Happy Anniversary Miguel!

Miguel and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary this week. I can't believe how time flies! But here we are 5 years, 3 kids and a lot of college semesters later. There really is joy in the journey. I love our life. Thanks for all of the good times Miguel! And thanks for the cute kids too.

Letters to Santa...

Erin wrote a letter to Santa the other day, I thought it was cute how she drew Santa's sleigh with all of the presents she wanted in it. Miguel held her hand to help her write the dear Santa part at the top and she wrote the rest, obviously.

Alive and well...

First a broken computer, then a broken camera... we are still alive and well. I will try to keep this updated more.

The amazing tent...

The kids got a play tent from Ikea for their birthday, well actually we broke down and gave it to them the day before their birthday so that they would be distracted and let us clean the house in preparation for their party. Well, they just love playing in their tent. Sometimes they pretend to go camping. Other times the tent is their house or a cool fort. One night we set it up in their room and they slept in it all night. It was a great motivator to go to bed and stay there. They even let Anya come in and play with them. I recommend this tent to everyone! It was way cheap and it creates hours of entertainment and imagination.

La Fiesta...

So here are the pics from Erin and David's birthday party. They had a ball playing party games with their friends and opening presents. I made a Dora cake for Erin and a Diego cake for David. Their Abuela came from Mexico for the occasion and brought some clowns that she made and filled with candy as party favors. After the party they played with their new toys all day long. It was a really fun day.

Capture the "everyday"...

I have to remind myself to photograph or capture the "everyday" things that the kids do. So I just had to post this video of the kids playing together. At least once a day they have these little moments where I'll catch all 3 of them playing really well together. I was lucky to have the camera in my hand at the time.

Project: Closet...

I finally got the kids closet organized! If anyone ever tells you that you can't fit 3 kids into the same room comfortably, don't believe them. It CAN be done. We have done it for a while (10 months) but I just now got the closet organized enough to have all of the kids' stuff in the same closet. It took a long time, a lot of work, and the help and motivation of my friend Cynthia, but it's done! It looks like less clothes in the picture than are really there, but check out the hangers to get an idea of just how many clothes we were able to shove in there.

Happy Birthday David!!!

David turned 3 last week. So now we have two 3 yr. old's in the house. It's fun to say, "raise your hand if you're 3!" and have both Erin and David raise their hands excitedly. This will only last for 5 weeks of course until Erin's birthday, but it is fun for now. David thinks he is so big because he is the same age as his big sister. I explained to them that they are not regular twins but that they are in fact Irish Twins. They kind of got it.

We didn't do much on his actual birthday because we are having a party for both of them soon. But he did get his birthday breakfast that day and I made him a cake that night.
He looks so old in that picture. I can't see any baby in him anymore.

On their birthdays I can't help but think back to the adventure it was when they were babies. I can't imagine having done anything differently. I love being a mom to these kids! So here's a quick trip down memory lane...

Happy Halloween!!!

I love Halloween. We went trick or treating in the afternoon at my work. And then again at night around the neighborhood. I think they were really tired by the end of the day because they sure didn't seem very excited the last part of the night. I joked with Cynthia that I might have to give them energy drinks next year before trick or treating so that they will be able to run from house to house all night and be as excited about Halloween as I am. So here are the pics of my little Dora, Diego, and Boots...

Free stuff!

Okay, so I usually don't do this, but I just couldn't resist taking one of those pics of all of the free stuff I got this month from Walgreens and RiteAid. This is most of it. I also got some Pert Plus Shampoo/Cond. and some Crest Toothpaste (not pictured). I love free stuff.

Pumpkin Cake...

Today I tried to make one of those cupcake cakes that you see in stores. You know the ones where they push all of the cupcakes together and cover them with icing in some design. So I'll just take my chance to say it again-- I am not Martha Stewart, nor am I a great cook (official disclaimer). But here are the pics of my pumpkin cake. It is made of chocolate cupcakes and vanilla icing tinted with gel food coloring to make the 3 different colors. The icing dripped off the edges a little in some spots. The cupcakes tasted great though!

Early Voting...

Miguel and I went to vote early the other day. First Miguel voted as I waited with the kids in the car. I was trying to teach Erin in the best 3 yr. old terms that I could what it means to vote and what the President of the United States is in charge of. I told her that Mommy and Daddy were going to vote for the President. Then it was my turn to go vote. After I had left the car, Erin told her daddy, "I think Mommy is going to vote for President Monson." Don't you just love sunbeams?

Different strokes...

So, Anya gave new meaning to the image of tree hugger/granola muncher tonight. First she tried eating grass.

Aaaand, it's good!

Then she went on to taste the flowers.

Then, last but not least, the pine cones.

Well, I'm not going to worry about adding fiber to her diet!

Greeeen Acres is the Place to be...

Yep, that's right! Faaaarm livin' is the life for me... Okay, so not really. But we did have fun going to the farm to pick pumpkins. You know, the hay ride... the pumpkin patch... then apple cider--in the form of a slurpee. What?! Yeah, we were expecting hot apple cider (especially since it was like 32 degrees outside) or hot chocolate or something. But the only things the big red barn was serving up were cider slushies and ice cream. WEIRD. The kids loved the bumpy hayride out to the pumpkin patch. David would not take his eyes off the big green tractor that was pulling the wagon. When we got to the big field of pumpkins Erin immediately picked up a small green gourd about the size of her hand and insisted on it the rest of the trip. David picked up his pumpkin and proceeded to drop it until it had cracked after which he picked it up again and tried to take it back on the wagon. Luckily I had found two smaller, toddler sized pumpkins on the other side of the field. After we rode the wagon back to the big red barn we took some more pics with our friends-- Cynthia and her adorable kids Alyssa, Bradley and Isabella. Then we paid for our pumpkins and bought some sweet snacks and some cider slushies for the kids. It was a great day. I think these activities are perfect for making memories with the kids. I'm so glad we all went together. I know I couldn't have done it by myself.

There were so many great pics I narrowed it down the best I could...

Isabella, Erin and David playing on the fence.

Erin with her favorite babysitter, Alyssa.

Halloween preview...

Today we tried on the kids Halloween costumes to see how they will look. Diego and Boots didn't mind a photo opp. but Dora wasn't willing to oblige. One of these days I will sneak a pic of her and post it. She did try on her costume though and she does look a lot like Dora.

Designer Pumpkins...

Yesterday uncle Edgar (a.k.a. Tio Eddy) took David out to get two pumpkins. And today he spent a good part of the day carving two high-end, designer pumpkins for David and Erin. The kids love their pumpkins. They were so excited for the pumpkin lighting tonight. He picked the perfect themes for their interests too. I mean what 2 yr. old boy doesn't love Lightning McQueen? And what 3 yr. old girl doesn't adore the Disney princesses? Great job Tio Eddy! Thanks for all you do for the kids!

Stay tuned for upcoming pics of Halloween. We are so excited for Halloween and then a few weeks later Birthday parties, Thanksgiving and of course Christmas! Isn't this just a great time of year?