The End Of An Era

My sister, Amanda, and I were only 17 months apart. My mom dressed us alike all the time. Pretty much every picture we are in together as little girls, we are 'twins'.

I had my life planned out. I was going to become 'happily married', have 2 little girls; 17 months apart. They were going to be best friends forever. I was going to dress them alike for as long as absolutely possible.

God had other plans. I didn't like His at first, but looking back now...I am so glad it went His way and not mine.

I had 2 children very close in age, all right, but it was a boy then a girl.

Then, having 3 little men so close in age was so sweet! They have been great about letting me dress them a bit similar and I think they rather like it. OK, maybe not like it, but don't mind it. I do let them wear different colors, though, to still let them have some individuality.

I have learned one very special thing from having sons. They love their mama with all their heart. Age doesn't matter: age 1, age 5, age 12, age 15 even...they love their mama and aren't afraid to be mama's boys in a very 'masculine' sort of way. Each of my sons goes out of his way, pretty much from birth, to do things to please me, gain my affection, bring me honor. (A post about just this and Miguel, will come later this week) Not that my sweet daughter isn't all things wonderful; it is just VERY different. Of course, I would love to have a little girl with my Timmy, and the Lord knows if He will ever see it fit to bless us with our Isabella Grace. But, if God wanted to give us another son, or sons, I know I would be overjoyed because the love between a mother and son is just something that is so sweet that it is truly indescribable.

So, now that Walker is 5, I am bowing out gracefully. I want to stop having them wear the same shirts before one of them says they don't want to do it anymore. It is the end of an era, indeed. However, not before even their cousins joined in one last time to give me a sweet memory to keep stored away of this precious time when 5 little boys could wear the same shirts and not feel 'weird' about it.(l-r: Christian, Walker, Tristan, Skyler, and Zack on the bottom left.)

And, no, Natalie and I did not plan this. We just showed up to church and noticed that our little guys all matched and I couldn't let the chance of this picture go. Guess it is very obvious that Natalie and I shop at the same place (Old Navy...love their clearance deals..these shirts were 6 bucks each) and think alike.

So, this era ends, but my little mama's boys...well, I know that each of them embraces that term, and I am so blessed to be their mama.

100 POSTS! (What we looked like then)

Us..100 posts ago (April 2007). The kids ALL look SO different! Miguel was still wearing glasses, Karizma's tooth was still 'out of place', Walker...well, it seems Walker never changes, Christian still looked like a baby, and Zack was only 4 months old!

18 months ago, I started this blog. Thanks to my husband's encouragement, Ivy's direction, and Jackie and Temo's patience in showing me the 'ropes'. I have loved sharing our life with those willing to read about it. Thanks to all my faithful blog readers for reading, commenting, and 'lurking', too. xoxo to all!

p.s. Good news...no more fuzzy pics for the blog! My sweetheart blessed me with a new camera...he ordered it for me and of course, he bought me a pink one. He is so sweet!

Our Home Away From Home

Since our Road trip extended over 2 days, we decided to go to our favorite place after our dino encounter...DISNEYLAND! We got there Thursday night and hung out for a couple of hours. Our first ride was on the Buzz ride. This is definitely the family favorite!

Tim LOVES this ride...probably because it is the only one he can get on. Christian got to ride with Daddy this time.

I just love to watch whichever child happens to ride with me, Zack this time, take the game/ride super serious. Zack totally thought he was hitting those targets.

We spent the night a a nearby hotel that night and even ventured over to the pool for a nighttime dip. The kids had a blast. Christian said he loved his 'new house'. (Cute story: when we got home the following night, Christian wakes up in our driveway and says, "This isn't our new house!! I don't want this old house, I want the new house!!" It took us awhile to console him and get him to stop crying. At least I know that the kids are not concerned about lack of space, if they were willing to live in a one room space like the hotel room. Hmm...wonder if it being a couple of blocks from The Happiest Place On Earth had anything to do with it?)

