Have you seen these guys?

The Numberjacks are Gabriel's current obsession. He watches this show everyday and even though it's in Italian he sings along and seems to figure out what they're saying. This show is made in the UK...thus I can't seem to find their DVD's in the American market. I don't know if this show is shown in the states, but the only place I can seem to find it in English is on You tube. Even then it isn't an entire show just different clips. I'm hoping that we can easily find these DVD's on our planned visit to London this summer because he absolutely loves them.

Childhood obesity....

After reading an article this morning on childhood obesity it got me thinking about the things my children put into their bodies. The health and physical fitness of our children is very important to me. I may serve healthy fare in our home, but my kids don't always eat it nor do they always make healthy choices when it comes to snacking or eating out. As their mother, I need to help them improve different aspects of their diet. For example,while Lesley is not afraid to try new foods and eats a variety of fruits/veggies she often skips breakfast because she isn't hungry. {which I hate 'cause it's the most important meal of the day} The boys on the other hand are picky eaters and really need to expand on the variety of fruits and veggies they eat. All I want is for them to have a balanced healthy diet, eat junk food sparingly in moderation, and to always be active.

Kids can be so cruel....

The story below is so heartbreaking. As a mother of an almost 11 yr. old my heart goes out to this beautiful little boy's parents and family. I am thankful Noah is able to learn in an environment free of peer pressure and bulling. Some might say I'm being over protective, I'm sheltering my kids, or bulling/harrassment are just a part of life,but I completely disagree. That type of behavior is not just a part of life, nor should any individual have to put up with it anywhere. {school,work, etc...} The author Barbara Coloroso has a book out on this subject and recently spoke to Anderson Cooper who was talking about 11 yr. old Jaheem Herrera. She was here just last month speaking to the all the military kids on this subject. ===================>

Note to self...

How are you going to set a short term weight loss goal in the morning and then head to the commissary to buy 3 half gallons of ice cream at noon???? Duhh...ya ice cream freak. Straight from the lips to the hips!!!! Yes I'll be at the gym tomorrow doing damage control :D

No medicine mommy...

Trent has duty which means he is in charge for the day and has to spend the night at the hospital. This morning I got a little taste of what my life will be like while my honey is deployed. Hectic and stressful at times, but with the right attitude every thing falls into place.
I was about to drive Lesley to the school bus stop when Gabe started throwing up all over himself in the car. Thankfully I covered him up with a small blanket because most of his puke landed on it and not him or his carseat. I automatically wiped him up and carried him inside to give him a drink of water. The first words out of his sobbing mouth as we walked in the door were "No medicine mommy"....which he repeated in between sobs. Poor thing!!! I placed him with a towel on the couch and tried to make him comfortable.
All this caused Lelsey to miss her bus. I had to deal with a sick toddler who may throw up again soon and trying to get her to school on time. Plus Noah my homeschooler is still in bed so he needs to wake up and get ready so he can go with me to the base 10 miles away to drop Lesley off. {Lesley's bus stop is at the end of our street }
I did manage to get out the door and have Lesley at school just on time. When I got home though Gabe threw up again in the car. At least it didn't happen while I was driving. Currently he has a fever and I was able to give him Tylenol via the suppositories his pediatrician gave me at his last visit. Hopefully this will stablize his temperature.
Get well soon little man.

Time to pick up the pace...

Alrighty..... I am in the process of finishing some travel plans for a short vacation we are taking to Rota, Spain in two weeks. I am so excited ...especially since our hotel is right on the beach. Lesley and I bought new bathing suits yesterday...which as every woman knows can be a dramatic experience, but I'm happy with what I got. Let me tell ya I have been working out very hard, but for the next two weeks I am setting a new short term goal. I want to weigh in at or below 120 lbs by May 11th the day I leave to Spain.;D {Yes, I may have weighed in at 121.6 lbs. today, but my diet can be bad when I'm hanging out with the girls.} I am really going to need to focus on my diet during the next couple of weeks because my appetite tends to really increase around the time I start menstrating. Uugh....like you really want to hear about that stuff!!! Anyways....that's my new goal and hopefully I won't over indulge at tomorrows drunko....I mean bunco get together. LOL

Ahhhh.....I can't wait to be lounging around here in two weeks. Whooo...Hooo

Mother's Day gift ideas for moi....

