Baby Delk's first photo shoot =)

I know no one else besides Brandon and me (and our moms!) really cares about these pictures, because hey, all ultrasound pictures look the same, right? Buuuut, Baby Delk is just so cute curled up in Mommy's tummy that I haaaaad to post these pictures! I mean, if you look close enough, you can see his/her (???) head, rump (that one day I'll probably have to spank if he/she is anything like Mommy!!), arms, legs (which were kicking so that's why they are in different places on each of the pictures), and cutest little baby tummy!! Melt my heart. Ok, just had to show you pictures of my sweet little one =)

It's a.... BABY!!!

Yep! That's right! I'm pregnant! I, Bethany Delk, am going to be a mommy. I could not be happier! In fact, I have never been happier in my life, I know it. Today we heard the heartbeat for the first time and we got to see the baby for the first time too. I cried. Like a baby actually, no pun intended =) When the midwife found the heartbeat, it truly was the sweetest sound I had ever heard. I'm actually crying as I write this because I am just so overwhelmed that God has blessed me with a life to grow and then to nurture. A little pitter patter, the heartbeat sounded like it was trying to race itself, 172 beats per minute! Bu-bump, bu-bump, bu-bump, sweet sweet music to my ears. I cried and I laughed and the midwife had to tell me to be still since my tummy was all over the place and she had trouble keeping the heartbeat while I was moving so much! The baby is about the size of your thumb, from the knuckle to the tip. Or a little bigger than the size of a grape. Imagine that... a little grape-sized baby... oh I am so in love already!! My little grape-baby is due August 1st so that makes me 10 weeks and 5 days along right now. They weren't exactly sure of my due date so it is possible it could change after my next few visits. We also won't get to know the sex of the baby until the middle of March... which feels like forever away, but I'm sure will end up flying by. Anyone got any strong feelings that it is a boy or a girl? I've had none. I keep wondering if I "feel" like it is one or the other, but I really don't know. I would be happy with either. I would love to dress a little girl is pretty dresses and bows for her hair but I also love my nephew to pieces and would love to see two boy cousins having fun together one day... To tell you a bit about my pregnancy I'm "borrowing" this cute survey from Becki's blog. (Thanks Becki!)

How far along? 10 weeks 5 days

Weight gain? 2 pounds so far! (I thought it would be so much more but I was very relieved to see the number on the scale today)

Maternity clothes? Not yet, but I am starting to have a little trouble with my dress pants for work. Don't tell anyone but I can't button one of my pairs of dress pants and as of 2 days ago, I officially cannot zip them up all the way anymore!! Holy Cow! My waist is disappearing!!

Sleep? I have never ever ever before in my life gotten up to pee in the middle of the night. I am a sleeper. I don't get up for anything, ask Susan, my college roommate, she remembers not even being able to wake me up for fire drills in the middle of the night! What can I say, I'm a sleepy person. Now, I get up at least once to pee. Before Christmas I had gotten up to getting up FOUR TIMES A NIGHT. FOUR. OMG. Ask me how frustrated I was. No words.

Stretch Marks? None... yet. Anyone have any stellar remedies for preventing these bad boys??

Best Moment this week? Hearing the baby's heartbeat and seeing him wave to Mommy today =)

Movement? Well I saw the baby moving during the ultrasound but I don't feel the baby yet.

Food Cravings? Cheeseburgers, mashed potatoes and gravy, scrambled eggs with cheese.

Food Aversions? COFFEE!!!! I used to LOVE coffee! This was clue number 1 that I was pregnant... I started weaning myself off caffeniated coffee for decaf when I knew we were going to start trying, then I found that I couldn't finish a whole cup of coffee in the morning. Then I didn't want coffee but I would still try to drink it, because, hey, I love coffee, I drink it every morning. THEN one day the smell made me gag and I COULD NOT drink even a sip. I threw the whole cup away. Please please please don't take me to Starbucks in the near future because I just might lose my lunch =( And, you can join in prayer with me that my love of coffee returns after the baby arrives =) Thanks!

What I miss most? Sleeping through the night.

What I'm looking forward to? Finding out what the sex of the baby is!!

Milestones... We had our first prenatal visit today. It went beautifully. I cried a lot and the ultrasound technician even complimented Brandon and I, saying that the staff thought I was beautiful and that we were the perfect couple! I was already having a fabulous day, this was just icing!!!

