The Big Two Nine

Happy Birthday to me! Thank you to all my friends and family who have so generously lavished me with birthday wishes, blessings, and gifts. I have felt especially loved this weekend.

On Friday night, Noah got to spend the night at his friend Andrew's house. Geary and I went out to dinner with Tim and Lorraine and then we went to see the movie Little Miss Sunshine (which we both really enjoyed!) And then he took me shopping and bought me some comfy new maternity pants and a pretty beaded necklace.

Today, I renewed my drivers license and am now the proud new owner of a Washington State Driver's License featuring a picture of myself with no neck. Needless to say, I'm simply thrilled about that one. I made up for it though by taking some of my hard earned AG money and some birthday money (Thank you, Garyanna & Bob!) and going on an Old Navy shopping spree for some maternity tops and another pair of comfy pants. I found 4 shirts that were only $2.97!!

Speaking of maternity--I am now officially in the second trimester! The baby is about 3 inches long which is about the length of a Q-tip (and yes, I did go all around the house measuring stuff so I could find something 3 inches long, thank you very much.) So, next time you're cleaning your ears, remember us and say a little prayer for the baby.

Reminder!

Don't forget: Rosh Hashanah beings at sundown today! Shanah Tovah!

When You Share You Get Your Share of Friends

Preschool: Developing good character in children since...um...a long long time ago.

When Geary and I went to the first Preschool Parent meeting, back in August, we were told that the kids were going to learn the alphabet, how to count to 10, shapes and colors, and how to spell their names. Geary was indignant, "Noah already knows all that stuff! We should move him up to Pre-K!" I knew he was right, but still I replied, "No, no, we're not going to be all my-kid-is-a-genius-and-we're-overachiever-parents about this. (Although let's just be honest here--my kid is a genius.) Preschool is about learning to take turns, and sit quietly, and share with others."

Well...Noah came home yesterday and we had this conversation:

Noah: Look what I made! I glued this tissue paper to this and that's the water!
Jeana: It's beautiful! Did you pour the glue yourself?
Noah: I had the purple gluestick. Reese wanted the purple one but I was using it.
Jeana: Oh, did you share it with her?
Noah: No! I shared it with me.

Baby Update

I had another doctors appointment today and everything still looks great! I got to hear the heartbeat (160 bpm) and everything is measuring just right. I also got some blood results back and it turns out that I'm anemic--which would explain why I've been feeling so tired and draggy lately. I'll be taking iron supplements which should help with that. Also, I've been given a new due date-April 8th. So that means I'll officially be done with the first trimester on Sunday!

Every good and perfect gift is from above,

coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,

who does not change like shifting shadows.

James 1:17

Seattle Children's Museum

Noah and I were invited by the Carlsons to visit the Seattle Children's Museum for the new Clifford the Big Red Dog exhibit. It was excellent! Noah loved playing mailman and delivering letters all around Birdwell Island. He also really liked being able to slide down Clifford's tail just like Emily Elizabeth. I would highly recommend the exhibit if you have a chance to go. Another favorite thing for the boys was the sailboat. Here we are on the Good Ship See Worthy. We all had our jobs to do. Noah was in charge of the sail, Andrew was in charge of lifejackets, Nicholas was in charge of being super cute, and I was in charge of rocking the boat--good thing I didn't make myself seasick! Thank you, Carlsons, for a great day--we love spending time with you!

Ahoy, me hearties!

It's Talk Like a Pirate Day! Aaaarrrgh!

Rosh Hashanah

My birthday is September 25 and I've always noticed that Rosh Hashanah falls near my birthday--sometimes even on the same day. I learned awhile ago that Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year, but I recently read something that makes my heart feel tender toward this holiday.

Rosh Hashanah is hebrew for head (rosh) of the year (hashanah). Shanah, from the same root as Mishnah (repetition), signals a return to the beginning. Its zodiacal sign is Libra or the scales, a time when our souls are weighed in the balance. We take stock of ourselves spiritually and engage in teshuvah (returning back to God). The dramatic high point in shul is the sounding of 100 blasts of the shofar (ram's horn) to awaken us from our spiritual slumber.

JEWISH CEREMONIES & HOLIDAYS KNOWLEDGE CARDS

(c) Ira Steingroot, Published by Pomegranate Communications, Inc.

I don't believe in astrology, but the symbolism of the zodiacal sign is interesting to me. In our tradtional New Year celebration we tend to make resolutions and goals--what we can we do to better ourselves for the future. How many times is a New Year's resolution to lose weight? But here, on Rosh Hashanah, the goal is to get weighed, to look back on our entire lives and see where we are at. And then, its not about setting a goal to aim for in the future, its about returning to our Source.

I was also struck by the 100 blasts of the shofar calling for us to awake from our spiritual slumber. The trumpeting of the ram's horns calls us to return to God. Isn't it interesting that the trumpeting of a ram's horn will also signal God's return to us? When Christ returns, with that shofar blast, we will be awakened to so much more.

I like that my birthday is around the same time as Rosh Hashanah. I think it is a significant thing for me to start a new year both physically and spiritually. This year Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown September 22. I encourage you to "weigh your soul in the balance" and return to God. Shanah Tovah!

Fund Raising

It's fundraising time for Geary and Noah's school. They're running a Magazine and Music Sale. Some of you may have recieved an email from Noah already, but in case you haven't, and in case you want to help our school, and in case you have some magazine subscriptions to renew or purchase, here are the details.

