Creatures of Habit

Last night I was sitting on the recliner watching "The Biggest Loser" when I overheard Alliah having quite the conversation with her Dad:

Alliah: "Dad, did you know that I am a nature of habit?"

Dad: "A nature of habit? What is a nature of habit?"

Alliah: "You know, because I always write my name, the date, and my number on all of my papers at school!"

Dad: "Oh, you mean 'creature' of habit..."

Alliah: "Creature? I'm a creature? Oh yeah! A CREATURE of habit! We are all creatures of habit."

Larry shook his head and laughed and Alliah heard me laughing, too. She glanced over at me and said, "Mom, I'm a creature. Did you know I'm a creature of habit? I said, "Yeah, so go brush your teeth and get into bed like you do every night, Creature of Habit." Alliah kissed me goodnight and ran up the stairs singing, "I'm a creature of haaaabiiit, I'm a creature of haaaabiiiit..." She started all over when she ran into Angel who was already upstairs. I heard her say, "Hey Angel, did you know that I'm a creature of habit?"

Church Search

So, if you haven't heard, we're on a new search for a new church home. We were at Echoes From Calvary for about 14 months but have now moved on. Our pastor resigned and is moving back to Missouri so we, too, have decided to move on. Today we visited a nice church called Mosaic. It's a new start up church with about 40 people and we liked it. It's about 5 minutes away from our house and the people there all live in our city, Marina. The worship was great and the preaching was down-to-earth and relevant. The kids liked the classes and I liked the free Starbucks coffee. The message about Christmas helped us put the season back into perspective: don't stress, keep it simple, treasure what you already have and remember that it's all about Jesus - it's not about us. The people in the congregation were all about our age, some younger, some older. They were extremely friendly and the church just felt like a comfortable place to be. We're excited to see what doors God is going to open up for our family to walk through. Whoever says being a Christian is boring really isn't a Christian at all because God always keeps us on our toes!

Christmas Fun

The Christmas Dance

I can't believe Christmas is just 16 days away! We have been so super busy and there have been some major changes going on in our lives these last two weeks. I finally have an opportunity to sit down and blog! It's one of my favorite past-times and is a memory keeper for reals. So now...I blog!!! Today we bought our first two gifts ~ one for Angel and one for Alliah. Yes, I did type our first two gifts. I'm the kind of person who likes the crowded stores and crazy parking lots. I love listening (and singing along to) Christmas music as I wait in line trying to make the people around me feel a little less stressed. Long lines don't bother me as long as there's good Christmas music in the background. Anwyas, our poor beautiful tree looked so lonely so Larry and I just HAD to buy the kids something (We LOVE Target) and put it under the tree. We put our tree up last week and had a blast doing it. The video below highlights the dancing skills of our hilarious children... enjoy! We did...

It's Turkey Time

Well emotions are high around our house tonight. Everyone is so excited about Thanksgiving. We'll be spending Thanksgiving with Larry's side of the family and the kids absolutely LOVE going to visit. We know we lose our son whenever we visit because Uncle Joe and Tia Diane adopt him for a few days to play with cousin Daniel. Alliah loves to stay with Grama Silvia because she's babied so much by her. But she has a big decision to make this year because Uncle Tommy wants Alliah to spend time with him and cousin Alexis. So what does that mean? Larry and I are kid-less and get to spend time talking to other adults in adult conversation - without any kids interrupting! That is nice (as long as it's not too long!). We're especially looking forward to spending time with Larry's mom and his step-dad David. Hopefully the whole family will be able to spend lots of time together laughing, sharing stories, eating, eating and eating! I'll be sure to take my stretchy jeans this year. I can look cute while being comfortable...heck yeah! Larry has chosen to pass on Flag Football on Thanksgiving morning. He could barely walk last year and now that he's another year older I'll encourage him just to sit back and enjoy another piece of pie. Have a great Thanksgiving everyone! I'll post some pics when we get back....

My November Throat

Well it's that time of year again... I get a severe sore throat every October or November and takes away my voice. Right now my voice is scratchy and deep, almost non-existent. There's not a lot of pain, but it is uncomfortable. Sucrets and hot tea make it a little better. Unfortunately, my kids anticipate this time of year! I can't raise my voice louder than a whisper and sometimes I'd rather just let things go than try to make a big deal out of something little just for the plain fact that it hurts when I talk. I still sang both services at church and had an 1-1/2 Christmas choir rehearsal to top it off. By the end of church last night I sounded like Oscar the Grouch - no, more like Mr. Snuffleupagus. Last night while we were in the car, I tried to talk to Angel and he couldn't hear me because my voice is so messed up. While I was still speaking, he cut me off and said, "Oh, Mom, you're throat is sick again?" Alliah jumped in asking, "Is it like last year when you couldn't talk and had to write stuff down that you wanted us to know?" I told them no, that it wasn't that bad. Angel's reply? "Awwww.... why not?"

