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.

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.

Moving Month, Part 2

This has been the hardest month (week) physically, financially, emotionally, and any other which way you look at it. Originally our Must Move Out Date was December 15th. But when the new buyer's loan didn't come through, the date was pushed back to December 30th. Aldo and I had most of our stuff moved out by the 15th. The final things were bicycles, tools, and the like in the garage. And some condiments in the fridge. Then, the week of Christmas mom informed us she was going out of town to Tennessee to move her camper and put an offer on some land down there. She said we (Aldo, myself, my uncles and Granddad) had to move her stuff out by the time she got back. Because the next day she would be signing the papers over. !! We had three days.... AND this is Aldo's busiest season, full of BLACK OUT days. 

Well, we did it. We got it done. With a toddler too!

Let me vent for a second.... I thought I might get a break from moving on Christmas Day. I didn't. Mom was taking off the next day for her trip, and all Christmas she was grumpy, saying stuff like "well I need to pack... I guess I'll do it by myself... nobody is helping me..." in her passive aggressive way of asking people to help her move. It's Christmas! So I went all day hearing this while trying to be with family, and finally couldn't take it any more and went over to help her get things loaded on her camper at night, since the guys just wanted to watch football. We pulled the camper in front and were checking the tail lights when we found that the entire right corner was covered in mold. The cushions were ruined. The corner needs completely gutted. So I couldn't pack anything on the camper. At the same time we found a leak in the garage. Apparently all that work mom and Jerad did on the garage roof, pulling up the surrounding metal, cleaning off the top, patching, and painting didn't fix the problem. So all night mom was furious. I went to help her pack so she would be ready to leave at 6 or 7 in the morning, so she could get down to Tennessee at the time she wanted, but instead  most of the time was spent shaking her head at the cushions and the puddle in the garage floor. The next morning she took her Durango to the mechanic to have fluids checked and wound up getting things replaced... and didn't leave until after noon.

Day 1 - Monday : Jerad cleaned out the 3rd garage stuff like mom's tools that she wanted in the trailer and put a load of things in his horse stall.

Day 2 - Tuesday : Jerad and I started packing boxes and moved them all to the large trailer with the furniture so we could figure out the best way to pack it on mom's trailer (to fit it all and get what mom wanted by the door.) Then when Jul came over we started moving it over to mom's trailer. It was probably our biggest moving day. And all this time Luke, Jenna and sometimes Jenna's friend were watching Mila.

Day 3 - Wednesday : Aldo and I both had to work in the morning, so Jerad watched the kids for us. Dad wanted to meet with me and the kids after I got off work for a special Christmas shopping spree. And then when we got back, Jerad was ready to finish with mom's house. I guess he had moved the rest of the garages and back room to the barn?? Or somewhere. I have no idea. So what was left was craft room junk and outside junk. We spent the night moving old, good-for-nothing (not even firewood) lumber on Jul's trailer. 

By the time mom got home on Thursday I was super excited that we got all that she asked done. Thursday morning Aldo and I went to sign papers at the apartment because it would be his only day off. Mom wasn't impressed at all when she saw what we had done. She said we didn't have to move the wood. The trailer was packed wrong. And where did her computer go? And we need to stop using her internet. ?!?! 

The newest news is this: the sale of the house fell through.

The appraiser for the VA that the guy was getting his loan from appraised the house too low. An appraisal that may stick with the house for 6 months. Mom doesn't want to come down on the price of the house again... (it would be $232K). All of our rush and work, I feel, was for nothing. She commented that she's letting the contract with her real estate agent run out and she'll do a For Sale by Owner. And in the meantime bring up the price of the house by updating the kitchen.

Lately, she's been hovering. The other day she wanted Luke to go with her to recycle, and when I said no because we had plans, she began to interrogate me on what those plans were. And got defensive when I said she's judgemental and that's why I didn't want to tell her. (Maecy said she told her our conversation and that she assumed I was at our Pastor's house. A Pastor's is not a bad place to hang out. No wonder I never had friends growing up...). When I went over today  to finish up the basement by shampooing the rest of the carpet and sweeping and mopping, and scrubbing the bathroom floor like she wanted... she came down and started spraying cleaner in the creepy bathroom (that we never used and had already cleaned) and started looking under sinks and such. When are we going to be free of her criticism? Are we ever going to be finished with the house? We have our own apartment now, pushed out / forced to get into by my own mother... when is our life going to become important?   Nothing we ever do, no decision we make is ever going to appease her.

