My day these days

For posterity purposes, I would like to keep track of my schedule these days. This is what our Tuesday's look like and note that I am rounding times here to keep things simple.

6:00 AM - alarm goes off and I wake up to Steve Inskeep and Renee Montagne's voices! Listen for a bit until I hit snooze for about 15 minutes. 

6:15 AM - really wake up! By now my daughter is already awake. Husband may or may not wake up, depending on whether he had coffee the day before. 

6:20 AM - attempt to wake up my son. This goes smoothly whether or not he went to bed before 9 PM the night before. If anytime after then it could be quite the task to wake this boy!

Go downstairs and make breakfast. Usually some sort of carb (pound cake, waffles, pancakes) and some fruit (banana, blueberries, strawberries or grapes)

6:45 AM - Settle the kids with breakfast and start making lunches. For now we are packing for both of them but soon enough we'll let them buy from the school cafeteria. 

7:00 AM - Start alerting kids that is time to go upstairs and start getting dressed and all the morning routine tasks. 

7:10 AM - I myself get upstairs and start my shower and get ready for work. This usually is early depending on whether my DH does breakfast or if I do it. 

7:30 AM - Kids are ready to go to school and in the car with lunches, snacks (my son takes a snack on top of his lunch) and backpacks ready to go. 

7:50 AM - Kids are dropped off at their school and kisses and hugs are blown. Off to work I go. 

8:10 AM - I arrive at work and settle in for a full day. 

Skip now to the end of the day!!

5:00 PM  - Leave work and usually my dear husband picks up the kids and are either on the way or already at home. 

5:10 PM - Arrive at home and daughter and husband are getting ready to go to soccer practice (it starts at 5:30 PM). I stay home with my son to start dinner. 

Dinner was lamb chops and broiled potatoes. I marinated the lamb chops and my husband is going to grill them when he gets home from practice YUM! This was btw our daughter's request for dinner :)

While the potatoes are cooking, my son practices piano (and that means that I have to sit down with him for him to practice). Practicing piano with him usually means he is right and I am wrong and at the end of practice I've convinced him that mom is right (as any woman always is) Always looking for opportunities to educate my children !

In the mean time I also put one load of laundry (that is the ONLY way I can keep up with it!)

6:20 PM - Settle my son with a light snack (a yogurt) and get him to practice writing his name, numbers and phone number. He's getting quite good at it too!!

6:30 PM - my son and I settle to play a board game. We play until the rest of the fam comes home. 

7:00 PM - dinner is ready and on the table!!

7:45 PM - done with dinner and now my daughter and husband go finish whatever homework she needs to finish, while I give my son a bath. 

8:30 PM - son goes down to bed! Daughter may still be doing homework or she is taking a shower by now. 

9:00 PM - Daughter goes down to bed and parents are exhausted! We get to do it all over again tomorrow!!

These days of waking up this early have been a bit harder on us (well me really!) but I am amazed at how much we get done and how I LOVE mornings!! It's a new schedule and it is an adjustment for all of us!

More later!

Updates Updates!

Wow, it's been a while since I've had the chance to update this blog!

So much to tell and so little time :) One thing I want to try to blog about more are the "struggles"/"challenges" of balancing working full time and being a mom to young kids.

 So here it goes!! Summer 2011 Quick Takes!

 1. My sister is expecting!! I don't know if I have permission to post this but she already knows it's a BOY! and our family couldn't be happier! This is their first baby, so we are just so ready for him to join us so we can love him to bits :). I think the next best thing after having your own children is your loved ones to have them!!

 2. During Labor Day weekend we made our annual pilgrimage to the Greek Festival. Great food, coffee, entertainment and this year, great company!! We truly had a great time out at the Greek Orthodox Church with the only difference that it was quite a chilly day for early september.

 3. We went to a couple of weddings this summer. One of them in Northern California (Pismo Beach to be exact). We started our trip in Sacramento then drove out to Napa for some vino tasting, then off to San Francisco for one night of fun and mingling with locals! Then drove down to Carmel for lunch and then to Pismo Beach for the wedding! Awesome views and great company made this trip one to never forget (and OHHHH... we went without the kids!) We were only there for 5 days, so it wasn't a long trip but it was totally worth it!

                                                  Just before the wedding in Pismo Beach! 

