Blooming Buds

And now.... Gaby!

2011-11-26T19:31:00.002-05:00

Gabriela was still 6+ years old the last time I updated the blog, and she is now 8. I cant even believe I have an 8 years old daughter!!! She is very innocent but also very rebel. She's still my drama queen. She is doing a lot of things by herself, even showering and getting ready for school in the mornings without hassle. She is a little geeky and she is crazy with Wii and computer in general. She is interested in Facebooking, talking to her friends on the phone, and it is dying for a Blackberry. She actually uses mine to chat with with some of my friends, and she does it very good and fast.

As Gaby was also supposed to go to Ecuador for a few months, last school year she missed some classes from Second Grade. Then, I placed her on a very small school to finish the 2nd Grade, however the experience wasnt very good and I got the impression that she didnt learn a lot. When I registered her for this school year, I discussed this situation with the Principal and Psychologist and we all agree that she should be placed in 2nd Grade again. I agreed mostly because I didnt want her to be behind on 3rd Grade compared to the other kids, but also because she is so innocent and doesnt have the same "street smart" as the kids her age. Most of the kids her age already cross street by themselves, and can buy stuff and handle money perfectly good, and are thinking about boyfriends. Anyway, she started 2nd Grade and by the end of the first week she was promoted to 3rd Grade because she was too advanced for that grade. So far she is doing very good in her classes and she gets along with all the kids. I picked up her grades for the second period already and she has all A's and B's (Between 80 and 95).

She has always been the one of my three girls less interested in eating, however she has been eating non-stop in the past few months. She gained A LOT of pounds, and now I have her watching more the amount she eats, because she is too chubby for her height. She is 80 pounds and 51.5 inches tall (4' 3 1/2""). According to the chart for her age she is in 94th percentile for weight and 66th percentile for height.

She is still very much in love with animals, especially dogs, and she loves watching Animal Planet. She also likes to watch the History Channel and mostly all the channels from Discovery pack. She would learn the most amazing things and loves to tell them to everybody. She loves drawing and coloring, as well as toys were she can built or make stuff (like puzzles, legos, jewelry makers toys). She still adores purple, and likes to match it with turquoise and pink.

Not many pictures of Gaby because the camera hates her. She doesnt have the photogenic vein that Camila has. But here some some. Here she is modeling for Baby Time, then just smiling for the camera, and then at Ariel's Pirate Birthday party:

Here she is on the airport after her sisters left to Ecuador (that was one of the last pictures of her with her normal weight), then with Camila at home in a pool day, and then by herself on the same day:

Here she is with her sisters after getting some make up on, then on Father's Day with a lollipop and then on her first day of this school year:

What about Camila?

2011-11-19T19:00:00.004-05:00

Camila was just a few months after turning 4 the last time that I posted. Now, she is 5.5 years old and it is amazing the change in her aspect and behavior. I have let her hair grown, and that gives her an older look. Her face looks all grown, and she is now taller and skinier, instead of short and chubby. She is 50 pounds and 44 inches tall (3' 8 1/2"). That is 83rd percentile for weight and 57th percentile for height according to her age.

She's my little model and diva. She loves posing at the camera and it is amazing how much the camera adores her. Regardless if she is crying, smiling, not looking, upset, she would still look gorgeous. When I want a picture of her, I normally take 2 or 3 pictures to get a nice shot, sometimes only 1 picture is enough.

She also got to experience some time in Ecuador like Mimi and it helped her to tone it down with her "mommy's separation anxiety issue". However, she's still very much a mommy's girl and she would do ANYTHING just to be by my side. She's still the most sensitive little girl in the world, and strong words will hurt her like if somebody had spanked her. She's super funny and caring, and it is amazing the ability she has of making people smile even in their worst day.

She loves fixing her hair, as well as everybody's hair. She have had a thing for this since she was a baby. The best game for her would be a room full of dolls, with cribs, bibs, diapers, bottles and of course, hair accessories to fix their hair. She keeps asking for a little brother or sister... Like non-stop! LOL.

She loves dancing too, and she is Shakira's number 1 fan. She would sing some of her songs, and she wants to dance just like her. Actually all three of them have a thing for Shakira, but Camila shows it more.

Just like Mimi, she also started the school year in Abril while she was in Ecuador, and officially at the end of August here. She is in Kinder and I cant believe that very soon she will be finishing preschool. Her favorite color is YELLOW, and everything that matches (like orange and red).

Here is Camila modelling for Baby Time, then one day trying to fix her hair (she does it as good as a 12 years old girl already), and then at Ariel's Pirate birthday party:

Here she is at our Annual Family Reunion, then at the airplane on her way to Ecuador and then on a bus while in Ecuador:

Here she is with her face painted at a park, then the day she visit for the first time the school she was in Ecuador, and then on her 5th birthday:

Here she is with a plush dog she got the day she got her Ecuadorian papers while I was there, then being all sassy at home, and then with my friend Perla doing what she was doing....

Here she is with her big lollypop she got on Father's Day at my dad's house and the last one is outside of her school's playground: All ready for Kinder!

What's Mimi up to?

2011-11-11T08:20:00.001-05:00

The last time I posted about Mimi it was a few months after she turned 3 years old. She is now 4.5 years old and she has grown SOO much. Well, she sounds older, she acts older, her face looks older, but she is still my little petite lady. According to the scale, she has gain some weight but according to my eyes, she is still the same. I can still say at places that she is 2 years old so I dont have to pay the fare for her and they never question it... very convenient for me :) We have weighted her a few times and it differs from one scale to the other, but one thing is for sure, she is still on the 20's, she is close to 30 pounds, but not quite yet. (Update: Have official height and weight: She is 32 pounds and 39 inches tall (3'3"). That is supposedly 11st percentile for her age.

Mimi is still VERY independent, however only when she wants. She likes to do everything her way, so even though she can perfectly feed herself since she was like 2 years old, sometimes she just wants to be babied and have somebody to feed her. She loves asking that to my grandma who has a weak heart for her. She still loves the water very much and she's not afraid of the pool or beach or going under water.

I have lost count of how many times she has needed stitches so far, but for the purpose of not forgetting the dates and keeping it here, she got two new ones. An scar on the right side of her nose (very scary moment when that happened back in August 2010), and then another one in her head (totally cured already and lost inside her hair) that happened in August 2011. I guess August is not her month.

Camila and her spent a few months with their dad in Ecuador which was a great experience for her, because got to meet her dad's family (like REALLY know them) and she got the oportunity to go to school there and experience something different. She started Pre-K there, because their school year is from April to November, instead of September to June like here or the states.

I picked her up on her birthday's weekend back in May and they made a mini pool party for her. It was a beautiful experience.

She officially started Pre-K here at the end of August and she is doing great. She is very advanced for her age and her vocabulary and fine motor skills are beyond what it is expected for her age. This is kinda funny because she looks sooo tiny but her language is so fluent that you have the idea that you are talking with an adult trapped on a babies body.

She loves playing Wii Sports and computer games, and her favorite things to do are coloring and pretend play (dolls and such). She is officially my little Princess and her favorite color is still PINK.

Here are some pictures from August 2010 up to now. In the first one you can see the scar she has now in her face, then doing a modeling job for Baby Time Slings, and then at Ariel Enrique's Pirate 4th Birthday party (Sept. 2010):

On this three, the first one is with Camila in our Annual Family Reunion (from my mom's side), then on the airplane on her way to Ecuador, and then eating a traditional soup from Ecuador:

Here she is being silly... The first one is at a park around February, and the second one is at another park in May when we were in Ecuador. The third one she was hiding in the bathroom door in the hotel we were staying before coming back to DR.

Here she is with her sisters at a pool day at home, then again being silly with Camila and my friend Perla... In the last one, she is just being cute....

Here she is on Father's Day eating a lollipop, then on her first day of Pre-K with Camila, and then being a goofy in front of a mirror...

Here she is flying on Gaby's birthday (while I was trying to avoid a heart attack), then playing Wii, and hugging Arnold (a plush dog with a story.... which will be for another moment).

Edited her height and weight :) First paragraph.

First post of 2011... Major updates!

2011-10-23T16:32:00.006-04:00

It's been over a year since my last post... Shame on me!! There are some many things to update that I wouldnt even know how to begin.

To start, we are now a family of four, which means All girls. It's been several months, however to avoid the drama of public posting, I decided to wait until now to post about it. In the meantime, we moved into a bigger house along with my mom and grandma, so we are actually 6 females under the same roof (plus Lupita, my mom's chihuahua).

I will be posting a single post for each one of the girls as there are many things to post about each one, so each one deserve her own post. My goal is to start posting at least once a month unless there is something special that I want to post about. After all, the whole purpose of the blog is to keep my family and friends updated, plus giving the girls something to read about their childhood when they are older.

As for me, Im still working with my business at 3 Little Flowers, however I only have the blog for now... Orders are welcome. I'm also working for Nikon and it's great to be able to play with the cameras and help people if they have any issues. Being a single mom is not easy, however I'm super happy and I don't regret it. I really wouldn't change a thing.

The picture is from Gaby's 8th birthday earlier this month, I will talk more about it on another post (coming soon).

By the way, I also updated the "About Us" section from this blog. Check it out.

What's going on?

2010-07-23T13:44:00.005-04:00

A lot have been going on since the last update. My mother in law got to be sent from New Jersey to Ecuador to be buried in her native country and hubby got to fly over there to say the last good bye to his mom. She was buried on Saturday the 10th.

In a good note, even though it was for a VERY sad reason, hubby had 18 YEARS without visiting his native country and it has been something huge for him to be able to see all that family that he haven't seen in sooo long, and to meet those that were not even born the last time he was there. He is still there, and he will be coming back next week.

Gaby also lost another tooth (notice on the first picture), and survived *another* ear infection (sigh!). Mimi has an eating strike, and it is hardly eating. My poor petite baby is getting skinnier. Camila is doing great but misses daddy very much. The nanny, Yudy, is happy at home, and we love having her around! Me? Working like a donkey!

Last week I bring home a Nikon D50 with a 50mm 1.8 lens and here are some pictures I took (well, some of them were taken by my friend Perla who was home with us that day):

Rest in Peace Mrs. Jenny (1954-2010)

2010-07-02T10:57:00.002-04:00

Words cant express the pain that we are feeling right now. My mother in law went to heaven to became an angel and we were just not ready to let her go. Her heart has been sick for sooo many years that people would think we were ready for it.

There are people that are sick for years and years, and the doctors keep telling their family that they wont make it pass two months, or a month, or a couple of weeks... However, sometimes those people live years and years and overcome every crisis. I have seen my mother in law REALLY sick. But then, she used to get over it and simply continue with her life. For the past 2 months, she kept telling Ernest that she was ready to leave, and it looks like she was. This day at 3:30am her heart simply stop beating. It was past 5am when our phone ring. It was Ernest's brother in law and we just knew it.

She left behind her husband, her son and daughter in law, her daughter and son in law, 4 grandchildren plus 1 one unborn grandchild. She is leaving all of us heartbroken, but knowing that she is now in a better place where there is no more pain. She had this huge smile and contagious laugh that will carry on in our memories forever. She was a devoted wife, an exceptionally caring mother and a loving grandmother.

I cant keep out of my mind something that she used to complain about. It was a metallic taste on her mouth and the feeling her teeth were going to fall off. Doctors were never able to figure this out. It gives me peace the fact that she will NEVER EVER feel that again.

I also wanted to share here a "note" that my hubby wrote on his Facebook. He actually wrote it on Spanish, so here is the translation:
My mother. I miss you so much. I have so many beautiful memories from you that I will never forget. Things like faith. I know you once said that you were ready to go and I said “No”. You knew your heart could make it anymore and you were getting ready to go. Even though it was hard to admit it, I have the hope that I will see you again and you will hug me and kiss me and call me: “My Israelito” (Israel is his middle name).
My beautiful mommy is hard to say good bye; not having you, not being able to hear your voice, and not being able to see you. But I know you are now happy so I will be happy with you. I know I now have a new guardian angel taking care of me on every movement and every decision that I make.
I love you!

I put together some pictures of her and I would like to share some of them. They are from 2005 up to 2009. She used to love the sand and the beach, and seeing her on the beach or a pool was like seeing a little girl getting in the water for the first time.

Mrs. Jenny: You just left and we already miss you so much! I guess we will see in Heaven again!

New ddition to our family PLUS Updates

2010-06-27T10:38:00.002-04:00

Yesterday somebody joined our families. We hired a live in nanny that will be staying with us everyday and will be leaving twice a month. She is 32 years old has 4 kids of her own (13, 11, 9 and 3) and they live with her mom in a town very far away. She goes and visit them once per month. She prefers live in jobs because she has no other place to stay in this town, and paying rent for her is not doable. She looks very caring and we are pleased so far.

I prefer a live in nanny because that person gets to be part of our family and I feel more comfortable having the girls with somebody that I know is clean and loving and caring. She will help out with some of the girls chores, but her main responsibility is "be there" for the girls when Ernest and I are working outside of the house at the same schedule (normally at nights). Before, they used to go to my mom's house and were taken out of their environment, so I prefer them to stay here in their own house. I will keep you guys updated.

And now, here I go with the updates that I have made. Just click on the image or title to see them:

First week out of school PLUS updates!

2010-06-18T02:40:00.002-04:00

I took a few days off from work because the girls are out of school and out of their afternoon activities. Thinking about getting them on Summer Camps or some sort of activity for this summer, but we havent really decide what we are going to do.

In the meantime, enjoy these NINE posts that I made from November and December 2009. There are only a couple more posts missing from December, but this is what I have completed so far. I tried to keep the text to the minimum so it doesnt bore you guys! Just click on the picture or title to view each post:

I'm back - Quick update from us!

2010-06-14T10:50:00.006-04:00

A new post!! FINALLY!! I have missed my blogs so much, and I think it is time to start blogging again. I will try to catch up, and that is what I plan to do for the next days. I cant promise to post on a daily basis, but who knows if I manage it. Here is a quick update from each one of the girls:

Last Friday was the last day of Toddler 2. She turned 3 last month, and even though she is still a peanut, you can tell how much she has grown just listening to her. She talks way better of what Camila and Gaby talked at 3 years old, and they were great talkers: So that is a lot to say. Her coloring has improved a lot and she hardly leaves white spots while she does it. She knows her colors, and can count until 5. I don’t believe there is anything that she cant actually express, and she makes sure to make her point across. She can play with mostly every toy around (especially the one that it is already in use by one of her sisters), however I dare to say that what she likes the most is arts and crafts. If there is crayons, paint, scissors, glue and paper, she will leave behind ANY toy she may be playing with. Lately she has been playing a lot with “My Little Ponies” and she loves to brush their hair. She still loves water and loves TO EAT more than anything in the world (I still wonder where is all that food going).

