1.28.2016

34 weeks and other little things.

I feel like this is my life mantra. I've had a few times where I find myself getting caught up in the silly, trivial things of this life and have had to remind myself to just be present and enjoy every little thing. Whoa. What a difference that makes!






Pregnancy Updates:

How far in: 34 weeks.


Baby is the size of a/an: Cantaloupe.


Feeling: Good. 


Weight Gain: All is well. I gained three pounds since my last appointment two weeks ago and my OB says I'm right on track.


Wearing: Maternity leggings and tees from Target. My fave!


Sleep: Having trouble getting comfortable lately. Thankfully, my sweet Ryan came to my rescue and insisted that we buy me a body pillow and I love it!


Missing: Being able to paint my toes. :/
Last doctor's appointment: Yesterday. Everything is right where it should be.


Next doctor's appointment: In two weeks. 


Movement: Oh man. Full somersaults. Lots of kicking on my right side. 


Food cravings: Oranges and apple sauce. Yogurt too.

Looking forward to: The crib coming in the mail! Yay!


Missionary Updates:

 "Hello family and friends!

Elder Baker is really starting to settle into the new area. He is an awesome companion and we have started to wean down the the amount of new and other investigators in our 
area book. There are records from as far back as 2005 so we are going out and visiting all these people
to try and find out if they even live in the addresses listed. We have been breaking in our bikes and foot miles trying to visit all
these people. Being out so much has really helped me memorize streets and the area better. 

We had the opportunity on Saturday to go to the temple with one of Elder Baker's recent converts! That was my first time inside of the San Antonio Temple. It is amazingly beautiful! The temple has a lot of stained glass windows and intricate carvings all around the outside. The grounds of the temples are always so peaceful to be around and it was an amazing opportunity! We also had the opportunity to visit the new family history center in Boerne. The church's Family History Center is now in a building separate from the ward building. The Genealogical Society of Kendall County and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints share a building in which any person can come in and do family history work using the church's premium software. 

It is an amazing service opportunity for the missionaries to go in and be consultants for a few hours a week and help hasten the work! 
We are progressing and working on finding people to teach.


The message I wanted to share this week is from a video called "A Secure Anchor". There are those in life that believe we can adhere to all the challenges in life without the gospel and be alright. But the gospel is meant to provide a safe means for us to achieve those aspirations through support, forgiveness and love. I testify that the gospel provides a way for us to be led and helped along our path of righteousness. There is a safer, but still enjoyable way for us to carry on through our daily activities. The gospel of Jesus Christ is true and it provides you and I the means to live with our families and our Father in Heaven again.





What are you thankful for?


XOXO,
post signature
Posted by

1.21.2016

33 Weeks.

As my due date approaches, I've been spending a bunch of time reading books about pregnancy and parenting. I love to read, and I am so grateful for parents and experts who have taken the time to share useful tips in the form of a good read! I love that the library has a parenting section.

Ha. THis is so me!

This is actually a pic of me during week 32. I need to document with more prego profile pics!


Update:

How far in: 33 weeks. Getting close to the final stretch!
Baby is the size of a/an: pineapple! (about 17 inches long, 4.5 lbs. O_O)
Feeling: Good. :)
Weight Gain: Not a ton. I think I look pretty round. 
Wearing: Comfy flats. As much as I'd love to wear heels, I really don't trust my sense of balance (or lack thereof) right now. So, I got another pair of cute flats over the weekend! These things are the most comfy pair of flats I own. Target FTW!
Sleep: Still trying to bank my sleep.
Missing: My energy. I get tired pretty darn easily, which I guess is a good thing because that tells me to take a break and put my feet up.
Next doctor's appointment: This upcoming Wednesday.
Movement: Oh man. My little guy loves to kick me beneath my ribs. I now understand what prego moms mean when they talk about how sometimes the kicking is cute, and then sometimes it's just plain uncomfortable!
Food cravings: Oranges!
Looking forward to: My baby shower! Meeting our sweet boy!



