Half Way There!

Ohhh, we're half way there, oohh oohh living on a prayer! (sing a long with us...)

This weekend marks 20 weeks, or half way through pregnancy with Baby Palmer 1! 

Not much has changed over the past two weeks...but here's a picture and a few updates.

Highlights:

-This baby is moving a lot and it's one of the neatest feelings out there, I'm convinced.

-We go back to the doctor this week, which means we should have a better idea of what we're having (stay tuned for a post!)

Aches and Pains:

-I often wake up sore after a night's rest...but I imagine that will only get worse the bigger the baby and I get.

-Still no major relief from nausea...but hey, I can handle it if it might mean the baby's growing (who knows!? or maybe I'm just a weird pregnant woman??)

That's about all that's new at this point.  Maybe week 22 update the belly will be getting bigger :)  And in the meantime, while we await the arrival of this little one, we really DO appreciate the prayers!

P.S. - on a completely non-related baby note, there has been some change happening here in Bratislava.  Namely, HOCKEY!!!  The World Ice Hockey Championships are being held right here across the street from us (and in another city in Slovakia).  It's a big deal!  A whole post to come later.

Studyin' and Marketin'

The other day Jas and I needed to do some studying for our class/tutor. It was bright and sunny and the idea of staying inside on a day like that was killing us.

So we headed out to the park right next to us (which happens to be super sweet with a HUGE playground, lots of ice cream, a great pond with swans, and a big walking/running/biking track).  We brought the hammock, our lunch, and our homework.

My phone was with me and so I snapped a few shots.

Some pre-study relaxing...

 

Beauty (except for this was a mean lil guy...very protective of his pond)

We then decided it was time for a market run.  Please look at this yumminess...

And after our day out we came home with some of these...

Oh happy day :)

Now for a week of rain!

MORE eggs...

After church on Sunday we joined up with some Slovaks and Americans for an Easter Egg Hunt.  I helped hide the eggs (and may or may not have hidden five or so of them a little TOO well...haha).

It was big fun watching the kids go for the eggs and enjoy the candy afterwards.  Jas and I are looking forward to being parents :)

Did I mention Sonya had prepared 130 eggs!  That's right...130 amazingly colorful eggs.

The egg-searching gang.

This lil guy was nestled in some grass just a-waitin' to be found.

And of course, after all the egg-citement (yes, I just went there ;) Jas and I wanted to try our own hand at dying eggs.  Not just any ole eggs though, these were brown eggs.  I had never dyed brown eggs before, so this was a first.

We did crack a few in the process (turns out we're either tough on eggs or they're not as resilient as white eggs), but then we let them sit in the color for a loooong time.  They turned out quite vibrant (and a bit streaky haha).

Hope everyone had a Happy Easter!

Vel'ka Noc!

Easter is a big deal around here.  People bring out eggs, water, and whips.  No, seriously.

From what we've learned so far, on Monday guys will take water and "whips" or braided branches, grab some water, and go find girls they think are pretty.  Then they will hit the girls and throw some water on them.  The girls give them eggs in return.  This is a tradition that has been going on for a loooong time.

As far as we know, here in the city it is a bit less common than it is in the villages and smaller towns.

But eggs, now, are a pretty universal symbol for Easter (at least it seems!).  So we decided we would take some plastic eggs that were sent to us (thanks mom!) and put them to good use.  We loaded them up with some sugary goodness, but that's not all we put in them...

The most important item we placed in the eggs was a slip of paper with the following on it:
"Jesus said to her:  I am the resurrection and the life.  Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.  Do you believe this?"  John 11:25-26

We then finished them off with a star sticker (for more color, of course!) and gave them to some of our fellow language classmates.

Thankful for the opportunity to share the good news of Christ because he died and rose for us :) What greater hope!?

Ordinary to Extraordinary

I have this favorite pair of shoes.

They're comfy, easy, and go with everything and because of that I have WORN them OUT.

Especially since coming to Slovakia!

And so they've started to show their miles in a major way.  And the other day I was having a craft craving (aka, I really wanted to do something artsy).

So I went and found my Sharpies, grabbed the shoes, and little by little over time, have been working on bringing the drab to fab.

The drab, worn, and dirty BEFORE...

And the colorfully glorious AFTER...

They may be a little over the top, possibly even kid-ish, but hey, I am a huge color creativity fan...so there ya go :)

And yes, they're still dirty (all I did was cover it up!), BUT the favorite shoes are back in action...yes!!