Like Father, Like Daughter

I took these photos and had to post them!  They are adorable!!!!!!!!

Jenna - 1 Month Old

We can't believe how much Jenna has changed in just over a month!  She is getting really big - luckily her newborn clothes fit, but not for long.  She is more active and it seems to focus more with her eyes.  She is such a joy, however mommy and daddy are trying to figure her routine at night :)  It appears around 9 pm she gets very fussy and FINALLY falls asleep around 12:30 am.  Although we did have a breakthrough last night.  She actually fell asleep around 9:30 and did not wake until 1:30 am.  So we will see what the coming weeks bring us.  Thankfully Ken took leave last week and things are obviously slow this week so it has not been too bad.  I have gotten some great advice from friends regarding "bedtime" so we will see what works for us.

Christmas was wonderful!  It was very quiet but we enjoyed watching Jenna looking at the lights and taking everything in.  Obviously she was not interested in opening presents, but mommy had fun doing that!  Thank you to all of our family and friends for all the X-mas cards and presents.  It was very special and Jenna is so loved!!!!!!!!

We took Jenna to the Embassy Health Unit yesterday to get her second HEP B shot and her infant screen test for metabolic disease.  She did pretty good with the HEP B shot, but it about broke my heart when the heal of her foot not only had to get pricked once, but twice.  The doctor had to squeeze her skin to get droplets of blood to fill 3 small circles on a sheet of paper. After the ordeal, Jenna stopped crying immediately and seemed to be okay.  She is a tough chick!

The funny part about yesterday happened in the morning when Ken and I were changing her.  Jenna was making a lot of sounds and Ken got really excited because he thought she said her first word............it sounded a lot like "Goo".  It was real cute, but I think we have some time before she starts using words, but who knows, anything is possible :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Ken, Jenna and I wish all of our family and friends the best of God's blessings.  May 2009 bring each of you love, health and happiness!!!!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR

Jenna - Two Weeks Old

Jenna amazes us everyday!!  She is so strong and extremely observant of her surroundings.  She saw the pediatrician on Thursday and he was also amazed by her "alertness."  She weighed 7 lbs 9 ozs and is drinking 3 oz at each feeding.  She has definitely filled out a little and the newborn diapers finally fit.  

She sees the doc after the first of the year and will have her second HEP B shot.  We decided to space the shots out since she is going to have a lot in the third month with the MMR and 3rd HEP B shot.

We had some visitors this week.  Some friends from the Embassy and MILGP, along with Lic Vasquez who is the wife of the chief of defense and our good friend, Col Rich Juergens - JTF-Bravo Commander.  Rich is a father of 8 daughters so he about melted when he saw Jenna.  Mom, Jenna and I met up with 9 other ladies for lunch on Wednesday.  For most, it was their first time to see Jenna and they all said, "she looks just like Ken."  She definitely has his eyes. We noticed that Jenna would get a crease b/w her eyes.  Ken and I kept wondering where it came from.  As of today, the mystery is now over.  Ken was talking to Rich and my mom and I immediately noticed the same "look" on his face.  Jenna, is indeed, Daddy's little girl :)

LAMB Institute Donations for Christmas

Thank you to our family and friends who sent donations to us for the LAMB Institute.  We raised over $1000.00 and it ranged from infant items, children's clothes, toys, stuffed animals and school supplies.  I contacted Suzy McCall, director of the orphanage and she was completely blown away when she came to the house Wednesday.  Her car was pretty full by the time we loaded everything up which you can see in the photo.  

I want to send a special thank you to Terry Chapman who donated $400 for Christmas gifts for 24 children in the daycare program.  Terry, we love you and thank you for your generous heart!!!!

The end of November, I applied for a $2500.00 grant through the MILGP to help assist the orphanage with some other things they need and I found out yesterday it was approved and the check has been sent.  I am so thrilled we are able to help out!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you again for everyone's support.  Without you it would be impossible to bring smiles to so many children :)

Uncle William's Birthday

To celebrate my brother's 45th Birthday we all went out to eat.  My recent Betty Crocker skills came in handy making him a cake :)  William truly embraced his role as "uncle" and had a great time hanging out with Jenna.  He departed today which 9 December was the date of Jenna's expected arrival. I am so glad she arrived before he left!!!!!!!  Here are some photos from dinner as well as some of the sites we visited while he was in town.  