Missionary Updates: 

"Hello everyone,

So not too much to report on this week however, there is one thing that happened that was certainly different. There was an ET (emergency transfer). Essentially an emergency transfer is when a missionary or several missionaries are transferred before transfer meeting. President Slaughter moved a few companionship's up in Austin so Elder Diaz is now in Austin while I remain here in hill country. My new companion is Elder Baker. He has been in the mission about 6 months and is awesome. It was fun being able to introduce him to the apartment and the whole new area, so until he gets up to pace, I have been kind of taking the lead! Although it is sad to see Elder Diaz go, we will still keep in touch. We had to drive all the way up to Austin which is about a two hour drive to drop him off and now we have to really be concerned about our car mileage. Time to get the bikes out for sure!

The message I want to share this week is from a three part series of
videos presented by Elder David A. Bednar called "Patterns of Light". The video I would like to share is the second part of the series called "Discerning Light".

We all have the opportunity to receive promptings of the Holy Ghost.
How often to we obey the promptings that are given? Those actions that have a good intent and bring you closer to our Heavenly Father do not need to be a miraculous vision to be from Him. The Holy Ghost
prompts us and guides us on the paths we should follow. When we are baptized by restored priesthood authority and in the name of Christ, we can have the Spirit reside within us. How great a blessing! I can testify of the blessing that this brings and how our Heavenly Father loves us and blesses us. We are his children, and no parent should abandon his children.

Sincerely,
Elder Arciniaga"

\
This kid loves serving the people of Texas!




Recap:

 We went to Buy Buy Baby to try out strollers and car seats. We both liked how they had lots of strollers on display for us to roll around, practice folding and unfolding and lots of car seats for us to mess around with too. (This place is no joke) 


Ryan and I had fun window shopping (and real shopping) at Walmart. Here is my sweet Ryan checking out the sweet gaming headphones. He found some he really liked, but sadly they weren't PC compatible. :( On the upside, I think he was able to find some similar ones online.



Weekly Obsessions:

This envelope.
We got this giant envelope in the mail at work. It was so huge! I'm still obsessed...







Memes I love:









Thankful Thursday: my Ryan, our Baby, the simple life, the gospel of Jesus Christ, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, our home, silly vines that pop up in my FB feed, steady income, being surrounded by good peeps. 




Throwback to that time I took my sweet Ryan (then boyfriend) to SoCal to meet my family...and he gave me the surprise of a lifetime! He took me to my favorite place, where we ate a picnic of all my favorite foods...he gifted me with my favorite things, and then pulled out a wicker clam shell with an engagement ring inside and asked me 

 "Will you be my eternal companion?"

  *Swoon* He is still my Favorite person and always will be. 



XOXO,
post signature
Posted by

1.14.2016

32 Weeks Along.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around the idea that in less than two-ish months, Adam will no longer be attached to my person! We will get to hold and love him and cuddle all the time! We're so excited to meet our sweet boy!




 Pregnancy Updates:

How far in: 32 weeks.

Baby is the size of a/an: Head of bok choy! (About 16.7 inches long and getting very close to four pounds!)

Feeling: Round. I feel like I have rounded out quite a bit in the past week!


Weight Gain: Not much since my last appointment 2 weeks ago.

Wearing: Boots and comfy clothes! Loving scarves and layers this week!

Sleep: I've been having some trouble sleeping lately. I feel like when bed time rolls around I have a hard time shutting my brain off. Time for daily meditation to go into effect!

Missing: Being able to wear my pre-pregnancy pants.
Not Missing: My period. (Ha. That will never change.)
Last doctor's appointment: Two days ago. According to my OBGYN, my blood pressure and weight gain are both normal. We listened to Adam's heart beat and she said its "really good!" (I love my OB. She's awesome!) 

Next doctor's appointment: Two weeks.

Movement: Lots. Adam loves to move all over, especially around bedtime.

