Baby Shower Recap + Weeks 29-30ish

Why helllllllllllo everyone and happy (early) Thanksgiving! We've got so much going on, but lots of exciting stuff. For one, two weekend ago I had a fabulous baby shower and have been sorting and moving baby G into our apartment. Secondly, we found renters for our house, so last weekend (and yesterday until midnight...) we moved the rest of the stuff out of our first love home, moved all the extras into a storage unit, stashed a couple things we need to sell at a friends', and donated the rest (other than lawn stuff that the renters will use). The renters move in TODAY! Talk about cutting it close. We are excited to not have to pay for 2 places to live anymore though, so it's a day to rejoice and be thankful!

In all the craziness, I've done a really bad job of taking picture updates, but as you can see in the picture below Gianna is growing growing growing! I'm sure over the holiday weekends she (or I?) will be growing A LOT from all the yummy food :-)

This is Thursday between Week 29 and 30 at Chris's job. It was "Bring your Wife to Work Day". Just kidding. That day doesn't exist. But, I do go to PCD sometimes to have an intense computer work day and last week I was busy most of the day writing thank-yous for the awesome baby swag I got at the shower. Yes, it's nearly impossible for me to be serious.

Post Shower Fall-Out

This was our apartment the day after the shower. Lots of goodies like a bouncer, swing, crib that my Aunt Claudia let me have, awesome chest my Uncle Dale made, jogger stroller, carseat, and etc baby swag. I sent this picture to my mom and it said something like "Welcome to my nightmare". I hate it when things are disorganized!!! So I got right to cleaning and organizing. Selected outcomes below!

For the first however many months, G will sleep in bed with us in a bassinet, but then she'll move to this rockin' crib with sweet tree and bird bedding set. My friend Kristin made the art that's on the wall--it's pretty fantastic, I need to do a close up!

I washed G's blankets and 0-3 months clothes. This is all the stuff that will go into drawers. It's a baby smorgasbord!

That's not all though, here we've got 3-12 mo clothes hanging up, ready for use when chunky gets big enough. (Yes, "chunky" is Gianna. The women in my family have large babies, so I've already prepared myself). Actually, there are some more clothes that should be in there but I hadn't finished hanging at that point.

I don't know why, but I love cabinets and drawers, so I took pictures of G's bathtime cabinet and grooming, etc drawer that are in our 2nd bathroom.

Just a touch of what's been going on in the past week. I'll post a few pictures from the shower soon, so you can see how the living room aftermath transpired :-)  But in the meantime, everyone have a safe, happy, and high-caloric (as if that's even a question) Thanksgiving!

The Vocation of Marriage

Hey Everyone!!! Before Chris gets into his post, I wanted to give a few quick updates and thank yous! The past two weekends I've had 2 baby showers, one that my friend Susan and CPLC family had for me and the other my mom, my Aunt Karen, cousins Heidi and Amy, and Grandma Baldwin had for me. I am overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and generosity and have been busy trying to put everything together and "stash" all the new baby goodies. A longer post and pictures (BTW if anyone has pictures from the shower, please e-mail them to me at rachel.l.rendall@gmail.com!) will be coming soon! A thousand thanks, hugs, and kisses to you all!!! Annnnnnnnnnnnd without further ado....I'll leave the rest of the post to Chris. 

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If there is anything that really gets my blood boiling though, it’s hearing statements from husbands/wives/etc like “When you meet God, all He will ask is what did you do for others.” Wrong! That is a sickness that has invaded our country and the mind of modern man. 

Everywhere I see people whose lives are complicated, tangled webs of activity, and yet their marriages, families, faith, and prayer life are dying and weak. Despite their vows to “forsake all others”, they are involved in this, chair member of that, and yet their children and spouses are starving for real, genuine attention and love. Yet, despite their complaining about their voluntary servitude, somehow they have glorified all this activity in their mind as if it was being asked of them. It isn’t. If you don’t believe that, talk to Martha. Jesus set her straight. 

“As they continued their journey he entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary [who] sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.’ The Lord said to her in reply, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.’” (Luke 10:38-42, emphasis mine)

I am a husband and now a father, and I will, by God’s grace, do those things well. If another calling grabs my heart, I will do it only if I am able to do it calmly, and do it well, while first making sure that I am living out my married vocation as laid out in Ephesians 5 by endeavoring to love as Christ loved, nourishing and spending plenty of time with my wife and children. That is where joy can be truly found, and as Christians we are primarily called to a life of joy. If we lose sight of that, we have missed the point.

 “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the bath of water with the word, that he might present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. So [also] husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one hates his own flesh but rather nourishes and cherishes it, even as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. (Ephesians 5: 25-30)

Once, when St. Josemaria Escriva was speaking, a man came up with his wife and said “Father, I’m just not sure what my vocation is.” St. Josemaria looked at him, pointed to his wife and said “She is your vocation.”

Yes, as Christians we are called to serve the poor, minister to the sick, etc. First though, we must ensure that our families are not the ones suffering, poor in faith, sick in the soul because they do not know God’s love in their domestic home. We are called to love those who are entrusted to us before all else, not save the world. That is God’s job. Especially with the busy holiday season, let us all remember our primary vocations as spouses and children of God, and often find ourselves at the feet of Jesus. 

Blessed Mary, Mother of the Word Incarnate, Jesus Christ, pray for us!
Sts. Gianna and Elizabeth, pray for us!
Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us!

