The Vazquez Family

2011-04-25T01:16:00.002-06:00

My latest project... I found these bamboo shades for $12 at BigLots and I spent $3 on white acrylic paint to make the vertical lines. I used white curtains that I already had in a different room. So $15 total for this window treatment. :)

St. Patrick's Day...

2011-03-17T22:40:00.000-06:00

The kids had a fun St. Patrick's Day at school but tonight they were so afraid of leprechauns that they all slept together in Erin's bed. David slept on the outside edge with a ballpoint pen in his hand so he could protect the girls and stab any leprechauns that came near. I also had to spray a perimeter of anti-leprechaun spray (glade air freshener) for peace of mind :)

year in pictures...

2011-01-03T00:33:00.025-07:00

Here's to catching up on a year of not blogging... the pictures say it all I think...

latest family pic...

2009-12-16T09:48:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday David!

2009-11-11T23:28:00.006-07:00

David turned 4 this week! He had cupcakes and pizza on his birthday. And a couple of days later we went to Chuck E Cheeses!
Here's a flashback pic to when he was a baby...
Thanks to Grandpa, Eva, Gran and Paula for the bunk beds for David and Erin's birthdays! We couldn't have done it without you!

Happy Halloween 2009!

2009-11-02T01:52:00.014-07:00

We went to Spanish Fork to trick or treat again this year... Here the kids are outside of Uncle Edgar and Aunt Liliana's house...

This was the line at the Krispy Kreme house. Each child received a 12 count box of donuts! Word sure travels fast, huh?

Erin was so excited to see her best friend Isabella again!
Anya loved it when Alyssa would take her to the different doors...
Uncle Edgar is still the king for Halloween decorating and pumpkin carving...

tree climbing...

2009-09-22T18:57:00.012-06:00

We went for a walk the other day and Erin tried climbing her first tree. It was so cute how proud she was of herself. And when she said her prayers that night she thanked Heavenly Father for helping her climb the tree.

Since I had the camera with us, I made the kids do a mini fall photo shoot. Here are some of the pics of the kids who were totally not in the mood to get their pic taken. I did get a few good ones though...

New Sofa!

2009-09-18T03:21:00.009-06:00

Our old futon sofa was on its last leg so I decided it was time to look into getting a new sofa. And like anything costing more than $20 I researched it online. I was surprised to find that sofas are REALLY expensive. The last time I looked into the price of sofas (about 3 years ago) they didn't cost nearly this much. These are some of the best prices I found online for full size, fabric, non-futon sofas. This one is on Target.com for $365This one is for sale on Walmart.com for $399
You can pick up this next sofa at any RC Willey store for $399
And I found this one at one of my favorite stores, Ikea, for $499. I was sad about this one because Ikea is known for its inexpensive furniture. So finally, after seeing all of these very expensive options that I knew I couldn't afford, I decided that there had to be another way. I went to my local D.I. thrift store and found a the softest, longest, no odor sofa with a nice shape that I could find. (I had about 12 sofas to choose from.) I paid $35 for this sofa and then went to my local Target store (because they have a good selection of slipcovers that happen to be on sale this week). I bought a 2 piece stretch slipcover and 5 throw pillows that I found on clearance. The combined total: I spent $150 on this sofa and materials. And ............. TA DA!........ this is what now sits in our living room...

Not too bad huh? I always think of the Duggar family and their motto, "buy used and save the difference". What I learned from this experience is that the cheapest new sofa you can buy will cost you about $400 and that means I saved $250 and I absolutely love the "new to us" sofa in our living room. :)

Funny Park Pics...

2009-09-13T21:34:00.005-06:00

This photo sequence and the expressions on her face make me laugh. And the funniest part is that this sequence happens EVERY time she climbs the slide, EVERY trip to the park, EVERY week. Kids are so funny.

the princess diva...

2009-09-08T01:33:00.005-06:00

Erin is turning 5 soon but she thinks that she is a teenager already. Which means we DO have our fights but we have some good conversations too. She always watches me put on make-up and has been wanting me to do her hair and make-up for a long time. So I finally decided to let her stay up late (after I put David and Anya to bed) and I curled her stick straight hair the best I could with a curling iron and did her make-up. Luckily she still has those chubby baby cheeks or else I would be crying about how my baby is growing up so fast. She does look older in these pics though. But I can still see my baby when I look in her eyes. I am proud of the big girl she is becoming.

I captured her reaction to seeing her hair and make-up in the mirror for the first time. She was so excited. She had to wash her face about 20 minutes later though because it was time for her to get in bed. She wasn't so happy about that part.

a great view...

2009-09-08T00:46:00.004-06:00

I realized that I never posted any pics of the great views from our new place. This is what I mean about this place looking more like Virginia than Utah. This is the view from our balcony in the living room... This is another window in the living room...

And this is the view from our Master Bedroom. If you look closely you can see the bird's nest (above the lamp) that the kids are always watching. The mama bird sits on her babies all day and the kids love to watch the birds. I just love all the green! We have never lived in a place, that was surrounded by this many trees, since we moved to Utah. Here we have the best of both worlds.

Happy Birthday Miguel!

