Sorry...lol

Well, well, well...here I am...almost 2 months later. I am just going to have to keep apologizing for my negligence. Sorry....lol

A lot has happened since the last time I blogged. I started (and finished) summer school. I didn't do as well as I wanted (A,B,B), but according to people who have taken those classes regular term, that is good for summer term. I am registered for 14 hours for the fall so far. I may be adding some more classes to that for 18 hours. The original plan was 17, so that is not bad. I hope it goes well.

Something really great and important happened the day before my last blog that I don't think I wrote about. Chad was baptized as a follower of Jesus Christ. He has made such a spiritual turn around in his life in just the 5 years that I have known him. His heart is truly calling out for God to come into his life and do those great things that only He can do. I have faith that there are so many great things ahead of us and that God has great plans for us.

On July 16th, which was Chad's birthday, we had an ultrasound to see if we could find out the sex of the baby.....and we found out we are having a little GIRL!!! We are so excited. I have already gotten gifts from family and friends for the little princess and I am in the process of getting her nursery ready which she will be sharing with her big sister, Bailey. I will post pictures when it's all done. I am so excited to be having a little girl. I wanted a little girl so badly (I would have been just as happy with a little boy, but I wanted my little princess!! lol). I can't wait to meet her. I am now just over 19 weeks and we will have another ultrasound on Aug. 11th. I can't wait to see her again! She is so active! During the last 2 ultrasounds it was a little difficult to get any good pictures of her because she would not sit still! It's great that she is so active, I just wish that I could actually feel all of that movement. She only weighs 9oz right now, so all I can really feel is little flutters when she is swimming around. I can't wait to be able to feel her kick and also for daddy to feel her as well.

Another exciting thing going on is that we are taking another little vacation in a few days. Chad and I are taking the kids to New Orleans for a night and then going to Destin, FL for some BEACH TIME! I have never been, so I am excited. We also decided last night to take my mother in law with us since she was in TN the last week we had the kids and she has not seen them in 3 weeks. It is going to be great! I can't wait.

There is something else pretty major going on right now, but I don't want to go into detail about it. Those of you close to me know what it is, and those who don't, I am sending out a little unspoken prayer request. I believe in the power of prayer and that God can do amazing things, so I am asking that you keep Chad, the kids and I in your prayers that everything will happen the way it should and the way that God wants it to. Although there are other people involved, God has total control and it is all in His hands. I am at peace knowing that...

Well, I think that may be all...or at least all I can think of for now. I hope that everyone is having a great week and continue to have a great weekend as well!!

Love,

Monica

Well what a week!! It's been a pretty crazy one...lets just say people amuse the heck out of me sometimes. Golden rule: Don't ever allow non-important unhappy people to be successful in any attempt to make you unhappy as well. Miserable people will always try to bring you down to their level, but a truly happy person will overcome that.

Anyway, a lot of important things have happened this week. My dad almost got laid off, but God truly has his angels watching us. Not to mention my dad is a very hard worker and good at what he does. So thank God, he still has his job. I would like everyone to say a little prayer for those people who have lost their jobs.
I found out this week that my cousin has some small tumors in her thyroid. They are in the process of running test to determine whether they are malignant or benign, so there is another huge prayer request. Chad and I are going to Mexico next weekend, so I will get to see her then. I can't wait.
On a lighter note...I start summer school at McNeese tomorrow! I am taking 7 hours in the summer and 17 hours in the fall. I don't know how we are going to afford paying for school since some people seem to think we are so broke...lol. Thankfully, Chad is being very supportive and encouraging me to just focus on school despite my valiant efforts to get a job. We don't plan taking any student loans out until I get to graduate school....I'm sure we will need to then. I can't say it enough....God is truly amazing. I am so glad to be getting back in school after the last semester off before the wedding. I can't wait for the day I am bringning home $200,000.00 a year. Won't be so broke then, will we?? It pays to be smart.... :o)

Anyway my dear readers, my hubby and I are going to lay down and watch a movie before bed. I have school early tomorrow and he has an important appointment he has to go to. The kids have friends over and are watching a movie also.

Life is good because God is great....

Good night!

It's getting there....

