Ok, so I am going to rant a little bit today and get on a soap box.  You know what I hate?  I get so tired of commercials, TV shows, sitcome and everything else making it out like all men are stupid.  Now, I know men make mistakes, but so do we, girls!  Seriously.  I was watching this commerical last night and it was a Brawny commercial and one of the lines was “If you don’t have to go back and clean up what your husband just cleaned, you are a magician.”  Ok, sorry, but maybe I am blessed (well I KNOW I am =)  ) but my husband does a great job helping me around the house and helping clean up.  I do NOT have to go back and re-clean things, especially dishes.  In fact, a lot of the time, he takes more time cleaning them than I do!  We women wonder why our husbands don’t WANT to help us clean up or whatnot and it isn’t because they don’t want to help us, it is because whey they do, they know we will just criticize them for how they do it.  You know its true, I even do it at times.  Ladies, we need to work on this.  This is not showing our husbands respect OR love or making them feel worthwhile!  Ok, sorry, but that commercial just really annoyed me!  I have a wonderful husband who loves to help me and I think more of you ladies out there have husbands much the same way. . .just give them the chance! 

Andrew and I’s weekend was actually pretty nice.  The weather was pretty gross and rainy ALL day Saturday, so it kind of forced us to relax and hang out, mostly at home.  We did end up getting out after the rain stopped, but it was still icky outside.  Friday, we had our date night at a pizza place that is new to the area, but one Andrew and I had eaten at in another town.  It was fun, and I even had a lady give up her seat for me in the waiting area since I was pregnant :-)  It is nice to know I look pregnant now!  I have already have several people comment on me and ask when I am due, etc. . .its pretty fun and it makes Andrew smile too.  It is so hard to believe I have a little person growing inside me, with a beating heart (which we heard again and its soooo cool, Andrew told me he wants to buy one of those doppler things, haha).  We will be finding out on April 23, what little baby Kulp is!  YAY!  We are very excited, we don’t care either way, but we are excited to know what baby is and call it by their name, and of course pick out incredibly cute boy or girl clothes and nursery stuff, rather than unisex!  So everyone be praying baby Kulp cooporate and doesn’t hide what the nurse needs to see! hehehe

Sunday was good too.  I was in JourneyKidz.  Last week, we learned about doing and giving what we can to help others and sharing the love of Christ with them.  One thing I challenged them with was to bring clothes that did not fit to donate, because that is a way we give what we can to others.  I had half the kids bring stuff back, so that was pretty cool.  Next Sunday, Andrew preaches, and I am excited to get to hear him :-) 

So, that is about it for now!  I hope everyone has a truly blessed week and maybe througout the week I will have things a bit more exciting to post!

Being pregnant has a way to force yourself to look on the inside.  Sure, being pregnant is a truly wonderful and amazing thing!  I love it so far :-)  I love knowing that God is allowing me to carry a miracle inside me and the blessing of knowing we will be parents.  However, the protruding belly, bloating, cramps, aches, and other pregnancy side effects I won’t go into on here, haha, are not always the nicest things to have.  They can, at times, make you feel ugly, fat, moody, and want to cry for no reason, which I do QUITE often.  However, being pregnant is also something that most others view as beautiful because they know something amazing is going on inside your womb.  Andrew has already told me he thinks I am beautiful with my pregnany belly and it makes me feel so wonderful.  At any given point in your life, whether pregnant or not, you are most likely to feel inadequate to those around you, even ugly or fat at times.  We need to remember that while man looks on the outside, God looks at the heart, and our heart is the most important thing!  Yes, we need to take care of our earthly bodies, eat right, stay healthy, but ultimately, that isn’t what is most important.  Pregnancy is helping me to see that.  I threw away our scale!  I was very proud of myself.  DUH, I am pregnant, of course I will gain weight, but I know that is something Satan uses against me to make me feel inadequate, so I got rid of it.  I know that I am eating right for me and the baby, I am still exercising and I have doctors that I know I can trust. . .so I don’t need to worry!  I need to sit back and enjoy the ride :-)  So, girls, pregnant or not, I encourage you to take a look at yourself.  Rather than saying “mirror mirror on the wall, what can I change to make me more. . .whatever” we need to be saying “mirror mirror on the wall, I am beautiful, inside, out and all”  Why?  because God made each of us, each of us unique!  Now, I KNOW I will still have “fat days” along the way, but hopefully with help of my friends, Andrew and mainly, the Lord Jesus Christ, I can overcome those and truly learn to love myself as God does (and of course, Andrew!) and I hope you can do the same!

