Before we knew it was Levi

This video pretty much sums up the first 18 weeks of the pregnancy. We initially did not want to know the sex of the baby, because we wanted to be surprised along with our family. We love the reaction of our family when we reveal to them that we're having a boy! These are just small clips of some very special moments for me and Bethany. We hope you enjoy-

3rd Trimester, here we come!

Well, we are finally here. The third, and last trimester. Only 13 weeks left and Levi will be joining us on the outside of the womb. His kicks and punches get stronger with each week. He now responds to my hand when I touch Bethany's stomach in different locations too. It's pretty cool, I will put pressure on one side of the belly, and I will feel him pivot himself and then kick my hand. Then I will put pressure on the opposite side, and again he pivots and kicks my hand. (Kick or punch... still not sure which one it is!)

Everyone, meet Trevor. We picked up this little guy while in San Diego celebrating our 2nd anniversary this past May. In just a little more time, he will become one of Levi's friends! 

26 weeks, 1 day

It is unbelievable how fast this pregnancy is going. It seems not too long ago we were just announcing to our families that we are pregnant, and now we have less than 14 weeks left before Levi joins us!

So far, everything has been going well. Levi is obviously growing, and we can tell because of two things:

1. Bethany reports that his kicks and punches are getting stronger. Even I get a little kick every time I feel her stomach. I am even starting to feel harder parts of his body, like an arm or a leg, although I am still unsure what part of the body it is.
2. Bethany cannot see her feet when she looks down.

Right now, Levi is a little bigger than a large cucumber, and weighs about 2 lbs! He measures about 15 inches from head to heel, and is putting on more and more fat. One cool fact about this stage in his development is in the ears. The nerves are maturing, allowing his hearing to be more sensitive. He can probably hear me and Bethany a lot better than ever now. His hearing began at week 16, when the ears were done forming. Since then, I've been talking or reading to him every night. A few times I also played the guitar and sang some worship songs (Maybe someday he will play some music himself!). This last Sunday, Bethany sang at church, and she said Levi was moving around a lot with all the music going on around him and through the stage monitors! Since he is surrounded by Bethany's skin, her body fat, the amniotic fluid, and the uterus walls, much of the sound he hears is muffled and reduced in loudness. However, lower frequencies travel the best through liquids, so Levi is definitely getting his fill of vibrations from bass instruments or really deep sounds (Like daddy's voice!).

Another pregnancy report this week is daddy's weight gain. Since Bethany has been pregnant, I have gained 15 lbs! Surprised me as well. So, last week I decided to start running to maintain my weight. It has also improved my study times, and I've noticed an increase in energy and alertness. Bethany has also been working out every morning, keeping herself active and her heart rate going. I'm proud of her for sticking with it every day. She has been amazing throughout the entire pregnancy by keeping up the house, meal planning, and making my lunches to take to work. I am so thankful for her, because she has been the biggest help to me despite her back pains and swelling feet. Things are busy around here with school and my study schedule, yet she continues to help and always offers me her loving support (I love you, Bethany!).

Countdown to Levi: 13 weeks, 6 days!

More than halfway!!

So we are at 25 weeks today! Baby Levi is quite the mover and kicks and punches after meals, when having Yogurtland or milk tea, and while watching movies in a loud theater.

Alejo is sooo excited and I am so blessed to be married to him. Regardless of how much homework he has or how tired he is from an opening shift, he still makes time to make sure I'm ok and to talk to Levi. Such a selfless man... I only hope I am doing as much to be a godly wife for him!

We're going to try and keep this thing more updated... Although we'll see what happens when the baby comes!

Countdown to Levi: 15 weeks!!

Hello baby

Currently we are 10 weeks 2 days, and about a week ago we went and saw our baby's heartbeat for the first time! It was an amazing moment, and we can't wait to see this little person when he/she is born!

And...we're back!

Hello blogging world!

Alejo and I were talking about some projects that we wanted to accomplish this year and tackling this blog was one of them. We figured since our family is growing, it would be a good way to keep everyone up to date on what's going on in our life so expect (well, hopefully expect) to see updates frequently!

Alright! One down on our list...lots of other things to accomplish this year!

in Christ alone,

Bethany

The hunt continues...

[Countdown: 7 months, 10 days]

With 7 months to go, we have the great task of looking for a place to live! We've made many trips already to Torrance and Redondo Beach... we're narrowing down the choices, but it is not an easy thing to decide on a place that we will be calling home!

Before driving around today, we took our dear friend to Greenfields in Long Beach for his birthday! What an awesome meat-selection we had! If you have never dined there before, we absolutely suggest you go sometime in your life... but be prepared to stretch your stomach to the limits with the amount of meat you take in! We had a great time hanging out and fellowshipping.

After an afternoon filled with looking, driving, shopping, and discussing our future living, we came home to get ready for an evening at LABTS (Los Angeles Bible Training School), where Bethany and I are taking a Soteriology class (That is, the study of salvation). Bethany and her brother Micah have been taking classes here for the past year, and my schedule has finally permitted me to join them this semester. This class is truly a great time of spiritual building, and going over the basics of our faith in the context of salvation! Today, we had some great discussions about atonement, the significance of Christ's blood, and hell. These topics are familiar to most Christians, but discussing them in a class setting really brings out the truth of God's word, and really challenges your perspective of God's word and your faith! Anyone who desires to deepen their faith should prayerfully consider taking bible classes. If you wish to join us on a Monday night, give us a call!

Well, that is all for now... we have some jogging to get to in the morning!
Blessings, and praise God for His works as seen in His creation, and in the great work He completed on the cross!

-alejo

(Psalm 19)