Fabulous Night

As promised here are some more pictures of the puppies with Piba. It is really hard to get close to them since they are in a little crate and Piba is protective of them. It was quite funny as soon as I got close to her and the puppies she readjusts herself to cover/protect them more. She is a good mama.

Yesterday was a great day. Work was the same as always- no real change there- I did have a wonderful evening. Lana- a friend of mine (who I met through work she is a representative to one of the companies that we write insurance with). We became friends when she lost her mother to cancer. She was looking for someone/something to make her feel better. Well- I know what she needs is GOD which is why I think God sent her to me to become friends. We have on occasion met for dinner to spend time together. I invited her to join book club. I mostly listen to her- since that is what she needs right now. Yesterday she calls me to see if I wanted to have dinner with her. At first I felt like it was last minute notice and that really I needed to be home- but I kept feeling like I needed to be there fro her so I called Paul to see if it was okay to go to dinner with Lana (he quickly agreed since he had homework to do anyways). We met right after work at 5:15 pm right down the street from my work at Sammy's Woodfire Pizza. Since it was happy hour they had all of their tapas at 1/2 off. The evening started off really nice just a little chit chat about nothing of real importance- then out of the clear blue she asked me if I was a religious person- This question is one I get often- and I respond by saying- it is not a religion to me it is a relationship- which to me is far more personal than just being religious. I explained to her that I have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. God opened the door for me to share my faith with Lana and it was exciting. She asked lots of questions- I answered them to the best of my knowledge. She was VERY receptive to listen to what I had to say. A comment she made " you always seem to happy and at peace- like no matter what happens you take it well- things seem to go well for you" made me laugh- I guess I never perceived myself as always happy and always taking things well- This made me realize HOW MUCH PEOPLE ARE WATCHING ME. It was a sobering thought- How many times have I not been the best example for CHRIST. So- in the end- Lana is asking MANY questions, which is an encouragement to me since I know a door has been opened and the Holy Spirit will work in her.

We spent 3 hours at the restaurant- and she wants to continue talking- which I told her ANYTIME she wants I am available. This Christmas is going to be hard for her since it is her first Christmas without her mother- but maybe she can find Her Saviour by them who can give the COMFORT she longs for.

Please pray with me- 1. That I be aware of all the open doors God gives me to share my faith and 2. For Lana- as I know she understands what I have told her- but now needs to reconcile within herself that God is what she so Desperately NEEDS for eternal salvation.

Update

Just got a call from Gabby- Piba has had 2 more puppies- both girls.
She thinks she is done- Since Piba got up and went to her little house taking her puppies with her. I will post more pictures tonight.

Labor Pains

Here is the proud papa-

Here is puppy # 1 (boy) born early this morning. He is SO precious.

Here is Piba- She was sitting by me and about every 15-20 minutes she would get really excited and get real nervous. I think that is when her contractions were coming.

Here is Che guarding Piba.

Here is Puppy #2 (girl) born. Here she is still in her sack- and Piba is cleaning her up.

I have learned so much about dogs watching Piba. God is AWESOME on how he created animals.

More pictures to follow.

What a trip

Thanksgiving was wonderful. Our plans got changed a little. A friend/co-worker did not want Paul and I to spend Thanksgiving alone so she invited us to her house. We had a great time with them. There were a total of 17 of us in attendance. We had to cut our visit there short since we had to get up at 3:30 am on Friday to pick up Pastor Mario and Gabby from the airport.
Friday morning came quicker than we wanted- We got to LA in approximately 4 1/2 hours. It was great seeing them. We made it back to Las Vegas safe and sound a little exhausted.
Looking forward to Piba having her puppies... Now we will see when she goes in to labor...
More to follow.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Turkey Treats

Today is our Thanksgiving potluck at work. I made these little treats for everyone. They were not as easy to make as they look. I thought this would be a nice EASY treat to make for my co-workers. I guess I was wrong- but it was a nice project for Paul and I to do together.

Glory by Selah

Glory

One day eyes that are blind will see you clearly
And one day all who deny will finally believe
One day hearts made of stone will break in pieces
And one day chains once unbroken will fall down at your feet
So we wait
For that one day
Come quickly, we want to see Your…

[Chorus:]

Glory
Every knee falls down before thee
Every tongue offers you praise, with every hand raised
Singing Glory
To you and unto you only
We'll sing Glory to Your name

One day voices that lie will all be silenced
One day all that's divided will be whole again
One day death will retreat and wave it's white flag
One day love will defeat the strongest enemy 

So we wait
For that one day
Come quickly, we want to see your….


