the rocking chair re-do, a.k.a. baby prep

The rocker did not have a seat, and it rocked funny, so John completely redid the chair frame and rockers.

We redid the rocker at the same time as the other chair, but I hadn't gotten around to posting any pictures yet. So, here they are! The only thing we still need to do is get some furniture oil to condition the wood.

A few photos from the past few days:

coldness

the Roebling Suspension Bridge

a winter sunset

the "spoils of war" from the church cookie exchange

Snow!!!

2008-11-27 Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving with the Indianapolis Smillies (all of them), going up Wednesday after John got off of work. He and I were a bit startled to be greeted by a closely shorn "Boo" when we walked in the door. The little dog had had a run in with the groomer's shears, and came back, um, slightly denuded of fur.

We enjoyed a nice evening with everyone on Wednesday (and Sarah very graciously let John and me sleep in her bed that night), and on Thursday morning we all had a BIG breakfast. A yummy breakfast. With not too many left-overs. We missed the parade, though.

By the time breakfast was cleaned up it was time to get working on dinner. No surprise to anyone who knows me, I baked (at home while getting ready to go) and cooked along with them. I made a lemon meringue pie and resurected Grandma Jacobsen's cranberry walnut salad (which, unbeknownst to me, David had had a hinkling after, as the Smillies' say), and both turned out pretty well (although I need to get the recipe I used to use for crust from Mom. This crust didn't turn out too well). Then we were all off to share and spend the afternoon and evening with a few families in the area.

We came back to the Smillies' house to wind down, and after John had a nap we drove home to Cincinnati so that I could be at Baby's dr. appointment early Friday morning.

All in all, a memorable "first" Thanksgiving.

Today we reached a milestone - 100 days until Baby's due date!



Last Friday at our follow-up ultrasound, the technician estimated that Little One weighs 1lb and 15 oz. Just slightly ahead of schedule for growth, but very healthy and active with a strong and steady heartbeat. We can hardly wait, especially now that I can barely see my toes. :)

:: adorable little face, on its side ::

so little, so precious

Last night I finished knitting a sweater and pair of booties for Baby. Darcie Newton introduced me to a lovely book called Simple Knits for Cherished Babies back in August, and now - with the weather getting colder - seemed like a perfect time to see if I remembered how to knit. I found the book at the library (which was wonderful, since it seems to be out of print at the moment), and, with some yarn I had saved from an angora sweater I had bought in Peru a few years ago, spent several very enjoyable days making these for Baby. It took a few tries to get some of the steps correct, and I ended up taking a few artistic liberties with the sweater pattern, but now I could hardly be more pleased with the results.

It seems hard to imagine that in about four months there will be a pair of feet and pair of arms small enough to fill these. I can hardly wait.

Fall is quickly approaching. From cool evenings and crisp mornings, to the leaves changing their color, fall is definitely in the air. But with this seasonal change, a stark contrast can be found all about. A few days ago, I brought home these beautiful carnations for Elizabeth which now so wonderfully accent our kitchen counter in combination with fall leaves.In keeping with the changing seasons, we visited Ikea on Sunday and bought this eye catching chandelier. We quickly installed it (with only one miss-wiring attempt) and it looks great. Even better, it has places for candles to sit on top! (Which is very romantic for the ladies and very handy for the guys when the power goes out in a storm, as it did a few weeks ago...before we bought the chandelier).

Seasons change not only with the weather and in the decorations of the house, but also in our lives - like it has with the baby on its way! As you can see below, Elizabeth is looking as beautiful as ever and doing so in stile, with her new top that I bought her at Hollister on our date night last night. Doesn't she look great!! And look at that little tummy!! I'm so excited if you could not tell!

