New Toy

Fun memories on a special day--it was one of those big life milestones that comes our way when we aren't looking!

 Look at those beautiful children! I love my family. They woke me up again with a yummy special breakfast. My husband is the best! He loves me so much.

I also got pampered and got my hair cut and highlighted. So per Angel's request, I'm letting it grow long.

So then we had a family grill-out. It was a beautiful evening my cousin Geniene helped plan. It was so special to have her and her boys there!

Then I got a new toy. A total surprise to me! iPod touch. I've never wanted one or asked for one or even know how to use one! Angel just thought I'd like it. And it sure has been so much fun learning!

(I'm taking tips on must-have apps)

13 Steps!

Aaron is up to 13 steps on his own! He loves practicing and just gets right back up when he falls. He even hit 22 steps yesterday, but averages around 10-15.

Time for a Fiesta!

 

We had a blast celebrating Aaron's 1st birthday on Saturday. Everything came together better than planned. Since his birthday is so close to the 4th, it is only fitting to celebrate in Red, White, and Blue and with fireworks! What a great way to celebrate! I'm sure Aaron thinks it's all in honor of him!

There were lots of friends and family. We love this kind of party and mixing family and Spanish-speaking friends.  

Besos from Tía Stephanie

We also love when our yard is full of kids playing everywhere!

Aaron had his first "mordita."

This is a tradition in Mexico after the candle is blown out to take a bite of your birthday cake and usually someone tries to push your face in the cake. Alisia and Caleb are very familiar with this, but it can sometimes end up in tears. Aaron was soo excited to have icing all over his mouth and wasn't bothered at all!

I grabbed a camera and this is what it looked like from his view with everyone watching.

Opening gifts was funny because he had no idea what to do! He was so cute though. When he finally saw it was more than a bag and paper, he wanted to open the gift and play with it. But then we would take it away and give him another one to open. He got frustrated and mad and started crying! It was soo cute though.

Then we "carefully" and "safely" set off some fireworks and sparklers in the street.  

 

We had to balance out the Red, White, and Blue:

We went up on the hill from our house to watch the fireworks. It was a good view of the city. At 10:23 we were remembering all the work that it took for him to come into the world. I guess fireworks is how he's gonna remember all of his birthdays!

A big THANKS to everyone who helped us celebrate!

The Pledge of Allegiance

Interpreted by Red Skelton

"I've been listening to you boys and girls recite the Pledge of Allegiance all semester

and it seems as though it is becoming monotonous to you. If I may, may I recite it and try to explain to you the meaning of each word?"

I me, an individual, a committee of one.

Pledge dedicate all of my worldly goods to give without self pity.

Allegiance my love and my devotion.

To the flag  our standard, Old Glory, a symbol of freedom. Wherever she waves, there's respect because your loyalty has given her a dignity that shouts freedom is everybody's job!

United that means that we have all come together.

States individual communities that have united into 48 great states. Forty-eight individual communities with pride and dignity and purpose; all divided with imaginary boundaries, yet united to a common purpose, and that's love for country.

And to the republic a state in which sovereign power is invested in representatives chosen by the people to govern. And government is the people and it's from the people to the leaders, not from the leaders to the people.

For which it stands, one nation one nation, meaning "so blessed by God"

Indivisible incapable of being divided.

With liberty which is freedom -- the right of power to live one's own life without threats, fear or some sort of retaliation.

And Justice the principle or quality of dealing fairly with others.

For all which means, boys and girls, it's as much your country as it is mine.

Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country and two words have been added to the pledge of Allegiance... 'UNDER GOD' Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer and that would be eliminated from schools too?

God Bless America!
--------------------------------

Happy Independence Day, Everyone!

1 Year

Aaron Samuel Garcia,
My precious boy, you have brought so much joy and laughter to us as since you have become part of our family. Oh, how you are loved all the way around the world! We loved you from the moment we knew about you. You are loved by your parents, brother and sister, grandparents, great-grandparents, uncles and aunts, and cousins. You got to meet your great-aunts and great-uncles and extended family and cousins. You still have to meet your family that loves you oh-so-much in Mexico! But that's not all! You are also loved ever so immensely by God that even I can't comprehend. God knew what a prefect fit you would be to our family. We are praying for the day that you come to know Jesus as your Savior and serve him with your life.

You are learning and growing so fast! You love to go on walks, take baths, read books, play outside, go swimming, pull DVDs off the shelf, and feel the bass-beat from the stereo-speaker. So we've had to move a lot of things off your level so you can't reach them. Sometimes that makes you un-happy.  I love the way you crinkle up your nose and squint your eyes when you smile!

