Just Dance...

So, last week a note was sent home with Merci about dance tryouts. Each participant needed to have a one minute dance prepared and tryouts were yesterday. Every child who tried out would be placed in a class but depending on their skills would decide which class. Merci tried out! And did good! She was nervous but still I think the judges were impressed. Tomorrow she will find out if she is in the beginners class or advanced. Also, yesterday was Wacky Wednesday. Andrew was not feeling it. But I made him get all whacked out and he loved it. He wore shorts, a green shirt, two different socks, two different shoes, a WILD hairdo and freckles. Yep, I got out my liquid eyeliner and made dots all over his face. It was really whacky. Merci wore green sweats, a striped shirt, purple knee highs, two different shoes, and REALLY whacky hair. We got to school and Merci noticed it looked like only the kindergartners were dressed up. I took Andrew to class and by the time I got back to the car she refused to get out. We sat there for ten minutes until we saw an older kid with blue hair. I was worried the dress up day was only for the little ones, but luckily I was wrong. Merci got out and I died laughing as I watched her walk away, she did look REALLY whacky! I picked Andrew up and he ran my errands with me looking like a wild child. He really soaked in the attention. The dots on his face made it really funny. Today was pajama day for the kindergartners and he sported his Scooby Doo nighties. This morning when he took a shower and scrubbed his face, I was a little panic stricken when he got out. The dots were still there, not even faded. I looked at my eyeliner and it read, "Waterproof". Greeeeaaaatttttt. I decided I would get it off with eye makeup remover, that didn't fade them. So I slathered his face with vaseline and rubbed off with a wet wash cloth and it worked, whew! Sophia still has hers I made on her cheeks and she goes into panic mode if I try to take them off. I guess I will just wait for them to fade on their own. If they covered her face like Andrew's did, I would make sure I got them off.

Oh, last thing. Today I took Andrew and Sophia to the mall with me for some shopping. We were at Forever 21 checking out when I looked over and saw my dear Sophia pottying all over the floor. WHAT?! She is potty trained and rarely has accidents so I was surprised. I asked the clerk for paper towels and she handed me a roll of toilet paper. She walked over and said "oh did she spill her juice?" I looked at her and said, yeah kinda. I mean I am sure she was getting rid of what she had just drank, right? I had to try to find humor somewhere in cleaning my 2 year olds potty off of the floor while everyone waiting in line was staring at me:)

"Be still, and know that I am God" Psalm 46:10

"Be still, and know that I am God" Psalm 46:10

It's a sad day. Its a day to rejoice. Actually there are a lot of mixed emotions so that is where the Bible verse comes in. Today I will hug my family tighter, tell them I love them over and over, and I will know that God is in control. Yesterday I got news my cousin went to Heaven. He was in his 40's and had health problems since he was born. I am not going to go into details out of respect for family. I never lived close to him or got to really know him personally. But I do know I loved him. I remember him being such a good guy and asked about him often. I wish I would have made an effort to know him better. And now it is too late. But I know he is in a better place and will never suffer again. I know we serve a God who promised that and I feel at such peace knowing he is not in pain anymore and never will be again. I am giving today to God, I am praying for my family and those closest to him. I know without a doubt that God will comfort us and wrap His arms around us.

A Few Pictures

Me and my Love

Andrew

Andrew

Merci at Disneyland

Sophia:)

Sophia

Merci at her choir concert

The Simple Life

Well, things have been going well. The kids finally are getting back into the routine of school and I like that. I don't mind my schedule being thrown off every once in a while, but I really like structure. Andrew and Merci really enjoy going to school which makes my life a lot easier. In fact, 99 percent of the time I pick Andrew up he begs to stay longer. Sophia even wants to stay. However, I know if she saw me leave there would be a complete breakdown. Maybe I will start her in preschool in the next year so she can get used to it.

Merci is in choir at school and had a performance on Thursday night. They sang in front of the school board and it was really nice. They did one song, which was perfect because Sophia was talking really loud the entire time. Juan let me know how teary eyed he got when they started singing. I love a sensitive man. I told him he was a big wimp and we laughed together. Even though we were laughing we were looking in each others eyes and it was one of those unspoken moments. Merci is growing up. And so are Andrew and Sophia. But they are still in the "baby" years. Merci isn't. It is sad. Period. As many of you all know it has been a rough ride for her over the years. She was 2 1/2 when I met her and Juan. That is Sophia's age now. And now she is 10. It just seems so unreal at times the way things happened. I know God has a reason for everything and as much as I hate the situation she has endured, it has opened so many doors for us and brought us closer together. We have laughed together, cried together, and we have came together as a family.

I am slowly learning how to cherish the moments I have with my kids. I know when I was ten I couldn't wait to be a grown up. If I had a dime for every time my mom told me to enjoy life while I was young because being a grown up would come so quickly, I could buy my own island. And now when Merci talks to me about how she wants to decorate her house when she is older and the pets she wants to have, I can't help but laugh. I was her not too long ago. I appreciate my mom more every day I live. She is without a doubt the strongest, most unselfish person I have ever known. And no mattter who I ever meet, noone will compare to her. It is impossible.

What A Vet Visit...

