It’s the year 2020...

It’s been years since I’ve written in this blog. I decided it was time to finally close it down with one last post to update our lives.

It is the year 2020 and the world is a different place. I now have an 11 year old going into 7th grade. Junior high! And a 9 year old 5th grader! Jacob and Isabella have made me so proud and are growing into amazing people. Jacob has been in Boy Scouts now a couple of years, and he loves it. Lots of fun activities and learning. It was a great option for his soul. Isabella has been in softball for years now. She loves it! Her goal is to get a softball scholarship. I hope she chases that dream. 

As for me, I’m no longer a stay at home mom. I’ve worked part time as a preschool teacher and then went on to work as an instructional assistant. This year I became a full time employee following in family foot steps working in the social services field. It’s been interesting since I started just 2 weeks before quarantine! 

Oh yeah! This year we’ve also experienced the world’s first pandemic in a 100 years with the corona virus or COVID 19. Adjusting to full time work as an essential worker and distance learning with the kids has been quite an experience. However, school is now out and we’re adjusting to our new lives. 

These last couple of years I realized I needed to take care of myself. I’d gained a lot of weight with my kids and I felt terrible so I did something about it. I’m now more active and I eat more healthfully. It feels good to participate in life instead of just existing. With my new found confidence, I’ve become more adventurous. Last year, we took our first family trip, just the 4 of us, to Cancun, Mexico! It was amazing! We had the best time ever, and we can’t wait to go back!

We also added to our family! It’s a boy! We got a dog! His name is Charlie and he came to us in 2016 when he was just 7 weeks old. We decided on the name Charlie when Jacob was going through a “Peanuts” phase. He’s a cocker spaniel and poodle mix. He‘s taught us all a lot of patience and unconditional love. And he fits just right in. 

Of course these last couple of years included many happy moments and memories with awards and rising in the ranks but also heartache with the loss of loved ones and illness. We’ve taken many road trips and vacations. Going on our first cruise to the Caribbean and our first family trip to Las Vegas. But we’ve also experienced the loss of my grandfather. Jacob and Bella were so sad. And as we get older, illnesses inevitably become part of our daily lives. But, I’m still so grateful for all that I have! I consider myself blessed to be loved by my husband and kids, and to be healthy and happy. I wish nothing but the best to us all as we continue to move into this new world of the unknown.

Busy, Busy & Uhbsessed

It's that time of the year. The end of the school year! The kids here start in mid August and are out by June. So, now I'm adjusting to this busyness. Easter is right around the corner, and despite being later in the season, it still managed to sneak up on me. I also have 2 graduation parties to plan. My nephew is graduating high school and my cousin is graduating nursing school. And were having family from out of town in June. Oh, and whatever else happens to come up, like some day trips and weekend getaways. I'm already tired. But I'm sure it's going to be a fun summer and I can't wait. 

In the meantime I've been busy with work, and Easter festivities. Oh, and sick here and there. And lots of baseball games and practices. You know, our new normal. 

Other than that let's talk about Isabella's obsession with frozen again! This girl. You may or many not know that everything Frozen is sold out everywhere. Well, it got into my head to get her an Elsa dress. But these are the hardest things to come buy and I'm not willing to spend hundreds of dollars on eBay for a $40 dress. So, here comes grandma to save th day. My mom is a hobby seamstress. She took on the daunting task of making her an Elsa dress. She completed it in one week, and let me tell you, Isabella is smitten. She loooves her dress. As soon as she put it on she performed her favorite song Let it Go. It was adorable, and yes, I got it on video. Oh, and grandma is crazy. She started making a second version of the dress. Yes, a second dress. Crazy, I say.

We also had spring pictures in the last few weeks. And looking at the kids pictures makes me sad, and proud. They are getting so big. 

Aquarium of the Pacific @ Long Beach

Last Friday I took the day off to do something fun with the kids. Unfortunately, our morning started off a little rough. Jacob woke up with an ear infection which meant we'd have to go to the doctor last minute. This also meant we wouldn't be able to do anything fun with a doctor's appointment in the middle of the day. But we got lucky. We got in early! So, we decided to go to breakfast and to the Aquarium of the Pacific (AOTP). Jacob would get excited every time he woud see the AOTP commercial, despite going just 3 years earlier. Isabella was just a baby, and Jacob was only 2.5 years old.

The kids had fun but they tired quickly. We were there for just over 3 hours. My kids are chicken. They didn't want to touch anything. And Jacob came to the conclusion that he likes the California Science Center much better. We went to the Sience Center during Christmas break. He loved it and he still talks about it. Actually, I think we all liked it, a lot! So, with the AOTP out of our systems we can try something else. We'll see what we get into this summer!