Jenna's First Week

WOW!  We can't believe our little girl is one week old.  We are enjoying every minute and learning so much about her.  Especially the little noises she makes and what they mean.  Her first outing was to the US Embassy.  She had a thorough check done by our Health Unit Doc.  She got top marks regarding her health.  The physicians here in Honduras do not perform metabolic screenings on infants so the Health Unit is checking into having a kit sent her, perform the test and send back to the states.  Her weight was 6 lbs 13 ozs.  Next we were off to the photography place to have Jenna's passport photo taken.  That was interesting.........she was so sound asleep and I had to wake her.  However, her photo depicts a very happy little girl despite the fact she was crying one second before and after that "perfect" shot was taken :)

On Dec 16 we have an appt with the Consular Section to submit all of Jenna's paperwork such as passports (travel & diplomatic), birth abroad and social security.  Apparently it takes forever to even get an appt b/c it is only done at certain times and days of the week.  We got lucky when we walked in to discuss what needed to be done, someone called and cancelled their appt.  Timing is everything :)

My brother turns 45 tomorrow (Pearl Harbor Day) so we went to dinner last night.  We had a wonderful time and a great meal!!!  Jenna was so good.  We have been out twice to dinner with her and she just sleeps and when she is awake she just looks around and takes everything in.

Catherine is my Hero

For those who've kept up on our blog, you know that up until now, Cathy has done all the entries. But this one I needed to write myself. -- Since the day that we found out "we" were pregnant, Catherine has been a wonderful caring and loving mother...even as she has continued to be a wonderful caring and loving wife to me. Over the last week though, I saw my wife in a new light. As I watched her throughout labor, delivery and afterward, she showed her tremendous strength, character and love. Labor was intense as was the delivery - yet Cathy did it all with faith and selflessness -- not a complaint (nor any drugs either.) She was positive and confident throughout and bravely bore two painful 'procedures' that were required during labor and delivery. The result of her 9 months of great "pre-mothering" and 6 hours of intense labor is our beautiful and very heathy daughter Jenna Ann. As a first time dad who was blessed to be in the delivery room for the birth, I can say that I've a new found respect for all mothers -- but especially my beautiful wife Catherine. My prayer today is that God continues to watch over our family, guiding us and protecting us. May God bless each and every one of you too. - Ken, Proud Husband and Papa.

Jenna's First Few Days

Jenna is such a joy!  She is so alert and happy.  Her sleep pattern is pretty good.  When we put her down to sleep she does not cry.  She will sleep about 4.5 to 5 hours and most of the time just opens her eyes and lays in her crib.  She only cries when she is hungry and of course getting that diaper changed.  She absolutely hates being cold so Ken and I try to work as quickly as we can.  She is pretty strong for only being 5 days old.  Last night I was trying to change her clothes and she kept pulling her arm down to her side so I could not get her arm out of the sleeve.  It was pretty funny.  

Ken was feeding her last night and she actually pushed the bottle away when she was through.  When she hears us speak she lifts up her head and looks for us, which is so neat to see.  When we were in the hospital Ken was assisting with the bathing and we gave her her first bath last night.  Ken pretty much did it all while I was trying to take photos.  He is just so awesome with her!!!!!!!!! 

Jenna Ann Rodriguez Has Arrived!!!!!!!!!

On Saturday, November 29th, Ken and I welcomed our daughter into the world!!!!!!!  Jenna arrived at 10:50 pm weighing 7 lbs and 19.7 inches long.  She is a perfect and healthy little girl.

Okay............we have received tons of questions about our "special day" so here it goes.............

Saturday morning around 4 am I felt some cramping but it was not consistent so I ignored it. Ken and I took my mom and brother shopping and went to lunch.  We came home in the afternoon and took a nap.  Next thing I know, I am having contractions every 20 minutes.  Ken called the OBGYN and said to call back when my contractions were 5 minutes apart.  Well, at times they were 2 minutes apart.  The doc met us at the hospital and I was admitted immediately and taken to a private room.  My doctor was awesome!  He was there the whole time and constantly checked on me.  Ken and I can not say enough good things about the medical center and the staff.  They gave the "3" of us wonderful care.  

On arrival to the hospital, I was dilated 1 centimeter and within 2 hrs I dilated to 3 centimeters. The doctor gave me some meds and I dilated quickly to 7 centimeters.  At this point the doc helped me brake my water and my contractions were coming pretty quickly and the pain was extremely intense.  Next thing I know I am being moved to the delivery room.  After 6 hours of labor and 30 minutes in the delivery room, I was able to deliver Jenna without benefit of any drugs.  I AM STILL IN SHOCK :)  In the delivery room, the OBGYN, Pediatrician and two nurses were with Ken and I.  They were incredible.  

