No Judging!

Back to a baby post.  I have no amazing updates on the growth of the baby other than all is going well in the growing department.  We have our next ultrasound Jan. 13th and we are hoping for a gender declaration.  In the mean time, I have been behaving very well.  Okay, I was behaving well and today I walked into Goody's and they had this AMAZING sale.  I couldn't resist the deals and I had to take advantage!  So what do you do when you run into a sale and have no idea what you are going to have?

Well...

16 full outfits and 2 extra pieces and I only spent $50!  All items can be returned so I will be saying goodbye to half of the collections in two weeks.  $2.77 each set is definitely a deal to me!!

Oh the joy of deals!

Just in time for Christmas!

Kevin and I made it back from our cruise on the 23rd of December.  Thankfully, we completed our shopping and gift wrapping before the trip and we were able to get ourselves ready for the holidays. 

Christmas is a bit tough for me because I miss my Noche Buena celebration with my family back in Florida. 
However, I am working on creating my own traditions here with my smaller family unit.  I celebrate my Noche Buena with authentic Puerto Rican dishes (still working on getting pasteles here next Christmas).  My sister has joined us for the last two Christmas' and my friend Sharon spends the evening with us with her family.  Music plays in the background and we enjoy each others company.  Not big but my tradition nevertheless.

Sharon and her family spend the night at the house and we celebrate Christmas morning with the boys and enjoy a big hearty breakfast before dispersing to visit family and friends.  Kevin and I usually spend early Christmas Eve with his family but this year we changed it up to Christmas Day dinner.  Our Christmas Day was BUSY but we enjoyed the entire 24 hours indulging with great company and visiting family!

Summer in December

Kevin and I planned a five day cruise for our getaway vacation.  No kiddo, no responsibility, the ultimate vacation after a long year for the both of us.  This was Kevin's first cruise and it was definitely like Christmas morning when we got on board!  Our five day cruise included two days fun at sea, one day at Progresso, Yucatan, and a day at Cozumel, Mexico.  We ate at the formal dining room each evening and enjoyed all the events possible on the ship.  Our days in Mexico were mixed with an excursion to the Mayan Ruins, touring the cities, lounging at the beach, and shopping for bargains.  What a great vacation pre baby!  I cannot wait for the next one.  In due time...

Christmas Eve

It has been a while since my last post but I was busy with finals and I just got back from a 5 day cruise!!  That was by far the best idea after a hard semester.  Kevin and I had an amazing time; we visited the Mayan ruins in Pregresso and lounged at the beach in Cozumel.  I will update with pictures later but now I have to do my last minute running around before my Christmas Eve dinner. 

Have a blessed day!

Fire Cracker

I am trying to figure out what happened to the deep sleeping baby I once had.  Movements at this time are supposed to feel like flutters and soft movements.  Well...someone forgot to tell this little peanut that!  Apparently, I have Kung Fu Panda growing inside of me.  Sometimes I let out a yelp because the movement startles me.  The good thing about it?  At least I can feel the baby!

Drive by Posting.

I have been extremely busy with school the last month.  I had a few traumatic moments that set me back and have been working extremely hard to get myself caught up.  I am exremely exhausted and I cannot wait until next weekend when I get to head out for a little R&R. 

I have learned plenty in the last month. 
I have learned that God blessed me with really great friends.  I have been fortunate to have a great support system with an amazing bunch of people.  They call in and make sure I am not under my bed soaking on my problems for too long. 
My husband has demonstrated great patience with me.  I know he hates having an absentee wife but understand the stress I am in and supports me and takes care of just about everything so I may focus on my studies.  He has pretty much gone to college with me and I doubt he will want to go after the rollercoaster we've been on for the last four years!  I will give him a break and then harrass him with the thought again.
My son has been understanding and this has been the hardest thing for me.  I am that parent that enjoys being at school events and helping as much as possible.  I want to provide him with all the opportunities and it has been hard for me to pull time out of the time I don't have to begin with.  He has been so understanding and I get emotional thinking about all the memories I could not make the last few months because of school.

On to other thoughts:
We have nothing out for Christmas yet.  I hope that this weekend will be the weekend to put up the tree and decorate the house.  I am glad that I keep my stuff up until the Epiphany has passed!  So I will have the house decorated for a bit.  Also my household has really been discussing a 1 gift rule for Christmas time.  We have shared our thoughts and ideas with J and he took it pretty well.  I do not find it bad for people to lavish those they love with gifts on Christmas if that is what makes them feel good but my household does that throughout the year.  We see things that the other would love and we get it for them.  J does not go without and I know that he will be pretty blessed with gifts from family and friends that think of him during this season.
I also have been really wanting to give back during the holiday times.  Families are going through tough times and instead of spending money on myself on things that will one day perish, I want to spend my time and resources spreading the message of Christ through acts of love. 
As a Christian we celebrate and rejoice the birth of Christ on December 25th.  He came to us in the most humble of ways and spent His entire time preparing the way and giving of His mercy and love.  That is what is important.

So much for a drive by...