La Habra Earthquake

On Friday, March 28th, we had a huge earthquake epicentered in our city. Let's just say it's been a long weekend! Literally! I took a four day weekend to spend time with Jacob over his spring break. Thursday we relaxed and Friday we had a special day trip planned. More on that trip in an upcoming post. We got home in the early evening and we were just relaxing. It was 9:00 pm and we decided to put the kids to bed. At 9:08 pm, I looked at the clock, I was taking my medication when everything started shaking. My first thought was to get to the kids! I'm not going to lie, I freaked out! I freaked out because it was big and lasted awhile. The kids were oblivious at first. They were just wondering what was happening. 

The first night after the earthquake I did not sleep a wink. We had a slumber party in our bed. The kids slept with us all weekend. One thing I hated the most was that we've had A LOT of aftershocks and we've felt most of them, at least one to 2 each hour. It has been maddening. As I type this we just had a few small ones, luckily, we did not feel. We also had a bit of reprieve Saturday night at my cousin's house for poker night. I almost did not want to leave. We also considered staying at my brother.s house who lives out in Riverside county. However, the time and effort it would take to go to these places was just not woth it. But last night I reached a limit. I was so exhausted and overwhelmed, I finally slept a few hours. 

I'm still exhausted, and luckily, fortunately, the aftershocks have decreased but I still jump every time. I' m looking forward to getting back to normal with little or no earthly disturbances, but I guess we'll see. Definitely a weekend I won't ever forget. 

Subscription Boxes

I'm sure you've heard of them, subscription boxes. If you haven't, well, look into it. To me, they're like Christmas every month. Who doesn't like to open a surprise package? But to be honest, I just jumped on this bandwagon. There are sooo many subscriptions to choose from such as beauty, baby, men's, food, and wine box subscriptions. I got my first box last month from Citrus Lane. It's a box geared toward babies, toddlers or kids depending on their age. I got it for Isabella who is 3.5 years old. It was free and it was okay. This box runs $30 a month. I also got a second box and I liked it much better than the first but I canceled cause $30 is a little pricey. I did instead subscribe to Ipsy which is a cosmetics box and I can't wait to try the goodies I get. I'll be getting my first box next month. I'll update then.

February Box

March Box

A Gray & Pink Bridal Shower

One of my favorite hobbies is creating parties. I've been doing it for quite a few years now, and the last six months are no exception. I did my cousin Crystal's bridal shower last October, and a baby shower for my nephew. More on that baby shower later. For the bridal shower, we started our design from the invitation. My cousin showed me invitations and designs she liked, and I designed and personalized her very own invitation. The colors were gray and pink with turquoise and white accents. We found the center pieces at Wal-Mart for $2 and party attendees were able to take them home and plant them. Let love grow! For the dessert table, we picked some easy handheld, bite-sized desserts. It was a big hit! All the girls loved it!  I had a lot of fun designing a party from the bottom up.

 

 

 

My Ballerina

Isabella just finished dance. This session started off rocky. For some reason, she just wasn't as comfortable as the last session. She dreaded going to class and I did too. Isabella is my strong-willed child. When she doesn't like something she'll let you know and she gave me problems going to dance, in the beginning. However, towards the end she completely changed and she was into it. My worry now is that I wanted to take a break and maybe start a new dance class somewhere else, but I'm not sure how she'll take it. 

Her last dance class and final performance.

March 2014

I'm here! And alive and well! There has been so much that has happened in the last half a year! Yeah, it's been 6 months! Some sad news, some happy news. Where to begin...

Jacob played soccer for a couple months this past fall. He hated it though. He's not a very aggressive boy and he found it difficult take control of the ball. He's now again in t-ball. The improvement is obvious. He knows what to expect now.  And getting even better at hitting, catching, and throwing. He's doing excellent in school too. I just got his report card with nothing but good news. Jacob's into Legos, Batman and Sponge Bob. Oh, and Monsters Inc. The most recent and biggest news we have is that Jacob lost his first baby tooth. It was his bottom right tooth. He's so big now!

Isabella has also been into a few things. She's now on her second term of dance. A ballet/tap combo class. She did really well her first session last fall, but has recently become bored with it. We'll try something different next. Isabella is still in my class, but seems bored by it as well. While I love having her in my class, I can't wait for her to go to pre-k and get more.  She's also heavily into Frozen. 🎶Let it go!🎶 Yes, that Frozen! Everything is about Elsa and Ana. Isabella has also picked up a very bad habit. She bites her nails! Ugh. I hate it, but I'm working on her quitting.

So that's the gist of it around here. The hubs and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary in Vegas. We also had the death of my uncle, and to counter that, the birth of my nephew! Can't wait to see what the rest of the year brings! Hopefully, I'll be back to fill you in!

Jacob's in kindergarten & the 1st day of school!

Ack! Where did the time go? I know people said they would grow fast, but I was hoping it wasn't true. The last couple of weeks have been crazy. We had kinder orientation where we met Jacob's teacher, and I found out that there were 29 kids in his class! Crazy! Hopefully that ratio will get lowered. Jacob at least knew one of the kids in his class from his t-ball days last spring. Jacob started school 2 weeks early on August 19th. The school year has changed! No more starting the day after Labor Day. Boo! Our summer was short, but we had fun.