Other tidbits about my 10 weeks because, well, just because. It is my first pregnancy and I'm figuring out this Mommy bit as I go and I want to share it with you all! Morning sickness. I'd heard of it and even sympathized with women who endured it because if you know me at all, you know I HATE to throw up. HATE HATE HATE it. I am actually fearful of vomiting. Mostly because I don't really remember how but because ew! its gross and awful and no fun! I have been blessed with morning sickness that is actually morning, noon and night sickness, aka, I'm nauseous 90% of the day. I have even woken up in the middle of the night, sat straight up in bed and thought "oh, no! I'm going to vomit on the bed and I really don't want to!" Don't worry, I didn't throw up in bed. I clenched my throat muscles reallllll tight and prayed that God would understand just hoooow badly I didn't want to throw up. Getting up in the morning is a mean trick. I mean I wake up, open my eyes and think "hey, I feel good today." THEN, I sit up and realize, "oh crap, no I don't." Does everyone know what dry heaving is? Yeah, me too. My closet knows what it is, my shower knows, my sink knows... how? because I've introduced them. Yep, Dry heaves while getting ready for work. There's not a whole lot worse than knowing you've got to be in another town for work in an hour and you can't get up from sitting beside the toilet. PLUS the ironic and slightly unfair thing about the whole first trimester is that you don't normally tell people you are pregnant until the second trimester so you spend a miserable 12 weeks hiding a secret and hovering over the white trough. How unfair! I couldn't tell anyone at work because I wanted to make sure the baby was healthy and strong and yet I was holed up in my office (because oh yeah, they brew approximately 4 pots of coffee in my office suite a day!!!) with the door closed alternating between putting my head on the desk and laying down on the floor. Yeah, what a miserable couple of weeks. I so wanted someone to sympathize with me or pat my back or just tell me I would survive. Needless to say, I called Brandon a lot. I haven't told my coworkers yet (Monday's the big day!) but I know it will all make sense to them once I tell them because I have been acting so different the past few weeks. Just to summarize, I have walked out on lunch on more than one occasion the color of kermit the frog, I have gone from eating salads for lunch to burgers, macaroni and cheese, and french fries (totally out of character for calorie-counting-me!), and I've been working with my office door shut (remember, the coffee aversion?).

I guess this qualifies as my longest post ever but I also qualify for first baby ever so it turns out its ok. I will try to post on a regular basis and also put some pictures up! I have to battle the scanner to be able to post the ultrasound pictures from today but I am prepared to go to war =) I also can't wait to start posting belly bump pictures!

To close out here is how I've been praying for the baby each night (and actually every free moment in the car or walking down the hall!) so feel free to join me in praying up this little one who we will all get to meet in just 7 short months!

Dear Lord,

Thank you so much for this blessing. I am so unworthy, yet You trust me with a life to nurture and teach Your ways. Please place your hand on my womb and hold this baby safely to delivery. Lord, develop 10 healthy and strong little toes and 2 feet and 2 ankles and 2 shins and 2 calves and 2 knees and 2 femurs and 2 hips and pelvis and tummy and digestive system and lungs and heart and shoulders and arms and elbows and wrists and hands and 10 fingers and spine and neck and brain and head and ears and eyes and nose and mouth and tongue and lips and cheeks and hair and all the parts of the baby's body. Lord keep this little one safe from harm and healthy. Lord keep illness away from this house and keep us strong and healthy and safe. Develop Brandon and I into the parents you want us to be. Help us to make wise decisions.

Thank you thank you thank you for this little miracle growing inside me.

We love you Lord.

When all goes quiet... you should worry...

Brittney and I were working on the materials for our coupon class when we suddenly heard... nothing. The silence was almost louder than any sound we could have heard. Then pitter patter down the hall came Corben and he walked into the office with a big grin on his face, along with some chocolate. He said "I got some candies." So naturally, Brittney and I were curious as to just what that meant. He proceeded to take us upstairs and show us this...

Yep, he managed to climb on top of the kitchen counter by himself, get the container of m'n'ms down without spilling them, carry them upstairs and dump them all over the floor!

How can you not love this kid? I mean, look at that face... melt my heart. =)

Christmas 2009!