I love to watch you grow! And see your curiosity for the world around you. You love being with your brother and sister. You watch and learn everything Caleb does. And you even already have started to tease him back. Alisia has special time with you every day and is like your 2nd mommy. I love when you just wake up, because that is when you love to be snuggled. You are always excited to see Papi when he gets home from work and you greet him with a big hug!

It took us a long time to decide on your name. We named you Aaron Samuel Garcia.

Aaron means "lofty; exalted; high mountain; one of light." In the bible, Aaron was Moses' brother and spoke for Moses to help lead the Israelites out of Egypt. Aaron was a great leader who loved and followed God. Our prayer for you in choosing your name is that you too will be a great godly leader of your generation and bring others to follow Christ.

The meaning of Samuel is "Name of God; asked of God; God has heard; God has listened." In the bible Samuel's mother asked God for a child, then dedicated him to God. Samuel was the prophet who anointed Saul and David as kings of Israel in the Old Testament. Our prayer for your in choosing this name is that you will "Only fear the Lord, and serve him faithfully with all your heart; for consider what great things he has done for you." (1 Samuel 12:24)

 Therefore may you praise Him, the LORD, among the nations; sing praises to his name.
(2 Samuel 22:50)

Summer Time

What's your favorite way to get around in the summer time?

Barefoot, flipflops or sandals?

His hands. His feet.

It's hard to believe that we will soon have a one-year-old! Life sure is different now than it was when he was a new-born. It's great--But it sure is still a lot of work.

Today I was looking through some pictures of when Aaron was born. I can't believe that when he was only three weeks old our family did this and I never blogged about it.

Back-track.

We must have been crazy thinking to take a three week old on an 8 hour trip to another state while trying to serve God and others. When we told people of our plans, most people said "good luck" or "you're brave." Honestly, I was exhausted and not looking forward to the 10+ hour drive ahead of us. I was grouchy and doubting that God could use us (or me) to minister His love to others.

This wasn't exactly the plan. We didn't know that Aaron would be just 3 weeks old. Both my other two kids were born 1-2 weeks before their due date. He came almost 2 weeks after the due date. We didn't know that it takes longer than three weeks to get used to a family of 5. But God did. God knew that little Aaron would be just three weeks old. Just old enough for momma to start feeling well again and to have a eating/sleeping schedule established. But still young enough to sleep the majority of the day and not care who is holding him. Not only did God know, but it was in His perfect plan.

God reminded me that he uses sinners. Sinners like me--to minister His love. To be His hands and His feet to a broken world. Sin is real. And our sin should not get in the way of us searching for ways to minister His love to others. I often get so tied up in my own sin, and so easily over look ways I have right in front of me to minister to others, at church, to friends, family, or even my own kids. Our own sin is the very reason we know we need a Savior and what drives us to the cross. In our sin is where we can remember what it is like for those who don't know the love of our Savior and see how important it is to share His name among the nations.

So what does family missions look like?

Well, it's living real life. In front of others to see. Talk about intimidating. With kids, you can't put up a front like we sometimes so easily can at church or when we are in public. Being real with who we are--the good and the bad, our mistakes, and mostly our need and love for Jesus. Going to the cross daily not only points us back to Jesus, but also those who we are ministering to. We co-lead a group to Dalton, Georgia for a week to connect with a local church and reach the Hispanic population. Each one took their place in serving and ministering to others during the week. I loved seeing how God used each member of our family as a part of the team for His purpose and glory.

God blessed Angel with an amazing ability to lead music during VBS and team worship time. This was not something in the plan. While this was way out of his comfort zone, he loved it! Angel also helped the team serve with a construction project. This was something he was good at and really enjoyed doing. The project was re-finnishing a house of a single-dad who had cancer, and was raising his two young boys. We later learned that the dad died shortly after we left and the boys are now living in the house with their grandmother.

I was able to relate to other moms and invite families to come back. This was a great aspect to our week in that many parents stayed during the VBS and heard the gospel. We weren't just ministering to the kids, but to families including moms and dads. I also stayed back to watch the kids from our group and help prepare for VBS while the other adults went to the construction site. Thankfully, since this was a family trip, we could plan nap time into our day!

practicing songs for VBS

Alisia has a heart for little children and offered her talents where needed. She eagerly helped in skits, lead music with her Papi, heled the younger kids with cafts, met new friends and invited them to come back to VBS. She also voluntereed to help with the construction project in whatever way she could. Alisia and the other girls even willingly cleaned the bathrooms in the church.

Caleb was very much still Caleb. He played in the rain, in the river, on the play ground, and in the field. God used Caleb's playful spirit which immediately attracted attention from other kids to come play. He also helped lead music motions and helped out with some of the skits during VBS.

