Jairo and I never go out. A ministry schedule and salary don´t give us lots of opportunities, and we´re usually so tired we´d rather just stay home. I´m not complaining...I´m a homebody to be honest. I like being home with my husband, relaxing. Maybe that´s because we so seldom get to relax!
However, being forced to ¨rest¨ (a practice which I do not find in the least restful) and stay home all the time is really starting to get on my nerves. I mean, even a homebody likes to see the sun. My husband has been especially busy, so I have been more time home alone than usual and I just couldn´t take it anymore.
I called Jairo and told him to meet me at the mall. He asked why, but I told him to just do it. I think he could hear the lunatic edge on my voice and said he´d be right there. (He was heading home at the time.) When we met at the mall, he seemed amused and curious, and asked me why we were there. I informed him that we were going to eat out, get ice cream and go see a movie. Now.
I´m not sure if he liked the idea or could just read the desperation on my face, but he caved and we did everything on my list. I went home like a conquering hero, although I was surprised how exhausted I was after just a few hours out. (Maybe there´s something to this rest thing.)
It was a really fun day, and a much-needed break from the monotony of being stuck at home with a giant belly and not too much to do. I´m not sure how often I can get away with it--since it was the first time in a year that I actually demanded something, maybe I just caught Jairo off guard. I don´t think it will work again tomorrow...but you never know!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Week 56: The new edition of why I love Ecuador (week 25 of pregnancy)
Every once in a while I am absolutely shocked by some aspect of Ecuadorian culture. It´s not too often because I consider myself pretty used to Ecuador and Ecuadorians, but every so often, something comes up.
Jairo was at church and I stayed home, ordered by my husband to ¨get some rest¨. Right. So there is a knock at my door and there are my neighbors who live in the apartment under ours. I greet them, wondering why at 9pm they are knocking on my door. The husband begins a tirade almost instantly about the trash. Apparently he believes that we should take our one bag of trash down to the street today because, I don´t even know why honestly, even though the trash doesn´t come by until two days from now. ¨You should have taken it out yesterday¨ he informs me. What? (It wasn´t full yesterday. We´re only two people.)
I am unsure how to respond. He´s yelling at me know, as I try to comprehend why one innocent little bag of trash (not even the bad smelling kind) should cause such rage. The wife is looking at me sympathetically. I´m not sure if she came for his moral support or mine.
Trying to be calm I explain to him that I am actually 6 months pregnant, and seldom do I take the trash down the three flights of stairs to the street. This tends to be my husband´s area, and he is not home. Maybe my neighbor would like to come back when my husband is home?
No. He will not be appeased. He informs me that I had better give my husband a talking to and strongly encourage him to take the trash out. (Yes, because I so often give my husband a talking to.)
I calmly inform our neighbor that the trash will not be passing by for two days, and I´m certain that when it does my husband will take out the trash as he always does. (Am I in the twilight zone?? Or Punk´d?)
He now informs me that if I leave the trash there for two days it will attract flies, and the flies will go into his house, so I had better talk to my husband.
Now at the point of tears from having been yelled at for so many consecutive minutes about something so ridiculous, I lose it. ¨Are you kidding me?? Do you know how many times your dog has come up and pooped on my patio and you have never once come up here to clean it!! Do you think THAT doesn´t attract flies!!! Why are you here?? Go away!¨
His answer? ¨We decided to get rid of our dog.¨
Oh, well that just erases everything that just happened. Seriously, am I in an alternate universe?
Finally, unable to continue watching the massacre, his wife steps in. ¨Our dog won´t be a problem anymore because we no longer have her. I´m sorry about that. You, of course, are not in charge of taking the trash down, so if it becomes a problem, we´ll just help you take it down to the street. Don´t worry about it.¨ Then she gives her husband a look that says, ¨Please, let´s go now!¨
With that, they are gone. I close the door and stand in shocked silence for a few seconds until the tears start flowing. Angry, angry tears.
Now you know as much as I do. Does any part of this story make sense to you?
Jairo assures me that he will not let the neighbors talk to me like that again. Apparently the story made no sense to him either. He looked like he was ready to go down and talk to the neighbors, but I think we both know that no rational response would be effective. We both tried for a while to understand what the problem even was, before giving up and talking about something else.
I just think it should be obvious: This huge pregnant belly is here to tell you that I do not need any extra stress in my life. Who yells at a pregnant woman?
Jairo was at church and I stayed home, ordered by my husband to ¨get some rest¨. Right. So there is a knock at my door and there are my neighbors who live in the apartment under ours. I greet them, wondering why at 9pm they are knocking on my door. The husband begins a tirade almost instantly about the trash. Apparently he believes that we should take our one bag of trash down to the street today because, I don´t even know why honestly, even though the trash doesn´t come by until two days from now. ¨You should have taken it out yesterday¨ he informs me. What? (It wasn´t full yesterday. We´re only two people.)
I am unsure how to respond. He´s yelling at me know, as I try to comprehend why one innocent little bag of trash (not even the bad smelling kind) should cause such rage. The wife is looking at me sympathetically. I´m not sure if she came for his moral support or mine.
Trying to be calm I explain to him that I am actually 6 months pregnant, and seldom do I take the trash down the three flights of stairs to the street. This tends to be my husband´s area, and he is not home. Maybe my neighbor would like to come back when my husband is home?
