tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23873063789300420612024-03-05T14:53:01.360-05:00Beni FamBeni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.comBlogger88125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-53237255646561145372012-07-11T18:11:00.000-04:002012-07-11T18:11:05.073-04:00Has half the year really gone by???In April I gave our last family update but that update seems like a lifetime ago. Around the time I posted our last update I learned that we were expecting a new bundle of joy. I didn't say anything for several reasons but the main reason was because of fear of judgment. It took me a while to deal with this emotion that I was going through but in the end I placed my trust in Him and accepted the fact that only He knows what He is doing. Honestly my first thoughts were this is not a good time because I just started losing weight again and how in the world will we be able to afford another child and what would I say to all those people that just mumble under their breath that we shouldn't be having another child. I struggled and struggled because when we got married we (Alex and I) both agreed that we would leave all children issues in the Lord's hands and we would gladly accept as many children He gave us with open arms. So why would I have these fears? I realize fear does not come from the Lord but these thoughts were on my mind. I was honestly very happy with my family. Who could ask for more? I have been blessed with two sons and two daughters. I thought I was content with my family size and the thought of having any more children did not cross my mind so I started to try to take control of this area of our lives. Obviously the Lord had totally different plans because boy were we shocked to learn in April that we were expecting again. I went through just about every emotion but in the end we decided to share this news with our immediate family only. I researched around for local midwives because we have already decided that we did not want to travel back to PA for another birth because it was just too much money to go back and forth. After researching around I found a hospital nearby that works with midwives and we scheduled an appointment. At our first appointment we knew we were going to have a dating sonogram so we were expecting to see the baby. One of the downfalls of living so far away from our family is that we do not have many people in this area that we trust to leave our children with for brief periods of time, so here we all go, all six of us in this little room and we wait to see the doctor and our baby. When we finally got to see the doctor he was so nice and made us feel at ease even though we had everyone in the room. He immediately went over all the background and then came the moment that we got to have our sonogram. All eyes were locked in on the screen to see the baby and my second son says, "Where is the baby? I don't see him." The minute he said that my heart sank. In that instant all the fears that have been invading my brain were washed away and all I could do was look for this baby. I felt the lump in my throat but held it together because I try to never cry in front of my children. All the kids wanted pictures so the doctor printed up four copies of the empty sac and the kids left the doctor's office so excited. Later that night my husband held me as I cried and I shared with him that I never wanted a child as much as I want this one. Like that every single fear was pushed aside and only love invaded my entire body. We prayed every night that week like we do most nights anyway but this time the prayers centered around Baby B. The kids were so sweet and honest with their prayers it warmed my heart even more. That week seemed like the longest week I have ever gone through but exactly a week later we went back to the doctor's office. This time my second son says, "Look the baby grew!" I stared at the doctor's face as his face dropped and he replied, "He is right, the baby did grow." The doctor was shocked and my kids responded we prayed for this baby all week and now we finally get to see him. So yes this has been an emotional journey for me but I can honestly say with such excitement that I am so excited to say that I can't wait to meet Baby B during the Christmas/New Year holiday!!!<br />
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Later in May we were visited by my parents which rushed us into June and Alex's parents visited us and brought us back to Texas while he was deployed to Japan. We have been here for about a month now and now we are getting ready to go back home to New Jersey. Can't believe that our vacation time is almost done. Honestly I am excited to reunite my family again with their daddy. We miss him terribly and can't wait to end this summer on a good note.<br />
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Now we begin the countdown to the beginning of a new school year. Yup in 12 days we will begin our new year and I have so many mixed emotions about it but I know that we will be stretched in good ways. The month of July has been a challenging one for us so far as there are many things that are happening that may affect all seven of us but we are trying to have faith that everything will work out for the best even if we can't see it now. So in the meantime we focus on the positive and love the family that He has blessed us with!<br />
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I know this has been a long post and if you made it to the end I thank you for always being a faithful and loving friend.<br />
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In Christ,<br />
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AleidaBeni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-84105924180300655472012-04-23T14:51:00.003-04:002012-04-23T15:04:50.791-04:00End of another yearThe last post I posted I was positive that I would be able to begin posting again but we became engulfed with everyday life. I last posted in September of last year, so let's see what has happened since then.
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The Mr. went on a deployment and I went home from October thru January. In January we went on a family cruise and when I say family cruise, I mean my parents (bc we were celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary that was in Dec), my sister, my brother and sister-in-law and niece, and then there was my forever growing family. We enjoyed being with the family during that time and it was great. We then drove back to New Jersey and began our normal routine again. Our normal routine is forever changing so what was normal then is definitely not normal now. In December we celebrated our oldest son's 6th birthday and in February we celebrated our youngest daughter's 1st birthday. Sometime from February to now we learned that my brother and sister in law are expecting their 2nd child so that thrills us beyond belief that we are adding a new member to the family. At the end of March my oldest son ended his 2nd grade year and my husband and I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary.
Now my days consist of doing fun school things like computer games that still practice the concepts we learned in the year for my 2nd grader and completing my other son's K4 year. The planning for next year has already begun as we have some huge transitions to factor in. One of those factors is the beginning of Preschool for the newest student of the Benavides Bible Academy. It still amazes me that in the next few months I will have a 3rd grader, a K5 student, and a PK student that will attend our school! <br />
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In my other free time I try to schedule in much needed reading of the Word time! My husband bought me a Busy Mom's Bible which I love. It is so important for me to have my quiet times so I am able to deal with the everyday life things in our house. I also try to schedule in workout time. I finally started losing the weight from the last pregnancy and it only happened from watching my diet and doing zumba about 5 times a week. I now use the elliptical as well. The Mr. was working days for a few months but they moved him back to nights last month so I take advantage of the time he is not here to do my own schooling. I am currently taking classes to get certified to be a Medical Transcriptionist, and a Medical Coding and Billing person. I started these classes in February and need to complete them by February of next year in order to have these classes paid for. I was able to qualify for this program due to my husband's rank (one of the few perks of him not making that much money).
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Still can't believe April is almost done but I am looking forward to May. May we will wrap up the school year for everyone and take a few months off for a summer vacation. My parents come up for a mini visit and that will take us into June. In June my in laws come up for a mini visit and then we are off to TX for a mini vacation. In July (more than likely) we will begin a new school year just so we can make sure everything is done in a timely fashion. I am expecting that this year we will have some schedules to work around and I would hate for the kids to be neglected by this.<br />
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Other than this being a long post...we are doing wonderful. We truly are blessed and we are so thankful for all the new friends that we have made recently. The Lord has blessed us beyond measure and we still can't believe He has chosen us to be apart of His family!
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In Christ,
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AleidaBeni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-90538114571215772822011-09-09T01:10:00.002-04:002011-09-09T01:33:52.882-04:00Long Overdue UpdateWow...what can I say??? It has been a year since our last update. So much has happened in that year. We found out we were expecting baby #4...we went home to TX for a few months due to a deployment...we moved to new jersey...our oldest son turned 5...our house went under contract...our house went off the contract...we wrapped up 1st grade and pre-k for our sons...another offer was made on our house and then backed out of again...we purchased a new vehicle to accomodate our growing family and became a minivan family...we had baby #4 which we named Miss Joanna Ruth...our house went under contract again and finally sold...had a summer vacation...our daughter turned 2...our other son turned 4...started a new school year so now we have a 2nd grader and a kindergartner...the Mr. went back to night shift after only a few months on day shift...and now we gear up for another deployment and praying that everything works out so we can have a family vacation this Christmas.<br /><br />That being said this has been an eventful year and yes I have fallen off the face of this earth when it comes to blogging but I think I am finally ready to begin blogging once again during the spare time that I can manage to take. This year I have learned a lot about myself. I never knew that I can face some of the challenges I have and still come out of the challenges trusting that the Lord will see me through it. I know we say that we trust the Lord to see us through things but I must admit that there were times I wasn't sure how that was going to be possible yet He always did see me through things. I am still learning to rely on Him completely! During this past year I did stray away from the Lord and I felt I became an ugly person but He never let me go too far. I got too busy with my everyday life that I forgot to check in with the One that gave His life for me. He has shown me that I need Him...Oh how I need Him! I still let my everyday life get in the way of spending time with Him from time to time but I am working on this. I have learned that when I don't spend time with my Savior I am irritable and not very pleasant. The Lord has humbled me beyond my beliefs and I am grateful that He loves me enough to forgive me. I am grateful that He gave me the family He has and they forgive me.