Happy Birthday Hetee!

Hetee's birthday was this past Thursday. He turned 32! He's not big on birthday celebrations but I did manage to convince him to have a few friends over for some homemade cake. We all had a good time and even Hetee admitted it was fun!

10 things I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE about my Sweetheart

1. He never pressures me to change to fit into Mongolian culture. He accepts me and loves me for who I am.
   
2. He cleans fish very well and handles that and other yucky jobs without complaining one bit.
3. He carries all my heavy stuff when we go grocery shopping at the market (a kg of this and a kg of that adds up to usually about 15 kgs, or about 35 lbs.)
   
4. He works long hours translating to earn extra money for his family.
   
5. He looks for opportunities to spend time with his kids. He invests time and energy in them every day.
   
6. He eats my culinary inventions and experiments most of the time.
   
7. He's incredibly happy about becoming a daddy again.
   
8. He loves to watch all kinds of movies, just like me.
9. He knows when I'm feeling overwhelmed and he always steps up to help.
10. He fears and trusts God.

Happy Birthday, my Love! Wishing you many more happy years to come!

Whoa, Surprising!

So, I just turned 20 weeks and so far I've gained... 22 lbs?! Just to give you an idea of how much that is for me, I normally am 7 or 8 months along before I gain that much (I can't remember exactly but I gain about 35-40 lbs all together for each pregnancy).

But wait! Before you label me a hog, there's a simple explanation for this. My prepregnant weight this time around was 110, which is a bit underweight for my height (5'8"). I was having trouble gaining weight because of a finicky appetite and (ahem...) an addiction to coffee. I was drinking up to 5 cups of the stuff a day and therefore not eating properly and feeling horrible most of the time. Not just the coffee but the sugar was literally making me sick and unable to eat.

Anyway, all this to say that I stopped drinking coffee the day I found out I was pregnant. I stopped cold turkey and didn't even crave it. After about a week or so my appetite picked up and I started feeling a whole lot better. And happily for me, this all lead to a small but steady weight gain, even through the first few weeks of morning sickness.

So, here I am, 5 months pregnant, 5'8" and weighing 132 lbs. Although I've gained more that I "should have" in the 1st trimester, I feel that it's the right amount for me. I'm not eating junky foods. I do eat whole fat yogurt and milk and I use butters and oils somewhat liberally to help with skin elasticity (it's sooooo dry here and this really takes a toll on my skin). I eat lots of protein and know by experience that what I eat now affects my body post partum. The healthier I eat now, the quicker I will bounce back from childbirth. I'm not too worried about what the weight gain charts say. I feel good and am so thankful to be in this place of my life right now.

Happy Birthday, Kenny-Man!

Kenny's birthday was on the 20th of June. We celebrated on the 19th with a small family party. For now, it would seem that we are Kenny's favorite people. He's more of the shy type and doesn't enjoy being the center of attention...






10 reasons why I love me some Kenny:

1. he's super cuddly
2. his favorite transformer is Bumblebee
   
3. he comes to find me during the day just to tell me he loves me
4. his brother is his best friend
5. he wants to be just like his daddy
6. he loves pancakes, just like mommy
7. he's caring and sweet
8. he loves to show off his muscles
9. he's super excited about becoming a big brother
10. he's a handsome little man who is going to grow up to do great things!
    

Happy Birthday. Sweet Kenneth Urnuun!

What's been making me smile

• after almost 3 weeks of sickness (mumps and a mystery virus), the children are feeling better and I can see a light at the end of the tunnel. Please keep praying; we're not completely out of the woods yet. Abi's mumps have moved to the other side and Kenny (the last one to catch the mumps) still has both sides swollen.
• A couple days ago Nate and I started our summer reading program. We picked 5 books in both English and Mongolian for him to read a little every day. Our program will end in 3 weeks and he'll receive an erector set that he's been wanting. It does my heart good to see him reading so well in 2 languages.
  
• Our crops are doing good and almost everything is growing. It's still early but I think we're going to have a great harvest!
• This morning, after a fitful night's sleep with Kenny, Hetee took the kids and gave them their breakfast. I went back to bed for another 3 hours! I love that man.
• Dinner with our friends last night. What was meant to be a date for Hetee and I turned into a dinner for 4. We had a great time and talked till almost midnight.
• Molly is doing fine after eating what we think was a poisoned mouse. For about 24 hours we thought we might lose her but she pulled through! One life down, 8 to go...
  
• Abi and her cute quips. The other day Nate was complaining about the clothes I picked out for him. Abi passed him in the hall and under her breath said, "don't bite the hand, Nate" (a line from Madagascar). Nate persisted to disagree with me and I told him that he would wear what i picked or stay home. Abi said in a louder voice, "You bit the hand, Nate, you bit the hand!" Laughter all around!
  
• When Kenny slaps his hand to his forehead and exclaims "O boje moi" ("oh my god" in Russian).
  
• My ultimate, all-time favorite highlight for this post is feeling the baby move! I have been enjoying our little one's movement for about 2 weeks now and it's such an incredible feeling that I never get used to. It's just cool. =)
  

What's been making you smile? I REALLY do want to know.

I'm Growing!

I just passed week 17 feel like my tummy popped out overnight. I can still squeeze into one pair of jeans that were too big and long before. Now they're longer and drag on the ground cause the waist band fits under my tummy. It makes me feel like I'm going to lose my pants which is not a very good feeling when you're walking home from the grocery store with a heavyish tote in each hand. But it's all good. My friend Lydia has so kindly offered to send me some maternity clothes. They should be here in a couple weeks. In the meantime, I'll find something to wear, I'm sure.

Today I went shopping for maternity undies. I found some at a small stall in the shopping center. They were one-size-fits-hippo and looked entirely too big for me at this point but I got them anyway, you know, to save for later when I would eventually need them. I got home and tried them on, just to get an idea of how they fit and, oh my, the big things FIT. Talk about a reality check!

Now I have to be really careful. I tend to do dumb things until I really realize just how big I am. I remember when I was pregnant for Kenny, right after my tummy "popped out", I slammed in in the door of the refrigerator. Granted I was trying to hide something from one of the kids so I was really close to the door. But still, I felt really stupid.

Anyway, thanks to everyone who has been praying for our family. Kenny has fully recovered other than a small spot right under his bottom lip. It stays moist (cause boys drool and girls rule) so it's taking longer to heal.

Abi and Nate had a good 3 days in Ulaan Baatar with their Mongolian grandparents but both returned home with a fever. Abi, it seems caught Nate's mumps. Sigh. And Nate apparently has what Kenny had and now has a tongue full of sores. Yesterday they both had fevers again. Nate was 102 and Abi was 103 but today they seem much better.