Picture of Sam

I just realized that I don't have any recent pictures of Sam on here. Poor little guy, already being overlooked. Here is a recent picture of him, isn't he cute??!!

We got them in!

We finally got our passports in the mail! Our last hurdle to travel to the far off land of Mexico. I feel like we should plan other international destinations in order to get our money's worth. The kids were so excited to see their passports, now they can't wait to go far far away. Isaac is going to Abilene with my mom for a week and he was so excited because he thought he would get a stamp for his passport. We had to break the news to him that Abilene isn't considered far enough. Funny that it will take longer for them to drive to Abilene than it will for us to fly to Cancun. We are set to leave for Cancun on May 6th and come back on May 13th, I can't wait! We still haven't told the kids yet, it has been more of a ' maybe one day we will fly far far away and go to a beach, and you can get a stamp for your passport'. Isaac and Josh were looking at the map yesterday and Isaac said he wanted to drive down through Central and South America then take a boat to Australia. Not so sure I would like to drive through Central America, but I would love to visit all those places some day.

Maya's newest thing is to end every word with a "y". She calls things milky milk, juicey juice. It is kinda cute coming from a 3 year old, but when I start calling things stopy stop you know something is wrong. She has also acquired something that I can only call an accent. I am not sure where it has come from but there are certain words that she seems to draw out. Like, "over there", it sounds more like "over theya". Samuel is still stuck on dada and mama, but not to me and Josh respectively. Though I think maybe he is catching on to dada for Josh. He loves his daddy. Every time Josh comes home Sam gets super excited to see him and if Josh doesn't pick him up right away he gets upset. Sam is also cruising along trying not to get tackled by Isaac or super hugged by Maya.

Easter is coming up in a couple of weeks and the kids are learning about it at school and here at home. Maya impressed my mom the other day when she was able to tell her what Easter was all about. My mom then had to tell her RE (religious education) class of 2nd graders that her 3 year old could tell her what Easter was, they were all very impressed. On Saturday I went to a fashion show with my mom and sister Virginia at their church. We had a great time, only problem was that now I want some new clothes. While I was there we sat next to a lady that taught me and Josh our NFP class. Her name is Barb and she loves to talk, it was so nice seeing her again. Her husband and her co-taught the class. She did give me some hope when she told us that one of sons is about to be ordained a priest in Rome and one of her daughters was a nun in Mexico City. When I asked her about their childhood she said her son was a handful or as her father reminds her, a brat and her daughter almost didn't become a nun because she didn't want to wear a dress. She then said that her boys never played "mass" but instead built forts and such with Lego's and played war and loved to blow things up. Maybe there is some hope for my kids. Though I don't think it is the dress part of being a nun that would deter Maya, I think it is more the fact that I don't think there are nuns that have sparkles on their dresses. I know my mom is continually praying for one of her grandchildren to be a priest or nun, my kids may be her last hope. If God is calling any of them to the priesthood or nunhood (I don't think that is what it is called) I pray they listen to that calling. We continually tell the children that they can become anything that God wants them to be.

We are finally healthy!!

I have felt like our family was like Pigpen from the Peanuts. Except instead of dirt flying around us it was germs. I just wanted to take out the Lysol and spray my entire house, kids included. One kid would get sick, then the other, then the other and the first one that was sick got sick again. It was a vicious cycle. Of course Josh and I managed to get the germs too. Josh got it worse, but was a trooper (well, for a man that is). But we are back and the kids are in full force. I think they are expelling all that pent up energy they socked away while they were sick. Valentines day came and went, Josh and I were probably the least romantic couple with our boogies and fever. We were supposed to go to our annual Valentines dance but since the kids were sick Josh offered to stay home. I ended up going and dragged my dear friend Andri along as my date. My father had an interesting time explaining our "situation". We ended up staying the night in the hotel (my father didn't use his suite so he offered it to me and Andrea). We woke up the next morning and had a late breakfast. It was a really nice evening out without the kids. I missed Josh but I also had lots of fun just haning out with Andrea. I miss our "girl" time. Guess that is about all for now, till later!

Catch up time

It has been a while since I last posted so I figured it was about time. Sam is sleeping and Isaac and Maya are occupied (ie watching TV). A few weeks ago we made a trip to Dallas to finally see our newest niece, Kaylee. She is beautiful!!! So sweet and loveable. Allison is a great mommy! We spent the weekend with Grammy and Grandaddy and most of the time played wii. We got to see Caleb and Katie's new house and see all the work they are putting into it. It is an adorable house and I can't wait to see it when they are finished renovating it. Good luck to them on this adventure of theirs. Sunday afternoon all of Josh's sisters and brother (family included) came over to hang out. We of course had lots of fun playing games. Isaac has become quite the wii player. He had a high score of 188 in bowling. He looks so crazy when he plays, but somehow manages to do it well. Maya on the other had is still trying to figure the game out. When she bowls she does a granny bowl, it is pretty funny. All of the other cousins are doing well and getting so big.

