First Baby Shower Pictures

Here is a link for the pictures from my first baby shower…

Discover Church Baby Shower

Baby shower #2 coming up this Saturday and I hope to get those pictures out a little quicker.

9 weeks and counting!!

17-27 weeks

Not surprisingly, I’ve slacked for the last 10 weeks!  My pregnancy continues right on track, and I have a lot of the normal symptoms, but not many of the most commonly talked about (mood swings, cravings, crying for no reason), maybe they’ll all suddenly show up on these last three months, who knows?  I’m very thankful that it’s been easy going so far!

Blogging slowed up because we had an ultrasound around 16-17 weeks to try to determine the sex of our sweet little one. The result of that was that it was a 70% chance that it was a girl. Well! I don’t want to know only 70%!! We were reluctantly excited and decided that since ultrasounds can be cheap down here that we would do another one to be 100% sure before our trip to the States where we’d be thrown a baby shower. (We didn’t want a bunch of pink clothes if a little boy came out!). We went to another ultrasound place a couple weeks later that offered 3D ultrasounds. However, we weren’t able to get a good 3D image at that time, but we did get confirmation that it was a girl! So we were able to let our full excitement come to the surface. Leyla Elaine Lozano is due on August 2nd (or whenever she decides to come around then).

We’ve been taking pictures, but not weekly. We’re slackers, and in need of a good camera readily available (we have one that someone is going to let us borrow after Leyla is born).  Here’s one that we put on facebook at 20 weeks:

We’re currently in the States for support raising,  and Discover Church threw us an awesome baby shower where we received most of the the items we needed, including what was my most desired gift: our supply of cloth diapers! I’ll share shower pictures soon!

16 Weeks

Ok so better photos are still to come, but at least I’m smiling in this one!

I’ve got my cloth diaper issue figured out, I’m going to bring detergent from the states, it doesn’t really take much so I won’t have to bring it that often. I had a doctor’s appointment today and everything is going well, we were able to hear the heartbeat, but never for very long because the little one moves a lot. (I feel it every now and then)!

We’ve been given the order for the long-awaited ultrasound where hopefully the little one will hold still long enough for us to figure out if he’s a he or if she’s a she!!! That update is soon to come! Here’s the latest photo… I think one of the last ones before we start seeing some significant changes, baby is due for a growth spurt!!

15 Weeks

It seems that my photos are getting worse in quality all the time. I’ll try to get better photos from now on, and not do it last thing before going to bed so I don’t have all of that mess going on with my hair 🙂

You hear all kinds of things about being pregnant. I thought, it can’t really be like that, can it? YEP, it sure is. In the first trimester, I was hungry all the time. I do feel like I live on the toilet (constantly having to pee). It IS hard to sleep. This last one is the one that’s really getting me this week. Finding a comfortable position is fine, but not having many other options to re-position myself is what is difficult. I was a side sleeper before getting pregnant, so I thought, no big deal, but sometimes it’s just nice to lay on your back which is now a big no-no. I’m surrounding myself with a sea of pillows and gently nudging Yeril off the edge of the bed more and more each night, and I don’t even have the big belly yet!

I’ve also started to put together a gift registry, maybe starting early, but when you live so far away it’s kind of necessary. It’s so much harder than I thought it would be. I wish I could just steal someone else’s and then tweek it a little. I have no idea how many bottles I’ll need.

My other battle is cloth vs. disposable. I absolutely 100% WANT to do cloth, it’s much better for the environment, and in the long-run, super cost-effective. My biggest issues now are what brand, how many, what style is going to work best for my baby. Then there’s the issue of washing them. You HAVE to wash them in warm/hot water or they won’t come clean and you’ll get build-up, this is not even an option for me unless I boil pots of water to add to my wash load as it’s filling, that will NOT be happening. Then I’ve seen comments that it’s not that big a deal you just have to compensate by washing them longer or putting a couple fewer in so they get more water per diaper, but not too few or you won’t get enough agitation to clean them. I’ve decided that cold water will work. My biggest hang up right now is detergent. From what I’ve seen if you use the wrong detergent it will absolutely ruin the ability for the diaper to do it’s work. I don’t have any of the fancy brands that are recommended available to me, and I need to do more research to see if I have any of the “free” (of fragrance, brighteners, and softeners) detergents around. Then there’s the option of making your own detergent, but I don’t think I can get the ingredients to make it either. I know people here use cloth diapers, I just have to find the right person to talk to to figure it all out. Thankfully I still have time to figure out if it’s going to work for us to use cloth living in Nicaragua, or not.

