The Haase Family

My 35th Birthday

2010-07-25T22:55:00.000-07:00

I celebrated my 35th birthday this past July 12th! Freddy and several of my friends did such an amazing job and I had the best bday bash ever!!!! I had sooooo much fun!!! When Freddy asked what I wanted to do, I immediately responded with "the piano bar"!! I LOVE piano bars!!!!!! Freddy and I found a great piano bar in Tempe (Mill Ave.) and that is where I wanted to go. Sooooo, me and my best BFF's celebrated the night at "The Big Bang" in Tempe. I had so much fun listening to the music, dancing....and eventually, Freddy and I ended up on stage. We were in some sort of dance contest....and....we won!! LOL!!! We won a free drink - sooo worth it!!! :) After spending a lot of time at the piano bar, we ended up at the club next door. They played the best hip hop music ever and I think we all showed the college kids that we can all out party them!!! :)

I really wanted this birthday to be a great one and it certainly was. It sounds like everyone who came had a great time.....at this stage in the game, we all know that nights out like this don't come around too often. So, when we can all get together and party, we live it up!!!! I am so thankful for all my friends and family who were able to help me celebrate. My 35th birthday was definitely one to remember - great times, great memories....I will never forget my birthday night!!! Thank you to everyone!!!! xoxoxo

Vegas Wedding!!!

2010-07-05T20:39:00.000-07:00

Our good friends, Hector and Rochelle, got married over the weekend!! It was a spur of the moment announcement, but Freddy and I were able to make it. Hector and Rochelle actually met for the first time at our wedding almost 5 years ago - sooo, even though it was a quick weekend for us, we had to be there! :) We drove to Vegas Saturday and drove right back home on Sunday. It was a great time and we made the most out of every minute! Rochelle had such an amazing wedding dress - very "Sex and the City" ish....very Rochelle! The ceremony was so special and sweet - you could really feel the love and happiness surrounding the bride and groom. :) Congrats to our friends.....we are so happy that we were able to be a part of your celebration!!! Here are some pics with the bride, groom and friends at the wedding!!!!!

Layla and Lily turn 4!!!

2010-07-05T19:54:00.001-07:00

Time has been flying by this summer! This is the first summer in quite some time that I have not worked....yet, it seems as though I have more time to blog when I am working! Anyhow, I must post a few pics of the twins before even more time passes by....

Layla and Liliana turned 4 years old on June 26!!! I cannot believe my babies are 4....wow. I had a bit of a struggle with this birthday. We are not having anymore kids and the twins are truly no longer babies. I know they have to grow up, but I wish they could stay little just a bit longer! This was the first birthday that the twins were soooo excited and looking forward to their special day. We had a big birthday party at the bowling alley near our house - tons of kids, cupcakes that Analisa and I made, and so many wonderful presents!! Freddy and I had given the twins their gifts from us before the party - big girl bikes. :) Wow - it felt so different walking the girls around the block as they rode their bikes instead of sitting in their strollers. :( These past 4 years have truly flown by. Although memories from the early "twin years" are definitely a little blurry, I cannot imagine not having these two wonderful little girls. They are so lucky to have one another and the two take care of each other in ways that I or Freddy cannot. Their bond is so special and I am so very lucky to be their mommy! Happy 4th birthday to Layla and Lily.......I'm excited to see what the next four years bring for my twinnies!! :)

Twins first dance recital!

2010-06-14T21:22:00.000-07:00

The twins have been taking dance classes since August - tap and ballet! They had their first recital this past Saturday afternoon. The girls performed an adorable ballet routine - they were soooo cute!!!! Little Marti has also been in dance lessons with the girls - it has been great! The three girls did such a great job - I was very proud of all of them! They had to stay backstage in the dressing room for quite a long time without their parents - they were troopers! After the show, they were given flowers by so many people who came and you could tell they were so happy and excited!! Here are a few pics - a few from the dress rehearsal and also some from the big day of the recital. :)

We have a celebrity!

2010-05-07T12:05:00.001-07:00

Analisa's boxing journey just keeps getting better and better! The press release which was released a few weeks ago to different media websites made it to the sports director of Univision (chanel 33, the Spanish Station here in AZ). The sports director contacted Chris and they set up a time for Analisa to be interviewed. Apparently, the director was impressed by Analisa because of her young age and her desire to compete in a male dominated sport.

The interview took place yesterday!!! It was awesome!!! They took footage of Analisa doing some of her regular training routine as well as punching the bag, mitts in the ring with Chris, etc. They also asked her a lot of questions - some were pretty tough!!! But, she was definitely on her game and gave some excellent answers!!!! She was not camera shy at all and was very, very calm. Chris was also interviewed and so was one other boxer from the gym. I hope this gives Chris and his boxers more exposure - they all deserve it!

So, the interview should be aired this coming Friday, May 14th, during the 5:00p.m. news. Analisa will be featured in a segment called "Promesas del futuro" (Promises of the Future). I'm so very proud of her - she has worked so hard this past year and deserves to be recognized for all of her hard work, dedication and commitment. I'm very happy and excited to see what more comes her way!!! :)

Analisa's first match

2010-05-04T13:42:00.001-07:00

Well, we took quite a roller coaster ride on the day of Analisa's big first match!!! We went from Analisa being very ready and excited to not thinking her opponent was going to show up, and finally to her showing up and being quite a bit taller than Analisa! When Analisa heard how much taller she was, she got a bit scared. :( But, after lots of thought, we decided to go ahead with the match. We figured there's a first time for everything, and she might as well try....

Analisa seemed to be thinking heavily the entire day, but seemed okay with getting into the ring. Finally, the time came. The second the two stepped into the ring, everyone could tell that Analisa was just outmatched. Her opponent was much taller, bigger, older, more experienced....and on and on. Analisa tried her best and I'm so proud of her for doing so. She definitely got in a few good punches!! I was/am so proud of Analisa for trying - she gave it her all. Most of all, I'm proud of her for not giving up. It would be very simple for her to say that she doesn't want to do this any longer, but she said the opposite. She is ready to train harder, spar girls of different sizes, and prepare as hard as she can to win her next match.

And, something very good did come out of the match. When the two girls were in the ring, many members of the audience started to cheer on "La chaparrita." This means "the shorter girl" in Spanish. I later told Chris about this and he just loved it. So, Analisa has a boxing name - Analisa "la chaparrita" Lopez! I love it!! She loves it as well - :) I'm excited to see how her boxing future continues to unfold......!!! Here are some pics from the day of the match - pretty cool if you ask me!!!! :)

Analisa - Press Release!!!

