We're Halfway!

Yesterday marked 20 weeks in our pregnancy...so we're halfway! As I mentioned in an earlier blog we had a sonogram while we were in the States with the doctor that is going to deliver our baby. We had decided to find out the sex of our baby as well. Luke had kind of wanted to be surprised but he knows how much I like to plan and agreed to finding out. The sonogram was amazing...our little one was moving all over. We saw the head, arms, legs, fingers, toes, heart, brain, umbilical cord...about the only thing we didn't see was something telling us if our baby is a boy or girl. Because of how the baby was positioned the only view we could get was of his/her butt cheeks and the little stinker had his/her legs crossed the entire time as well! I had been thinking that we were having a boy but now I think we may have a little stubborn girl...or a little girl that already knows she has her daddy wrapped around her finger and she figured keeping her sex a surprise was the least she could do for him! Since they do a sonogram at every appointment in Germany we could still find out the sex, but I've decided I can plan well enough without knowing and we think it'll be fun to be surprised the day our baby is born. Here are a few pictures we got from the sonogram.

CJ's armCJ's face

Christmas at Home

Here are a few pictures from our time at home!

Adiella modeling her new hat and swimming suit...LOVE those chubby arms and legs!Getting some time with little Josiah.

Luke trying out my new Sleepy Wrap...I think Levi likes it too!

Uncle Luke with Josiah.

Christmas in Rome

I realized today it's been a month since I've posted on our blog. Sometimes my lack of posting is because I don't feel like there's been anything "post worthy"...but that has not been the case this past month! A brief synopsis...Luke and I went to Rome for Christmas and then flew home to spend two weeks in Kansas. While in Kansas we were able to see the house we bought in Hesston, celebrate Christmas with both our families and get some quality time with our niece and nephew, whom we adore!! We also had an appointment with the doctor that is going to deliver our baby and another sonogram to find out the sex of our baby. Many of you know the result...but I'll make another post soon to let everyone else know what we found out! I'll try and post some pictures from our time in Kansas too...but back to Rome. Luke and I were in Rome from December 22-26 and loved every minute of it! We saw all the sites...the Forum, the Coliseum, the Vatican, St. Peter's Basilica to name a few highlights. We did a lot of walking and really enjoyed just walking through all the little neighborhoods throughout the central part of Rome. Another one of our favorites was the delicious Italian food we got to eat. I don't think the Olive Garden will ever be quite the same! ;-) I'm working on a slideshow of the pictures we took to post. Hopefully I'll get those up this evening!

Baby Update

We're now 15 weeks and we had another doctor's appointment last week and this time the doctor spent even longer doing an ultrasound. We really enjoyed getting to see our little one! The doctor checked to make sure that the baby is growing appropriately and that the spinal cord is fully closed. Everything looked good! The heart rate was again about 140/minute. The picture isn't as good this time, but we were able to see all of the baby including the tiny fingers and the baby trying to suck his/her thumb. Pretty amazing! I've been feeling good too and have a little more energy than I did during the first trimester. I'm starting to get a "pooch"...I'll make a slideshow of pictures so you can watch my belly grow. In this picture the baby's head is on the right and is looking down.

Visitors!

The last few weeks we've had the pleasure of hosting some visitors. Luke's parents came to visit for a week at the beginning of November and a couple of days after they left my friend, Wendy, came for almost two weeks. We really enjoyed our time with each of them! Luke had to work while his parents were here so I had the honor of playing tour guide. We went to see the Neuschwanstein Castle and hiked up the mountain to get a view of the castle from a bridge, visited Dachau, did a little shopping in a nearby town, and drove to the Black Forest and visited Freiburg. Unfortunately I didn't take many pictures while they were here...not sure what I was thinking! But here's one of the Neuschwanstein castle in winter. It had snowed a little while Luke's parents were here and then we got about 5 inches the weekend after they left and it's still on the ground. I need to get geared up for a winter here!

