I WON A GIVEAWAY!.... and just in case you hadn't heard it's a BOY!

I won a giveaway and it couldn't have been more perfect! Jon and I found out Monday that we are expecting Anderson James Malko, or sweet little man! We got to see him playing around in my belly! He weighs 10 oz and is about 7 inches long and we are more excited than ever to meet him!!!

Well, on Tuesday morning when I got into work I had an email from the blog http://www.thefashionablebambino.com/ that I had stumbled across and entered a giveaway on. I had entered it so long that I had forgotten about it. Well, I WON! And this is what we got...

http://www.kokopax.com/Products/city-classic-carrier.aspx

to see more pictures! We are sooo excited! And it couldn't have come at a more perfect time. We chose to get the stone color and are anxiously awaiting it's arrival, even though we won't be able to use it for a while! It is just a reminder that Sweet Anderson will be here before we know it!

My belly is also starting to get bigger - to those that don't know me I still may look just a little chubby, but my friends and family definitely recognize the baby bump. We have taken a few pics and I really will try to post some soon. Our lives are just so exciting right now and jam packed with preparation for all of these life changes! We would appreciate it so much if you would join us in Praying for Anderson, that he will be safe and healthy and that his mom will do everything she can to take the best care of him by taking good care of herself :) Also that the Lord will continue to prepare Jon and I to be parents - we are in much need of grace :)

Thanks!

The Diet of a Pregnant Woman

I haven't so much been craving weird or unusual things just very specific things like....

• Orange Juice - during the first trimester I drank OJ for 3 meals a day
• Eggs - or any Breakfast food for that matter
• BLT's - this is what I have for lunch nearly every day!
• Milk chocolate - which is weird b/c I normally prefer dark chocolate
• Green Beans - which I have never eaten before in my life but now I love them
• Grapes and Apples
• String Cheese
• A salad from the Outback - not sure why but this specif salad is what I want
• Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos from Bonefish Grill - this is a new one, but I have been thinking about them all day haha
• Root Beer - maybe this is because it wasn't until I was pregnant that I realized it was caffeine free!

Things I DO NOT want that I used to love

• Coffee - this is the main thing - i usually drink coffee every day and now the only coffee I could stomach is the fancy stuff not just a plain cup-o-joe.
• Diet Coke - i just don't ever really want it anymore
• Fried food - I can and have eaten it but I wouldn't pick it
• Yogurt - I know it is good for you but the thought of it isn't good

I have no idea why I want or don't want all these specific things, but as far as I hear it is common! Any Preggers out there wanna share what they love or hate??

Baby Crib

Tonight we went to USA Baby and ordered our crib! We are so excited! In less than 2 weeks we get to find out the gender, and it just feels like everything is going by quickly.... so exciting! Here is a picture of our crib - we aren't getting the other furniture pictured with it, just the crib its self... I love the round feet on the bed - it is my favorite part and what helped us to make the deciding choice on this crib! Can't wait to find out what we are having so that we can pick out bedding!

Some upcoming events

We always seem to have a lot going on. My mom always comment son how busy I am, but she has begun to make fun of me because my answer is always it's just a couple of weeks and then things will slow down.... but do they ever slow down...no!

Here are some upcoming events in our lives:

This Friday - our great friend Meg from Fort Myers comes to visit for the weekend
Sunday - EASTER!
Tuesday, April 6th - 2nd heartbeat appointment
April 10th - host a baby shower for a great friend!
April 24th - Mother Daughter tea with our 9th grade girls
May 3rd - Find out if we are having a boy or girl!!
May 16th - our 2 year wedding anniversary
June 1 - my little bro graduates High School - CRAZY!
June 11th - My little bro turns 18
June 12-17 - possibly in FL for pastor's conference/convention - this is still tentative
June 28-July 1 - summer camp at Southern Seminary - crazy work week!
July 10th-17th - in FL for babymoon, to visit our family, and for Ray and Heather's wedding!

