Fall Farm Photos

Here are some pictures from Eston's 7th birthday party, the last summer CSA day, and random shots around the farm.  Yay for October and some cooler weather, boo for having only summer maternity clothes! Hopefully that won't matter much longer though... I can't express how eager we are to meet our sweet baby and how surreal it is all at the same time! Enjoy the pictures! Please pray for us in this time of waiting and for our labor. Thank you!

Baby Shower

Last Sunday Kyle's mom, Joanne, threw us a wonderful baby shower in Wilmington.  It was such a sweet celebration and Kyle and I felt so loved and supported by all our family and friends who came. I could not believe that it was all for us and our baby!  We were given so many adorable gifts that were much needed.  The way that God continues to provide for us through His abundant resources is such a blessing and I see Jesus in people when they give so generously because He is the ultimate generous giver of full life.  It was really special getting to see friends from high school, college and Topsail and having family come into town for the occasion.  I loved having so many people that we love all together.  I enjoyed getting everything settled into the baby's room this week and I just washed all the blankets, crib sheets, burp cloths and clothes and loved picturing our lil shug in each outfit! Baby clothes are so dang cute! We are really beginning to wonder when we are going to get to meet our little one and what they will be like!  Thanks Momma Jo for all that you did for us and for everyone else who helped in one way or another, we are thankful for you!

Sweet Raleigh Friends

Laur with Charlie and Libby with Lillie

So pretty!

Charlie and Lauren (Dooley)

Aunt Mary Beth and Mom- sweet cousins!

The Yancey's!

Papa-to-be getting some practice in!

Lillie and Catherine

Kellay Raye 

Lovely Wilmington girls

Nana with her girls and grandbabies

Marveling at the baby belly!

Winston-Salem Weekend

This past Sunday my sister Lauren had a baby shower in Winston-Salem.  Yes, my sister and I are pregnant with our first babies at the same time! And it is so fun! We like to do things together, like getting married within four months of each other...  I am curious to see if the trend continues with our future children. So, two, dear, long-time, family friends Christine and Morgan along with my mom came up from Wilmington and Kyle and I went up for the weekend for the shower.  While all the women hung out at Lauren and Brad's house Saturday night and Sunday before the shower Brad and Kyle were out bow hunting for deer.  While Brad is a veteran hunter this was Kyle's first hunting experience.  Kyle was pumped to have this opportunity and I know the guys had such a great time hanging out together.  The whole deer stand concept didn't appeal to me so much but I tried not to think about it.  It was new seeing my husband in camo and it reminded me of  his first day of work on the farm when he was decked out in suspenders and a straw hat! Life is full of surprises! So Kyle didn't actually have a bow of his own but Brad graciously gave up his bow on Sunday morning and Kyle went out and he got a deer!! How crazy?! I had prayed that the boys would have fun and at least get to see some deer and maybe take a few shots, but God had even better plans than what I asked for!  I am learning that this is true in all of life.  Lauren and I woke up to a phone call and the boys came over to show us the deer, neither Kyle nor I had seen a deer like this before, except on the side of the road.  It wasn't so fun to look at, mind you, but it was an exciting event!

The shower was such a sweet celebration of my sister and her soon to be here daughter, Eva.  It was held at Brad's brother's house and hosted by all the Gerstmyer women.  They did such a fabulous job, it was elegant and the food was SO good.  Have you ever heard of monkey bread? If not, you should look up a recipe and make it! It was so good!  There were four different kinds of quiches to choose from, scones, amazing little ham sandwiches with melted cheese, a large, colorful fruit platter that had completely vanished by the end of the shower and your choice of a chocolate or vanilla cupcake to top it off.  Lauren received so many great gifts, all of which were adorable and some of which were handmade, including a stylish teething necklace Laur can wear (and Eva can chew), and great things to have like a beautiful nursing cover and a baby food processor.  It is so good how God provides for us, even little Eva who isn't born yet! We all had such a great weekend.  It was such a blessing to all get to be together and to have Christine, Morg and mom come from Wilmington.  I am thankful for the fellowship and sweet time that was shared. Here are some pics from the weekend.

Lucy giving Morg some lovin!

Mom, Me, Laur, Morg and Christine

Three pregnant sisters! That is Mary Beth Gerstmyer, one of the hostesses and this will be her third child!