Food cravings: Yogurt and apple sauce! I made a point to stock up on both!


Looking forward to: Meeting Adam!


Pregnancy memes I'm loving:
 (My sweet Ryan is so good about not getting annoyed when I'm moody like this)
Missionary Updates:
"Hello everyone,

This week has been awesome! I am finally starting to feel confident about being out here and have started taking the lead on a majority of the
responsibilities. Yesterday, we went out on splits and tried to visit a bunch of people that we normally do not get the chance to see. Over
two hours I was only able to reschedule one appointment, but it was all I needed to feel the excitement to keep going! I have such an
excellent district and I am grateful for the willingness and desire that they all have to work. Something I had the opportunity to think
about was how important members are to bringing people into the church. After 6-8 weeks and the missionaries transfer out, what kind
of connection will people they were teaching have to the church. Fellow-shipping is something that we have really been pushing here in
our area to ensure that there is plenty of support to new people.

https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2015-01-011-reach-out-with-love?lang=eng

There is a video I wanted to share about how we are approaching what we are called and asked to do and if it is really effective. This
video is about a Priest named Guillermo and how he learned to be a friend instead of begrudgingly fulfilling a calling. We can all learn
from this and how we are all missionaries. A term that has started to bother me is "missionary work". Is this really missionary work? This
is our Heavenly Father's work and glory, as missionaries we just reach out to help hasten his work. I have learned that being a missionary is
truly about how we desire to go and do. Whether it be service or going door to door, the work is still the same. We should always be inviting
and giving people the opportunity, and when they feel ready they will accept the invitation.

As people, we should love one another and by doing so, we could be really changing someones life. It got me thinking about hymn 223 which
is " Have I done any good?" The lyrics really stuck out to me and it's something that we should really ponder. "Have I done any good in the
world today? Have I helped anyone in need? Have I cheered up the sad and made someone feel glad? If not, I have failed indeed." As we go
throughout the week, we should be on the lookout for opportunities to do good! Blessings will come with loving others.

The scripture I would like to share is Mosiah 2:17 which says "And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may
learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."

Hasten the work,

 Elder Arciniaga"


Recap:

  • We had a Chinese food dinner date! We had a good chat too. 
  • We took a tour of the maternity wing at the hospital. (Talk about swanky) 
  • I've been binge-watching Parks & Recreation and finished it! (What a sweet ending to an awesome show!)
  • Our CTR 6 class rocks! I was so impressed by how engaged and sincere they were during our lesson on Sunday. (These kids are too cute!)

Weekly Obsessions:

  • Ironic by Alanis Morissette (classic)
  • Fun party songs! (Like "Tongue-Tied" by GroupLove)
  • Now watching season 12 of Grey's Anatomy! (Thank goodness for Hulu+)



A few thoughts about this meme...
This is something that I am trying to do more often. It's amazing how my perspective changes when I ask what I can learn from an experience.



These Memes:





Thankful Thursday: our circumstances. 

I am so thankful for exactly where we are right now! (Buying our home, awaiting arrival of Adam, teaching CTR 6, our jobs, me being married to the sweetest guy around!) I mean, how lucky are we?




XOXO,
post signature
Posted by

1.07.2016

8 months Pregnant!

I hit a big milestone this week! I am getting so much closer to my due date! Eek!



Pregnancy Updates:

How far in: 31 weeks aka 8 months!
Feeling: Sooooo sleepy. 

Wearing: My new leopard flats from Target. Talk about comfy! (pictured below)
Sleep: I've been needing a lot more as of late. 

Miss anything: Being able to sit up without feeling like a turtle on it's back. Ha.

Movement: He does gymnastics a few times a day. 

Food cravings: Cereal.

Labor signs: None. :D

Next OBGYN appointment: Next week. 

Looking forward to: Finishing my many projects I started since my last post! (ie reading the baby books I checked out from the library, registering for my baby shower, buying stuff for & setting up Adam's room!)