I've officially proved myself to be a bad blogger =/ I had my first long stent of no posting, boo. Well, I thought it was about time to get back at it and what better way to start than with Christmas! This was our third Christmas married and this year was my year to spend Christmas morning with my family. We started a tradition last year (our first year in our new house) and continued it this year with Christmas Eve brunch at our house with Brandon's family. Christmas Eve morning I was up early to start making yummy foods and I made zucchini bread, a ham and cheese breakfast casserole with crescent rolls for the crust, and apple pancakes with homemade apple cider syrup (yum!). While I was making the pancakes, everyone was arriving and Corben would periodically come over to the stove, point up and say "I need to see the pancakes." So, I would lift him up and show him how I flip the pancakes and he would giggle and ask when he could have one, then I'd have to put him down to put more apples on the griddle. When we finally sat down to brunch, every single pancake I'd made got gobbled up! Apparently they were a hit! When we were done eating we let Corben open his present from Brandon and I, a chalkboard/whiteboard easel from IKEA and some playdoh, a stuffed elephant, and of course, a ball. After brunch we packed up and headed over to Brandon's Dad's house to exchange gifts. After our stop there we went on to Joan's house to exchange gifts. She and Nana had made tons of yummy food and we let Corben start the gift opening. Corben's big gifts were coming in the morning from Santa so he got a bunch of clothes and other small gifts. Brittney and I got the same black boots (of course!) and I got a hair dryer (which has changed my world by the way). Brandon opened several boxes of money so he could go buy whatever he wanted, which was exactly what he wanted. Before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye and get on the road to Lynchburg to see my family. We went straight to the Christmas Eve service at TRBC and then went back to Mom's house afterward. She had made us a yummy dinner and then continued to bake yummy goodies all night! The next morning I was up first (for some reason, I always wake up before Josh) and was anxious to see what Santa had brought. Mom made homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast and we opened gifts and then watched Christmas movies all day. We had a great Christmas. Then we spent the day after Christmas shopping in Richmond and then the next 2 days just hanging out at Mom's. It was a good trip home. I'll be honest, I love where we live, but there's just something about Lynchburg that calls to you every once in awhile. I love that town and I'm so glad I was blessed to grow up there.

I should be strung up because I didn't take a lot of pictures over the holidays but Kellie took some and so did Josh so I will try to get copies from them to put on here... Anyways, here are some pictures of our Christmas and New Years!

Corben helping Nana open her presents!!
I love this kid. And he loves taking pictures with me so he can look at them =)
Happy New Year's to my wonderful wonderful hubby!
Corben petting Kellie's bunny =)

Here's my cutiepie nephew picking up the bunny... sort of. =)

halloween with my favorite pirate!!

My precious nephew was a pirate this year for Halloween and it was his first time trick-or-treating! Talk about a cutie pie... if he came to my door, I'd give him the whole bowl of candy! Corben was a little skeptical of going door to door to say "trick-or-treat" and get candy but I think that his Aunt Bethy convinced him to keep going for the greater good. =) Meaning of course to satisfy my sweet tooth!

Here is the cutest pirate you'll ever see...

We went to a fall festival before we went trick-or-treating and he liked the games more than the candy!


Corben trick-or-treating... you know this is the cutest thing...
The pirate and his loot!!

a penny-filled pantry

I have always been somewhat frugal and I think this comes from my upbringing. I was taught to work hard and to take care of what God entrusted me to have. I know that money doesn't grow on trees, although I've often suggested this idea to God, but I also know that I was blessed with health and a drive to do well (aka "achiever" for those of you who speak "Strengths-talk"). So I find it funny that I'd never used a coupon before in my life until this year. I mean, I remember my mom using coupons when I was growing up and I'd use the occasional coupon at the mall, but I never thought about using coupons for groceries until this year. I went on a girls weekend trip with my college roommates early this year and while we were there, one of my roommates, Whitney, was telling me about how she uses coupons to get a lot of her toiletries for free. That was it. I was hooked. I went home and googled everything I could about coupons and how to get groceries for free. Its like a game. And it definately has a high. I mean, you go in, get a bunch of stuff, watch your total go up to like $75 dollars, feel your stomach knot up, have the cashier scan the coupons and turn to you and ask you for something like 45 cents!! Bam, you're high! And, on a rare occasion, I've had cashiers look up from the screen with a puzzled look and say "I don't know if I'm allowed to do this or not, but its telling me I owe YOU money, so here it is!" The most I've ever "made" grocery shopping is a little over $2. I actually have a cashier "friend" at one of the grocery stores I go to and she pretty much cheers me on at the register! How fun is that?! She will ask the bagger and I to guess what the total will be before she rings up the last coupon and she will make a big production of it (drum roll noises, a little dance, etc) and then scan the last coupon and all I can do is grin (because remember, at this point I'm high) and laugh and take my mostly free groceries out the door. I learned all the coupon policies at all the different stores, learned the lingo and what works and what doesn't, who "stacks" coupons, what "ExtraBucks" are, and when triple coupon days are. Brandon and I started using a budget for the first time this year on a regular basis and we set our grocery budget each week at $15 and I don't ever go over that. We can honestly feed ourselves and have enough toiletries and other household items for under $15 a week. This spring when we learned that I was going to have to take a pay cut and we were losing some of our support (when we moved to plant the church we had to raise our own support like missionaries) I was so worried. And so wrong to doubt God. This is what my pantry looks like today...

