I'm never cold with all this body heat. and 100+ temps.

Well here I am again!! Time to share some more pics of the ever-increasing belly size... for some reason, I think my baby just wants to be seen as much as possible, even in the womb, that she squeezes her little body up against mine and makes herself look extra huge for her [gestational] age. a.k.a. my belly seems huge to be only 23 weeks preggo, no? but good news, baby stacy is growing EXACTLY to the due date was selected for her! way to go girl!!                     

here goes with some preggo highlights:

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 23 weeks (6 months on Wednesday!)

Size of baby: Baby G (georgia) is about 12 in. long and a little over 1 pound (the size of a large mango? i didn't know large mangos were a foot long. that's giant.)

Total Weight Gain:oh you know, ENOUGH. I am guessing I weigh about as much as I did after my freshman year in college. gooey and voluptuous.

Maternity Clothes:Well, yes and no. yes, my tops need to be larger than life to fit now, but now that Katy gave me a "Be-Band" (i think thats what its called) i can wear any of my old pants unbuttoned/unzipped and no one can tell!! magic.

Gender:Baby G(irl)!!!! cannot wait to meet her already.

Movement:She moves ALOT these days. I absolutely loooove it. I've read that she should now be on a "sleep cycle" and I can safely say she wakes up around 3:30-5am every morning. gettin ready for some loooong nights ahead! oh, why Georgia, why.

Sleep: Meh, it varies. right now I have a brutal cough/chest wheezy thing going on and it's a bit tough to stay asleep all night. usually it's fine. figuring out how to position a huge belly gets tricky, though.

What I miss: working out...

Cravings:Most things that are heavy, fattening, and spicy.

Symptoms: I think she's growing and my ligaments are stretching. lots of pulling on my mid-section. weird, huh?
Best Moment this week: knowing that I'm one week closer to meeting her! and getting excited about showers with friends!

22 weeks

23 weeks

23 weeks

just-a-cookin'

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 16 Weeks (17 on Wednesday)

Size of baby: Nug is a little bigger than a navel orange (about 4.5-5 inches from crown to rump)

Total Weight Gain: maintaining...right at 10

Maternity Clothes: pretty much in the pants department. and all of my shirts are seemingly not long enough
these days.

Gender: appt. tomorrow, maybe i can convince them to give me an ultrasound and take a sneek peak.
if not, waiting patiently until week 20.

Sleep: so-so. learning to sleep on my side is a doosy. seriously hurts my shoulders/collar bone. why do people sleep on their side if they aren't preggs? that's a huge question mark.

What I miss: working out/playing sports with my heart rate being over 140bpm.

Cravings: food that has too much intense flavor makes me naush. i.e. basil and cilantro leaves. or raw onions. sick.

Symptons: i think pregnancy made me need a power high at all times. or i just have always had control issues, and they are just now coming to light. oops. i may or may not be on edge at all times.

Best Moment this week: knowing that baby can suck his thumb now and will soon be able to kick me in the sides and let me feel his jabs. crazy.

This is last Wednesday. 16 weeks. both pics.

Baby Stacy is due December 28th, 2011. I am still in awe that there is a life growing inside of me, and God is knitting him/her together, aware of every hair on his/her head!

There's a growing nugg in my belleh!

Wow! Broun is going to be a daddy, and I'm going to be a mommy. Surprise!!!

Here are some belly pics from the past weeks. They are all pretty similar, but I think my belly has popped out this last week (13), and my boobs have grown. I guess the better for squirting out milk with? I'm never supposed to end sentences with prepositions, but who's counting...about?

13 weeks

11 weeks

 

9 weeks

 

8 weeks

...And as for stealing ideas, I copy-pasted the "Pregnancy Highlights" from another blog. We'll see if I can keep this up.

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 13 Weeks (14 on Wednesday)

Size of baby: Nug is about the size of a peach

Total Weight Gain: uhh, already too much for just reaching my 2nd trimester ( i will say less than 10)

Maternity Clothes: Not yet, but literally everything on me is expanding at a quick rate

Gender: Can't wait to find out! (I think it's a little chiquitito)

Sleep: I wake up once or twice a night. Can fall asleep at any time during the day.

What I miss: working out/playing sports with my heart rate being over 140bpm.

Cravings: all food, especially candy.

Symptons: Baby in belly, fatigue, weight gain. would have no clue I am pregnant if I didn't pay close attention to my body. no nausea. thankful to GOD that he is allowing me to want more kids from this easy/boring pregnancy!!