<br /><br />So as I blog I pray that those that do read this continues to keep me in prayers. I have been blessed with friends that pray for me on a regular basis and I appreciate them very much. I may not blog as often as I would like but that is ok because I truly do not want to do something else that will take away much needed time with Him!Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-68045337420249598162010-07-27T15:07:00.007-04:002010-07-27T15:31:58.466-04:003rd Birthday!Three years ago the Lord blessed us with a son we named Nathanael Paul. It is a fitting name because Nathanael means gift from God and Paul means small. Boy was he a small gift from God. He came at a perfect time in our marriage and we have become even stronger as a family just for having him enter our life. Never in a million years would I begin to imagine how having children would transform my life. Having children has been one of the best and rewarding experiences the Lord has given our family.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRN5wMbm9RqvQKVDPn7A93_hULxXIkr3ef-cRPLYwMkZ3wCn8XShFSyXqc0rmgXCsqwsAkcKxGyxKERmShrSwCymJ_UIa-dE0api4KoPHM3Mx5xYTTMbk-571-M4J54lmlrjfmxbG64CA/s1600/pix+153.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRN5wMbm9RqvQKVDPn7A93_hULxXIkr3ef-cRPLYwMkZ3wCn8XShFSyXqc0rmgXCsqwsAkcKxGyxKERmShrSwCymJ_UIa-dE0api4KoPHM3Mx5xYTTMbk-571-M4J54lmlrjfmxbG64CA/s320/pix+153.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498665889761327970" /></a><br /><br />Although I was extremely sick for this weekend we still managed to celebrate a little. Here are some pics to show an update on our family.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisfKMLvoU6xwjbGcy4mjDtiDHWw8evPQOiBTkgtsLx5LB21y2wCC5HXEWfpP-I6DP2KvLk1POEeGvkHVHcWjlpzf7iPFZsMLWivy4b7jbMPLEWlBmOO_D_-QqkWpGs2-4lJEzqLzx78Kw/s1600/HPIM1165.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisfKMLvoU6xwjbGcy4mjDtiDHWw8evPQOiBTkgtsLx5LB21y2wCC5HXEWfpP-I6DP2KvLk1POEeGvkHVHcWjlpzf7iPFZsMLWivy4b7jbMPLEWlBmOO_D_-QqkWpGs2-4lJEzqLzx78Kw/s320/HPIM1165.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498665898909001234" /></a><br /><br /><br />The birthday boy hitting his Thomas the train piñata.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCFoN1mkbNxVj4EBv6TU8yKryBkk80kl6deQlEVf6NEXcXy0r7mlcSuUTXhGsOZVld4wJ5ONm-DvJRigiukcIIN04s_1LviIUdxlb8n6yvY-ea0zn0Y_UyK71e7JUATyh_deE9URZC97o/s1600/HPIM1177.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCFoN1mkbNxVj4EBv6TU8yKryBkk80kl6deQlEVf6NEXcXy0r7mlcSuUTXhGsOZVld4wJ5ONm-DvJRigiukcIIN04s_1LviIUdxlb8n6yvY-ea0zn0Y_UyK71e7JUATyh_deE9URZC97o/s320/HPIM1177.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498665905854715714" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM5n2IVi3LmVRdgSnk5bry9uBxgsQXyGQvqCYpaZGzZXqHcRc49rvzYAmlWra7Kb_WbzN8tr_v9z0QedNU4kWHvMdoQloqnPlhkQESEEaU9T-YQ-wGXb42XQdDm3d5-wwMCxWDva5OpAM/s1600/HPIM1179.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM5n2IVi3LmVRdgSnk5bry9uBxgsQXyGQvqCYpaZGzZXqHcRc49rvzYAmlWra7Kb_WbzN8tr_v9z0QedNU4kWHvMdoQloqnPlhkQESEEaU9T-YQ-wGXb42XQdDm3d5-wwMCxWDva5OpAM/s320/HPIM1179.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498665914992544402" /></a><br /><br />The brother and sister hitting the piñata.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOcQOyUJybqYJjyapD3TBJ7S7Um7OolqTT4FB_RElv3zf08e5eE8RhrUqReXROHt9cu9DcO9ojDi_4W5ul4zTFu_ITCh3KE-IzD1f-ZNHbx1hZJRYczHZhd6hsZjSXvUpTKRy-YKETT1w/s1600/HPIM1186.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOcQOyUJybqYJjyapD3TBJ7S7Um7OolqTT4FB_RElv3zf08e5eE8RhrUqReXROHt9cu9DcO9ojDi_4W5ul4zTFu_ITCh3KE-IzD1f-ZNHbx1hZJRYczHZhd6hsZjSXvUpTKRy-YKETT1w/s320/HPIM1186.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498665924131596818" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizeWF7gs_GIMKkypOZwSNavVfCn5PyI1ScYGD3NlMewBZUbz90HZ49wZ7tFUyjqi18EFQyGMNvvsArvqRPJUgucbgdFVRJyLsqkPSnD8x591wSK7qjhgQp71mf_ER1m5gY4-iz-1gQQWI/s1600/HPIM1187.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizeWF7gs_GIMKkypOZwSNavVfCn5PyI1ScYGD3NlMewBZUbz90HZ49wZ7tFUyjqi18EFQyGMNvvsArvqRPJUgucbgdFVRJyLsqkPSnD8x591wSK7qjhgQp71mf_ER1m5gY4-iz-1gQQWI/s320/HPIM1187.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498667747791800978" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeg2FCo_cJ_6JjBFgrI86t4XpZGa3b96xStiOyQos7J2jP_NIMRUBONEeCQoOtaTXodtTHQJw-4Jxga1UnbrHDLfUKplFjbgJbrpzfd6Op2WB5jJ4poiUCJXnG4CyOppWS_xiWCM88nXk/s1600/HPIM1188.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeg2FCo_cJ_6JjBFgrI86t4XpZGa3b96xStiOyQos7J2jP_NIMRUBONEeCQoOtaTXodtTHQJw-4Jxga1UnbrHDLfUKplFjbgJbrpzfd6Op2WB5jJ4poiUCJXnG4CyOppWS_xiWCM88nXk/s320/HPIM1188.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498667754429560466" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzyCsf7ulPSOxg-3yyo4kbdh2hlSnmZU6K2tEt74yJ5Bh501Ues5IQQgxwyy3YUU75I2pVABsTse9pFsMKiMFtuez0ndIeYJAmgizS1GJUounEmwX5olkvOuMa09OVbEX59mQyhTWv5Dc/s1600/HPIM1194.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzyCsf7ulPSOxg-3yyo4kbdh2hlSnmZU6K2tEt74yJ5Bh501Ues5IQQgxwyy3YUU75I2pVABsTse9pFsMKiMFtuez0ndIeYJAmgizS1GJUounEmwX5olkvOuMa09OVbEX59mQyhTWv5Dc/s320/HPIM1194.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498667761119260658" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhToFZKcEtUTDHoOumWxF4bZqm14fQDCU8BU7A9mdSqnntxaA-8ZLaY3zvIqdv4R7BgoFIMXQRtjHvK-gEalG9P8cQB3B6ICoeeZ-yEZVyBbmHUM4bt6y7RufAVWitM5Id1dGGmeJowZCc/s1600/HPIM1197.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhToFZKcEtUTDHoOumWxF4bZqm14fQDCU8BU7A9mdSqnntxaA-8ZLaY3zvIqdv4R7BgoFIMXQRtjHvK-gEalG9P8cQB3B6ICoeeZ-yEZVyBbmHUM4bt6y7RufAVWitM5Id1dGGmeJowZCc/s320/HPIM1197.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498667770491605762" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ6HFiKx8sQHp2oJ1qOoLN9iTe4j5Go3gr7cXjkK47OXwIC3XVC1fmP_fPtyMAzGFm2Ib1xPBlktxKr6UFKaODmX-NJhkSN_31jinEojjsdte9YjtqmMUAvRQfxtXjP_lwn7_cXzDCT1g/s1600/HPIM1205.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ6HFiKx8sQHp2oJ1qOoLN9iTe4j5Go3gr7cXjkK47OXwIC3XVC1fmP_fPtyMAzGFm2Ib1xPBlktxKr6UFKaODmX-NJhkSN_31jinEojjsdte9YjtqmMUAvRQfxtXjP_lwn7_cXzDCT1g/s320/HPIM1205.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498667781443091474" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUAvPs7FnGrtPGiOzsXCk9kybeTybSJ2e1Ux82kTljWOWh7ZFw9Uu0NfomvWNhbc_QW1YWf_CR54pmrs5YwIHeVayl5LHwK3sTNtKofFBM29jBZ8VhrCExJRdR_kz3GUSVoHCPzFFRJWw/s1600/HPIM1207.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUAvPs7FnGrtPGiOzsXCk9kybeTybSJ2e1Ux82kTljWOWh7ZFw9Uu0NfomvWNhbc_QW1YWf_CR54pmrs5YwIHeVayl5LHwK3sTNtKofFBM29jBZ8VhrCExJRdR_kz3GUSVoHCPzFFRJWw/s320/HPIM1207.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498669071880689058" /></a><br /><br /><br />After the piñata we came inside to have some cake. After the cake and gifts all my men got haircuts.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirO0MYayQv_EG5OWWzGdxN_sVsLT-UiXUvOJB9d1DB1hxMALrjIPXxMWxiv9luwhkzxqNVA8vcJNSJBxKuVRbtqHIia_M-XjGhIrjbmDs33m5fOdagFq4cVDoC86hh8uYPyz4qO-ti0AY/s1600/HPIM1229.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirO0MYayQv_EG5OWWzGdxN_sVsLT-UiXUvOJB9d1DB1hxMALrjIPXxMWxiv9luwhkzxqNVA8vcJNSJBxKuVRbtqHIia_M-XjGhIrjbmDs33m5fOdagFq4cVDoC86hh8uYPyz4qO-ti0AY/s320/HPIM1229.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498669079324850146" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEM7tItHk095N-KKe9xwE-KYeGKyPs2z-FdDlNyaSniBkQqbsZNpoPHUHRRPRzrtD6TfpAAf7bDBH4rfy96JSRA5NJNiJ9VSx1p9xnxwtFvtJvSubrRR1ud2xPvV9Qu-XtZC_fpaykt7w/s1600/HPIM1248.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEM7tItHk095N-KKe9xwE-KYeGKyPs2z-FdDlNyaSniBkQqbsZNpoPHUHRRPRzrtD6TfpAAf7bDBH4rfy96JSRA5NJNiJ9VSx1p9xnxwtFvtJvSubrRR1ud2xPvV9Qu-XtZC_fpaykt7w/s320/HPIM1248.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498669089009639874" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Ob2TS3jtsujLdhyoWMioa_dYaBnnGLSYGqfJyArZtTpFgvoxboFF20vAEzdb2mMGsnW-f8DjUaDkz4A9znbYAVWu5Tdn5okoJN8bdUDk1yOlIWLtVOjWR55t8f_5bQovT0FqH2I6-Ns/s1600/HPIM1252.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Ob2TS3jtsujLdhyoWMioa_dYaBnnGLSYGqfJyArZtTpFgvoxboFF20vAEzdb2mMGsnW-f8DjUaDkz4A9znbYAVWu5Tdn5okoJN8bdUDk1yOlIWLtVOjWR55t8f_5bQovT0FqH2I6-Ns/s320/HPIM1252.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498669099005349666" /></a><br /><br />We had a lot of fun Sunday celebrating. On Monday we just loved on our gift even more. These pics are on his actual birthday.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKV3NDQ7HqaIOIQR6l0d9w0pUvcKeeSv1NcoyHPiQ8lg4Os1wPvNufK8GZCf0YmsK5iNXSTtVpfCLelrnswO1JZlZUgmwwrC_JvI_UEw1HobesceIChreuo7UUlmEsAa0_LZThl0OQL1A/s1600/HPIM1263.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 241px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKV3NDQ7HqaIOIQR6l0d9w0pUvcKeeSv1NcoyHPiQ8lg4Os1wPvNufK8GZCf0YmsK5iNXSTtVpfCLelrnswO1JZlZUgmwwrC_JvI_UEw1HobesceIChreuo7UUlmEsAa0_LZThl0OQL1A/s320/HPIM1263.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498669113524219682" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg79hbkHPcun7n0KKG1Kk9nn9loVo6UJOJIWuQssxNfBJjt6-B93BrBZtuK9KWUTAHkZbMT_l1MU-mFjpUoWr_F3L-cwVfMBmmSJ9PIPJYsilU0ZCoae-1L04oJwT0CL2VFdVoJRrky6YQ/s1600/HPIM1267.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg79hbkHPcun7n0KKG1Kk9nn9loVo6UJOJIWuQssxNfBJjt6-B93BrBZtuK9KWUTAHkZbMT_l1MU-mFjpUoWr_F3L-cwVfMBmmSJ9PIPJYsilU0ZCoae-1L04oJwT0CL2VFdVoJRrky6YQ/s320/HPIM1267.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498669281950014898" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtBlrmMCGB2uyuZC-1C0OVdprGlCKiKxsSszwNg5Ook5aK65fI6QM1Mc0NjoqZnCvUJT8i1rQd_s4cN-b0a5fdkSQoqzdNmlRR3uYrQkHlNVcjuKVdH-P3dM8sFTqTsEE_UWeCEP3Rpbs/s1600/HPIM1269.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtBlrmMCGB2uyuZC-1C0OVdprGlCKiKxsSszwNg5Ook5aK65fI6QM1Mc0NjoqZnCvUJT8i1rQd_s4cN-b0a5fdkSQoqzdNmlRR3uYrQkHlNVcjuKVdH-P3dM8sFTqTsEE_UWeCEP3Rpbs/s320/HPIM1269.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498669290979269426" /></a><br /><br />We had a great time! We are blessed!Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-33647666291918441782010-07-11T14:26:00.002-04:002010-07-11T15:06:53.674-04:00StrugglingWow where do I start? When we first moved to Maine we were so excited because we knew that it was very clear that God wanted us to move there and he opened up doors to take us there. While we lived in Maine the first couple of years we struggled because we were so far away from our family and friends. After our hardships we finally got connected with a good church and we thrived within our Christian community. The last year or two we were in Maine we have really learned how to depend on each other and we have grown so much in the Lord. There were several times during that time we debated doing what we wanted but we never felt God gave us the ok to pursue what we wanted. God constantly put it on our heart to remain where we are and He will show us where to go and what to do next. Now we are in Pennyslvania and God has opened up new doors. We are now in a new chapter of our lives. Although we are in new chapters of our lives I must admit that I have been discouraged because we have seen many discouraging events happen over the past year and a half. I have a lot of resentment towards actions that have happened with friends in Maine and elsewhere but I have seen how God can use unfortunate circumstances and bring good out of them.