Author: Dalia Leyva

First of all, I am very grateful to work for such a great company that allowed me to take a Sabbatical and take time to rest and renew.  I went back to work this past Friday and was very happy to see all my peeps. I sure do love them all! 😍 Here is my last post to blog.

For my service work, my kids and I went to Love and Care Ministries and helped in “His clothing”. That’s where all donations are received and clothing is separated.  They have a warehouse full of bags that they call “the mountain” and it’s literally a mountain of bags with clothing that need to be sorted through, separated and hung up to have ready to be put out for people that go in to get clothing either for themselves or for their family.  They can also take a shower there and receive a change of clothes.  Everyone there was so nice and happy that we were there helping.

The most amazing part was when we were invited to prayer the next morning. So before starting work the next morning, we went to “His Quiet Place”.  Workers and volunteers were there for some quiet time with my Jesus.  We walked in and music was on softly playing, the lights were dim and it felt very peaceful.  Then for a couple of seconds they stop the music and the next song that came on was “Flawless” by Mercy Me now this song is very special to me and let me tell you why.  When I first started getting to know my Jesus, I was having a difficult time believing that my Jesus could actually forgive my sins. I felt like I had failed Him and there was no way I could ever be close to Him because of my sins.  Then one day I was washing dishes and listening to music on youtube and this song came on and I quickly stopped what I was doing, listened to it, replayed it again (by this time I was shaking) and when the song was over I just dropped to my knees and cried.  At that moment I realized that my Jesus does love me unconditionally and does forgive me and that He will always be there for me….now  fast forward to the present. The past couple of months I had been stressing and feeling like I haven’t been doing enough and trying to catch up with everyday life. So when my song came on that day, my Jesus was there letting me know that I am exactly where He wants me to be and that I am doing exactly what He wants me to do and to keep going.  It was such an incredible moment that I still get emotional just thinking about it!

After that I went to Dallas to spend some time with my mom and sister.  I came back home, rested, and spent quality time with my kiddos before going back to work.  I am so thankful to have been able to spend time with my family and it has also been an amazing experience that has taught me to slow down and enjoy every single day and to slow down and spend time with my Jesus in prayer.

And so here’s another song I would like to share with you all, “Hard Love” by NeedToBreathe, I also heard it when I needed it most, hope you all like it as much as I do – 🎶It’s not enough to just feel the flame, You’ve gotta burn your old self away, Hold on tight a little longer, What don’t kill you makes you stronger, Get back up ’cause it’s a hard love🎶

God bless!!

My kids and I got back home Friday night. We ended up staying another week in El Paso and really enjoyed spending time with family, but oh my goodness, we ate just about everything we wanted (gained a couple of pounds in the process), would stay up late and do it all over again the next day.  So even though I did enjoy my time there, I sure was ready to come back home to my normal.

That week, we went to Bob-O’s Family Fun Center. We got to ride on the go karts, played miniature golf, got on the bumper boats (my favorite), practiced our batting (mine wasn’t that good), and played laser tag which was pretty cool and fun.

I was also able to spend time with my aunt and uncle. My aunt will be getting married in July and she had been needing help to clean up her backyard so I told her that I would help her.  By the way, I love cleaning and organizing and so I quickly jumped at the opportunity when she mentioned it.  My cousin, my aunt, her fiancé, and me started cleaning at 10 in the morning and finished around 3:30.  They tried quitting on me a couple of times but I didn’t let them 😏. After we were done, my aunt thanked me but said that she wouldn’t let me help her again because I wouldn’t let her take breaks 😱 (lol), which I did but only short ones. My biggest regret is not taking before and after pictures to show, lol, hopefully I’ll remember next time.

And so as I was driving back home, I was thinking about everything I had done and am so grateful that I had the opportunity to be with my family without having to worry about time and also thankful for making it home safely.

-Thank you my Jesus for being with me and for always bringing back to you, reminding me to trust you and have faith in you.  For loving me unconditionally and showering me with your many blessings.  In Jesus name we pray. Amen.-

I can’t believe I’m on my 11th day of my Sabbatical! I try not to think about it because I start thinking about all the things I want to get done.  Funny rite, since it’s not about what I want to get done but what God has planned for me.

The first couple of days were of rest and taking it all in.  I didn’t worry about what time it was and what I needed to get done.  I’ve also made time to pray every morning, taking a nap, and reading my books (Rediscover Jesus and The Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic both by Matthew Kelly).  As I was reading my book, God reminded me to “slow down and enjoy the journey” and that’s what I’ve been trying to do.

On Wednesday, I went to the Wellness Center to sign up with Deonna for the Live Fit Challenge and also went to Love and Care Ministries to drop off my volunteer form.  The next couple of days I cleaned my house, rested, watched movies, and got ready for our trip to El Paso.

We arrived to El Paso last Sunday night and my brother in law had some food ready for us to eat.  Monday, we visited my cousins and made lasagna for dinner and spent the rest of the evening talking and reminiscing.  Tuesday, we celebrated my son’s 12th birthday and went to Rockin’ Jump and had a blast! It’s different size of indoor trampolines and the best part of all was when my kiddos told me they were happy that I got to jump with them.  Wednesday was a day of rest.  Thursday, we went bowling and again had so much fun!

On Friday, my sister came over and visited with us.  When I told my kiddos that I had a sister from my dad’s side of the family, they were really surprised.  I didn’t realize I hadn’t mentioned that to them and my son quickly asked where she was from. I told him that she was from here (El Paso) and he asked why they had never met her.  I told him that I hadn’t had a close relationship with her because we were both very young when we met but that I wanted to change that and wanted for us to get to know her.  I also have a brother but he lives in California and hopefully one day we will get to meet him as well.  For rite now I am very thankful that my sister and I met again and spent time together.

Saturday, we went to the cemetery and cleaned my baby’s grave and put fresh flowers.  It’s been 18 years since her passing but it always feels like yesterday when my Jesus needed an angel in heaven.  Today, Sunday, we went to mass and had a relaxing day with my mother in law, brother in law and his family.  I am really enjoying spending time with family and not having to worry about time.  I’m learning how to live in the moment, leaving yesterday in the past and not worry so much about tomorrow.

Till next time…

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