June Happenings

June has been yet another busy month filled with a lot of variety.
 

Enoch volunteered(on top of his busy work schedule) at the Institute of Texan Cultures and the San Antonio Food Bank. He is also helping me build several props that will be used in the upcoming newborn and family photography sessions. Enoch has also been very busy finishing up the last units he needed to complete his Bachelors degree. I am so happy that after years of being in school, he can officially get a degree.

Melany started preschool this month and although at first was uneasy about changing teachers, she transitioned better than we thought. And did I mention our little girl is potty trained almost! She no longer uses diapers in the day, only one at night. Yay!! Melany has been a #1 Frozen fan for months now. Our family in LA mailed her the movie and now she has memorized ALL the songs and acts them out. She is turning in to quite the entertainer. I am working on adding her reenactments of the movie scenes on youtube because it is so funny to see her get in to character without any cue or assistance from anyone. She all of a sudden starts singing and acting! Who knew!?

And I continue to work and grow. I will be 31 weeks pregnant tomorrow. I am glad I'm in my third trimester because we can't wait to meet our sweet Baby. I am looking forward to taking my friends newborn baby pictures as well. I have been on pinterest to get ideas for props. One of my favorites is a Baby Bed that Enoch will be helping me make. I have also been making my rounds these past months to each of the Young Women groups in my ward presenting on "Self-Worth." I created a power point presentation and have enjoyed discussing this topic with them. I do not have a calling in young women but because of my job the Young women leaders asked me a while ago to talk to them about self-worth/God.

We are very much looking forward to July as it will be full of many wonderful memories as we spend time with family and friends in the various upcoming celebrations and out of town trips!

The gifts Melany gave for her DAD for fathers day(made at preschool)

Melany loves her little Sister already, without us asking she always kisses and says"Hi" to her "Baby"



We love reading to Melany, this is one of our favorite books about a Guatemalan family

Having some fun in the sun with her Corvette

 

Melany and her Daddy napping in the couch

 

I found this shirt at a Garage Sale, Melany as Jesse the cowgirl

My brother's girlfriend Aurora was in town and brought us gifts from my family in LA

Watching the US vs. Portugal soccer game

Shopping with Mama

Melany trying to do a ballet move

Another girl!

Have I mentioned how happy we are to be expecting another little girl?!

 We found out on the day of our anniversary. Enoch and I took the day off work and Melany was with us for the ultrasound appointment. Enoch and I were very shocked because we really thought I was having a boy. I thought that because my nausea and other symptoms were worse than with Melany, this time around it would be a boy.

After the shock, we were able to really imagine how wonderful it's going to be for Melany to have a little sister. And I thought how fun it is to dress and shop for little girls!

My pregnancy has gotten better but I am still feeling very tired. Working 9 hour days makes for a very tired Mama. And we've also been working on potty training Melany so I am extra tired. But I can't complain, I am 24 weeks tomorrow (6 months) and both the baby and I are doing well.

Our little girl kicks so much and it can get interesting  being in a therapy session at work, and all of a sudden a little kick reminds me she is there.

We also just finished taking birthing classes taught by our doula.

Yes! I am having a doula and I am aiming for a VBAC. I want to experience natural labor without meds (as muCh as possible).  I will be using skills I learned in grad school about CBT and relaxation exercises, meditation..as well as reading up and studying everything about hypnobirthing.  I will also be doing prenatal yoga.

23 weeks

Melany is super excited to have  a baby sister

Melany says "this is my baby"

21 weeks

Easter 2014

We've had such busy weeks in April. I need to write another post on all of it.

But I don't want to forget to post the pictures of Easter. We teach and talk with Melany about Jesus all the time. However, she is still young to understand the resurrection, so we just reminded her how much Jesus loves us. On Easter day we didn't do much but had dinner and hid eggs for Melany in our "under construction" backyard.

 It was that weekend that Enoch barely finished putting up the gazebo so we hid the eggs in the grass and Melany jumped for joy looking for them. She had an Easter basket but only to place the eggs in them. A lot of people here bought their children baskets full of toys and gifts. We opted to just placing small chocolates inside the eggs. We also took some pictures of each other and our little Sariah (Melany's middle name).

 

Our 5 year anniversary

“Marriage is a mosaic you build with your spouse. Millions of tiny moments that create your love story.” — Jennifer Smith

     It seems like just yesterday on a November day in 2007 that I met a sweet, funny, tall, blue-eyed gentleman. Almost a year and a half later in 2009, I got sealed to him in the San Diego temple for time and all eternity. It's been five years since that we embarked on the journey of marriage. As I look back, I realize just how much I've grown and learned about myself, Enoch, God and marriage. One of the things I learned from the start is that marriage is not easy. I realized that it takes so much more than just love, and it's surely a work in progress.

