Lack of sleep and overwhelming emotions...

One of the things I have discovered about pregnancy is that it gives me the propensity of being overcome by emotions at the most unexpected times. My patience runs a little lower and it really becomes a conscientious effort to maintain a "quiet and gentle spirit" (1 Peter 3:4). Yesterday was one of those days. Somehow my emotions were stronger and at some point, instead of being the blessing I intended to be all along I ended up breaking up in tears and disappointed at myself. Then, though I was tired I couldn´t go to sleep... I did a mental inventory of all the projects I have both unfinished and to begin... Hem up those maternity pants that will fit sooner than later... Finish that translation for my uncle... Work on both the wedding and Elena´s scrap books... Fix the frays on my table settings and tablecloths... just to mention a few. Then I realized I am about to enter the 20th week of this pregnancy and we still don´t have a house to move into... Will we have one in time for the baby to be born? At any rate... it is so good to know that His mercies are new every morning and that He even provides for that quiet and gentle spirit so long as we are willing to let Him be stronger than ourselves in our lives. How much growing we need to do!!! How much growing I need to do!

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Una de las cosas que he descubierto del embarazo es que me hace propensa a que me traicionen las emociones en los momentos más inesperados. Ando corta de paciencia y mantener un "espíritu tierno y sereno" (1 Pedro 3:4) se vuelve un esfuerzo consciente. Ayer fue uno de esos días. De alguna manera, mis emociones fueron más fuertes que yo y llegó el momento en que en lugar de ser la bendición que quise ser todo el día, rompí a llorar y me decepcioné a mí misma. Luego, a pesar de estar cansada no podía dormir... Hice un inventario mental de todos los proyectos que tengo a media y por iniciar... subirle el ruedo a los pantalones de maternidad que me van a quedar más pronto de lo que imagino... Terminar esa traducción de mi tío que tengo a medias... Trabajar en el album de bodas y el de Elena... Componerle los flecos a mis mantelitos y manteles antes de que se me deshagan... estos son sólo unos cuantos. Luego caí en la cuenta de que voy entrando a la 20a. semana de embarazo y todavía no tenemos casa a dónde pasarnos... ¿Será que tendremos una cuando nazca este bebé? De cualquier manera, es tan bueno saber que sus misericordias son nuevas cada mañana y que Él mismo provee para ese espíritu tierno y sereno siempre y cuando estemos dispuestos a dejarlo a Él ser más fuerte que nosotros mismos en nuestra vida. ¡Cuánto nos falta crecer! ¡Cuánto me falta crecer!

Marriage... (second posting)

I had this on the works for quite a few weeks and when I went to publish it published under the date of the day when I began to write it... that is why it is the second posting.

"Quick! Catch all the little foxes before they ruin the vineyard of your love, for the grapevines are all in blossom." (Song of Solomon 2:15, New Living Translation)

When does a married couple allows for familiarity and routine to steal away from them? How does it happen? When do voids that eventually turn into gaps grow between them? A little observation has brought sadness to my heart as I look at couples who are living as mere roommates. There is no vision, there are no goals, there are just two people that, somehow, ended up living under the same roof, sharing chores and expenses. Granted, being married is not easy. It is a life of dying to one's self, sacrifice and hard work. Then again, aren't good things supposed to be hard to get? All too often I find that "marital bliss" is not something that just falls on a lucky, unsuspecting couple who then just sit back and enjoy it. It is, instead, a decision that needs to be made daily, sorting through the nitty gritty details of the day and choosing to keep your attention focused on every good thing. After all, even a "match made in heaven" needs to be maintained on earth!
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"Cazadnos las zorras, las zorras pequeñas que arruinan las viñas, pues nuestras viñas están en flor." (Cantares 2:15, La Biblia de las Américas)

