17 weeks!

Life has certainly been busy in the Miller house! Nathaniel turned 2 and we celebrated birthday with family. He really enjoyed all of his presents, as well as blowing out the candle. In fact, he wanted to do it again and again and again. Haha! Constance's birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks and I'm so excited for her! Birthday parties seem to get more and more fun each year because the kids understand more what's going on and they love it! :)
Joshua has been working a ton of overtime and I know he is totally worn out. We have chosen to see the extra work as a blessing, though, as any extra money helps. I do much better by myself than I used to, simply because my evenings go by in a flash. The extra time alone with the kids is a lot of fun and I typically try to keep them busy with helping me cook or getting them into some kind of activity that doesn't involve destroying the house. (They make quite the mischievous team.)
I am now 17 weeks along and feeling fantastic! We find out the gender here in a couple of weeks. I'm not really sure what we are having, although everyone seems to think its a girl. We shall see! If we do wind up having a girl, we have chosen the name Joanna Leigh. I love the name Josiah for a boy, but we cannot seem to find a decent middle name to go with it. Oh well. We will know soon enough! The baby is moving a lot these days, which is such a relief to me. I would feel them move a little here and there and then feel nothing for days. I guess the little stinker is getting bigger and those kicks are getting a little stronger. It's funny how I was barely feeling anything with my first baby at this point!
Wednesday evening Joshua is preaching at a friends church and we are singing/playing as well. I'm not really nervous about it, as we have been singing together for several years and I've been playing and singing the piano a lot lately. I also got the chance to play while he sang at a teen meeting about a month ago, so I got the experience of playing in front of strangers. (I surprisingly made it without shaking or feeling my stomach in my throat.) So, as of today, I'm not nervous about that. I'm more focused on trying to make sure things go smoothly and that I keep my head in a good place, because I've already learned how the devil loves to fight when God gives you the opportunity to minister! I also need to keep things running smoothly to ensure that my husband stays focused and isn't under stress! (This is only the second time he has ever preached. He is already nervous!!) I'm also super excited to meet new people and see what The Lord is gonna do! We have been praying for The Lord to show us His will for a very long time and I'm telling you - my husband surrendering to the call to preach and us using our gifts just feels so right. I am thrilled for these opportunities and anticipating what The Lord has in store. :)