8 more days until Christmas

Who's counting? Apparently, I am!  Ha. (clears throat)

Okay, so ever since I set up the Christmas tree. Joanna has been asking if it's Christmas yet. I kept telling her "NO". Then I marked off the days that are over and started the countdown.

I just started wrapping some presents. I thought I was done with Christmas shopping but I am not. I still have one more to go. Plus, I will have to get something for Peter's birthday which is on the 23rd. I.Kid.Not! He was born on the 23rd. My "Christmas" baby. *sighs* Sooo.... with that being said, I'll go shopping for another gift just for his birthday. It's only fair. Poor little guy. I think I will have to celebrate his birthday another day when he gets older and have friends, you know? No one will want to come over to his birthday party if I celebrate it on the 23rd. Come on! Everyone wants to be with family. True.

Then I figured I haven't been blogging. So I decided to change my background to make it fit in with the Christmas theme and blog a little. Being a mother of three small children is a lot of work. My kids constantly need me. They want a lot of attention. Sometimes I have my me time, I usually like to sit down and use my laptop. I LOVE technology. It offers A LOT of wealth of information and all. You know what I mean, right? Like right now, you can use it to read the news, shop online, research... on and on. I love it when my kids can allow me to sit down and have this kind of time. They usually like to play or watch educational cartoons. I always check on them to make sure they aren't doing anything dangerous.... like jumping on the bed (which they like to do) and who knows what?

Not only that, I am kind of spoiled with staying at my in-laws. Yes, we are still living with them. Eventually, we'll get a place of our own. I know it will be hard for my in-laws when the day comes when we do move. My children love their grandparents. When grandma leaves to go to the store, Joanna cries. It is hard for my mother-in-law to leave her. She just can't bear when her granddaughter cries. In fact, she'll cry too. SIGHS. Anyway, do I know when we'll be moving? No, not yet. Not anytime soon since Matt just started working a different job for a couple of months now. Until then...

What's new?  Well, I don't know where to start. Nothing major has happened yet. So there's no big news as of now. But a lot has been happening. Like things my children says and does.  They are changing. Growing. They look different. And when they do, I have to remind myself that we are changing too. NoooooOooooOOooo!!!!!  Whhhhhhhy Oh Whhhhhy?!?!  Why what you may think? Okay, why do we have to grow OLD? Who wants to grow old?  I wish we can stay young looking forever. Yep, wishful thinking. Even though some people think I look younger than I actually am. I find myself looking at products that can keep me young. I started looking at creams and stuff like that already. When I smiled. I noticed my forehead has a lot of wrinkles. I was like... that's UGLY! Goodness. What can I do to minimize my wrinkly forehead?! You'll see when I take a picture.

So I went to the thrift store to buy some cheap toys for my kids. Well, I was in a hurry and pressed the key to automatically closed the sliding door. A lady started waving a me and I'd gestured I couldn't hear her. Then she moved her mouth to let me know that I left my van door opened. I grab Joanna and then Peter and put them in the back of the cart and rushed out the store to make sure I get to my van in time. I didn't want anyone to steal anything. I do have a few expensive items like the carseats, baby carrier and stroller. Then of course, my van. Thankfully, the Lord send that sweet lady over my way. She didn't have to say a thing. You know? So I thanked the Lord for even little things like this.

Little things can add up and for the little things I am grateful. For example: I have been wanting a yellowish-mustard cardigan. They go well with some of my clothing. I like to collect different colors. I am always wearing black and white for the most part and need to start expanding my ware robe. Not that it's important or anything but I do like to look nice. I'm used to shopping at the thrifts. My grandma has taught me well. Anyway, I bought a mustard cardigan for $2 bucks! Then I went home and found a stain on it, I didn't see that stain before. So I took out the "Shout It Out" and sprayed it hoping that the stain will come off. And it did! YAY! The Lord saved this just for me! No wonder no one bought it because of the stain. I love that it was 50% off. He loves me, right?!

Another interesting day... Matt comes home from work. Joanna thought it was her grandma. She listens to the garage door opening and runs over to see if grandma has arrived home from work. Nope. It was daddy. Matt asked Joanna if she misses him. Believe it or not, she didn't! Ha! That little girl is something. She favors her grandma A LOT. And I know why. Because grandma spoils her rotten. Yep. There's a different between being a parents versus grandparents.

So... we are still looking for a church to join. We did find two but now we are leaning towards one. We still are praying about it. Both are good. KJV. Traditional. One has over 100 members and the other has around 30-40 members. In the meantime, we'll be hopping back and forth from these two churches until the Lord gives us the final say.  I'm like... if we get tired of one, we'll go to the other. Visa versa. Hee hee but of course I know better and that's not how it works. I just wanted to throw that in.

