My heart is full....and my daughter is 6!

Introducing.....Alice!

Lexi kicked off her birthday celebration with a special night out with Grandma and Grandpa. How can you beat that? They first went to Chili's, where she tried to eat corn on the cob without any front teeth! Then they strolled around Target, letting her browse through toys, purses, and clothing. She picked out a barbie car, barbie clothes and a new barbie, a sparkly pink scarf and a few pants and sweaters. Then they enjoyed a Cold Stone ice cream. She had a blast and felt very special. Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa!

Amidst the chaos of life, I felt strongly that I needed to throw Lexi a friend party for her birthday this year. Her birthday is November 24, and somehow it always feels like it's in the midst of too much holiday excitement to really focus on. And I didn't want that to happen this year. So I asked her what type of party she wanted, and she came up with "Alice in Wonderland". I was quite surprised because we don't have any real affection for that movie, but it sounded fun...and she didn't change her mind after I asked her like 20 different times....so the theme stuck!


Here is some of the decor from her Tea Party. I got tea cups from garage sales and glued pink ribbon on them. Then, I wrote each girl's name on her cup and she got to take it home!









This was her first year inviting friends from school. This was a mix of school, church, neighbor, cousin and sisters!

(l to r: Charity, Sarah D, Jordyn, Emma, Lexi, Kalynn, Lyric, Kaelyn, Izzy...not pictured Ava and Peyton)

I asked a family friend, Camille, to come be my party helper, and I'm so glad I did. Here she is painting hearts on their faces.

i

Cute little Alice (Lexi)!

Our "present circle". The kids always sit in a circle on our rug to open gifts. This is by far the most fun for both the givers and receiver! They love it!

Poor Peyton was napping through most the party, but when she woke up and heard all the noise, she wasn't sure what to think. Tucker caught her peeking around the corner. I cracked up when I saw this one. I love this pic!!!

I just love this girl so much! She was beaming all day. She is so sweet and pretty easy to please. She helped me design her tea-cup cake. She specifically wanted the green and blue stripes on the tea cup and she wanted me to write "Alexis" on it.


Our three girls! Lexi and Jordyn are similar sizes, but not as exact as this pic looks. Lexi was sneaky and stood up on her tippy toes. It was a fun party and I'm so glad Lexi got to feel extra special for a day. I love you Lex! You're the sweetest six year old around!

I love my girls and feel so thankful to be their mom. The bickering and drama and whining can really....REALLY...drain me. But at the same time I enjoy them so much and am having fun watching them become little people with talents, opinions and defined personalities. My heart is (tired and) full.

Finally!

A few days shy from her 6th birthday, and Lexi has no front teeth!

She went from this......



To this....(this is a *real* shot of her hysterically crying because she didn't want us to pull out her dangling tooth!)


And finally, to THIS!! What a cutie!

A Day in the Life...

I realized that I must be getting really used to being in the classroom when I found myself writing the 1st grade teacher a note at the end of the day that went something like this:

"The class went really smoothly today. No major behavior problems out of the ordinary. Lukas was really helpful.

The only issues were the following:

1) Christopher was complaining of a tummy ache. I sent him to the bathroom and to get a drink, but when it persisted, I sent him to the nurse. They sent him back saying "try to make it". So I reassured him that he was allowed to RUN to the trash or outside if he needed to throw up and didn't need to ask. I'm so glad I did because not a minute later, he was at the trash can throwing up everywhere! It also got on his clothing, the walls, door and carpet. I called the janitor....hopefully it will be cleaned up soon!

and

2) Hailee was crying pretty hard all morning. I had a little talk with her at recess and she explained to me that she found her dog dead during the weekend and was really sad about it. She told me how her brother was in jail and her sister just had a baby, and it was just her and the dog at home. So she misses the dog a lot and 'one of her mom's boyfriends' came over to bury it. I encouraged her to write a letter and draw a picture to her dog so she will always remember how much she loved her. I told her it's okay to feel sad. She felt a lot better after the picture and we shared it with the class so they would understand why she had been sad."

Whew! A teacher wears so many hats during the day! The exhaustion and satisfaction are both significant at the end of a day of teaching 20+ kids.

Mickey's Trick-or-Treat

Early in October, my neighbor/friend Jennifer came over and started telling me about the Halloween event "Mickey's Trick-or-Treat Party" at Disney's California Adventure. She had taken her two kids the year before and loved it. The way she described it made it sound hard to pass up.

