To this:To this on Monday afternoon:

(wow...look at that floor under our floor. We think it's the original floor from the 50s)

If you couldn't guess, we are remodeling our kitchen. Can't say how long it will take, but we will post pictures along the way. We are excited about having clean floors, more cabinet space, and new appliances. In the meantime, if you live in Salem and have seen this, feel free to invite us over for dinner! If any wives out there can give me some advice about how to continue fulfilling my wifely role of feeding my husband, let me know!

If you're looking for a good book, we've found two that we can recommend!I'm reading this biography on Amy Carmichael, written by Elizabeth Elliot. I'm at the part now where she is arriving in India to start her missionary work...it's good. I prefer biographies most of the time.

Aaron borrowed this book from the church's library. It's called Foundations of Grace, written by Steven Lawson. He reads some nights before bed...sometimes out loud to me. It's strong reading.

Aaron has been treating himself to several new toys in the last couple of months. Maybe he's taking advantage of the time before baby arrives, because then our finances will have to be directed elsewhere! But it's so interesting to see how opposite his choices are from what mine would be... A heavy-duty pressure washer. Wow. He got this on clearance at the mall in Asheville. Don't ask me why he put it together in the kitchen... :)
And a gas grill. He used a Sears store credit that his parents gave him for Christmas. I'm sure I'll enjoy this gift, too.

This weekend we traveled for another getaway! This time we headed to Lake Lure, NC in the very western part of the state. It's a small lake located in the Hickory Nut Gorge. We met Charles and Brittany there to spend the weekend with them. We left on Thursday night and came back early this morning just in time for church. We had our own little cabin. It was perfect...very sweet and comfortable.

And Charles and Brittany had their own cabin. They cooked breakfast for us on Friday morning in there.
The front of ours. There was a hot tub on the back porch...maybe we'll go again when I'm not pregnant so I can get in it! We weren't right beside the lake...it was just a short drive to it. But we didn't spend a lot of time there anyway since it's not bathing suit season!
On Friday we toured Chimney Rock State Park, which is right beside Lake Lure. The main attraction is the view from the mountaintop, as you can probably guess why. There is an elevator that runs 258 feet right up through the rock to get you there...we enjoyed reading the history of the Morse brothers who made it happen in the 1940s. (I think the pose for this picture made Charles a little nervous!) On Saturday we drove to Asheville, which was about 30 miles. We rode to the Biltmore property but didn't buy the tickets to go in...maybe one day in the spring! We browsed around a hardware store...and played arcade games at the movie theater while we waited for our matinee to start. We saw The Bucket List, which was pretty good but had some unnecessary language in it. The popcorn was the best part.We also stopped by The Marble Slab to get the pregnant lady some ice cream. It was a highlight of the trip :) We shopped at the Asheville Mall, and finished our excursion with dinner out. It was an awesome, relaxing trip and we thank Charles and Brittany for inviting us!

Why the long face, kiddo? We promise we will take good care of you!

Hi mom and dad! Thanks for looking in on me!

Over Christmas break I gutted a lot of the house in hopes of organizing. I was at it again this week...we have experienced a tremendous amount of relief in redoing our closets! I called The Closet/Storage Organizers and they came yesterday to make things easier in our tiny tiny closets. We used Christmas money...but the awesome thing is that both closets were remodeled for a little more than $100! What a deal!

Before:

There were two bars to hang clothes, one in front of the other. You had to make a part in the shirts to get to the pants. What a nightmare. Whose idea was that?
We had our shoes in these Rubbermaid containers. Needless to say, it wasn't the best way to store them.

After:

For Christmas Aaron reserved a night for us at a B&B in Christiansburg and we went yesterday. It was our first experience doing this, and we are so glad we did! It was awesome...far above our expectations. The inn was exquisite, the room was huge and comfortable, the dinner at a nearby fine dining restaurant was perfect, the relaxation factor was high, and we met some fun people at the 3-course breakfast this morning. Thanks to my hubby for a wonderful getaway!