Also, today... I decided to purchased Young Living oils. I have my doubts but my friends from Georgia told me about them. I have heard of them before. I was even going to go to a friend's house to learn more about it. I decided to wait. I don't really know what to think about them. I still have my doubts then again I hear good things. The Cheek family use it for many things. I am grateful for Godly Christian friends. I know I can trust them. They have used it. So this will be my Christmas gifts. Thanks to my wonderful sweet thoughtful husband! It is pricey but I hope it'll be worth it. Of course, I'll share you my experience once I've tried it for myself. So.... I can't comment about it yet.

I guess that's about all I have to update you with. Other than, I just took my family pictures again this past Sunday. I'll be sharing it sometimes next week. Okay??

Update on Andrew

Last week, Andrew had his one year check-up. He's now weighting in at 11.5 pounds; 24 inches long. Still very small for a one year old.

For those who doesn't know, he has a missing chromosome:18p-

He is making small progress throughout his speech, occupational and physical therapy. He can't roll over, crawl... just about everything a baby his age should do. Hence, therapy. He can sit up for 2 minutes with assistance. A milestone. That's about the longest he can sit up before falling over. YAY! Go, Andrew! He hasn't babble yet. We've also started getting him to eat rice cereal. Another milestone.

He will be needing eye surgery. His left eye (which still drifts away) needs eye muscle surgery to help keep it align with his right eye. After that, he will need another surgery to lift (I think) both eyelids. That will help him be able to see better so that he doesn't have to "throw his head back" in order to see. Often people have asked if he is sleepy... well, no... it's his droopy eyelids causing him to look that way. That's just about as wide as he can open them.

In short, will you please pray for him to strive and grow? It's the little things we often take for granted.

Thank you to all those who have been praying for him. It means a lot to my family.

Throughout trials, I don't always see the good but I've learned to praise Him for everything because He has been good to us.

Below: You'll see a picture of me with my beautiful yet sweet little guy. And another picture with just my three beautiful children that God has blessed me with.

Andrew turned 1!

On December 3rd, Andrew turned one year old. It's crazy how fast this year has flown by! But then it's like that with all of us, right? ;)

Anyway, we had a busy day.. it started off with taking him to Speech Therapy. Then I waited until my mother in law and Matt got off work to celebrate. My mom stopped by earlier to bring him a birthday cake. Thanks mom! We gave Andrew is small bite of his own cake but he didn't really know how to eat it yet. He's in the process of learning to eat. I've been feeding him rice cereal one time a day. I haven't followed up with his feeding consistently. He is finally getting the hang of swallowing his own food. Praise the Lord!

Well.. it is 11pm on my time. I need to get some sleep so that I can take him to his Physical Therapy at 9am and then later on the same day he'll get his 1 year annual check-up with his pediatrician.

Hopefully I can do an update about what we have been up to lately. Sorry I haven't been able to post like I should. I hope you understand.

Well...

today I decided to try and play with my Final Cut Pro X program. I know... I know.. I still have a lot of work to do in order to make it look perfect, you know? I'm determined to and I know that I'll eventually get there. Well, I hope! And yes, I'm really trying hard.


I hope you enjoy watching. Hee hee

My girl singing in the choir for the first time.

It was so special to see Joanna singing in church with children around her age. I just LOVE it! We were visiting a church and this was our second time visiting and I was amazed at how quick my daughter could pick up a song. Okay, I am not too surprised because she loves to sing at home. I mean, she really loves music! Hmmmm... what does that mean? Do you know? I honestly didn't know that they were going to sing that day, Matt had point me to where Joanna was. I was like what?? Of course, I had to grab my phone camera to capture it. You know it! I wasn't going to miss her first time singing in a choir. NO WAY!! As you know, I wasn't sure how she'll do especially singing with a choir in front of the whole church. She can be shy sometimes. So I was very impressed with her and I think she did great! Don't you? Yes, I've noticed...she's a little dramatic at times. Hee Hee

My favorite was when she was up there waving at me (not captured on video) and when she kind of lost her balance.

I remember thinking back wondering what it's going to be like to watch them do things for the Lord. I thought when my children are old enough, I'll enjoy watching them participate in any activities for the Lord. Am I making any sense? Anyway, this was one of them. I just LOVE it.

Photo Booth Fun at Marquita's wedding

Yesterday, I went to a friend's wedding. It's been years since I've last seen this friend. Her name is Marquita. And yes, I am much much older than her but she is still as sweet as she was when I first met her. I'm so proud of who she has become. She is a doctor now but I'm not sure in what field. At her wedding reception, they provided a Photo Booth for the guests to take, frame the photo to a board and write her well wishes. We even got a copy for ourselves to keep. Sweet! I love this idea! I might consider that for my children's future wedding. If they think it's a cool thing to do. I mean... they even have silly props to use but we didn't use any. We're kind of boring! Perhaps, next time!

