Celebrating 9 Years Of Marriage!

Can you believe it's already been 9 years since Jonny and I got married? It's been 9 years since the photos below were taken (We had to take a picture of these photos from our wedding album since there were no digital cameras in those days - unbelievable!):

Nine years sounds like a very long time; to us, it sounds very grown up! But the truth is, nine years sounds just right because it's been a very intense time since we got married. In the past nine years we have: finished our degrees, moved countries, moved homes, changed jobs, lost a son, had another son, learned (still learning!) to be parents, traveled, made friends, lost friends, prayed together, fasted together, matured, been sick, been healthy, laughed together, cried together, hurt each other, forgiven each other...yeah, we've been through a lot together.

But most importantly, as we reflect on the past 9 years, we can see that we have really loved each other. We have gone through everything as a team (even in our disputes, we have done our best to work them out together), helping and serving one another, committed to each other, committed to our vows, and above all, committed to God. The latter really is the key: it is very clear to us that we have made it through the past nine years loving each other so much because of God in our lives. As we have talked about our relationship, we can see key moments where if it were not for God working, if it were not for our faith in Him, we would probably not be together and even if we were, our marriage would not be strong. So as we celebrate our marriage today, we give all glory to God!

Thank you Lord for this gift of marriage, thank you for protecting us, guiding us, leading us, convicting us, teaching us. Because of You, we have experienced true love, the kind that "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." (1 Cor.13:7) (This passage was read on our wedding day, when we didn't really understand what it meant...now, nine years later, we thankfully have a much better idea.)

To celebrate our marriage, we had a great lunch today at a special Brazilian Restaurant in Baltimore and were even surprised by an "Anniversary Pudim"! Check out the photos below!

We managed to get a photo at the beginning of the meal but then got really into the food so no more photos of the amazing food...

We also enjoyed having the Brazilian drink "Guarana!"

And then coffee to keep us awake after the big meal - despite the celebration, we had to go back to work! :-)

We were pleasantly surprised by this Brazilian cream caramel (pudim) on the house!

I love you darls, now more than ever!

Thankful for Vovô Daddy!

I feel like this is becoming a habit: Relatives come to visit and I end up writing a "good-bye" blog after coming back home, seeing that they are truly gone, and feeling sad... This time, however, it's been even harder because Daniel is also missing his Vovô. We dropped him off at the airport this afternoon and Daniel has already asked about him... How can you explain to a 16th month old that his Vovô, a very loving and friendly man who has played with him for over 2 weeks and was "living in the basement", is just not here anymore? Well, this has made saying goodbye to my Daddy even harder....

But, before I let my emotions take over, I'm trying to focus on the wonderful 16 days that we just spent together. It truly was such a wonderful time: lots of love, lots of laughter, lots of playing, lots of having fun... and there were even some tears during meaningful conversations... For all of this, I'm very grateful.

Thank you Daddy, thank you Vovô, for coming all this way to visit us! We love you so much and we are already missing you!!! Oh Lord, it's not easy being far away from our loved ones!

You know, after my dad left I have been thinking a lot about him and what a special man he is. And suddenly it hit me and I was able to clearly define what in my dad is so special: he is a very humble person, a rare example of humility. He loves God, thinks first of others, loves to serve others, is very generous when he sees a need, and just doesn't think much about himself (he says he doesn't even really look in the mirror, just doesn't worry about what he looks like!). My dad is one of the most humble persons I have ever met, and for this, I'm truly grateful. To have my own dad as an example of humility, something that I strive to grow in, is truly a blessing for our family. I even bet that as he reads this, he will be thinking "No, my daugther, you shouldn't think that about me." Yes Daddy, that's exactly why I do; thank you for being this to me also! We love you and we can't wait until we are together again!

Vovô Daddy loved taking care of Daniel at the park...

Enjoying one of many wonderful dinners - this one with Maria Helena too...

He loved carrying Daniel...

Daniel enjoying his Vovô at a friends house on the 4th of July Holiday - thanks for these great photos Evy!

Vovô got to witness Daniel enjoy his swim class!

We also visited the Memorial Park...

Vovô got to eat Maryland Crabs!!! He liked them but thought the Old Bay Spice was a bit too spicy!

