Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday was spent in our new home and it was very special for us because we hosted Easter in our new home. We had my brother, his fiancee, my best friend. and my dad and his gf came over. I spent all morning cleaning up and getting ready for our company. I made a batch of cupcakes and some yummy potato salad. Hubs got out of work early and helped with the BBQ.

This was my Easter set up along with my cupcake centerpiece :)
The kids were given Easter baskets by my brother and his fiancee and my dad and his gf.

These are Christina's baskets

These are Carlos's baskets

My brother and Elsa hid eggs everywhere for the kids and then it was time for them to find them. They had a blast looking for them and loved the surprises they found inside of them!

I hope everyones Easter was as fun as ours! A great time was had by all!

Let The Egg Hunting Begin.....

Our Saturday morning before Easter began with taking a trip to little C's school for an Easter egg hunt for the community. We walked all the way to his school and back. A total of 3 miles! It was definitely good exercise :D When we got there we found many kids just as ready as my kids to find eggs and have a great time. They had an awesome set up. Kids ages 0-2 in one, kids 3-5 in another, and Elementary school kids were 30 min after the little kids. I was a little worried because this was Chris's first time egg hunting and unfortunately the group she was in (ages 3-5) had to look for eggs without the company of their parent. She had just seen Dora the explorer on TV the day before so I reminded her to just look for the eggs just like Dora did. She just answered with "OK mommy" and eagerly awaited everyone to do the countdown to begin

As the countdown began....my worries quickly went away because it turns out my child is a pro at egg hunting and as soon as the countdown hit 1 off she went to find her some eggs!

She ran around the whole park and came back with a basket full of eggs! She made her mama proud. Inside the eggs were coupons that could be redeemed for prizes and both her and her brother came back with lots of coupons that were found inside their eggs.

Next it was her brothers turn. He was in the elementary group and when the countdown came for them. They all took off and it was really funny because unlike the younger kids, the older kids cleaned up within minutes! It was really funny to watch, its like they would migrate from spot to spot all at the same time. He did really good as well and came back with a bag full of eggs.

The kids then went and redeemed their coupons and got some awesome prizes. They had tons of fun and were very excited. It was awesome to see the community come together and put something like this together. We will definitely doing this again next year :D

A day in the life of my little girl.....

I love days when I just hang out with the kids at home. Today was one of those days. I had the day off work as it is Good Friday and I had a great day with the kids. Today Christina had a really good day. She is becoming very independent. Wanting to dress herself, choosing her clothes, changing her outfits and so on and so one. Todays ensemble made me smile..I walked into her room and found that she had found her outfit for the day and it was as so:

upon further inspection I noticed that her pants were on inside out with the tag sticking way out.

I let her be and her day went on with her chosen outfit. In that entire day Christina became a ballerina......

a cowgirl of some sort.....

and played in her room making some great food in her play kitchen

I love seeing her play and use her imagination. She had a great day :D

Saying Good Bye For a Week ......

...to my son was by far the hardest thing I had to do so far this year. He left on my birthday to science camp and came back today. Even though I was sad to be apart from him I was really excited that he was having this awesome experience.

I was so excited to go get him today though. His sister and I got to his school really early and waited patiently for those darned buses to arrive.

along with all the other parents we waited and waited and waited and when a bus would come around the corner my heart would start beating faster...only to be let down because those buses were empty.....but all of a sudden....

one by one.....

The buses all arrived!!! Christina and I waited patiently as the kids made their way out of the busses. C was in the third bus and as he made his way toward us I tried hard to hold the tears back. I was so happy to finally see this face after a very long week:

He had a blast and came home telling us all sorts of science camp stories. Just seeing him and hearing how much fun he had all week made everything worthwhile :)

Happy Birthday To Me......

Today marks the beginning of a new decade for me. I leave my 20's behind and begin my 30's. I cant believe time has gone by so quickly. So many things have happened, so many changes. I can honestly say that I feel content beginning my 30's....I mean, its so weird, I dreaded being this age for so long and now that it is finally here I am ok with it. I am happy. I have the love of my husband, a home we can call our own and create our own memories in, and two beautiful children that brighten up my world. I am embracing my age and everything that will come along with this decade. My 20's were good and I am positive my 30's will be even better!

With all that said. My birthday fell on a Monday. I took the day off and spent it with my husband. Little C went off to camp that morning(info on that experience will come in my next post), and Christina spent some of the morning with me and then was taken to her ninos and ninas home to take pics with the easter bunny. I got a mani/pedi then met up with my family and had some awesome dinner. Good food with good company. I couldnt have asked for a better B-day :)

and now for some pics:

Delicious food at my favorite breakfast place Stacks in Campbell. Yum!!!!!

Making Christina smile at Stacks

We had dinner at Chevys and in most of the pics we took I looked like I was totally wasted when I was not! lol and if you dont believe me....here is an example:

Well ok...maybe it might be because I am sipping my delicious strawberry margarita out of the PITCHER! but yea...I'ts my party and I'll drink if I want to! :P

Anyway the night was awesome....A good time was had by all....:)

Child Survey. Take 1!

I got this survey from one of my favorite blogs and I decided to ask little C the questions since he came to work with me today. Lets see how he answered them.

1. What is something mommy always says to you? C: That she is always proud of me

2. What makes mommy happy? C: Me! ( said with a big smile in his face)

3. What makes mommy sad? C: When we are hurt and we have a frown on our face

4. How does your mommy make you laugh? C: When she does clumsy things lol

5. What was your mommy like as a child? C: She was a good child, but never allowed to do anything! lol

6. How old is your mommy? C:29!

7. How tall is your mommy? C: laughs...."Wow...5'7?"

8. What is her favorite thing to do? C: She likes to play Halo 3

9. What does your mommy do when you’re not around? C: " Uhhhhh play halo3 , get on the computer, and clean"

10. If your mommy becomes famous, what will it be for? C: "um that one is too hard"

11. What is your mommy really good at? C: " Being a mom"

12. What is your mommy not very good at? C: "Math" lol

13. What does your mommy do for her job? C: "She answers phones, and works in an office"

14. What is your mommy’s favorite food? C: "Fettucine alfredo"

15. What makes you proud of your mommy? C:" She is the best mommy in the whole world"

16. If your mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be? C: " Spongebob's mother from Spongebob squarepants"

17. What do you and your mommy do together? C: " We play halo 3 and we paint pottery"

18. How are you and your mommy the same? C: " We are both hispanic" ha ha ha

19. How are you and your mommy different? C: " I am a boy and shes a girl"

20. How do you know your mommy loves you? C: " cause she says it to me all the time"

21. What does your mommy like most about your daddy? C: " That he cares about my mom and makes her smile"

22. Where is your mommy’s favorite place to go? C: " Home with her children.

and there you have it! answered as honestly by my 10 year old. He is so silly!

"When One Falls, Another Takes Him Home"

Last night I watched the movie " Taking Chance" with hubs and I was so moved by it I decided to write a blog about it. Usually I don't watch war-themed movies with my husband because it makes me really sad to see the many things that happen. This movie is unlike any other war movie I have seen. This movie is based on a true story of Marine Lieutenant Colonel Michael Strobl's journey to escort 19 year old PFC Chance Phelps's remains back home. It opened up my eyes on the process that goes in taking a fallen serviceman home. The honor, respect that goes in getting everything ready and most of all it opened up my eyes on the effect that this process has on everyone it touches. I know the effect it had on me. I would recommend this movie to anyone, if you have HBO watch it. Oh and have kleenex by your side..you will need it.

My husband served in the Marine Corps for 5 years. Everyday I am proud of the fact that he served our country and risked his life for all of us. To all of those in the armed forces who have given up so much to protect us here at home...I thank you....To PFC C. Phelps USMC and all the other fallen marines, soldiers, sailors and airmen...Thank you for your service to our country and for protecting our freedoms. Rest in peace.

My Second cake!

So unfortunately I could not make it to my class tonight, but I still tried my hardest to practice at home and make my cake. Since I missed class I was unable to practice making those weird clown shapes, but I did practice my drop flowers, and shell border as best as I could. I cant wait to go back next week for our final project: The Wilton Rose.


Here I am hard at work makin the shell borders :D

This was my end result. I was very pleased with it this time and I have to thank hubs this time around because he helped me make the icing :)

My First Cake!

Last night was my 2nd cake decorating class and it went really well!

We practiced all sorts of stars, border fill-In's, curving lines, zigzags, printing and the first part of the Wilton Rose. I totally didnt realize that holding the decorating bag a certain way would make my wrist hurt because by the end of the class I was in pain! I had tons of fun though. I decided to make the cake that was on the cover of my Wilton Cake Decorating Beginners Guide. This is what I ended up with:

and a cute one of Christina poking at it! She couldn't help herself!

