Father's Day

Francisco's first Father's Day! Eventhough the baby isn't born yet it's fun to celebrate the future father. As the day gets closer we are excited to meet our little one that God has entrusted us with.

Marriage 101

We are back. And just like our honeymoon it was sad to come back and start our regular schedule again. A word for all married couples, go to a marraige conference once a year! This was our second marriage conference (our first was a year ago before we got engaged). This conference was amazing! The interesting thing, is we can get so comfortable in our marriage and believe the lies that everything is going well and nothings needs to be changed. Until we hear the truth of the Lord do we realize how much we still need to strive to change. I don't know if any of this makes sense, it just really refreshed Francisco and I. We were together for 5 days and it was great. We went with a group from our Spanish church. Apart from our honeymoon we have not spent that much time together. It reminded me that he is my bestfriend and there is no one else with whom I would rather share my life with than him. We came back with a list of things we wanted to change in our walk with Jesus and strive to be more like him. I don't think there is anything more exciting in life than to see the Lord change each one of us and change us together making us more united. Anyway, I could go on and on about the family conference...but I think you all should just go to one (Family Life recommended). the pics are of Francisco and I in the hotel....he baught me a rose on night and the other is his huge sandwich he made and ate after a long day in workshops.

Ropita

Okay you all, I know this is a little cheesy, but I couldn't resist sharing these clothes with you all. These are the first outfits I have bought for our baby. They seemed very neutral, but the best part is I got everything for $1. Yes, one dollar my friends. We are talking the nice blessings of a garage sale (or church sale). I also got a nice little carrier for $1...you know those that wrap all around you and you can have both your hands free? I realize this might not be exciting for some of you, but it was very satisfying for me:) Did you all see that never worn pooh hat in the far right top corner? I love it. Although, Francisco didn't seem too excited about it (I think he's thinking if we have a boy that would be cramping his style:). Anyway, look for photos in the future of our baby wearing these:) Francisco and I are off to a week long marriage conference in Illinois. Praise the LORD! It will be sucha nice vacation/learning time for the both of us. We need to just get away for a while. Please pray for us, that we would feel refreshed in the Lord and that we would grow closer in our marriage. We will also be learning about raising children, which I think will be fun to hear. So I am sure I will have plenty to update you all on in a week! Until then, don't just merely survive each day, live each day (to it's fullest). Love you all!

swollen feet and 10 pounds heavier

Okay since my husband doesn't seem shocked, maybe you women would appreciate the "oh no" feeling I felt when the nurse told me I had gained 10 pounds in the last 3 weeks, not the last 4 weeks, the last 3!!! That's about 3.3 pounds a week. That's a shocker. Let's just hope I don't continue on that path or I will have some major back aches. Although she did comfort me by telling me I was off to a really slow start with all my vomitting (which made me kind of appreciate the morning sickness in a strange kind of way). So I actually lost weight in the start of my pregnacy and overall I have only gained 14 pounds. Which according to the nurse, she says by the end of the pregnacy I should have gained about a pound a week and right now I am at 23 almost 24 weeks (so does that mean I can gain 10 more pounds this week and be right on track?:) So now I know why I can't bend over or breathe as easily as I used to. Plus, see those swollen feet? I think that is where 5 pounds might be. Great news: she siad they probably won't get any smaller:) I will make sure to post some more pictures of those swollen babies. By the way, those marks on my feet are from my sandals that used to be loose on me...now I can barely squeeze my feet into them.

New friend

Okay this is for my brother and anyone else who wants to see Francisco's new friend. He was so excited about this purchase. His hard work and patience paid off....we got a great deal and no payments to make! It's a '99 Ford Ranger. Oh yeah does it look like a baby seat can fit in back? Well, somehow Francisco succeeded in squishing one in, but he claims it's legal. I'll be taking it to see if it meets the safety standards. You know I don't want to be cramping his style, but I would like to travel with no worries. Isn't he cute in that picture above?