She finished the Toddler 3 class last Friday, and even though her evaluation will be next week, I know I will be hearing great things from her. She turned 4 in April, yet she is still like a big baby to me. She is still a very happy child, however some changes that occurred in our household for the last few months affected her the most from all 3 girls (most of you know what Im talking about, if not just ask me privately). She loves pretend play like there is no tomorrow, and she needs a doll with her 24/7. That doll needs to have all her needs covered, so she needs at least: a bottle, a bib or blanket, a pacifier, and needs to be properly dressed (preferably with a change of clothes). She still prefers to play with the sand instead of the water when we are on the beach, however when she gets in the water she doesn’t want to get out. She is still a mama’s girl; however she is crazy about daddy to. She will do ANYTHING for a hug and a kiss, and prefers to cuddle with us than anything else (which can be very cute, except for when I want to go to the bathroom or simply have a 2 minutes alone time). She started taking ballet classes with Gaby, even though I think she is more into wearing the ballet outfit than dancing itself.

She finished first grade last Friday and I still cant believe it. Getting to first grade was a huge milestone itself, but getting to an end feels like my daughter is a little lady. I will get her grades on the 24th and I cant wait. Back in January, I switched her to another school (that is a whole new post), and this school is primarily in Spanish. She now can read mostly ANYTHING, and I just love how she can read books to her sisters, and how easy it has become for her. We have to work hard with her English so she doesn’t forget what she had accomplished before, and I plan to work on it on the summer. She continues to be a dog lover and she misses Sassy very much. We told her to ask Santa for a new puppy this Christmas as we are planning to get her a female cocker spaniel (and of course, we will be naming her Lady like the movie). She loves computer games and watching movies for big kids. She also loves taking pictures, playing with her VPocket and actually anything that involves technology. I’m 100% sure strong genes from her daddy and me were passed to her, and I cant wait for her to grow a bit and start designing like I do. She is also in love with My Little Pony, The littlest Pet Shop, Barbie, Fairies in general and Disney Princesses. She is taking ballet classes in the afternoon and she LOVES it!

As for me, I continue doing my designing business at 3 Little Flowers, and Im also working for a camera brand. It helps me stay close to photography and Im learning a lot about it. Ernest still working at the same school, and now has a second job at nights for a cell phone company. Busy bees!

Im alive...

2010-02-04T08:15:00.001-05:00

I swear to God!! I PROMISE things will go back to NORMAL very soon!!! I MISS my blogs!!!!!!!!!!! :(

Task #14: Checked! - Eyeglasses for me!

2010-01-08T00:14:00.000-05:00

FINALLY!!! This was loooong overdue!! I got my butt to the doctor, purchased a cute frame and got my eyeglasses!!!

In case you didnt know, the latina singer and actress Thalia actually has an eyewear collection and it is very cute... I got the "Curiosa" model in Aqua Tortoise and Im IN LOVE with them!!

I have to confess that I should be wearing them more, but it is just difficult to get used to be using eyeglasses.. I feel that I can see better without them, even though I dont... This is not the best picture, but here I am:

The 3 Wise Kings 2010

2010-01-04T12:35:00.000-05:00

It is actually celebrated on the 6th, however in this country non major holidays are normally celebrated on the Monday before or Monday after (to protect the economy of mid and small companies from closing down in the middle of the week). So, this year we got to celebrate the 3 Wise Kings on the 4th!

Some of the things that Gaby got was a V-Pocket and a newborn My Little Pony. Camila got ANOTHER doll!

Camila was into combing their dolls, and fixing everybody's hair (including mine) so we got her this set that even has a blow dryer with real sounds....

And YES, more dolls for Mimi...

The girls are in love with Mickey and Friends, and each one got a few figurines of them....

They were REALLY happy and I was just thrilled!!

Starting the year: ER trip!

2010-01-01T12:03:00.000-05:00

What a day to be at the ER!! Gaby was at my mom's mahogany rocking chair drinking a glass of milk. Here is the rocking chair she was sitting down that day:

Camila thought it was fun to rock her and she did it sooo hard that the rocking chair felt backwards, and the back of it broke causing Gaby to cut around her elbows in two different places. She got two stitches in one side of the elbow and one in the other side! It was really painful, but she amazed me with how brave she handled it. She cried, but she let the doctors sew her with the minimum of issues.

Funny thing is that it is a VERY strong rocking chair and very well made. Not really sure where did Camila found the strength to rock it so hard, but she did.

Good Bye 2009

2009-12-31T11:56:00.000-05:00

2009 was a year full of strong emotions: good and bad ones, and Im completely sure it is a year that I will never forget. It actually marked so many things in our lives and I dare to say that it may have been the year where I learned and grew more in my whole life. It was a year with lots of tears, but a the year that made me as strong as I feel now.

Here are the girls enjoying the fireworks from their bedroom at my mom's house when the clock marked 12!

Gotta say that it was the first year since the last 6 Christmas that I didnt have a child crying being scared with fireworks! Big milestone for our household!

Santa came to town!

2009-12-25T09:07:00.002-05:00

This year I was too busy helping the girls to open their presents, that I couldnt get as many pictures as I normally get. The also got other stuff but here are the stuff they got from me and Auntie Cara.

They choose what they wanted to leave for Santa, so he got: Strawberry milk, a banana, baby carrots and cookies (those cookies were they ons that kept me awake while I was wrapping them ALL NIGHT long! LOL)... I have to practice my Santa's handwriting for next year, and I think I will also purchase a notebook for years to come. This year Santa used "the napkin":

First off, when they walked out their bedroom, they found some clothes from Santa. I purchased a white shirt, made a Christmas tree and their name with glue, and threw some glitter on it. They loved them!

Here are their gifts:

Before tearing them apart...

Because the dolls are never enough!

Camila's favorite gift:

My favorite gift from all....They have toys of each color inside of each "crayon"... LOVED it! .. In the back, Gaby's favorite gift: A Barbie Register!

They all got crowns, wands, earrings and bracelets:

Merry Christmas from us to you!!

2009-12-24T09:02:00.000-05:00

This year I made plans with our holiday cards and how early I was get them out and yada yada yada, however it didnt happen. I made our Holiday Cards WAY LATE and I didnt even mail them out. I decided to stick to online this year, because of the time it was. Anyway, here it is!

Visiting my grandma

2009-12-21T22:31:00.002-05:00

Last night after the show, we went to visit my grandmother. I hardly get to visit her and it was sooo nice for the girls to spend some time with her. My grandma was surprised with all the bananas they were eating (Mimi actually ate 2 and a half, Camila 3 and Gaby 3)... Gotta love my piggies!!

All 3 girls ready to leave:

Arent they just gorgeous?

Mia being cute (how I miss her long hair!!)

My grandma, mom and the girls:

Mimi chatting with my gradma. She will be 92 years old next year....

The 3 Wise Kings and the BIrth of Jesus - A Play

2009-12-20T22:40:00.000-05:00

Today we went to a play about Jesus Birth. It was awesome and the girls had a blast. I took tons of pictures of the play, but I wont bore you all with them. Here are just a few...

The camels:

Here you can see Maria, Joseph, Baby Jesus and the 3 Wise Kings:

The angels:

The cast at the end of the show:

Gaby's Christmas Play at School

2009-12-16T21:17:00.003-05:00

To be honest, we cant remember for the live of us the name of the song that Gaby and her classmates represented on their presentation. We think it was Christmas in the Caribbean, but we are just not sure. That is what happens when you are a lousy blogger and dont post on time!

Anyway, enjoy these few pictures. I have lots more, however I prefer not to post many pictures with the other kids in it as my blog is public. Looking back at the pictures, I see that Gaby already had a "flower bow" like the one on these pictures (wonder where it is! LOL).

That night I had the Christmas Party for my job at Hard Rock Cafe and I had a blast! Oh, memories!

Task #49: Checked! - New do for me!

2009-12-15T20:19:00.000-05:00

Cant even remember when was the last time that I did something for my look. I believe the last time I got highlights was after Gaby was born in 2003!!!!

When I started loosing weight a few months ago I decided it was time to let my hair grow and anybody who has done that can relate on how difficult it is. I have been wanting to get highlights since several months ago, however I wanted to wait until my hair was long enough to blow dry it, instead of keeping it wet with gel or leave in.

So, the time had come and my hair was long enough to be blow dried which means highlights were in order! The "before" picture was taken a week or so before the highlights (please, ignore my poor smiling skills for the camera..ugh), and the "after picture" was taken a month after it (on my birthday party) because it was the only picture I could find that actually shows my hair. The hair was also longer and for some reason it looks a bit reddish, however the base is brownish and the highlights are blondish.

Photo Shoot at home!

2009-12-14T20:02:00.001-05:00

I bring a camera from work yesterday, and the girls were thrilled for getting to go outside for some pictures. I have sooo much to learn about photography but I promise to get better with the time. I really need to learn how to use manual settings, especially for days like there when auto mode is giving me a hard time!

Take a look at their faces cause these pictures does say a lot about their personalities!

Just a day at home

2009-12-13T18:45:00.001-05:00

We have been sleeping at my mom's house simply trying to keep the girls away from the unpacking process, however not being able to unpack at night is making things way slower. I know we will get it done at some point!

Here are some pics from today! Gaby and Mimi just being naughty:

Gaby begging for a picture:

Camila getting to bed (I remember she was sick that day):

Mimi being spoiled by her grandma: Being rocked to sleep (something that she actually hated when she was a baby, and it is now loving!):

Even Lupita (my mom's chihuahua) got her picture taken!

Task #18: Checked! - New place

2009-12-01T18:05:00.000-05:00

We actually rented the new place 2 weeks ago, however today is when we officially emptied the old house and finished moving all the furniture and boxes to the new place. Im not really sure how I will make fit a 2 floor house into this small apartment, but we will manage.

It also has 3 bedrooms plus a little bedroom next to the laundry room (used for maids in this country), however each room is way smaller and now we dont have space for the outdoor toys. We have also given away a lot stuff, and we will be giving away more once we finish unpacking.

Note from June 2010: Over 6 months in the new place and I have to admit that LOTS of boxes are still packed. We have been working hard to unpack those boxes in the last few days, and we wont stop until we finish! Being without "those things" for some many months made me realize that I can actually LIVE without so many things, so we will be getting rid of LOTS and LOTS of stuff that we actually dont need.

Better than I thought

2009-11-30T18:12:00.000-05:00

Working outside of the house turned out to be better than I thought. I didnt know how I was going to manage to be away from the girls for so many hours and how I was still going to be able to keep on with 3 Little Flowers, but it worked out just fine.

Being able to interact with other adults and actually talk about something different than poopy diapers and potty training, it was really nice. I also got to play with different cameras which made it very fun.

I also got to meet new people and hang out with them, which was a bit weird, as mostly all of my actual friends have kids and husbands (or wives), and the majority of these new people are not even close to get married, much less to have kids.

Anyway, we'll see what this new adventure brings!

Task #79: Checked! - New home for Sassy

2009-11-29T17:34:00.003-05:00

When the decision of getting a smaller place was done, we knew one of the most difficult things was going to be giving Sassy away. She was still a puppy, however we knew she was going to grow into a huge dog and it was an impossible thing to think we were gonna be able to keep it in an apartment.

One of my mom's employees offer to take her home and raise her and it was a blessing, because she was going to be able to stay in a place where we can actually go and visit her. They came to pick her up and I felt they were taking away a part of me. We weren't sleeping at the house already, and we were only coming to pack and feed her, which made it easier for the girls. A few months after that, even when they knew she wasnt living there, the girls will continue saying that Sassy was at the old house.

Then, when the girls found out that she was preggo and delivered 3 puppies: they were thrilled!! But that is a whole new post.

*(Post written a few months after it actually happened. Posted on the correct day)

I've been bad!!

2009-11-19T20:22:00.002-05:00

Im sorry I havent been updating my blog... It has been soooooo HECTIC that it is not even a way to explain it.

I just posted a few posts on the correct day... They are:

Powerpuff Girls from October 31st

Task #88: Checked! - Extra Income from November 2nd

Purple Lunchbox Notice from November 6th

Mismatch Day from November 13th

Task #50: Checked! - New shoes from November 17th

Thanks for reading!

Task #50: Checked! - New shoes

2009-11-17T20:03:00.002-05:00

FINALLY!!!!!!!!!

I have been wanting to get some sport looking Mary Jane shoes for me to wear in the everyday basis and I FINALLY did it!!!

The ones that I really wanted were not available in my size, so I decided just to get these ones and Im IN LOVE with them!!

They are sooo comfty and they look perfectly fine with casual pants to wear to job, and also with jeans. I still plan to buy a pair of brown ones for everyday use, but Payless doesnt have the buy the second pair for half price here, so I will get the other pair later on...

Mismatch Day

2009-11-13T20:02:00.000-05:00

Today was mismatch day at Gaby's school, and it seems she had a blast... There are some photos that Ernest took, and I promise to post them as soon as he send them to me!!

Purple Lunchbox Notice...

2009-11-06T19:56:00.000-05:00

I wont be making the Purple Lunchbox post for a few weeks, until I settle down in a new place that Im planning to move to... Everything is a whole mess, plus I have been getting out of the house at 6:30pm for training.

They continue to eat healthy, however Im not even taking photos!

If somebody wants to do it while I dont do it, just post your links on this or any previous post about it!

Task #88: Checked! - Extra income

2009-11-02T19:29:00.000-05:00

I did it!!

Today was my first day training as a support professional for Nikon... As you all know I LOVE photography and I think this is something that I can really enjoy and will give me the chance to grow up in the photography business and even become a pro.... Mixing my graphic design business with pro photography is like a dream come true to me...

Also, there are a lot of my customers that owns Nikon cameras (mostly the D40 and D60) and being able to play with them, and even bring them home, will let me to help my customers to achieve the best shots possible out of their equipments!

The Powerpuff Girls

2009-10-31T19:22:00.000-04:00

I decided to dress the girls as Powerpuff girls this year... I simply ordered a pillow dress from here, and Im beyong pleased! Im sad that I didnt got a single photo showing off the dresses or even the right things they were suppose on their hair, but I promise I will take a photo as soon as I get a chance...

We went to a Halloween party at a local mall, and the girls had a blast... Gaby even won a contest...

Luis Enrique and his mom went with us and we had a blast!

The Purple Lunchbox # 11

2009-10-30T00:01:00.000-04:00

I got to make lunches the whole week this week!! How fun!! The girls continue to eat most of their lunch, especially Mia and Mimi. Gaby sometimes doesnt eat everything but she normally does it after school.

Mia does very good with fruits, while Mimi does better with carbs, and Gaby does better with proteins... It is funny how they can be sisters and be so much alike, and at the same time be so different with the things they like.

I really want more ideas to change things a bit... I feel like they are eating the same ALL THE TIME... It would be just easier if I could just design the lunch in Photoshop, right?

Here is what they got this week:

- Chicken sausages
- Banana Yogurt
- Apple slices
- A cupcake

- A cheese sandwich
- Ham rolls
- Peas and carrots with blue sprinkles

- A ham and cheese wrap
- Baby corn
- Mandarines
- A cupcake

- Chicken sausages
- Cheese sandwich
- Apple slices

If played along this week, share your link here:

Dont forget to leave your comment, even if you didnt participate!! You guys know how much I love comments!!!!

