It's All History

The other day, Luke, Nayelli and I went over to Granddad's to interview him about his life. We played (or I played it) as a school thing (I still haven't told Luke the secret.... he blows secrets), when really Luke was doing it undercover to get some valuable information from Graddad for his 90th birthday. I've always wanted to ask him about his life, so I'm glad we were able to do that. Something I admire about Granddad is that he's always been an amazing storyteller, even if his stories are mostly half-truths. (Ask him about the day he met Grammy and he'll talk about strolling down the sidewalk with a red wagon, meeting this little girl who was picking her nose.) Anyway, it brought up to memory my blog. Why? Because I was wondering if one day someone will be curious enough to ask me about my life. Or will my kids want to hear about how it was when they were growing up? I love hearing stories about when I was little, stuff that I just can't remember or I was too young. Some of it would have been really helpful while I was pregnant, or nursing, or dealing with some feeling that everyone goes through. So, with that said.... I'll just continue with what we're doing now and go from there.

Luke

I've been looking for things for my kids to do lately. After Luke broke both of his feet when the church shelf fell on him, we've been taking a break from soccer. Since then, we joined 4H because it was something cheap to do and at the same time Bandit would get doggie lessons. FYI - while 4H only costs $15 a year to join, doggie lessons can get expensive after buying the right show collar and leads, training harness, treats, treat holder, brushes, poo poo bags, and extras. Now Luke has been in 4H for 2 years and going on his 3rd. Last year, we added Entomology to his projects. Good thing we did because when all the sports and meetings were cancelled due to Covid, he was still able to go outside and find bugs and participate in something. Now that we're back in school (or I should say "virtual school"), it has been abundantly clear that Luke needs something physical to do. In virtual school, they don't provide those Specials classes (art, music, physical ed.) and I'm afraid he's going to develop a gut and become absorbed in Minecraft, ARK, and other weirdos who play those games on Youtube. 

School is going ok. At first it was hard doing every subject a day, but when we switched to our version of a block schedule it worked out much better. He generally understands the math because it's all multiplication. They've added in crud like finding patterns and critiquing other peoples' math work. We just work through it and move on. I've given him real world problems... like we figured out that it would be cheaper for us to go with Disney+ and buy two movies than stick with Netflix. We also found out that if I wanted to put Mila and Luke into sports, we'd have to plan on at least $75/mo. It's the important things... There have been hidden things in there like variables and powers, but we haven't gone too far into it. He's understanding English concepts. Why are they still talking about nouns in 5th grade, though? Was 1st - 4th grade all for nothing? I don't understand. The Reading curriculum is garbage. Don't even get me started on that. I wasn't sure about Science, but it has been surprisingly fun. The entire first unit has been on the Food Web, but they've broken it down into your various animals, plants, decomposers, and next, worms. This last week we had mold growing on food in our kitchen... on purpose... in Ziplock bags. Grosssss. But curiosity got the best of us and we started researching why mold grew quickly on some things and not on others. Before this stay-at-home business, Luke didn't much care for History, but now that he's been home with Mom, he's starting to grasp it's importance and impact. We've gone through movement of people into the Americas, Native American life, and exploration. Now we're getting into colonization. Points that have stuck out to him are the Mayan calendar and people thinking the world would actually end in 2012 and how unfair/cruel taking over Native American land (which they didn't even consider to be property) was. I'm excited to get through the colonization lessons because I'm hoping he'll be able to do a colony replica project on Minecraft, something I created to help the lesson sink in. 

I really like having Luke at home. He's fun and interesting, and a lot of times parents don't get this one on one time with their kids. It's something to really appreciate and not take for granted. 

Mila

Mila is in school four days a week. She goes with her mask on. ALL day. She's a trooper. I'm starting to notice a little weirdness, but I'm glad she's meeting new friends her age (a lot of them BOYS! Oh no!). The second week of school I got an email from her teacher. The teacher said that she wasn't responding to her name and sounded a lot like asking me if Mila was hard of hearing, or had ADD or something like that. Like any parent, I was defensive and furious at first. But, I answered back politely (probably more stoic than anything)... that Mila is a creative kid and she's 5 years old and still getting the hang of school. I think it all came down to an incident in the car rider line where Mila heard another little girl called with either the same name or a similar name. I don't call her by her full name at home so I can see how this would be confusing if she's just listening for her first name. 

I'm honestly not too thrilled about how schools are handling Covid. I have this feeling that it's all political. Anyway, funny story to explain Mila's personality. She's been home on Wednesdays. She is required to attend the two 1-hour Zoom meetings on that day, otherwise she'll be marked absent. During the first meeting they sing a dumb "good morning" song and talk about feelings. Then they get into the letter sounds that they've been talking about all week. The teacher does all of these sign language moves for the letters (but I don't think it's real sign language...) and has all of these little rhymes or jingles for each letter. It's seriously annoying and almost over-stimulating. I get a headache watching the teacher. And sometimes they read a book. That's just in the first hour. And they can't eat during the meeting. And they can't raise their hand; they have to touch their nose. And they have certain signs for Yes and No. And they have to sit up with their hands in their laps. I'm like - I can barely get Mila up in the morning, I'm not turning her away from a cracker during your dumb song meeting. Mila would be more likely to do better work if they would let her have Wednesday as a relax and rest day. An all day siesta. If you think about it, there are kids that are going half days to Kindergarten, so why is there so much requirement out of the one day? And these are days that parents have to be the teacher, or find someone to oversee all the work. I can't imagine the single parents who are working and have multiple kids. On top of that, the teacher gives out like 10 assignments to complete. This week we had 4 that had to do with the letter they're learning, 2 for math, a reader that had to do with the science or history of coronavirus and our feelings about it, and the rest was specials or learning games/activities around the house. My 5-year-old can't concentrate that long. She needs breaks. She understands the letter. The highlighting the letters and circling letters and cutting them out and gluing them next to pictures that make the sound and coloring the animals realistic colors... it's too much. It isn't helping. It's putting a damper on her creativity and burning her out on the letter. We were playing one of the letter games on the computer and it asked Mila to choose the picture that starts with the M sound. Her choices were mud or pizza. She pointed to pizza, "because mud is gross". Later she had to pop M balloons. She told me to pop a balloon that wasn't just so she could see what would happen. That's curiosity! She knows what the letter is because it's drilled into them over and over again... kiddos need to explore! I was talking to Vero the other day and she was explaining how public schools are arranged to create people for the workforce. Everything in school promotes industrialism - creating docile factory workers. Why are there school bells? It's regimented. It resembles the workman's check-in and check-out time. Why is there a cafeteria line? It looks a lot like the assembly line. Why is the work standardized and focuses on literacy? Because they just wanted compliant, literate workers. I'm not saying being literate is wrong, people need to know how to read and write, but what happened to letting kids explore their interests... even at a young age? 