<br /><br />So now I am trying to leave this hurt in my heart in His hands. As I said the Lord has brought us to PA and has made it very clear that God's mission field for us right now for Alex is the Navy and for me it is my children. This year, Alex finally started his master's degree and after debating with God for months finally agreed to pursue his masters of divinity so now he is in Seminary. This is something that has been placed in our hearts for quite sometime but we weren't sure if that was something we really wanted to pursue. Well God won that war and now we are waiting out the time as he finishes his degree. We really don't know how long it will take for him to complete this degree because he does work full time but as long as it takes we know for right now we are supposed to be right where we are.<br /><br />We have been through a lot during the past four years of our life and my hope is that the lessons that we have learned will help us overcome the feelings that we are feeling now. Please keep us in prayers because I am trying to live a stress free life right now and it has been very hard especially in this neighborhood we live in. We stay to ourselves here and we are looking forward to making the arrangements to get to our new home in New Jersey. The original plan was for us to not live in New Jersey until next February or March but now we are going to try to make arrangements to be there before the end of this year. <br /><br />Hope you have a great day!<br /><br />Blessed,<br /><br />AleidaBeni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-2724037107527542472010-06-22T20:53:00.002-04:002010-06-22T21:08:40.970-04:00Exciting newsThis weekend Alex's parents made the most generous offer. This offer was one we could not pass up. As most of you know Alex is going on a month long deployment. We considered having me go down to Texas with the kids so they would not have to be focused on the fact that he is not around. There are some days that my N children cry when he walks out the door because he has been working ridiculous hours. Anyways we ended up deciding we could not go home because our money is extremely strapped because we are trying to sell our townhouse in Texas and until we do so we are making two house payments along with making repairs to the townhouse and just making ends meet from paycheck to paycheck. We literally have burned through our savings these past couple of months so we have told both of our parents that we would not be able to make it home until the house sold or we came into some kind of money (and yes this even means Christmas). Anyways I share this information with you so you can understand how blessed we are. Although I really wanted to go home I had come to peace with knowing I would be here by myself for the first time with 3 kids in a place I am still not that comfortable with. Just as I came to this peace, my in-laws shared that they really want for us to come and they decided they wanted to come up here and pick us up and take us back to Texas for the month and when Alex gets back they will be more than happy to bring us back. How exciting is that? Needless to say we were excited and the kids are excited knowing that they will be seeing their grandparents soon.<br /><br />Maybe we can catch up with some of you guys when we are down there. If you are interested in meeting up send me an email and I can let you know specific dates that we will be in town.<br /><br />In Christ,<br /><br />AleidaBeni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-70549741193482064902010-06-13T16:53:00.002-04:002010-06-13T17:06:12.790-04:00Successful weekWe are so blessed to have people that pray for us on a regular basis. This past week we knew it was going to be a rough one because of schedules and what nots but over all we had a great week. We completed our first week of P90X which let me say is an intense workout but we achieved our goal of making it through the first week. Today is our day of rest so hopefully we can continue on our journey of staying healthy.<br /><br />Friday, I's curriculum came in so we spent the afternoon organizing the dining room and creating schedules of how the school year will go. Today we purchased N his first school box for his Pre-K year and he was so thrilled. It is so encouraging to see how eager the kids are for learning. They are the ones nudging us the majority of the time to continually be in school mode. We tell them they need to learn to have rest time too because when they get older they are going to want these summer breaks. Although we would love to stay in summer mode we must get back to school mode because of the move that will be happening again within this school year. We haven't heard officially when it will happen but rumor is it will be somewhere between October and February so I need a cushion so we can take some weeks off during that time. Moving takes a lot of work but the good thing is once we get to New Jersey we should be put for at least 2-3 years so we can get back to a normal school schedule once we get situated unless we decide to have this year round schedule with a week or two off after each semester. We shall see how the kids adjust to the changes they will be enduring once again.<br /><br />So the rest of today will consist of naps and rest before we begin our 2010-2011 school year tomorrow.Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-31117687899067926572010-06-07T15:29:00.000-04:002010-06-07T15:44:07.639-04:00New WeekWe have been sick for almost two weeks with a stomach bug in our house until this weekend. Finally we turned the corner and everyone is feeling great so we got out of the house for the first time in two weeks. Can I just say it was so wonderful? We finally had a great breeze with little humidity so it was great! We went for our daily run that we have not got do for two weeks like I mentioned so I was expecting for a lot of breaks but lo and behold I made it. I jogged at the same speed for two whole miles. I am so excited. Alex ran along pushing the kids in our three <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">seater</span>. My goal is to get to the pushing and running phase but I met my first goal of running the entire time. We celebrated by letting the kids play at the park for a while so I can catch my breath. We then came home to eat lunch and begin our new workout. Yes, we have begun the P90X workouts and boy was it tough. Hopefully tomorrow will be a good day too.<br /><br />I now sit and take a few seconds to myself as everyone is napping and the husband is at work. I just ordered Isaiah's curriculum for this school year and now I need to sit and create my schedule. We need to plan out how this school year will run now that both the boys will be homeschooling this year. (Isaiah will be in 1st grade and Nathanael will be in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Pre</span>-K) I also need to incorporate baby sign time with the baby girl while the boys do their school work. We are going to be starting the new school year soon because we are moving again within this school year and I don't want to get behind plus we take a month off for the Christmas holiday and this year the husband will be going on a deployment for a month so we have a lot of adjustments to fix in our little schedule. Please pray for us as we schedule our schedule. We had a rough week last week because the husband is working ridiculous hours (3:30 pm - 5 am) the latest. It ranges from 3-5 am. This week looks like it will be the same so please pray we handle it better than we did last week. I remind myself constantly that the Lord never gives us too much to handle and as long as I am walking with Him I am good!<br /><br />Have a great week!Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-8277680776692962102010-06-03T20:11:00.000-04:002010-06-03T20:41:37.332-04:00Has it really been since Sept since I last posted?Wow...I decided to take a break and blog a little only to realize that we hadn't posted anything since September. How crazy is that? So much has happened but let me see if I can condense my updates. In September, I started homeschooling Isaiah with a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">pre</span>-k curriculum and it is so amazing to see how much he has learned in those months. When we first started he was barely learning to hold scissors and a pencil and now you can't seem to stop him when it comes to writing his name and anything else he wishes. In December/January, we had movers come pack us up and move us to the state of PA. We started a new life to a very different place than we were used to. We grew to fall in love with Maine and life in the city is very different. Even our kids notice but they are happy with wherever we end up. Just as we begin getting used to the area and the new budgets we had set in place the Lord reminded us once again that he was in charge. We learned in March that our tenant would be moving out of our townhouse in TX by the end of April. Of course with the move and other unexpected expenses that came up we realized we only had enough savings to cover two more months of mortgage payments. Once again we found ourselves placing all of our circumstances in the Lord's hands. We have since had enough to cover two house payments and make repairs to the townhouse to sell. Don't get me wrong we are not living extravagantly by any means. We have had to pinch pennies even more but we have had more than enough and have never gone without. Isn't our Lord good?<br /><br />So now we are more recent...last month we celebrated our daughter's first birthday. She is such a joy. She has brought a completely different joy to our house. She is still very small. She only weighs 16 pounds but she is going non-stop. She will more than likely be walking here soon. We got to visit with the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Curiel</span> grandparents for 5 days a couple of weeks ago. That was wonderful. The kids were sad when they left and that tugged at our hearts so much. It is crazy how big they are getting and they do notice when their loved ones are gone. We wrapped up the school year last Friday. We enjoyed the curriculum that we used this year for Isaiah that we decided to use the same curriculum for Nathanael this year now that he will be 3 in July. He is very interested in school already. As far as Isaiah the Lord completely answered my prayers. A few years ago I happened to see this PACE that friends of ours used to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">homeschool</span> their kids and finally asked them about it and they told me who they ordered their curriculum through. I researched them and came to learn that this is exactly what I was looking for. I used to use these <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">PACEs</span> when I was in private school my freshman year. After receiving brochures I realized this is exactly what I wanted but I knew it would be a little pricier than we wanted to go so I prayed about it and left it in the Lord's hands because after all the husband would have to approve it in order for monies to be spent. A week later I showed all of my findings to the husband and he was excited and said this is definitely the route I want to go. So needless to say we have been putting money aside to cover the yearly fee and the curriculum fee. We decided to enroll him in Lighthouse Christian Academy but I will still be homeschooling him at home. They just keep all of his school records on file for us. After all the papers were signed they sent us a Reading Readiness Test to see where he would be placed and he scored perfectly. He has been placed in First grade. This was exciting to us because originally he was going to be placed in kindergarten because of his age but the tests confirm he is ready to begin reading so we will be starting first this school year. We decided we will be starting school again once his curriculum is ordered and has arrived. We were originally going to start in mid August but since we will be moving again very soon then we decided to start a little earlier so we don't get too far behind with the next move. The great thing about the next move is that we are only moving about 45 minutes away from where we are now.