¿Cuándo es que una pareja de esposos permite que la rutina y la familiaridad le robe a su matrimonio? ¿Cómo es que sucede? ¿En qué momento crecen entre ellos vacíos que eventualmente se convierten en abismos? Un poco de observación a mi alrededor ha traído tristeza a mi corazón cuando veo parejas que parecen solamente ser compañeros de cuarto. No tienen visión, no tienen metas, simplemente son dos personas que, de algún modo terminaron viviendo bajo el mismo techo compartiendo gastos y responsabilidades. Claro está, el matrimonio no es fácil. Es una vida de morir a uno mismo, una vida de sacrificio y trabajo duro. Pero... ¿no se supone que lo bueno cuesta? Con frecuencia me encuentro reflexionando en que la dicha marital no es algo que le llega a una pareja de suertudos que se sientan a disfrutarla. Es, por el contrario, una decisión que debe tomarse cada día, separando entre lo engorroso de la vida diaria y escogiendo mantener la atención en las cosas buenas. Después de todo, hasta un romance "hecho en el cielo" debe mantenerse aquí en la tierra.

From a Child´s perspective

We constantly pray to honor the Lord with our marriage and the way we live. We want to bless people and model a godly marriage. Of course, it is easier said than done, but it is our heart and our prayer nonetheless. Yesteday my sweetheart was out and about, looking for a little something to grace my day. As he was in the local store he ran into a lady that we know. She is a single mom (divorced, I take it), doesn´t come to church herself but has sent her daughter (about 7 years-old) to several of our children outreach activities. This lady immediately began to relate to Ben the conversation that had taken place one day in her van. She and someone else were discussing whether they knew anyone who was "happily married". They kept throwing names back and forth and were coming to the sad conclusion that they didn´t know any couple whom they could say were "happily married". I don´t know if her daughter had been a part of the conversation or not, but she finally interjected and said: "What about Pastor Ben? He is happily married!" The mom said they couldn´t debate her argument. We are blessed to know that this little girl who doesn´t have the model of an integrated home has been impacted by whatever she has observed in our marriage. She thinks we are happy (and we are) and so, there is hope for her... she has the potential of believing that she could grow up to be happy herself! If we have lived to impact one life, we haven´t wasted our time!

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Constantemente le hemos pedido al Señor poder honrarlo con nuestro matrimonio y la manera en que llevamos nuestra vida. Por supuesto, es más fácil decirlo que hacerlo, pero esa es nuestra intención y nuestra oración. Ayer mi amado andaba en la calle, buscando algo con qué agraciarme el día. Estando en la tienda local se encontró con una señora que conocemos. Es mamá soltera (divorciada, supongo), no viene a la iglesia pero ha mandado a su hija (de más o menos 7 años) a varias de las actividades infantiles que hemos tenido. La señora inmediatamente empezó a contarle a Ben de una conversación que había tenido lugar en su van un día. Ella y alguien más discutían si conocían o no a alguien que estuviera "felizmente casado". Daban nombres a diestra y siniestra y llegaban a la triste conclusión de que ninguna pareja que conocen puede calificarse de "felizmente casada". No sé si su hija era parte de la discusión o no, pero finalmente intervino y dijo: "¿Qué hay del Pastor Ben? ¡Él está felizmente casado!" La mamá dijo que no pudieron debatir su argumento. Nos bendice saber que esta niñita que no tiene el modelo de un hogar integrado en su propia vida se ha impresionado por lo que ha observado en nuestro matrimonio. Ella piensa que somos felices (y lo somos) y por eso, hay esperanza para ella... ¡tiene el potencial de crecer creyendo que ella también podría llegar a ser feliz! ¡Si hemos vivido para causar una impresión en una sola vida, no hemos vivido en vano!

My Baby is weaning...