So, Mila is very creative. She draws princesses all the time - with big lips and poofy sleeves on their dresses and high heels and sometimes even makeup and long eyelashes. She makes me books and books and books. (Really they're a picture folded up hot dog style, but I love them.) She plays with play-doh and makes me food. She puts on "shows", which is her hopping around the living room doing karate-type moves. She does her own makeup and makes videos. Art is definitely her thing. Keep that fire going, girly! <3 

Nayelli

It's taken me a few days to write this... so now that I'm typing this portion, Nayelli is officially 2 years old. For her birthday celebration we took a day trip to the Omaha Zoo. Her favorite animals were the zebra and giraffe (both very similar to a horse). She also thought that the orangutang that licked the food off the glass was hilarious. The rest of us enjoyed the tiger that took a bath right in front of us and the sea lions that followed our fingers under water. In fact, it had such an impact on Luke that he now wants to be a zoologist when he's wanted to be a paleontologist for the longest time. Nayelli picked out the biggest stuffed zebra she could find at the gift shop and carried it around with her the rest of the day. Now it sits in her bed. We've had ice cream throughout the week, and yesterday we watched her Tia's softball game.

Nayelli is fairly independent. While I'm teaching Luke in the morning, she'll watch Elmo and other Youtube videos on the iPod, iPad, or my iPhone. I'm glad it's learning, but I just hope she doesn't get attached to these i-things. She also loves athletics - she reminds me a lot of her Grammy and Great-Grammy. She likes to do these backbends while I'm changing her diaper! And she'll play catch and run around, even though she runs a little funny (tummy first). 

She said her first complete sentence the other day, but I can't remember what it was. Her faces are too funny - so many expressions. When she gets in trouble or is acting up, first I'll ask her, "Do you need a spankin'?" and she'll usually stop. If I count to 3 and she still doesn't do what I've told her, then I'll pretend to spank and just slap my own hand, just to make a loud, frightening noise. And if that doesn't work, she'll get a little spank on the leg. She doesn't like that. Like her sister, that will hurt her feelings. But, she reacts differently. She doesn't make a peep. She'll stick her bottom lip out and the tears will come out, and you'll see her shoulders heave up and down. And we'll tell her in a serious tone, "Put away your lip." There's other times where we'll put her time out. Overall, she's a pretty good girl.

Now, I might have said that early... because ON HER BIRTHDAY she got into her sister's pink lip stick and it went all over her lips and hands, feet and pants. AND OUR CARPET! Luckily, it was all able to come out of the carpet, and she just looks like she drank some red Kool-aid. Also, both my other kids started their "Terrible Twos" early and went through it really quick. I haven't seen anything in Nayelli yet. Or have we, as parents, finally learned with the third child how to parent? :D

Because COVID

If you were awake and breathing in 2020 (oh the irony of those words), then you already know what the title of this post alludes to. If you were asleep, then I’ll fill you in... 

In early March, the government (at the recommendation of the health organizations) decided to put out a stay-at-home order to stop the spread of coronavirus, or more specifically "to flatten the curve". It was an effort to keep hospitals from being bombarded since coronavirus is highly contagious. You couldn't go anywhere unless absolutely necessary. Travel shut down. Kids were sent home from school. Restaurants closed. Major sports suspended their seasons. (You could rewatch the Chiefs winning the Superbowl on tv.) "Essential" workers were basically doctors, grocery store workers, and truck drivers. I remember that it hit China and Europe first and people all over sent out these videos saying that we (Americans) needed to take it seriously. People ran to the store and stocked up on all kinds of stuff. There was a time when almost all of the aisles at the store were bare - all you could find was chili beans and tofu. Toilet paper and disinfecting wipes were off of the shelves for weeks. During this time more information about the virus came out - it was from Wuhan, China  from eating bat soup? Rumors were constantly spreading that it was a bioweapon, that it was coverup for human trafficking, and that it was just another strain of coronavirus. In the meantime, my family just tried to get through the days at home. Luke had to complete 4th grade through Zoom and Google Classroom. Aldo was working from home and took a pay cut. There was huge controversy about churches being open/closed - whether it was a violation of religious laws and whether government had that power. The saddest part through all of this, I think, is that those in nursing homes haven't been able to leave their rooms much or have visitors because the elderly were most at risk.

We sent Granddad some encouraging pictures during our at home "Spirit Week"

Then, in June, George Floyd was brutally killed by police officers. This started all kinds of crazy - Black Lives Matter protests hijacked by Antifa rioting, looting, and open conversations on racial injustice - statues and monuments of historical figures (most likely those with a past as slave holders) were being vandalized and torn down - police shows were cancelled on tv (even Paw Patrol!, no joke) - activists were "woke" and if you didn't actively participate then you're a "racist". So then the health gurus said that it was ok to be out if you were protesting, but if not then stay home because of coronavirus. Like you were protected from it in a huge mob! There was more and more evidence of a wide difference in opinion between Democrats and Republicans that it seemed like everything became political. The news seemed ludicrous because everything had an agenda - spread fear of coronavirus, warp numbers of death rate, promote Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders.... President Trump isn't wearing his mask today! People started looking down the rabbit hole, including myself, into QAnon, human trafficking and cabal after the Epstein case. It made me realize just how much Hollywood, Netflix, and even the news promotes ideas, sometimes without us even realizing it.