[Chorus:]

Glory
Every knee falls down before thee
Every tongue offers you praise, with every hand raised
Singing Glory
To you and unto you only
We'll sing Glory to Your name


We know not the day or the hour
Or the moments in between
But we know the end of the story…
When we'll see your…


[Chorus:]

Glory
Every knee falls down before thee
Every tongue offers you praise,every hand raised
Singing Glory
To you and unto you only
We'll sing
Glory to Your name

To listen to this song go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Efw-7cFGSA

Our Pre-Thanksgiving

Paul and I decided we were going to have a Pre-Thanksgiving with a turkey and then on Thanksgiving day have Ham. SO Sunday I prepared our turkey- The picture above is what our turkey looked like. It was YUMMY- and it is the first turkey that I did by myself in the oven. We fried a turkey one year and the remainder of our Thanksgivings have been at someone else's house where we did not cook the turkey. Paul and I enjoyed our little pre-thanksgiving day- making memories. We had mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, stuffing and pumpkin pie.
For Thanksgiving I will make the ham with scallop potatoes, cooked carrots, sweet potatoes and lemon meringue pie.
This weekend was a peaceful one. Friday night, Ana treated me to a movie- NEW MOON. It was a good movie. We were surrounded by teenagers- it was amusing. Saturday Paul and I spent the day relaxing, drinking mate and enjoying our "facturas" from the french bakery. We also called Argentina and Paul spoke to his father for quite a while. It was nice catching up on things in Argentina.
Sunday- we enjoyed church and then our Pre-Thanksgiving meal. I cleaned the turkey and froze some of the turkey and kept some out for dinners this week.
This week should be a slow week. A lot of people take the entire week off. Great time to get caught up and take it easy.
Looking forward to what the Lord has in store for us this week.
Until the next one.....
Psalm 92:1
IT IS A GOOD THING TO GIVE THANKS UNTO THE LORD, AND TO SING PRAISES UNTO THY NAME, O MOST HIGH.

Thanksgiving

November is usually my favorite month. This year has been a little different. It has been a tough year over all. I got to thinking that how I view things can also make it better or worse. For example- if I only look at the negative - my focus will be negative- and I will keep thinking of only the negative. This reminded me of when we used to foster the boys. Paul and I would get tired of hearing them complain about things or their siblings- so we started making them list 10 things they were happy/thankful for. At first the boys struggled with this- but once they had to do it more than once it started to come easier to them- and in the end I believe it helped them realize how much we should be happy/thankful for. So, I am challenging myself this way also-
I am going to list 10 things I am happy/thankful for:
1. My Saviour Jesus Christ- who came to save us- without HIM we have NOTHING. (John 3:16)
2. My loving husband- who despite all my flaws he still loves me unconditionally.
3. My family- who have been a great encouragement through EVERYTHING in my life. They laugh with me, cry with me and always jump at the opportunity to help us out.
4. My church- I am thankful that I have a place I can go to where the TRUTH is taught.
5. Ana- She is the reason I succeed at Landini & Associates. She is such a positive person- always smiling, always humming, and always excited for the adventures of a new day.
6. A good nights sleep- last night I slept 9 hours (something I have not done in a while). It is amazing what being well rested does to a body.
7. My job- yes I am thankful that I still have a job- even when things are rough- at least I have a job- when so many people are jobless these days.
8. Good deals- (I know that this one sounds silly but let me explain) Paul and I are spending Thanksgiving alone this year. I got a 16 lb turkey for $4.88- This is a GREAT deal (or at least I thought so).
9. Our house- even though we owe more than what the house is worth- we still have one and still make our monthly payments. PRAISE the LORD for that- when so many are foreclosing on their homes- we will do all it takes to continue to pay and honor the debt we have.
10. The lovely Scenery- the sky is clear the mountains have white caps on them and the air is crisp.
Okay- that felt good. I definitely need to keep doing that!

Wisdom

Today was a very hard day for me. Overall I get along pretty well with most people. I try very hard to give a good example to my co-workers and my customers and shine the Light of God. Today I feel like I have slipped some- I had a NASTY confrontation with one of our new co-workers. I should have walked away and cooled off before I reacted- but I let the FLESH take over and boy was it NASTY. I went to the restroom and had a little meltdown. I have been under so much pressure that this situation just broke the camels back. The worst part is that he was clearly wrong but I should have never reacted the way I did so it made me wrong too. I have asked God to forgive me and have asked him to forgive me for the way I reacted. I appreciate all of you for thinking of my and being my prayer warriors.
I have to get better at blogging again! I have missed writing and also I know that some of you keep caught up with us through this blog.
Talk to you all soon!!!!

Great ways to deal with Burdens of Life

• Accept that some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.
• Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.
• Drive carefully, it's not only cars that can be "recalled" by their maker.
• It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply be kind to others.
• Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.
• Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.
• You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.
• Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.
• We could learn a lot from crayons...some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names, and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.

Erica Holly Ritchie

Erica Holly Ritchie was born this morning at 4:37 am. She weighed 7lbs 1oz. and is 21 inches long.

Mom and Dad are doing well.

Congratulations Tanya and Wayne Ritchie!

I am still here!