2010-04-21T10:30:00.000-07:00

I know many of you have already heard or read about this, but I am just so excited and wanted to make sure that I documented this on our family blog!!

Analisa has been training for close to a year now. She has sparred a couple of times and this Saturday will be her first real boxing match. Her trainer, Chris, is very proud of her and has truly prepared her for this match. Chris now has his own gym and is beginning to do a lot of marketing, PR work, etc. We are so excited that he chose to have Analisa included in his first press release. I'm soooo thrilled!!! If you get a chance, check out the information that was sent out. I'm so proud of Analisa and am super excited for Saturday. I'm nervous, of course. Not nervous that she will be hurt because I know she is well prepared and Chris would never let things get out of hand. :) But, I just want to make sure all the bases are covered and that everything runs smoothly for her. I truly don't care if she wins or loses - of course a win WOULD be great - but, I want her to put her best effort forth and show her skills.

I love this article (scroll down, on right sight click on "blog") about her - it was released on Wednesday, April 21, to various media websites. Very cool!!!! Wish her luck!!!

Analisa spars again!

2010-04-11T20:33:00.000-07:00

Soooo, as most of you know, Analisa has been training for almost a year now. She has her amateur boxing license and now we are just trying to get her ready for an actual match. She was so very nervous before the spar. She definitely has the physical ability to do this, but is still lacking some confidence in her self. She almost wanted to leave, but something her trainer said to her made her go through with it. I'm soooo glad she did! She was amazing! The poor girl she was up against called it quits before the 1st round was even over. Afterwards, Analisa felt bad that she hurt the girl and talked to her for a second. The girl was sitting on the couch with an ice pack on her head! :( I'm proud of my daughter for going through with it and for doing her absolute best. I'm also very proud of her sportsmanship and for talking to her opponent afterwards. An actual fight may be happening very soon. I hope she has the confidence to pull it off!! I know she can do it, but she has to believe in herself. I will keep everyone posted!!! :) Here is a pic of Analisa after the spar - even if she doesn't want to admit it, I can tell she was very proud of herself... :)

Easter, 2010

2010-04-04T22:13:00.000-07:00

Wow....time is certainly flying by. I cannot beleive Easter has come and gone...every day truly seems to go by quicker than the last. We had a fantastic Easter and celebrated it with our family at our home this year. The twins were waiting all day for Dominick to arrive and had a blast with him from the second he got here until the second he left. We had soooo much yummy food!!! The big hits were definitley the potato cornflake dish (thanks, Jen!!), the super yummy spicy coleslaw (thank you, Juliet!!) and a great cornflake/peanut butter dessert (again, thanks Juliet!). We had a great time relaxing and spending time with the kiddos....it was a memorable Easter for sure...Happy Easter everyone!

A Day at the Park.....

2010-03-18T21:00:00.000-07:00

Again this year, I had a different spring break from the girls. I did enjoy my "alone" time while I was home and they were at school....it was nice! But, this week has been hectic. We have had to try to find different people to help with the twins every day this week. I did take one day off to spend with them and I am sooo thankful I did! I took them to the Railroad Park today and we had such a fun day. We rode the carousel several times, rode the train once, played at the playground and had a yummy lunch together. It was so fun spending the day with just us - it was great and perfect and I can't wait to do it again. Here are some pics of our fun day together....enjoy!

Happy Valentine's Day, 2010!

2010-02-12T13:54:00.001-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day, 2010!!! I know many people might feel that Valentine's Day is overrated, but if it's an excuse for Freddy and I to have an evening out alone, I will take it! :) We usually don't go out on actual Valentine's Day, but do try to get out before the holiday. This year, we went to Cheuvront's Wine Bar - we were VERY impressed!!! The meal and wine were amazing and the price was excellent! We had a great time having a nice dinner, just the two of us..... :)

Analisa went to her first Valentine's Day Dance this year. She is growing up so fast! These days, I don't think Mom is very "cool" in her eyes. Everything I like she hates! So, in order to avoid any battles, my friend Colleen took her shopping for me! THANK GOOODNESS for wonderful girl friends!!!! Colleen helped Analisa pick out a dress, shoes, and of course, fake nails for the evening! :) They were only gone for a couple of hours. Had I taken her, we would STILL be at the store trying to compromise on an outfit! LOL... Here is a picture of Analisa before I dropped her off.....she looked so beautiful!

Finally, here are some of my favorite pictures of my favorite kids - I think these pictures are very appropriate for Valentine's Day! So many pictures full of hugs and kisses.... :) Happy Valentine's Day everyone!!!

Friends

2010-02-09T20:17:00.000-08:00

I really, truly have the best friends ever. I don't know what I would ever do without my friends....they all mean the world to me! This past weekend I got to celebrate my friend Neyma's birthday. I've known Neyma for almost 20 years....wow! One of my oldest and dearest friends ever. We have a great group of friends that try to get together to celebrate special days in our lives....me, Neyma, Melissa, Denise and Elena. I love these girls soooo much! We laugh tons when we are together and have been there for each other through thick and thin. And, we have all depended on Neyma at some point of our lives....she is our rock!! Here is a pic of our last outing - us celebrating Neyma's bday!!! Happy birthday, Neyma!!!! I thank you for being there for me always.....can't wait to celebrate with you again soon!! :)

New do's for the twins....

2010-01-31T20:20:00.000-08:00

I have been debating for a long time what to do with the twins hair. Lily's hair has always been pretty manegable, but my little Layla has sooooo much hair!!! I had thought about cutting their hair, but was so reluctant to do so! Deep down I knew that if the girls got a hair cut, they would probably look a little older...I wasn't quite ready for that! :) The girls are my last babies and I wanted them to still look like "babies" as long as possible!! But, Layla's hair was just getting way too long.....and, if one got their hair cut, the other must as well. So, we finally did it!! And, I'm sooooo glad we did!!!! Our friend, Rochelle, cut their hair and it is simply ADORABLE!!! It's sooo much easier to do their hair for school and bathtime is even quicker! LOL! The girls do look older, but they look sooooo cute!! Lily looks even more like Freddy.....I don't know how that is possible, but she really does!! And Layla is as cute as can be. They are so excited about their new little do's....here are some recent pics!! :)

Dominique's 35th Birthday Party!!!!

