Crystal and Jonathan

The Baby Santos Chronicles…Pictures Are Worth a Thousand Words

santosfamily — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 22:18:40 +0000

We are officially at the 38 week mark and I don’t know exactly what that means except for we technically only have 3 weeks left to go until we meet our precious little Baby Santos! Although I have posted many words and feelings here in our blog, I thought it would be fun to share some beautiful pictures that adequately express our joy of what’s to come! Thanks to Amanda Rose Images we have some beautiful words in pictures.

The Baby Santos Chronicles…We love all the Aunties near and far

santosfamily — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 06:30:57 +0000

I have been blessed with such wonderful friends. Some married, some single, some near and now some far. This past week, I was blessed to get to celebrate the coming of our baby Santos with some of the dear ladies I used to attend church with who’s friendships have lasted past our church time together. Two of these ladies have moved away, but I love the way we can come together after not seeing one another or speaking for quite a while and just pick up where we left off. It was great to catch up and they spoiled me, the baby and even Jono with gifts for Christmas/baby.

It’s so great to know that Baby Santos will have experiences with each of you and learn from you, the wise women that you are. What a lucky baby to have so many Aunties near and far!

The Baby Santos Chronicles…He Came as a Baby

santosfamily — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 15:12:18 +0000

Today is Christmas and we are at 33 weeks now! A year ago today, saying that was only a desire burning inside my heart as I sat beside the tree. I can hardly believe how close we are getting to our baby’s arrival. As we get closer, I’ve begun to experience some fear and anxiety…just little snippets of it. I’ve had many thoughts and questions about what kind of parent I’ll be. In the beginning of my pregnancy I stayed away from the parenting books because I wanted to enjoy this journey of experiencing this miracle called pregnancy…yet the time has gone by so quickly that I’ve hardly had enough time to even pick those books up. There is still plenty of time to read, but the real deal is coming in about 7 weeks. My happiness about the opportunity to see these little feet that are kicking me is now coupled with a desire to slow down, enjoy the now, and find something, anything to calm my fears and show me all the “proper” ways to handle a newborn baby.

This past week, I’ve been pondering why Jesus was sent as a baby. My baby is certainly not the savior of the world….but in the midst of my fear I have been searching for comfort. Looking for comfort in how Mary must have felt bringing a baby into the world and also why Jesus was sent as a baby in the first place. What does that teach us? As I have been looking for this answer, God has been slowly giving me answers and pieces of comfort. It’s been everywhere! I’ve heard it in the songs people have shared on Facebook, I’ve heard it through quiet times at home and last night; I heard it through the message at our Christmas eve service at church. The answer I have found is not only that did He come as a baby to be fully human and relate to us as so, but also because we are not perfect. Jesus came as a perfect and innocent baby in the midst of an imperfect world and neither could cancel each other out. It’s so comforting to me to know that our baby will come as this perfect God given being and nothing about our imperfection will take that away…at least in the beginning. I’m sure we will fail and stumble many times over, but by God’s grace we will also care, love, and experience something more perfect and God given than we could have ever imagined.

What a beautiful understanding and gift to be reminded that God came as perfection to save us from our imperfect selves and He didn’t come as a loud and powerful bolt of thunder or a gigantic king that would show us the way. He came as a baby with innocent and perfect love. He knew that would change our hearts more than anything else.

On this Christmas morning I realize that having our baby might just be the closest to God we will ever be. What comfort. What a miracle.

Thanks to my friend Amy for sharing this video yesterday. You were a piece of God speaking to me

Happy Thanksgiving!

santosfamily — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 20:01:28 +0000

This morning, on Thanksgiving, Jono and I took some time to add to our Thankfulness tree. We had a few things on here already, but took some extra time for reflection and add to it.

This year we are thankful for:

Our relationship with God and the hope we have in Him

Eachother

Our baby that is soon on the way

Our family

Our friends

Our church community whom happen to also be our friends

Our rascally puppy

Food to eat

A place to live and opportunities that many don’t have

I’m sure the list could go on…and it did, but these are among the basic ones that we reflected on today.