Below, you'll see that I am next to a teen (on the left). I just met her yesterday and found out that she is an exchange student from Vietnam. My cousin Khai and his wife Zulema (on the right) are hosting this sweet teenager.  How cool is that? She speaks English very well and is wanting to learn about computers. From what she told me...

Anyway, as we sat in the Photo Booth, we didn't know what to do. Like when to smile for our pictures... but that's what makes it fun. See?  We're laughing at the times we didn't take it like we wanted. And I think I kind of embarrassed them with my craziness. Hee Hee!  Oh well. At least, the first one came out right! Yay!

I really had fun taking pictures with the gals. I know I would with you too!  Wanna?

In Loving Memory: Joe G. Garcia

I have had a lot going on. I even had my laptop broken and just got a new one. I thanked the Lord for allowing my data to be restored (got everything back) and for blessing me with a new MacBook Pro and iPad. God has been so good to me!

Well, here are some of the pictures of my grandpa and his relatives and friends.  I'll be sure to come back and blog some more about what's been happening lately. But right now, I have to get ready to take Andrew to his Speech Therapy. Until then!

My grandpa passed away

Yesterday morning, my grandpa went with the Lord.

I haven't been on here for several days. It's been crazy with my grandpa. Earlier last week, I almost lost him but because he was rushed to the hospital and got the care he needed, the Lord spared him and I'm thankful for that because I wouldn't have said my last goodbyes, gave him my kisses or to let him know that I loved him one last time. If you don't know me.... I am the kind of person that will take advantage of these times knowing that his time was short and that anything could happen. He was being treated due to fluid in the lungs caused by poor functioning of the heart.

I also learned that he was diagnosed with stomach cancer.

I knew that time was sensitive and I thanked the Lord for giving me the opportunity to spend these last few days and for allowing me to tell my grandpa that I love him. To have him say "I love you too" was especially sweet, special and somewhat comforting...

Thank you for praying. 

Andrew's Physical Therapy: Day 1

I told you I would come back and update about Andrew's first day of Physical Therapy.

Well, here's a small video of him and his physical therapist, Cindy.

She has worked on his Motor Development. We've spent an hour with her. She was working on the following:

Prone: Weight on Extended Arms
Prone Activities: On Forearms
Prone: Weight on Forearms
Transitional: Supine to Side Lying and...
Sit: Long leg


On a side note, I have a praise. His Endo test results came back normal! Although, this is a routine check-up... it's still a PRAISE in my eyes! To God be the glory!! <3

Back in June, I took this video...

It was when Joanna was attending her first Vacation Bible School in Selma, Indiana.

In this video, you'll see Joanna sitting down. She had bad traction shoes. I didn't realized why she sat alone until she tried to get up and slip right back down. After videoing, I went up to her and told her to take off her shoes and run. She did and had a blast! But it was for only a few minutes. I've learned my lessons to bring an extra pair of shoes.

This video may be a few months old but I am finally taking the time to get them uploaded. Enjoy!

Joanna walking in my shoes..

I don't know what to think as she came walking towards me. I was sitting down at the kitchen table downloading pictures for you guys to see. When I turned to look at her, I thought to myself... it can't be! It won't be long until she is actually walking in heels. Those are my shoes, I wear a size 6. Small shoes? Well, of course but they look big on her. SIGHS.

I am glad I decided to take a few pictures of Joanna and Peter. I've noticed their facial features have changed... okay, you're right. I hate to admit it but we all know that they're growing. Some says Joanna looks just like me and Peter looks just like Matt. But then I hear that both of them look like their father. What's with that??

I didn't get any of Andrew. He was taking a nap. Perhaps, I'll take some of him soon. Tomorrow, he'll start his physical therapy. There will be an update on that too. Remember, the pictures before was just an evaluation. The therapy starts tomorrow. I'll be present with him while Matt watches Joanna and Peter. We've decided to take turns attending Physical Therapy with Andrew. If Matt can't, I'll go. Visa versa.

Caramel package arrived!

So a friend from Georgia posted on Facebook about sending a package of caramel out. I couldn't help but asked if he could send me some too. And he did! Sweet! Here's a few pictures of Joanna, Peter and I enjoying our sweet treats. Thanks, Tim Brown! It's good!

Update on Andrew: saw three different specialists

Update on Andrew:

This month, Andrew has already seen three different specialists. They are:

Urologist (on July 2^nd)

Andrew has one testicle higher than the other. They said he has up to age two to see if it drops. If not, I am not exactly sure what they will do but I think they will try to move it down.  After he was born, he was too small to get circumcised but now he can get that taken care of anytime.  Not sure when that will be.

Ophthalmologist (on July 16^th)

Andrew had both of his eyes checked. The good news is that the doctor said he can see with both of his eyes. Praise the Lord! However, on his left eye, he has strabismus-exotropia (alignment), ptosis (drooping of the upper eyelid) and amblyopia (decreased vision due to above).