Okay everyday with my family is a gift and yes I know you guys love me. BUT if you really want to make me feel extra special and greatly appreciated this Mother's Day here is something I'd really like. ;D

The Ipod Touch:

My baby girl....

Here are Lesley, Layna, and Rosabel being camera happy at Carney Park this past weekend. I tell ya one minute you're changing their stinky poopy diapers and in the blink of an eye next they're a teenager doing things teenagers do best......driving their parents CRAZY. Nahhh...Lesley is a really good kid and we are really proud of her.

Wordless Wednesday...that's not so wordless. :D

Lajolla, CA 2006

My nephew Julian with Noah & Lesley at Seal's Beach ....can you see the seals and their pups laying on the beach. Pretty neat....huh!

Gabe and Trent at Scripps Birch Aquarium

Edible cells

Noah has been learning about cells in science. I've included several pics of some stuff we've been doing.Below he is using the computer to view interactive cells.

He also made edible cells this past Sunday

This week he needs to finish a venn diagram comparing plant and animal cells. Hopefully everything he's learning is sticking. LOL

I'll end with one of my favorite quotes-

... "Education is not the filling of a bucket, but the lighting of a fire." --- William Butler Yeats.

Quick and challenging workout....

My handy dandy jump rope is breathing new life into my otherwise boring cardio workout. I really am enjoying it mainly because it's something different and fresh. Basically I am using some of the boxing warm up training I used to do and my ipod music to keep the tempo up. No I'm not talking about your average Joe jumping at a slow pace, but rather the fast pace you see boxers do. Here is my quick 25 min cardio workout playlist....and I must tell ya I have been known to break it down when I miss a jump because the music just makes me want to dance. :D LOL

Jump rope playlist:

Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

Lady Gaga- Poker Face

T-Pain- Freeze

Jamie Foxx- Blame It

Akon- Beautiful

Metro Station- Shake It

Farewell Mr. Mamón....hello withdrawals

For clarity I have to mention that we call a binky ..a mamón in our home. As you can see from the pictures below Gabe and his buddie mamón go way back. He could always count on the mamón to calm, soothe, and bring him comfort. It has been there everyday for him through happy milestones, crankiness, traveling , laser blasting, bedtime, 1st haircut, baptism, theme parks, Aunt Jenny's visit, and so much more.

As of the first week of March his mamón left on a journey to the moon...where it would be given to smaller babies who needed it more. ;) wink* When he found a stray mamón under his bed two weeks later he was so excited..... it was as if he hit the jackpot. I thought we would have to go back to square one, but I distracted him with our nightly book reading that evening then snuck it away and he forgot about it. This has been a hard adjustment for my little guy.

It has been close to 6 weeks that the mamón has been away, but just this week at bedtime he asked me to please get his mamón from the moon. It is especially dificult for him at bedtime and I have caught him sucking on his thumb and blankie as a substitute. They both just don't do for him what his mamón could do. I've noticed that since his mamón was taken away he now has nightmares, is crankier than usual, he needs a lot of comforting (only from mom cause dad just won't do), and he also has developed the habit of waking up during the night and coming into our bed. He hardly did that before. Pobrecito I love my Gabey so much ...I'll give him all the time he needs to adjust. :D

A few more pics from this weekend....

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Weekend drama,hormonal mood swings,baseball,park fun, and weight update in that order...

Friday night we were supposed to go out to dinner with Trent's coworkers, but that all changed after Trent gave me word as I was about to get ready about his discussion with the detailer. The word is " ......deployment up to one year which consist of combat training and 7 months boots on the ground in Afghanistan." I immediately lost my appetite and no longer was in the mood to do anything. Truthfully I cried and to make matters worse it was not a good day for that kind of news because of the onset of my PMDD symptoms. I could handle 6,7,even 8 months of separation, but a whole damn year...that's just asking a frickin' little too much from me!!! LOL Hopefully my mood will improve in two weeks....because I can guarantee life with me during the next two weeks will be a BiATCH! =) I'll try my very best to push all that worrying to the side and maintain my focus on my health, fitness, and exercise routine.

