Baby Sunderman 2020

This week, we took advantage of an extra day off work to move home. After 11 weeks on Hitchingham, we packed up and headed back to our little house in Adrian. We have finally finished enough projects that it didn't feel like we were coming back to a construction zone. Over the course of the past stretch, we have installed base board and trim, installed flooring and done a LOT of painting! We owe a huge thanks to Brian, Karrie and Taylor who have been able to give us so much of their time, talent and energy. Over the next few days and weeks, we plan to finalize the baseboard in the living room and finish some paint touch ups before hanging up some art. Ben has lived in the same house his entire life. So, all of this is very new and exciting to him. Kiersten, on the other hand, lived in 6 different places over the past 7 years. So, the process is quite daunting. If you've known her at all, you won't be surprised that hanging art on the walls has been allowed to remain on the ...

When they said that the end of second trimester often brought swollen feet, I'm not sure we quite understood exactly what they meant. Swollen seems like such a small word for the drastic change that has taken place, here. At one point this week, Kiersten's ankles were wider than her calves!  If you thought putting on lace up shoes was challenging while pregnant, you haven't thought through the care and keeping of a gal's feet and legs. This week, Kiersten tried shaving in the shower and trimming her toenails (honestly, how impractical, really). Needless to say, the pregnant body is not friendly toward these initiatives. Given the challenging emotional journey the past two weeks, we both agreed that some self care and physical pampering were called for. So, Ben sent Kiersten into the store and said "Whatever speaks to you, just get it!" She came back with a bag of Epsom salt, fancy razor cream and new razors. Mama D helped us find a shower safe stool, ...

Talk about exhaustion - its a tough job growing a human! When they say baby takes what baby needs, they aren't exaggerating. Right now, Kiersten is feeling the full force of fatigue associated with this time in pregnancy. Baby is growing along as expected, now with lungs capable of inhaling and exhaling and a brain ready for some complex thought. Kiersten had a visit with the midwives on Friday, confirming that baby is measuring appropriately and all is well. Next week brings the dreaded glucose test....not looking forward to a nasty sugar drink and blood draw! Kiersten was fortunate to be connected with a due date group on Facebook where she can share our journey with other Catholic women across the continent. This group has been a phenomenal resource as we navigate new symptoms, challenges and joys. Its been so reaffirming to experience such solidarity and community. Each week, the participants share photos for "Tummy Tuesday" as a reminder to document the growth j...

We're not going to sugar coat it. This week was hard. A miscommunication between us led to a painful evening of tears and heartache. No harm was intended but a loss was experienced that could not be undone. Don't worry - baby is fine. These are just social challenges, magnified by a hundred-year quarantine and pregnancy hormones. Apologies were made and forgiveness offered but hurt can still linger. Unfortunately, some mistakes can't be fixed, and we have to find a way to accept what we cannot control. This pregnancy has carried a tremendously strong theme of humility and surrender. From the very beginning, we knew God was calling us to surrender control to His will, and this has been constant throughout our journey. This time, the challenge itself was relatively small, but it felt enormous. Our time under Michigan's stay-at-home order has been challenging, to say the least. While we have certainly enjoyed extra time with our Diachun siblings, there's no d...

The "little bedroom" is on its way to becoming a nursery! This week, Ben successfully dismantled the old light fixture and installed a new one. The nickel finish will compliment the grey tones in the furniture, nicely. This was a fun little project because we had hoped we could handle ourselves but weren't sure if this was practical. When he said he was finished, Ben sent Kiersten downstairs to flip the breaker back on. You can only imagine his disappointment when she shouted that it was flipped and the light didn't go on. As he stood scratching his head, he was relieved to hear another shout - baby brain flipped the wrong switch! We chuckled as she came back upstairs to admire his handiwork. Baby is now the size of a head of cauliflower. They are measuring over a foot long and we can definitely tell its getting cramped in there! At one point this week, baby seemed to completely roll over and Kiersten jumped in surprise. It can be kind of disconcerting to think th...

No, we aren't referring to the bird's nest crazy that's Kiersten's hair. That's just the result of several weeks of quarantine aligned with 24 weeks of pregnancy. We have begun a pretty serious nesting stage. This week, Kiersten loaded and unloaded the dishwasher 3 times in one day. She voluntarily vacuums and dusts the house, something our home in Adrian sorely needs by now, but we still remain at the Hitchingham Hostel. The other residents have grown accustomed to her cleaning frenzies and pitch in as needed to keep her crazy to a minimum. The nesting would be much better used in Adrian, as a nursery is completely non-existent at the moment. Don't worry, Kiersten has been pinteresting for months, and we started a registry a while ago, but nothing had been purchased when this week began. On Friday, we finally got back to the house to spend some quality time preparing for baby's arrival. We cleaned out the 2nd bedroom and made way in the living room...

It has been several weeks since we were last able to truly celebrate Mass. This has been one of the most other worldly aspects of this entire experience. Since we began dating, we have attended mass together nearly every single Sunday. We can count the ones we were apart on just 1 hand. This week, we celebrated Easter as best we could, considering the Easter Vigil was only available through Facebook Live on the living room TV, and Kiersten was off to work Night Audit both Saturday and Sunday nights. When she got home from work Sunday morning, we hunted for eggs before she headed to bed for the day. Unfortunately, a combination of stretched sleep routine, buffalo wings and hormones led to another bout of nausea and vomiting that morning (or was it evening? what time of day is it?). Ben kindly found her medicine and sent her off to get some sleep, waking her up only to enjoy pierogi with the family in the afternoon. Raptor has now grown as big as a grapefruit and likely weighs ov...