To feel or not to feel

To feel or not to feel, that is the question my dear friends. So we all know by now the baby kicks and I can feel it, but everytime Francisco puts his hand on my stomach to try and feel the kick the baby stops (Francisco claims the baby knows who it's daddy is and fear is instilled in the baby...we'll let him continue to think that:) So today was the day!! I got up with Francisco this morning before he left for work and we were sitting on the couch talking. The baby was kicking me so hard so I put Francisco's hand there and pushed down and sure enough Francisco felt it...not once, not twice, but three times! It was fun to be able to share that moment.
Just to give you an idea of how often the baby kicks.....it has been kicking me practically non-stop the whole time I have been writing this. I don't know, but I think the baby wants out:)

The photo above is of the baby's leg..I thought it was appropriate to post it, considering the topic.

Otra foto

I couldn't help, but share another picture with you all from the ultrasound. You might have to stare at it for awhile to figure out exactly what you are looking at, but it's beautiful. Just so interesting to me how life is formed and how it all works. This morning Francisco and I prayed for many years together and with our family, we have realized how precious life is and each day should be lived, not merely survived. God is good and he has blessed us so much in our first year of marriage. Whoever said life as a christian is boring? Jesus opens our eyes to so much of the beauty in life and we are able to see it from the perspective of His creativity. He is so creative...ahh, the stories I have of the creativeness of the Lord in my life. He has made my life exciting and beautiful. It leaves me with no words for which I can explain.

The Ultrasound, which I explained in my first post was a neat experience (except for the fact that I had to have a full bladder, and who would have guessed, the baby's legs were right on top of my bladder giving me a little kick every minute). My sweet grandma came to share this day with us, which was a blessing. She has been fighting ovarian cancer since January and she is winning the battle. She sometimes feels very weak from the chemo, so this was a special trip she made for us. We love her dearly and she has been a part of my life in so many ways. My parents also came, which was sweet because we know they made their own sacrifices as well to be there. My mom (she makes me smile), like always came excited with her video camera in hand and was ready to take videos ( I felt like it was the birth). Anyway, they would not allow her video camera to roll, which is okay...it can remain memories for all of us that we were able to share. We didn't find out if it was a boy or girl..we want it to remain a surprise (I have this thought that it will make the birth less painful), but anyway our baby wasn't even going to make it possible for us to look (very modest baby...don't know who that would be after??).

Right now I am praying for moms. I want to surround myself with godly women who are mothers. No offense to anyway, it just makes me feel really old when I say those words....so that was a struggle. I feel like I have gone through three stages in a year, from singleness to married life to motherhood (and that's a little fast if you ask me) so I have some adjusting to do. Oh the changes, oh the adjustments, but oh the blessings are numerous!!

The one thing that has gotten me during this whole process is how can women be pregnant and not realize there is a God in control of all of this? It is amazing how our bodies change to prepare for the birth of our child (and the fact that a child can come out of us!) also how amazing afterwards the Lord has set up our bodies to care for this child. Breastfeeding? What? Only the Lord could think of something like that. Not only does it provide our babies with nurishment it promotes bonding. How fun he must have had in the process of creating the human.

To my dear friend Emily: I now understand what it is like to pee my pants. If I sneeze or cough with a full bladder I literally lose it all. I'm not sure what's going to happen when you are pregnant someday:)

*Fun fact: my sister is also pregnant (with her second child), she is due a month in a half before me.

Antojos

Antojos is Spanish for cravings, which at this point I am not having a lot of (which could be due to the fact that I like food in general). But, I will tell you a cute story. Besides crabmeat rangoons, laffy taffy and some other unhealthy stuff that I have craved I never tell Francisco I am craving anything. I think he was prepared to leave the house at 2am to go get me some exotic meal, but I just haven't been like that. So the other day we were driving home and I said, "Francisco, you know what I am craving?" With excitement Francisco wanted to know. I said, "Nachos" without letting me further explain my craving and without hesitation he whipped into the Taco Bell parking lot. He turned to me and said, "I am so excited you have a craving you haven't told me for 51/2 months that you have had a craving." I thought to myself, sweet thanks Lord that my husband is excited to buy me Taco Bell nachos because I'm not so excited to eat them:) My craving for nachos, were my friend Maria's nachos. I have never eatten nachos like her nachos....they are so delicious, not like the pre-made Taco Bell nachos, but without pausing I sucked it up and went inside Taco Bell to eat my nachos. To my surprise they satisfied my craving. The point is not that I get exactly what I want, but that the Lord has blessed me with a sweet man who found my craving exciting (a little strange, but sweet:).

