park with tobe

while tom goes to his sunday school, toby and i are left with few options. luckily there is a cute little park right there at the school!

it's about that time. . . CHRISTMAS TIME

it seems that this year everybody's kicked off the holiday season early. we had our tree and wreath up way before it was even thanksgiving. so, the weekend after thanksgiving we skipped church and hit the mall instead. the mall always gets me into that holiday spirit. the boys and i watched all the free shows, oogled the SPCA puppies, and had lunch.

house of blues. . . micheal jackson night

ok. . . . we didn't really see MJ himself, but we were close. it was a micheal jackson tribute band called 'who's bad'. we also saw another opening band called 'jones' and they were the hit for us. since we'd never been to the house of blues we were awww struck of the whole night. i love dallas. there's always something new to me!!

we had a busy halloween. first it was trick-or-treating with the kids.

then we were off to Fabi's Halloween party. it was a good time!

Victor's "kid-friendly" Halloween Party

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOSILYN

sorry for the picture quality. someone's tiny little dirty fingers touched my camera lens and i took 20 test pictures before we figured out why it was so blurry.

little month of horrors

october really got into the halloween spirit this year and i truly did have a HORRIFIC october (overly dramatic?)

1) i was subjected to an 8-hour diversity training at work

2) i had the worst time getting health insurance

3) my all-time dreaded fear. . .i ran into an old friend i hate, while looking like a hot mess with no make up, sweats, and wet hair

well not everything was terrible. there were also some great events this month that make it ALL worth while

1) i had a to-die-for facial at sarah's birthday spa day

2) rod and i had a GREAT time eating, drinking and dancing for maria's bday

3) i get to go trick-or-treating tonight!!!!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOSHUA

becky, we had a great time at the party. you did a great job putting it all together! thanks a bunch. i hope joshua enjoys his book/blocks. hopefuly the kids can see each other again soon.

**pumpkin patch**

aren't they handsome!

our cousin drove up from austin this past weekend to celebrate her son's 2nd birthday. she took us ALL to the arboretum to see the autumn blooms. it was such a great idea. we all took advantage of the natural scenery and took PICTURES. . . lots of pictures.

waiting to be discovered.

toby LOVES to pose. he's my little model. we sit on his bedroom floor and have mini photo shoots. he loves it! (not as much as me though) he's cheap entertainment. and he says "cheese" for each picture. it's hilarious!!

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

Poor Greg. He’s at that age. You, know, "that age". The age where your not quite a child, but not quite an adult. It starts at about 12 and last until about 25! It’s the difference between a Happy Meal and a Might Kids Meal.

I had heard about the popular Wimpy Kid book series by Jeff Kinney’s. Then I saw the set at Target, so it seemed that these books were calling to me. I was very lucky to find them both at the used book store for a steal! So, I snatched them up, wrapped them up and gave them to Thomas as a happy-first-day-of-jr.high present. To my surprise he was very happy with my present! I already had my you-have-to-read-them speech prepared; what a waste. He had already read Diary of a Wimpy Kid, but not Diary of a Wimpy Kid Rodrick Rules. We sat down together and each read our Wimpy Kid book.

Greg is the middle child in between a high school aged brother and a baby brother. The book is set up as Greg’s daily diary. He writes about what’s going on in his life and then he adds a detailed picture to go with each entry. It was hilarious! Greg is very similar to Thomas. I found myself rolling laughing throughout most of it as I replaced Greg with Thomas in my head. He tolerates his mom’s nurturing and ignores his dad’s disciplining. He worships his big bother and tortures his baby brother. His best friend is Rowley. Rowley gets on his nerves and is lower on the popularity scale that Greg made up himself. However, Greg is his friend, but mostly out of loyalty at first, and then he realizes that he really does value Rowley as a friend.

I probably will not ready the second book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid Rodrick Rules, but Thomas loved it! So I signed up on Jeff Kinney’s website to be notified when the third book hits stores. We’ll be first in line at Borders. http://www.wimpykid.com/

Eating the Cheshire Cat by Helen Ellis

Crazy. . crazy funny. that's the only way to describe this book. Ms. Ellis has to be crazy too. Its about three high school girls that are not friends. However, they impact each other's lives in a big way. The story follows these girls from jr. high to their early college years. Think Mean Girls meets Girl Interrupted.

Sarina is the beeotch of the three. Totally beautiful, cheerleader type. She's not only mean, but a tad evil. The things that she does to get her way cause major problems. She doesn't just spread dirty rumours. Bitty Jack is sweet, smart, not so pretty. . . average looking. Her life is impacted by the horrible things that Sarina does to her and her family from jr. high all the way to college. Lastly, there is Nicole. Nicole and Sarina were best friends in jr. high. She is obsessed with Sarina. Obsessed 'til the very end.

