5 x 12: february

february, the month of love.  and for us, the month that changed our future.

• after months of stress, emotion, and big decision making our school got the best news.  we will own our entire campus.  i cannot explain what this means to us.  mostly that the kids will have their school, friends and teachers in the fall!

• i can tell you that february for me and bobby was filled with a roller coaster of emotion, what ifs, and lots of prayer.

• jordan finished his last round of testing and interviews for high school.  looking forward to some good news in the next few weeks.

• jordan had his best basketball season ever, scoring a personal best, making a 3-point shot, free throws and even making fouls. (that was a lesson in being more aggressive.)

• andrew had so much fun.  his team didn't fare so well, but he learned the fundamentals of the game and is interested in trying again next year.

• andrew became a marlin for another little league season.

• we had a quiet valentine’s dinner at home with chinese food and sushi.

• sofia celebrated 100 days at school and dr. seuss’ birthday.

• bobby won a bronze medal in his rowing competition.

• we took jordan and a few of his friends to disneyland.  they roamed the park while we hung out with grandma and grandpa tom.

• sofia rode matterhorn, space mountain and tower of terror for the first time - and she loved it.

• i ran and ran and ran.

• i lost my patience with my diy project. it is currently in a bag in the corner of my room.

• sofia had her first sleepover and she survived - so did i.

• we had one last snow day.

• this last week has been full of good news - let's keep up the momentum.

february you rocked it - thank you!

this is a happy life

love everything about this.

Source: emilymccarthy.com via Gioconda on Pinterest

around here: february

we are still enjoying our valentine's treats.

this is my halfway mark and then it's all downhill.

my sister and i just purchased a few teas from david's tea to try.  so far love the strawberry rhubarb.  and can't wait to try the salted caramel.

someone's birthday is coming up...

we made some girl scout troops very happy.  and have since added two more boxes.

fish tacos on friday? yes, please.

she's decided to be a rapper, lord help me.

jordan's basketball team played like champions til the end.  they were good sports, played hard and fought the good fight finishing 3rd with a 4-2 record.  thanks to our wonderful coach for his guidance and leadership.  go eagles!!

we had a great art show at school last week.

and showed off some of our wine.

i am reading this

and this.

and reminding myself of this everyday.

2013 weekly menu: week 9

thanks to the rain last week, we all enjoyed a hot cup of cocoa topped with whipped cream.

huge sigh.
cleansing breath.
moving on.

we are starting this week with some amazing news for our little school.  it's way too complicated to share just yet but everyone is elated and excited for what's next.

hopefully the good news will keep on coming.  we should start getting responses from high schools this week and next.  keeping those prayers going for the best.

this weekend we kick off baseball season with opening day on saturday and the marlins first game on sunday.  we have a great group of kids and our wonderful coach from last year.  looking forward to watching andrew play ball.

that sounds like enough excitement for one week, right?


weekend eats: 
saturday: big lunch at meditarranean bistro
sunday: croissant sandwiches, mac and cheese, chips

making this week:
monday: asian glazed drumsticks, rice, broccoli
tuesday:  pizza (moving it from friday during lent)
wednesday: chicken piccata, arugula salad
thursday: entomatadas, rice
friday: cioppino, bread

wishing so badly that i could hop back into bed and take a little nap.  but work needs to be done, like shopping for all of these groceries.

have an excellent week.

our weekend in pictures: whiskey flat days

saturday we went up to kernville to get away for the long weekend and for one last snow day.  kernville was celebrating whiskey flat days so there was plenty to do and lots of people around.  they have a rodeo, parade, wild west encampment, and arts and crafts show.  lots of fun stuff if you can handle the crowds in an otherwise quiet little town.

we got there saturday afternoon and hung out around the house.

sunday the big boys went on a quad ride while we took the kids to see the whiskey flat camp.  imagine a renaissance fair but in the wild west.

people dressed up in costume and taking on the characters of this time.

artisans making items from that time period.

the kids got to pump their own water

grind corn for cornbread

and learn how they bathed and washed cloths without a washer and dryer.

we saw a shoot out reenactment and learned how whiskey flat got it's name.

then we stepped into a native american village and got to see different types of teepees

and wigwams. jeff and kenzi invited us to see their new house but i think their real place is slightly larger than this one.

they had cooking demonstrations, bow and arrow practice, even a tomahawk throwing activity, with a real tomahawk.  surprisingly no one wanted to try it.

they had a huge drum in the middle of the village and the kids took turns beating on the drum. jordan and i got to play with one of the natives. we followed him and then played our own beat.  it was pure energy.

we left the heat of the encampment to get these kids to the snow.  a serious climate change. there was little left on the ground, just enough to enjoy for the afternoon.

sledding, fort building and snowball fights.

these two little girls really enjoyed sliding down the hill.

sunday the kids went to the track for some quad riding.  sofia is getting very comfortable on her bike learning about the throttle and the choke.  her bike goes at the perfect speed, although i'm sure she would love to go faster.  she joined the guys on the big track this time and did great.  she's a natural.

bobby wanted them to pose like they were tough.  looks like the cover of 4 wheeler magazine, right?

we loved hanging out with everyone and enjoyed the time away.

