37 weeks and 3 days

It is funny to me that the last 9 months of my life has been measured in weeks and days. I remember this past spring when I could not wait to reach the 12 week milestone...then 20 weeks...now I've hit term at 37 weeks and we are sooooo ready to meet our baby girl.

I'm a big believer in the motto that "one can never be too prepared". Well I think God is  about to teach me a big lesson with having a baby. AS much as I try to prepare for everything she might need, every scenario that could unfold.....I don't think I will ever be ready for this amazing miracle about to enter our lives. I am learning flexibility already and that things won't always be perfect.  But Im starting to feel okay with the unknown...the excitement that we get to parent an innocent little being. What will her personality be like? What will she look like? What will her cry sound like? How will our lives change?

I'm often asked, "Did your pregnancy feel like it went fast?" Sometimes I answer that yes it flew by  and then other days I think back on it and it feels much longer than 9 months. So much has happened...I feel like I've grown and changed into a mother and Pete a father. I've grown a baby for heavens sakes... Can all this really happen in just 9 months?

Pete has been such a trooper the last nine months; especially the last month as my nesting has soared to a whole new height. We've deep cleaned every corner of the house, we steam cleaned the carpets, we've organized and rearranged and then did it all again, we've put many baby items together, stocked the cupboards, cleaned the cars, took a baby moon, attended our birthing class, and read birthing books. Tomorrow I'm having our air and dryer vents cleaned. HA. There always seems to be just one more thing that needs to be done before "she comes".

BUT my heart is becoming more and more content as each day passes. I feel a peace...Ready or not....our arms are open to hold little Shipley Lucille. As my friend Mel told me the other day, "Maggie-I really don't think you will care if your oven is clean when you get home from the hospital with your sweet baby!" Good advice!

My pregnancy has shown me in more ways that one what an awesome GOD we have! I cannot even imagine how I will feel after I lay eyes on her. The development and growth of a baby is ASTONISHING when experienced first hand...God's protection over mom and baby is OUTSTANDING... and the wave of love I feel in my heart is CAPTIVATING. (Can anyone tell that I'm super sentimental and emotional right now?)

In conclusion. . .pregnancy has been an amazing journey...one I hope I will get to experience again in my life time. BUT I'm ready for the next chapter. My heart skips a beat just thinking about my daughter. Lastly, we are so thankful for our families, friends, coworkers, and the day to day people we interact with  that have supported us, encouraged us, and gave us advice for pregnancy and parenthood. For example, the man at the pharmacy told me yesterday I'm in for a "magical" experience having a little girl! :) It has been wonderful having loved ones to share in our JOY!

So let the count down continue...It is less than or equal to 1 week and 4 days till we will meet S.L.M.! Prayers are appreciated for a safe delivery. I will write again with the news of BIRTH! :)

Family Bonding in Cannon Beach!

What a day! the three of us (Pete, Nellie, and I) or should I say the four of us (Shipley too) made a spontaneous day trip to Cannon Beach. Only one hour west of our home in Beaverton. . .it was quite easy to wake-up and say let's go! It was a beautiful day-90 degrees here in Portland and 70 degrees on the coast...perfect for a beach walk. Nellie loved chasing Pete in the sand and dodging the waves. I enjoyed a nice leisurely walk as I watched my ankles swell up. :) We made a stop at Bruce's Candy Kitchen for some of our favorite salt water taffy and then headed to the Wayfarer Restaurant for the world's best clam chowder. We were there about 3.5 hours before heading home so Pete could catch the end of the Seahawk's game. :)

It was a lovely outing that left us both smiling. We realized over dinner last night that our weekends before baby are very limited and our time with just the two of us is far and few between. I am 30 weeks and 1 day today...less than 10 weeks to go. We are more than thrilled to welcome Shipley into our lives-but we realize a special phase of our life is ending and a new one will be starting. We cherished the freedom of today...the good conversation...the laughter....and the relaxation of one of our favorite spots (the Oregon Coast). Today was one of those days we will look back on in 20 years with fondness!

Reflecting over left over dessert

As I sit here nibbling on a piece of leftover red velvet dessert from yesterday's lunch at The Cheesecake Factory with two of my favorite people... I feel very content and relaxed. My mom and grandma came to stay with us for the past four days. This is the ultimate treat for me!

Being the least crafty and artsy person there every was.....they help me put my ideas into action. They also sew, iron, and do lots of other things I'm not really gifted at.  We got so much done in the baby's room! It was rewarding and fun. They also cook, clean, organize, and tell me ways to better my kitchen. :) My grandma made one of her delicious casseroles, her famous french toast, and traditional pot roast and mashed potatoes last night. Baby and I got fattened up a bit. ;) Pete also truly enjoyed the home cooking!