Friday morning Tim went to LA for a few hours to attend a hearing, and we ventured over to CA Adventure. Walker and Christian got on a ride that was so cute to watch from the ground because you could see their little feet dangling from beneath.

Walker is on the left, Christian on the right.




The new Toy Story ride at CA Adventure was broken down on Friday, but thanks to our passes, we will check it out eventually. Christian did ride the Tower of Terror for the first time. That ride is awesome, but it makes me all queazy. I am so amazed that the boys want to do these rides already.

Zack and Christian were so star struck when they met Woody. Walker thinks it's cute that the little guys haven't figured out 'the secret'.


Zack saw Goofy and was not hesitant at all to go and give him a hug. He kept calling out to him, and it was so sweet how Goofy put him on his knee and played with him for awhile.



Everything at CA Adven. is more relaxed and the characters seem more friendly. Plus, taking Zack to go see the Live Disney Playhouse show is always the highlight for me. He is a HUGE Little Einsteins fan, so when he sees the characters on stage he is in total awe. I admit that I spend the whole time just watching him instead of the show, because he is so precious.

Until our next trip....

...And Made A Pit Stop In The Past

We made a stop in Cabazon to see the big dino's. We had the boys close their eyes until we could drive right under the Brontosaurus. When we had them open their eyes they were just so blown away. We had them get out and pose for pics and Walker ran up to me, wrapped his arms around me and said, "Thank you, thank you, thank you for bringing us here, Mom. This is the best day of my life!" Wow...definitely worth the long drive. Next time we will actually fork over the cash to sit in the T-Rex's mouth like Pee-Wee got to do in his big adventure.

I Have Seen The Future

We took a road trip with Tim on Thursday to Beaumont (Riverside County), which is not too far from Cabazon...you know, where the big dinosaurs that were in Pee Wee's Big Adventure are?? (pics of that to follow) We love to visit outlet centers, so we couldn't pass up going and visiting the one in Cabazon. Of course with 5 children, we have to make lots of potty stops. Karizma had a look of total amazement written across her face when she came out. Here is our conversation:

Karizma: Mom, the toilets put the covers on for you!!

Mom (me): What are you talking about?? (most of you know I wear hearing aids, so I totally figured I must have misheard her.)

Karizma: Mom, I'm not kidding...they put plastic covers on for you so you don't have to touch it, then they get rid of it.

Mom: (I am pretty bewildered at this point...who are 'they' and how do 'they' put a cover on for you?? I have to admit I was picturing a little hand coming out from near the back pipe and gently taking a sheet of toilet seat cover, and placing it just so, then smoothing it out, and keeping a finger on it so it doesn't slip into the toilet before someone sits down...I hate when that happens!) Who wants to come with mommy to check it out?!

Walker and Christian: I DO, I DO, I DO, I DO.....

So, I walk into the ladies restroom with my 5 and 3 year old sons in tow and what do we discover? THE FUTURE! Yes, we have seen the future, my friends, and it is lookin' pretty bright.





Of course, the 2 little boys that only 30 seconds prior had promised they did not need to 'go'...all of a sudden HAD TO GO and they had to do it...sitting down, of course. They wanted to experience this phenomenon for themselves.

As you can see, it doesn't take much to impress our family. This is going on my top 10 favorite inventions!

**On a side note: I couldn't get over that they would build a contraption like this to put on a seat cover, but still had the manual lever to flush the toilet. Gross!

The Locator

Have you seen this show?

It is about a guy that goes around the country reuniting people. For example the episode I recently saw, that touched me deeply, was of a brother searching for a brother he never got to meet because his mother gave the brother up for adoption. Man, talk about a tearjerker. The brother that was given up for adoption, Brock, was adopted into a family that already had 2 children; a boy and a girl. However, both his brother and sister have since passed away. It really made me think about myself and how this show had some similarities with my life.

