The Big Reveal...

Last week I wrote that I would have a big surprise at the end of this week, well, here it is!!! We were blessed by some WONDERFUL people in our lives, who gifted us with a 3d/4d sonogram session this afternoon!! There are no words that can express the emotions I felt looking at my sweet baby boy, watching him move and kick, suck his foot, grab his ear, yawn and smile, all while still in my growing belly!! WOW! With our sonogram, we received a DVD of the entire thing, 25 minutes long, a CD with almost 50 pictures of him, and even some black & white and sepia printouts of some of the best shots we got! As I was laying there watching him on the big wall (they had the images projected onto the wall in LARGE form, it was so cool!), I couldn't help but think about my absolute favorite chapter in the entire bible, Psalm 139. Honestly, up until we found out we were pregnant, and even now, up until today, I always applied it to myself. I was created in my mother's womb, I am fearfully & wonderfully made, I am unique. But today, I was blessed with a whole new outlook and understanding of that Psalm. I understood it as if the Lord was reading it to me about Caleb. The first few moments I saw him up on the big wall, I could not believe it was him, and I was overwhelmed with joy, contentment and true excitement of what is to come. And yes, I did cry (not surprising though!). All in all, this was one of the best days of my life, and I will cherish these pictures of Caleb forever. Who knows if I will ever have this opportunity again, but I know for today, I am going to cherish every single moment of this pregnancy I have left...and then the real adventure begins!! Enjoy the photos!!

I think he has my round nose here

This one is a little awkward, but the two little things in front of his mouth are two of his little toes (the others are blocked by his arm)

He was trying to get his little foot in his mouth here

And mission accomplished! Yes folks, that is his foot!

He was clearly getting tired of us pushing on him so that he would move and cooperate a little more. He yawned probably 4 or 5 times during the 25 minute time span. So precious!!

This one and the next are probably my two favorite. He has such a sweet little face, I can't wait to soak him up when he gets here!!!!

Caleb, we love you so much and cannot wait to meet you! You already are so much a part of the joy I experience daily! Thank you Lord, for such a gift as this sweet little life!

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Psalm 139: 13-16

Be Blessed and Encouraged!

Getting back into shape

So you might be asking yourself why I am already getting ready for Halloween. Actually, this is the gear that was loaned to me by a friend here in Dallas. I have been wanting to start biking for exercise for a while, and just have not had the money to buy the gear to do it. So I decided to ask Don if I could borrow his bike to see if it would even be a worthwhile investment.

So today I decided to go ahead and see how my body would like/ dislike this type of exercise. Here are my thoughts 30 minutes after my first ride:

1) I am out of shape. I was doing really well by going to the gym 4 days a week before I hurt my shoulder and I was in pretty good shape. Not so much anymore!
2) I am not sure if it is the shorts (again borrowed) or what, but I would say that the nether regions were not doing so hot about 5 minutes into the ride. This can be damaging to the motivation to keep going, but I did anyway (11 minutes total for first ride time).
3) I like this much better than running. For one thing, I can't run because of my herniated disk in my back. I tried it, but wound up walking home after my second run from my back giving out. It is low impact, and I feel like I could go much longer without pain. We will see if this is the case when I wake up in the morning. I am curious if I will be super sore, sore, or not at all sore. I will let you know.

Over all, first day not to bad. Not great, but am looking forward to doing it again, which I guess is a good sign. I will continue posting to let you guys know how it goes.

P.S. Since I am borrowing the gear for only 2 weeks, I am also keeping my eyes and ears open to anyone not riding their bike that wouldn't mind me using theirs for a while. I need to talk with Jill about money and where we are to maybe start saving up for one of my own (along with everything else we are saving up for :-) ).

First Days

So my first couple of days at my new job consisted of meeting mostly everyone that works there minus those that were out of the office or on vacation. I learned how to use some of the systems necessary to perform my role there. For those of you wondering my title, it is NOC (Network Operations Center) Support Technician. I also found out a couple of perks that I will be getting with this new position:

1. They will pay for all training materials and tests so that I can become certified. Something Jill and I have talked about me doing.

2. I get a company cell phone, which will be the new Iphone. Really excited about that.

3. Reimbursement for my DSL at the house. This is great because I was just bumped by AT&T to the Data Max plan which gives me up to 10.5 Mbps. Really, really fast for those of you less techy people reading this.

