Birthday Fun...

This past week has just flown by, as most weeks do :-) We had a nice low key weekend..it was rainy all weekend so it was a good time to snuggle on the couch, make bows and just enjoy each other....Sat night we went to church which we all enjoyed and Sunday was another low key day...we did go out eat in for Dan's cousins 12th bday..we went to a japenese buffet which was CRAZY busy but it went smoothly...Dan and I aren't fans of buffets so we tried to eat "safe" foods and luckily no one got sick...on the way there tornado sirens were going off around the suburbs, but luckily everything just passed on through..Our week has started off nice and slow but the rest of the week is going to be busy..tonight we have Awanas and small group..Nina had picture day at school today...tomorrow I have errands to do while Sophia goes out with her aunt for a little bit and then I am going to pick up Nina from school and take her out for ice cream and to the dollar store so she can pick something out for her sister..THEN...we have to go to literacy night and PTA meeting at 4:30...Its going to be a very busy day...Fri Dan has dentist, we have playdate, he is going to be mystery reader at school and at 6pm we are having a little bday celebration for Sophia at our house...Sat. Dan has mens breakfast at church, we are going to the zoo and then church in the evening....After these next few days I am going to be ready to just relax and not have anything on the schedule!! Next week our schedule is pretty open at this point so that will be nice...Today Sophia got a bday package from Dodo and Papa Bob and she was very excited...she hasn't stopped playing with her stuff since we opened it..there was also some stuff for Nina ( and mommy and daddy too) and I know Nina is just going to be so excited when she gets home!

Picnic time on Saturday...

Rare Photo of mommy :-)...

Nina doing art....

She loves her art time!

Sophia with her new doll..

"Look at that box mommy "!

Cozy minnie slippers

Happy to be off school...

Homemade cream of potato broccoli soup..it was soooo yummy..

Its only 12pm!

Today has felt like a good productive day so far and its only 12pm! I love days like that...I woke up at 6:15...showered and read my devotions and bible..I love starting my day that way but many times its so hard to get up in the morning..I helped get Nina off to school and then I watched 19 kids and counting..I love the Duggars, I can't imagine having 19 kids but I love their devotion and love for God...I had some bananas I needed to use up so I decided to make banana nut bread...by 8:30am I had the bread in the oven, smelling delicious and helping to heat the house on this chilly fall morning..I added bananas to the top and a tad bit of sugar..We saw on this on Americas Test Kitchen and wanted to try it out....An hour later and after some cooling time, my bread came out delicious...Sophia got up about 9 today which is rare, but nice..I felt like since I had gotten up so early, I had some time to myself before I really had to start my day with her...she spent the morning playing, coloring and watching her fav. shows....She has been one hungry little girl this morn...she has eaten 2 dora yogurts, banana, fruit snacks, pretzels, lunchable and now apples! Breakfast and lunch just blended together for her today! :-) I washed up the morning dishes, got dinner going in the crockpot which is salsa verde chicken...we will have tacos tonight.....and I dusted the living room..its amazing how quickly it gets dusty! I also got my laundry done, bills paid and a few other misc tasks..I love feeling so productive by 12pm :-)  We didn't go on our walk today but I am hoping to squeeze one in tomorrow morning...Roxanne is on vacation and its always so boring to walk alone....Hoping the rest of the day is as productive as the morning has been :-)

Ready to Bake...

The finished product!!

Watching Strawberry Shortcake....

Happy Monday....