 

Lots of biking and fishing

We planted a vegetable garden! 

(Lots of success with zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, and jalapenos)

Pinning bugs for 4H Beginner Entomology

In July, a mask mandate went out that you have to wear a mask in public places, and thankfully there was a slow opening of businesses. As you would suspect, there's been controversy over wearing masks. Are they really keeping us safe or creating more health issues? What about those with health issues (like asthma or if they're hearing impaired)? What if you're carrying a concealed weapon? Will a plastic face shield work instead? Keep 6 feet away and wear a mask. Wash your hands. Wipe the shopping cart handles with disinfectant. Limit how many can sit in a restaurant together. The executive order was put out until rescinded, and I would like to say that it's been rescinded, but it hasn't. School was pushed back by three weeks of the start date so that they could put proper protocols in place to follow the orders.

Here we are. If you experience any of the symptoms, in any amount of severity, including none at all, and in any order, please get a nose swab to the brain and quarantine yourself for 14 days because you may have the markers for covid and be contagious without even knowing it:

• trouble breathing
• cough/ sore throat
  
• chest pain
• confusion
• trouble staying awake
• fever/chills
• fatigue
• body aches
• headache
• loss of taste
• loss of smell
• diarrhea

All of these, as you can see, can resemble just about all other common sicknesses... cold, flu, and allergy, AND panic attack symptoms and anxiety!

This year has been so strange. I didn't even mention the Saharan dust storms, Australian bush fires, back-to-back hurricanes in Texas/Louisiana, murder hornets, and genetically modified Florida mosquitoes. I'm sure people are suspicious that this might be it - the time before the end - the Tribulation or start of it. The majority of us (believers that I know) are just ready for 2020 to end. It feels like this has gone on for 36+ months, when we've barely entered 9.

 

Mila's Tangled Birthday Party

 

& First HAIRCUT!!!

She donated 10 inches to kids with hair loss.

Today, I took Mila to her first day of Kindergarten. We waited in the car line for over 20 minutes as each child had their temperature checked before leaving his or her vehicle and entering the school. They had to walk 6ft apart with masks on (not shields) down the sidewalk. I couldn't take her to class. I couldn't take her picture outside by the school sign, like every other child's right of passage picture prior to this year. I watched as she said she knew exactly where to go with hesitation in her small voice and then followed it with dramatic limping down the the school's entry way because her "foot fell asleep". We had the choice to send her to school full-time, remotely with daily check-ins, or virtually. We chose full-time because it was really only two days a week and remote the rest of the week due to Covid (which would include mask breaks throughout the day). Within weeks of school, that changed to four days of the week and one day remote (even though older kids go to school less??). (This must be a funding thing, and who's at least amount of risk.) Within days, I found out that there would be no mask breaks at all. 

The Night before Kindergarten

First Day of Kindergarten

This is not fair. Stressful. Insane. Emotional. Heart-wrenching. Sucky. Because COVID.

1. I couldn't go to church - because COVID.
2. I couldn't visit Granddad at home - because COVID. 
3. I couldn't go on our trip to Germany - because COVID.
4. I couldn't celebrate Aldo or Luke's birthday big - because COVID.
5. I couldn't take the kids to the zoo - because COVID.
6. I couldn't sign the kids up for sports - because COVID.
7. I couldn't play on the park equipment - because COVID. 
8. I couldn't help with Camp - because COVID.
   
9. I couldn't find the toilet paper, disinfectant wipes, baby wipes, and bleach spray - because COVID.
10. I couldn't do grocery pick-up - because COVID.
    
11. I couldn't buy a cheap pool, splash pad, or sprinkler - because COVID.
    
12. I couldn't give my honest opinion without questioning if I'd be labeled as racist or automatically assigned a political affiliation - because COVID.
13. I couldn't enjoy my regular programming of shows - because COVID.
14. I couldn't participate in fair activities with my kids like normal - because COVID.
    
15. I couldn't send my kids to school like normal - because COVID.
    
16. I couldn't breathe - because COVID.

In part, it hasn't been all negatives. The Gutz, Herricks, and us have been meeting for Bible Study on Sunday evenings and Wednesday morning Zoom devotionals. We've grown closer together in that. I spent more time/am spending more time with my kids. I got my CCL and found out that I'm a sharp shooter. :) I learned how to grow and keep a vegetable garden and enjoyed the products of it. I didn't gain any weight, but I didn't lose any either - we went on more bike rides and took more walks. We stayed strong as a family. <3

Sharp Shooter 😜

You can't see them, but all the bullet holes are in the center or cheek or eye. Score: 25/25

How Long Will I Do This?

I don't know how long I'm supposed to journal about my family life and kids for. I had this grand idea that I would have a book printed for each of my children up til their first birthday. So now I haven't printed off Mila's yet, and I just finished Nayelli's. Now that I'm done, do I continue on? Do I catch up once in a while? Dunno. Who's to say?

So..... just in case.....

For Halloween we dressed up as Wizard of Oz characters. I found this perfect rainbow dress for Mila so that she could be the Good Witch. Luke agreed that he would be the Tin Man. I made a little apron for Nayelli to make her look like Dorothy and sparkled up some socks with this red glitter glue, but it all ended up coming off as she walked. Last minute, Aldo dressed up as a Munchkin, I was the Scarecrow and Bandit was the Lion.

Happy Halloween - Oh, My!

In November we went to visit Aldo's dad in El Paso. Time was due to see Abuelito. Nayelli and Mila attached to him like a magnet. And the car ride was fun and one to remember because every major stop the kids got a fun present to unwrap.

  

Visiting Abuelito in El Paso, TX

The Alvidrez Bloodline

The Christmas Play was a hit! We did a Disney-themed musical that went through the life of Jesus. I obviously was obsessed with the two group performances that had movements. They were so powerful! One was to "He is Not One of Us" and showed how the crowds rejected Jesus before he was crucified, and the other was to "He Lives In You" and was the salvational message/lesson that the main character learned. I'll tell you this - I will NOT volunteer to make theatrical flats again.