I think its not bad for my first cake. Next time I have to make sure to add little more food coloring to the icing so that the colors "pop" a bit more. My green was way too light! I need to think of what to make for my second cake....so stay tuned for next week! :D

Six Word Memoir

The other day I was told about this awesome site called Six Word Memoirs and I thought hard about what mine would be. It had to be something that would describe my life in six words....this is what I came up with:

Young mom gave it all, Succeeded

I liked it beacause it works in so many ways and it made me realize how far I have come. Not just in life, but as a mom, a woman, a wife, etc. etc.

It is definitely a site to check out. What would yours be?

Wilton Cake Decorating Classes

So I signed up to take some cake decorating classes. Why you ask? because I want to learn to decorate cakes like a pro :P I did some researching and I found that Michaels offers cake decorating classes so I signed up. The awesome part is that my class cost me $17.50 for a 4 week course! Today is my first class and I am excited and nervous at the same time.

I will be taking the beginners course which is:

Course I
Discover Cake Decorating
Focuses on basic skills and techniques, from icing prep and simple borders to roses.

From there I can move to the other courses they offer

Course 2
Flowers & Borders
Teaches more borders and flowers. 8 different flowers, including pansies, mums, and daisies, plusbasketweave and Color Flow

Course 3
Fondant & Tiered Cakes
Introduces rolled fondant, advanced borders, lily nail flowers (lilies, poinsettias, petunias and more)and tiered cake assembly

Course 4
Fondant & Gum Paste Course
Our expert instructors show you how to marbleize fondant, work with the ribbon cutter, make gum paste flowers, and so much more!

I am excited and will be blogging about my progress as I go along!

Boston Creme Pie Minis

Since today is super bowl I wanted to make some tasty treats for the family. I was pressed with time so I went to one of my favorite Kraft website and found a recipe for some Boston Cream Pie Minis. This recipe calls for *gasp* boxed cake mix. I know I know many dont like to use it but when you have to get something ready pronto this is what I like to use. I was pleased with the end result and the family loved them as well.

Boston Cream Pie Minis

You will need the following:

1pkg. (2-layer size yellow cake mix)

1 cup of cold milk

1 pkg. (4-serving size) vanilla flavor instant pudding

1-1/2 cups thawed Cool Whip topping, divided

4 squares semi-sweet baking chocolate

PREHEAT oven to 350 F. Prepare cake batter and bake 24 greased muffin pan cups as directed on package. Cool 10 min. in pans. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.

POUR mik into large bowl. Add dry pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk 2 min. or until well blended. Let stand 5 min. to thicken. Meanwhile, using a serrated knife, cupt cupcakes horizontally in half. Gently stir 1/2 cup of the whipped topping into pudding. Spoon about 1 Tspb. of the pudding mixture onto bottom half of each cupcake; cover with top of cupcake.

MICROWAVE remaining 1 cup of whipped topping and the chocolate in small microwaveable bowl on High 1-1/2 min. or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring after 1 min. Stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is well blended. Frost each cupcake with about 1-1/2 tsp of the chocolate mixture. Refrigerate at least 15 min. before serving. Store leftover cupcakes in refrigerator. Makes 24 cupcakes.

and one more pic because they look oh so good :)

Where have the years gone?

As I sit here blogging away. I cant help but feel very surprised at how fast these years have gone. In a few months I will be turning the big 3-0 and I am terrified. Where have the years gone? I remember the times when I didnt have a care in the world. When everything was so easy. When all I had to do in my day was go to school and come home, do homework and make sure my room was clean. Now my days are spent making sure that my kids do that with their day. I think back to the days when I would ask myself, "Am I grown up yet?" "Am I an adult?" Well I'm going to be 30 soon and I still ask myself that same question.

I guess I am rambling, but I would rather blog about it then talk someones ear off about this.

Maybe one of these days soon enough it will come to me.......

Our 44th President of The United States: Barack Obama.

President Barack Obama was sworn into presidency today and became the 44th president of The United States. His speech gave me the chills as I sat watching at work. I hope my children remember this day when they are my age. I am proud to call myself an American.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Score!!!

I just scored these two tops from Old navy at $4.99 each! :)

I had previously purchased the same style in a aqua color and I liked the style so much that I went back and I got a promo code for 50% off and voila. I love coming up on bargains! Especially with the way our economy is right now. What a great way to start the weekend :)

Wordle PT. 2

I liked trying this out so much I thought I would try it again. So for the 2nd time. This is how Wordle sees my blog :D