Best Moment this week: Hearing baby's strong heartbeat and seeing him growww!! Oh, and telling the whole youth group in NYC that we're preggs. Best reaction ever. =) 

 

Here is baby today:

Spring Cleaning...

Ok brothers and sisters.

I read wayyyy too many blogs to not be updating my own. It's like going to a small group and listening to everyone else be vulnerable, mooching off of their ideas, and not being willing to take out my chips and ante-up. Well, maybe I already ante-ed up per my first few blogs...but this is getting ridiculous.

A lot has happened since May 2010, believe it or not. Following my bullet points from before:

* My sister, Morgan, got married May 23, 2010 to Keith. He is awesome, and her new last name is Williamson. Weird.

* I began and ended a fitness instructor job at the YMCA. Jan-May 2010.

*Broun and I went to Jamaica with the youth group, many lives were changed by the Holy Spirit, and we all got to meet/love on people who live much different lives than we are used to.

*Also went with youth group to Idaho to camp, white water raft, hike, climb, and learn more about Jesus.

*Started my job at the Presbyterian School working as a 7th grade Spanish teacher. I am also the soccer and track coach.

*Had our 1 year anniversary on October 11, 2010. Went to Nashville to celebrate.

*My dad gets engaged.

*Baby Myla Livingston was born Dec.8, 2010!! Katy K is officially a mama!

*Christmas ski trip with youth group. Always a blast.

*Christmas in Atlanta with my family!

*Celebrated our neice Addison's 1 year bday.. she's a firey ginger and both of her parents have dark brown hair. This gives me hope that I can have one child from every race.

*Broun's dad remarried on Valentine's Day.

*Our apt was flooded.

*Visit to Morgan and Keith's new house in Nashville. Morgan is now a camp director for a church in North Nashville. Keith is a physical therapist. Got to visit their church plant in dowtown Nashville. So sweet.

*A new addition to the Stacy family: Tempurpedic mattress from heaven.

*Spring Break trip with Morgan/Keith, Katy/Dave, Allie/Matt. Very fun, relaxing and love-filled. We went to Destin and brought baby Myla. I'm pretty sure we burned most of our food calories through laughing.

and now, we're here. Mom just had surgery on her knee from skiing and falling in Park City last week. I'm taking care of her and playing multiple games of Words with Friends con ella.

I just began a new Read-Thru-the-Bible-in-a-Year plan. I think this is what sparked my interest in blogging again. Commitment. Now that I'm a teacher, I find more value in people sticking to their word (being doers, not just hearers). I might as well do the things I believe in, right?

So, here's the plug for the radicalexperiment. Love the Word.

Para Comer

I love food. So does Broun. and we can't seem to make regular "staple" meals because we have continual urges to experiment, and make the next meal even tastier than the last.

So, for your enjoyment, and perhaps, interest, I'll copy the recipes i've used for these tasty delights!

I decided to make Broun's favorite dish Chile Relleno (stuffed chile), and honestly thought it was going to be a huge flop after i started following the directions on the recipe. However, much to my surprise (and I'm sure everyone else I was cooking for), it tasted SO GOOOOOD! I'm really not trying to toot my horn or anything, but it was full of fresh ingredients, and although it was slightly battered, left you with a good feeling after you ate it. Or maybe I was just dreaming while eating, so combined made me hallucinate. Who knows. But try it out; this is the link to the recipe I used, and a picture of what it looked like:

note: you can always change it up and grill or roast the poblano peppers before (or instead) of battering them.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/follow-that-food/poblano-chile-relleno-recipe/index.html

Another scrumptious, and quick, meal that we made recently was Alton Brown's famous Baked Mac 'N' Cheese. We found this recipe in a magazine, but it's also on foodnetwork.com. Turned out muy delicioso, but I think we could have added some sides to go with it.

side note: Brussel Sprouts are so good.

k, here's a link and a pic of how ours turned out!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/baked-macaroni-and-cheese-recipe/index.html

Oh, p.s. I also made some awesome salsa---in a blender. And some cool roasted garlic guacamole.

Both are pictured in small amounts on the plate with the chile relleno.

SALSA:

1/2 white onion

whole jalapeño

small handful of cilantro

juice of 1 Lime

1 tsp salt

black pepper/cayenne pepper---to taste

1 can (14.5 oz) fire roasted or plain diced tomatoes

put all in blender and mix

GUAC:

3 Avocados

Juice of 1 Lime

handful of cilantro

salt and pepper---to taste

about 2-4 cloves of roasted garlic

to quickly roast garlic, just throw a few cloves on a skillet over medium heat with NOTHING in the pan. turn them over at 5 min. after 10 min, they should be soft and ready to mash. there should be dark spots on the outside of cloves when they are ready. the spicy zing of the garlic is taken away, but the flavor is deeper and richer. SO GOOD.