Andrew and I had a great weekend together.  We relaxed together, spent alot of time outdoors because the weather was so beautiful, cooked together, walked together, it was just all in all some great time together.  Last night was a great night together too.  We first went by our churches newcomers coffee, so the new members could get to know Andrew and what he does.  Afterward we went out and shared an appetizer snack thing together at a local wing place and just talked.  We talked about a lot of things dealing with church planting, Baltimore, timing etc.  We will both admit we are still nervous and even anxious at times in dealing with this.  It is a BIG change and a big decision.  We are still both confident we will be moving and be in ministry, but there are still some things to talk through together and pray through together.  Last night was just a great night for us to be completely open and honest with each other about things and I loved it.  Even though we are unsure at times, God is sure.  God knows His plans for us and He is working them out for us even as I type this entry.  You can be confident He is doing the same in your life as well.  No matter what stage you may be in your life, God is working.  No matter if you feel stuck, God is working.  We cannot see the final outcome or the big picture, but we don’t need to because God can and God already knows the plans for our life and is constantly working in our lives.  Today, as I was spending some time with the Lord, He reminded me of this.  It really gave me some peace this morning.  The Lord brought to my mind a verse that is a promise that He will work everything out.  It is in Proverbs.  This is the verse.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.”  Proverbs 3:5-6

This verse really gave me comfort this morning.  I know that as long as Andrew and I are seeking after him and following him, He will provide what we need to make the next step and we can be sure that our path will be straight during this journey.  He will direct us, He will guide us and that is sometimes, ALL we need to know!

Ok, so today someone told me “Emily you are getting bigger!”  I am guessing that since I am pregnant, that is a good thing. . .I will tell you this much.  Pregnancy is the ONLY time, I repeat ONLY time, that men can get away with telling a woman she is getting bigger!

Ok, so today I started reading “A Wife after God’s Own Heart” by Elizabeth George.  I have really loved how she writes.  She is so real, so honest and so transparent and I love that.  So of course, the book is going to open with some of the basics of making your marriage better (that we ALL probably know by heart!).  Following God is number one, and as wives, we know that the Bible has very clear instructions on how we, as wives, are supposed to treat and respond to our husbands.  She came up with a pretty cute way of rememering them, and it is an acrostic for WIFE:

W:  Warm up his life with your love
I:    Improve his life as a helper
F:   Follow his leadership with a willing heart
E:   Esteem him highly with utmost respect

This simple acrostic covers all areas that we as wives are supposed to do. . .LOVE, HELP, SUBMIT TO and RESPECT our husbands.  Now, I will be the first to admit I am not always the greatest at these things.  I nitpick, nag, complain, whine, criticize, interupt, talk harshly to and sometimes DISrespect Andrew.  I love him dearly, so why do I do these things?  Well, fellow wives, we are human, we are sinners.  We ALL need remdining on how to be better BIBLICAL wives from time to time.  I am really looking forward to this book and I will be sharing little things with you along the way.  If you have never read her first book “A Woman After God’s Own Heart” I suggest you read it.  I gives wonderful basics to being a woman after God’s own heart, which will ultimately lead you to being a wife after God’s own heart, then a mother after God’s own heart (which I will be reading next)  YAY!  I am going to close with a verse.  It is a verse about working together as a team. . .because that is what marriage is!  Teamwork!