I'm seriously bummed for my mom that the house didn't work out. This whole adventure / process has been one obstacle after another. I'm sorry her hopes were set high. I'm sorry she's now stuck in a house to pay for by herself, with an animal she'll have to take care of by herself, with repairs or remodeling she wants to make to get it sold at the price she wants and I'm sure she'll be left to do it by herself. The outcome to all of this isn't what I thought. What should be a celebratory thing hasn't been that way with every step. All I know is now we have the keys to a place called home, and we're going to be sleeping there on Tuesday. 

Moving Month, Part 1

1 Year, 4 Months

We're half-way through our move. Like any other major events that happen in life, there's been some good and some bad points, although I would say this has been better than what I expected, and the so-called "bad" have just been "surprises". For instance, I thought the kids would get on my nerves. They don't at all. The kids are hardly here, and when they are Luke has someone to keep him busy and off the tv, Mila has young baby watchers so we can move or clean or cook, and if none of the above, they actually keep to themselves. When they're not here the house is absolute quiet. My uncle is usually off doing horse business making the big bucks, or in his room. Another example, I thought Mila would be too much for them because she can be demanding and loud. The kids LOVE her and she has this weird communication/connection with Jerad. He LOVES her. My guess is he has a little baby fever. (After all they used to foster all the time. So kids had the run of the place.) For some reason I keep imagining my mom talking with family members and as a side note questioning how it's going or somehow making us look like bad renters (whether it's not getting the laundry through in a timely fashion, not cleaning up dishes, always watching tv, always sleeping, always reading, using all the internet, using all the water, not offering to help with horses, not painting the place..... these are just some valid to outlandish things I could come up with, and it's not really that far-fetched of a daydream). And Jerad answering for us.. "no, they're good tenants." Of course we are. I feel as if Jerad would rather we stay longer; if not for the extra money then for the company.

This past week was the first time we actually "hung out". Aldo and I had to go somewhere, I can't remember, and Aldo told Jerad he could watch on our tv. When we got back Jerad has his feet up on the couch all comfortable-like and was watching off of Kodi (the movie set-up Dad did for us). The next day he was on it again. And the next day. And then the kids were here for the weekend. At first they played outside in the snow, and then when they came in... watched on our tv again! This was the surprise. I thought for sure they would leave by bedtime. Because they were watching the movie for the second time. And it was a school night. And privacy. Nope. Aldo wasn't here so Luke was put in bed and Mila and I hid in my room watching a DVD on my laptop. So this was the one time where privacy ever came up. And it really wasn't that bad. Not what I thought.

The other surprise has been the fireplace. It's not bad or anything... just a nuisance. You have to restock the logs more frequently than what I would have thought. Our first night here was the coldest night ever!! And so now we know how much firewood, size of logs, when to put them in, how to control the fire, etc. I guess for if we ever need to know that information. But more importantly, central heating is a MUST and a fireplace can be back-up.

---

Today I had a morning meeting, so while Mila slept on Jerad's watch, Luke came with me and then I took him to school. This would give me the chance to ask about transferring later on and virtual school, etc. The office lady was a heckler. She gave me the 10th degree and dug in to where I had to tell the truth about us moving. And she was like... <use Wicked Witch of the West voice>.. "well using a different address is illegal." Ugh. Do you know how many people live out of district and still go to the school of their choice? Or use a different address than where they are really living? A ton of people. AND, I've had several people tell me that they knew people who didn't have to transfer. A Piper kid for instance. That's KCK school district. Hmmmm.... So it's not like I was asking for Luke to ride the bus or anything. She said, "well, he'll need to get approved by the district office and you'll have to call them... and usually only people who need special attention or special reasons get through." Baloney. (I know that's not how you spell the word... But I think that's how It's spelled when it's not the lunch meat, and more of phoney information. Just so you know. I'm not illiterate. Haha!)

So... today I've spent scrambling to get paperwork together: birth certificate, lease information, immunizations, utility information, etc. All before the schools and businesses are closed for the holidays and winter break. Luke's last day at Basehor Elementary is tomorrow!!! He doesn't even know. Him, his teacher, the schools... it's like nobody had been prepped and made ready for this transition. Poor buddy. His friends are going to be surprised to know that he's not coming back from winter break. He's moving away. And so what should be a fun thing has become an emotional, sad thing. My poor baby. I can see a few benefits from this:

1. The new school is directly across the street from the apartments. So I no longer have to travel back and forth to take Luke to school. Less money spent on gas for transportation. And I do t have to travel during the winter months either. And I can be there at a moment's notice if need be.