I will post later about that side of my life, but I figured it was time to post a picture of my brothers and sister from Houston.l-r: Adam-the middle child, Mayte'-the baby, Mariano-the eldest
(Aren't they gorgeous?!)
Do you think they have any resemblance to me?

Adam, and his wife Vanessa, got married earlier this year and are expecting their first baby! I am finally going to get to see what a niece or nephew from my side of the family looks like. I am so excited for them!

Mayte', my little sis, has been married to her handsome hubby, Ros, for about 1.5 years. She is such a sweet part of my life. I adore her more than she will ever know.

Mariano, has been married to the lovely Sylvia, for almost 8 years. When they came to visit us a while back...a long while back...we had one of the best times. They had us laughing so hard. We really hope they can come and hang with us in Cali again soon.

My brothers and sister came into my life just a short time after my sister, Amanda, passed away. They have all made efforts to come and visit me in SD. I have been out to Houston once, but they still haven't gotten the chance to meet Walker, Christian, and Zack. Maybe once my nephew or niece is born, we can all take a road trip to TX!!

Field Trip #2: Home Depot

We headed out again with my mommies group to our September field trip. It was at a Home Depot in San Diego. There must have been about 20 kids! They took a tour of the store, wearing their Home Depot aprons, and were given demonstrations on how to use 3 different saws. After the tour, we were taken outside to take part in a workshop. All the kids....umm, Moms and older siblings....got to put together their very own truck. It was awesome to see a bunch of nails and blocks of wood form this really, super, cool, crayon holder-truck. The boys haven't stopped playing with them since they made them. And get this...it was all FREE!!

Home Depot's newest (and most handsome) employee, Zack, 21 months old.


Christian found the saws too noisy, but Isabel was so amazed.


Brianna was our expert builder. She helped most of my boys put their trucks together.


I loved watching the boys play with their trucks once they were done. They all seemed so proud of their work.

Christian, Walker, Mr. Vaca-the Home Depot Rep, Jacob, and Zack.

We have the greatest kids in our group. The older kids ALWAYS are looking out for the little ones. I am so blessed to be a part of this group. Thanks again to Katie for her efforts. We all had the best time!!

Visitors ON Mars

**Special shout-out to Grandma Joanne for being a loyal reader that encourages me to post DAILY if possible. Joanne, your encouragement and kindness means so much to me. Thank you.**





"I, Jacob, have come up to this mountain, known as Mars, to observe the Martians. They were open to showing me their customs and shared a meal with me.

The Martians are a humorous people and they had me laughing out loud.

They hold their hands up (like I am demonstrating in the picture) to praise the one and only Almighty God and their savior, Jesus.

They had my parents perform a ritual they referred to as "Playing the Wii." My Father and Mother both took this ritual very seriously and received a lot of 'woohoo's and 'waytogo's for their efforts from the Martians. I partook in many of their daily events, such as the trampoline, climbing the gym, and riding on the Jeep from Mars. It was an interesting trip to the mountain, but I enjoyed the scenery. The Martians have extended their invitation to me and my parents to come up to their mountain anytime. Maybe next time I can join them while they build a snowman on Mars."

Our friends, the Marquez family, made the trip up to 'Mars' this past Saturday. It was my kind of visit because they brought the main dish and drinks and we took care of the sides. Brianna is a great cook and we loved getting to talk football with Gabe. But, I got to say that the best part was having little Jacob all to myself and not having to share him with the nursery staff of my church. Oh, and watching Gabe and Brianna be competitive with one another while playing the Wii was so much fun. They are a very cute couple and we are so blessed to call them friends. We can't wait to have them up again.

Grace Church Annual Picnic

Tim and Zack: "Go Chargers!"


