Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Much Ado About Nothing
Far too many days have passed since I last updated our blog and it's about time I do so...
Fernando and I have been much like ships passing in the night between his work trips and my visits to friends and family- which have ceased indefinitely until some time after Sofia arrives. We are hoping to bring her back to Phoenix as soon as possible so that her great-grandmother can see her in person, even if it means traveling to the desert in the summer. Oy!
In the meantime, we are determined to get the house in order before the end of May. Or shall I say, I am determined to get the house in order before the end of May. I'm pretty sure I've entered the "nesting" phase of pregnancy, which is particularly heinous in our household considering my already obsessive compulsive nature when it comes to cleanliness and organization. Fernando would greatly appreciate your prayers!
We are already at 30 weeks which is so hard to believe. The fatigue has returned and I don't anticipate it leaving until some time around October or November. Something to look forward to...In the meantime, I just try to muster enough energy to chase Daniel around the house and get everybody fed each day- a feat in and of itself. If I have a Dr. Pepper or two, I may even manage to do a load of laundry and/or make our bed. :)
It's another rainy day in Little Rock (shocking), although the rain hasn't actually started falling yet. It is just gloomy and we managed to lose our power already for a short time. I would love for someone to be able to explain that phenomenon to me! Fernando is on his way to Shreveport, Louisiana, for the next few days so Daniel and I are on our own. I managed to change out of my pajamas, but it's looking like that will be the extent of it for me today. Daniel is currently running around in a diaper (and 1 sock) until his "Snowman" jammies are done in the dryer. He insisted on wearing them all day today, which, of course, meant doing a load of laundry. Some days it's just not worth the fight.
As I write, Daniel is tearing through a box of his baby sister's toys and reveling in his discoveries. He has also reverted to chewing on teething rings and shaking rattles. This will undoubtedly last until the theme song for "Max and Ruby" echoes from the family room.
I hope to accomplish something of value today, I have a list of "Things To Do" a mile long, but something tells me my day will consist of getting Daniel milk, watching a bazillion episodes of Go, Diego, Go, and listening to the Sasquatch stomp around upstairs (a story for a blog yet to come).
Fernando and I have been much like ships passing in the night between his work trips and my visits to friends and family- which have ceased indefinitely until some time after Sofia arrives. We are hoping to bring her back to Phoenix as soon as possible so that her great-grandmother can see her in person, even if it means traveling to the desert in the summer. Oy!
In the meantime, we are determined to get the house in order before the end of May. Or shall I say, I am determined to get the house in order before the end of May. I'm pretty sure I've entered the "nesting" phase of pregnancy, which is particularly heinous in our household considering my already obsessive compulsive nature when it comes to cleanliness and organization. Fernando would greatly appreciate your prayers!
We are already at 30 weeks which is so hard to believe. The fatigue has returned and I don't anticipate it leaving until some time around October or November. Something to look forward to...In the meantime, I just try to muster enough energy to chase Daniel around the house and get everybody fed each day- a feat in and of itself. If I have a Dr. Pepper or two, I may even manage to do a load of laundry and/or make our bed. :)
It's another rainy day in Little Rock (shocking), although the rain hasn't actually started falling yet. It is just gloomy and we managed to lose our power already for a short time. I would love for someone to be able to explain that phenomenon to me! Fernando is on his way to Shreveport, Louisiana, for the next few days so Daniel and I are on our own. I managed to change out of my pajamas, but it's looking like that will be the extent of it for me today. Daniel is currently running around in a diaper (and 1 sock) until his "Snowman" jammies are done in the dryer. He insisted on wearing them all day today, which, of course, meant doing a load of laundry. Some days it's just not worth the fight.
As I write, Daniel is tearing through a box of his baby sister's toys and reveling in his discoveries. He has also reverted to chewing on teething rings and shaking rattles. This will undoubtedly last until the theme song for "Max and Ruby" echoes from the family room.
I hope to accomplish something of value today, I have a list of "Things To Do" a mile long, but something tells me my day will consist of getting Daniel milk, watching a bazillion episodes of Go, Diego, Go, and listening to the Sasquatch stomp around upstairs (a story for a blog yet to come).
Monday, March 3, 2008
Welcome to the Family!
My sister's boyfriend, Wade, has been an honorary member of our family for years now. We have loved him since we met him and have known they are a perfect match. Just this morning, I'm happy to announce, Wade became an official member of our family when he and Nance got married! We knew it was coming, but had no idea when. We are all SO happy for them and thrilled that we have an official brother-in-law and "Wunka Wade" (as Daniel calls him). We love you guys!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Back to Bed...
