Almost 6 months!

(it's a virgin marg, people)

I can't believe how time is flying by! I'm almost 6 months pregnant. Amazing. It's getting hard to rock Noah at night. He doesn't need it; he goes to sleep on his own, but for me, it's our time together and I like snuggling with him. But my stomach is literally starting to get in the way of holding him. He has no place to be! :( How sad. I'm not ready to give that part of my day up!

We heard from Homes for Our Troops a few days ago; we had a conference call and got some really great news. Looks like they're planning (tentatively) for a build brigade the weekend of April 23. That's where they put the whole outside of the house up over the weekend. Then it will be weather-proof and they can finish the inside. We are looking at a completion date of June 29th. Baby Brynne should be here by then!! (by the way--can't decide how to spell her name--which looks better--Brynne Johanna Bagge or Brinn Johanna Bagge Not sure. Thoughts?)

That's pretty much it. Still really enjoying my job and we have some little trips here and there planned in the next few months, which is always fun. A trip to the beach in March and then a marriage retreat in April. I always like having things to look forward to :)

This pic is in Puerta Vallarta, Mexico. I just got back last Saturday from an all girls trip to Mexico for 8 days. It was fun, but boy I could have done without all the drama that always comes with girls who are together longer than 8 hours. Like, really--do you really care if I go clubbing with you or not? Why can't I just stay back here and read or sleep, or do other things that pregnant people love to do?! I even sent out a disclaimer email beforehand, stating that I am not a drinker (duh, but especially now that I'm pregnant) and that I wouldn't be going to clubs, staying out late, etc. I paid good money for this vacation, and I was going to do what I wanted to do, dangit! I just didn't want people to think I "didn't like them" or whatever. But seriously, are there really pregos that go to clubs til 4 am?? Well, if there are, I'm not one of them.

Anyway, for the most part, it was a fun time and I enjoyed getting to know the different girls and spending time in the sun and pool. I even rented a wave runner (don't worry--it was safe, I didn't go too fast). And went whale watching, where I spent 3 of the 4 hours feeding the whales by leaning my pregnant body over the side of the teeny tiny raft and puking. And yes, half the blood vessels in my eyes DID pop. It was awesome. But thankfully, it IS true that once you get off the boat, you're completely fine. Just. Super. Tired.

Anyhow--so the next vacay I go on will be with my family. I missed them ;)

Below is a pic of a little private island my friend Amber and I took a boat to--gorgeous!

baby girl on the way!

Oh my, it's been a long time. The latest news is that I'm PREGNANT! I am due June 22 and we are really excited, although this was completely unexpected and unplanned. AND--we also found out we are having a GIRL! The first girl grandbaby on my side of the family, so that makes us proud :) We decided to name her Brynne Johanna Bagge (after Christian--his first name is Johan--pronounced like Yo-hahn) Anyway, so that is exciting!
We did have a few scares--mainly we were concerned that she might have spinabifida. But after close ultrasound and other tests, everything looks good for the most part. There is a chance that I could have her early, because of the tests that they did. So I'm not to overlook any Braxton Hicks and am supposed to take it easy. I have been having a lot of cramping and that makes me nervous, so it's water water water and rest rest rest when that happens. Not used to it.

Because of all the testing we were able to find out the sex early (I am only 19 weeks now and we found out 2 weeks ago!) So we are praising the Lord for many things. Noah knew all along it would be a baby sister and he is already calling her "Brynnee". It's so sweet :) Live is good!

Below is a family pic at Christmas :)

Pumpkin Patch

We went to the pumpkin patch today and I loved every minute. It was crisp outside and beautiful. We ate some delicious honey crisp apples and spent quality time together. :) Loved it!

He picked his very own pumpkin. All by himself!

Daddy showing Noah some corn that was on the ground...

Noah is sooo into tractors lately. He loved this one. (Mama did too, a little :) )

Noah and his best little friend, also named Noah.

Then this happened tonight. It was hilarious:

Blessed :)

Well, C left early this morning for a week long hunting trip. I'm excited for him. Time by ourselves is of the essence. Months ago, it would have been much harder for me to say goodbye. I would have been really depressed and lonely. But I can see how much God is allowing us to be satisfied and content...more and more each day.

We have started regularly attending a church that we've decided to call our "home". We had been "shopping around" for quite some time...almost a year, so the feeling is wonderful...we are settling in. I've found that when you move, it just takes a while to get settled and connected. But what a good feeling it is when it finally comes!

A few weeks ago we signed up to host a home group. We enjoy every. last. drop of it. We clean, I bake, we set up. People arrive and our home is full. We meet new people. We talk to people that linger a little longer and learn what their story is. Last night we talked with an older doctor who was alone (his wife is away with grandkids). We learned he had been run over on I-5 when he was 25 years old and has suffered ever since. He had an amazing story and we felt blessed to have heard it. And...an invitation for dinner soon. It just feels so wonderful to have fellowship and friends who are believers. We are just on the same page, and it's great. ...feeling content and at peace. I really feel God working, and it's exciting!

What's next?!

What a crazy hectic weekend. Phew! I am so worn out and emotionally exhausted--we had one of the most exciting weekends in a long time, and not in a good way.