Funny

So who is using the pillow more Francisco or the pregnant lady? This is one of those pregnacy body pillows and somehow Francisco ends up with it. I guess I shouldn't be surprised since when we first found out I was pregnant he felt like he was always hungry, just like me and then he went through a phase of being really tired. He just hasn't experienced morning sickness or the baby moving other that that he has claimed to experience just about everything I have. He truly makes me laugh. More to come later.

Precious

Isn't this so sweet. Carlos is a little baby we take care of and this day we were taking care of him and he was sick, so he was crying and I couldn't get him to calm down. Francisco asked me if he could have him and this is how it ended. We love Carlos. He doesn't have a father figure right now, so Francisco takes him under his wing. Please pray with me that the Lord continues to build Francisco up so he will love and guide his children in the ways of the Lord. I know his heart is so full of love and he is beyond excited to be a father.

Pictures

The picture to the left is me at 4 months and the picture on the top is today (23 weeks) which is 5 1/2 months. It's amazing how much my belly has grown (not to mention my appetite). I am defintely enjoying all the food I crave since for the first 3-4 months I threw up everything including my gut. Francisco likes to laugh at the maternity pants (they give me a long butt he says). So many body changes that it's hard not to laugh sometimes when I try to get ready for the day. Sometimes I do want to cry because they are drastic changes, but then the baby moves inside of me and reminds me of the sweet blessing.

23 weeks

So today starts my 23rd week. They say the baby can feel my dance moves this week:) We'll see who the baby ends up dancing like:) It is the coolest thing...I can see the baby kick me...my stomach literally moves where the baby kicks. It's such a fun sensation, just a bummer you guys don't get to experience it:) Each day I cherish that I have left with just Francisco and I, but also am excited to see this new creation that the Lord has allowed us both the create together. I often wonder silly things, like will the baby blow their nose like Francisco (with just one hand) or like me (with both hands)? Will the baby walk like me or like Francisco? I know it is minute things, but they are still fun to think about. Today coming home from church Francisco had to pull over FAST so I could throw up...I let myself get too hungry. It's strange, I can't be too hungry or too stuffed otherwise I get sick. It's been fun watching my stomach grow, although it is very painful to bend over (they say to bend at the knees, but then I can never get back up again). It's something I have yet to master. I have some photos to share which I will explain. I am kind of doing things backwards, trying to catch up for the time I have not journaled. The picture to the left is the picture of my positive pregnacy test. I will never forget Francisco made me take the test twice because he didn't believe it (I doubted it too, so I was okay with it:).

Baby!

So I have decided to finally journal Francisco and I's experience of our first pregnacy! I am currently 22 weeks (a little over half way) so I will post pictures as my belly continues to grow:) It has definitely so far been a blessed feeling knowing that we will soon be parents. I am most excited to see Francisco in the role of being a father. It still all seems so sureal to us both considering we haven't even celebrated our first wedding anniversary yet! It's coming soon. Right now I am feeling well and I haven't had any nausea or vomitting on a regular basis (opposite of my first 3-4 months). The picture I posted is of our baby 2 weeks ago when we went in for the ultrasound. I had to drink 32 ounces in one sitting (I threw up 16 of those in the mall parking lot). My grandma, and my parents were able to come and join us for the special occasion, which was sweet. I will post the measurements of everything, once we receive them. They said everything looked great and there were no concerns. I think Francisco is still trying to grasp the concept that we will soon have a third party joining us, but for me I have grasped it considering I am the one being kicked in the belly on a regular basis. It's the funkiest, coolest and most interesting feeling. It's amazing because the baby already has a schedule. I am kicked at around the same time each morning and night, there are really no surprises (maybe occassional ones throughout the day), but how neat is that?? The baby is definitely an early riser (takes after Francisco). I don't even really need to set an alarm:) This has definitely been a rollercoster of emotions from surprised to sad to scared to excited, but through it all we feel extremely blessed by Jesus.