This year for Christmas, we stayed within budget, which was pretty cool. And I think for the first time I actually have the budget saved. Luke's big present was my old iPhone. Mila really wanted the doctor Barbies and I was planning on building her a cardboard Barbie house. The house ended up getting saturated when I tried to modge-podge the wallpaper on, and so I tossed it. She was still happy with her Barbies though. Nayelli got a train to ride on. She wasn't overtaken at first, but now she's all about it. Mila and her will hide random toys in the back, and Mila will push Nayelli on it, or they'll fight over it. So good buy. Mila and Luke are also very into LEGOs. It's neat to see them work on things together. Nayelli on the other hand is at a hair-pulling stage.

Aldo got us into football sometime in the middle of last season, and he was absolutely stuck on watching every Chiefs game this season. Well, he awakened the monster. We ended up hosting a Super Bowl Party that the Chiefs WON!!!! FYI, I had no doubts. Though I may not go to downtown to see the parade, or try to have every sign or show my support on FB, I do cheer for my KC teams.

    

Reppin' Chiefs & KC Every Sunday

 

World Champions 2020!

• Aldo is still loving his job. His boss was in Thailand for the winter and it seemed like he had off for a long time, and had snow days, and could go in late, but now we're back on a schedule, getting ready for the season of roofing to take off again I suppose. And, he's mentioned a few times how he can see himself running this business with a friend/partner in the future. Hmm...
• You can read my update in the last post.
• Luke has been taking Bandit to dog training on Sundays. Bandit is going through anxiety, which I didn't know that they go through that around this age...??? So he's chewed up three leashes within the last month, and he really, really, really feels comfortable in his kennel. But last week we worked outside and Bandit did a lot better. So cross your fingers that Bandit continues to work out of this anxiety phase and do well for Master Luke. Luke also has been enjoying the Percy Jackson series this year. We started off reading the first two books together, but then he got so far ahead that I had to stop.
• Mila has enjoyed the old princess movies like Snow White, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty. She's also gotten really protective over her room within the last week. I'm noticing that maybe it's best that she have alone time in her room to play without Nayelli. So much she has to share, that it's good to have her own thing at times. Mila, like I said, does well enough in homeschool and she's excited to go to Kindergarten with a playground and other kids. She loves art and play-dough. Her hair is down to her bottom, and the other day I convinced her that it's ok to cut because we won't cut it so short that it looks like a boy's.
• Nayelli is learning more and more each day. She calls Luke - "Ook". She calls Mila - "Beela". She calls Bandit - "Dit". She calls poop - "po-po", Papa - "po-po" and popcorn - "po-po". She understands so much, and right now I'm trying to get her to understand the difference between YES and NO and the head nods or shakes to match. Nayelli likes to get in the dog food because she wants to help feed Bandit, but then she also will eat his food, or fling it to him piece by piece. She likes holding onto phones or tablets or remotes, and other devices. I think she feels the power. But she also has a tendency to call unknown numbers or have important items selected and ready to delete with a click of the red button. She takes one nap a day from 2:30 to about 4:30. And recently, she likes story time at the library. It's almost too long for her, but I know that it does give her and Mila something different. She likes the theme song to Gilmore Girls and dances to it, just like Luke used to run to Big Bang Theory, and Mila used to to whatever we watched during her early years. Mila has taught her the Baby Shark song and I am not annoyed with it yet.

Til next time. Doo-doo do do.

Nayelli's First Birthday

I've been wanting to write for the longest time, but I specifically wanted to post about Nayelli's First Birthday, and then a lot of the time was spent waiting on her "professional" birthday pictures, because you can't post about the big birthday without the big birthday pictures. (I'm partly disappointed in them because I thought I would have hundreds of photos, and of people that attended... not just of her in the one position...) Anyway, the theme was "Wild One" in a round-about way. I just wanted it to be simple and everyone come to the s'mores cookout out front, and the colors to bring out her blue eyes. She looks really good in yellow, which brought me to Nayelli's yellow autumn outfit, which then brought up the sunflower decoration idea. Too many ideas... ... ...

Happy First Birthday, Nayelli Grace!

Her Rustic-Looking Cake

<3

It ended up being a pretty large turnout. Elli was so adorable, but I think she was a bit overwhelmed and didn't quite know what to do.

I have half a mind to just buy my own camera and equipment to take my own awesome pictures for future events. I love these so much! And I'm sorry there isn't more that was captured. We were a bit worried about it being cold and rainy. I had a backup plan with decorations I hung up inside as well.

Nayelli started walking a few days after her birthday! For animal crackers.

New Seasons

11.5 Months

I don't even know how to start this post because a lot has changed. Lately we've been trying to get the house back in order - like I said in the last post.. with a budget, and now with the kids involved in chores. I've been doing more deep cleaning around the house and following a daily schedule. Well, I can now because Aldo is more or less at a 9 to 5.

The main news is that Aldo left NFM. The easiest way I can explain it is that he's a claims adjuster at a growing company, but eventually he'll be in charge of production. He seems to like it. A lot of numbers are involved and fine-combing through files with city ordinances, etc. and going back and forth with insurance. We don't have the income we "need" yet, which is strange because I feel ok about it. I think the life insurance prepared me for us taking the dip. I know the money will come and I'm at peace about it. I like having Aldo home on the weekends, and home in the evenings. Yes, he stays late right now, but I know it won't always be like that. I just like seeing him happy and having energy. I mean... he's been playing football with Luke and Bandit.

Daddy's Home!