 4. Our next wedding was closer, in Cincinnati. It was a nice small affair a day before July 4th! We had a good time meeting new people and being present at my husband's friend wedding.

 5. We also took a trip to Washington DC! That was a great trip and one to remember. We visited the Lincoln Memorial, The WWII memorial, Vietnam Memorial, we saw the Washington Monument on a very hot and humid DC day! Then we stood in the front lawn of the white house as we watched Marine One take off! YES, the president must have been on board as sources said that he was leaving for vacation (and the extra security around the grounds were giving it away!). We also had a chance to visit several Smithsonian museums (The National Archives, The Museum of American History, The National Museum of Natural History, The Air and Space Museum!)

 We drove to Mt. Vernon and took a tour of the grounds and the mansion. It was an incredible trip with lots of anecdotes to tell... such as dinning at one of my favorite places (Fogo de Chao) and doing simple things, like playing frisbee on the mall grounds.

                                     The Family, aboard a small cruise along the Potomac River. 


 6. We went to the pool several times! Some times while my dear husband was out of town and the kids were just too hot, after work I got a lite dinner together and took them to the pool! Yes, we are about 20 shades darker than what we really are but it is totally worth it watching them be so comfortable around the water.

 7. My son's last day at his preschool came. All the emotions came rushing in as I left the place where my baby made so many friends in the lat 4 years. Bittersweet moment for sure.

 8. The kids started a new school together! This was a big move for us as we were already in a fantastic school district. But the more and more I think about the reason of the change, it wasn't to escape anything that we were in, but more to gain something from the new school. One of the reasons being them being together for 5 years which is huge for us!

 9. We tried a CSA!!! If you don't know what a CSA is, it stands for Community Supported Agriculture. It meant that we paid a fixed price at the beginning of the season and we received fresh crops from a local grower. I've certainly enjoyed my share of tomatos, bell peppers, onions, eggplants, corn (corn and more corn), peaches and strawberries. It was a bit too much of a share to be honest, so I am not sure if we'll do it next year. However, it was an experience that I am glad we tried! 

10. We have been regulars at Church! Ever since my "reversion" to the Catholic faith and my husband full support, it has been a joy to go to church every Sunday. The kids are still getting used to it, but as they get older they will get to appreciate what a celebration it is to attend mass weekly.

 Well, off to bed. As the fall of 2011 finds me getting up in the wee hour of 6 in the AM (YUCK) and I do need my beauty sleep tonight!! Later I'll write more about the challenges of working and having kids in school and activities. Toto... I think we're not in Kansas anymore!!

Summer!

Oh Summer, how have I missed you! The days of taking multiple showers a day, days of smelling like chlorine from being at the pool so much, the longer days (yay!) and the smell of barbeque's throughout the neighborhood!
I absolutely love summer and it's funny how I took warmer weather for granted when I was younger living in Honduras.
Now I appreciate this season so much more here because it ends!!
In any case, summer has already brought in quite a bit of changes for us. Starting with the good news that our dear daughter's biopsy results were good (phew!). That was a long wait!!

Also, speaking of my dear daughter, there's a boy in the neighborhood that "likes" her and keeps coming around to say hi and wanting to play with her. I'm not so crazy about boys already knocking on our doors (and this one is persistent even after dear husband said to him that he can't play with her quite a few times). I suppose that is natural (she is 9) but I'm not ready!!! I don't want to seem like she's not allowed to play with her friends, I just rather she played with girls right now rather than boys. He's a good boy, polite and really nice to her, I'm just not ready to let her go out to play roaming around the neighborhood. So that's a change I have to deal with! Plus we don't know his parents and also, what kind of parents lets their nine year old son roam around the neighborhood for hours and hours and never once we see anybody looking for him?? I know where he lives but I don't understand his family situation.

Well, the summer promises some fun, such as west coast trips (Cali), lots of pool time, a small trip to DC (so our kids see the capital city), a visit from my mom and lots of BBQs! YAY Summer!

Also, some big news that I can't really share just yet but I can't wait to burst it out!! Of course, they are not my news so I can't go there yet, but I'm just so excited :) :)

Ok - till next time!!

Race for the Cure

A friend of mine suggested we join our families and do the Family Fun Walk for this year's Susan G. Komen's Race for the Cure in Columbus OH. I thought it would be a great opportunity to explain to the kids as much as they can understand about this disease.
As I was explaining to Jackie, I couldn't help but get choked on words about how cancer has affected so many lives. In our family, my grandma died from complications of lung cancer and 20 years before she passed, she had been diagnosed with stomach cancer.

