Tuesday, February 23, 2010

All Over Randomness!

For lent I gave up soda, juice, iced tea . . . you get it right.  The only thing that I am allowing myself to drink is coffee and water.  And let me tell you I have been tempted - really tempted to drink some of that juice that is sitting in our fridge.  But I'm only tempted, but I won't go there.

Noah is feeling better these days!  Yay!  In fact, we just returned from a short little run/walk.  It's been forever since my feet hit the pavement and it's an understatement to say that I am out of shape.  The hill coming up to our house kicked my boo-tay :0)  It really did.  But I'm glad Jay pushed me to go.  We all enjoyed the fresh air, the exercise, and the familiarity of being out there- our feet beating the pavement!

I am planning Noah's 3rd birthday and I'm having so much fun "thinking up" all these ideas.  I'm really trying to homemake everything.  And most of it will be homemade . . . I can't wait.  The theme is going to be monkey - mod monkey.  The colors are pastel turquoise and yellow, with brown of course.  I really want to go all out (as all out as my budget can go) because Noah is at that age where birthdays are a big deal.  I really want to make it a big deal for him.  He deserves a big deal!

Just wanted to share these pictures because I don't like to post without leaving a picture or two.  This was from the first weekend of February when we went to IKEA with mom & poly.


It seemed like forever since I had been there!  Got me some new glassware!  Woohoo!

The rain was a bummer!  But it didn't stop us from having a nice & fun outing!

The boys quickly and easily made themselves at home in all the display rooms :0)

Noah had a blast in the kiddie section.  We could've stayed there all day!

Nicholas was patient but bored while he waited for his brother to finish playing! 

The fun begins for Nicholas as he gets spoiled by his mum-mum Judy!  Lucky boy!

Us, out to dinner at one of our favorite places . . . Teri Cafe!  The boys have silly faces in these pictures. :0)

 Okay, happy Tuesday! 

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Cooking

When I first got married I had absolutely no idea how to cook.  And it really didn't dawn on me that cooking would need to be my thing in order to sustain my household.  Which at the time was only me and Jay.  I can clearly remember when it hit me, hit me that it was my duty to cook dinner.  We were finally settled in housing, the excitement died down; we were unpacked and ready to start our new lives.  Jay had left to work and I dabbled around the house when I realized . . . "Jay will come home hungry after work, what will I cook?"  The thought makes me smile to myself because I was so young, correction, we were so young.  I remember phoning my dad and asking him, "So, what do you think I should cook for dinner for Jay?" Of course my dad's reply was typical of him, and typical of any old school Chamorru . . .Chicken Kadu.  This is basically a chicken soup.  And thank God for dad who walked me through the whole cooking process!  But even more thankful that through all the wedding bliss of living, loving, and learning about one another I discovered that Jay had a great appreciation for more than just Chamorru food.  But that first year we ate alot of corned beef, polska kielbasa sausage (still my favorite thing to eat!), and spaghetti.  And we ate out alot!  Like alot, alot.  Shamefully alot!

This memory came to me the other night while I was sauteeing my onions and, yup, you guessed it! polska kielbasa sausage.  But I'm happy to report that we eat it alot less, because I've learned to cook since then (wink, wink) and it is a weakness of mine and it's just not healthy.  What's even better is that through the years Jay and I have learned to cook all kinds of things together.  Cooking, in our home, is a shared duty.  We each have our specialties; but Nicholas will openly proclaim that "Dad is the better cook in our house!"  This doesn't bother me, because Jay is a good cook!  My specialty . . . baking yummy, yummy cookies from scratch, and my family loves them and appreciates them so much.  That makes me happy!

I thought I'd share a recipie of mine, since I've been doing all this talk of cooking!  It's not a recipie with the kielbasa sausage in it though . . . although I do have one!  This one I'm sharing with you I learned at one of my ww meetings, but it's a delicious, go-to meal.  Enjoy

Meatloaf Muffins

1lb ground beef or ground turkey
1lb Jimmy Dean Sausage (I've used Sage before & it turned out just as good)
1 box any flavor stovetop stuffing
2 eggs
1 cup of water
1 cup, your choice of vegetables

Mix all ingriedients together and form into 12 balls that will fit into your muffin tin.  For easier clean-up use cupcake foil liners.  Bake meatloaf muffins at 350 degrees for 45 min. Pull meatloaf muffins out of oven and baste with tomatos ketchup and brown sugar, (be sure mix the two beforehand).  Put meatloaf muffins in oven for another 5 min.  This recipie makes 12 meatloaf muffinsl

*I usually serve this dish with homemade mashed potatos or homemade scalloped potatos.  It's a quick meal I can throw together on a busy weeknight and know for sure my kids will eat good! 


Wednesday, February 17, 2010

A Little Independence . . .

I taught Nicholas how to ride his bike the summer before his kindergarten year; he was just 5 years old.  I remember running with him, holding on to the back of the seat, reassuring him that I wouldn't let go.  Of course, eventually I let go . . . don't all parents.  And he was fine, he took off pedalling, working hard to balance himself, and maintain a steady grip on the handlebars.  He did so well!  I was so proud of him! 

And now, almost 5 years later, he is finally on his bike, riding around the neighborhood with his buddies.  This is something he just started doing and he is really enjoying the independence of getting on his bike and getting himself where he'd like to be.  I'm fine about it, in fact I'm happy that he's out enjoying himself.  Of course I'm always a little nervous and worried when he is not within sight - but I trust him and his choices.  I know he will make good choices and decisions for himself when he is not directly in my care.

One more thing . . . when I taught Nicholas how to ride his bike, he was wearing his cowboy boots :0)  And one more thing . . . thank God for cell phones.  I'm much more at ease knowing that he is, literally, a phone call away.

What's been going on . . .

It has been crazy here . . . Noah has been feeling under the weather for almost a week now.  It's been tough, but finally on Monday I took him in to see his pediatrician and he has an ear infection in his left ear.  This makes for a very uncomfortable little guy; poor thing.  Yesterday he began to feel a little better towards the end of the evening; but giving him his antibiotics is going to be super, super challenging for the next 10 days! Ugh!

My project life album and photos haven't been forgotten.  I am still excited about documenting a year in my life through photos and journaling but I've just been "lazy" about posting.  But I'm still participating in it and loving it.  In fact one of my favorite blogs did a photo prompt/challenge on Monday.  It was based on taking a picture based on how you felt that day . . .  On that particular day I was feeling overwhelmed; Noah was just so sick that day, feverish, coughing, ear ache, you name it he was feeling it!  And Nicholas had no school that day.  Thank goodness for left-over pizza, because that's what Nicholas had that day.  But even though I was overwhelmed, the feeling that would describe that day the most was "worried."  All day I was worried . . . worried for Noah because he's never been that down and out of it, worried for Nicholas because he asked to ride his bike to his friends house (first time he did this!) and his friends house is about a mile and a half away.  I was worried about the upcoming family reunion for my dad's family.  Gosh, so much was on my mind that day. 

No pictures this post.  I will next post, maybe I'll even post some of my project life photos :0)
Here's to hoping today is a little better than yesterday!  

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

My Job, My Purpose.

Most days when I wake up I really have no reason to get all "fixed" up.  Afterall much of my day is spent here at home . . .making meals, doing laundry, vacuming, scrubbing toilets oh the list goes on.  In the mornings, while I wait for the iron to heat up, and I'm making my bed I plan my day quietly in my head.  "Should I run to the grocery store . . . um no.  I could get laundry done today.  Maybe I'll scrapbook a little while Noah naps.  Man the bathrooms really need to be cleaned.  I really should work on next weeks menu.  Ugh . . .my life sounds so BORING!" 

One of the great things about being a stay at home mom is that it's flexible.  I'm in charge and I rearrange things throughout the day so that I can sit and play with Noah, read to him, teach an art class at Nicholas' school, or do something totally selfish like scrapbook while Noah naps, (of course the washing machine is always running in the background).  I am not uneducated, I have my degree and one day I intend to use my degree to help contribute finacially to our family's needs/wants.  But right now my contribution to my family is in what I do here at home and how I take care of my boys.  Sometimes when the mundane things in life seem to dampen my spirit and I fall prey to the desires of all that "a job outside" my home could do for me and my family I stop and ask myself, "Am I where I should be; am I doing what I'm supposed to be doing?  Am I helping Jay enough?  Usually when I'm thinking these thoughts I am brought back to the present moment by the beautiful infectious laughter of my youngest son Noah.  Or my thoughts are interrupted by the sound of the rain falling and I know that my oldest son will need me to pick him up from school.  They need me now, both boys, in their own way, need me here.  And I am. 

It's rather difficult though; we are sacrificing so much so that I can be home.  But through it all I feel strongly about what we are teaching our boys.  I feel they will be raised to value their father's hard work to take care of our family.  They don't get everything they want, most certainly not from us.  We provide them both with what they need but "extras" are just not in our budget.  And yet we are all still happy; we enjoy wonderful family outings, summer days at the beach, Little League Games, and planned trips to water parks.  We get to do alot, despite our one income family.  It's just all about planning and saving and prioritizing.  That, we have become very good at! 

Just one of the ways I stretch our dollar.  I hang dry 60% of our laundry so that it doesn't fade and it last longer.  An added benefit is that it also lowers our gas/electric bill.

Monday, February 8, 2010

Sunday Church

Yesterday I had the best workout . . . carrying Noah as we walked, rather rushed into church.  We got there, once again, at 10am.  Mass starts at 10am, why are we always pushing the clock?  I finally caught my breath and composure by the end of the first reading.  All in all it was a good day at church.  Sometimes the boys can "act up" and I was proud of them yesterday.  Noah even caused a few smiles from the couple sitting next to us.   During Communion Noah was so good; he sat on my lap and as I held my eyes shut in prayer the choir began singing "Here I Am Lord."  They sang that song almost everynight at my dad's rosary.  I noticed the lady sitting next to me was dabbing her eyes . . . I wonder why she was crying.  I wonder if that particular song made her think of someone special, the way it made me think of my dad.  After church I asked Nicholas did the song familiar to him and without hesitation he said, "Mom, they sang that song almost everynight at Papa's rosary.  I remember."  My boy remembers . . . I hope he remembers more than just my dad's rosary.  I'm sure he does, but I hope that he keeps those memories with him, in his life, forever.

This picture is from two Sunday's ago . . .



Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Baseball

It's hard to believe that it's been 5 years that Nicholas has been playing sports. 5 years ago Nicholas started playing baseball . . . his very first sport. Since then he's played flag football, tackle football, baseball, and basketball. But he has always felt drawn to baseball; and every year around this time we gear up and get ready for baseball season. I have grown to love the sport, even as much as football. It's exciting to see Nicholas out there on the field; but I know that no matter what sport he chooses I will always be excited to see him out there playing his best.

Jay and I aren't the type of parents that have to have their child on a winning team.  And for the most part, Nicholas has always been on teams that have struggled - but Nicholas has always remained in good character - and we are always so proud to see that in him.  As we begin this new baseball season in the Majors, we are anxious to see him on the field again.  Anxious because we love to watch him play and anxious because this is his first time playing in the Majors division. We hope that win or lose he remains in good character, we hope that he always does his best, and always remains humble in his actions and words.


Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Project Life Tuesday Photos 1/25-1/31

Monday Jan. 25: It was a real uneventful day . . .that is until these two decided to do push-ups and sit-ups right before brushing their teeth and getting into bed.  Too bad their "routine" was short lived. :0) Their workouts have been pretty inconsistent since this day . . . hehehe!

Tues. Jan 26: Jay and Nicholas went out and bought this baseball "contraption" as I call it.  It's called the swing-away and is supposed to develop your swing and hitting the ball in the right place.  Or something like that.  You know . . . boy stuff!  The boys were up until almost 10pm hanging out int the garage with this thing!  I was inside the house . . . enjoying the quiet :0)

 
Wed. Jan. 27: It was a cold and gloomy day.  Perfect to do a little scrapbooking.  Although I am enjoying this project life album and process, I'd still like to continue on with scrapbooking the boys pictures.  It was fun to get my stuff out and do a couple of layouts.


Thurs. Jan 28: This was the night we were looking forward to all week long.  Hat night, much like the NFL draft.  But for baseball.  And of course for Little League.  We were anxious to see what team Nicholas got drafted to - and it was the Nationals!  We're so excited to get Spring baseball started.  It's always a fun time for all of us!


Fri. Jan 29: Jay took Noah out with him to pick up his uniforms.  I got time to myself!  Yay.  I blogged about it and if interested you can scroll down to read that post. :0)

 
Sat. Jan. 30: Invited the family up to my house to play some cards.  Auntie Naik, Angie, and my mom came up and we played 3 games of May-I.  It was nice to have it at my house for a change . . .  

 

Sun. Jan 31: It was uncle Gary's 60th Birthday!  We celebrated it real low key, but lots of fun.  It was nice to see everyone and see Sherry & Alonso's new house!