Pretty much any magazine you can imagine is available as well as some books and music. You get the stuff at a discount of anywhere from 30-70% off newstand prices. The school gets 40% of the profit--its a pretty good chunk. There is also a nice selection of books, CD-roms, and CDs you can buy.

Also, this is a great time to buy magazine subscriptions as a gift. Geary's mom gives me Real Simple every year and I love it! It's like a continuous Christmas gift. She also gives Noah Ladybug magazine and he is thrilled to get real mail every month. Plus, if you're going to do this for Christmas, now is the time since it takes 12 to 14 weeks for delivery to start.

Check out the fundraiser website for yourself. You can order directly online there. Just enter our school code of 425009581 (It should say Sno County Christian El School). You can also email me your order and mail a check or money order which Noah can turn in at school. I've noticed that catalouge lists more magazines than the website, so if you can't find what you're looking for, email me and I'll see if it's available.

This is a short fundraiser--the last day for Noah turn in orders is September 26th and the last day for online orders is September 27th.

If you can help us out, that would be excellent. If you can't or don't want to--no worries! This is completely nonpressure and we're just trying to spread the word.

Thanks!

First Memory Verse

Psalm 139:14

I will praise you, for I am wonderfully made.

Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Family Portrait--by Noah

Click picture to enlarge.

Noah drew these pictures a couple nights ago and described them to me. The details he chooses to put in his drawings crack me up. Notice the nostrils and fingers. And the baby has a belly button--probably because we were looking at a baby book and talking about umbilical cords.

Like

Noah: Mom, I have a story and a question for you.
Jeana: Okay.
Noah (with big hand motions): So, last time I was at Andrew's house, Cindy was like, "Do you wanna snack?" And Andrew was like, "Sure!" And Cindy was like, "Apples make you grow big and strong." And I was like, "I like apples!" and Cindy was like, "Good."
Jeana: Wow, I gave birth to Bill and Ted. Okay, what's the question?
Noah: Do apples really make boys big and strong?
Jeana: Like, yes they do.
Noah: Mom! Why do you say like all the time!?

Crazy Pregnant Dreams

For the last three nights I've had this dream.

I'm downhill skiing (I have never been skiing in my life) and I pass this older gentleman slowly making his way down the hill. I shout out, "God Bless!" and wave to him. But he thinks I've shouted, "Dog Mess!" So he lifts his shoe to look, but of course he has a ski attached to his foot and he suddenly becomes this human wheel rolling down the hill. Every time his head touches the snow, the snow acts like glue and pulls out a little bit of the man's hair so that there is a trail of gray hair down the hill. Finally, he stops rolling and he is completely bald. I race down the hill with a giant pregnant belly that was not there earlier in the dream. "Are you alright?" I ask. I'm frantic. The man nods and then grabs a handful of his scalp in his hand and does the Scooby Doo face mask removal thing. It's really my doctor! She says, "Oh yes, I'm fine! Let me just get changed and then we can deliver your baby!" Then I wake up. Huh???

School Days

Noah finished his first week of school with flying colors. He loves it! When I walked him into his classroom the first day he walked right up to his teacher and said, "Hi, I'm Noah. My mom is gonna leave now." Then he glanced over his shoulder to me and said, "Bye, Mom!" I got the hint and made a quick escape. He sure is independent!

I've been trying to keep it on the down-low that Geary is a teacher at Noah's school. I don't want him to get special treatment or be coddled by the office staff. All my hush-hush has been for nothing, though. Every school secretary that sees Noah just gushes all over him. This is just one of the funny conversations I've witnessed:

Secretary: Noah Linhart! Look at you! You're such a big boy now!

Noah: Yeah. I'm three and half.

Secretary: I know your Daddy!

Noah: His name is Daddy Linhart. I mean, Geary.

Secretary: Do you know what your daddy does? Is he a fireman? Or a doctor?

Noah: No...He's a MAN!

Name Our Fetus

We got our first congratulations-on-being-pregnant gift today! My friend and mentor, Megan Neill, gave me a package of Goldfish Baby for our little Goldfish Baby! Isn't it too cute? Thank you, Megan! We love it!
We need some help coming up with a fetus name for this child. I hate calling the baby "it" or just plain "baby." We called Noah "Sprout" and now we need some suggestions for this one. Some ideas we've thrown around include GB (Goldfish Baby), Bean (pretty common), and TheCure (you know, so it can be "Walk for TheCure, Stay Hydrated for TheCure, Take your monster-huge-horse-pill-prenatal-vitamin-which-makes-you-sick for TheCure). What are your ideas?

First Day of Pre-School

Happy Birthday Papa and Grandma!

We went to California over Labor Day weekend to celebrate my Grandma's (dad's mom) 75th birthday and my Papa's (mom's dad) 80th birthday. Both parties were lots of fun and we had a really good time visiting with relatives. This is my Grandma Vera and my Grandpa Lou. Doesn't she look adorable in her red shoes? Grandma's party was a surprise party and she was REALLY surprised. It was kind of a fancy party so here my two boys looking kind of fancy.
This is my cousin Abigail with Noah. We ate dinner at The Elephant Bar and the kid's menus came with these safari jungle glasses.

This is my wonderful Papa. I'm pretty sure Noah and Papa fell in love with each other on this trip. One thing that totally won Noah over was Papa feeding Noah ice cream and french fries for lunch. Of course the endless hours of coloring, playing hide and seek, and conversations with Curious George helped, too.