Then and Now

Shortly after moving to Az and joining a mom's group I met a wonderful person who has since become one of my good friends. Adrianna is leaving for a few months and I will miss her! I thought this would be a perfect time to look back on one of my fonder memories of our two girls. Adrianna has a daughter who is very close in age to Madison and when the girls were younger it was very hard to tell the two apart. They both had lighter hair and pretty much bald heads. They were roughly the same size and developmentally the same, for the most part. In the first picture (taken when the girls were about 8 mos.) they look very similar to each other and the second picture was just taken August 1st (Girls are 2) and it is evident how much they have grown and how they each have their own look now. Adrianna and I still laugh about how much they looked alike and how we always had a hard time telling them apart. I just know that Adrianna is going to be one of those friends that will be in my life for a long time and hopefully our girls will be able to grow up together (along with many of my other friends and their amazing kids).

Back to School

Makenzie started back to school on Monday (orientation) and then her first official day was Wed.

Makenzie had missed school so much so she was not scared or upset when it was time for me to go. She did seem sad to leave Madison and told her, "I will miss you best friend!" That made my heart melt, but for the most part I was tear-free. Makenzie goes to an awesome school and they served us all breakfast and had a present for all of the parents which was called a cry baby bag or a parent survival kit. Attached was a little letter that I thought was so precious I had to share it:

Dear parents,

After you have wiped your tears, make yourself a cup of tea. Put your feet up and relax and take a minute to remember a few things while holding...

Cotton Ball- The softness will help you to remember the gentle spirit of your child

Rubber Band- Remember to help your child learn the possibilities and importance of having a flexible mind, heart and body. Stretch them, but not to the breaking point.

Candle- Celebrate life with your child. We usually celebrate birthdays and other special occasions, but overlook life's daily triumphs. Everyday miracles and extraordianary effort are reason enough to celebrate.

String- Think of it as a kite string- and remember to let your child soar, but don't let go of the string.

Penny- This is for your child's thoughts. Remember to have a conversation. lots of conversations. Don't just tell your child what you think or what they should think. Find out what they think. Encourage them to think for themselves. then listen very, very carefully.

Cross- Remember that Jesus loves you and your child

Thank you for entrusting your child with us. we promise to do our best every day to be your child's companion in learning and growing, both academically and spiritually.

Blessings, your staff at Christ Greenfield Lutheran preschool

Summer Fun!

With school starting tomorrow, I thought that I would recap our summer and some of the amazing experiences that we have had.

My Friends

This is just a few of the amazing women that I am lucky to call my friends. Moving out here two years ago I never thought that I would meet a group of ladies that are as amazing, friendly, understanding and supportive as these wonderful women. We try to meet at least once a week and all of us have at least one kid that is around the same age. This particular picture was taken at a birthday party for sweet mackenzie!

D-Backs Game July 24th, 2009

We had so much fun at the diamond back stadium. They have an amazing play land for the kids and a peter piper pizza inside. The girls loved playing and eating super expensive stadium food. We were really high up though which was kinda scary when you have an energetic 2 year old, but it all worked out and will definitely be going to another game soon!

Maddie's 2nd Birthday at CEC

I have very fond memories of Chuck E. Cheese since I worked there for most of high school. I have always thought they were a great company and provide so much fun. Makenzie had her first birthday at CEC and now Madison has celebrated a birthday there as well. It was so much fun and she was able to celebrate with some of her closest friends. Madison ended up with a black eye (which Brian attributes to the coger birthday curse), but she really enjoyed herself and I think had an awesome birthday!

Toddler Mcdonalds

One of my favorite things about AZ is how kid friendly everything is. There is so many options to get your kids out of the heat and one of the cheapest is the Toddler Mcdonalds. They have an entire play area dedicated to toddlers. It can get pretty crowded, but we were able to meet up with our friend baby mackenzie and her mommy for some lunch and play before it got too packed!

4th of July

One of my earliest childhood memories is going to Fairmont Park in CA and having BBQ's. If anyone knows my mom it is one of her favorite parks and she suggests going there for any holiday which permits having a BBQ. This was where we spent the fourth of July and it was a ton of fun! We played badminton for a couple hours (YES HOURS) and sat by the lake enjoying awesome food and visiting with family and friends.