2. We continue to break out on our own. Is Johnson County where we see ourselves in the future? Well, we aren't still hitched to family in the boonies.

3. It's easier to transfer now rather than in 2nd or 3rd or 4th grade, or middle school. It's better now while he's young. And at least it's one kid and not both of them.

4. This is weird, but another daydream I've been having is that what if this is all part of God's plan? What if years from now Luke is sitting across from his wife, whom he met in 1st grade at this new school, and she confesses that if he had come sooner he would never have "stuck out" to her. An de if he had come sooner he would never have been coupled up with her to learn the class rules, catch up on the subject, etc. What if this is all God's plan? (That should have been my #1.)

As I was being handed all the paperwork to sign at this new school from this new face in the office, I was heartbroken that Luke had to be plucked out from what he knew and pushed into something else. I said out loud, "<sigh> this is sad." The office lady looked at me like I was crazy. Like I was getting a divorce or something and Luke was going to need counciling. Not the case, lady. It's more like my expectations were hit by a train. And so all I can think is - it must all be God's plan to get us into that position where He wants us. Literally.

Christmas Traditions

What a beautiful Christmas. Probably one of my top favorites in recent years.

I think a lot of the time we remember what it was like during our childhood and wish for our Christmas futures to turn out somewhat the same. We want our kids to have the same memories that filled us with so much joy and family tradition.
At my Grammy and Grandad's house we always ate some meal together (except my little family of Mom, me and Maecy was always late), took pictures on the stairs with all the generations - after having to explain to the elders how to operate the camera or figure out the timer, opened presents in the living room (kids on the hideously green shag carpet), and the rest of the day playing card games at the dining room table or play with our new toys and gadgets. As a young kid all I ever wanted to do was sit at the adult table to eat and hear the big, adult conversations and play "Up and Down the River".
Christmas at Grandma and Grandpa's was probably more like how other cultures imagine an American Christmas. We would sit down at the long table and pass around the meal, scooping our portions onto our plate. The children only talked when the adults asked questions. Afterward we would go in the living room and open presents all at once. The room was filled with Christmas decorations, but the best of all was the Christmas tree. It's the most breakable and most beautiful Christmas tree I've ever seen in my life. All white ornaments and lights. No games or anything, but there was a table covered in every delicious desert in the dining room. Sometimes prior Christmas we would spend an entire day making povatisa bread at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Another favorite thing - and you can count on it being the best since my family spent years improving the recipe and found the best way to get it done. Kind of like Aldo's family knows how to make tamales the best way. And last, in your stocking, you would always find an ornament, hand-picked by Grandma, especially for you. Mine was a Precious Moments ornament. Always.

From what I've heard, Aldo's Christmas with his family has always been a bit different. Different culture, different traditions. Aldo's mom would make a red soup with cow's stomach called pasole. (Sorry, I can't tell you if that's the correct spelling.) They would spend all day Christmas Eve  playing games and singing karaoke, maybe even dancing, waiting to open gifts at midnight. And they open gifts one at a time.

In past years we've figured out our schedule as a young couple... Christmas Eve at his family's, Christmas at mine, and New Year's at Aunt Dolores' because my Grandma and Grandpa don't always have Christmas at their house any more. With a child and making side dishes or even the main dish, it's difficult to go to every Christmas celebration. Rather than spending a few quick hours everywhere and feeling rushed and overwhelmed, we would rather spend a good long time hanging out, making memories and unfortuneatley missing out on another. This year we had a new baby though. Two kids. Our little family is growing. It's about time we came up with our own Christmas traditions for our kids. I looked some up and a lot of them we already do. Christmas meals. Open a gift at midnight. Pictures by the Christmas tree. But none of them stand out for us. There were some things I liked but they're not Christmas morning per se: see Christmas lights, watch Christmas movies, gingerbread houses (we do this already), first present of new pajamas (we have a friend that does this and I'm not a copycat), adopt a family, go to Christmas morning church service (already do), etc. So what should our family do???
WE NOW HOLD A CHRISTMAS PRESENT TREASURE HUNT. Rather than waking up and tearing the wrapping off of all our gifts and then feeling remorseful all day, we've figured out a way to draw out the excitement a little bit.

