Five Fact Friday

1. Insomnia has hit this week. I keep waking up for no apparent reason and then not being able to fall back to sleep for ages. The other night I was wide awake from 1.30am to 5am but when it came to getting up for work at 7am I could have happily stayed asleep. Urgh!

2. It was ironic that I posted an 'I love pregnancy' post yesterday (I wrote it a week or so ago and scheduled it) because I've been in a grump for the last couple of days. I'm tired (see above), I'm hot and I look like a whale in all my summer clothes. It's just a phase I'm sure.

3. Springwatch is back! For those of you who don't know, it's a live wildlife program which is currently being hosted at a nature reserve which was just down the road from where we used to live in Aberystwyth.
To be honest I don't think I should keep on watching the webcams because it's making me feel quite homesick. We used to go to Ynys-hir (the reserve) all the time and this type of weather makes me crave being out in the countryside while everything is all green and lush and bursting with life. We're settling into Cardiff but I still miss Aber so much.

4. The Olympic torch is coming to Cardiff today. Some random man came and asked if he could put bunting up on our house because they're filming it coming down our road, but we're no-where near the official route so I don't know why it would be coming down our little backstreet! I'm at work today but I'm hoping that it'll be this evening and we'll get our own little private show with someone famous parading it around! {I probably won't recognise who they are though!}

5. I've got a ridiculously busy two weeks coming up and I'm feeling a little apprehensive about it. I'm sure it won't be as bad as I'm expecting, and I need to just try and relax and actually enjoy each thing I do rather than constantly be thinking of the next meeting or thing I've got to get done but I still think I'm going to feel exhausted, especially as I'm not sleeping well. If I'm not posting so much in the next few days then you know why.

I feel like this Five Fact Friday is on a bit of a downer, but I'm just feeling tired and sorry for myself. I've got nothing to complain about really and I'm sure a relaxing day in the sunshine will cheer me up tomorrow!

**UPDATE**: I am no longer so gloomy because look what my husband dropped off at work to surprise me when I got back from lunch break…

Sweetest man alive.

Ten Reasons to Love Pregnancy

I remember reading a couple of blogs at the beginning of this year from women who spoke continually about how wonderful pregnancy was. In between hanging my head down the toilet bowl and laying utterly exhausted in bed I remember thinking ‘HOW CAN ANYONE EVER THINK THIS IS A GOOD IDEA?!’. I don’t think I ever believed them that you could feel great in pregnancy.

Well, I’m sorry; I’m turning into one of those sickly women who keeps raving on about how amazing pregnancy is.

Sorry if it makes you want to gouge my eyes out...but I do want to remember this time in my life and what a blessing this pregnancy has been. Sure – sometimes I feel a bit ill, tired or achy but the privilege of carrying our little daughter far out ways any discomfort I may feel.

10 reasons I love being pregnant:

1) Although I never believed it would come I can confirm that the ‘bloom’ does exist! Generally I feel great! My hair and my skin are good and people keep telling me I have a glow!
Interesting fact: did you know during pregnancy hardly any of your hair falls out? That’s why it looks all thick and lustrous!

2. I love my bump! To be honest my body changing has freaked me out a little as I’ve always been really slim and had a flat stomach, but it’s exciting to know that our little baby is growing daily and it’s nice to actually look pregnant.

3. Everyone loves a pregnant lady! People want to talk baby stuff and are just generally kinder and more considerate. As long as you can let the advice and baby/birth horror stories wash over your head it’s great!

4. I love having something to look forward to. Until I found out I was pregnant I felt a bit purposeless in Cardiff, especially as my job isn’t very interesting. Now I’ve got something to work towards and can see more of God’s plan for our life here. It’s much easier to settle in with that in mind.

5. We just feel incredibly blessed by God. Pregnancy is an amazing way of focussing your eyes on God and his sovereignty and goodness. I mean, a human being is growing inside of me and I’m not doing anything to control it...my body just does its thing! God’s creation is awesome.