Night Swimming Anyone?

Our first night in CA, my mom insisted that we all break out our bathing suits and go swimming. Madison couldn't stay awake, but the rest of us were swimming around 11PM. Makenzie thought it was the coolest thing in the whole world taht we could stay up late to go swimming!

Road Trip

This is one of my favorite pictures from our road trip to CA. It was not a really special drive and is one that we have made dozens of times, but I wanted to make it seem more like a vacation so me and the girls played all kinds of games and took a dozen pictures. This was during a stop for gas. While in Ca we got to do two things I have never done before which is visit the L.A. Zoo (free with my Phoenix zoo membership) and the aquarium of the pacific (which is fantastic!!!)

Makenzie's Birthday Party

Makenzie celebrated her fourth birthday at build-a- Bear. She really wanted to have it there and wanted to invite her entire class. It was so much fun watching all of the kids make their bears, but I thought the best part was seeing all of her classmates react when they saw each other. They had been on summer vacation for about a month before Makenzie's party so when they saw each other they were giving hugs and were so excited to see each other. Makenzie and madison still are sleeping with the bears they made so I think it was a hit!

Veg Pledge

As some of you may know, before getting pregnant with makenzie I was a vegetarian. At that time, I wanted to eat healthier and I have a liking for for pigs and cows. I think they are cute so I felt bad eating them. I lasted for a long time, but when I got pregnant I craved burgers. That was probably the reason that I gained so much weight during that pregnancy. I seriously had like three burgers a day at least. Since then I have just not had the motivation to go back. Growing up a meat eater it is just easier and more convenient for me to cook meat rather than try to be creative in thinking up veg recipes. However, I have really wanted to go back and try it again. The last couple weeks I have been strongly considering it and I keep coming across more and more things that are pushing me in that direction. So, it is official starting Monday june 15th I am no longer going to be eating meat. I took a pledge through PETA to try it for 30 days in which I will see how manageable it is for me with 2 kids and a husband (who is NOT giving up meat). This time around there is a variety of reasons for doing this. Some of the reasons are:

It is healthier

Vegetarians have more energy, lower cholesterol and are at lower risk for heart disease

It helps save animals

The grain used to feed live stock can be used to help feed the hungry

Cows and pigs are cute (some people may think poultry/seafood is cute)

One thing I cannot give up is dairy. I like milk, cheese, etc. and no amount of soy substitutes are going to make up for it. Other than that no beef, pork, poultry or seafood for at least 30 days, but quite possibly longer. If anyone knows any tasty vegetarian recipes please send them my way and wish me luck!

Animal LOVE

Among other things, last week me and the girls went shopping at old Navy. they were having a sale on dresses and skirts so I wanted to stop by and see if I could find anything. The first thing Madison sees is the Manequins standing at the front of the store. They are the ones in the commercial with the moms and dads and kids and a DOG!!! Madison was hooked. We spent at least fifteen minutes while Madison hugged the "kids" and pet the "dog". I had to drag her away so I could, heaven forbid, shop for clothes. Makenzie was waiting to see the doggie on the bench so we eventually made our way to the kids section, but there was no dog. Makenzie was so bummed. I got them bouncie balls to keep them occupied (big mistake bc every 2 seconds I was chasing after someone's ball) while I finished shopping. As we made our way to the dressing room Makenzie screamed, "there he is!!!!!!" The dog was in the dressing room. the girls ran over and spent the next ten minutes sitting with the dog. Makenzie asked if I could take their picture so here it is.

Following the animal theme, Madison has been working on her animal sounds. I thought it would be cute to take a video of her practicing. (Please excuse the laundry in the background...it was laundry day!)

