new blog!

Hey, everyone. Here is the link to our new blog where we will have posts about our family!

www.alittlebitblessed.blogspot.com

a much needed vacation

We had a great time earlier this month going to Destin, FL with family! We got there just a few weeks before the oil did! The beaches were beautiful but there was a lot of algae in the water.

Most of our time was spent reading, eating, and going to the beach. We entered week 15 of the pregnancy while we were there. It was the first week that I started feeling better. I didn't get sick the entire time I was there!!

The boys enjoyed cooking shrimp and eating oysters at the house we rented. The house was just a block from the beach so it was super convenient for evening strolls. My favorite part was eating crab legs at the Crab Trap. They were so good and I ate them all! We also got to watch fireworks over the bay one night.
My dad and brother rented a scooter and a sail boat but Matt and I decided it would be best if I didn't ride either one, partly for safety reasons but mostly because I would have been nauseous. The week was just going too well to get nauseous.

life is really good!

Well, we've got big news. We're pregnant! Woo hoo! We are about 13 weeks along now. It has been so fun to see our baby on the ultrasound and hear its tiny heartbeat on the Doppler. We feel so blessed and so excited. We were praying and trying for a little while now, but of course, God's timing is always perfect and we're thankful for the patience He gave us while we waited.

I am just starting to "show". Nothing too exciting, I mostly look like I ate too much at the Chinese buffet but it's still fun to see that the baby is growing and making room for itself. Right now he/she is about the size of a peach (we'll figure out the sex of the baby around week 20).

We started taking pictures, this is me at 12 weeks.

Our 9 week ultrasound was so exciting, it's hard to see, but the head is on the left. The little round bubble is the yolk sack, that will go away soon. You can kind of see "his" little hands tucked up at his sides. We could see the tiny flutter of the heart on the ultrasound but it's not visible in the picture.

highlights

It's Christmas-time and I haven't blogged in 6 months! Yikes! What a crazy, fast year this was. Let's take a look at how great it was...
We got to spend lots of time this year with our neice, Bella! We saw her in Little Rock, St. Louis, and Columbia, MO.


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We had a fun Cinco de Mayo party with our friends, and then went on a cruise. Our garden was hard work, but a lot of fun.
In August we went camping and a bunch of our friends came out for the day.








Thanksgiving was at our house this year. My family and grandparents came and we ate a ton of food! 40 pounds of fried turkey ended up being too much for 9 people so we had leftovers for a few days. My Meema got a speeding ticket on the way over here from Tulsa. Dad and Matt kept busy with the birds.




Halloween was spooktacular, of course. We had a costume party with home-made costumes for me and Matt. Matt was a Lego man and we papier mache'd his head! If you ever want to strengthen your marriage and gain more patience, try papier mache-ing together! I was princess Leia from Star Wars and yes, those are actual honey buns on my head. The gown was sewn from a white sheet and I used alluminum foil to make my belt. So fun!


Most recently we attended the second annual Ugly Christmas Sweater Party at the Wheelock's house. It was awesome. The sweaters were wild and the food was great. We wore the same sweaters as last year because they are hideous.

I think the best part of this year has been getting to know the couples in our lifegroup. We have great friends that we get to see each week to study God's word. They are a huge blessing and encouragement.
Christmas is quickly approaching and we are so excited about seeing our families and going to Disney World!

key west

This year we took a Carnival cruise to Key West. Apart from the storm in the Gulf, it was a wonderful, relaxing trip! Seriously, people were injured from the rocking of the boat. But we enjoyed good food and fun in the sun, especially when we docked at Key West. It was such a beautiful place. Our boat docked at 6:30 in the morning so we walked down Duval street until we got to the "southernmost part of the USA". Then we sat on the beach and had some coffee until the shops opened at 10:00.

The other destination was supposed to be the Bahamas but the storm was so bad that they couldn't dock the boat! Bummer! Oh well, we still got to enjoy a fantastic new towel animal each day. By the way, does anyone know what this one is??

el jardin

Our latest ongoing project has been our garden. After a lot of hard labor and money (dirt gets expensive!), we have finally completed it for this season! We originally started everything from seeds indoors in like February (not a good idea). When we had beans climbing up the chandelier in the kitchen we decided we should just wait for warmer weather and start from scratch outside. So far so good. We've got the workings of future tomatoes, pole beans, okra and cucumber. On the other side of the patio we just planted some black beans, a variety of peppers, and more okra because the other ones aren't looking so good.



So exciting! Can't wait to enjoy the fruits (and veggies) of our labor! We have fruit already developing on the cucumbers and tomatoes.


Here's a shot of the entire backyard...standing in the corner as far as the new fence would allow us to go. Check back soon for more photos of our backyard adventures!

hemming

I just hemmed my own jeans!! Matt and I found some great deals on Black Friday at the Banana Republic outlet in Branson and so I got two pairs of jeans. But when I got home I realized they were way too long so I called around and found out it costs $15 to get a pair of jeans hemmed. Then I found this website where it shows you how to hem jeans while keeping the original hem at the bottom. So I tried it with my new sewing machine and it worked! No need to spend $30 when I can do it myself!