2009-08-29T01:16:00.002-06:00

Today Miguel turned 29! He got the day off of work and we spent a nice day together as a family. Tonight we dropped the kids off with the Ramos Family (thanks so much Ricardo and Suzie for watching the kids for us!) and Miguel and I went to Wise Guys Comedy Club to see some really funny stand-up comics. The comedian that was headlining tonight was the guy that wrote the script for the movies "The Singles Ward", "Mobsters and Mormons", and the "the RM". He was so funny. It was nice to go on a real date with Miguel. And the whole thing was a surprise to Miguel. He didn't know that I had planned any of this. I finally told him where we were going, after we dropped off the kids and were driving to the club. It was a great night. I hope you had a great Birthday Miguel!

a trip to the Little Gym...

2009-08-29T00:28:00.009-06:00

This week I took the kids to their free trial class at the Little Gym. They had a blast and got almost all of their wiggles out. David kind of wandered around (which the teacher said was okay, especially as he was experiencing it for the first time) and then he eventually joined the rest of the kids in the activities. Erin did a great job listening to the teacher and following instructions...

That poor teacher! Having to lift all 45 lbs. of David and then he decided that he didn't like being picked up and did the whole "dead weight" thing! I wonder if she had back pain the rest of the day?

There was lots of fun stuff to do...

I saw a lot of smiling faces that day...

That looks like fun too!

Anya played in the waiting room while the older kids were in their class. Then she got her turn later when I took her into the Mommy and Me class and the older kids were entertained in the waiting room. By the way, she did great in her class too. On another note, don't you love the baby mullet she is sporting? She is in that awkward hair stage that kids go through when she doesn't have very much hair yet, but the hair she does have is getting longer. Funny.

Over all, the kids really enjoyed the Little Gym and I really liked their teaching methods. I would recommend it to anyone as long as you can afford $15 per kid, per class! It was nice to try it out for free though. I would actually consider it for birthday parties because the price isn't that much more than Chuckie Cheese or other specialty kids places.

We are still here... I promise...

2009-08-20T09:05:00.012-06:00

I had to post this random pic from a few weeks ago. Very silly, but cute kids! They have gotten so big in the last 2 months. I had to get shoes for all three recently because they had completely outgrown their old shoes again, and Erin and David are now wearing size 13 shoes! What happened to my babies? And Anya has had some significant growth spurts in the past 2 months too! When we went to Virginia she was outgrowing her size 3 shoes and now she is in size 6! Don't ask me how a child's feet can grow almost 3 sizes in 3 months! I just don't know how she does it. We went to the zoo yesterday. We have a family pass for the year. Here's a pic of my monkeys checking out the zoo monkeys...

I love this one of Erin...

So cute!...

Some random hissing cockroaches...scary!

one the teeter totter...

he makes a great turtle don't you think?... but he could never handle moving that slow...

Anya's hair (most days) looks like Jim Halpert from the tv show The Office.

My little spiderman...

We moved again...

2009-07-17T20:39:00.006-06:00

I haven't posted in forever because we just moved again. This time we are in this really great, big place with nice gardens and a lake with tons of fish and ducks for the kids to feed. The kids and I take walks around the lake everyday to feed the ducks (and get the wiggles out). We are loving it here. I also started working a temporary job at the Lion House at Temple Square. Soon I will be starting a job in my favorite thing-- accounting and office management. The kids are doing great. So is Miguel, who is working in hotel management again but this time at the Radisson on South Temple (just 4 blocks from my work :). As soon as I figure out which box we packed the camera in, I will post some more pics.

more random vacay pics...

2009-06-21T17:22:00.005-06:00

I forgot to post this one before. We stopped at Pedro's place South of the Border. (really just at the North Carolina/South Carolina border) David was fascinated with Pedro and wanted to take some pics with him. Here's one that most of you won't believe. Yes, those are my kids and they are petting a dog. CRAZY I know. Grandpa and Eva have a really old dog named Penny and the kids actually got used to being around a dog. Who knew that this day would ever come? Here's one of our visit to the cemetery to see where Grandma is buried.

Paramount's Kings Dominion...

2009-06-21T15:05:00.014-06:00

While we were in Virginia I took the kids to Paramount's Kings Dominion. Growing up, my friend Brooke and I had season passes to Kings Dominion every summer. And I worked there in the merchandise stores off and on from my high school years until I was 6 months pregnant with Erin. So, Brooke watched Anya at her house while I took Erin and David there for the day.
Erin was fearless on the rides. David took a little while to warm up to his surroundings. The Taxi Jam roller coaster was the first official coaster that Erin and David went on. I look forward to the day when they can ride the big coasters with Mom.
We got to see Scooby Doo but the kids didn't want to get too close or take pics with him. Erin did however want to drive the Mystery Machine bus. We also saw Dora and Boots but the kids were not thrilled about getting too close to them either. They were taller than Mommy and kind of intimidating for little kids. (Paramount is a Viacom company and so anything from Nickolodeon or Hanna Barbara falls under the Viacom umbrella.)--can you tell how many years I worked at the park?
David was still hesitant to ride things but agreed to go on the helicopter ride.
Then we headed down to the water park area of the park and David's attitude changed completely. He was on board from then on out.
I loved the expression on his face when he would come down the water slide.