Chore Charts

A few weeks ago, we decided we needed to have a family meeting to talk about the dreaded subject of chores. We believe our kids need to have chores so they can learn about personal responsibility, make a contribution to the family, to teach them to be organized, clean and take care of their things, and to also give them a little bit of moola so they can buy ice cream on Fridays after school. So we all sat down around the coffee table, broke out the pizza and handed each kid a piece of paper and a pencil. They were so excited to find out what this family meeting was going to be about. I layed out, in detail, what needed to be done and gave them the choice of when they were going to do that particular chore: morning, afternoon or evening. Now since THEY had the "power" to choose when to do what, they feel like they are in charge of their schedule and feel empowered to do chores! What a concept!! It's been three weeks now and I am AMAZED at how well these new chore charts are working. The kids put a checkmark after each chore is completed and if they complete all their chores that day, mom or dad drops a little money in a glass jar we bought just for them. I think each kid didn't complete all their chores only a few times. Angel and Alliah are such good kids! We certainly have been blessed with kids who LOVE to help, and now are starting to notice when help is needed and they step up! These chore charts are life savers and voice savers, too. We don't need to remind them, they just know what needs to be done. I'm left standing in the hall saying, "Ha-le-lu-yuh, thank-you Jesus!" :D I love them chore charts!

Wise Advise

Here's some of the wise advise emailed to me from my friend, Lillian:

The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right time, but also to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.
*****
The older you get, the tougher it is to lose weight, because by then your body and your fat have gotten to be really good friends.
*****
Did you ever notice: The Roman Numerals for forty (40) are ' XL.'
*****
If you can smile when things go wrong, you must have someone else in mind to blame.
*****
The sole purpose of a child's middle name is so that he can tell when he's 'really' in trouble.
*****
Did you ever notice: When you put the 2 words 'The' and 'IRS' together it spells 'Theirs.'
*****
Aging: Eventually you will reach a point when you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it.
*****
The older we get, the fewer things seem worth waiting in line for.
*****
Ah, being young is beautiful, but being old is comfortable.
*****
Lord, Keep your arm around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth...AMEN..!!

Great Words

This was sent to me by my sister Liz. I liked it so I thought, "Why not share?"

Happiness keeps You Sweet,
Trials keep You Strong,
Sorrows keep You Human,
Failures keep You Humble,
Success keeps You Glowing,
But Only God keeps You Going!

Oh How They've Grown!

I'm BAAACK!!!

It's been almost a week since my last post. So much has happened in just one week! Soccer season came to a close. Saturday was both kids last games and we are so glad! (In a good kinda way) Of course, we enjoyed watching the games and going to the kids practices, but sometimes our schedule felt a little overwhelming! Angel had his pizza party and received his trophy Saturday afternoon. Alliah got her medal on the soccer field, but her party isn't until this Sunday. Ahh.... no practices today...no practices anymore...well, until January. Baseball starts in January. :D
And...Larry and I went to a Family Life Marriage Conference this past weekend, too. It was AWESOME!! We had the best time ever and God did so much in our marriage and in our lives. God poured His love out on us both and we know that our marriage will never be the same. We even had the opportunity to renew our marriage vows and spend time alone just enjoying eachother, falling in love all over again. I'll write more later...

I LOVE YOU LARRY GONZALES!!!

Too Funny

In the wonderful spirit of Thanksgiving, this short story was sent to me by a special lady named Sue:

A game warden was driving down the road when he came upon a young boy carrying a wild turkey under his arm.

He stopped and asked the boy, 'Where did you get that turkey?' The boy replied, 'What turkey?'

The game warden said, 'That turkey you're carrying under your arm.'

The boy looks down and said, 'Well, lookee here, a turkey done roosted under my arm!'

The game warden said, 'Now look son, you know turkey season is closed, so whatever you do to that turkey, I'm going to do to you.

If you break his leg, I'm gonna break your leg. If you break his wing, I'll break your arm. Whatever you do to him, I'll do to you.... So, what are you gonna do with him?'

The little boy said, 'I guess I'll just kiss his BUTT and let him go!'

Thanks, Sue....I needed that laugh!

