9 Weeks, 5 Days

Sarah and I had a doctors appointment on Monday at the women's health center where we'll be going for all of our check-ups, classes, and other things that come along with having a baby. I thought I'd pass along the news that came out of the appointment, even though there isn't that much to tell, really.

Basically, everything seems to be progressing normally. They took blood and did all of the normal tests. Everything pointed to the development of a healthy fetus. They figure we're about 9 weeks and 5 days into the pregnancy, so we'll go back in about a month to get an ultrasound and do some more tests for things like Down's syndrome and any neural tube disorders. They tried to listen for the fetus' heart beat yesterday, but it's a bit early along in the pregnancy for the rhythm to be very pronounced, so we didn't hear anything. So it goes.

The due date we've been given is April 30th, so... Keep that in mind, I guess.

So, that's all, really. Things are going well, for the most part. Sarah is pretty nauseated and fatigued almost all of the time, so we have been taking things pretty easy around here. The new TV we got has been getting a lot of use, so I've got to give a big high-five to pregnancy in general for justifying the amount of money we spent on the TV. Hoorah.

Not much else to say for now... I think we'll be taking some more pictures around here soon, so maybe we'll be sharing those on here. I sort of feel bad for not taking more pictures since we moved here. I forget sometimes that most of you all have no real idea what it looks like out here or what we see on a daily basis. Hopefully we can help to change that soon.

Be good, kids. Stay Gold!

MMK

The Same Sun

This is an interesting time in my life. In our lives. In America. There's too much going on right now for me to coherently compose my thoughts. Others have already said it more eloquently than I ever could, anyway.


HAVE HEART - "The Same Sun"

"Son, did you stare too long in front of that mirror?
Did it break when your conscience didn't get any clearer
because of the stomach you'll fill with all the food you eat
and the lack of pain you feel for the eyes that weep
outside of the windowsill in the castle where you sleep?"

Has the sun stopped shining upon the crown you hang?
Has your love and your hate begun to feel the same?
Did that leave you feeling empty, feeling sick,
feeling as empty as a poor child's stomach?

As alone and forsaken as you'd like to be,
there are shoreless miseries of oceans, not seas.
While you wallow and wait in your tower of ivory,
your sister is starving, your brother is begging.

Your sisters are starving, your brothers are begging.
Your mothers are mourning, your fathers are folding.
Unseen, unsung -- under the same sun.

Wake up, look up, there's a warmth up there.
A reminder of peace and a reason to care.
A reason to care.
Wake up, look up, that's something you share.
There's more to life than the boy in that mirror...
Wake up, wake up, wake up."

...From the depths of this hell -
where the free are slaves,
no difference between the cowards and brave,
where our love and hate have become the same -
it's time that we "unbecame"...

Where the ears are deaf, and tongues too dry,
where the arms don't hold, and seeing eyes go blind.
Where nothing is everything and everything is nothing...

"Arise-my soul, and sing."

By The Sea

I used to think that I knew who I was and that I would always be the person I knew.


"By the Sea" by Modern Life is War

We were young, numb, and violent all at once. We were always smashing glass but it was never enough to make us feel OK. Are we normal boys? Is this the normal way? We've been dragging dead weight across Midwest towns. Killing our times with our frowns. Alone in the crowd four years down feeling torn and beaten down. Alone in the crowd four years down, our hearts were beating to this sound. Me and you, we never got much sleep those nights. There was too much turmoil too deep inside. Lost in the dark without our pride... There was a light at the end of that tunnel, but we chose to shield our eyes.

Could It be? Are we seeing clearly for the very first time? We've been to the edge and we know what it's like to want to die...and that's something we won't glorify. We'll leave those miserable times behind. How far can I go? I'm rising from the depths of my own hell. I don't need another tragic tale. I need the strength to walk the other way. I found conviction in my ever changing mind. I grew up tied down and bleeding on the inside, but I know I was a victim of my own device, and I want to live to see a brand new life.


Stay Gold,

MMK

It's a boy and/or girl!

Yep. We're gonna have a baby.

I guess I'll tell you more when there's more to know.

Thanks, God, for making us fertile.

Our Apartment

So, it's taken a little while to get this done, but here you go. I made a short little video walk through of our apartment so that you, our friends and family back home, can see where it is that we're living here in the 'Shire. Check it out.



It's started raining outside. This is my first ever tropical storm experience... Hooray Hanna.

We got up early this morning and hosted a pancake breakfast at our place with a bunch of other hall directors. Durham was having a city-wide garage sale this morning, so we hit that up after the pancake breakfast. I bought an antique looking picture of Mary and a blond-haired baby Jesus. It's historical accuracy was its most appealing feature. I can't get behind a savior with dark skin and features... Everyone knows that Jesus was American.

We're going out to dinner now. Enjoy yourselves.

Stay Gold!

MMK