2013 weekly menu: week 8

strawberry cupcake and salted caramel cupcake from nadia cakes in palmdale.

thinking sweet thoughts to get me through the day.
taking a deep breath from yoga this morning.
and trying to stay warm.
looking forward to the rain washing away the bad and bringing in the good.
recovering from a great weekend.
energizing myself for the week ahead.
hoping i can put something on the table each night that is healthy and delicious.


weekend eats: kerniville
saturday: pizza
sunday: chicken, salad, macaroni and cheese
monday: mexican food

making this week:
tuesday: birthday dinner for my brother-in-law
wednesday: pasta with turkey sausage
thursday: chicken piccata, arugula salad
friday: minestrone soup, bread

well i guess i am going italian this week.

buon appetito!

awesome and a dare

i had a dream about a blog post i was going to write today. something that would inspire, something honest and emotional.

i sat down at the computer this morning to write it.  but as i do every morning, i checked ali's site first and found this video.  this video that made me laugh, cry and breath deep.

this says it better than i ever could. and it's too wonderful not to share, especially now.

dare #5
do something that will make today awesome.  in a big way or small. for you or for someone else.  be "gooder than that". i dare you.

check out ali's post today.  the other video she has on there is pretty inspirational as well. (that one had me crying too.) we have more in common than differences.  let's remember and appreciate that.

have an incredible weekend.

being loved

Source: alifetimeofwisdom.com via Gioconda on Pinterest

spending today with first graders and lots of sugar.
then it's home to be with the ones i love.

happy valentine's day!

currents: 2.12.13

time: 10:40 am

place: kitchen table

eating: an english muffin with nutella and strawberries - that's right

drinking: reheated coffee with milk

feeling: centered

watching: ugh - the bachelor - please don't hate me

thinking: about adding another day of yoga - once a week just isn't enough

creating: 52 lists

hoping: andrew has a good basketball game today

needing: to change our morning routine - ok, her morning routine

wishing: everyone could just see the positive

2013 weekly menu: week 7

chicken pho. 

happy monday.
this is going to be a happy monday.
and a happy week.
no matter what comes my way i will remember to stay happy.

looking at all the things this week holds i am a little worried for myself.
i can do this.
i will do this.
and it will be a happy week.


weekend eats:
saturday: grilled burgers and fries (made for 4 teenage boys who slept over)
sunday: we had dinner with those same boys at disneyland - sooo fun.

making this week:
monday: pork chow mein
tuesday: chicken tostada
wednesday: minestrone soup, bread - ash wednesday
thursday: special valentine's dinner - no clue what i'm making yet but it will be special
friday: fish tacos and rice - that's right, lent has begun

have a good one.

all in a day: 2.2

this past saturday was another one of those days.  we had four people with four things that had to be done.  a lot of it overlapped and we wondered how we could get it done.

we decided to make a game plan. bobby always thinks best with pen and paper.

 

he made a list of who needed to be where and then we matched up our schedules like a jigsaw puzzle.  (note: we got up at 6 not 6:45.  that was wishful thinking.)

we had 4 big events:

• i had my first training run
• jordan had a high school entrance exam and interview
• andrew had his first baseball practice of the season
• bobby had a rowing competition

after looking at the different things we had and the location of each we figured out the best course of action.

bobby dropped off jordan at his test.

then took the kids to breakfast at ihop.

i went to the y for my training run.

it was an easy one this morning. 40 minutes on a very familiar route.  i have to admit i feel a little rusty.  things are achey and sore.  but it felt good to be running again.

we met up at home.  they brought me breakfast too.

then i showered and andrew got into his baseball gear.  bobby and andrew left for practice.

andrew is on the same team from last year.  it's nice because we love the coach and feel good about his ability this year being a little older and more experienced.

sofia and i went to pick up jordan from his test.  he had an hour before his interview so we grabbed lunch at panda express.

then it was back to school for the interview.

he did awesome by the way.  i had a few questions about college preparation and honors classes and then we were on our way.

a stop at the mall to get a birthday gift.

bobby and andrew left baseball practice early to get to his competition in long beach.

he's been training for the past few months on the rowing machines at his work. it was a complete workout regimen all for 8 minutes of rowing. he did great beating his goal by 6 seconds.  go bobby!

andrew was not happy about being around "a bunch of sweaty old men". but he was a trooper and even took pictures for us.

we were all reunited at home for the afternoon.  the kids relaxed, played video games and we took a much needed nap.

a friend of ours was celebrating her birthday that night.  unfortunately, we did not have a babysitter.  so bobby stayed home with the kids and i went to the party with my sister-in-law.

the party was at la descarga in hollywood.  a cuban cigar and rum bar.

i had never seen anything like this before.  you actually enter through a closet to get into the bar.  so cool.

and then you see this.

and this.

we had such a good time hanging out with friends, watching the show, drinking mojitos and making it home before midnight.

we definitely seized the day!