At home, I decided to go forth with teaching Mila preschool and she loves it. Every morning after breakfast we go upstairs to her room and "enter school" (a teal table in the corner). Sometimes we make it through our work and sometimes we don't. It really depends on how Mila is feeling and if Elli is too distracting. Usually school lasts about an hour and a half. After school I come down and fix lunch. Then Nayelli goes down for her nap and we have some quiet time and rest, or I try to clean up the house a bit. (Right now is my down time because I mowed the lawn this morning and did my work for the day.) I realized when we first started the school that I'm a great stay-at-home mom because I can find things to do. I'm like my mom in that I have to have a project. If I don't have something to work on and put my attention toward, then I get bored and lazy and depressing, watching things like "Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee" just so I can have some conversation, even though I'm not a part of it. (True story.)
At first it was hard going to "school", but now Mila has the hang of it. And I do too. She likes to earn stickers - princess, Minnie, Paw Patrol, star earrings, etc. And she loves cutting and gluing, and activity. Following a story where I don't turn the page as much is difficult for her. Or even worse, a story without pictures. So I'll start off school with the story so that we get the hard part over with while I have her attention. And if there's a day with two stories, then I'll tell the second during our snack time. It's a different experience than when I was at Miss Pat's. Mila doesn't have anyone to learn with. But at the same time, she shows some of the the same behaviors that Luke did - for example, she likes to tell me not to look while she's coloring the page and surprise me with it when she's done. Hopefully, she is learning that letters have sounds and remembering what the sounds of each letter are. So far we have gone through Aa, Mm, Ss, Ff, Rr, and this week we are working on Ee. She also has been having a hard time figuring out if a word starts with the sound during our Auditory Drills, but I'm not sure if she's just pretending or if she is really struggling. I guess we'll see when she enters Kindergarten.

Mila's 1st School

I'm going to be honest, I've been in a funk in the month of September. Probably even longer. Recently I've been praying more and reading my Bible more in the mornings. And it's been really good. It's been healing... I wasn't like how I was looking. I was snapping at Luke a lot. I was stressed. And negative. My birthday was NOT fun at all. Aldo said it was the Birthday Blues, that I get them every year. I didn't know that. I was so overwhelmed by wanting everyone else to have a good time, that I couldn't have a good time myself. Dumb huh? So... this might be my last year celebrating my birthday. From now on, let's just get ice-cream as a family or leave completely and go on vacation. :)

Other news:

• We met with Pastor Joe and told him that we were looking at ending our time as Children's Church Pastors after the Christmas Play. It's been a struggle coming up with ideas for the room and for a logo, and getting involved with the Warriors and other things, but we've discussed it and it's probably because, it's not supposed to be us that does it. After telling him, it was like a huge relief fell off my chest. And recently, I had a quick vision that we're supposed to "direct". Like, being an in-between making things flow. Interestingly that's what we're really good at. So I know we're supposed to do something... I'm just not sure what yet. And this past week, our worship leaders were let go. AND, Pastor T and Miss C let Pastors know that they were leaving the church. Crazy changes, huh? We have a leadership meeting tonight since all of this news... I don't know how it's going to play out. I hate being put on the spot. Also strangely, I haven't been so excited to be apart of something in a while. I'm excited to be praying and receiving healing and direction from God. I'm excited about the Women's Conference in October at CenterPointe. And I'm excited about the Christmas Play and that Aldo is so gung-ho for it too. And I'm excited to work with JoAnn at Project Give Hope. And, like we were at first, I'm excited to be used by God in whatever we do.
• Over the summer, Bandit did really well in the Agility competition. He got a white, however, we had worked on the teeter-totter only a few days beforehand and Bandit would barely touch it with his front paws. HE TRIED! At the competition he tried!! Luke and I were prepared for him to just skip that section and go to the next place, but Bandit tried and we were all surprised. I wish I could share the video with you on here, because I think the hearts of all of the audience were paused in anticipation. Everyone was rooting for him. It was really cool to watch.

 

 

Bandit & Luke in 4H

• We sent in our request for citizenship for Aldo. He went and got biometrics done. This Thursday, he has his naturalization interview where they test him on his English understanding and civics. Things like - how many voting members does the US House of Representatives have? (435), Name a writer of the Federalist Papers (James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Publius), and who is the current Speaker of the House (Nancy Pelosi)? I wouldn't have been able to answer any of these before. I don't think 50% of Americans can answer these questions. Sad.
• Mila's Pink Tea Party was a hit! I got the girls tea party hats, feathered boas, gloves and fans. I also had tea cups on little plates for each guest to use for their pink lemonade, chocolate covered strawberries, pink wafers, and puff pastry. Aldo did a reading for us, which was really cute. And we tried to balance spoons on our noses. We finished with ice-cream and presents. I had a blast even though I didn't get as dressed up as I wanted too. It's all about her anyway. She was really upset when I changed out the calendar to September in our school room (because I had to remove her cupcake that represented her birthday...).

Mila's Pink Tea Party

She Loves Her Present! (4 Years Old!!)

• Our fridge has been out of service for a month. They (a second repairman sent through the HWA) also come on Thursday and hopefully we'll be approved for a new fridge rather than someone fixing this one (only because it stinks now and I just want the whole thing gone). We've been living out of mom's mini fridge inside the house and a "beater fridge" in the basement. Not the most convenient, but thank goodness we have these and can eat at home rather than traveling and storing things at mom's, or going the expensive route and eating out.

 Ethnic Festival 2019

 

Viva Mexico!

Three Entries

6.5 Months

For the past couple of months, the last few weeks especially, I was experiencing all the symptoms that point to menopause. Menopause! I finally buckled down and went to the doctor after reading that my body might be low on estrogen. I have everything working against me, really. I had a c-section, had gestational diabetes, and I’m breastfeeding... it’s like the trifecta. Turns out that I just have baby blues again. For some reason, my mind just likes to point all the emotions at Aldo and what comes out is boiling hot anger. Ugh. The cure: sunshine, exercise, drink more water and reducing stress. Ha! Better said than done, and what’s worse is hardly anyone believes you unless they have experienced postpartum depression or are a doctor. Nobody really shows the mom going through it empathy.

Also, I had low Vitamin D. The next few days I walked 3 miles to and from the school with the whole family, mowed the lawn, etc. and the weather was sooo nice. I really had been longing for it. Now the weather is back down to the 60s. I love Spring, but I don’t think I’ve longed for summer so much.

