Holiday Letter 2011

2011 Holiday Season

After the 2010 we had it was hard to imagine that 2011 could be better, but this year has been filled with just as much excitement as the last one. We both could barely keep up with everything happening.

This year started slow until our first anniversary in April. We enjoyed a piano concert by Jim Brickman at the Van Wezel in Sarasota. He spoke of celebrating anniversaries since he had just celebrated 15 years of writing and performing in December. It was a perfect concert to celebrate the occasion. I made Kris an album keepsake that highlighted our early years together and our first year of marriage. It was a wonderful weekend of romance and reminiscing.

The most exciting highlight of 2011 was learning we were expecting our first baby in January 2012. I had suspected for some time that we might be pregnant but was too nervous to test. After two weeks of waiting, we decided to take a home pregnancy test on my 37^th birthday. Even though the line was faint, we were both excited to learn that we were, in fact, pregnant. It was the best present that I could have ever received.

The past couple of months have been quite busy trying to prepare for the baby’s arrival. Thankfully the pregnancy has been uneventful. I did not have much more than slight morning sickness and fatigue the first trimester. It had me out for the count on some days. The second trimester I had more energy and felt like I could get more things done. I tried to take advantage of these bursts of energy to get some cooking done ahead of time. During the third trimester we have been busily trying to get the house and nursery ready. It has been a slow process as fatigue has set in again.

Early in the pregnancy we referred to our little one as Special K since we did not know the gender. Everyone wondered whether our Special K had strawberries or blueberries (girl or boy). Kris had been hoping for a girl while I was hoping for a boy, so one of us was going to be right. We both would have been happy either way. In August, right around 20 weeks, we were happy to learn that we were having a GIRL. We have chosen the name Felicity after my 92-year-old grandmother, Felicidad, who went home to the Philippines shortly before we were married.

This year we enjoyed a babymoon vacation in September. We took a tour of Florida beginning in Naples with the baby shower of our friends Gary and Christine Huber. I was excited for our baby bumps to meet for the first time.  The rest of our vacation consisted of a visit to Mom and Dad Mendoza in Fort Pierce, the Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse in Daytona, the hot spots in St. Augustine and a quick lunch with a good friend in Orlando. Kris climbed all 203 steps to the top of the lighthouse while Mommy and baby visited the different museums on the campus. While in St. Augustine, we visited the Shrine of Our Lady of La Leche and Potter’s Wax Museum. It was nice to have one last getaway before baby girl arrives.

Other family highlights this year include celebrating my parent’s 40^th wedding anniversary, my Mom’s 65^th birthday and the 12^th birthday of my oldest niece Lexy in November. Mom and Dad hosted a nice dinner for family and friends to celebrate. We also welcomed Izabella Anna, the daughter of Kris’ brother Paul and his wife Nicole. Izabella is the 9^th niece and nephew between the both of us. It was wonderful to share the pregnancy experience with Nikki and we are looking forward to the two cousins meeting.

Here we are now at the end of 2011 and the new year is fast approaching. We both are looking forward to meeting our daughter and the many adventures 2012 has in store for us. We cannot wait to share with you all our exciting news of the upcoming year.

We would like to send you and your family the love and blessings of our Lord this holiday season. We hope you find the joy of the Lord this new year and many years to come.

Sending love, joy and peace from our family to yours this holiday season. May the new year bring good health, happiness and prosperity.

With lots of love,

Kris, Eileen Mae and, coming soon, Felicity

Our Christmas 2011 photo

8 1/2 months pregnant

Christmas 2011

Showered with Love

"Truly you have formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother's womb.

I give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made; wonderful are your works.

My soul you also knew full well; nor was my frame unknown to you 

    When I was made in secret, when I was fashioned in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes have seen my actions; in your book they are all written." 
Psalm 139: 13-16a

I already know that our Special K Felicity is loved by so many. She has been in the prayers of many of our friends and family throughout our entire pregnancy. Many more prayers have been added each step of the way. Prayers have continued through our difficult moments when I was having morning sickness and other uncomfortable symptoms. There were even more prayers of thanksgiving when we had good news to share. We have had the love and prayers of so many the past six months. It has been an incredible journey. We have been so blessed.

