emily our dog

I have only posted two times and Emily has already been mentioned. She's our 3-year old golden retriever. I figure I might as well get a photo up on the blog right away so that you can see her with your own eyes! We think she's pretty special . . . your typical golden retriever - everyone's friend (she definitely would not make a good watch dog).

There are people who take regular walks around the neighborhood who plan their route to stop by our fence to greet Emily. The other day Emily was in the house with me when I hear someone outside calling her name - sure enough it was one of her "friends" stopping by to say hello to her.

Emily had 7 puppies on Dec. 23 . . . I'm not sure that we will be ready to have puppies again in this lifetime. Fun, but tons of work.

Anyways- here's the famous Emily!

Baby Arteaga Arriving in 2007!

One of the most exciting news we have to share is that not only were we just married a few months ago, but we are also expecting Baby Arteaga in December 2007! We are excited! Ruth is 3 months along (or at 13 weeks if you'd rather count weeks). Santiago has already proven to be a very patient husband and daddy - taking very good care of Ruth while she was on 2 weeks of bed-rest this month due to some complications.

We will let you know as soon as we know if Baby Arteaga is a boy or a girl. We're hoping for a boy, but will be grateful for whatever God has planned for us! Santi sometimes feels out-numbered as he is surrounded by women - Ruth, his mom Emma, Emily our dog - so a boy would a nice addition to our family!

We'll keep you posted as things progress . . . Ruth is trying to keep up with life and work in spite of being tired all the time and feeling the usual "morning sickness" which seems to last all day! So far her cravings have included everything from chips & salsa to "locro de papa" (a typical potato soup here in Ecuador), to Big Macs from McDonald's. She even found Rice Chex in the store the other day which sounded really good - that lasted for about 2 days and then it was on to another craving! Santi has his work ahead of him trying to keep up with the cravings which seem to last for a day or so at this point! Thankfully he's a very patient person!

We look forward to sharing more news of Baby Arteaga this year!

Welcome!

Welcome to the Arteaga Family blog! We have finally decided to start a blog and join the rest of the world using modern technology to keep up with family and friends. We have enjoyed reading our friend's blogs and so hopefully this will be a good way for you to keep up with us as well!

It seems like life is full of opportunities and changes and exciting news, so we hope to use this space to share some of the happenings in our corner of the world - here in Quito, Ecuador. Since we were married on October 28, 2006, it seems like life has been a whirlwind!

The whirlwind actually started before the wedding. We were thrilled to have friends and family join us a week before the ceremony - giving us an opportunity to show them around this beautiful country. We enjoyed visiting the equator, going up a 13,000 ft mountain on a cable car, touring beautiful colonial Quito and shopping at the world-famous outdoor market in Otavalo.

This was the group that came from the states!

Then wedding bells rang October 28! What a blessing to be surrounded by so many friends and family during an garden ceremony at a small country inn about 45 minutes outside of Quito - Rincón de Puembo was the place!



Shortly after the wedding, we flew to the US to enjoy a stateside reception in Indianapolis where we were able to celebrate with even more friends and family! We are grateful to our good friends Julie and Joe who made the stateside reception possible. It was beautiful but there simply was not enough time to talk with everyone. Thank you to everyone who came!

And the past seven months of married bliss have been wonderful. We enjoyed being a part of various Christmas activities - including the celebration of HCJB Global's 75th Anniversary and also the various Christmas Parties organized by Extreme Response International in various needy communities. This certainly brought the true meaning of Christmas to our hearts!

Then the end of January found us traveling to Colorado Springs, CO to be a part of the Training and Orientation for New Missionaries at HCJB's headquarters. The mission had asked us to go through orientation as a couple. It was a good opportunity for us to also meet some of our co-workers in the office and put faces with names.

And then it was back to Ecuador to settle into our work with HCJB and Extreme Response! Santi loves his ministry in the Information Systems Department at HCJB. He spends most of his time on computers which is something he really enjoys. Ruth is having fun in the Extreme Response office, helping with various administrative duties as well as coordinating the Kids Club at the Quito city dump every Wednesday afternoon.

This blog has probably gotten long enough for today - but it's a start! Thanks for reading . . . we look forward to keeping in touch!