Ken was with me the whole time and was so supportive!!!!!  Ken is absolutely wonderful and fatherhood suits him well.  He changed her first diaper and gave her her first two baths at the hospital.  Jenna absolutely loves him and is very very alert when he speaks to her.  Her Apgar score was a 10 so we are thrilled!!!!!!

We came home from the hospital today (Monday around 12:30 pm) and the entire experience was wonderful!!!!!!!!  I don't think we could have gotten better care back home in the states. 

This is a truly amazing experience and we have so much to look forward to.  God truly has blessed us and we can't be thankful enough.  For me, the most memorable moment that I will always have is Ken holding Jenna for the first time.  He was just looking at her with tears in his eyes and I am extremely lucky to have him as my life partner!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here are Jenna's first photos and one with our OBGYN, Dr. Claros who delivered Jenna.  Enjoy and love to all!

Cathy, Ken and Jenna

 

38 Weeks!

Ken and I saw Dr. Claros on Wednesday and our little one is now 6 lbs 3 ozs and 20 inches long.  9 December still looks like the expected delivery date but it could happen any time :)  My mom and brother arrive Tuesday so we are getting the house ready for company.  Ken and I are hosting Thanksgiving dinner at the MILGP for the troops on Wednesday and will have about 20 people over for Thanksgiving Day.  This next week is going to be pretty busy so if I go into labor there will definitely be a lot of excitement.  We wish all of our friends and family back home a wonderful Thanksgiving and we miss you all!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Less Than 3 Weeks Until She Is Here........We Hope

37 weeks and counting. We saw the doctor last week and our little girl weighed 5 lbs 11 ozs and 19.6 inches long. Our next appt is Wednesday. Lately, I am feeling discomfort, especially at night. I woke up early this morning with a charley horse in my calf muscle. Ken being the great husband he is took excellent care of me. I have noticed swelling in both ankles when I am standing too long and some lower back pain. As for the decrease in baby movement - definitely not true in our case. Our little girl remains very active despite the lack of space. I told Ken a few days ago I think she is doing "cross overs" in my stomach. He laughed since I used an "ST" term.

Last week was very busy for Ken. He traveled to Puerto Lempira (a very remote region of Honduras) with Ambassador Llorens who inaugurated 3 schools the MILGP built using humanitarian assistance funds. Also, through the MILGP efforts, over $200,000 in humanitarian assistance funds was given to a local hospital in the same area for the purchase of a hyperbaric chamber. Even though this area is remote, it is on a beautiful coastline where many people suffer from sickness and even death due to the lack of education on diving. Now there is the ability to treat those suffering from the Bends and other dive related afflictions. I included part of the article with photos - you can't miss Ken. Just look for the "red beret." If you click on the image, you can see photos better.

Both of us seem to be on the go non-stop during the week and we take advantage of the weekends to relax. On Friday, about 20 of the Honduran military spouses hosted a baby shower for me. The nice part is the ladies from Ken's office were also able to attend. It was wonderful and very special! I have some wonderful keepsakes for our little girl. The shower was very similar to baby showers hosted in the states but it was very high energy. After 2 1/2 hours Ken arrived to pick me up so we could head to the Ambassadors house for dinner. By the time we arrived home we were exhausted and could not even open the gifts. The baby's room look like Santa came early to visit. We received some beautiful things, but most importantly we received DIAPERS!!!!!!!!!!! On Sunday, we invited the Honduran Navy Captain and his wife for dinner. Our Navy section chief also attended.

It is hard to believe Thanksgiving is right around the corner. We plan to have Thanksgiving at Ken's office. The nice part will be sharing it with my mom and brother who will arrive early next week. We are definitely looking forward to the visit and all the fun that is about to begin in the coming weeks.

On a good note, the senior defense attache's daughter gave birth to a healthy baby girl last week at the same hospital we go to along with the same doctor. We visited her, saw the baby and heard nothing but good words regarding the hospital, staff and care. Hearing this obviously increases our confidence when the time comes :)

Last week a friend came over to the house to take some photos of us and wanted to share.........