It's been a strange week at the Orona house. Our two and a half year old has chosen to adopt the sleeping habits of a newborn the past few nights. Monday night (or Tuesday morning rather) he decided to wake up at 1:15 ready to start his day. He finally succombed to his need for sleep around 4:00 and was up bright and early at 6:30 in the morning. We assumed the noise of the storm woke him up. Tuesday was a bit better- no thunder. But he was ready to go at 5:45 am. Last night, he crawled into our bed at 4:15. Some parents may shrug their shoulders as if to say, "welcome to life with a toddler". But for Fernando and I, who have been blessed with a little boy who has slept until about 7:30 am since he was 4 months old, this is an abrupt change and one we cannot figure out how to remedy. Each night it grows increasingly frustrating. Especially when all attempts to help him fall back to sleep fail miserably. As a parent, and a pregnant one at that, there are few things as frustrating as leaning over the side rail of a toddler bed (or climbing into it) at 2:00 in the morning trying to soothe a little boy who refuses to give in to sleep. At 4:15 this morning, I found myself in this exact predicament- again. Tears of exhaustion began to well up in my eyes when something dawned on me.
I started to wonder if I have ever made God feel this same way and ever so subtly, the Holy Spirit answered..."yes". I began to think of all the times in my life when I've woken up in "the darkness" and thought to myself, if only I could get up and start doing something, it would all be better. If I could take action and start moving then the sun would come up. And God says to me, "just rest". I so often struggle with giving up control and do everything in my power to change my circumstances when all I need to do is close my eyes and rest- knowing that God will take care of everything in His time.
Darkness brings such fear and uncertaintanty. It's at those times when Satan chooses to bring the thunder. He knows our weaknesses and that, if he can just get our attention and cause us to be restless, we will do just enough to get in the way of God's work in our lives. But the Lord is telling us, that if we just get "back to bed" and rest in Him, the sun will come up a lot sooner. That doesn't mean that we won't have those "nights", that seem to last forever, when we just need to crawl into His arms and feel His embrace or be able to look up and know that our Father is right there beside us. But only in the darkness can we truly know what it means to rest...
When we come to God as a Father, while we must remember that He is Lord of heaven and earth, which obliges us to come to him with reverence as to the sovereign Lord of all; we are blessed to be able to come to Him with confidence, as one able to defend us from evil, and to supply us with all good. Knowing full well that He will embrace us, scoop us up, and lovingly carry us back to bed.
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." -Matthew 11:28 (NLT)
I started to wonder if I have ever made God feel this same way and ever so subtly, the Holy Spirit answered..."yes". I began to think of all the times in my life when I've woken up in "the darkness" and thought to myself, if only I could get up and start doing something, it would all be better. If I could take action and start moving then the sun would come up. And God says to me, "just rest". I so often struggle with giving up control and do everything in my power to change my circumstances when all I need to do is close my eyes and rest- knowing that God will take care of everything in His time.
Darkness brings such fear and uncertaintanty. It's at those times when Satan chooses to bring the thunder. He knows our weaknesses and that, if he can just get our attention and cause us to be restless, we will do just enough to get in the way of God's work in our lives. But the Lord is telling us, that if we just get "back to bed" and rest in Him, the sun will come up a lot sooner. That doesn't mean that we won't have those "nights", that seem to last forever, when we just need to crawl into His arms and feel His embrace or be able to look up and know that our Father is right there beside us. But only in the darkness can we truly know what it means to rest...
When we come to God as a Father, while we must remember that He is Lord of heaven and earth, which obliges us to come to him with reverence as to the sovereign Lord of all; we are blessed to be able to come to Him with confidence, as one able to defend us from evil, and to supply us with all good. Knowing full well that He will embrace us, scoop us up, and lovingly carry us back to bed.
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." -Matthew 11:28 (NLT)
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Life With a Two Year Old
Every day is a new adventure when you're the parent of a toddler. Toddlers are energetic, unpredictable, curious, and VERY resourceful. I am beginning to believe that having a two year old can be likened to having a miniautre neanderthal running wild through your home. Some days I can handle it. Others, I cannot. This has been one of those days...
I'm not sure what set the day off on the wrong foot. My gut tells me that it had something to do with Daniel bounding into the bedroom just after 6:00 a.m. singing the theme song to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Or it could be the fact that simple tasks such as putting on your child's socks now require the use of an octagon and a referee. Whatever the cause, I knew very quickly today would be a long day. As I was wearily making waffles at 7:00 am, I found my son hard at work organizing his magnetic alphabet letters... in the dog's water bowl. It only took about 30 minutes for the letters to be removed and placed on a paper towel to dry. The fact that Daniel was arranging the letters by color certainly helped to expedite the process.
Can't wait to see what the rest of the day brings...
I'm not sure what set the day off on the wrong foot. My gut tells me that it had something to do with Daniel bounding into the bedroom just after 6:00 a.m. singing the theme song to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Or it could be the fact that simple tasks such as putting on your child's socks now require the use of an octagon and a referee. Whatever the cause, I knew very quickly today would be a long day. As I was wearily making waffles at 7:00 am, I found my son hard at work organizing his magnetic alphabet letters... in the dog's water bowl. It only took about 30 minutes for the letters to be removed and placed on a paper towel to dry. The fact that Daniel was arranging the letters by color certainly helped to expedite the process.