Ask me if I can squeeze one more thing in there... ok, no I can't! And I have several cabinets just as full! God took me by the shoulders and gave me one big shake one day and said "Hello! Don't you see I will always provide for you? Can't you trust me by now? When have I ever let you go hungry?" And I was humbled and in awe. My awesome God had shown me that I didn't need to worry about the money we would be without, in fact, we don't even miss it! We have more food than we ever had before the paycut and my cup overfloweth! How sweet it is to know that I am taken care of by the ultimate Provider.

Here's a little something I like to call my "free closet" not because I got the closet for free, but because everything in the closet was free!!

I have enough toothpaste, dish detergent, aluminum foil, paper plates, etc, to last us a lifetime! God is so good to provide all this!!

Here is my most recent triple coupon trip to Harris Teeter. I got all of this plus a 1.5lb pack of chicken and a frozen pizza (not pictured) for $4.76.
In case you can't tell, that's 10 cans of carnation evaporated milk, 2 bags of No Yolks pasta, 1 bag of Wacky Mac pasta, 3 packs of Starkist tuna, 1 pack of Ortega tortillas, 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk, 1 roll of Viva papertowels, 1 bottle of Heinz katsup, 2 cans of Scrubbing Bubbles, 3 cans of Swansons chicken broth, 2 seasoning packs, 1 pack of yeast, 1 jar of relish, 4 muffin packages, a box of spaghetti, a box of macaroni noodles, tic tacs, and poptarts! Yay for free groceries! Let me know if you are hungry or need toothpaste because I've got it!

The fair comes to town!

Last year was my first year ever going to the State Fair. I'm a sucker for funnel cakes so off we went...

After going last year I spent approximately 364 days looking forward to this year's fair! I don't eat fried foods, mostly because I get yelled at by my pancreas if I do (that's a story for another day), but also because for every bite of fried goodness I eat, I'm busy calculating how many miles that means I'll have to run. Anyhoo, the State Fair is the one time of year that I actually want to eat fried foods. And let me tell you this, if you like it normally, you'll love it fried, and the State Fair's got it.
Yep. Deep fried ANYTHING. You probably can't see it in that picture but this stand has a halo and angels around it. Nah, just kidding, but there is a HUGE crowd of people trying to get in line to get fat...er... I mean, get a fried "something-yummy-on-a-stick." Brandon and I tried the fried Snickers bar this year and yes it was so good we went back for a second one! In case you've never seen a "fried-goodness-on-a-stick" as I like to call it, here is Brittney eating hers. And yes the reason we don't have a picture of us eating our TWO "fried-goodness-on-a-stick" is because they were gone THAT FAST!


Among other fried goods were other assorted candy bars, mac-n-cheese, cheesecake, pecan pie (which is on my list for next year), pickles, veggies, cheeseburgers (yes cheeseburgers! battered and fried my friends, battered and fried!!) and of course, my favorite funnel cakes!

Here is Stu's fried cheeseburger... one of the few things in life that prompts me to say "yummy and gross."


Here's my funnel cake stand!

Ok, I promise we did more than eat while we were there... although that was the main reason we went. We went with Cole and Brittney and Corben, and Stu (the intern at church) and Jenna, Cole's sister. We saw some giant bunnies, kinda cute, kinda scary. We saw some animals and some best-in-show fruits and veggies, including GIANT pumpkins and watermelons. We kindly refused all of the "fattest-woman-in-the-world" and "snake-woman" and "two-headed-lamb" exhibits as guilt steered us away. I mean really, I had no desire to pay fifty cents to go in and look at a fat woman who gets pointed at all day. Nightmares of carnies filled my head...

Anyways, here are some pictures of our adventures at the fair!

In the parking lot, before even entering the gates!

This is our "I'm-so-excited-I-finally-get-to-eat-a-funnel-cake" look... and someone's grandma, just not ours...


Me and my precious nephew, Corben!