Daddy Daughter

I am looking forward to this... experiencing childbirth (not literally) with Daniel. He has no idea (me either) what's coming. I'm just praying he doesn't pass out. A new Sims will be the sweetest moment in our lives. It's sneaking up on us... only 4 more months! Here are some things that make me excited. Read the 50 Rules for Dads. I'll have to print it out for Daniel soon. 

Click: 50 Rules for Dads

Daniel and Mary Hill

Daddy

love.

Daniel’s favorite (right now): 18 Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 19 Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 20 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, 21 so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth.

Deuteronomy 11:18-21

It's almost October!

Nothing beats a Sunday nap... and a Saints win. 

[Just a little background story] I can remember going to my grandmother's every Sunday after church for lunch. I was probably 5 or 6 and had an obsession with corn on the cob. My grandmother (June) would make a large spread for Sunday lunch. Our birthday meals were either chicken fried steak or crawfish casserole (with butter drenching the top). Did I mention that none of these meals were healthy? After we indulged in home cooking, she brought out Bluebell ice cream and strawberries - YUM! When it got time to leave, all 4 of us loaded up in the "ro-day-o" (Rodeo)... or ole faithful. Mawmaw June lived in Zachary, 25 miles from Clinton. With 4 kids, we always fought for shotgun. Who doesn't? I was given the boot every time for my size, so the argument was between Riley, Jill and John Preston. One would run to the car, lock the door and pretend to be asleep. It worked most of the time. Riley usually won, duh. So that would leave me, Jill and John Preston in the back. We wouldn't get out of the driveway and I would be asleep on Jill's lap with slobber on deck. To this day, those were the best Sunday afternoon naps. I would soon wake up to Jill's sneeze and us searching for a sock. Yes, a sock. Dad had a magical sock that appeared every time (Jill) we sneezed. I guess it never registered to get napkins... socks were more adventurous. Although I'm no longer waking up to, "Hurry....hurry... find a sock" on Sunday afternoon, I will always remember those times together. Oh yeah... "BLUE DRIVEWAY! I win."

 On another note... I just started working 2 weeks ago. Everything is great! The first week was hard, but I really enjoy my placement. I'm working at an elderly home from 7:30-10:00 then head to the nursing home from 10:00-12:00 and 1:00-3:00. My schedule is perfect. At 7:30 we make a route to pick up the clients. Last Thursday we picked up a lady in ... down a long dirt road in Starkville. I'm not sure where we were, but she had no running water. I was shocked people still lived without water. That makes my job worth it. I'm able to learn people's stories and try to help (to the best of my ability) - that's why I love the nursing home. I have heard more interesting stories about drugs, health problems, strokes, etc. I can't wait to see them every morning. I'm becoming a natural at Bingo! One downfall is the smell. Since I've been pregnant I can smell the garbage truck go by. Working with the elderly isn't the best smelling place, but I'm slowly adjusting. 

My bus buddy, Mr. No-teeth Nash

Here comes the weekend! Friday night we (Daniel, me, Crawford and Caroline) ate at a "new" mexican restaurant, Casa Bravo. It wasn't the best, but the company was. Upon leaving, a group of alumni Phi Mu's were having a mini reunion. It was so good to see people I graduated with in Starkville! I wish they were still in town. Saturday morning, some Chi O's had a reunion in City Bagel. We are so spread out and needed to see each other. About 10 of us got together and had breakfast before the football game. I loved fellowshipping with everyone and talking about the "real world". I am so thankful to have met those girls! The Lord shines in their work and friendships. I'm sad we don't live together anymore, but encouraged to hear how the Lord has used them. Love y'all! 

City Bagel in downtown Starkville

Also, Daniel met with some guys who came into town on Saturday morning in City Bagel. After we had been there an hour, I looked at their table. I noticed their group had grown and Bibles were everywhere. I just stopped and thanked God for friends and a seeking husband. Seeing discipleship at Mississippi State is not uncommon (Praise the Lord). It's a perfect picture of the great commission. It has been a beautiful ride with Daniel - seeing both of us change for the better. Thank you, faithful friends! 

 After breakfast, we walked home to see Ole Miss get beat ...and was it sweet! Around 2:30 I headed to the junction to meet up with some friends. Daniel (or Crawford) doesn't like to tailgate so I went to meet friends. The junction was alive and ready to watch Louisiana Tech get beat. Well, they did have a pretty day, but Mississippi State played terrible. Daniel and I decided to sell our tickets and not go in - thank goodness. We walked home then headed to Crawford's. I wasn't planning on going in so we could watch LSU beat West Virginia. THAT was a good game. I'll admit it, I'm not true maroon. Don't kill me. Daniel started going for LA Tech, because our offense was horrible... and we're extremely cocky. Which, I'll have to agree with him. We stormed the field after winning... in OT... against Tech. No offense (no pun intended), but we should've killed them. With all that to be said, it was a great day! I didn't realize how bad leg cramps were until 7:00 PM and I sat down. Whew! The Sims ladies can't be on our feet for that long again. Oh yeah, you'll see in these pictures that my hair is now brown. It's slowly growing on me. 