Not only is this story about three girls, but it also gives insight into why they are they way that they are. Their mothers are also part of the story. The mothers are the ones instigating, supporting, and pressuring. We (women) all turn into our mothers. . . . Crap!

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

When I was in my early teens my cousin Becky made a group of us sit down to watch a movie called Like Water for Chocolate. I remember the event vaguely but I remember the way the movie made me feel vividly. Though I've never known oppression like Tita, I strongly related to her character. So when I saw the book for sale at a used bookstore I was immediately drawn to the sole copy on the shelf. It was beat up and clearly read dozens of times over.

Each chapter begins with an authentic Mexican recipe and throughout the chapter Tita is cooking that recipe. Tita is the youngest of three daughters. She is also a great cook. She learned from early childhood. She takes great care in preparing the family’s meals, but somehow all her most passionate emotions flood into her cooking. Then all that eat her cooking will feel what she felt while she was cooking. Dinnertime can become quite dramatic, but Laura Esquivel manages to make it humorous at the same time. As the youngest daughter, tradition has it that Tita will live out her life only to be her mother’s caretaker or nurse until the day her mother dies. She cannot move away or marry. We can all agree that this is the dumbest tradition ever, but its one that is strictly enforced in Tita's family. Tita has a great love for Pedro, but Mama Elena denies their love. The older sister's are free to marry, so Pedro uses this as a way to stay close to Tita. All she can do is sit by and watch. But through the power of her cooking Tita tries to control the events around her. She fights desperately to break the tradition because she does not want to see her beloved niece follow in the same fate as her. The passion in Tita is explosive, literally. There is a lot of magic in this book but I think that is a use of symbolism for passion.

Even though I fell in love with this book I gave my copy away. It just so happens that my aunt Lydia came to visit shortly after I was done reading it. I gave the book to her inscribing "for my Aunt Lydia a book of traditions". She is probably the only one of my family members who enjoys reading the way that I do. I thought of her life, her oppressions growing up and even the ones she lives with now. Thank you Aunt Lydia for everything you've ever done for my family. You were there at many points in our lives when we needed family the most.

jermi's

sarah threw a very low maintenance party for her friend victoria. rod and i got a sitter and made a night of it. even though it was victoria's birthday, i think that morty had the most fun of any one. he was ALL over the place!

The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing

The Fifth Child is a British novel first published in 1988. So as both a foreign and an older book I was quite surprised at how much I like it. Doris Lessing is extremely talented, creative and sick in the head. The book was terribly disturbing. It was the direct cause of several nightmares.

Harriet and Jack meet at the very beginning of the novel, which sets the quick tone for the rest of the book. Doris Lessing moves quickly and skimps on the detail. At first I found this hard to deal with but it allowed me to use my own imagination for much of story. Harriet and Jack share similar interests, ideas on life and the desire to have a large family. A game of scrabble with a bowl of clam chowder would be their ideal evening spent. They marry quickly and buy an over-sized house for just the two of them. They do so because they plan to fill it with 9 kids! Immediately! Everyone around them is outraged. They insist that 9 children are too many and it’s not fair to the kids or to the family as a whole. However, Harriet and Jack are determined. They begin their family anyhow. Four kids later they are as happy and anyone could have imaged. They regularly fill the house on holidays with all their family and friends. It is the birth of their fifth child, as the title preludes to, which the story turns. The love of a mother can go a long way. It can go to the ends of the earth. But what if your child scares the bujeezus out of you, your husband and all your other kids.

It is never clear what the exact problem is with the fifth child. A great imagination would come in handy here. The ending was mildly believable, but lacked closure. As a mother I am extremely blest. The most outrageous problem we have is a mild case of ADD. Other than that my kids are beautiful, loveable, and healthy. Doris Lessing gave me a reason to thank my lucky stars!

Baby Proof by Emily Giffin

First comes love. Then comes marriage. Then comes...a baby carriage? Isn't that what all women want? – The tag line for this book.

I had fallen in love with Rachel and Darcy’s love-hate relationship that started with drama, but ended in happiness. So, after reading Emily Giffins’ Something Borrowed and Something Blue, it was natural to want to complete the trilogy. Or at least, I assumed it was a trilogy based on the titles. Now along comes Claudia. Claudia was not a character in the first two books so immediately I am confused.

