Seeing Family and Friends

We made our first visit to see David's dad on Wednesday.  We drove down to McComb to see them and went to church with them at First Baptist. 

David, Jody, Mr. Harold, Regina

On Thursday, I met my mom for lunch at Porches.  It's my favorite place to eat for lunch.

Thursday night, thanks to Facebook, we heard that some old friends of ours band was playing at a  restaurant nearby.  We decided to drive down and hear them sing as well as eat a good meal.  They sang some wonderful praise and worship music that we enjoyed hearing in English!!

I took a few photos but it was dark.  They were singing outside.  They did a great job!

While there we also saw several other people we knew.  David saw four old high school classmates and I was so upset with myself that I did not take a photo of all of them.  But, it was a fun night!

Celebrating Ms. Linda's Birthday

Tuesday night we celebrated David's mom's birthday by going out to eat at the local fish house in Hazlehurst.  One of the food's we missed while being away was fried catfish and all the trimmings- fries, cole slaw, hush puppies, and turnip greens.  It was very good!!  We were glad to be home this year to celebrate with her.

David, Regina, Sawyer, Ms. Linda, Robin, Kelly, and Larsen

(our other neice, Kaylie, had a ballgame)

Our nephew, Sawyer, proudly wore his Guatemala soccer jersey we brought him home last year

Our neice, Larsen

After eating, we all went back to Robin's house to open gifts and visit. 

Larsen, David, and Ms. Linda

David's sister- Robin, his mom- Ms. Linda, and David

Sawyer and Larsen clowing for us

Larsen with no shoes, no shirt, her pants on backwards, and eating a banana.  You would think we'd raised her in Guatemala, haha!!

Week 11

I am 11 weeks today!  It is such a relief with each passing week to know that things are going well.  I just don't think that I'll be able to relax and not be anxious until I actually give birth.  I have been nervous to buy anything yet but could not resist buying a few seasonal outfits that I found on clearance this past week.  They were super cheap and I couldn't pass them up.  We can't wait for our little one to be photographed wearing these-

The Baby's Development
From this week until week 20, the baby will be growing rapidly — increasing in size from about 2 inches to about 8 inches from crown to rump. To accommodate all this growth, the blood vessels in the placenta are increasing in both size and number to provide the baby with more nutrients.  At this time the baby is about the size of a large lime.

Facial development continues as the ears move toward their final position on the sides of the head.  The baby's head accounts for about half of the body length.

Although the baby's reproductive organs are developing rapidly, the external genitals of boys and girls appear somewhat similar until the end of week 11. They will be clearly differentiated by week 14.  We don't think we will be able to find out the sex of the baby until our January appointment.  :-(

How Am I Feeling?

We had our first doctor's visit in the States on Monday.  All went well.  We heard the heartbeat and that made us very happy!  We will return next Monday, Nov. 16th for another sonogram.  At my appointment, my weight was the same, although I expect that to be changing soon.  I have not craved one specific food this week but have eaten a variety of different foods.  Some of the things I have enjoyed the most have been a plate lunch from Starks, fried catfish, fried oysters, salad, stuffed mushrooms, and Sonic hamburgers.  Yeah, my weight will soon be going up, HA.  I usually have to eat a late night snack before going to bed so that I can make it all night without getting hungry.  The foods I most like at that time are instant grits, instant oatmeal, or toaster strudel's.  I still stay tired most all of the time but am hoping that in a few weeks I'll start  feeling better.  We are anxious to get through this first trimester, just one more week to go!!  Please continue to keep us in your prayers. 

Dinner with Friends

Monday night we had a couple of friends drive down to meet us for dinner.  We met the Brown's and the Sojourner's at Mitchell's, a local restaurant here in Brookhaven.  The meal was delicious!  We had jumbo fried shrimp, crab claws, coconut shrimp, fried green tomatos, and stuffed mushrooms (my favorite!)  Needless to say, I did not have to eat a snack before going to bed last night.  It was great visiting with them and laughing about old times.

