I have to admit, it seemed like a pretty hight temp for that long, but who am I to disagree with a recipe.  So I put it in the oven and set the timer.  Well, after 3 hours the buzzer went off. I was on my way home from the grocery store when tim called me and said, "honey, the ham..." I said, "what about it?" He said, "it looks bad, really bad!"

I kind of blew it off and told him to turn the oven off. I was home in a few minutes, and I could not believe how bad it really looked!  It was charcoal!  I tapped on it with a knife... and it made a loud cracking noise!  

Bummer, I thought - another ham in the garbage!

But then I talked to my sweet mother and she said that I should try to cut into it anyways to see what was inside. So after several minutes of carving away at the charcoal helmet, I broke through to -- beautiful pink ham!  It was amazing! It actually tasted sweet and juicy!  So we went ahead and ate on it for the next few days.  Craziness.... any good ham recipes out there?

Pictures of Baby Logan

We had the privilege of seeing Scott, Lindsay, and little David James last night. He is a cutie! We promised them we would post pics for everyone, since they don't have internet access at the hospital.