The doctor said he will need to have surgery due to ptosis. They want to raise the eyelid so that he can see better.  It will also strengthen his vision. Before the surgery, he is required to wear a patch over his good eye so that he can get exercises to help strengthen his weak eye muscles.

Physical Therapist (on July 22^nd)

Today, Andrew had his evaluation. The physical therapist said that he moves like a 2-3 months old. Therefore, he’ll need therapy to help him learn skills.  They want us to meet one time a week for 6 months. They’ll see what will happen from there about whether he is making fast progress or not.  A good thing, Andrew is flexible. Because of that, it is easier for the physical therapist to work with him.  Praise the Lord!  Although, there is a lot of work that needs to be done.

Thank you for your continuous prayers. Please, keep them coming!

June flew by too fast!

It was a busy month for us too! I was still slowly but surely getting everything put away at my in-laws. Then we left for our long road trips from Texas-Michigan-Indiana-Missouri-Texa for a week and a half. Let me just tell you, traveling with small children for 20+ hour isn't fun. The good thing about this trip? I was able to be a part of my friend's wedding (in Michigan) and was able to see friends and visited two of our supporting churches in Indiana and Missouri. Matt was able to give them an update of our new ministry. While there, I thoroughly enjoyed both Pastor Keppel and Pastor McCurley's preaching. 

For the first two days, Joanna was able to attend VBS at Bible Baptist Church in Selma, Indiana (her first). Although the trip was short, we were still able to enjoy our time with friends.

The last few days, it seems like all of us have had bad allergies... but as of today, we are all doing better. 

Andrew has some follow-ups in July. Will keep you posted.

Here are a few pictures to share with you all... I am going to have to copy a picture off of Facebook to show you Rebekah's wedding photos. It was a short and sweet wedding, simple but nice. The bride looked beautiful and all of her bridesmaids...except ME. I felt like a... MAN. My hair was up and well everyone liked it so I went with my hair up... if only... if only... I could have stood up for myself. Sometimes I have to give in and it's not about me anyways.. it's about the BRIDE.  I guess we all can be conscious of our looks and that's O-K. I am free to express how I feel, right? Well... I better get going. I should be posting more soon. Sorry it's been awhile... things kept happening. Including the church we are helping. It's been really... REALLY rough. To where we just want to quit. I.AM.NOT.JOKING. *sighs* If you think of us, please pray for us.  We don't know if this small church will continue but we'll keep on trying until the Lord moves us other wises.

Okay... okay .... I'm off to bed. It is 10:23pm my time as I am closing this post.  I'll be back! Pronto!

Pulling in 3 different directions...

Do you ever have 3 things going on at the same time that you kind of just want to scream or pull your hair off or something? Well, that just happened to me a couple of days ago. I made a phone call to ordered a pair of shoes for my friend's wedding (Rebekah) and at the same time got a text from her about a problem she was having at Office Max. If I haven't told you, I am helping Rebekah (I'm one of her bridesmaids too) with her wedding postcards. While that's all going on, Peter wanted me to take him to the rest room. Another thing, yes, I'm potty-training my 2 year old and he's doing a great job after two weeks of training!  I'm so proud of him! Okay, back to my phone call story, I had to tell the person on the phone to hold because my son wanted me to go to the restroom with him, then the next thing I know was that Peter fell down the floor and on his face! I screamed, "Nooo.. noooo noooo! And rocked and held him tight. I was scared of him breaking his nose or hurting his face. Thankfully and praise God that he's alright!  Thank you, Lord!  How did that happened you must wondered? Peter fell off the stepping stool.   Then off I rushed back to the kitchen where I was sitting to take care of Rebekah's postcards. She was waiting for me to send her a missing file. I tried to hurry and her and the OfficcMax person a copy. Well, bad thing, my file didn't go through because it it was too big for their email attachment. I then switched to my phone call and gave out my mailing address and credit card information. Thankfully, she didn't hanged up on me and was very patience with me. I really needed to ordered these shoes because I have like 45 days left.  I can't waste no time especially finding out that they take about 5-6 weeks to arrive. Then I rushed back to Peter and got him cleaned and dressed.  Whoooo weeeee! See what I mean??  What a day!!

Good thing, I got my shoes ordered and got Rebekah's files in time.

About my shoes, let me just say... it is difficult finding a nice formal purple dress shoes in size 6 at  just any stores.  Did I tell you that my shoes takes about 5-6 weeks to get here?!  As crazy as it sounds, Rebekah's wedding is on June 20th! That's right... my shoes should arrive here in about a week or two before I head to Michigan! I'm kind of nervous! I'm hoping they come in time.  If not, I will have to find a pair of shoes and spray paint them purple or something. That's going to be my backup plan.  I'm serious!! If all else fails since I've already have a hard time finding purple shoes, this will have to do!! I hope that is not the case. BUT then again, who knows??!

