HEY! There's no singin' in the North Pole!

Christmas is 6 hours away and the countdown has begun. Thankfully this year I have discouraged the girls from waking me up at 5 am to open presents, and hopefully the bribe has worked. I am relieved that Christmas is almost over, as I have been feeling extremely exhausted and overwhelmed. I am not in the "Christmasy" spirit and I am not sure if its because the lack of family around to spend it with, or the eagerness to move on from this year.
While our Christmas plan is simple, it consists of having Darren's family over, in addition to all the kids and stuffing our face with as much Mexican food as physically possible. I am excited because I have felt a void of cheese enchiladas and cheese enchiladas are by far my fav food!
While I am missing my family, I am excited to spending the evening with my fabulous husband and sister Elizabeth.. and tomorrow I will awake and remind myself that the Christmas shopping is done and it is now time to take down the tree which has been up since Thanksgiving!
To all of my friends and family, have a wonderful Christmas and stay safe!

And the hits keep coming....

Here's the deal.... I am going to try ridiculously hard to keep this post positive even though I feel like the world is collapsing around me! I could have never imagined how overwhelming family events can be and how much of a toll they really take on you. I honestly wish I could pick out a family who is in a state of chaos similar to mine and start a bitch fest that mainly consisted of rambling on about how much their family sucks, but that would just be cruel.

I am tired, boy am I tired.. I am drained emotionally and physically. I feel like since Thanksgiving events have taken place one after another without a chance to breathe a breath of fresh air. I am certain that life is not suppose to be this difficult. The saddest part? I don't even know where to start.

Since I am all about venting right now, I am going to lay it all out there and we will find out who really reads my blog.. ha

Ok.. so I am pregnant, (8 weeks this Friday) While I am completely excited, and cannot help but smile ear to ear when I think of holding my little baby, I am completely terrified. After the events that took place in July, I am a paranoid freak of nature who is cautious about everything that I come in contact with and that includes anything from an undercooked taco, to the neighbor (in my opinion hes a little off). I hate how once you have a terrible pregnancy experience  all of the sudden your world is focused on what you should and should not avoid. I hate it all! All I can say is right now I feel blessed and I am praying that this little baby sticks around and makes it.. God only knows how much I have prayed about this.

Secondly... the car issue, which might I remind you I am still completely pissed off about. Who do things type of things happen to??? I realize luck is not something that runs in my blood, however I have never felt that I have bad luck.. The whole incident was just irritating, and took away from my Christmas money... bastards.

Thirdly, without giving away all of my brother's private information, basically hes sick and has been for a long time. My brother makes decisions that are not good and are harmful to himself. My family and I got sick of standing on the side lines while he self mutilated himself, therefore we got him admitted into a hospital that will hopefully help him. Bless his heart I know he is miserable where he is, but I just want him to get better. I have been dealing with the brother issue since last Wednesday (coincidentally enough, it was the same day I got my car back). I hate to see him upset, but he just needs help and thankfully it seems like the doctors are helping.

Family brings more family... Since my brother has been in a somewhat crisis state, we have had a lot of family involved trying to help, which has made the situation more stressful than necessary. I think that is why I am so drained...

Yesterday I went to Phoenix to see Hailey perform at the State Capitol building, it was great. I actually have video and pics that I will post later when I gather the energy. In addition to seeing Hailey, I also met my half sister Elizabeth who I have never met before.. It was awesome to finally meet her and my new little nephew!

So upcoming we have the holidays... while I love this time of year, its one more thing to drive me insane. I have most of the Christmas shopping done, but still have little things here and there.. it's probably a sin in some way to say that you are excited the season is almost over but I really, really am.

That is what is going on in my life. How I wish I could have a bottomless margarita to ease the tension, and unfortunately margaritas (the good ones anyway) are on the no-no list for being prego. So I will continue what feels like an uphill battle and I will laugh at the fact that God is being humorous and playing a few little tricks on me, which are probably being done to keep me on my toes.

Until next time.......

When it rains..it pours!

I feel like this year has been one giant rain cloud, while life has definitely been rewarding, I felt like we dealt with a lot of battles too. Our most recent battle? Our brand new Outlook is broken...