(I bought something for myself at Hollister too, its a green shirt which reads, "Stop Global Warming We Need Ice For The Party.")

old things new

John and I headed over to the fabric store the other evening and took advantage of their remnants. After a bit of scrounging we found a piece that was "just right" and brought it home. A little more batting, 2/3 yard fabric (the flowers of which have golden centers - joy!), an episode of "Chuck" and 50 or so staples later and ....... viola! the desk chair is reborn!

my husband chose a very gentle way of letting me know when the cocoa mix needs to be refilled - he left it open

so I filled it - from the 5lb container - and put it back the way I found it

a walk in the woods

The other evening John and I went to one of the county parks, and enjoyed an hour of walking through the trees. Early fall is a gorgeous time of year, still warm, but hinting at the crispness to come; still lush, but begin to fade into brown or -where it's been wet - triumph in glorious color.

Next time we walk that trail, though, we'll need to get there an hour or so earlier. It is getting dark earlier. :)

When we pulled out our Jenga game the other night (to celebrate its recent arrival from CA), somehow John and I managed to build a tower that was 32 stories tall ...

... and then it fell (odd how it always seems to happen on my turn).

View From Our New Home!

A Beautiful Sunset.

View From Our Dinning Room.

I know its been a little while since we lasted posted something, but when you move, are pregnant, have work, and you're still trying to fit in a little "life" here and there, posting a blog slides down the list pretty quick! But here we are! Our new home! Since our apartment faces west, we get to see the sunset every evening (something which neither of us realized we missed so much until we had it back!). As you can see in the picture, we have done a little painting around the place and Elizabeth has done a wonderful job decorating! The deep red is called "Royal Red," the yellow/tan is "Homestead Resort Pumpkin." We also painted the wall behind our bed "Dover gray" (adding a white lace curtain that drapes down behind the bed), and panted the ceiling in the "baby's" room "High Noon" (a blueish color). I will try to get pictures posted of these rooms in the coming days. As you can imagine, a dull white apartment is starting to feel a lot more like "home." It has been great to watch as Elizabeth has been "nesting" a lot more in preparation for the baby.

Which, by the way, since our last post, we have visited the doctor twice and everything is going wonderfully with the baby (and mother too)! In fact, it seems as if the baby is ahead of "normal growth charts" at this time (I think that just means he/she is very healthily and good looking like his/her mother!) Last Thursday, we went to have an ultrasound done - it was amazing to stand there and see OUR BABY!!!! HOW GREAT IS THAT!!!! The heart beating, those little hands moving all around....how special. (Elizabeth will be posting pictures on her blog shortly).

Well, I hope this satisfies some of the curiosity regarding the Smillie family in Cincinnati. God bless and thanks for all of your prayers.

Well, it's finally here. After a few weeks of packing, we might actually be ready. We are moving tomorrow!
Which means that we'll be offline for a few days to a week.
Once we get back up I [should] have everything in order again and have lots of wonderful things to tell you all. But then again, we might still be living out of boxes!
See you in a week [or maybe less]!


btw, today is Dad and Mom's [Jacobsen] 25th wedding anniversary. Feel free to send them congrats!

We have a new home!

...I mean, an apartment...

On August 28th, we will be moving into our new home on the north side of Cincinnati (closer to work)! The apartment is 10 min. from work (Liz calculated that up to be saving me 12 hr's of driving a month, she's really likes that) and it will give us a lot more room (2 bd. 2 bath); almost 3 times the room we have now (400 sq. ft. to 1,100 sq. ft.!!). There are washer and dryer hookups in the apartment which will be a lot easier for Liz, now that she is starting to really "look pregnant." We are very excited about this move and the chance to get everything set before the baby arrives. Oh, and we can paint the apartment any color that we want, so Liz is starting to pick colors for the baby's wall/room (how cool is that!!) Anyway our new address, starting the 28th, will be:

11651 Norbourne Dr. Apt. #714

Cincinnati, OH 45240

God Bless

The Smillies

Liz and I visited IKEA! (for the 2nd time)

Today, Liz and I got out of the apartment and drove 30 min. north to visit IKEA! We both LOVE that store!!!! So many great things to see and all for great prices too! Anyways, the best part about it was that we left IKEA without buying a single thing!!!! (I think I should get a prize for helping Liz accomplish this great feat! :-)). But we did stop by Starbucks and pick up a coffee and Strawberry water and munch on PBJ sandwiches in the car. All in all, a very good day.