An afternoon outside

2009-10-24T20:22:00.001-04:00

Today hubby had the idea of doing a "picnic" outside... We were going to eat some sandwiches and we bought a a very unhealthy orange soda (it is a local brand and it is hubby's favorite... It is similar to Mirinda or Fanta.. very high in dyes). From all sodas in the world, my less favorite are the orange ones, cause to me they taste like medicine, but hubby loves it...

Anyway, we had a lof of fun, and after we ate, hubby started fixing a few things in the car and I started playing with the girls while laying down on the comforter we lay outside... Here is Gaby with "Pito".. He has being her favorite plush toy since she was 8 months old....

Even Sassy was playing with us:

Then, we got the bikes out... While hubby was still fixing the car...

At first it was only Gaby's bike and the other two were just looking at her (please, ignore the ugly looking front of the house...Our gardener is giving us a hard time, which is mostly why we want to get our own mower... )

It was a fine afternoon, and then we got inside for a bit because it was too hot... Then, we got out again, and we stayed outside until it was dark already! Fun!

The Purple Lunchbox # 10 - Favorite Lunches

2009-10-23T09:42:00.001-04:00

I didnt got to make lunches AT ALL this week... Mia and Mimi were home all week, and even though Gaby went to school 3 days of this week, I was feeling too sick myself and asked hubby to get her something himself from the cafeteria... A few days of non-so-healthy lunch wont be so bad for her...

Anyway, I was thinking about this the other day, and I will be posting it today as I dont have lunchboxes to post... I was thinking what were my daughters favorite items in their lunchboxes. I will post their favorite food out of each category: Proteins, Carbs, Fruits and Veggies.

Mimi has always been a great eater... She is not the best weight gainer, and she hardly grows, but I know it has nothing to do with how she eats, because out of the 3 girls she is the one that eats the most. This is what she loves the most from each category:
- Protein: Ham rolls
- Carbs: Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
- Fruits: Banana
- Veggie: Tomato
Camila was an awesome eater as a baby, however, she started eating less when she turned 2. Now, she is a very good eater and she loves to try new stuff if I tell her she will like them... Here is what she loves the most from each category:
- Protein: Yogurt
- Carb: Cracker sandwiches with mayo dressing
- Fruit: Apple
- Veggie: Baby Corn
Gaby was the biggest picky eater as baby and toddler... Then, at some point and after a lot of persistence on our part, she started eating better and better, and now she is a very good eater... She is still picky, but she eats, which at the end is the most important thing:
- Protein: Chicken sausages
- Carb: Spinach Wrap with ham and cheese
- Fruit: Pinneaple
- Veggie: Carrots

I feel blessed with my daughters appetite, and I LOVE to hear people saying and praising how good they eat... Especially if there is rice and beans!! THEY LOVE IT!!!

I would love to know everybody's children favorites... Care to share?

If played along this week, share your link here:

Dont forget to leave your comment, even if you didnt participate!! You guys know how much I love comments!!!!

Sick buds... (Updated)

2009-10-22T09:17:00.002-04:00

I havent post much this week mostly because the girls have been sooo SICK that they have been home mostly all week... Mimi and Mia didnt go to school except for yesterday when I thought they were way better... However, I got a call at 10am that Mia had fever... After 6 days on antibiotics and 2 days without fever, she got fever again, so I went to pick her up... As of last night, Mimi was the one worst, and we had to run with her to the ER... She has a lung infiltration, which could mean she is on the verge of getting pneumonia... She got out of the ER after 3 shots (OUCH) : one for the blood work, one to lower the fever (it was 102.2 already), and the other one for antibiotics.. She also had X-Rays (hence how they know about the infiltrate), and they prescribed her 3 days of intramuscular antibiotics plus other meds... Not fun!

Gaby went to school everyday except for Monday, but I can tell how she is on her way to get really sick...

I just want them to get better ASAP... I knew they were going to get sick when they started preschool again, but I kinda forgot how bad it gets, especially at the beginning!! Mia and Mimi have cried today ALL DAY to go to school, but I wont take them until Monday (hopefully)...

UPDATED: Gaby stayed home from school today... She was really not feeling well since last night, and I didnt want to risk her more taking her out of the house. Anyway, she was playing with her sisters and she got a HUGE goose egg right next to her left eye! Poor thing!!!

The Child of the Year Contest at 3 Little Flowers

2009-10-19T08:05:00.004-04:00

Im hosting at my shop's blog a contest for the chance to win a FULL YEAR of photo cards for 2010!!! A photo card for each holiday to make 2010 a year that you will NEVER forget!

It is fun, and very easy... All I need is a gorgeous photo of each one of your kids, along with their names and I will automacally enter them (go here to submit the photos)... Then, you just need to find people (friends and family) who think your kid is the cutest of all (easy pie, right?)... You guys can vote for your own child too... Everybody is entiled to vote ONE TIME PER DAY until the end of the contest!!!

I will have TWO WINNERS: A boy and a girl!! Each day you can vote for the boy AND the girl that you think it is the cutest!!!

So, what are you waiting for??
* To enter your child, just submit your photo here.
* To cast your vote, just go here.
* To read the rules of the contest, go here.

After you submit your photo, fill out a contact form here, to ask me for a blinkie to promote your child!!! You will be able to post the blinkie on your blog, site, Facebook and even send it by email for everybody to vote!! The blinkie will look just like this one on the right:

Of course, Camila is not participating... She is just the model for the example! Isnt she a total cutie??

And PLEASE, dont forget to read the rules...

Third time auntie!

2009-10-18T22:55:00.004-04:00

My sister in law's due date was October 27th (same due date I had with Gaby in 2003). Yesterday, I woke up after having a dream that she was going to give birth yesterday. I told hubby that we should call to find out if she was Ok. We call around noon and my mother in law tells us that she is on her way to the hospital because she has been having strong contractions all night long!! HOW FUN!!

After a very long labor at around 11:00pm: Jesse Daniel entered the world!! He weighted 6 pounds, 13 ounces and was 20 inches long... His dad told me he is breastfeeding like a champ and that my sister in law is doing great!

Im desperate to see a photo of him!!! CANT WAIT!!!

Im officially the mom of 3 little girls, and the auntie of 3 little boys!! How fun!

Another party for Gaby!

2009-10-17T08:49:00.003-04:00

We didnt plan another party, however my mom wanted to invite for a pizza to the daughters of two of her employees who recently had their birthdays. One of them turned 11 the same day of Gaby's birthday (the 5th), and the other one turned 9 on Thursday. So, her idea was to sing Happy Birthday to Gaby and those two other girls over a pizza.

As soon as I mentioned Gaby another birthday party she asked for her BIRTHDAY OUTFIT AGAIN!!!!!!!!!! Luckily, it was washed already and I only had to iron it.

When we were coordinating the time and such, I asked her if I should get cupcakes, and she told me to do whatever I think it was cute, so with less than three hours of preparation, I came up with this:

I took a few of leftovers things from Gaby's school party and then ran to the supermarket and this is what I got:
- 12 cupcakes (6 vanilla and 6 chocolate)
- 2 large boxes of Jello (one Grape, and the other strawberry)
- A can of whipped cream
- A large package of Oreo cookies
- 2 M&M's

Then, I ran to my mom's house to put everything together... I first made the jellos and put them in the fridge so they could be ready right away. This is how they looked after they were ready:

I used again my homemade cupcake tower, and this is how each floor looked... As it was so little cupcake, I put a little crystal bowl with M&M's for the balance:

Here are the three cupcakes for the birthday girls:

Here are the birthday girls:

Gaby blew her candle before we finish singing Happy Birthday and this is her mischievous face:

The one that was turning 9 had a baby brother (11 months old) and he had a lot of fun with some of the toys we have at my mom's house:

Here is the whole group of kids (ages 11 months old to 11 years old):

The Flowers:

Even though they just met they were having so much fun that it looked they have known each other since forever... The other two girls, even though they are older, were playing with them and having so much fun, that they didnt want to leave.

We promised to do something together again very soon!

The Purple Lunchbox # 9

2009-10-16T08:19:00.003-04:00

I didnt got to make 3 lunches the whole week, because Gaby didnt had school on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday due to the teachers taking some workshops. However, she got the same thing her sisters got, but in a plate at home.

This week the one that ate the most was Mia... Everyday she was excited to tell me that she ate EVERYTHING... She would open her lunchbox and show me the empty container so I can congratulate her.. Sooo cute.. Mimi got the hint, and by the third day started doing the same thing!!!

Here is their week....

- Handfull of olives
- Ham and cheese sandwich in a flower shape
- One laughing cow cream cheese
- Grissini

- Ham and cheese rolls
- Strawberry yogurt
- Crackers with mayo dressing
- A full banana for Gaby, and half banana for Mia and Mimi

- Cheese sandwich with mayo
- Chicken sausages
- Grissini

THURSDAY:
I didnt got a photo from this day, and I cant remember for the life of me what I sent... I know I sent a biscuit, but cant remember what else...

- Strawberry yougurt (they begged for it)
- Cheese sandwich with mayo
- Ham in rolls
- Half apple for each one in slices

If played along this week, share your link here:

Dont forget to leave your comment, even if you didnt participate!! You guys know how much I love comments!!!!

Gaby's birthday's mini party - Part II * UPDATED *

2009-10-15T13:38:00.003-04:00

Here are the photos that I promised from Gaby's school party...Here is how everything looked:

Flower shape sandwiches with carrot dressing:

Grape and strawberry jello with whipped cream... On the left, you can see the tray with cheese (mozarella and gooda), ham and salty crackers.

The cupcakes...

The pop cakes... I wish I had a better photo of them, but I dont... I still have two pop cakes decorated at my mom's house, and I plan to take a cute photo of those for my website (to promote the tags):

Blowing her candles:

All the kids upstairs in front of their classroom.. Even I got to be in this photo..

Gaby with her homeroom teacher and two aides:

Updating the post with a closeup of the cake pops as I know the top photo is kinda messy... It is not a good photo, and they werent even that cute because I really had a hard time melting the candy melt, but here they are:

Task #85: Checked!

2009-10-12T21:27:00.000-04:00

I knew this was going to be the second task that I was going to complete... After all, it was the easiest.. I just needed a little reminder!

I honestly cant believe that the photos on our about us page and top banner where A YEAR OLD!!!

Anyway, I did it, as you can see on the right side of my top banner, and you can check out the updated About us page here. I didnt change much, and mostly what I did was to update all FIVE ages... Also, added the middle names, and changed that Mia was an Elmo freak to being a Dora and Diego freak.

Just for reference, here is how the top banner looked and then how it looks now... Amazing how much ALL of three of them have changed:
Old:

New:

For a complete list of all tasks, go here.

Gaby's birthday's mini party

2009-10-10T19:28:00.002-04:00

Im not sure if I already mentioned that I was having Gaby's birthday party at school... I need to remember next year that it gets too stressful because you actually have a deadline to get out of the house... I prefer just to be home and that the guests find me undressed and still cooking..

Despite the last minute stress, everything came out very cute and Gaby was thrilled. Most of the photos are on my friend's laptop, and I will be posting them as soon as I get them... Anyway, here is a peek from the ones of the second memory card... Here is Gaby with one of her best friends:

We are also very happy as Gaby had two quizzes yesterday (just before the party) and she got excellent grades in both! Of course, she got bunch of privileges over the weekend, one of those was to go to the park alone with me, while hubby was in the car taking care of Mia and Mimi who were sound asleep!

In another topic, today hubby and I had a night out... It was at all as we plan it, but we still had fun! We planned to go to the movies, however our car had other plans and it broke down on our way there... Three hours later there was no movie to watch (of course), so we went to grab something to eat and we talked and laugh and had a very good time... The girls stayed at my mom's house sleeping, and when we got to my mom's house, we just watched a few programs on TV. We will try to go out every second Saturday of the month (hopefully more)... My mom has no problem staying with the girls if we leave them sleeping.

The Purple Lunchbox # 8 - Times Three! *** UPDATED

2009-10-09T19:08:00.001-04:00

This week was the first week doing 3 lunchboxes and I have to confess that it could get very expensive... Still it was very fun, and the girls loved their lunches everyday...

I started a competition between them, and everyday they are all excited to show me how much they ate to see who won... So far, Mimi has been winning EVERYDAY!!!

I took photos everyday, however a friend of mine download them for me in her laptop and hubby has forgotten everyday to ask her for them.. Anyway, I have a photo from the very first day, so here is how Monday looked:

- 3 mini croissants with melted cheese
- Grapes
- Baby carrots with melted cheese and some froot loops

Tuesday:

- Chicken sausages
- Apple wedges
- Cheese rolls
- Crackers with light mayo

Wednesday:

- They asked for Chicken sausages again
- Baby corn
- Pieces of Mozarella
- Spinach wrap with Ham and cheese
- Carrot juice (I got new juice containers, so Im showing them off in the photo.. I LOVE them!)

Friday:

- Grapes
- Vanilla cupcake
- Pieces of Ham and cheese
- Salty crackers
- Sandwich with carrot dressing
(This was the menu on Gaby's party, however, her sisters got the exact same thing on their lunches... Gaby also got Jello)

If played along this week, share your link here:

Dont forget to leave your comment, even if you didnt participate!! You guys know how much I love comments!!!!

Wordless Wednesday #8 - A mother's job

2009-10-07T19:59:00.001-04:00

Mia and Mimi's new adventures...

2009-10-06T19:01:00.002-04:00

Mimi and Mia started preschool yesterday, and they are REALLY happy!! I have to confess than getting three little girls ready for school it is not an easy task... Pants and shirts needs to be ironed, and all the other accessories needs to be in one place to make it easier...

Mia and Mimi's school is a Catholic school and have very strict rules about uniforms and such. I attend a catholic school myself, so Im very aware that even the scrunchie needs to match to the T. So far, the most difficult task was to find a black pair of shoes for Mimi.. She is finally size 5 but still very small!

They were both very excited on their way to school and they talk the whole way there how much fun they were going to have with their new friends, how much they were going to color and so on... They even let me take a photo of them outside of school... You guys can tell the excitement on Mimi's face, and you could tell that Mia was annoyed as she wanted to get inside already!

I dropped Mimi first and she did cry for a bit, but by the time I dropped Mia only four classroom away, she had already calmed down... I think the key was that I dropped her off first...

Her classroom has a window and she was happily sitting down when I was leaving (of course, she didnt see me taking a peek).

Mia got there happily and was eager for me to leave... Funny thing is that she is a big mama's girl, but she loves school and she knew what to expect...

Im also very excited about making purple lunchboxes for all of them, and I even started a competition between them, and so far Mimi is the one winning (and yes, they are getting the exact same amount of snack, and Mimi is still the one eating more)...

