MY BABY IS 6 YEARS OLD!

How did that happen?

Going from five to six seems like such a big difference.

But, whether you are turning six or sixteen, you will always be my baby.

I love you so much, my little princess.

I'm so blessed to be your mommy.

Even when your mouth is stuffed with cake, you are still adorable!

FRIDAY PHOTO FLASHBACK

I started "Friday Photo Flashback" because I have so many pictures from my PRE-digital camera days. I thought it would be fun to scan them and share them here with you. I'm having so much fun doing this, that I would love for you to join me, too! So dig out the photo albums and put your scanner to good use! Don't forget to sign in to MckLinky so we can all visit and comment on each others blogs!

I thought it would be fun to dig out a photo of Isaiah in a costume. He was 2 1/2 in this picture (1998), and I remember this day vividly! I was still working, but my husband was already off of work and had already picked up Isaiah & Miranda from daycare. Their costumes and makeup were ready, so all he had to do was dress them up for me. I had him hurry up so he could bring them to my work so all my co-workers could see them. I know I have a picture of Miranda somewhere, but I'm too lazy to look for it. She was dressed as a tiger and looked so ADORABLE! And here is Isaiah in his little clown outfit! What a cutie!

I wonder if he would mind if I posted it on his Facebook page?

32/52 PICTURES OF ME

I'm participating in a year long challenge, created by Carin at Forever In Blue Jeans. The goal is to be in one picture a week, for 52 weeks. Since us moms are always behind the camera, this gives us a chance to get out in front and be in the pictures with our family. So, click here if you want to join in on the fun!

This was the day we went to the mini amusement park, and I took some random shots with the kids!

Danny didn't want to go on the roller coaster, so he and I are just waiting on everyone.

And here is the token tween photo. I'm sure this picture speaks for itself.

I decided to add in another picture of my husband and I. And yes, I do realize that this looks like every other picture I have. :)

WORDFUL WEDNESDAY

I JUST took these pictures earlier this evening at my youngest daughters soccer game. The sun wast about to go down, and I thought to myself, "Let me try one of those cool shots with the sun in the background." Since Miranda was right there, I started taking pictures of her (until she started to get annoyed).

She's not too annoyed yet...

She definitely is here.


Be sure to visit 7 Clown Circus for Wordful Wednesday

GILROY FUN!

Are any of you familiar with the "garlic capital of the world?"

Gilroy, California is KNOWN for it's production of garlic. They even have an annual Garlic Festival that was once televised on the Food Network a few years back.

Well, nestled in that little town (which is about 45 minutes from us) is also a family theme park geared toward kids 13 and under. It's called Gilroy Gardens.

I was blessed to have won tickets from my friend who was giving away five of them on Facebook! A couple of days later, her sister was unable to go, so she mailed me her three tickets! It was perfect because we didn't have to buy any extras, and we were able to invite Miranda's friend, Michele, with us. That is a savings of at least $300!!

We skipped church on Sunday morning because that was the only time we'd be able to go, and to make the most of our time. The girls had to be back at church by four for choir practice, and we didn't want to feel rushed to leave.

But, just like I've stated before, there has to be some type of drama when we go out.

It's inevitable.

As soon as we entered the park, Danny was covering his mouth with his hands and was gagging.

OH NOOO!!!!

We knew what was coming. Or should I say, "Going!"

Yup...talk about vomit all over his arms and face. It probably would have been all over his shirt if he still didn't have his face covered with his hands. As soon as we got him cleaned up, we were ready to have some fun!

No, he wasn't sick, he was nauseated from sitting in the back of the Suburban while stuffing his face with McDonald's right before we got there.

And yes, I came prepared. He already had a change of clothes in the car.

Mommy's smart like that (heehee).

Miranda, Michele, & Veronica waiting patiently while Danny is getting cleaned up.

Annoyed? That's how they look, huh? Still waiting for Dad to finish cleaning up Danny in the bathroom.

The first ride the girls' went on. Well, the "tweens" went on for Veronica's sake. Can you see her head on the far left?

Yah, let's pick up the pace! The girls are somewhere in the middle there.

My babies! Poor Danny, he was TOO TALL to get on the next ride. Veronica had to ride with some random girl around her age.

Yee Haw!!! Isaiah & Hubby

Some happy...some not. Hmm. Waiting in the heat for the hot air balloon ride.

And this is not a hoax. They really are in one!!

Doesn't Miranda look more than excited to be on this ride?

Beautiful landscaping. You could walk behind the greenery there and stand under the waterfall. I was going to walk through it but I didn't want to get my camera, purse, and hair wet.

Isn't that pretty?

This was a major greenhouse with butterflies inside. I'm glad one didn't land on me or I would have screamed!