 I love this sweater...but I didn't end up buying it. But I did get the flats! (Side note: that bump on the sweater is not my belly button. It's a button on my top! My belly button is almost to the point of being flat)



Missionary Updates:

"Greetings everyone,

So this week was full of so many blessings! We are finally getting to
know the ward and members are starting to reach out to the
missionaries to see if there is anything they can do!

Friday night, Elder Diaz and myself were out around our area getting
ready to go back to the apartment when we decided to knock on one lastdoor. We were certainly not expecting someone so friendly to answer! A
woman answered the door and exclaimed "Oh hey Elders!" We asked if she
knew who we were, and she replied that she was a member of the church.
We were completely thrown off because we only knew of one family that
lived in the apartment and it was not her. She said it was perfect
timing that we came to her door because the last time she had the
missionaries over was when she was moving into the apartment years ago
and she was getting ready to move out. We also found out that she
would still be in our area where she was moving. So we offered to
assist with the move and sh said yes! On top of that she was also
thinking about coming back to church. But she is very busy we found
out as well! She is a nurse and a rehabilitation center and is "on
call" whenever! She is very kind and cares a lot about helping people
as well! She does a lot of work around the community, and she says
that she works with the city to help people with eating disorders get
back on track! Funny enough, she has not been to church in so long but
she officiates the church's twelve step meetings. We have found a
great person and we hope that we can bring her back to church!

We also had the opportunity to go out and help a part member family
move into the ward. They are very nice people, they moved from Lubbock
to out here in Boerne. The wife is a member but has been less active
for many years and the husband is not a member. They are an older
couple but have grown a desire to really learn more about the restored
gospel! They were so surprised when a large amount if the ward came to
help them move in. It really touched the husband when we did that. He
told us that it was usually him that would go out and help others and
he finally knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of
service. It was then when he turned to me and told me "You Mormons
almost got me, just keep doing what you're doing" We took that same
family to church with us and then that night he had a desire to be
baptized. It was a really joyous occasion! There has been so many
miracles here in Boerne!

This video of the Refiner's Fire

This is a video I was watching and it really made me appreciate how we
have trials and hardships here and how we choose to handle those
problems will either bring us closer to God or pull us away. This
video, the refiners fire, references the hardships of life to shaping
metal. If the metal is till too stiff, it goes back into the fire
until it is ready for it's form to change.

I can testify that through trials and handling them with exact
obedience that blessings and miracles will come even in the darkest
times. This is the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and the atonement
provides us with the chance to change from mistakes we have made. The
purpose of missionaries is to invite others to come unto Christ, and
help people understand that he loves them by helping them to receive
the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement,
repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring
to the end.

Have a wonderful new year and reflect on the love the savior has for each of us!

Sincerely,
Elder Arciniaga"

This guy is too cute. I love him! 



Recap:

  • My New Year's Eve: hung with my parents and saw In The Heart Of The Sea, hung out & watched Pitbull's New Year's Eve Special on tv, ate yummy food!
  • Ryan's New Year's Eve: LAN party with his friends, then more gaming when he got home in the wee hours of the morning
  • We now teach the CTR 6 class in Primary. They are so well behaved!
  • We got Hulu Plus! Talk about a great investment.


Weekly Obsessions:
  • Sleep!
  • being in Baby Mode! (A good portion of my spare time this week has been spent prepping for Adam's arrival)
  • Parks & Recreation on the Hulu Plus app!
These memes:




My fave mantra:








Thankful Thursday: my sweet Ryan!
This guy is my Favorite.
I tell him every single day. He is so sweet and patient with me. He puts up with my 2-3 goodbye hugs every morning (yay for hormones that make me so very clingy!) and always checks in to see how I'm doing. He often helps me get up and cuddles with me in his sleep. He often makes me dinner while he listens to the many things I have to say. In short, he's the greatest.


Happy 2016, friends!


XOXO,
post signature
Posted by
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)