No. He will not be appeased. He informs me that I had better give my husband a talking to and strongly encourage him to take the trash out. (Yes, because I so often give my husband a talking to.)
I calmly inform our neighbor that the trash will not be passing by for two days, and I´m certain that when it does my husband will take out the trash as he always does. (Am I in the twilight zone?? Or Punk´d?)
He now informs me that if I leave the trash there for two days it will attract flies, and the flies will go into his house, so I had better talk to my husband.
Now at the point of tears from having been yelled at for so many consecutive minutes about something so ridiculous, I lose it. ¨Are you kidding me?? Do you know how many times your dog has come up and pooped on my patio and you have never once come up here to clean it!! Do you think THAT doesn´t attract flies!!! Why are you here?? Go away!¨
His answer? ¨We decided to get rid of our dog.¨
Oh, well that just erases everything that just happened. Seriously, am I in an alternate universe?
Finally, unable to continue watching the massacre, his wife steps in. ¨Our dog won´t be a problem anymore because we no longer have her. I´m sorry about that. You, of course, are not in charge of taking the trash down, so if it becomes a problem, we´ll just help you take it down to the street. Don´t worry about it.¨ Then she gives her husband a look that says, ¨Please, let´s go now!¨
With that, they are gone. I close the door and stand in shocked silence for a few seconds until the tears start flowing. Angry, angry tears.
Now you know as much as I do. Does any part of this story make sense to you?
Jairo assures me that he will not let the neighbors talk to me like that again. Apparently the story made no sense to him either. He looked like he was ready to go down and talk to the neighbors, but I think we both know that no rational response would be effective. We both tried for a while to understand what the problem even was, before giving up and talking about something else.
I just think it should be obvious: This huge pregnant belly is here to tell you that I do not need any extra stress in my life. Who yells at a pregnant woman?
Week 55: Road trip! (week 24 of pregnancy)
We were invited to Puyo for a special youth service a while ago, and the drama team has been preparing a special drama for the event. It´s a drama with music that Jairo invented, and it´s really cool! I didn´t get to be a part of it thanks to my expanding midsection and had to content myself with being cheerleader, but the drama turned out really great. It´s fun to see Jairo get all excited about things like this. They had lots and lots of special practices leading up to the date, and were very excited because it was their first performance outside of church! When we finally got to Puyo everything went really well, and the drama went perfectly! I was really proud of Jairo for the way he led the group during the trip, since it was really the first time we took them anywhere.
After the youth service we stayed another two days in Puyo. The first day we went with the Church of God in Puyo to a river and cooked out, swam and had fun! It was a challenge with some of the girls because of modesty issues, and I made a mental note to make sure this was a clear conversation point BEFORE the trip next time. Hindsight, right? I think I might even make some written agreements!! Still, it was a lot of fun. The river was beautiful and it felt amazing to swim and not feel my heavy belly for a while!
The next day we headed back to Quito, but stopped with the youth group in Baños at the zoo there. It was a fun trip, and I got to see lots of weird Ecuadorian animals. I had a brain dead moment at one point because we were looking at some cougar-like animal and it was so adorable, it didn´t even look real. It looked like a stuffed animal. So it walked by the doorway which had these little slits in it, and I could not resist and put my hand in to try to touch it. Jairo totally freaked out and grabbed me away, yelling ¨What are you doing?!?¨ while I just stared at him and said, ¨I just wanted to pet it!¨ His reply was to remind me that this was not like one of my bunnies, but rather a meat-eating deadly animal. Whatever, I bet it wouldn´t have bit me. I also got my picture taken with a boa constrictor, to which Jairo also objected but later gave in to me on. It was pretty cool!!
I did decide, however, that this would be my last long trip pre-baby. It was really challenging to travel, and to be in a different climate (Puyo is more jungle-like). I´m really glad I went, but I know that in a few weeks I will be even bigger and more pregnant, and this is only going to get more difficult, so from now until baby I think I will be staying home! Still, it was a really cool trip, and I hope we get to go again sometime soon (post-baby, of course!).
After the youth service we stayed another two days in Puyo. The first day we went with the Church of God in Puyo to a river and cooked out, swam and had fun! It was a challenge with some of the girls because of modesty issues, and I made a mental note to make sure this was a clear conversation point BEFORE the trip next time. Hindsight, right? I think I might even make some written agreements!! Still, it was a lot of fun. The river was beautiful and it felt amazing to swim and not feel my heavy belly for a while!
The next day we headed back to Quito, but stopped with the youth group in Baños at the zoo there. It was a fun trip, and I got to see lots of weird Ecuadorian animals. I had a brain dead moment at one point because we were looking at some cougar-like animal and it was so adorable, it didn´t even look real. It looked like a stuffed animal. So it walked by the doorway which had these little slits in it, and I could not resist and put my hand in to try to touch it. Jairo totally freaked out and grabbed me away, yelling ¨What are you doing?!?¨ while I just stared at him and said, ¨I just wanted to pet it!¨ His reply was to remind me that this was not like one of my bunnies, but rather a meat-eating deadly animal. Whatever, I bet it wouldn´t have bit me. I also got my picture taken with a boa constrictor, to which Jairo also objected but later gave in to me on. It was pretty cool!!