Today was a busy day that flew by ! We had a good weekend and I was thankful for  the little things...Saturday night we went to church and we all really enjoyed it...we are looking forward to going back this week! Kristina has been doing a great job memorizing John 3:16 and she is looking forward to going back to Awanas on Weds..I am so glad that she likes it and I am hoping that she can make some new friends there...Sunday the girls went to Dan's parents so we went and did errands and went out to the Olive Garden for lunch for a treat...when we got there it was pretty empty which turned out to be perfect timing because by the time that we left, the line was out the door to get in...there were tons of people, I couldn't believe how full it was...So thankful we got there when we did :-)
This morn I had to go to Target and the grocery store to get ready for the week..I was able to get alot of free stuff this trip..I did have to buy 3 packs of pull ups at full price but since I need them anyway it was a great trip...I will post a pic of all the free stuff...The girls came home super crabby which usually happens after being at Grandma's and Sophia ended up in her bed about 20 min after she came home for having a meltdown fit...Nina was tired but being good so I let her watch a movie on the couch...then her and I played Candyland which is something we rarely get to do without Sophia around...we played about 10 games and she was really enjoying just spending alone time with me..I wish her and I had that time together more..but with her in school I rarely have time alone with her anymore...After Candyland I needed to make potato wedges to go with dinner, Dan grilled some organic beef hamburgers which were delicious and the girls had grilled hotdogs...I let Nina wash all the potatoes for me...I don't usually let them help much in the kitchen but I am trying to work on letting them do more..its always just easier and faster to do it by myself ..but now that they are getting older I am going to make more of an effort to let them do things with me...She really enjoyed being my helper! We had a good dinner and Dan took the girls to ride their bikes afterwards while I cleaned up the kitchen...The last week or so Dan has been home earlier and has been trying to take them out on their bikes which they really enjoy..then it was the dreaded shower time..I bought some crayons today that we designed for the shower ..I was hoping Sophia would like them and not cry...they did work although she did fuss a little bit...but overall I think they enjoyed them..then it was time to read books and bed time! They were so tired!! We expected Sophia to be really crabby all night but I think that little nap helped her...we actually had a pretty nice relaxing evening...Now time for us to relax :-)

Free stuff from Target..value $35.00

Chef Nina

Hard at work washing potatoes

Beating mommy at Candyland...

Happy girl....

Low Key Day...

Yesterday was a pretty low key day...the only thing we HAD to do was pick up Nina at school...Sophia and I spent the day reading books, playing kitchen and dolls...The house was pretty picked up from the day before so there was just the daily things to do like dishes and vaccuming....I am still not feeling that great today so hoping for another relaxing day around here...the temp. dropped about 25 degrees since yesterday so I am sure going out and about in this weather wouldn't be good for me....
We don't have much planned for the weekend except going to church on Sat night...Dan will prob spend most of the day out in the yard tomorrow, probably the last time of the year...he needs to get all the bushes trimmed up and the grass cut...thankfully we don't have many leaves to rake since we really don't have trees in our yard :-)

Kristina is off school on Monday so I am hoping I can do something fun with them..even if its just going to get ice cream or going to the library....Hopefully we will all be feeling better again...Sophia still has a cough on and off and Dan is still sick as well... I also have a dentist appt. Monday morning...I love the feeling after having my teeth cleaned but always dread going to the dentist....the cleaning always hurts a bit and I just get so uncomfortable sitting in the chairs...but I am thankful that I have the chance to go to the dentist, have insurance which covers it and that we have a fantastic dentist...I watched a show recently where many Americans can't afford to go to the dentist and now they are ending up in the ER at hospitals just to have teeth pulled or fixed...its the only way they can get dental care...so more and more hospitals are getting dental staffs now...I found it interesting and sad.....so I choose to be thankful that I can go to the dentist whenever I want and don't have to sacrafice any of my families needs to do so :-) I have been trying to find joy in everyday things even when I don't feel like it...For example, dishes are never ending around here and it seems like once I clean the kitchen within a few hours it needs to be cleaned again..But when my dishes are stacked high and I feel grumbly about it I remind myself that 4000 children die EVERY DAY from contaminated water illness/ disease...Millions die every year!!! I think about what I am thankful for...The reason I have so many dishes is because I was able to feed my family today..3 meals and snacks...something that many people worldwide can not do....I have clean water to wash my dishes in and I don't have to worry about my children dying from drinking it...Or when my laundry never ends..I am thankful I have a washer and dryer...we see so many people around here walking down the street with carts and strollers full of laundry..kids in tow....and I am thankful I dont have to do that....We went to the laundry mat for years and it wasn't something I liked doing at all, I can't imagine having to bring kids and having to walk to it as well...makes me grateful I can just go downstairs and put some wash in...its not always easy but I am trying to find Joy in everyday things :-)

Girls enjoying chance to wear rain coats...

Homework time with Daddy...

Ready for Awana's on Weds...

Dollhouse time!

Reading new books,,,

Rainy Day...