Tristan and Walker just after dunking for apples


Christian eating, as usual


The infamous Skyler Skowl...wearing his Mr. Happy shirt, no less

We have been attending Grace Santee Church for almost 2 years now, and we are so thankful for our church family. We had really been looking forward to the picnic this year, and were so blessed that the Ortiz family joined us for the day. (We love you, guys!!) Last years was a lot of fun with Grandmom and Grandad joining us. But, this year was even better with our brother and sister-in-law, Dan and Natalie; and our nephews and nieces in attendance as well. We missed Uncle Chris, though.

Looking back 2 years ago, praying for a home church and having someone care about us as much as our good friend Eddie S., really makes me so thankful to God for His answered prayer. Eddie never stopped encouraging us, and inviting us to Grace, and I remember that when we first visited Grace, within the first 20 minutes of listening to Pastor Steve preach, Tim said, "We found our church."

Getting Old

A few signs that you are getting old(er):

1. Your toddler tells you, "Mom, you are getting old."

2. You get on ONE ride at Disneyland, and feel like you got hit by a truck the following day.

3. Your husband reminds you that you are now closer to 70 than you were to birth.

4. And my very favorite...you get an AARP magazine in the mail with your name on it.

The Pink Phone And The Seafood Palace, Part III

(Since some of you have been emailing me and giving me a hard time about keeping you in suspense... I will make you wait no more...but I will pray that you learn to be patient. LOL)


So, Tim answered his phone and it was a man telling Tim he had found a pink cell phone at Disneyland. He asks Tim if he knows where the Seafood Palace is. Seafood Palace?? No, we don't, but we will find it. He says he will just go ahead and leave it at the restaurant's front desk. This guy was getting zapped with some conviction. But, not only was he feeling convicted, he was repenting and went as far as to call Tim's cell phone (which I have labeled as Husband in my phonebook), and give him the address and directions to the place. (we also later found out, when we got home, that he must have called the house first..which I have labeled as home in my phonebook...to let us know he had found the phone. Not getting an answer there, he went on to call Timmy.) Of course, we never expected to have to drive 6 miles away from where I lost my phone to get it, but it helped to see just how God was working through our prayer to have this person feel conviction. If he had turned it back in at DLand, it wouldn't have sunk in as much that he meant to keep it, then dealt with the conviction we prayed for and returned it. We stopped right there in Toontown, Disneyland and gave praise to God for hearing our cry and answering our prayer. We did have to call it a night, because we were unsure when the palace closed.

We drove to the Seafood Palace, which was about 6 miles inland from Disneyland. Not the nicest part of town, but the palace was actually very beautiful inside. You would think they would have a nicer sign, huh? The guy at the front desk said that some guy had left the phone there to be picked up, but was a bit reluctant to hand over a pink phone to Tim. Tim reminded him that not many people would be coming to a Seafood Palace for a pink phone and the guy handed it over.

I was just elated that God loved me so much to take care of this for me. And, now I had to keep my end of the deal...no more complaining about the pink phone. My attitude changed and I started to see all the cool features it has. It even has this feature that makes it compatible with my hearing aids and I can hear it so much better now! My 30 day return expired yesterday, and I have decided to keep that pretty pink phone. It will be a constant reminder that God cares about each thing I have on my heart. That he truly does listen and wants to bless me.

Psalm 18:6 says "In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears." This is my favorite verse in the bible, because I see it come to pass daily.

P.S. Yes, I do realize that the sign says 'Place' and not Palace..and so does the door, but the guy that had taken my phone kept calling it the 'Palace' and we found my phone there, so Palace it stays.

Driving While Brown

That is the term Tim used. I had never heard it. Anyway, it was a good way to describe my little run in with the law today.

We live off a dirt road up in the mountains. We were warned about the illegal aliens that come down the mountain in front of our house and the 'coyotes' that bring them. We have only lived her a few months, but have seen several groups of illegals. So, it is great to see the Border Patrol up here often.