I'm sure there will be plenty more during and after these dates! But it sure makes for an exciting life!

Just to fill you in I haven't taken any prego pics because I am still not showing. I mean I can definitely tell there is change happening, but I don't think anyone else can.... I will start trying to take some soon :) We are 14 weeks this week - into our second trimester and feeling great! I am secretly hoping it is a girl, but will be so thrilled either way - we just want a healthy baby! We have also been doing a lot of work on our home, but for those of you who own homes as well you know this is a never ending task! It is great to get to do work outside though! Looking forward to start building the master suite upstairs soon!!!

I am long over due on pictures! I will try to post some next week! Until then...

~Brooke

11 Weeks today!

So 11 weeks today means I am 1/4 of the way through my pregnancy! I can't believe it! Time is flying by, but I guess since we didn't know until about 5 1/2 weeks it has made it feel faster! Here is what is happening with Baby Malko this week...

How your baby's growing:Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Baby's hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under the gums, and some bones are beginning to harden. The Baby is already busy kicking and stretching, and the tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as the body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

Join us in praying for our precious gift from the Lord!

~Brooke

Could it be Spring??

This weekend's weather was simply divine! I didn't even realize how much I missed the sunshine! Living in Fl for the past 2 1/2 years really made me accoustomed to sunshine almost every day, and this gloomy winter has almost done me in! Since I worked all last weekend I was ablt to ake Friday off as well so this glorious weekend lasted 3 days for me - and it was soo needed!

On Friday I was able to run some errands, and Jon and I were able to celebrate my Dad's birthday with my family.

On Saturday Jon and I worked hard around the house to get it in tip top shape. Dusting and Vacuuming and doing laundry - it is amazing how far behind you can fall on these things when you work nearly 2 weeks without a day off! We relaxed a lot on Saturday as well and just enjoyed each others company making a semi-late night run to McDonald's for some Hot Fudge Sundaes!

Yesterday (Sunday) was probably my favorite day of our weekend! We enjoyed worship and fellowship with our Highview Family. Then we had a nice lunch at McAlister's with my mom dad and brother. Afterwards I was so thrilled with the weather that I wanted to get outside and do some of the work on our house we have been waiting all winter to do! Jon pulled all of the old ugly metal awnings off of the windows, and I sanded down the swing that we will soon be painting and hanging on our front porch! Then Jon cleaned out the garage - we still had several boxes stowed away in there, and I Sanded our back door to prepare that to be painted as well.

I have been debating what color to paint my swing, back door and front door.... I'm open to suggestions if you have seen anything adorable! I have considered yellow for the swing but am not committed! We want something colorful to make our house look young and fun! Please tell me what you think! Or send me links to pictures of adorable ones! I need some inspiration!

Thanks!
~Brooke

Other Happenings

Well, now that the big news is broken there are some other happenings in the lives of the Malko family. We are so thankful that we were able to sell my car - the X3. WE had been praying that the Lord would let it sell quickly so we could be able to save more money as we wait to meet Baby Malko, and it did! Praise the Lord! For the past 2 or so weeks Jon and I have been a one car family. Honestly I have enjoyed it. Despite the occasional inconvenience it was so nice to have that little extra time together. We shared so many laughs and good times just riding together to work and back! Well, yesterday, while I was at work from 12:30pm - 10:30pm (The Adopting for Life Conference is happening as I type at SBTS), Jon bought us a 2nd car! WOOHOO! He picked me up in it last night and I absolutely love it! It will primarily be my daily driver since it was my daily driver that we sold, and honestly it doesn't even feel like a downgrade, but it is financially 1/3 of what we had paid for the x3! It is a black Mercedes ML500 (suv)! I was elated when Jon pulled up in it last night! My dad found it for us from another dealer that had gotten it as a trade in. - THANKS DAD! So we are finally a 2 car family again. It will make the flow of life so much easier, but I will definitely miss those sweet times with Jon!