Going a bit off topic, I mentioned yesterday about Gaby getting some kind of super powers at 6 years old... One of those powers is that for two days in a row she has been doing her homework by herself!!! Each day she has gotten 4 homeworks and have done them beautifuly!! Here she is doing homework at my mom's house (and yes, that hottie in the back is me when I graduated from high school.. LOL).

Happy 6th birthday to Gabriela Michele!

2009-10-05T11:30:00.000-04:00

It feels surreal to think about SIX years has passed since the last day that hubby and I were a couple and then became a family.

I was re-reading last year's post about Gaby's birth and if you have never read it, you may want to do that now (click here to read it).

I was going through my mind how October 5, 2003 was one of the happies days of my life, but also the most painful. No pain I have ever felt over something else can compare to the pain I had while in labor and child birth... 48 hours of labor and 1+ hour pushing was surely painful. But then, the most gorgeous miracle arrived and Gaby was born.

Gaby has been awaiting to turn 6 since she was 4!!! At that age she was in a multiage preschool, and Pre-K kids were together with Kinder kids... So, after just a few months of class, the older ones started to turn 6. Then, last school year when she was in Kinder, kid after kid after kid was turning 6, and she was just dying to be 6! She would say all kind of things that she "still cant do because she is not 6". My mom was joking the other day that it was like Gaby was expecting some kind of super power when turning 6.

The funny thing is that I see her more mature and doing things in a different (meaning positive) way... She is a total BIG GIRL now!

In case you cant read, and havent heard about this poem before, this is what it says:

When I was One,
I had just begun.

When I was Two,
I was nearly new.

When I was Three,
I was hardly Me.

When I was Four,
I was not much more.

When I was Five,
I was just alive.

But now I am Six, I'm as clever as clever.
So I think I'll be six now for ever and ever.
This poem was written by AA Miler, who is Winnie the pooh's creator and the real dad of Christopher!

Birthday celebration continued at home...

2009-10-04T23:14:00.001-04:00

.... actually at my mom's house!

My mom had the ilusion of singing happy birthday to ALL of them... She didnt buy a cake for Mimi or Mia on their birthdays, so I decorated 4 cupcakes for them... They were all super excited and it was like a mini-party for them... Notice the stand is a dinnerware stand and I use it as a cupcake stand... I may do that for Gaby's mini birthday party on Friday... With cute plates, though. Or maybe small trays....

Each one had to wait for their turn (yes, we had to put them a little bit far because Ariel and Mimi couldnt wait.. LOL):

The first one was Mia, as her birthday was back in April:

Then, it was Mimi, who's birthday was back in May:

Then, Ariel, who's birthday was a couple of weeks ago on Sept. 21st.

And then, Gaby, who's birthday is tomorrow:

After that, they were honestly beat up!

Birthday celebration started at the zoo

2009-10-04T16:08:00.001-04:00

Gaby's birthday is tomorrow, and my mom wanted to do something special for her and for my nephew Ariel (he turned 3 a couple of weeks ago)... The zoo got new animals, and we havent been there in several months, so we decided that the zoo was a great option for today... They even have a new playground area in the petting zoo and that was a big hit with the kids.

Here is the real Mimi... I hardly get her to be like she really is in front of the camera, but this photo shows a bit of her real personality and mischievous self.

This bird looks like a Rainbow Lorikeet from Australia, but it is new and it doesnt have a sign with the name... Anyway, hubby had tons of fun with him... and then, he pooped so far that it ended up in Mia's feet... She cried for at least 10 minutes, but then she was laughing as we were all doing.. It was truly funny!

Here she is happy after we cleaned her crocs and feet:

DR people DO recycle! (For my non-Spanish readers, this is a place to separate the garbage... On the left is for plastics, on the midde for organics and on the right for metals(.

My bro had class for the master he is doing, and then he meet us there... We were waiting for his train to get to where we were, and check out what I spotted... Cant get any cuter:

The whole group minus my bro (was still on the train) and me (behind the camera)... Gotta laugh at hubby's face:

The girls... I LOVE LOVE how Mia looks on this pic! Mimi wouldnt let go the zoo's brochure!

All the kids got on ponies (I should say *Pony* because they all got in the same one as the other two were having a vet's check up... A great lesson to wait for their turn...)

Here is hubby petting a cow:

Just having fun:

Mimi and Ariel

They were going up and down NON-STOP.. It was soo fun for them.

Gaby's new do!

2009-10-03T20:40:00.000-04:00

Gaby has been BEGGING to have long hair since almost 3 years ago... Now, that her hair is stronger Im letting it grow... The main reason why she wants to have long hair is because she was a pony tail in the back.... As her forehead is kinda big, I was worried about how it will look her hair all the way to her back, so we decided to make her BANGS!

I have to confess... Im not a big fan of bangs, and even though I have Mia and Mimi with bangs, I dont like how Gaby used to look in bangs when she was little, but I wanted to give it a try... After all, if we dont like it, it will grow anyway.

This is how she looks with her bangs... She is also now wearing her birthday outfit and bow...

We also cleaned Mia's bangs and they were on her eyes already:

Mimi also got a clean up, but no photos to show it... Im sure there will be tons of pics tomorrow to show her new do.

The Purple Lunchbox # 7 - Carrot Cupcake Recipe

2009-10-02T13:45:00.002-04:00

I couldnt take photos this week, and I have to confess that it gets kinda dissapointing... I kept Gaby's lunches looking almost the same as the ones from the previous week...

One of the readers, once asked me for the recipes that I used for the carrot cake that I made, so I decided to post that instead of the non-photo lunches.... Happily next week, there will be TONS of photos, not only because I got a borrowed camera, but also because my youngest two are starting school too, so I will get to photograph THREE LUNCHES per day!

The recipe I used I got it from Joy of Baking by Stephanie Jaworski, and it worked beautifully. I removed the ingredients I didnt used, because I wanted to show how I did it because that was the way I can comment on. The recipe was also made for 20 cupcakes, so I divided everything by half as only made 10. Another thing is that the original recipe comes with instructions for frosting, which I didnt do.

CARROT CUPCAKE - Ingredients
- 1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) safflower or canola oil
- 1 cup (105 grams) finely grated raw carrots
- 1/2 cup grated apple (approximately 1 large)
- I added coloful sprinkles instead of the nuts and raisins.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Place paper liners in 10 muffin cups.

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and ground cinnamon.

In another large bowl whisk the eggs, sugar, and oil until slightly thickened. Fold in the flour mixture until incorporated. With a large rubber spatula fold in the grated carrots, grated apple, chopped nuts, and raisins (I added the colorful sprinkles here, instead of the nuts and raisins). Evenly divide the batter between the 10 muffin cups and bake about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean (mine cooked after around 15 mins).

Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack. With a knife or small metal spatula spread cream cheese frosting on top of each cupcake. Cover and refrigerate the cupcakes until serving time.

I will continue to work with "MAGIC GREEN" for next week... I will try a variety of green veggies... We'll see how that goes... If you guys want to play along, Im open to any ideas or suggestions...

If played along this week, share your link here:

Dont forget to leave your comment, even if you didnt participate!! You guys know how much I love comments!!!!

A decision has been made and big changes are on the way!!

2009-10-01T20:32:00.000-04:00

The debate has been on for 3 months and it is over now (at least that is the plan)... As I have mentioned before, there are 3 ages to start school in this country: The normal age, the suggested age and the mandatory age...

The normal age is 2 years old. There is a full curriculum for that age, and that is "normal" whether the mom works or not. Then, the suggested age is 3. It is normal for a child who goes to a new preschool at age 3 to be asked in the registration form the name of the previous school and even to evaluate them. Then, the mandatory age is 4. All kids are required to attend school by this age or else.

For my family and local friends it was a reason of concern that I was keeping Mia and Mimi at home in an attend to homeschool them this school year. There is no such thing as homeschooling here, so when I mention it, they dont even understand that there are actually recognized programs and even less how much homeschooling is an option that more people are considering these days... Not that this affected my decision of homeschooling, but just getting out was is going through my mind...

Anyway, Mia and Mimi have been begging to go to school since summer... Even though they were saying that they were happy with *teacher mom*, they wanted to have a lunchbox to carry to school, play with other kids, and ever wear their uniforms... Camila also has been saying that she was homework like Gaby, and that she wants to learn to write in the same place Gaby is learning...

THE DECISION? You may ask.... The girls are starting school next MONDAY!!! We got an awesome deal in a school close to home, and they will be there for a few hours every morning, and I will be picking them at noon. Camila had her evaluation on Tuesday, and my mom and I went with her... We had the chance to spend around 30 minutes inside the classroom where you will be attending and I confess Im impressed with how the kids are so well behaved but happy at the same time... Everything looks awesome, and I couldnt be happier... Mimi will be attending the 2 years old class called: Nido, and Mia will be attending the 3 years old class called: Maternal.

Among other things I will go back to walk with my mom in the mornings after I drop them off, and I will be able to go to my nutricionist by weekly appointment... Also, I will have almost 3 hours of non-stop time to focus in my work. That will allow me to have less stress by the time I get to do homework with Gaby in the afternoon, and will allow me to organize better my time with them.

We think this will work for our family and that we will all be happier, even if that means that I will become a taxi driver dropping them all in the mornings, then picking Mia and Mimi at noon, and then picking hubby and Gaby in the afternoon...

Wordless Wednesday #7 - Almost 6 years ago

2009-09-30T08:16:00.000-04:00

Another not so wordless Wednesday in honor of Gaby's birthday (coming soon)... Cant believe almost 6 years ago I had this baby in my arms, and now she is a first grader about to turn SIX!
Side note: This wasnt her real birth announcement.. I made this one as a sample when I first started my business... Her real birth announcement was done with the big photo of this announcement and I paid over 150 bucks for it!! OUCH!!!!!!! Thanks God people have my shop now (hint, hint) so they dont have to pay that much! :)

For more Wordless (and not so wordless) Wednesdays, go here and to 5 Minutes for Mom.

I have big girls...

2009-09-29T07:54:00.001-04:00

My girls never stop to amaze me, but in the last few weeks I have been able to see them growing in front of my eyes in a way I cant even explain.

As I have mentioned before, bedtime has never been a real issue in this house. The only challenge we had once was kicking Mia out of our bed, but we did it and she sleeps happily in her bed every night. There are a few days where she would try to sneak in our bed, but we send her back to hers, and she will walk back to it.

Anyway, I was a bit hesitant about moving Mimi out of her crib, however, she haven’t stop to amaze us since day 1. She actually walks in to her bed, asks for a kiss and a hug, and then she gets comfortable and falls asleep. Even when Mia tries to sneak in our bed, Mimi will follow her to find out if we would allow her in our bed… When she sees that we are not going to allow her, she actually runs back to her bed, no questions asked.

The only situation is that they all want to sleep together, so we had to put the beds right next to each other, but I truly don’t mind for now. I plan to get each one of them a new comforter with their favorite characters, still haven’t decide which ones are those… Probably for Gaby can be My Little Pony, for Mia can be Mickey and Minnie, and for Mimi can be Dora…. We’ll see. Maybe, after each one has their new comforter, they will want to sleep in their own bed.. Who knows? Or maybe I could get somebody on Etsy to make me comforters with their flower color: Purple Flower for Gaby, Red Flower for Mia and Pink Flower for Mimi... Who knows? That is part of my 101 tasks (#4 to be exact), so I need to get into that...

As Im still camera-less, I have no new pics for this post, so the pic Im adding is from last month when I was trying to get a photo for a sample card for a Sesame Street set for my shop.

Daddy's shirt

2009-09-28T22:55:00.000-04:00

The delivery guy knocks on the door.... I wasnt properly dressed to receive a guy on the door, so I wanted to grab something fast to wear... The first that I could grab was one of hubby's shirt...

First reaction:
Mimi: Noooooooo... that belongs to Daddy
Me: Yes, but he is borrowing it to Mommy
Mimi: Nooooo.. That belongs to daddy, and instanly runs to hubby to tell him (he was already cracking up)...

So, Im going down the stairs and..
Mia: Mommy, that belongs to daddy
Me: Yes, but he is borrowing it to Mommy
Mia: No, give it back.... Nooooooooooooooooooow.

As I go to the door, Gaby comes to me and gives me a hug... I guess she is the only loyal to mommy around here! LOL :)

101 tasks to complete in 1001 days! - Task #1: Checked!

2009-09-26T00:39:00.016-04:00

I read this on another blog, and just a few days ago I was reading the rules at the meme's home. As my readers should know by now, I LOVE checking off completed tasks, so I think this project would be AWESOME for me... So far, the most difficult thing has been to come up with 101 things that I want to complete in 2.75 years. The idea is that "tasks must be specific with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined". As I complete each one, I will be making a post of it with the number of the task Im completing and photos and what not, about the task! Feel free to join me and let me know if you do!

I think this is a big challenge and Im merging in it some lists that I have made in the past for New Years solutions, the Blooming Buds strategy, as well as the Working on Healthy buds posts.