Breathe in, Breathe out.... (repeat)

Update on Andrew

Andrew seems to be doing good. Today, he went in for his 4 month check-up. Now, he's at 9 lb., 8 oz. Also, he range below the normal growth on the chart but a good thing is that he is following the growth curves. His GI test came back normal. If he pass another GI test, he doesn't have to go back. So far, with his Endo test, it has been coming back normal. Praise the Lord! But he still needs follow-up visits to check his hormones level. His Endo follow-up visits are important because it affects his growth... well, basically everything. I will have to reschedule another appointment after missing this month's.

I also found out that we need to take him to physical therapy. The physical therapist will help work on his motor skills. We will also be seeing a specialist for his left eye to find out why he isn't opening one eye as much as the other. Whew! That is all I can think of besides all of his other future follow-ups.
Thank you everyone for thinking and praying for him!

Guerra Family: Easter 2014

We were able to take a few family pictures after church. Photo credit goes to Debbie Alderman for two of our family photos.

The first picture was taken after my kids went Eggs hunting. A lady from the church wanted the kids to have some fun. Of course, we know the real reason for celebrating Easter... He is Risen! Hallelujah!

Irving DeafNation Expo

Me, Matt and baby Andrew were all able to go to the DeafNation Expo. Joanna and Peter stayed home with their grandparents.  It was neat to see and meet some professional and successful deafies. During my visiting at the Expo, I got interviewed. I think I did horrible too and I told the news man to crop off the ones that I did bad on. (laughs) Who knows I might or might not be on the video. It doesn't bother me but he'll have it ready about two weeks from now. I think he'll post it on Youtube. Will be sure to keep you posted about that. Anyway, I'll brief alittle about some of the professional and successful deaf below, they are:

Joel Barish co-founded DeafNation in 2003. He also documented deaf people from around the world.
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Light heavyweight Matt "The Hammer" Hamill, UFC fighter
The Hammer, is a 2010 biographical film about Matt Hamill, a deaf wrestler and mixed martial artist.
I have not seen the movie.
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Kurt "Deaf Irish Chef" Ramborger, made an appearance on the Food Nework’s TV show “Chopped”
He is currently working at The Blind Squirrel Sandwiches in Round Rock, Texas.
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Christopher B. Corrigan, played one of the main character Huck, in "Big River" broadway show in Washington, D.C.  Also, an actor for the movie “Lake Windfall” directed by Roger Vass Jr. (deaf)
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Lisa McBee, a friend introduced me to Purple. We were able to test out a video relay call through my phone. Pretty neat, huh?!  Just another wonderful technology innovation services for the deaf. For more information, go to www.purple.us

and then some random pictures.

The last picture was when we stopped to have dinner with our friends, The O'Leary.  After dinner, we left and headed back to Austin. We arrived around 10:30pm.

Celebrating my birthday at San Antonio

We were only an hour and a half away from home. I still did the things I wanted to do. It really wasn't much to ask for... I just wanted to ride the boat and try the 3 lb. cinnamon roll. The rest just fell into place as we go. We decided to visit the Alamo because it was free. Why not? A landmark in San Antonio. History. After that, we've decided to ride the boat while it is still daylight. It's located at the River Walk. We don't like to stay too late on a Friday night because then they'll be too many drinking and whatnots? Afterwards, we ate dinner and I've picked the Mexican restaurant because it was located right where we got off the boat. It's the food that smelled delicious fault! What a clever business. Just clever! I just couldn't help it. Tsk Tsk

The next day, on my birthday, we finally headed to Lulu's Bakery to try out the 3 lb. cinnamon roll! Together, Matt and I, could only eat half of it. Nothing more! So, we took the rest of it home. Then we stopped at the Tanger Outlets to look around and shop. Next, we headed to my mom's for a birthday cake and gifts. What can I say? Spoiled much? I think so! All in all, I I'm thankful for the opportunity to be able to enjoy and relax on my birthday. My husband has been absolutely wonderful! Love him!

Family photo and update

Out of the others to choose from, this is the picture I decided to purchased and frame. Our re-take were successful and Peter has thoroughly behaved (...and no nose picking, YAY). All because I prayed, remember? :)

THIS AND THAT

Hair Scare

Imagine walking to the rest room and seeing a cockroach on the shower wall. Would you have jumped or something? Well, I did! Yep, you've guessed it. Even my own hair scares me!  What happened was that my hair fell down the "drain claw" and instead of Matt throwing it in the trash, he put it on the shower wall.  Yeah Yeah...

Hand in sink disposal? 