Okay so NO video... i started posting this at 3:00 and it is now 7:30 and is still not uploaded. I will edit this later

A tutto c'è rimedio, fuorchè alla morte

The last month has been especially rough. I received a phone call letting me know that my friend's two year old daughter had passed away. It was a shock to everyone. She wasn't sick or anything, but was invloved in a horrible freak accident. The emotions spilled over. Being a mother, I cannot imagine what the loss of a child is like. Makenzie and Madison both slept with me that night and I could do nothing, but cry and hold my girls. It is in times like these that my faith is tested. How could something like this happen??? Why?? What is the purpose of taking a little girl from her family when she had so much more to do and see ? I just don't know. I was able to attend the memorial service which was agonizing. What words are there to console a family who has experienced such a loss? I even found myself sitting on the floor at Walmart crying because there are no sympathy cards that can express how sympathetic I am, how much I want to do to help, and how nothing anyone can do will help ease the pain. Death has always had a profound impact on me. It makes me realize that life is too short to waste. I find myself evaluating my time with my girls and wondering if I am making the most of it. Today, I found out that an old friend lost his mother to cancer. She was an amazing woman. One of the kindest women that you could ever meet. So, today I am asking myself again, Why? Why was this mother taken when her kids still needed her so much? Although I know that i will never know the answers to these questions, this has served as a reminder that each moment is special and you never know where life will lead so it is important to make the most of it. I want to cherish my girls, my marriage, my family and friends.

Funny Faces

The girls have been so funny trying to make different faces. Especially Madison... She will drop everything to do her funny faces on command. The top image is her mad face. She growls while making that face. It is hilarious. The second image is the silly face. The girls were than happy to take a picture making their silly face.

Finally an update!!!

Okay, okay I know it has been forever since I updated my blog. So many things have happened since I last updated. Probably too much to mention. We made a trip to CA at the beginning of May. Although it wasn't very eventful we did get to spend a relaxing day at the lake. The girls built castles and collected shells. It was a beautiful day and we were pretty much the only ones there. The next day we went to Uncle Boo's volleyball game and then headed to Pizza Hut with everyone. The girls always enjoy spending time with their grandparents and uncles.

Fast forward to Memorial Day. My dad came over and we had a BBQ of ribs and chicken. My dad and I took the girls swimming while Brian cooked and then we all ate and watched a movie together. it was nice to get some quality family time. The next day my mom came out from CA so she could watch the girls while i got my wisdom teeth removed. I had all four removed on Thur. I have on and off again discomfort, but the pain is pretty much gone. The girls have been doing a lot of swimming with G.G. and art projects. They have been making me "feel better" lady bugs, flowers, pictures. It is so cute!!!

Friday we spent some time in Scottsdale at my uncle's house. My two aunts, two uncles, cousin, her boyfriend, my dad, his girlfriend, my mom, and my family all got together for another BBQ. We had fun catching up and spending some time together. It has been over a year since we all got together. The girls loved playing hide-and-seek with their two great aunts and G.G.

Last night Brian and I went out to celebrate my friend Sue's birthday. We had a lot of fun and a much needed break from the every day. It is so rare that both of us can go out together. However, I forgot that I was not supposed to drink through a straw for a week and I did so my mouth hurt so much last night.

Date Night

Last night was so great. Me and Brian had our first date night in over 2 years. Moving to Arizona was hard for both of us because we were leaving our families behind. We quickly found out that our occasional nights out and little breaks from parenthood were gone. We didn't know anyone well enough to have them baby sit so one of us always stays home to watch the girls, but last night my mom watched the girls and Brian and I headed out to dinner with some friends. I haven't seen my friend belinda in months and it was wonderful catching up with her and meeting her new boyfriend. We actually were able to engage in adult conversation and talk about something other than kids. After our dinner we headed to the movies. This was HUGE for us. We have not been to a movie together in over 3 years. We watched The Haunting in Connecticut which was okay, but it felt amazing to be out. Brian and I were actually able to hold hands act like a couple again. Usually, because we have 2, we are running after one kid or the other and holding their hands, pushing strollers, etc. It was definitely a nice change! I wish we had taken some pictures, but I forgot! Anyways, we had a great time

Our Museum Adventure

We decided to take advantage of the 3 for Free on sundays at the museums in downtown Mesa. We just visited Artville in march so I was eager to visit the AZ Museum of Natural History. I had heard wondeful things about this museum. When we got to the museum we realized that a lot of people take advantage of the free sundays so it was packed!!!! Growing up in Southern California where there is a lot of big museums, zoos, theme parks, etc. I am continuously being disappointed by the attractions in AZ, and this museum was just okay. I felt that a lot of the exhibits were plastic and fake, but for the girls they had some cool stuff that kept them entertained.