David, Regina, Reagan, Malinda, Mrs. Ann, Amy, and Mr. Johnny   

Weekend Update

We started the weekend off with a visit from two of our former students, Tyler and Candice, on Friday night.  They were married back in June.  Tyler is a student at New Orleans Seminary and they stopped by to visit us on their way home for the weekend.  We went out to eat at the local Mexican restaurant and then went back to our house and talked for hours.  It was great catching up with them and hearing how God is working in their lives.

Saturday David's sister and mother came to visit as well as Larsen and Lilli Grace.  We went to eat lunch together and made a trip to Wal-Mart. 

Later that afternoon we had a visit from my former step-sister, Janet.  It's been many years since I have seen her so I enjoyed visiting and catching up with her too.  We had a great visit and plan to get together again soon.

Sunday we attended services at our home church, Harmony Baptist in Crystal Springs.  It was great getting to see many that we have not had a chance to see since returning home. 

We had a great weekend full of visits with family and friends.  Hope yours was good too.

Fun With Family

Thursday night we had a family dinner at my mom's house.  Not only did we have some delicious food but we had a great time visiting with some family member's we've not seen in a while.  It was great getting together, laughing, and talking about old times. 

After dinner we all watched a marathon of America's Funniest Home Videos (one of my all time favorite shows).  We laughed so much and had a wonderful time together doing it!!!

Love Is In The Air

Tuesday night we attended a wedding shower for Jackie and Nickey, two of our former youth ministry students.  They are getting married in December.  David will be doing the service and I will be a bridesmaid.  I ordered my dress back in the summer, long before I found out I was pregnant.  My prayer now is that I'll still be able to fit in it in another 6 weeks, ha.  We are excited for them and the future they will have together!

Week 10

I am 10 weeks today!  This is a photo of a frame my mother-in-law gave us.  We LOVE it!  The picture is our 8 week ultrasound photo.

We've been asked tons of questions so far so I thought I would answer a few of the most common ones here for everyone.  1)  This is my first pregnancy.  I am 37 years old and have never been pregnant before.  2)  I got pregnant the old fashioned way- no meds, no precedures, lots of patience.  3)  We do plan to return to Guatemala.  If  you have questions, send them our way.  We'll answer them either privately or in a future post.

HOW'S THE BABY?
By week 10, all of the baby's vital organs have been formed and are starting to work together.

As external changes such as the separation of fingers and toes and the disappearance of the tail takes place, internal developments are taking place too. Tooth buds form inside the mouth, and if we're having a boy, his testes will begin producing the male hormone testosterone.

Congenital abnormalities are unlikely to develop after week 10. This also marks the end of the embryonic period — in general, the embryo now has a distinctly human appearance and starting next week the baby will officially be considered a fetus.

HOW AM I?
Much better than  previous weeks.  I am still tired most all of the time but have not had much sickness at all!  I rest when I can, nap when I can, and go when I can.  This past week I have been able to eat much more foods than I had been eating.  As long as I eat something about every 2 hours, I'm good.  My foods of choice this week have been fried bologna sandwiches and chocolate (although not at the same time, ha).  We are looking forward to my next check-up which will be next Monday the 9th.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers!!!

Weekend Update

Our first weekend back home was a great one. We had planned to attend a high school football game on Friday night but it was too cold and rainy to sit outdoors. Instead we went to a local Mexican restaurant and had a yummy meal. We also enjoyed a lot of sitting around and relaxing over the weekend! On Saturday, my mom, aunt, and cousin came down to see us. We went out to lunch together and then made a trip to the local Super Wal-Mart. I had forgotten just how busy Wal-Mart can be on a Saturday and made a mental note not to return during such a busy time. We had a great visit with them.
That night we were invited to a block party by our neighbors. Before we left, we had our first trick or treaters. This is Maggie & Annie. They are our neighbors two precious girls. We are blessed to be living by such a great couple and we look forward to spending a lot of time with them while we are here!

The party was a lot of fun with lots of people, food, and kids. This is a photo of most of the children before they went trick or treating.

They had two trailers that they all loaded up on and went around town getting candy. We opted to return home and not go with them. It was pretty chilly Saturday night!

Instead we came home to pass out candy at the door.