Family Is Everything

We had a Family Get-Together at my Mom & Dad's place this past Saturday afternoon. My Grandpa Fermin, 82, my Tia Susie and my Uncle Ray came to visit. It was so nice to see them because it has been way too long since we'd been together. Growing up we used to visit my dad's side of the family every Friday night for pizza and movies. Those are precious, wonderful memories!! Here are some pics we took that afternoon:
Grandpa & The Girls...
Grandpa & The Men...
Fermin I, Fermin II, Fermin IIV, Fermin IV...
While I had the camera out, we took some individual family photos, too.
Liz's Family...

My Family...

Nicole's Family...

Fermin's Family...

We missed my oldest sister Connie's family. It was her husband, James, birthday and they had their own party going on. Her oldest son, Pete, is in the Men's group photo though. Yes, Family Is Everything!

Off To The Movies.....Again

Tonight is another Family Night out to dinner and to the movies. We saw the previews of the new Madagascar movie when we went to see Beverly Hills Chihuahua and Larry promised the kids we'd see it on its opening night. We all LOVE the first Madagascar movie. It is so funny! Whenever we're running late, we get the kids moving by singing the "I like to move it, move it" song. I bought our tickets this afternoon (love Fandango) and Larry will probably pick the place to eat. If we left it up to the kids it'd be MacDonalds or Wendy's. The kids are all dressed up to go out and are super excited! Alliah put on her slacks and dressy jacket and Angel even put gel in his hair lol. A Night out on the town with my three favorite people? Priceless.

My New Toy

Lately I've been experiencing ETD (Emotional Technical Difficulties). This is primarily due to this "pause" in our second adoption journey and the lack of my patience. Larry and I met for lunch today and there happened to be a birthday party going on in the restaurant. I was already having a shaky morning and I was looking forward to being with Larry. But of all things, this party just HAD to be for a baby who looked to be under one years old. Like I said, other things had been going on that made the ETD more and more apparent, but this took the 'birthday' cake. The room was buzzing with about 25-30 new moms and their babies laughing and talking baby talk and, of course, comparing their baby's development with the development of the others. It took everything within me to hold back my tears. In my mind I was screaming, "I want MY baby to find his way home!!!" Hhhmm...I can usually handle days like these and take it in stride, but for some reason, today, I can't - or I should say, couldn't. So....what else was there to do but return to my office and buzz around blogspot to read about other families who have been where I am and know what it's like to wait without ANY knowledge of when or from where my baby will come. After reading many, many, many stories I had the need to go to..........WALMART! Why you ask? Well, let me tell you. While I was reading the other adoption blogs and stories of how other Forever Families came to be, I thought of my two precious babies that I already have. On one site, a mom excitedly uploaded videos of her kids, They were uh... screaming. Yes, screaming. I guess she just wanted to record 'something' using the Flip Camcorder she had just purchased. The camcorder was amazing! So amazing I went and bought one! It's the size of my hand, can record up to 60 minutes and has a pop-out USB port so it connects right to my computer. It runs on recharable AA batteries and I'll tell you, it just fixed me up in a minute! So, please, don't worry about me. I share these thoughts so I can go back and read the blog entries for myself - especially when I've made it over the hill I thought was a mountain. I have days like this one every once in a while and then I gather my thoughts, pick myself up, cancel all the invitations to my pity-party and I get over it. I thank God for being there for me and for ignoring all the "not so nice" things I sometimes say to Him. I came home so excited to use my new toy (like the mom with the screaming kids) but I recorded my Alliah singing a new song she learned in music class. It took less than 10 minutes to open the package, put in the batteries, press the record button and upload the video here. I'll be posting more videos for sure, so keep reading!

We Voted!

We're all sitting here in the family room watching the electoral map flash across the screen. There's lots of blue. Larry, me, and the kids are watching in anticipation 207 to 135 Obama. We took the kids to the voting poll and we're here waiting to see what' going to happen... As republicans who stand for biblical truths and righteousness, we have no choice than to put our trust in the Lord no matter what happens. God is greater than this election and HE is ultimately in control!

My Felicia

My mom said my sister Liz and my neice Felicia are supposed to be coming over this weekend. I miss them so much and hope they can make it! Just had to post this beautiful picture of my neice. I remember when she was so small like Isabella is now. I was her most favorite person in the whole wide world, with the exception of her mommy. I sure do miss those days! (Felicia sent me this updated pic. She didn't like the one I posted. She said it's 'blah' She's all dolled up in this one and looking way too old in my opinion. :D I'll find some pics that I love, love, love of her....not that I don't love this one too. I can't wait to see her this weekend!!!)