We are also Thankful to have a day off together to relax, have breakfast

and prepare some food to gather…

with friends tonight where we will make some Christmas crafts, watch football, talk, laugh and enjoy the company of others who are thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving to all our family and friends! Near or far, you mean so much to us and we wish that all the people we know and love could gather in one place today, but we hope you enjoy this day and season no matter where you are.

Love,

Jono, Crystal, Baby Santos & Briar dog!

The Baby Santos Chronicles…What Will Baby Be? The Official Poll

santosfamily — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 05:35:16 +0000

So…after hearing differing opinions about whether Jono and I are having a boy or a girl, and also hearing guesses for both boy and girl in any given hour we thought it would be fun to open up a poll on here to our family and friends near and far.

Just a few fun reasons for why people are guessing one gender over another:

You are carrying high”

“You are carrying low..”

“The heartbeat is less than 140 beats per minute.”

“You weren’t sick, so you must be having a boy.”

“Your belly is round.”

“Your belly is pointy.”

“You are getting pretty…..(Thank God no one has told me I’m getting ugly

We’ve heard it all and now it’s time to hear from you. What shall it be? BOY or a GIRL?

We decided we’d give a $25 visa gift card to the person guessing the gender as well as the closes birth date and time. (Time will only be used to narrow down to one winner, and if necessary, a random drawing.)

You need only leave a comment in the section below to enter. Winners will be announced on the date of birth!

Thankful for Friends ~ Westport Weekend

santosfamily — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 06:49:23 +0000

This past weekend we were fortunate to spend some vacation time in Westport with our dear friends, the Ibsens. We played together, cooked together, talked, danced and and relaxed. Beautiful memories were shared. Thanks Luke & Janell for sharing your time and your kids with us. We look forward to many more precious get togethers.

Here are some picture memories of the weekend:

Spent our first morning checking out views from the bay window

& playing a game of chicken foot (dominoes) with Janell and Nev bug.

We took a walk in the beautiful sunshine,

collected sand dollars,

went out to fly a kite,

practiced some steps,

played in the sand,

and we even took a nap or two

Happy faces shared by all.

We reflected on the blessing of friends and the joys that await us when we finally become parents ourselves.

So many happy memories!

One of The Family

santosfamily — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 05:21:55 +0000

About 4 years ago, when Jono and I were still engaged….I, determined to own a dog and my soon to be husband who wanted to make me happy went looking at some shelters for the perfect one. I have always had a soft spot for dogs and thought it was worth all the muddy carpets in the world to have one in the family. We found a few good looking young dogs at the humane society who no doubt would be popular with all the prospective dog owners, but we were just looking of course and ended up leaving without one. On our way back from the hunt, we stopped at a place called Homeward Pets. This is a small shelter nestled in a business park in Woodinville, WA. There were only a few dogs there and some were off limits (allowed only to be given to families with prior dog experience). In the back though, was a little black ragamuffin looking puppy with a bite out of the corner of his ear (they said it was from a fight with his sister who had been adopted just a day before) We took him outside to play and he stole my heart. Without much delay, we had signed the papers ad brought this precious little doggy that would consume the next few years of our lives home. We named him Briar because he was our dog and that was the City between where Jono and I lived when we met.

The first year, was a challenging one and we often had run arounds in the condo with a stubborn barking dog. We would have taken him back to the shelter, except for the fact that we were already in love with this sometimes crazy and other times sweet mut. We had…both stressful and precious moments with him. The mornings by far were always a favorite because that is when he was mellow and I could cuddle with him. It’s been quite a road, but I highly doubt we would trade any of it…

The harder seasons have passed and Briar has grown into a large, loving, loyal and yes, clingy Lab/Shepard dog. He is more than just a dog (aka running partner) to us though. To us, he is a member of our family. Our first kid.