Here we are standing outside of the museum. The girls were more interested in their snacks than the dinosaur behind us!


This dinosaur was the coolest one in the museum. Brian pretended to feed Madison to the dinosaur and she thought that was hilarious. I was afraid they were going to knock down the exhibit because every time he lifted her up there, I saw the dino shake a little.



I don't think Brian was having much fun! (Might have been because we had just lost makenzie. she wandered out of our sight and we were freaking out trying to find her. She learned her lesson because she stayed attached to us the rest of the trip. )




The girls were watching the big dinosaur exhibit. The noise of the water and the t-rex that kept moving was exciting for them.





Makenzie taking a picture with the meteorite.

Men...

Last night was the night of my cheer banquet and it was amazing!!! Everything went to so smoothly and it was a fun and emotional night. A few of my girls brought me flowers and then the varsity coach gave me a bouquet of flowers as well. I was ecstatic because I love receiving flowers and I rarely get them. I brought them home to Brian so he could put them in water because I was headed over to a friend's house. When i got home Brian was already in bed so i checked to make sure that he put my flowers in water. Well, he sure did. rather than look for a vase to put them in, he filled up the sink and stuck them in there. It was pretty funny and I just had to take a picture.

Sometimes kids are so funny...

Makenzie had dance class today and as we were leaving the girls wanted to get a drink from the drinking fountain. Usually I hold the girls up there so they are tall enough to reach the fountain, but Freestone Rec Center conveniently has step stools so children can get their own drinks. Makenzie went first and had no problems so, of course, Madison wanted to do it by herself as well. Unfortunately, she was still not tall enough to reach the stream of water, but watching her try over and over again was hilarious. I pulled out my camera and got most of it on tape, but I did miss the first few tries where she totally wet her head. She was so determined though and kept at it. I couldn't help but laughing because it was so funny and adorable at the same time! I finally helped her out and lifted her up there so she could get a drink. *** In the background you will hear Makenzie begging me to get her on camera ( I think someone was a little jealous).

Goal for Myself

So now that cheer is over I am going to take some time for myself and lose this baby weight (or in my case toddler weight). My motivation is Brian and my trip to Nashville in the fall. I want to lose 50 pounds in between now and then. I definitely think that I can do it as long as i stick with it and find a time that is feasible for me and the girls. The hardest thing will be eating the right foods. I am just tired of not feeling like myself. It has been three years of being in this strange persons body and I am determined to get mine back before it is too late! I know I am going to need support and encouragement along the way, but I am ready to do this!

So, cheer is officially over!!! I can't say that I am not ecstatic. I mean I definitely enjoyed getting back into coaching and anyone who has ever coached knows how rewarding the experience can be, but then again when you have 15 teenage girls that you are in charge of, it can be enough to drive you insane. These last few weeks were especially stressful as we were preparing for our competition. In those weeks we had practice every day and our squad dwindled down to 10 so instead of practicing our routine over and over we had to constantly keep changing it to adapt to our new number. It was extremely frustrating for me because it caused me to stay up late at night making these changes, but also it was hard to see the disappointment on the girls' faces every time they found out another girl had quit. Why were all these girls quitting??? Well, I guess the only way that I can sum it up is that they were not dedicated and did not care at all about the girls (friends) that they were affecting by making selfish decisions. I was also frustrated with the parents of these girls who enable their children to quit when they don't like something rather than sticking it out. I feel if you make a commitment to something you should see it through good or bad and then afterwardes choose whether or not to do it again. I see these girls treat their parents with such little respect and, in turn, I got the exact same treatment from a majority of these girls. Again, I am grateful for the experience because I feel that i am learning to be a better parent by learning how to deal with a variety of different personalities. Also i am getting prepared for when I have 2 teenage girls in my own home. (I know I am a long way off, but practice makes perfect... right?) Anyways, yesterday was the Competition. 17 hours of cheerleading!!! we left at 6:30 AM and did not get back until 11PM. Cheer competitions are a way of proving yourself in the cheerleading world. You are proving yourself to the other schools, the judges, the parents, and colleges that come to scout out cheerleaders. In the case of our school we also had to prove ourselves to the other squads within our own school. This makes it very stressful for a coach, especially one who has not choreographed anything in over 3 years. I was so nervous and even threw up in the morning from butterflies. Even though we had to be there at 7:30 AM we did not perform until almost 5PM. So I had all that time to scope out what other squads were doing and how I might measure up. I felt like I was going to pass out from nerves!!! Finally we were up and I have to say that i am so proud of my girls. They did amazing considering what we had gone through in the last couple weeks and the limited time they had to practice our final routine. We hit almost everything and the things that we messed up on were things that could have been fixed with more time. I was so happy with the end result. In the end we were fourth place. It wasn't enough to get anounced or receive a trophy, but it was enough for me and the girls seemed to be happy as well. We had proved ourselves and showed that even through adversity we could get something accomplished. Thank you girls for sticking with it and showing so much dedication and working so hard. I could not have asked for a better group of girls to end the season with.