Frankly I think Trent got himself in this situation because of a discussion he had with his specialty leader last summer and because he doesn't tell people that are trying to groom him to be this asset to the Navy that he has never planned on staying in longer than his obligated 21 years.
Ahhh....I can taste the BITTERNESS in my mouth! LOL I guess the one good thing to come out of this deployment is that I get to go home finally after 15 yrs.

Anyways, Noah's baseball season started on Saturday. His team lost their first game =( , but they played well. Noah is a really good first baseman....he did get upset about a call the umpire made while he was at bat. Gabriel got to hang out and play with a few of his pals while we were at the park. Lesley and her friends found a hedgehog while they were taking snapshots by the woods. He looks a little sickly, but it could just be that he was afraid of us. He curled up into a tight little ball and stuck out his little quills.



On the topic of fitness. Here is my current weigh in pic below.

My goal was to weigh in at 121 lbs. this week, but I just missed it. Below are pics of Gabe expressing excitement over eating brisket, rice, and beans. My old middle school friend Larry (who is stationed here) and his wife cooked it.....

YUMMY......

Wordless Wednesday....Girl's night out

I'm bored....

After eight weeks I'm beginning to get bored with my gym routine plus it's time to change it up anyway. Some boredom busters I've tried are updating my ipod playlists, downloading 30 Rock shows and Bill Maher podcasts to my ipod, and lifting heavier weights so that my muscles continue to be challenged. They've helped, but basically I'm getting bored with my cardio routine. I do no less than 50 mins. to 90 mins. of cardio depending on the time and energy I have. I may start cross training and incorporating some of the boxing combination routines I used to do. I'm also taking my workouts outside now that the weather is better.

That's just what I did last night after being kicked out of the gym after 40 mins. of cardio. Turns out the gym closed early at 8 pm last night due to Easter Monday. Who knew??? So feeling like I hadn't worked out enough I ran 3.5 miles around the base. I am so happy that I was able to run the entire distance without my right knee acting up. You would think that my torn calf muscle injury from 2004 would give me problems still, but nope it never does. It's always my right knee that kills me. I'm hoping I can get back to running 4 to 5 miles like I use to when we lived on Randolph AFB. We'll see.....if I've learned anything it's not to rush and do too much. It's all about incorporating healthy lifestyle changes that become a natural way of life. It's also about balance and not beating yourself up when you get off track either.

Mi Familia....

These are pics I hacked off my BIL myspace page.;P I have to say how dare they take a family pic without me!!! LOL Looks like they had fun this weekend in Texas.Introducing my crazy family....
L to R: Russell, Belinda, Rik, Jennifer and my parents sitting.

Stephanie-ology

I shamelessly swiped this off of Marsha's blog. :D This will just give ya a little glimpse of moi.

Let others know a little more about yourself, re-post this as your name followed by "ology"

FOOD-OLOGY

What is your favorite salad dressing?
Honey mustard

What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?
Buca di Beppo or Carrabbas or Mi Tierra...I can't pick just one! lol

What food could you eat for 2 weeks straight and not get sick of it?
Healthy Mexican food ...lots of grilled meats with colorful veggies...YUM

What are your pizza toppings of choice?
Little cheese, fresh basil, onions, bellpeppers, broccoli, and grilled chicken

What do you like to put on your toast?
I eat it dry or slab some peanut butter drizzled with honey sprinked with cinnamon.

TECHNOLOGY

How many televisions are in your house?
We have four, but only use one to watch shows on. The others are used for video games or DVD movies.

What color cell phone do you have?
Silver

What does the first text message in your in box say and who sent it?
It says " I love u mommy" it's from Lesley. BTW I hardly receive text messages unless it's from her.:P

Who was the last person to call you?
My mom.

BIOLOGY

Are you right-handed or left-handed?
Right. Trent and I both are, but Lesley and Noah are leftys. Gabe seems to be a righty thus far.

Have you ever had anything removed from your body?
Yes, my tonsils, adenoids, and a full length sewing needle they found in my right foot two years ago. I do not know how or when the needle got there...... just the pain it caused while boxing.

What is the last heavy item you lifted?
The weights I lifted at the gym on Friday.

RANDOM-OLOGY

If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?
No.....but I try my very best to live each day as if it were my last.