Are you kidding me? There is no way I'm going to stick my hand down the sink disposal! It's a scary thought of what would have happen... like getting my hand all chopped.. okay, I'll stop there. It's too graphic to share my thoughts. I've seen my mother-in-law clear out the disposal with her digging her hand down there. Brave but no thanks!  One day, I was home alone with the kids and "felt" the disposal wasn't working properly and since my handyman wasn't there, I decided to use a folk to get the feel of what's in there. It had a mushy feel down there, I thought what could it be? Ah ha, perhaps a cloth. Sure enough, it was. 

Baby Gio, Baby Drew

For awhile, I don't remember if I told you this but Peter has been calling Andrew: "Baby Gio" for awhile and most recently he's been saying "Baby Drew". I really like his nickname! Too cute! A lady from church has caught Peter saying "Andrew". I told Matt that and he'd doubt it. Then Peter said it again! 

Drop glass

I don't know how I missed not seeing a glass on top of the counter, I swung my hand and it has splattered the floor. My kids were bare footed and Joanna was just about to walk into the kitchen, I've yelled and stopped her from entering the kitchen. I did not want her to get glass in her feet. So she obeyed and stayed put. I hurried and swept the floor and mopped it really good before my children or anyone walked in there with no shoes on.

Andrew looks small

There are times I get sad looking at how small Andrew is. I don't know why I guess I have been seeing other babies that are bigger than him at his age. He's 3 months and still looks like a newborn. Matt reminds me that he's just small but he is still growing. He's right. Today, Andrew looks a little different. I can tell he has grown some. It's time for me to post some more pictures. I know, I know.

Baked goodies failed

I've tried baking lemon bars and failed. How could I not known that my in-laws oven works so much better than my RV trailer's oven?! Next time, I have to "watch" all of my baked goodies so that I won't burned them. 

Pinterest

If you have heard of it and never used it, that's fine. I was like that for a long time. I gave in when my aunt mentioned it and another friend of mine. Now I am hooked! I have found a lot of recipes, crafts, do-it-yourself, and so much more on there! Look me up and see what I have on my Pinterest page. Here is my link: http://www.pinterest.com/sagalynn/

Peter is sneaky

Okay, kids are like that, right? I don't know how I didn't see it coming but everyone else saw it coming.  Hmmm.. anyway, I picked up Andrew from the baby bassinet swing. Peter pointed and gestured to me to put him back. I did just that because I thought he wanted to play with him. It ended up that he wanted me to carry him, instead of Andrew. See? Sneaky!!  And I honestly didn't see that coming!

Wedding postcard

My dear friend has asked me to help her design her wedding postcard. I am happy to help her! But I told her that I have never done one before and if all else failed, to seek a professional. This is project I have been doing for the last few days. 

Lending our RV trailer

A pastor friend asked if he could borrow our RV trailer home until him and his wife finds a home. Matt brought it to my attention and made sure it was okay with me. I was at peace about it. I never ever would just let anyone use it. I like to take care of the things that the Lord gave us. Also, I wanted to be a blessing. This pastor friend was called to pastored a church and sold his home and needed a place to stay. So he'll have 2 weeks to move out of his house. We are busy unpacking all of our stuff into my in-laws. It's also good on my part so that I can give rid of things I haven't used it well... forever.  

San Antonio

This Friday and Saturday, Matt and I (and Andrew) are all going to take a trip to San Antonio. Reason? My birthday! YAY!! Well, my birthday is on Saturday. I'm excited to have the opportunity to go someplace and enjoy my birthday with my loves. Grandma and grandpa Guerra will be babysitting my two older children: Joanna and Peter. Thanks so much!!!!!

Okay... I guess that is all I have to update you with... I'll try and update weekly if not everyday or every other days.

Where did I go?

Um, yes. So, I fell off the face of the earth. *thud* (haha) Oh, come on now! You know I was kidding and it's only been a week since I've lasted posted. *wink wink*

To potty train or not. That is the question.
So, here's what new, I've been contemplating on whether or not to potty train Peter. Well, long story short, Matt says he isn't ready. So I had him buy diapers. BUT for sure, this summer, I am going to have him potty trained. Whether he's ready or not. He's two years old and yes I know at that age other toddlers has already been trained. I am beginning to wonder, maybe it's because Matt isn't ready. Perhaps!

Prayer has been answered to retake pictures
You know the family pictures I've told you about? The ones that I took at JCPenney? The one that Peter picked his nose? I've mentioned that I needed to reschedule and retake, hoping for a better outcome the next time.  Well, I got them done again. Retaken, that is. Anyway, long story short, Matt really doubt that I'll get any good pictures taken all because we've already had a bad experience with Peter not being cooperative. Well, I can't argue because it's true. I know Matt's right BUT I told him I'm hoping that'll change and I told him that I am going to pray. Sure enough, I prayed before we went inside.  He still has his doubt and I don't blame him but I was hopeful. Hopeful.  Don't get me wrong, I know this is not an important prayer to pray about but I really wanted at least one good family picture of us. A family picture of us is like a sentimental value to me. If the Lord lets me live longer, I can look back at it for years to come and reminisce. The outcome? Believe it or not,  God did answered my prayers! He has heard even the little unimportant things I've asked Him. Wowzers! And Guess what? Matt was man enough to apologized to me after we were done taking pictures. He said I cheated. How did I cheated?? By praying?? Riiiiight. It was all God. I can't believe Peter has behaved throughout our whole hour picture sessions!