I'll tell it from the beginning. This year Aldo was off three days in a row. I've learned that it's easier to start Christmas shopping in September and buy online and have things shipped straight to my door than going out, traveling all over the city looking for that one thing... So I definitely did that again this year. Had everything under the tree and wrapped (except the couple from Santa) by the weekend. Wednesday could have been a stay-at-home and bum day, but we hadn't spent any time with our friends. I think they were feeling neglected, so we went to the movies Wednesday morning. Mila's first movie theater showing was "Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens". A big deal this year. It was kind of perfect because our son's name is Luke and I always kidded that we should name our daughter Leia. But we're not big, big fans so that would have been silly. Mila slept for a good portion. And then watched intensely the second portion. Never thought this day would come, but I breastfed in public. In a public place. Not in a car. Or in a back room. However, it was dark and loud. Nobody could really be interrupted by her and I wouldn't get rude glares. It wasn't until the last 30 minutes (we were there over two hours) that Aldo and I had to stand up with her and walk around near the exit to keep her from crying, where she fell asleep again. Afterward, we went back to their house and played "Up and Down the River". Yes, my craving for the game of the old days had been satisfied. And I won! (I kept score. I forever hold to the theory that "scorekeeper always wins".) We didn't intend on it, but we stayed until dark.

Thursday was Christmas Eve. Since Lily missed out on Thanksgiving this year, no pasole, but turkey again for the celebration. I can't recall what we did all morning, but before we left in the afternoon Aldo made potatoes and we headed over at 2:30 pm to play games until midnight. Everyone must have been a little "off". We found out that Alex already received the gift we got him, so we stopped at Walmart just in time before closing. Lily had to work extra hours. Veronica had to last minute take her kids to another Christmas. Aldo had to pick up his dad and then get turkey gravy from somewhere that was still open. Mitzy just decided they weren't coming until later I guess. Like usual, dinner wasn't until later. But much later. I don't think we ate until 10 o'clock hit. Cold food, but still not bad. We bought the game "Pit" for the Alvidrez/Hernandez house. They're a people that like their fast-paced, loud, schemish games... So it was a perfect choice. We didn't play until 10:30ish. And I could've been disappointed in their lack of involvement, and lack of loudness, but I wasn't - everyone was just tired. Instead of midnight, we opened gifts at 11:00. One at a time. So a lot of tradition was set aside.......... And I kind of missed it. But........ I decided days before - sometimes I get aggravated at the lack of games at my mom's Christmas, the lack of planning at Aldo's family's Christmas, and I hate to admit this, but the same present I got the year before (lotion or something). I decided I wasn't going to be a Scrooge. I wasn't going to be disappointed. I wasn't going to be depressed. I was going to embrace Christmas. Because days before I was reminded that America is the richest nation. And that when you compare the $11/hour our lower class makes to the $3/day some people in Mexico make to the other nations that don't have clean water or a carpeted floor or a cushioned bed, we are a rich country. I decided there is more to life than not getting to play the game you want and instead listening to the most boring conversation of rental houses and the improvements they need. There is more than not starting the day at the exact time you want. There is more than a $20 gift card you want. I would be happy and embrace the Christmas and the people I get to spend it with. Now, looking back, much of the Christmas Eve was spent looking at family albums. Reminiscing. Awwww...

Christmas morning Aldo went to church service and let the rest of us sleep in. Thanks, babe! Our plan was to have a relaxing morning alone with our own family, but instead, when he got back, we went over to Granddad's for a breakfast that Granddad decided to have last minute. We got home and did our "Christmas present treasure hunt".... Our new family tradition!, helped mom clean the upstairs, made our side of salad, and waited. Waited. Waited. For the rest of the family to arrive to open presents under the tree.

Family traditions.
I can't say it enough. You expect certain things. And when something doesn't meet that expectation it could throw off your whole day. I think that's the theme of my Christmas this year: letting go of my Christmas expectations. And I'll tell you, it could have been a disaster. Awkwardly, we were opening Christmas gifts for ourselves as strangers and family who didn't have gifts were arriving and watching. How do you make it look like it's not about the gifts, when it truly is not about the gifts to you, but it seems that it is about the gifts because people are there while you alone are opening gifts? And you just look like spoiled brats? And you're also trying to go quickly, only to get it over with so it isn't awkward anymore. But instead it looks like you're looking for that one gift you want and are unhappy with anything prior, and a selfish, greedy person because you aren't thanking anyone. !!! It was so difficult for me. I do not know who gave Luke some of his gifts because he went through them so fast, because I was trying to go through mine, and get Mila to stop crying. Another thought: You just can't please everybody. No matter hard you try (I am talking in any situation; not just the holidays) there will always be that one person that judges you. That looks at you and makes you feel like crud. But they are only looking at what they see. And they don't know you're heart, and they don't know the back story. They may call you "spoiled" and "wanting all the attention", but that is just simply not true. So don't become offended when you're called names, because they don't know what you've experienced in the past, even the past five minutes. They're sticking their foot in their mouths. But the next lesson is this: Don't become them. Don't judge others. Be kind. You don't know their story and what they're currently going through. And as I write this - isn't that the plot of Christmas with the Kranks?