In addition, they gave me some motherly advice I needed to hear.  "Rest up, drink more fluids, and relax....everything will be ready when Shipley comes!" The more pregnant I get-I need to remember that I can't keep going the same speed I always do. My mom and my grandma helped enforce this. I just wish they could move in until the baby is born. I love having the helpers and the time with them! Nellie sure enjoys their company too.

I am blessed with two wonderful women and role models in my life. Their tips, tricks, ideas, expertise, and advice makes me a better woman myself and prepares me for motherhood! Which by the way, I am growing more excited for every single moment of every single day.

Mmm the last bite is always the best! :)

little footprints, pink filling....many BLESSINGS

Little moments...little footprints.. like this with my niece Elle Grey completely made my summer. Hearing her little voice say, "maggie com here" as she would grab my hand ....was priceless. She would also point at my tummy and say baby or baby "shippy". My heart melted a thousand times just being around her. The last day she sang a song about me, "maggie, maggie, maggie, maggie, maggie, maggie.". I almost cried with joy!

Being with my family for a week at Solana beach was pretty rewarding. It is amazing how fast a week can go by, but how many memorable moments can be packed into that week. I cherish every single one.

We also got to reconnect with dear friends, celebrate my friend Mel's baby shower, and my sweet friend's also threw me a baby shower. It was an exciting week. Last but not least, we revealed the gender of baby moormeier. The filling was pink...Shipley Lucille Moormeier. We are proud parents of a little girl. :)

Beaming with happiness

We've already been home for a week and the routine of life rolls on...but thinking back on the many blessings of this past month keeps me smiling. 

Life is not always full of sunshine, love, and surprises. We all experience highs and lows. But life is beautiful in the good and the bad. I think finding this beauty and holding on to it is key. This month I have felt the beauty of life in so many ways..I'm holding on tight! :)

Growing mom and growing baby :)

Week 4-at our celebratory dinner

Week 8

Week 15

Week 18 and 3 days

For those of you who have been asking about my belly growth...here is a little preview. I added a few of my weekly progress pics. :) I'm 19 full weeks tomorrow! woohoo. We find out the gender of little baby mo on monday! We are so excited and we are doing a gender reveal party next Thursday in San Diego (more details to come). Almost to the half way mark and doing well. Resting up this weekend at home! Starting to feel little baby kicks and loving it! :)

I miss you so much Grandpa!

5 years ago today. . .My grandpa left this world. I said goodbye to an amazing grandpa, a role model, a wisdom giver, a friend, and someone who could always could make me smile and brighten my mood. I said goodbye but he is always in my heart. I think of him often...wondering what he would think about things or what his advice would be.

My grandpa was a huge part of my childhood and really shaped who I am today. He always encouraged me to be a nurse (as he loved math and science) and he is one of the big reasons that dream came true for me.

Things aren't the same without you grandpa, but we will never stop remembering you! Your brave spirit and your passion to be with Jesus truly touched me. I love you and am thinking of you more than ever today!

One of his favorite songs...a great memory I have singing with him...

---

1. What a friend we have in Jesus, 
 all our sins and griefs to bear! 
 What a privilege to carry 
 everything to God in prayer! 
 O what peace we often forfeit,
 O what needless pain we bear, 
 all because we do not carry 
 everything to God in prayer. 

2. Have we trials and temptations? 
 Is there trouble anywhere? 
 We should never be discouraged; 
 take it to the Lord in prayer. 
 Can we find a friend so faithful 
 who will all our sorrows share? 
 Jesus knows our every weakness; 
 take it to the Lord in prayer. 

3. Are we weak and heavy laden, 
 cumbered with a load of care? 
 Precious Savior, still our refuge; 
 take it to the Lord in prayer. 
 Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? 
 Take it to the Lord in prayer! 
 In his arms he'll take and shield thee; 
 thou wilt find a solace there.

Hello Second Trimester

Today I am 14.3 weeks along in my pregnancy. I also wore maternity jeans (not that i needed to)  for the first time yesterday... I thought both these milestones deserved a blog post. :) Pete and I could not be happier to know that God has blessed us with a growing baby. We feel joyful, happy, joyful, and happy!

November 24th is our due date and it could not come quick enough. ALTHOUGH I do love being pregnant; despite a few pesky symptoms. I just feel like smiling ALL the time.  For the most part,  I have been feeling really well. My worst symptoms has been exhaustion and food adversions. I sleep or feel like sleeping all the time. The smell of asian food or seafood has me running for the back door. It is starting to improve though and I have only thrown up one time the whole first trimester.  Pete has been great about making me countless peanutbutter banana protein shakes and has been more than accomodating with my odd food issues. One of my few cravings has been our neighbor dave's barbeque ribs. He made them for me last night..boy oh boy were they tasty! :)

We've started crib shopping, we've tested out strollers, and baby names are a daily discussion. We find out the baby's gender on July 2nd! We are not near as anxious to know the sex as we thought we would be. We both feel happy with either a boy or a girl and more than anything just want a healthy baby!