Here are my 101 tasks that I will have done by: June 23, 2012
#1 : ~~Come up with 101 tasks to complete in 1001 days - That is another 100 tasks besides this one~~ (Completed by 9-26-2009)
#2 : Potty train Mimi [In progress]
#3 : Pay off credit card [In progress]
#4 : Redecorate the girls room {including a new bed for Mimi, and comforters for all three girls} [In progress... Already got a new bed for Mimi]
#5 : Make a will
#6 : Get a family portrait taken for my new website having the girls wearing their colors: Purple, red and pink [In progress: already got Gaby's purple outfit]
#7 : For 2010, buy the holiday outfits from Prairie Mama and hair bows from Fifi's Closet, for the holiday card photo, take the photo and make the card by the first week of November at the latest (0/3) [Changed the year on this one as it didnt happen on 2009]
#8 : Burn a CD of my customers per year
#9 : Continue burning CDs with our photos per month [Done from Gaby's birth up to June 2006]
#10 : Clean up my Gmail [In progress ... Im already down from 99% full to 96%]
#11 : Clean up my MSN Email
#12 : Recuperate photos from Mia’s 2nd birthday and Mimi’s baptism with the photographer
#13 : Paint the house inside
#14 : ~~Get my eyes checked again and get my prescription lens and frame (2/2)~~ (Completed by 01/08/10).
#15: Get a sewing machine
#16 : Get a laminator
#17 : Get a bike for me
#18 : ~~Move to a new and smaller place~~ (Completed by Dec. 1, 2009)
#19 : Organize bookmarks on computer - Explorer and Firefox (0/2)
#20 : Get new dishes
#21 : Get the girls at least 15 new bows each and buy a nice bow holder to put them in their bedroom (Bows: 1/45, Holders: 0/3)
#22 : To have a Thanksgiving dinner and set up the Christmas Tree that same day [Changed the year on this one as it didnt happen on 2009]
#23 : Give life to my unused Etsy shop
#24 : Launch 3LF Creative Media blog
#25 : Launch 3LF Creative Media site
#26 : Launch the new version for 3 Little Flowers [In progress. Already purchased new hosting, just need to finish designing the site]
#27 : Put together printed party supplies designed by me for a photo for my new site [In progress]
#28 : Buy a new small camera for daily use (to replace the stolen ones)
#29 : Buy a DSLR camera (Nikon D90)
#30 : Reach my weight goal: 135 pounds [In progress... Already lost 40 pounds]
#31 : Have a breast reduction
#32 : Go to Ocean World with the girls
#33 : Get a binder for each girl and organize all their papers -medical, school, identification, etc.- (0/3) [In process: Already bought the one for Gaby and I still need to decorate it]
#34 : Finish my blog books from 2007 to 2010 (0/4)
#35: Invite for a sleepover my two nephews at my house for a weekend
#36 : Make and implement new reward system for the girls
#37 : Make at home the gifts for the teachers for Christmas 2010 by the first week of December [Changed the year on this one as it didnt happen on 2009]
#38 : Redecorate the playroom [In progress]
#39 : Get rid of all the toys from 0-2 years old [In progress]
#40 : Get rid of unused clothes of the girls and us (including maternity clothes) [In progress]
#41 : Get a new ironing board
#42 : Fix our car completely or buy a new one [In progress]
#43 : Tint the car windows
#44 : Give the car a makeover
#45 : Open a new Paypal account and back account (0/2)
#46 : Make a simply recipe book
#47 : Make a new budget
#48 : Make an standard shopping list to go food shopping
#49 : ~~Get a new do - highlights~~ (Completed by Dec. 15, 2009)
#50 : ~~Buy a new pair of shoes for the day to day use {~~this one in Tribal brown or this one in chocolate ~~or another similar one that I find at the moment}~~ (Completed by Nov. 17, 2009)
#51 : To get new clothes for my new weight when I reach my weight goal
#52 : Read 10 books that are NOT mom related (4/10) [In progress... Read so far: Succubus Blues, Succubus on top, Succubus Dreams, Succubus Heat, now reading Succubus Shadows]
#53 : ~~aGo out alone with my friends at least once per month for six months (6/6)~~ (Completed... Will have to make a post about it soon)
#54 : Plan something for my mom's 60th birthday on 2011
#55 : Decorate a wall with photos
#56 : Buy makeup [In progress]
#57 : Give a creative use to the bedroom next to the laundry room (called the maid's room in this country)
#58 : Redecorate my bedroom
#59 : Make playdates with 5 different high school friends with kids (0/5)
#60 : Plan a nice joined birthday party for Mia and Mimi for 2011 - 4th and 5th Birthday
#61 : Plan something nice for my 29th birthday on January - which is something that I NEVER do - [Completed by January 29th... Post to come]
#62 : Make an alphabet book
#63 : Learn how to make bows
#64 : Learn how to sew
#65 : ~~Buy a Blackberry for me~~ (Completed by Nov. 28, 2009... Also updated it by May 5th)
#66 : ~~Get a power generator~~ (Completed by Nov. 21, 2009)
#67 : Take care of my blood pressure issue
#68 : Sponsor a child
#69 : Make 10 blinkies at no charge to other blogs in exchange for them to have my blinkie on their blogs
#70 : Visit our old neighbors in our old town
#71 : To get Gaby to get checked by an orthopedist for a second opinion on her bull legs
#72 : Get Gaby the neurologic tests done - EEG, Head MRI, plus some blood work with several tests. (0/3)
#73 : Work on my business mailing list and start it
#74 : Take the girls to the dentist (0/3)
#75 : Perform "surgery" to all books in need and protect them all with contact paper to the ones that need it
#76 : Find 5 things on the house that can be sold and sell them
#77 : Get a dentist check up for me
#78 : Make a cute card to 10 people just because (0/10)
#79 : ~~Find a new home for Sassy once I found the new place~~ (Completed by Nov. 29, 2009)
#80 : Learn how to make jam
#81 : Learn how to make bread
#82 : Get together with my cousins for a coffee and chat a bit (just the girls)
#83 : Organize all the medications and label them and buy an ear thermometer
#84 : Get hampers for each girl and a separate hamper for the uniforms (0/4)
#85 : ~~Update the About us page on my blog and the photos of the girls faces on the top right~~ (Completed by October 12th.. Click here to view ... Second update made 06/14/2010)
#86 : Plan or help plan a new get together with all my cousins and their kids for 2011
#87 : Host a get together at our house
#88 : ~~Get an extra income of at least $500 bucks~~ (Completed by Nov. 2, 2009)
#89 : Get Gaby to participate in some kinda of sport
#90 : Go to the movies with the girls
#91 : Get a Wii and Wii Fit
#92 : Convert one friend or family to cloth diaper
#93 : Pay off loan #1
#94 : Pay off loan #2
#95 : Go back college again
#96 : Get passports for Camila and Amelia (0/2)
#97 : Complete 2 courses related to design and/or photography (0/2)
#98 : Plan a sleepover with some of Gaby's friends or cousins
#99 : Get a comfortable chair for my computer
#100 : Get a cute case for my headsets
#101 : Buy a lunchbox for my job

Facts about us in 1001 days:
- Completition date is June 23, 2012 (Just added a countdown at the blog's bottom)
- Gaby is going to be out of 3rd grade, Mia is going to be out of Kinder and Mimi is going to be out of Pre-K. All 3 of them are going to be getting ready for summer and looking forward to 4th Grade, 1st Grade and Kinder.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Updates:
October 11, 2009 - Marked several as in progress
November 19, 2009 - Made a lot of changes due to some changes in my household
June 17, 2010 - Marked several as in progress and completed (big update for the blog to come in the next few days)

The Purple Lunchbox # 6

2009-09-25T10:18:00.004-04:00

This week we had a day off Thursday, so Gaby only had 4 lunchboxes... I was only able to get the Cauliflower done one day, and Gaby said it was yucky, and I honestly dont want to push it... Cant understand how something that is so yummy for me, it is so yucky for her, but oh well... I think we will moving on to another veggie...

I plan to make next week "MAGIC GREEN"... I will try a variety of green veggies... We'll see how that goes... If you guys want to play along, Im open to any ideas or suggestions...

This week I didnt had my dad's camera with me, so while I get my new camera, I think we will be getting nasty cell phone photos.... Here is what Gaby got this week:

MONDAY:

- Chicken sausages
- 1 mozarella stick (cut in half)
- Peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwich
- A banana
Comments: She had an issue in school and she didnt had time to eat her whole lunch... She only ate the sausages and cheese... She adores bananas, but she didnt had enough time.

TUESDAY:

- Cauliflower puree (boiled cauliflowers, then made puree in the chopper with some skim milk and butter).. I also put cheese on top, which is all you guys can see..
- Salty crackers
- 3 rolls of Ham with olives
Comments: She ate everything except for the cauliflower..

WEDNESDAY:

- Spinach wrap with Ham and cheese with mayo (cut in 4 due to space)
- A handful of olives
- Mixed of berries yogurt
Comments: She ate everything except for 2 or 3 olives...

THURSDAY: NO SCHOOL

FRIDAY: No photo
- Low Fat Cookies and Cream Granola Bar
- Mozarella cheese stick
- Sandwich of Cheese and Ham with olives
Comments: She ate everything as I was expencting.. LOL.

If played along this week, share your link here:

Dont forget to leave your comment, even if you didnt participate!! You guys know how much I love comments!!!!

Day off = Family Day...

2009-09-24T21:45:00.000-04:00

Today was a local holiday and we got to spend the whole day together... My brother, sister in law and nephew were in town, and we went to Happyland (remember the place?)... This time we went to a new Happyland they opened last week in the same place where I got together with my friend last week. My mom also went with us.

I didnt had the camera with us, and my brother only takes photos with his Blackberry, so there are no photos to post... That makes me really sad, but oh well, there will be other chances to take photos...

Here are some photos property on Bonchecitos, so you guys can have an idea of how it looks... This is the main entrance:

The similar atraction in the other Happyland is a ship.. In the new one it is a plane!

The similar to this one is the trains... Here they have Safari jeeps:

The bumper cars... I got in with Gaby (she was doing all the driving) and hubby got in with Mia.. It was really fun...

When we got home, we took care of a few homeworks that Gaby had for tomorrow... How fun was to find out that she can practice her lessons ONLINE!!!!!! One of the math homeworks was to go and play an addition game in the Harcourt website, and we found tons of games for math and spelling and Gaby is in love with them... I will be doing a separate post about this!

Wordless Wednesday #6 - From dress to shirt, from one sister to the other

2009-09-23T12:47:00.004-04:00

Today's post cant be totally wordless.. The shirt Mia is wearing was originally made for Mimi as a dress (see photos here.... notice they have matching dresses, but the one for Mimi is the one with the pink ribbon).... By the way, the pillow dress (now shirt) was made by Prairie Mama... Not only they are cute, but will last A LOT and they are super cheap!

For more Wordless Wednesday go here and 5 minutes for mom.

Putting a face to the screen name...

2009-09-22T23:02:00.001-04:00

For years I have known a lady under her online screen name, and as the mom of two gorgeous boys... We "met" on the Latino Families board on Baby Center and we kinda lose contact after the boards changed (I think it was a year ago... or is it two years already??)...

Anyway, she is married to a dominican man, and they came to the country to visit his family... On the very last day of her visit, I got to meet, not only her, her husband and kids, but also her husband's whole family!!

We got together in a big department store that is kinda like a shopping plaza, just after I picked Gaby up from school, and we talked and talked and talked. The kids ran around like crazy, and my girls also ate some chocolates and junk food that they "stole" from her older son.. LOL...

Her younger son was at home, because he was sleeping, so we decided to go to their house and we had an awesome time... As soon as we got there, there were tons of arms to hold the girls and play with them... They live in a very small street and mostly all the neighbors are from the same family... My girls felt at home..

After a while, we went to my mom's house so Gaby could do her homework and to get together with hubby (I had my mom's car, so hubby drove my mom to her house and was waiting for me over there)... Then, we came back to my friend's house so hubby could also meet her and her family...

We truly had an awesome time, and it makes me sad that we got to meet in her very last day in the country... Im sure our friendship will grow up more, and they do visit the country as frequent as they can, so there will be more and more chances to see each other. Their family is very nice and treated us like queen, king and princesses...

Happy 3rd Birthday to Ariel and Marcos!!

2009-09-21T11:58:00.001-04:00

Today is my nephew's Ariel 3rd birthday and we plan to celebrate it next weekend... It is also the third anniversary of the birth of Marcos, the angel baby that grew wings too soon to become Ariel's angel (for those who doesnt know who he is, he is the son of my friend Luz, who was born at 26 weeks and grew wings a few hours later on Sept. 22, 2006).

I plan to update this post as soon as we can get the photos on Marcos' gifts... In the meantime, you guys can read last year's post.

Our weekend...

2009-09-20T23:44:00.000-04:00

The last 2 or 3 weeks have been very rough on Gaby, and last Thursday she was actually shaking of how tired she was... It was scary, but I just knew what she was feeling...

There are days where I dont go to sleep until 3-4am and then I wake up at 5:30am.. If I do that 2 or 3 days in a row, there is a moment where I start shaking... I feel little ants running all over my body and I cant keep myself on a chair a second longer...

I think that is how Gaby was feeling... Of course, not with so little sleep, but Im 28 and she is 5 (HUGE age difference)..

Anyway, I first talked to hubby and then with my mom and we all agree that it was better for Gaby to spend the weekend at my mom's house... The idea was to keep her in a noise free enviroment where she could sleep naps during the day, and simply veggie around... On Saturday she actually took TWO naps!!!

My mom gave her some tutoring in Spanish, and it is amazing how my mom got her reading Spanish in just two days... She was reading and writing happily...

Anyway, I have to confess that I miss her... It feels weird not to have her around, especially since hubby was here... On Saturday, we took Mia and Mimi to a park and they had a blast... Then, we went for Ice Cream... It was weird to do all that without Gaby, however it was fun for the two little ones to have an one in one atention...

I hate that we didnt had a camera to take photos as my dad and his wife are using their camera this weekend... I really need to buy a new small camera... It's been several months since the last time my camera was mugged!

The Purple Lunchbox # 5

2009-09-18T04:00:00.001-04:00

This week was a very good, but not in the way I planned for it... We had issues with our gas provider and we are still waiting for them to come and fill out our gas (who has been out since Monday after I finished making breakfast)... We are fine cooking everything else in our electric oven and microwave and rice electric pot, however, I had no way to boil the broccoli.. Soooo, we couldnt make the Magic Broccoli week... Instead, I decided to avoid veggies most of the days to see how much Gaby was going to improve her eating...

Im amazed to say that almost everyday (except one day that I sent in veggies), she ate EVERYTHING!!!!! And I mean EVERYTHING, even the fruits that sometimes she will leave untouched!!!!

As I also got cauliflower, and assuming my gas situation will be sort out tomorrow at the latest, I plan to make next week "MAGIC CAULIFLOWER", with 5 different ways to eat Cauliflower... If you guys want to play along, Im open to any ideas or suggestions...

Here is what Gaby got this week:
MONDAY:

- Cheese and mayo dressing in a tomato wrap
- Ham with olives rolls
- Laughing cow cream cheese
- Blueberry Yogurt
Comments: Container came home EMPTY EMPTY!

TUESDAY:

- Peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwich in whole wheat bread
- Chicken sausages
- Apple wedges (a full apple)
Comments: Container also came home EMPTY EMPTY!

WEDNESDAY:

- Cheese and dressing in a tomato wrap
- Apple wedges (a full apple)
- Carrots in circle with melted cheese
Comments: Carrots were almost all there and at least half of the apples...

THURSDAY:

- Ham with olive and cheese rolls
- Tuna salad sandwich in whole wheat bread
- Strawberry yougurt
Comments: She ate EVERYTHING.

FRIDAY:

- Crackers with dressing
- Pears with chocolate sprinkles
- Cheese and Ham with olives rolls
Comments: None yet.

BONUS!
On Monday (just before my gas decided to die), I made a sandwich for hubby to take to work that looked very good... The photo is not good and it doesnt show it as cute as it was in real person, though... It is a sandwich in whole wheat bread with Ham with olives, cheese, tomato, eggs and mayo.

If played along this week, share your link here:

Dont forget to leave your comment, even if you didnt participate!! You guys know how much I love comments!!!!

Missing out the Fluff Talk Thursday!

2009-09-17T21:55:00.001-04:00

I cant believe how difficult has been for me to keep up with this meme... There has been some fun new themes and I havent been able to participate... I promise to take photos this weekend and catch up with "Photos of my Stash", "My cloth wipes system" and "Daddy's point of view", VERY SOON!!!

Wordless Wednesday #5 - My very own Uniqua and Tasha

2009-09-16T08:21:00.000-04:00

For more Wordless Wednesday go here and 5 Minutes for Mom.

Last Monday....