I did decide, however, that this would be my last long trip pre-baby. It was really challenging to travel, and to be in a different climate (Puyo is more jungle-like). I´m really glad I went, but I know that in a few weeks I will be even bigger and more pregnant, and this is only going to get more difficult, so from now until baby I think I will be staying home! Still, it was a really cool trip, and I hope we get to go again sometime soon (post-baby, of course!).
Week 54: I thought this day would never come! Really! (week 23 of pregnancy)
As I say in the title, I really, really thought this day would never come, but we finally got all the paperwork straightened out and today they gave me my censo and cedula...in other words, I have my residency in Ecuador forever and ever!! Praise God! I really thought that this would be just another pointless trip to immigration for them to charge me more money for nonsense things, and I was pretty discouraged. But, as is my custom, I asked God to please please make this time count, because I really wanted to have everything done before baby comes so that there will be no problems getting his or her dual citizenship taken care of. I asked, and as usual, God delivered! I smiled like an idiot in the censo picture, way too happy to control myself, but I got my emotions under control enough to have a serious expression in my cedula picture, since Ecuadorians do not typically smile in pictures. I didn´t want to be the only weirdo with a smily ID card.
I cannot begin to thank all of you who have faithfully prayed for this day for so long! Not to mention all of you who have supported us in our ministry and helped to see us through the ups and downs of all this immigration business. Thank you so much. I know the power of your prayers because I feel it every day of my life here in Ecuador. Praise God for this victory!
I cannot begin to thank all of you who have faithfully prayed for this day for so long! Not to mention all of you who have supported us in our ministry and helped to see us through the ups and downs of all this immigration business. Thank you so much. I know the power of your prayers because I feel it every day of my life here in Ecuador. Praise God for this victory!
Week 54: A real movie premiere! (week 23 of pregnancy)
We had the opportunity to attend the premiere of the movie ¨Poema de Salvación¨, put out by Canzion. It´s a Christian movie, and the goal was to make a movie as good of quality as any other movie that comes out in theaters, since Christian movies tend to be more made-for-tv quality. It is a movie based on the life of Pablo Olivares, a Christian singer who used to be a death metal rocker who made a deal with the devil (for real) and was becoming a star in Argentina until a series of events led him back to Christ. His conversion is thanks mostly to the prayers of his mother over many years, and he is now a great Christian artist.
A neat surprise was that Marcos Witt was at the premiere. Marcos Witt, if you don´t know, is probably the single most influential Christian singer in Latin America. He is also a pastor at Lakewood Church in Texas, where I believe Joel Olstein is also pastor. Marcos Witt is pastor for the Spanish-speaking services. He´s an incredibly neat person, and we got to meet him, so that was pretty cool.
The movie was really neat, and I think God will be able to use it to touch a lot of lives. Marcos Witt talked about the movie after the premiere and he said that their goal is to make many more high quality Christian movies, because Christians should be doing things even better than the world does them. Since our generation and the younger generations are so visual, movies like this one and like the Passion, for example, have an incredible potential for evangelism.
If you notice this movie in theaters near you (I asked and they said it would be released later in the US) I would encourage you to go so it. Not only is it a great movie and a very interesting story, it´s a great effort by many Christian people and I think we should all try to support it!!
A neat surprise was that Marcos Witt was at the premiere. Marcos Witt, if you don´t know, is probably the single most influential Christian singer in Latin America. He is also a pastor at Lakewood Church in Texas, where I believe Joel Olstein is also pastor. Marcos Witt is pastor for the Spanish-speaking services. He´s an incredibly neat person, and we got to meet him, so that was pretty cool.
The movie was really neat, and I think God will be able to use it to touch a lot of lives. Marcos Witt talked about the movie after the premiere and he said that their goal is to make many more high quality Christian movies, because Christians should be doing things even better than the world does them. Since our generation and the younger generations are so visual, movies like this one and like the Passion, for example, have an incredible potential for evangelism.
If you notice this movie in theaters near you (I asked and they said it would be released later in the US) I would encourage you to go so it. Not only is it a great movie and a very interesting story, it´s a great effort by many Christian people and I think we should all try to support it!!
Week 54: A Cool Challenge (week 23 of pregnancy)
I wanted to share this with anyone who might be interested. It is a plan for reading the Bible in 3 months, and I am going to do it! I was looking online for a Bible reading plan, but I felt bored with the ones that make you read in a year because I am used to reading more than just a chapter or two a day. Still, I wanted some kind of guide because my reading lately has felt kind of aimless. Well, I found this, so here is the link. On the references page on the right hand side you will see a column that says ¨free downloads¨. Click on ¨bookmark¨ and you will find the plan. Then just print it out and there you go! If you decide to do the plan, let me know!!
Week 53: A possible soccer player? (week 22 of pregnancy)
So, I am increasingly amazed by the strength and force that my unborn child possesses. I would really not be surprised if I had some broken bones by the time labor comes around. I´m thinking that maybe we have a future athlete on our hands.
My mom says that I was a very active baby, and when the time came for me to be born, I was born very quickly. So, maybe this is a sign that our little munchkin is rearing to get out and will have a speedy delivery! A mom can hope, right?
It´s funny how the novelty of pregnancy starts to wear off the longer it goes on. Even the little movements that you used to be thrilled by start to get on your nerves after a while. After all, those kicks start hurting! And baby hiccups are only cute maybe once or twice. Then they are just annoying.