It sounded so magical that even in our money-less state, we decided to go for it. We booked tickets for Halloween night and looked forward to a Disney Halloween with the Prieto family all month.

I tell ya, this was absolutely worth every penny! It was only from 7:30-11:30, so at first I wondered if the trip would really be worth only four hours. But then I found out that they only sell less than 1/3 of the tickets they do on a normal day in the park, so it was a LOT less crowded. We literally did not wait more than two minutes for any ride! Can you imagine?

It was so festive! Everyone was dressed up, there were trick or treat booths all over, dance parties, characters and NO LINES! I would absolutely do it again in a heartbeat. I think it was $40 per person over age three? They do it most nights throughout October too. It was such a magical night and the kids LOVED it!



Our three geishas (aka Mulans)!


Check out Peyton's face. That kid can pout like no other! I may look like a party pooper not dressed up, but for some reason after a four hour drive and getting four people's makeup done, I was lucky to be dressed with normal make up on.

Anyway, the funniest part about Tucker's costume as a Samurai Warrior......as we were driving in, he said "I hope I don't offend any Japanese people". Which I thought was a really strange comment, and mumbled something about it being like a Japanese person dressing up like Abraham Lincoln... and asked "would you be offended?".

So, as he nodded politely to every Japanese person we passed (almost like "I hope I don't offend you", which made me laugh even more)...all of the sudden, I turned around and a group of Japanese people were stopping Tucker to take pictures of him! This happened three more times during the night! So funny! They were opposite of offended....they loved it!



Ava, Emma, Jordyn, Lexi and Peyton..........and this is how Peyton was skipping/dancing all night long!



They were SOOOO mesmerized by Belle and Ariel. Jordyn was so proud that her hair matched Ariels!



We are smiling, but by this picture it was midnight, the kids were DONE and Jennifer was having major contractions (she was 31 weeks)! Lexi, pretending to eat the oversized candy corn.



Then, the next morning, we had another "first". Guess we are really amateur when it comes to Disneyland. This was also worth every penny! There are a few character breakfasts to choose from, and we went to Lilo and Stitch's breakfast buffet at Paradise Pier Hotel. It's like $20 per adult and $12 per kid....but it is so worth it. You not only get an amazing breakfast, but you can spend as long as you want there and the kids get TONS of one-on-one time with Disney characters! Our kids played with Daisy Duck, Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Goofy, Lilo, Stitch....got their autographs, danced with them and learned Hawaiian dances! No lines to wait in, just pure fun and magic for the kids.






It was such a fun whirlwind trip and very memorable with the kids. We may have to make October an annual tradition! Thanks, Prietos, for inviting us!!

And I have to say how much I love the ride Soarin Over California! I cannot express how amazing that ride was. I heard things about it being a simulated ride, and "sort of like Star Tours". Oh my gosh, not even. It actually feels like you are hanging on an airplane flying all over California, smelling oranges and pine trees (which I didn't notice, unfortunately....I was soothing scared children next to me who thought they really WERE flying!). It was so real, I was lifting my feet so they wouldn't "drag in the ocean". You can't really fathom it untill you ride it. If you ever have a chance, GO!

All Lexi Wants For Christmas.....

One down.....one crooked one to go! (Stubborn top teeth!)

Randomness

I'd like to know who pushed fast forward with the Life Button? I mean, seriously! Can't it slow down just a bit! My kids are getting too big too fast, my schedule is getting too crazy, and my house is definitely getting too messy!

Lexi will be turning six in about 2 weeks. Her birthday is right near Thanksgiving (if not ON the holiday) and so it's easy to do something quick & easy during the holidays. But this year I've decided it's time for an official "friend party". She finally settled on the theme "Alice in Wonderland". Where did that come from? Who knows, so we're going to have a Mad Hatter Tea Party. We're inviting school friends for the first time, but she only wants 6 of the 9 girls in her class. We're discussing this because I don't think it's worth the possibility of hurt feelings....so I want to just invite all of them. We'll see.

And I've seriously turned a corner as far as not keeping up with the house. I mean, it's a real problem. I guess I could say I'm too busy but, if I'm honest, I also am choosing to be too busy. It's bad. We're stumbling through piles all over the place! I need a maid. Wait....that takes money. Nevermind!

