Changing in so many ways!

So I've totally slacked on the whole blog thing. I'm back and now I'm going to try and update in one post and then continue on. So 2012 came and went and now we're on to 2013 (mid year). Things have changed a lot! Ethan started school, and Eli's in Junior High. 
This was a picture from the first day of school! They've grown so much since then! Eli is almost as tall as me, his hands are officially bigger than mine and he wears the same size shoe as Miguel. Livi is also getting taller and cuter. Ethan is grower taller and only a size or two behind Livi in shoes.

Along with our kids all in school, now our whole family is. That's right, we all go to school everyday except Miguel and I both work in school. I started last October as a math teacher in the High School. I teach Algebra I and Geometry. I get to work with teenage boys everyday (I think it's preparing me for how I don't want my children to become). I made it through my last day of school and only have a work day tomorrow! This summer was much needed!!!! I didn't know how I was going to make it to Thanksgiving break and when it was done, I was ok to work again. Christmas came just in time before a melt down I thought I was going to have. Spring Break was a breath of fresh air and this last month and a half of school was sooo long. Anyone that gives a state assessment exam can empathize with me! I did get to go to prom with my husband, again. Well, this time I was a chaperon as opposed to the first time I was a student!

I have met some great teachers and made some good friends! I'm still trying to get into this whole working thing full time and finding out it pretty much sucks. Oh well, have to make the best of the situation! I've entered a new phase in my life and know it's going to take some time to get used to it. I'm growing up! Isn't this what every parent looks forward to---or spouse? I'm still learning how to juggle being mom, working full time (and then some), wife, cook, taxi, referee, and all the other things that I do. I'm learning that you can't plan enough for everything and that is the key to success---planning.

That brings me to my next point, planning on succeeding. So with all this new life changing experiences comes...get ready for it.....it's exciting....ok, maybe not that exciting............you guessed it.......weight gain. Sorry, I know that was anticlimactic but it was fun! So I'm back up to my heaviest weight and not happy with it. I put on at least 10 lbs. working and need to get rid of it. I've had some come to Jesus moments and finally admitted that my husband eats better than I do, even with all my fresh juices, protein shakes and homemade alternative uses with greek yogurt and applesauce! So, I'm turning over a new leaf. I'm not getting any younger....

neither is my sister for that matter (she just turned 40)! This is a picture of us on her birthday--I flew up and surprised her! I took her shopping all day while my mom and her husband got everything ready for her surprise party! That's besides the point. The point is, I'm done. I'm done with feeling bad about myself. I'm done with eating crap and then feeling crappy. I'm done with all of it. It's time to focus on me and feeling better. I feel good when I eat good. When I eat good, I workout more and it's a good thing. This summer I'm going to learn to cook some new foods (and hopefully teach my 13 yr. old son to cook too) and eat clean. I lost weight before when I ate clean and worked out. I know I can do it, i just have to DO IT! Nike was smart when they came up with that logo! So after eating Sonic today and feeling crappy (took a nap too--could be a side effect of school finishing today) I got my lazy arse up and went and did a body pump class that should make my legs pretty sore.

When I came home, I had 3/4 of a chicken breast and a small banana. I know the banana wasn't the best thing to eat at night (it was like 8:30) but it's a start in a new direction. I have no one to blame but me for where I've come. It's time to stop blaming and start doing!!! So....join me  on my journey. I am going to blog everyday about my successes and failures and all that goes on! Happy Summer!

Six Already!

Yes, my baby girl turned 6 already. She had her birthday last week and a party last Saturday. She was SO excited to turn 6. In fact, the day after her birthday, she woke up and said, "I'm so glad I'm 6 now!" It was precious!

When I asked Livi what she wanted for her birthday, she said she wanted Miguel and I to surprise her! She opened 2 presents before she went to school on her birthday and she got a hello kitty spinning toothbrush and a real ceramic tea set. She was so excited! We went to Gattitown for dinner (pizza and games) and played for awhile after dinner. A couple times Livi asked if she was going to get anymore presents and I told her maybe. She wasn't being a brat or acting ungrateful, she just really wanted more presents, I guess! When we got home, it was late but still did cake and ice cream!

