The JOY of Life

We've been experiencing lots of joy this holiday season... from the joys of sisterhood you see above, to the joys of one-on-one time, to the joys of doing things for others. To learn more about the good times in our lives, read on!

Some one-on-one time can be found for Isabella and Momma when we use the sling. This was our first attempt at the kangaroo carry, which she's still a little too small for...
... and the cradle carry which suits her just fine, as you can see! She loves being close, and I love having my hands free. If you need a recommendation for a pouch-style sling, just ask! I'll share my source!
Quick to remind me that she is a baby, too, Ivy wanted to be swaddled one day. Of course when you ask her to give you a turn at brushing her teeth she responds with, "I'll do it! I'll do it! I'm a grown-up!" Well, three-year-old, please make up your mind. I can't keep up with whether you need me, or not!
We've really enJOYed the homemade Advent Calendar of activities that Katrina suggested...
Our Advent Calendar has had us making treats for neighbors...
Making ornaments at the local library......which meant some one-on-one time for Ivy...
... and a very serious round of snacking!
We've visited Santa at the mall. Here Ivy is telling Isabella all about the excitement to come...
...but once we were there she wasn't so sure she wanted to get up-close and personal!
She didn't mind telling him all about the pictures she has of him at home!
We finally got a pretty decent shot!

We've also had some wrapping fun, made fruit loop garland, watched A Charlie Brown Christmas (complete with hot cocoa), and shared lots of other joyful moments!

I'm certain that with all the hustle and bustle, I won't update again before Christmas, so wherever you are know that we are sending you warm wishes for a merry Christmas holiday!

Patience

The title of this post has several applications, as I know that you (meaning you who are not yet on facebook) have had patience with me waiting for the introduction of our newest family member, and also as I have prayed for patience a lot of times over the past few weeks! :)

First of all, I would like you to meet Isabella Marissa Adela Alfaro. She was born on November 10th (which a number nerd like me LOVES because it's 11-10-9) after six hours of labor.

From inside my tummy, she seemed as though she was a bit different than her sister... she moved and kicked ALL of the time, and she seemed to like touch, curling up under my hand, a book, the seatbelt, anything resting on my stomach. Ivy was VERY different. She only moved a few times a day and if something rested on my tummy, she thumped it and quickly moved away. Isa continued to show her differences by waiting patiently (and requiring a bit of pitocin) to come out (labor with Ivy was 4 hours). Since her arrival she has had no trouble with formula (I however have had the same issue with milk supply only making about enough for one bottle a day), she has created more dirty diapers than Ivy did in the first year, she has slept more than Ivy slept in 6 months, and she is a blondie from birth whereas Ivy was a brunette!

Of course there are a MILLION pictures I could share with you, but I doubt you really want to see them all, so here are a few of Isa's first weeks at home...




Not to be forgotten, here is Ivy at her Thanksgiving program. I guess this is the last time she'll be in the Trinity program, because next year she'll be in PreK at the BIG kids' school!
And here is a picture of our little blessing on Thanksgiving Day.
We have also enjoyed decorating for the Christmas Season now that Thanksgiving is behind us. (I’m just not one of those people who can decorate for one holiday before the current one has been thoroughly celebrated!)
Yes...she's on the roof.
The numbers hadn't lit up yet...but it was 31 (taken on Thanksgiving night).
Ivy has adjusted to life as a big sister remarkably well, and she shows her love and care for her sister each and every day in the sweetest ways...

"Here, Isabella. You can have movie night on the floor with me!"

"Oh. I can give her a bath!"
"Isabella, this is how you squeak the pig."

However, life is definitely smoother for Ivy when it follows a bit of a pattern. The past few days of Thanksgiving Vacation have been difficult for her because there has been no normalcy given the fact that our "normal" has changed and that is evermore apparent when she's not in the routine of school. This, and a lack of continuity in my sleep for a few weeks now, has caused me to pray for patience often. I'm trying very hard to remember that Ivy's world has changed and that as a new three-year-old her coping skills are not that well developed... Heck, I'm a not-so-new thirty-one-year-old and my coping skills with this new adjustment have been challenged! Please continue to pray for us, that patience is abundant and grace overflows!


We are starting to feel a little rhythm in our days now, and with the holidays behind us (and ahead of us) there is so much to be thankful for and no matter the stress, I'm keeping the blessings at the forefront of my mind!

How truly lucky we are...

Thankful for Thirty

So I took the challenge and then I had a baby. So... Nov. 12 and Nov. 19 have come and gone, and the chances that I'll be in a place where I can post on Nov. 26 are slim, so I'm going to take advantage of this moment and finish out the month. Believe me, it will be an easy thing to do! I'll warn you though, we're going with free association which means no rhyme or reason to the order!