Brookhavvvven

yes, we ate at the alumni tent... and... 

tailgating in the junction with great friends!

Baby girl Sims was begging to wear this- maybe in the next 3 years

Someone was getting heated...

field-goal for OT

Tech scores

Speaking of pregnancy, there's one word... hormones. Daniel has acquired all of my symptoms. Last Monday we were going to bed, and he was having hot flashes. I was thrilled, because he turned the air down. The next night he was really nauseated. We couldn't understand why he was getting sick. It finally hit me on Thursday... it was me. He was also pregnant (kidding!)...but, Daniel did get all of my sickness. He's still burning up, doesn't feel well and can smell everything. It's quite entertaining. Personally, I think it's great that he's going through the pain, too. Before you know it, he'll be lactating. 

"bless his heart"

Throughout the week, mom and I have been putting together an article for the Mississippi Magazine. When that comes out, every sorority girl has a copy. I remember being in the Chi O house last year and the magazine was no where to be found in Starkville. Are you surprised? We had one copy and passed it around - deprived sorority girls. I wish I was lying. 

Drum roll please........... baby girl Sims is now a SPAGHETTI SQUASH! We reached the 1 lb. (8 in.) mark. When I get on the scale now I'll know one of those is not mine :) She's growing so fast. Daniel and Crawford still think she's a boy. It's getting much harder to get dressed and sleep. I know the last 4 months will be inconvenient, but so worth it. Still haven't given into the "oh-so-comfortable mom jeans". I just can't do it. 

Lastly, I wanted to say "Thank You!", again. 

Daniel and I can feel the prayers. So many things have worked out for us. Again, nothing is perfect, but we are so grateful. We have a (convenient) place to live, food on the table, I'm employed, etc. We thank you for praying for us. God is doing His work and it's a beautiful thing. If there is ANYTHING we can do, please let us know (even if it takes me weeks to get back to you). Prayer is so powerful. We are grateful. Thanks for reading :) If you have pointers on how to make a blog look good, send them to me! I just type.

Have a great week! It's almost October!

Update!

Can't. Hardly. Wait. 

Ahhh. I finally get to sit and write... in my own bed at home (September 17). After a really nice shower by the ladies of County Line Baptist Church (Crystal Springs, MS), I came home. Daniel was busy building deer stands all day so I didn't feel too bad for leaving. Since it was 50 degrees at the LSU game, I needed to come home to grab my fall/winter clothes... and open more wedding gifts! We are so overwhelmed with great gifts - THANK YOU! 

Blanche look-a-like

Going back to the LSU game... that wasn't fun. I was surprised we stayed with LSU for the 1st half. Then... it was all-downhill, on top of freezing my tail off the whole night. It was the white out game and I did not feel sorry for cold girls in white summer dresses. Hello... it's windy and 50 degrees. Oh well! It was a nice SEC beating MSU got on Thursday night. I was thankful Shelby Hailey got to come up. We chatted the whole game then she made the long trek back to Baton Rouge. We also saw Adam Elam and Mr. Bob Arnold. It's nice to have a little bit of home visit Mississippi State.

Whitney and Kelli

the newlyweds

Stephen (Daniel's older brother) and Daniel

Thanks for the tickets, Chuck Beauchamp!

Shelby Hailey

Ok, Chi Omega get on this. 

I can now say I'm a working woman. I started my job with Community Counseling on Monday. It's going really well. I have to complete 325 hours (about 10 weeks). Daniel loves the fact that I'm working - I'm not. I'll be a stay at home mom/wife. I'm really okay with that. I have met a variety of people. I started in the developmentally delayed program then made my way to the nursing home. I love it there. We bowl, play bingo, give manicures, lots of worksheets and Bible reading. The best part is being done at 3:00. I'm getting used to this whole working thing. 

 On the other hand, school has really picked up for Daniel. Twenty-one hours is a load! This semester is about to fly by. We're still being patient about Daniel's job. It's hard not to worry, but I have ALL the confidence in the world in him. He watches more CNBC and knows every current event. I'm interested to see where we'll be in the spring. God has guided us this far, we need only to be still.

Ah ha! I found remains. 