But that's partially because I'm up to my eyeballs in crafts! In addition to substitute teaching, I'm selling things at a local boutique (Trinkets & Treasures) here in Kingsburg. Trying to make some money and also have a hobby I enjoy. I'm making memo boards, custom lettering, tiles, glass blocks and also working in the store as one of the 13 co-ops who rent space there. It's a lot of fun, but it also means my counter is COVERED in fabric, ribbon, scissors, glue gun, rhinestones, etc. If you haven't yet, go HERE to check out the Facebook page with pics on it.

So I guess between subbing and Trinkets, I'm probably working about 40 hours per week (that's counting assembling orders at home). I've been subbing one to two days per week. Which is a tiring job! I can't believe how often little kids can ask to get a drink or go to the bathroom in a day. And when there are 24 of them! You've got to walk into a classroom armed and prepared with rules and boundaries, or they will eat you alive! I am supposed to start my long-term sub assignment in January, but I am having a feeling it could be sooner because the teacher is having some pre-term issues. I've got to get myself in the mindset of routines and predictability (which does NOT describe my life) so I can enjoy and teach the little Kindergarteners properly.

I guess I can announce it on my blog because everyone in "real life" knows here that my sis Lindy is pregnant, only 7 weeks. And she is siiiiiick as a dog. Way sicker than before, more in the category of how sick I am when prego, so my parents and us have been tag teaming lots with her kids so she can survive. I actually really love helping her and really love having her kids - fun to have cousins together. The only catch is that Pey and Pax do NOT know how to go 3 minutes w/o fighting. They are really in the thick of it at ages 2 and 3. They have a total love/hate relationship! Little stinkers. Lucky they are both so cute!!

Life is quite a ride, I tell ya. I am constantly amazed at what a balancing act it is to ride the high waves as well as the low. It's like I'm often teetering close to falling off my board, but somehow keep riding the surf and staying standing...even if just barely. I can hardly keep up, but when I keep trying, there are plenty of blessings amongst the trials, pain and confusion. My psyche must be feeling that a lot because the other night I had the most real dream (and I hardly EVER dream) that I was subbing and then left the school at lunch time and never returned. And it didn't hit me till later that night (in my dream) that I'd abandoned the kids and I woke up panicked that I was totally busted by one of the schools!

Another stressful event, and I swear it's changed my heart & breathing patterns, happened at Jordyn's school last week. When picking up Jordyn from school...in the 4.5 seconds it took me to walk to her and back, the I was borrowing the Expedition and apparently the it has a hard tim making it into Park, which I didn't know, and when I turned around it had rolled halfway down the street with three kids in it! I have never had an adrenaline rush like that and basically grew wings and flew to the moving vehicle, somehow jumped in and then accidentally slammed on the GAS. It THREW us backwards (it was stuck in reverse) into a flowerbed. So freakin scary. I cried and shook for hours. Have you ever tried to run after a moving vehicle...and get IN IT? SOOOOO hard! Can NOT believe no one was hit during such a high traffic time and all were safe! (All except my heart and nerves.)

Overall, life is good. Hard and good, just as it should be I guess. I have some photo posts I want to catch up on, but I feel like I hardly ever do journal-type, randomly filled posts. So here it is. And now I'm off to make Lexi's bday invites! Nighty night.

Halloween 2009 - Part I

Our Halloween Part I consists of our church's "Trunk-or-Treat". We always have a big party at the church the Wednesday night preceding Halloween. There is a chili cook-off (and this year there were like 20 chilis!), games for the kids, a costume parade and then trick or treating in the parking lot (thus the "trunks"). We invited our neighbors, the Prietos, to come. It was fun!

All the kids before the party: Ava, Peyton, Emma, Jordyn, Lyric, Paxton and Lexi

Our three girls: Jordyn was a Geisha, Lexi was a ballerina, and Peyton was a butterfly




This is such a typical photo of Peyton and Packy. Always looking a bit suspicious, always a little non-conformative and nearly always fighting. But love each other devotedly. It's complicated to be 2/3 years old!

Tucker was the hit of the party. His buddy, Keith Lorang, and him like to banter quite a bit back and forth. All in great fun. Keith is about 20 years older than Tucker and they have also been work-out buddies before. Keith's arms get pretty huge, so Tucker dressed up as Keith and it was hilarious! Everyone got quite a kick out of it. On his back, there was a big "LORANG" just in case anyone didn't get it.




My mom came, Lindy and Mike were there and then our neighbors the Prietos.


I didn't dress up for the halloween party, but the next day I needed to dress up for work at Trinkets and Treasures, so this is my 80's outfit. The funny part is It hink many people just thought that was my style because it's coming back in (barf)!