So early on in the day I found out that most everyone there are dog lovers. In fact one of the ladies brough her 11 month old Mastif to work. According to them this is a normal occurance for employees to bring dogs to work (I enjoy this since Jill and I can't have pets yet).

By mid day the two Bills (whose team I am on) and I went to Walmart and Tom Thumb for a grocery run. We were picking up ingredients for homemade ice cream since one of the ladies had brought there ice cream maker. So around 3pm we all gathered in the break room to enjoy this tasty treat.

Now obvioulsly I did do some work, but apparently around holiday weekends the office kind of slows down since our clients kind of slow down as well. In fact I left at 2:30 my second day. I have a feeling I need to enjoy this since it could be the calm before the storm. They assured me that things will definitely pick up soon.

So all in all I had a great first couple of days, and look forward to the days to come.

Transitions

So for those of you who have not heard, I have started a new job! It all started about the time that Jill and I found out that we were pregnant. I started looking at the budget and what I brought to the table financially with Wired PC Guys, and just started praying that God would show us where he wanted me to be vocationally so that He could provide for our family.

It wasn't but two weeks later that I got a phone call from my old boss with Accenture asking if I would be interested in a position at Celanese on a contract basis. I gave him an answer that same day after talking it over with Jill and our Community group, and since he needed to know pretty quickly. It just didn't seem to be the best move since I would be making less money, and there was no guarantee that this would turn into full time gig.

Well the next day I had lunch with Don and he decided to throw me a curve ball and encouraged me to speak with Tom Wright who is the IT Director at VentureNet. He encouraged me to do this because he found out that there were two positions they were trying to fill. So I contacted Tom that next day and setup a meeting with him over breakfast. I did this because two days in a row I fell like I have been nudged a little to see what opportunities were out there.

As I spoke with Tom about where Jill and I were with a new baby and wanting to try and allow Jill to stay home, he got excited by the fact that I was now looking for a full time position elsewhere. He proceeded to tell me that one of the positions was still open and that he would love to me to look into taking it. He wanted to make sure that the man I would be reporting to would be on board so we set up a lunch appointment the next Monday. After this we definitely continued praying multiple times a day for this opportunity as to whether or not this is what God wanted for us.

Lunch went very well, and by the end of it they had given me an offer letter. This was exciting since it was going to be a salary position, with paid time off and bonuses and holidays. You would be surprised how nice things like vacation and sick time sound when you haven't had them for a little over a year. So after much prayer and conversations with Jill and our friends we decided to accept the offer.

I e-mailed my new boss with the news and I started July 2, 2008. We are excited to see what the Lord will do next, and are anxious to meet our new little one.

Coming Soon...

To the Garcia house near you, a brand new addition to the family. That's right Jill and I are expecting our first little one come January 11th, 2009(current due date), and we can't be more excited, overwhelmed, and blessed! As of today we are 9 weeks along, and we have heard the baby's heart beat (a fast little 174 BPM) and had the first sonogram take which you can see above.

We actually found out almost a month ago when we took the home pregnancy test. It was weird because the night before we were going to take the test I had this really weird feeling like it was going to be positive. Don't ask me why I thought this, but I did. So I told Jill that when she took the test to let me see the results first. So morning came, Jill took the test and I waited a few minutes then looked at the results. I walked out of the bathroom and said "Sorry honey..." which was followed by Jill's very disappointing sigh, "...looks like we are going to have to find a new place for your office since we are going to need it for the nursery!" This was followed by Jill jumping out of bed as if she were 7 and it was Christmas morning.

We thank the Lord for answering our prayers and continue to rest in him through the rest of the pregnancy and beyond. It is funny to look back at just the last few months. First we finish paying off our debts then we are now expecting a little miracle.

We ask for your continued prayers for Jill (she has been feeling nauseous pretty much all day for last few weeks), for the baby's health, and the overall pregnancy. We thank the Lord in advance for how he will show himself through this little one. We will keep you posted on any changes and when we find out the sex of the baby, which we will be doing.

Love you all!

Summer Movies

This summer is shaping up to be a good one for movie goers. This week kicked it off with the awaited live action, comic book turned movie IRON MAN!

Jill and I braved the opening night and saw this great movie, and I will say that even if you have never read the comic or even hate comic books, this movie is still well worth the $10 bucks for movie tickets.

