Update and Ramblings...

Well, M & D got some wonderful news last Friday... they have one girl and one boy on the way! Yes, their shopping will be a little tougher since they can't just double up on every outfit, but I think the blessing of a boy and a girl is worth the extra work! Needless to say they are over the moon with excitement. As far as other pregnancy news go, everything is pretty uneventful! I've really begun to notice my belly the last few days, it's starting to get in the way of my keyboard, and anyone who looks at me KNOWS I'm pregnant... there's no "I wonder if I should ask her" moment anymore. I'm enjoying having a baby belly, and of course I love maternity pants!! I wish they made cute non-maternity clothes with such comfortable waistbands! The babies are doing wonderful too. At the ultrasound they looked perfectly healthy and were growing right on target, if not a little on the big side. My weight gain isn't as high as some books say it should be, but my doctor is happy, and says as long as I'm staying active, and not losing weight that he's not worried! So we keep chuggin' along.....

To switch topics, I'm very frustrated with the election this year. I can honestly say I don't agree with either McCain or Obama on some key issues for me... therefore I will be voting for someone else... I know that they don't really have a chance at winning the presidency, but at least I would not be contributing my vote to someone I know I won't be happy with. Then the whole Prop 8 thing. Will a supporter of "Yes on Prop 8" please SHOW me where it says gay marriage will be taught in schools?? Also while you're at it, please tell me why you "as a Christian" (I know it's not true of every prop 8 supporter, but churches seem to be scaring their members into voting Yes) have the right to judge someone else because of their beliefs?? Did Jesus judge anyone?? No, I didn't think so either. First off let me say that I am a Christian, and I believe I'm a "good" one at that. My family goes to church every week, I volunteer in the children's ministry, we tithe, we attend our small group studies, and I do my best to treat EVERYONE with respect. No, I did not grow up in any church, yes I did have a child out of "wedlock" etc etc etc. I am NOT claiming to be perfect, but at the same time, as a Christian, I know that it is my duty to raise my children in God's word, and to teach them to have good morals, and how to be TOLERANT of others who may not have the same beliefs, or follow the same "guidelines" we do.
My mother is in a beautiful homosexual relationship and has been for about 8 years. Do I think it's "right"?... no, I do not. Do I respect her? YES! Do I think she should have every right that I do? YES! And we have taught our kids that even though our Bible and our God says their relationship is "wrong", that still DOES NOT give us the right to judge them, or treat them with any less respect. The Bible gives everyone the right to make their own choices... good or bad... Who am I to stand in the way of that?
On another note... a particular VP candidate has a stance on teaching abstinence in schools that I do not agree with at all. Obviously it's successful... I mean look at her daughter! ha! (Bristol will be my Halloween costume by the way... I will be wearing an "Abstinence works" shirt, a name tag that says "Hi my Name is Bristol" and carrying a hockey stick and a stuffed Moose.) Before you flame me... I think abstinence until marriage is a WONDERFUL thing. I will encourage my daughter to remain abstinent until marriage, but it is also my job to make sure she knows how to have safe-sex if she chooses to do so before marriage. I think teaching safe-sex is vital in bringing teenage pregnancy rates down. No one can stop teens from doing it. It ultimately is their choice... so why not give them access to the information they need to make an educated decision for themselves? I am one who chose to have pre-marital sex, and I do not regret it. You can also bet that my mom made sure that I knew I could ask her for any sort of birth control at any time, and you can bet that I did ask her to buy me more condoms when my boyfriend and I ran out... I had paid attention in my sex-ed classes and I knew that STD's or Teenage Pregnancy was not something I wanted to deal with because I had been EDUCATED on the topic. Lucky for me it was taught in my school, and my mom was willing to answer any other questions I had. The problem comes when parents choose not to talk to their kids about things like safe-sex, or even drugs for that matter. Sheltering our children from the "real-world" will not prepare them to live life in it!

Ok... Off my soap-box and back to work...