Are you shitting me?

You have GOT to be kidding me! 

Look at this precious little gift that was left on my front lawn this morning? 

It's a good thing I walked outside and saw this before Sweets did since she was playing at the sand table as I was inside watching her from the kitchen window because there is no doubt, she would've given it the touch, and possibly taste test.

Ok, if that were me & let's say forgot my poop bag (giving them the benefit of the doubt), I would have been so mortified, (especially seeing all the kids' toys out front) that I would have left a note and/or knocked on the door apologizing profusely & telling the person I would be back to clean it up, hell, I would've picked it up with my bear hands. I am now on a mission & determined to catch any & all dog owners (because I've seen a few passing by our house) walking their dog empty handed, and give them a piece of my mind! I don't even have to know pet owner etiquette, it's common courtesy! (which obviously some people don't comprehend nor adhere to)

Sheesh!

**Honey, when you read this, yet another reason on my list why we need, yes, need our white vinyl "picket fence" surrounding our front yard to keep intruders off our property**

A Friendly, Fun, Fruitful Filled Friday Review

It's been a busy week over here at the Soto dwelling. The girls & I had not 1, but 2 lunch dates with dear friends from the old work family; Spicy's regular weekly classes; Aunt Tita's distant birthday celebration that involved a morning birthday card-making craft, a trip to the post office not once but twice & a loud obnoxious lovely singing assemblage; lots of little, fun projects around the house like showcasing our most recent family photo shoot pics & a 2nd hand-made chalkboard...

 painting & relocating this mirror...

 and making some art work (finally) & moving hand-made chalkboard #1 into Spicy's room. 

 It's also been a very busy and productive week on the exterior remodel: digging trenches, laying pipes for electrical, gas, drainage, sprinklers, etc, leveling dirt, breaking up concrete, forming and more all to get ready for pouring cement a week from tomorrow! So excited for that day. Not only will it make a huge difference aesthetically but also functionally (meaning I won't have to vacuum/sweep/mop floors daily. No joke. Not fun!)  This guy is still going strong.

And well, in my down time, I've got a toddler climbing on my back or yanking on twirling my hair to fall asleep while baby numero dos is on my breast. Yes, I am aware it sounds like they are leeches. The thought does cross my mind, you know.  

Phew.  Pause to catch my breath.

The other big event happening over here is that Spicy is now officially enrolled in school! Daddy and I teamed up to teach her first lesson last night. Yes, as in homeschooling.  Shriek! Gasp! Cough! Yes, I am very aware of the typical, oh so common, knee-jerk reactions in response to that blasphemous "h" word. Trust me, we've heard it all. But for those of you that are immediately flooded with negative images, like say, an antisocial freak wearing braids and long skirts, let me ease your anguish. Think of it rather as a distance learning, online Academy in which Big D & I are the facilitators & will be assured that our children receive the best (Orthodox) Catholic education possible that we believe even (& especially nowadays) traditional Catholic private schools can not achieve. And I assure you, our kids will be anything but antisocial and unfashionable. Pinky swear. As for weird, I can't make any promises. ha! Anyway, we now have in our possession the curriculum for Reading (to begin with Latin), Writing and Arithmetic. It may take her one year to master or (more than likely) three years but the beauty is we can take it at our pace, tailor it to her specific learning style and maximize her potential accelerating as much as we see fit. I must admit I am both nervous and excited but when my negative, intimidated, anxious nature gets the best of me, Daddy sure has an incredible way using reason, logic and emotion to edify and empower me, refocusing me on my primary purpose to teach my children in the way of holiness. 

Have I stated lately how much I looooove taking care of these two? Well, just in case I haven't and for the scrapbook recording, I absolutely, positively LOVE my job of loving them all day every day! 

But I better not blog the whole nap time break away. I've gotta prep for dinner. We have a special guest coming over tonight...  Give up? Ok, I'll tell you...It's Auntie Neenee!! We have much to catch up on over baked Wild Alaskan salmon, grilled veggies, rice pilaf and wine, of course. Maybe we will end the night with a group trip over to our favorite nearby yogurt shop.

Have a splendid weekend everyone!

Simple Pleasures

You know your single days are long gone when the highlight of your day is a trip to Costco for a family night out enjoying sweet, cheap thrills!

Yep, no more splurging at fine dining restaurants. No more movies, dancing or long walks on the beach. Just holding sticky hands and running sneaking into burger joints where you have no intention of spending a dime to get to a bathroom in time. But I wouldn't change a thing. 

Except add a few more to the bunch! 

A hilariously gross story that must be documented for future embarrassing opportunities. So Spicy and I are having a heart to heart moment while she sits on the throne...

A: I told you mommy I had to go pee pee and poo poo.

M: Yes, sweetheart and I'm so proud of you. You're such a big girl.

Rather long pause...

A: You don't eat it.

M: You don't eat what?

A: Poo poo. You don't eat poo poo and you don't drink pee pee

M: That's right sweetie. How on earth did you learn that without anyone telling you? (slight sarcasm in tone of voice as I'm cracking up) 

Later that night as we are she is climbing into bed...

A: Read me 3 books cuz I'm THREE

M: Oh sweetie, I don't know if I can read 3 tonight, mommy is sooo tired.

A: Yes, you can. You are the best teacher

Melt. My. Heart. 