Week 14

I guess my re-caps are really from the previous week, but my pics are from the beginning of the numbered week.

Now that we have that technicality out of the way; it’s been a good week, except for the fact that I’ve had this stabbing pain in my back right above the buttocks. Called the doctor and she recommended a topical anti-inflammatory gel and to call her back if that didn’t help. After two days of laying out in bed and asking my wonderful, caring, loving husband to rub cream on my bum every couple hours, I can actually walk, sit and stand without severe pain, in fact, with no pain! Score one for anti-inflammatory gel makers.  Then half of one of my molars crumbled to bits and pieces. Getting it checked out tomorrow, but I’m expecting to need a root canal. A little research on the Internet (a pregnant woman’s worst enemy), it seems that with someone who knows what they’re doing, the second trimester is the ideal, and only time during a pregnancy that one can be done. I pray there is someone here who can do it if indeed I need one.

Here’s my pic from week 14 (It looks a lot like week 13 in case I never get that one to upload):

Week 13

Ok, so I’m finally starting to at least think I’m looking a little pregnant. It’s a bit hard to tell the difference between my normal belly and baby, belly, but this week I feel like things got a little more round in front.  I had a great pic, but for some reason I can’t get it to upload. I’ll try again later!

Week 13 was a bit difficult. It’s the end of the first trimester so I should start to feel better, and although I had an awesome first trimester without vomiting (except for a couple of extra strong gag reflexes while brushing my teeth), I have too much bacteria in my blood and the doc has me on some meds that make me at least feel bad, and at worst, vomit the entire days contents of my stomach. So first full-blown pregnancy vomit coming at you in week 13, not too distantly followed by second.  Thankfully I’ve completed the treatment and hopefully the bacteria is all gone and I won’t have to take any more vomit inducing medications.

Ultrasound Pictures

When we first found out we were pregnant, we were super excited. I was excited because that second little line finally showed up, and Yeril was more relieved to know that we actually could have kids. (I think the man’s true excitement comes after birth?) We went to the doctor around what I thought was probably week 6 and she ordered a bunch of blood work and an ultrasound.  We went right away to do the ultrasound and found out that I was just shy of 5 weeks, and we got to see our little sack (the official term at this point is gestational sack).

We were so excited, and even though it had no form yet, just seeing that it was really there was sooo exciting for me. A couple hours later we were at my in-laws showing off the picture of our little “sack” quite proudly, then a little while later skyping with my parents and still showing off that little picture.  Again, I’ll proudly show off our little “sack”:

The little dark spot is the little sack!

After we told our parents and siblings I immediately started to panic and worry about a miscarage as if I had ruined things by being excited.

Just over 6 weeks later I was back on that ultrasound table ready to see how our little sack had developed into our little baby! The only problem is that when they called me into the room, Yeril had stepped out to go to the bathroom, so he wasn’t with me. Both this time and the first time the Ultrasound Doctor wanted to try a topical ultrasound before doing the transvaginal one, so as I’m laying on the table getting gel rubbed on my abdomin I’m on the verge of tears wishing my husband were there to see this amazing little creature with hands and feet and all the little parts that should be there. The doctor gets done looking and tells me I can go to the bathroom (the topical part has to be done with a full bladder) and she asks what my husband’s name is so she can find him before the next part. As I’m getting ready to come back out I can hear Yeril enter the room and start talking to the doctor and releaf washes over me. “He’s not going to miss this amazing opportunity to see our baby for the first time!” The next part having him by my side was amazing. We heard a strong heartbeat at 162 bpm, and the little one kept moving and made it hard for the doctor to get her measurments. Later Yeril told me that he was silently rooting for the baby to “not get caught”.  Here are a few images from that encounter:

Little hands!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PS sorry about the quality, I got excited about starting these posts that I just took pictures of the pictures with my web cam, I’ll try to scan and re-upload soon!

