I'm BACK!

It is my goal to begin blogging again! I finally feel like I have things together again since completing graduate school, starting a new job and having a baby (nearly 2 years ago)!

Okay - so I am going to make an attempt anyway! We will see how that goes! I am sure I've lost a lot of followers in the process... here's to hoping I will pick up a few followers again.

I will try and get caught up as far as all that has happened since I've not been blogging! I will start with where I left off from my last post.

Next post...Landry's birthday story and first year!

See you guys soon!

Guess what...

I'm NOT in labor!! But I am completely okay with that! I am currently 3 days past my due date but it is not horrible. My body is just not ready and neither is Baby Conaway. As I sit and play the waiting game I thought I should take this time to update and catch you all up on stuff and just blog about random things!

Pregnancy:

As far as the pregnancy goes, let me share a few thoughts...I always had thought that pregnancy is a beautiful thing created by our Creator! And it truly is! How God creates our bodies to grow and birth babies is just simply amazing! I always thought I would be one of those to absolutely LOVE being pregnant...I like being pregnant but not sure I LOVE it - I LOVE what it is giving me and Jeff and that is Baby Conaway. Pregnancy is just different. Beautiful but different.

I am overjoyed to be carrying a child of God and forever thankful he has entrusted me to be this child's mommy. I decided early on that if God ever gave Jeff and I the ability to conceive children I would do my best to stay healthy and continue my workout routine etc. So, naturally once we found out we were expecting (I was training for a half marathon, but Dr. thought I didn't need to continue the training but I could continue running), I continued with my running and weight routines which made me feel good about my growing body. However, I must say for someone who has struggled with an eating disorder it has been difficult to watch my body change in this way. I have trusted God! I know that sounds silly because this is one time in a woman's life it's perfectly acceptable to be bigger. But this has been the biggest struggle. People think just because you were fit before that they can jokingly now call you fat and chubby and whatever else suits them. I have just silently prayed for those people. Anyway, I have had very little to truly complain about throughout this pregnancy and I praise God for that! There have only been mild discomforts even though I was on bedrest for two weeks! A few of those mild discomforts have been...experiencing pregnancy induced carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands and currently lower back pain. I have been blessed throughout this pregnancy because God has been so faithful!

I am trusting in God's timing for the birth of our daughter. Lots of people think I am nuts to not want to be induced! I don't! I am content with waiting until my daughter and my body are ready for this process. I do not want to disturb the way or time in which God has already planned for her birthday! I am excited to meet her! So excited! I can't wait to see who she will look more like and to see if she will have dark hair or red hair after my beloved Grandma and my dad! I have lots of excitement and nervous anxiety about the birth and being a mom! It is my desire to bring my child into this world with as little medication as possible! The ultimate goal is drug free! We covet your prayers in this area for strength and perseverance!! God is faithful! I'll let you know how this all goes after it's all over with!

Funny story - yesterday while on our way to church I told Jeff the plan for a quick get-a-way if my water were to break while at church and he replied with this, "Okay, well uh are you wearing a diaper or anything?" Oh I died with laughter...I said "no, did you want me to?" He followed with "don't you think it would have been a good idea?" He is so funny!!

Baby Showers:

All I can say is that we have been blessed by so many people and never knew that many people cared for us so much and wanted to help invest in the life of our little girl! We were blessed with six baby showers and received so many precious and practical things...Jeff's favorite is the diapers! He said that is less we have to buy...funny thing is that he doesn't go buy the stuff from grocery store anyway! Funny! I love everything and am so thankful for the many blessings!

Nursery:

The nursery is COMPLETE!!! Finally everything is finished! And it turned out just how I wanted it! Check out the sneak peek, let me know what you think! This photo is without the wall decor because my parents have my camera attachment to upload the rest of the photos! Will do that soon!

Coaching Staff:

The GCT coaching staff has had a few additions for the upcoming football season! We are thrilled to bring in more coaches to add to the talent that is currently on the coaching staff! The four guys that have been hired, I feel like, are going to fit in perfectly with the rest of the coaching staff! Jeff is thrilled to get these young energetic coaches in to bring a new dynamic to the team. During the month of May, three of the coaches lived with us which was pretty fun but weird since I am pregnant. Let's just say, that's a quick way to get to know new coaching staff. It worked out well though.

