1...2...3...GLOW!

Saturday night our family went with some of our favorite friends to the Louisville Balloon Glow. The Doves were veteran Balloon Glow-ers, while we McCullochs were first-timers. A good time was had by all.

It's fun to stay at the Y-M-C-A!

So, thanks to my mom's generosity (and a comment from a Chinese friend about Adam's recent "growth"), the McCullochs are now members at the local YMCA. We are super-excited about this new venture. Not only does the Downtown Y have tons of stellar equipment and the always-essential pool, but they also have childcare (which from what I can tell seems extremely safe and reliable) so I can actually work-out somewhat regularly! Plus, Katie will get to start swim lessons this fall, and I'll get to swim laps and enjoy the benefits of water-weightlessness which becomes increasingly important as I get bigger and bigger with child. So...be on the look-out for some new and improved McCullochs!

I can't resist sharing some of the funny/scary pictures that come up in a Google Image search when you type in "YMCA":

Where the heck is this frightening statue? And who felt the need to make it?

Looks like this baby is really getting a work-out in the Mom/Baby Yoga class....

On.

For those of you who have "been in the dark" about the power outage in Louisville, we got quite a beating from Hurricane Ike's brief visit to Kentucky. No rain, but winds up to 80 mph. It was pretty awesome to watch on Sunday...but not awesome to get home from church and realize that we were among the 300,000 without power. Even in the midst of the natural inconveniences that power outages cause, the Lord's mercies towards us have been numerous and have completely outweighed any annoyance we might have had. Here's a sample:

-Several friends close by to us never lost power, so we were able to mooch hot showers, hot meals, and laundry off of them for several days. And we were able to save most of our food from the freezer and fridge! (Thanks, Faulkners, Heaths, and Thayers!)

-The weather has been absolutely gorgeous here all week, highs in the 70s, cool at night. Ideal conditions for "indoor camping."

-Because Adam now works for the power company, he's been working 12 hours shifts and was even called in on Sunday. While this may not sound like a perk, it's actually a blessing in disguise. The overtime cash is pretty sweet, especially in a month when our budget was going to be cutting it a little close. Plus, we saved on several days of electricity and groceries! If we're going to be out of power, it's nice to be getting paid for it, right?

Thankfully, our power came back on this morning at 10am. It took me a moment to realize it was even happening. Luckily, I was on the phone with a friend who lives in our apartment complex who was able to explain to me the obvious: "Mary, the power's back on!"

So, 3 1/2 days of powerlessness later, we McCullochs are a more thankful people.

A Lime and a Heartbeat

Today I had my 12 week OB appointment, and I got to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time! And Katie did too! Sadly, Adam was unable to join us because of his work schedule, but I'm so glad that Katie was there to experience it with me. She is already so excited about her little brother or sister and loves to talk to him/her and gives him/her kisses through my belly.

An unborn baby's heartbeat is one of the most beautiful sounds in the world. I'll never forget the first time I heard Katie's heartbeat (when I was 9 weeks pregnant, picture on right). It was then that I realized the miracle that was happening inside of me. Until that point, the only indication I had that I was pregnant was that I felt sick and tired all the time. Hearing the baby's heartbeat changed my perspective and reminded me of the new life that was being created inside of me, but really without any of my help.

Today's experience was no different, although I do admit that I've already had a much better perspective on things this second time around than I did with Katie. Not only do I know more what to expect, but it also helps that this baby was "planned" (as opposed to Katie who was in God's plan but not in ours...boy, are we thankful though that His plans are the ones that actually happen!) I think it also helps that I've been married for more than 3 months this time. :)

I've also got to point out this great slideshow I learned about from my friend Alicia's blog. Ever wondered what kind of produce your unborn baby most resembles? Wonder no more!

Here's Baby McCulloch #2 at 12 weeks:

At 12 weeks, your baby is the size of a lime and weighs 1/2 ounce. (Length: just over 2 inches, head to bottom.)

For those of you readers who are more scientically-minded, you can go here to see an illustration of a 12 week old baby in utero and here to read about what's going on developmentally at 12 weeks. Utterly amazing.

"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." Psalm 139:14

Me in Pictures

My friend Ruhiyyih's blog featured another time-sucking but very fun thing to do on the internet. To perpetuate the wasteful use of time, I tag Hannah, Jamie, Lorann, and Jaclyn.

You can play too:
1. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
2. Using only the first page of results, pick an image.
3. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd’s mosaic maker.
4. Copy the mosaic image (right click, save image as) to your computer.

The Questions:
1. What is your first name? Mary
2. What is your favorite food? Pizza
3. What high school did you go to? Douglas Southall Freeman
4. What is your favorite color? Blue
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Christian Bale (I feel a little awkward about this one since I'm married and all, so I just picked the celebrity I wanted to marry when I was 15 years old.)
6. Favorite drink? Pumpkin Spice Latte
7. Dream vacation? Scotland
8. Favorite dessert? Godiva Cheesecake
9. What you want to be when you grow up? missionary
10. What do you love most in life? Jesus
11. One Word to describe you? Wistful, at times
12. Your flickr name? marymmcculloch

Photo credits:
1. Mary, Mary quite contrary, 2. Posina fora a pizza box!, 3. Douglas Southall Freeman Gravesite at Hollywood Cemetery, 4. The Chesil Beach at Portland - Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site, 5. Forearm, 6. Pumpkin Spice Latte, 7. One more from the Storr, 8. @ cheesecake factory, 9. Class Meeting: Lady Missionary in India, 10. Plus haut, 11. wistful, 12. DSC03400

It's time to say goodbye to the summer....

Just a few photos and videos from this past summer that I've neglected to post along the way. Consider this my "reflection on the summer" post intended to hasten the coming of fall.

Fun at the Waterfront

Trip to Cincinnati, June 2008

Enjoying the Wallaroos at the zoo in Louisville

Getting attacked by the Lorakeets at the Louisville zoo
Katie and the gorilla, up close and personal

Hooray for visits from grandparents!

And visits from great-grandparents!

And last but not least, hooray for Bojangles! And the Stallings, of course. ;)

Laugh so hard you'll have to go to the bathroom

This weekend we went to visit our old team leaders from China who are on furlough in Tennessee. We had an awesome, awesome time...and got to eat at Bojangles four days in a row!

While we were there, Patty introduced me to one of the funniest videos on YouTube I have ever seen. Note: this will only be funny to you if you are well-acquainted with Carrie Underwood's Jesus Take the Wheel.