Wendy and I had the chance to go to Prague for a couple of days while she was here. We also went to the BMW Museum, toured the Residence Castle in Munich, visited Dachau, made a Thanksgiving dinner with some friends, and did some shopping at a Christmas market. It was a lot of fun to have her here and I've enjoyed having people around to hang out with during the day! Wendy and I on the Charles Bridge (Prague Castle in background)

Astronomical ClockEntrance to Prague Castle (some of which was built in the 10th Century!)My favorite car at the BMW Museum...maybe not such a good family car though!

***Stay tuned for a baby update!!***

Our Baby's 1st Photo

As probably most of you have heard by now we are expecting a baby June 4th. We had our first OB appointment this week. We weren't really sure what to expect since it was here in Germany. I thought they might try and listen for the heartbeat with a doppler, but we were pleasantly surprised when they did a quick sonogram. So not only did we get to hear the heartbeat, but we got to see our little one as well! The head is on the left of the picture and is about half the body right now. You can see two little hands and one foot as well. On the sonogram we could also see the heart beating and the baby moving around some. Amazing!! The baby is only about 3 cm right now...so just over an inch. Overall I've felt really well so far. I've definitely been more tired than normal, but I figure being tired is something I should probably get used to! We've decided to move back to the States sometime towards the end of March. Luke's contract here is up at the beginning of April so the timing works well with that and then we'll be home a couple of months before the baby should arrive...hopefully that will give us a little time to get settled. Right now the plan is that we'll be moving to Hesston, KS where Luke will continue to work for Agco. We've started house-shopping :-) and are looking forward to being back closer to family.

Indonesia

Luke and I returned last Friday from spending two weeks in Indonesia visiting Luke's brother, Caleb. We saw and experienced so many things that I've been having a hard time deciding how to give you a glimpse of it in one blog post. So I will do my best (without going on and on and on...) to share the highlights with you. I've only included a few pictures in this blog, but I will make a slideshow of some of our favorite pictures on the sidebar that you can look at if you'd like. Between us and Caleb we have over 500 pictures, so I promise I'll just pick our favorites!

We spent the first week in Indonesia in Bandung, where Caleb lives. We met with many of his friends, spent some time with a couple from Kansas that has lived in Indonesia for 32 years, saw an active volcano, went to a market, went a Muslim mosque, and traveled to a farm in rural Indonesia and spent one night there. We then traveled back to Jakarta (the capital city) and stayed with an Indonesian family that Caleb has gotten to know well during his time there. They showed us great hospitality and we really enjoyed our time with them. While in Jakarta we were part of a going-away party for the couple from Kansas, toured a park that displayed the culture of the different islands that make up Indonesia, and spent one night on a small island where we were able to snorkel, relax, and enjoy the scenery. On our way to the airport at the end of our trip Caleb asked us to choose five words to describe our experience in Indonesia. I think this may be the best way to highlight the trip for you. And in all honesty, I've made some slight changes to the five words from how I originally answered Caleb's question as I've had a little more time to reflect on our trip (and to try and give you a more complete picture on the blog!).

1. People: I think this word best describes Luke's and my first impression of Indonesia...there are people everywhere!! Caleb told us that the island has an average of 1000 people/sq km...and there are rural parts of the island with very few people. Most neighborhoods did not have streets through them, just very narrow paths (impossible for a car to fit down, but just wide enough for a motorcycle) called gongs. The gongs weave through all the houses that are definitely not set up on any sort of grid. We were amazed Caleb could figure his way through the mazes of gongs! The other reason we chose this word is that everyday we had at least one meal with a friend of Caleb's. It was a lot of fun to meet the people that he has been developing relationships with over the past two years. The above picture was taken after we ate lunch with Caleb's roommates. We had a great time with them and ended up giving a mini "marriage seminar" as they are almost all single, really wanting to find a wife, and had lots of questions about dating and marriage. I don't know how much wisdom we have to share after short 8 months...but they were eager to learn whatever they could from us!