I just wanted to share this valuable information with everyone since it is a very useful skill. It was sooo easy and you don't even have to cut them. Here is the link to the website so all you crafy cats can do this too!

http://www.daciaray.com/?p=38

One Year

Last weekend Matt and I rented a cabin at Devil's Den with our favorite outdoorsey couple, Amy and Eli. What fun we had. The cabin was perfect and cozy. Suprisingly, there was a tv there with cable and since none of us have cable in our homes, we got sucked in to watching some pretty crazy shows. But it was a great time to relax.

It had been a while since any of us had been to Devil's Den so we enjoyed the hikes and caves very much. It's never a dull day when you get to see bats, a salamander,lots of green moss, and Matt hanging from a tree.

It was also the weekend before our one year anniversary!! Wow, it was a wonderful year full of exciting changes and huge blessings. We feel so incredibly blessed to have each other. Despite having to work hard in the real world, we wake up every day and think "could it really get any better than this?!"

monkeys and softball?

Wow, we are continually amazed and humbled by the enormous blessings God has been pouring on us. Matt's job has been great, he really likes the people he works with and his income has been completely supporting us so far. I graduated on September 6th and was super excited to accept a position as a nurse in a new children's clinic that is opening on October 1st. It is in Bentonville, very close to our home, and I'll have the same work hours as Matt! I am sooo excited!I have been training this week and I love it! We had a nice break before I graduated and were able to go to Destin with my family. (see picture) We didn't do anything but sleep, eat good food, and play on the beach - and we loved every minute of it). Earlier this summer we went to Tulsa and Mema Gunselman took us to the zoo! It was really hot but we saw some funny animals and this ADORABLE monkey!! He was so playful. I could have watched him all day.

The church that we found up here has been wonderful in so many ways. We have met some great friends and a few of the couples live in our neighborhood! This fall we will start a young married couple "life group" and we will focus on glorifying God through our marriages as well as serving people in need. Matt joined the church's men's softball team and has really impressed me with his athletic talent. They have games every week this fall and he really enjoys the time with the guys. One thing that I love right now is being able to step outside after dinner and enjoy the end-of-summer weather. Matt and I like to walk around barefoot and check out the yard and then take a walk around the neighborhood. Sounds very Arkansan, I know, but I love it.

la casa

First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes...a house!
We bought a house! Matt and I have been looking at houses in the Bentonville area since he got the job at Wal-Mart. We found a great deal on a 3 bedroom, 2 bath house in Centerton. It's about 3 miles west of Bentonville. We are so excited! It is the perfect place to start our family.

We've been learning so much together about how big God is and how everything is in His hands. We feel so blessed for everything we have but know if we lost it all we would still have all we need in Him.

Nursing school is awesome... and hard and gross and tiring. But I love it. This semester I've been able to experience many different areas of nursing. So far my favorites have been labor & delivery, hospice, same day surgery, and clinics.
I just need a little more practice with IVs. Any takers?

back to bloggin'

Well, I'm back on the blog. Matt and I got married on December 16th and went to Disney World for our honeymoon! We had a blast. There was even an exhibit in Epcot on Oaxaca! The exhibit was about the brightly colored, hand-carved wood animals that Oaxaca is famous for. Outside we took a picture with Donaldo.
Our wedding was perfect, it was everything we wanted. The chapel was beautiful and all our friends and family were there. We had some touches of Mexico at the reception with bottled Mexican sodas and Mexican food. We loved every second of it. It really was the perfect day. Now I've moved in to Matt's apartment and we're getting our lives meshed together and we love it. We feel like kings now that we have a blender and breadmaker and other appliances we've never owned before. We really have everything we need.
Matt will finish his last semester of school for his MBA this spring and I am starting my third semester of nursing school. We didn't have any new year's resolutions but we did decide to read the Bible in a year, which neither of us has done before. So far it's going well and we love reading and learning together. Life is good.

home sweet home

Most of you have kept up with the news about Oaxaca recently. There have been riots and protests in Oaxaca City for 5 months now. It got terribly out of hand when policemen were being shot and the American reporter was killed. Troops had been stationed in Huatulco, a city about 2 hours from Roca Blanca. They moved in to the city on Sunday to put an end to the violence and rioting. Fortunately, we were already on the road and out of the State when this happened. We left early Saturday morning and began our 45 hour drive trip. God really kept us safe and healthy. We had no car trouble, good weather, and very little traffic. Our only problem was being stopped at the border. We told them we came from Oaxaca and they pulled us over and x-rayed our car. It was a little scary at the time but really cool to see a giant moving x-ray machine. They searched our car but didn't take anything from us and we were soon in the USA. It is so good to be back with my family and friends.

Our time at Roca was incredible. We served on the mission field, grew closer to God, and made friendships with some amazing people. Matt and I will tell a little of our tale on Sunday, November 5 at the Grove Church. I can't wait to see everyone. Thank you all for your support and prayers.