I made some changes to my blog....it's finally starting to look (and sound) good! At least I think it is. This will be my little project while I'm still in my first trimester, since all I want to do is sit (or lay) on my butt all day. It's really not a good thing. At least I will be starting school in about a week and a half!! I can't wait. I had to put off some of the home projects for a while, which kind of stinks, but I will get my drive back soon hopefully. I am so tired of feeling like this. I need to be doing something to keep busy, I just really don't have the energy. HELP!

I broke my promise...and I'm sorry

So in my last post I made a promise that I was going to keep up with my blog and not be so MIA...I broke that promise and I'm sorry. A lot has happened since that last post that is life changing, and I really should be sharing it and expressing how I am feeling every chance I get. The week after my last post I went on a 7-day Western Carribbean cruise with Chad, the kids, my in-laws and some more of Chad's family. It was my first cruise and I must say I had the most AMAZING time. We went to Jamaica (twice in 2 months! How lucky amd I??), Grand Cayman and Cozumel. I have tons of pictures that I will have to post. I had a few days of not feeling so well and throwing up. Some say it was sea-sickness, I thought it was because I ate too much lol (what?? I was hungry!!) Well, when we got back I was still not feeling so great (remember in my last post I was feeling a little "under the weather"?? So on April 22, three days after we got back from the cruise and after getting tired of Chad telling me to do it....I took a pregnancy test. We have not been trying, and we hadn't planned on having a baby so soon (I am still in school), but once again....He has a different plan for us. I was a little scared at first since it was unexpected, and Chad was too, but he kept telling me that it was ok and that God has this plan for us. I went home that weekend to tell my parents (my dad's birthday was the 24th). They were so happy and excited....not to mention surprised lol. So since then I have had a few dr. appointments and was able to see the baby's heartbeat the last 2 times. I can't even begin to describe what I felt the minute I saw that little pulse on the screen. It was one of the most incredible feelings I have ever felt. There is really this little person growing inside of me....Chad and I really did this...after all the fears and worries I've had of not being able to have kids after the tumor....God decided I was ready and able...He really is an amazing God....

I am now 10 weeks and 3 days!! Chad and I are both excited and feel so blessed to be expecting our first child together. My next appointment is June 18th!!

Aside from the surprise of being pregnant, God has been doing some great things in our lives. I'm sure none of you know, but Chad was never baptized. He has been getting a lot closer to God lately and decided that he wanted to take that step...so he will be baptized next Saturday! I am so excited for him and so happy to see him getting closer and closer to God. I can't wait to see what else He has in store for our future.

More news.....Chad bought me a puppy about 2 weeks ago. She is a boxer and is now about 10 weeks old. We named her Bella. I have to post pictures of her as well. She is a terror!!! Andre is still not very fond of her, but I am hoping that he will warm up to her eventually. I don't think it helps that she is already more than twice his size! lol

Well, I think that is all for now. I really will try my hardest to keep blogging more often. I think it will be something good to have once the little one is born to be able to go back and read about the wonderful experience we are going through helping her (or him) grow and how anxious we are to get to meet her in a few months.

I hope everyone is having a great week!!

Deeply Disturbed

I know I have been MIA from my blog, but I promise I will try to update more. I have just been so busy "moving in" that it's hard to find the time to do anything. Tonight I am feeling a little under the weather (probably thanks to the winter winds we had on this "spring" day), so I decided to drink a cup of Theraflu and curl up on the couch and watch Intervention so I don't wake the husband up (unlike me, he has to wake up early to go to work).

So that brings me to the reason for this blog....I am so deeply disturbed watching this show. I cannot wrap my brain around what goes on in an addict"s mind. I had my moments when I was younger of getting into trouble and doing things I am not so proud of now, but I grew up and I moved on with my life. I became a responsible adult that didn't "depend" on a substance (whether it be alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, meth or even cigarettes) to get me through the day. How do people get to that point?? I have always been a firm believer that a person can do anything they put their mind to and hand over to God. I can say this because I have lived it. I will take this time to tell you guys a little bit of my story...I went through some really rough times as a teenager. I quickly went from being a straight "A" student (really...I only got one B in 4th grade and I thought the world was going to come crashing down) to a barely making it student. I graduated high school with around a 2.5 when I should have (and easily could have) had a 4.0. Granted, I was still smart enough to graduate a year early even with all of my problems. So...I decided to take some time off of college (bad idea) and just work and enjoy my life. Well, "enjoying" my life got me into too much trouble, and landed me in the hospital one night. I shouldn't have made it out of the hospital night. I should have been dead...or at least that was the plan...my plan. *Keep in mind this was a looooong time ago....even years before I met Chad.* So now, I said that was my plan, but someone had a different plan for me and decided to give me another chance. Apparently, He believed in me enough to reach out and take my hand....I haven't let go since.