<br /><br />So I guess that about sums up what we have been up to. I look forward to reading my friends blogs to see what life has been like for them.<br /><br />In Christ,<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-973981410547737922009-09-11T08:57:00.000-04:002009-09-11T09:14:11.801-04:00Learning to Let GoLast night was the first night of many nights of this lesson of learning to let go and trust God when it comes to our children. It is funny because you think you would know this by now. Alex and I didn't realize how closely we held our children until we went to a new/old church for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Awana</span>. I say new because Isaiah was too young to remember being there because he was only 1 when we attended the church but it is old because we used to attend this church. I remembered a few days ago that they have the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Awana</span> program so I looked them up and called to find out if it was too late to get him registered. We have been debating for some time now if it was worth trying to get him into the program because we are moving sometime in December or January and we didn't know the cost and so forth. We finally said let's let him do it because he is enjoying memorizing scripture for school why not let him get to enjoy other kids his age and still learn about how much God loves him.<br /><br />So last night was the first club meeting and everything went smoothly until a little girl came and grabbed Isaiah by the hand to take him off because Nathanael wanted to go too but he is only 2 and you have to be at least 3. All we heard was crying for a good ten minutes or so. We were told when the time for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">cubbies</span> would be over and then we left. As we left we just looked at each other and said this is definitely hard to just leave. It just wasn't the same without our Isaiah. I tried to be brave as I told my husband our little boy is growing up. We had to let go at some point or he will never learn how to be a big boy. We sat in silence for a few minutes and then we had to figure out what to do for the next hour and a half because this church is a good 15-20 minutes from where we live so we went to the case lot sale that the commissary is having and then we took Nathanael to the park and he had such a blast. I think Thursday evenings from now on will be filled with days at the park as long as the weather allows it to happen because at some point it got too cold last night for Naomi to be out. We are definitely in the fall now. As I type this message it is 50 degrees out and it is only 8 something in the morning.... When we went to pick up Isaiah he was excited to see me because he wanted to share with me all the things he did but in between that time he didn't even know we had left the church.<br /><br />This experience was so very hard for us because we have never left our children with anyone besides our parents and we left Isaiah one time with a friend of ours when I went into labor with Nathanael for a few hours and then both boys with a family we are friends with for a few nights but they spent the days with us while I was in the hospital with Naomi. It was hard for us but it made it easier knowing that the Lord has his hands over our little boy. I can't even imagine how much harder it is going to be when he is older.<br /><br />Well I hope you have a great day.Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-30404004446262080282009-09-03T08:36:00.000-04:002009-09-03T09:06:26.667-04:00Life with 3 BabiesAfter reading Abby's post I figured why not do this. Since only Nathanael and I are up right now I figured I could do this real quick and then spend some quality time with him.<br /><br />Things That Have Been Easier That I Imagined<br /><br />-I would have never imagined that Naomi would have been welcomed into the family as much as she would. I figured the boys would look at her and then go on about what they are doing but it is the complete opposite. Naomi is very much a social butterfly and has to be in the mix but that is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">ok</span> because the boys love to be around her and love to make her laugh and they actually drop what they are doing if they hear her cry to try to run and comfort her. It just makes me cry to see the simple love.<br /><br />-Nursing. I thought it would be more of a challenge because now that Isaiah is older and getting curious about body parts I figured I would have to constantly go to another room to nurse but wondered how in the world am I going to keep an eye on the boys. I tried it a few times by staying in the same room because let's get real...when a baby is hungry they are hungry. Anyways he realized that I was providing nourishment to her so now when she cries he says, "Mommy, Naomi want to eat." I am not so self conscience around him when it comes to that.<br /><br />- Nursing in public. I always wondered how does Michelle <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Duggar</span> nurse while walking around and tending to all her kids? I went out and bought a my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">brest</span> friend pillow and decided to try to see if it was possible and that was the best idea ever. Now we are able to continue to do things as a family without having to put everyone on hold just so she can eat. We stop for a little while to get me situated and then we are off and still having family fun and I can keep up while walking and nursing. I am grateful for this because I would have missed tons of laughs and memories.<br /><br />- Our routines have definitely changed but the routine has been easily adapted too. We wake up early and play (all 4 of us because Alex is working) then we all get dressed for the day and head downstairs for breakfast. I get the boys situated first and then I serve myself a bowl of cereal and then sit on the couch to have Naomi nurse while we all eat. After breakfast we clean up the living room area and then start school. Naomi goes to her toy and works on her grabbing skills and Nathanael goes to the play room while I work with Isaiah. When lunch time comes around we fill Alex in on everything that has happened for the day and then once he leaves it is nap time for everyone. Isaiah usually only naps for a little while if he naps at all but I get the housework that I need done during this time. Then when Alex gets home we enjoy the rest of the evening with him. Our day changes a little every day for instance if we have an appointment of some kind school may get pushed back to nap time since he naps shorter periods. It has been a different experience but we all enjoy the flexibility of our schedule because it just makes our life easier.<br /><br />- Everyone says that adding a new child is harder on the finances because it costs money to have a child but as of right now it really isn't that much of a difference. Maybe it is because we choose to live a frugal life already that it really isn't that much of a difference. We have saved so much money from the nursing and we did cloth diapers on Naomi for the first month but stopped because of our trips that were coming up and now I am about to go back to the cloth diapering system that it has helped our finances. The Lord has provided more than enough and we have been blessed beyond measure.<br /><br />Things That Have Been Harder Than I Imagined<br /><br />- Cloth Diapers. For some reason I thought we will do this because we will save money from having to buy diapers but then I was frustrated the first week or so because she was going through clothes like crazy. The only reason I was so frustrated was because my house was in complete <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">disarray</span> and I couldn't get the house clean yet keep up with diapers. We went back to disposables until I got the house where I wanted and then it was easier to manage both. Now that we are home from our vacation it has been a little difficult for me to go back to cloth diapers because of the ease of just throwing away a diaper but we aren't on the road now so I need to go back to the cloth diapers.<br /><br />- Although nursing Naomi has been so much easier it does get a little harder when we are in public because she does not like to be covered at all. We have to work a little harder to make sure I stay covered at all times. Although it is perfectly legal for me to feed my baby in public I choose to stay covered because of my modesty. Feeding her in Texas was the worst because it was so HOT!!!<br /><br />- The first month was hard adding a new baby to the mix because she cried and kept me up at night and I was so tired but I reminded myself that it was temporary.<br /><br />Overall adding a third baby to the mix has been a lot easier than I expected and the most difficult time was during the first month but we had a lot of unforeseen circumstances come up during her first month of life that could not be helped. I am very content with how things are running in our lives and am very grateful that the Lord has blessed me with three wonderful children I call Isaiah, Nathanael, and Naomi. My dad says we should name our house the (INN) for the first initials of all my children.<br /><br />Have a good day.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-25722250569294509962009-08-27T10:22:00.000-04:002009-08-27T10:39:10.308-04:00Quick UpdateThe month of August has come and gone for us. We were on vacation for three weeks of this month and just got back Sunday early morning (4am). We spent the day resting and doing laundry and then Monday got on our normal routines for now. Monday I started homeschooling Isaiah so we have developed new schedules around this new development. We started off with the intention of only doing Preschool with him but in most areas he has far exceeded the expectation that is involved so we are throwing a few different things into the midst. I have since ordered a Kindergarten curriculum and we will be adding a few kindergarten things for him to learn. We are still doing majority Preschool things but my focus is mainly on learning Spanish versions of words like the alphabet, colors, and shapes. We are also working on building his hand muscles so a lot of our day is using scissors, glue sticks, crayons and pencils. All of this to train his hand muscles to do bigger boy things. He is doing so well and within 2 days he is already reciting scripture. We are so excited. We are focusing on how God created the world and yesterday he quoted Genesis 1:1. I know such a simple verse but such a huge accomplishment for a 3 1/2 year old. Needless to say that the grandparents are super excited. They can't wait to see this homeschooling business into action for their own eyes. They will be able to see it soon now that we finally got orders.