2009-09-13T10:48:00.003-04:00

I made a post about a birthday party that we went last Monday... Even though I made it today, I posted on the correct day... So, scroll down to read it :) (or click on the photo)....

The Purple Lunchbox #4

2009-09-11T06:36:00.001-04:00

This week was way better than the previous week... It was MAGIC CARROT week and it worked perfectly.... She still didnt eat some of the other stuff that I sent (some of the fruits were untouched), however she did ATE all the things with carrots that I sent for her.. WOO HOO!!!

To keep up with "hide the veggies" idea, this week we will play MAGIC BROCCOLI. We will come up with 5 different ways to eat broccoli... If you guys want to play along, Im open to any ideas or suggestions... I know I can make Puree Broccoli (I used to make puree Cauliflower with a South Beach Recipe), so I hope it tastes as good with Broccoli.

Here is what Gaby got this week:
MONDAY:
- Cheese in shapes (you guys can hardly notice, but there are hearts, circles, triangles, among others)
- Crackers with mayo dressing
- 2 slices of Ham
- Apple Wedges
- Apple and Carrot Juice
Comments: Even though I sent juice everyday, I never take photos of it... Today, Im including it in the photo, because there is where the magic carrot is... My mom has a Power Juicer, so we stopped by her house the night before to make the juice with it... It has TONS of carrots and Gaby LOVED it... When I picked her up I asked her if she knew what kind of juice it was, and she was happily surprised when I told her what it was. She hardly touch the apples, but that is Ok as she still got her fruit with the juice.

TUESDAY:
- Ham and Cheese Sandwich with a homemade carrot dressing
- Strawberry yogurt (with Strawberry chuncks)
- 4 slices of ham
Comments: She ate EVERYTHING... She loved the sandwich and when I asked her if she knew what the dressing was she said YES. She told me that she opened it before eating it and that the carrot dressing was really good.

WEDNESDAY:
- Crackers sandwiches with the same carrot dressing from yesterday
- Rounded pieces of carrots
- 1 triangle of the Laughing Cow
- 2 slices of cheese
- Peach wedges with chocolate sprinkles
Comments: She didnt eat the peach because "she didnt know what it was" (I have gotten that excuse several times already) and the pieces of carrots were almost untouched... However, she ate the carrots from the dressing on the crackers, and everything else.

THURSDAY:
- Breadsticks with tomato sauce
- Chocolate pudding
- Orange Juice
Comments: Hubby had to buy her brunch at school today, because I went to sleep at 4am and I just couldnt get up to make her something... I still cant believe what he gave her, but of course, she ate it all.. LOL

FRIDAY:
- Carrot cupcakes
- Strawberries with a little bit of vanilla frosting
- Crackers with mayo dressing
Comments: We ran out of bread and tortillas so I had to send her crackers again... They are low fat and still tummy fillers, so Im Ok with that. I still have no idea if she will eat everything, but I bet she will love the carrot cupcakes!

If played along this week, share your link here:

Mario's 6th Birthday Party

2009-09-07T23:46:00.001-04:00

Today was the birthday party of one of Gaby's classmates... His name is Mario, and his mom and I get along very well... She invited all 3 girls, and even though it was a Monday, we all went.

It was so funny because the girls ate like there was no tomorrow, and they seriously had a blast... They are normally shy at parties, but they were all having fun and participating in the activities....

Mimi even let them paint her face for the first time... They all got cat faces! Here is Gaby participating in one of the activities:

Mimi EATING:

My 3 kitties:

Eating some more:

Mia running around:

Then, they ate pizza and then Ice Cream:

We didnt got a good shot of the cake, but at least we know the girls were there, right? LOL

The Purple Lunchbox # 3

2009-09-04T19:58:00.005-04:00

This was the worst week since I started the Purple Lunchbox! First of all Im late doing this post… Why? Cause Im having Internet issues at home since the beginning of the week, and Im driving myself crazy! Second, because Gaby is hardly eating what Im sending her!… and third, because it got very difficult to take the photos; and on Thursday I couldn’t even pack her lunch!!! That is just A LOT of issues for one week! (Yeah, Yeah, I know it is not the end of the world, but bare with me here).

The main reason why Gaby stopped eating her lunch is because she just doesn’t want carrots or baby corn when her friends are having Cheetos and Oreos. Also, she prefers to eat the tummy filler (the wrap, sandwich or whatever carbs I sent that day), and then go and play. So, as I had spot the problem, I need to focus in a solution for next week.

PLAN:
The plan is to HIDE the veggies. I honestly wasn’t looking forward to do this, especially since she actually likes some veggies. But, if she doesn’t want to eat them in school because she is embarrassed (some kids actually make fun of her healthy lunch, and some even ask her: “Are you going to eat THAT? Why?”.

I know there are other solutions, but in the meantime, at least for a few weeks I will hide the veggies… I have no idea HOW I will do that, but I will do my homework (Thanks God for Google) and I will come up with a few things to do.

So, if you want to try something different this new week, why don’t we all try: “5 WAYS TO COVER UP: CARROTS”… I will try a different thing EACH day of the week with CARROTS.

Here are this week’s lunchboxes:
MONDAY: (No photo because the camera was a no show)
- Ham and cheese Sandwich
- Apple Wedges (a full apple)
- Cherrie Tomatoes
RESULTS: She ate the sandwich and some apple. Tomatoes came home untouched: She just wont eat them.

TUESDAY:
- Spinach Wrap with Ham and Cheese (2 pieces)
- Peach wedges
- Baby Corn
RESULTS: She eat one and half wrap and leave EVERYTHING else! The funny thing is that she loves those wraps so much that she always complains that I don’t send more… So, today, she didn’t even finish those. Peach and corn were untouched. She complained that the corn had no dipping and asked me to send them again tomorrow with dipping.

Today I also sent hubby some lunch:
- Rice
- Boiled Egg
- Cherrie Tomatoes
- 1 mozzarella stick (cut in 2)
- Pineapple slices
RESULTS: He didn’t got full and was starving 3 hours later! I don’t plan to send him more food than that, instead Im going to teach him to get full with that amount because it is just enough for him.

WEDNESDAY:
- Crackers sandwiches with a homemade dip made with Mayo
- 1 mozzarella stick (cut in 2)
- Apple Wedges (a full apple)
- Baby Corn with melted cheese
RESULTS: She ate the crackers, the cheese, but she barely touched the apple and didn’t even look at the baby corn. They were actually swimming in cheese as she asked yesterday, however she told me that she didn’t know what it was and that is why she didn’t eat it. Sigh! Still not sure why she haven’t been eating the apples because she LOVES apples.

THURSDAY: (No photo)
Today I couldn’t pack lunch for her (I will talk about what happened Wednesday night in detail in another post). Anyway, I didn’t give her money. Instead, hubby bought the things for her. He got her a Ham and cheese Sandwich with a biscuit (plus the juice).
RESULTS: She ate everything and actually told me that she prefers that, instead of the veggies and fruits… How motivating she is to me! NOT!

FRIDAY: (No photo)
- Baby Carrots with melted cheese
- Pineapple slices
- 1 mozzarella stick (cut in 2)
RESULTS: Today I decided not to send carbs to see what she was going to do, and she still didn’t eat right. Baby carrots were untouched, and she drank the juice out of the pineapples and didn’t actually eat them. The only thing she actually ate was the mozzarella stick.

If played along this week, share your link here:

Missing in action!

2009-09-03T19:55:00.000-04:00

My internet is out and I have hardly been able to get online since Tuesday... I have so much to post about, but I will catch up as soon as the Internet company decides that I deserve Internet again.... Sigh! :(

An afternoon with Dora and Mickey Mouse!

2009-08-29T23:30:00.002-04:00

This show was from the same people from Elmo from last week, and Dora from a few weeks ago. Sadly, tomorrow is their last show of the season, so we wont be able to see them as frequently. This one was in a crowded place, and we wouldnt have gone, except that Mickey was going to be there, and the girls were dying to see him. Mickey is one of Camila's favorite characters, so we needed to go. I left my purse at home, and hubby took one card plus a little bit of money on his pockets.. We couldnt risk to be mugged or something for that matter.. and off we went.

We didnt spend much time there mostly because the games and activities they were doing were more for bigger kids, which was their main public at the moment... But the most important thing is that they got to see them and that they had a great time while it lasted... Mimi had the chance to sit a bit with Mickey and she was sooo happy... We even got a group photo of the girls with Dora and Mickey, even though Mimi was crying (not sure why)...

Here are Mickey, Dora and the animators singing and dancing a song from Lazy Town.

Here is Mimi in her alone time with Mickey...

Here are the girls with Dora and Mickey...

After the show we went to get some Ice Cream that I promised to Mia for helping me fix the playroom. Also, that was the excuse to leave the show.. They got into a Tom thingy (Tom as the cat from Tom and Jerry):

And here is what is going through their mind while eating icre cream:
It was a fun day.. We mange to leave with no crying and all 3 very happy! After the Ice Cream, they were asking to come back to see Mickey and Dora, and I told them that the show was over.. They say that it was Ok... I guess my girls ARE growing!!

The Purple Lunchbox # 2

2009-08-28T07:17:00.005-04:00

Here it is our second Purple Lunchbox. This week had her ups and downs, but I just need to work out more creative ideas cause so far I havent been "decorating" it as I would like... Im sure that is a down point in Gaby's case. Im planning to buy sprinkles for decoration and maybe cholocate chips to make eyes and mouth, but havent been able to find them...

Anway, here it is what she got this week:

- Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich in whole wheat bread
- 10 Cherrie Tomatos
- 1 morazella cheese stick (cut in 2)
- Dip with light mayo (made with oregano, light pepper, and a pinch of garlic..)... Gaby's favorite
- 1 Banana
Results: The cherrie tomatoes came home intact... I find out later on that a kid was making comments about Gaby eating tomatoes.. Who knows is that has some inflence on her.
Comments: Took me around 10 minutes to get it ready. The dip is one of Gaby's favorite which is why I send it with the cherrie tomatoes as she had never had cherrie tomatoes before.. It didnt work. I need to find another way to get her to eat them...

- 2 spinach wraps with ham and cheese
- Apple wedges (half of an apple in total)
- 8 baby carrots
- Strawberry with skim cheese dipping
Results: She ate all the carrots except for 2.
Comments: Took me around 15 minutes to prepare.. I always boil the carrots at least 5 minutes.

- 7 pieces of grilled chicken nuggets.. Each piece spelling: Gaby I(love)U - The "love" was a heart
- A pack of wholemeal crackers
- 1 morazella cheese stick (cut in 2)
- Pink dip (catchup and light mayo)
Results: She ate everything.
Comments: I put the nuggets together the night before, and grilled them in the morning. Too me around 15-20 mins the night before plus another 15-20 to get it ready in the morning. Hubby helped with the grill, however the poor letter G became a C... Oh well.

- 2 cheese quesadillas
- 8 baby carrots
- Pineapple rings
- Cheese dipping
Time to prepare:
Results: She ate everything except for the carrots.. The pineapple juice got the carrots get and she said she didnt like it like that..
Comments: Those pineapple ring was from a can. I normally dont buy fruit in cans, however my mother in law gave us around 5 cans and we havent use them. So, I decided to give them a try with Gaby.. She loved them! Took me around 15 minutes to get the lunchbox together.

- Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich in white bread
- 2 Ham and cheese roll ups
- Around 8 strawberries (cant remember how many) with a bit of vanilla frosting
Results: Will edit when she gets back from school.
Comments: I actually put this together the night before and put everything inside the lunchbox (including the juice) inside the fridge.. This is way she is free of veggies... She has her first quiz today, and I wanted to focus on that in the morning, and not on the lunch.

BONUS:
Since the other day I was planning to start doing a Tin Meal... Im not sure if I will participate in that meme, however I wanted to post it as I know some people has comment about how to do it if the kids are home.

This is what I did for Mia and Mimi. I used a 12 cupcake pan, and each one got 6 different things... I wish I had two cupcake pans, but I dont (gotta go out and get some different options).. Anyway, this can be done in this cupcake pan, or in anything else that comes to your mind.. It can even be packed just like I would pack it to send it to school... Your call.

As the idea of the lunch is that is has to be fun, I decided to play a little game with them to get them to motivate them to eat everything. I got some Little People toys and each one was going to get to put the Little People inside each empty hole as they were emptying them... I was sooo fun. The bonus was a Little People horse (instead of a person) for whoever would eat the carrots.. It was motivating at first, but they really just used the carrots to eat the dipping by itself...

Here is how it looked when I put it together!! It is soo colorful.. They were thrilled!!

And here is AFTER they finished eating: (By the way, the chubby blond people that is where the dipping was, it is one of my OWN Little People when I was their age).

This is what you see:
- Honey Bunches of Oats cereal (one for each)
- Apple wegdes (for each)
- 4 little ham rolls (for each)
- Prunes (for each)
- Chocolate milk (for each)
- Baby carrots and cheese dipping (same for both)

They ate everything very equally, however, Mimi ate more ham than Mia; and Mia ate more Honey Bunches of Oats than Mimi. Also, the only one that took bites of the carrots was Mia.. Mimi used the same carrot over and over again to eat cheese dipping (Mia was doing it too)...

So, were you able to take photos during the week?? Do you mind sharing them with us?? Just make a post about it today (dont forget to add our buttom with your post)... And of course, if you forgot to take photos, a description of what you sent is welcome to! Dont forget that you can participate even if your kids are home and dont go to school. Looking forward to read your comments (cause you were not thinking about posting the link and not posting a comment, right? wink wink)

Post your links here:

Back to School Night

2009-08-27T23:35:00.000-04:00

Last night was Back to School night for the parents at Gaby's school... My mom kept the girls, as no kid is allow to go (kids always go, but I prefer to be stress free to be able to focus)... It was a great meeting, and Im pleased with everything I heard.

This school year truly promise to be an AWESOME year for Gaby and us... Tomorrow is Gaby's first quiz ever... Im honestly nervous, because Im not ready to move on from the "comments and check marks from Kinder to having GRADES.. That is something HUGE for me, and I still havent been able to figure out a reward system for her report card (the first one will be Sept. 16th.. Just around the corner).

Wordless Wednesday #4 - Mia combing Mimi's Hair: Priceless

2009-08-26T00:01:00.002-04:00

For more Wordless Wednesday go here and 5 Minutes for Mom.

A day as a SAHM!

2009-08-25T22:42:00.004-04:00

Im suppose to be a WAHM (Work at home mom), but there are days, like today, when I cant work and those are the days that I become a SAHM (Stay at home mom)...

A lot of people wonder how is it that I can work at home, take care of the girls (which also means spend time with them, play with them, read to them, etc), do my part of the chores, cook, help Gaby with her homework, and still have time to spend with hubby everyday...