2010-01-31T17:12:00.000-08:00

Last night, we celebrated Dominique's birthday.....we all had sooooooo much fun!!!!! Marty planned the night at the Wildhorse Pass Casino and we had an amazing time from beginning to end. The hotel/casino is beautiful!!! Freddy, Dominique, Marty, Moone, Roman and I had dinner at Shula's Steakhouse which is in the casino and it was fantastic!!!! It was fun having some time, just the 6 of us, catching up before the craziness started!! :) After dinner, we headed to Encore Lounge and did a little dancing there. We then headed to Aria nightclub and danced til we literally had to take our shoes off! About 50 people came to celebrate Dominique's birthday and everyone really enjoyed themselves! Dominique is an amazing friend and I am so lucky to call her one of my BFF's!!! Freddy and I had such a wonderful time celebrating her special day! We love you, Dom!!!! Happy birthday!

Christmas, 2009

2009-12-29T12:27:00.000-08:00

We had such a wonderful Christmas! The kids had a great time opening all of their gifts this year and it seemed as if the little ones (Layla, Lily and Dominick) are finally understanding Christmas. Luca was too cute getting into all of the paper and having fun just watching all of the kids go crazy! Santa was very good to everyone this year and Analisa even got a laptop for Christmas! Either she's been a very good girl all year long or Santa is just a pushover....! We were able to spend a lot of family time together, ate LOTS of yummy food, and made many new memories. We hope that everyone had a very merry Christmas! Enjoy the pics!

2009-12-21T20:52:00.001-08:00

I was able to escape to Newport Beach for a quick, two day getaway! My great friend, Colleen, is there visiting her sis and invited me to stay with them for a couple of days. I was welcomed soooooo graciously and with such open arms. Colleen's sister, Sue, is such an amazing hostess. I had a "welcome sign" on the wall, a "welcome basket" with new pajamas, cozy socks, towels, etc. WOW! Colleen and Sue had EVERYTHING planned out for me which was amazing. As my good friends know, I'm always the planner.....it felt soooo good to just sit back and relax.

The fun started immediately when I was picked up at the airport - check out the convertible with the leapord interior!!! Soooo CUTE!!!! Colleen had a mani/pedi appointment set up for us. BUT, I didn't' know that this would be the best mani/pedi appointment ever!!! I literally received a manicure, pedicure, and back shoulder/neck massage ALL at the same time!!! AND, we were even able to drink some wine while all this was going on!!!! AMAZING! We then headed to Sue's for a holiday party that she had planned. The next day, I was able to sleep in - yes, sleep in!!!!! I haven't been able to do this in sooo long!!! Colleen and I then headed to the Montage Resort to have a picnic. Sue and Colleen packed a delicious picnic filled with fried chicken, wine, blankets and dessert!! YUM! A picnic right on the beach....what more could I ask for?! After our picnic, Colleen and I headed out on the town and found a cool little spot on pacific highway....3 thirty 3. We had a great time there catching up, and making some new memories.....

Monday, we were able to have a nice lunch at a cozy restaurant right on the water. Afterwards, Colleen and I headed to the Hyatt in Huntington Beach to share some wine and more laughs together.

I had such an amazing time catching up with Colleen and spending time with Sue and her family. These two girls did EVERYTHING to make my trip so very memorable. I had sooo much fun and was able to relax. I experienced hospitality at its best and thank Colleen and Sue sooo very much for my perfect trip. I love you girls and cannot wait to visit again!!!!! Thank you for everything!!!!

Holiday Party

2009-12-13T21:13:00.000-08:00

We had a little holiday party this past Friday!!! It turned out so, soooo well!!! Lots of people, tons of yummy food, lots of fires to keep us warm...a great time for sure. Freddy and I were a bit worried because we knew lots of people were going to show and our house is so tiny! But, we all hung out outside all evening long and the fire pits were more than enough to keep us warm and cozy! It was a great night....thanks to all who were able to make it! Lots of great memories!! Merry Christmas!!!!!

Fall is finally here!!

2009-10-28T21:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's cool weather made me realize that fall is finally here!!! I was able to get home early from work and made a big pot of chili for dinner . . .yummm!! Freddy made it home a bit earlier than usual as well and we had time to carve our pumpkins and get them ready for the Halloween weekend!

Analisa loved carving her pumpkin . . .although it didn't turn out exactly how she imagined. :) Layla dug right into her pumpkin and she got nice and dirty trying to clean it out! Liliana.....oh, my Lily . . .she was digusted when she tried to clean out her pumpkin and just kept staring at her hands and making this funny noise! She does not like to get too dirty and kind of freaks out, especially when her hands are dirty!! Then, Freddy asked the twins what kind of jack-o-lantern they wanted. Layla said she wanted a "happy" jack-o-lantern" with triangle eyes. . . .so, that is what she got! Lily said she wanted a scary jack-o-lantern with a scary smile and square eyes. Lily's pumpkin did have square eyes, but Lily was NOT happy. In fact, she screamed and cried at the top of her lungs because her jack-o-lantern was not scary enough! She was sooo upset, but I had to take a picture - this will be great to show her later on!!

With all the mess and screaming and some crying, we still had a nice family evening.....seems like these occasions are rare during the week with our hectic work schedules and Analisa's boxing schedule!! It was a fun night with my family....enjoy the pics!

Grease!

2009-10-26T12:26:00.000-07:00

My sister and I have been fans of "Grease" as long as we can remember!!!! We absolutely love that movie!!!! I still watch it as often as I can! LOL! A group of my co-workers got together to see the play this past weekend and my sister also came along. We both wanted to get up and sing and dance along with the actors, but we soon realized we were NOT at a concert, but at a play! Marissa's "Pink Lady" jacket was a definite hit!!! The show was very cute and we had a great time. Afterwards, Taylor Hicks was signing autographs and taking pictures!! We stayed and took a picture with him! Kinda cheesy, I know, but I like Taylor Hicks!! :) It was a good time and a memorable night!

Overnight with Dominick and Luca

2009-10-11T17:45:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, we headed over to Jen's and DJ's to watch Dominick and Luca. We spent the night there and Jen and DJ spent the night at our place! Worked out great! The kids did so well - especially little Luca!! He is soooooooo adorable!!!!!!! It was so fun having a baby around all day long again.....seems like the twins have just grown up so fast and they are such big girls now. Having three 3 year olds all day long was quite interesting - tattling seems to be a hot topic with this age group! LOL! But, there were also plenty of laughs and hugs and kisses throughout the day and night.

Here are a few pics of our fun time together! Looking forward to the next overnight!!!!

Analisa - video clip

2009-10-03T15:55:00.000-07:00

Analisa continues to do very well with her boxing training!!! Her trainer, Chris, recently sent me this video clip of her training. I have to say, I was quite impressed!!!! I'm so very proud of her dedication and committment to this sport. She has found something she really loves!