Upon Elena´s birth we had decided to nurse her for as long as it were possible, aiming at a year and hoping to revisit the decision at that point. Though this second baby was not a surprise to us, after finding out about his/her coming we decided that once Elena turned a year we would start the weaning process. It has seemed as a sensible decision to me all along, especially since I am so exhausted most of the time and she had been waking up too many times during the night. Now that we have been living through our attempts to wean her though, my heart is starting to realize what we are giving up. We started by offering her a cup of milk instead of certain nursings, but if she insisted on nursing we wouldn´t push it and would let her nurse. After a couple weeks of this and with her realizing that the cup of milk is now more filling than the nursing more and more cups of milk have been requested and less and less nursings have been demanded. Yesterday she nursed at 6:30 a.m. and didn´t ask to nurse throughout the day. When bedtime came, she didn´t ask to nurse and she drank her cup of milk and went to sleep in daddy´s arms. Through the night, in spite of waking up several times due to a cold, she was content to have her cup of milk and it wasn´t until this morning again at 6:30 a.m. that she finally asked to nurse again. Since then, she hasn´t asked again! I guess this is just one step of many we will reach in her growth and Ben also reminded me that "lechita" (as we had called nursing to Elena) will now be for the next baby. She is growing, just as she has been since the moment her life began in the secret depths of my womb and just as this baby is now. They are destined to grow as part of God´s calling and every inch takes them further away from me. That is why, even on the challenging days, I am not in a hurry to get past this season... the end of it will come too soon and then I will miss it.

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Desde que Elena nació decidimos que la amamantaríamos el mayor tiempo posible, tratando de llegar al año y volviendo a evaluar la situación entonces. Aunque este segundo bebito/a no nos vino de sorpresa, después de enterarnos de su venida decidimos que al cumplir Elena el año empezaríamos el proceso de quitarle el pecho. Desde entonces me ha parecido una decisión sensible, especialmente considerando lo exhausta que me mantengo y que ella se estaba despertando demasiadas veces durante la noche. Ahora que estamos viviendo nuestros intentos me estoy empezando a dar cuenta de la magnitud de lo que estamos dejando ir. Empezamos a ofrecerle vasos de leche para reemplazar algunos de los tiempos de pecho, pero si ella insistía en amamantar tampoco se lo negábamos. Después de un par de semanas de esto y de que ella se dio cuenta de que la leche la estaba llenando más, cada vez pidió amamantar menos y en su lugar optó más seguido por el vaso de leche. Ayer tomó pecho a las 6:30 a.m. y no volvió a pedir durante el resto del día. Cuando llegó la hora de dormir, se tomó su vaso de leche y se durmió en brazos de Papi. Durante la noche, a pesar de que se despertó varias veces por un catarro que tiene le bastó con tomarse su vaso de leche y se volvía a dormir y no fue sino hasta hoy a las 6:30 a.m. que volvió a pedir mamar. ¡Desde entonces, no lo ha vuelto a pedir! Sé que este es un primer paso de muchos que vamos a dar en el proceso de su crecimiento y Ben también me recordaba anoche que ahora la "lechita" será ahora para el siguiente bebé. Ella está creciendo, de la misma manera que lo ha hecho desde el momento en que su vida se empezó a formar en lo secreto de mi vientre y de la misma manera que ahora crece este bebito/a. Como parte del lamado de Dios están destinados a crecer y cada centímetro que alcanzan los lleva más lejos de mí. Es por eso que, aún en los días que no son tan fáciles, no tengo prisa por dejar esta temporada atrás... su final vendrá muy pronto y entonces lo estaré extrañando.

Superbowl

As I was doing dishes one day and was thinking of how long it usually takes me to accomplish the task (and any other task I set my hand to) I was remembering how I used to be the fastest, more practical woman anyone had ever met (except for my mom) back in Guatemala. Everything, from a test to getting ready in the morning and any kind of task in between I always finished first and had done well. When I came to the US I found myself being the last for everything! Everybody is quicker than me in everything. I have learned that I now live in a culture oriented to immediate results. From the kitchen to people´s personal develpment, everything is expected to render positive and efficient results right away. That is why I find it kind of intriguing that such a quick paced culture would make most of its sporting events last such a long time! That is without the added whistles of the pregame and postgame ceremonies. Now, no offense here, we were plugged in to the whole thing from beginning to end and were happy with the outcome as well. This is merely an observation from someone who has spent the past three years adjusting to fit into this new world that surrounds me and such observations are inevitable under the circumstances. At any rate, our day was enjoyed as were my sweet´s specialties as he wanted to make his own wings from scratch!