Claudia is a girl who grew up knowing for a fact that she did not want to have children. It was barely factor for her until she hit 30 and she was still alone. She became certain that she was not married, because of the child factor. It was a deal-breaker! No kids, no way. After she becomes comfortable with the idea of growing old alone, it finally happened for her. . . .love. Love in Ben. On date one they declare their mutual decisions not to have children. Claudia is immediately smitten and the relationship flourishes. It flourishes all the way to marriage. You would think this would be the happily ever after part, right? No, one day Claudia and Ben’s very best couple friends announce that they are expecting. Ben begins to question his original stance on children. Then after the birth of their friends’ baby, Ben’s mind has officially changed. He has a serious sit-down with Claudia. Asking her to please change her mind as well. Claudia will not budge on the idea. She is "baby proof". During this sit-down, Claudia asks Ben, are you choosing right now between a baby and me? "With guilt and grief in his eyes", Ben chooses.
This is the turning point in their story where Ben and Claudia have to truly decide if love can conquer all.

Unfortunately, I cannot relate to Claudia at all. Myself being a mother of two. I like to read as if I am the protagonist in a book. However, I could never bring myself to agree with Claudia, not even a little bit. I found her character selfish and needy. Emily Giffin did a famous good job in the believability of the character. However, the story ended poorly, without resolution. It left me empty handed and mouth ajar.

not quite the New York Times

since the permanent hiatus of the friolitas i've decided the continue with my own book reviews. i am starting with what i've read since february. let's call it a book club of one aka the friolita solita. i am doing this for a number of reasons. #1. for my own entertainment and love of reading #2. so that i can better remember what i've read. many times i will buy a new book forgetting that i've already read it. until i read page one and i have a cripes moment. #3. against all recommendations, i DO judge a book by its cover. most of the time i'm right on, but. . . i've been wrong. i'll admit it. i'd like to save others from this mistake by imposing my recommendations on whomever will let me.


so, i'm not technically qualified to review books, but for entertainment purposes; go with me on this one.


Reviews Soon to Come:
Baby Proof by Emily Giffin
The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing
Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
Eating the Cheshire Cat by Helen Ellis
Diary of a Wimp by Jeff Kinney
Sula by Toni Morrison

tobe has a playdate

they didn't "technically" play together, but they played in the same vicinity of each other. each having a ton of fun on their own.

Middle School MADNESS!!!

aaaakk. the pain in my chest and throat was intense when tommy told me not walk him to his first class this morning. i threw in a few "are-you-sures" . . . you know. . . just in case. but he didn't budge. rod and i sat in the car for several minutes completely bewildered on what to do next. keep waiting, follow him, drive away or cry. rod drove away eventually and i fought tears. i wanted to cry justin timberlake a river, but i rationalized that if i didn't cry for kinder then i shouldn't cry for jr. high.

i do want to also point out that we were only a handful of parents who did NOT do the walk in. but we did see one mom reach for her son's hand and she was immediately (but discreetly) swatted away.

work, school & fibromyalgia

one day a couple of months ago rodney text me while he was at work saying how frustrated he was with his job. he called himself an over paid associate instead of a manager. all i could say was HANG IN THERE! and he did. he did a great job; and his prayers were answered because shortly there after he got a call from the owner of the G.O.D. she asked him to please come back to work for them for a great raise and a better work schedule. he took it w/o a second thought. so monday was his first day of work after PB gave him a week off with pay. i think this will be a great move.

also school is about to start again for the '08-'09 school year. thomas will be going to MIDDLE SCHOOL. i am soooo scared. if he's scared he sure isn't showing it, but really i think he is CLUELESS. he has no idea what he's in for. i've tried explaining but it's one of those things the he will have to experience for himself. diney is a sophmore this year, hayden is going to the 2nd grade and jocelyn will be in 4th. but at least all the school clothes and supplies are ready!

me?? i thought i was having a heart attack on friday night. turns out it was heartburn. not a heartattack or fibromyalgia as i had first suspected. i stayed home from work on wednesday to rest after a few "episodes" this past week, so i went to sarah's house to discuss my condition. thomas later told rodney that i was . . . "talking to aunt sarah about her fibromyalgia".

AFV here we come!!!

we are on a mission!! a mission to win $10,000 on America's Funniest Videos. the show has been a favorite of mine and tommy's for several years. we stop whatever we are doing on sunday evenings at 6pm to gather around the TV. we watch re-runs and even google favorites online to watch over and over again. it is one of the few things that thomas and i can enjoy together. i have little interest in Halo 3 and the cartoon network. in turn, he has zero interest in chick-lit novels and garage saleing. this is our first try, but as you can see i was distracted during the video shoot!