When Analisa saw me watching this clip, she specified that this was about a month ago and that she is much better now. :) Copy the link below into your browser and check her out!!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SAQ9OO_Lac

Playdough

2009-09-27T12:37:00.000-07:00

It seems as if every day is busier than the last. It even seems as if we have to schedule days to just hang out and relax! Luckily, today was one of those days! Since we had no where to go or anything to do, I thought I would try to make some home-made playdough with the twins. I didn't care how messy they would get or the mess I would have to clean up later. We used a simple recipe (water, flour, salt and food coloring) and made green play dough. Layla loved it! She dug her hands in with me and had a great time making the play dough. Once Lily saw the green food coloing all over our hands, she wanted nothing to do with it. She just stared at us and asked me to get the "real" playdough" out. :) The girls played together with all the playdough for quite a while. It was a nice and fun afternoon with the girls! :)

San Francisco - 2nd trip this year!

2009-09-22T10:31:00.000-07:00

Our friends Moone and Roman invited us to tag along on part of their trip to San Francisco!!!! How could we have turned down that invitation?! :) Another quick trip to our favorite city, but every minute was a party!

Saturday we spent the day/night at Union Square. We had some great, crazy people watching at a little bar right on Powell Street. It seems as though every time we go back to San Francisco, there are more "interesting" people walking around the city. Later, we met up at The View Bar/Lounge at the top of the Marriott Marquis hotel (where we got to stay!) and then headed out to dinner! Later, we went to The Boom Boom Room for some blues and then ended up at our favorite pub, Lefty O'douls!!! Freddy had a great time at Lefty's making some new friends (imagine that!). We all had fun singing around the piano and just laughing the night away!

Sunday was a great day together! We took the trolley down to the wharf and had a yummy lunch along with some great bloody mary's! We decided to take a sailboat ride - it was awesome! It turned out to be almost a private tour - we were the only ones on the boat except for one other guy. The Golden Gate Bridge was covered with fog that day, so the captain took us around the south side of San Francisco. We had never been to that side on the water so it was great to see different sites. And, the sailboat ride was all you can drink!!! How great is that?! We decided to have dinner in Little Italy that evening - it took FOREVER for us to find the restaurant I had made reservations at, but it was soooo worth it! The restaurant, Franchino, was a tiny, little family owned restaurant and it was absolutely delicious! We decided to stay in North Beach for the evening and found a little bar where we were able to sit outside and enjoy the great weather. Then, somehow, we ended up at my favorite pub again! :) We closed the pub and then finally headed back to the hotel.

It was definitely a quick trip, but soooo much fun. Again, thank you, Moone and Roman for inviting us! We hope you had a fun time with us showing you the city in 2 quick days! :) And a BIG thank you to everyone that helped with the kids!!! Jen, DJ, Marissa, Alex and Colleen - We couldn't have gone on this trip without all your help and love you all tons!

Analisa - boxing update!

2009-08-23T16:43:00.000-07:00

A little update on Analisa's boxing . . .

Analisa has been training one on one with a boxing trainer for close to 3 months now. She is getting great at boxing and gaining a little more confidence each session!! Her trainer just asked me to increase her training sessions by one day. So, now she will be training 4 nights a week. It's a pretty hectic schedule, but somehow we make it work!!! And, her trainer isn't going to increase our payment because of the additional day. He is really hoping to get her ready for a match in December and just wants her available for one more night!!! He is also going to include Analisa's bio on his website soon. On the website, he will have some pics of her boxing as well as a video of her sparring/punching the bag! I'm super excited! As soon as her trainer has this ready, I will let everyone know!!! We are beginning to purchase all the necessary equipment for her boxing matches......of course we had to start with the gloves! Here are a couple of recent pictures!

3 year old pics - FINALLY!

2009-08-21T13:34:00.000-07:00

The girls turned 3 in June, but we barely got around to taking some "3 year old pics" of the twins! A photographer that we have used in the past, Jacqueline Phillips (www.momentsinfilm.com) , took some awesome pictures of the girls! Of course, both of them were only cooperative for part of the time. First, Layla was having fun taking pictures, and Lily wanted nothing to do with it. Then, Lily was having a great time and Layla did not want her picture taken! At least we got a couple of the two together. I can't believe how quickly time is flying by . . .here are some pictures of my beautiful twins!

2009-08-11T20:00:00.001-07:00

We've had quite a busy week! Monday, Analisa started 6th grade. She still let me take her to school and walk her to her first class - I was secretely very happy about that. :) After I left her in front of her homeroom door, I became a bit teary eyed. She is now with the "junior high" kids and not with the "elementary" students anymore. She is growing up soooo fast. I remember 6th grade as being one of the best and most difficult years in school! I hope Analisa makes some lasting friendships and continues to do well . . .an exciting, but scary time for sure!

The twins had "Meet the Teacher" day on Monday. They were very excited to see their school and meet their new friends. Once we arrived at school, Layla was not scared at all. She began playing on the playground equipment and was roaming around without a care in the world. Lily, on the other hand, was a bit hesitant. Finally, Layla took Lily "under her wing" and she was ok.....

Finally, the first official day of pre-school arrived! Freddy and I took the girls together to school on this big day. Again, Layla was just fine. She put away her little backpack and lunchbox and sat down in her chair and began eating the snack she was given. Lily, on the other hand, was crying hysterically. She was the only child in the room crying! We felt so bad for her! I sat with her and tried to comfort her - Freddy didn't really know what to do. I think he wanted to cry with her. Suddenly, Lily stopped hugging me and ran right into Layla's arms. Layla hugged her and patted her back and kept telling her things would be ok. It was really the cutest, sweetest thing. At that moment, I felt how my two little girls are truly best friends and how they really do need each other. It hit me that they have never really been apart for very long - possibly only twice for different doctor appointments! They take care of each other and need each other very much. My Layla - my little nurturer - was such a big girl at that moment and I knew she would take care of her sister that first day of school (and every day after!). We left the classroom as Layla took care of Lily . . .we both wanted to go back and make sure they were okay, but knew we had to go. It was very hard for both of us! Harder than I thought it would be.

At the end of the day, their teacher told me that they did great. Layla took care of Lily for a while that morning and then she was ok. They were both so excited when we got home - they were marching around, singing songs and telling me about all their new friends. I hope things get easier for Lily. I know things will be easier for me knowing that Layla is there to take care of her sister. As they get older, their "twin" bond definitely becomes stronger. They are so lucky to have each other. I'm excited for this new adventure in their lives!

The Wrigley Mansion!!!