“two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor.  For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.  But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up.”  Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Are we, as wives, being this for our husbands?  Are we there to lift him up and be his companion, or do we tear them down?  I challenge you today, even those not married yet, for this day will come, to think of ways to be a companion, a help-mate, for your husband today. . .myself included.  We all get busy with our own lives, schedules, and wants, but we are never to neglect our husbands.  God bless!

OH MY GOSH, OH MY GOSH YOU GUYS! :-)  Easter Sunday at Journey was SOOOO awesome and amazing!  We had over 100 people there and were close to our goal number, and we probably would have been there if it wasn’t for Spring break!  There were a couple of families not there and several college guys and even some kiddos.  God is so awesome.  We even had 2 families that told us they want to make Journey their church home JUST because of how we did the Easter service and that baptisms!!!  I love how God works.  He always works in better ways than we can ever imagine.  The baptism service was amazing.  One of our kiddos was baptized, as well as a close friend.  I am so proud of both of them and so excited and happy for their decision.  You can see in the faces they are changed, and it rocks! 

JourneyKidz was good too.  I was in the service, but there were several kids in there and they other team members had awesome game ideas and a great lesson time planned.  After church we had an Easter EGG-stravaganza that was pretty fun too.  We had inflatables!  We had a giant obstacle course, giant slide and the moon bounce.  The kids had a blast and it is so fun to see the smiles on their faces and them giggling and encouraging and loving their friends.  We can learn so much from children it we allow ourselves.  We also had, of course, eggs with candy. . .always a hit

So, I am so excited for Journey because I think this was a great day in the life of Journey Church!  I know our pastor and his wife were pumped too, you could see it in their faces and it was SOOOO sweet.  I love when church members are pumped up about something.  I hope everyone else had a truly blessed Easter.  What a wonderful day to celebrate in our lives as Christ-followers!  Christ did the impossible, rose from the dead. . .just as he told us he would.  Jesus is trustworthy, he always does as he says and never lets us down.  I still am in awe he loved us so much he died for us so we could have a relationship with him.  God Bless!

Ok, so here you go.  A day in the life of a pregnant woman. . .well at least this is how I am pregnant

1) I woke up bright and early at 6 AM because I was going into work today, got a shower, got my makeup done, at breakfast, all before realizing, “wait a minute, my husband has a meeting this morning, I could have slept in!”  So, of course I blame Andrew telling him he should have realized I forget things easily and should had reminded me when he saw that I was waking up at 6!  (sorry sweetie!!!)  Well, it turned out ok, I got some laundry folded, had a great time with the Lord, and practiced my guitar.

2)  I was ok this morning on the drive to work, but man, once I got to work I must had turned into, no, let me reprhase that. . .I DID turn into CRANKY EVIL PREGNANT WOMAN!  Again, sorry sweetie!  Yes, unfortunately Andrew received all of my crankiness.  I think we made our co-workers laugh at us.  It seems funny now, not too funny at the time.  Me: I really need your help, geez, why are you being so rude (in a not so nice tone myself) Andrew:  Are you going to stop being like this, I cannot help you when you are acting this way sweetie.  Ya, I was the one yelling, but somehow I still blamed Andrew. . .this is a day in the life. . .

3)  Went maternity clothes shopping, with being so small, had to try on, try on, AND try on shorts until I FINALLY found some that did not fall off or were so baggy in the crotch it looked like I was trying to do MC Hammer, “cant touch this”. . .ok that sounded wrong. . .ANYWAYS. . .found some cute stuff finally!  YAY!