This past weekend we had a very unexpected blessing. Kris managed to keep plans of a baby shower a secret for nearly two weeks. I did not suspect a thing. I was very pleasantly surprised and touched by everyone who joined us to celebrate our Special K. We feel even more loved.

The decorations for the party were so cute. Kris' Mom put bows on top of small containers of Special K cereal to give to everyone as party giveaways. She used a large box to make a "Special K" baby. She wrapped a blanket around the box and put a balloon with a baby's hat on top. It was just too cute! She wrapped Special K cereal bars with a touching poem based on Psalm 139. Here is what it said:

Before we knew you as FELICITY, you were our SPECIAL K

Before that - in your father's eye, you were only a gleam

Before that - in your mother's heart, you were only a dream

But from all eternity - in secret, in the depths of the earth

Your inmost being was already woven together by God and

All your days ordained and written in His book.

I almost cried (again) when I read it. We were both so touched. It was a wonderful gathering.

The shower was just in time, too. We had recently received an outfit for her and I had mentioned to Kris how we did not have much for her. We have not even started a baby registry. She will be here in three short months and we do not have things ready for her arrival. We will have much to prepare over the next few months. Little did I know that this gathering was already in the works and in a few short hours we would be showered with love from a few people who have been praying along side of us. I was almost brought to tears when I walked into the house and saw the decorations and everyone there.

Now we have some 3-month, 6-month, and 9-month onesies. We also have a few outfits for when she is older (18 and 24-months) We got a few other small items and even a walker from Uncle Paul and Aunt Nikki. Now we have a few things to get us started. There is still so much left to do but I am excited to have a few items to get us motivated to get things in gear.

I cannot put into words how touched I am. The only thing I can keep saying is that we are so touched. We are so blessed. We thank you so much from the bottom of our hearts. We know that Felicity is already loved by so many.

This is what I saw as soon as I walked in the door

Our "Special K"

Party giveaways

The chair was all decorated for me to sit in and open gifts

A bear for Felicity's new room

We were showered with love

I was delightfully surprised

A big bow for Mommy and a little bow for Felicity

Mommy and Daddy

Dear Special K Felicity,

You are so loved! So many people have been praying for you. Long before we even knew you, there have been prayers for you. We have only dreamed of this moment. We have only prayed for this time with you. Very soon you will be here with us. We cannot wait to hold you. We cannot wait for you to see the wonderful gifts that you were showered with this weekend. So many people love you and are waiting for your arrival. Continue to grow big and strong in there. We will see you when you are ready.

Love, Mommy and Daddy

Special K with Strawberries

As we were awaiting our recent ultrasound to learn the Special K's gender some of my online friends from an NFP forum were curious to find out if we had Special K with strawberries or blueberries. I have always wanted a little boy first, but Kris from the very beginning had a feeling it was a little girl. Whether Special K had strawberries or blueberries was not so important to us as the health. We wanted to be sure that we had a healthy, growing baby. Anything else was going to be a bonus. 

Our calendar the weeks before our ultrasound appointment was pretty busy. Between the OB, the dentist, the eye doctor, Church meetings and a few family obligations, we were quite busy. It helped the weeks to pass quickly. The Friday of our appointment was going to be a very busy day with errands to run before and after the appointment. Despite our busy schedule nothing could have spoiled the excitement of seeing our precious Special K again since our first ultrasound at 8 weeks. We had already heard the heartbeat twice but we were looking forward to seeing the baby again. At our first quick peek Special K only looked like a peanut. You could see the heartbeat and the makings of a tiny baby but the baby was too small to notice tiny hands or feet. We were excited to see how much our little one had grown.