Erin and David coming out of one of the wave pools.
We went on the new ferris wheel and could see the whole park from up top. We had a great view of the Eiffle tower too. (not the on in France obviously--this one is just 333 1/3 feet tall exactly 1/3 the height of the real one)--again useless info that park employees have to know.

Erin cracks me up in this photo because I kept telling her to put the cotton candy down so I could see her face and some random lady told her that she should listen to her Mom and then Erin gave the lady this look.
At the end of the day I put the kids back in the car hoping that Kings Dominion had worn them out enough to get a good nights sleep. They were both out by the time we had made it 10 miles down the road. Victory!!!

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina...

2009-06-06T22:51:00.023-06:00

...wishing Miguel could have been here with us.

David is always taking care of his baby sister. What a nice brother!

We had the best beach vacation! The kids had so much fun at the beach. And what a difference a year makes! This time they actually wanted to go in the ocean. Last year they were still terrified of the waves. But this time they had a blast. They jumped over the little waves on the shore, played in the sand, and ran around crazy in the kids pools at the hotel.

Anya was just chillin' in one of the heated indoor pools.

Erin and David preferred the outdoor kids pools.

This is the water slide that Erin went down. She didn't even think twice. Just sat down and went for it. She is getting so big.

Maybe we went a little overboard on the floaties. Erin has two inner tubes.

That famous froggie slide. What a great idea for the little kids. All of the kids pools were just 1 ft. to 1.5 ft. deep.

Growing up my family always took us on summer vacations to Virginia Beach, the Outer Banks, and Myrtle Beach. I feel so blessed to be able to take my kids to those same places so they can have fun memories of the beach too.

Great Deal!

2009-06-06T22:22:00.003-06:00

So, most of you know how much I love a great deal right? I just have to spill about how happy I am that I got all of my dental work done in Mexico. (for those of you who have already read my post on facebook, ignore this) The Dentists/Endodontists in Salt Lake wanted to charge me $2,200 for my dental work. But I got it all done in Mexico for the equivalent of $320 U.S. dollars. That is about 1/7 the price! And the Endodontist and Dentist in Mexico did a great job and were much nicer to deal with. I would recommend this only if you have friends or family that live in Mexico that can personally recommend a specific doctor. I don't have much experience with those medical tourism websites. But this worked out great for us. I was able to get it done in the short time that we were there visiting Miguel's family. Gotta love a great deal!

Mexican family reunion...

2009-06-06T22:02:00.005-06:00

Our last night in Mexico we went to a big family dinner at Miguel's tio Oscar's house and got to see a lot of family that we hadn't seen in a really long time. And also some new family members that we hadn't met yet. Anya got to meet some of her second cousins that are close in age. She still doesn't have any first cousins but she has a ton of second cousins in Mexico.
And David finally met his match in little Felipe (another second cousin). Felipe is 4 but they are the same size and have the same interests and similar personalities. Poor David is surrounded by sisters and really enjoys the few chances he has to play with other boys his age. He was definitely happy to meet this little boy.

And here's some of the other family members that joined us for dinner.

continued from Mexico...

2009-06-06T20:43:00.010-06:00

So I am catching up on my posting from our vacation because I have not had access to a computer for a while. I wanted to post the pictures of our visit to Miguel's aunt's business. His Aunt is a famous, former politician in Mexico city whose daughter Norma (Miguel's cousin) is currently running for public office there. His Aunt is also the owner of the largest waste disposal/recycling center in all of Mexico. We dropped in to visit her unexpectedly on her day off and so she is more casual than normal in these pics. But we picked up the vibe that she is a very important person there because she had assistants everywhere that were waiting to do anything she asked of them and security guards at every gate.
She took us for a ride in the official CEO golf cart to give us a tour of the facilities. The property is like this huge compound where all of her workers live with their families. She built apartments where they can live for free. She also built convenience stores, schools, churches, and a free medical clinic for her employees. They earn a salary in addition to their benefits. Talk about creating employee loyalty! Here we are at the convenience store picking out whatever we wanted. Some of the smaller apartments are located on the second floor.

She also took us to see her son's house inside the compound. He changes the decor every year and this year's theme is African safari.

Then we got a tour of the actual waste operations. This is how the garbage from Mexico city arrives from the trash trucks.

Then, the line workers sort everything by material and color. Here is the mountain of clear and white plastics...

and some others pretty colors too.

And then everything gets bundled into cubes just like in the movie Wall-E. It was really surprising how clean the compound is for being a dump. There is only trash in its designated place. Ironically though, when we were in the business offices, I couldn't find the trash can to throw away Anya's tissue.

more fun in Mexico...

2009-05-23T19:32:00.028-06:00

We are still in Mexico having fun. So get ready for a ton of pics... I am catching up for the last few days. This picture is funny because the covered patio is the place where the carseats get the most use (when the kids are playing in them). Most of the time we fit 5 or 6 people in the back seat of the car and there is no room for carseats. They are not very common here. Even new cars dont have a latch system and the seatbelts are not the automatic locking retractor belts designed for carseats. So here the carseats rest.

