Going With a List

I'm going with a list today... because there are a bunch of things I want to play catch-up on, and if I devote an entire post to each one, I'll never do it and the blog will languish a bit longer.

I've been a really lousy blogger these last few months... chalk it up to not feeling well. (I'm not one of those glowing, radiant pregnant women. I'm more of a puking pregnant woman.) And then, when I just started to feel a bit more human (month 4), I was hit with an insane travel schedule (of my own devising) and two bouts of jet lag. But, I'm starting to crawl out of that, too, and am optimistic that once I'm fully rested and my body and internal sleeping clock are firmly on the same continent, I'll feel even more like myself. Hopefully that means more writing. Because I do miss it.

So here is my list:

• Home was amazing. The food. The weather. The people. The snow cones. It was all great. We had a fantastic time, and miraculously missed one of the hottest summers of record in Beijing, complete with limited electricity and very little AC! I would have been SOOO MISERABLE! (I feel a lot worse when I'm hot.) So, I'm really thankful to have skipped that.
• First there was the wedding in Houston. It was beautiful and so much fun. Jacob's little brother Aaron made a dashing, Bond-esque groom, and his bride, Eileen, looked very regal. I think Hannah (Jacob's little sister) really thought she stole the show, though, and she was adorable. And, in the girly news department, I got to wear a fun dress I picked up in Thailand. It is silk and ties in a really cool way in the back. I don't have many occasions to get dressed up, so I had a lot of fun. Jacob isn't as much of a fan of dressing up, but I thought he was handsome in his suit and I was glad he had to wear it... but I forgot to get someone to take a picture of us! The photographer did take one of us dancing though, so all was not lost. Anyway, if you want to see pics from the evening, Eileen loaded some on the Scarlet Threads facebook page.  (Which you should be a fan of, if you aren't.)
• On our way to our hometown, we stopped in Dallas where we had a reunion of sorts with all sorts of wonderful people. It was a whirlwind for sure, but we got to see Leah and Julia (foster home grads) and a bunch of other super-special people. It really blessed us.

Us with our DFW friends, including Julia and Leah!
• And then it was to our home-town, where we rested, spent time with our immediate families, and ate a lot of good food. There was also a short trip to Albuquerque in the middle to visit Jacob's oldest brother and family. We love staying in the "Jake and Carrie room" at their home in the mountains; it's a restful place to us. And, they like to eat the same kind of food that I like to eat. Berries, good cheese, whole grains, and fresh fruits and veggies. I know it may seem crazy, but that actually is my favorite kind of food. Oh and we had root beer floats. No pictures from our time in the TX Panhandle or in ABQ, though. Our camera was broken. And I'm lazy about taking pics.
• And then at the end of our trip home, we went to Washington state to spend time with my grandparents and family up there. It was fantastic. My grandma is doing great -- recovering very nicely from her heart surgery (thank you for your prayers!) and back to her spunky self. And then, in what may have been the highlight of Jacob's recreational year (or 5), we went to the beach with some of our family to ride 4-wheelers and other high-powered loud things all over the Oregon coast. He was in heaven. I was happy to see him so happy, especially considering it fell just a few days after his birthday. And in what may have been the highlight of my year, I picked raspberries. Nearly 6 pounds of them. And paid 6 dollars. And ate a whole bunch more while I picked. (Is that wrong? I assume the expectation of snack-age it is built into the price.) I also somehow managed to convince Jacob to help me, so I probably only picked 3 pounds of berries and then made jam with my grandma. I also ate lots of blackberries and blueberries straight from bushes in my grandparent's backyard, but raspberries are quite possibly my favorite food in the whole wide world (and just about impossible to find in my part of China), and I was in paradise.

My Papa calls the Pacific Northwest "God's Country."  He's probably right.

Grandma teaching me how to make jam.
• And then it was back to China via Canada. It was a pleasant and uneventful trip back, and we're mostly getting over the jetlag. It's good to be back with our friends here, but I have to admit I might have left part of my heart in the raspberry patch. Our dog seems to be especially happy to see us. She literally spends a good part of her day quivering with excitement and a chunk of it running in circles chasing her tail. She does her "happy dance" quite frequently, and when she finally decides to rest, often will come and lay her head on our feet. It's cute. Thankfully she isn't barking or anything, so we just have to deal with a dog that acts as if she's been fed sugar pills for the last month. (Ruth, do you have something to tell me!?)
• I just realized that a good amount of all that I've talked about on here is food-related. I actually don't have much of an appetite, but it seems I have to eat all. the. time. to keep from getting sick, so it's starting to consume a lot of my daily brain power. We had our 20 week checkup on Friday, and all is well. Here's our 'lil critter in 3D - gender still unrevealed!

Sorry it is so grainy.  I wasn't able to take a clear picture of a picture.  I think it is funny that it's in basically the same position as last time; maybe we have a lazy child.

The doctor said everything looks good with me and baby, and though my weight gain is on the low end of normal, she said we're both doing fine (baby is growing slightly above average) and she's happier for me to stay down there than to gain too much, as that leads to more complications. I'm not trying not to gain weight; it's just really hard to eat very much.

Me and baby in the berry patch.  4.5 mths. 
• And Friday was our 5-year-wedding anniversary! I am so incredibly thankful for and amazed by the man I get to spend my life with. I know most of you just know the "Carrie" part of "jacobandcarrie" through the blog, and my dear husband is a bit of a stranger... but he's an incredible man, and I'm blessed beyond belief. We have points with a certain hotel chain built up from Jacob's old job, so we cashed some of those in and stayed at a nice hotel (for free!) in Beijing and just had a lot of R&R. And then we treated ourselves to a massage. It was very relaxing.

Jacob in his happy place.