Thank-you family and friends for your well wishes, your prayers, and your continued prayers as we prepare to become parents. Let the next chapter and the journey begin! :) And cheers to the second trimester or as they say the "golden trimester"!

True Blue Friends

What a treat the last three days were. Two of my dearest friends and their husbands came to Portland for a special spring visit. I had lots of plans in store and the sun stayed out for us most of the weekend. It was perfect!

We stuffed ourselves at some of Portland's finest restaurants. We tried Pok Pok (thai) and Torro Bravo (spanish tapas) for the first time. They have both been on my bucket list for forever. They were extremely delicious. We also devoured some tasty food at the "good food" food carts on Belmont. Yum-Herb's Macaroni was insane! Lastly, we hit Blue Hour for a happy happy hour and one of my favorite breakfast spots- Isabel Cantina (in the pearl). Needless to say- we did not go hungry this weekend!

We power walked the nike campus, enjoyed a beautiful drive to Sauvie Island to sit on the beach, and shopped numerous districts to our heart's content. The boys enjoyed golf, basketball, and local breweries. We also snuck in a game of "fish bowl" (tradition) to finish off the weekend. Memories were truly made!

There is nothing like a visit from your true blue friends to leave you laughing, inspired, warmed to the core, and then oh so sad that they are gone again. Now as we are each back in our own cities (Portland, Seattle, and San Diego)-we look forward to the next reunion and think fondly on this one!

THANK-YOU my friends for brightening up my month with your visit!

Spring Cleaning!

Is it really spring? Is this for real? Have we really survived the winter and rain in the Northwest? Is there really sunshine and happy times in our future?

Those of living in Portland, Seattle, or anywhere in between know that it gets rough November-March. Sometimes you wonder if you will ever see the light of day again. Most of us resort to tropical trips, cozy indoor activities, or eating comfort food to pass the time. Then. . . the first nice day of spring we all rush outside and plant flowers. HAHA. Oh the life we live in the rain!

Spring brings more than sunny weather and dry days-it brings cleaning. I know there are others of you who, like myself, get the wild, irresistable itch to clean the dickens out of every corner in the house. Pete always jokes that if I can't find anything to clean out or give away. . .I just start bringing his favorite things to Good Will. He always gets a bit nervous when I mention spring cleaning as it means he might lose some of his clothes or gadgets. He also knows we will have to clean the carpets (a task he absolutely loathes). :)

There is something about cleansing every spring though. It is rejuvenating to look through things and condense, organize, and polish up. I love making sure that the winter dust is gone, changing my flannel sheets to bright colorful ones, and putting the sweaters and coats in the back, back of my closet. It is so nice to actually see my neighbors again as we have all been hiding away for the winter months. And it is exciting to be able to run or walk outdoors without wearing 8 layers and a beanie.

Spring brings a fresh feeling to life...New smells in the air..longer days...and promises of barbecuing and leaving the car windows cracked. It also is a great chance to spring clean yourself... maybe an attitude adjustment or a new exercise plan? Maybe a new commitment to a hobby or weekly girl's night? Maybe cutting back or adding more? Whatever it is..spring is here and it is time to roll up your sleeves and start doing some dirty work!

HAPPY SPRING CLEANING! :)

Simple Things

Today as I sit with my wool socks on, sipping a cup of tea....I was reminded of my new years resolution to plan less and stay at home more. As we are well into the third month of the year, I feel like this resolution is ringing true. I have found myself comfy and cozy around the house many days this year wearing my wool socks and sipping tea. We've been taking numerous walks around our neighborhood with Nellie and cooking more dinners in our own kitchen.

I am learning to find happiness in my own surroundings and the familiarity of life. I've striving to be more content with the simple things right in front of me. Life is not all about the GO, GO, GO. There is plenty of time to explore and try new things. Sometimes the best moments in life are the candid ones on your own couch (I think Nellie would agree with this!). In these simple moments I can hear myself think, I take time to pray, and the busy pace of life stops for awhile. I am learning to appreciate the simplicity of staying home and the beautiful things that God has put right in front of me and around me.

What is something simple that you have found beauty in today?

Claude and the delicious square of banana bread!

When on vacation earlier this month, Pete and I had the most amazing breakfast at The Loft. This is one of the restaurants at the Montage hotel in Laguna Beach (picture of our view to the left). Shortly after being taken to our table, we were greeted by Claude (a fancy french waiter). His accent and disposition made me want to quickly put my napkin on my lap and sit a little straighter in my chair. But his warm smile and beautiful descriptions of each item on the menu made him very likeable. I liked him even more when he brought us these delicious little morsels of banana bread before our meal arrived. Upon asking for another plate of these morsels (Yes I'm guilty), Claude offered me the recipe. He said a couple years ago he began printing out copies for his customers as this banana bread was so popular. So because Claude was so thoughtful to share with me....I just had to share with you. :)

I am waiting for some of my bananas to over-ripen and I plan to make it this week. Thank-you Claude!