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Mientras lavaba los platos un día y pensaba en cuánto tiempo me toma terminar la tarea (y cualquier otra tarea que me disponga hacer) recordaba como yo solía ser la mujer más rápida, práctica y eficiente que nadie hubiera conocido en Guatemala antes (excepto por mi mamá). Desde presentar un examen hasta arreglarme en las mañanas y cualquier otra tarea de por medio, yo siempre terminaba primero habiendo hecho un buen trabajo. ¡Cuando vine a los Estados me topé con que siempre soy la última en terminar todo! ¡Todo el mundo es más rápido que yo! He aprendido que ahora vivo en una cultura orientada a resultados inmediatos. Desde la cocina hasta el desarrollo personal de la gente, se espera que todo rinda resultados positivos y eficientes inmediatamente. Es por eso que encuentro intrigante que una cultura tan apresurada haga que sus eventos deportivos duren tantísimo tiempo. Y eso sin agregar todo el bullicio de las ceremonias previas y posteriores al juego en sí. Ahora bien, sin ofender a nadie, nosotros estuvimos prendidos del evento completo desde que empezó hasta que terminó. Esto es sencillamente una observación desde el punto de vista de alquien que ha pasado los últimos tres años tratando de adaptarse a este nuevo mundo para quien observaciones como tales son inevitables bajo las circunstancias. De cualquier manera, disfrutamos nuestro día tanto como las especialidades de mi esposito que había dispuesto preparar sus propias viandas que, en esta ocasión, eran alitas en barbacoa.

"I´m gonna get you!!!"

Ben says those words and immediately a big huge smile appears on Elena´s face as she takes these cute little quick steps pretending to get away from him as fast as she can. Ben stumps his feet on the floor to make it more dramatic... he hasn´t moved yet, he only made noise with his feet, yet she is laughing and "trying" to get away. When Ben gets close to her, though instead of getting away she gets so excited with the anticipation and the delight of "being caught" that if he takes too long to get her, she´ll lean towards his hands. Such precious moments!

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"¡Alli voy!" Ben dice esas palabras e inmediatamente aparece una gran sonrisa en la carita de Elena mientras da los más simpáticos pasitos rápidos como para escapársele tan rápidamente como puede. Ben somata los pies en el suelo para añadirle al drama... no se ha movido todavía, solamente hizo ruido con los pies, y ella está matándose de la risa "tratando" de escapar. Sin embargo, cuando Ben se le acerca en lugar de escaparse se emociona tanto con anticipación y el gusto de que la "atrape" que si se tarda mucho en agarrarla ella se inclina hacia sus manos haciéndose más fácil de atrapar. ¡Son momentos tan bellos!

Marriage

"Quick! Catch all the little foxes before they ruin the vineyard of your love, for the grapevines are all in blossom." (Song of Solomon 2:15, New Living Translation)

When does a married couple allows for familiarity and routine to steal away from them? How does it happen? When do voids that eventually turn into gaps grow between them? A little observation has brought sadness to my heart as I look at couples who are living as mere roommates. There is no vision, there are no goals, there are just two people that, somehow, ended up living under the same roof, sharing chores and expenses. Granted, being married is not easy. It is a life of dying to one's self, sacrifice and hard work. Then again, aren't good things supposed to be hard to get? All too often I find that "marital bliss" is not something that just falls on a lucky, unsuspecting couple who then just sit back and enjoy it. It is, instead, a decision that needs to be made daily, sorting through the nitty gritty details of the day and choosing to keep your attention focused on every good thing. After all, even a "match made in heaven" needs to be maintained on earth!

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"Cazadnos las zorras, las zorras pequeñas que arruinan las viñas, pues nuestras viñas están en flor." (Cantares 2:15, La Biblia de las Américas)

¿Cuándo es que una pareja de esposos permite que la rutina y la familiaridad le robe a su matrimonio? ¿Cómo es que sucede? ¿En qué momento crecen entre ellos vacíos que eventualmente se convierten en abismos? Un poco de observación a mi alrededor ha traído tristeza a mi corazón cuando veo parejas que parecen solamente ser compañeros de cuarto. No tienen visión, no tienen metas, simplemente son dos personas que, de algún modo terminaron viviendo bajo el mismo techo compartiendo gastos y responsabilidades. Claro está, el matrimonio no es fácil. Es una vida de morir a uno mismo, una vida de sacrificio y trabajo duro. Pero... ¿no se supone que lo bueno cuesta? Con frecuencia me encuentro reflexionando en que la dicha marital no es algo que le llega a una pareja de suertudos que se sientan a disfrutarla. Es, por el contrario, una decisión que debe tomarse cada día, separando entre lo engorroso de la vida diaria y escogiendo mantener la atención en las cosas buenas. Después de todo, hasta un romance "hecho en el cielo" debe mantenerse aquí en la tierra.