Here are my kids going crazy in the back seat of the car because they have never been in a car without being strapped into their carseats. I think I have done a great job of just rolling with the punches and recognizing things that I cannot change and then moving on.

So today we went to this park at the University where Miguel used to attend school. This park is absolutely beautiful. The pictures speak for themselves. And we pretty much had the whole park to ourselves.

Anya continues to be clingy and whenever someone else is holding her and she spots me, she cries. Thats why she doesnt look so happy here, but she was having a blast before she saw me.

As we were walking through the first part of the trail that runs through the park, Erin asked me if we were in a jungle. Did I mention that their Tio Jose (12) and their Tia Vivi (almost 11) are great helpers. They always hold the kids hands when they are walking and Jose helps carry Anya a lot too.

Erin was looking at some interesting bugs in the grass.
Anya finally let me put her down.

And David wouldnt be David if he didnt find a stick and try to poke the fish in the pond. :)

We saw some cute turtles hiding on the rocks in the lake.

I am not sure what kind of flower this is but its definately unique.

Anya spent the rest of her time in the park resting on the shoulder of her Abuela.

The kids are really enjoying the company of their Tios and love visiting with their Abuelos.

David is always running off to the next thing.

After the first park, we went home to take a potty break and then we walked to the neighborhood park that is about 3 blocks away. We have gone there a number of times since we arrived because we can just walk to it and because the kids have so much energy!

Thats about all for now but I will keep posting from Mexico. We will be here for another 9 days and then its off to Virginia to see Grandpa!

Traveling...

2009-05-16T22:10:00.016-06:00

We made it to Mexico! I flew with the kids by myself this time. And somehow managed to make it through 2 flights then immigration and customs with 3 small children, all of our luggage and 3 carseats. Surprisingly I only broke down and cried twice. This was the only moment all day that they were calm (none of them slept on the plane) so I thought I would take a picture. But we are all here safe and sound and loving our vacation.
The kids love the giant wash tub that their Abuela bought for them.

Here David and his aunt Vivian, a.k.a. Tia Vivi, are jumping on the beds (while Erin is sleeping of course)

Anya has not had much practice with stairs and was still crawling down backwards until she just woke up one day and decided that she was going to go down the stairs like the big girls. After she did it the first time, she practiced her new trick 4 or 5 more times to make sure she had mastered it.

Their aunt Liliana, a.k.a. Tia Lili, had a birthday this weekend and we arrived just in time for her birthday party and the delicious catered taco bar. Here the taco guy is roasting the pork and shredding it with a big knife.

Here is the birthday girl and the other guests waiting in line for their tacos. They were sooooo good. I broke my diet and ate an ton of tacos (exact count undisclosed).

Here Erin is performing karaoke (to a Hanana Montana song of course).

Then today we went to the pool and let the kids swim all afternoon. I know I am biased but I think Anya makes a great beach babe.

Here she is sitting with her feet in the pool alongside her Abuela.

The girls loved swiming with their Abuelo too. I should mention that their Tia Vivi and Tio Jose helped a lot with the kids in the pool since they are both older and excelent swimmers.

Here David and Jose are about to get in the pool.

As always, David has to pose for the camera. What a silly boy.

He did it!

2009-05-12T00:05:00.003-06:00

David is officially potty trained! He is 3 1/2. We have been working on this for a long time and we thought he would never be fully potty trained and he IS! He is such an easygoing kid that the usual prizes (stickers, candy, toys) didn't really motivate him much. He enjoyed going to pick out a toy truck at the dollar store after he had reached his goal, but he didn't do it because of the toy truck, he did it because he was finally ready. I am so proud of him and so excited too. He is just so proud of himself. I can't remember the last time I had just one child in diapers. It's weird but I remember feeling a renewed sense of confidence as a mother after Erin finally learned to go potty and I have to say that it feels great to having done it the second time as well. It just occurred to me today that if Anya learns as young as Erin did then by this time next year our house will be diaper free! Now THAT will be a day of celebration. :)

Kids club...

2009-05-01T22:06:00.004-06:00

The kids were being mysteriously quiet the other day so I peeked into their room to see what they were up to. They were having a private meeting in their little "kids club" that they had created on Erin's bed. They were also sharing a bag of pretzels.

Anya is such a climber. Her new favorite place is on top of the kitchen table. Every time I turn my back she is perched up there again. This time she took the top off of the yogurt and smeared it all over the table, but was as happy as could be. I can't seem to keep her feet on the ground.

Easter Carnival...

2009-04-11T21:30:00.012-06:00

Today we went to the Easter Carnival at the historic Wheeler Farm. They had everything from face painting to pony rides. We had a lot of fun. It was packed though. I think maybe too many people heard about it and at $2 per person for an all day pass, it seemed like everyone in Salt Lake showed up. They had all of these bounce houses for the kids and one of them was a really small baby bounce house. So Anya got to bounce with Erin and David...

We had to wait in line for some things, but it was nice having time together as a family. And luckily, there were lots of fun things to do in line and tons of farm animals to look at.