This morning as we passed the mail boxes at the entrance to the dirt road leading up the mountain, we saw a strange guy (Mexican) out there with a car (lowered with a metallic blue paint and tinted windows) we did not recognize. He gave the neighborly wave that everyone gives up here, so we paid it no mind. As we continued to drive down the windy road off the mountain, I looked in my rearview mirror and there was that car on my tail with what looked like cop lights flashing. What?!? Weird...I told Tim I wasn't pulling over (the kids and I were joining him on his road trip to Rancho Mirage today). Tim tells me I have to and that the sirens are going off now. Well, me and my bad hearing, I could not hear the sirens, but I sure could see those lights, flashing, and flashing, and flashing. Anyway, if you have been on the road that leads to our mountain, you are fully aware that there is NO WHERE to pull over for miles. So, for about 2 miles, I made him follow me. Tim at this point is telling me how important it is that I pull over and so on and so on...I planned to do it, just not in the middle of no where. How do I know that this guy is really a cop?!?! Anyway, I finally found a safe place to pull over and the kids are wondering what is going on and I roll down my window for this guy. He gets out of his car and is in jeans and some white t-shirt and is all tatt-ed up..but, then he pulls out a badge from under his shirt. "Border Patrol", he says. He tells me he is doing a check, and wants to know my citizenship. I tell him U.S. He continues to DRILL me. Wants me address, where was I born, how many kids, the whole deal. He then goes and takes a look at my plates, which happen to be personalized, and comes back and says thank you.

So, this is what happens when driving while brown. I actually am very grateful. I want them to do their job. I want them being aware of their surroundings. Even if it means pulling my total suburban mom-mobile, with my NOTW sticker on the back, over on the side of this windy, lonely road.

Coming Soon...

The Pink Phone And The Seafood Palace, Part III...

Remember, patience is a virtue.

My Pink Cell Phone And The Seafood Palace: Part II

You would think that when Tim surprised me with that cute, new, shiny cellphone, I would be grateful, touched, and happy. I tried to be, but honestly, I was a little bummed that I did not get to go and pick it out myself and check out the options, and so forth. The funny thing is that I am sure I would have picked the pink one, too. He was so happy when he surprised me that I hated to say anything and break his heart. So, I kept my big mouth shut...well, at least for a few hours. Then I said it:

"I wish you would have waited for me to go and pick it out myself. I just don't like it very much, it is hard to figure out."

He was deflated and hurt and I had opened my big mouth and complained. How I wished I could swallow those words, but I couldn't. So, did I learn my lesson? No...I kept complaining with subtle comments, like, "This phone is too heavy." or "I can't figure anything out on this phone." or the dreaded "I can't hear you, this phone sucks." Yeah, I said it sucks. I kept 'threatening to take it back and Tim was actually really sweet about it and kept offering to take me to go look at my other options. But, I kept making my little comments each time the phone would be in my hand.

I had told him on our way to Disneyland that I was definitely going to exchange it. I just couldn't stand the phone and I wasn't looking for 'cute' in a phone, I was looking functionality. Is that even a word?!?! Well, it was what I was looking for. When we got to Disneyland, Tim dropped us off and we headed to Star Tours. It was Christian's first time and I couldn't wait to see his little face. He loves Star Wars. I was leaving Zack and Miguel outside the ride, so I had to take that pink phone with me. I put it in my pocket, forgot about it for about 20 minutes, and did not realize that it must have slipped out somewhere between Star Tours and Autopia. Not good. I checked with the ride, the stores, we walked back and forth. No phone. Of course, we all got together and prayed what a sweet friend of mine calls the 'Zap It' prayer. I also told God that if he helped me find the phone, that was only 3 weeks old, I would NEVER complain about the phone again. But, what I really needed to do is and ask God to forgive me for being ungrateful, and ask my husband to forgive me for not appreciating his kindness. I did both. I loved that my Timmy was not mad and you know what that sweet man said when I told him I lost the phone? He said that he had some mileage checks coming in and he would let me go and pick whatever phone I wanted this time. Geez, was I a booger or what before..yeah, don't say it, I already know.