Saturday Special

This past Saturday we had a lunch-time get-together at our house with my parents, my sister Nicole and her family, and my brother Fermin and his family. We surprised my nephew Isaiah with a walker and he loved it! Nicole (his mommy) zoomed him around our house. He went backwards a few times all by himself...he'll get the hang of it soon. Here are some pictures of baby Isaiah sitting in his new walker eating chocolate frosting for the first time. He did all he could to get every ounce of it in his mouth. He cracked us up!!











And this is our precious Isabella. She's my brother Fermin's new baby girl and is growing so fast! This was her first visit to Tia Kristie & Uncle Larry's house. She smiles and coos now and is such a good baby.

Little Fermin

This is my nephew Fermin who will be eight this November. All he wants for Christmas is his two front teeth!

Harvest Fest

Tonight was Harvest Fest! We don't celebrate "Halloween" so our church offers a family-friendly alternative to going out trick or treating and uses this night as an outreach to the community. That's Harvest Fest. Along with about 600-700 people, Angel and Alliah enjoyed the bounce houses, rock climbing wall, bungee run, pumpkin patch, carnival games, face painting, cake walks, popcorn machine, prize drawings, free food and sodas and, of course, the candy, candy, candy!

Buying costumes for Halloween is pretty much a waste of money so for fun, we let our kids create their own costume out of the clothes they have.

This year Angel chose to be his favorite ball player #25 Barry Bonds AKA Angel Bonds!
Alliah LOVES cowboy boots on any day, so what else would she possibly want to be but a cute little Cowgirl. She was a cowgirl last year, too. Country runs through her blood!

Alliah strikes a pose as her enthusiastic self. Tonight was a blast!

Page Update!

I updated my page today!

Angel's Take On Scandal

Tonight as we were trying to hurry out the door for church, Angel stopped me and said there was something cool he learned and he just had to show me before he forgot. It was important! I reluctantly stopped and gave him my full attention (I'm practicing to be better at that). He said, "Mom, today I learned how to write the secret code name of the man who stayed at the water hotel with the gate in front of it." I said, "What are you talking about, Angel? You learned this at school today?" He showed me a piece of paper that read: II I / O II He said, "Yeah, Mom, watch...." He quickly wrote a "\" to connect the II's and to cross the / and smiled really big saying, "It says NIXON." Get it? It's the name of the man who stayed at the water hotel with the gate in front of it?! ha!

Family Life Conference

Well today I signed me and Larry up for our once a year ritual: Family Life's 'I Still Do' Marriage Conference. We have attended this marriage conference every year for the last 5 years. Both Larry and I are excited to go. It's a yearly shot in the arm against the ever fighting marriage viruses like "you live your life, I'll live mine", "don't tell me what to do or how to do it", "you're not the boss of me" and "you better check yo'self" kind of attitudes. We knew we REALLY needed to keep going to conferences like this one after we got kids. We are strong believers in that parents MUST be unified - a team - otherwise the kids will raise up like wild vines that can choke the life out of any mighty oak tree. Not intentionally, of course, - but love and respect can diminish or fade away while we try to keep up with hectic work/church/school/sport schedules, not to mention everyday living in the home. If you've never been to a Family Life conference, you oughta check one out. It's not only a marriage saver, but makes marriage a whole lot sweeter.

Our New Motto

After seeing "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" our family adopted a new motto from the movie: We are mexi-CANS, not mexi-CAN'TS! The kids were chanting it through Costco this afternoon. We got smiles from fellow mexicans and the "what in the world are you talking about" kind of looks from the non-mexicans LOL Don't know if it's a good motto or a bad motto quite yet, but it sure worked during this morning's soccer games!

It's Friday Night

It's Friday Night and the kids are so excited the weekend is here. We all are. It's been a LONG two weeks around our house so we decided we needed to get out and do something fun together as a family. We thought about driving to Fresno to visit family, but after checking the weather we didn't think that'd be a good idea for Larry (who doesn't do well in the heat). Then we talked about heading out to Swank Farms in Hollister. There's a pumpkin patch, two haunted houses, two cornstalk mazes, pumpkin sling shots and more. So I went online to check out the prices. It'd cost our family $100 - $150 to do all of the activities and we said uh......no. Now we have decided to go try a new restaurant that opened in Monterey called ISLANDS FINE BURGERS & DRINKS (gourmet burgers and yummy shakes) and we're heading to the movies to see Beverly Hills Chihuahua! I think this will be just what the doctor ordered. :oD