After this incident I needed answers....I needed to know why everything was happening in my life the way that it was. Why was this all happening to me? Why was I feeling so down and depressed about things?? I turned to God for these answers and my answer came pretty quickly. Once I started to pray and go to church and truly seek God and let him take over my life, I became happy. I wasn't depressed anymore, I started living my life right, and I felt so good... I changed in so many ways, and I believe that without God I would not be the person I am today....and I kinda like me. :o)

So anyway, my whole point to this story is that if people...addicts....would just look up every once in a while, they would realize that they can quit. I don't like using the word addict because my belief in God is so great that I almost don't believe in that word. I don't believe that a person can be so addicted to something that they cannot stop. They can stop...they just need someone to hold their hand like He held mine.

I hope that I can help at least one person out with this post...if you would like to know more, don't be scared to ask. I am an open book...

It's time for bed now. Good night...

Blog Negligence

I guess the appropriate way to start this blog is to apologize. I have had a hell of a past two weeks, so I have neglected my blog and my readers...if I have any. So, I'm sorry, but once you hear about what has been going on you will forgive me.

I am going to start with this past weekend, since last week I had a stomach virus and I'm pretty sure you don't want to know about that...
I went "home" Thursday night to spend the weekend with Chad. We decided that since I am finally moving in, that we are going to do some much needed work around the house. Chad lived on his own, and most men apparently don't know what soap...or tilex....or bleach...or a broom is. So needless to say, we had our work cut out for us. I cleaned quite a bit Friday and also took Andre to meet his new Dr...Dr. Ford. Andre has been breaking out into rashes and itching like crazy, so I took him to get checked out. Turns out he has bad allergies and had to get a shot and I have to give him medicine twice daily and bathe him twice a week with a medicated shampoo. My poor baby. So anyway...Friday was dedicated to cleaning, Laundry and Andre. Saturday we decide to do yard work and "renovation" work. Chad, being the man...starts working out in the yard. I think there were weeds as tall as me in the backyard...granted, that's not very hard seeing as to how I'm pint-sized, but still!!! So he spent the whole day outside. I on the other hand....decide to start stripping wallpaper. Now I'm thinking that this is going to be an easy project...I'm going to strip the wallpaper and just even some areas out and paint it to look great!! WRONG!!! So I start stripping one wall and discover paneling underneath!!! NNNOOOOO!!!! I didn't know what to do, so I just stripped most of the wallpaper from the dining room for now, and Monday I will figure something out and get to work. I hated leaving the house the way I did on Monday. Sunday we did more yard work amd then decided to be lazy, so I didn't get much of my project done. Our dining room is now "under construction". I can't wait to get back to work on it.

Monday I drove in straight to the dentist for my sister to check out a tooth that has been killing me for the past month and to get a cleaning. When I left there I headed to work, but first I was going to meet Kristin at Target. I don't know what happened or how I got distracted, but right as I am getting to my destination....I look up just as I'm about to hit the car in front of me. I tensed up and not even sure if I was able to break or not, but I hit the car in front of me full force. To make matters worse...I was driving my mom's car. "Ouch" Thank God the driver of the other car was not hurt, and I just had some minor scrapes and bruises and have now been so sore. But I am alive and kicking and I thank God for that. I feel horrible that I wrecked my mom's car, but soon...soon...I will be able to buy her a new and better car. Love you mom and I'm sorry.

That pretty much sums up my last two weeks and explains my negligence. I hope you understand. :o)

Now I look forward to my last day at work tomorrow and a final HH with some friends and soon to be ex-coworkers. Then I'm off to begin the next chapter in my life....

12 More days...

So the countdown is getting shorter...this weekend didn't really apply to my waiting game...I got to spend Friday, Saturday and tonight with my husband (I love the sound of that). Tomorrow will be a rude awakening at 5:45am when my alarm is set to take me back to hell...that is work. Don't get me wrong...I love my job and I love where I work, but it's hell knowing that I will not get to see Chad again until Thursday night.