Prior to arrival at the appointment I was required to drink two glasses of water and asked not to use the bathroom. Not an easy task for a 19-week pregnant woman. Fortunately the receptionist told me it was okay as long as I drank more water. So I had to continuously drink water until the time of our appointment. The ultrasound itself lasted about 45 minutes. They took all kinds of different measurements to make sure that our little one was healthy. They measured the ulna, the humerous, the femur, the chest, the brain, the head, and many other things. It was so neat to see our little one moving all around during the ultrasound. Special K was quite the acrobat. I was hoping to get a good peek before the tech told us if Special K had strawberries or blueberries but Special K just would not stay still long enough for me to get a good peek. I am not sure I would have known what to look for anyway. We were enjoying watching our little one move and dance around. We saw the baby "wave", suck their thumb, kick their leg, tumble, somersault and so much more. We saw the two halves of the brain, the four chambers of the heart, the bones in the fingers and toes and much, much more. It was like Special K was putting on a show for Mommy and Daddy. Although it was hard to lie there with a full bladder I did not want to stop watching the baby. It was so amazing to see. The baby was still rather tiny but you could see everything so clearly. Kris was so excited to see the baby again and this time Special K was more than a peanut. 

We were both excited when time came to reveal Special K's gender. We both had our hunches about the gender and could not wait to find out who was right. No matter what we both had already loved Special K so much already. Gender made no difference. Fortunately, Special K was quite cooperative when it came time to reveal the gender. The tech focused in to show us. She asked what we thought. I was not too sure but I had to ask. Then came the big news. IT'S A GIRL!!!!!!! Kris was so excited. His first comment was, "Now we have to start saving for a wedding." I was just simply moved to tears. Although I wanted a boy, I knew that having a girl was something extra special. I had always planned to name my first daughter Felicity after my paternal grandmother, Felicidad. My Mama Edad is 92-years old and we have been very close since I was young. We used to do many arts and crafts together. She has inspired me and taught me so much. I was sad to learn that she would be returning home to the Philippines a couple of months before we were married. I have had the chance to speak with her via Skype shortly after we learned we were pregnant. She was the first family member we told. I told her that if we were to have a girl, we will name her after her. Mama was so happy to hear that. There was a smile so big on her face. Mama has 6 children (5 daughters and 1 son), 19 grandchildren and now our baby girl Felicity makes 22 great-grandchildren. I am honored to be carrying Mama Edad's namesake and excited for Mama to see her even if it is only by Skype.

After our ultrasound, we met with the specialist Dr. Barron. She informed us that little Felicity is perfectly healthy at this time. She measured exactly where she needed to be (According to the OB we were 18 weeks and 6 days and she was measuing 18 weeks and 5 days) She told us we were on track for an average 7-7.5lb baby. I was taken a little by surprise since my nieces and nephews were not much bigger than 6lbs. A 7-lb baby in is a BIG baby for our family but I was glad to hear that she is very healthy. It was such a relief to hear. We both let out a deep sigh of relief. We could not be more excited to meet our little one in a few months.

This reminded me of a "classic" ultrasound picture that you might see in a book, magazine or poster but this time it was of OUR little girl.

She is such the cutie already!

The tech told us that she has Daddy's nose not a Filipino, flat nose.

She was sucking her thumb.

She has LONG legs like Daddy. She likes to kick me on my left side.

She waved hi for Mommy and Daddy. Hi baby girl!!!!!!!!

Dear Special K Felicity,

We are so happy to have seen you dance, somersault, kick and even wave for us. It was certainly an exciting show to see. We cannot get enough. I wish we could have watched all day. Keep on growing in there. Stay strong and active. I do not mind if you give me a little kick here and there to let me know you are okay but please be gentle. We will see you very soon little one. Remember you are already so loved.

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

Our Special K

No, it is not cereal but we are expecting our first bundle of joy. After suspecting we might be pregnant for a few weeks, we learned of our new bundle of joy on my birthday. What a birthday gift it was!!! We were overjoyed when we saw the EPT.

The best birthday gift

We are now 9 weeks and Special K (which is what we are calling him/her since we do not know the gender) is due on January 21, 2012. We do not really have preference except for a happy, healthy baby. Kris is thinking pink but I am thinking blue so one of us is right.

Say cheese! Baby at 8 weeks and 2 days.

Family photo

The next 7 1/2 months are going to mean BIG changes for us and we cannot wait for our little one to finally get here. We are slowly working on organizing the house to make room for baby. We do not know what lies ahead for us but each new experience fills our hearts with joy.