          I am less selfish, more considerate and patient than I was before. I love Enoch more because of our trials than I ever thought possible. In these past five years we have traveled to another country, been separated for 6 months, endured a miscarriage, moved 8 times, moved states, joined the military, received a Masters degree, cried much, laughed often, bought our first home, had our first child and now expecting our second. Our marriage is not perfect. I am not perfect. Enoch is not perfect.

      We understood each other because of our upbringing. We saw the potential in each other and like our patriarchal blessing said we had an "instant bond." I fell in love with Enoch because he offered me things that others could not. He gave me unconditional, genuine love, patience, empathy, kindness and laughter. Growing up, I never thought I would find someone like him nor have the happiness that I feel in his arms.

     I know I am blessed to have such a hard-working, humble, loving man in my life. John Legend has a song with lyrics that say "'Cause all of me..Loves all of you..You're my end and my beginning.. Love all your perfect imperfections."

I love Enoch for his imperfections and admire his willingness to work for our children, our, happiness and marriage. I am really looking forward to spending the rest of my life and eternity with Enoch. And I am so grateful for the family we have.

The first picture we took together-November 2007

 



 

Honeymoon in Hawaii

We baked a cake the Sunday before the date to celebrate our anniversary

Enoch took us on a horse drawn chariot ride around downtown

Dinner at our favorite place

Enoch building a Gazeebo for our backyard

Enoch the builder really wanted to put a gazebo in the backyard our house. We chose not to pay $3,000 to the home builder as we wanted something different and not pay so much. We way paid less than that and saved tons on labor.  Enoch spend every time he could after work and on the weekends to finish the gazebo. And it looks great. We are still working on adding plants, and stones on the ground but for now, we are loving it! Now we have shade for the hot, summer days ahead.



 

 

How our backyard looked before.

 

 

 

Cowboys for heroes event

          Last month we were able to attend a free event for military families. It was held at Fort Sam Houston (Army base) and it had a Western theme. They had authentic "cowboy" cooking on 1800s-style chuck wagons, live music, ponies, sheep and we also got to see a  Rodeo Show. The weather was nice and the base was not too far from our house.

     The food and drinks were also free so Enoch had a blast eating all of the BBQ, burgers, baked beans and corn bread possible. Melany opted to not ride the mechanical bull or horses.  She would say she would, I would get in line and then she would freak out at the last minute. Melany did manage to run and land her whole body in a big puddle of mud. Daddy came to the rescue and changed her clothes quickly.

 And I was wishing I could get on the bull, horses and crave all the food Enoch ate but I couldn't. Nonetheless, I was happy with spending the day with my family. It was a  very nice event and we are grateful we got treated to all the fun.

 

Right before she landed in the mud-watching the sheep

 

We love the USA!

 

All about Social Work!

NASW(National Association of Social Workers) first introduced National Professional Social Work Month in March 1963. The purpose of this introduction was to encourage public support and interest in social work as a profession. It wasn't until 1984 that the White House officially recognized March as National Professional Social Work Month.

Many think they know what social workers do. But unless you are one, it’s hard to really understand what we do.

I am a member of NASW. I’ve been doing “social work” type of jobs for about 10 years now. I’ve worked with the homeless population, children in elementary through high school, foster families and children involved with CPS, hospice, home health, the elderly, probation, psychiatrists, doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals. My most memorable jobs have been working with Autistic children, families, and immigrant communities.

However, I feel more in my “niche” doing what I do now which is providing psychotherapy and other types of mental health interventions/modalities for individuals. Most are referred by our doctors who often jokingly tell to me “fix” them.

In these past 10 years, I’ve helped people move in to homes after being chronically homeless, assist young girls/boys in realizing their full potential and self-worth. I’ve assisted people from being evicted, advocated for my clients in front of judges, lawyers and/or doctors.  People have yelled, cursed, cried, had panic attacks, hallucinated, and smiled right in front of my eyes. Individuals have recounted severe traumatic experiences in my office, only to find out I was the first person they disclosed this information to. This is why I love my job! This is why I love being a social worker(minus the yelling and cursing).

 I’ve been given the blessing of being an instrument in the hands of the Lord. I try to instill hope, love, compassion, empathy, and motivation to my clients. I want them to see how important they are in the sight of God.

And there have been times for example in the earlier years that a client was so mean that I cried in the bathroom. But I learned so much: about them and myself.

 I know I still have a lot to learn and can really say this is my calling.  I know my own experiences, and trials have led me to this field. Being a social worker has helped me be a better mother, sister, friend, wife and overall a more consciences human being.



Picture with co-workers taken by MHM photographer

 

And this sums its up