Baby girl Sims is absolutely growing! I can feel her often. The jeans are getting harder to fit into. I'm trying to avoid getting the stretchy jeans, so I bought a band to put over my regular ones. I just can't bring myself to buy the maternity jeans. I'm 21 weeks and she's now the size of a banana (11 oz. and 7 in.). It's getting harder to find outfits for work. I'm ready for her to get here! When football games come on, Daniel calls us "Team Sims". It's really cute. When I get stressed out over a game (Auburn/Ms State), he covers my eyes. He obviously doesn't want a crying baby girl.

sweet gift from Rachel Hill- I love anything smocked

Lastly, I want to share this from "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young. I read it September 17 - perfect. 

Baby Girl Sims

She is beautiful. 

Daniel and I both have blue eyes so hopefully this will be the final product. I'm kidding, but she is precious. 

(photo by: cdnimg.visualizeus.com)

"They are the children God has graciously given your servant." Genesis 33:5 

She is truly a gift from God. 

Boys

Looks like she's taken by Wait and George Harrod! I'm okay with that.

Y'all might have to fight her daddy, ha ha!

Surprise!

That's right... SURPRISE! Daniel and I are so sly- well, I like to think so. Our original sonogram was for Thursday, September 8th. When we found out we would be going to the beach for Labor Day weekend, I decided to move our appointment up and surprise my family. So, I called the clinic and she told me I couldn't have a sonogram until 20 weeks. After "discussing" the matter, I finally got it moved. So here comes Tuesday, August 30 (our 1 month anniversary) and we head to the doctor's office. After I signed in, the secretary told me they were running really late... great! We were already nervous and this just iced the cake. Speaking of icing, I planned a gender reveal party for all of our friends Monday night. The appointment was moved on Monday and I texted messaged everyone 3 hours later. I was nervous about the gender, a good picture and the 200 cupcakes Shelley and I had been baking all afternoon. Back to the doctor's office... they finally call us back around 4:30 (they closed at 5). The doctor told us we were early for a sonogram (18 weeks) and we might not get a good picture. I was scared, but made sure I had a sonogram. I was too anxious and wanted to start shopping with my mom.

While in the room, we told the nurse we did not want to know the sex... but if she would kindly write it on a note and put it in a sealed envelope. It took us awhile to describe what we were planning, but she eventually got it. After the 5 minute sonogram, we talked to the doctor. Everything is GREAT! The baby was 7 oz. and right on track. We quickly left the women's clinic and headed to Cups-N-Cakes.

Earlier that day, I had ordered 2 cream cheese cupcakes inferring I would come back later with the correct gender. I walk inside, hand them the envelope and they told me my cupcakes were ready. I looked at them and asked, "Really??? We just left." She then tells me the doctor called earlier and told us the sex... but it was different than the one I handed them. We were so confused - and that was something not to be confused about. After that confusion, I just asked her to make 2 new cupcakes with the gender on the envelope. We were all laughing, but inside I was so nervous. After that fiasco, Daniel and I headed home.

PARTY TIME! Everything was going well. I finished icing the cupcakes, Daniel did the dirty work, then Crawford and Shelley came over. They generously hung the streamers and helped us get organized. Well, Crawford just enjoyed his Shocktop and TV show :) So here comes the time for Daniel and I to get dressed. What to wear??? I said, yellow and Daniel made me choose a color. What we wore didn't signify what we wanted, but what we thought the baby was. I actually thought it was a boy, but we both couldn't wear blue (my thoughts). We both REALLY wanted a girl. A boy would've been perfect, too. Daniel (confidently) puts on his blue shirt and I was too rushed to think.

Here comes 8:00 and people start arriving! It's finally here :) 8:10 rolls around and probably 30 people are in our one bedroom apartment. Julie Tigrett, my roommate last year, came all the way from Jackson! It made the party so special for me. It was such a good feeling to have all of our friends celebrate with us! Of course, all of the boys wore blue. We took a blue picture and a girl picture - so glad we did that... thanks, Nations! So time goes by and it's 8:15... Nations asks if we were ready and I say, "Just give me 2 more minutes." My heart was racing.

About 2 minutes go by and I look at Daniel. He was ready because he KNEW it was a boy. He told us before the party that the ultrasound lady did it so quick, she just saw the boy part. I mean, convinced it was a boy. He thought everyone wearing pink was silly. As we're walking toward the cupcakes, everything seemed surreal. Daniel hands me the cupcake and we bite in!

