Teefy turns 1!!!!! That went by quick!!

 

It's so cliché, but it really does feel like Teef was born yesterday.

Ram had a great party for the little guy!!

Plus, I hadn't eaten at Christina's party, so I was glad there was some great food there!!

Loving Ram's fruit salsa!!

 

 

My Sri Lankan dad and brother. I love George. We were talking and I was trying to ask him the most random questions I could... like if he'd ever want to go to Guatemala. He was like, why do you ask? And really... I couldn't think of a good answer.

It just seems like something I should do so we can bond.

 

This gal was great. An annoying guy was really bothering her so she sat down and started breastfeeding and he walked away. Quote, "Finally!! Just whip out my boob and he'll stop talking!!"

 

Ok. Favorite person of the night. I'm loving Ryan's girlfriend. Seriously.

She was really nice, although at first it did seem like we were in an interview.

Which we were.

Ryan and her are both a little on the quiet side, but they are both genuinely nice and sincere people.

Ryan said he's going to propose in a year.

I look forward to getting to know her even more. One thing I really like about her is that she doesn't seem fake. She seems like she would be a really good caring type of mom.

And they'd make really cute cousins for Amyra, Mya and Teef.

 

 

Love Yuko.

 

Ramya and Me. If I wore glasses.

 

So my children love these masks. They are so fun!! Ramya did a great job making them and in all reality, it was better for the kids to enjoy them then lame adults. She had made them for a "baby shower"... more like event of the century with all the work she did... and there were extra. Anyways, point is... it was nice to see the kids enjoy them so much.

 

Amyra's face is priceless. I was pretty proud of her. There were some snarky comments from other kids and she was pretty patient and responded in a nice manner. Plus the poor dear fell and hurt her knee but she was a trooper. It was cute to see her friends so concerned and holding her hand to help her.

 

After we ate, we spent some time at the park. It was a beautiful evening.

 

The kids loved the piñata. Ram was smart to have a little bat so it didn't break right away.

Christina ended up breaking it and was pretty proud.

Ram also had great party favors besides the masks. Fun swords and pop out eye glasses.

 

So happy this wonderful boy is here! He is going to do great things with his life.

I'm specifically thinking the NBA.

It's so weird because he really is a little man version of Ramya.

I got to watch him once and he was a total cuddle bug. Full of utter sweetness!!! I look forward to spending much more time together!!!

Fablehaven Birthday Party- Christina turns 9!!!

 

Well, this lil' chickadee had her birthday party- Fablehaven style.

Fablehaven is a good book, the series though... get longer and longer with each book.

Neither of us has been able to finish.

 

We kept it pretty small and simple.

 

We started out with landscape paintings. In the book Kendra and Seth go to their grandparents and spend a lot of their time doing things like painting until they discover the "big secret".

 

 

 

Quite the artists!!

 

Next was knot tying. The girls tied knots and passed them to the person next to them to see if they could untie. Muriel the witch was bound by magical knots to her cabin until set free by Seth and their grandma.

 

We had races. I know Maria loves to run, so this was more for her. We titled it Muriel's race. In the book, Seth ran in the woods to escape the creepy witch.

 

We had a riddle race. They took a step forward if they could figure out the riddle.

I loved all the creative answers. Not really a game for first graders, but the older girls got a few.

In the book, they had to answer the troll's riddles to get his help to find their grandfather.

 

Lastly, we had a chocolate key and lock hunt. Fablehaven was a preserve for magical creatures, but Seth and Kendra didn't find this out until she unlocked a bunch of locks with keys. In each place there was always a chocolate and at the end, a note that said drink the milk.

I really wanted to get horchata for everyone, but I was in survival mode from hiking Mt.Rose the night before.

 

For lunch we enjoyed pizza, fruit salad and ceasar salad.

 

We had a fairy cake and flower cupcakes.

I wish I would have gotten a picture of party favors.

They were super cute fairy jars and tarantula jars for the boys.

In the book Seth trapped a fairy in a jar, she turned into a tarantula and it had

huge consequences... namely destroyed Fablehaven and his grandfather was captured by evil creatures.

 

Friends!!!

We love our friends. It was so fun to spend time together and they are always so thoughtful.

Christina got some great loot!!

 

I thought it was so sweet Nikki gave Christina a matching best friend ring.

They've gotten really close this year. I think she is a wonderful little friend!!

They have a lot in common and recently started a dragonology group.

 

Tobi is great. She got Christina an annoying furby... but in all honesty, we're all having fun teaching the little thing. Even my dad was singing to it.

 

There's the fairy jar!! We're missing our Lils and Anna. Now that they are homeschooled, I need to do a better job of getting us together!!

 

This little girl is a sweetheart. We were hiking pretty close paced and had the same motto- slow and steady. She is really nice and has had some bad luck with some girls at school. I'm hoping that she'll spend more time around Christina and Nikki and have better experiences.

 

Hooray for birthdays!!

 

And thanks Ram for all the pics!! You're always a total lifesaver when it comes to that!

Busy Week!! Part III Christina's Field Trip MT. ROSE

 

Now this was an experience. We were "planning" on Joe going to the top with Christina and I'd hike half-way to the waterfall. Change of plans.... Daddy can't come.

Work it Mama.

 

Mt. Rose is almost 11,000 feet high.

Fun times.

 

Our motto was slow and steady. Time passed quickly! So quickly, we didn't even get a chance to have lunch.

This one teacher was saying that if we weren't to the top by 2, we had to turn around.

That made me a little peaved and I voiced my complaint.

She said that since we weren't riding the bus, we didn't have to worry.

Partially true.

 

The weather was about 35 degrees, but since we were constantly moving, it didn't even feel cold.

Or is that what you say at the ending phase of hypothermia?

 

Cliff energy bars were key. I don't know what's in them, but it gave us plenty of energy.

 

 

The first 2/3 of the hike was good. The last bit was not safe. And that's putting it lightly.

We saw lots of people falling, sliding and it was worrisome.

 

But we persevered and made it to the top!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE Christina's teacher.

She is a jewel. We were 2nd to last to make it up and it's funny because both Christina and I weren't overly thrilled. It was pretty, but we saw the danger of the situation. It was high, steep, thin and very icy and slippery.

 

Being last-ish though, we had the security of search and rescue right behind us. Plus Mrs. Hensley and her husband who are "super" athletes. We were in a small group as they herded us down the mountain. They are super big on not "cutting the trail" but because it was so icy, they had us going down a different path.

 

The search and rescue man started talking to Mr. Hensley about some pretty gruesome stories about people injured on the mountain. He was right behind Christina.... I noticed at that point she slowed down even more.

 

I look transgender. But honestly... I'm pregnant and I hiked Mt.Rose.

 

The whole time I checked on Christina and she checked on me. We were constantly encouraging each other. It was beautiful weather, no wind. But it was quite the miracle that we made it. God was definitely watching over us. Christina slipped only once.

I had the distinct impression that my garments were keeping me safe.

 

Plus, on the way down we hiked with Nikki and Tyler.

They are the BEST!!

They are so funny and positive... plus I was glad to have someone nearby who had the priesthood.

The priesthood is the power of God and to have someone who could give us a blessing close by was very comforting.

I trust God a million times over search and rescue.

Although search and rescue are angels!!

One sweet woman just couldn't make it. It was the last 2.5 miles, it was getting dark and search and rescue carried her all the way to an ambulance. I talked with Mrs. Hensley and she is doing much better. She had a cyst, but she didn't want to disappoint her son. She did make it to the top, she just needed a little help out.

 

Christina's stalker. He walked in front of us a good hour.

We slowed down.

Then he was waiting at the end to hand out cupcakes. He must have been waiting a long time because it took us 8 hours.

 

 

But we made it!! With God all things are possible. It was such a wonderful experience with my daughter.

 

We ended the night with dinner at Qudoba. It was funny. We were tired, hungry, sore. Christina said it was the best meal she'd ever had in her life!! I loved seeing her beautiful face in front of mine.

To see her smile. To have shared this special time together.

 

I just want to mention a few religious thoughts I had. I know that this life is much like the hike we took. There are ups and downs, beautiful parts, hard parts. I know that God is watching us all along the way. There are angels to help. And our sweet children are often those angels that keep us going.

I know that we can make it to the top with God's help.

He is merciful.

I know that we can make it to the end.

And if we don't, he'll carry us. He'll help us when we've done all we can.

 

At night, I struggled a little. It was amazing that the entire hike I felt great!! At one point I even felt like I could run!! But at 1AM it hit and it hit hard. My good husband helped to rub my legs and get water and Tylenol. I thought of all the pain and knew that I'd do it a million times over and worse if it meant my daughter was happy. It was a very microscopic glimpse into why God would sacrifice His Son, Jesus Christ. Because we are His children and He would do anything for us to truly be happy.

 

I'm grateful to know God lives and loves us. I'm grateful to know that families can be forever.

I'm grateful for this experience and kind of look forward to it again with Maria in 3 years.

Thank goodness I have 3 years to rest!!!