If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
I wouldn't change a thing...I like my name. Thanks mom ;D

Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000?
Nope because it would jack up my intestines and I'd probably shit FIRE! LOL $1000 isn't worth it.

DUMB-OLOGY

How many pairs of flip flops do you own?
I think three.

When is the last time you had a run in with the cops?
Probably back in 2004 when we lived on Miramar MCAS in base housing and our alcoholic racist neighbor called my husband a racial slur and said lots of hateful things to a group of kids in our cul-de-sac

Last person you talked to in person:
Noah.....

Favorite Month(s)?
September thru December.......I totally heart the fall.

CURRENT-OLOGY

Missing someone?
My family back home

Mood?
Tired and exhausted. I think I'm coming down with something.

What are you listening to?
The wind howling outside my living room windows

Watching?
Nothing, but this computer screen.

Worrying about?
My hubby having to deploy to Afghanistan......everytime I think about it I feel this need to gasp for air :( On a funnier note though......okay I'll just say it ....I also feel this big need to go out and buy a vibrator.LOL I think I've said a little too much there!!!!

RANDOM-OLOGY

Last movie you saw
Madea Goes To Jail with Trent on Friday.

Do you smile often?
YES!!! What annoys me most is that I also have a nervous smile. Which means sometimes I'm smilin' when it's not the most appropriate thing to do.

Do you always answer your phone?
No. sometimes I'm too busy with school or truthfully I'm feelin' anti-social !! I'm not that good about calling people either...unless you're my mom.

It’s four in the morning and you get a text message, who is it?
If I'm getting a text message at four in the morning over here...it would probably be from some friend who's had way too much to drink.

If you could change your eye color what would it be?
I've always wanted my daddy's green eyes......but I like my brown eyes too.

Do you own a digital camera?
Yes

Have you ever had a pet fish?
Growing up I don't recall having a pet fish. My kids have had several...which have all died.

Favorite Christmas song
Let It Snow- sung by Michael Buble and O' Holy Night

What’s on your wish list for your birthday
I'll be wishing that Trent doesn't deploy and for fun a trip to England or Ireland

Can you do pushups?
Yes.

Can you do a chin up?
A couple.

Does the future make you more nervous or excited?
It make me nervously excited. LOL

Ever been in a car wreck?
Yes, back in 1992 with my friends Carlos Isarras & Alfred Gonzales.

What is the last song to make you cry?
It wasn't a song, but the music at the end of the movie The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.

Plans tonight?
I'm about to walk upstairs carry Gabe out of my bed (since he fell asleep there while listening to me read 5 books) Then I'm going to wake Trent up so we can talk and snuggle and......;D fall asleep. LOL

Have you ever felt like you hit rock bottom?
Yes more than once.

Name three things you bought yesterday.
Just bottled water

Have you ever been given roses?
Yes

Do you have an accent?
No.

Current hate right now?
My husbands specialty leader

Met someone who changed your life?
Yes....my husband.

What were you doing at 12 AM last night?
In bed lying in Trent's arms drifting off to sleep. Feeling Safe and Secure!:D

Cascarones....

Growing up making cascarones was an Easter tradition in my family. I can still vividly remember making them with my siblings. Over the course of many weeks my mom would crack just the top part off of the shell when cooking with eggs. She'd rinse and save these eggshells until we had dozens of them. About a week before Easter she'd round us all up and we'd paint and decorate the eggshells. After they dried we'd fill them up with confetti then seal the tops with squared tissue paper. The cascarones were cracked on our heads at Easter. It was all about sneaking up on someone and cracking that confetti filled egg on their head. LOL What wasn't too fun is when my cousins would fill theirs up with gitter or sand. The glitter sometimes took weeks to wash off...it was a big pain in the ass.


Every Easter was spent at my late uncle Tony's ranch just outside San Antonio. We had a major Easter egg hunt, sack races, egg toss competions, wheel barrow races, volleyball games, and my dad's lemon roll game. There was always lots of food and fun to be had by everyone. AHHH those were some good times. As of today I still try to keep the tradition going with my kids even if others are unaccustomed to the whole cascarone idea.

The boys dyeing their eggs:

Just two of the four dozen we made....ignore the messy table! : D
Let the fun begin...Easter 2009

Gabe running from Dad

Smashing daddy's head....