I kid you not, and it was no ones fault (which really sucks because it makes is so much better when you can at least blame someone!). Last Wednesday I decided to skip my class (problem #1) and go to Pima to turn in some books and maybe do a little shopping. On my way to Pima I heard a metal clunking noise while driving. Upon arriving to Pima, I noticed fluid gushing from the front of the car which I quickly realized was not a good sign.
I called Darren who instructed me to contact our roadside assistance (which we have taken full advantage of) and have them tow the car to the dealership. I did as instructed.
Darren came and picked us up from Pima and then we went to the dealership and the looked at the car... here comes the bad part.
The service manager who I had managed to piss off already (which I am blaming on hormones) had looked at the car and found a metal rod had penetrated the radiator, a/c compressor and power steering fluid holder. This in all was going to cost around $1,800.... some mistake I made.
After speaking with the service manager we were advised to contact our insurance company to file a claim (ya because it wont make his rates go up)... well again I did as I was advised and now we are waiting for our car to be fixed (our car which we bought brand new in July...ughhhhh) and we have a nice little payment amount of $500 due.... some storm.

Time flys when your having Fun!

Life has been nuts lately and I realized that my blogging updates totally suck right now. I am making a promise to myself to stay on top of my blog and avoid not posting for to long!

Where to start...

To begin October we went to Los Angeles to visit my parents. While there we went to the Santa Monica Pier, Disneyland and Knottsberry Farm. The girls had a blast and it was a nice way to get away from the heat and all the craziness at home. Our lovely slide show is below :)

The rest of October was pretty slow.. we had the girls for Halloween which is always a blast! Again slide show below!

Thanksgiving we had at our home this year, it was lovely. My parents came down from Los Angeles, and Darren's parents came over. It was a super nice day.

Chloe's turned 5 on the 29th of November, so we went ahead and had her party the Saturday after Thanksgiving, I will post pictures of that soon!

Other than that we are just getting ready for Christmas. Unfortunately this past Wednesday I was driving and got a metal rod stuck in the radiator, so my brand new outlook is in the shop to get fixed... so for now I am stuck at home.. definitely not the fun way to start out December!

Well.. for now that is all, I feel better that I have updated our blog, and going forward I will try and keep on top of it! Have a great weekend!

What a CRAZY weekend!

This weekend has been absolutely mind blowing!

Friday night we had planned for our friends Mike and Nicole and their daughter McKayla to come over.. we got take out from Chuy's and managed to have a blast.. it was a cool night, so we spent most of the night on the back patio enjoying the weather and having a few drinks.

Darren happened to glance at his Navy scheduled and realized he had his Navy weekend, which quickly eliminated all of our weekend plans! Knowing he had to get up early, he still managed to stay up late and hang out!

Saturday, Hailey, Chloe and I were running around practically all day running errands. The evening came and we had plans to attend our friend Shasta's birthday party and then bowling after with our neighbors.. lets just say that half way through the birthday party, Darren was falling asleep!

We ended up coming home, and upon our arrival we were greeted by a little mouse running across our garage.. ughhhhhhhhh. If that isnt bad enough, we opened the back door to let Frankie outside and there was another mouse.. ewwwwwwwww.

Today has been somewhat calmer. Chloe and I have spent the day lounging around and I have managed to get some homework done! I am now in the process of recording the Dallas Football game and plan on watching it with the husband as soon as he gets home!

On top of everything else, I have been dealing with some family issues that has thrown a curve ball in our direction. We are keeping my brother in our prayers, and hope the outcome is a positive one.

You can't be late until you show up

I cannot believe how long it has been since I have added a post!

Life as usual has dealt some completely random things. Its amazing how one action can have such a unexpected outcome. Its one of those things where you wake up and you can't remember whether or not you are dreaming. Some of you may know what I am talking about, others will find out over time I am sure.

Other news, the kids are out of school for the next 3 weeks for their fall break. It will be nice to have Hailey home during the day, the hard part will be keeping her busy. We are contemplating a trip up to the Grand Canyon the last week the kids are out of school, we will see whether or not it works out.

School for me has been going well, there is 1 class in particular where the instructor must be convinced that I have nothing better to do with my time, so she piles on the homework. Luckily we are almost half way through the semester!