I loved seeing what was God's perfect plan for Aaron. This was what I was most worried about. Conversations are so much easier to start if you are carrying a newborn. I had many moms come up to me and start a conversation just because I was holding him. Many mom's stayed at the VBS when they saw that other moms were there. LOTS of people held him. There's a wives-tale in Latino countries called "mal de ojo" (evil eye) usually associated with envy and that if someone wants to hold your baby, they should, or they will leave a bad vibe with the baby resulting in uncontrollable crying. I had to be comfortable handing him off. I had to trust.

Overall, the trip reaffirmed to Angel and I that God can use our imperfect family to share His love. God can speak through us and to the hearts of others. God has laid it on Angel's heart to take the gospel to other Hispanics, his own people, and his own family. Please join us as we will be praying for God to open up doors for us to have opportunities to minister His love in this way. In the mean time, may God prepare our hearts and use us where we are to be His hands and His feet.

No Comments?

After my last blog post, I felt God convicting me. I want this blog to be a resting place where God is shared. A place I can reflect on our life and share memories. I want people to be able to come here and see God reflected in our life. That's the same thing we desire for our home. To have open doors and for Christ to be the center. I want to cherish these moments my kids are small and I want to be in the moment with them. As I walk through these moments with my family, I want to be able to testify to the Lord's goodness and encourage someone else on this journey. If this blog leaves you thirsty for more, thirsty for a deep relationship with Christ where you too can rest, please e-mail me! I'd love to share more with you and my reason for hope.

This summer I'm going part time--YAY! I want to invest my time eternally instead of via computer screen. And I want to spend time with my kids, their friends, in the neighborhood, and in relationships, with family members, with my grandparents, with my brother and his new family, etc. I need to free my time.

So this is what I’m doing.

I have found that the Internet in general is a big time sucker for me. I've enjoyed meeting other sweet gals and find encouraging blogs. But there's so many great sites that leads to other great sites. And before long, hours have passed. I'm sure Satan takes delight in taking something that is intended for good and making a mess out of it. For now, I decided to do something drastic--for me at least, in regards to my blog. I've decided to close comments. Crazy for this gal in the blog world!

That doesn't mean I don't want to hear from you. If you would like to leave a comment, please do so.
E-mail me.

I’m going to change the way I blog as well, which you may have noticed. For now, I’m closing comments on my posts (which I'll probably open them up from time to time). So still some thoughts and journaling style. But also more pictures of what we've been up to so I don't loose touch or feel behind. My blog was originally created to "stay in touch" with friends and family from afar. Now everyone has facebook. So I can still do that too. I just want to take the time I usually put into these things and invest it personally, spiritually, eternally.

"Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God."
Colossians 3:2-3

Sing Joyfully

We can always be amazed by the almighty, unchanging love that God continues to give us. I feel like these past few weeks of school ending have just flown by and have been completely packed. There's too much going on. Field trips. Zoo. Kings Dominion. End of the year celebrations. Practice solo. Spring Concerts. Homework. Studying. Final Papers. Tests. Play's. Work. Trainings. Meetings. Home Visits. Documentation. The hospital moving. Volunteer to help. Mother's Day. Graduations and Ceremoney's. Loss, grieving. Travel. Funeral. A little Chuck E Cheese fun. Anniversary. Angel's Birthday. Jarrod's here. Stephanie. Meet Baby Marc! Hold him. Kiss him. Eat him up! No more skyping. Slurpees, cook-outs, sprinklers, water games. Got-it?

Yet through it all, God has remained consistent and steady in showing his obvious love for us. I want to enjoy these moments and not rush through them. I've struggled with not being able to be a part of every moment and every field trip, but I've already learned this lesson last year when I was 8 months pregnant. God loves our children so much more than we do. I'm so thankful for what I have been able to be a part of. I'm so excited because of some changes, I'll be working part-time through out the summer and hope that it slows down a bit.

To hear our children sing these truths as they lift their hands in praise was a beautiful melody to my heart!

"Your love is deeper than the depths of the ocean
broader than the winds of the sea
overflowing love like a moutian
all of creation sings joyfully."

*you can hear Aaron in the background, he liked it too and wanted to sing!
*Caleb's solo (2nd video) was a bit longer than this video. I cut it off thinking that was the end. Regardless, he did so good!

Coolest Dad Award

This weekend my hubby became the coolest dad on the planet! He got first place--with a baby on his lap.

Unfortuately not all dads can take this title. Looks like another dad wasn't too happy his kid was watching.

Come 'on, lets handle this like big boys. No pouting.

What kinds of things make you a "cool" parent?

(to your child that is)