Can't wait to see what the rest of the day brings...
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
We have a winner!
We have finally decided on a name for the newest member of our family. Let me rephrase that. We have finally agreed to go with the name we chose 6 years ago. It has been a long process, especially for me. When we found out we were having a boy in 2005, we were shocked. We had been certain up to that point that our first child would be a little girl. Choosing his name, however, was not difficult. We knew if we were ever blessed with a boy, his name would be Daniel. That is, after all, Fernando's middle name. There were other names on the list that we liked, but we had always planned on using them for any subsequent boys in the family. His middle name took a little while, but was easily chosen. Our first thought was Joseph. To reconcile ourselves to the fact that we didn't choose to name him after his maternal great-grandfather, Ralph, we were leaning towards Pop Pop's middle name. But once Isaac popped into mind, we knew that was it. Thus, Daniel Isaac Orona was named. We hoped and prayed that he would one day have a sister so that we could use the name we had already chosen for her. Last month, we found out she was on her way. But for some reason, I was struggling to commit to what Fernando (and Daniel-quite honestly) were already calling her. I've prayed a lot for confirmation and received it. Thank the Lord!
For those of you who don't know, Fernando had an older sister (born the same year as my older sister) named Josephine. She was very sick as a baby and passed away when she was only 1 1/2. It was a heart wrenching time for his parents and older brother. He has always hoped to have a little girl and name her after his sweet sister. On the other hand, my paternal grandmother, Josephine, was not quite as sweet and innocent. Thus, the name does not carry the same connotation with my side of the family. Before we were married, we had discussed this fact and tried to come up with some derivative of Josephine- not an easy task, I might add. That way her name would still be special, but not conjure up images of a bitter, old, Italian woman (may she rest in peace). :) To add to the confusion, both of our mothers are named Margaret Elizabeth. So we set out on a mission to find a way to pay tribute to Fernando's sister, the two wonderful women who raised us, and hint towards her Italian background.
Over the last few years, however, the name we decided on has grown in popularity, which is why I have had such a difficult time committing to it. I have never wanted to choose a "trendy" name for any of our kids and because we put such careful consideration into their names, I have never wanted anyone to assume that we followed the crowd. I finally came to the realization (after attempting to call the baby every other name that popped into my head) that there was only one that was fitting. I also realized that I'm almost 32 and should know by now not to care what other people think. Something I should have come to terms with after junior high- one would assume.
At any rate, we are happy to announce that Sofia Margaret Orona is healthy and growing and will be here in about 16 short weeks! There, I said it. It's official!
For those of you who don't know, Fernando had an older sister (born the same year as my older sister) named Josephine. She was very sick as a baby and passed away when she was only 1 1/2. It was a heart wrenching time for his parents and older brother. He has always hoped to have a little girl and name her after his sweet sister. On the other hand, my paternal grandmother, Josephine, was not quite as sweet and innocent. Thus, the name does not carry the same connotation with my side of the family. Before we were married, we had discussed this fact and tried to come up with some derivative of Josephine- not an easy task, I might add. That way her name would still be special, but not conjure up images of a bitter, old, Italian woman (may she rest in peace). :) To add to the confusion, both of our mothers are named Margaret Elizabeth. So we set out on a mission to find a way to pay tribute to Fernando's sister, the two wonderful women who raised us, and hint towards her Italian background.
Over the last few years, however, the name we decided on has grown in popularity, which is why I have had such a difficult time committing to it. I have never wanted to choose a "trendy" name for any of our kids and because we put such careful consideration into their names, I have never wanted anyone to assume that we followed the crowd. I finally came to the realization (after attempting to call the baby every other name that popped into my head) that there was only one that was fitting. I also realized that I'm almost 32 and should know by now not to care what other people think. Something I should have come to terms with after junior high- one would assume.
At any rate, we are happy to announce that Sofia Margaret Orona is healthy and growing and will be here in about 16 short weeks! There, I said it. It's official!
Friday, January 4, 2008
What makes me smile...
...a nice, hot shower
...the smell of fresh coffee brewing
...sunshine and blue skies
...the sight of squirrels romping around on our back fence
...Daniel's happy voice in the morning
...shopping for my baby girl
...knowing the weekend is coming and Fernando will be home
...my son singing Jesus Loves Me at the top of his lungs in the grocery store
...talking to my mom on the phone
...dinner with friends
...cheesecake for dessert!
...the smell of fresh coffee brewing
...sunshine and blue skies
...the sight of squirrels romping around on our back fence
...Daniel's happy voice in the morning
...shopping for my baby girl
...knowing the weekend is coming and Fernando will be home
...my son singing Jesus Loves Me at the top of his lungs in the grocery store
...talking to my mom on the phone
...dinner with friends
...cheesecake for dessert!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