Still, I remind myself that this is the only time in my life when I will have an experience like this. The next time I get pregnant, I will already have another child to look after and my pregnancy experience will be much different. For one thing I imagine that it will include much less rest! I´m trying to enjoy the bonding I can do with the baby now, because I know I will never have this chance again. For nine months I get this little one all to myself, but after that I will never have him or her so close again! I will have to share this baby with the world! Or at least with relatives.
I will say this, though. Sometimes Jairo will come into our room and start singing with the guitar, and it never fails that this little one starts moving and grooving, and I love the fact that baby knows daddy´s voice...and it´s not a bad sign that he or she likes music, because that is pretty much a requirement in this family! I can´t wait to find out what else baby likes!
My mom says that I was a very active baby, and when the time came for me to be born, I was born very quickly. So, maybe this is a sign that our little munchkin is rearing to get out and will have a speedy delivery! A mom can hope, right?
It´s funny how the novelty of pregnancy starts to wear off the longer it goes on. Even the little movements that you used to be thrilled by start to get on your nerves after a while. After all, those kicks start hurting! And baby hiccups are only cute maybe once or twice. Then they are just annoying.
Still, I remind myself that this is the only time in my life when I will have an experience like this. The next time I get pregnant, I will already have another child to look after and my pregnancy experience will be much different. For one thing I imagine that it will include much less rest! I´m trying to enjoy the bonding I can do with the baby now, because I know I will never have this chance again. For nine months I get this little one all to myself, but after that I will never have him or her so close again! I will have to share this baby with the world! Or at least with relatives.
I will say this, though. Sometimes Jairo will come into our room and start singing with the guitar, and it never fails that this little one starts moving and grooving, and I love the fact that baby knows daddy´s voice...and it´s not a bad sign that he or she likes music, because that is pretty much a requirement in this family! I can´t wait to find out what else baby likes!
Week 52: Are you doing the math? (week 21 of pregnancy)
If you saw what week we are in, and you did some quick math in your head, you probably already know what this post is about. This week is our one year anniversary!! One year!!
I decided to make Jairo something special for our anniversary. I tossed around several ideas, but eventually decided to go with this: I made a sort of news magazine, filled with stories and pictures from things that had happened during the year, from the perspective of a paparazzi, as though we were some famous couple. The title story was ¨The happy couple celebrates one year of marriage, and all of Ecuador can´t believe it!¨
It is safe to say that here in Ecuador our marriage was nothing less than a scandal. No one believed we would make it two days, let alone a year! I, being North American, am supposedly a sus-standard wife. I do un-wifely things like use a potato peeler instead of a knife to peel potatoes and have even been known to cook foods that are not Ecuadorian from time to time. Oh, the horror!
It was hard at first, with so many people being against me, but I learned the importance of relying on God and keeping your marriage issues in your marriage. Ecuador is an especially gossippy culture, and I have been careful not to air out my dirty laundry. While wives here (and I suspect in most places) take every opportunity to discuss their every problem with each other and complain about their husbands, Jairo and I have the strict policy of keeping things between us, good and bad. We are very private, which I think is something most people here don´t like because they don´t have as much to gossip about, but it has been a marriage-saver. When I talk about my husband to others, it doesn´t matter whether or not we are getting along. I know that even on his worst days my husband is a good man, with many good qualities, and those are the only things I talk about. I don´t complain about him. After all, how would that look to God when just the other day I was thanking Him for giving me such a great husband? No one needs to know about the ups and downs of our marriage. And as a woman trying to be a woman of good character, I do my best to honor my husband, whether or not he is present.
If there is one thing that has kept us afloat on the difficult things, I think this is it. We honor and respect each other. And of course, we love each other. But every married couple knows that some days you don´t feel the warm and fuzzies. On those days, it is my love for God and my respect for my husband that keep me trying hard to make things work. I don´t mind forgiving him quickly, even for big mistakes, because I prefer to be happy with him than angry for something he already apologized for. I don´t mind taking the blame sometimes even when I know it´s not my fault, because I would rather be at peace than be right. I don´t mind putting him before myself, because I find that when I do, he does the same, and we both get taken care of. I don´t mind fighting once in a while because I think it´s a good sign we are both still two people with pulses. I don´t mind sacrificing some things, I don´t mind losing, and I don´t mind that he has faults that he is not quick to change--because so do I!
All of these things are learned, by the way, the product of 365 days of learning. I suspect that in 365 more days, I will have a whole new list of things I´ve learned, because I don´t think you learn as much in all of formal education as you do in one week of marriage.
At the end of the day, I can´t think of anything I love more than cuddling up with my husband, feeling all that love well up inside of me, and seeing on his face that he feels it to. Isn´t it worth some rough times as long as you get to feel that?
I decided to make Jairo something special for our anniversary. I tossed around several ideas, but eventually decided to go with this: I made a sort of news magazine, filled with stories and pictures from things that had happened during the year, from the perspective of a paparazzi, as though we were some famous couple. The title story was ¨The happy couple celebrates one year of marriage, and all of Ecuador can´t believe it!¨
It is safe to say that here in Ecuador our marriage was nothing less than a scandal. No one believed we would make it two days, let alone a year! I, being North American, am supposedly a sus-standard wife. I do un-wifely things like use a potato peeler instead of a knife to peel potatoes and have even been known to cook foods that are not Ecuadorian from time to time. Oh, the horror!