Well, my secret is LACK OF ELECTRICITY! Yes, that is... If there is a reader from this country, they know what Im talking about... For those of you living outside of the "jungle" and have no idea what Im talking about here is what happens: There is a deficiency in the electric area, and mostly everyday I spend at least 10 minutes without electricity.. That is on the good days of course... There are days like today, when they decided to make a maintenance on the electric lines, that we spent 8 hours WITHOUT electricity!! Yes, that is right, EIGHT!!

Everyday, I know the electricity will go out at some point and I try to work while there is electricity.. As I never know how long it would be, I cant even take a nap, because what about if I nap while there is electricity, and just at the second I decide to start working, the electricity goes off for several hours??

So, that is my secret... At the second the electricity goes off, I run to do the chores.. I do this, here and there... Im grateful that I dont live in a hot house... The windows are open, and the girls can play without complaining for the lack of the fan. I do hate to cook without electricity, but I open the kitchen door and windows, and it is totally Ok... There are days where Im blessed with electricity the whole day, and I get to make my chores with electricity, but normally those days I try to work more on my business and less in the house...

I also try to do stuff with the girls everyday, even though I confess I hardly take them to the backyard... But, in days like today I spend MORE time with them than usual.. Of course, we LOVE it. Today I even did something for them that I have been wanting to do since the other day: A tin meal (I will talk more about it on Friday.. On the next Purple Lunchbox).

We got to play more than usual and we talk a lot.. Today I realized how much urge of learning how to read Camila has... Probably she is going to be like me.. I adores books since I was a little girl... Since I learned how to read and until I was around 12 or so, I used to hide a little lamp inside of my bedroom.. My mom will send me to bed and minutes later, I used to turn on the lamp under my sheets and READ and READ and READ for hours and hours... Needles to say, 3 or so years after I started doing that, I was precribed with GLASSES... It was because of the poor lighting. As an adult, my mom confessed that she knew about it, but how do you tell a child not to love reading!!

At one point I was trying to get a cute photo of Mimi with her cloth diapers but she couldnt stay still in the position that I wanted her to be...
Another thing that I did was more chores than what I get to do in a regular day, so GO ME! :) It was a fun way to show that you dont need electricity to have fun, which is why I wanted to post about this: To remember it!!!

Fluff Talk Thursday#1 = 10 reasons why I use cloth diapers

2009-08-24T09:26:00.000-04:00

Yes, Im aware is Monday... But better late than ever. Beth at Happily Domestic is having a weekly meme about cloth diapers. I get cloth diapering questions all the time from my family and friends, so even though Im not a expert this could probably enlight somebody out there.

This week's question is WHY CLOTH? And I decided to go ahead and write a TOP 10 of why I prefer cloth diapering versus disposables:
1 - Because it makes my family to save money
2 - Because there are no piles of dirty diapers to throw out, with a terrible smell (a cute wetbag solves that... and when have you seen a disposable diaper thrown in a fancy wetbag like this one?)
3 - Because my daughter's bum stays chemicals free (free of sodium polyacrylate, dioxin, and tributyl-tin to be exact.. I so dont want to see those nasty crystals and gel in my daugther's bum).
4 - Because Im not throwing away my money (which is what you do with disposables every 4 hours)
5 - Because it is better for the enviroment (disposables take from 250 to 500 YEARS to decompose.. OUCH!)
6 - You can help somebody after you are done, either selling them at a very low price, or just giving them away and making somebody's day.
7 - Because they are SOO EASY to use
8 - Because you will never leave the baby a little bit more on the diaper because you just put the diaper a few minutes ago... It hurts to throw a disposable away, but it doesnt hurt to reach another cloth diaper.
9 - Because baby likes better to feel something made of cloth than something made of paper... That is not rocket science... Even gives more cushion when they baby falls.. The only way to get that cushion with diapers is having it FULL of pee.
10 - Because they are TOO CUTE to resist!!!!!!!!!!!

An afternoon with Elmo!

2009-08-23T23:30:00.001-04:00

There was another show from the same people that presented Dora a couple of weeks ago... They had animators from their company plus ELMO!!! The girls were thrilled.. All three of them!!! I even invited a friend that has a little girl that is around 15 months old.

We had an awesome time, even though Mia and Mimi were a bit shy, but they sure loved Elmo... They wanted to participate when they didnt want to be by themselves.... Here is hubby dancing with them:

Choo-Choo!

Mimi was sooo happy when he came out:

There were a few contests:

Mia even won one:

A group photo:

Elmo and Mimi.... Now, all they talk about is that he held Mimi..

The girls, Elmo and I (you cant really see Mia cause hubby was too scared Elmo was going to drop Mimi that he didnt even realized that I Mia was behind my head

Mimi got a Cars poster... She didnt want to let go for a while... She was holding it like it was gold:

With my friend Elvira and her daughter...

Mimi having a blast with a balloon:

Gaby and Mia showing off their painted face:

I got a a video of the girls during one of the contests, but You Tube is giving me a hard time to upload it!!! :(

After the show we went to my dad's house... Im very happy to announce that the girls left the show WITHOUT throwing any tantrum... Way to go girls!

Big Milestone day for Mimi (and mommy too, of course)

2009-08-22T22:10:00.002-04:00

I have talked about this milestones over and over again, and even though I knew the day was going to come (sooner or later), I was still thinking it was going to be a bit more...

Can you tell what is this???

This is Mimi's crib, in pieces already, waiting for my little brother to pick it up for his son. This crib has been part of my life since before Gaby was born, and have been "there" through all my three girls... Words cant express how much I LOVED that crib.. It has 3 side drawers and 2 big bottom drawers, and it was just perfect for us... That crib was even shipped to us when we moved to this country (yes, that is how much I loved it)....

Of all my three daughters Mimi has been the one that spent the most time sleeping on the crib... Gaby was about of the crib by 20 months or so (and it wasnt before Mia was born, because Mia was born several months after that... Then, Mia was out of her crib before she turned 18 months old just because she refused to get in the crib anymore... Mimi was already born, but she was happily sleeping in a craddle that my aunt let us borrow.

Mimi was "happily" sleeping in her crib... I mean, she was spending the whole night there, however, she would complain about her sisters sleeping in their beds (actually one bed, because they like to sleep together in the same twin bed and leave the other one empty), which is why I offered the crib to my brother.

The only thing babyish that we still use are diapers, and I confess I havent put any effort into it, even though she has been showing signs since forever... As I use cloth diapers, Im not really desperate to stop saving money, which is what forces some people to potty train their child too fast... I may wait for her to tell me that she doesnt want any more diapers, (that is what Gaby did at 2 and half years old)... Maybe if by the time she is 2 and half and she havent potty train herself, I will just start working that out (but as you guys know, nothing can be predicted with kids, so it will happen, when it has to happen... No rush on my part)....

There are a few other babyish stuff, that even though we dont use them, they are still here (and driving me crazy)... Hubby already started putting aside the toys that are for babies so we can give most of them to my nephew, but I plan to join him during the week, so we can finish it by next weekend.

They went to bed at their bedtime, and after 5 minutes of low voice talking, they felt asleep. It was so funny when I was explaining to Mimi that she was not going to sleep in her crib anymore. She said: "Yes, because daddy broke it". Hubby also told her to hug it and say good bye.

In the photo, Mimi is having a very messy lunch (which is not normal in her, but I was letting her to have fun with her lunch (yes, I confess, Im sick and I dont want to deal with it.. LOL).

The Purple Lunchbox # 1

2009-08-21T05:21:00.006-04:00

Welcome to our very first The Purple Lunchbox! If this is your first time in this blog, you may want to read the Introduction and/our FAQ.

As Gaby doesnt actully eat breaskfast, I was trying to come up with something with more calories for her morning milk... So, this week I have been giving her chocolate milk with oatmeal.. This weekend I have to go again food shopping, and I will start making her different kinds of smoothies... Fruity smoothies that is. I will also try to wake her up at least 20 minutes earlier (even if that means putting her bedtime earlier) so she can eat something.. She is up everyday by 6:10am, because hubby and her needs to be out of the door by 6:40am at the lastest (and yes, if you are wondering, I actually bather her at that time.. Believe it or not it is already HOT at that time). So, I will try to move her bedtime to 7:40pm... We'll see how that works...

Anyway, here is what I came up with week... I will try to add more variety next week...

Tuesday Lunchbox
- 4 ham with olives rolled up
- 1 Mozarella and cheddar stick
- 1 heart and 1 Flower of Mozarella cheese (that was done with the knife.. Gotta buy some cookie cutters
- 10 baby carrots
- Strawberry with skim cheese dipping
- A banana
Results: She ate everything except for 5 or so carrots..

Wednesday Lunchbox:
- Grissini bread
- Ham and cheese sauce
- 10 grapes
- 10 baby corns
- 1 laughing cow triangle
Results: I got an empty lunchbox when she got home!

Thursday Lunchbox:
- 2 spinach wraps with cheese and butter (you cant see the second one as it is under the other)
- 10 baby carrots
- Cheese dipping
- A few dried prunes
- Apple wedges (as much as it fit in the little container.. It was almost a whole one)
Results: Baby carrots came back home.... She also told me that she share the prunes with a friend.

Friday Lunchbox:
- 2 spinach wrappers with light butter, cheese and ham with olives (again, you cant see the second one as it is under the other.. She actually begged for that this morning)
- 10 baby corn
- Strawberry with skim cheese dipping
- 2 Mozarella and cheddar stick (each one cut in half)
Results: She ate mostly everything... Then she got home to ask for ANOTHER wrap!

I think it was a great week overall. I also plan to do some baking this weekend.. We will sew how that goes.

So, were you able to take photos during the week?? Do you mind sharing them with us?? So, just make a post about it today (dont forget to add our buttom with your post)... And of course, if you forgot to take photos, a description of what you sent is welcome to! Dont forget that you can participate even if your kids are home and dont go to school. Looking forward to read your comments (cause you were not thinking about posting the link and not posting a comment, right? wink wink)

To add the button to your post just copy and paste this code.. It will add it in the left, but you can change it to the right or center if you please, of course.

Post your links here:

Our week so far...

2009-08-20T21:51:00.002-04:00

Things have been going great... Gaby has been following instructions and behaving really good at school, and that cant make me happier... As I mentioned earlier this week, I have been implementing a reward system, and it is working great...

Mia and Mimi are spending the days with me at home, and it is funny how easy it is to take care of two kids when you are used to take care of three... Mia has been actually taking naps (she NEVER EVER naps unless Gaby does).... Mia is also behaving way better at home, and I assume it is because she feels like she is the BIG SISTER while Gaby is not her.. She gets upset with Mimi when she does things she is not suppose to do, and she doesnt do them herself...

Anyway, here is a pic of my two early birds having their morning milk while I was taking the photo of Gaby's lunch (that is actually an apple wedge in Mimi's hand). Who would think it is 6:50am?

Wordless Wednesday #3 - A day from last school year: Mia on the car

2009-08-19T14:56:00.000-04:00

See more photos at Wordless Wednesday and 5 Minutes for Mom.

First day of First Grade

2009-08-18T19:18:00.002-04:00

Today was the day Gaby started First Grade.... What a huge milestone!!

She was really happy to get ready for school, and was happy to get there... How thrilled she was when she saw her teachers that she already knows and love.. Her main teacher was the one we went on vacations with (remember?) and the teacher's aide was one of the ladies that we went to the beach one day (remember? If you click to see her she is the one that is playing with Gaby in the sand almost all the way down). She was also very happy to her friends from last year. When I picked her up she was telling me all about her old friends and new friends, and what she did during the day.. It was early dismissal at 12, but tomorrow they start full force.

Today I started the first day of the Purple Lunchbox and it went great... Of course, I will post more of that on Friday.

I was told it was a very uneventful day, and I honestly hopes it stays that way... Gaby will be rewarded for good behavior and extra good behavior... She also will be rewarded for taking care of her scrunchies (last year I had to use a new one EACH day, cause they will get lost everyday... LOL)... So, I hope for this year to be able to actually REUSE them!

Im honestly amazed on how big she looks on the photo... There is something about the lenght of her hair and the fact that she is using a size 8 shirt (she would have fit in a 6, but the smallest is size 8), that makes her look older... She also is not allowed to use bermudas or shots like in preschool, so the long pants may contribute to her looking older (and of course, the actual fact that she IS bigger)...

The Purple Lunchbox FAQ

2009-08-17T10:47:00.004-04:00

I wasnt planning on posting againg about the Purple Lunchbox until next Friday, however two people emailed me asking me more about it to be able to actually participate this first Friday, so I decided to write a little bit more about it...

What is the Purple Lunchbox? It was born with the idea of keep me motivated to keep up with the HEALTHY and FUN idea of her brunch. Little details to make it more fun and appealing for my daughter Gaby. Each Friday, I will post pictures from what I sent to school for her to eat, and a brief description of what it is. In my case, it will be Brunch, but in your case can be breakfast, snack or lunch (whatever is that you send your child in his/her lunchbox to school.

Why is called the Purple Lunchbox? Simply because my daughter's favorite color is purple. Her lunchbox is purple, with pink and lilac dots everywhere.

How can I participate? If you want to play along, you will have to take pictures of your child's snack/brunch/lunch as many days as you can, and post it in your blog with the logo on the Purple Lunchbox (I will add the code at the end of this post)... Then, you will come back to my blog and post the link to your blog (I will have a Mr. Linky to make it easier) so I can go and check it out (along with all the others that participate if they want to)...

Any suggestions for what to pack? I will be also learning as we go, but the idea is to send a balance of carbs, protein, fruits and veggies... Something like this:
In my case, I may send more fruit and less veggies, but I will try to send more veggies and less fruits as the time goes...

Any "green" ideas to complement the idea? Yes, as Im living greener everyday, I will pack a cloth napkin, and the water or juice that I send will be in a reusable bottle. Also, I will try to send mostly homemade foods...

Why am I doing this? Because I think this is a great way to motivate us, as mothers (and dads), to send healthier food to preschool/school, and also to add a little bit of FUN to it.

Do I need to have a blog to participate? Certainly not. However, you will need to upload your photos "somewhere" so we can see them... I highly recommend using Flickr for that.

What if my child still doesnt go to preschool or if the preschool provides lunch, but I still want to participate? You can still participate... If your child is home with you, you can do this idea for the snak/brunch that you will make for him/her. You can even buy a lunchbox to make it more fun. Im sure that your chilld will LOVE that (especially if you actually homeschool). If in your case, the preschool provides the food, you can do this for the afternoon snack, or in the weekends.

So, if you want to participate this week, start taking photos so you can post them all on Friday. Gaby starts First Grade tomorrow and I cant wait to start!

To grab the blinkie just paste this code into your post and/or the sidebar of your blog.

An afternoon wtih Dora the Explorer

2009-08-15T23:49:00.000-04:00

I became a fan in Facebook of a local Party Events Company and find out about some activities that they are going to do soon.. One of those activities was Story Time with Dora The Explorer and off we go.

We went to pick up my dad's camera and it looks like it was because it was very low on batteries but all the photos came out BLURRY!!! That is very sad, but it is better than no photos, right?