Me & Daniel waiting for everyone to get off the roller coaster. He didn't want to ride on it.

Gotta have the cotton candy!!

And finally, there was no way they were leaving without getting on the Garlic Twirl!

We left after the kids got off this ride, and when we were about 10 minutes away, Miranda realized she didn't have her cell phone on her. We drove back to the park and they asked Lost & Found if anyone turned in her phone.

Wasn't there.

I called T-Mobile and put a suspension on her phone so nobody could use it. If it doesn't turn up in their L&F by tomorrow, I'll have to order her a new one. Thank goodness we got insurance for it. Our kids are VERY responsible with their cells, so she didn't get in trouble for losing it there. Inconvenient, yes, but just another lesson learned to be more careful.

But, all in all..it was a fun afternoon (even with the drama).

GIRLS TEA PARTY

I've posted on here before how my friend loves to host tea parties for my girls and our other friends daughters. This past Friday, she had another one! It's such a blessing when she does this because she really puts her heart into it. Her table is always beautifully decorated, and the girls feel like little Princesses.

What I love the most about this is that my friend Mariela will give each a girl a verse to read, and then she will share a little bit about what that verse means. Not only are their tummies getting fed, but also their spirits.

After we serve the girls and take 100's of pictures, us ladies will go outside to our table that my friend set up for us. This also gives the girls time to have some privacy. Of course, after a few minutes, they are more interested in what we're doing!

When everyone is done eating, that is when the dancing starts! We have a variety of salsa, Christian Rap, and clean old school music to entertain! It was such a fun night, and a great way to end the week! Can't wait to do it again.

Veronica, Michele, & Miranda. I'm so glad that Veronica was able to wear that dress again. It's too pretty to just hang in the closet. Michele is the girl that also went to the Father Daughter Princess Ball with them.

All the girls! This was the best angle we could get of all of them.

Just beautiful!

I make this every time. Strawberry cake with vanilla frosting and sprinkles!

My friend Christina (Michele's mom) made these! And yes, they were as good as they looked.

Another view of the table decor.

Mariela made the sandwiches, and our other friend Gwen brought those yummy cookies!

This was our table outside. Isn't that wonderful?!

Here's a copy of the verses that each of the girls read.

Michele reading her verse. Do you see how my friend printed it on their own individual cards?

And they even had their own place cards.

Time to get our groove on!

Mariela showing Christina how to SALSA!

Veronica & I lookin' all sweaty from dancing together.

SCRIPTURE SUNDAY

On Sundays, I usually post something random. I decided that instead of doing that, I will share a scripture. I pray that it will be a blessing to whoever reads it!

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.-1 Corinthians 13:4-7

J.O.B.

When I tell my kids that I used to work, it's almost like they can't believe I did anything BUT be a stay at home mom!

It really does seem like ages ago that I had to get up early in the morning because I HAD to be at work at a certain time. I did work up until Isaiah was 2, and Miranda was 1 year old.

I thought it would be fun to look back and reminisce about the jobs I did have!

I had my first job "illegally", meaning I was still underage. You had to be 16 years old to get a work permit from school, but I just delayed in getting one so I could work longer. I was only 15, and I really liked working here because one of my good friends worked there too. I only worked there a few months, but this was not my last gig at the food industry.

My next stop at 16 years old would be Pioneer Chicken. The owners loved me! At $3.50 an hour, I was a quarter ABOVE minimum wage!! I thought I was livin' large! Remember friends, this was in 1986. I actually couldn't stand working here after awhile. The brown & orange uniform was 100% polyester and very uncomfortable. I would go home smelling like fried liver and gizzards. I knew that after this job, I had to try something different!

I don't recall the name of the next company I worked for, but I was only there for a couple of months, at the most! I was a telemarketer, and my job was to call random people from a phone book to try to book appointments for solar energy! Now, doesn't that sound FUN??? NOT!!

The next job I got was through my good friend. It was at a trendy, teenage/young adult clothing store called Merry-Go-Round. Any of you remember the brand I.O.U.? And this was when Guess jeans came out. This was the "cool" place to work, and I met a lot of people. But, this place had it's downfalls too. The pay was minimum wage (three & a quarter), or commission, whichever was more. So, we couldn't just stand there and socialize with customers. I mean, we could, but only to a point. But, the biggest upside to working there was the 40% discount on the clothes!!

After I was done with retail, I moved on to bigger and better things (chuckle)! I was a bank teller at Wells Fargo Bank. By far, this was my favorite job, ever! I worked for WF for a few years, and at two different locations. If there was one job I could imagine myself going back to, that would definitely be it.