Go Hard or Go Home...a tribute to Ceci Gonzalez and LaCrae

BLUE! for 2010. I feel like blue is a good January color, don't you? At least it's the color I wore for the past 2 January weddings I was in. Marine Blue, to be exact.

WOW! I'm bad at blogging in real life. When i lived in Spain it was so much easier to look at my inner-self and my surroundings and come up with a written summary of life as it were. NOW, with no job, and a new title as wife....I just can't seem to find the time, or will-power, to muster up a clever bloggage. Maybe I just don't want my life on display, OKAY?????? just kidding. that was weird.

so where were we? well, had a wedding.

-had a honeymoon in Cancun, Mexico and Playa del Carmen Mexico!!

-had sex for the first time =).

-First Thanksgiving with my husband in Atlanta, GA.

-Morgan and Keith got engaged!!!(wedding in May).

-First Christmas with my husband/the in-laws.

-First FPC ski trip!

-and brought in the New Year with two wonderful weddings! Congrats Keith and Emily Ries...and felicidades Dave and Katy Livingston!!

what in the WORLD! so many firsts! and now, a new decade!! Gosh. I don't really know how to sum it all up. But here are a few words.

I was talking to one of my best friends the other day about the unexpected curve balls that life, or God, throws us...and the necessity to "grow up" or "become an adult" by learning what we believe in, what we find our identity in, or what we want our lives to count for. All issues that I'm sure EVERYONE faces at one time or the next. I've had a rough patch with the Lord lately. and by lately i mean the past 6 months since I've been back from Spain.

I came home and was thrown into the bowels of wedding-planning and learning what it meant to be engaged AND in the same country as my lovely Broun. Huge changes all at once. so suddenly my freedom and role in the people's lives around me felt like it had to change from what it looked like in Spain. Also, I immediately became a part of my own culture again, feeling like I'm automatically susceptible to the worldly snares that so naturally entrap our American lives. So these variables all have played a part in my not allowing God to rapture me with his goodness and Holy Spirit and REST in all things. I just feel the need to confess my untrust and unrest in our Lord, because the sneaky voice of sin has captured my heart over Him recently, and I need to repent of my nature! Regardless of the excuses, God deserves my attention. He deserves my trust, and my worship. He deserves to be able to change my mindset in that I don't have to only find my identity in Christ when I'm abroad, but can bring back the Truth of my experiences to share into American lives as well. Christ is everywhere, and patiently waiting for us to call out to him.

But thanks to Him, I can now recognize the trap that my heart and mind have been in for the past half year. and repent. and get out of this mess. Thank God for grace, and cleanliness. Thanks for taking the blinders off me.

That's all. Here are some pics of the past few months. Marriage is CRAAAAZY/AWESOME!!

SUUHKERRITEE!!

Katy and Dave Livingston!

Emily and Keith Ries!
Our beautiful wedding party!!

La Boda

For those of you who are reading this/wondering, the URL to this blog is "bratsta" because

1. broun + lat = brat, and

2. sta=short for Stacy, the new last name of this God-contrived family unit. =)

So, since I like pseudo-stalking people's lives via electronic photos and journaling (blogs), i decided I would try and be less of a hypocrite and let the world in on my life as well.

Here we are!... A month married, and well on our way to understanding what oneness really means.

We were married on 11/10/09 (that's how the spaniards would write the date), which is October 11, 2009. We had around 200 people at the wedding in Austin. The wedding was amazingly beautiful, and I have to give most of that credit to A) God, B) my mother, Telicia Montague (+her wonderful friends), and C) Lake Travis. It rained most of the day, but remained [spiritually] misty during the ceremony.

Jonathan Almanzar, Broun's friend/mentor from his time in Mexico, was the officiant/pastor of the matrimony. He had much truth to bring that day, to everyone. His sermonette outlined the idea of cultivation. The way we can grow into one another by purely believing and seeing the potential in the other. but also being content with this person if they never change. I married Broun of the present, not some future version of who I hope Broun might become. We then exchanged some personally written vows to one another, followed by traditional vows. It was all by the magic of Jesus that we were able to come together and worship Him as a congregation, being moved by the Holy Spirit in spoken Truth, and joyfully party on the grace that God has given us.

here are a few pics from the event. you can see more at paigenewtonphotography.com