Nayelli has been rolling over a ton. She ends up sleeping on her belly when I check on her at night and in the morning. She says, “Mama”. Starting to be more intentional with it. But really the way she gets my attention is reaching out her arms or screaming bloody murder - like you think she just pinched or scratched herself, but really she pooped and wants out of it. She love, love, loves Bandit. They have this special relationship where she grabs his whiskers and he licks her legs. Everyone asks if she’s teething. Hey everybody, she’s been sucking on her fists, fingers, and wanting food since she was 3 months old. She’s been teething. The doctor said at her last visit in mid-April that she’s got some time still before her bottom two teeth pop through. I checked today; they’re definitely closer. Soon my tatas will know.

Mila has grown up in so many ways, it’s funny, exciting, surprising, and sad all at once. First, she’s finally potty trained. She likes a sip of water before bed, unlike Luke who only wanted milk, and so you have to make her go to the bathroom even if she resists. Her figure... I swear... she looks just like me, and yet she’s sooo stinking cute. She likes Paw Patrol, Lion Guard, Barbie, Trolls, PJ Mask, Spider-Man, Power Rangers, dinosaurs, purses, princesses, shoes, cooking in her fake kitchen, and watching YouTube Kids (which she calls “Ipod”). The girl is non-stop talkative. Or singing. Or dancing and moving. Nayelli will always be entertained. What’s funny is how sometimes I’ll be riding in the car with someone (like my mom) and I can totally ignore it, and the other person can’t. I wish I could share all the funny, clever things she says. Recently, she’s added the words, “of course,” to her vocabulary. She talks to herself a lot (as you can imagine), and so one day she was doing it and held up one finger and said, “of course”. Hilarious and perfect timing. That girl will do amazing things. Aldo and I honestly have our hands full; Luke is a genius, so having these two younger sisters that pick up things quick.... crazy to think about what they’re going to do/accomplish.

Ideas for future parents of girls:

Mila is now at the age where she tells me what hairdo she wants. Also, she has never had a haircut yet. I’m so sad that this might be the year it happens. Anyway, “look like Elsa” means one braid. “Puppy tail” means a regular pony tail, “puppy ears” means pig-tails, and “princess hair” can be any form of braid or pretty bow, clip, etc. So obviously we got these ideas from when Mila was Skye on Halloween from Paw Patrol.And it stuck. My recommendation is that you use what you can, use what they know to explain things or help them make sense of their world, and just do it in their own time. Today Mila said, AGAIN, and with emphasis, that she wants to go to school.

—

7 Months

See how I can start on something, be interrupted, and come right back? It only took me a few weeks...

1 - Nayelli’s teeth popped through a couple of days ago. Unlike the others she didn’t drool a ton WHILE popping through. She didn’t bite me a lot. She didn’t need tons of Orajel. She was fussy ONE day. Interesting... And also, it was the bottom left, right, and top right.

2 - Mila finally opened up the makeup. The real makeup. I can get her to be quiet, but only if I let her put on 5 different colors of real lipstick, pink eyeshadow on her chin and now foundation on her cheeks. She loves it. *Ask to see her “makeup tutorials”.

3 - I never even made it to Luke.

I hate how once they’re in school, I can’t tell you much about the milestones. He’s still smart. Still wants to be involved in paleontology. Doesn’t care about girls right now (or at least won’t bring it up to me...). He has friends. I asked him the other day if he’s popular, or everyone’s friend, or nerdy. He said he’s just popular with his friends but he thinks they’re all a little nerdy.

Today Aldo is about working on insurance. Yesterday he made calls and now he is out and about at appointments in Topeka, Olathe, and Kansas City. (I wish it were more localized.) His goal is to make $10K but if he makes $8K, he’ll put in his two weeks. He seems to think that he’ll pay us back, start a business fund, and pay for our trip to Germany in one swoop. Can your life change in less than a week? Also that brings up Germany. I’ve been looking into it. It’s been my hope to travel abroad again. Although after some research, I’m a little scared to go to Germany. I don’t know the language and the culture doesn’t seem as appealing as Spain.

—

This is just ridiculous. Why can’t I finish a basic post? 

1 - Nayelli now screams like a firecracker going off. I figured out that sometimes it’s just the ending to her singing Pat-A-Cake (the “throw it in the pan” part). You can tell because she’ll make the hand gestures. Like she trying to figure out how to “roll it up”.

2 - Mila likes fake cooking in her fake kitchen. I remembered that cooking together was something good for this age to do, so for Bandit’s first birthday the kids and I made homemade puppy treats. Mila made peanut butter, banana, and Greek yogurt in an ice cube tray. I should tell you that I hate the smell of Greek yogurt and Mila ate half the banana. So when it cane time for her to scoop it into the tray from the mixer, she got some on herself and cried about being messy. So then I had to do it and keep the gags to myself because of the stale smell.

Luke made baked doggie cookies out of pumpkin, eggs, peanut butter, and wheat flower. We rolled it out and used bone and party hat cookie cutters too. Luke tried one and said it was gross because it had no taste. I think for humans all it needed was sugar...?

3 - Luke’s last week of school is coming up. Why do they even make kids go this last week if they’re already sending home books and telling the kids that this and that subject are over (I.e. Science & Social Studies)? This month he’s done MAP testing, then went to the park, went on a limo ride to Pizza Studio, and this next week they have a Splash and Dash.

4 - Nayelli’s dedication is tomorrow. So I really need to go to sleep now, because we’re out of Children’s Church, but I still need to have the lesson laid out for our sub, which is a LAB day (full of very hands-on stuff). 

Annnnd, I made posole today for the very first time alllllmost by myself. It was an experience! Remind me later to elaborate! 

Finally, the end.

My mom says I need to continue blogging...

Little does she know I already am...

3 Months

Nayelli Grace (2 Months)

I actually haven't forgotten to write; I've just been really, really busy. From October through December we had been working on the Christmas play at church. It seems I was there at least three times a week. I was worried because it wasn't your typical Christmas play (a modern day Scrooge), and second it wasn't your typical nativity story that you would see in church (a modern day Scrooge with a spiritual twist). Furthermore, I had to do the set all by myself. And I had a newborn! And a three-year-old that can't sit still. Thank goodness Dad let me borrow his Netflix password, otherwise we would never have gotten it done.