Our cousin, who was in her early thirties, got diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She is a strong survivor!!

Today, while we were walking to the starting line, I felt the energy in the air on how many people have been affected by this disease. And while reading all the messages folks were sporting on their t-shirts, my thoughts and prayers went out to them. So many strong ladies and their families supporting this event (more than 30,000 people participated). Dedications to aunts, sisters, mothers and themselves shows that breast cancer is real and too often affects too many women. Thankfully, nowadays with proper diagnosis and treatment there are so many strong ladies who overcome it.

It didn't used to be that way. In reading more about this cause, I am moved deeply on how it started. There is a book available called "Promise Me" by Nancy Brinker (Susan's sister)
Here's a review taken from the Amazon site:

"More than twenty-five years ago, Nancy’s love for her cherished sister sparked a promise to fight breast cancer. Today that promise has launched a global movement to end breast cancer, and Nancy is fulfilling her promise to women all around the world. Promise Me is an inspiring tribute to a sister’s love and a must-read for all who know the pink ribbon."
—LAURA BUSH, former First Lady and author of Spoken from the Heart

In addition, more close to home, I remember a really energetic reporter called Heather Pick who I used to watch on the local news channels. She was a young mom who did the morning reports while I was on maternity leave with Julien, so he and I used to watch her all the time. I didn't know that at the time she was battling breast cancer.
She passed away in 2008 and on her last broadcast (from her home) she wore a pink wig to show her support. Nowadays, the pink wig is a symbol of hope!! So today, with our pink gear on, we joined a lot of pink wigs to show support for the cause!

Here are some pictures of our day today :)

The latest ...

As usual life is busy! Too busy some days and apparently Chris and I are not busy enough because we feel like we want to make it even busier with challenges we are willing to take.
The challenges? Well, it has to do with the kids schools. Julien will be going to Kindergarten next year and our school district does not offer full day kindergarten. Since Chris and I both work full time, half day kindergarten does not work for us (no full day care for him). Soooo we need to keep him at his current school which does have a full day kindergarten. Ok - that's good right?
Well, we have now started going to the Newman Center (Catholic church) on campus and I absolutely LOVE IT. The dynamic is more my style and the community is so diverse. I feel like I'm at my church back at home (Honduras). I started thinking that I went to a religious school all my life (K through High School). I feel that religion was a pivotal subject to take for me, which has helped me on my toughest days and has given me a faith that I don't think I could have gotten otherwise.
We started looking at catholic schools in Columbus and we have found one that we really like. We toured it and we were pleasantly surprised at how much we like it. They teach Spanish starting in Kindergarten!!! THAT is preparing children for the future in this competitive world.
The other big PLUS is that both kids would be in the same school for 5 years together. If we stay in the schools we are at then they would only EVER be in the same school for 1 year and that's it.

The biggest cons are cost and logistics. The school is not free but it's not out of our reach however that is something to consider. The next thing is the logistics. The school is no where close to our house and just thinking about after school commitments... well it makes my head hurt! If we go this route we will commit to continue the catholic schools up until High School, so that is another consideration and cost that we would have to incur.

I don't know what we'll decide, either way the kids will be fine and as long as both of them end up being good people who strive to help instead of hurt, who choose love over anything else and who are honest with themselves first and then others, then I would have done my job as a mom :)

The Fall!

Oh my favorite season! This fall we've had some beautiful weather in Ohio - warm days (some actually hot!) and some cool with that crisp air. If you are wondering what crisp air is... well it's like a very sharp cool air, not so cold that it bothers you, but cool enough to refresh you. On crisp days everything looks sharp. The sun is shinning and the colors are just ... CRISP :). I took a walk with the kids to a local metro park, where me and about 200 other folks were also walking and taking pictures. The fall colors were AMAZING! I truly enjoyed myself and I hope my kids did too.

It also means it is time to clean up the yard and prepare it for the winter! For us that means cutting down perennials so they don't have any leaves or dead branches come spring and raking our very large yard (well it's not so large but for me it is). I was in a zen mode while raking today, before I knew it I had done what I set out to do out in the yard! The whole time I thought about how we couldn't sell our house this year and if in some cosmic way it was meant not to sell.