Who knew taking a dog to the vet could be so traumatic. And I am not talking about for the dog. Note 3253: Andrew does not do well in veterinarian settings. Period. When I scheduled our Brussels Griffon's vet visit I made it for when Andrew was out of school because I thought he would like to go. He has a heart for animals and would take in every stray if we let him. So I thought this would be a good experience for him. Boy was I ever wrong. I picked him up from school and we headed to the vet. He was already asking if Cody's shots would make him bleed. I explained to him the process and it was not a big deal at all. We check Cody in and I ask them to check if he has a chip. Since we adopted him, I wasn't sure. Andrew freaked out. And this was just the little scanner that Cody could have cared less about. We take Cody back and Andrew and Sophia are fighting over who gets to hold the leash and I am now regretting bringing them with me. Finally they come in and we decided they should take Cody to the back for his shots, for Andrew's sake. I always like them to do the shots in front of me so I know I am getting what I pay for. But I really don't think Andrew could have handled it. His little body was trembling. At this point Sophia is crying too and I cannot wait to get out of there. We leave and Andrew is okay. The funniest part about it is he has never acted like that even when he has to get shots. His little heart is so tender.

Today we took Cody to the groomer and now he looks like a handsome Brussels Griffon. Another exciting thing...our dear Sophia decided 4am would be the new 7. She was wide awake at 4 and ready for her day to start. If you know me, you know I am NOT a morning person. I have a hard time falling asleep at night so I am up really late, kinda like right now. So I need my sleep. She also thought it would be nice to wake Andrew and Merci up. So now we had three little rugrats up before the sun. But that's not the funniest part, Sophia did not take a nap all day and did not fall asleep until 9:30 tonight. Today has been long. She was extremely cranky and I hope she gets a good rest so we can do it all again tomorrow!

The kids new mattresses come in tomorrow and I am way more excited than I should be. I don't know why I love new things, decorating things, reorganizing things. Some people like alcohol, I like rearranging things. It makes me happy, makes my kids happy, and makes my house neat. I actually just bought my first staple gun and I can't wait to use it. First project is to reupholster a chair. So excited!!!

This weekend will be pretty uneventful, which is good. I plan on making a fabric run to Joanne's on Saturday and well, you guessed it, rearranging and organizing some things. Oh, one project is to get block letters that spell "Bruce", paint them and hang above Andrew's guinea pig's cage. How fun! Sunday is church and lunch with a good friend. I love lazy weekends.

I am now going to lay here and listen to my little angel snore. Sometimes the most annoying sounds are the most precious ones:)

Silly California

So, the kids FINALLY went back to school today. Yes, finally. They have been out for about 25 days and that is just a long time. Really. It is. And not just for me, but them as well. There is only so much you can do with rainy, chilly weather. They needed to get back into school, back with their friends. This morning went ok. I had to drag Andrew out of bed and Merci got up pretty well. We were out of the house on time and didn't forget anything. I even remembered Merci's lunch money! We were waiting outside waiting for the gate to open and Andrew was shivering. He looked to the sky and said "I wish Jesus would open the heavens a little and let the warmth out." It was so cute. I love to see my kids talk about Jesus and know who He is. It is truly heart warming. That reminds me of something. When Andrew was three he had a little tickle in his chest. He started laughing uncontrollably and when I asked him what he was laughing at he told me Jesus was tickling him. We have always taught them that Jesus lives in their hearts if they ask Him to and he was convinced that "tickle" was Jesus.

I signed Sophia up for gymnastics class. She goes for a trial visit on Friday so I can see if is is worth the money. She seems excited even though she has no idea what it is. She misses her Andrew and Merci today. She can't wait to pick them up, and honestly, I can't either. I am sure once the fighting sets in tonight I will be ready for tomorrow morning! I am super excited about making dinner tonight, chicken fried chicken with homemade mashed potatoes. Yummy, yummy!

Oops...

Well, I did it again. I sorta forgot about my blog. Let's play catch up!! Christmas was great. We spent it as just our family of five and it was such a relaxed day. I was one of those crazy shoppers who finishes up on Christmas Eve. I ordered all of the "big" stuff online so all I had to get was stocking stuffers. I waited in line for 45 minutes at Claire's so I could buy Sophia all the princessy goodness she needed. Was she worth it? Absolutely! I also grabbed Merci a few things there, too. She was pleased. Then I battled Toys R Us. Even crazier. But I survived. Then to the awful, dreaded Walmart. Target is and always will be my first choice but they closed earlier than Walmart so I did not have a choice. Man, I was regretting not doing this shopping earlier. But I managed. My total Christmas eve shopping was about four hours and it was a nice break from the kids. They went to bed after baking Santa his favorite chocolate chip cookies. The elves made footprints all over the house and even put together all of the toys. How nice of the elves;)

The kids woke up bright and early Christmas morning and were amazed. They tore open their gifts and were excited about the note Santa left. It told them how they should always remember the true meaning of Christmas and left them a book about Jesus. They were thrilled. I made a huge feast for lunch...fajitas, refried beans, spanish rice, pecan pies, divinity, and fruit salad. We stayed in our pajamas all day and watched movies. It was so nice.

The next day we met Merci's aunt and uncle in Banning. They got Merci for a few days and had a blast. Merci baked cakes, played with her cousins, and went to an airplane museum. We picked her up on her birthday. She wasn't ready to leave but we were ready to have her back! We got her a "real" cellphone for her birthday and she was ecstatic. She has texted the life out of it. We went over the rules for having it and so far, so good.

That pretty much sums up the last couple of weeks. I am trying to update this thing more often, I just get so busy. The kids will be starting their sports soon; Merci in soccer and Andrew in t-ball. Sophia will also be starting a dance or gymnastics class as well. So to say I will be buys just might be an understatement. But it is my New Year's Resolution to keep up with this more often!