It was hard at first, with so many people being against me, but I learned the importance of relying on God and keeping your marriage issues in your marriage. Ecuador is an especially gossippy culture, and I have been careful not to air out my dirty laundry. While wives here (and I suspect in most places) take every opportunity to discuss their every problem with each other and complain about their husbands, Jairo and I have the strict policy of keeping things between us, good and bad. We are very private, which I think is something most people here don´t like because they don´t have as much to gossip about, but it has been a marriage-saver. When I talk about my husband to others, it doesn´t matter whether or not we are getting along. I know that even on his worst days my husband is a good man, with many good qualities, and those are the only things I talk about. I don´t complain about him. After all, how would that look to God when just the other day I was thanking Him for giving me such a great husband? No one needs to know about the ups and downs of our marriage. And as a woman trying to be a woman of good character, I do my best to honor my husband, whether or not he is present.
If there is one thing that has kept us afloat on the difficult things, I think this is it. We honor and respect each other. And of course, we love each other. But every married couple knows that some days you don´t feel the warm and fuzzies. On those days, it is my love for God and my respect for my husband that keep me trying hard to make things work. I don´t mind forgiving him quickly, even for big mistakes, because I prefer to be happy with him than angry for something he already apologized for. I don´t mind taking the blame sometimes even when I know it´s not my fault, because I would rather be at peace than be right. I don´t mind putting him before myself, because I find that when I do, he does the same, and we both get taken care of. I don´t mind fighting once in a while because I think it´s a good sign we are both still two people with pulses. I don´t mind sacrificing some things, I don´t mind losing, and I don´t mind that he has faults that he is not quick to change--because so do I!
All of these things are learned, by the way, the product of 365 days of learning. I suspect that in 365 more days, I will have a whole new list of things I´ve learned, because I don´t think you learn as much in all of formal education as you do in one week of marriage.
At the end of the day, I can´t think of anything I love more than cuddling up with my husband, feeling all that love well up inside of me, and seeing on his face that he feels it to. Isn´t it worth some rough times as long as you get to feel that?
Week 52: More proof of life in the womb (week 21 of pregnancy)
My dad went home this week, but before he did we got to see more of my favorite thing: our baby! This time it wasn´t just a heartbeat...we had our very first ultrasound.
The baby was not at all inclined to let us see if it is a boy or a girl. In fact, during the ultrasound it crossed its little legs, and no matter how the doctor tried to move the baby around, nothing worked. But we did get to see our baby, which was more than enough. The doctor even showed us the baby´s little hands and feet, and counted the fingers and toes...everything was perfect.
If hearing the heartbeat was a confirmation of pregnancy, seeing the ultrasound was so much beyond that. First of all it was a relief to know that everything is developing perfectly and we have a healthy little baby, who is exactly the right size. It was amazing to see that little heart pumping away, and I tried to imagine what it would look like if I could see inside for real and not just in black and white 2D. Again it amazed me to think that I have done absolutely nothing for this baby to develop, yet there it is, developing perfectly, hitting every milestone right on target.
It might sound weird, but it was really neat to see the spine. It was neat because it´s the one thing on the ultrasound that you see and you know without a doubt what it is. Every other part you think to yourself, I think that´s a...until the doctor tells you for sure. To think that those little parts will keep growing, and soon enough I will be holding them and kissing them!
I´ve been able to feel the baby move for a long time now, but the more baby grows the more I can feel (which is sometimes not a good thing!), and that combined with seeing the baby on the ultrasound is enough to make you feel something special for this little creature growing inside of you. At this point I think the maternal bond is more of an instinctual thing, a desire to protect the baby and a hope that everything will be fine. I think once the baby is born and we get to know each other, that relationship will probably continue to mature and grow during his or her whole life. To think that I could feel more love for this baby than I do right now seems almost impossible, but I´m pretty convinced that that´s the way it will be. I can´t wait to get to know this little person, to see his or her face, and to know that unlike all those other adorable babies out there, this baby has a quality that none of those have...this baby is ours!
The baby was not at all inclined to let us see if it is a boy or a girl. In fact, during the ultrasound it crossed its little legs, and no matter how the doctor tried to move the baby around, nothing worked. But we did get to see our baby, which was more than enough. The doctor even showed us the baby´s little hands and feet, and counted the fingers and toes...everything was perfect.
If hearing the heartbeat was a confirmation of pregnancy, seeing the ultrasound was so much beyond that. First of all it was a relief to know that everything is developing perfectly and we have a healthy little baby, who is exactly the right size. It was amazing to see that little heart pumping away, and I tried to imagine what it would look like if I could see inside for real and not just in black and white 2D. Again it amazed me to think that I have done absolutely nothing for this baby to develop, yet there it is, developing perfectly, hitting every milestone right on target.
It might sound weird, but it was really neat to see the spine. It was neat because it´s the one thing on the ultrasound that you see and you know without a doubt what it is. Every other part you think to yourself, I think that´s a...until the doctor tells you for sure. To think that those little parts will keep growing, and soon enough I will be holding them and kissing them!