6. One of my favourite parts of pregnancy has been seeing Josh getting ready to be a daddy. I love seeing the excitement on his face when he feels the baby kicks, or when he bought the Moses basket. He has been so amazing to me during pregnancy and he’s looked after me so well and loved me unconditionally even when I was really ill and couldn’t do anything. I love to see how our marriage has progressed in the last few years and what a Godly leader he has become. I know he will make a great father.

7. It has been a real blessing to stumble upon several blogs of pregnant ladies due around the same time as me recently. It’s good to see what we’re each going through and offer support to each other. I’m also loving the new followers that have stopped by in the last few weeks, especially you mamas who have offered me advice about various things. If you’re new and stopping by make sure you say hello in the comments!

8. I like having an excuse for afternoon naps. ‘nough said.

9.  At the beginning of pregnancy I was despairing at my diet. I always imagined I’d switch to super healthy organic eating as soon as I got pregnant but it didn’t quite work out like that with my horrific morning sickness. I don’t think I saw anything fresh for weeks!
Although my diet still isn’t perfect I’ve managed to settle into a better routine now and I’m trying to make sure I get my 5+ fruit and veg a day. It’s nice to have the motivation to cook a healthy meal even when I feel like I’d rather just have a piece of toast, or to say no to too much added sugar. I definitely feel better for it and hope it’s benefitting our little one.

10.  I love seeing God’s provision. I feel like it’s become my unofficial mission to get as many baby bargains as we can. I don’t want it to sound like we’re being really tight towards our unborn child – of course I want her to have the best – I just hate all the commercialisation around pregnancy and babies. There’s so much pressure to have all the gadgets and I’m sure it’s all totally unnecessary. We’ve already seen God’s provision so much in this pregnancy (a £100 Moses basket for £18; hello!) and so we’re trusting him on providing the stuff we really need rather than getting caught up in what the magazines tell us is essential.

Baby clothes advice needed!

We got given lots of baby clothes on Sunday.

They’re all so beautiful!

and delicate!

and small!

and cute!

and the shoes…oh the shoes! I can’t wait to nibble on little feet that are small enough to fit into these…

eeek!

On a practical note, when I ask how many baby clothes I’ll need to get for a newborn people keep saying “oh loads! – they go through lots in a day”, but in your experience how much is that in reality? I’ve got 9 sleep suits and 14 baby grows and a few other random tshirts etc. I expect we’ll be given quite a bit more when the baby arrives…how much did you start off with? Should I just wait and buy stuff as we need it?

Any advice gratefully received!

Domestic Goddess Fail

Does anyone know how to clean out a front loading washing machine that has gone all scummy and mouldy inside?

Apparently I don’t…

I’ve read on several websites that putting bleach in on an (empty) hot cycle can clean out the inside of the machine and stop everything smelling but when I came down into the kitchen I found my machine making a strange noise and everything overflowing with bubbles!

Thankfully I found it before they started coming out onto the floor…!

I managed to bail out the excess and put salt into the drum and the draw which helped the bubbles to subside, but I had to do several rinse cycles before the machine was clear.

It was all fairly hilarious, but I won’t be repeating the procedure.

Does anyone have any tips for cleaning your machine without causing a minor flood?

Five Fact Friday

I am so glad it’s Friday! This week has just been one of those weeks and I’ll be glad to sweep it under the carpet and start afresh, and hopefully be a bit more productive next week!

1. Josh was away for the first half of the week at the Holy Trinity Brompton leadership conference in London. It was great for him as they had awesome and inspiring speakers (like Rick Warren) and great worship, but sad for me because we missed him!
I ended up staying up pretty late because I don’t really like sleeping without Josh there (I get paranoid about every creak and noise) which totally wiped my pathetic pregnancy body out and I’ve felt exhausted.

2. Due to exhaustion it seems like baby-brain has hit majorly this week. I have just been out of it! As a result I’ve achieved practically nothing of worth and have made some stupid mistakes. I made sure I had a massive meaty meal last night and took my pregnancy vitamins (which I always forget to take) and feel a lot better today. If you treat your body right it’ll perform right!