What? Did I forget to mention our house was on the market the entire summer? Well, it was! And it was not fun. Not fun having to go through showing after showing after showing just to find out that the buyer did not like ... whatever. From the yard to the corner and how small the house was, the price was the biggest complain. So we lowered and lowered and LOWERED the price down so much that we pretty much were giving the house away. Well, that still didn't help to sell it. As I was raking the leaves and cutting down my Hydrangeas, I realize that I DO love living here. I do love this neighborhood and its conveniences (close to everything, including WORK!) But we wanted to give our kids more space and my visiting family more room to roam. Since it does get pretty cold here, we live indoors for a good part of the year so it can get crowded with more than 4 people in the house. However, it has brought us closer (the kids and us) and we LOVE having less space to clean. I can find many positives and I'm not making excuses, but I remember what some people live like in other parts of the world. They barely have a roof over their heads and they share all a room (to sleep, eat and live in). Why the need for more space? Why the need for bigger and better? I can't answer that, but I can tell you that we will enjoy these holidays in our home this year - because home to ME is where my family is.

I read an article the other day about a family that decided to down size instead of upgrade their house. Their house was already pretty big but after a trip to a third world country they all understood what's important in life. So they sold their large home and bought a smaller home which allowed them to give more money to philantrophic efforts and in the end it brought the family closer. I always say that I don't need anything bigger and better - I just need our family to be healthy and happy. Our kids smile every day (so they seem happy and they say they are happy!) We can afford to go places (took 2 major trips this year and they were tons of fun!). And at least my commute is unbeatable (3 minutes to work!)

It still doesn't mean that we won't try again in the spring (to sell that is) but for now I would be ok if we don't.

Pictures of the fall and our home:

Mother's Day

The second Sunday of May is Mother's day in Honduras and the US. I was very fortunate this year to spend it with my mom and my kids- which is rare since mom lives in Honduras. It was such a great day in Cleveland *a bit chilly but nonetheless a good day. Great food and drinks compliments of my beautiful sister Thania. My kids woke me up with kisses, hugs and presents! My husband was very poetic in his card and I am a lucky person to have all the blessings I have.

Then as the day went on - things changed a bit. I found out my very good friend's mom passed away Saturday evening. He had just had his daughter (first one) a couple of weeks before and he had lost his sister about 8 years ago. I started to cry. It was almost like a dagger went through my heart to think about this sad moments for him (specially on Mother's Day!!). Why do things happen like that? Why so much happiness but then so much pain at the same time!?
I haven't stopped thinking about this (how I wish I could go and give him and his dad a hug). His mom was a fantastic lady. She was a constant presence at our high school, one that would take us kids to do community service. She was such a cool mom - always being more like a friend to everyone and being incredibly compassionate. We all lost a role model on Saturday and one that touched so many lives.
I haven't talked to her in such a long time, however we used to email back and forth shortly after her daughter passed away (that was another shock) which was around the same time my daughter was born. She was obviously grieving but she still took the time to wish me the best on my new endevour as a mom.

She left an impression on me in the way she lived her life as a mom and wife. My friend had the best mom he could ever have and she will now be their angel and hopefully guidance on his new journey as a dad. I pray that you focus in celebrating her life and while we want to be selfish and have her here with us, remember that a piece of her is in you and in your daughter.

My lesson? Live in the now and make NOW the best of it.

It was still a nice day for us and we got the chance to spend it together while enjoying great food, flowers and each other. Here are some pictures of our day in Cleveland.

2010 - what a year so far!

I feel like I've matured a lot in my thirties ( ha ha ha - I know I crack myself up!) But in a way I am appreciating all the cool things about getting older and wiser. I try not to let the little things bother me and I also keep things in perspective * or try to!

However, I have found a new love. That is photography! My dear husband gave me a super cool camera for Christmas and I've enjoyed taking pictures with it. I am still learning but I found myself taking pictures of my kids (which is the whole purpose of the camera) and really enjoying getting these little moments in their faces. Looking back at these pictures, I hope they are my keepsake for years to come on when they were little! We went on a spring walk earlier in the year and we enjoyed walking around the neighborhood (me camera in hand) and we just stopped to look at flowers, birds or smell the spring air! 

I love my kids - if I could stop time right now I would be so happy! They are the perfect age to have fun with to be somewhat independent already but yet still spend time reading books, watching movies or taking bike rides.