My Belly is HUGE

Kyle and I cannot believe it is already September and that will be meeting our son or daughter so soon! We are getting more and more excited to meet our lil one and more and more anxious to know if they will be a he or a she! It is crazy that the baby really could come anytime from now or 6 weeks from now, it is really up to them and when they are ready to come out.  After our 36 week appointment we will be having appointments every week until the baby comes. We have three more classes for our Bradley Birth class.  We have met twice with our friend Kellay Raye aka our doula and are so excited about her being a part of our child's birth, not to mention thankful!  Her knowledge and passion for childbirth is such a blessing to us.  Check out her website if you are curious about what a doula is or if you live in the triangle area and are in need of a doula... ohbabydoula.weebly.com I have started thinking about packing our bag for the Birth Center and getting together some things that we may need in the car for our 40 minute drive.  I have been trying to picture us in labor and picture what the heck a contraction will be like and I honestly have no clue...I guess I will know soon enough.  I feel great assurance, confidence and comfort knowing that Kyle will be with me the whole time and that Kellay will be there to help us too.  Not to mention that I am completely out of control as to how labor will go and that I constantly have to commit my trust in Jesus and rest in the Truth that He will be with us the entire time and that He cares for us.  I receive peace only after committing my worries and fears to Him throughout the days whenever they rise up. His peace is so good.

I've added some pictures of the baby's room thus far.  I have had fun working in there and getting the room arranged just right.  The room used to be our guest bedroom and will now act as both baby room and guest room (I am thankful for how big of a room it is).  There are still some plans I have for what I want above the crib and not to mention actual bedding for the crib and a bunch of other knick knacks we still need to get.  But overall the room has come a long way and is ready to welcome babe.  We also have a wooden cradle in our bedroom where newborn babe will sleep.  My grandfather, aunt, uncle, mother, sister and myself have all slept in the cradle (maybe some cousins too).  It's really amazing that our baby will now sleep in it, I love stuff like that!

Friends I know from college, Caroline and Danielle came to the farm to visit not long ago and we had such a sweet time together.  It was so good to get to catch up with them and to get to visit with them face to face.  I am thankful Raleigh isn't so far from here and allows for such times.  We had fun checking out the pigs who are now huge (like someone else I know) and aren't so cute and cuddly anymore.  Pigs are pretty hilarious to watch, they really remind me of fat dogs and are so aggressive when it comes to eating.  When Kyle was feeding them two ran through his legs, knocked him off his feet and he landed sitting on their backs! They also nibble at his feet every time he goes in to feed them.

I hope you are enjoying September as much as I am and I hope you enjoy the pictures!

This is made using a piece of a burlap bag that once held blue potatoes that were planted on the farm (and were delicious)!

The fabric hanging in the window pane has blue flowers on it and the giraffe guy on the crib plays different sounds for play time and sleeping

Kyle made the "S" blacksmithing and we made the ribbon board from a canvas (with a failed attempt at a painting on it), an old towel for batting, fabric, ribbon and buttons!

Why I Love Going to Birth Class

1.  The Birth Instructor's house where we meet is awesome and they keep the air turned down real low.
2.  There is a black lab named Jackson that greets us every time we arrive.  He is really sweet and I love black labs.
3.  It's the one time in my week I get to be with three other pregnant women and their husbands and talk about babies and being pregnant for 2+ hours, which rocks.
4.  We get free, yummy, healthy snacks to eat the whole time.
5.  We get to learn about what happens during labor and I am fascinated by the whole process.
6.  We get to practice for labor which is really fun and involves me lying in a relaxation position on the floor with some pillows with my eyes clothes, jaw relaxed, allowing drool to fall where it may, listening to the ocean crash on the shore (on cd), Kyle "timing" our fake contraction of 60 seconds, while sweetly rubbing my back, talking about a scene at Topsail Beach to allow me to visually relax, and simulating a contraction by squeezing my bicep-I love it! What's not to love?!
7.  I love that for two hours all the attention and focus is on the babe and the only time my instructor, classmates or myself get off topic is when we are talking about other babies and pregnancies and deliveries which is still totally on topic!
8.  All the prego women and their husbands tailor sit the whole time which is a great position that helps prepare the body for labor (it's basically the classic "Indian style" with a purpose).
9.  Our instructor, Christina, has a ton of books on pregnancy, labor and birth, breastfeeding, and babies that we can borrow for free. I love books! And not having to pay for them!
10.  We get to watch movies about labor/birth that give me an idea of what is to come and show me that other women have gone through the same thing, naturally, coping with the pain using the same techniques we're learning, and in the end held their sweet baby in their arms. The movies get me pumped up.
11.  It is the one guaranteed time in the week that Kyle and I are completely free from distractions and are focusing on learning, preparing and practicing for the birth of child. 
12.  Jackson, the black lab, once again sends us off for the week with a sweet look, shake of the head, wag of the tail and invites us to pet him goodbye. 