Everyone Needs a Pick-me-up :-)

Despite Tuesday's election results, there is still much to rejoice and laugh about and it seems like a bit of light heartedness is necessary. ALSO, please keep in mind: while we may have a President who does not respect the inherent dignity and value of human life or marriage and seems to think the totality of a woman’s care is getting free birth control, just to name a few, we serve a much greater Leader—the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who said to Peter (rock), “…you are Peter, and upon this rock I shall build my church, and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it.” (Matt 16:18—emphasis mine) I'll stick with Jesus and "the rock" anyday!

I love this hymn, sung here by Ike Ndolo--"How Can I Keep From Singing? The chorus:

"No storm can shake my inmost calm, while to that rock I'm clinging. Since love is lord of heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?"
 

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Pick me ups, Prego Style:

From Eat, Sleep, Poop: A Common Sense Guide to Your Baby’s First Year:

 

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Wise/amusing/honest words from Money Secrets of the Amish…a book I loved and would highly suggest to anyone looking to cut back, become more self-sufficient, and live simply.

 

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Moving Pictures:

I am wildly obsessed with packing. I love to do it and am quite good at making things fit perfectly into small spaces (Maybe that will help with childbirth???…..let’s all laugh together at that one). As a testimony, here are a couple pictures of my car in the early stages of our move:

 
 Photo 1- Backseat of car: 1 long entryway table, 3 side tables, pillows, 3 boxes, odds and ends. In the front seat, not pictured, there was a vacuum, 2 boxes, and all my travel goodies (like food/purse, etc)

Photo 2- Trunk of car: 2 suitcases, 4 boxes, a brown woven chest thing that we keep blankets in, random bags filled with various things to take up every possible inch of space. 

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According to the MyFitnessPal app, I will be gone soon, as shown in the below picture. I track my nutrition/exercise stats on most days to make sure I’m not eating too much sugar and getting enough protein, iron, and fiber. When you’re finished for the day, it gives you a “prognosis” for the future 5 weeks and what you’d weigh if you stayed on the same track. I have been lying to MyFitnessPal because there’s no way to program in that I’m pregnant, but oh well. It’s been glitching a lot lately, but this is the best so far.

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Last, but not least, something that’s actually useful. Found a recipe online today for a homemade windshield de-icer/door defreezer, thought I’d pass it along. 

Windshield: Fill spray bottle with 1 part 70%+ alcohol, 2 parts room temp water, and 1 tsp dish detergent. Shake to blend. Spray on windshield and windows at night. If you forget to spray at night, you can also spray in the morning and the ice will melt.

Doors: Spray rubber door seal with cooking spray and rub in with a paper towel.

Could it get any cheaper/simpler than that? I bet most of you already have all that stuff at home!Stole the “recipe” from: http://thekrazycouponlady.com/at-home/ice-ice-baby-diy-de-icing-options/

A few of my favorite things

It’s Fall! And that means lots of hot tea and soup!!! 

I’m also pregnant, so most of my "favorite things" are food!

 I love meals that taste awesome, are really healthy, very simple, and cheap to make. I wanted to share a couple of my favorite recipes, hope you will have time to enjoy them on a chilly day :-) You’ll notice that many of the ingredients required you probably have on hand already…and if you’re missing something…experiment…these recipes are VERY forgiving.

Pasta e Fagioli (BETTER THAN OLIVE GARDEN!)

·         1 tbsp olive oil

·         1 cup chopped onion

·         2 garlic cloves

·         1 tsp dried, crushed rosemary

·         3-4 chopped carrots

·         4 cups low-sodium chicken broth (or you can do 4 cups water+2 bouillon cubes)

·         2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano (do not drain!)

·         1.5 cups mini bow-tie past

·         2 (15 oz) cans white cannellini or white beans, drained and rinsed

·         Grated parmesan cheese, to taste

Heat oil in a large pot, add onion, garlic, rosemary, and carrots. Cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until veggies soften. Add broth and tomatoes and bring to a boil. Stir in pasta and cook about 8 minutes (al dente). Add beans and cook about 2 additional minutes. Serve in bowls with as much parmesan cheese as you want! 

I made a half batch of this Rosemary Olive Oil Bread to go with it and I love it. I would suggest chopping the rosemary very fine if you decide to try it…it’s actually really easy!

Crockpot Vegetarian Enchiladas

• 28 oz. Diced tomatoes, undrained
• 14 oz. Chunky salsa
• 6 oz. Tomato paste
• 30 oz. can of black beans, rinsed and drained
• 15 oz. Corn, drained
• 4 oz. Diced green chiles
• 2 tsp. Ground cumin
• 2 tsp. Chili powder
• 2 Cloves garlic, minced
• 8-10 Corn tortillas
• 2 oz. Can of sliced black olives, drained
• 1 c. Shredded cheddar cheese

Mix everything together in a bowl except tortillas, cheese and olives. In a large crockpot (5 quarts is perfect!), pour 1/3 of the mixture at the bottom of crockpot. Top with 2-3 tortillas (whatever/however you can get the layer to fit) and sprinkle 1/3 of the cheese. Repeat twice more (mixture, tortillas, cheese), and sprinkle olives over top. Cover and crock on HIGH for 3 hours or LOW for 5 hours. (Truthfully….I just say it’s done when it looks done J)

Serve in a bowl with any extras you want! Grated cheese (extra sharp cheddar is BEST!), sour cream, chives, jalapenos, chips, rice, or cornbread...the possibilities are endless!!