The last few days have seemed long and busy although we haven't had much going on...Dan is still getting over being really sick with a cold...its really knocked him out and it seems to be just be lingering...I am still fighting it off...it hasn't hit me full force yet but I can tell that my body is really working to fight it off...today I feel tired and my body aches all over and my throat is so dry! Dan had time in between stops today so he went out of his way to go to Jamba Juice to get me a smoothie for my throat..it was so kind of him considering it was the opposite way he was going and he ended up bringing me two, so I could have one for later...the smoothies just help cool my throat and are a nice treat :-)

Today is rainy but not too cold..it was nice since I am not feeling 100% to not have to do much today except pick up Nina from school...Sophia and I spent the morning lounging around, watching Strawberry Shortcake and just staying warm and dry inside:-) I did get all the bedding washed which is a huge task because washing everyones usually takes over 6 hours...I usually try and do theirs one day and ours on diff day but since we have all been sick I really just wanted to get everyones done and today was a perfect day to do it...And I was able to wash Sophia's Kitty Custard who was getting very smelly again...I did a deep clean on the bathroom and kitchen over the last few days so it was nice that I didn't have too much housework to catch up on today...Tonight Nina has Awanas and I have small group...I may just have Dan take her later but I am unsure now, I guess I will just see how I feel in a little while...he would like to find a group too but for Awanas you need to be 3yrs and Sophia just misses that by a few weeks but they said maybe they can make an exception for her...so we will see if Dan is able to attend a small group tonight..

Today at Nina's school while we were waiting for her to come out, a teacher came out and started handing out coloring books..they had received them at an assembly they had a few weeks ago and must of had a bunch left over...Sophia was excited that she got one and then as we were walking to the car, the teacher gave Nina one...sometimes its the small things that make the girls so excited...:-)

Waiting for Nina to come out of school...

Excited about getting a coloring book...

We weren't home five min before they started coloring :-)

Ready to go home!

Play do time....

On our walk yesterday...

Puddle Jumpin' at Nina's School...

Serving the community...

Happy Fall!!! I love October, I think it is one of my favorite months....I love all the colors and smells in the air...when we go on our morning walk the beautiful orange and red leaves reflect off of the water and its almost majestic..It reminds me of God's beauty in all things and makes me so thankful for all the things he provides for us.

On Saturday I went to Humboldt Park, which is in the city of Chicago...its a mostly puerto rican neighborhood and doesn't exactly have a good reputation..like most neighborhoods in the city, the crime rate is high and poverty is all around...The city is really trying to clean up the area and there is evidence of over priced boutiques and american eateries, but unfortunatley many of the people who live there make less than $25,000 a year and can't afford the "new" places being put in their neighborhood...The city is an expensive place to live in general and I was blown away by the prices...there was a little neighborhood grocery store and you could get eggs, bread and milk for $8.00!! Out in the suburbs I could get all that for about $4.50....Gas was $4.69 there, out here its $3.49....No wonder there is so much poverty....!! We were having the clothing sale at the community center which was a one room building..they handed out over 1000 fliers and it went out in their community newsletter so we thought there was going to be alot of people...But an hour after being there, we had only had a few people come through...there were 6 of us ladies so 3 of us decided to go and spread the word on the streets about it...Shellie, who is in my small group grew up in the area and her husband did also..her husband's father is a big part of the community so he was the one who was able to get us a place to have the clothing drive...he also had some cousins who were helping us and lived in the community so we went walking with them a few blocks down...we went to some laundry mats and then a huge park right in the middle of the community and handed out fliers...it really put me out of my comfort zone to talk to strangers esp in an environment that I am not used to...broken glass, grafitti and homeless people seemed to be a common sight on the streets...but there were also a lot of families too...The park had several homeless people and other shady characters wondering about but they also had a large really nice playground with prob about 50 kids playing on.it made me so thankful for what I have...when I take my kids to the playground, we are not surrounded with gangs or addicts out here in the suburbs...Our parks are pretty clean where this one was filled with garbage and smelled of urine from the homeless...So after a bit we started to head back to the center and several people we talked to at the park came over to get clothes...it was awesome!! We felt like we had really done something to serve God's kingdom...At the end when we were closing a family came in and we decided to take back out some of the boxes to let them get some stuff...we had a ton left over...they had a few kids and it was fun to help find the sizes and they were so excited over the most basic of items...plain sweatshirts and used socks and underwear...one of the boys played sports and we found hima bunch of athletic shorts and he was just so excited...and it just warmed my heart to know that we had just blessed this family...we loaded them up with several bags , hopefully enough to get them through the next year of seasons...I just felt so blessed to be part of it all!! We had a ton of stuff left over and it will be donated to several organizations and the some of the other stuff I think they are going to try and give away next weekend....It was a great way to spend my Saturday and I look forward to doing more things like that in the future...

Roxanne, Wendy and I serving the Kingdom!