<br /><br />So that leads me to the new things in our life. We learned in late July we were going to be moving to Pennsylvania. The funny thing is it is the same place we visited over the Fourth of July weekend. So we are moving 8 hours south of us. The thing is that my husband is being sent to Fort Worth first to learn the new airplane he will be working on. He will be sent to Fort Worth for 70 days in January so we are debating on packing our stuff up in December and having it placed in storage until he is done with school and we can move to PA when he is ready. In the mean time he will be living in a bachelors quarters while in Fort Worth so we (the kids and I) are more than likely going to be moving back to Corpus and try to arrange it to see Alex on the weekends or something. We are still talking out logistics but that is where we stand as of now. We are so excited about this new venture for us. Once we finally move to Pennsylvania we will only be there less than a year and then we are off to New Jersey if my husband stays in the military. He only has a year or so left so we may only see PA but NJ is a big possibility for us. We are excited anyways because we know that the Lord will guide us in every move we make.<br /><br />So now that I have gotten a late start on the day I need to feed all the kids and then begin school before my dentist appointment. This week has definitely been busy but it is a nice busy and I can't wait to see how the school year will bring much more joy to our house.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-81051591684416158242009-08-03T08:26:00.001-04:002009-08-03T08:35:11.485-04:00Benavides VacationOur family vacation started yesterday after Alex got off work or should I say when I stopped working. I didn't want a total train wreck when I got home so I managed to have the upstairs completely spotless and the downstairs is almost spotless but Alex made me stop working because he said I was due a vacation. He is such a wonderful husband.<br /><br />So we got on the road around 3<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">ish</span> because I just never made it to the store for a few items. We were able to make it at least 3 hours in our drive to Texas before we decided to pull over. It was a good thing we pulled over when we did. Nathanael was so cranky. Nathanael spent a good portion of Saturday night in the ER because his ear was three to four times the normal size. I was nursing Naomi on the couch and my sons pulled their little red chairs in front of me so they could watch their little movie and from behind I noticed Nathanael's ear. To me it looked very red and a little swollen. I mentioned it to Alex but he kind of brushed me off because he was busy loading the car. Later when he finally settled down for the night I mentioned it again and he noticed it too but by this time it was bigger. We weren't sure what it was so I told Alex to take him while I stayed behind with the other ones because I didn't want to take everyone there. Turned out it was only a black fly bite but his ear is still huge. That incident paired up with a lack of a nap made him very cranky so we pulled over early. After eating dinner we decided to take the kids to the pool because they love swimming and after all it is their vacation too. We had such a blast and when we said it was time to go the kids were more than eager to listen and get ready to go too. After they bathed they knocked out and they are still sleeping.<br /><br />Today we are going to try to make up some ground and our goal is to end up in Virginia tonight. Hopefully it happens but we are not in a hurry to get anywhere. We are just enjoying the time as a family. Please keep us in prayer this month as we travel here and there. Hope you have a blessed day.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-10933173631975774582009-07-31T15:36:00.000-04:002009-07-31T15:56:56.282-04:00Is July already over?At this moment I sit here with Naomi on my lap and type with one hand, we watch the light rain fall and we are enjoying the peace in our home. As I watch outside I am humbled in my heart to realize that I need the rain in my own heart in order for me to grow spiritually. I must admit that the past year or so I have allowed my life to be consumed by everything other than what I need the most in life. I realize I have three young ones now but I don't feel that should be an excuse to where I am spiritually. I need Him more now especially since I have young ones because if I am not where I am supposed to be how will I teach them in the ways they should go? If I am not teaching them then who will? Anyways this has been on my heart for the past couple of weeks but this week it has affected me the most.<br /><br />Other than my spiritual life so much has happened since the last time I posted. As I mentioned in our last post, Alex's conversion status has been approved. With this new development we were able to finally put in for orders. We are just waiting for the papers to be finalized and then we will share where we are moving next. If everything goes as planned (what we have been told) we should be not far from our current area.<br /><br />We celebrated Nathanael's second birthday this past Sunday. The day before his birthday we pulled the clippers out and the bar stool and we gave both boys a haircut. The significant change was Nathanael's haircut though because this was the first time he really got a haircut. He no longer has a bowl cut and no longer looks like my baby. I put off haircuts until two years old because I want them to be my babies as long as possible. I was not ready to admit that until Isaiah's got his first haircut and then his baby features all faded away and he began to look like a big boy. I remembered this so I held on to Nathanael's baby look until the day before his second birthday the way we did it with Isaiah. When his hair hit the ground I almost shed a tear because I realized that my little baby boy was no longer a baby. He is my little boy now. He is so handsome and I am so grateful for the gift that God gave me which is also the meaning of his name. (Nathanael = gift of God) We celebrated the birthday by going to Chuck E Cheese and letting the boys run around having the time of their life.<br /><br />This week has consisted of much cleaning and preparation for our vacation. We are going to be having a three week vacation which is so exciting for us. We are doing it for that long because this is our last big trip before our move. Our plans are to go to Corpus and visit for a few days before we head to Amarillo to visit my brother. We are actually vacationing with my parents but my dad's vacation doesn't start until Sunday so we will be in Corpus until then. After visiting my brother we will head to Colorado for about a week and then we depart from my family and will visit the friends in Albuquerque before we head back to Maine. We plan on taking our time and enjoying every moment of it. Now I must go and finish packing. I am actually almost done with the gathering of things that we need for this trip and tomorrow should consist of cleaning the car and getting it loaded so all we have to do on Sunday is pick up Alex from work and then head to Texas.<br /><br />Maybe we will see some of you during this trip.Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-16981190633063061632009-07-15T15:42:00.000-04:002009-07-15T15:45:33.207-04:00Conversion StatusAfter many months of waiting Alex's rate conversion has gone through. This is exciting for us because we actually get to receive orders to our new location soon. He spoke with the detailer this morning about some possible locations and we should find something out within the next few weeks about our new location. We are excited because it makes our next move a little more real. We know our time is ending here in Maine but we haven't known where we are going next. According to the detailer though we will be detaching from this base in December which is only 5 months from now and will be reporting to our new location in January. So please pray that the Lord will put us where he wants us.Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-21147644342661524592009-07-08T10:20:00.001-04:002009-07-08T11:10:24.693-04:00Can you believe we are in the second half of the year?It seems like yesterday that we started the year 2009 and now we are in July. This just makes me realize how fast time goes by. So much has happened in this first half of the year that I am anxious to see what is going to happen in the second half of the year...<br /><br />Recap of first half of year...<br /><br />January consisted of much snow so that had lots of time on the sled during the fresh snow because the next day would be too icy. This winter wasn't as much fun as the year before only because it turned icy so fast and it wasn't very soft snow. I was a little over five months pregnant here.<br /><br />February consisted of more snow and more of the same as January. Six months pregnant here.<br /><br />March...Alex and I celebrated 4 years of marriage. Seven months pregnant. We decided that Alex should try to do a rate conversion which basically changes his job and title. He is currently an electrician but will try to become an aviation electrician.<br /><br />April...Pretty miserable at this point because I am hitting the end of the pregnancy. Many walks to the park. Many walks period because I am ready to have this baby. No word yet on the conversion status.<br /><br />May...Our beautiful baby girl makes her appearance. My parents come for a two week visit. The day my parents leave Alex's parents come in but due to the untimely death of Alex's brother only stayed for two days before turning around to head home. Alex visited Texas for about two weeks and had to learn how to manage three kiddos with my sister.<br /><br />June...Alex gets home from Texas. My sister <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">flew</span> back to Texas. It is now one month of having our little girl and it has been such a huge blessing. Every day we have with her makes us count our blessings. The boys are falling in love with Naomi more and more and have been extremely helpful with everything. We realize we only have 6-7 months left here in the state of Maine so we decide to try to do something every payday to visit the rest of Maine and the surrounding areas. Alex's conversion package fell through with the rate he was wanting but a new package was put in for him to become some kind of aviation technician of some sort. We should hear back soon. We are now getting so much rain it has been very depressing. We visit York's Wild Kingdom on a non rainy day but it is very cloudy. The cloudiness prevented it from being too hot so it was a blessing in disguise. The kids enjoyed the zoo. The boys fed the deer and could have stayed there all day. Took a paddle boat ride. Rode an elephant. Visited the butterfly exhibit. Took the boys to ride the rides at the amusement park portion of the park. The zoo was much bigger than we anticipated and had a lot of exotic animals. We truly enjoyed this day. I have many pictures but I am unable to post them because my computer is broken. I am having to use the laptop which doesn't contain the programs to upload pictures so pictures will come at a later date.