Hanging out on the deck...

Vovô was always so tender with Daniel...

I really love my Daddy...

On our way to the airport...

Last photo at the airport - sad but thankful. Daniel was looking at the airport busses and had no idea what was happening!

Daniel At 16 Months - Climbing Everything!

Boy wonder is now 16 months old! He really is a little boy now, the baby days have truly passed... He understands so much now, follows instructions (like get your shoes, go upstairs, put X in the trash) and he uses his "words" more to communicate - especially, "ma-ma" (for mamae), "pa-pa" (for papai), "bo-bo" (for vovô - grandpa in Portuguese), "ba-ba" (for ball or baby), "au-au" (for doggy) and "na-na" (for trucks and other means of transportation which he's just obsessed about!). He often calls out "ma-ma?" (as a question) when he wakes up or if I'm not in the room which is the most wonderful sound to me! :-) He points at everything and wants us to tell him the word for whatever it is. When reading word books, he now points to several objects on the page and if we ask him to show us something, he gets most of them right!

Daniel can now "run" too - he still loses his balance from time to time but he is quite fast! What has been really special is that he likes to run to us from a distance, with a big smile on his face to be hugged and held. He has become more affectionate recently (i.e. actively seeking cuddles, for example) and is learning to kiss back too! He also continues to love the phone and pretends to have conversations - it's amazing how he imitates us. He often says "oi" ("hi" in Portuguese) and pauses, as if listening, and then makes a few sounds that only he can decipher! :-)

He had his 15 months check-up last week and he weighs just over 27 pounds (80th percentile) and is 33 and 1/2 inches long (90th percentile) - so he continues to be a big boy, wearing 2T clothes already! He had two shots on his arms for the first time and he didn't cry for the first one and just whimpered a little with the second and also had no fever afterwards, which was a relief to us all. (My dad was at the check-up too and he really enjoyed the whole process - photo below!)

Since about the middle of 15 months, he's been climbing chairs/sofas (and pretty much anything that he's able to) and now he is very good at it! It's a bit scary since he can climb up well but cannot climb down so we've got to keep an extra eye on him and we are trying to teach him that chairs are for sitting and not standing! But the concept of danger is very foreign to him! :-)

We were able to take a cute series of photos of Daniel in his pyjamas climbing one of our chairs on a recent morning (with a very full, after a whole night, droopy diaper :-))!

Vovô Daddy Is Here!

The photo above says it all: Daniel is so happy his Vovô is here - and so are we! My dad is visiting from Brazil and from the moment Daniel saw him, it was love at first sight. Daniel calls him "bobo" and asks for him when he hears him downstairs in the basement. It's such a joy to see them together! My dad is just wonderful with children, always has been. He loves to carry Daniel and hasn't once complained that he is too heavy - which we do all the time! :-) My dad, at age 73, is just so fit, thank God! I told him today that we expect him to be at Daniel's wedding so he better keep up the good health! :-)

The day after he arrived, we went for a walk to the park and I took some great shots of the two of them having fun together:

We are so thankful that you are here Daddy and that we have another 2 weeks to enjoy you! I'm also thrilled that you are able to enjoy your grandson at this precious age - he'll be 16 months on Friday!

Back From Vacation!

We are back from our week-long vacation in Williamsburg, VA. We had a wonderful time there and would love to go back one day. The small historical towns, the river beach, the resort we stayed in, was just perfect for our family. The weather was wonderful the whole time and Daniel really enjoyed it too. We felt so blessed having this time together; it was hard for Jonny to go back to work today... We have many special memories of this "first-ever" family vacation. Thank you Vozinha for giving us this week away using your timeshare!

Coming back home was also very special, especially for Daniel. He was just so excited arriving home, being in his room again, playing with his toys, it was the cutest thing ever to watch! Because he hadn't climbed any stairs for a week, Daniel squealed excitedly when he got to climb the stairs to his room and then later climbed the stairs over and over again!

Since we got back, we have been busy getting ready for my dad's arrival from Brazil. He arrived yesterday and now we are just enjoying him so much! Daniel loves his Vovo and my dad is just wonderful with him! I will write a blog about my dad's visit soon.

Here is the slideshow of our photos from our vacation: