2010 Reads

One thing I always purpose to do each year is read. Countless books line our shelves that I have looked at year after year and promised to read, with little success. Some I've read in previous years and are anxious to get back to. Others I was just recently introduced to. Regardless, I'm anxious to get through them all. But, in order to accomplish it this year...I'm making it public. Here is my "2010 Must Read" list...

• Redeeming Love- Francine Rivers
• Confessions of a Shopaholic- Sophie Kinsella
• The Phantom Tollbooth- Norton Juster
• The Fellowship of the Ring- J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Two Towers- J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Return of the King- J.R.R. Tolkien
• Persuasion- Jane Austen
• The Almond Picker- Simonetta Agnello Hornby
• The Harry Potter Series- J.K. Rowling

Real Moms Can Gift Wrap Frying Pans

I spent the morning wrapping my kids Christmas presents. I readily admit that I am an over-achiever but, in this particular case, I did it less as a result of that and more because I simply don't have the room to store the confounded things for the next six weeks.

I love wrapping gifts and this morning was no different. Although I often find it difficult to get into the "Christmas spirit" prior to Thanksgiving. The fact that was about 80 degrees outside didn't help, but it wasn't anything that the ceiling fan and my Josh Groban Christmas CD couldn't remedy.

Box after box, I cut, wrapped, and taped, carefully marking each gift with a child's name as to not forget which box belongs to whom. I moved on to the books. The school teacher in me doesn't let Christmas go by without the gift of a new book for each kid. As I slowly moved through the assortment of presents (sounds like more than it actually was), I kept eyeing one gift in particular. You know the gift. It is the one that is shaped in such a way that it is veritably impossible to wrap with paper. There is one every year. Last year, it was a barrel full of Play-doh. This year it is a play frying pan, complete with lid, and filled with plastic food. I know some of you would just opt for a gift bag, but let's face it, little kids don't care for gift bags and, while I hold them in high esteem for the rest of my gift giving, when it comes to my kids, gift bags don't cut it.

So there it was, staring back at me, taunting me as if to say, "Let's see what you've got, lady...I dare you." Watching it out of the corner of my eye, I proceeded to wrap, label, and pack every other gift until I couldn't put it off any longer. One present left and ten minutes before my eldest walked through the door from school, I took a deep breath and cut a piece of wrapping paper knowing full well that the size didn't matter. It took a good deal of time, but in the end, every inch of that frying pan was covered with wrapping paper. So what if it looks like I wrapped a giant fried chicken leg and placed it under the tree Christmas morning? I comforted myself in knowing that it still far suprassed any gift ever wrapped by my brother-in-law (sorry, Alex, but you know it's true!) and I'm sure my 18-month old won't care in the least.

Take that frying pan!

Ready Or Not, Here It Comes!

The Christmas season is upon us...although I tend to prefer to wait until the day after Thanksgiving to fully embrace it. This year, I don't feel the luxury of putting off my preparations. With three kids under the age of four and the inability to find time to take care of the simple, every day aspects of life, such as going to the bathroom, the holiday season demands that I meet it head-on as early as humanly possible.

I typically begin my Christmas shopping in July. July 25th is unofficially "Christmas In July" at our house and kicks of my Christmas shopping season. I do this for a couple reasons. One, because, quite frankly, by the time July hits, those of us who live in Arizona, have been sweltering for well over 2 months and the hope that the holidays are coming helps to cheer me and offset the occasional urge to off myself as the temperature soars into the 120s. Secondly, from a budgeting stanpoint, it's a necessity. Christmas is definitely my favorite time of the year, but the need and desire to eat for the two months prior to it dictate that I begin shopping during the summer and take advantage of as many "deals" as possible.

That being said, I have nearly completed my Christmas shopping...for the kids, that is. Family shopping remains to be done and sends me into a psychological state I prefer not to discuss, at least until my Xanax prescription is refilled.


Truth be told, however, and we moms can attest to this...the shopping is really the easiest part of the show. Lugging the gifts home, wrapping them, storing them, cleaning the house, baking the goodies, running the errands, shipping the boxes, mailing the Christmas cards, attending countless events, buying and preparing the food, etc. etc. etc. are the things that send us into an emotional frenzy and suck the joy out of the season.


So, while it seams premature to me to begin my Christmas preparations so soon...my hope is that this year I will find some time to sit and enjoy the sights, sounds, and smells of the holidays like I once did.