2. Overwhelming: For much of the trip I found myself feeling overwhelmed, for a number of reasons (being pregnant may be one). I think one of the most difficult things for me was to see the level and extent of poverty that exists in Indonesia and feeling a sense of hopelessness and wondering how you could even begin to make a difference in a place with such poverty. The poverty level in Indonesia is considered an income of $2/day or less and 40% of the population lives at or below the poverty line. The government is well-known for its corruption and this has definitely contributed to the lack of development in Indonesia. The people we talked to though had great respect for their newest president and they all felt that he was taking steps to eliminate the corruption. This picture is a typical street scene in Bandung. There are a couple of bicycle taxis on the left side of the picture and a man carrying to large metal boxes over his shoulder. He is most likely able to cook out of these boxes and then sell food on the side of the street. This is a very common way Indonesians try to make a living. So not only do you have all the traffic of cars and motorcycles but you also have bicycle taxis, people pushing carts, and horse-drawn taxis trying to weave their way in and out of traffic. We actually saw a motorcyclist get knocked down by a young boy pulling a horse-drawn taxi against the flow of traffic during rush hour in Jakarta.

3. Culture: Luke and I really enjoyed getting to experience the culture of Indonesia. While we were in Bandung we attended a performance of traditional Indonesian music and dance. The Anklung is a traditional Indonesian instrument made out of bamboo reeds of different sizes to make different pitches. We even had the opportunity to learn how to play the Anklung. Dance in Indonesia always includes very colorful costumes, often a mask, and a lot of emphasis is placed on facial expressions and hand movements. The video at the end of this paragraph is a traditional Indonesian celebration for a boy before he is circumcised. The boy being carried in the chair is the lucky guy...I don't think he has any idea what's coming! We also got to try a variety of Indonesian foods, which always includes rice for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The Indonesians we met joked that unless they've had rice with their meal they aren't full. In Indonesia breakfast food is not much different than what you eat for lunch or dinner...seasoned rice with tofu is a very common breakfast. We were also fortunate enough to be in Indonesia for mango season, so we ate lots and lots of mango and other tropical fruits while we were there. We also ate at a restaurant in Bandung that was up on top of one of the mountains and was an open restaurant in the jungle. There were huts spread throughout that each had one table, so you felt like you were the only ones there. There were trees, large boulders, and waterfalls all over as well. It was gorgeous and the food was delicious!! It is considered an upscale restaurant, but the entrees were all about $5/plate...what a deal! The night we ate with Caleb's Vietnamese friends they cooked traditional Vietnamese food. It was really good and Luke and I managed to eat the entire meal with chopsticks! The most interesting thing they made us was a dish they normally have to celebrate the new year that is made with meat and cartiledge from a pigs ears and face. I tried one bite, but that was about all that I could stomach. I think it was knowing I was eating cartilage more than the actual taste. I'll make sure and include some pictures of the food we ate in the slideshow of photos.


4. Ministry: It was really encouraging to see the fruits of the ministries that have been started in Indonesia. The first couple of nights we were in Bandung we stayed with a couple that has served in Indonesia for 32 years. They actually moved back to the US while we were there, but the fruits of their labor were very evident and encouraging to see. We met a friend of Caleb's that is a leader on a campus ministry team whose father had been discipled by the man of the couple that had been in Indonesia for 32 years. Luke and I were really challenged to think about how we can be intentional where the Lord has placed us and how we can best serve Him and the people that He has placed in our lives.

5. Beauty: While I would not necessarily say that the cities were overly asthetically pleasing, we saw some amazing beauty in the rural parts of Indonesia. We saw valleys of hand-farmed rice patties, active volcanoes, mountains, jungles, and amazingly clear blue water with gorgeous coral, sea animals, and fish. Definitely much different scenery than you see in Kansas or southern Germany! We also got to experience some traditional Indonesian music and dance while we were there that was beautiful as well! We both really enjoyed experiencing the culture and the friendliness of the people of Indonesia.