I'm Finally Ready!!

Well, I think I'm finally finished and ready for this busy week of Christmas Eve and Christmas day. I've struggled this year getting into the Holiday mode. I've been going through a very trying time at my work the past eight months, and along with a slice of "the change" well... lets just say I hit a wall last week. But, I'm not one for a pity party, I'm one for fixing and moving forward. I have been concentrating on what the real meaning of this season is, I'm also really trying to be positive, praying and reading inspirational stories and concentrating on what I can do for others. I know a lot of people struggle through the holidays for various reasons, and with the way the economy is right now, and people being out of work, I know this year might be especially tough on some. So, I'm counting my blessings and Thanking God for my wonderful and very supportive Husband, daughter, kids, grandkids and all my beautiful girlfriends...

Today, My mom came down so I could help her finish her shopping and we had a nice visit and I finally finished these

I decided to start a tradition when Natalie was born to paint on her stocking whatever symbolizes what she's into that year. 07 Natalie loved both Uniqua and Piglet and this year it's Horses. Since Noah is still only six months old, I put a teddy bear in a diaper on his. I'm planning on doing this until they are eighteen. My husband thinks this will be challenging during their teenage years..

Tomorrow night, I'm getting together with my highschool girlfriends for our gift exchange. We'll have a blast and I'll post pictures and stories. Wednesday, We're having Christmas eve open house, where all of our family and friends come by for tamales and all kinds of goodies. Christmas day, Erin and Jed will be here with the kids around 2:00 and I can't wait.!!

Bonco Babe Christmas Party

This year, Toni, the hostess with the mostess, threw a humdinger of a Christmas Bonco. We all showed up in our Christmas PJs and had a great dinner, exchanged gifts and also did the stealing gift game. We actually didn't play Bonco, which was just fine with me. It was nice to just visit with this great group of women. It's even more fun, when we mix it up and we have a theme bonco. Pajamas was this year, and how nice is it to actually put on your PJs and slippers and go out!!! So comfortable.
Aubrey had my name, and got me what I totally wanted which was a tree smelling candle from Bath and Body, plus some other B&B things. This candle smells sooo good, I try to get one every year.

This is the gift I snatched away from a fellow Bonco Babe. You could only steal twice, so I got lucky. It's the cutest set of whimsical snowmen
here's Julie and Chris, (two bonco lifers) Julie came complete with Curlers in her hair. So Cute.
The Complete Group. There were some that showed up with the same Pajamas. I guess the PJs weren't couture :)
Chris, Toni, Jenny, Me, Julie and Sandy.

Here I am with Shawn. She's my friend from way back.... I begged her to join this group.
Sandy, is a lifer. She joined when the group was started and she was pregnant with her third son, who is now a Junior in High School. Toni Marie, my BFF, well... when people would leave the group, you would recruit another Lady to join in, who will fit in as well. I knew Toni would be perfect!!
This is Gizmo, Toni's dog. He was kind of rescued and shows his gratitude to Toni by being the most mellow, sweetest dog possible. The way he looks at her, it's like he's so in love... I swear he barely has a heartbeat he's so calm.
Toni Decorated the Tables with clear dishes, on Gold Chargers with a red leaf underneath. I painted ornaments with every one's names on them for place settings. I have a friend that's an interior designer, and she suggested I use glass plates and chargers for decorating a table. It's a great way to decorate for whatever occasion you are celebrating. I've done it for Thanksgiving with Fall leaves in between the dish and charger. But you can use any flat decoration such as hearts for valentines, birthday confetti, and so on. It looks fantastic and glass dishes are pretty cheap, either Walmart or Kmart.

Thank you again, Toni, for your great big heart, and for making such a special night for all of us. You are truly one of a kind and I'm so blessed to have you in my life!!!

A mini Mimi Vacation

On Thursday, I took the Amtrak down to see Erin and family. We had planned a while back that we would take Natalie to Disneyland during the Holiday season.

I love taking the train. I always upgrade to Business class so the seats are bigger and you have a little more leg room (not that I need that). I bring a laptop, a good book and literally just veg..
It takes longer, five hours in total, but there are times I've driven home in traffic and it's taken about that long, along with a huge dose of frustration..

Friday morning, Erin, Natalie and I went and checked out Natalie's New preschool. I think she's going to love it. Then after naps, we headed to Mickey Mouse's house.