Dear Special K,

Mommy and Daddy love you so much already. We cannot wait to meet you. We are getting things ready for you here. We cannot wait for you to see what we have prepared for you. Stay safe. Grow big.

Lots of love, Mommy and Daddy

Age is nothing but a number...

Happy 91st Birthday Lola Rosa!

Me: Please Grandma, tell me your secret. How do you look so young?
Grandma: A diet of chicken, fish, vegetables, and rice.
Me (to Kris): We are changing our diet tomorrow. I want to look like Grandma when I am 91.

Grandma Rosa and I at our wedding.

Grandma Rosa and I celebrating her 90th birthday

We were so blessed to have Grandma Rosa (my maternal Grandmother) living with us since I was just ten years old. I always remembered her as having a very active lifestyle. She was athletic and played volleyball into her 60s before moving to the States. She still gardens, sews, and walks everyday. She is healthy with only a few things that come along with "old age." She worked for public health back home in the Philippines (as told to us by my mother) which required her to walk from house to house giving shots, delivering babies, and providing health care for new mothers. She even went to the far off barrios and often stayed there for an entire week. Sometimes she did more than provide health care. She would clean their house, wash the clothes, and do other any other needed chores. She has been a great example of wife and mother.

We pray that she lives for many more years to come. We will be here to celebrate 100 with you Grandma Rosa. We love you!

Animal Behavior

Don't let the cute face fool you

Other than my college roommate's cat LuLu, I have never really lived with a pet full time before. I have lived with roommates who had pets including my sister and her family but taking care of the pet was never my full time responsibility. I never really had the chance to learn much about animal behavior or demeanor. In the past year, I have learned a lot about having a pet from our dear Gracie.

Gracie as a kitten circa 2001

Let me give you a little background on how Gracie came to live with Kris and now us. Gracie was a Christmas/birthday gift from his sister Hannah. He almost did not want to take her home until I convinced him he had to bring her home. He was living in an apartment that did not allow pets and was soon moving. He did not want to take her and pay extra fees to keep her. But it was too late. I was so in love with her. I kept was playing with her and trying to think of a name. My first thought was Kasey because his initials -- KCK but the name did not seem to fit her. I tried to think of names to fit her feisty personality but none of those seemed to fit her either. Then it hit. She was a cute little gray kitten. Gray-cie. Gracie. The name was perfect. He looked at me and then back at her, and he knew he had to take her home. He made some arrangements with Hannah to keep her until he found a new place and could bring her home. After about 3 months or so, Gracie came home to live with Kris.

Gracie was a very playful kitten

It was not soon after she came home that he fell in love with her, too. How could you resist her? She was cute and playful. And she kept him company at night. Since we were only dating, I had an apartment of my own. At night Kris would come home to his apartment and she would be there waiting for him. I came over as often as I could to see her and play with her. She was just too cute that I could not stay away. 

Kris and Gracie reading the Sunday comics

Gracie's curiosity has always gotten the best of her

She found her way to places she was not supposed to be

Fast forward ten years, Gracie is now a ten-year old cat. It has been just Gracie and Kris all these years. They have lived in many different places but she has been his only roommate. He has been her only housemate, too. They have taken care of one another. She has grown pretty attached to Kris and was not looking forward to anyone moving in on her territory. Little did she know that the once frequent visitor would soon become a permanent resident in her home. This was quite an adjustment for both of us. I had never had the pleasures of experiencing her daily routine with Kris. After only a few weeks, I was introduced to her daily rituals.

Gracie on our dining room chair then...

Now...ten years later

Nighttime Ritual

Gracie has a very particular nighttime ritual. Just when things are perfectly quiet and we are all ready for bed Gracie is ready to start her routine. She will parade all through the house with her "mouse" and meow as if to show off her find for the night. Her parade ends back in our bedroom (where it began of course) to announce her find. After receiving adequate praise she will finally jump into bed to settle in for the night. This routine usually does not start until it is completely silent. Sometimes I am just about to fall asleep when I start to hear her meows from outside our door. The meows do not cease until she has been given praise from both of us and a proper invitation to bed. This ritual can last anywhere from five to ten minutes without stopping. Rarely we just have to ignore her until she finally decides to settle in for the night.  