4)  Got home and we decided, no I decided, to have my birthday dinner this evening, then have pizza at home and a movie tomorrow on my actual birthday.  So, I choose Olive Garden which isnt Andrews fav, but he was sweet and let me go there, but of course I get in the “I cannot do anything right” mood and felt bad

5)  I did get a GREAT birthday present from my mom and sis!  WONDERFUL maternity shirts, sooo cute, and will be PERFECT since I will so hot in the summer

6)  And lastly, I had another break down and cry moment. . .oh so fun

So, there you have it, pregnant women can go through any emotion at ANY time!  Even though I get frustrated with myself, it is so worth it and we are so blessed and excited to be parents.  I only hope my wonderful husband can put up with me for the next 6 months. . .pray for him!

ok, so those of you who read my wonderful hubby’s blog saw that he “got the word out” about us.  For those of you who do not know yet, we are having a baby!  YAY.  We are so very excited.  We do not know what it is yet, but will be finding out in 6 weeks. . .cross your fingers they will be able to tell us.  I have nursery plans folks, and they are NOT gender nuetral ;-) 

So, I am hoping that by admitting I am pregnant, you will cut me some slack when it comes to writing blogs.  Some days I didn’t feel so great, others I did, but was tired and taking naps, other days my brain just didn’t work and I was forgetful.  All of these are lovely symptoms of pregnany, but all of them are worth it.  Thinking of having a baby always brings me back to the amazing Psalm 139.  If reading these amazing passages does not convince you our Lord and Savior sees life at conception, I don’t know what will!  God has ALL of our days planned BEFORE we were even born and knew everything about us.  Isn’t that awesome!?  So, we are very excited, so please be praying for everything to continue as it should, a healthy baby develops and we can use being new parents as a way to connect with even more disconnected people.

Easter is this Sunday. . .and my birthday is on Good Friday, eeh.  I am old, I will 27!  I look 15, so I guess being 27 doesn’t count for much huh?  haha.  Ok, anyway, Easter.  Way important time for us and it will be a wonderful day at Journey.  I think we are set to do 10 baptisms!  We are also having some fun family stuff after the service.  It is a great opportunity for you to invite family and friends.  Have a great week!

Ok, so the past several days have been a bit nuts.  I went into work last week and worked the whole entire day drawing houses.  It sure made the day go by faster, but I had absolultey no down time!  As I said earlier, Andrew and I went to Lakeview North American Missions Festival last week as well, which ended up being quite nice.  We looked forward to this weekend, although it wasn’t too calm either.  Saturday we caught up on sleep, went to a late breakfast together and walked around at outdoor mall.  So, that was pleasant.  However, Sunday was pretty crammed.  All good things, but crammed nontheless.  Now that is a wierd word. . .nonetheless.  Ok, so moving on.  Sunday, we of course, had church at Journey, I was in JourneyKidz this week.  We started a new series last week, Super Sports Spectacular, which is AWESOME so far.  I love it, love the music, love the Bible stories, love the skits.  The kids seem to be into it as well.  Then, after church, we took some friends out to lunch, stayed there for over 2 hours talking, got home around 3:30, and headed back up to Journey before 5.  We had a “Sunday Night Live”  which is a wonderful time of worship for the church family, with dinner, of course.  The church provided the meat, and everyone else brought sides and dessert.  It turned out great.  The worship was great, especially since we now have new awesome lighting! :-)  YAY!  We didn’t get home from that until after 8, so I was pretty tired.  Now come Monday, I am here at work again ,working like a crazy woman.  I am eating my lunch, so I decided to do an entry before I went ANOTHER week without writing. . .oops, I did it again. . .hmm was that a song???  Ok, so anyways!  Something I have had to remind myself of this week is I cannot please everyone. . .I am constantly having to remind myself of this quote

 ”You can please some people all the time, all the people some of the time, but you will never please all people all the time”

Yes, very simple, very true, but hard to remember sometimes!  Especially with all this church planting stuff in Andrew and I’s future.  I will probably be having to tell myself this everyday, probably a hundred times a day.  I am a people pleaser a lot of the time.  I hate when people are mad at me and I want people to like me.  Now, wanting people to like you is not necessarily a bad thing, but I need to remember to focus on the Lord and what He is calling me to do. . .if I follow him and that makes people mad at me in the process, so be it.  It is better to have people mad at you than to go against the Lord and His commands in order to appease them!  Ok, so this is pretty rambly, I think I am going to sign out :-)  LATERS!