It has been awhile...

So, I have been ignoring the blog. But I have good reasons, I promise!

First of all, I got a teaching position! Hired on a Friday, installed on Sunday, worked in my classroom Monday-Wednesday, and school started on Thursday. Talk about intense! I have never felt like I have winged anything like this before. I am teaching 3rd and 4th grade, minus reading and social studies, plus 2nd grade math and science, at River Roads Lutheran School. I have seven 3rd graders and thirteen 4th graders and we are getting along pretty well so far. Some seem to be on summer vacation still, but they are adjusting slowly. So anyways, I have been devoting a lot of time to grading and curriculum planning, but that should even out as I slowly adjust to the school year as well.

Second, we went down to Lake of the Ozarks this past weekend. Jared's parents rented a cabin right on the lake for the week, and we were fortunate to join them for the weekend, along with Jared's brother, sister-in-law, and their adorable son, Eli. We did a lot of sitting by the lake, grilling dinner, and playing with Eli. I think the highlight for Jared was renting a boat Sunday and heading out on the lake for several hours in true bliss. We all started the journey, but Eli was not a fan of his life jacket, and my baby was not appreciating the waves. So, the girls were dropped back off and the boys had a good time exploring. Pictures should be up in a day or so...

We are looking forward to a weekend here at home for the holiday weekend. The weather looks like it will be cooler and we are going to hit some of the local attractions, along with sleeping in before Jared starts classes on Tuesday!

Appointment

We had our next appointment today...a whole 10 minutes after waiting for and hour and a half. :) Everything checked out normal and I got my bottle of orange flavored drink so that I can have my glucose test next month. I understand that it will not be my favorite day in the pregnancy, but a necessary evil for all pregnant women. Fun times coming ahead! Other than that, we are just staying out of the heat...98 degrees today, with a heat index of 112 degrees...here is a picture of Jared's favorite outfit for his son thus far. :) I am predicting a future filled with tripping over lots of cars and digging implements.

The game continues

The baby is really moving! It has been a lot of fun to feel this random movement and know that I am doing nothing to create them. Jared has yet to feel anything - I think our son likes to play hide-and-seek with his daddy. :) Anyways, we have our next appointment tomorrow, so another update will be coming.

We had an awesome time in Michigan - what a blessing to be involved in the wedding of dear friends! Pictures are up in the picasa link. A worthwhile video is Jared dancing with Grandpa Errer...and then another video devoted to Jared dancing with Josh to a song about a streaker. They were very entertaining to say the least. :) We then traveled to Dearborn, worshiped with my parents at Guardian, and then had a baby shower. (Jared hung out at the house and ate brats and drank beer, Sarah opened really cute stuff with the girls). We have been blessed with MANY blankets, toys, clothes, and the general "baby stuff." It starts to come closer to reality when his dresser is filling and we have diapers piled everywhere! :) Pictures from the shower are also up in picasa.

We returned Monday to St. Louis, unloaded and sorted baby stuff, and then hosted 4 of our high school friends from Litchfield. They were needing a place to stay after coming in for a concert and we were happy to supply with the floor space needed. The apartment is now ours again and we are excited to be home for a couple of weeks before one more trip and the routine of school starts.

Michigan

Ahh, to be back in Northern territory! Jared and I arrived safely in Mount Pleasant for Josh and Erica's wedding yesterday. We are currently enjoying weather that is topping out right around 80, accompanied by low humidity. We are looking forward to rehearsal tonight, a bbq in the park, and then all the festivities tomorrow. There will be lots of pictures, but unfortunately I forgot the cord for the camera, so they'll be up sometime this next week when we get back to St. Louis. Everything with junior is going well...he is really moving! I have been feeling flutters on and off for the last couple of weeks, but in just the last couple of days I have been able to feel him move from the outside. :) It is usually when I have the laptop leaning against my belly and then I find that it is moving without my assistance. Whenever Jared puts his hands on my belly to get a feel, he stops, but it has been a fun new game to keep us entertained.