I´ve been able to feel the baby move for a long time now, but the more baby grows the more I can feel (which is sometimes not a good thing!), and that combined with seeing the baby on the ultrasound is enough to make you feel something special for this little creature growing inside of you. At this point I think the maternal bond is more of an instinctual thing, a desire to protect the baby and a hope that everything will be fine. I think once the baby is born and we get to know each other, that relationship will probably continue to mature and grow during his or her whole life. To think that I could feel more love for this baby than I do right now seems almost impossible, but I´m pretty convinced that that´s the way it will be. I can´t wait to get to know this little person, to see his or her face, and to know that unlike all those other adorable babies out there, this baby has a quality that none of those have...this baby is ours!
Week 51: Something to think about (week 20 of pregnancy)
I mentioned in my other post that we went to Ibarra to see our friend Fausto. While we were there talking he told us this illustration which I really liked and I thought I would share with you all!
Two Christian friends were talking one day, and the one asked the other, "How exactly are we supposed to look for God? I mean, I pray for a little while, and then I don't really have anything else to say, and that's pretty much it. I don't really feel like I've "found God", I just feel like I talked for a while." The other friend thought for a moment and replied, "You have a son in kindergarten, right? Well, let's say that every day your son comes home on the bus at noon. What would you do if it was already 12:30 and your son was nowhere to be found?"
"Well, I would go and look for him, of course!" replied the first friend.
"And if you didn't find him by 1pm?"
"I would keep looking!"
"But if he didn't show up by 2pm you would probably just say, 'Oh well, maybe he'll show up tomorrow. I'm tired of looking', right?"
"No, of course not! I would keep looking for my son until I found him, even if it took all night!"
If you or I couldn't find a loved one, we would worry. We would call people who might have seen them, we would get in our car and go to places where they might be, and we might even call the police after not finding them for a while. The search would be an intense one, because we love the person and we wouldn't be able to rest without knowing where they are. Why is it, then, that when it comes to searching for God, we look for maybe ten, fifteen, even thirty minutes, then shrug our shoulders and say, "Oh well, maybe He'll show up tomorrow!"? In what ways would our lives change if we looked for God every day until He shows up? Until we can tangibly feel His presence? What if we were willing to look for God all day if that's what it took?
The Bible says that God can still be found by those who seek Him, and it warns that it will not always be this way. We should take the advice in the verse above and seek God with all our hearts until we find Him.
Two Christian friends were talking one day, and the one asked the other, "How exactly are we supposed to look for God? I mean, I pray for a little while, and then I don't really have anything else to say, and that's pretty much it. I don't really feel like I've "found God", I just feel like I talked for a while." The other friend thought for a moment and replied, "You have a son in kindergarten, right? Well, let's say that every day your son comes home on the bus at noon. What would you do if it was already 12:30 and your son was nowhere to be found?"
"Well, I would go and look for him, of course!" replied the first friend.
"And if you didn't find him by 1pm?"
"I would keep looking!"
"But if he didn't show up by 2pm you would probably just say, 'Oh well, maybe he'll show up tomorrow. I'm tired of looking', right?"
"No, of course not! I would keep looking for my son until I found him, even if it took all night!"
If you or I couldn't find a loved one, we would worry. We would call people who might have seen them, we would get in our car and go to places where they might be, and we might even call the police after not finding them for a while. The search would be an intense one, because we love the person and we wouldn't be able to rest without knowing where they are. Why is it, then, that when it comes to searching for God, we look for maybe ten, fifteen, even thirty minutes, then shrug our shoulders and say, "Oh well, maybe He'll show up tomorrow!"? In what ways would our lives change if we looked for God every day until He shows up? Until we can tangibly feel His presence? What if we were willing to look for God all day if that's what it took?
The Bible says that God can still be found by those who seek Him, and it warns that it will not always be this way. We should take the advice in the verse above and seek God with all our hearts until we find Him.
Week 51: More quality time with dad (week 20 of pregnancy)
My dad is still here visiting us, and we´ve been enjoying his company a lot. My in-laws came to Quito to see my dad while he´s here, especially to hear him preach at the youth service. I translated for him again, and the youth seemed to really enjoy the message. I was relieved at how easy it was to translate, mostly because my dad is not a motor mouth, because I was little worried beforehand that I wouldn´t be able to do it.
We got to hear the heartbeat again, and my dad got to be in the room for that, so that was something special. The next time he´s here he´ll get to hold the baby! That just blows my mind to think about!!
We decided to go up to Ibarra for the day to surprise our friend Fausto for his birthday. My dad had never been to that part of Ecuador and I wanted to take him to see the volcano up there. We stopped at Otavalo at the market so he could buy some souvenirs. The volcano was pretty overcast so we couldn´t see the top of it, which disapopinted me, but my dad seemed happy enough to take pictures from the lookout. We ate lunch and birthday cake with Fausto´s family and visited for a while with them and then went to the volcano lookout and to a lagoon before heading home. It was a really nice day and it was great to see our friends. My dad seemed to really like Fausto and his family a lot, in spite of language differences, and I was glad he got to meet their family since they have been my closest friends here in Ecuador. It´s always nice when the people you love get to know the other people you love!
My dad´s time here is coming to a close and I am going to miss him a lot. I´m really glad he got to come, I just wish he didn´t have to go! The nice thing is that he will back with my mom in just a few months once the baby is born. They´re planning to visit sometime in June, so it makes it a little easier knowing that. It has been such a nice visit!
We got to hear the heartbeat again, and my dad got to be in the room for that, so that was something special. The next time he´s here he´ll get to hold the baby! That just blows my mind to think about!!