2009-08-11T11:56:00.003-07:00

I absolutely LOVE having brunch at the Wrigley Mansion! It's such a treat - unlimited champagne and delicious food. Of course, the company I am with always makes brunch ten times better!!!! Colleen, Megan, Amy and I took advantage of the $35 brunch special at the Wrigley Mansion this past Sunday. We had a great time catching up, remembering old times, and learning about new things in our lives while drinking tons of mimosas!!! :) I love you girls! Thanks for a great Sunday!!!!

Alex's 40th Birthday

2009-08-10T20:21:00.001-07:00

We celebrated Alex's 40th birthday this past weekend! First of all, I can't believe Alex is 40 . . . seriously, he looks much, MUCH younger than 40!!!! I told a few friends that we were celebrating Alex's 40th birthday and every friend would question me . . . "you mean 30, right?"! LOL!! What a curse......to look younger than you really are!

We had a ton of fun celebrating Alex's birthday. We partied the night away at Baja Tily's! Blast from the past for sure! We had a great time and hope Alex did as well. It's always nice to hang out with my sis and Alex and we hope we can hang out more often. . .Happy 40th, Alex!

Here are a couple pics of our fun night out!

Adjusting Every Day.....

2009-07-29T20:45:00.001-07:00

Most of my posts focus on pictures of the kids and all the great times we have together as a family. I love working on our blog so that I can look back and remember the great times we share together. However, I think I just might start writing about a few of our "tough" times too! I also need to remember these times - when I look back and read about them, they will probably be funny (then, not now!) and I can also remember that somehow, I "survived."

Soooo, I will begin by venting about the very stressful day I had yesterday. I recently went back to work after being off all summer. At the beginning of my summer, I was trying to adjust to being home all day. Well, now it seems like I'm trying to re-adjust and trying to desperately multi-task all my different roles: mother, wife, teacher, etc. I was exhausted when I got home from work yesterday and not one of my daughters seemed to take that into consideration! :) Analisa is DEFINITELY entering the teenage years and her attitude can take a toll on me. She was truly upset that one of her 3 year old sisters took a bite out of a mango she had been eyeballing (yes, I said a mango!). She wanted that mango so bad, but would not eat it! Ridiculous?? ABSOLUTELY! So, while I'm dealing with the mango situation, I begin to tell the twins that it is time for their bath. Lily proceeds to take her clothes off. Layla, on the other hand, begins to kick and scream and throws herself on the floor. Since Lily had no clothes on and was ready for her bath, I thought I would grab her first. Well, while I was dealing with Layla, naked Lily was standing in the corner and trying to pee! I was at my wits end! Not to mention, I had loads of laundry to wash/fold, dinner still to make, and the list goes on and on and on..........

Somehow, the twins were bathed, Analisa ate the mango, and things were back to normal. When Freddy got home, I vented to him for some time. While talking with Freddy, I realized that when the twins were born, I was physically exhausted. Now, I am not only physically exhausted, but mentally exhausted as well. They can talk now, they want to bargain, they want me to know that they have a "voice"......and the whining (oh the whining!!) is endless. And their older sister is doing the same thing.....when does it end?!

Still, I can't imagine life differently. Somehow, we all made it through a crazy evening. Each child was happy and playful toward the end of the night and they each went to bed peacefully. And, things were better today...... :) I love this pic of the girls - not exactly "picture perfect", but sums up "craziness."

My birthday!

2009-07-13T17:29:00.000-07:00

I celebrated my 34th birthday over the weekend. It was one of the best birthday weekends I have ever had! Freddy and I had a perfect date night on Friday night. Freddy arranged for a driver and we were picked up 7:00pm to get the evening started! First, we went to the bar at the Rokerij and then moved over to Coup des Tartes for dinner. It was our first time at Coup des Tartes and it was AMAZING! We both had so much fun spending some alone time together. I love you, Freddy, so very much and just love when we have time to hang out. We have so much fun together....you truly are my best friend! :)

Saturday we headed over to Paula's for a family lunch. The food was great (chicken salad, lots of fruit, and of course wine!!) and so was the company - Jenny, DJ, Dominick, Luca, Paula, Pat, Aunt Rosella and of course Freddy and the girls! The kids swam all afternoon and then we had a delicious birthday cake that Jenny made for me!! Sooo good!!!! :)Afterwards, we headed to my parents house for more yummy food and cake!!! Homemade tacos, carrot cake . . .wow! We were even able to squeeze in some time for Boggle at my parents house! I lost my title though! Freddy is the new "Boggler".....! It was a great day....

Sunday I had a big celebration with my friends!! What an amazing time!!!! My great friend Colleen organized this event and it was just perfect! There were about 18 girls at Postino's ready to help me celebrate!!!! We drank tons of wine, and had lots of time to talk and catch up - it was great to see so many of my good friends there! Afterwards, a few of us girls decided it was a MUST to go see New Kids on the Block!! LOL! I guess that's what happens after too much vino! So, we went to Dodge Theatre, purchased our tickets, and danced the night away!!

I had such a great, perfect weekend. Thank you to all of my friends and family that helped me celebrate the big "34" in such a great way - I love you all! And thank you soooo much to my wonderful husband for making sure that my birthday weekend was nothing less than perfect. I love you! :)

Analisa . . .

2009-07-10T14:08:00.000-07:00

A few months ago, Analisa had mentioned that she would like to start taking boxing classes. My first thought was that she must be joking! Well, she continued to ask and I finally started to try to locate a gym that teaches young kids how to box. I found a great trainer and she has been training with him for a couple of months now....she absolutely loves it!

When I picked her up from boxing today, her trainer, Chris, spoke with me for a bit. He told me that Analisa is a very fast learner and has great talent...and, he cannot believe how hard she can hit! Apparently, she can hit harder than some of the boys that Chris trains! LOL! Chris would like to enter Analisa into the "Silver Match" boxing competition in a few months! She could have her first boxing match as early as November or December of this year!!! If things go well, we could be traveling to California or Nevada for her to participate in other matches! I can't believe the next step is to purchase an amateur boxing license for her!!

I'm really very excited to see what her future has in store. I am proud of her dedication (she has not missed one class yet!) and think she has found a sport that she truly loves. We are all very excited and proud of her! :)

Layla and Liliana's 3rd Birthday Weekend

2009-06-29T08:24:00.000-07:00

Our family spent the twins birthday weekend at a friend's cabin in Show Low - Jenny, DJ, Dominick, Luca, Paula and Analisa's friend Allyssia all joined us! It was a really great weekend. The cabin we stayed in was absolutely gorgeous and we were VERY comfortable! At times it was a difficult having three 3 year olds around.....when DOES the whining end?! :) Of course minutes later the three of them would do something silly or cute...how can you stay mad at those little faces?! Little Luca was an angel - he was so happy and calm the entire weekend. I wish I had taken more pics of the adults! I guess we were so busy with the kids and everything else.....