Baby Blog

Ok, so I have many family and friends who are obviously very far away from me who I think at least a handful of them would like to keep tabs on me during my pregnancy. I don’t want to do an in-your-face weekly baby-bump facebook picture. But I will do one via blog!  This past year hasn’t been my best blogging year, but I’d like to give it another go to keep you guys updated on this developing baby! Anyway, you can check back at your leisure, I won’t be linking to all of my posts on facebook, because, really, that’s just a not as in-your-face way of being in-your-face, and it’s more work.  I hope you enjoy!

Home

Have you ever gone on vacation and thought, “Wow! This place is amazing, it’s so different from home.” When we go on vacation we usually only see the positive side of the place and don’t see the day to day struggles like we do when we’re at home. At home we see the dishes that have to be done, the bills that need to be paid, the laundry that needs to be cleaned, all that on top of our work and family. At home we see the cracks in the wall, or get frustrated with the people around us who just don’t get “it”, whatever it may be. On vacation we get to relax, spend more time with our family, spend more time with God, we can enjoy the view.

When I first moved to Nicaragua it was a little like going on vacation. It was something new, everything was different and exciting. Maybe it wasn’t always so relaxing, but it had that vacation feel. Now that I’ve been here for a few years I’m starting to see the cracks in the walls and sometimes I get a little (or a lot) frustrated with the people who just don’t get “it”.

Yesterday I was driving and I was feeling a little bad about this because I was thinking how sad it was that I didn’t love Nicaragua like I used to. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not thinking about leaving anytime soon, but I don’t have that same feeling of excitement that I once had. It used to be easy for me to say “I love Nicaragua”, now it’s a little harder. Then it hit me: Nicaragua is my home. I know it’s streets (and all the wholes that are in them), I know it’s people (good and bad), I know that it’s processes are always changing so there’s no point in really learning them. I can see the good and the bad, and I know that just because there are things that are frustrating for me, that doesn’t mean I can’t love the country as a whole. I am where God has called me to be and I am doing what He has called me to do. I absolutely love my job, and I couldn’t do this specific job anywhere else. I am home.

Be not Conformed…

Romans 12:2 says “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

I was thinking about this passage last night and about how it applies to me here in Nicaragua. Moving to a country that is not your own and trying to minister to it’s people is not always easy. Thankfully, God called me to a country that is very similar to my native country. I ask myself how things would be different if I had moved to Pakistan, or tribal Africa, what things would I have changed about myself to fit into my surroundings? If I had moved to Pakistan, would I have dressed according to Muslim traditions? Yes! If I had moved to tribal Africa, would I have gone topless? Not so sure on that one, but I can’t rule it out. To me it’s a matter of modesty, but to them, it’s not (from what I understand).

Sometimes as Christians, I think we take this verse and think “if I listen to that music, or if I dress that way, or if I watch that movie, or go to that place, then I’m being conformed to this world”. Now, I believe that there are those things that Christians shouldn’t take part in, but I also believe that sometimes taking part in some of those things, will allow us to better relate to the world we live in. However, this verse also says that we should be transformed by the renewing of our minds. What does this mean? It means that although Jesus went to sinner’s houses (i.e. that place), He didn’t sin. It means that even if we do go to that place, it doesn’t mean we have to take part in things that compromise our beliefs.

In the Message Bible this verse in Romans says “Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”

Living in Nicaragua, I see attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs that are not the norm for me. With some of these things it’s just a matter of getting used to them; driving equally aggressive and defensive, the process of buying something, lines – if you leave any space between you and the person in front of you, anyone can fill that space. But other things go right to this verse. I often get frustrated when I see or hear of a Christian who behaves in a way that is normal, and even expected in Nicaraguan culture, but goes against what I believe that Christ would want of His followers. When Yeril and I were going to get married one of his uncles advised him that “Gringos don’t like when you lie to them”. To me, this is an obvious statement that I would think would apply to everyone, however, in Nicaragua things are different and sometimes lies are expected and/or accepted. This is one of those things that frustrates me and I think to myself, “but you’re a Christian, why would you think that’s ok?”. They’re “so well-adjusted to their culture that they fit into it without even thinking.” 

This is where people can say to me… “Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” – Matthew 7:5 How well-adjusted am I to my culture? How well-adjusted are you to your culture? What are the things that we do that we don’t even realize are wrong? That is why the second part of this verse is soo important “… but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Let’s become so well-adjusted to Christ’s culture that we can fit into it without even thinking. Let’s become so fixed on Him that we will be truly and completely changed on the inside.