We took pictures of the room as soon as we arrived. Aaron is taking this picture from one section of the bathroom. There was a lot of space...and a refrigerator with a chocolate mousse dessert in it :)

Baby Fernandez is moving around! I think he/she has been doing it for several weeks, but I am just now starting to feel it this week. It started in church on Sunday when Nick was preaching about the sufficiency of Christ. He and Aaron decided that the baby wanted us to know he/she agreed, so there was a little "tap tap". I'm loving it!

Aaron was a VIP last night (in someone else's eyes other than mine)! He went to see State play Georgia Tech at the RBC Center in Raleigh. His dad had received box seats to be a VIP fan from one of his customers, so he invited Aaron to come along with him and Brooke and some other family friends from Nash County (I couldn't miss work). They served a full meal in the box! Unfortunately, he didn't take the camera, and even more unfortunate, State lost by 3 points. But I've heard it was an awesome night!

On Sunday we had the privilege of having guests with us at church. The Stevens family has been an encouragement to me and Aaron since I started teaching their two youngest girls last year. They are from Liberia. They spent time several years in a refugee camp in Africa (because of a war) before they moved to Roanoke almost two years ago. Mr. Stevens, Joseph, has shared lots of stories about horrific things they have seen and experienced, but he always does so with sure confidence in the power and goodness of God. His wife, Caroline, has been sick with cancer, and now she is at home with hospice care. The girls know their mother is dying, but their smiles and sweet spirits have not faded! We enjoyed worshipping with them and breaking bread together.

This picture was taken a month or so ago. Aaron and I went to their home with dinner to share a meal and encouraging conversations with them.
This was Sunday after church at a Mexican restaurant. Aaron recommended this meal to Joseph...I think he was overwhelmed at first, but he ate the whole plate! Joseph works night shifts at Lowe's and takes care of his wife during the day. He handles all school stuff for the girls. He is a true servant.
From left to right: Diamond (10th grade), Stanlyn (3rd grade), Joseph, Jovina (1st grade).

There is a community effort for this family. It's called Coins for Caroline. Their sweet picture is all over the news and a couple of sponsoring organizations are trying to raise $200,000 for them. Check out the website: coinsforcaroline.org

Granny might say, "Our little man is growing up."

We got back on Sunday evening from a very relaxing mini-vacation! We traveled to Snowshoe, WVa on Friday and stayed at the resort there with my family. Even though mom and Sierra didn't come until Saturday night, and there was no real snow, we had a great time. Don't worry...the pregnant lady didn't ski! I stayed inside to keep things clean and make lunch and dinner and cookies for the men. The fake snow was good enough for them...they skied a lot on Saturday and Sunday. We are looking forward to going back in February with Jonathan and Joy and Stephen and Michael!I knew Aaron had a pure and beautiful soul before I took this picture...the picture just proves it. The guys are getting ready but they both look confused about those boots!

And dad is waiting patiently!

Unfortunately, I didn't get any group shots. But everyone was there!

I went to the doctor today and was able to hear the heartbeat again. Here it is for you to hear! There is no picture, but click on the arrow to play and turn your computer's volume up. It was at 140 bpm and everything looks great! I got lots of questions answered. We are looking forward to the big ultrasound in 3 weeks!

When we were visiting Lucama at Thanksgiving, we came across this sweet picture of Granny and Gene. I borrowed it to post here, because we had to share it!

I went back to work today, but I wasn't the only one! My mom has recently been offered her dream job with the Girl Scout Council and today was her first day of work. We are very excited for her! She has spent the last 29 years supporting my dad and raising the 4 of us, and now she's looking forward to doing something else she loves. She is the Outdoor Program Manager. This means, among other things, that she will be in charge of the camp in this picture.
It was rainy and dreary the day I took this picture. This is the main building on many, many acres that the Council has recently purchased to be the camp. It will be challenging, but she's the woman for the job! Congratulations, mom.

Happy New Year! We celebrated last night with the Flores tradition of dinner at Kabuki, a Japanese steakhouse. Everyone was there and we had a fun time before going our separate ways to party.

Afterward, Aaron and I went to Dennis and Shannon's home for a party to the countdown! Most everyone from our Sunday School class was there and we had a lot of good conversation. I think the men mostly talked about God and the women talked about babies. We toasted the New Year with hot cocoa!