The Loft Banana Bread Recipe

16oz flour

16 oz brown sugar

2 tsp. baking soda

4 over ripe bananas pured

1/4 pound melted butter

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

2 tsp. baking powder

2 cups buttermilk

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, add the four, brown sugar, baking soda, and baking powder and thoroughly mix until everything is incorporated. In a second bowl, add buttermilk, eggs, vanilla, butter, and banana puree and whisk until everything is a smooth consistency.

Grease a 13x9x2 baking pan.

When pan and oven are both ready, add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients and combine quickly. Batter may be slightly lumpy. Do not over mix the batter. Empty batter into the greased pan and put directly in the oven.

Bake for 20 minutes and check with a toothpick or cake knife. Toothpick should come out clean. Continue baking for an additional 5 minutes and check that bread is cooked through. Remove from oven and cool. Cut and serve!!!

Finding Love in Sourdough Toast

Happy Valentine's Day! My favorite holiday has looped back around once again. A holiday full of surprises, the unexpected, and going big for LOVE. And it is also time again for my annual valentine's blog message :)

Pete and I recently returned home from a wonderful vacation to southern california. We had a lot of much needed quality time together. I think we were literally with each other every minute for 8 days. I loved each one of those minutes for a different reason!

The funny thing is while on this vacation we discovered we both have an undying love for sourdough toast. Now for 5 and 1/2 years of marriage, we've never realized this. How you may ask? Well I've always noticed that Pete ordered sourdough toast when we are out for breakfast, but I always thought he did it because I liked it so much and then he could share a piece with me. Pete thought that (after all these years) I always buy sourdough toast at the grocery store just for him to make his sandwiches with. While out for breakfast in Laguna Beach, it came out that we both actually love sourdough toast and we have ever since we were children. We had a good laugh and were pretty touched that we both thought the other one was sacrificing sourdough toast.

I thought this story was a good one for Valentine's Day. Whether you have been married 5 1/2 years, 6 months, or 52 years. . . never stop finding out what your spouse loves. You may find out your taste buds have more things in common than you once thought. :) It always amazes me that year after year of knowing and loving someone you. . .there is always more to know and more to love about that person. That is what makes love so unbelievable and so adventurous!

So this year my Valentine's challenge is to you is to search out something new to love in your spouse or significant other, your friend, your parent, your child, or your co-worker. Add another reason to the list of why you love them or how they make your life a better place. That is what Valentine's Day is all about.

LOVE,

Maggie

12 steps forward or 12 steps back?

Happy 2012! We have 12 months to make this year count and January is already in full swing! It was my new year resolution two years ago to start this blog and I have kept it going. Happy 2nd Anniversary Tell Me Moor! I write in waves, but my passion is always there. :)

I am all about new years resolutions. There is something extremely inspiring to me about setting new goals and having a clean slate to begin working on them. Each new year, Pete and I sit down, write them out, and talk about them. It is neat to look back at the end of a year and see where we have come-what goals we've accomplished and which ones we need to carry over to the next year. Someone asked me the other day, "But what if you fail?" I believe when setting a resolution the number one rule is don't be afraid of failing. If you fear failure you will not set your goals as high. You won't push yourself to take steps forward. Secondly, of course you will fail. Each year there is at least two or three resolutions I fail at, but then I step back and look at my life. Why didn't I accomplish that goal? Is that goal still a priority to me? And then most importantly, does that goal correlate with God's plan for my life? So go for it-make some resolutions-push yourself to take 12 steps forward this year in the right direction.

We usually make a long list of resolutions that cover lots of areas of life-personal, relationship spiritual, finance, career, travel, health, and recreational. They are big, small, silly, challenging, unique, and sometimes laughable-but they motivate us to keep taking those steps. Below I have shared 12 of our resolutions for 2012. I hope to blog about their progress this coming year. :)

1.) Start learning spanish (Maggie)

2.) Plan less, stay at home more (Both)

3.) Break 80 at golf (Pete)

4.) 100 pizza challenge (Both)

5.) Go somewhere I've never been (Maggie)

6.) 1 new hike a month (Both)

7.) Decide where we are going to live long term (Both)

8.) Grow in the patience (Maggie)

9.) Join a ministry at church (Pete)

10.) Read one book a month for sheer enjoyment (Maggie)

11.) Maintain a weekly date night (Both)

12.) Find joy in something new and out of the ordinary (Both)