There are two comic book movies that stick out in my mind. Those being Batman Begins, and Spiderman (not the one that came out in the 80's). Iron Man, has rounded out the top three in my mind. The main character Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is at best a money hungry, womanizer, who enjoys all the toys in the world, and owns his own weapons manufacturing company, but lacks a true family. The people closest to him are his assistant Pepper Potts (Gwenyth Paltrow), Col. James Rhodes (Terrance Howard), and Obadiah Stane who helps Stark with Stark Industries.

This is not the Peter Parker story of a man who turns into a superhero by being bit by a genetically enhanced spider, or even Bruce Wayne who relies on fear and gadgets to defeat his foes, as a part of the revenge for his parents being killed in front of him. Tony Stark is a genius who uses his brain to make brawn through his one of a kind (at least for the moment) suit that allows him flight, and strength among other things, in an attempt to help those that can't help themselves.

I won't go into details, but suffice it to say, I would be willing to buy this movie once it comes to DVD, and even go see it again in the theater. It is funny, action packed, and actually has good acting with a well delivered script. Jon Favreau, the director, hits this one out of the park. Keep an eye out for him in a cameo as Stark's personal driver. Also make sure you STAY TO THE END of the credits for a short scene by a special guest actor.

If you disagree with this review, that is great....really! If everyone liked and disliked the same things, this world would be boring. I give this movie 5 out of 5 stars.

A new way of eating...

So Jill and I have decided for the month of May to only buy our groceries at Whole Foods. Most of our friends and family know that I am the natural/ organic eater in the family, but Jill has been great in coming on board with this for the month just to try it out.

So we went today, and just to let you know Whole Foods is great. They might not have what you would find in the normal corner grocer, but it is much better for you (mostly)! We have decided to go once a week as to keep the cost down, and by doing this we only purchase dinners for that week only, and any other random things we might need like bread or milk.
Week one we spent $120, for all breakfasts, lunches and dinners for the week. So if that is the average for the rest of the month we are looking at spending just under $500. Now, we do have money set aside for "eating out", but the hope is to not eat out so much by eating in.

If you have never been to Whole Foods I strongly recommend it. The staff goes above and beyond to make you feel important and like you are the only person in the store. Our first visit, Jill and I forgot to grab a cart or basket. Seeing this, one of the staff offered to grab one for us. He went, he got, and found us to give us the basket. It was awesome. I have never been given this kind of treatment in a grocery store.
Well we will keep you up to date as to how our new eating style goes and if it is worth it!

Our newest family member!

We've jumped in with the crowd and have our first pet! "Hopper" joined our family only two days ago and I'm already loving it! Since Aaron is allergic to cats and we're not ready for a puppy, I've been asking for a bunny for about two years now. I am a huge animal lover, especially when their cute and furry. Aaron surprised me at work on Wednesday with Hopper. Hopper comes from a client of Aaron who was trying to minimize household pets (they already have 2 bunnies & 2 dogs). They gave us everything to go along with Hopper including his cage, food, bedding and toys! We're in a "trial" period right now, to make sure Aaron's not allergic to him, but everything seems to be going great so far outside of an allergy to Hopper's hay. Just means I'll be his housekeeper and will be the one making sure he has clean bedding and litter! Anyway, here's a few pics of Hopper's first day in his new home!

Be blessed and encouraged!

A Long Time Coming

WE'RE DEBT FREE!!!! Oh how I've longed to say those words for sooo many years and so many different reasons! Our opportunity finally arrived on the night of January 11, 2008. That night will be forever ingrained in my mind as one of the most special and freeing nights of my life! As most of you know, Aaron and I have been working our tails off since we were first married to get out of debt and be free from the financial burdens that come along with owing money to others. As hard as the road has been, it has been equally rewarding. Some of the things the Lord has taught us during this season of life:

-The Lord is faithful
-The Lord will provide for our EVERY need
-The Lord is patient
-The Lord desires to give us His best, not for us to settle for what we think is best for ourselves
-The Lord loves us unconditionally

There's not many times in my life I can honestly say I've been obedient to the Lord, but I will say that EVERY time he has asked me to obey him, I have never had a single regret. There truly is a different kind of freedom that comes with being debt free.

Thank you to all of you who have prayed for us, with us and encouraged us along this journey. We are so excited to continue down the path that the Lord has for us as we venture into our next phase of life!