I'm not as dumb as I look

I have learned in just the last twelve months that pets are not as dumb as they look or even pretend to be. They do cute things just to get your attention and you look at them. They look so cute and innocent but they really have something else up their sleeve. She knows who to nuzzle up to (kiss up) to get what she wants. No matter how high up or out of reach I put something she will find her way to it. She knows where to hide or how far under the bed to sit so just barely touch her. She can tell you just how mad she is when we have been gone to long. She just have to give you that "look" and whatever she wants is hers. Sometimes I wonder if she really is a cat or just a small child hidden under all that fur.

Despite all Gracie's silly antics and annoying behaviors, we love her to death. She always has been OUR little girl. She is the best kitty and I am so happy that Kris decided to take her home with him. I know that he is, too!

Having Cake (and Eating it, too!)

Our cake topper: One Year Later

Throughout our first year of marriage I wondered if our cake topper would survive in the freezer and make it to our first anniversary. I had heard many stories about the cake tasting horrible a year later and most couples throwing it out after taking one bite. For the first few weeks after we were married when I would see the cake in the freezer, I would tell myself I had to take it out and wrap it up in plastic wrap as the wedding cake designer had said so that it would remain fresh. As the weeks and months went by (and the cake remained in the freezer on the plate covered with a plastic top just as we had received it after the reception) I kept praying that it would be decent enough for us to enjoy at least one slice. I was not expecting to finish the whole cake but I wanted for us to enjoy at least one slice. It was, after all, a red velvet cake and my favorite kind of cake.

A couple of nights before our anniversary we took the cake out of the freezer to defrost. I knew it would take a little while to defrost the cake after an entire year in the freezer. We left it out on the counter for a few hours then let it finish defrosting in the refrigerator before finally cutting into it on our anniversary day.

Attempting to cut the cake by myself

The initial cut was a little difficult but I was not surprised. We used the same cake cutter we did on our wedding day which had been given to us by Kris' Mom. I remembered it being difficult to cut into the cake on our wedding day, too. We had to cut through the fondant and two layers of cake. The topper was no different. Kris and I made the initial cut together just as we did on our wedding day. Then came the big moment. It was time to taste the cake. We were both a little nervous. We were not sure how to go about it. We wanted to eat a slice as part of the tradition but we were both fearful of how it would taste. We finally decided to take a taste together. We were pleasantly surprised that the cake did not taste all that bad. It was still pretty moist as when I had tried it during the cake tasting. The cake was pretty heavy but it was too be expected for a real southern red velvet cake.

Cutting the cake together

Eating our cake topper one year later

Despite the fact that the cake was not half bad, I still do not think we will end up eating the whole cake topper. We have a hard time finishing a fresh cake when it is just the two of us. How much more for a cake that is more than a year old? I am happy that it did not taste bad. I have even enjoyed another piece since our anniversary. I would have been so sad if we could not have even had that one bite.

Perhaps I will make us a red velvet cake for our next anniversary.

Our First Anniversary

First Wedding Anniversary

Traditional anniversary gift: Paper
Modern anniversary gift: Plastic/clock
Travel anniversary gift ideas: Travel gift certificate, Airline tickets

For more anniversary ideas check out this website

Husband and Wife: One Year Later

When I read the traditional gift for the first anniversary, I started to think about what kind of gift I could get for my husband to celebrate our first anniversary. Paper? What kind of meaningful paper gift can I get? Although I can write a great romantic and sentimental card, I did not want to get JUST a card as our first anniversary gift. I wanted to get something that would chronicle our first year and would be cherished. But paper? So with some extra thought we both came up with a couple of great gifts that we can cherish for many years to come.

Kris' gift: Jim Brickman tickets

Kris' original gift idea was an annual pass to one of the major theme parks. We are so fortunate to live within a couple of hours of the best theme parks. This seemed to be a great idea at first until we realized how hot it really gets in Florida. A pass good until the end of the year would have been okay if we purchased it earlier in the year when we could have used it while the weather was still cool. As the temperatures get hotter and hotter, the likelihood of using the pass in the next couple months was not very likely.