Besides Dora the Explorer, they also had Ernie from Keebler cookies and "Chelin" (that means like an small penny) who is the mascot of one local bank.

All the girls (me included) with Dora the Explorer:

Daddy and the little flowers with Ernie from Keebler cookies:

Sitting on the floor listening to the activities... Right on the left, there is Mimi sitting on top of hubby and moving a bit to the right there is Gaby and then Camila:

During Story Time... Gaby was sitting right next to the guy reading:

The girls had a blast, and even though there was some crying at the time to leave, I know they were happy to be there..

After we left, we stop by my dad's house and spend a bit of time there... Then, we went shopping for Gaby's lunchbox...

Introducing The Purple Lunchbox!

2009-08-14T08:20:00.004-04:00

A week ago I was chatting with my friend Erica about some cool ideas to pack for lunch for school. What to pack for school has always been a challenge for me and Im always trying to come up with ideas for this.

Gaby will be going to first grade starting on next Tuesday, so it's time to think about packing her lunchbox again. Let's face it: Gaby doesnt eat breakfast... She will drink a glass of strawberry or chocolate milk, but it is not easy to get her to actually eat something. I despite morning fights and stress, so I try to play along for a hasslefree time while getting her ready for school.

The idea is that Gaby gets her glass of milk at 7:00am in the morning, then has snack time in school at midmorning, and then she comes home for a heavy lunch at 2:30pm. This means that what I need to pack for school is going to be BRUNCH (late breakfast)... I want to keep it as fun as possible so she could actually EAT it everyday!

The Purple Lunchbox was born with the idea of keep me motivated to keep up with the FUN idea of her brunch. Little details to make it more fun and appealing for her.

Why PURPLE? Because purple is her FAVORITE color, and even though I havent got her lunchbox yet (shame on me, I know), Im sure it will be purple (or have purple somewhere)....

Stay tuned for "The Purple Lunchbox" posts every Friday! I will try to take a photo of her lunch everyday to post them of Fridays with a short description of each lunch. I will have a Mr. Linky up so you can post your link if you decide to join the fun and post your lunch ideas in your blog too...

When a pet dies...

2009-08-13T09:03:00.000-04:00

This is so beautiful that I couldnt help to make a whole post for this... Warning: Yoy may cry reading this.

Our 14 year old dog, Abbey, died last month. The day after she died, my 4 year old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could so she dictated these words:

Dear God,
Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much. I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick.

I hope you will play with her. She likes to play with balls and to swim. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her You will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.

Love, Meredith

We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.

Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, 'To Meredith' in an unfamiliar handwriting. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers called, 'When a Pet Dies.' Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:

Dear Meredith,
Abbey arrived safely in heaven. Having the picture was a big help. I recognized Abbey right away.

Abbey isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets to keep your picture in, so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by..

Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you.

I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much.
By the way, I'm easy to find, I am wherever there is love.

Love, God
* * *
This is one of the kindest things you may ever see. It is not known who replied, but there is a beautiful soul working in the dead letter's office of the US postal service.

Wordless Wednesday #2 - Feeding the doll with Sassy's food

2009-08-12T11:58:00.002-04:00

See more photos at Wordless Wednesday and 5 Minutes for Mom.

Catching up with my blog rollcall

2009-08-11T11:56:00.001-04:00

For the weeks that I was behind with my blog posting, I was also behind with my blog reading.... I have been catching up but it is not easy... You guys know how much I love writing comments, so if you miss me, dont worry... I will be by your blog VERY SOON!! :)

Low key weekend

2009-08-09T23:03:00.000-04:00

This weekend was very low key... We spent most of the time at home, mostly because I had a ridiculously amount of work to do and I needed to get tons of things done. I also decided to create a group in Facebook for my shop and I added all the cards that I have in my blog, in my new group... Stop by and become a fan. It was fun!

Hubby and I also had tons of quality time which is always great.. We went food shopping with my mom and also went to visit my dad, and spent some time with my nephew and his mom there...

Now is time to hit the bed! Tomorrow I need to shop for Gaby's backpack which is the only thing that I plan to buy online (well.. I probably also buy the lunchbox and some bentos).... I may look for some pants too... We'll see.

A first Grader???

2009-08-07T14:03:00.001-04:00

Im still in disbelief that Gaby will be a first grader in less than 2 weeks... School starts on August 18th and it gets so weird to think about Gaby getting "grades" and maybe even "Notice of concern" or "detention".... She will also get several homeworks each day, instead of one homework 2 times a week when she was in K.

She is going to be in the building where the big kids are, and she is going to be the youngest of the WHOLE school... Last year she was the youngest of her classmates, but there were a bunch of kids from grades Nursery, Toddler and Pre-K that were younger than her... This year she is going to be the youngest of over 300 kids!! (In case you are wondering why she is the youngest, it is because all her classmates are already 6 or turning 6 this month or in September... She turns 6 on October 5th, which makes her the youngest).

Im very happy with her new teacher. Her new teacher is somebody Gaby loves and that loves Gaby, and also the teacher's aide. Im sure that will make the adaptation process just easier, because she still wonders why her teacher from last year wont be her teacher anymore... Her new teacher is the one that we went with to our first family vacation back in April.

Wordless Wednesday #1 - Lollypop Madness

2009-08-05T23:37:00.001-04:00

Ok.. This one wont be so wordless cause it is the first one, and I need to explain what is this all about. The idea is that every Wednesday I will post a photo without words... While I get my new camera, I may use old photos, but I will put new photos here and there when I have my dad's camera at hand.

See more photos at Wordless Wednesday and 5 Minutes for Mom.

Sun and sand!

2009-08-03T08:48:00.002-04:00

Since a few weeks ago, I started a Facebook Event inviting my high school friends for a day at the beach. Off we went this morning and how fun it was!!! I still have my new round of tonsilitis, so I couldnt get in the water, but that didnt keep me from having a great time.. My brother Manuel (aKa Tite) went with us and the girls were very happy!!

Gaby playing with my cousin Alina (she is my cousin, but also graduated with me)

Hubby and the girls:

My friend Laura and I:

Hubby and I:

With my brother Tite:

The girls having fun:

Some of us:

Ready to go:

Uneventful week

2009-08-01T21:58:00.001-04:00

Nothing much happened this week... Hubby has been going to school, I have been working a lot, the girls have been having tons of fun at home, and hubby and I have been watching movies every night..

The camera wasnt here, so there is not even photos from this week!! We are getting ready for a beach day with my high school friends tomorrow!

Updating a few posts....

2009-07-24T16:16:00.005-04:00

I took some photos with a friend's camera, and now it is when I was able to get the photos... Please, dont forget to stop by these three posts that I just updated with photos:

- Local's Mother's Day : About what we did on our local Mother's Day

- Six stitches later... YES, SIX!! : About the day that Mimi hit her forehead against the rails of an sliding door and ended up with six stitches.

- Having some night fun : About a night out that hubby and I had.

Sassy's 1st Playdate

2009-07-23T16:01:00.002-04:00

Today Sassy had her first playdate ever!! One of hubby's co-workers needed a babysitter for her dog (not really her dog, but that is a long story).. Anyway, we agreed and the girls couldnt be happier... They were expecting him since 2 days ago when we first mention it and it is like a dream come true (especially for Gaby)... Gaby has always dreamed about a quiet dog that will calmy sit right next to her... This is the first dog that actually sits right next to her ans STAYS there!!

His name is Miky (as in Mickey), and he is a Lhasa Apso. It bring me back a lot of memories to have a Lhasa Apso at home.. Back in March, I posted about two dogs of that breed that I had while growing up (there is even a photo of them). I still think about them a lot, and Miky was a lot like them.. As I still havent been able to buy a camera since the last time it got stolen, and my dad's camera wasnt here (we have been using it from time to time), I couldnt take photos (Sassy's photo on the right is actually from 2 days ago with my dad's camera)... It was sad not to take photos cause the chemistry between Sassy and Miky was amazing!! They were kissing each other (yes, ACTUALLY kissing), and playing non-stop. I dont think Miky has ever played that much in his life, but he was able to handle it longer than Sassy (There was a point that Sassy wanted to rest, but Miky wanted to keep playing.. so cute)...

The girls are wondering when he is going to come back, and Im not sure it will happen... It honestly wasnt easy to take care of 2 dogs and 3 kids all by myself... I was exhausted by the time hubby got home!! It was worth it, though, cause the girls REALLY enjoyed having him home!

Introducing: Feels like recovering the old me!

2009-07-22T16:02:00.004-04:00

Even though I have been keeping up with my new health blog for a few weeks already, I havent properly introduce it... It is called: Feels like recovering the old me!

My first post starts like this: I have been overweight for almost 6 years, and this still doesnt feel like me. My weight gain story started when I got pregnant with my first daughter. Due to liquid retantion I manage to gain 60 pounds during my first pregnancy. I was NEVER able to loose that weight... Two pregnancies later and 2 years after my last pregnancy, Im still in the same position that I was when I gave birth to my first daughter.

As Im a petite person (5'2 3/4... almost 5'3, but not really) and being at the weight I am now is A LOT. For several years I have tried to loose weight with doctors, diets, and exersise, but nothing happens... I have lost 5-10 pounds and gain them again, but nothing REALLY happens...

On this blog I plan to talk about my ups and downs on my weight loss journey, as well as some of the health issues I have been discovering along the way and how Im dealing with them... There will also be some tips of how I have been losing weight, in case I can help one of my readers.

This blog is private, so if you want access to my blog, you can fill out a contact form on my site (this way your email will only be seen by me), or even just leave a comment here...

A very girly afternoon

2009-07-21T15:58:00.003-04:00

I decided to take an afternoon off and play something with the girls... Mimi felt asleep so I decided to do something that normally cant be done with Mimi around...

We decided to play MAKEUP!! We have played Makeup with Mimi, but it does gets too messy, especially since she starts taking everything away from the other girls, and they crying and fighthing gets too much..

I got out a few bracelets (those are actually mine), girls makeup, purple nail polisher, a comb, some strawberry shortake scrunchies, and even a body splash (that was mine too)! We laugh and talk for at least a couple of hours...

More BLOOD on Mimi's face!

2009-07-20T15:58:00.003-04:00

Seriously.. This is the THIRD TIME in less than 2 months!!! Yesterday, we stopped at my dad's house after the Dog's Show and Mimi felt against a coffee table (not a corner, just the coffee table per se). It was very small and KNEW how it was going to look in the morning:

This is just sad, and I just wonder WHEN they will stop falling this much?!?!?

Steph's 6th Birthday Party

2009-07-19T15:56:00.002-04:00

Gaby got invited to her friend Steph birthday party... I have know Steph's mom for over 13-14 years... It was a coincidence to bump into her at this school and it was very nice to have a familiar face around when I started working at this school..

Today was her daughter's 6th birthday... It was a Tinkerbell Pool Party and they celebrate it in the school.. They all had a blast... Gaby was the only invited, so I went with Gaby, while hubby stayed home taking care of Mia and Mimi. My tonsilitis is still on fire, but it felt very nice to have some friends to talk to while Gaby was having so much fun! Last year I made her birthday's invitation.. The theme was Care Bears.

The Dog's Show - LIVE!

2009-07-18T15:56:00.003-04:00

One of Gaby's rewards for saying the line she was suppose to say at her graduation performance was to take her to a Dog's Show that was coming to town called: Dogs: The show of the incredible dogs.

She patiently waited for this day, and she couldnt believe it was today... As I have tonsilitis, it was impossible for me to go, so hubby took her and Mia to the show.. When we went to get the tickets, they told us about a new time that they opened up and we got for that time... Hubby told me how empty it was, so even though they were not in first row, it felt like it!

I got a bit sad that Mimi didnt got to enjoy it, but as we thought it was going to be very crowded, we decided it was going to be very difficult for hubby to deal with the three of them by himself..

Our new pet...

2009-07-12T15:42:00.001-04:00

My mom spent the weekend at one of my aunt's beach house and she bring along a gift for the girls:

Yes, you are looking at Tiburcio... We will be taking him back to the beach when we go... In the meantime, the girls have a new pet to love!

Blooming Buds

And now.... Gaby!

What about Camila?

What's Mimi up to?

First post of 2011... Major updates!

What's going on?

Rest in Peace Mrs. Jenny (1954-2010)

New ddition to our family PLUS Updates

First week out of school PLUS updates!

I'm back - Quick update from us!

Im alive...

Task #14: Checked! - Eyeglasses for me!

The 3 Wise Kings 2010

Starting the year: ER trip!

Good Bye 2009

Santa came to town!

Merry Christmas from us to you!!

Visiting my grandma

The 3 Wise Kings and the BIrth of Jesus - A Play

Gaby's Christmas Play at School

Task #49: Checked! - New do for me!

Photo Shoot at home!

Just a day at home

Task #18: Checked! - New place

Better than I thought

Task #79: Checked! - New home for Sassy

I've been bad!!

Task #50: Checked! - New shoes

Mismatch Day

Purple Lunchbox Notice...

Task #88: Checked! - Extra income

The Powerpuff Girls

The Purple Lunchbox # 11

An afternoon outside

The Purple Lunchbox # 10 - Favorite Lunches

Sick buds... (Updated)

The Child of the Year Contest at 3 Little Flowers

Third time auntie!

Another party for Gaby!

The Purple Lunchbox # 9

Gaby's birthday's mini party - Part II *** UPDATED ***

Task #85: Checked!

Gaby's birthday's mini party

The Purple Lunchbox # 8 - Times Three! *** UPDATED

Wordless Wednesday #8 - A mother's job

Mia and Mimi's new adventures...

Happy 6th birthday to Gabriela Michele!

Birthday celebration continued at home...

Birthday celebration started at the zoo

Gaby's new do!

The Purple Lunchbox # 7 - Carrot Cupcake Recipe

A decision has been made and big changes are on the way!!

Wordless Wednesday #7 - Almost 6 years ago

I have big girls...

Daddy's shirt

101 tasks to complete in 1001 days! - Task #1: Checked!

The Purple Lunchbox # 6

Day off = Family Day...

Wordless Wednesday #6 - From dress to shirt, from one sister to the other

Putting a face to the screen name...

Happy 3rd Birthday to Ariel and Marcos!!

Our weekend...

The Purple Lunchbox # 5

Missing out the Fluff Talk Thursday!

Wordless Wednesday #5 - My very own Uniqua and Tasha

Last Monday....

The Purple Lunchbox #4

Mario's 6th Birthday Party

The Purple Lunchbox # 3

Missing in action!

An afternoon with Dora and Mickey Mouse!

The Purple Lunchbox # 2

Back to School Night

Wordless Wednesday #4 - Mia combing Mimi's Hair: Priceless

A day as a SAHM!

Fluff Talk Thursday#1 = 10 reasons why I use cloth diapers

An afternoon with Elmo!

Big Milestone day for Mimi (and mommy too, of course)

The Purple Lunchbox # 1

Our week so far...

Gaby's birthday's mini party - Part II * UPDATED *