Afterwards, I asked Livi to go get ready for bed and she asked me if she did it, would she get anymore presents. I told her she needed to obey and not do it to just get presents. As she broke down in tears (she didn't have a nap that day, she was over tired, and it was already about 9:30 and she normally goes to bed at 8pm) Miguel came in with her last present! She went from tears to all smiles in about a second!

Our next step is to take off the training wheels! So far, she loves her bike and rides it everyday outside! Still can't believe she's 6, but that means Eli turns 10 soon! Happy Birthday, Livi!

Livi's Party:
We had a party for Livi this year and she invited some girls over for some lunch, a scavenger hunt and some cupcake decorating! First, they had lunch! Then a scavenger hunt that sent them from the microwave to the grill to the trees and then ended up at the school playground where all the girls got a princess stamp that Dad hid in the slide! It was so cute to listen to all the girls sound out the words and read the clues!

After that it was time to open some presents....

...and then on to the cupcake decorating! Instead of cake (since we already had one on her real birthday) the girls got to decorate and eat their own cupcakes!

At the end of the day I asked her if she enjoyed her party and her day and she said, "I had a blast!" It made me grin from ear to ear!

So glad she's so happy to be 6! Thanks for all the birthday wishes, calls and cards!

Day trip to Wimberley & Fort fun!

I've really been trying to enjoy every moment with my kids since time is not on my side. They all just keep getting older and wiser (ha!)! I've tried not being so high strung and just go with the flow and enjoy the simple things in life. Miguel had to go to a funeral in Wimberley so I thought it would be fun to make a day trip out of it and go see what the little tourist town is about! After we dropped Miguel off, we went back into town and went to a park. Majority of our time was spent there, where the kids threw sticks in the water! After much coaxing and promising to go to a candy store, we finally left the park!

ethan trying on hippie glasses in a toy/candy store!

We went to a toy/candy store and looked around. The kids wanted everything and so I told them we were going to get ice cream and if they didn't want that, then we could come back and they could get some candy. Let's just say, they were fine with getting ice cream. Since Miguel's funeral was very long, we had to kill more time. We drove down the mainstreet and found a middle school that had a playground. I read in the car (since it was cold and I only had a light sweatshirt on) for awhile while the kids played. After that, I got out and played tag with them for awhile! When everyone was thirsty and Livi was upset and Ethan had splinters in his hand, we decided to call it quits! We waited back at the park for Miguel and enjoyed a game of "Uno" on a blanket at the park! It was a great Saturday!

Eli fake sleeping in the fort!

Then, since the kids didn't have school on Monday, I thought it would be a good idea to build a fort for the kids and let them sleep in it! I remember using every encyclopedia in the house to hold the blankets down for our fort! We built a great fort, got all the kids in it and they had fun. It didn't take long for them to go to sleep, but let's just say, the night was not great!

Ethan in front of the fort!

Livi woke up a couple of times to switch from the couch, to my bed, to finally end up in her bed. Ethan and Eli woke me up at 3am b/c they were trying to fix the fort. At a little after 5am, I had had enough. I stormed into where the tent was to see both boys awake, playing the radio with every night light on, and and an extension added onto the fort.

getting their places ready in the fort

They both had to go to their own beds and warned them not to wake me up early! It started out good, but should have known it couldn't last long! We decided we'll try it again, in a few years!!

Summer turns into School Time!

(at the Rainforest Pyramid in Moody Gardens-Galveston)

So, the summer flew by, again. Don't you remember how time used to be so much slower when you were a child? Why is it that it gets faster and faster the older you get? We had a good summer. It went quickly because I was working about 60+ hours a week, for two months of it. I finally quit and was able to spend the last part of the summer with the kids.

(in Galveston at the Rainforest Cafe)

Alivia went into Kindergarten and Elijah started 4th grade today.

That left just me and Ethan. When I asked him what we should do today, he replied "let's play Bingo!" We never got around to Bingo, but we did have a blast at the jumpy place (indoor bounce house place).

