Week Seventeen

Hello Friends! 

I have entered into my seventeenth week of pregnancy.  Some exciting news: I'm 90% sure I felt the baby move this week!  I was cleaning up my classroom after school and immediately stopped when I felt my stomach do little flips.  It felt like when you drive over rolling hills in the car.  I actually laughed to myself because it felt so funny!  Since then I have felt a similar feeling every so often (I still smile every time).  So what is babycakes up to this week?  Well, baby is five inches long and 6 ounces.  Baby has mastered simple reflexes like swallowing, sucking, and blinking.  Babycakes could even get a bout of the hiccups!  I hope you are all having a lovely week and enjoying the little things in life.

                        Much Love,

                    Jen   

Saturday in St. Paul

Last Saturday my sister and I journeyed to St. Paul for a morning of coffee and catching up.  We started off at Nina's Coffee Cafe.

After a luxurious morning that led into lunch we went downstairs to check out Garrison Keillor's bookstore "Common Good Books". 

Before we traveled back to Minneapolis we walked along Summit Avenue and took in the beauty of the warm winter day.

I love sister dates :).

Week Sixteen

Knitting- that's what's going on this week (and the previous weeks and the next five months to come).  God continues to knit our sweet babycakes together.  What a marvelous thought: the God of the universe personally stitches together each little life. 

"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well."

-Psalm 139:13-14

Valentine's Date

Josh and I had an early Valentine's Date on Friday.  We took a trip down memory lane as we traveled down the streets of St. Paul.  We went to a restaurant on Grand Avenue called Brasa.  This neighborhood is special to us because it is where we lived our first year of marriage.  We have many fond memories of walks on Summit Avenue, ice cream stops at the Grand Old Creamery and laundry days at the Sel-Dale Laundromat.  We had never eaten at Brasa; it was delicious!  The food is described as "comfort food inspired by the creole cooking traditions of the Americas and the Caribbean".  Josh and I shared: poblano pepper dip appetizer, 1/2 rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes, romaine and mozzarella salad, and a chocolate torte for dessert.  We would highly recommend this place!  I'm sure we will be back soon.  Here are a few pictures from our lovely evening:

Happy (early) Valentine's Day!

Fifteen Weeks

Good afternoon friends!  I'm currently at Nina's Coffee Cafe with my lovely sister Justine.  We are drinking good coffee (decaf for me) and catching up on life.  It is a perfect way to spend a Saturday afternoon.  I'll have a more detailed post with pictures of our time together later this weekend. 

The week is almost over and has almost slipped by without a "pregnancy post" :)!  This week marks my fifteenth week.  The baby is the size of a navel orange.  Baby is 4 inches long and weighs around 2.5 ounces.  All four limbs have functional joints and babycakes is said to be squirming and wiggling like crazy (even though I haven't been able recognize it yet).                                                                                  Things I'm loving right now: mashed potatoes, pink lady apples, and the bodyshop's almond body butter.  

I hope you have a joy-filled weekend.  To all of you Minnesotans, enjoy the 40 degree weather tomorrow!  

Love,

Jen   

Date Deals

Saturday the hub and I went out on a "day date".  Josh surprised me last weekend by rounding up all of our giftcards from the past year and planning a maternity shopping date (swoon :) ).  Even though I cleared out my closest a few weeks ago I realized my clothes were not quite fitting like they used to so I happily made a little more room for a few clothing purchases. 

First Stop: Blacklist Vintage
I had sold a dress here this summer for $10.50 in store credit.  I scoured the racks to find "vintage maternity" and didn't have luck.  The gal working ended up looking too and found a black skirt from the 60's!  I love it.  It is simple but the small detail of buttons on the back gives it a fun look.

Next Up: Lakeshore Learning
Yeah I know there aren't any maternity clothes here but sometimes you have to run errands on dates too :).
Next Up: Panera
Josh had a "free bakery treat" to use.  We indulged in a chocolate croissant.  He sipped coffee and I enjoyed my box of milk.

Next Up: Anthropologie
I didn't have any giftcards here and did not end up buying anything but wow, what a place to get inspired!
Here are a few pretty things from Anthro: latte bowls, paperclips (the most adorable ever made)

Next Up: H&M
Thanks Beth for the giftcard!  I bought two sweaters (not maternity, but they button in the front so I think they will work out for awhile) and a pair of black tights.
Next Up: Gap
No giftcards here but we were glad we stopped in; every clearance item was another 30% off!  Here were the purchases:

For Dinner: We stopped at Culvers for a couple of kid's meals (Thanks Jackie for the Culvers tickets!).  A hamburger and ice cream tasted so good :).

And so ended our day of deals.  Total Savings $68.00!

(extra)ordinary

It is easy to see God in the midst of miracles (an unexplainable case of cancer cured, walking away from a disaster without a scratch, etc..).  Last Monday the Hope staff reflected upon the seemingly ordinary daily provisions of God in our lives.  We began to recall God's goodness and faithfulness to us throughout our days.  I have been pondering these very provisions this week.  It has made me stand in awe of a God who not only cares about the "big" things in our lives, but His hands are in every detail too.

Here are just a few (extra)ordinary ways God cares me for in a day:
1. Every morning I wake up (in a warm bed, in a warm house and I've gotten a good night's sleep!).
2. When I open the refrigerator to search for breakfast I have a plethora of options before me that will keep me nourished and strengthen my body.
3. Josh drives me to work and we both arrive to our jobs safely(even though he drives 60 mph on the icy highways along with the rest of the morning traffic).
4. Teachers, staff and students smile at me in the hallways, share words of encouragement and pray for me.
5. God again provides food for me and baby at lunch; I also get to eat lunch with some pretty adorable kiddos.
6. I am driven home safely (yet again).
7. I have an amazing, loving husband to cook dinner with and a wonderful Jemimah who sings as she sets the table.
8. Our family can eat together and share stories from our day.
9. I am able to fall asleep snuggled up to my best friend.
10. Not only has God provided all of these daily necessities for me but He also has been knitting together a little life inside of me and providing for our baby!

Throughout the day my heart has beat an average of 100,000 times a day; I have taken an average of 20,000 breaths a day and all without stopping or having to remember to do this to function!

"nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything."  
-Acts 17:25

Knowing these things and remembering them are quite different.  I want to recall God's love for me in the mundane details of every day.  It's easy to complain when I've had a "hard day"; but really, how can I when He's done so much for me and continues to lavish His love and grace on me?  Remembering these things has the ability to shut my mouth pretty quickly.  I'm thankful God forgives my grumbling and helps me to understand His love in new refreshing ways.  Oh how He loves us! 

Fourteen Weeks

I'm 14 weeks along and doing well. Baby is the size of a lemon and has defined facial features.  Baby is also busy sucking his/her thumb, wiggling toes, and growing lanugo (thin downy hair)!  While I was eating lunch with my kindergartners yesterday one of the kiddos said, "Mrs. Jacobs, you are looking chubbier!".  She also was the "line leader" and couldn't keep her eyes off my belly the entire walk down the hallway!  Kids make me smile :).

Sunrise Smoothies

Here's a recipe from one of my cravings this weekend...smoothies!

What you'll need:
1-2 ripe peaches
1 ripe mango
1 banana
1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup orange juice
2 cups ice

Blend and enjoy a little taste of spring!