The word is out!

Well, it's official! We wanted to wait until we heard our sweet baby's heartbeat before we announced anything "publically" and WOW was it difficult keeping secret!

Yesterday at 4pm we had the long awaited appointment and I had no idea how exciting it would be! To wait for weeks in prayer and anticipation and then to finally get to hear our baby - this sweet blessing that only God could give!! I couldn't wait to rush home and share the news!

Today, I told my students and they were so excited! "Is it a boy or a girl?" "What are you going to name it?" "You don't look pregnant - where's the baby?" "Will we get to meet him/her?" "Can we come to your baby shower?" "Does it hurt when it kicks you?" "Can I feel your tummy?" Needless to say it was a challenge trying to get them to focus on academics today! After lunch a student said, "Mrs. Miller, I can see your baby - your belly is growing!" I could sense them staring at the mid-region all day hoping to see something amazing. :) One boy even slyly put his hand on my stomach as they were leaving the room for lunch - as he left I overheard him telling the other boys - "that baby is strong - like superman - Mrs. Miller's tummy is so hard!" :P

Here is the 11 week photo for my non-facebook friends :)

His Plan - and we wouldn't have it any other way!

I've been working on starting a blog for some time now...and now is as good a time as any!

Ever since I was a little girl asked to memorize this verse in Sunday school it has been one of my favorites. A constant reminder that God is in control!

Now, more than ever, Reece and I look back at the past few years and see how God has guided each one of our steps to lead us where He wants us. His plans have always prevailed over the many that we have made - and we are so grateful for His goodness!

We had it all planned out, once again. All up until Thursday, February 19th, that is. It was just like any other day until right in the middle of teaching a math lesson I thought for sure I was going to be sick. I'd been fighting off a cold from the weekend prior so I didn't think anything of it - and I was able to hold it in being the expert puker that I am (for those of you that are worried at this point - mucous makes me sick - and with my allergies as bad as they are....well, I am quite experienced in the art of vomiting...yuck!).

I went through the rest of the school day snacking on a cracker here and there in attempt to settle my stomach. That evening, while Reece was out proctoring the EMT class, the thought crossed my mind that I had lost track of time...and well...yeah. So, I had an old, expired pregnancy test in the bathroom drawer and didn't expect anything to come of it but figured I'd at least make sure that I was legitimately ill (so as to call in sick for the following day of work). You can imagine my shock when it turned out to be positive. I took a picture just to be sure (and so I could later show Reece). For the remainder of the evening I checked and re-checked the calendar...apparently it's easy to lose track when you're as busy as we are! The next day I bought a new test - a different brand just to be absolutely sure - and it was again positive.

Reece got home that evening and I asked him if he wanted to see what I had been up to. He did as I knew he would, so I gave him the camera. When he turned it on to view the images, he stopped, looked at me with the most surprised face I've ever seen and asked "are you pregnant?!!!!?" "I think that's what that means," I replied.

How can this be?! We had not planned this. We had, in fact, been planning the exact opposite. I was going to work another year, we were saving to buy property, build a home, and THEN start our family.

But, as we have learned over and over again, God has plans that are often different than ours and better than anything we could come up with!

A new addition to the Miller family should be arriving near the end of October, 2009! Thank you for your prayers and rejoicing with us during this time!!

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I quickly learned all I wanted to know about the joys of morning sickness - and feel blessed (ok, maybe "blessed" is not quite the right word) to be among those that are not just sick in the morning - but all day. I have been rarely able to keep any breakfast or lunch down - and dinner only manages to stay in most times because I can lay down afterward. Vomiting 3-5 times a day is getting old really fast! It is truly exhausting and I'll be delighted when this stage is over.

If anyone is ever in need of a list of food ratings, I can accurately provide them with a chart of the best and worst tasting foods to throw up...not really something I am proud of.