(Ethan climbing on the school playground after we dropped the other kids off at school!)

I would say it was a good summer, but glad for school to start! I start school on Wednesday--I'm finishing my last class (2nd comp. science class) and will graduate in December from my very long college career. Ethan will go to Mother's Day Out program on T/Th and that leaves me to find some new freedom!! To another great school year!

Just when you think things can't get any worse.....that's when the bugs come in!

I don't know anyone who has had a better week than this past week! Just when I think my life can't get anything more into it, that's when the bugs come! This past week was a very hectic one, including a test in modern physics, homework due in fourier series class, miguel leaving to go out of town and having a babysitter come relieve my other babysitter, having to drive to Houston by myself (after just taking Ethan to the Dr. to get shots), helping my sister move in, trying to get my kids to nap, trying to get my kids to go to bed, and then finding out that Livi has lice. Yes, the parasite that lives in your hair. Ethan had it too. They both only had nits (which are the eggs and can't be spread). After disinfecting my mom's house, learning that I had lice too, my sister went to my other sister's house to pick up Eli. His head was pretty nasty with the lice. So, my sister brought him over to my mom's, I shaved his head and then put lice shampoo on him. I did this only after my sister put the shampoo on me, my brother shaved Ethan's hair, I cut livi's hair and put shampoo on them. Then, I had to comb thru literally each strand of her hair and pull out the nits with my fingernails (they are really hard to get off). As if that wasn't enough, then my mom and I got into a really big argument and I had only slept 3 hours the night before! After sleeping Saturday night and dreaming all about parasites and what I was going to have to do when I got home, we headed home. That's when the real fun began! I had to wash everyone's bedding, vacuum the house, the furniture, disinfect brushes and combs (did I mention Miguel was in Reno this whole time?), unpack the car, call Eli's teacher, look for nits in the kids' head and somehow get some sleep? I think that Eli brought it home to everyone from school (which is usually what happens). Miguel didn't get it--probably b/c he's at work most of the time and out of town when all hell breaks loose!
And that's it for my horrible,terrible,no good, very bad week!
Hope yours was better!

(by the way, if anyone needs some knowledge about lice, I have a lot I could share with you!)

Procrastination is my friend!

What better thing to do than everything else than what I really need to be doing? Did you follow? I figure since I really should be doing homework, why not catch up on my email, blog stalking and ice cream eating? Who wouldn't want to surf the web when you could be figuring out problems about particles colliding at certain speeds close to c? Does anyone know what 'c' stands for? Anyways, I thought it would be a good time to type another post.

Why do kids say the darndest things? I think I figured it out. I think they say it to make us realize that we are the idiots, not them. Tonight my daughter asked me: "Why did you yell at Eli?" I replied, 'Because he wasn't listening to me.' Then I thought about it some more and realized. If I'm yelling at him, how can I even notice if he's listening to me. Better yet, why would he listen to me yell? If I were him, I'd probably want to cover my ears or leave the room. So, I'm going to try a different approach. I'm going to try and NOT yell at my kids. I know. This is totally foreign to me and who knows, it might even work! Wish me luck!

I guarantee a cry from laughing sooooo hard!

I stole this story off my friend Aly's blog. I was crying so hard from laughing. I think I got a good stomach work-out from it. It's all to familiar!

A 3-year-old tells all from his mother's restroom stall.By Shannon PopkinMy little guy, Cade, is quite a talker. He loves to communicate and does it quite well. He talks to people constantly, whether we're in the library, the grocery store, or at a drive-thru window. People often comment on how clearly he speaks for a just-turned-3-year-old, and you never have to ask him to turn up the volume. It's always fully cranked. There've been several embarrassing times that I've wished the meaning of his words would have been masked by a not-so-audible voice, but never have I wished this more than last week at Costco.

Halfway through our shopping trip, nature called, so I took Cade with me into the restroom. If you'd been one of the ladies in the restroom that evening, this is what you would have heard coming from the second~to~the~last stall:"Mommy, are you gonna go potty? Oh! Why are you putting toi wet pa per on the potty, Mommy? Oh! You gonna sit down on DA toiwet paper now? Mommy, what are you doing? Mommy, are you gonna go stinkies on the potty?"At this point, I started mentally counting how many women had been in the bathroom when I walked in. Several stalls were full ... 4? 5? Maybe we could wait until they all left, before I had to make my debut out of this stall and reveal my identity.