I am truly sad to say that one of my dearest friends has moved to Arizona! I was hoping that I would have my baby before Kristin & Jason left Arkansas, but it didn't happen! I am just going to have to make a trip to visit! The great thing is that her mom & dad still live in my hometown and maybe we can see each other during holidays! I am happy for them for the great opportunities they are experiencing and that Kristin will be close to Stacy (her sister)! I am a bit jealous too because it sounds like a really cool place to live!

Well, next time I post it will be about Baby Conaway's birthday!!

Getting close...

We are getting so close to the day we will meet our baby girl! We are currently 8 weeks and 2 days away! I can't believe I am this far along. I often look down at my belly in disbelief!

A lot has happened since the last post...at 22 weeks I was put on 2 weeks bed rest to prevent labor. And a week after being taken off bed rest I came down with the stomach bug and a severe bladder infection and ended up in the hospital for a day! And I have been constantly sick and stopped up the whole pregnancy; however we are so thankful for all of it & trust God in & through it all. Also, we found out my sister is also going to be having a baby in September which we are thrilled about! Our kids will grow up together! She finds out this week what she is having!

We had our first baby shower in Springdale, hosted by some very sweet dear friends! And it was so great to see so many familiar faces we had not seen in a very long time! Jeff actually stayed for the shower to visit. Since he stayed my friend Blaire took a few photos of us that really turned out great! Here are a few of my favorites! And some from the shower.

We are blessed to have such great friends all over Arkansas!

Our next shower is in Paragould this weekend! Really excited about it all! I will post photos of nursery soon - still working on the finishing touches.

Until next time! Which I hope to be sooner than later!

Baby Gender Reveal

So I know I am so far behind with this blog and I have a lot to catch you all up on...

First off, on Feb. 11th Jeff & I had an ultrasound to find out the sex of our sweet baby. We went but we did not find out that day! We waited until the next day to find out with family and friends! It was so much fun - so here is how we did it!

I took an envelope to the ultrasound technician and asked her not to tell us the sex of the baby but to put the evidence (pictures) in the envelope for us. So, she did just that! Prior to that Thursday I had my friends and co-workers at school agree fill cupcakes with pink or blue icing then ice the top of them for me. I made the cupcakes Thursday night and placed a hole large enough for that oh so sweet pink or blue icing!

I decorated everything pink & blue and had a ton of fun doing it! I began to get a little anxious as I was decorating but mostly excited!

I had invited our families and a few friends over for the big baby gender reveal!

I asked those attending the get together to wear pink or blue so we know what their guess was! It worked out perfectly! Here are the groups of pink and blue.

Then once all arrived Friday evening Jeff & I stood in front of everyone and bit into our cupcakes to find out our baby's gender! My heart was pounding... here is us just before then moments after...

Jeff was super fast and found out first. I wanted to make sure I bit into the cupcake far enough to find out...I think I nearly bit too far into it! I had a mouthful & Jeff's reaction was priceless! We both were convinced it was a boy until we looked at the cupcakes and saw that it's a ...GIRL!!

It was such a fun way to find out with everyone what this little bundle of joy is! Our families really enjoyed it & our friends did too. No one could believe that we had enough willpower to not look inside that envelope! I sealed the envelope and wrote over the seal "Baby Conaway" so that I would know if Jeff tampered with it! But we were very busy moving on Thursday after the appointment & that kept us busy until the party on Friday! It was a busy few days that's for sure!

Until next time - which I hope to be sooner than later! I have a little more time on my hands now! I will explain that in another post!

Love,

Melissa

What's been goin on!

Alright! So a lot have happened since the last post, so I must catch you guys up on everything without making this post way too long!

• First off - Jeff & his team won in the first round of playoffs! This was a big deal - it has never been done in the school's history of GCT football! Our first game was in Magnolia which was forever away but we came away with such an exciting victory and had an amazing fan base that traveled with us!
  
• The second round of playoffs unfortunately did not have the same outcome! And ended up being a crazy night because as my family & I drove down to Monticello in Jeff's truck, so we could all ride together, we managed to hit a deer on the way home. But then Jeff got to stay the weekend with me at my parent's house so that was a good thing. This loss was very hard to take though. At least Monticello went on to win the state championship!
  
