His ways are higher..

he got the job!!
Matt has been interviewing for a promotion within his company for a couple of weeks now. by all (human) accounts, the position should have been given to someone with much more experience, or to someone who's been with the company for longer.
evidently, the Lord had a different idea!
they made him an offer yesterday. he accepted right away.

the Lord's provision in this is so obvious to both of us. while I'm still working, we can save up money for after we have the baby. after I have the baby, I'll be able to quit and be a full-time mom! it'll be a dream I've always hoped would come true. his raise will be enough to make up for me not working, as well as an increase in rent (we need a bigger place if there's going to be a baby Koenig!).

He is so good. and His timing is perfect!

another thought

I read at the beginning of the week that our baby is the size of a lime (about two inches long).
that's pretty big if you think about it!  considering that last week, it was the size of a grape.
now that's what you call growth!
no wonder I'm so blasted tired all the time...

dreaming your fears

tell me if you've experienced this before.  Matt said he's never had this happen, but I've had it happen more times than I can count!
pretend that you have a fear about something.  then, pretend that you have a very realistic dream that the event that you fear so much happens.  you wake up, and you're not so afraid anymore. 
it's similar to the idea that the thought of something is worse than it actually happening.  such as, the thought of a broken bone is worse than actually breaking a bone.
once you actually experience it (or, in my case, have a dream about it), the fear alleviates quite a bit.

why do I bring this up?  well, I had a really terrible dream the other night. 
it was about the baby... and it was not good.
it was something I'd been thinking about, and terrified that it actually might happen.
and then, I had a very vivid, terrifying dream about it.
but now, my fear is still there.  it didn't alleviate it.
I'm not sure what to make of that.

I'm thinking it's a combination.  my aunt, experienced midwife, said that many pregnant women she sees have "techni-color dreams", and that's it's normal for them to be bad or stressful.
I'm also thinking maybe the enemy is trying to put more fear in my heart.  that he's trying to keep me from trusting the Lord to see this through, in whatever way He wills.

since that night, my dreams haven't been so bad.  and I think I've been sleeping better.  maybe, as the dream fades into memory, I'll sleep better, and my fears will lessen.  that's what I'm praying for.
and in the meantime, I just need to trust.  and wait.  and hope the rest of my first trimester goes very very quickly!

she did it!

Kate, you did it! you married the one your heart loved. way to go. congratulations. many happy returns. and all those other really happy things I have to say to you right now!
I'm so excited to watch as you & Todd figure out life together. it's going to be an adventure. it's hard at times, but so much fun, and so rewarding in the midst of all the hard stuff!
you guys are wonderful. and I'm so happy for you.

our little strawberry

that's how big our baby is.  it's crazy to think about - how he or she is so stinkin' small, but is causing me so much trouble! 
I wonder if that's a precursor to the temperment of our baby.  I do believe I'm doomed by a mother's prophecy.
whenever she was frustrated with me (almost always directly related to my bull-headed strong will), my mom would say "I hope you have a little boy someday, just like you!".  because everybody knows that strong-willed little boys are even more difficult to handle than strong-willed little girls.
her vengeance will be complete.  and I'll love every trying second of it!

peanut

it's really faint, but you can still see him/her. barely. look towards the middle, a little closer to the top. there's a darker area with a little peanut shape in the middle of it.
that's our peanut!

one step at a time...

Hey Everybody! I have a theory that it's generally easier for girls to blog then guys; at least about "life" stuff. Guys could go on forever about concrete/knowledge-based concepts, but typing about one's touchy feely stuff gets a bit more difficult. I may just prove myself wrong.

We had our first ultrasound on Friday, which was AMAZING. We barely saw the heartbeat, but we did see it. (I know I wasn't imagining it.) This time is kind of an odd mix of excitement and perseverance though I know the challenging times haven't even come yet. Sarah is still feeling extremely tired every day. She's not able to enjoy things as much due to her ill feelings; work is also more difficult. Please pray for grace as she endures these next few weeks of time when it's normal to feel crappy.

I also had an interview last Thursday at my current company. This position would be more interesting, more challenging and would also be better financially. Please pray for the Lord's will in this and direction/guidance/wisdom if I don't get it.

Thank you for caring and for reading this. We truly appreciate all of our friends.