Cade continued, "Mommy, you ARE going stinkies, aren't you? Oh, dats a good girl, Mommy! Are you gonna get some candy for going stinkies on the potty? Let me see doze stinkies, Mommy! Oh .. Mommy! I'm trying to see in dere. Oh! I see dem. Dat is a very good girl, Mommy. You are gonna get some candy!"I heard a few faint chuckles coming from the stalls on either side of me. Where is a screaming newborn when you need her? Good grief. This was really getting embarrassing. I was definitely waiting a long time before exiting.

Trying to divert him, I said, "Why don't you look in Mommy's purse and see if you can find some candy. We'll both have some!" "No, I'm trying to see doze more stinkies. Oh! Mommy!" He started to gag at this point. "Uh oh, Mommy. I fink I'm gonna frow up. Mommy, doze stinkies are making me frow up!! Dat is so gross!!" As the gags became louder, so did the chuckles outside my stall. I quickly flushed the toilet, in hopes of changing the subject. I began to reason with myself: "OK. There are four other toilets. If I count four flushes, I can be reasonably assured that those who overheard this embarrassing monologue will be long gone.""Mommy! Would you get off the potty, now? I want you to be done going stinkies! Get up! Get up!" He grunted as he tried to pull me off.

Now I could hear full-blown laughter. I bent down to count the feet outside my door. "Oh, are you wooking under dere, Mommy? You wooking under DA door? What were you wooking at, Mommy? You wooking at the wady's feet?" More laughter. I stood insid e the locked door and tried to assess the situation. "Mommy, it's time to wash our hands, now. We have to go out now, Mommy." He started pounding on the door. "Mommy, don't you want to wash your hands? I want to go out!!" I saw that my "wait 'em out" plan was unraveling.I sheepishly opened the door, and found, standing outside my stall, twenty to thirty ladies crowded around the stall, all smiling and starting to applaud. My first thought was complete embarrassment, then I thought, "Where's the fine print on the 'motherhood contract', where I signed away every bit of my dignity and privacy?"But as my little boy gave me a big, cheeky grin, while he rubbed bubbly soap between his chubby little hands, I thought, "I'd sign it all away again, just to be known as Mommy to this little fellow."

Dad Would Be SO Proud!

Miguel would be so proud of his son if he saw this. Thank goodness he doesn't read this very often. I thought it was hilarious. The one on the left is my 3 yr. old daughter, and the child on the right is my 7 yr. old son. They both make beautiful princesses. He was all decked out, from the high heeled shoes to the bracelet and earrings and crown. Again, I was just grateful both of the kids were playing so nicely and not teasing each other.
What can I say about my 2 yr. old son? He's a frog, no tigger, no.... I guess he's just 2 and loves to jump!

The Extent of Our Outfits for the Day

This is Ethan trying out the top bunk bed. Eli sleeps on the top and Ethan sleeps on the bottom. Why is it so much fun on top?This is about as much clothes as he normally has on. Since it's been winter, they usually have a shirt on too.


This is Livi and Ethan playing 'shopping.' They go and get cans of food out of the pantry and the bread maker under the counter is where it goes. Livi's in her usual attire, but Ethan, I guess was hot. That's his hand on the other side of him---it's not his boy part. Yes, I made him put underwear on after I took this cute picture! Kids will be kids! At least they weren't screaming and fighting. It's amazing how relaxed you get after you have 3!

Chefs in Training!

We had a fun time making dinner tonight! You ask yourself, "Self, how is it possible to have fun making dinner?" And you answer, "Let the kids do it while you supervise and take pictures!" I wish there were more things the kids could make. We'll have to figure it out. I guess some more practicing and I could have some personal chefs by the time they're 10!

so carefully they spread the sauce!

then it was on to spreading the cheese while saying 'cheese!'

such concentration goes into putting pepperoni's on--who'd of thought?

presenting their masterpiece

trying to get a picture with all 3 kids looking is impossible!

watching it cook.....


still watching it cook!!