Isidro takes more corn to the Ixtayutla region!

down by the riverside

We went to Nopala again this weekend to take James to see the church. James has been coming to Roca since he was 15. He is now in his 30s and is married with 2 kids. His stories are really crazy. On his first trip here in the 80s he went to a town called Jamiltepec where for the first time he saw deliverances, healings, and a guy levitating off the ground. No joke. He said the guy was lying on his back floating like 10 inches in the air. So James walks over and starts trying to push him down. I probably wouldn’t have believed that story a year ago, but after being here and seeing strange things myself, I can totally picture it. So a few years ago James quit his job and started a coffee company to support the churches that Roca started in Oaxaca. It's Oaxacan coffee that is roasted in Springfield. It's very yummy. Check out his website: www.oaxacafe.com.

The church in Nopala is doing very well. They have had some hard times with renting a house but things are settling down. Instead of having church on Sunday, they took everyone to the river for baptisms. It was beautiful and joyful. We started out singing and then James read about baptisms and then it started to rain a little. Matt's joke is that there can now be no theological conflict because they were all sprinkled and dunked.
There were 6 people who were baptized. Each one of them came up out of the water and hugged someone and cried. It is such an amazing thing to see, especially in a town with almost no Christians and with much opposition of the Catholic Church.
Update on the corn in Ixtayultla- over $1000 has been given to buy food! So as soon as the rain stops here and the roads are less dangerous they will be taking more loads up to the people.

Also, we will be leaving for home in 2 weeks. I’m sad to leave but very excited to get home. We’ll be driving again so it will take a while. Please pray for safe travel and favor at the border.
I love you all!

panixtlahuaca

This weekend we drove a group to a village called Panixtlahuaca. They held a conference to educate children’s ministry leaders. This was awesome because of the great need for outreach to children in this area. They also preached at church about the importance of disciplining children and showing Christ’s love.

It was a good trip. Rough, but good. It was a 6 hour drive on curvy, dirt roads. But the scenery was beautiful. Men with guns were running up and down the streets when we got there Friday night. We didn’t shower all weekend and they weren’t prepared for gringos so they didn’t prepare any of the food with purified water. Matt and I sat around and entertained the kids most of the time. We walked to the local market where I bought supplies for my exciting new hobby – embroidery. We left for Roca at 5:30am on Sunday and got stuck several times in the mud and pushed our way up the hill until the sun finally came up. It was great fun.

Once again it was an amazing experience of witnessing God’s presence among an indigenous people group and knowing that this area is changed because of the work of the base. Panix was a hard village to reach, not only because of its curvy washed-away roads, but also because of the resistance of the Catholic Church. I’m never trying to offend Catholics when I talk about the Catholicism here. It’s just that here it has been twisted into this idolatry and witchcraft that still carries the Catholic name. Anyway, Duane had told us stories about them blocking the roads and carrying guns and being robbed when they tried to reach the people there. Panix was the first village to have a martyr. The very first Christian there was shot because of his faith. He was shot many times in the chest, died, and was driven down the mountain. Toward the end of the 6 hour drive the man came back to life! He’s still alive and kicking. Matt met him at the base last month and we talked to him when we went to the church service in Panix. His name is Juventino and he’s the cutest little old man I’ve ever seen. My only question is – since he came back to life, does that still make him a martyr?


Good news!! We applied for Roca to be represented as a mission organization at the Passion07 conference and we were accepted! This is amazing news because it will expose the work of the base to 20,000 college students. Matt and I will go to Atlanta in January to pray for students and encourage them to get involved with missions. We’ll also talk to them about our experience on the field at Roca. We are so excited!!! Please pray for us because our deadline to send in our photos, videos, and agency fee of $500 is fast approaching.

corn

There has been some sad news from the Ixtayutla/El Mosco area recently. The people there are running out of food. Specifically, there is no corn, which is what their tortillas are made of. Duane and some base workers took two truckloads of corn and fish up 2 weeks ago. People wanting to buy some corn stopped them several times along the 8-hour drive up the rugged mountain. They couldn't sell it to them or they would be out by the time they got to where the problem was worst. In addition to being out of corn, they are also in need of sugar and other basic cooking ingredients. It was heartbreaking for those who went on the trip to see this devastating hunger. The people of Ixtayutla are starving.
This is a product of many things. One is simply that a spirit of poverty lives in this entire area. Also, many men have left this region to work in the States, leaving their fields unattended. They might send money to their families, but it doesn't matter because there's no food available to buy.
God only knows what the solution to this problem is. We can help by sending truckloads of food and ministering to the people.
Please pray for this area, that God will move in big ways and change the hearts of His people and that He would provide for them the food that they need.

white rock

Pictures from our boat trip around Roca Blanca (the white rock).

This is Allison, a girl from the last team that was here. She will be moving to Mexico soon to do missionary work for 10 months.




The boat driver of the other boat randomly jumped in the water and caught these awesome sea turtles with his bare hands!