So in case you can’t tell by my subtle hint, I am indeed pregnant.  We’ve known for a few weeks now, and it’s been eating me alive not to say anything.  I am anything if not patient.

We wanted to tell our families on Mother’s Day – you can commence with your “awwwwwww”s – so once the cat was out of the bag, I couldn’t dial the phone (and blog) fast enough.

It’s most definitely been part of the reason I’ve been such an emotional mess lately, and I’ve enjoyed that lovely combination of culture stress and homesickness AND pregnant hormones.  Nice.  It’s really quite becoming.

But truly, we couldn’t be happier, and our hearts are overjoyed with gratitude.

I’ll now answer for you our most commonly-asked questions, starting with most popular:

1. Q - In which country will you have the baby?   A - The very short answer is, we don’t know.  We’ve been in prayer about this since before we even left, and there are lots of considerations to weigh.  But we’ll let you know when we know.
2. Q - How are you feeling?  A - While I don’t feel at the top of my game, I know it could be much worse.  I was hit with my first bout of serious nausea today, but I haven’t yet yakked.  Mostly, I’ve been extraordinarily tired and hungry, which were my main symptoms with Chickpea.  I’ve also got Pregnant Brain, which is never fun when you’re trying to learn another language.  If I can’t remember the last half of my sentences in English, imagine what it’s like in a brand-new language.  Quite entertaining, really.  I’ve also got Pregnant Nose, which, other than not being able to be near raw meat without near-wretching, it also means that the entire country smells like corn tortillas.  I am not making this up.  And I’m just guessing here that the closest place where I could find corn tortillas is Spain.  It’s unexplainable.
3. Q - When are you due?  A - Google says January 2, the OB says January 5.  Take your pick.
4. Q - How old will Chickpea be?  A - A month away from 3.  Kinda great, in my opinion.
5. Q - Do you need anything?  A - Well, I brought most of my maternity clothes, so I think I might be okay in that department.  I left all our newborn stuff in a box back in the States, so someone can just put a stamp on it and mail it when we need it.  It’s girl stuff, though so we may not need it at all.  The short answer to the question is – nothing yet, but we’ll let you all know!  Thanks for asking.

So.  There you have it.  I have to say that I’m doing better emotionally now that I’m able to go public.  It’s sorta been eating me up having to withhold this information, especially when I try to explain how I’m doing.  I do get a bit sad when I think of not being around friends and family during the pregnancy, and – most importantly – a month of meals if I’m not going to be in Austin for the delivery.  But there are blessings for sure, and my goal this week is to focus on those.  The Lord has really impressed upon me the need to think on whatever is good, to be thankful, and to rest in where He has us.  So you’ll be happy to know that my general plan is to be a bit more optimistic in my writing for at least the next few weeks.

Enjoy those burritos for me.

posted: 07 May 14
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