Today I'm thankful for...
*the newest angel that God blessed our family with
*being able to see the bond between Ivy and Isabella grow
*a good husband and father with whom to share this journey
*any night where there are more than 2 consecutive hours of sleep
*a soft bed to rest in
*closed captioning which means I can watch TV while feeding Isa in the middle of the night...it sure helps the time pass more quickly, and it doesn't stimulate Isa
*a baby who is consolable when fussy
*a precious little girl who turned three years old last weekend and has taught me more about love and patience than any other person in the world
*the tears that still flow too freely from my eyes...they remind me of how deeply I can feel love
*friends who have kept me sane, just by checking in to say "How are you?"
*an affordable plane ticket to bring my wacky, loveable mother to visit
*a wacky, loveable mother who is willing to put her life on hold to keep Isa for a month
*unbelievable in-laws who will be staying with us to keep Isa for three months
*my aunt and uncle who have inspired such a unique heart (and vocabulary) in Ivy
*friends who share everything from nursing pads and maternity clothes to the humor of a pitifully low milk supply (which negates the need for nursing pads).
*the memories the word cajun evokes. Wow....can you say Eunice?
*a job that I love that's waiting for me in January.
*that at home there are no nurses waking me up every hour
*a doctor who understood exactly what was important to me in Isabella's delivery
*a sister who has checked in just when we needed her
*friends who provided dinner and save me from a mini-meltdown over trying to decide what to feed the family when feeding Isa was the only thing on my mind
*clean water to drink
*an herbal tea doesn't taste bad
*chocolate
*shows that I look forward to on TV...it's a nice distraction
*cousins...I cannot believe the bond we've developed even though the miles between us are so great
*facebook for bringing those who are far away in to my living room (and my heart) each day
*skype for allowing Isabella and Ivy's extended family to be part of their lives
*the modern conveniences like the telephone and internet that keep the feeling of isolation at bay
*each and every breath I get to take

Thankful Thursday

Accepting Sarai's challenge to list 10 things I'm thankful for every Thursday this month, I'm going to put my list here and encourage you to do the same on your own blog, in your journal, or just in your heart here and now...

*My family, near and far, crazy and sane
*A warm, clean home
*The clean, fresh water in the bottle in front of me
*The opportunity to enjoy pregnancy
*Unexpected lunch with my sister yesterday
*A soft place to lay my head
*Gas in my car
*Food in my panty/fridge
*This moment of quiet
*The promise that God is watching over me

October's End

Our little Dorothy posing at the front door with Ghostie Girl and Mr. Pumpkin. Although she didn't really know who Dorothy was until we watched The Wizard of Oz earlier in the week, she was totally agreeable to the outfit because of the Ruby Slippers! She wanted to wear them everywhere!

Our All Hallows' Eve actually had weather befitting of spooky times... it was gray, dreary, and misty most of the day with periods of all out rain in the afternoon. Luckily, there was a break in the rain just about 5:30 when Ivy and our neighbor, Samantha, met up to hit the houses in the neighborhood.

Here they are posing on our front porch, and Ivy is in the middle of clearly explaining that she "...will smile for her Momma, but not for you, Papa!" Oh, what a mess she can be!
They were back in about 20 minutes, and Ivy enjoyed some of the spoils...
and then our funny little girl declared that she did not want to go to Aunt Shirley's to trick-or-treat, nor did she want to go to the festival at her school... so we stayed in with a Tinkerbell movie that Papa surprised her with.
Thanks to the late movie night, she handled the time change as if nothing were different at all! Hooray!

And so, October ends and we are still a family of three...but do you know what that means??? It means that Isabella will be in eight days or less! Oh. My. Goodness! I don't imagine I'll post again until she's here...so, so long (for the last time) from the Alfaro three...

Jesus

So, Ivy and I have fallen into a little bit of a routine when it comes to her naptime. That's sort of new for us... now, she actually WANTS to come home after school and I think part of that is because she knows what to expect from the afternoon, and she likes it. So typically we come home, we use "teamwork" to make a snack and she {gasp} checks out one of her favorite 30 minute shows. This gives me some uninterrupted time to unpack her bags and go through the mail we collected on our way in. She knows that when the credits roll, it's time to potty, change, and take a rest.

She does great until we get to the rest part...and then she can stall like no two year old before her! She will sit on the potty for eternity, do whatever she can to prolong handwashing, require a selection of outfits for napping, take her sweet time choosing, ask a MILLION really good questions that I find it difficult to resist, and so on...and the beauty of her stalling is that I am loath to pick her up and put her squarely in the bed because I know that unless she gets there in her own time, it does more harm than good. So what does that have to do with Jesus?

