Did you really just say that?

Last night I put Nicholas down into his crib for the night and somehow got sidetracked (happens to me a lot these days) and we skipped our goodnight prayers.  When I realized my mistake, about 10 minutes later, I went back in. He was not yet asleep, but I think he was just starting to doze off.  After the initial parts of the prayer..."In the name of the Fadder, Son, Hoaty Spirit...." We always go through the God Bless so and sos, he names off the people that he wants God to bless that day.  They are usually the same ones, he once in awhile throws in someone random just to keep me on my toes.  Then we end by praying "God Bless all the children who have no homes, Amen"  Here's where it gets cute....Nicholas looks up at me with those sleepy eyes and says "Mom, I am in THE RIGHT SPOT, right here next to you and Tony." Now who really knows what exactly he meant by those words, but I took it to mean that he was happy and content here in our family.   I left the room with tears in my eyes.   

I could not agree with you more, sweet boy.

American Idol

I finally figured it out.  It has been bugging me all season.  Does David Cook remind anyone but me,  of Jon Gosselin on the Discovery Health show, "Jon and Kate Plus 8?"  Am I nuts? They just look alike somehow to me.  I love John Cook.  I hope he wins.  I also love to watch "Jon and Kate plus 8," although I think Kate is very mean to Jon...that show always inspires me to be nicer to my husband.  

The Crazy Things We Do in SoCal

One of the not so fun things about living in the "country" in Southern California is having to deal with rattlesnakes.  Some dogs in our neighborhood have had some nasty encounters with snakes this season.  We back up to hundreds of acres of open space and the snakes seem to be coming down in record numbers this year.  I actually killed a medium-sized one myself in my driveway a week ago.  I thought I would have "super-mom snakekiller" status,  but the hawks got the dead snake before the kids could even see him.  I usually am not a fan of killing any wild thing, but a rattlesnake living in my front yard does not sit well with me. Here is our dog, Luna working with a trainer at a Rattlesnake Aversion Training Class.  There is a rattlesnake in the grass right under her nose. Our neighbors hosted this class yesterday on their property.  40 dogs participated throughout the day.  The dogs were rigged up with a special collar that gave them a slight shock if they showed any interest in any of the live rattlesnakes that were brought there by the trainers.  The other photo is one of the small snakes. Notice the muzzle around his head.  I wish I had a photo of the biggest snake.  He was about 5 feet long and very angry. I think the guy who muzzles these snakes must win the award for most crazy job ever. My camera is not the greatest, and they would not let us get too close.  Luna did a fine job, I hope she has learned to stay away from Rattlers.

Future Russian-American Idol?

Nicholas  has always loved to pretend he is playing the guitar.  Even when he was a baby.  He improvises with whatever is handy, a stick, a ruler, a toy gun...to him they are all guitars. His favorite song is "School's Out for Summer" by Alice Cooper.  We blared this song in the car on the way to the last day of school last June. The kids all thought I was crazy, but it has been a family favorite ever since.   We brought this guitar home for Nick from our recent Mexico trip.  It cost me $50 pesos-about 5 Bucks.  It is already broken, but he still plays with it every day.  I caught him mid-performance last night.  Our superstar.

Gymnastics Insanity

My oldest daughter lives and breathes gymnastics. She works extremely hard and we are so proud of her. She had her first competition season last year. We traveled to Torrance, Chino, Van Nuys, Valencia and State Finals in San Diego. We even got to fly to Phoenix, Arizona for the Hard Rock Invitational. Gymnasts came from all over the US to compete. It was so much fun. She had a rocky start with a few low scores at the first meets. She battled back and showed some real improvement by the end of the season. She had a fantastic finish at State Finals. Our entire team is so dedicated. These girls are awesome. The coaches have upped the training schedule to 12 hours each week and are now getting the team ready for the Level 5 season beginning in September. Should be fun!!!! The other squid-eaters will be dragged all over So.Cal to watch, they get bored, but how many baseball, basketball and football games have we all been to? Are you crazy? Way too many to count. This photo is dark, but here she is, getting a medal at State Finals.

Back to Reality

I have not posted in awhile, because there really was not anything exciting going on around here, then drumroll please.......We went on vacation. When I say vacation, I mean VACATION!!!!! No camping trip, which is actually more work than staying home, no fighting crowds at Disney with 4 kids all wanting to go in opposite directions, not anything like that at all. This is the first time we have left the kids overnight since we went to Russia to bring Nicky home. This was an adults only, 4 night break, a little slice of heaven, if you ask me. We even got upgraded on the second night to a suite. It was a much needed, relaxing almost second honeymoon. Check out our digs at casaquecanta.com The place was great, the setting was beautiful and the food was fantastic. If I ever had the chance, I would return to this spot in Mexico again in a heartbeat. I am going to save every extra penny I get, in a special spot earmarked just for this purpose. I waited 10 years for this, I can wait again. Big thanks to Grandpa and Grandma Donut for holding down the fort while we were gone. Yes...these are my toes as I sit in a chaise reading a BOOK!!!