Oh, I am not finished yet. It gets interesting and I love how the Lord works. Well, the little things adds up. I was spring cleaning and sorting out my clothes. Getting rid of some that I haven't wore in years. As I did, I found a $20 bill in one of my jacket. To you it's no big deal and perhaps $20 to you is nothing but to me it's something and I felt rich! Ha ha, okay I am exaggerating there. And then I found another $35 dollars stacked away underneath some of my clothes. No kidding! Now you see what I am talking about? I felt like the Lord was spoiling me! But really He was blessing me for whatever reasons! Of course, I thanked my Heavenly Father as I found them. Then I shared the news with Matt. I was thrilled!  Oh and get this, I have been wanting a black skirt that falls just below my knees and with belt handles (so that I can tuck in my shirt and wear a belt). Well, I found one just as I had described at the Thrift store!  Yes, I am not kidding! It's like God saved that skirt just for me! The plus side? I got it for under $5! Isn't our Lord wonderful?! It's the little things!!  Such blessings, right?! Right! Amen!

Thrift stores lover
If you're wondering, I absolutely loved buying clothes and other cute finds at the Thrift stores!  It is so affordable and I can find a lot of nice stuff there. I have to "look" for them. It takes some time but well worth it. If you haven't known me, most of my clothes that you see me wear are gentle and used. Yep, they are mostly bought at the thrift stores.  My type? I like classy and modest clothings. I find a lot of brands clothing such as Ann Taylor, The Limited, New York & Company, H&M and on and on. I even found expensive brand purses (Wilson Leather, Nine West, etcs.) and shoes there too!  Okay that is most of the time, not all the time.  Other times, I find nothing. Zip. Nada. So that keeps me going back because they are always recycling. Do I ever splurge? Yes, but rarely. I've always use my birthday and Christmas money to splurge on things I have been eyeballing for a long time. My recent splurge was on nude shoes from Nine West. The outfit I wore for my JCP photos were all from the Thrift store except the belt (Kohls) and of course my new nude shoes (Nine West).  Okay enough of that, you get what I mean.

Post card from The Cheek family
I just got a postcard from a dear sweet family we've met in Georgia. Thank you friends!  Funny, it doesn't take much to bring a smile to my face. A postcard or letter can sure brightens my day! Thanks for the postcard! Love and miss you guys!

Friends near and far
I'm so blessed for all the friends the Lord has brought into my life. Near and far, I'm very grateful for them! Thank you, Lord for all of my friends! I may not be around them or live close by to most of them but I admit it is very nice to stay in touch merely through text messaging, emails, letters, Facebook, blogging, videochat and other social media tools.

Pictures from FBC 1st Anniversary

We had a wonderful service and fellowship today for Friendship Baptist's church 1st Anniversary. A few of the church members couldn't make it but thankfully we had 3 visitors! Praise!

Pastor Steve Parker preached a good message and his family sang and even used American Sign Language! All that getting up early to cook and set up was worth it. It is exhausting for both Matt and I but we love doing it for the Lord!

The last picture was taken after we finished up and everyone left. We got stuck with a dead battery but thankfully, our neighbor came to our rescue and got the truck to jump-start! YEAH! Oh, and by the way, yesterday we were in the HIGH 80s, today was supposed to be in the HIGH 70s but for whatever reasons, the cold front came through this morning! RAIN+COLD= NOT SO PLEASANT WEATHER! What happened to our HIGH 70s?!!

FBC upcoming one year anniversary

So I've been working on this flier. I finally got it done. The church is having their one year anniversary. Looking forward to hearing our guest speaker and have food and great fellowship with everyone. You're invited! ;)

Family Photo

Well, we went to JCP to take our family pictures. Every pictures, except one came out... bad. The only one that had everyone smiling, wasn't the best one either because I looked dorky laughing at the photographer who was trying to get my children to smile. She was making some funny moves.

Can you guess who wasn't up for pictures? Yep, PETER!!! Because of that, I have already reschedule to retake them. I'm really hoping to get better ones next time. Please, Peter.. my son, you know I love you but cooperate for mommy. I like photos of my family, sentimental value. Memories. I want to create them. Why not?

What I got for Valentine's...

Should have posted this sooner but anyway, here's mine. It's the little things!