Winter Wonderland

This morning I got up and Ben asked me to look out the window. What a beautiful sight it was! The ground and the trees were covered in a couple inches of snow and you could hardly see anything else but the big, huge, snowflakes coming down. It all looked so pretty! I immediately took Elena to the window and she seemed to be delighted for the sight as well. But it really became amazing to me when I brought Elena outside. Her face was glowing with excitement as she would point to the snowflakes and try to touch them as they were falling down. She didn´t care it was cold, she didn´t care it was wet, she would throw her head back and let the snowflakes fall on her face and laugh. The purity and innocence of that picture reminded me of how we miss out on the wonders of the simple things when we become so worked up about life. If we only had a desire like the Psalmist did:

"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me."Psalm 51:9-11

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Esta mañana me levanté y Ben me dijo que viera por la ventana. ¡Qué vista más maravillosa! El suelo y los árboles estaban cubiertos de un par de pulgadas de nieve y apenas y se podía ver con claridad por los grandes copos de nieve que estaban cayendo. ¡Todo se veía tan precioso! Inmediatamente levanté a Elena y la llevé a la ventana y ella parecía estar deleitándose con la vista también. Pero realmente se volvió sorprendente cuando sacamos a Elena afuera. Su carita parecía brillar de la emoción mientras extendía sus manitas para tratar de tocar los copos de nieve que caían. No le importó que había frío, no le importó que estaba mojado, simplemente tiraba su cabecita para atrás para ver los copos caer y sentirlos en su carita. La pureza e inocencia de esa imagen me recordó cómo nos perdemos de las maravillas de las cosas sencillas al llenarnos de ansiedad por las cosas de la vida. Ojalá todos tuviéramos el corazón del Salmista:

" ¡Crea en mí, Dios, un corazón limpio, y renueva un espíritu recto dentro de mí!" Salmos 51:10

Random thoughts

• It is scary to realize that so many parents are so unaware of what goes on in their teenager´s lives. God help His people not be caught up in not "invading their privacy" and missing out on important signs of need in their lives... blogs are a great indicator.
• I don´t particularly like this part of the American Idol process, I know some people are there to really make a show of themselves but some others are so naive and then get humilliated in a very mean way and we sit there and watch it... I´m not sure about that.
• While in Guatemala, Elena had no problem at all with my drying my hair. I figured we must have gotten over the season of having to have Ben around every time I blow dry my hair (or use the blender, vacuum cleaner, mixer, and any other noise-making-appliance around the house). Sure enough we got back home and she can´t even see my hair dryer here!
• Like father, like daughter... these two years of living with my hubby I have discovered that he sometimes talks (and walks and does different things) in his sleep. It always takes me a while to figure it out because it usually involves my waking up and finding him walking around the room, eyes wide open and all. I´d ask what he´s doing and that´s usually when I realize he´s sleeping. The next morning he has absolutely no recollection of whatever happened the night before. At any rate, after an hour of napping, Elena suddenly sat on the bed, mumbled her usual conversation and then plopped back on the pillow and was immediately sleeping again.