We saw the Easter Bunny but Erin and David hesitated to get too close. Anya got closer than anyone but soon decided that she didn't like him either. When she doesn't like someone or something she puts her little hand out in front of her and says her favorite word, "STOP!"

David got to chase some ducks today. He just loves chasing ducks. He does it every week at Sugarhouse park too. He thinks its cool that they run away.
Anya loves ducks too. In fact she calls EVERY animal a "quack, quack." Although, today she did say "mooo" when we were watching the cows.

The kids got to color eggs and other craft projects. Erin colored a mask. They also got to watch a snake handler with a boa constrictor and attend a short hip hop dance class for kids.

They got to climb on antique tractors and we took a tractor pulled wagon ride out to the Easter egg patch.
I had to throw this picture in because David makes such a handsome little cowboy. He just loved being at the farm today. He loved running around and getting dirty. I really couldn't get mad at him for jumping in the mud, because we DID take him to a farm.

Easter Bunny House...

2009-03-12T19:42:00.005-06:00

The other day, we got a bunny house kit at the store. The kids had a blast building and decorating it. They made a huge mess. Then they got to eat little pieces of it for the next few days. It was a really fun family activity. Here is what it looked like before they ate it...

Still alive, just unpacking moving boxes...

2009-03-11T21:49:00.004-06:00

We are still alive, I promise. We just moved back to Salt Lake City. I have been unpacking boxes and painting and cleaning non-stop since we moved in. Every night when I put the kids to bed, I start cleaning, painting, or unpacking and I find myself at 2:00 a.m. still at it. I am a little overwhelmed at the amount of work this move has been. Part of it is because I am painting every, and I do mean EVERY surface (inside of closets, cabinets, ceilings) of this place. If you want to know my OCD reasons for this just send me an email and I will be glad to explain it.

We moved from the quiet suburbs of Spanish Fork back to the busy city in Salt Lake. I was trying to analyze this week if I am a city girl or a country girl and I haven't come to any definite conclusions although my friend Cynthia will tell you that I am a city girl. I do however see wonderful things about both places.

The suburbs are great here in Utah because of the wide open spaces, the big backyards and the kids playing in the culdesacs and riding bikes with the neighbor kids. And the kids actually go trick-or-treating door to door in those neighborhoods because it is so safe. All of that is nice. My complaint about S.F. is that if you ever want to grab a burger, or anything for that matter, after 10:00 p.m., good luck finding one... and enjoy your 15 minute drive on I-15 to the Provo exit. Also, of course if you are looking for your favorite, national chain stores (Old Navy, Barnes & Noble, Target, Toys R Us, Best Buy) your trip will take you all the way to Orem (20-25 min. in traffic). Here everyone has to commute to work. And here's a petty one for you... all of the houses look exactly the same! There's no telling your friends to take a left at the stop sign and yours is the blue house on the left. Blue, red, green, etc. houses are hard to come by. Every house has some shade of brown or gray with stonework or bricks and/or stucco. You'd have to say, take a left at the stop sign and mine is the 12th tan house with stonework and stucco on the left. Don't get me wrong, the houses are very nice and new there, just a little too cookie cutter with the colors and styles. And yes, I know this one is a personal preference.

Then there's the city. Not as safe, obviously. Tons of cars and creepy people. Very small yards if any. Air pollution. No neighborhood trick-or-treating. But here are the things that I missed out in the suburbs: Big city parks. One of the most walkable cities in America. Nice clean UTA buses on almost every street and TRAX trains (you really don't need a car at all). Any product or service you could imagine at a stone's throw. Big box stores. Shopping malls. Private schools. I have taken the kids out in the stroller almost every day this week. The sidewalks are clean and the crosswalks at intersections have electronic pedestrian walk signs. Even if we limit our walks to a 6 block radius, we can walk to 2 grocery stores, 3 playgrounds, 1 elementary school 2 preschools, the post office, two 7-11 stores, 3 restaurants,2 children's clothing stores, 2 fabric stores, 3 hair salons and 2 spas. If we extended that radius to 10 blocks (which we have walked plenty of times) we would include an 8 screen movie theatre, Toys R Us, Barnes & Noble, Old Navy, Panda Express, Noodles and Company, 3 more grocery stores, a third 7-11 store, 3 more elementary schools, 1 public library, 3 historical landmarks, 4 more playgrounds, 5 Auto repair shops,15 more restaurants, etc. I guess I love the freedom to walk where ever we need to go and not having to pack everyone in the car and drive 5 exits down the interstate to get somewhere. This way we get more exercise and sunshine. And both of those things make me happy.

So I guess my question is this: if money were no option, would you choose to live in a small town suburban area or would you live in a big city?

Erin's friend...

2009-02-24T08:30:00.002-07:00

I just had to post this picture of Erin and her friend Isabella. They play together all the time and I'm sure Erin will miss Isabella when we move. She has been such a good friend to my little girl.

Starting day 5...

2009-02-10T08:33:00.002-07:00

I am starting day 5 of the cleanse. Day 4 was the hardest for me. I think that was my "detox" day. It wasn't too bad, but I woke up with aches and pains in all of my muscles and a small headache. It got better as the day went on, but I was cranky all day. I woke up this morning with a lot more energy and a few pounds lighter. I am down 7 lbs. after the first 4 days. I'm sure this is all water weight and colon cleansing though. I have not exercised really at all. I've heard that most people have a ton of energy from day 5 through day 10 so, I am excited to finally feel an energy boost. Still not hungry!