Birthday Curse

Some people may know about Brian's curse, but for those who do not Brian has a birthday curse. Either on or around his birthday (usually the day we plan to celebreate his birthday) he has to work and while at work he experiences some sort of freak accident where he gets hurt. A couple of years ago he had a wood chip fly into his eye, last year he was very close to an explosion, and this year was no different. His birthday was Friday, but we were celebrating on saturday by going out to dinner and a movie but during the day he had to go into work. The night before we had been joking about the curse and so when i got a call from his co worker that he was hurt I thought it was a practical joke. When I called back and heard the panic in his co workers voice and brian got on the phone and said it was pretty bad i knew that it was not a joke. I rushed to the hospital and was told that he has cut his arm very bad (not off--thankfully). I was completely unprepared for what I was about to see. I go into ER room number 12 and Brian asked me excitedly if i wanted to see it. He lifted up the guaze and his arm just fell open. The gash was about eight inches long, over an inch deep and about 2 inches wide. It was quite a shock!!! The doctore informed us that it was a pretty clean cut and he paraded other doctors, med students, and even the security guard in the room to show them this massive wound. He had cut himself so deeply that when he flexed his hand you could clearly see the muscle moving. the doctore pointed out muscles, nerves, and other parts and tissues that people cannot normally see. The wound required over 100 stitches in several layers in order for it close. Overall it was a very stressful ordeal and Brian is going to be fine. throughout the process brian made me take progression pictures so i thought that I would share them.

***Please be advised these pictures are graphic and bloody so do not look if you are squeemish.

A Good education is priceless (but it comes with a hefty price tag)

I don't think anyone tells you the insane amount of worries that comes with having children. I mean it goes from the obvious like sickness and eating habits to the less obvious such as education. That is where my current problem lies. Makenzie goes to an amazing school!!! The teachers are great, the staff is very friendly, the kids all seem happy, and the tuition is reasonably priced. However, I do not feel that Makenzie is being challenged as academically as I would like. The problem first came up in the beginning of the school year when a friend of mine and I were comparing our children's preschools. (There we go again...constantly comparing) Anyways, her son was learning so much more than Makenzie and I tried to put it out my mind, but more recently some parents in her class have decided that they are not going to enroll their children next year and want to find a more academically challenging school. I have looked into these schools, read the reviews and have come to the conclusion that they are far more academic than Makenzie's current school. The children are leaving pre-K reading, writing their own names, and have basic math concepts among other things. The only catch is the tuition is $100 more per month than what we are currently paying. My husband already has a heart attack every time we have to shell out money for school and I will have a hard time convincing him to shell out even more, but what is the point of sending her to school at all if she is not accomplishing the things that I want her to accomplish in school. I already work with her and feel that she is very bright and I want school to go even further and challenge what she already knows rather than have her possibly forget what she knows. How do you decide the price of a good education???

--ahhh the things we never discussed in lamaze class...