I really can't believe that Layla and Liliana are already 3 years old.....we have definitely reached a big milestone! The girls are in dance class now, will be starting pre-school full time in the fall....really does not seem so long ago that I was holding two little newborn angels. I think Freddy and I have done a pretty good job with our girls over the last few years and feel proud of everything we have accomplished. The last three years have been very busy, but we are blessed with great memories. Mommy and Daddy love you, Layla and Lily! Happy 3rd birthday!

Early birthday celebration!

2009-06-24T23:10:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe that Layla and Liliana will be 3 years old this Friday, June 26th! Yes, twins are truly "double the work", but I swear time passes by twice as fast! The last few years have truly flown by - my little girls are growing up so quickly. We had a mini birthday celebration for them this week and some of their friends came by to wish them a happy 3rd birthday. A big "thank you" to everyone who was able to stop by - it was a great day! :) Here are some pics!

First baseball game!

2009-06-14T17:49:00.001-07:00

Freddy and I took the twins to their first ever Diamondbacks game today! Jenny, DJ and Dominick joined us as well! I was hoping that we would make it through at least half of the game, but the kids did great! We didn't leave until close to the 9th inning! Us adults didn't get to see much of the game, but we still had a great time! :)

At around the 7th inning, we took the kids upstairs to the "Sandlot"- an indoor playground at the ball park! Whoever thought of this is a genius! The kids were able to play in the playground for a bit and get some of their energy out. Sadly, Layla had a little accident at her first baseball game. She decided that she wanted to go up the slide the wrong way and another little girl was coming down the slide. The two kids collided and the result was Layla with a very bloody mouth. There was an EMT on site and she was at Layla's side in a matter of seconds. She cleaned her up really well and gave her tons of gauze (which Layla later called her "pillow for her teeth") and made her feel lots better. Of course, anything Layla has Lily has to have too, so she got some gauze for her mouth as well. :)

Here are some pics of our fun day!

My little ballerina's!

2009-06-09T21:08:00.001-07:00

I have been waiting for this day for so long! Today was Layla's and Liliana's first day of ballet/tap class! My little ballerinas are so adorable! It was very interesting to watch the girls in this setting today.....Liliana LOVED the class and at times was the only one in the class dancing - she was soooo cute! Layla was a bit hesitant and I had to stay by her side for a bit. It was interesting to see how much my two little girls love each other. When I was not around, they always seemed to come together and make sure they were okay. It was truly such a sweet thing to watch. If the teacher did not realize that Layla was doing something well, Lily made sure to point it out to the teacher so that Layla wouldn't be overlooked. :) I hope my girls enjoy the class...I look forward to Tuesday's when I can dress them up and put little buns in their hair!! Dominique also signed up Marti!!! Marti is a natural dancer and had such a great time - she had a smile on her face throughout the entire class. It really helped to have Marti there - the three of them walked in together holding hands. I hope Layla and Lily follow Marti's lead and enjoy the class to the fullest! Hopefully we will all be attending a recital sometime soon! :)

SAN FRANCISCO!

2009-05-26T11:22:00.001-07:00

Marty and Dominique invited us on a weekend trip to San Francisco! What a BLAST we had!! It was Dominique's and Marty's first time in San Francisco. Freddy and I LOVE San Fran and had a great time showing our good friends the city! It was a quick trip, but we were able to do sooo much! We ate great food, drank delicious drinks, laughed so much together, and danced both nights away! We found a club that played 80's music on one side and hip-hop on the other! Dominique and I were in heaven!! Saturday we hopped on a boat that took us under the Golden Gate Bridge and around Alcatraz. We were even able to take some wine along our little boat ride! It was great! We had such an amazing time and hope to do it again! Thank you, Marty and Dominique for inviting us! We love you guys and can't wait for our next trip together!

Analisa's 11th Birthday Party

2009-05-16T18:27:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrated Analisa's 11th birthday. I can't believe she is 11 years old already. It seems as if she was just a little girl....and now, she is a "pre-teen." I am a little nervous for the teenage years that will be here before I know it, but excited to see what the future holds for Analisa. She is a good girl, straight A student, and pretty responsible. I love that she still likes to stay home with us and many times turns down invitations to other events so that she can hang at home with her family. I know this may not last forever, but I will take it for now! :)

We had a pool party for her and her friends at Paula's house - another great party! The party did not end there . . . I have 5 pre-teen girls running around our house at this moment. We are having our first slumber party - the first of many, I'm sure, with three daughters. The twins will stay with Nani tonight so that Analisa and her friends can have full reign of the house! Wish me luck! Analisa seems so happy right now . . .I hope she has a great time celebrating her birthday!

Mother's Day, 2009

2009-05-11T09:26:00.000-07:00

What a great mother's day weekend I had! I got to party the night away with some of my very best friends on Friday night while Freddy stayed home with the girls. What a blast we all had! Perfect girls night out! Started the night out at Postino's and then headed out dancing for the rest of the night! Definitely a night to remember. All of us mommies got to have some time to ourselves and definitely appreciated every minute of it!

The rest of the weekend was spent with our families - Saturday with my mom and family and Sunday with Freddy's family. It was nice to spend time with my daugthers to appreciate how wonderful they all truly are and what a great family I have. Analisa was such a good girl to me all weekend long - she made me a "coupon book" with the best coupons ever (head rubs, foot massages, babysitting the girls)! I can't wait to start cashing in those coupons! The twins, of course, are too little yet to really understand what was going on. But hearing the words "Happy Mother's Day" from their little mouths was the cutest thing ever and made my heart melt.

I wish I had taken more pictures of me and the girls yesterday....I need to work on that! I posted a few pics of the kids enjoying their day too - ice cream and swimming all day long! Lucky kids! Luca is such a good baby and I got to hold him for a long time yesterday. I got a great pic of Analisa holding her new cousin too.......

My friend Jaysen (thank you Jaysen!!!) sent me the coolest video to say "Happy Mother's Day." I've never seen anything like it before and just love it! I think I will look at this video every time I start to feel overwhelmed by the many jobs us mommies have. I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day! Here is the link to the video......
http://news.cnnbcvideo.com/?nid=STW_kH6Cg7NgHGL.5iim4DUzNTMxNg--&referred_by=15860235-URXc46x&p=moveon

Our weekend with Dominick!

2009-05-03T20:21:00.000-07:00

We had Dominick over this past weekend and had so much fun! Saturday was a big day - we took the twins and Dominick to see "Sesame Street Live" at the Dodge theatre. We were stopped several times by people admiring the "triplets"! The kids had a great time - they ate cotton candy, tons of popcorn, snacks and danced throughout the show!