L-I-F-E

Tonight we played another game of Life. This time I joined in the fun. Larry was an entertainer who made $50K a year. Alliah was a mechanic. Angel, a hairdresser. Both made $30K a year. And me? An athlete and don't ask how much I made. We all bought starter homes and none of us went to college. Angel had twin boys, Alliah had one girl and I had one girl. Larry had no kids but sure did have lots of money. That's probably why he had lots of money (joke). Poor Alliah was sued twice by her brother and Angel switched professions and became a police officer. An hour and 15 minutes into the game we decided to call it and count the cash to see who won. Larry was first, Angel was second, Alliah third, then me. It was a fun evening and a memory created that we won't soon forget. Through all the hustle and bustle of LIFE, we have to remind ourselves that playing with our kids is important. Whether it's playing a board game, throwing a ball, taking a walk, or reading a book with our kids, they need us! They want nothing more than mom and dad's attention - undivided attention. It's not only good for them, but for us too. Thank you, again, Lord for my babies. Help us to be what they need us to be!

A Thankful Mommy

Today is a day that I stopped moving for a minute to exclusively thank God for my family. Between work, school, soccer, church, meetings, and more, I chose to stop and be a thankful Mommy. I am blessed with the most wonderful family; I couldn't ask for more. My husband, my son, my daughter - the three lights of my life. They're like the candles on my birthday cake. Sometimes they let me know how old I'm getting, but for the most part they are the lights that light up my darkest day. Just one hug from Alliah or a joke from Angel, a smile from Larry...oh how it drives away my blues. My family is irreplaceable. I could never imagine my life without them. When I read the morning paper or sit and watch the evening news all there is is bad news and horror stories about the economy, murders, accidents.... But even if all our money is gone, houses, land, cars, whatever...as long as I have my family and I know God, I know we'll be just fine. I love my family and I thank God for keeping us in the palm of His hand. I don't think there is a greater blessing than being in a family.

Adoption...

Well, we've all heard the saying, no news is good news right? Well, I don't agree with that statement!!! Last week, Monday, we got a call about a 6 month old baby girl, Mia. Her birthmother was nowhere to be found and her birthfather was a drugee, unable to take care of her. She needed to be placed in a home and she needed to be placed that same day. After reading the email from our social worker, Larry and I talked about it, and though she wasn't the baby boy we were hoping for, we agreed nevertheless and said we would accept this baby girl into our home. It was for about a 1/2 an hour that we thought little Mia would be coming home to us. We imagined for just a 1/2 an hour what it would be like having a baby in the house that same evening. Unfortunately, we got another call from our Adoption Agency telling us that baby Mia had been placed in another home earlier that morning. Before this second call, my heart leaped within me, only to fall flat upon the ground. Heartache. But, after regrouping ourselves and dusting off all the disappointment, Larry and I banded together and we continue to wait for our baby boy to find his way to our home (he already has our hearts). While the waiting is unbearable sometimes, we praise God for the two wonderful kids we already have. Angel and Alliah are truly our blessings from God! It's almost like they have some way of knowing when mom and dad need some extra lovin' because when they got home from school they hugged us, kissed us and wanted to be with us all afternoon. Well, more than usual. :D So, keep us in your prayers as we continue on and forge through this adoption process. God's in control and we know He is holding our baby boy in His hands until we meet him. He makes all things beautiful in HIS time.

Memories....

All I can say is...WOW! Many, many moons ago we pledged our love and our lives.

Soccer Pics

Soccer season is in full swing! Angel and Alliah got their soccer pictures last week and they came out so adorable. We practiced these smiles - no cheesey smiles...pictures are too expensive. :D Both kids played today. Angel's game was at 9am. Score was 3-0 with his team (Blue Lightnings) with three points! Alliah's game was at noon and it was a tie game 0-0. Her team is the Black Panthers. Both kids are hardcore when they play. Larry practices with them out in the driveway and it shows. We're so proud of them. Whatever they do, they pretty much always do their best. We hope you like the pictures!

Joy Comes In the Morning

Well I just got back to the office from a funeral. My brother-in-law's son died at the age of 22 years old. As I sat in the church listening to all of the wonderful things family and friends had to say about this young man my heart just wanted to scream out to all of the young people there, "Do you know Jesus?! Are you ready for your eternity if you died today?!" Like the minister said, we are not promised tomorrow. If you gain a tomorrow, it is truly a blessing from God. Tears did flow, but laughter also filled the sanctuary as a young life was celebrated. God did get all the glory for the short-lived life this young man did live. My sister was there for her husband, and her kids and us, her siblings, were there for her. Todays a sad day, but though weeping may endure for a night, joy will come in the morning. God's Word doesn't say we can't weep. We can weep for a night. But we have to trust the Lord in whatever He allows and grab a hold of and hang onto the joy and comfort only He can give. Love you all.