<br /><br /><br />So that recaps my first half of the year and now we are in July. Naomi had her 2 month check up last week and she is now weighing in at 10 pounds and is in the 35th percentile for weight. She is doing extremely well even if she looks really small. As I mentioned we have been getting lots of rain and we have pretty much had rain off and on for the past five weeks so it has been a little upsetting. We were going to go camping during the fourth of July weekend but because of the rain we decided to go to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Pennsylvania</span> for four days. We were going to go to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Pennsylvania</span> during the second half of the month for Nathanael's birthday but since it was going to rain in Maine and not <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Pennsylvania</span> we went where the rain was not going to be. Friday the 3rd we spent our day driving to Willow Grove which is about 30 minutes away from <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Philadelphia</span>. It took us 11 hours to get a 7 1/2 hour drive done. On the 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">th</span> we went to Sesame Place. Sesame Place is a theme park for kids completely consisting of Sesame Street characters. This was the main reason we went to PA. We went to see Elmo. During our time there we were able to see shows, ride rides, and have a good time. We even got good seats to see the parade at the end of the day. My boys were so excited to see the characters and then when they were able to touch Elmo and then Cookie Monster they were in awe. They asked us later if we can see Elmo again the next day but we told them we would have to see. (What makes us laugh about wanting to see Elmo is because we are amazed how our kids even know who any of these characters are because I kid you not we have not introduced our kids to Sesame Street at all. At our house they only watch Veggie Tales and now the Ice Age movies. They may have seen one show but this was probably about a year ago but if you ask who that character is or the other one they will tell you exactly who they are. Well Isaiah will tell you because Nathanael just knows how to say Elmo and attempts to say the other character names.) The next day we planned on visiting <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Philadelphia</span> to visit historic attractions but we were starting to run low on our budgeted funds that we decided we would have to come back at another time. When the kids asked about Elmo we told them we would have to come back at another time. So we decided to head home a day early but after driving for 6-7 hours I was ready to pull over and so were the kids so we pulled over in Connecticut and went swimming in an indoor heated pool. It was very important to find an indoor pool to us because even though it is warm/hot outside the water in any pool area is freezing because it is just not like Texas heat and water where you are comfortable in the water. We had a lot of fun and then on Monday the 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">th</span> we headed home and celebrated the two months that we have had our Naomi. We got home around 7:30<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">ish</span> so there was still plenty of time to just rest. We took our time to get anywhere and really enjoyed it. Now we are home and resting and looking forward to celebrating Nathanael's birthday at the end of the month. He will not be getting any presents this year but he knows he is loved regardless. I will probably make some kind of dessert but who knows because I think we may try to go camping in Bar Harbor and go whale watching. This is one thing I want to get crossed off my check list. I want to go to Bar Harbor to see whales and penguins, Acadia National Park which is in the Bar Harbor Area, visit the areas surrounding the Canadian border, visit Augusta which is in the Moose River Valley area of Maine, and the western lakes and mountain area of Maine. We have many things we want to accomplish and that is only the areas in Maine we want to see so we will definitely be busy these next few months.<br /><br />Although we will be busy I will do my best to keep you posted with photos and our journeys along the way. Hope you are all doing well.Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-41262591060372432652009-06-18T11:35:00.000-04:002009-06-18T11:41:10.060-04:00Summer has begunThis week has been fun as we are all shaking off the sick bug. We have enjoyed getting to go outside a little more than usual. The weather hasn't been too good to us up here so when it is a nice day out we let the kids take the bikes out in the front and play with the other neighborhood kids.<br /><br />Naomi turned six weeks yesterday and we are so grateful that we have been able to get to this milestone. She is growing big and strong. She eats all the time and is so cute with her chubby cheeks. I will have to post newer pictures soon. They get big so fast...don't they?<br /><br />Well we are looking forward to this weekend because we are going to try to be outside more this weekend and try to just rest a little. Last night was a rough night because Naomi thought it would be fun to wake up at 2:30 in the morning and just stay awake until 4 am. She didn't cry much but she did move and kick and coo which kept me up. I am ready for a nap and I think this weekend will be just nice to just do nothing.<br /><br />Well I hope you are having a good day. Be blessed.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-35879153875674119212009-06-12T08:59:00.000-04:002009-06-12T09:20:45.882-04:00What a weekThis has been a very stressful week for me because I have been sick and it was the first week that I have had the kids all day long by myself. Saturday night I started feeling my throat hurt and told Alex but we thought nothing of it until Sunday when I woke up and I was feeling worse. We rested the majority of Sunday because I was not up to par. Sunday I went to bed with a mild fever but when Monday rolled around I had a fever of a 101.4 and Alex felt terrible because he had duty and this was the first time he was going to be at work since May 5<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span>. The kids waking up at 5:30 that morning didn't really help the situation but the cutest thing happened that morning. Keep in mind the boys just got their daddy home and spent 5 days with him so they are not wanting to see him leave. That morning Isaiah says "Daddy, where are you going?" Alex responds, "I am going to work." Isaiah says, "You go work daddy?" Alex says, "Yes baby, daddy is going to make some money so we can be able to play together later." Isaiah sits and thinks about what his daddy has just told him and then he spots a penny on the table and smiles. He grabs the penny and runs to Alex and says, "Daddy here I make money for you." Alex carries that penny around now. Needless to say he didn't want to leave him that morning but the transition ended up going pretty well.<br /><br />Tuesday I continued to run a fever and that night Isaiah came to our bed around 11:30 pm crying and when he crawled into bed I could feel the heat from his body. He slept with us and the next morning he was extremely hot. I noticed he had trouble swallowing so I scheduled an appointment for him with the pediatrician and they told us that he just has the same virus I had and it just needs to run its course. Wednesday night Naomi started with the coughing and then Thursday morning Nathanael started with a runny nose. Everyone is running a mild fever now including me but I am hoping we can get this junk out of our systems soon. The weather over here hasn't helped the situation because it is cold and rainy. I want to air out our house but it gets too cold too fast so I am hoping we will have a sunny day soon so we can go outside and get some fresh air.<br /><br />We are excited it is Friday and that we have completed the first week of getting back to normal. This week was a bit rougher because of the sickness but it also was a little nice to get used to the intimacy of our little family. I must admit getting back into the swing of things has been a little harder that I expected but as I have felt better I have noticed I can get a good hour to hour and a half worth of cleaning in the morning and then another two to three hours in the afternoon when everyone is napping. I am sure we will develop a system soon. I hope everyone has a good week.Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-56787683048589613972009-06-04T10:00:00.000-04:002009-06-04T10:21:27.430-04:00Exciting DaysThis week has been very exciting for us. Tuesday my sister flew home to Texas and Alex flew in to Maine. We were all set to leave the house because I had to take her to Manchester, New Hampshire so she can fly out when my phone rang. I saw that it was someone from Alex's command so I answered the phone only to hear what are you thinking? I was confused by this and said what? Well it turned out to be a friend of ours and he told me that I was absolutely insane to go to Manchester because I really needed to be resting. He offered to take my sister for me and to pick up Alex because his flight was coming in around midnight. I took him up on picking up Alex for sure but told him I would have to call back about my sister. A few minutes later I called back and asked if he happened to have his minivan with him and turned out he did so he was able to take all of us and I had someone to drive me there. It was such a blessing.<br /><br />Keep in mind that when I woke up Tuesday morning I was dreading this day because I knew it was going to be a long day and I just kept telling myself I was going to be glad when the day was done. So the Lord completely blessed me with Derek and his help and it was great because my kids absolutely love him. On the way home from Manchester I got another phone call from a friend of mine from church and she said she had made an excess of dinner and would love to bring us dinner that evening. I was so excited because this was another thought in my head wondering what I would do about dinner that evening. She made us some homemade macaroni and cookies for dinner. We got home from Manchester around 5:15 and an hour later we had dinner. Isn't God so great?<br /><br />The rest of the evening went smoothly and I let the kids wait up for their daddy to come home but I knew they wouldn't make it. My intention was to let them stay up late so they can sleep in the next day which worked out in my favor. Nathanael lasted until 10:30 and Isaiah lasted until 11:00 but Alex didn't come home until nearly 1 am the next morning. They slept until about 9:30 so that was nice.<br /><br />We took Naomi to the doctor yesterday for her one month check up even though it is a few days early but she is doing wonderful. She is now weighing 8 pounds and that puts her in the 20<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span> percentile for weight. She is now 20 1/2 inches long and that puts her in the 33rd percentile and her head is now 14 inches which puts her in the 19<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">th</span> percentile for her head growth. We were just glad to see her on the growth chart because the boys were never on the growth chart.<br /><br />After her shots she was exhausted so we decided to go to the park on Main street and let the boys run around and get some energy out as she slept. We enjoyed a sunny day out with the boys and then came home only to lose power just as we were about to make dinner. We waited around and finally decided to go and get something to eat since we didn't know how long power was going to be out and just as Alex was about to leave the power went back on so I made dinner and got everyone fed and about an hour later we lost power again. We went again without power for another hour or two but we were so grateful that we had power long enough to make dinner so we didn't have to spend any money. We ended our evening playing cards in the candlelight.<br /><br />The past two days have been filled with much to do but the Lord has completely blessed us and I am so grateful.