Our Amazing Trunk or Treat (and First Family Photo)

Nayelli was a Unicorn Princess

After that we were sick for a while. About four rounds of itchy throat and runny noses, and pure exhaustion. I didn't feel much like talking about that. Actually, Nayelli had to be observed overnight at Children's Mercy because she had a temperature. Aldo had forgotten about this, but because of her young age, a slight temperature is something to worry about. It was rough. Aldo had to stay home with the kids and with Bandit. I had to stay at the hospital alone overnight. Nayelli had to sleep in a big girl bed/crib hooked up to monitors. Of course, she slept through the night proving the point that she is a "perfect baby". I slept in the rocking chair right next to her with lights on and waking up every hour to pump or for vital check, etc. I'm grateful though, because from this experience we learned that she can, indeed, sleep alone in her crib through the night. So when we got home, we swaddled her and put her in the crib. Since then she's slept through the night.

Nayelli's First Visit with Abuelito

The holidays were nuts. Absolutely nuts. Honestly, where do I come up with these ideas? And why do I open my big mouth? Why do I agree to things? For Thanksgiving, I decided that I wanted to see Dad's side of the family. We hardly ever see them for holidays. Then, Aldo's dad announced that he was moving to El Paso after Thanksgiving, so this was our last time to see him. And Aldo's mom would be going to central Mexico on vacation for Christmas. And Vero wanted to host, but not late at night. And Jerad would host, but he would have to do it later for the kids. It was all mixed up this year! Long story short, we made it to all three, but we were late to both of mine and I didn't get to do my favorite thing... play games! Never. Again. Never, ever again. Two Thanksgivings is enough. Three Thanksgivings is straight up coo-coo.  

Merry Christmas 2018! 

 The very first in our new house...

Christmas, I thought, might go better since we were hosting (Aldo's idea). I knew it was coming because Maecy hosted last year, and when we bought the house Aldo said we would host the next one. Hosting is just as bad as being the one to travel. I don't know who decided we'd be the only ones cooking... I know who. It was Aldo! IT WAS ALDO!!! Aldo told all of my family that we would cook mom's ham, buy a turkey as well and cook it, make mashed potatoes (because J and Amy might not be coming and they're easy), and I'd cook the green beans (per usual because I make his favorite). He told his family not to worry about a thing, that there would be plenty of food, just bring themselves!!! I was like, whoa now... if we're hosting two families at the SAME TIME, we're going to need more. Jerad brought a ton of soda. Granddad was supposed to bring the rolls (he brought hamburger buns). Maecy brought her pretzel salad dessert (delicious!), Mom made stuffing, and Jul came with (what he brings every year) pecan pie. Everyone came at the same time! IT WAS INSANE! Thanks to Granddad and his horrible memory, and Jerad's "5 minutes" turning into a solid hour, my side ended up at the house between 1:30-2:00. Aldo's side, running on CPT, got there immediately after. We were supposed to serve at noon. And I hadn't eaten breakfast. I was starrrrving! And you know what else??? We had two gift exchanges. And while everyone was playing games on the Cooper side, we had the Secret Santa with the Alvidrez'. And while they played the cube game and I almost burnt the second round of green beans, I also had to show the Coopers how to work the remote. Entertaining is stressful. All I wanted to do was play games!!! I had spent YEARS waiting to get to the adult table... it was like, my greatest accomplishment when I was finally able to sit down with everyone and be taken seriously at Up and Down the River... and now, I might actually strategize and win! Sheesh. Afterward, Aldo agreed that hosting both sides at the same time, even though we had enough seating probably wasn't the best idea. So now, we plan on switching years at hosting between the family. 
How did New Years come up? Aldo. Still Aldo. He told friends that he wanted to have them at our house. And invited more friends. Someone's kids invited their friends. And so on. Aldo had worked a regular shift, came home and grilled up some tacos, and hosted til past midnight. For a while there, it was a ton of music and, for me, running up and down the stairs to take care of Nayelli. Then for a while we played Texas Hold Em'. Midnight came, and since then we haven't had a spotless house. (Was it seriously ever going to be spotless? And with a dog that sheds?) Confetti was everywhere! I knew we'd have confetti to sweep up, but darn it, some kid took it upstairs and tossed it all over both of our kids' rooms and in the bathroom too! There's confetti in between the crack of the seat of our couch. There's confetti in our air vents. There's confetti in our vacuum that we emptied at least three times. And there's still confetti in our room (which was locked that night), from sticking to the bottom of our socks and shoes and being carried in there! Forever confetti. Fun night though. Since then, everybody wants to come to our house. I don't know why... we have hardly any seating. No one eats at the dining room table. Our dog goes bonkers when anyone comes over. Maybe I should stop smiling when someone throws out these bad ideas..... I'll replace it with Aldo's "grumpy cat" face.

I forgot to mention that in between the holidays, right before Christmas to be exact, Aldo decided to get a vasectomy. So there's that. I don't want to go into too much detail, but let's just say it was a bad experience for both of us. What should have been a 5-10 minute operation, ended up being 45 minutes. And the recovery was longer. And it's hard as a "nurse" when you don't know how to help the "patient" and how to empathize with what they're going through. All you know is that it was traumatic. And you know, it being the sensitive and prized area... all the more traumatic. 


Currently...

Nayelli
Gosh, because this is HER first year book that I'm working on... 
She's amazing. Absolutely amazing. I already said that she sleeps through the night. A typical day goes like this:

5:00-7:00 am • Wakes up after sleeping through the night for first feeding and goes back to bed
9:00-10:00 am • Wakes up for good, is very attentive and happy (I get most of my cleaning done)
Eating in between
12:00-2:00ish • First nap
Eating in between
Attentive, but wants attention. A good time for games, toys, and learning.
6:00-8:00ish • Second nap
Eating in between
10:00-11:00ish • Bedtime

She recognizes and loves my face. Daddy is pretty high up there too. More importantly, Bandit is interesting now. Except that I've caught him licking her hands, feet, and head while she's in the swing, so you have to keep an eye out. And on top of that, she likes to stick her hands in her mouth as fists. It's really cute. But what's not so cute is when she does it right after Bandit licks them. She also blows raspberries and will chatter at you and raise her eyebrows and smile, like she's telling you a story. Cutest thing ever! She drools a lot. Can babies cut teeth this early? Google says some babies are born with teeth, so at three months it could happen. Typically, they cut around 6 months, but a baby can start showing the symptoms as early as 3 months. If that's so, she might be slobbery in every picture from now til then. Just saying. Last, blankets now go to the mouth too. Today, I caught her examining her hands. The time when she starts examining all sorts of things with her mouth is coming. It's right around the corner.

