over due

Hello!

This update is long overdue! I passed my deadline of attempting to write an entry every 4 weeks, long ago. So Sorry!

To catch everyone up:

We did find an apartment and will be moving in on Monday. It's itty bitty, but with the cost of living so high- we will just have to make IKEA our new best friend and learn to be SUPER organized. The apartment is actually in the same complex as the temp. apartment we are in now. Go figure we end up where we started off. Oh well. Between the cost of gas and attempting to have only one car, staying put allows Joel to be only 7 miles from work as well as get rides 2 and from the job site with several of his co-workers who live in the same complex when needed. I am so excited to get my STUFF back! It's going to be Christmas in June opening all the boxes.

I am doing well and the baby is growing. After a surge in weight gain that put me in panic mode of becoming a 2 ton whale- oreos have been replaced with apples and potato chips with cottage cheese. The doctor consoled me to say that my body was simply preparing itself for the baby's next growth spurt. Since then the scale has slowed way down to the healthy average. Thankfully it seems that ever lb. gained seems to settle front and center- so each week the belly just keeps popping out. Here's proof of the explosion! I know I don't look huge, but thanks to Liz Lange and Target, I've been able to find maternity clothes that don't look or feel the part. P.S. For those who haven't heard, Joel and I have decided on a name! Whitaker Lee Samples. I can't wait to start the monogramming!

The summer heat has already started to take it's toll. I think Joel is worried that by the end of the summer I will have a buzz cut. Thankfully the Lord provided a new best friend at a local hair cuttery to help elevate my insentient need to keep cutting my hair. My wardrobe now simply consists of cotton dresses and my bathing suit. The pool opened on Memorial day and you better believe it, I was the first there to grab a lounge chair! I'm looking forward to bopping in the pool to cure everything from heat stroke to back aches.

Ilse, Kwilai and I just got back from a lengthy road trip to South Carolina's low country for a wedding. Ilse and Kwilai were both in the wedding, stealing the show- of course! The trip reminded me just how much I needed to brush up on my little people skills, mainly patience. Ilse is great with Kwilai and by the end of the week groans turned into laughter over the many times Kwilai pulled apart, teared apart, or some how disassembled the hotel room. Kwilai's growing like a weed, getting taller and taller every day! She is 'talking' more and loving to mimic any simple words you say.

Joel's job is going well. We are thankful for everyday that he even has one. A couple weeks after moving up to Baltimore there was large lay off at his old office due to the lack of work in the Atlanta area. We also heard of some buddies of Joel who are in the Site Development/Heavy Construction industry get laid off from their jobs as well. With each discouraging phone call, the Lord has given us a new perspective on many of our moans and groans of the area we are living in and our current circumstances. Being thankful for the small stuff is an understatement to the Lord's way of giving us a dose of hard reality mixed with grace.

Well that's about it! There are some other things brewing that are keeping both Joel and I very busy, but I'll save that for the next entry.

Love from Maryland,
Joel, Jacqueline and Baby Whitaker

one day over the rainbow...

There will be a pot of gold, a BMW Z5 for me, and a '09 Audi S4 stage 3 for Joel, and MOST OF ALL a perfect place for us to live!

Yep, we have not found the rainbow yet! We're still looking!

The apartment searching is still going. Every day I have my ritual of checking craigslist and www.apartmentratings.com for some inspiration. This morning, there were a couple glimmers of hope. Continue to pray that we are able to get settled soon (i'm dying to start decorating the nursery- and to get "my stuff" out of storage)

Great news- we are very excited about a church we visited, Bay Area Community Church. It's south close to Annapolis, so we are going to try to focus our apartment search so that we are within driving distance. It will be a HUGE blessing once we are able to get plugged in!