We finally got into the other room to eat our Christmas meal. Turkey again. I sat at the kids table with Luke, Jenna and Aldo. The food wasn't half bad, even Granddad's runny green bean casserole (because he didn't drain the beans). After, I taught Maecy, Juan and Jenna how to play "Up and Down the River". Aldo played chess with Jerad. The old people played dominoes. Then, all the people played "Up and Down the River". (Granddad won. The scorekeeper.) Then everyone left and Jerad arrived back. So we played Split. Then a fishing dice game.

I guess when you let go of expectations... When you don't have any expectations, all expectations are met. You embrace Christmas. And a little "Up and Down the River" helps too.

Through the Camera Lens

Luke is about to get his first Christmas letter from the North Pole.

The other day - and I've thought about this a lot lately - I was thinking about when I'm recording things on my phone, or when I'm taking pictures... Sure, I've captured the moment, but did I get to experience the moment to its fullest potential, because I was taking the picture/video... Do I want to experience life through a lens or do I want to just experience life? Do I want to worry about lighting and angle and how weird I sound in the background, or do I just want to make a lasting memory? And it be one of those things I hold onto and share with just the other person(s) involved, and sometimes (because our memories aren't so good), the memory changes and evolves. "One year it snowed and I also walked to school" becomes "in my day I walked to and from school in five feet of snow up hill both ways..." That's obviously not true and an exaggeration. But my point is this.... Do I record this moment of Luke opening his card? And share it? Or is this one I keep for myself? I am his mother after all.

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas!

Minus the snow that is. Luke and I finally finished decorating the duct-taped Christmas tree we've had for forever. My M&M lights still around it. Luke made a sparkly pine cone somewhere and wanted it to be at the top where a star or angel would go... We don't have either one of those so the pine cone was fine with me. We decided we wanted a delicious tree after making our gingerbread house at the library, so Luke strategically placed candy canes around the tree (a big patch in front, not any on the bottom row or on the sides or backside) and today we strung popcorn (a measily string of popcorn because Mommy kept poking herself with the sewing needle, Mila was crying, and Luke wanted a snack). Poor tree is pitiful this year. Last year I think something happened and so there's red duct tape keeping it together, but it leans to the side. All things considered, I think we're anything but Scrooge's and Grinch's this year. So excited for family to open their gifts. From me... From Santa... The real one. (Luke told me no pictures at Cabela's this year... He's not the real Santa. So we wrote a letter to the real one and slipped it in the library's North Pole Express Mail. Luke's been good "300 days and wants a 'chransformer', Mila was good 3 days and wants a golden dress and a 'dipr'." We're waiting on our reply. But I do know Luke got an Optimus Prime and Mila got her diaper... Along with some other things.) I look forward to Christmas. There's nothing like planning out a really awesome gift or tying them together with some sort of theme. Tomorrow we'll be finishing off our shopping list. I'm excited. Have I said that enough? I'm excited! Somehow, it always works out, that we get to spend a little extra at this time of year and spoil each other. This time it's because I got a check back from Luke's ex-doctor because I overpaid for a bill in 2013. Seriously? Awesome!!

Yesterday Luke was in his first Christmas play. His part was one of the kids in the classroom. He had a few lines he shared with the other kids... "FRANKENSTEIN?!".... No. Frankincense. And he also sang "Joy to the World" in the microphone. The rest of the time he kind of stood there moving his lips and didn't do the movements too big. I think he got a little stage fright. But I was proud of him.

 

Daddy & Son Gingerbread House

Christmas Play @ CenterPointe (with friend, Ember Cubbage)

Today Mila is officially 18 weeks old. Doesn't sound like much, but I looked it up and there are a lot of big achievements in four months.