We were all just waiting for the pizza to finish and I look in the family room to see this.....

Yes, Livi has a kleenex hanging out of her nostril and Ethan's eating toothpaste, again.

I made the best out of the situation, and made them pose! As you can tell, Livi was more than willing to do so!

Happy Halloween

We had a lot of fun this year for Halloween! We went to the Trunk-or-Treat on Tuesday, the 30th and my kids learned how to get candy pretty quickly! If you noticed, Eli was not dressed up b/c he was grounded. I won't go into the whole thing, but he went something like this:

Me: Eli, can you set the table please? (just called him in from outside where he was playing with his friends)

Eli: What? You called me in from outside to do that? Why can't you set the table? I was playing with my friends.

So, that's about it. If you don't have any kids that are this age, then look what you have to look forward to! I was pretty surprised by his comment, so I told him he had to tell his father what he said when he got home (Eli knows that means business!!!) Why do they know things are serious when dad talks to them and not mom??

Sorry for the word vomit, let's continue on! So, I took Tigger and Sunshine Bear (a.k.a. Ethan & Livi) around to all the trunks and let them get giddy with getting candy! The YW put this whole thing together so they were handing out donuts and hot chocolate. What kid wouldn't want a donut when they have a bag full of candy?

We ran out of candy and it was getting late, so we took a family picture before we left. I think Eli gets his picture posing skills from Miguel. Usually Miguel is the one making silly faces. I'm behind Sunshine Bear and Eli. My hand is on Sunshine Bear's tummy. I was an army girl---people had a hard time seeing me. I guess that means my costume was really good! (for those of you who don't know me, that last part was all sarcastic. it's really hard to be sarcastic in a blog b/c you can't hear the tone!)

Halloween Night
This is Scooby (a.k.a Eli) showing Ethan that we have a bowl full of candy to give to trick-or-treaters. Ethan kept trying to get candy out of it. Maybe he recognized it from the night before at the trunk-or-treat. Yes, I recycled the kids' candy. They got a couple pieces on Tuesday night and then I poured them into this bowl to give to the kids in our neighborhood.

Scooby went to all the houses on our block pretty quickly so Miguel took him in the back of the neighborhood and I kept Sunshine Bear and Tigger. We went around on our street and then headed back to our house to hand out candy. It was fun. There were tons of people out and so many on our street! I realized when we got to our house, Miguel had locked the front door and had the keys in his pocket. I would have called him, but his cell phone was inside recharging. I thought to myself, this isn't so bad, the back door is unlocked, so I thought! Well, it wasn't, but the window next to it was open so all I had to do was take off the screen and reach around to unlock the door. Good thing I got robber like instincts!

This is what it looked like most of the night. Ethan knew what to do, and Alivia was along for the candy. Ethan would walk right up to people's doors and knock (he'd attempt to ring the doorbell but was usually too short). I love these ages when the kids have so much fun! When we got back home, and in our house, we passed out some candy. The kids ate some too! Little did they know, the next day it would be gone!! I kept a few lollipops as bribery and some good chocolate bars to mix in ice cream and threw the rest away. If I don't do that, then I eat it all, and we all know that would not be pretty!

Happy Memories

(Eli and Livi. The day we brought her home from the hospital. So precious!)

Yesterday was a great day. Some of my favorite parts were: Livi said "I love you, mom!" for no reason! Then, Ethan did something really cute (can't for the life of me remember it now) and he always says 'thank you' for everything. If I give him some toast with jelly and milk for breakfast, he'll thank me for the toast, the milk, and the jelly I put on it. Eli was such a big helper. I threatened to take away his privelage of going to the Trunk-or-Treat for church tonight and he shaped up. He cleaned all the tires on my van (that was part of our activity for FHE) and recruitted half the street to help wash it! I love my family! I had a great day. I really tried to see the positive in everything and I was astonished. I think I need to do that everyday!