Jim Brickman in Concert at the Van Wezel

Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall

The back of the hall faces the bay

He still wanted to get tickets but now we were considering a show either locally or nearby. We have a couple of performing arts halls and forums within a couple of hours. We even have a local theatre nearby. We found a couple of shows of interest including a Jim Brickman concert at the local theatre the Saturday before our anniversary.

We got dressed up and headed down to the local theatre on Saturday evening hoping that tickets were still available. Lucky for us, there were still tickets available for the show. It was a perfect anniversary gift. Jim Brickman talked about celebrating his 15 year anniversary as a recording artist and performer this past Christmas. He talked about how it was much like a wedding anniversary. His music was soft and romantic. It was simply a perfect night.

 

Night Rain by Jim Brickman

The Gift by Jim Brickman

My gift: A Photo Journal

A photo journey of our the good times we have shared

After much thought, I finally decided on a photo journal for an anniversary gift. I knew it was not going to cost much money. I had all the materials (paper of course) in my scrapbooking supplies. I wanted it to make all from paper and by hand. I had some pictures from our first year of marriage as well as pictures from our early days of dating. I organized them into a small "album" which I made using black pages and a brown cover. I used letters and some stickers I had to decorate the album. I was a little worried that Kris would not find it sentimental but when I gave it to him and we looked at it together, he loved every picture and sharing the memories we have made together. We looked at it again while waiting for the concert to start. It was like taking a photo journey through our the last 10 years together. It was a great memory for both of us. He said a few times throughout the night how much he had loved the album and the memories contained in it. We have had fun just looking through it and remembering the good times we have shared.

The inside cover to start the journey

The end of the album but not our journey

The back of the album

We had a perfect weekend celebrating our first anniversary. We were able to celebrate with some family and friends who had been with us on the day we were married. We went back to the Church where were married and said a prayer or two for the year ahead. We even visited the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe, one of our most favorite places. On the actual day of our anniversary, we went to Mass together and then enjoyed a nice quiet breakfast. It was the perfect way to end our anniversary weekend and celebrate.

Daybook

FOR TODAY

April 6, 2011

Outside my window... it is a beautiful sunny 77 degrees. It is a perfect day for a bike ride and some fresh air.

I am thinking... about using flylady.net to get motivated to keep up with my daily/weekly chores.

I am thankful for... friends who are also great prayer warriors. Not only do they keep us in their daily prayers but also our friends and family who are facing difficult times and in need of extra prayers.

From the kitchen... half a party pizza is warming in the toaster oven and a half-pound of ground beef is defrosting.

I am wearing... the same pajamas for the last couple of days. It is time to get out and enjoy the day.

I am creating... a paper first anniversary gift. I have been working on it in secret. Hubby has no idea what it is.

I am going... to treat myself to a milkshake from McDonald’s. I want a shamrock shake if they still have them. 

I am STILL reading... Financial Peace Revisited. I am struggling with my book a month goal. I have to find a day where I can just sit and read.

I am hoping praying... for Nancy and Joan.

 
Rest in peace Carl. You lived a long and blessed life. Our lives are enriched because we knew you. Eternal rest grant unto Carl and may perpetual light sine upon him. May Carl and the souls of all the faithfully departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.

I am hearing... DING! -- the sound of the toaster oven. Pizza is warm. Yummy!

Around the house... it is calm and quiet. There are a few small chores that need to be done but overall it is rather peaceful.

One of my favorite things... getting to talk with family on Skype. My 3-year-old niece sang nursery rhymes to me. She even asked my sister to call back after we hung up just to show me her new “glasses.”

A few plans for the rest of the week:

Thursday: Semniar Week #7
Friday: Orlando
Saturday: Easter Egg Hunt with Young Adults in Christ
Sunday: Our first anniversary

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

New landscaping project

Our front walk

The shrub we picked out.

It is called Loropetalum or Emerald Snow.

The view across the "lake" from under our oak tree.

http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/
The Simple Woman's Daybook is a brief outline for women/mothers who blog to use as a way to compose thoughts, plan the week, and keep a grateful heart. It is typically published once a week on Tuesdays.