• On December 19th 2009 I graduated with a Master's degree in Communication Disorders. This was a very big deal to me and I am so thankful God gave me the opportunity and ability to go back to school and get my masters! God has been faithful! My close friends & family planned a surprise bash for me which made me feel so special - thanks to everyone who helped!


• And on December 21, 2009 I was officially hired at the Brookland School district as a Speech-language Pathologist! God is faithful!

And the biggest deal that has gone on since the last post is that we found out we will be welcoming a little baby into the world in late June! We found out in October and kept it quiet from public for a while to get to our first doctor appointment. In the mean time we told our families! And they have been beyond excited! Again, God is faithful!

So I am sure you are curious as to how we told our families. Here's the story...

I guess I should start with Jeff... I took a test on a Thursday morning and was in disbelief, so I waited and said absolutely nothing to him and hid the test. Then I took another one Friday morning. Just in case the test was positive I went ahead Thursday afternoon and bought a picture frame that said daddy on it with scripture and a baby pillow that has a cross on it that says "bless this child." Friday morning I took the test and it was of course positive. I decided since he had a big game that night against a really tough team I needed to go ahead and share the news with him. So I called him into the kitchen and told him I had a "good luck" gift for the big game for him! (Side note - earlier this same week we found out our friends Josh & Kate were expecting their 3rd child) So he opened his gift and said "why did you give me a gift for Josh?" I said, no it's for you... he said "for real" He was excited and told me "congratulations" I just laughed because he was pretty much speechless and was unsure of what to say! He was thrilled and still is! He will be one amazing dad!

The day after we found out we were pregnant Jeff wanted to immediately tell his family; therefore I had no time to plan! Jeff's sister, who just had a baby last June, was over and so was little Harleigh. We put Harleigh in Jeff's lap and I took a picture. Then his mom said "Jeff now don't you need one of those!" and so we ran with that line and I said "Yeah, I think it's June when he will have one!" Allison was just walking out the door to go run and heard me say that but thought if it's what she thought Jeff's mom would run out and get her before she left. Vicki(Jeff's mom) sat in disbelief, like - did I hear her right!?! And so all she could say was "really?" "are you kidding?" Then Allison finished her run and I told her I wanted to show her what I gave Jeff on Friday as his "good luck" present before the big game he had...she immediately said "dad, you're gonna be a dad! I knew that what you were trying to say when I walked out but was sure if that's what it was someone would have come to get me! This makes my day" They were all so excited, and there was still another sister of Jeff's to tell. Becky was at home and we all loaded up and went to her house! She thought something bad had happened; and we told her she was going to be an aunt again! She didn't know if it were me or Allison! It was great! She teared up and we all screamed and laughed!

After that - it was going to be a couple of weeks before we saw my family again, so we decided to wait to tell them in person! They met us in Batesville for our football game and I was just praying we won - and we did. It was a big win that put us in the playoffs. So after the game Jeff got in the vehicle with me, Beth, Mom & Dad. I handed them all bags that were the same size just different color and told them we bought them a gift for making playoffs! They totally bought it. I counted to three and they opened up the bags! Inside dad's bag was a picture frame that says best grandpa ever with a picture of a sonogram I printed off the Internet & inserted, inside mom's bag was a picture frame that says look who loves grandma and inside Beth's bag was a little tile that said Aunt's are the coolest. They opened up the bags and screamed then jumped out of the car and gave hugs! It was priceless!

Below are a few pictures from the baby reveal!
The above photo is the photo I took of Jeff & Harleigh the day we told his family!

The last four photos are the photos from the night of the reveal to my family! Can't you tell they were so excited!?!

Coming up next... the Gender Reveal!!!! We will find out Feb. 11th!

God is faithful even when I am not! Thank you God for all the blessings you have trusted me with! I am thankful!

Eagles

Our GCT Eagles are currently sitting at 8-2 and have made it to the playoffs for the first time in 18 years! I am so proud of my husband and his coaching staff for all they have done to change this program and change people's hearts about football in Paragould.

Since the last post we won 2 of the last 3 games. The last game was the big game with our crosstown rivals the Paragould Rams. There is a Bell trophy that is won at this game and is passed back and forth between the two schools...the game has been named Battle for the Bell. We won the BELL and I have one happy husband!