Just to let everyone know ...

A Motif Of God's Glory

On Monday night, Mr. and Mrs. Newton (long time Jacobsen family friends) stopped by on their way to visit family in New York. After dinner, we all went to Ault Park to enjoy a warm summer evening; walking through the many flower gardens that are maintained by members of the community. As we walked along, reminiscing about old times, I was amazed by the color, life, and beauty that surrounded us. A very, very small, picture of the glory of God. But, what an amazing picture it is!

"O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.

From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise

because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers,

the moon and the starts, which you have set in place,

what is man that you are mindful of him,

the son of man that you care for him?

You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings

and crowned him with glory and honor.

You made him ruler over the works of your hands;

you put everything under his feet:

all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field,

the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.

O Lord, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!"

~Psalm 8~

WHAT IF?

Today at church, the message was on the need for unity in the church. With the prayer being, "Father, make us one" just as Jesus prayed in John 17:20-25: "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. My they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me." And as it was reconfirmed in Ephesians 4, "....Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit - just as you were called to one hope when you were called - one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all..."

As the pastor correctly pointed out, we are called to unity and not uniformity. The church is not required to be uniformed in its service, music, or even its names; but it is called to be united and the world may know the Head of the Church - Christ. So what would happen if the Church (with a big "C") was united with Christ at the center? The pastor answered this question by saying this: on Monday, we (the church) would abolish world hunger, on Tuesday we will provide lasting clean drinking water for everyone in the world, on Wednesday we would provide medical aid to every person who needs it, on Thursday we will see the end of poverty, on Friday we will take care of every orphan and provide for their needs, by Saturday every person in the world will know the name of the Jesus and see him (His glory), and on Sunday, we will worship as a Church like we have never worshiped before.

What do you think would happen if the Church was unified?

July 4th - On The River

It rained practically all day here, but right about 8 o'clock the rain let up, and after a short discussion, we grabbed a blanket and headed out. First stop was the grocery store for a rhubarb pie and vanilla ice cream (of course). Then we went to Eden Park, which has a lovely overlook with a view of the Ohio River and Kentucky. We enjoyed lightning bugs, fireworks all up and down the valley, thunder, a bunch of little kids next to us who at each big explosion exclaimed, "dang!", our pie and ice cream (and part of a cheesecake that jumped into the basket), and a few mosquitoes. A lovely evening, and a wonderful way to celebrate.

The largest fireworks lasted well over an hour, and probably went on longer, but we decided to call it a night close to 10:30 because John had to work this morning.

Our garden is growing, healthy and hearty, and giving forth fruit - the tomato plant has four baby tomatoes on it! Occasionally the man with the balcony below ours gets dripped on though. I should probably put something under the pots so that they don't drip ... Oh, and something has taken a liking to the basil plant - I keep finding holes in the dirt near the roots. Last time it happened, one of the shoots withered. I am beginning to get a bit upset at whatever sort of vermin is doing this ....

Marriage is defined by a positive virtue. It presumes the gift of self. Kathleen and Thomas Hart write, "One can do many external deeds of love and still hold back the really precious gift, the inner self. This gift can only be given through communication."

Talking and touching are two of the most important ways we can ourselves to each other. The refusal to give the gift of self can sometimes be malicious. At other times, this "witholding" may not be done consciously. We just wake up one day and realize that we have made no effort to keep moving toward our spouse physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Most of us, in fact, probably never approached the relationship of marriage with the thought that "apathy" is the antithesis of Christian love. As long as we're not mean, vindictive, or cruel, we may think we're fulfilling our Christian duty.
But we're not.
The truth is, I owe my [spouse] this "gift of self."
-Sacred Marriage, chp 153, by Gary Thomas