Food and Father's Day

There is a Hispanic store in ABQ called Pro's Ranch Market. I go there a few times a month to get produce because their prices are so great. It's a really cool place and you feel like you've stepped into Mexico when you walk in. They have "The Kitchen" where you can get fresh Hispanic dishes. There's also an "Aguas Frescas" refreshment bar with Hispanic drinks. They have live entertainment, exotic items and tropical fruits shipped daily. There's a 24 hour bakery and you can buy fresh hand-made tortillas. We bought some but haven't tried them yet. 

Here's a picture of just a sample of the different chillies you can buy:

There's also cactus, which we've tried.

We love the variety and culture here!

This picture is from Father's Day. I didn't get him a gift, but he got this bouquet of candies from the ward and also a plate of goodies, which I ate most of. We are so excited for this baby to come in 5 months. 

Baby Update:  I went for my appt. with the perintologist. The ultrasound was so clear and she did a live 4D of the baby. She printed us a few more pictures and gave me a cd of pictures that she'll add to at my next appointment. Good news was there was no cyst! Miraculously, it was gone. We are thrilled and know our prayers have been answered. My placenta is still low-lying so they scheduled another ultrasound to monitor at our 20 week appointment and we'll also find out the gender on July 12. Any guesses? We're hoping for a girl, but we'll see. 

Our friends had a neighbor drop off boxes and boxes of baby girl clothes. I went over and raided it so now we're set for girl clothes. Also, our ward had an activity that was basically a free garage sale. I walked away with handfuls of boy clothes. Either way, we have tons now!

Los Alamos Summerfest

Our second weekend in Los Alamos was a lot of fun. We pitched the tent at Summerfest then stayed with it for awhile because we thought it might blow away! For lunch we walked down the street. I got a Masala Indian dish. It was basically a pancake filled with potatoes and veggies with lentils and a yogurt sauce. It was pretty good. Ryan got a hamburger ;) They had a live band playing lots of rock 'n' roll and booths everywhere. It's fun to be there because we don't feel like the minority. Most people are white and there are not many Hispanics, unlike Albuquerque. It was a nice change for once. There were dogs everywhere. Most visitors had one tagging along.

We got to drive this baby up from ABQ. 

The top down only lasted for a minute. It was too windy and hot. We would've gotten fried.

On the way home we stopped off the freeway at the Mormon Battalion monument.  It's located halfway between ABQ and Santa Fe.

The original 20-foot monument was built in 1940 by church members in New Mexico and was rededicated in 1996.

That night we had a date night since Ryan would be gone all next week to scout camp. We went to El Modelo, a place we've been referred to from numerous people. It's Mexican take-out, although they do have an outdoor patio. We ordered a bunch of food and it was delicious! Ryan got the Mexican Plate which is a Tamale, Taco, Enchilada, Rice, Refried Beans, Red Chile Chorizo, Spare Rib, Chips and 2 Sopaipillas. I got the stuffed Sopaipilla and we ordered a 1/2 lb Chicharrones. That's real Mexican food folks!    

Baby on Board!

FAQs:

-Was it planned? YES

-When are you due? Nov 26

-Any morning sickness? NO. I feel so blessed and have felt great the entire time. I've only thrown up a few times but it was right after I ate something. I just learned to stay away from avocados and eggs for awhile.

-Do you plan to find out the gender? YES. Hopefully we'll find out before we head to Utah for the 4th of July, if not, it will be right after.

-Do you have any cravings? NO

We are both so excited for this new chapter in our lives. We waited a long time and finally feel that we're ready to be parents. (Although everyone says it's something you can't really prepare for). There have been a few bumps along the way. Around 12 weeks my Midwife noticed that my uterus was really high and big for how far along I was, which meant I was either having twins (Ryan's a twin) or my due date was off. Instead of making us wait weeks to find out she did a quick ultrasound to reassure us there's just one baby. At our official ultrasound a few days later they moved my due date up a week but also found that I have a cyst on my right ovary. Cysts are quite common and most go away during pregnancy, but they were concerned because mine is 5x7 cm. It's pushing my uterus up and to the side which is why it's so high. After some spotting, another ultrasound and a few doctor visits later they decided to refer me to the Center for Prenatal Development where I could get a more clear ultrasound from a Perinatologist. My appointment is Thursday. They're hoping it shrinks but there is concern that because it's so big it may twist or flip my ovary. That would be really painful and they would have to operate. Also, I have a low lying placenta. It's only about an inch above my uterus which is causing the spotting. They're not worried because they said it should rise as the baby grows. Because I have A- blood I also had to get a Rhogam shot. Normally they wait until about 28 weeks but because I've been spotting they were concerned I may already have antibodies. Luckily, it didn't hurt at all.

The baby however, thank goodness, is perfect.

Our Garden

We finally got around to planting the seeds Ryan's mom gave me for my birthday. I do not have a green thumb and have no experience gardening. Honestly, I put it off so long because I was so nervous and had no idea where to even start. After running to Home Depot and feeling overwhelmed by all the choices I called Debbie and she helped me know what to get. We used her coconut briques and soil and planted the little seeds. We planted cucumber, zucchini and green beans. Last week when I went out to water I was so surprised to see little plants growing. I called to Ryan and he came out to see. We were so excited, it was funny. Now that we know we can do it we're motivated to plant more! We still have herbs, flowers, and watermelon to plant and I want to plant strawberries too.  New Mexico has a long growing season, from about February to November, so it's a great place to have a garden.  That means that there are a ton of produce in season almost all year long. We get to enjoy cherries in early June as apposed to early July, like in Utah. Just another reason we love it here! We want to visit a farmer's market one of these Saturday mornings that we're not busy and we can't wait until green chili season is here this Fall.

Los Alamos Nukes

Yesterday we headed up to Los Alamos (100 miles North of Albuquerque) to support the club Rugby team. Ryan has a branch there and they sponsor this team. They were holding a car wash to raise money for tournaments. We enjoyed the beautiful weather and gave away raffle tickets to win a free Camero rental. This is my second time there. We drove up to visit before moving here as well. The city is situated on a plateau at 7500 feet elevation. There are about 12,000 residents.  It's a cute little town. I had a good time meeting some of the people who live there. We're heading up there again next week for Chamberfest weekend. While we were driving home the temp reached 100, welcome summer!