IT'S PINK!!!!! He was SHOCKED. Do the pictures do it justice? It was the best feeling in the world! All of our friends were surrounding us... just missing our parents. Daniel called his parents as soon as everyone left. They were thrilled! His dad thought is was a boy and Jonelle a girl. Women are always right :)

My first thoughts were, "CLOTHES! DRESS UP! DECORATING! I CAN'T WAIT TO TELL MY FAMILY!" I mean, those thoughts took .5 seconds. Daniel was so sweet. He was just in shock. Weeks before he kept telling me he wanted a girl, but he was absolutely surprised. I am so glad we have it on video - thank you everyone! After we caught our breath, we hugged kissed and said, "What are we going to do." On one video Daniel says, "... I thought it was a boy."

I wish I could describe the feelings we had. I know this sounds cliche', but Daniel and I fell in love all over again. (Now, I don't believe in "falling in or out of love", but you get the picture) That moment was better than our first kiss, proposal, wedding, honeymoon - EVERYTHING! When everyone left, we had our time to take everything in. WE WERE SO EXCITED! It's like we just wanted to hug every second. After we settled down, we tried to fall asleep - fail. Daniel carried on with, "I know nothing about girls. I've never been around little girls." It was so sweet. I can just imagine daddy/daughter dates and them being best friends. He is going to be absolutely smitten by her :) Finding out has allowed both of us to become extremely excited. Like I said, before I wasn't okay with the situation. Now... I'm itching to February 1st!

Now we're at the beach! Daniel and I were anxiously awaiting this weekend and now it's raining. It's not only raining... it's a tropical depression. Oh well, it's still a vacation and I get to see my mom and sister! They're coming down tonight. I found out her friends are here for a birthday party so we're inviting them over tonight. My mom has NO IDEA we went to the doctor. It has been killing me not to tell her or my dad.

Daniel trying to be a "little girl

Wednesday morning Daniel and I bought my dad some little girl panties with "Rebels stink" monogrammed in maroon. It was perfect! He'll be getting the package today and I have given him specific instructions on when to open. One of them being, "Don't open at work, because I don't want you to embarrass yourself when you start crying." He just laughed knowing that was the truth. I'm about to rat you out dad, but when my mom sent him a picture of the 2nd ultrasound he got it at work... and couldn't look at it. It was also a couple says before Father's Day, too. I love your sensitive side, "deedy" :) I CANNOT WAIT TO TELL MY PARENTS! Since it's been raining here, Daniel and I went to a children's shop yesterday. I want EVERYTHING! The store had nothing but smocked dresses.

Ah!! Let the pinning begin on Pinterest! 

MOM AND DAD FINALLY KNOW! Yesterday daddy received his package in the mail. He opened it at lunch with my grandmother, Mrs. Charel, Colden, Jackson, Mrs. Ramona and John Preston. They were so surprised! He sent me some pictures as soon as he saw it. The caption read, "Congratulations on the point guard!" I wish we could've been there. 

Mom and Jill were supposed to be here around 8 on Friday night. They got into the storm, took a few detours and arrived around midnight. Daniel and I were debating on telling them in the morning, but we couldn't wait. The cupcakes were in the refrigerator and we were anxiously awaiting them to open it. They had no idea we had an appointment. After seeing the cupcakes Daniel and I explained the story. They were caught off guard, but so excited! After a long car ride a cupcake filled with pink icing was perfect :) So mom and Jill took a bite... Jill couldn't see the pink then mom showed her. Both of them were surprised, but Jill guessed right. It's a girl! I'm glad we got to surprise them! 

Yesterday, I looked at my handy dandy app again and the baby's size has changed! Daniel walked in the living room and I said, "Guess what fruit she is!" He replied, "...not again." I said, "It starts with an M. It's my favorite fruit." He said, "...........mang... mang.... mang...." We both died out laughing, because he couldn't think of the "O". He was so close! ".....mang -ricots!" No. I made him guess for the next 2 minutes. We both kept repeating, "Mang... mang...." I finally said, "I love mang...." and he shouted out, "Mangos!" It was hilarious. I promise I'm not married to an idiot, he just keeps life interesting. Yes friends, we are the size of a mango. We love her so so much. 

Last night (Thursday) we got to watch Mississippi State play Memphis. We won 49-14! Go ahead, boys! There is so much hype in Starkville - it's a great time to be living in a college town. I'm ready for the LSU/Mississippi State game on Thursday, September 14. Geaux Dawgs! Speaking of LSU, maybe we should've gone to Dallas this weekend. The rain is interesting and all, but Jerry World seems more appealing. Oh well! We'll be watching from Orange Beach - BEAT OREGON! Have fun Betsy and Graham! 

Thank you again for all the support you have given Daniel and me. It has been a whirlwind, but we wouldn't want it any other way. The Lord has blessed us in so many ways. His grace is ...ah... unbelievable. This is a good thing. Thank you.