I have posted some pictures from last night.. we went to Chuy's near our home and ended up having a blast! We sat on the patio and there ended up being live music. Amy was down for Phoenix, so she joined us.

Labor Day Weekend 2009

This Labor Day Weekend my parents came into town and stayed at the Embassy Suites. We pretty much hung out there all weekend swimming, eating and enjoying some college football!

The Parents:









Hailey playing with her new camera:










Again.......










Chloe was wide awake....











And passed out just as fast!













I must admit this is a little random.. we parked in the parking lot next to a GMC Acadia (I think) and we decided to take a picture to point out the similarities.. the picture didn't turn out to well, but it seemed like a brilliant idea at the time!
















Hope everyone had a fun and safe Labor Day Weekend!!!!

Rain in the Desert

My favorite part about Tucson weather is the awesome temperatures in the winter time, and the monsoon during the summer. This year I think all Tucsonans have felt a little ripped off because our monsoon season has consisted of maybe 7 or 8 days this year. Well today it happened... It rained and it rained hard, in fact it is still raining!

There is no comparing the smell of rain in the desert, it is a smell I long for all year round, and finally we get to experience it once again! I tried to take some pictures of the rain, but unfortunately they really don't capture the rain image!

Our Date Night!

So for us to not have kids on a Friday night is almost near unheard of. We always manage to have at least one which means that night consists of doing "kid" things.

Somehow we managed to be childless this past Friday night and I must say it was perfect timing! I feel like Darren and I haven't had a minute to ourselves to just be and that has taken a toll on us, in addition I started school last week which has added to the craziness!

So Friday night we decided to go to Sakura and for anyone who has not been to Sakura and has not done the Teppan Yaki (or however it is spelled) you must try it! Its an amazing experience! I have not been there in years, so it was a super nice treat!

We had an amazing evening which included great food, good wine and a great Teppan Chef!

Fall 2009

I am really excited about this time of the year.. The Dallas Cowboys have their first regular season game on the 13th of Sept against Tampa Bay... go Cowboys!!!!!! I am also set to start school today. I am excited to hopefully be done with school soon.... it seems like I have been going to school for years and years.

The other thing exciting about this time of year is we are closer to having cooler weather. While living in Tucson has it perks the number one downfall is definitely the 100+ degree weather. Its miserable during the summer and while the monsoon does provide a little relief, it is still hot.

I defnitely think the next few months will be a nice change of pace and I am looking forward to having some fun with the family, maybe even squeeze in a trip to California!

Hailey's 8th Birthday

Funness!

Sunday night we decided to go to dinner and we opted for Pizza Hut (Mainly because its the only thing close that we haven't had lately). The food was great, and as usual with all the kids the entertainment was great!

We enjoyed great pizza... and
took goofy pictures..





















































and pictures of feet....strange I don't remember that one..











Dylan and I also decided to create a Fantasy Football team.. our Draft is Wednesday, I can't wait!

Lazy Sundays...

I must say today was one of the most quiet Sunday's in a long time. With Darren working this weekend with the Navy, Hailey with her dad and the boys with their mom, the only ones home have been Chloe and I.

While I miss the fact most of my family is gone, it has been nice having a little bit of peace and quiet. I could have used this time to get more done around the house (like I ever get caught up..ha!) Instead I have decided to lounge around in my comfy clothes switching between the Disney channel for Chloe and the Food Network for me.

While I haven't gotten to much done today (besides laundry) I have gotten a few new recipes for dinners. I think today was a perfect start for the rest of the week!

"Time can change in every breath we take"

This has got to be one of my most favorite quotes ever. Its so true, because things change in a matter of minutes or sometimes seconds. It is scary to know we are so close to the end of the year, and I just got used to the idea of writing out 2009. Where has all the time gone?

The one thing I have always been told is that you can buy anything in the world except for time, and now that I have children and I witness how quickly they are growing I realize how much that quote really coincides with my life. I hope that going forward I will always have the realization of how precious time really is and how precious life really is.

Golf N Stuff + Stuff

This past weekend Hailey and Chloe were with their grandmother, and we had Dylan and Kyle. Since we didn't have the girls, we figured it would be nice to take the boys to do something special.