4 down, 6 to go!

"Mommy, me fix it with tape. K?"

2009-02-08T22:11:00.003-07:00

So, I heard some noises in the kitchen just now and I noticed that all of the lights were on. I found David in the kitchen going through the junk drawer and when he heard me come in he turns around and holds up Erin's Barbie doll and a roll of tape and looks up at me sweetly but nervously (not knowing if he was in trouble) and says, "Mommy, me fix it with tape. K?" I love that he immediately thought to fix it as he is our little fix-it-guy and that he was going to fix it with a huge roll of packing tape. He is so cute.

Homemade Laundry Soap!

2009-02-08T17:22:00.003-07:00

Last night Cynthia came over to help me make my first batch of homemade laundry soap. It's really easy to make. Took us about 30 min. and now I have 180 (top load washer) loads of liquid laundry soap for approx. $2. I have already tried it on 3 loads and it works great! It doesn't create bubbles though so I googled the problem and found out that its the soap and not the bubbles that cleans clothes. Actually, the stuff they put in detergents to cause the bubbles can damage your washing machine and take years off its useful life.

I used Michelle Duggar's recipe. You know, the one with 18 kids. I got all of the ingredients at our local Macey's grocery store.
So, here is the recipe if anyone wants it:

Homemade Liquid Laundry Soap- Front or top load machine- best value

4 Cups hot tap water
1 Fels-Naptha soap bar
1 Cup Washing Soda
½ Cup Borax

- Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.

-Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.

-Stir and fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser half full with soap and then fill rest of way with water. Shake before each use. (will gel)

-Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.

-Yield: Liquid soap recipe makes 10 gallons.

-Top Load Machine- 5/8 Cup per load (Approx. 180 loads)

-Front Load Machines- ¼ Cup per load (Approx. 640 loads)

Day 3 of the Cleanse...

2009-02-08T17:00:00.003-07:00

Today is the third day of my "Master Cleanse" experience. I have 7 more days to go! The cleanse drink consists of: filtered water, cayenne pepper, fresh squeezed lemon juice, and organic, grade B maple syrup. That's all I have had to eat/drink for the last 3 days. Well, that and a salt water mixture in the morning and at night that flushes everything out of my colon.

With the exception of about 10 minutes the first day, I haven't felt any hunger at all. I didn't like the taste of the drink the first 2 days but today it has been much better. I have to admit though, cooking for Miguel and the kids isn't fun. But I am able to make myself just enjoy the rich smells of the food and then drink my cleanse drink and be satisfied. I have cravings from time to time but they usually hit when it's about time for my next drink (every 2 hours). I feel like I am getting a lot of the toxins (from fast food, soda, sweets, ect.) out of my body. I have been in a good mood overall and have been fairly productive. A pleasant side effect of the cleanse is that I have lost 3 lb. in 3 days.

I will keep updating the blog with my progress. It is a good way for me to deal with this experience that at times can be difficult. I'm sure this next week will be great though. Everyone that has done this cleanse says that days 3 and 4 are the hardest. Wish me Luck!

Dance with me...

2009-02-06T03:30:00.004-07:00

Erin and David love to dance together but until now I had never thought to get it on tape. They must get their dancing talent from their Mexican genes.

From the mouths of babes...

2009-02-03T15:25:00.002-07:00

This conversation took place the other night before bedtime:

Mom: "Erin and David, you have 10 minutes till bedtime."
Erin: (Whining) "But mom, Nooooo."
Mom: (Sarcastically) "Okay, then 5 minutes."
Erin: (Smiling) "Okay!"

Kids are so funny sometimes.

Jellyfish, Stingrays and Sharks,.. oh my!

2009-01-31T23:02:00.014-07:00

Today I finally took the kids to the Aquarium for the first time. I have been wanting to take them there for over a year. They LOVED it! The whole way home, I turned off the radio so we could talk about the stuff they liked and their favorite parts. It was a 45 min. drive home and we never ran out of conversation. I'm glad we finally made the trip.

Designing Women...

2009-01-28T02:56:00.005-07:00

Today Erin wanted me to see her bed that she made. She loves coming up with different looks for her bed. Not only is she my little fashionista, she is my little interior designer. I went to look at it and was surprised once again at her ability to come up with new designs. I love the color block stripes with the blankets and the different pillows. It's funny because I remember when I was little, loving to decorate for parties and making everything look stylish and cool. I still enjoy design. I love watching her enjoy it even more. Here's her design of the day...

Some new tools...

2009-01-28T01:21:00.002-07:00

We had a great time at the Successful Mothering Convention this weekend. We listened to speakers on everything from parenting peacefully to getting the spice back in our marriages. As promised, I took notes on the things that the speakers presented. So here are a few things (by topic) that I learned...