3 part birthday

part 1

we took tommy to portrait innovations to take his picture. he totally wanted to do a photo shoot like we did for toby. BUT. . .come picture day he got all embarrassed in front of his dad and started back pedaling. (i knew he really wanted to go. MOM ALWAYS KNOWS) so i had to play bad guy. i said "thomas, don't make me waste my time and gas going all the way to plano for this, if this is something that you don't want to do!". already packed up and in the car. thomas quietly says "yes, i want to go". i'm watching him in the rear view mirror and caught the grin that wasn't meant for me. i don't mind being the bad guy so that thomas gets what he really wants and doesn't have to be embarrassed about it in front of dad, because mom is "making him do it" (wink wink)

part 2

a family just cake party at the house. we got the grandma's over to the house and we sang happy birthday to tommy. he got a tennis racket and tennis lessons. something he's been wanting to do for quite a while. he also got a great birthday spanking from his uncle morty!

part 3
we took thomas to medieval times. he invited one of his friends to join him and we had a good ol' time. actually i think that i had the best time. i've lived in dallas for 21 years and this was my first time there. tobias had a ton of fun. he LOVES to clap and there was lots of clapping there.

feeding our kids

recently, i was making fun of david because of how he feeds his kids their snacks. it's the funniest thing ever. . . . he puts down a couple hands fulls of Cheerios, animal crackers, goldfish or whatever just spread out onto a coffee table at home. then the twins help themselves at their own leisure. it's actually a good idea and one i've tried myself. only, either toby will thrown them all on the floor for the dog to eat or he'll feed them to the dog himself or. . . the dog will just reach up onto the coffee table and help himself. so for my own convenience i've trained my 1 year old to eat all of his food right out of my hand. so he'll sit mouth open and wait for food to enter. (no hands needed). he's become so accustomed to this format that he rarely will even consider using his hands. he'll even let david's twin hand feed him. i should have gotten video of that for AFV!

therefore, we started working on me not feeding him. he will eventually learn to feed himself, but until then, the table's edge is our go-between. here is some video of tobias' new way of eating his meals . . . . hands free.

an evening outside

somewhere between 2 and 5 days out of the week i am at home alone with the kids in the evenings because rod has to work. during this time i am often bored out of my mind especially now that it's summer time. during the school year i'm often too busy yelling at thomas to do his homework, take a bath and brush his teeth that i don't even notice that rod's not home. but this summer thomas has no responsibilities outside of playing halo 3 and blogging on youtube. i do throw in the occasional chore for him to do just to make him feel like he's a "slave .. . A SLAVE WHO HAS TO DO EVERYTHING AROUND HERE!!!" thanks thomas for vacuuming that one rug, now i'm free of all household duties for the whole year!!! --sarcasm : )

therefore, i've tried to incorporate some "outside time" for me and the boys. we started one night by taking a walk. we were off to a bad start the first time because i miscalculated what time it got dark outside and we headed out at 9pm. we ended up taking our walk under street lights, which scared thomas half-to-death. but we've gotten better and have a great route we follow now. however, most nights we just hang out of the front porch for a bit to play with the cat and get some air. i love summer nights in texas; they always remind me of being 16!

GRANDPA!!

our grandpad came to visit us! isn't that crazy. him and my aunt up and left home on saturday afternoon, caught a flight and headed over to my mom's house. they didn't even tell my other aunts! well, we were all glad to see him. he's doing 100xs better than the last time we saw him earlier this year. plus we had an excuse to ALL get together and have great dinners. thanks aunt lydia!!

2008 4th of July

it seems like just yesterday toby was celebrating his very first holiday which was 4th of july 2007 and now he's on round 2! he fell into a whole this year to celebrate. my heart stopped for several seconds until i realized what had happened. my first thought was of "baby jessica" who fell down a well in the late 80's. she was 18 months old and survived 2 1/2 days underground. toby's event wasn't quite as dramatic. . .no media was necessary. we were able to pull him out butt first from the 10 inch deep whole soon to be a water meter in the front yard of someones new home in mckinney. he came out with only a scratch to show for it.

other than that we had a great 4th. vic invited us for for bbqed burgers and our choice of firework shows that surrounded his house. thanks vic, we had a blast!

this is what happens when. . .

my mom goes out of town and i'm forced to leave my baby with others. . . poor tobes. he's sleeping in the corner of sarah's house to take his afternoon nap. diney has sooo kindly volunteered to watch tobias while my mom goes out of town for 3 days. and by volunteer i mean she's letting me pay her to watch toby for 3 days.

he looks so peaceful there. . . .on the floor. . . . in the corner.

miscellaneous pictures

tommy's thoughful face. . . i wonder what goes on in that head of his???

toby's big smile

you're never too big to get into the slides and tunnels and mcdonalds

front yard watergun play. thomas shot water for tobias to drink.

big big big hug . . . . awww that's brotherly love

thomas surfing at the puma store *narley*

tobias posing for the camera at his 1yr doc appt.