(In the hospital, after having Ethan. Livi was only 18 months old, Eli was 5.)

Why do I hate man boobs?

Because I heard my daughter say that! Yes, no lie, my 3 yr. old daughter said that tonight. I sat down to comb her hair and turned on the tv to distract her. Guess what was on? Yes, that's right, The Biggest Loser. That's when a great conversation started.

Livi: I see her nipples.

Me: No, those aren't nipples, those are boobs.

(the lady goes back to her team and a man takes off his shirt to weigh in).

Livi: I see that man's nipples.

Me: Those aren't nipples, those are boobs. They're man boobs.

Livi: I don't like man boobs.

Me: (laughing) I don't either!

So, if you haven't learned the moral of this story by now (I think this is advice that I REALLY need to follow), don't let your 3 yr. old watch 'The Biggest Loser' or you'll hear all kinds of words that shouldn't come out of their mouth!!

I MUST HAVE DONE SOMETHING RIGHT!!!

I thought to myself today, I must have done something right! This was my thought as I'm trying to potty train Ethan. He just turned 2 a week and a half ago. We started doing it about a month or two ago and he was doing really well, and then he stopped and I didn't want to clean up pee 5 times a day. His grandma gave him some pretty cool underwear for his birthday (thanks Maritza) and I think that sparked the interest again!

I again realized that I (really me and Miguel) had done something right when I went to check on Livi, in the bathroom, and this is what I encountered. She makes us soo proud!!!

(yes, I do comb her hair, just not everyday b/c of the screaming and the fight for her to let me do it. I may start doing it everyday after I realized that she looks homeless!)

GOTTA LOVE THEM!

Don't you just love how real kids are and how they just tell it like it is? Well, as I was combing Livi's hair before bed, we sat down to watch a show on tv (usually a great distraction from the gnarls in her hair). She proceded to inform me that she doesn't watch 'shows,' she watches 'cartoons.' I thanked her for telling me that and she went on playing with her book as I watched "The Biggest Loser." I noticed she started watching the show more and playing less with her word book. Before long, this was the conversation that we had.

Livi: Wow, that lady has big nipples.

Me: (laughing) Really? You can't see her nipples. Those are her boobs.

Livi: No, she has BIG nipples.

Me: (still laughing that my 3 yr. old is talking so frankly about nipples). Are you talking about her belly?

Livi: No. That lady has big nipples.

Me: (still laughing to myself and thinking how am I going to explain the different body parts so she doesn't bust out with this conversation in public).

Livi: Wow. That guy has big nipples.

Me: Those are his boobs.

Livi: No, those are his nipples. (hey kristi, is 'nipples' on your "list?")

Me: Do you have nipples, Livi?

Livi: Yes, I have baby nipples.

Me: You do? Aren't you a big girl?

Livi: Yes, but I have baby nipples. So does Ethan and Eli and Daddy and you!

Me: How does Eli have baby nipples when he's 7? He's a big kid.

Livi: Jeremy has baby nipples too. (he's a cousin that's 9).

Me: How does Jeremy have baby nipples when he's 9?

Livi: Eli's 9 too!

Me: Eli's only 7. Jeremy's 9.

Livi: Ethan has baby nipples, and so do I.

Me: Where's your nipples?

Livi: (pulls up her nightgown and points at them)

Me: Good job. Let's go to bed now.

Livi: Ok. Will you read me a 'once upon a time story?'

Me: Sure.

The moral of this conversation is: you need to explain that boobs are different than nipples and you probably shouldn't let your 3 yr. old watch "The Biggest Loser." I hope I'm not the only one that has children that talk so frank about things and make no sense when you're trying to reason with them!

How to (or maybe not to) communicate with a 7 yr. old boy

Me: So Eli, how was your day at school?

Eli: Want me to tell you who's in my class?

Me: Sure!

Eli: Jackson, Logan, she's a girl,...(i zoned out while he continued to tell me everyone's name and their gender)
Did you count 18?

Me: Oh, I wasn't keeping track.

Eli: Ok. There's Ava, Maddie (and this time he tells me where they sit in reference to him).