- She rolled over. I mean really rolled. One minute I had her on the blanket on her back, and the next minute she was in Luke's stuff a couple feet over. So now she can go from back to front (which she's been doing) and front to back, mostly in one direction though. I'll have to test that out.

- She recognizes Grammy's face, and Luke's face, and now (finally!) Daddy's face. She actually smiled at Daddy tonight. Outside I didn't make a big deal, but inside I was ecstatic! Finally! Finally! Finally! Is she a Daddy's girl? I know it would mean the world to him. And melt his heart. 

- Here's something I just read:

At this age, your baby is sleeping less, and she's awake for longer periods of the day. She's anxious to learn about her world and family, and she may not always be interested in your choice of game. If she turns her head and looks away, she's declaring she's ready to move on to something else. At only 11 weeks, she's got ideas of her own!

That's Mila for sure! Never wants to nap. Wants held, wants a toy, wants my food, wants to sit, wants my drink, wants to sit further, wants to play with her feet, wants her diaper changed after piddle... *sigh* ... Girl just knows what she wants.
- I also read that she now understands that when I'm talking I'm speaking in syllables. Whoa, right?! And so the process of learning the language and sounds, constants and vowels begins.
- She ate some cereal. Did alright. She's more impressed with the flavor of lemonade, and refried beans, and Panera's broccoli cheddar soup. A tooth isn't too far off, but I haven't seen any signs of one yet.

More to come…

A Christmas Reveal

The night before Christmas, in the Alvidrez house, a little boy was stirring because he found out he was going to be a big brother. We told him we had a special surprise. I reminded him of when he was a baby and before that when he was in his mommy's belly by showing him his blog book. Then, we announced that there is another baby in mommy's belly. We went to the doctor the day before and she found a baby in there. He asked questions like: When is the baby coming? Tomorrow? And can I have one? He even said a special prayer for the baby and told the baby, Hey, I'm your big brother. It was the sweetest thing. The best reveal I will ever get to experience I think. We showed him the pictures we had taken earlier of him in a Santa hat - mad face, silly face, smoochy face, I'm going to be a big brother face. And we explained how Grammy and Maecy were going to find out. That as they opened each picture, he could tell them the face he made. It would be his Christmas surprise!

The next morning we had to wake up early for Christmas service and Aldo and I agreed it would be better for each of us to open one present, mom opening the pictures. Luke jumped out of bed immediately - no one complains or plays 'possum when they hear the words It's Christmas! Luke found two presents on his bed from Santa (a ninja turtles sticker book and the new life-like movie). Aldo and I opened up our stockings. Grammy opened up four pictures individually. She vaguely remembered seeing the photos, but didn't know this is what I did - and she was completely surprised! A great reaction. She said there were times when she thought we might be, and then quickly threw the idea out. We spent some time talking and then quickly headed to church together. The first thing Luke does is tell his friends that there's a baby in mommy's tummy. A friend of ours came up to me and said, "You know Luke is telling everyone you're pregnant… Are you?" It's a good thing we had told mom that morning…

When we got back home we opened up most of our presents. Luke couldn't wait. And Ruby re-wrapped the pictures for us. Maecy and Juan ended up arriving a little before lunch, so we decided to let her open them before the rest of the family. As she was opening up the second one, I looked out the window and saw Granddad in the driveway. We had to rush her through it - and she had no idea what was going on - it was kind of chaotic. I wish it wasn't, but she was surprised at the end anyway. I quickly ran the pictures downstairs to re-wrap them AGAIN! 

When everyone showed up it was time for lunch. Luke had been doing a fantastic job at keeping the secret, but near the end of the meal, when everyone was getting dessert, he shouted, My Grammy is having a baby! Whoops! He was on the other side of the room. All I heard was my mom and maybe a few others do the shhh-sound at him. Everyone turns to one another like what's going on? and why is he in trouble… It's actually quite hilarious in retrospect. I explained it to them by saying that Luke was telling everyone what they got for Christmas. It was the honest truth, and they seemed appeased with the answer. Aldo turns to me and says, we have to do it NOW. Granddad would open the presents this time. We gave him the presents and he opened the first one. I don't know why, but he thought the "mad face" was hilarious, to the point where he might have been crying and couldn't stop laughing. We had to move him on to the second one. Not as funny as the first I guess. After the third one he was guessing what could be the fourth - maybe a descent picture… and congratulations. Not too bad. Well worth the wait, just to see all of their different reactions alone.