This whole episode also meant I had to humble myself in front of my children and tell them that I should have been grateful to begin with and I should have been appreciative of what their Dad had done for me. Anyway, after we all prayed that the person that had it would have a conviction put on their heart to return it, and searched for awhile, and reported it to lost and found, and tried calling it several times, and texted a message to the phone to call our other cell phone, I decided I wasn't going to let my carelessness ruin the kids day. We went on to have a great day at DLand. There were no lines!

Then around 7pm, while we were walking around Toon Town, Tim got a call from a 626 area code....should he answer it, he says. Answer it, I say, it could be someone calling about my pink phone! This is where the Seafood Palace came into play...

Retraction

I must print a retraction concerning my earlier blog about MVCF. I said that Michelle was a nut thief....

I stand corrected: Michelle is actually a nut borrower.

Hope that clears things up, Me-Shell!

A MVCF Retreat, A Pink Cell Phone, And The Seafood Palace

It all started at the MVCF women's retreat in early August. The campus at Muiretta Hot Springs was absolutely pristine and so beautiful.



Then hanging with some of my favorite girls late at night in the hot springs was so fun. I totally felt like I was at 6th grade camp, but only better, because Jesus was at the center of this weekend. I was blessed so much, especially by learning how to praise God. It is easy to praise God during our happy times, but we must also praise him through the hard times, the difficult times. It is during those times that our relationship with the Lord is being strengthened. So, we must praise Him, praise Him, at ALL times, through ALL things.


I just love my MVCF women!! Michelle, lovingly known as MeShell my Bell, to me...was so fun to hang out with. Even if she is a nut thief...but, Michelle, your secret is safe with me, girl.

Paula, one of my 6 roomates, had her rockstar debut on this day. She looked so stinkin' cute up on the stage praising God with all her heart! She is lovingly known as my other pea in the pod.

It was a weekend of lots of lessons learned, for me and even for Tim. ( I have been meaning to post about what he learned that weekend for some time, but it is really personal, and I am building myself up to share.) It was nice to have some 'me' time with the Lord, but I did miss my family so much.
When I met Tim at a friend's house, on my way back from the retreat, he had a surprise for me... a shiny new pink cell phone, with a long 2 year contract attached. (Gotta love those, right?) ...the cell phone has been quite the pain in the you know what since I got it...or was it? I have found that if you look long enough, each situation has a lesson attached. You just have to be willing to learn from it. My pink phone has been quite the teacher.......check back to hear what nuggets of wisdom my pink cell offers and how it all ties into The Seafood Palace....

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!

Tim had a deposition to go to in Orange County yesterday, so we decided to hitch a ride with him and be dropped off at the Happiest Place On Earth...DISNEYLAND!! If you know me, you know I love me some Disney time. Tim was only gone for a couple of hours, then came to meet us at the park.

It was a hot day, but there were NO lines and all the kids had a chance to ride most of the rides; some even twice!
Miguel is the best big brother and took the boys on lots of the rides that I decided to pass on. Christian was finally tall enough to get on Space Mountain, twice, and Star Tours. I think the only ride they still need to grow a few inches for is Indiana Jones. I know Walker can't wait, because he is a BIG 'Indy' fan.

After Tim got back from his deposition, we had a late lunch at the Carnation restaurant. We love their fried chicken.



We took Zack to the parade and he was really enjoying it. I loved the look on his face when the Ariel float passed us, only to bring on Ursula. Well, you would be pretty taken aback if that huge villainess was headed right at you, too!


As usual, we can't help but be happy at DLand. Tim was in a bit of pain, but I know he has become a Disney fanatic along with me. It is where we became engaged afterall! God met the desire of our hearts, by providing the $$ for gas, food, and some treats by using Tim's depo. It was a great day all in all...although, I did lose my pretty new pink cell phone only 30 minutes into getting into the park...but that is another post!!