Me: (i'm really trying to focus now and count how many kids so he doesn't have to list them for a third time!)

Eli: (he finishes) How many was that?

Me: That was 18. So, how was your day?

Eli: Good.

Me: Is that it?

Eli: Yeah! Do you want me to tell you what we did today?

Me: Sure!

Eli: We had 'fun friday!' Do you know what that means?

Me: Yes. You get to go to recess two times!!

Eli: Oh, man! (then he proceeds to tell me when they have recess, what they did after lunch and so on and so on. He used 'like' so many times I was really distracted. Who would have thought that he would have gone on for so long? It was like word vomit that just kept coming and I couldn't do anything to stop it!)

Me: Hey Eli. Did you know when I was a kid, we used to have recess twice a day, everyday?!

Eli: (eyes real big) Really?

Me: Yah. And, we had PE everyday.

Eli: Are you kidding me? Why?

Me: Because it's good for you to move around and exercise and have fun!

Eli: Can I go outside now!

Me: Sure. Love you!

Eli: Love you too!

The moral of this conversation is to show you that just b/c you aren't 7, doesn't mean you don't have A.d.d. and how boys (who eventually grow into men) communicate. Why can't they communicate? What's a mom/wife to do?

BEWARE OF LITTLE CHILDREN

I finally downloaded a whole bunch of picture from my camera! Yeah!! When I saw all those wonderful pictures it reminded me of a great story I could retell. So we have some friends that got married down at this old mansion in Galveston this past summer. They have been friends for awhile and have known our kids most of their lives. Well, since Miguel and I got married and had kids so young, it works out for our friends. They are all now just getting married, and our kids are in their weddings(since we're really only the ones with kids, let alone that they are the right age for being really cute in weddings). This was the first wedding that Livi and Eli have both been in together. Eli was the ring bearer and Livi was the flower girl.

James and Rheanna (the wedding couple) had their wedding at 6pm. Not the ideal time for Livi since she still naps in the afternoon (i can't believe they didn't schedule it around her nap---the nerve! j/k). Let's just say she was being good but getting tired and getting into stuff. By the time we got to the mansion, she's ripped the seam on her dress (i just finally cut it off) and she'd pulled a bow off! Thank goodness I had "borrowed" one of those little sewing kits from a hotel and it had some pink thread and a needle in it (Thanks so much omni!) so I sewed that bow on in the car on the way to the wedding! Go Martha, I mean Mom! While I was in the process of having Eli take a picture of me and Miguel, I noticed Livi was no where to be found. I started freaking out and then I found her. Any guesses to where she was??? Yes, she had taken a fork and was eating the bride's cake. Now in a normal, not in public place, especially not at a wedding, I would have totally freaked out, but I didn't. I thought to myself "self, you can look at how bad this is, or how bad it isn't." I took the latter. I figured, at least she ate off the back side of the cake, and she used a fork and not her hands!! That's a story to keep forever!

DORA TO THE RESCUE!

For those of you who have mulitple children, you know that fighting and contention can't be prevented. So when those rare moments occur where the kids are playing so nicely, you wish you could make those moments last forever! Here is proof that they do happen.

Both Ethan and Livi wanted to ride the infamous Dora bike, so they took turns being the driver. I love these times!! I'll have these wonderful memories to look back on when they're teenagers really fighting over who's turn it is to drive!! AGGGGGHHH!

IS IT JUST MY KID WHO'S REALLY GROSS?

While I was in my normal position in the morning (on the couch half asleep) I notice Ethan was being quiet and just standing there sucking on his pacie (pacifier). Usually when he does that--assumes the position--then I know he's doing his business. This position was different. As the fog rolls from my eyes with each blink, I notice there's hair hanging off his pacie. Yes, HAIR. Not just any hair, but long, black hair. It wasn't just a hair, it was lots of hair. As soon as I would grab the pacie and take the hair off it, he would go find more, put it on his pacie and suck it so contently!! I about vomited at this. It was so gross, I had to take a picture and share it. Please tell me my kid isn't the only sick one out there! no, it's not a pubic hair, although it looks like it