Well, just now, she's been in her room for about 25 minutes and while I've heard her bumping around, I don't go check on her because our deal is and always has been that she doesn't have to sleep, but she does have to occupy yourself quietly- in her room- for an hour. This time she called me back to her room. Here's our conversation that I oh-so-impatiently participated in, seeing it only as a stall tactic until it became so much more...

I: Look, I found Mary! Come see!
M: Oh, I do see...
I: And I found Adam and Eve in the front...
M: That's great...
I: (turning pages) And here's Abraham and Rebekkah and Baby Moses and Joshua and Goliath!
M: Yes, I see...
I: Why Goliath was being mean?
M: Well, because he didn't have Jesus in his heart, so he didn't think it was important to be kind to others. He didn't love God, but David did.

Now...I should tell you the following part of our conversation has happened many, many times...to a certain extent.

I: David has Jesus in his heart but I don't.
M: Well, Jesus gives us a choice. He wants us to WANT him in our hearts, so we have to ask him to live in our heart and to help us be the good person he wants us to be. Jesus helped David because David needed him, and if He is in your heart he can help you, too.
I: And Jesus will be in my heart when I ask him...
M: That's right.

Now, this is the part that's different than before, and how glad I am that my impatience didn't get in the way.

I: (big breath, big smile) Jesus, will you come mumm-mmumum-mmm.
M: Ivy, sweetheart, you don't have to hide your face in the bed when you talk to Jesus. You don't have to be embarrassed or bashful. Jesus loves, you and He is SO glad to talk to you.
I: (sits up straight, lifts her hands and her face to heaven, smiles, and LOUDLY says) Dear, Jesus, will you please come and live in my heart and I can do the right thing, please ma'am?

Now, I know that this isn't the same as an older youth who really "understands" what salvation is all about. But because of the bashfulness of a usually bold little girl, and the grin that went from ear to ear, I also know what a truly special moment this was...and as if I needed validation, when her papa came home two hours later and asked if she napped or just rested she replied, "Well, I asked Jesus to live in my heart!"

By the way, I updated the blog with our weekly post this morning, so scroll on down for a little update...

Rain or Shine

Rain or shine, we have spent the last week enjoying one of my favorite seasons, Autumn! It's a wonderful time to admire God's handiwork as the everyday scenery becomes something more when bathed in reds, oranges, and yellows...

This weekend, thanks to a little more water from the heavens, we spent most of our time indoors...so we decided to bring a little of the outdoors in! Thanks to our friends at Three Simple Girls for the reminder of something so simple and fun!
We made our Autumn Hand Art on wax paper so that after it dried it could be cut out to make a sun-catcher in the window...
Monday, beautiful Monday! The week started with sunshine and warm weather, and we spent every possible minute outside! We hung out with our Halloween Friends...
We hula-hooped to our hearts content... (Well, this little girl named Mary/Camila/Tarrin/Landyn/Samantha did...)
And everyday, we waited for that joyous moment when Papa would be home to share the sunshine with us! Here she has just spied his truck coming down the road. Have you ever seen a happier girl?


And for a little update on the other girl in our lives: I developed an ear infection, probably from water in my ear during a shower, and went to the doctor a day earlier than usual. Isabella is sitting about as low as she can without tumbling out! Literally. The doctor said that it could be any day now with no worries as I made it to "term" on Tuesday when I hit 37 weeks. I wouldn't be surprised if I don't end up with an induction as I had with Ivy, but as long as she's happily baking away, I'm content to let her be. I feel great, and know that we are truly, truly blessed...

Showers of Blessings...

Last Sunday our dear friend Brooke hosted a shower for Isabella... the shower favors were "to-go" sippy cups filled with treats from the candy bar. It was only one of the many special touches that Brooke created...

We had some really fun moments, and received many, much appreciated, gifts for Isa...

It was a terrific time of fellowship with friends and family (my sister and aunt joined us). We are truly blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives.

We know that Isabella will be joining us sooner rather than later, so we've been tackling the to-do list...finally completing her nursery...

and practicing for her arrival. Here Ivy is sporting a pouch-style baby sling that I made for her! She has been intrigued by my sling since it arrived in the mail one day, but of course it's WAY too big for her...so now she has one that is just right for her and baby Mimi.

I'm a little bigger at 36 weeks than I was when we started this journey, but I cannot complain! I have been so lucky to have had another healthy pregnancy. For those keeping track, yes! I've gained more weight this time (11-13 lbs, depending on the day).

Ivy, who never wants to have her picture made these days, wanted to show of her belly too!

And since we know that our days as a family of three are numbered, we're trying to spend special time with Ivy in the hopes that she'll feel secure about her place in this family, and in our hearts, when our attention and sleep-deprived thoughts are a bit more scattered. On Friday we took advantage of the beautiful afternoon and went to play our first round of putt-putt. Papa taught her proper form, and... as you can see, she was a natural!