We were able to go out to eat without the kids. Grandma and grandpa kindly watched our children. We really didn't know what to do. How sad is that? We normally don't go out or celebrate Valentine's but this year we figured why not. Instead of going out to a fancy restaurant, we tried out Smash burger. (laughs) It was the closest drive to where we were staying and being hungry we figured we try that place out since we live close and it was already close to 1pm. Earlier, we had to take Peter to the pediatrician for his vaccination shots. After that, we dropped him home and fed the kids before heading out to the Caverns! Yep, how romantic, right?! Ha Ha! I think I know what you're thinking... going to the cave on Valentine's day? Like I said, we didn't know what to do. I know that we didn't do anything fancy instead we did something different but enjoyable! Not a bad way to start off, right? Keep in mind, we never celebrate this holiday. Someday in the near future we'll be able to go out to a nice restaurant, not a fast food place. :) Before heading home, we've decided to hang out at the Outlet Mall since it wasn't too far from the Caverns. It was nice to be able to spend some times together for a couple of hours. Thanks grandma and grandpa for babysitting for us!

FBC Valentine's banquet

We had our Friendship Baptist Church Valentine's Banquet yesterday. Although, it was cold that day some members still managed to show up. We had several others who couldn't make it but all in all we had a wonderful time. We didn't want anyone to feel singled out so we made sure that everyone was invited. It wasn't focused on a couple, that is. We've played games such as Valentine's Bingo with M&M, Minute to Win It "Heart Stacks", Valentine's Word Scramble and Bible couples quiz. Whoever wins, gets prizes. We wanted the church to get together for food, fun and fellowship.

Behind the scene: with my family of five

I forgot to post this photos of us yesterday. Let me just say, it's hard taking pictures with small children. They get bored easily. Don't sit for long. Distracted. Cranky. And so forth. I should have posted Peter's precious mad face on here, I just didn't think of it. Here, we are trying to get ready for our family portrait. Can't you see how hard it was to get them to settle for a picture? My favorite is the one with Joanna bursting out laughing. Taking photos of my own family is HARD. I was thinking of having it professionally done but several photographers are charging $200.00! *sighs* That's just too expensive for me. If you haven't known, I can take pictures... well, for fun. Not professionally or anything but it's my hobby. The problem is, I just can't do my own family. Hence, the much needed help. So, how did I get these photos taken? I asked my father-in-law. I set it up and just told him to snap photos of us. He did. He even tried to get the kids attention. The picture before this one, I have photoshopped the background. It was actually the couch and yes, I've changed up the color. I think I found the solution to not spending to much money, is to ask for my family to help. Just press the button down. Voila! COST for my family portrait = FREE

I do all I can do to S.A.V.E. moo-lah

Our family of five

He's home! Praise the Lord!

We are so excited to have him back home! Sorry this post is a day late, he came home yesterday. Thank you for your prayers!

Finally, a video of baby Andrew

It took me a while to get this on here. I've been quite busy but finally worked on this video all night long until 3 in the morning. Why you may wonder? Well, I was using a program I am not familiar with and that's called Final Cut Pro X. Long story short, I couldn't remember my password to upload it on Youtube which can be shared on this blog. What's with forgetting my password? Geez. Don't even tell me... I already know. Heh.

This was taken back on January 11, 2014. I plan on creating another recent video, if not sooner, then they'll be one when he heads home.

So far, he's improving. He will still be staying at the hospital for a few more days. If not both of us, one of us always visit him. He lost some weight and went back to his birth weight, however, I was told today that he gained about 2 ounces. Either way, I'll take it as a praise! Giving Him thanks.

Visiting baby Andrew

Well, there's my baby boy... it's definitely not a pretty sight to see him like this but I'm grateful that he is being taken care of at the hospital.

Update: (information gathered from Matt)

Andrew is doing much better. (What he meant by that is that they were able to get him to hydrate, react, breathe.) He was dehydrated. Anyway, they said he has RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus). Said it is very common during the winter time. They are moving him to the NICU.

I thank the Lord for allowing the doctor to find out what was wrong and that he is doing better. It is really scary to not see him move or react to anything... like he was slowing dying. Scared this momma.

Thank you for your prayers, I greatly appreciated them.

Baby Andrew is back at the hospital

I am sad. The past two days I've noticed baby Andrew hasn't eaten like he should. Then I also noticed he doesn't cry like he normally does, doesn't move much either... Matt took him to see the pediatrician and she didn't like what she saw.. he stopped breathing at times so she called EMT, they hooked him to IVs.

Now, he's at the hospital. Please keep him in prayers. Thanks.

Baby Andrew gained 6 ounces

He now weights 5 pounds! Yeah!

This may not mean anything to you but to me it does! I give Him thanks! I was starting to get worried because he hasn't been gaining half an ounce a day as he should and have been praying that he does. Just to find out that he has doubled his weight! Oh to hear that he gained 6 ounces...was just awesome! I was happy and praising the Lord. Before we had to see the pediatrician every week but because he has doubled his weight, we don't go back until 2 months. Whoo!