3. Every week when I walk to work on a Friday I see a guy lying in the middle of the park and every single time I think ARGH! THERE’S A DEAD PERSON! He’s actually just stretching for exercise but it still freaks me out.

4. We watched the film Machine Gun Preacher last night and I would recommend it if you’re looking for a film to watch. It’s based on the true story of Sam Childers who turned away from a life of drugs and crime when he became a Christian and built an orphanage in Sudan for children affected by the work of the LRA.
Be warned it’s got quite a bit of swearing and violence in it (it’s a 15 – but I thought it should be an 18), but as it’s based on real life events I don’t think it’s right to shy away from the horrific things that are happening every single day just because it might offend my sensibilities.  
It touches on some really interesting discussion points such as whether it is right to use violence against violence, and it really highlights the differences between how we live in the West compared to the struggles faced in Africa. It makes me feel sick when I think of all the money I waste on pointless, selfish rubbish when you realise how far it could go to supporting others.
Don’t watch it if you don’t want to be challenged. I dreamt about the orphaned kids last night and my heart is hurting today.

5. I think that’s all for now...what are your plans for the weekend?

Spring at Coed y Bedw

What a difference a year makes

A year ago today we visited Cardiff for an open day at Josh’s college. It was the first time we really had a chance to look around and ask some questions and I just remember coming away feeling totally overwhelmed.

I posted about my thoughts HERE, and I’m so glad I have this blog to remember the time of change and transition we have experienced in the last twelve months. I’ve been pretty honest about the struggles and joys of moving to the city and it’s great to see how God has worked through several situations in hindsight.

Here are a few things that my former self might have found useful to know last year...

Then:
This time last year accommodation was a huge weight on my mind. We knew we wanted to live in a privately rented house but we weren’t sure if the college would agree. I remember bursting into tears when one of the students was particularly unhelpful about showing us one of our potential flats (but trying not make a scene - why is it impossible to stop crying when you want to?!) because I just wanted to know where we were going to live and to sort it out.
Now:
God answered our prayers and we were able to move into the house we longed for. Not only that, but the landlords put in a new kitchen and bathroom and sorted out some mould and damp issues that I was slightly concerned about. I love our house so much, and I’ve loved hosting people and being hospitable.

Then:
I was worried about Josh going back to being a student because when we were first married (and Josh was a student and I wasn’t) I found it really tough. I was sad that Josh would have all his meals in college and we wouldn’t really eat together. I didn’t want to feel left out as he did this new thing and met new people, whilst I didn’t really have a role in Cardiff.
Now:
None of this has really been an issue. Josh and I get to spend a lot of time together and eating alone on some days isn’t too bad. Going back to university as a mature student is definitely different to doing it the first time around, I have been proud to see Josh settle in so well and it’s been nice to meet some of the other college spouses and students.

Then:
I had no idea was my role in Cardiff would be. I had no job when we moved down and finding a full time post was something that made me stressed for months after moving to the city. I felt like I had to prove my worth, especially when most of the new people we were meeting were lawyers or doctors!
Now:
God provided some part time work for me very soon after moving down and it was such a blessing as I didn’t really have to search it out. To be honest, getting rejected from job after job was tough, especially as I don’t find my receptionist job very stimulating, but when we found out I was pregnant at the beginning of the year it all made sense. It would have been really awkward to have started a new job and then have to leave a couple of months later...plus I really love being part time as it has enabled me to get to know people, spend time making a nice home for Josh and just be a bit more relaxed.

I would be here all day if I listed every other thing that has fallen into place this last year from our church to our transport. It hasn’t all been easy and I remember shedding many tears, but God is faithful and we are settled here.  There are still many different frustrations and difficult situations in front of us but it’s easy to face the future when you know God’s promises and can see them fulfilled in your past.

And you know what? I’m glad that I didn’t know how things would work out this time last year because we have learnt and grown so much through it. Our faith and our marriage have been strengthened through our experience and that’s what living life is all about.