We took the kids out to lunch afterwards. They weren't too interested in eating, but decided they were hungry enough to have some ice cream. After lunch, we walked around Town and Country and took the kids to the different fountains. The kids threw pennies and made wishes. We even ran into some ducks! I don't know what it is with us and ducks lately! LOL! After lunch we came home and the kids played in the water. Here are some pics of our fun day together

Baby Luca has arrived!

2009-05-02T14:32:00.000-07:00

We have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of our new nephew! He arrived Friday, May 1st and is just as precious as can be. We were able to see the new baby and Jenny and DJ a few hours after the baby was born. Jenny looks amazing - definitely has the new mommy glow! Here are a couple pics of Luca Frederick.

We are taking care of Dominick for the weekend and having tons of fun spending time with him. Can't wait to spend more time with the new baby as well.

Britney Spears!

2009-04-25T14:58:00.000-07:00

Last night, Colleen, Jaysen and I went to see BRITNEY SPEARS!! It truly was an amazing show! She performed almost everything from her "Circus" CD, but also performed some of her old stuff! There were circus performers before the show and Britney performed many magic and circus tricks herself! We had so much fun dancing and singing the night away! Here are a few pics from our night!

DUCKS!!!

2009-04-25T14:23:00.001-07:00

What a Saturday! I was out back with the girls and Freddy was inside working. All of a sudden, Freddy runs out back and yells that there are ducks in our front yard! Of course I didn't believe him, but went out front anyway! This is what we saw!!! A mama duck and her 10 baby ducklings . . .amazing! Who knows where in the world these ducks came from . . .they were definitely lost and kept roaming the neighborhood . . .

Needless to say, the girls went crazy over the ducks. And, so did Freddy. He ran into the garage and brought out the little pool. He set it out front and tried to lour the ducks back into our yard by feeding them bread. Eventually they came back and got out somehow. Poor duckies . . .I don't know where they ended up. I even tried to call animal rescue, but could not get a hold of anybody! Quite an interesting afternoon! The girls were quite upset when the ducks finally left . . . hopefully they will find their way home.

A Sunday Afternoon!

2009-04-19T22:19:00.000-07:00

Today was a busy, but fun day! This morning we took the twins to a carnival sponsored by the "Mother's of Multiples" group that I belong to. The girls got to jump in the bouncer, eat cotton candy and snow cones, and sit in a fire truck! It was hard to get pics though . . .I was always somewhere with one of the girls and Freddy was somewhere else with the other. After the carnival, we headed over to Paula's house. The girls were soooo excited to get to Nani's - not only was Nani there, but so was Dominick! Here are some pics from our afternoon . . .a fun time for sure!

Asleep - finally!

2009-04-14T21:05:00.000-07:00

I had to post this picture of the girls . . .last night was a very rough night. It was one of those nights where the twins would NOT stay in their beds for anything! First they said they had to go potty a million times, then they wanted to be sung to a million times, etc., etc. Finally, they wanted to say "good night" to their big sister. So, I took them into Analisa's bedroom so that they could say "good night" to their big sis. Analisa asked me to please let them stay in her bed . . .at this point, I was ready for the twins to go to bed wherever! Layla and Lily both crawled into bed with Analisa . . .I figured this wouldn't last long so I walked out. The three of them were giggling together for quite a while! I thought I would "let things be" for about 30 minutes or so. After about half an hour, I walked in to Analisa's bedroom, and this is what I saw. It was really soooo cute - my three girls asleep together in one big bed. I let them sleep this way for a while, and then took the twins to their room. It was really very cute. . .will this become a habit???!! I don't think so . . .maybe they just needed to be together for a while. They really are growing up so fast so I have to remember these precious moments!

Happy Easter!!

2009-04-12T21:25:00.001-07:00

Happy Easter!!! We had such a busy day today . . .we hosted Easter at our house and were busy from early morning until late evening! The girls woke up early, as usual . . .and, they had to find the Easter baskets which the "Easter Bunny" hid for them as soon as they woke up! All 3 of the girls were so excited to find their baskets!! We had a fun morning together and then got ready for the rest of the family to join us for Easter lunch/early dinner. The girls had a great time hanging out with the family and hunting for eggs! I love the last pic of Lily "hugging" her new baby cousin . . .a beautiful day for sure . . . !

Layla, Lily and Analisa's new toy . . . .!

2009-04-03T11:31:00.000-07:00

Why do we ever spend money on expensive toys? We always say that kids end up playing with so many things other than their toys. These pictures prove this to be true! We had left an ice chest outside and the girls asked Analisa to give them rides in the ice chest. They had soooo much fun riding around the yard!! I would have never guessed that my three girls would have so much fun with an ice chest! :)

Lisa and Megan at the Rascal Flats concert!

2009-04-02T21:21:00.000-07:00

My friend Megan invited me to the Rascal Flats concert a couple of weeks ago!!! We had the most amazing time!! Jessica Simpson opened for Rascal Flats - crazy! She is truly an airhead! Rascal Flats put on an amazing show! Thank you, Megan, for inviting me out . . .I will never think of paleontologists in quite the same way . . . LOL! Love you tons!

Layla and Lily partying!

2009-03-31T21:26:00.000-07:00

I was out of town this past weekend (will post pics later!!) and Freddy took the twins to a birthday party. Our friend, Melissa, took some awesome pictures of all the kids at the party. Thank you, Melissa!!! Here are a few pics of Layla and Lily. I love the shot when they are sitting together eating . . .soooo precious. It's hard to get Layla to look into the camera and smile. Lily is practicing her "smile" for the camera - how cute is she?!!! Thanks again, Melissa!!!

Daddy's home!!!

2009-03-30T20:53:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist posting this picture. As soon as Freddy came home from work today, the twins wanted to play with him. He is such a good daddy and plays whatever it is they want to play. I love this picture of him playing with Layla and Lily while wearing a white boa, and holding our little black female poodle! He is surrounded by girls but he loves every minute of it!

Home with the girls . . .

2009-03-26T21:29:00.000-07:00

It seems like it's been a long time since I've posted anything on our blog! Potty training was a bit tiring, but the girls have done so well. This was my first week back at work after being on spring break for two weeks! We are all trying to get back into our routine . . .