This week we are traveling a great distance to play Magnolia in our first round of playoffs! I am excited about traveling because I get to go home and see my family and my Grandpa is really excited to get to come too! He is very supportive of Jeff and loves the fact I married a Football Coach! I love it too Grandpa!!!

Just a quick recap on what the coaching staff has done in the past couple of years...

2 years ago GCT football held a record of 0-10 (future was not looking so bright for the program, this was the season prior to Jeff being hired)

Last year GCT Football finished the season with a 4-6 record.

This season thus far we are at 8-2 and pray and are believing in more victories!

I hope there are more people in Paragould and all over Arkansas that believe in GCT Football again!

Needless to say but things are really exciting in our house right now!!!

Until next time...

Updated 10.22.09, sorry so late

Lots has happened since the last post and yes I still don't have photos up yet and it is just due to my pure laziness....but hey, I deserve to be lazy every now and then. Everyone does!

Alright, I am praising God for so many things that He has continued to bless me with.
First of all - I passed COMPS & the SLP Praxis tests! And will get to graduate in December!!! Since joining our church in Paragould, I have been praying for God to bring us a Worship Pastor who would not put his will before the will of God and lead us in Spirit filled worship! Last Sunday night our church welcomed Rob & Tunrade Schumann into our church family for this role. Jeff & I are beyond excited about this answered prayer! And our Greene County Tech Eagles are currently sitting at 6-1 with a big game tomorrow against West Helena! I am trusting in God for a BIG win for our program! It has been since 1990 since the Eagles have been 6-1! I am thrilled that God is showing Jeff the fruits of his labor! He is working so hard to take this team and program to a new height; however, He & I both know it is impossible without God!

I am staying very busy myself, with clinic being everyday I often come home exhausted and do not want to do anything. I am praying for God's guidance in finding a job close to where we live and praying that it will be a perfect fit. I want to love what I do and where I work! Most of all I want it to be a ministry! I have a heart for children and want to invest in their lives!

God is most definitely at work in our lives right now and I feel His presence more than ever! Praise Him! I am just so thankful to finally know my school is almost over with and I won't have that burden any longer. God is Good - and Faithful Always!

I have thought about not blogging anymore because I am clearly terrible at it and only do it every once in a while. So, let me know if there are actually any readers out there. If so I will be better and updating more often!

The time has come

Well, it's here...this is what I have been waiting for...the biggest test of my life and there are so many emotions running through me tonight that I could not help but to blog about them! I have one test down and one really long and big test to go (Monday & Tuesday).

I am feeling a lot of tightness in my chest with an overwhelming urge that tears are quickly on their way...tears of fear, anxiety and relief that it is almost over! Then I feel confident that I have studied and studied and have been responsible about time and effort put in; then I think will I remember it all and then the overwhelming urge to vomit comes over me! I am so ready for Tuesday to be over with! However, I am more nervous for next week when the results sit in my mailbox at school with my name on them...all I will have to do is open that envelope and I am praying it will say "congratulations, you have passed"!!! However, I will praise God regardless! He knows what is best for me and has it all planned out! Praise the Lord! I trust fully in Him; then my flesh and worldly ways make me worry about the unknown! For those of you who know me... you know I like to be in control of EVERYTHING! So, not having control kills me! However, I am trusting in God!

I am slowly feeling my blood pressure go down but my heart is still pounding out of my chest!

Lord be with me and my classmates tomorrow; please give us the ability to retain all that we have learned and studied and may we honor you and give you ALL the Honor & Glory!

ALRIGHT - BACK TO STUDYING!!!

And by the way the Eagles are 2-0!! Go GCT Eagles! Proud of you guys!

Normal Life

What's that? A normal life is what I cannot wait to have after all these tests are over!

I am praying for perseverance through this next week! I truly cannot make it through these tests without Christ's hand guiding me and helping me to retain all the information I have been putting in my brain! It is no doubt a stressful time but I feel God's presence and His calming spirit with me.

On a GREAT note, GCT won their first game last Friday against our biggest rivalry (Paragould High). I was a nervous wreck but we pulled it off and it has made for a great weekend and a happy husband! Praise the Lord!