A Story of Unlikely Events

Imagine coming home from a four-day weekend trip visiting family.  You walk in the door, the heat from inside blasts you in the face since you had the temperature turned way up to save a few bucks. You go and turn the heat down.  Despite the heat, it is good to be home after the eight hour car ride driving through torrential rain and playing word feud with your husband on your parents' high tech phones even though you felt car sick most of the time looking at the screen (how do they have high tech phones and we don't?).  Oh and you are pregnant and had a hard time sitting in one spot with your huge abdomen for eight hours straight.  Thankfully the car was air-conditioned.  Okay, so you walk in, turn down the heat, plop your bags in the library as you walk to the kitchen for some water.  There is bright blue and green glass shattered on the ground.  Your glass fish you loved is now non recognizable. The cobalt blue, glass circle of a puffin with the words "Bar Harbor" printed on it is shattered in the sink (among the pile of dirty silverware that was left for you to clean when you return because you don't have a dishwasher and didn't want to wash them before you left).  Everything is fallen from the window sills.  The TV is still in its place in the living room, nothing is stolen from the house.  Your only hypothesis is that there was a terrible storm that shook the windows so bad that everything fell (not to mention that the windows have outer storm windows and they are the sturdiest, built in the forties, not going anywhere windows).  So naturally you get your husband to call your friend/neighbor because he grew up here and may have a more likely guess for what happened.  And he does-rats.  Not what you wanted to hear?  You immediately pick your feet up into your chair (that will save you from the rats) as you hear that word repeatedly being exchanged over the line.  So then you and your husband proceed to look for rat turds.  Yes, rat turds on your kitchen counter.  Thankfully you don't find any but disappointingly the mystery is unsolved and you aren't sure if you will be able to sleep tonight wondering what's lurking in your house.

You both cannot even talk to one another out of shear exhaustion from the car ride.  You pop in a movie and sit down to eat dinner/veg in front of the TV.  Eh, forty minutes goes by and you hear something to your left in the dining room.  You look over and don't see a person in there and so the sound goes unmentioned between the two of you.  Eh, another twenty minutes goes by and another distinct, clear, clanking sound from the dining room.  You both look at each other as your husband pauses the movie.  You stay right where you are, safe on the couch, tucking your legs under you.  Armed with a flashlight, your husband sneakily walks into the dining room and within seconds you hear the words "I see his tail."  What?! HIS TAIL?! Oh yeah, on the buffet table, behind the typewriter.  A tail. At your husbands coaxing, you walk across the room to see the tail for yourself.  He was right, it is a tail.  Not skinny and hairless like a rat's but not huge and bushy like a squirrel's either.  Kind of cute and smaller with a similar likeness to a squirrel's, yes cute.  Okay, so it is time for action. You suggest that the flashlight may not be necessary as you do have an overhead light that would make it easier to see the thing.  Your husband goes to get a T-shirt to use to catch it and the camera to capture this strange situation you both find yourself in while you close the door to the kitchen and the door from the living room to the hallway leaving the creature somewhat trapped in the dining room and living room. You wonder if it has rabies or poses any other harmful threat besides the one that he might get close to you or even touch you!  You get the camera ready as you stand on a chair in the living room and your husband grabs a yard stick.  Then begins the chase.

Off the buffet table, on the floor, around the table, in the corner, across the room (toward you), he turns around (your scream scares him back), around the table, under the buffet, in the living room (you move to a chair in the dining room and instruct your husband to open the door to the porch- you are really good at giving orders right now), around the TV, in the fireplace (maybe showing us how he got in?), under the chair, behind the couch, ON the couch, soaring across the room from the arm of the couch to the TV (did he just fly?!), back under the couch where he stays for a while.  After many failed dives from your husband with the red T-shirt/net and after many little turds have been dropped your husband picks up the yard stick again and you are wondering if he is going to try to kill it with that! Instead, with frustration he throws off all the couch cushions explaining that the squirrel may be IN the pull-out couch and uses the yard stick to prod and poke around in the couch.  Then, there he is, on the back of the couch, he runs across the back cushions the entire length of the couch dodging your husbands grabs and gives an impressive leap off the arm of the chair as his arm flaps/wings open and he lands on the porch! Your husband screams "No way! A flying squirrel!" You order your husband to "close the door, close the door" (duh).  And he proceeds to go on the porch while you remain safe behind the glass panes, among the disaster you have of a living room.  After a few soars on the part of the squirrel and a leap to your husband's arm and off again, the little guy is caught with the red T-shirt by his hind leg and your husband holds him close to the window for you to see before he takes him outside to throw him in the yard! Your home is once again free from creepy/cute animal invaders and you can now finish what is left of a really sad ending of a movie (even after all that happened it is still easy to get sucked back into the film and sob like a baby) and then you go to sleep in peace. The end.

Pictures of July

The bees are alive and well and doing their thing

Honey!

Kyle and I spent a weekend just us at Topsail for my birthday!

Baby already loves the beach...

Jamie Brie, the kids and I went blueberry picking and I couldn't resist taking this of sweet Adela!

This is our set up for Sunset Farms at the Durham Farmer's Market on Saturdays

Flounder that Kyle, Brad and Dad caught earlier in the summer! Fried eggplant and tomatoes too! Yum!

Kyle and I had a picnic at the nearby Cedarock Park for my birthday!

Kyle enjoying some of his favorite fruit!

First time growing flowers from seed (or any flowers at all...)-zinnias!

View of Sunset Farms on one of my walks

Crazy Snowball is always one to entertain.  She joined Kyle and I on our walk this particular evening.