Top Ten

This is what I like to call the "Top Ten List of Things I Suck At Since I Had a Third Child".
1. Answering the phone
2. Keeping up with laundry
3. Showering daily
4. Making meals that do not include bologna
5. Finishing a book in less than 6 months
6. Remembering to R.S.V.P to an event
7. Providing nurishment for myself in a timely manner
8. Making it through the day without an assortment of goo on my shirt sleeves
9. Getting out of the house during daylight hours
10. Maintaining my blog........

Thirteen Years- Part 1

While the number itself bares little significance, I was surprised to realize earlier in the week that today, August 28, is the day that Fernando and I met...thirteen years ago. It seems odd to me that I can remember events from my life, specifically my adulthood, that happened that long ago as I often feel as if I am still in my teens (despite what my body screams).

I remember the day vividly, it was hot and a bit muggy, as it always is in Phoenix this time of year (to us Phoenicians, 30% humidity is "muggy" and we can certainly feel it). It was my second day of classes at Southwestern College after transferring there as a junior. Only weeks earlier I had gone on a tirade about how much I did NOT want to go to school there. I believe my rant included something about "home school boys" and "Bible college losers", if I remember correctly. I'm certain my mother could recount most of the details if I asked, but seeing as it wasn't one of my finest moments, I think I'll just let it remain in the past.

I do remember one specific comment that was made- something to the effect that probably the only guy that would ever show any interest in me was most likely the only Mexican guy on campus. In the past I had always been favored by the Mexican gentlemen I came in contact with. Although, my experience with them was usually limited to cat calls and lewd comments made entirely in Spanish from soccer fields and/or the cabs of overly-crowded landscaping trucks. Having stated that opinion, just weeks before the start of classes, I vowed to attend class, keep to myself, and in doing so, not give a moments thought to any member of the opposite sex.

The first day of classes went very much as anticipated. I spent most of the day with a gal I had known since childhood, so relieved to have found a familiar face even if she was a Freshman. :)
She encouraged me to join the choir and reluctantly I agreed. The next day I sheepishly entered the choir rehearsal room. It seemed everyone already knew everyone else and I could not figure out how. I came to realize that many of them had spent the previous week in rehearsals as members of a smaller, traveling ensemble. Good for them. I vividly remember walking down a row to an empty seat when I looked up to see this young man entering the room. He had a smile on his face as people greeted him and I froze in my spot. He had a face that I recognized, though I was certain we had never met. I stared at him, trying to figure out why he was so strangely familiar. That's when I heard it. A voice, audible only in my head and certainly not my own, as I immediately began to argue with it as soon as it spoke. It said..."That's the man you're going to marry." And although I flatly denied that prospect, I knew it was true. I didn't know this person's name, or where he was from, but I knew I was going to marry him...whether I liked it or not. As a little girl, I always dreamed of what my future husband would be like and no matter what picture I conjured up in my mind, he never had a face. I now knew why this stranger looked so familiar...it was HIS face that I'd been waiting to see. And I liked it...a lot. Sappy? Maybe. But, definitely Divine and completely wonderful!

Now, I've heard many folks say that God has a sense of humor and it is truly undeniable. Although, I often feel that he's not laughing WITH me quite as much as he's laughing AT me. Picture this...college co-ed on her second day of class lays eyes on, quite literally, the man of her dreams. All she wants is to know something about him...anything. Imagine my excitement as our director began to take roll, calling out each name and awaiting a response. I realized this was my chance. I was going to find out the name of my future husband. I sat in eager anticipation, my heart pounding, my breath caught in my chest, waiting for his name to be called. And then the moment was upon me. Our director looked up, made eye contact with the stranger, sitting only two rows directly in front of me and said, "Fernando".

Slightly more muffled than the first voice in my head was the sound of laughter and the words I so vehemently expressed to my mother only weeks before played over and over in my head. There he was, the man I was going to marry with the face I'd been waiting for...and he was Mexican. I quickly scanned the room and every face on campus for the following week. It was just as I suspected. Not only was he Mexican...he was the ONLY Mexican on campus.

Sad, But True

I find it very sad that I can now only find time to blog once every month...I'm going to make a meager attempt to do some catch up today. Wish me luck!

1 Month Old!

Our munchkin is one month old today. What a sweet and brave little boy we have. Despite all that he's been through over the last four weeks, he is happy and growing strong.

Daniel just loves his baby brother and enjoys singing lullabies to him. He also reminds us constantly to be quiet so we don't wake Isaiah, even when he's not sleeping. Sofia is enamored with her baby "baba" as well and loves to try and grab his face. In the meantime, Isaiah is still looking at all of us with that newborn expression that says "who are you people and what is wrong with you?" A question he will likely verbalize in the coming years. But he loves to be snuggled and sung to and completes our family perfectly.

We are excited to see his little personality emerge over the coming months and to watch him change.