233rd Marine Corp Ball

Ken and I attended the Marine Ball last night which was held at the Marriott.  We had a wonderful time!!!!!!!  Around 250 people were in attendance and Ken was the keynote speaker. He gave an incredible speech despite losing power at our house yesterday for over 2 hrs while he was working on it on the computer.  It was very touching and I know the 9 young Marines stationed here truly appreciated what he had to say.  The Marine Corp Detach. Cdr totally hooked us up and we stayed in the Presidential Suite.........it was pretty swanky :)  Initially we were to stay in the VP Suite, but the US Ambassador declined to use it so we got the upgrade.  I attached some photos.  One includes the US Ambassador, Hugo Llorens, Ken and Ryan Ybarra, Marine Corp Detach. Cdr.  It was a long evening and hard to believe I made it til 11:30, but we were thrilled to be a part of it.

35 Weeks and counting...............

I can't believe today we are 35 weeks pregnant!  We are so excited and our little girl is doing so well.  We saw the doctor this past week and she is weighing around 5 lbs.  Her heartbeat is extremely strong and the doctor says everything is right on schedule.  We had a few more questions regarding the labor process and Dr. Claros (as always) is very supportive and encouraging.  One concern we had was if I needed blood could I use Ken's since we have the same blood type.  Dr. Claros was happy to hear it and said that would not be a problem and actually would be the best way to go.  We don't for see any problems but it was a question that I felt needed to be asked because we were unsure how the blood bank is handled here.  

The great news is we received the baby bedding/drapes this week.  I had so much fun putting everything together and her room is just beautiful.  A big THANK YOU goes to my cousins and my aunt & uncle for getting the bedding.  Also, to my cousin Tracy (who is more like my big sister) for reading my mind and finding exactly what we wanted.  We love you all very much and appreciate your generosity. There are a few more things that we have to put together such as the play yard, cradle swing and install the car seat.  I plan to paint some pictures for her room so I need to get started "soon."

FUNDASIDA Donation

Back in late July I visited an orphanage called FUNDASIDA (Translation: National Foundation for HIV/AIDS Prevention, Education and Care) here in the capital.  The organization supports a temporary home that helps children who are ill with Tuberculosis and AIDS.  There are sixty children ranging from one years old to early teens.  Over the last few months I was able to raise over $800 to buy food for these children.  Yesterday I met with some of the children and caretakers to go shopping.  The kids had a lot of fun picking out the necessities they needed and had huge smiles.

A huge THANK YOU goes to my friends Sean and Lindsay Lynch and Generous Heart Ministries, Inc., Destin, FL for their generous donation and our Faith Formation Director, Teresa McClure at Saint Peters Catholic Church in Mary Esther, FL.  Without you, buying food and hygiene items would not have been possible.  

Ken and I purchased some things as well.  Besides birthdays, Christmas is really the only holiday celebrated here.  So while we were purchasing the food I saw a Christmas Tree with lights and bought it.  I am not sure if these children will even get presents but at least they will have something to make them smile :)  

Miami

Ken and I just returned from Miami where we both attended the Security Cooperation Officer's Conference.  I attended the spouses portion and learned quite a bit and met some wonderful spouses.  I think I had more fun since the spouses got one free day from briefings and we visited Fairchild Gardens, The Biltmore and spent a few hours shopping :)  Ken stayed extremely busy throughout the conference while coordinating relief efforts back in Honduras.  Tropical Depression 16 created a lot of flooding and some of the villages were really affected.  Thousands were rescued and 30 are dead with more still missing.  The MILGP and Joint Task Force Bravo (US Military Unit in Honduras) have been assisting the Honduran gov't and COPECO (the country's disaster relief) with humanitarian relief and rescue efforts.  

The best part of the whole week was being able to see family!  My parents, along with two of my aunts and uncle flew down to meet us.  It was wonderful to see them and catch up.  Here are some photos with the family................

It goes with out saying that I made the trip to Target!  And yes, a big box came back with us on the plane full of diapers, wipes and some other goodies.  In Honduras we are very lucky to have US imports unfortunately you will pay twice the amount.  For example, a package of 40 diapers costs close to $30.  So there were some pretty good deals at Target that I could not pass up.  For the last five months I have missed eating at Outback Steakhouse so Ken took me there so I could get my Alice Springs Chicken.  The Children's Place clothing store was nearby so we made a stop there too.  

It was really nice to be back stateside and we miss the roads!!!!!  In Honduras they are very narrow and full of potholes with lot's of crazy drivers.  However, we saw very similar driving techniques in Miami.  Ken and I will probably have to go through a driving course when we return home so we can get rid of the bad habits:)

We have a doctors appt today so I will be sure to post the latest on our little girl.  It is hard to believe we are at 34 weeks.  Not much longer!!!!!!!!!!!