Believe it or not I miss blogging. It was a great way to keep people informed on our life. I am amazed at how busy my life has become.
Paul and I were just talking about how BUSY we have made ourselves. And every way we look at things for now that is how things must be. Paul has been extremely busy with school. I am going to start a count down to when Paul will be done with school- then maybe we will return to a semi- normal life. I love spending time with Paul- and while he is in school my time with him is limited. So selfishly I am looking forward to the day he is done.
Work for me is going better than expected. I have started taking my Bible to work with me and doing my devotions in the morning early (before everyone shows up) and I am amazed at how that has changed my outlook to work. Not that I didn't like work before but I felt overwhelmed all the time with all the work I had to do... but since I have been reading my devos at work- I feel more at peace- I thank God for that.
Pastor Mario and Gabby leave for Argentina on Thursday. It is bitter sweet for me- Bitter because I hate to see my friends leave for 2 months- but sweet because I know that they will be with family that they have not seen in years and they need a vacation.
Their dogs Che and Piba will be with us the whole time- but here is the kicker- we think that Piba is pregnant again!!!! She may be due at the end of November- It depends on when she conceived- This means that we may be the ones to take care of her with the puppies. I am a little worried about this- I just don't want something to happen to either her or the puppies. So I am praying that the puppies come after the 27th of November. Pray with me please.
Tomorrow is donations day. I made fiesta tamale pie for the workers along with a salad. I hope they enjoy it.
We will see what the Lord blesses the church with tomorrow.

Small Mercies

God is good.... I was able to keep one of the employees!!! Hooray for us! I really do not like working on the personal lines desk- And God knew that... because the decision to fire one of the employees was reversed!
I have been very thankful for that!
Work is going better than anticipated- but the days ahead will be getting harder as Tanya goes on maternity leave. Okay- enough of that! NO more sad news... On to the more fun stuff.

Paul and I have truly enjoyed having Pastor Mario and Gabby living with us. We enjoy the meals together and the fellowship we have with them. We have shown them how important it is to spend time as a family. SO once in a while we have family night- which usually consists of a dinner and a movie. Three weeks ago for our Saturday family night I made spinach lasagna and we watched Get Smart - the movie that came out a few years ago. It was great to see them relax and enjoy the time. They seem to always be busy, between visiting people from the church and the church activities, that Paul and I felt like they never take time to just RELAX and do nothing... That mental down time is DESPERATELY needed. I am starting to grow attached to their dogs. They have 2 small dogs. They are really funny to watch. It is amazing how dogs make you forget about everything that is going on around you and help you relax.

On another note- Paul is taking two classes right now that are BRUTAL. He is spending most of his free time with school. Reading, writing and taking tests. I think he will be very thankful when these two classes are over.

I on the other hand- seem to be more relaxed at home. I truly think it is more because I have great help with the chores of home. Pastor and Gabby clean the house for me since they are living with us. This is a HUGE help to us. I am ever so Thankful for them and their work.

My parents may be coming out to visit in October, and I am looking forward to the possibility of this visit. My mother used to come quite frequently and work at my office while she was here but my father has not been out here in probably 5 or more years.

For all of my blog prayer warriors please keep my in-laws in your prayers. My mother in law is in Nebraska spending time with her mother since she is not doing well. My father in law is in Argentina continuing their ministry in Argentina. I know that my MIL needed to make this trip to see her mother but I am also very sure that my FIL is missing her. We keep them in our constant prayers.

Okay- I guess that is enough news for one blog... I am getting tired and really looking forward to my night of sleep.

Until the next one.....

Be Thankful Always

Never in my life had I imagined I would have a week like the last week I had. God must really be wanting to teach me something. Work has been really busy- which will only get worse in the weeks to come.
Most of you know how I post at times about my WONDERFUL staff! I must say that the group gets along really well and works well together. We help each other out when needed and we do it without complaining.
The horrible part of this story is that as of yesterday- When the group consisted of 9 people (that is including the owner) now we are down to 6. Yesterday we had a lay off at work. We are now left with the owner, the accounting lady (who only works 12 hours a week), one sales person, 2 support staff to do the day to day activities (which might I add- one is pregnant and due in 3 weeks) and ME-
Now think about this carefully- We had someone that handled the clients that had life and health insurance- we now have no one to handle that.
We had someone that handled all the personal lines (auto insurance and home insurance) we now have no one to handle that.
We had an AWESOME customer service representative- who was a jack of all trades- she was at the front desk as a receptionist, did quoting, checked policies, set up accounts, etc... She is no longer with us.
So.... do you think we have less work since they left? ABSOLUTELY not. Who do you think will be straddled with that work- I think you have figured it out... YES ME!!!!
Well- instead of being negative about it I have decided that I will do my best with a smile on my face- I will Honor God and keep giving my ALL in these difficult times.
When the decision was made to lay off 3 employees- it cut me deep- because there is not a performance issue with the employees- it is an economic issue that caused the lay off. I went home very sad- Thank you Paul for the moral support (while I cried on your shoulder).
Yesterday was a very emotional sad day. Many tears were shed.
I think for the first time since I have worked at Landini the entire office was SAD, quiet and emotionally spent.
So- in lieu of the situation at hand... I am fully aware that my life at Landini will not be the place it used to be. Paul and I are both praying for direction- That the Lord show us clearly what he wants of our lives and where he wants our lives.
Praise the Lord I have a job- Of that I am truly thankful- I will continue to Rejoice on the positives of the whole situation and pray for daily strength to make it through the day.
Pray with me wont you?