In other news, Lauren and Chad, my sister and brother-in-law are grandparents - haha! Their dog cooper just had puppies! Cooper is a boy - but they bred him with our Uncle's dog. So once the babies are weened from their mother Lauren and Chad will have a new little girl Yorkie pup! They are so excited, and the puppies are adorable! You could hold 3 of them in your palm they are so tiny right now.

Jon and I have both been super busy at work, but it is because we have been working on exciting things! Highview got new projectors and screens in the sanctuary this week, and Jon is very excited about them. The old ones were very faded and washed out and everything he filmed looked extremely dark and dull, but now it will be bright and vibrant. At Southern we had 3 major conferences this semester, and we are on day 2 of the second one! It has made for a busy February, but the 2 conferences we have had thus far have gone really well! It will be nice to be back to a routine once we are past them!

On March 10th Jon and I get to go and hear the baby's heart beat for the first time! WE are sooo excited! We have SEEN the heart beat by an early untra sound but we have not heard it yet. We cannot wait to hear the heartbeat of our sweet baby that the Lord has been sustaining! It is so unbelieveable to read about how the baby is developing, and humbling to know that the Lord is fulfilling his promise as he knits he or she together! The Lord has been teaching me so much through this proccess. My prayer life has been impacted in a huge way. The Lord has been teaching me to pray more intentionally, it began with our baby, but has spilled over into so many other areas of my prayer life. I really feel the sanctification proccess taking place in our home, and it is such a blessing. Praying that the Lord continues the great work he has begun, trust that he will because he is always faithful!

~Brooke

What's Going on with us this week

If you have been wondering if I have been avoiding our blog, the answer is YES! We have had some big things going on in our lives that we haven't been ready to share with the world yet, but the time has come to let you in on what is going on with the Malko's this week.......

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Your pregnancy: 9 weeks


How your baby's growing:Your new resident is nearly an inch long — about the size of a grape — and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months. Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks. Her eyes are fully formed, but her eyelids are fused shut and won't open until 27 weeks. She has tiny earlobes, and her mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct. The placenta is developed enough now to take over most of the critical job of producing hormones. Now that your baby's basic physiology is in place, she's poised for rapid weight gain.



We can't wait to meet baby Malko around September 28th!!!

Valentine's Day

This year for Valentines Day Jon and I are going low key so that we can take a little mini-vacation in July. We are going to Fort Myers for our Friends Ray and Heather's wedding - Jon is in the wedding! Since we are already going to be there we decided for V-day and our anniversary we were going to go super low budget and then stay a few nights on the Beach while we are in FL in July! I am really excited about it!

This year we are going to cash in on some gift cards we have been saving since Christmas. For Valentines day we are going to go to Bristol downtown, and then maybe see a movie!

We want to know what everyone else is doing for Valentines day. Comment and let us know!

Here is the Link to our Valentine's post from last year! It was our first one as a married couple. Blogs are great for reminiscing!

~Brooke

Weekend Fun

We love the weekends at the Malko Home, but then again who doesn't? Here are some things that made our weekend enjoyable...

*Watching Friday Night Lights on Friday Night

*Sleeping in only a little on Saturday morning (we love to sleep in only a little. We hate when we sleep our whole Saturday away, but it is nice to get a little extra res. Getting up around 9 in our favorite!)

*Eating lunch at Impellizari's - our Fave Louisville pizzeria

*Dinner and game night with Grant and Gabi Henry - thanks for the yummy dinner Henry Family!

*Sunday morning at Highview - we love our church family!

*Spending time with my brother

*Family game night on Sunday's - we do this every Sunday and this week it was at our home! We at Spanish Noodles, Jon's favorite recipe from his Grammy, and played Scene It on the xbox 360 - highly recommend it, and Uno!

Can't wait for next weekend :)