Freddy took his mom out tonight - they went to the Billy Joel and Elton John concert! So, us girls had the house to ourselves and hung out! We didn't do anything too crazy . . .we had popsicles, played a bit, and had some laughs! Here are a few pics of the girls making "silly faces." They are all growing up so fast . . .let's see how much longer Analisa will make "silly faces" for me! She will be 11 in May!!! Crazy!!! She is such a good big sister and really helps, especially when dad is out for the night! :)

2009-03-11T15:55:00.000-07:00

Wendy and her little guy, Diego, came over today! Wendy and I are both on spring break and took advantage of the great weather for a play date! Diego is such a GOOD baby and doesn't complain at all! He was having such a great time with the girls, all of their toys, and especially with Linda (our poodle!)!! The twins were having a great time with the bubbles that Wendy brought over . . .Lily was trying her hardest to blow the biggest bubbles ever!

The twins have not napped at all since Friday....I think Diego wore them out today. They FINALLY napped for two hours! They passed out on the couch! If you look closely, you can see that Liliana was playing with my high heels and fell asleep with them on! Too cute! We had a great time with Wendy and Diego!!

Potty Training X 2!

2009-03-08T15:40:00.000-07:00

We finally decided to potty train the twins. We decided to go with the 3 day "cold turkey" method and had the girls wear underwear first thing Saturday morning. The first half of the day was a complete mess . . .I almost gave in. Then, suddenly Layla "got it" and used the potty! We made such a fuss over her huge accomplishment and she was so excited! I felt very, very bad because I rewarded her with a small treat and poor Lily was just in tears because she wanted a treat too. It was so heartbreaking to see her cry over this. Eventually, Lily figured out how to use the potty as well and was so happy to receive her "reward." :)

Today, both girls have done so well and we are only on day 2! We only had one accident all day long! I have to say, I was quite worried about potty training two kids at the same time. Yes, it has been exhausting running two kids to their potties nonstop, cleaning potty after potty . . .however, I didn't realize the plus side of potty training two at once. One twin always catches on quicker than the other, depending on what they are trying to learn. In this case, Layla learned how to use the potty first. Liliana was able to watch her sister and caught on so quickly. One other plus is that they have a personal "cheerleader" around at all times! Both girls are so excited for each other whenever the use the potty! I'm so proud of them for taking on this huge milestone with such patience and eagerness! They are such good girls and learn so quickly!

Here are a few pics of the girls enjoying a special "fudgsicle" and some outdoor fun after a long day of potty training!

My Job!!

2009-03-05T21:41:00.000-08:00

This is the first school year that I have worked full-time since the twins were born. I work full time as a Reading Interventionist at Lowell School. I truly love my job! I tutor kids all throughout the day and also model reading lessons in all of our first grade classrooms. I love having the opportunity to work with kids one-on-one and having the chance to teach in a whole group setting.

I set some personal career goals at the beginning of this year for the first grade students that I work with. 1st grade students should be reading 20 words per minute by December and 40 words per minute by May. I have worked very closely with the 1st grade teachers all year to help all of the students accomplish these goals.

Today, I was at a district meeting and I received some pretty cool news! The 1st grade students at Lowell scored the highest in the district in reading!! 71% of the students met the reading goal for December!!! This was super exciting for me. I knew that we had scored very high, but it was great news to know that we scored the highest in the district. Now, my personal goal is to have 88% of the students meet the end of the year reading goal. Some of the first grade teachers think that this goal is a little too high . . .but, I think the kiddos can do it. I'm very, very happy with the results so far. The hard work that everyone has put forth this year has paid off! It has been truly amazing to work with a student that couldn't read a word in September and now they can read almost any text that is placed in front of them. I am sooo proud of so many kids!

Happy Birthday, Freddy!

2009-03-02T19:36:00.000-08:00

Today was Freddy's 33rd birthday . . .Freddy didn't want to do too much to celebrate his birthday this year . . . I guess that's what happens as you get older! Just kidding, honey! :) We celebrated with Paula, Jenny, DJ and Dominick over the weekend. Today, we celebrated his actual birthday at home with dinner and cake. The twins were so excited to sing "Happy Birthday" to their daddy. As soon as Freddy got home from work Liliana ran up to him and said "Happy Birthday Daddy!" in her cute, raspy voice . . . it was the sweetest thing ever! Even though it was a quiet birthday, I hope he had a good day . . . he definitely deserves it!

A Peanut Butter Mess

2009-02-16T11:04:00.000-08:00

There really never is a dull moment in our house! Today, Layla and Lily saw me eating an apple with peanut butter and asked if they could have some as well. I gave them each some apple slices and just a bit of peanut butter. They seemed very happy . . .I thought I could hurry and get the dishes done while they were occupied. I turned my back for a few minutes and when I turned around, this is what I saw! Cute, yes . . . !! Messy? Without a doubt!!! The girls had their bath very early today . . .fun times! :)

Freddy - the minister!

2009-02-15T11:12:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know, Freddy was ordained as a minister about a year ago!! He performed his first wedding ceremony last May and performed his second wedding yesterday - on Valentine's Day! He did an amazing job - I was very proud of him. Freddy practiced the ceremony several times and worked very hard to make sure everything ran smoothly. We all know how Freddy loves to joke and make people laugh . . . it's very interesting to see another side of Freddy that we don't get to see too often! He projects his voice very well amongst a large crowd and truly captures the attention of the audience. His voice is very calming and you can tell that he really means the words he says to the bride and groom. Freddy "charges" couples a room at the hotel and requests to for he and I to be invited to the party!! LOL!! Here is a picture of us as we celebrated with the bride and groom at the wedding reception last night. It was a very fun time and Freddy and I danced the night away!! If any of you know of anyone looking for a minister, let me know!! :)

The cast is off!!!

2009-02-13T08:49:00.000-08:00

Liliana's cast finally came off! It was three long weeks . . .she is definitely a trooper. She insisted on wearing her ballerina dress to the doctor appointment. Everyone thought she was the cutest thing and the doctor thanked her for dressing up to get her cast off! :) They used a little saw to take the cast off - it was very, very, loud!! Lily did not shed a tear and just asked to hold my hand while the doctor took the cast off. We took Lily alone to the doctor and on the way home she kept saying "I want to see Layla now." It was very sweet . Layla missed her sister while we were away and was very excited to see her. Layla keeps telling everyone "no more cast for Lily!" Hopefully we wont' see another cast in our household again! :)

The Family at Dinner!

2009-02-08T19:48:00.000-08:00

Freddy, Jenny, DJ, Paula and I and the kiddos all got together to remember Fred's birthday. We had a great time at dinner and I was able to get some cute pics of the kids! It was the first time that any of them had cotton candy! WOW! I think Layla loved it the most - after a while she was running around the entire restaraunt! The sugar must have gotten to her! :)