Parenting:

1. Explain EVERYTHING that a child can expect in a new situation. Then check for comprehension.
2. TEACH instead of TIME-OUTS. Personally, I like to combine the two. But I think the point of the speaker was that we tend to focus more on the punishment than on the teaching that could go on before, during and after the situation.
3. Get your child to "Buy into" the consequences of their actions. An example: Your child bites another child. They need to understand their actions have hurt someone else and they need to help in healing/taking care of the other child (i.e. Going to get the Neosporin and the Band Aid for them). I think there are situations in which this might work.
4. Say YES! every chance you get, but on your own terms. i.e. "Yes, you can have a cookie, right after you finish your dinner" I know I am guilty of using the word NO far too often with my kids.
5. Use "preventive parenting" and avoid control battles. Head them off at the corner.
6. Pull them out of their bad mood and into a happy place with your imaginations and positive outlook.

The last one is my favorite. I've already tried this on Erin and it works wonders...
7. To eliminate whining or sassy talk... i.e. "MOMMY! I WANT IT NOW!" (imagine the whiny, demanding voice) Get in front of their face and repeat it exactly how they just said it in a whiny voice. Then say it the polite way, "Mommy, could I please have it now" (in a sweet voice). Then say, "Repeat." If you make it clear that they have to repeat it and show that you are waiting to hear it, they will do it in the nice voice that you used. I tried this one for the first time with Miguel in the audience and he was amazed at how well it worked. Frankly, I was amazed too.
(combination of teachings from Shelly Locke and Paula Fellingham's classes)

Dating your Husband:

1. Use what little time you have together to talk about uplifting things instead of venting about the bad parts of your day.
2. Plan for dates like you did when you first met. Put on your best outfit, perfume, make-up, ect., and get excited about the date.
3. Take pictures on your dates and make an album or blog you can refer back to. Sounds cheesy but it could be cool.
4. Get into your husband's head. Maybe he would rather have tickets to his favorite team than a new tie. Or he might love it if you cleaned his car.
(Lindsey Rietzsch's class)

Grocery Deals:

1. Don't go to Costco or Sam's for food! Always buy the smallest, and buy it on sale. (Use a coupon too)
2. Plan your week's menu solely around the sale items on the front of the grocery ad. from your favorite store. Don't go to multiple stores.
3. Don't clip coupons and organize. For every 100 you clip you will probably only use 10 and you wasted time clipping the other 90. Just 3-hole punch the insert and stick it in a 3-ring binder that you take with you.
4. Grocery coupons typically last for 2 months and the same ones come out every 4 weeks... meaning you don't really need 4 or 5 copies of the Sunday paper. 2 will suffice.
I am guilty of having 5 copies. So I learned something new. Although I do enjoy the 5 copies of coupons when I get great deals on non-grocery items like shampoo, razors, ect.
This class was a great supplement to the other couponing classes I have taken. I do have to point out that food storage was not addressed and that is a major thing that I coupon for. So maybe it isn't so bad having 5 copies when you get something down to a "stock-up" price.
(The Grocery Guru's class)

Motherhood:

This class was titled, "Exchanging Martyrdom for Motherhood"
1. We need to remember that we CHOSE motherhood as a career. No one forced us to become mothers.
2. Just like any other job, it has its glamorous points (pros) and its not so glamorous points (cons). Maybe we should exchange the word cons for "not fun things."
3. We need to start giving OURSELVES high fives and pats on the back because it will be a long sad journey if we are waiting for someone else to do it. Motherhood is not like other jobs where you get praised by your boss or promotions/raises.
(Rachelle Hughes class)

The convention was awesome. I feel refreshed and ready to put these new tools to work. I can't wait for next year's conference!

p.s. Thanks Jenn, Cynthia, and Abby for going with me.

Sunbeams...

2009-01-19T01:01:00.002-07:00

I just have to say that I love our new sunbeams class. We had great kids last year and we miss them all. But I love our new kids. We are just getting to know them as they've only been in ourclass for 3 weeks. But they are so much fun and they say the cutest things. They definitley keep me on my toes though. As stressful as it is sometimes I'm really glad we have this calling.

What a mess!

2009-01-12T00:44:00.003-07:00

The kids did this to the wall in our bedroom! What did moms do before Mr. Clean came out with his magic eraser?

Happy 1st Birthday Anya!

2009-01-12T00:19:00.008-07:00

Anya had her first birthday this week. As some of you know, I have long since believed that when a baby turns 1, it is the mother that deserves a party-- for surviving the first year. We had a small family party for her. I made the cake very last minute. Not my best work, but she loved the cake... obviously.

Yes Ashley, I do have Zapatos!

2009-01-12T00:16:00.002-07:00

Ashley is the only one who will get this post.

Successful Mothering Convention...

2009-01-06T00:03:00.004-07:00

It's that time of year again. The day I look forward to all year long is just a couple of weeks away! Every year I go to the Successful Mothering convention. It's a day just for moms. I go with my friends and am always excited to invite everyone I know to attend. They have the best classes and presentations for every type of mother out there. It is in Sandy at the South Towne Expo Center and it costs just $15 if you purchase your tickets online in advance. I hope all of you in the Utah area will come with us on Sat. January 24th and enjoy a really fun day for mothers.