So steering away from my ramblings for a second...my wonderful husband is laying in bed next to me being nosy and decided to criticize my writing and it's context. Apparently I didn't use "rude awakening" in the correct context. Well, I have an excuse...I'm Mexican and English is my second language. However, I think I used it correctly. So there...

Ok back to my weekend...
It was a good Friday. I went to my brother's for Molly's birthday celebration. It was fun, but I was sort of ready to get to Louisiana. I get pretty anxious come 3pm Fridays when I know that I will be seeing Chad that night. I left there around 8 and headed to LA. I stopped at OB's to celebrate yet another birthday once I got here, but that was short-lived. I was ready, remember?? So I finally made it home to my husband to open our wedding gifts!!! That was fun. I am game for opening presents anytime...even if they are not for me. lol

Saturday and Sunday we pretty much spent the day cleaning and doing stuff around the house. Bailey and I went shopping for her bedroom. We got her a new bed, so we needed new sheets, comforter, curtain, pillows, etc. We picked pink and lime green (or neon green) it looks really pretty. Saturday night we actually had our first "family" dinner at the house. Chad cooked some steaks and we invited his parents and his brother over for dinner. It was nice.

So after my great weekend with him, I have to try to force a smile on my face as I head back to work for another week. I know that it is best...we need the money and I can't leave without thoroughly training someone, but it really is so much harder than I thought. I'm ready for these next 12 days to be done already. It still just doesn't feel "real" you know??

Well, I could still sit here and go on a little more, but I am laying next to a grump that wants me off the computer already....so I hope that you all have a great night. I will :o)

And the countdown continues...

15 days...wow...it seems like it's months away. A few months before getting married, Chad and I had talked about and decided to continue doing the long distance thing for a few months after we were married. It wasn't until a couple of weeks before the wedding day that we both decided that we didn't want to wait that long to actually start our lives "together". Thinking back on it, I don't know what the heck I was thinking...it is killing me to be away from him for a week...how would I have survived a few MONTHS??? So as I continue the countdown and look forward to the day I get to go *home*, I continue to face the agony of being away from him...

15 seemed to be the lucky (or not so lucky) number today. That is the number of people that got laid off at work today. It was so sad to see or hear about these people who lost their jobs...I will keep them and their families, as well as all of the others who are affected by this recession in my prayers, and I ask that everyone reading this please do the same.

On a lighter note, I went and visited my brother, Molly and my nephew after work today. Something about seeing my nephew and niece's faces puts a huge smile on my face. I can't wait to give them a little cousin to play with... :o) Kids are such a huge blessing, and although God has blessed me so much in my life, the one thing still missing is the final puzzle piece to complete Chad and I...at least one is all I pray for. One day...no matter what, I still have 2 wonderful step-kids that I have grown so attached to and gotten to love so much and I couldn't be more grateful for that.

Well, it's getting late, and although I suffer from insomina, I am going to try to at least rest my eyes for a while. I have a long day tomorrow. Work, my sister-in-law's birthday BBQ, Lexi's birthday and then finally I get to go home to my husband for the weekend. I can't wait...

In case you are wondering...

...My reason for starting this blog (besides the fact that I love reading Heather's and Jen's) is to be able to keep a little "electronic diary" of the new life that I am about to embark in. Most of you reading this already know me, but for those of you who don't, I recently (11 days ago to be exact) married my best friend. After 4 1/2 years I was finally able to get him to marry me :o).

So...this first blog will be a chance to tell those of you who don't know me, a little bit about "us". Chad and I met at a casino in Lake Charles, LA (I'm from Houston, TX) at my sister-in-law's bachelorette party. We pretty much hit it off right away, and became inseperable (as inseperable as two can get living 150 miles apart). I knew after a few months that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. He was different than any guy I had ever met...and he was able to completely steal every inch of my heart possible. I will keep the rest of the story short...as I have tried to do for everyone that I have met in the past couple of years...meeting Chad has changed my life in so many ways (good ways). I now, am not only a wife, but also a step-mother to a 7 and 12 year old, about to be a full time student, and am going to be moving away from everything I have ever known...whew...sounds scary doesn't it? It used to be a little scary to me just thinking about it, but now, I can't wait for my life to finally "begin".
I will be finishing up at my job and officially moving in in with my husband (love the sound of that) on March 27, 2009. The countdown has begun...only 16 more days....

God has been so good to me, and I am not sure what I did to deserve all this, but I couldn't be any more grateful.