I am currently taking a study break and daydreaming what life will be like after these two tests are over with! Things I can't wait to do...to get back in the gym and hit it hardcore, work on my resume and begin job interviews, watch lots and lots of football with my husband on the weekends without a test or paper looming over my head, Sleep good again (this includes Sunday afternoon naps), be a better blogger and go on a vacation at some point! These are just a few things I am looking forward to and thought I would share them!

Well long enough study break! I will post football photos from the first two games soon. I say from the first two games because I will most likely not be back on here until after my tests are finished! If you by chance think of me randomly next Saturday the 12th or the following Monday or Tuesday the 14th & 15th, would you please say a small prayer for me! Thanks in advance!

UPDATES from a crazy busy girl!!!

Well, I told you guys I would do my best to update this more but the truth is there has not been any time for it! And I couldn't post any photos because I left my camera at Jeff's aunt's house!

I am finishing up clinic III practicum as I type! Today is the last day for the semester! So, that means that studying has to be taken to a new level as soon as my final is over with!

The dates are official: SLP version of Praxis is on Sept. 12th (in the middle of football season) & COMPS are Sept. 14th & 15th! My level of anxiety is as high as it has ever been!

Since the last post -

Andrew Jordan (former Shiloh football player) has moved in with us and was Jeff's intern for the summer and well he just moved out last weekend! Sad day! He was so much help!

We had a baby shower for my sister-n-law Allison and a few short weeks later Harleigh arrived!!

I tortured my Macey Girl with some tissue paper! She couldn't remove it so she just gave up and decided to pout; hoping someone would have compassion and remove it from her collar!

I finally am OLD and turned 26...spent time with the family and pigged out on my favorite dessert!!! One vanilla ice cream scoop with hot chocolate sauce drizzled on top from Outback!

July 4th we had a baby shower for Jeff's cousin who is adopting a baby from over seas! It was a surprise and they were so much fun - they enjoyed all the goodies they received. They are going to name him Knox and his middle name will be Daniel-Wu (Daniel after his dad and Wu is currently part of his name that is part of his culture)! Soooo cute!

Our great friend SARAH SLOCUM won Miss Arkansas!!!! Our family was there to cheer her on and were able to witness the whole thing! It was so sweet!

And we celebrated my dad's birthday the day after Sarah Won! I don't have photos of the celebration because I did not have my camera!! They are on dad's camera and I will post as soon as I get them! We enjoyed time together in Hot Springs! I love being with my family! They are very special people and I thank God for them!!!

Jeff and I recently celebrated 6 wonderful years of marriage in July! We spent a weekend in Memphis and it was truly special! He is such a kind, compassionate and loving husband for which I am thankful for!

After tomorrow I will have a few weeks off but not really! I will be studying for 10 or more hours each day in preparation for the upcoming tests in September! I am not looking forward to it but I am ready to be finished and to detox my body from all caffeine that I have taken in while in grad school!

I am looking forward to new adventures in my life and the upcoming football season!

GOD IS SOOOOOO GOOD!!!

'Tis the season to be busy...

It has been such a long time since my last post, which has become a recurring theme with me blogging! I am so very sorry! Life has definitely been super busy and it is only going to get worse before it gets better. But that is the life of a graduate student who is also a wife and lives with the in-laws and works at a health club in what very little spare time I have.

Since the last post here is what all has gone on!

1. Finished my Clinical II practicum, which was so much fun!
2. Kristin & Jason got married (see photos below). It was such a beautiful affair!
3. I went to an awesome Women's conference in Branson with some really great ladies from our church!

4. One of Jeff's former Shiloh students moved in with us (in Jeff's mom's house) to help intern for the summer.
5. We FINALLY moved out of our house! It was so sad! We had some awesome help from some really awesome friends. And we have a really super awesome friend renting our house! God is sooooooo Good!!!
6. I started back summer school and my Clinical III practicum! It has been super hairy so far!
7. My pregnant sister-n-law Allison and her 14 month old Dallas have been living with ALL of us for the past few weeks while her hubby worked to put a murderer behind bars!!

8. We threw a baby shower for my sis-n-law Allison; Harleigh will arrive on June 17th! Crazy!
9. And I have started studying for COMPS!

I need a vacation people!!! I am sure I have left something out! I always do! The baby shower pictures will have to wait until next time!