Sister Sister

This morning, I woke up to this ....

I'll explain...After some snuggly time in my bed with Spicy A, we heard Sweet G moving around on the monitor. Alizea immediately exclaimed screamed "Jenna!" and squirmed her way out of my arms. When I asked "should we go check on her?" she answered "No, I!". "No problema" I thought as I savored my final quiet, relaxing moments covered in my warm down comforter. I knew that all would be fine and all she would or could be doing is climbing up on the bottom rail of the crib to greet Sweet, talking to her in her (adorable) baby voice and tickling her (as she says "keekol, keekol, keekol ) so I took advantage quickly making the bed and getting dressed but I had forgotten that there was a small stool in her room I had used to pull some diapers down from her closet. Naturally, Spicy moved it and climbed right up & in giving Sweet some snuggles of her own. I was slightly scared when I walked in and didn't see her but after seconds of realizing what had happened, my heart was smiling along with my mouth! And with that, Alizea kicked off a wonderful, fun weekend enjoying lots of laughter and love with the blessing of the sisterhood!

Picking up Big sister (aka, Auntita) from the airport :

A 2nd meeting. 

It's hard to believe 5 months has already passed since...

no wonder we were all so very excited to see you, Teets!

And with this...

and this...

we began a very exciting family fun weekend! 

(apparently, you can't start them too young - they are doing online word searches in the thesaurus , not playing games, of course)

TGIF!

Today was supposed to be a nice, relaxing 'catch up' day - after a quick trip away from home, I was in much need of some time to unload, unpack, wash, quality time with A after 2 days with Mimi, maybe a trio nap, etc. Well, after being up almost all night with an uncomfortable toddler, the day's plans took a turn.  Just yesterday, Alizea began complaining of burning when she went pee pee, then last night her "privates" (as Dr Wong called them) got red and between coughing (that darn cold is lingering) and yelling every time she urinated, the Soto fam had a rough night. So instead of cartoons, coffe and PJs, our day began bright and early at the doctor's office. Sooo, remember this?

Well, it's possible (could be a number of reasons) that the lack of a proper water absorbent diaper (oops! Mommy faux pas. Note to self: have proper diapers for water play on-hand at all times, or let child remain in the nude) along with the interesting critters in this old, old grass and too much time in the non-water absorbent diaper caused poor spicy A to get a yeast infection! Never knew little girls can get them too, huh? Well, they are different from big girl yeast infections (according to doc) but still a good ole fungus friend. Anyway, all this to say that after an interesting (yes, that's sarcastic) morning and very little patience on my part due to lack of sleep (seems like a reasonable excuse), momma was in desperate need of an escape and treat! With little time, as the tots were approaching their meltdown point, and little spending money, a trip to the discount fabric store right around the corner from the house did just the trick! I was extremely pleased with my findings for my next project:

Ever since the room addition was built, I've wanted the front living room and new family room to somehow coordinate, connect, flow yet still have their unique styles, colors, etc. It's also been hard to find anything that goes with our muted green/grey/not sure what color it is couch. Now with coordinating fabric (which are actually the same, just different colored backgrounds) I think we are on our way! I also like how much the black one pairs with our already made (thanks mom!) zebra pillows:

As soon as I finish (& start) mom's Mother's Day gift, I'll be able to focus on the finishing touches to our ever-changing home (hey, it's only been 5 years since we moved in, give me a break! ha) 'After' pics coming soon (or eventually)

BIG points to Dean for bringing home a pizza from BJs for a mellow, no-cooking night in! Shhhh, he doesn't know I just went there with Ita! hehe 

TGIF!

A Good Friday Indeed

 Can you guess what we did today???

This morning was one of the few times that I didn't have anything in particular planned to do...I figured with the massive amounts of laundry I've been putting off and the unpredictable weather, I could use the time at home. However, 

No plan + energetic toddler = major stress. 

Thankfully, we are blessed with a handful of parks within walking distance, one inside our track! And when I asked Alizea if she wanted to partake in the park experience, she exclaimed with the excitement as if someone just told me I won the lottery! So, for the next 10 minutes or so, I scurried quickly to empty all the trash, get all 3 of us dressed & groomed and pack the double stroller limo with all the necessities (nursing cover, blankets, jackets, snacks, water and of course my cafecito! Can't leave home without that) before the little miss changed her mind (she is a female, after all) 

I don't know about the girls but I had a blast! At one point, however, I was holding a 15 pound baby to my breast with one arm while pushing a 36-pounder in the swing with my other arm. Whew! Serious work out on the upper body! One of the highlights of the outing was Alizea yelling "Ta-da!" at the sandcastle we worked long and hard on: 

 Then we ventured off to the grocery store and back home for nap time! In the evening, we got an unexpected visit from "Nee-nee" which is sure to bring plenty of squeals, laughter and wine sippin'!

It was a good day. I cherished the time with my children in a special way, I got a nice long power walk in, I remembered every item on my grocery list (without writing anything down, which is always a big feat), I attacked the dreaded laundry and actually got all 4 loads washed, folded and put away (world record!), all the while pondering the incredible, amazing, beautiful, hard-to-ponder work that our Lord and Savior and God did for each and every one of us in dying on the cross so that not only could we experience joy and peace in this life but also the promise of the next...