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• Da miedo pensar que hay tantos padres de adolescentes que no tienen la menor idea de lo que pasa en la vida de sus hijos. Dios nos ayude a Su pueblo a no caer en la trampa de no "invadir su privacidad" y perdernos señales importantes de la necesidad de su corazón. Los "blogs" son un buen indicador de cómo andan las cosas...
• Esta parte del proceso de American Idol no es precisamente mi favorita, yo sé que mucha de la gente que va sabe que va a dar un espectáculo y no tiene problema con eso, pero hay otro grupo de gente inocente que realmente se ve humillada por el show sin embargo, alli estamos sentados viéndolos... a veces me pregunto qué dice eso de nosotros...
• Mientras estábamos en Guate., Elena no tenía problema alguno con que me secara el pelo. Me imaginé que ya habíamos dejado atrás la época de tener que esperar que Ben estuviera aqui para secarme el pelo (o usar la licuadore, batidora, aspiradora y cualquier otro electrodoméstico que hiciera ruido). Por supuesto, al venir aqui y usar mi secadora, resulta que siempre no le gusta.
• De tal palo, tal astilla... estos dos años de vivir con mi esposito me han revelado que a veces habla (y camina y realiza diferentes actividades) dormido. Siempre me toma un poco de tiempo darme cuenta porque usualmente me despierta que ande caminando por el cuarto, con los ojos abiertos y todo. Le pregunto qué pasa y es allí donde me doy cuenta de que está dormido. A la mañana siguiente, ni se recuerda de lo que pasó. Hoy, después de estar durmiendo como por una hora, Elena se despertó, se sentó en la cama y empezó a hablar como es su costumbre, luego se dejó caer otra vez en la almohada e inmediatamente estaba sumida en el más profundo sueño.

Everything is a process...

There is nothing more disheartening for me than coming home and feeling overwhelmed rather than refreshed... My haven, the one place where my husband and daughter should feel comforted and nurtured and if it gives me that feeling when I walk through the door I can´t really expect it to be any different for them. I think it bothers me more becasue when I was growing up my mom used to tell my that my bedroom was a mirror to my heart and I really feel undone inside if my abode is undone. Now, I know there are only so many hours in one day and so many things I can do in those hours, especially when part of my day goes in following a little person around and picking up after her all day long (somehow the concept of "putting back in" is taking its sweet time to click). At any rate, I know it is a process and I know I won´t get it done as soon as I wish... little by little and one day at a time we´ll have a haven again. On another note, I told you earlier that my sweet hubby was setting up his own blog, so pay him a visit at www.misterrandom.blogspot.com

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No hay nada más descorazonador para mí que entrar a mi casa y en lugar de sentir regrigerio, sentirme atarantada... Mi oasis, el lugar donde mi esposo y mi hija deben sentirse reconfortados, si me hace sentirme así a mí al entrar por la puerta, realmente no puedo esperar que sea distinto para ellos. Creo que lo que más me molesta es que mi mamá solía decirme que mi cuarto era un reflejo de mi corazón y realmente siento que estoy descontrolada por dentro cuando tengo todo descontrolado por fuera. Ahora, yo sé que el día sólo tiene 24 horas y que solamente hay cierta cantidad de cosas que puedo hacer en ese tiempo, especialmente cuando una buena parte del día se me va en perseguir a una personita por todos lados recogiendo todo lo que deja tirado (por alguna razón el concepto de "guardar" todavía no le hace click). De cualquier manera, sé que es un proceso y sé que no lograré hacer todo tan pronto como quiero... poquito a poco y un día a la vez llegaremos a tener un oasis nuevamente. Cambiando de tema, como les conté antes, mi esposito tiene ahora su propio sitio, visítenlo cuando tengan tiempo: www.misterrandom.blogspot.com

A picture worth a thousand words...

The first birthday called for the first experience with chocolate cake... this was the result...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ELENA!

A Year Ago...

One year ago today, I was at the hospital waiting for labor to progress. I was barely 3 cm dilated (which I had been for the longest time already). At this point, we realized it was going to be a very long hospital stay if we stayed there so we decided to leave and go "take a walk." Elena was finally born at 8:55 a.m. (tomorrow) after having been in transition for 8 hours. Time goes by so quickly! She will be one tomorrow and as we watch her grow from a baby into a little girl we are reminded of the new life that is growing within me. Yesterday we had an ultrasound (No, we won't find out what the baby is) and we saw a tiny nose in a cute little face and a tiny little body squirming all over the place. Our eyes were filled up with tears as we contemplated, once again, the miracle of life and our hearts were filled with joy as we realized afresh how blessed we are! It's simply amazing!