The kids have been having fun in Mothers Day Out and learning so much. They love their teachers and look forward to going to "school". Isaac is learning his letters and what sounds they make. He has really picked it up and is always eager to find things that start with their letter of the week. They have a jobs chart where each child chooses which job they will do for the day. His teacher says the kids love it and are always eager to help. Maybe I should put together a job chart here at home. You think the kids will be so eager to clean up their playroom and maybe Josh will want to help with laundry??!! Maya is having fun learning her colors and letter recognition. I think her favorite part is story time, she always mentions the books they read in class. And of course she loves chapel, she gets to sing songs.

Sam is doing well, he is growing and becoming a handful. He is crawling now and there is no stop to his curiosity. He is pulling up but sometimes forgets how to get back down. His siblings are always there to help him out, maybe a little too much sometimes. The other day Isaac decided to pick him up and put him on the couch, needless to say Sam made a nose dive for the floor. Poor little guy cried and cried. I think Isaac learned his lesson. Speaking of Sam the kids just woke him up (they are doing races down the hallway). Is their show already over?? Guess the tv can't keep them entertained for too long, which is a good thing, right?

One last thing, my dearest friend Amy, had her baby yesterday. His name is Nicolas Manuel Ayala. I am soooo happy for her and Hector!!! I love you guys!!

It was the most fun ever!

I take care of our neighbor across the street after school. His name is Dylan. Isaac loves playing with him and they usually have lots of fun playing together. Well on Friday they had the most fun ever! I was busy inside doing laundry and basic house stuff. I heard them laughing and playing outside, harmless, right? I decide to check on them and I walk out to see Dylan with the water hose spraying Isaac. Isaac is laughing and having a blast. The boys have the biggest smiles on their faces. I can't help but giggle to myself. I don't get after them too much. Just tell them to end their fun and put the water hose up. Give them the basic, you shouldn't have done that, but I can't blame them, it is fun! Maya meanwhile is taking shelter in the little school house. I find her shivering soaking wet. I am not so sure she was having as much fun. After having them change I make them come back inside to have some quite time. It wasn't so quite as the boys were too riled up, but after I made them some popcorn they settled down to watch some Scooby Doo. Dylan comes back today, I'll have to keep a better eye on them, no laundry!

Miss Maya is 3!!!

We brought in a New Year, but more importantly we celebrated Maya's 3rd birthday. We spent New Year's at the Gonzales house and had a wonderful time. The Turmans as well as Tony's sister Josie and her family joined us for the festivities. We had some yummy food and drinks and played board games while the kids played wii. Sam hit the sack early but Isaac stayed up till Midnight. Maya almost made it but crashed at about 20 minutes till midnight. At around 11 we went outside and did sparklers. Maya loved them at first, till she overheard someone say to be careful because you can get hurt. She would have no more of the sparklers. Isaac on the other hand said no from the get go. He was terrified of the sparklers. I tried to hold him while holding a sparkler and that didn't even work. He was happy just watching from afar. At midnight we toasted a New Year with everyone, Isaac had no idea what we were all cheering and hugging for. But he was eager to yell and cheer along for no reason. We finally left their house at around 2 am. The kids thankfully let us sleep in till 8:45!!! They never sleep in that late, maybe we should keep them awake till midnight every night.

The next day Mom came over to help us prepare for Maya's party. She made the rice and beans and I still haven't learned how to make them. The Gonzales's and Turmans came over at around 2. Maya requested chocolate cake with a flower on it. I made the cake and Josh decorated it. It turned out really cute, Josh did a great job on it and Maya loved it. Maya chose what she wanted to wear to her party. She wore striped tights, pink sparkly shirt and her Snow White dress up dress. She looked adorable. When it came to singing happy birthday for Maya she was so excited. She loved all the singing just for her. She blew out her candles and was ready to move on to the presents. I told her we had to wait till everyone finished their cake. I soon after found her opening up a gift. When I came over there she told me not to look. We finally made it to her gifts and she loved them all. One of the gifts she received was a Cinderella outfit (tiara, dress, handbag and high heeled shoes) from the Webbs. She was eager to put it on. I wish I could post video to this site because she had us all laughing so hard as she tried to walk down the hallway in her shoes. She looked like a little bag lady with her striped tights and dress up dress wobbling down the hallway. She was definitely having fun. Maya is a sweet and smart little girl with a lot of spunk in her. She says the funniest things and has a way of getting her way. Everything is just one more for her, either it be cookies, books, hugs or kisses. And I am always up for one more hug for my little girl.