Friday night we ended up going Cosmic Bowling, which has to be one of the funnest things ever.. We played 3 games, Dylan won the first time, I won the 2nd time and the 3rd game was incomplete.. and a side note for the husband... if you weren't so competitive, it wouldn't hurt so much...I still love you though!

Saturday night we took Dylan, Kyle and their friend to Golf N Stuff... we got there around 8:30 and didn't end up leaving until midnight! I have posted some pics, unfortunately they did not come out to well I think because of the darkness.
































Sunday Darren and I started a 2,000 Piece puzzle (because we have that much time on our hands, Ha!) I have posted a picture of Day 1's Completion.. we have yet to work on it since then and it is still sitting on our coffee table, but we are bound and determined to get this thing finished!












Monday night our A/C ended up going out.. we had someone scheduled to come out Tuesday evening, which meant that Chloe and I were stuck in a hot house all day, luckily the weather was mostly overcast which kept the temperature somewhat low until the afternoon when the sunshine was bright and hot!

The house actually got up to 89 inside... it was really sad because at one point in the afternoon it almost felt cooler outside then inside... sigh. Luckily we are up and running again and things seem to be going well. I am looking forward to this weekend even though we have zero plans which is actually nice for a change!

Its the Case of the Mondays

I cannot stand Mondays... Now that I am home you would think that would go away, its not like anything really changes for me, its pretty much like any other day with the only difference being that Darren is at work after a weekend.

It feels like now that I am at home my days collide into one and its hard to keep track of everything going on. I feel so overwhelmed with things I have to do it makes me wonder how I managed to juggle everything before staying home.

I hope eventually with going to school, taking care of the house and kids that I manage to come up with some sort of system or schedule to make my life more efficient. The funny part is its been so long since I have stayed home with my kids, I often wondered what moms that stayed home did all day?

My answer to that question... is whatever they want! I see my daily schedule being very flexible.. I go with the flow on whats going on with Chloe and Darren's day. I tend to make plans and try to schedule what I am going to do.. but the plans change at a drop of a hat. My main priorities throughout the day are:

1. Be home at 2:30 to get Hailey from the bus
2. Make sure the house is straightened
3. Make sure Frankie gets out to go to the bathroom
4. Make sure dishes are done
5. Do laundry if Darren needs clothes for work
6. Check up on all my social accounts (Facebook, Myspace)
7. Try to come up with some brilliant idea for dinner while trying to satisfy everyone's taste
8. Work with Chloe on all of her preschool stuff (teaching her letters and how to write them)

Of course things to do get thrown into the mix all the time, but overall this is my To-Do list every day. I don't have a particular order but they beautiful thing is they all get done!

I Heart Cake

But not just any cake, I am totally craving this amazing chocolate cake from Costco. I believe the name of the cake is the "All American Chocolate Cake". Its comparable to heaven in a bite. I love it so much.. I think I may convince my husband that we need to take a road trip (literally a road trip) to Costco to pick this little baby up.

The problem with including the husband is this master plan is that he may actually want a bite of my little piece of heaven. I am not sure how I feel about this seeing as we have to strategize and execute a road trip to get the cake. This may be one treat I want to store and hide and keep all for myself. While many of you may think this is a selfish move, all I have to say is once you try this cake, you too will end up plotting a secret cake relationship.

The second part of the plan that is an obstacle, is the fact that this cake comes with a cost, and a hefty one at that. In one 8 oz slice of cake is 900 calories and 38 grams of fat. Now I am not the type of person to sit there and count calories, however I do have a pretty good idea of the amount of calories I intake at a meal or snake. With that said, it really comes down to what you want and what you need... for me this cake is clearly a need!

In July.....

We got a dalmatian. Her name is Frankie, shes super cute!

Frankie and Darren.. I think Frankie was terrified of the camera, she took off running as soon as I pulled it out... weird

Chloe was silly.....

We couldn't find Chloe for about 20 minutes, and finally came to realize she had fallen asleep under the side table and she had placed pillows around the table to hide herself!

My friend Kasey had baby Landon.. Congrats Kasey!!!

Hailey started 3rd grade, Dylan started 8th grade and Kyle started 6th grade

We bought a brand new 2008 Saturn Outlook.. I love it!

Also in July... My stepsister Donna had baby Joshua and My friend Crystal had baby Jase.. Congrats!!!!