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-55045149425268617992009-06-01T18:28:00.001-04:002009-06-01T19:52:52.880-04:00Photo Update<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div>I have finally uploaded the last two rolls of film I have developed and I took two more rolls of film to be developed yesterday but here are all the pictures I have up to date. These pictures are from October 2008 - May 2009.</div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQSZzZDKuVaE2Nb2Fg_xQvYZrYDKUk1949vS4Wn3FFQRWiLslieyCjNFsZlhl37dGXdv93GOV0ej3nkwr12OD7fc4Jcxx287VuDeTyp3bhhvyxHuKIVXofNmcJxc1U6plMZB55alCgYcY/s1600-h/IMG023.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342492270435753394" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQSZzZDKuVaE2Nb2Fg_xQvYZrYDKUk1949vS4Wn3FFQRWiLslieyCjNFsZlhl37dGXdv93GOV0ej3nkwr12OD7fc4Jcxx287VuDeTyp3bhhvyxHuKIVXofNmcJxc1U6plMZB55alCgYcY/s320/IMG023.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Nathanael was our fireman because Isaiah was the fireman the year before.</div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi0bM3p4VxIp-bO0HV3ZIB-VF_XniWNzFNHOrYGTgeIgiOhSojrWXZmqqws0yy3has25B8jpi9TSVrdL9EMicci_0t3TdfMsmAD8__wDSjsuiq-OI9TO9lpmLWO1hdZ80rd_ZzyLwGJ-g/s1600-h/IMG021.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342492282541343874" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi0bM3p4VxIp-bO0HV3ZIB-VF_XniWNzFNHOrYGTgeIgiOhSojrWXZmqqws0yy3has25B8jpi9TSVrdL9EMicci_0t3TdfMsmAD8__wDSjsuiq-OI9TO9lpmLWO1hdZ80rd_ZzyLwGJ-g/s320/IMG021.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Isaiah was Bob the tomato.</div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi835lAWENwjroYY8vfL4vX1i9z7_D8j-1hyj1zKPKeE81ucGKLsR68qpPGQ9RKnAbViLWxfky60wU6reN3q6CYiKDZHsLiNYQ6NeLhSfSSuTZ4QyEUAoEgjAj1XwMlZiWbu_bSc1J_jYY/s1600-h/IMG020.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342492275645071522" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi835lAWENwjroYY8vfL4vX1i9z7_D8j-1hyj1zKPKeE81ucGKLsR68qpPGQ9RKnAbViLWxfky60wU6reN3q6CYiKDZHsLiNYQ6NeLhSfSSuTZ4QyEUAoEgjAj1XwMlZiWbu_bSc1J_jYY/s320/IMG020.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Bob the tomato and the fireman in their wagon.</div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ0_YM4BlCC0TUaYl_epOC7AX5H5Y95_8d8AwCUlinlay_2yJNIYwbucfaZcUbJFPSz6ZJKzAJJEJYBwQXuqF27h25mO_IgfJuOlZwc2fR9vFCRfaIYcy_KlJ8RQuVcyGckH_IzznsOlE/s1600-h/IMG010.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342491219687078082" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ0_YM4BlCC0TUaYl_epOC7AX5H5Y95_8d8AwCUlinlay_2yJNIYwbucfaZcUbJFPSz6ZJKzAJJEJYBwQXuqF27h25mO_IgfJuOlZwc2fR9vFCRfaIYcy_KlJ8RQuVcyGckH_IzznsOlE/s320/IMG010.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />The boys playing the piano at our friend's house after trick or treating.<br /></div><div></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghvUKvcbQcO8-wJFfhdkkE-fdJoFWGaSyet_5TtfeP0xEr-aOmtXcaDz7K7l9u4qp5-Ctlet_ZMnuSJcu4gsy6qQX9rHxTwNa4acpRHmJqjKAr3CccfhYHdXgshq6v3VTomf8fWnKsXdQ/s1600-h/IMG000.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342491210619303714" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghvUKvcbQcO8-wJFfhdkkE-fdJoFWGaSyet_5TtfeP0xEr-aOmtXcaDz7K7l9u4qp5-Ctlet_ZMnuSJcu4gsy6qQX9rHxTwNa4acpRHmJqjKAr3CccfhYHdXgshq6v3VTomf8fWnKsXdQ/s320/IMG000.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Resting at the house after a busy evening.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2w7L0wiWQEkbLhXbFP1iS4yG_5lMtVdqNqfu8mDsblFaID1rvmKa6YpxNRJv8W9jBBCIaYhhjlXEOZn6dDIEJQ5DdNbUdNeeYoaHcMyP0Nc20MY4p2WpZUDllnLfPgG15tcjk9GKxHgc/s1600-h/IMG012.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342492284472769010" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2w7L0wiWQEkbLhXbFP1iS4yG_5lMtVdqNqfu8mDsblFaID1rvmKa6YpxNRJv8W9jBBCIaYhhjlXEOZn6dDIEJQ5DdNbUdNeeYoaHcMyP0Nc20MY4p2WpZUDllnLfPgG15tcjk9GKxHgc/s320/IMG012.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>My brother and I at my sister's graduation in December.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNasT3wCPA6DEyutGKu7XPjlH1KIYppf1DKdO1YM6sT951dlpojdS1OtSaUVPgurT9BP5sDFlTaEkcFWOirHQfs11ccFnPaQuycIQVsBqG7xPCXmvDO1kZEyq4FsmznznmVb-MMo9yRfo/s1600-h/IMG000.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342493348451538530" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNasT3wCPA6DEyutGKu7XPjlH1KIYppf1DKdO1YM6sT951dlpojdS1OtSaUVPgurT9BP5sDFlTaEkcFWOirHQfs11ccFnPaQuycIQVsBqG7xPCXmvDO1kZEyq4FsmznznmVb-MMo9yRfo/s320/IMG000.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Nathanael's baby dedication just before Christmas.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmcxuBY9i8jIQs1NMMf-_nYAYofAnYes-O1xrsiO6LOtycZcYe6m9tp4O5O5FbouJ9RuONk8b1k7z-A03JUf5Igfv0h-OKexg0T3-aW-0ircnZE6dN1Hp_gGJ2Mt5pXxL9DRcDjhyphenhyphenDCXE/s1600-h/HPIM0356.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342493363214071554" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmcxuBY9i8jIQs1NMMf-_nYAYofAnYes-O1xrsiO6LOtycZcYe6m9tp4O5O5FbouJ9RuONk8b1k7z-A03JUf5Igfv0h-OKexg0T3-aW-0ircnZE6dN1Hp_gGJ2Mt5pXxL9DRcDjhyphenhyphenDCXE/s320/HPIM0356.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Playing in the snow in late January and early February.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTW924V4eSdbDXJb3sEY6bIFHfpohxZykSUIGiHfWDkzpBy8-3V1qiDrUOLHrxq3sNtmiLhSEPD8197YrSzIIbnSBYtDjHKNWWrS3aVOfGShvxB8h8XrVUfURh5ZrlMqa2ta8c9EeehZc/s1600-h/HPIM0366.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342494533704848146" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTW924V4eSdbDXJb3sEY6bIFHfpohxZykSUIGiHfWDkzpBy8-3V1qiDrUOLHrxq3sNtmiLhSEPD8197YrSzIIbnSBYtDjHKNWWrS3aVOfGShvxB8h8XrVUfURh5ZrlMqa2ta8c9EeehZc/s320/HPIM0366.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Nathanael getting his balance on the sled.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgprLh-yo8o3ZzbN5mpOyVqOd4RzWq5OM3YR9u6oExZ38N4qdJ1Cgb84RB6HbMKi4F5huQFkx_fBbNoq5xFO7T5WFKic3JLCul8ItmPoIZikf-KZGZ9YmgXQMhCK9m1O8haS48YFIzsYb0/s1600-h/HPIM0369.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342494540838571202" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgprLh-yo8o3ZzbN5mpOyVqOd4RzWq5OM3YR9u6oExZ38N4qdJ1Cgb84RB6HbMKi4F5huQFkx_fBbNoq5xFO7T5WFKic3JLCul8ItmPoIZikf-KZGZ9YmgXQMhCK9m1O8haS48YFIzsYb0/s320/HPIM0369.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Isaiah waiting to get going again. He never wants to come in when we are out playing in the snow.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho0vVB4Ge1pl2fqoBgs4xZIqMU-Lk5teLpQJk74m8_CQZsH4p25kvmm6Y50d1EM3YedtUqzHUDMngMW-4yEuo6YK6iW301rm9-90wkuqrpPy7HHDpQj7Xf3eZtIOI11XgTyKJHt599ZC4/s1600-h/HPIM0438.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342494551871104978" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho0vVB4Ge1pl2fqoBgs4xZIqMU-Lk5teLpQJk74m8_CQZsH4p25kvmm6Y50d1EM3YedtUqzHUDMngMW-4yEuo6YK6iW301rm9-90wkuqrpPy7HHDpQj7Xf3eZtIOI11XgTyKJHt599ZC4/s320/HPIM0438.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>My anniversary gift this year. It is funny because I was originally going to get this for Alex since the traditional gift for us this year was either flowers or fruit and he ended up getting it for me but he ate it too so we ended up getting the best of both. I ended up taking him to a nice restaurant of his choice.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzEwmOPk7-Q89Xs3KMs8sRisyFppMvWcBSQeJu86QuIP4A0PmGyYf35ELJPhU4XTU-y8aC4_6WU833uL1Ng9duyDDeYRYN9GPVwUxkHUwmOGdUHbUzHHNdtmVHGyFZspJ7G6BiQ8Wa6gI/s1600-h/HPIM0439.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342494562269690658" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzEwmOPk7-Q89Xs3KMs8sRisyFppMvWcBSQeJu86QuIP4A0PmGyYf35ELJPhU4XTU-y8aC4_6WU833uL1Ng9duyDDeYRYN9GPVwUxkHUwmOGdUHbUzHHNdtmVHGyFZspJ7G6BiQ8Wa6gI/s320/HPIM0439.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>This is what the bouquet looked like after removing the wrapper.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHnF6gyY3WsC_x66E2PSxXUxyZyUmM3ZpFjtBGPXCew00xrtnGidLEMPu-tv4q9OuHVcsb4RN1S1NcbLZGYXKeQtbxgmhmLeoevnswx9cJoDEEFFd4GEP8b3-DIZtLE82bJQyganxKpUI/s1600-h/HPIM0446.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342495614900392482" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHnF6gyY3WsC_x66E2PSxXUxyZyUmM3ZpFjtBGPXCew00xrtnGidLEMPu-tv4q9OuHVcsb4RN1S1NcbLZGYXKeQtbxgmhmLeoevnswx9cJoDEEFFd4GEP8b3-DIZtLE82bJQyganxKpUI/s320/HPIM0446.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Just celebrated 4 years of marriage.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDHCf2EvwSRmfjyQSReFZ-xefc3EbCuy-7AMrjZxpUyYJNTuoKhPGVMNkvMVPm_T_KR2dg9VU6hXktIzqTZYFznOcJ6oXzlwDYDGwmgdDGfmiEltWYZSQhl2_tPnfXfTwPV404CRn_cuQ/s1600-h/HPIM0452.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342495622322401378" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDHCf2EvwSRmfjyQSReFZ-xefc3EbCuy-7AMrjZxpUyYJNTuoKhPGVMNkvMVPm_T_KR2dg9VU6hXktIzqTZYFznOcJ6oXzlwDYDGwmgdDGfmiEltWYZSQhl2_tPnfXfTwPV404CRn_cuQ/s320/HPIM0452.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Nathanael is Easter egg hunting at the base chapel.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGM69rcdoIH1Gm9ef5gXhMtrSfb1TErwoyCL8o4lmLw1-NeoijqV5AKB2U2WOEZ6awAYbxVMEr4NNm1Xy6IIXVQh2xINAg-u6y9GzDrQ7-8K3TkErY7_1xByjy7HcEN7sudxzJ5hdNcGE/s1600-h/HPIM0455.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342495632652840162" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGM69rcdoIH1Gm9ef5gXhMtrSfb1TErwoyCL8o4lmLw1-NeoijqV5AKB2U2WOEZ6awAYbxVMEr4NNm1Xy6IIXVQh2xINAg-u6y9GzDrQ7-8K3TkErY7_1xByjy7HcEN7sudxzJ5hdNcGE/s320/HPIM0455.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Isaiah is interested in playing with the eggs and taking it to the pretend kitchen.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikVsAbuk0Uly2257bit4gIxeMIO9LkOE8KE0E3DUlTznQlCcstb0xUoU0tPVg8GgLKNCSG7BZz1z_F08c-4xVwD8_cauD51k6wVde7SqPoq9tMlx9yB_69NfKRnPoFsAmj1u6gtV5GNFg/s1600-h/HPIM0456.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342495626560943090" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikVsAbuk0Uly2257bit4gIxeMIO9LkOE8KE0E3DUlTznQlCcstb0xUoU0tPVg8GgLKNCSG7BZz1z_F08c-4xVwD8_cauD51k6wVde7SqPoq9tMlx9yB_69NfKRnPoFsAmj1u6gtV5GNFg/s320/HPIM0456.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Isaiah is helping his brother collect his ten eggs.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnuAG6RTQb9GIRg0BilRaBFDB29uIGe8OfFUzr-Q3yo0knTA_KCIg-nS5C7cT6jwR-0O5UXXgS7M0AQKTXEDyjxIZdfShsep6UWAuviDbxkDXs5Mku17AoV8EhuGkL1sm6M-MEK773pnA/s1600-h/HPIM0467.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342496826518761554" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnuAG6RTQb9GIRg0BilRaBFDB29uIGe8OfFUzr-Q3yo0knTA_KCIg-nS5C7cT6jwR-0O5UXXgS7M0AQKTXEDyjxIZdfShsep6UWAuviDbxkDXs5Mku17AoV8EhuGkL1sm6M-MEK773pnA/s320/HPIM0467.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Naomi Annette in one of her first pictures. She loves to be curled up like this. She is barely starting to stretch those long legs of hers.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL0ifpW2boeDZYMuWTxF6tTaVyvT41L56n9x2jTi3atuS0k-voJ2IgZ0Bt3UTQDtfAPRPT6wn_g0lQihODJ0woMr0LoguwDUha3W2IcA5ov3xGOexezF6hw7mQ9vqDcvP5u0cWdAd4Hyc/s1600-h/HPIM0472.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342496827676692690" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL0ifpW2boeDZYMuWTxF6tTaVyvT41L56n9x2jTi3atuS0k-voJ2IgZ0Bt3UTQDtfAPRPT6wn_g0lQihODJ0woMr0LoguwDUha3W2IcA5ov3xGOexezF6hw7mQ9vqDcvP5u0cWdAd4Hyc/s320/HPIM0472.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>Isn't she so precious just resting so peacefully.</div><div> </div><div>Well there are more pictures but those are some pictures to catch you up on our life. I have told you most of our stories of what we have been up to but I have not been very good at posting pictures like I promised so here is the start. I will post more pics of the kids as I get the chance. Hope you all enjoy.