Carmen's Birthday and Halloween

 Although every mother gets frustrated from time to time, how can I resist this beautiful face. As she gets older she gets more dramatic and hilarious. She does remind me of "me" when I was a child, but something tells me she will take it to an entirely new level! She is a hoot!

 For her birthday she invited 7 girls over for a princess party and they all dressed up. The house was decorated with Sofia the First everything. The girls had princess sandwiches shaped like crowns and slippers and various other pink foods, played pin the crown on the princess, had a craft time where the girls made crowns and magic wands that they got to take home, and ended the party with a bounce house and pinata. It was one of our best parties in my opinion. She loved it and she was so happy the entire time. The girls had fun as well, and one little girl even told me, "this is the best party I have ever gone to!"

 And the cake...so Abel and I made this cake for her ourselves. It was not perfect and didn't taste as great as a store purchased cake, but it was impressive and the girls liked it.

 Look at the intensity in her face. She will do just about anything for candy!

 The party was a success. A few weeks later we celebrated Halloween. Nonna and Papa came over and watched the kids trick or treat.

10 Years and Counting

So on October 4th, 2013, Abel and I renewed our wedding vows for our 10 year anniversary. Many people asked us, "why do you want to do this?" It was really important to us that we celebrate being a family. It wasn't just about Abel and I, but it was about commitment to helping each other and loving each other as a family. Our closest friends and relatives that could make it into town were on hand to help us celebrate this special day.

Our dearest friend Adam read vows that allowed us to commit to each other, for a second time, despite the many things that often drive us nuts about each other. Adam had us in tears with laughter. First Abel had to agree to the following, "Abel…… do you promise to put up with Kristin and complete every honey do list that she leaves, keep her calm when she gets crazy, iron since she can’t, and repair all things that need to be sewed since she doesn’t have the patience for it?" Followed by my vows, "Kristin… do you promise to continue to put up with his need to keep everything in that drawer next to the bed and throw nothing away, read all directions when assembling things since he won’t, and be kind when he calls from the store 15 times because he has no idea what he is supposed to buy?" It's true, he called me from the store today...like three times!

The best part was involving the kids in a family unity candle. They are stuck with us now. 

After the ceremony people ate dinner and watched a beautiful slide show that my dad put together that showed Abel and I growing up, getting married, and the kids from birth to present day. Such a beautiful job! My daddy is the best!

Dancing of course!

And the next part is even more fun because the next morning it was off to Disney!



Our Disney Post

 

I know...everyone has been asking.....where are the Disney pics and the vow renewal pics. Well, this should hold you over. I am really trying to get back on track. Here is a run down of our disney adventure. Thanks to Nonna and Papa we stayed at the Beach Club and did the Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Typhoon Lagoon, Epcot, and Downtown Disney. We had a blast!

Our busy lives

I do love posting pictures for everyone to see, but lately things have been so busy. 3rd grade homework, baseball, girl scouts, boy scouts, dance class.....it goes on and on. Plus I am finishing up a few classes for my Principal's certificate while working, so things are crazy. I know what people will say, you do it to yourself and I probably would go crazy if I was just sitting around. Our October is the busiest, but although it has been busy, here is just a sneak peak into what we have been up to. There will be more to come.

 Carmen officially became a Daisy recently. She loves the troop and is learning about how to be kind, work together, and how to be a good friend. She likes the meetings and recently said, "mom...are you always going to stay because the other moms leave."  Miss Independent!

Gianni recently went on a weekend camping trip up to Flagstaff with dad and his boy scout den. They roughed it for a few days and when he came home I soaked him in the tub and washed his hair 3 times. Dirty and stinky are not my thing, so Carmen and I stayed back and took care of things around the house. Also, his den went roller skating at a local roller rink. My kids have never been skating. It was rough at first but they got the hang of it and Carmen cried when we left because she loved it so much and wanted to stay.  

Mom and dad???? Yup we hosted Supper Club at the end of September. Our meal was Tuscan themed. We ate outside on the patio and dined al fresco!

 

The menu consisted of a lemon rosemary cocktail, full Antipasti platter featuring on olive oil tasting, prosciutto wrapped figs, white bean soup, Bistecca alla Florentine with a butternut squash vanilla bean risotto, and a balsamic raspberry dessert with mascarpone. The entire menu was gluten free other than the bread for dipping and the crouton in the soup. My friend Jenni has gone gluten free and we were able to adapt nicely.  





 

Finally, on to what many have been waiting for......the BIG TRIP. As most of you know, my parents surprised the kids with a full trip to Disney World Florida. They had a scavenger hunt set up around the house and the kids had to use the clues to work their way to the end. They were so excited and went to school the next day and told their friends and teachers all about it. 

 

The week before this trip was NUTS! I had parent teacher conferences to finish out the 1st quarter so there were many late nights, packing last minute, ohh and preparing for our vow renewal ceremony....INSANE. On Friday morning, October 4th, the last day of school and the day of our anniversary mom and dad took some time to visit Carmen's class and help with an Apple Party. We both took the day off to prepare for the party that evening and the trip which was the next day. It was nice to be "one of those parents" for a day, you know the ones that show up at school and help out in the classroom. I don't get to do that often.

Okay, so where are the vow renewal pictures and Disney pictures......patience please...it will come : ) We have been home for one full day and we are recovering and preparing to go back to school tomorrow. I promise you will see them soon. 

My Beautiful Parade Dancer

 

Okay, I know it has been a super long time since I posted, but things have been absolutely insane lately. This weekend we were able to catch up on house work, and I was able to upload some pictures for a quick post. Look at my beautiful Carmelita! She was in a performance of Aladdin on Saturday and played a parade dancer. She is still loving to be on stage. Next week there is no dance and then the fall session starts. She will be switching to jazz/ballet combo and has decided to drop the tap for now.

 

http://youtu.be/QwuC7QU-2Rs

100%

She is the line leader and comes in on the right hand side of the stage behind the monkey.

Click on the Dance Recital Link ABOVE

 

Moving back in time now, just before school started Gianni spent a week at Diamondbacks baseball camp. Every night from 6pm-9pm in the heat he was out there working hard and learning a ton. We can't wait for the fall ball season to start!



It is offically monsoon season. It rained all day today, but a few weeks ago we woke up to rain and I know it sounds crazy, but when it rains here, she takes advantage of it! Dancing in the rain is a once in a blue moon experience out here. She loves to do it every chance she gets.

We also had our Greek inspired supper club at Jenni and Chad's house. Lots of feta, spinach, and red peppers! A great night and all was gluten free.

 

 For some reason I can't get this picture any bigger. My computer is not cooperating. Any how, here are my munchkins on the first day of school. Carmen is loving kindergarten and I can't believe how intense third grade is, it's like REAL SCHOOL.

 Gianni has cursive homework, math homework, reading homework, computer homework, and projects of all kinds. He completes a writing journal every week, this weekend we did science experiments, and he has a geography test tomorrow. Real school! I guess it has hit me this year that he is really growing up. Dreading the day when he will drive in with me to my middle school. Only a few years away. For now, we do our best to keep them young and involved.

 

The kids are managing the back to school schedule better than I am I think. Gianni is still in boy scouts, and baseball starts soon. Carmen is dancing and tennis just finished. She is becoming a girl scout, well a Daisy, and our first meeting is in a few weeks. I hope to get back on top of this blog but man it is hard to find the time. Until next time.....