Later this afternoon.... I went to the gravesite burial. It was beautiful. The family felt loved, we sang "Blessed Assurance" and 10 white pigeons were released into the air. A very nice ending to a tragic day.

None of that 'Sissy Stuff

Here's a little sumthin' sumthin' for you to laugh about. A friend sent it to me and I emailed it out to all my TRUE friends. Here's to a good laugh...

Are you tired of those sissy 'friendship' poems that always sound good, but never actually come close to reality? Well, here is a series of promises that actually speak of True Friendship. You WON'T see cutesy little smiley faces here. Just the stone cold truth of our great friendship.

1. When you are sad, I will jump on the person who made you sad like a spider monkey jacked up on Mountain Dew!!!

2. When you are blue, I will try to dislodge whatever is choking you.

3. When you smile, I will know you are plotting something that I must be involved in.

4. When you're scared, we will high tail it outta here.

5. When you are worried, I will tell you horrible stories about how much worse it could be until you quit whining, ya big baby!!!!

6. When you are confused, I will use little words.

7. When you are sick, stay away from me until you are well again. I don't want whatever you have.

8. When you fall, I'll pick you up and dust you off -- after I laugh my butt off!!

9. This is my oath... I pledge it to the end.

"Why?' you may ask; -- because you are my FRIEND!

Oh and last but not least: Friendship is like peeing your pants, everyone can see it, but only YOU can feel the true warmth.

KidFest Monterey

I said I'd post our pics from KidFest. So here ya go...

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Going Out!!!

I only have a few minutes to write because my hubby is taking me out tonight to dinner and a movie! It's been a long while since we've been out alone—at night. This afternoon the kids and I went to "Kidsfest" at the Monterey fairgrounds. We took my neice Valencia with us. Even though we had to wait almost 1/2 an hour for the giant inflatable slide, I reviewed the pics on my camera when I got home and it was well worth the wait. What smiles. I'll post some pics later on. Well, just wanted to sign in and say "HEY" but now I got to go get ready for my date!!! The kids aren't too excited about staying home with a sitter, but we told them it's a "kissie date" and after saying that, they were more than willing to stay home. :D 'Night all!

PS...Larry just reminded me to tell you all: At nine years old, Angel has decided he now wants to be called AJ. Short for Angel John. It's gonna take some getting used to because he's always been Angel. Don't know if that's gonna hang on, but for now I love my AJ.

Isaiah Visits

Today my nephew Isaiah got to spend the day with us. My baby sister, Nicole, had to work so we got to play with Isaiah all day long!! My mom ususally watches him during the week and Fridays are Nikki's regularly scheduled days off. Today was an exception. I can't believe how big Isaiah is getting...crawling all over the place, standing up all on his own, giving kisses and man oh man can that boy eat! Definitely Gonzales blood is in this little guy. I love this boy so much. Here's a few of the cute pics I got of him today:

From Liz

My sister Liz sent this to me. I thought it was funny. Thus, I share...


Tough Love vs. Spanking - Good Argument

Most of the American population thinks it improper to spank children, so I have tried other methods to control my kids when they have one of 'those moments.'

One that I found effective is for me to just take the child for a car ride and talk.

Some say it's the vibration from the car, others say it's the time away from any distractions such as TV, Video Games, Computer, IPod, etc.

Either way, my kids usually calm down and stop misbehaving after our car ride together. Eye to eye contact helps a lot too.

I've included a photo below of one of my sessions with my son, in case you would like to use the technique.

Sincerely,
Your Friend

Today's Walk

Our family has decided to do at least a 1/2 an hour of exercise together every day. During today's walk, Alliah was doing cartwheels down the street. She'd do a cartwheel, take 2 or 3 steps and cartwheel again. Angel and Larry were throwing the football back and forth as they ran down the street - miraculously hitting me and Alliah only once each! I was walking, while making sure nobody got hurt. This was some of today's conversation:

Angel: "Alliah, you better be careful doing those cartwheels. You can get really hurt."

Alliah: "Don't worry, Angel, I'm a professional cartwheeler....aren't I Moma?"

Me: "Yes, Alliah, you are..."

Alliah: "But I'm not a professional walker because sometimes I bump into poles."