Check out some pics from our spring walk :)

Summer vacation

So nice to have the kids be off school and off activities! I hope they get to enjoy their summer and just relax have fun and get some fun in the sun! We've been doing bike rides (mostly me power walking and the kids riding) going to the park, the pool, etc. It's so nice to finally open the windows and let the air breeze through the house without it being super cold!!!
Other than that - things are great! The kids have a summer nanny which is awesome. Work is work and Chris got a scare today (layoffs at his place ... sucks) he was safe though . Here's hoping he continues to work work work for da man!
I just recently started exercising on a regular basis- not sure why I didn't do it sooner since we belong to this super cool gym! I'm excited about my new routine and hope I can continue doing it through the rest of the year.

Talking about end of school/beginning of summer, I am wondering why there are no report cards coming home at the end of the school year ... maybe first grade doesn't need such report? (everybody passes onto second grade!?)

In addition, there have been a group of earthquakes that have been shaking the north coast of Honduras. What a pain... they were strong too! My family was not affected but some business places were. That sucked - my poor country can not get a break.
Allright - I'll post again soon!!

What a weekend!

Wow!! Tons of stuff to do and thank goodness we were relatively early to all of them!
It started with soccer at 9 AM - last game. Jackie got a super cool trophy for her efforts and parents were asking Chris if he'd be coaching next year again. I thought that was really nice and I hope he keeps on doing it. Our kids will have that build meant for soccer players and we just need to develop their skills more. Jackie says she likes it!! We shall see what we do with little Jules.
On our way back home from soccer we decided to stop by Tim Horton's to get some breakfast and saw very good friends of ours eating inside, so we decided to join them! It was a quick breakfast but nonetheless enjoyable!
Then we came home showered and went to Gahanna for lunch at Cicis with the Lebolds! My surrogate grandparents! We had a good time with them and Christen and her family. It was a bit nostalgic talking about how they need to get rid of almost everything they own as they make the last transition of their lives into an assisted living apartment. They will be right on Neil Ave by Victorian village on a newly remodeled apartment. I have signed up to be a mover helper a couple of weeks from today. They have been so crucial in my life and so inspiring. I've always felt at home at their house!
Then we left Gahanna to go downtown to watch the greatest show on earth!! The Barnum and Baileys Circus! Fun fun fun! After some seating problems (not ours but other people that can't read the seat numbers) we had a blast. It was 5 families with 10 kids in tow *all kids under 7! We had dinner at Bucca Di Beppo and really enjoyed the food there except it was a bit chaotic keeping the kids in check. In any case, it was a fun dinner for everybody. Then off to our very good friend's house for an after-circus-dinner- party. Overall a cool and busy Saturday!

Sunday of course was for resting! We took it easy in the morning, but I really wanted to take Jackie see her friends Leah and Alyssa watch their ballet performance. They are on the same dance academy Jackie is but they have are performing on a different show due to age differences. So we made it over and really enjoyed watching the littlest girls do ballet. It was soooo cute. Jackie was excited to see her friends and she is now officially nervous of her upcoming performance. I'm sure she will shine and we will be there to cheer her on :)

This weeks promises another fun week with an outing for Battelle on Monday (non-family related so it's just us), then Wednesday a wine tasting event and then Saturday and Sunday all about ballet performances! I'm a little nervous I forgot to get tickets for Jackie's performance!! And they are getting sold out apparently! UGH, I hope I can at least get 7 tickets to include the full party attending!! Let's keep our fingers crossed!!!!

It has been a sloowwww week....

Not sure why I feel like that. I have had trouble sleeping yet not motivated to do much after the kids are in bed. Anyway - work is the same (work!). I am helping a friend of mine with getting a job at Sterling! I hope it works out as I would love to see her again on a regular basis!

This week was my favorite show's season finale! Lost!! Boy oh boy - what a finale! I won't say anything since this is not a Lost forum and don't want to spoil it. But it was really insightful, so much so that I had to watch it one more time before I went to bed and really thoroughly enjoyed it :) Great show, great writing and great setting! I highly recommend it!

Also, things are winding down! Yay - soccer is over here this week. Ballet will be over in about 2 weeks and piano will continue for Jackie but other than that we will have our evenings off again! (yay) Which makes it a lot of fun for the kids as we will take long bike rides and just enjoy the wonderful summer days!

This weekend promises the last soccer game, lunch with our wonderful friends the Lebolds and the circus on Saturday afternoon! Yay!

Julien has not been doing the best at school, he's been sent to the director's office about 3 times this week (which is not a good thing as he can get defiant!) That has been really frustrating as he seems to know that he does something wrong, but yet it's almost like he does on purpose to be defiant!!! But today, after we had a talk, we went outside and drew on our driveway(with chalk!) and played with bubbles. Then we took a long bike ride and stopped at our neighborhood park. After that we came home just as Jackie and Chris were coming home too (piano and ballet) and Julien turned around and said - mommy that was a fun ride!! Awwwww my son/baby/cutie petuties ... I just enjoyed that glance he gave followed by the hug and kiss and I thought to myself, right NOW I'm the luckiest person on this earth!!

Oh what a day ... running around!

Thursdays are just CRAZY!! Crazy I say!! I run out of work to get Jackie (whom my wonderful neighbor Irma had her) and got her (got to eat a bit of Irma's cooking ... fantastic may I say!) then off to piano. Bur FIRST ... Julien needed to be picked up.. YIKES. It is 5:45 PM, piano class is at 6 and still I needed to get Julien. Somehow I made it without any accidents (Phew) I had to slow down a bit though when Julien joyfully says "I like going fast mommy" Hmmm slow down girlfriend! So I did.

Piano was good (I think) then to ballet where by DH met us with dinner (Yay!) we hogged a corner of the ballet studio and plopped ourselves down for dinner without Jackie who was dancing. Jackie is doing great with her practice! She will be dancing to - Diamonds are a Girls Best Friends - I think sang by Marilyn Monroe. I need to get her outfit fitted here soon to see if she needs any alterations. Her show is over Memorial Day weekend.

Then Chris left with Julien mid ballet class and Jackie and I made it to Kroger for a quick run (a quick run nowadays runs me $110.00!!!) Incredible. But we got at least breakfast stuff which we needed. Then came home and did a whole kitchen cleanup! We have new countertops(granite) which I kept hearing how we can't hurt granite from the vendor. Well ... you can't hurt it but you CAN fade it! We had left an aluminum pan sitting overnight (which may have had a bit of moisture) and left a BIG faded circle. It looks weird. I hope it just dries away.

Now I'm looking at our calendar and somehow we are fitting in Yoga! I'm so excited, I haven't been to yoga in Ages! It's nice to pair up with someone and go - my yogi friend (Jen) and I will be comparing places to do Yoga. One time we'll go to my studio of preference (Yoga on High) and another day we will go to her studio of preference (Goodbodies). We shall see. Her studio already gets props though since it's way closer than YOH.
Today when I was walking into the office, (btw our campus is fantastically landscaped!) it looked like a scene out of a meadow! Everything looked sharp and crisp, odd being that it was foggy. I took my time walking in, since I was enjoying the morning smell, the morning air and the morning newness! LOVE IT!

I enjoyed my day today because of that morning walk (from the parking lot to the building) was fantastic! I also enjoy listening Jackie play piano - which she amazes me every time I hear her! Also seeing Julien all covered in chalk playing outside and those goodnight kisses!

Ok - gonna get a book and fall asleep reading!!! Tonight is - Cosmos by Carl Sagan.

Going to start blogging more

We'll see how that one goes! But I think it's good to let it out! Sort of keep a virtual diary plus it's good to put things in perspective, and I tend to do that when I write.

Anyway, so today *Wednesday* was an uneventful day (thank goodness!) Sent the mother's day card to the MIL - signed by Jackie with 4 pics of the kids. (1 per grandparent!) I had also sent my mom her card a while back (since it takes longer for her to get it). I hope they enjoy them as the gmas like to send cards this way! I felt productive regarding keeping up with those responsibilities!

Home life is good. I have made a mental list of things I need to get going here and one of them is to make dinner time easier so we can enjoy our time outside on nicer days. Soooo I ordered Schwans meals! I saw them the other day on the Apprentice and thought to myself ... I can order those and give it a shot! Unfortunately, I had to pay a bit more so they leave them on freezer bags as I can't really guarantee that I will be here for the delivery.

Jackie did not have soccer practice due to the rain (which I'm glad because that's one less possibility of her getting sick). In the meantime, Julien's school just sent a note saying that a lot of people were coming up with Strepp (riiighhhttt late news there as I knew at least of 4 families that had it over the last 3 months!) I don't know about that school sometimes. I can't wait for the summer as we are getting a sitter for the kidos! YAY! We love the girl we are getting - she rocks, she's cool and super sweet with the kids!!

I need to do something about Chris' high blood pressure. Less sodium is the key. But MAN that's hard! A tablespoon of anything has about 500mg of sodium!! What's up with that? And for a low sodium diet they recommend like 2500 mg a day.

I just had the best mango I have had in a long time! It was juicy and ripe and orange! YUM! Enjoying the simpler things in life! A nice ripe mango!

I hope to have a nice evening and enjoy couple time with my hubby as we watch Lost sans commercials (thanks DVR!)

I am an undecided Ohio Voter!

Yes, I'm one of those. I may very well be some sort of Joe the Plumber! Interestingly enough, I don't like politics. In fact, I hate politics. Now that I am US Citizen though, I feel compelled and almost my responsibility to get educated on the issues on the candidates and my options. I rather stay away from one particular party for now - I want to vote for the candidate that will make this country better.
Unfortunately, the candidate of my choice is not even running anymore (boo!) Both major party candidates are great, I'm sure they are both going to help in some way. But the major issue for me in these elections at least, is the healthcare issue. I think people are dying or going bankrupt due to having some major disease. Which is circumventing that Americans do not take care of themselves - they don't lead a healthy life and now cancer diagnosis are on the rise and heart conditions are obvious and apparent to a younger generation.
So when you get sick - what? You have to fight with the insurance companies to get the proper care that you need and doctors won't prescribe the necessary exams, screening, etc. because the insurance companies won't cover them. That's absurd and ridiculous.
A couple of years I had a cholesterol screening and it came back a bit high for my age. What I was told by a nurse at the family practice I was going to at the time was to exercise and eat better. No SH#$*()T Sherlock? In countries like France or Britain, doctors are rewarded by their government for educating people on how to lead a healthy life. They have great prevention programs so that folks learn what it is that they need to do/change to lead a healthier life.
Anyway, that's one of the issues that is close to me. I hope both candidates realize that people's healthcare needs to be a right in a country like the US. Or at least, we shouldn't be wasting millions of dollars on unnecessary programs that don't make sense and reforming the fundamentals of healthcare in this country.

It's been so long!!!

I can't believe I've taken so long to post. I don't know why - but work, family - life in general has taken a lot of my time. I decided this morning to get up and cook a hearty meal (yes it is fall so a pot roast seemed appropriate) and just enjoy fall.

I love living here in Ohio(sans the winters), but recently, we've been disheartened at our current situation with our house. While we have great jobs, our house we live in is our first house. Meaning it is too small now!! So we decided to put it on the market. YEAH - we thought - we get to move to a larger home and build some good equity. Well, with the market the way it is, our house did not sell after 4 months of being on the market. It sucked!! Sucked having to stage this house so many times, having to rush out of work so that I could clean the house and have it ready for a showing - just to hear back after the showing and find out that they didn't like the color of the wall!? Anyway, we are done with this nonsense. I am pondering whether it is just a better idea to expand this house and make it our own, or if we should try again and sell in the Spring? I don't know what the answer is, but I am determined to focus on just enjoying the holidays and making it even more fun this year for the kids.

The stress we've felt during the past months were awful. Poor DH and I had too many unnecessary arguments which added a stressful cloud over us.
We decided to take a trip by ourselves a couple of weeks ago (more on that on another blog!) and we just got back to knowing that we still love each other very much, but just the stresses of life gets to us. We came back revamped and just determined to make sure the kids have a fun holiday season!!
After all, it's not about the house, it's about the family!

The Beatles!

One of the greatest bands ever! I am trying to embed a video of one of my favorite of their songs... and this video speaks for itself !!

Changes oh Changes

So a while ago I stopped working at my previous employer (well sorta was LET GO from my previous employer) About 6 weeks later, I started a new venture with new titles and a new environment (and the best commute ever - 3 minutes!!!).
The emotions we go through when we are let go of our jobs is tremendous. Some days I felt like taking on the world and just imagining the opportunities!! Others, I felt helpless, edgy and worried that this unknown was upon our family. Once I started getting calls - even if they were from recruiters (which in the techie world they call all the time) it gave me a boost of confidence. Finally, about 6 weeks after I was let go from my 6 year professional job, I accepted my current job! It was nice to have that opportunity and even nicer to start a new venture.

I recently learned that most of my old co-workers are not going to be around that place anymore (again ... the LAYOFF), and I have mixed feelings for them. Mixed feelings because I know that most of them have worked in this place for the longest time (15, 16+) years, which makes it hard to even think about a new place to work for. But on the other hand, I feel that they do need to realize that there is life after this company. That new opportunities are not all that bad - and actually they could bring a breath of fresh air to a new company or to themselves. Sure sure, the vacation would not be the same, but companies nowadays are wonderful at giving you comp time or pretty much half days off without having to dip into your precious vacation pool.

For me, the hardest thing has been leaving my co-workers. Not to say that I haven't found a wonderful group who I currently work with, but my old peers were unique, in that they fostered me (this fresh out of college girl!) and helped me get through 6 years at a tough company. I made great friends along the way at my old job and I will try to make every effort possible to keep in touch with them.
It's tough going through changes - specially job changes. But I think one of the maturity traits for a human being in this day and age is to be able to adapt to change. Change is inevitable, and we need to embrace and jump to new ventures with both feet. Because this world is full of surprises - and even though I don't like surprises, I accept them and enjoy the ride!

Denver, CO

Ok so now I can turn my iPod on BUT I can't hear my music that I have bought from iTunes! Why oh why do they do this to use the users!!
I just got back from a trip in Denver CO. I didn't realize the altitude sickness would actually get to me. It did - maybe it was because I was nervous about presenting in front of so many customers (yes it was a work trip and I got to present a class twice!) or maybe it was because Denver is about 5,280 feet above sea level!
We went to the Red Rocks Amphitheater, Invesco Field and stayed in downtown Denver during the conference, met some really interesting people and made a few friends along the way!

Anyway - I'm going to bed. I've had a loooonnnnggggg day!!!

My Music My taste- do I have one?

Well, I'm so PI#$ED right now! My iPod won't boot up, nothing NADA!! I want to listen to about $50 worth of songs I've purchased from iTunes, and I can't ARGH! No- I don't want to listen to them on iTunes, I want to listen to them on my iPOD! I've tried everything the Apple site tells me to do, but it hasn't worked (sniff sniff)

So back on topic ... My music. So you must wonder what kind of music I like. I wonder what kind of music I like. It's funny, I usually list the genres I don't like, since I like so many types of music. I know I don't like RAP, Tejano and Country music. Other than that I pretty much enjoy anything else. So I guess a good way to talk about what I enjoy is what I have on my iPod. My ELO music!! What? You don't know ELO!? Come on!! Livin Thing? Mr. Blue Sky? Telephone Line? All Over the World? Last Train to London? Come on!! One of my all time favorite bands! With my favorite song being Livin Thing!

Then there's Soda Stereo! Best Rock En Espanol band ever, although some people might argue La Ley is better ... that's up for discussion! Then I LOVE Bossa Nova - Joao Gilberto, Sergio Mendes, Bebel Gilberto! That music just puts me in a GREAT mood.

For dancing I am currently into Daft Punk *their Discovery album* not that new crap they came out with recently! Then I like ABBA (yes I admit!), Fergie, Black Eyed Peas, Donna Summer, Janet Jackson, George Michael, Elton John!

I love to relax to some Jazz! I don't know many Jazz artists by name, but I love the music.
Then my all time favorite Latin singer - Shakira! She rocks - but not her latest stuff, her early spanish songs!! That's Shakira! Look it up if you ever get a chance.

Then there's my platonic boyfriend - Miguel Bose!! With his Amante Bandido!! Yikes, if he were 15 years younger .. boy oh boy!

Then I really enjoy classical music - specially Chopin and Tsaikovsky!
Well, so I like everything in my opinion! At least of what I've been exposed to.... I need to fix my iPod!!! BOO!
I also love to dance and get out as much as I can with my also dancing loving husband! I just hope my kids inherit our dance moves and enjoy just having fun dancing!

Spring!

Well, it's almost over here in Ohio! I love Spring - every spring ever since we moved to this house, we have taken a picture along the yellow tulips right in front of our house. They are beautiful strong tulips - which were here before we moved. Enjoy the picture slide show - a chronological transition of our family!

Updated the newest pictures :) - I love my family (that include the tulips!!)