Finally, I moved into credit reporting. For the next few years, I worked as a Customer Service Rep. for a company who put together credit reports for mortgage companies. It had it's stressful moments, but it had it's perks too. From my customers, I received cards, gifts when I had my two older kids, flowers, and free lunches! I've also been able to stay in touch with my ex co-workers through Facebook!

It's been 12 years since I've worked. It feels like a lifetime ago.

It was fun while it lasted.

What was your favorite job?

FRIDAY PHOTO FLASHBACK

I started "Friday Photo Flashback" because I have so many pictures from my PRE-digital camera days. I thought it would be fun to scan them and share them here with you. I'm having so much fun doing this, that I would love for you to join me, too! So dig out the photo albums and put your scanner to good use! Don't forget to sign in to MckLinky so we can all visit and comment on each others blogs!

2004

I thought this picture would be appropriate since our annual Harvest Festival at church is next Saturday! Not only that, it will be Veronica's 6th birthday!!

This was taken when our kids were ages 7, 6, 3, 2, & 1 years old!! They're so little, and oh so cute! I can't believe that Danny is the same age that Isaiah was here in this photo, and also that Veronica will be turning the same age as Miranda here, too. Wow!

31/52 PICTURES OF ME-DRAMA!

I'm participating in a year long challenge, created by Carin at Forever In Blue Jeans. The goal is to be in one picture a week, for 52 weeks. Since us moms are always behind the camera, this gives us a chance to get out in front and be in the pictures with our family. So, click here if you want to join in on the fun!

This picture was taken before all the drama happened.

The kids and I took our dogs for a walk around the block, and in just a matter of 30 minutes, drama still managed to happen.

1. Danny trips on the sidewalk and falls on his hands and knees. But,because of the trooper he is, he just gets right back up.

2. Veronica stops throughout the walk to check and re-check inside her boots because something is poking her foot.

3. Mocha is barking at random people and other dogs. So embarrassing! Doesn't she realize that the only thing separating her from a German Shepherd is a flimsy gated fence?

4. Finally, they all decided to race home once we turned the corner. Up ahead I see Miranda sitting on the sidewalk. Apparently Danny suddenly stopped in front of her, making Skippy (our Border Collie) cut her off, which caused her to fall and skin her knee.

She was all upset, and I wanted to crack up, but I know that would be insensitive on my part. :)

I asked Eli why his face looked like this and he said it was because he didn't want to take a picture. Sorry, Eli!

And there is Veronica looking stressed about her boots.

WORDFUL WEDNESDAY

This is what happens when my "tween" daughter gets a hold of my camera.

I'm trying to decide if this is creepy or artsy.

What do you think?

Be sure to visit 7 Clown Circus for Wordful Wednesday

MAC ATTACK

I loved my MAC.

Yes, past tense.

No, not the makeup, my Macintosh computer. My beloved Apple IMAC G5.

When we purchased it a few years ago, I swore I would never go back to a Windows PC.

Well, never say never.

A few weeks ago, my MAC took a dive! After Google'ing the issue and talking to an Apple representative, we figured out it was doing something called "Kernal Panic." Sounds pretty serious, huh?

My husband took it into the Apple store so they can determine if it was a hardware or a software issue. I was praying it was the latter.

The Apple Genius said the problem was the logic board. The "mother board", if you will. The heart of the computer!

What does that mean?

It means $600 to fix it!

Um...thanks, but NO THANKS!

You can buy a brand new one for just over $1,300.

This is when I became THANKFUL for the kids computers. The ones we use for school (and for blogging and Facebook).

I realize now, that just as long as I can access those sites, nothing else matters.

Anyway...

This is where the good news comes in.

My sister in-law had a laptop that was just sitting around her house.

So, what did she do?

She offered it to me, and of course, I said, "YES!"

Excited and overjoyed are an understatement!

I've never had a laptop before and I'm lovin' it!

What a blessing!

SOUP'S ON!

My husband has been under the weather lately, so he was craving for soup. Not from out of the can, but the homemade kind.

He went to the store and bought all the ingredients that he wanted in it, and all I had to do was cut and season!

I know I said I wasn't confident to share all my recipes, but this is super easy, and pretty much a no brainer!

This is my version of "Chicken Vegetable Soup."

This soup really hits the spot!

These are the ingredients I used:

3 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
1 Head of Cabbage (Cut up in quarters)
1 Bunch of Celery
4 Carrots
1/2 Onion
1 Can of Stewed Tomatoes
10 Sticks of Spaghetti Noodles (Broken in small pieces)

You can use any seasoning that you like. I used celery salt, pepper, fennel seed, and basil.

I boiled the chicken breasts and then cut it up when it was done. I used the same water that it cooked in, and then I added all the veggies except the celery and cabbage. When the carrots were almost done, that's when I added those in, plus the noodles. I cooked it on medium the entire time.