Check It Out!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Big Brother Blues

As I was stepping out of the shower this morning I heard a rustling going on. I heard the pitter patter of little feet running quickly down the stairs. Just as I grabbed my towel, I paused in silence. I heard the same pitter patter running UP the stairs. I stood, waiting for a sound from the mouth of one of my wonderfully behaved children. It was Alliah. Are we surprised? Anyway, I heard a screeching, whining voice say, "Angelllll, I told you a thousand times don't!!" this was followed by the laughter of a nine year old boy who'd just scared the bee-gee-bees out of his little sister. I don't know if he chased her with a spider or told her he had a dream about a headless mummy covered in blood, but I didn't ask. I stayed out of it! Angel has discovered the guilty pleasure of scaring his little sister half to death. He'll invite her to play with him upstairs in his room(at night) and then run downstairs leaving her all alone and shutting off the lights behind him. Or he'll wait until he hears Alliah singing in the shower, quietly open the door and turn off the light (at night). And yes, spine-shivering screaming is heard. I think the best he's ever got her is when we were all getting out of the car late one Wednesday night after church. Alliah is slow to get out of the car (unless she has to go to the bathroom) and is deathly afraid of raccoons. We have 2-5 raccoons that walk up and down our long driveway each night. On this particular night, Alliah was lolligagging to the door when Angel screamed "RACCOONS" in a "you-better-run" kinda voice. I have never seen Alliah run so fast. She hopped out of the car and started running to the front door crying and screaming, "Daddy, daddy, help me!" as if Godzilla himself was chasing her. Angel was laughing so hard he was holding his stomach, trying to stay standing up. We were all still outside on the porch (trying to find the house key in my wonderfully organized purse) and couldn't help but laugh at (1) Alliah for freaking out so bad and(2)at Angel laughing so hysterically. Once Alliah calmed down she gave Angel a piece of her mind and unwillingly retired to her bedroom. Needless to say, we said an extra long prayer that night so Alliah could sleep without thinking about the raccoons. Even though the kids go through all of this, I know Angel loves Alliah almost more than money. This is just a phase brothers and sisters go through. Oh, and no one can say anything bad about Alliah's big brother either. When other people are involved, they defend eachother like nobody's business. We stop the drama when things get out of hand (like when Dad joins forces with Angel), but sometimes it's just plain funny. I also know that there WILL BE a day that Alliah will be able to get Angel back for all of the pranks he's played on her.....like when they're in high school!

Fun Fun Fun

I had so much fun hanging out with my girlfriends this past weekend at the Women of Faith Conference. The highlight, besides being with some of the most wonderful women in the world and eating yummy food with extremely high caloric values, was seeing Mandisa LIVE in concert. She brought down the house! Man, that girl can sing. We also saw Nicole C. Mullens, Sandy Patti and got to hear all of the conference speakers to boot. I learned so much, too much to tell. Besides, I'm not done thinking it all out yet. None of us took a camera. I shot a few on my cell phone, but they didn't come out too clear. This weekend proved to me just how amazing God is and how much He loves me - and how amazing my friends really are and how much THEY love me, too. I'm surrounded by love 24/7. What else can a girl ask for?

And Then There's Naomi

My Friend Naomi = amazing, believing, caring, dependable, equal, forgiving, glorious, hilarious, igniting, jesus-loving, kingdom-building, loyal, merciful, near sighted (ha!), open-hearted, pleasant, quick to move, resourceful, servant, tasteful, understanding, vocal, wise,xciting, youthful, zealous.

After re-reading my last post and pausing to thank the Lord for the faithful friends He's given me, I couldn't leave out my Naomi. She's a friend everybody ought to have and I'm so glad she's mine!

Women of Faith Conference

I'm gearing up to leave with several of my bestest gal pals to the Women of Faith Conference in San Jose, CA. We leave tomorrow at 8am and will be back Saturday night. I'm looking forward to spending time with these Great Women who love the Lord with all their hearts and encourage me to keep doing the same. It'll be me, Lillian, Crystal, Angie, Erin, Julie and Able. Lillian---I've written about Lillian before. She's the real deal. If you want to know the truth, ask Lillian. She's honest, yet compassionate. She'd give you her last nickle if you needed it. I always know someone is praying for me because she is my friend. Crystal---now Crystal is just FUN! We have the same sense of humor and always end up laughing when we're together. She's also our Children's Director at church and my kids love her to death. And the girl can SANG! Angie---Angie is our Pastor's wife. She is hip, young, fresh...lol Really, she is a wonderful woman who loves the Lord and it shows. She's got great taste in music and style to top it off. Erin---Erin is a stay at home mommy who loves her kids more than anyone I know. She is on our Worship Team and can bring down the house! I am looking forward to getting to know Julie and Able. They are two of Lillian's friends and have recently started attending our church. I know we are all going to have a BLAST and take in all God is preparing to serve up! I'm taking my camera so I'll be posting some pics. I'm so glad God created FRIENDS. I'm especially glad He blessed me with mine!