We decided to go up to Ibarra for the day to surprise our friend Fausto for his birthday. My dad had never been to that part of Ecuador and I wanted to take him to see the volcano up there. We stopped at Otavalo at the market so he could buy some souvenirs. The volcano was pretty overcast so we couldn´t see the top of it, which disapopinted me, but my dad seemed happy enough to take pictures from the lookout. We ate lunch and birthday cake with Fausto´s family and visited for a while with them and then went to the volcano lookout and to a lagoon before heading home. It was a really nice day and it was great to see our friends. My dad seemed to really like Fausto and his family a lot, in spite of language differences, and I was glad he got to meet their family since they have been my closest friends here in Ecuador. It´s always nice when the people you love get to know the other people you love!
My dad´s time here is coming to a close and I am going to miss him a lot. I´m really glad he got to come, I just wish he didn´t have to go! The nice thing is that he will back with my mom in just a few months once the baby is born. They´re planning to visit sometime in June, so it makes it a little easier knowing that. It has been such a nice visit!
Week 50: A special visitor (week 19 of pregnancy)
This week my dad got here! My mom was going to come too, but had some health problems and was not cleared to fly. I was sad she didn´t get to come, but I was still super excited to get to see my dad after almost a whole year!
He came with a few huge suitcases, none of which had any of his stuff in them. They were full of gifts for us, clothes for me, baby stuff, food, etc. It was a lot of fun opening up the suitcases, especially since there was way more stuff than I ever expected. I was especially excited about the maternity clothes, since I was just starting to freak out now that my clothes are getting tight! He brought some wrapped gifts too, to be opened in a few days when we can Skype my mom so she can see us open the gifts. Still, even with all the gifts, the best part was definitely getting to see my dad again, and it was a cool feeling to be able to have him in my home, since before I had never had my own home! Now that we are established as a couple, with our ruitines and our own habits, it was nice to have my dad be a part of that.
The pastor had invited my dad to preach the second Sunday that he is here, but apparently got confused about the dates and had actually booked my dad for the first Sunday he was here, just the morning after he got in. We didn´t know this until we arrived at church, about 10 minutes before the service. The pastor, being Ecuadorian, didn´t see why it should be a big deal that my dad had not had time to prepare anything and basically insisted on my dad preaching on the fly. My dad took a few minutes, got together a message, and preached with me translating. 5 people got saved after the message! It was amazing to see God use him in that way, in the moment when he probably felt the least prepared and useful. I think he will probably think twice about accepting a preaching invitation from my pastor again, though!
My dad also decided to take us out to eat to Papa John´s, and I had not eaten there in years, so it was absolutely delicious!! My dad, who doesn´t normally eat Papa John´s in the US, was pretty impressed with their pizza and announced after dinner that we would definitely be returning there to eat again before he goes home. There were no objections! It was a first for Jairo, who also really liked it.
Besides that, we have been hanging out, talking and watching movies, and it has been a lot of fun. My dad is pretty laid back and easy to please, so we don´t have to do a whole lot to have fun together, which is nice. He and Jairo seem to get a kick out of each other despite the language barrier, and it´s cool to see them relating to each other. I´m really glad my dad is here, and I´m trying to convince him to stay a little longer!!
He came with a few huge suitcases, none of which had any of his stuff in them. They were full of gifts for us, clothes for me, baby stuff, food, etc. It was a lot of fun opening up the suitcases, especially since there was way more stuff than I ever expected. I was especially excited about the maternity clothes, since I was just starting to freak out now that my clothes are getting tight! He brought some wrapped gifts too, to be opened in a few days when we can Skype my mom so she can see us open the gifts. Still, even with all the gifts, the best part was definitely getting to see my dad again, and it was a cool feeling to be able to have him in my home, since before I had never had my own home! Now that we are established as a couple, with our ruitines and our own habits, it was nice to have my dad be a part of that.
The pastor had invited my dad to preach the second Sunday that he is here, but apparently got confused about the dates and had actually booked my dad for the first Sunday he was here, just the morning after he got in. We didn´t know this until we arrived at church, about 10 minutes before the service. The pastor, being Ecuadorian, didn´t see why it should be a big deal that my dad had not had time to prepare anything and basically insisted on my dad preaching on the fly. My dad took a few minutes, got together a message, and preached with me translating. 5 people got saved after the message! It was amazing to see God use him in that way, in the moment when he probably felt the least prepared and useful. I think he will probably think twice about accepting a preaching invitation from my pastor again, though!
My dad also decided to take us out to eat to Papa John´s, and I had not eaten there in years, so it was absolutely delicious!! My dad, who doesn´t normally eat Papa John´s in the US, was pretty impressed with their pizza and announced after dinner that we would definitely be returning there to eat again before he goes home. There were no objections! It was a first for Jairo, who also really liked it.
Besides that, we have been hanging out, talking and watching movies, and it has been a lot of fun. My dad is pretty laid back and easy to please, so we don´t have to do a whole lot to have fun together, which is nice. He and Jairo seem to get a kick out of each other despite the language barrier, and it´s cool to see them relating to each other. I´m really glad my dad is here, and I´m trying to convince him to stay a little longer!!
Week 49: New Years (week 18 of pregnancy)
We decided to spend New Year´s in Puyo with Jairo´s family. We had a nice visit, and really it was nice to get away and relax a little after a very busy December.