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Hoy hace un año estábamos en el hospital esperando que progresara el trabajo de parto. Apenas tenía 3 cm de dilatación (desde hacía un montón de tiempo). A estas alturas decidimos irnos a caminar por alli porque la espera en el hospital iba a ser demasiado larga. Elena finalmente nació a las 8:55 a.m. (de mañana) después de 8 horas de transición. ¡Qué rápido se va el tiempo! Mañana cumple un año y al mismo tiempo que la vemos crecer de bebé a nenita se nos recuerda la nueva vida que se forma dentro de mí. Ayer tuvimos un ultrasonido (No, no vamos a averiguar qué es) y vimos una naricita en una carita y un diminuto cuerpo que se movía por todos lados. Se nos llenaron los ojos de lágrimas al contemplar una vez más el milagro de la vida, el corazón se nos llenó de gozo al volver a darnos cuenta de lo bendecidos que somos. ¡Sencillamente es maravilloso!

Todavía estamos aterrizando...

2 Corintios 4:17-18 (Biblia en Lenguaje Sencillo)
Biblia
en Lenguaje Sencillo (BLS)

"17 Las dificultades que tenemos son pequeñas, y no van a durar siempre.
Pero, gracias a ellas, Dios nos llenará de la gloria que dura para siempre: una
gloria grande y maravillosa.18 Porque nosotros no nos preocupamos por lo que nos
pasa en esta vida, que pronto acabará. Al contrario, nos preocupamos por lo que
nos pasará en la vida que tendremos en el cielo. Ahora no sabemos cómo será esa
vida. Lo que sí sabemos es que será eterna."

Todo es cuestión de perspectiva.

Still trying to land...

2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (Amplified Bible)
Amplified
Bible (AMP)
"17For our light, momentary affliction
(this slight distress of the passing hour) is ever more and more abundantly
preparing and producing and achieving for us an everlasting weight of glory
[beyond all measure, excessively surpassing all comparisons and all
calculations, a vast and transcendent glory and blessedness never to
cease!],
18Since we consider and look not to the things that are seen but to
the
things that are unseen; for the things that are visible are temporal
(brief and
fleeting), but the things that are invisible are deathless and
everlasting."

Isn´t it all a matter of perspective?

We're Home!

Or so we think... it is the right address, it just doesn't look like home AT ALL! You can't really walk through any room without tripping on a box, a suitcase, a pile of something, or the toys my daughter keeps scattering through the floor of the whole apartment. We came home at 2 a.m. yesterday, landed in the middle of an awful snow storm and then drove home through roads covered in drifted snow that literally reached the bumper of our van. It took us over an hour an a half to reach home. We hit the ground running as we went to church yesterday morning, have an empty fridge and empty cupboards and don't seem to have time to shop for groceries today since Ben had to go to the office after being absent for three weeks, we have a doctor's appointment to make sure all is going well with baby number two and then we have a board meeting at church! But we are home... happy to be here and sad to have left Guatemala. But as we left church yesterday and I thought about the welcome we received from our church family I realized how blessed we are and how undeserving we feel! We are appreciated, loved and missed in two places that are very different from each other! Even though we landed in Albany at 11.45 p.m. and there was a snow storm we were greeted at the airport by these friends. We came home to learn of other friends who wanted to come meet us but couldn't make it under the circumstances. Then we were greeted at church by so many who told us how much we were missed! It wouldn't be fair if I didn't say that I do love my New York people too! It is good to be home, it is good to be loved and we are loved in two different places of the map... What else could we ask for?

Like a Breeze!

This is it! We breezed through it and our vacation is over... well, more over than not. We sit here, a little bit more than 24 hours away from departure time and toys are already being counted and put together. The bed holds four suitcases that, somehow, are supposed to fit all of the stuff we brought plus all of the stuff we're taking and still weigh up to 50 lbs. each (I truly believe I am in on line for a small miracle on this one). But the inevitable is coming and the time to say good by grows nearer. I miss home, I want to go home, as much as I love this country and all my friends and family we're getting to that time when we need our routine back. That doesn't mean that we're looking forward to saying good by. As we do this routine over and over again, I realize we have all tried to learn to live and endure it the best way we can. I have learned that He is my only hope and my only strength. I have understood that I don't need to understand why life goes the way it does... as long as I am secure in Him we will be fine. The grace for the day will come from Him, the strength to carry on will come from Him, and the joy for even these moments will come from Him as well. My only prayer is that all those others facing the good bys with us will find the same source.