Jacob's now been in school two weeks, and he's getting used to his new schedule. So am I. He only goes half days, and I'm okay with that. I am not okay with the fact that I don't get to spend everyday with him. I had spent everyday with him for the last 5 years. I was lucky enough to work at his preschool and be a stay-at-home mom. On his first day of school and the week leading up to it, I was emotional. It still makes me sad when I think about it. I'm not there to watch over him. I linger everyday as he walks into school to make sure, as much as I can, that he's okay. Although, I heard he got a little lost on the first day of school accidently going to the wrong class. If I was there, that wouldn't have happened, but he must learn. He must become independent. My big boy I love so much. It's time to let him fly.

Isabella also started preschool in my class this year. It's going to be nice and special to have her in my class. I think it's a unique opportunity. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure we're going to have a few challenges. She's a feisty one and somewhat stubborn, but hopefully her seeing the way the other kids act and react will guide her own actions. So far so good. But it's only been a few weeks. I will update at the end of the year. Let's see what this new school year brings!

A Bumble Bee & Batman Party!

A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated the kids' birthdays. I REALLY wanted to do single parties for each, but come on, joint makes much more sense. So, joint we did. My biggest obstacle was finding a them they could share. Colors, characters, whatever worked. Colors worked this year. I decided to use black and yellow for a bumble bee and batman theme. I started with the invitation and then worked all the other stuff out. I bought most of my decorations, and made a few. To my surprise, the Batman theme gave me the biggest headache since now Batman dresses in blue. Who knew? So, I just used the logo through out, and made my usual centerpieces. I also made the cupcake toppers and candy labels. We had a last minute candy buffet that looked sooo cute! Glad I did it, but we're still eating candy. Besides the candy table, the kids also got a favor basket. I bought yellow baskets at the Dollar Tree, and I filled them with a ball, sidewalk chalk, water guns, a nifty whistle, and bubbles. The cakes! I loved them too. They were from Sam's Club. I had no idea that Sam's Club had so many licensed character cakes. Way more than Costco. For the bee cake, I just asked them to decorate with flowers and I bought sugar bees separately. For the Batman cake, I bought sugar sheets from Michaels and had my niece cut out a bat. I also bought batman rings separately and added those to the cake. Side note: Sam's had really cute Batman cakes BUT they were in blue! I didn't want the blue so I went on my own for the décor. We had a taco guy, love them! They're so easy since they provide just about everything. We all had a good time and all the kids enjoyed the pool party! I say it now, but I don't want to do another party next year! I might change my mind. Maybe.

Black and yellow candy table.

 

 

 

Bumble bee cake using sugar bees.

Batman cake.

 

Bumble bee centerpiece.

 

Batman centerpiece.

 

Bumble bee and Batman cupcake toppers.

 

Happy Birthday!!!

 

Isabella's 3 Years Old & Jacob's 5 Years Old!

I know, I know, I'm way behind! But Isabella is 3 now! We celebrated her birthday twice! On her actual birthday and a joint party (post coming soon!) for her and her brother. So, my baby girl is no longer a baby. She's a big girl. She still loves Minnie Mouse but she also loves Hello Kitty, My Little Pony, and anything pink and girly. She loves her brother to pieces, and she loves to annoy him too. They play together a lot more now. Her current shows are Peppa Pig, My Little Pony, and Sophia the First.

We also had her annual checkup. Isabella is 37.5" tall (50th %) and weighs about 40 pounds (90%). My girl loves her sweets! Her favorite is cookies. She loves to steal cookies from her grandparents' house. And her grandpa is her favorite person. We also had Isabella's first dentist visit. She has one cavity that we have to keep an eye on, but we've on top of it, and the dentist doesn't see a problem.

I love my spunky little girl to pieces! She's crazy, curious, and so cute! Everyday is different with her, and I'm very lucky to say that I am her preschool teacher this year. I can't wait to see what my baby learns this year!

A couple weeks ago, Jacob turned 5! We celebrated his birthday at the joint party and we also had a cake on his actual birthday. He's sooo big now. He's into all kinds of boy stuff. He like pirate ships, airplanes, rockets, and Batman. Oh, and anything villain related. He's so smart, and ready to start kindergarten! Yup, he's in school now.

We had Jacob's checkup last week. He's now 43.25" tall and he weighs about 43 pounds. The doctor asked him all kinds of questions about school, and he got 2 shots! He had his finger pricked, and a hearing test too. It was a big trip. He cried more when I ripped of the band-aids from his shots than he did for the actual shots. Go figure.

Jacob is a sweet, sensitive soul. He's very caring, and sweet. He's definitely momma's boy. I love with all of my heart, and I can't wait to see what this year brings for him.