Hooray!

I get a new compuuuuter.... I get a new compuuuuter.... Hooray! Today my boss finally folded and agreed to purchase a new computer for my office! My current computer hooks up to our accountant's server and with my computer being almost prehistoric, I've been having major problems! Now I'll be up to speed.... literally! Good thing there are no speeding tickets for computers because I plan on flying!!! :D Not only that, but I get a 22" Wide Screen Monitor, too! Good-bye headaches and hello big screen!

Oh How He's Growing

Last night I walked into the kitchen and saw the two men in my life having a late night snack together. I couldn't help but sneak out the camera and take a picture. I just can't believe how big Angel looked next to Larry! Both sitting in their pajama bottoms and white T-shirts talking about dad and son stuff. It seemed as if they were in a world all their own. One day those two won't be able to sit next to eachother on our kitchen counter. I feel as though each time I close my eyes my Angel grows another inch or two. He's nine now and doesn't like me to hold his hand and doesn't like me to kiss him good-bye in front of his friends. I knew these days would come. Out with Mom and now Dad's little shadow (and His parrot). I must say, though, that Angel still loves Mom's good-night hugs and kisses and bedtime prayers. I hope THAT never changes.

A Funny From Alliah

So Alliah came to sit on the couch with me as I'm watching "Criminal Minds" tonight. As the show was coming to an end, the bad guy who had been shooting people at random decides to turn himself in to the police. As "the bad guy" entered the police precinct asking if they were looking for him, the cops yell for him to put his gun down. They wrestle him to the floor, cuffing him, and stating he's there to turn himself in. Alliah is watching this and asks, "What does it mean to turn yourself in?" I explained that he had done a lot of bad things that hurt good people and he felt bad so he turned himself into the police. She said, "Awwww, he's a responsible guy...why are they arresting him?" ha!

H-E-L-L-O

Have you ever stopped to hear the laughter of kids? My kids' laughs are irresistable! You can't help but laugh when they start laughing. Alliah is currently into learning cheers. Each recess, all of the little girls gather together on the school playround and make up cheers or teach the cheers they know to the rest of the clan. Tonight at dinner Alliah jumped out of her seat to show us her newest cheer: H-E-L-L-O... this is how we say hello and do our funky moves! Then she started jumping up and down touching her feet front to back in the most "funky" way. After she was done she stood frozen - waiting for a response from us. Then she started giggling and giggling uncontainably. We—all sitting at the dinner table—started laughing with her (okay, well at her). Once Angel got going there was no stopping us! After a truly hectic day, I believe I can say it was one of the best dinners we've ever had. It's so true....laughter is good medicine.

So we have some bad news to share....

Our dog, Johnson, passed away yesterday morning. Please pray for the kids. They loved Johnson and both cried, cried, cried. I'll share more later. We'll miss our little dog...

Angel's Words

Last night Angel and Alliah were trotting up the stairs to brush their teeth and hit the hay. As Alliah climbed the stairs she shouted (and I mean SHOUTED), "Mawwwwwwm, will you come up and pray with meeeeee?" I said yes, but after she brushed and when she was in bed. Angel will usually follow with, "Me too, mom?" but he didn't say any a word - so I said, "Angel, and you? What about your prayers?" He said, "Oh, don't worry, Mom, I'll go talk to the Lord..."

Crazy Day!

Do you remember your last crazy, CRAZY day? Well, I'm having one today! It's one of those days that your eyes roll to the back of your head all by themselves because you've rolled them all day long in frustration. My head is shaking back and forth in a "no-ooooooh" motion all on its own, too! I've stopped working a few times and closed my eyes saying, "Breathe, Kristie, breathe..." and followed it by walking away from my computer, shaking out my legs, rotating my neck, stretching my back and swinging my arms around. (I hope nobody was looking through my office window! They'd think I was a pretty rotten dancer.) That worked a couple of times. Huuuugghhh....But! I came here to remind myself that I can do all things through Christ because He gives me the strength to do it and that all things work together for the good of those who love the Lord (me) and are called according to His purpose. I must remember to not walk after the flesh (and get frustrated and high strung), but after the Spirit. I am asking for the peace that passes all understanding to guard my heart of mind in Christ Jesus.

Ahhhhh, feeling better already! :D Now, I'm gonna walk out of my office door, leave those cares behind, jump in my car, put on some good music and head home for the kids' soccer practices. If you had a crazy, wacked out day too, just remember that when you lay your head down tonight- turn it all over to Jesus and sleep in peace. Tomorrow will be a brand new day. Things are gonna get better!