Hmm..where should I start? Friday Christian left for a long awaited guy's weekend up in the middle of nowhere. Knowing he would be gone, I planned a girl's night at my house with wine and movies...the works :) There was drama at my girls' night, but I'll leave that out. Anyhoo, so I get a call from Christian in the middle of my movie saying that his brother Levi has been stung by something and is having chest pains, shortness of breath, and swelling. AND, they are about 1 1/2 hours from anywhere. So they were rushing to the hospital, but barely even had cell service. So my girls' night turned into me worrying and texting, worrying and texting. C also informed me that they had had a run-in with a cougar the night before and he was on the brink of shooting at it through the tent. (I've decided that gee, guy's weekend in the woods sounds like so much fun--I'm going next year!)

So Levi apparently got stung by a hornet and was having a terrible allergic reaction to it. They gave him some medicine and they came and stayed the night here. The next morning, I dropped Noah off at my mom's and drove all the way back out to the campsite with C & Levi to help them load everything up (they had left all their stuff up there). We get home, I pick up Noah and put him down to sleep...have some lunch, and Levi leaves. So I'm snoozing on the couch and Christian starts saying his face is itchy, and his eyes are burning. So he goes up to get in the shower then a few minutes later is hollering at me to come look.

I basically came up the stairs to find a monster in my midst. Seriously--eyes almost completely swollen shut, HUGE hives all over, swollen lips, coughing, shortness of breath, and terrible stomach cramps. I can't believe how fast this all happened! (**On a side note--Christian has like, the HIGHEST pain tolerance I've ever seen. Since he got hurt in Iraq, pain is not something he even complains about--ever. And often in the hospital he would be asked what his pain was, on a scale of 1-10, and he'd usually say like a 4 or 5...when it got to 8 he couldn't even talk, but that was rare).

Anyway, so I asked him if I needed to take him to the hospital and he said he thought so...wouldn't you know that Noah was napping, so I started calling grandparents to see if one of them could come over and be here with Noah so I could take C to the hospital. And no one answered. Finally after a few minutes C's parents called back and I explained what was going on. By this point, he was in the bathroom keeled over in pain and crying...wondering if he'd been poisoned. I had mentioned spraying some Raid outside and wondered if he had touched it and then touched his eyes. So he was super freaked out, as was I. And then there was the fact that he was having trouble breathing and pretty much I couldn't see his eyeballs. I wish I would have taken a picture.

So at the climax of this all, he yelled out to call 911. So I did. And I could hardly communicate to the poor lady, I was so freaked out. When the paramedics got here, C told them his pain was about a 9 out of 10. I couldn't believe it.

So long story short, C had taken 2 benadryl immediately after he started reacting, and those pretty much probably saved his life. The ambulance came and checked him out and told him we needed to go to the hospital. They said he was definitely having an allergic reaction, probably to food...so he is being really careful about what he eats, and they gave us an "epi-pen" (shot of epinephrine) in case this happens again.

Then today, I'm going down the slide with my Noah, and he hits his poor little head on the side of the slide and slices his eyelid open. Blood and everything. Poor little thing. He really whacked it good. I managed to take a picture of that:


Poor little peach. :(

So too much drama for us in one weekend.

On a positive note--I started a painting class today and loved it. Just the type of relaxation I needed!

It's been a while!

It's sure been a while! Since I last posted I believe Noah had a birthday, and we went to the beach? Perhaps not...but perhaps. Anyway, a few pics from the beach:



Noah's 2nd b'day, with his Thomas cake :)

Loving the cake :)

Scooting down a sand hill


Looking for sea shells with mama

First family trip (and photo) at the beach!

And, I'm excited to say that we are hosting a home group every Wednesday night on Peacemaking, and we are both really excited about it! Tonight was the first night and Christian and I both just felt really good about it. Welcoming people into our home, seeing familiar faces and new ones...fellowship in general. It is a blessing to us. :) Our home felt warm and full. Praise the Lord!

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We've also become good friends with the new associate pastor at this church. He and his wife are 32 and 30, and they have a son, also named Noah, who is only a few weeks older than our Noah. What a coincidence. Anyway, they just moved here from Bellevue, Washington and Maija and I and our Noahs have been spending time together. That is also a blessing in many ways, and I am thankful. It's sure amazing what a friend can do for the soul :)

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Christian and I decided recently that now is the time for him to go through the Wallstreet Warfighters program. It's a fast track program that is free for him to do, and he will become a broker. He will attend the school that Donald Trump attended...pretty prestigious. BUT, it means he will be gone for 6 months. 2 months in Chicago, 2 in Philadelphia, and 2 in New York. Beginning in February. I am nervous about it, but not in the way that I previously was (we talked about this a while back and decided that it was NOT a good time then). I am nervous now because Noah is sooo extremely attached to Christian right now. He is his WORLD. And I've read and heard from many different sources that this age is crucial for father-son bonding. And what happens if Christian's gone? I know that people do it alllll the time, and heck--look at the military life! I should know better and think differently, but I don't. I am worried about it. So--please pray, faithful reader out there, about this :)

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I think that's it for now. My melatonin is kicking in, so I need to hit the sack :)

What gives??

How come my blog list on the right side of my blog page is never correctly updated? It shows that the latest blog posted by friends was like 2 weeks ago, but then when I click on it, it shows one that was just posted, oh...TODAY. What gives?? Am I not doing something or doing something wrong?? ...anybody?