Mila
Oh, Mila. She is a wonderful big sister. She doesn't try to "help" by taking care of the baby herself like I feared she might. Instead, she warns me when the baby is crying and I need to get out my "special leche". She'll grab you diapers and wipes if you ask repeatedly. And, she'll play with Nayelli by taking her toys, giving Nayelli a high-pitched voice and having a conversation for her, or by telling her she's "so cute" and reminding me to put bows in her hair. Everything is still "so cute". Nayelli is a "princess". Speaking of which... we had a conversation today:

Me [in control of Nayelli's hands]: Come at me, Mila. I'm gonna punch you. Come on. Come at me!
[Mila giggles]: No!
Me: Come on...
[Still giggling]: No!
Me: Hey, guess what, Mila. I'm a princess boss. 
Mila: No, you're not a boss.
Me: Yeah, Mila. I'm a princess boss. Mila's not a princess boss.
Mila: No!
Me: Yeah, I'm a princess boss. Mila's a baby!
[Mila giggles]: I'm not a baby! You baby! 

Gosh, she's so smart. And gorgeous! Both of my girls are GORGEOUS. I mean... watch out! But back to smart. I was worried because I haven't been able to work with her like I did with Luke. For a good portion of his life, Luke watched Elmo and that's how he learned everything. So I was very happy when she picked up Mickey's shapes book. And counting from "monkeys jumping on the bed". And colors from... well, I don't know where they came from. Power Rangers, maybe? I'm so proud.
Hopefully soon we'll be able to get back to the library, where she can have some big girl time and learn with kids her age. Get used to kids her age! She wants to go to "school" and calls the library her "school" and also church her "school". She'll tell me she has "homework" and then play with her toys for a while. I honestly have no idea what she's doing, but if it keeps her occupied for a little bit, then that's good. The girl is constantly talking, or singing, or moving. She's seriously a special kind.

Luke
This is the part where my mom said I should start blogging again. It comes from the fact that I enrolled Luke in 4H. He decided his first project should be with the dog. Actually I encouraged it. Dog Care & Obedience to be exact. Win-win! So we had our first class (without the dog). Class went well with three kids. The trainer is really nice and funny, seems down-to-earth and easy-going. She ended up giving out homework to work on this first week. Made sense since next class will be wild with 10-20 dogs, several of them less than a year old, meeting other dogs and other people for the first time in a new place with new smells. Some who haven't been on a leash that much. Some who haven't been in the car that much... like ours for instance. I imagine that we'll want to quit after the first week. Anyway, the homework was: to work on their name (a dog should look you in the eyes when you say their name, that way if you're out in a field and shout their name... they at least acknowledge you), work on a "stupid trick" that I can only describe as dog touches their nose to your open hand, and the basic trick of sitting. If the dog is already pretty good at sitting then you can toss them treats (which leads to staying). Well, we get home and Luke and I look at each other and say, "Hmmm... let's see what Bandit can do!"
Bandit is not a dumb dog. Close, but not the dumbest. He knows his name. Woohoo! He instantly wants to come at your hand if you put it out. Instead of a nose touch, it has turned into let me go above and beyond and lick your hand up and down for the treat. I will wrap my tongue AROUND your hand, that's how much I want a treat. :| And, for a treat... he'll sit right away. He'll also sit for praise. He likes attention. So, we're like... let's move on to the treat toss. The very first one bonks him right in the middle of the forehead! It was hilarious and sad. I've noticed that he's not very quick at sniffing things out. Apparently he's not very good at seeing things fly towards his head either. I will give it to him though, the treat is tiny like pea-size. I suggest we try a toy instead. So Luke and I do the trick with Bandit's squirrel that he just got for Christmas. He did sooo good! And Aldo taught Bandit to "drop it" so it's been turned into a really fun game! After 20 or so treats and fetches, we're done and I go upstairs. Before I know it, Luke comes up and tells me he has bad news. Bandit ripped up his squirrel. There's stuffing everywhere. Ok, no biggie. He's also ripped up my bra. My last bra. Ugh. THIS DOG! The trainer said to pay attention to how much praise vs. "no"s we tell our four-legged companions. I tied up the count real quick. (To be noted: Bandit has gone after my bras forever. Is it my smell? Is it the breastmilk? Is it the fact that it's just mine and he wants it? I don't know why he went for it, but he's on my Do Not Trust list. Cannot leave bras around, even if on the highest point of the couch or counter. He WILL find it. He WILL go for it.)

Aldo & Myself
Right now our church is doing a 21-day fast. It's been good so far. It is only Day 3...
In the midst though, we have been planning for the Children's Church ahead of schedule, which is nice (for me especially... the admin). We went on a "date" last night to go pick up a foosball table in middle of nowhere, Holton, KS. During the ride we talked about dreams that we've had on trips to go on, retirement, aspirations, work-related goals, etc. Today starts the day where I start getting the house in order and our five year plan written out, a budget in place and so on. Aldo and I are finally in agreement to do the insurance thing (not with the original company), AND in agreement that I should go back to school to become a CPA. I've looked into it several times and every time I think - Oh my gosh, I haven't done a math problem in forever and now companies and people are going to trust me to help them with their finances and taxes! I can't do percentages off the top of my head like Aldo can! I don't understand stocks! I would have to be attached to Excel and whatever other programs they have now. And, would working with numbers all day be mundane and dull? But, I am encouraged to try out a class at least. I can do it. If it doesn't work out, well, like Aldo's insurance job... it wouldn't be "the dream job"... but a means to the end. In all seriousness, I've made the dream job. I'm a mother.