You can get more info from the website www.successfulmothering.org

GO UTES!

2009-01-02T21:42:00.005-07:00

Go UTES! The University of Utah just won the Sugar Bowl! I don't even like football, but I was glued to the TV for this one. Miguel is a student at the U, and proud of it. Great game UTES!

She's walking!

2009-01-01T10:26:00.007-07:00

Its official. Anya's walking! We were hoping she would walk while her aunt Paula was here visiting and she did. Before she could only walk one or two steps and then she would fall. She put on a show for us this Tuesday and walked a record 7 steps and then a few minutes later, 10 steps! We got it all on video too but I was unsuccessful at transferring the video to the computer. I did get some pictures of it though.

"mommy, me feed Anya..."

2009-01-01T09:42:00.005-07:00

This morning I heard Erin and David get up but I still hadn't heard anything from Anya yet. She normally cries until we go to get her out of her crib. I went to check on her and found David next to her crib feeding her cereal through the railing. I asked David what he was doing and he sweetly reported back, "Mommy, me feed Anya so she be happy." He is such a nice brother.

Happy Anniversary Miguel!

2008-12-20T03:46:00.005-07:00

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...

2008-12-20T03:39:00.003-07:00

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...

2008-12-20T03:37:00.001-07:00

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...

2008-12-08T02:01:00.003-07:00

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...

2008-11-30T20:55:00.009-07:00

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"...

2008-11-29T01:42:00.004-07:00

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...

2008-11-29T01:30:00.004-07:00

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!!!

2008-11-13T23:28:00.004-07:00

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!!!

2008-11-03T02:41:00.009-07:00

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!

2008-11-03T02:36:00.002-07:00

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...

2008-10-26T22:23:00.004-06:00

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...

2008-10-26T21:52:00.003-06:00

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...

2008-10-19T23:56:00.011-06:00

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...

2008-10-15T01:49:00.017-06:00

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...

2008-10-14T00:23:00.004-06:00

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...

2008-10-11T21:46:00.009-06:00

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?

Outdoor Adventure...

2008-10-05T21:17:00.015-06:00

Tonight after conference we drove up Payson canyon and attempted to get some good fall pictures of the kids. After we had gotten some good pics, the kids had fun climbing on the rocks and throwing pebbles into the river. I am the opposite of an outdoors person so I was proud of myself for hiking by the river and staying so long despite the thick clouds of mosquitos in the area. Most of the pics turned out great. But anyone that has kids knows that you can't make everyone happy all the time. So there are some shots in which Erin is crying.

Cute Kids

2008-10-05T00:11:00.012-06:00

Today, I really enjoyed watching the kids interact with each other. They are really starting to show their true personalities and take there place in the family as sisters and brother. Erin is growing up so fast. She knows how to do so many things. For example, I asked her to make her and David's beds this morning and she was so proud of the job that she did.

Later the kids were loving it when I was taking their picture together. They really do get along most of the time. It's great that they always will have someone to play with.

Also, I finally remembered to take a picture of Anya standing up. She's been doing it for about a month now but I just didn't have a pic of it.

At the end of the day, I just love being a mother to these great kids, and I know I'm biased, but they are just so darn cute. Even David, when he is not driving me crazy, he looks like this...

Here's another cute one of Anya...

Cheap Haircuts...

2008-09-23T01:47:00.005-06:00

Tonight I had Miguel cut my hair. I only get a haircut once, maybe twice, a year and I didn't want to pay for a haircut so I made Miguel do it! I am the official hairstylist in our family, not because I have any training, but by default. I am actually pretty good at cutting Miguel and David's hair as I get to practice every 4-5 weeks. And I am pretty good at cutting Erin's hair too. I cut her bangs every 5 weeks. So after all of the free haircuts that I have given in the past 4 years, I figured it was about time for me to get my haircut for free. I told Cynthia that I was planning on getting Miguel to cut it and she thought I was absolutely crazy. But I did it anyway and it actually turned out nice enough. I "trained" him first of course. And I walked him through it every step of the way. He was so nervous at first, but he quickly got the hang of it. I told him I was closing my eyes and pretending I was at a spa and my pedicure was next. He laughed. And as he became more confident, I joked with him that if his career ever falls through he now has a backup plan. He wasn't amused. He really did do a pretty decent job though. He even layered it. Of course with hair as curly as mine it's easier to hide any imperfections. And I can't believe I'm doing this but here's a picture of me after the experience. Try to focus on the hair and not the fact that my eyes are closed, I'm in my pijamas, and I have absolutely no make-up on.

Attention viewers: Do Not Try This at Home...

Mom, can we ride bikes again?

2008-09-20T22:09:00.000-06:00

Lately, the exciting thing around here is bike riding. A friend of ours randomly gave us some hand-me-down bikes for the kids. Erin and David were so excited that they practiced for 3 hours that same day and taught themselves how to ride their new bikes. Now they beg to ride their bikes everyday.

Also, Erin started preschool two weeks ago and is so excited about her new preschool friends and her teacher. On the days she has school she is lightning fast at getting ready in the morning. She even puts her crayons in her backpack and puts on her shoes early. I took some pics of her on her first day of school.