Ooops!

I was in such a hurry this morning that I completely forgot there were actual pictures of Ben and my brothers doing the canopy... here you go...

A quick update

This last week is going quickly and, as expected, is getting busier by the minute as everyone realizes we are closer to leaving. We are packing tomorrow (somehow!) and heading home and as much as we want to go home a part of us doesn't want to leave. This week, Ben and my brothers did "canopy" on Monday and they had a great time. They even found a couple challenges that made their trip more adventurous! Elena and I stayed home and visited some friends (pregnant women shouldn't really hang from trees). After giving up on our desire of going to the beach, last night someone offered to take us today, so we are going!!! As I sit here and write preparations are going on around the house for a short day enjoying the warmest weather, the sun and the water! We'll send pics! Other than that, we still have dinner tonight with an uncle and lunch tomorrow with a friend and off we go! We should be arriving in Albany's airport around 11:45 p.m. on Saturday.

On another note, Elena finally cut her first tooth! With all the other stuff going on with the infamous virus and the colds that grabbed a hold of us on this trip, cutting her first tooth was as uneventful and almost unnoticeable as you can imagine, but there it is and she is constantly rubbing her tongue against it!

Well, just wanted to update you quickly on our schedule, we miss you all!

Elena's Piñata

Today, the Guatemalan family celebrated Elena's birthday. I've included a few pictures to give you a taste of it. It was supposed to be at an open park area, but it was too windy so we ended up all crowded in my cousin's house. It was a lot of fun and a lot of people came together to celebrate our daughter, which was a blessing!

I think she has a puzzled look on her face trying to figure out why there are so many people standing in front of her watching her on the swing!



They all chipped in and gave her an Elmo themed first piñata.




And, of course, after the piñata was broken and all the candy was on the ground, she was taught by my cousins that girls wear dresses to piñatas to gather all their candy!


We had a lot of fun and are very grateful that the family has taken all the time and effort to spoil her. It really means so much to us to see them going so much out of their way to bless our daughter... eventhough we weren't here for Christmas there was a gift for Elena under every tree at every home of friends and family. We have no idea how we will manage to get all those gifts back home but I must admit that is a wonderful "problem" to have! I love my Guatemalan people!

The Past few days

These past few days have been a treat in every possible way! To begin with, our wedding anniversary was the 3rd and my sweet husband surprised me with an appointment at a spa for a facial!!! I don't think I had had one of those before! I was spoiled and y face felt baby soft! After the facial we left Elena at my parents' and then went out for a nice lunch date. We had a wonderful avocado salad, steak, corn, baked potatoes and dessert. As I have told you before, my grandmother (dad's mom) is already 94 and one of her sons decided to have a recording made of her talking about her life before her memory fails her more and we loose all those wonderful stories. The video in and of itself was a joy to watch as she told anecdote after anecdote about her childhood, how she met my grandfather and her writings, but the real treat for me came at the end of the interview, when as she is closing with some personal thoughts the camera gets off her and suddenly starts showing what seems a very old video. "Mamita" (my grandmother) was all dressed up and she is standing outside a church. The church looked familiar to me, but I couldn't make out what it was about, until I saw this bride and groom position themselves right next to her on the receiving line. At that point, my mom exclaimed "That's my wedding!!" It turns out that my uncle had used an 8mm camera to record at the wedding and somewhere down the line completely forgot about it. My parents never saw it, so they didn't even know it existed. It was such a wonderful surprise to actually get to see my parents on their wedding day! We grew up looking at the pictures, but it is amazing how much it came to life as we watched it on the screen! Of course, now we will talk to the editor of Mamita's video and try to secure the whole recording of my parents' wedding and hopefully it will happen before we leave!