Sunday we attended church at Fair River Baptist Church in Brookhaven with our neighbors. Bro. David Fortenberry is the pastor there. He used to speak at our home church's annual Men's Pig Roast/ Wild Game Supper. After church we ate lunch next door at the neighbor's and spent the afternoon visiting with them. I need to post a photo of them because I have mentioned them several times. I'll try to do that soon. We had a great weekend and hope you did as well!

November 2009 Newsletter

Greetings from Mississippi! As most of you know we returned to the States last Sunday to begin our Stateside Assignment. We had a great day of travel and were welcomed home with lots of well wishes and love. We are getting readjusted well and fast. So far we are really enjoying our time back at home. Please pray that this will be a time of renewing and refreshment in our lives.

We are sure that most of you have heard by now, but in case you have not we had some wonderful news to share with our family and friends upon our arrival back in the States. We are having a baby!!! We are due June 2o10. Please pray for this pregnancy, my health, and the health of the baby. My next doctors appointment will be Monday, Nov. 9. We are praying for another great report on that day.

We are starting to get some speaking engagements booked and we hope to be able to see many of you while we are home. We still covet your prayers even though we are back in the States. We pray that we will be used here just as much as we were used there to make a difference in other people's lives.

We hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. We look forward to spending ours with our families! Until next time....

Sending our love,

David & Regina

Your Missionaries to Guatemala

PRAYER PRAISES:

1) a safe return trip to the States

2) a house to live in and a vehicle to drive while we are here

3) many family and friends who love and support us

4) our little one that is one the way! God is good!!!

PRAYER REQUESTS:

1) our safety of travel as we visit around and share about our work

2) my pregnancy and next doctors appointment- Nov. 9

3) to be able to effectively relay to the churches all that we have experienced while being on the mission field

4) that God would use us to encourage others to get involved in missions

The Comforts of Home

We are definitely getting spoiled while being back in the States. There has just been an overwhelming amount of love and support being shown to us. We truly feel blessed and loved!

We are living in the City of Brookhaven. So far we love it! We are a five minutes drive from not only Super Wal-Mart but also several options of places to eat. We are staying in a house owned by the Lincoln County Baptist Association. We are grateful to them for opening their home to us. It is very nice and very roomy! We feel lost in such a large living space, ha.

The dining room/ kitchen alone is as big as our apartment in Guatemala.

The house is completely furnished!!! We didn't need a thing but our clothes and some groceries. What a blessing that has been to us!We love this full size refrigerator! It's frost free so no more manual defrosting. Yippeee!! We have 3 bedrooms and 2 baths, with a BATHTUB!
The two guest rooms have twin beds And our room has a queen bed. We love it! The living room
We live in a nice, quiet residential area with very little traffic. It is almost too quiet after living in Guatemala. David joked that the only cars he saw pass yesterday were the garbage truck and the mail man. ha It's very peaceful.

We are also grateful to the Macedonia Call Foundation of Mississippi for providing us with a vehicle to drive while we are home. They take donated vehicles and then let missionaries use them while in the States. It's a great organization, be sure to check out their website. We only pay for insurance and maintenance. Just another thing we consider a blessing!!

Our First Ultrasound & A Little Update

Due to some early complications, we were very anxious to have our first ultrasound. We had it done last Wednesday, Oct. 21. I was 8 weeks. Words can't describe our thoughts and feelings when we saw our baby on the screen and heard it's heartbeat!!! What a relief and thrilling day that was!

The clinic has two doctors and mine is on the left. Both doctors were present for the ultrasound and both thought everything looked and sounded great! I have photos but have not been anywhere to scan them so I can post them but will try to do that soon.

I am 9 weeks today. Please continue to keep this pregnancy in your prayers as well as my health and the babies health. We would really appreciate it!

How am I feeling?

Sick & tired! ha I don't seem to be quite as sick as I was but the fatigue is as strong as ever. I think all the traveling and moving this week has worn me out. I am finally getting a little of my appetite back, but no weird cravings yet. I have not been able to eat much of anything so far. But, I think I have eaten more since returning to the States than I did in the last few weeks combined. I did wake up Tuesday morning wanting a hot dog for breakfast though. That was weird. I sneeze all the time and am constantly blowing my nose. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world!!!