</div><div> </div><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Aleida</span></div><div> </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-24305103964229757592009-05-28T13:01:00.000-04:002009-05-28T13:09:22.904-04:00Three weeksIt is so hard for me to believe that Naomi is three weeks old already. She is thriving and getting bigger. She is still a peanut but to me she looks like she is getting longer and I just can't believe it.<br /><br />So much has happened in the past three weeks that I don't know where to begin. We have had some adjustments that needed to be made but we are all doing well. Isaiah is doing well with having a new sibling but he is starting to get into the talking back phase and having to have the last word phase that it is driving me insane. He makes me laugh because he acts older than he really is.<br /><br />Nathanael was not too fond of Naomi when she first arrived but now he loves to look at her and loves to give her kisses with Isaiah. They both enjoy giving her kisses and hugs. Nathanael has also had a growth spurt and is starting to look a little taller these days. His birthday is right around the corner in two months so we are thinking of ways to make him feel extra special without breaking the bank. Anyone have any ideas?<br /><br />As far as Alex and I...we are doing well. Alex is still in Texas and I can't wait for him to be home already. He tells us he misses us dearly and we definitely feel that way about him. It will be nice to have him home again soon. I am a little exhausted but doing well. I finally got Naomi's crib situated to be her bed and transitioned Nathanael out of the crib into a twin mattress. Once Alex gets home I will have him get his bed together but he enjoys having his big boy bed. I have managed to stay busy but I am resting as well. My sister has been here helping me keep my sanity.Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-47602056770404151372009-05-23T15:29:00.000-04:002009-05-23T15:36:22.872-04:00A time of frustrationI feel so overwhelmed at this moment and really need prayer. Wednesday Alex's brother Mario passed away and went to be with the Lord. Although we knew it was coming it has still been something that has been a bit overwhelming. Alex left for Texas yesterday with his family and they should be there tomorrow night sometime which I will be happier knowing he made it there safely. Today I have been researching flights for him to come home and that has been hard because it is hard to determine when would be a good time for him to fly home and what can we really afford and that kind of thing. My sister stayed behind to help me manage three kiddos without losing my sanity as I try to rest some as well. So I have also been trying to look up flights for her too.<br /><br />I am just ready to have a good cry and go to sleep for a few hours because none of us slept good last night with Alex leaving. The boys didn't get to say bye to him so they keep asking where daddy is and when he will be home. They don't understand time just yet. Thank you for listening to me vent a little during this frustrating time for me. I hope you are having a better day than I am today. I know tomorrow is a new day and things will get better and easier.<br /><br />In Christ,<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-10866316849672521282009-05-19T14:36:00.001-04:002009-05-19T14:52:18.157-04:00Many Prayer RequestsI can't believe tomorrow Naomi will be two weeks old. It just blows my mind how fast time has gone by. I realize I have not been online very much because we have had the new baby along with having my parents here helping us out. I thought I would get online a little bit today as I have a little quiet time right now. The main reason I get online today is to ask for prayer for many things...<br /><br />I ask for continued prayer with the recovery process of child labor and delivery. You would think after two weeks I would feel better but this has been a slow recovery for me and I must admit that I am in some pain still. This is frustrating for me because I am used to doing more around the house to help and I have had to learn to just let others help me out while I just rest. <br /><br />As I learn to rest and try to take it easy, I have become overwhelmed with other things that go on. Yesterday we received a phone call that Alex's disabled brother went to be with the Lord the evening before but they <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">resuscitated</span> him and he was now on a respirator and we had to wait to find out how much more brain damage had occurred. We learned this morning that he survived the night despite having several seizures throughout the evening. Today we think they are going to try to take him off the respirator and see how he does and if he can breathe on his own then they will leave him off and wait to see how everything plays out. If he doesn't do well on his own they will put him back on the respirator until the family gets there and then they will just let him go so he can be with the Lord. Needless to say that this is a very sad ordeal for my husband and as I try to comfort him we are trying to figure out the details as far as him traveling back home.<br /><br />My parents leave Maine tomorrow morning and start heading back to Texas so we ask for safe travels for them. Alex's parents were on their way to visit us when we got the news so I think they will be here tomorrow and will be turning around shortly to head back home but they really wanted to see Naomi. So we ask for continued safe travels for them. Alex's command has been very generous and has offered much support as we figure out what is going to happen within the next week or so and I couldn't ask for more. <br /><br />I hope everyone of you are having a wonderful day but I must go now and take a nap because I am so exhausted. Please keep us in your prayers.<br /><br />In Christ,<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-63266503810753945322009-05-07T14:27:00.000-04:002009-05-07T14:47:52.247-04:00Naomi AnnetteWow has this week flown by. Monday I went in for my check up and left the office a little discouraged learning that I was only at a 3. The next day I had made some progress but not enough to send me into active labor. Yesterday morning I woke up feeling significantly different and told Alex that we were going to have Naomi that day. After waiting for about 3 1/2 hours at home we came into the hospital for the third time but this time they admitted me and started me on antibiotics because I tested positive for group B strep. When I was admitted I was still a 3 but they told me that I was very soft and they didn't want to chance sending me home this time. After being in the hospital for about 2 hours my midwife told me that she would rupture my water because she really didn't want to see me miserable for the next few days. I called my mom and told her what was going on and then an hour later around 10:25 we found out I was a 5 so I was definitely making progress so we knew this was the real thing. My midwife went ahead and ruptured my water bag but it didn't go as she had planned. She decided that she wanted me to get up and walk around and see if I can get Naomi's head to put a little pressure on my cervix so she can get the rupture she wanted but the minute I stood up I felt a shift and this put me into full swing. My water bad ended up completely rupturing so I went straight to the jacuzzi to labor in the water up until I needed to push since I was unable to do the water birth that I so desperately wanted for this birth. I had a water birth for Nathanael and was very pleased and honestly prefer this experience over anything but since the hospital can not perform water births here anymore I had to settle for laboring in the jacuzzi and then shifting to the bed when it was time to push. When I felt it was near time to push they moved me back to the bed and I learned I was a 9. At this point about an hour and a half had passed since my water breaking and then finally after 21 minutes of pushing our beautiful little girl made her appearance. By far this was the most difficult labor process I had ever done but the Lord gave me the strength to endure what I needed in order for me to complete this process.<br /><br />As I sit here in silence watching this beautiful gift the Lord gives me I feel completely blessed. Because this has been the most difficult labor for me I have rested for most of the day and I am enjoying the fact that I have this time to rest in silence. I am doing well and the recovery process is definitely slow but we are making it. Naomi is a very mellow baby. She is also a very good eater and is latching on very well. She made her appearance at 12:22 pm and weighed in at 6 pounds .7 ounces. She was 19 1/2 inches long and her head was 13 inches. Although she was my biggest baby yet she is so tiny. I forgot how small babies are when they are first born. We will be in the hospital until tomorrow at least I believe but like I said we are just enjoying the quietness of just being together. <br /><br />Thank you for all your prayers for us during this pregnancy and I can't wait to get some pictures of this beautiful baby girl up soon. As soon as I get some pictures up I will post them. I pray all of you have a wonderful day and will keep you updated on any further news that may come up.<br /><br />In Christ,<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2387306378930042061.post-50573370238133603022009-05-01T10:36:00.000-04:002009-05-01T10:46:39.151-04:00Nearing 39 weeksI have been so frustrated with my computer because for some reason I have been unable to use it lately so I have been out of touch with everyone. So here is my quick update. I am still pregnant and doing well. I have not had as much pain lately which is good because honestly I would be crazy by now considering she is still in my belly. There have been days I have just wanted her to come but I am also learning to be patient. There have been many good reasons that she hasn't come yet. One reason is she is still growing healthy in my belly and another reason is all of the boys in my house have been sick with some but they can't seem to shake off. We are convinced that Lord has deliberately not allowed for our baby girl to come into this world because it would be so hard to keep the boys away from their sister.<br /><br />My parents will be traveling up here for their 2 week vacation starting on the 9<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span> and my actual due date is the 12<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">th</span> so maybe she will just wait until they get here which is also a plus because at least the boys will have family they can hang out with. We already have arrangements made in case she does come a little early but we just don't know the time she will actually come.<br /><br />My last doctors appointment went good and I had passed my mucus plug on Sunday and I was at a 2 as far as dilation goes. My midwife told Alex I would probably have the baby within a few days but it has been a few days and no baby has come yet so once again we have to chalk it up to a baby will come when they are ready. I am partly convinced I will be pregnant forever but I know that is not true. I will keep you updated as the time comes and I can only hope it will happen soon. Who knows we may end up having to discuss induction at my next appointment on Monday because my midwife doesn't like for any of her patients to go too far over their due date.<br /><br />More updates to come soon as we are nearing the end...<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Aleida</span>Beni Famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07457328257099092966noreply@blogger.com2