There is never really that much to report about visits to Puyo because life moves so slowly down there, and we never do much of anything except hanging out. It´s a welcome change from the faster-paced life we live in Quito.
One thing that Jairo did while we were there is build some shelves, a cabinet and a TV stand for the apartment. His dad has a workshop there in their house, so he used his dad´s tools and drew up some simple designs and went to work. It was fun to watch him because he´s very artistic, and these kinds of things are easy for him. My dad always made furniture for our house, so I feel like in some way Jairo making furniture is only fitting, since in my mind that is just something a husband does! It all turned out really nice, and we brought the pieces back to Quito to stain and put together.
Aside from that, the only real development is that I officially have a ¨baby bump¨. It´s not something anyone would notice who doesn´t know me, of course, but it´s funny to see this little bump where my stomach used to be flat. I always think of pregnant bellies as those big round ones, but right now the ¨bump¨ only reaches as far as my belly button, which is pretty weird to look at! I can´t imagine what it will be like to have a big, round belly, but to be honest I would like to start showing more, just so I will look more pregnant than fat! I´m sure I´ll feel differently once I actually have the big belly, but for now I am looking forward to it. Soon enough the baby will arrive, but it still seems so far away! I guess that could be a good thing, though, because we have a lot of preparing to do before the big day.
There is never really that much to report about visits to Puyo because life moves so slowly down there, and we never do much of anything except hanging out. It´s a welcome change from the faster-paced life we live in Quito.
One thing that Jairo did while we were there is build some shelves, a cabinet and a TV stand for the apartment. His dad has a workshop there in their house, so he used his dad´s tools and drew up some simple designs and went to work. It was fun to watch him because he´s very artistic, and these kinds of things are easy for him. My dad always made furniture for our house, so I feel like in some way Jairo making furniture is only fitting, since in my mind that is just something a husband does! It all turned out really nice, and we brought the pieces back to Quito to stain and put together.
Aside from that, the only real development is that I officially have a ¨baby bump¨. It´s not something anyone would notice who doesn´t know me, of course, but it´s funny to see this little bump where my stomach used to be flat. I always think of pregnant bellies as those big round ones, but right now the ¨bump¨ only reaches as far as my belly button, which is pretty weird to look at! I can´t imagine what it will be like to have a big, round belly, but to be honest I would like to start showing more, just so I will look more pregnant than fat! I´m sure I´ll feel differently once I actually have the big belly, but for now I am looking forward to it. Soon enough the baby will arrive, but it still seems so far away! I guess that could be a good thing, though, because we have a lot of preparing to do before the big day.
Week 48: Christmas! (week 17 of pregnancy)
Merry Christmas!!
Christmas is by far my favorite day of the year. It has been ever since I was little. This Christmas was somewhat bittersweet since I didn´t get to spend it with my family back home, but even so it was a beautiful day!
It was our first married Christmas. We preserved a lot of the traditions I have from my family, like reading the Christmas story from Luke 2 and getting up early on Christmas morning. We bought most of our gifts together, but we still wrapped them and we both threw in a couple of surprise gifts, too. It was a lot of fun!
What I most like about Christmas is what Christmas really means. I´m always amazed to think about the significance of this day for humanity, and for me personally. That baby didn´t stay a baby forever. He grew up and became the Savior of the world, and to think that God himself would come to dwell among us, trading in his glory to live as a human, in all our frailty and suffering. As if his life were not sacrifice enough, his death was horrific on every level, in ways that our human minds can´t even understand. Yet he did all this willingly, knowing that it was the only way to save us and loving us too much to let us spend an eternity in hell.
I´m a big fan of family get togethers and Christmas gifts, not to mention Christmas traditions, but I think there´s a danger that we might just forget the real meaning of Christmas behind all the lights and ornaments. Christmas is the one day of the year that should give us the most joy, not because of presents or loved ones, but because without this day, we would have been lost forever, hopeless, with no real purpose to our lives. Now, thanks to this day, thanks to God who decided to become one of us, we can live lives of abundance! What day could be better than this one?
Christmas is by far my favorite day of the year. It has been ever since I was little. This Christmas was somewhat bittersweet since I didn´t get to spend it with my family back home, but even so it was a beautiful day!
It was our first married Christmas. We preserved a lot of the traditions I have from my family, like reading the Christmas story from Luke 2 and getting up early on Christmas morning. We bought most of our gifts together, but we still wrapped them and we both threw in a couple of surprise gifts, too. It was a lot of fun!
What I most like about Christmas is what Christmas really means. I´m always amazed to think about the significance of this day for humanity, and for me personally. That baby didn´t stay a baby forever. He grew up and became the Savior of the world, and to think that God himself would come to dwell among us, trading in his glory to live as a human, in all our frailty and suffering. As if his life were not sacrifice enough, his death was horrific on every level, in ways that our human minds can´t even understand. Yet he did all this willingly, knowing that it was the only way to save us and loving us too much to let us spend an eternity in hell.
I´m a big fan of family get togethers and Christmas gifts, not to mention Christmas traditions, but I think there´s a danger that we might just forget the real meaning of Christmas behind all the lights and ornaments. Christmas is the one day of the year that should give us the most joy, not because of presents or loved ones, but because without this day, we would have been lost forever, hopeless, with no real purpose to our lives. Now, thanks to this day, thanks to God who decided to become one of us, we can live lives of abundance! What day could be better than this one?
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