It was so crowded that, we literally went to two attractions. The Princess palace where we listened to Snow White tell a story. Mind you, the only reason Natalie sat still was because Erin got her something to snack on. Then we headed off to Mickey Mouse's house. The line took about 45 minutes, which is about three hours in toddler time and Natalie was not the only small child melting down in this line. We pondered whether or not to wait it out, but since I promised Natalie that we were going to see Mickey, I couldn't back out... (note to self.. what ever made me think that Disneyland wouldn't be packed on a plan ole Friday... Don't people know we are in a recession!!! oh wait..I was there :).
Anyway, after that, we headed home. Erin and I decided to head back around 9:00 that evening, just her and I for GNO. I had to get my annual pass validated so we HAD to go. Again, it was totally packed. I have never seen so many trollers with kids slumped over in total exhaustion in my life. For some reason, I'm thinking, why is everyone here??? why tonight?,(oh, wait, I was there too) We watched the fireworks, and then attempted to walk down Main street. Warning.. If you are claustophobic, even slightly, don't attempt this after the firework show, You will surely freak out.. After that, we decided we were tired and wanted to go home. Mind you, even when you decide to go home when at the great DL, you are looking at at least 45 minutes to walk to a tram station, catch it, get to your parking structure, and then your car. When we walked to the tram station, the people were lined up for at least an hour wait. By this time it was 10:30. We decided to go to downtown Disney and let the crowds die down. We went to the California Hotel and sat in their lounge area and had a snack and just visited. It was actually really nice to just have a conversation without interruptions, that doesn't have to exist when the kids are napping, and it was NOT crowded. We headed back at 11:30 to the tram station and it took us about one hour to make it home. Not exactly the vision I had of taking my Natylu to Disneyland and then having a girl's night with my daughter, but, at least we got our exercise :)

Saturday, after attempting to take family photos for Erin and her clan ( not successful) I headed back on the train. I got on, put Sound of Music in the DVD player, watched the sunset when we went by Ventura, and felt really relaxed and happy.. Until.. I got to my destination, which was Guadalupe. My husband was five minutes late, which is five hours in Guadalupe. I was sitting there for an ETERNITY devising my plan of action should I get encountered by thugs, which is very likely in Guadalupe. Luckily, there wasn't time for me to devise a plan... Mark is so lucky I missed him..

Let's start at the very beginning

It's 3:30 in the morning and both My husband and I are on our laptops. Ugh.. I've been awake since about 1:30 and my mind has been racing. Anyway, I decided I should blog a little about myself and my family, so here goes.

I met my husband when I was 40. We met through a neighbor of mine, who worked with Mark. When she first told me about him, she said " he's nice, smart, cute and he's a single dad with FOUR children, two sets of twins, oh, and he has full custody of them." Now, I'm thinking, no flippin way, and who has two sets of twins, except those families on the Discovery channel. Anyway, after a failed attempt to meet each other, we kind of had a blind date for lunch. I remember we both kept our sunglasses on... Over the course of a couple of months, we talked for hours on the phone and found out that we had some really core things in common. We were both Catholic, came from larger families, and had strong family values. But, when you meet in your 40s, you always have baggage, no two ways around it. My kids were older, and I stupidly thought that it would be easier to meet someone when they were teenagers. Not so, It was not a welcome adjustment in my home. Mark's kids, were younger, barely seven and barely nine. They were like "whatever." Plus, it wasn't like he had them every other weekend, it was 24/7 and he worked full time and was pretty much both mom and dad.

I think we fell in Love rather quickly, that part was kind of easy, it's the friendship, the understanding of each other's differences, and whether you can accept them and help each other grow. You may think.. Really, how much do you need to keep growing at our age, well.. I learned a lot about myself in those years, and we helped each other through the rough spots of parenting, balancing careers and family, exes, etc. Our biggest challenge was our parenting skills, they differed greatly. I was a single mom, and I gave in like most moms, and I catered to my kid's every needs, I loved doing it. I had a curfew just like my daughter, and my cell would ring if I was late. Mark's kids on the other hand, were the furthest thing from being indulged or spoiled. They were self reliant. Don't get me wrong, my husband is a very loving father but, he's strict, and still to this day, if he says no, there's probably not a chance in you know where, he'll change his mind.

After about four years of dating, I was pretty much on my own. Erin was married and Tyler lived with his dad. I wanted to wait until Tyler was in College before getting married. On my 45th Birthday, Mark threw me a surprise Party, then we went on a cruise and he proposed. We got married in Sept of 05.

In preparation,I read every book I could find on step-parenting. All of them scared the crap out of me. I really just wanted to make a difference in their lives but it was a huge adjustment for everyone. We did a lot of reading and workbooks and even attended a seminar, which is required by our church. We decided beforehand who would do what, right down to cooking, cleaning, discipling, even finances (yuck). Even with all the planning, I struggled to make Mark's home, my home too. luckily, the kids (most of them) adapted quickly and we established a routine that we stuck to, like a set dinnertime, sitting together as a family. Also, this was now my daughter's home, and I wanted her to feel welcome and comfortable when she would come and stay and she does.
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It's been three years, and I think for the most part we've worked out the kinks. There are some things and some feelings I couldn't of anticipated, even though I tried to prepare. I could of stayed in my beautiful little condo, that I had decorated and loved, where the only one I had to worry about was myself. I ate a can of olives for dinner and would watch whatever I wanted on TV, do only my laundry, and run my dishwasher maybe once a week. I had it easy... But then, I wanted to be married to Mark, and I wanted to make a home and make a difference in the kid's lives, and we have. The kids know i'm here for them. They know they can rely on me and I love that and take on the tasks gladly. And my husband and I continue to grow and learn with each passing year, He's really very good to me and treats me wonderfully. It's a lot of work, and I'm tired a lot of the times, but it's a good life with lots of love, friends, great families, and of course the icing on the cake, our grandbabies!!!