A few days ago I took Briar for a routine check up and to have the vet take a look at a few other normal concerns I had. I was expecting, as always, to hear a report with a clean bill of health. Much to my surprise and pregnant hormonal dismay that the vet had heard a heart murmur. She said there can be many causes for this, but wrote in his notes that the most likely cause is heart disease. Nothing to be alarmed about until we look into it a little further…but I haven’t been able to shake the feeling that there may be, just maybe something wrong with my sweet doggy’s heart. It’s just about breaking mine. I know, I know. I’m probably jumping the gun here. We haven’t had an ultrasound done on him to confirm the diagnosis and some would say, “Crystal, please. It’s just a dog.” but not knowing a final diagnosis is driving me crazy and I can’t help but be saddened by the chance that our years with him could be less than we thought.

Is it crazy to beleive that the God who heals us can heal and repair the heart of my dog? I’m going to believe that it’s not.

Praying and seeking comfort from the God who is capable of healing what matters to me.

The Baby Santos Chronicles…Just a Little Camera Shy

santosfamily — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 06:15:25 +0000

We went to get some 3D pictures of our baby today. Just as in our 20 week Ultrasound and in the last, there was a lot of face covering and hiding against the lining of my belly. Seems you are a little camera-shy.

Not sure why you would be. You are both precious and beautiful. I’m sure you were really just sleepy and it seems you like to have your hand to your face. It was so fun getting to see all of your little features even if you wouldn’t fully turn around. We even got some great shots of your spine, brain and some other parts…

with the exception of the part that tells us whether you are a boy or girl.

We still remain clueless and we wait in anticipation of the surprise that awaits us at your coming.

The Baby Santos Chronicles…Yes Baby, You’re Mama is a Basket Case

santosfamily — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 05:33:26 +0000

These past few months seem to have flown by. This next Friday will be the last week in my second trimester. Baby Santos is growing bigger by the week and according to our recent Ultrasound and measurements, we now know that he or she is in the 85th percentile. They said that the baby has long legs. Perhaps we have a dancer….or a basketball player, or…a runner In any event, it was good to be able to see our baby again.

Isn't our Baby Santos adorable? We think so!

While the measurements are still in the normal range, the thought that I may get overly large in the next few months has had me in a metal tizzy about getting things done now. There’s so much to get organized, purchased, packed and made before the baby comes. I even had a nightmare that I had a much earlier birth and our bags werent packed yet. Eeek! I’ve had some stressful moments, days and some necessary to me tears that have been leaving me too mentally exhausted to even be productive at times. Yes baby Santos, you’re Mama is a basket case! I’m learning more and more that crazy is the new normal and I hope you’ll love me in spite of it.

On the other hand, I’m also feeling an overwhelming pull to slow down and relax. While getting all this stuff done is important to me, it’s also really important to take a deep breath and enjoy the rest of our time as a couple with no kids…to just enjoy each other and the time we have left. I know we will enjoy being parents and all the wonderful things that come with it, but I also know it will be more challenging for us to connect and life will be a little more challenging in general.

Maybe, just maybe I’ll learn to relax more in the chaos. A good fried posted a prayer that seems appropriate for this season and probably just about every season in a woman’s life.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.

A special thanks to my dear husband (your DAD) for putting up with me over the past few months

The Baby Santos Chronicles…The Rhythm of Love

santosfamily — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 05:00:31 +0000

I awoke one morning last week to you moving around in my belly. I hadn’t yet felt kicks quite that high so it was a pretty awesome wake up call. That was last Saturday…and just a week later I can feel bigger movements mid belly. Daddy and I have even been able to see them! I’m loving every minute of these movements…I’m loving every minute I get to experience of our little acrobat.

I’ve read that at this stage you are fully aware to sounds, tastes and movements that are happening outside…Briar’s dog Barks, the latin music that had us shakin in Zumba class last week and constant movement that is rocking you to sleep or keeping you awake are all apart of your world right now…and while my movements, sounds, tastes…etc. are apart of your world, you are a part of mine. I could sit here forever as you move and shake in my world. I think I’m in love

This is the song in my heart:

“Play the music low and swing to the rhythm of love”

~ Plain White T’s