Joel is still working very long hours, but doing GREAT! A typical workday has him out the door by 6:00 am and typically doesn't come home until after 7:00 pm. The long hours makes me soo excited for Fridays and most of all the weekend, when I have him ALL to myself. :)

The baby is doing fabulous-growing and making mommy feel HUGE and kicking his little heart out! It soo precious! I've had a blast scouring the clearance racks for outfits. I've fallen in love with what Lands End has- Between the sail boats, alligators, and anchors- everything is soo adorable! It's hard to believe, I'm 5 months along! I spent the day organizing yesterday and updating my calendar and it was a shock to see how little time is left before his arrival. (REMINDER: Mark your calendars for August 2nd! - Baby Shower and open house at Mom's place)

I am doing well. Adjusting, but again doing well. Joel has been very supportive and and my sister is on speed dial! My quiet times consist of Monday: praying for Faith, Tuesday: praying for Trust, Wednesday: praying for Patience, Thursday: REPEAT!

I know the Lord will provide and has something great in store for Joel and I while we are here. Plus- let's be honest, 24 months and we are off on the next adventure, where ever Joel's job may take us....

Hope all is well!

Joel, Jac, and Mr. BabySamples

Think blue!

Boy Oh Boy, we're having a boy!

Many prayers later, and a few tears- the ultrasound tech on Friday confidently told us that a boy was on the way. (I would have posted the picture- but the time it would have taken to find a scanner, etc...)

Joel and I agreed, we fell in love that morning. Seeing the little man stretch, kick, and wave his arms, was amazing. He even cooperated, at first he was on his back, and by simply laying on my side while the tech punched in some numbers to determine where his measurements fit on the scale to determine his due date, he flipped over and the tech got some awesome profile shots. (I'll send the pics with Joel in the morning and have him scan them).

The MOVE:
The move, the move, OH THE MOVE. We made it! A special shot out to my dad, sister, and niece who were are welcome party upon our arrival. Our major hiccup was that the storage containers were not big enough for all of our 'stuff'... by the time we left we threw away all our food, kitchen items, made several trips to the goodwill, and had the car packed so tight, it would make any college senior proud!

The ride itself, went well. We made our first leg of the trip on Friday and spent the night at my best friends apartment from High School in Chapel Hill, NC. On Saturday, we had a simple 5.5 hour ride up to Maryland.

With Ilse's help and multiple trips to the grocery store, we settled in quickly. We even had enough energy to head down to Annapolis on Sunday, which was the highlight of the weekend. I know we only hit the surface of seeing the many gems of the city, a ride over and back on the bay bridge was especially exciting- in the rain. It was quite awe striking to see a barge below that looked 'small'. (the funny part was dad romping around with the camera around his neck, claiming he hadn't been a "tourist" in years (quite comical).

Our next adventure is finding a place to live! I'll keep you posted!

Have a great day!
Joel, Jac, and Mr. BabySamples

and the beat goes on...

Hello!

I thought I would take advantage of the time I was resting with my feet propped up to update everyone on what is going on at the Samples household...

Joel is in town for the weekend, and has been working feverishly to sell his car, so far- to no avail. Please pray that we are able to miraculously sell it before the move. It would be SOO nice to only have to drive one car up North.

Joel flies out tomorrow evening and thus begins my very busy week without him. I am soo excited though to know that this will be the last time I will have to drop him off at the airport. After this weekend, I will be going with him to Baltimore. The plan is as follows:

Mon. - meet with friends

Tues. - get my hair highlighted and cut! (SOO revved about that!)

Wed.- last minute packing, meet with friends - (i know, rough life)

Thurs. - the movers come to pack up the apartment and load the storage containers. Joel flies home that night!

Fri.- 8:30 am, last Dr. appt with my Atl OB and then at 10:00 am we have a sonagram scheduled to tell us the sex of the baby and to make sure there are 10 fingers and 10 toes.
We are planning on leaving straight after that to Chapel Hill, NC to stay with my best friend from high school.

Sat.- leave NC in the morning and head to Baltimore, MD where my sister, niece and dad will be anticipating our arrival. (I AM SOO EXCITED)

My sister and I were talking about all the reasons to pay people to come and pack our stuff- even what little we have. I told her the most important reason to me was that I didn't want to wear myself out. I know the move will be hard enough- Joel having a new job, new city, new baby, etc... I didn't need to start our next adventure burnt out. I am so thankful the Lord has provided that option for us.

I found out GREAT NEWS today, the apartment complex does not require a notice AND does not have a check list of cleaning that has to be done. Their only request when you leave is that you leave no trash behind. What a relief! I was dreading cleaning- from the base boards to wiping down the blinds. (the Lord is soo good).

This past week I finished up my last week at work. It was crazy busy, but it went soo well. I will miss my buddies! It's amazing the relationships you form with people you spend 40 hours a week with. I promised everyone that I would stop before we left town to tell them if the baby is a boy or girl.

Joel and I are still rolling names around, we've narrowed down our choices for boy names, but aren't having much luck making progress on deciding on girl names. We seem to always disagree. (watch- the baby will be a girl- then we'll really be up creek w/o a paddle :) That's ok- I'm guessing we will spend much of the trip to B-more digging in the archives of our brains for names... (now if only i kept that list from 5th grade...) hehe.

Well- that's it. Oh- mark your calendars for the first weekend in August. (2nd). If you're around - Ohio that is... stop by! Joel and I will be in town visiting!

Have a great day!
Jac, Joel and babySamples

14 weeks and 4 days

It's an unholy hour on Thursday. I can't sleep, as I now have a full fledge sinus infection and a headache that ridiculous! Granted, the thought of ONLY being able to nurse it with Tylenol and Sudafed, isn't helping! (which i haven't even had the chance to start taking- i just don't feel like running to wal-mart at this hour) We also received some news last night about Joel's job and the next adventure ahead of us which has my thoughts racing.

Joel will begin working at a new position on a job up in Baltimore, MD. (Brandon Shores to be exact). If you google map it- you will see that it is right off the Chesapeake Bay. The catch is- he starts THIS MONDAY! The story so far is that he will work up there during the week and fly home on the weekends, at least until I can get organized and pack us up and completely relocate to Maryland. The AMAZING thing about all of this, is that I will only be 4 hours from my sister in Pittsburgh. A dream come true!

Details.Details.Details. The last time I moved states was after college, and I don't think that really counts... Between giving a notice at work, scheduling the move- movers vs. U-Haul, and of course, when we get there- finding a place to live! My head has been spinning. We have been told that Joel will most likely be on the job for a minimum of 18 months, and after that- who knows where they will send him next.

My mantra has been Proverbs 3:5-6, 'Trust in the Lord will all your heart, and lean not on your own understands, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your path straight." I know that God is in control, and if I simply remove my "self", doubt, worry, and even my own understanding, the Lord so badly wants to take over and give me a peace that comes with truly trusting the One that is leading. The Lord has great plans for us, I can proclaim that promise- now I simply have to wake up each morning and surrender to it.

Baby time:
One of the best parts of having a baby is the shopping (at this point, window shopping)! Though I have to say, it didn't take me long to find a crib sets that I fell in love with! I wanted something that was gender neutral that I could use over and again (Lord willing!). www.landofnod.com - love this site! I am also really excited about the crib beddings sets that Dwell Studio has out at Target! So fun! and at a great price!

I can't wait to start painting pictures and sewing things for the nursery. Thankfully husbands (well, my hubby) aren't really into this stuff- so I finally am going to have a room in the house that I free rein to do what I like! Granted Joel will be looking over my shoulder and the check book :).

Things are going well with the pregnancy, though I did have a bit of a scare the weekend before my Doctor's visit, as I was cramping far more than what they had described as normal. At my Dr. appointments it was confirmed that my corpus luteum cyst was still there (instead of disappearing as it should have) and was most likely leaking- thus the complications with cramping and severe pain. Good News is that it will go away- it's just something that can happen and isn't very fun. The good thing that came out of all of this was that I got an impromptu ultrasound and was able to see the baby kick. It was amazing to see the changes from 9 weeks to 13 weeks- oh my, has the baby grown!

The next few weeks are going to be hectic, but very exciting! I promise to give updates often!

Jacqueline.

the bridgewater ladies

Hello!

I've heard down the grapevine that several of the ladies from back home have been anticipating an 'update'...hehe.

My next doctor's appointment is next Monday, St. Patrick's Day. I have finally reached 12 weeks- 3 months! I've been feeling a whole lot better, and eating my little heart out.

Thankfully all of my clothes still fit, and there is a only a slight baby bump. (i'm not complaining- i'm dreading shopping for maternity clothes) I plan of wearing 'normal' clothes as long as I can. I look forward to taking advantage of what sewing skills I have acquired since I got my sewing machine for my birthday, to alter what is possible in order to make the belly fit! Thankfully the style for tops is long. I don't want to jinx myself, but of course, I'm hoping for the basketball belly- we shall see.

Speaking of bellies- mom encouraged me to start measuring my belly each week. Well, Joel decided he wanted in on the action, and so we now have a contest of who has the biggest. Believe it or not, he's winning! (he was soo distraught) Granted, to make it fair, I measured our 'cabooses' and of course-I won that one. hehe.

I did tell everyone at work a week or so ago that I was pregnant. That Monday I went in and got my hair chopped. (I love it- and it is sooo much easier. It's a combo of the cut I use to have when it was short and the katie holmes hair-do). So when I came in on Tuesday, it was easy to tell everyone why I made the drastic change- I was expecting and I was starting now to simplify life! I promise to post pictures soon!

Yes, we have thought of some baby names- we are havin' the dickens of a time agreeing on a girls name. So far all I have is: Caroline or Jillian.
For a boy: Whitaker Lee or Jacob Taylor
Any Ideas? Feel free to leave a comment and help us out!

Joel is doing great- of course! Work is going well and the clock has finally begun to tick to the countdown for when they will move us. We are so excited about the idea of moving closer to family.

Well- that's about it for now.

Have a great week! and for all the Ohioans- may you not remain buried in snow forever! Those of us living south of the mason dixon are enjoying sunshine and 60 degree weather! :) Come and visit- we'd love to see you!

Jacqueline, Joel and BabySamples

...and baby makes THREE!

Hello!

I am so thankful that I set up this blog this year as Joel and I have been going through so many changes. Our latest update is that we are going to be proud parents come the end of September (Sept. 22nd is my due date). As much as it was planned, it was a complete surprise as to how quickly we became pregnant (the first month!). We had our first ultrasound today and everything came back normal. The heartbeat was 174 beats per minute- some say that means it's a girl, but so far that is only an old wife's tale. It was so awesome to see the little 'spud' squirming about and to see the heartbeat. Amazingly, time feels like it is flying by. Ten more weeks and we will be able to tell if the baby is a girl or boy!


(the head is facing down w/ the feet in the air- if you look REALLY hard you will be able to see the arms and eyes as well)

I seem to have every symptom! without any breaks, but overall, doing very well. I am currently 9 weeks and 2 days. I've only now realized why mom's are so good about numbers and dates when it comes to their children's ages. (like, they say their child is 24 months, instead of just 2!) I think it comes from all the counting that began when they were pregnant.

Our families are sooo excited, I think my sister most of all! My brother John's birthday is the 24th of September, so we are excited at the chance that the baby may be born on his/her uncle's birthday. Joel is doing is best to make use of his 'free' time- working on his new car, watching lots of movies and playing video games- his count down is more or less, one that leads to the inevitable shift to parenthood. (and I don't blame him) He has been doing an awesome job supporting me through all my ups, downs, naps, and cravings. I couldn't ask for a better help mate!

Believe it or not, I am actually one of 6 ladies at work who are expecting between July and September. Not everyone knows at work, but as soon as I break the news, I will have plenty of people to sympathize with, which will be nice!

In other news, we recently moved into a smaller and cheaper apartment after receiving word from Joel's job that is will be another 6 months before they anticipate being able to move us to northern VA. It's a very large one bedroom, with the actual bedroom being larger than our last apartments- which is quite impressive. (plenty of room for a crib) We moved about 15 minutes south from where we were, and Joel's commute is down to only 5 minutes (if he hits all the lights). My commute remained the same, as we are so much closer to the main highway.

Well, that is all we have for now. We will be updating this blog once when we hit different mile stones in our pregnancy and life in general. Please check in, and leave comments! We would love to hear how you are doing!

Have a great day!

Joel, Jacqueline and BabySamples

'Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;' Psalm 127:3-5