Happy 1st Birthday Lily!

I couldn't believe Lily's 1st birthday came so quickly! It took 3 long years of waiting before we were able to hold her in our arms and now she was turning 1! (I blogged about my struggle here!)

For her actual birthday day, it was just the four of us. I made her a cake and sang "Happy Birthday." She got to open one of her presents that evening.

We found out she doesn't like fire! 

It took her a bit before she thought it was funny to play in it. She didn't really care to eat any though.

Oh the faces she makes. :)

After a bath she opened her present...

...with help from Isaias. :)

Her party was just a few days later. We invited some of Erik's family and some of mine. I had fun making her first tutu for it! I know it's not everybody's style or taste, but, guess what? It's OK!!! :)
Here are a few pictures from her party!

Her adorable hat Grandma Janet and Grandpa Quico got her!

Grandma Janet and Grandpa Quico

Since she cried after we lit her candle, we just set her on the table to make a mess!

I kept it simple this year. I would have liked to have made a Lily for each cupcake, but I'd never done it and didn't feel like getting frustrated.

Juliana (Lily's cousin)

Here are Lily's 1st birthday pictures!

I can look at her expressions and just hear the sound she is making in my head!

Here was a recent one I couldn't resist adding!

Fat Cristina

I know, the title seems silly, right? When I began tracking my weight loss and looked back at pictures, there was one I titled "Fat Cristina," and I saved it to my computer that way. Erik thought it was hilarious! So...it seemed like a good title. :)

Since March of this year, and 4 months after giving birth to my daughter, I decided to start losing weight. I was squeezing myself into jeans that were a size I'd NEVER been in before. I was unhealthy, obese, and felt horrible about myself.

My goal is realistic. To get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. That will take another 15-18 pounds. Oh, and to exercise a little more! I've lost 26 pounds since March! That's a total weight loss goal of at least 40 pounds and I'm OVER halfway there!

I posted the picture below to facebook and I was almost embarrassed to. I looked pretty bad before! Why is it that nobody tells you you've got a muffin top? Oh, wait! Somebody did. It really hurt my feelings and took a blow to my self-esteem. You know what though? It helped motivate me.

How did I begin? Portion control! I stopped snacking so much and started eating 3 meals a day. I limited sugar, some carbs, and started adding a bit more protein. I reduced my portions probably in half. My biggest thing to comfort me is food. What do we spend all our extra money on? Eating out! We LOVE to eat out! Plus, I don't like cooking. We try to only eat out about two times a week now. To some that may be a lot, but for us it's pretty good. Wednesday nights we like to eat out and Sunday after church.

Another thing we started was Visalus shakes. Its a meal replacement that we started taking. It's really the best weight loss shake I've had! Not only that but it has vitamins and fiber in it as well. I do sell it, and if you want more info, here's the link. I'm adding it just in case you're interested. I've had some people ask about it after posting on Facebook. I'm not a very good sales person and the type that if you want it, you'll let me know. I don't like to be pushy at all.

Here's "Fat Cristina," and I should have titled the other one "halfway there" instead of "after." :)

If you notice, Erik has lost weight too! 18 pounds now!

Isaias' 6th Birthday!

It seems almost silly to post this now after 2 months! Oh well, better late than never, right?!

This year for Isaias' 6th birthday he chose to have it at Gage Bowl and had his first friend birthday party. He has had a friend or two come to other parties, but this was focused on him and his friends. It wasn't about the adults and food and so on. There's not a thing wrong with family and food, but it was time for him to have a friend party. :) We always have a hard time deciding who to invite, so, this year I let him choose, but there was a limit on how many friends and they had to be boys. Up until school started he preferred playing with girls, but we've been working on making sure he's ALL boy. :)

I had a challenge this year with the cake. I've never actually drawn a figure on a cake, but I made Isaias' cake doing the piping gel transfer. I also used all butter frosting, which didn't work so well and globbed all over the place. Isaias looked at Mario's shoes and said, "eww, what is that?" Ha! I'm only showing the picture that makes it look the best though. The kids didn't care what it looked like. :)

The party went well! They enjoyed bowling, drank pop, ate cake, and had a good time!

So...on a different note. I can't believe my son is 6?!! I know he's still young, but he seems so old to me now! I've enjoyed seeing him grow and his personality flourish even more with him starting school. He's like his Dad too, such a comedian!

When he started putting his candles on the cake, I was about to get after him and tell him to put the candles somewhere else. I didn't. I figured, what was the harm? Plus, it is rather hilarious. :)

Me and my birthday boy!

I could have put all the pictures up of his presents, but chose not to. He has played with everything though and really enjoyed all his gifts. 

Erik and I were blessed to be able to get him a Wii this year! He loved it!!!!

The goody bags I made. The star cookies were lots of work!

Erik's grandma and his mom

The boys!

Isaias enjoyed his birthday party, AND he is already thinking of what his next party will be! I told him to enjoy being 6 while he can!

I spy....

Can you spot something new on Lily? :)

I edited the picture to help see it better.

Look hard.....it's kind of small....

 I thought I'd add the original below just because I like this picture. :)

3 days shy of 11 months old and I noticed she's getting a TOOTH!! My big girl is growing so quickly!

Life

Life has been so crazy busy for me. I'm not sure if it's my need for a completely clean house or just because I'm purely busy. Maybe both. I'm not really sure!

My grandma is a hoarder. Yes, she could definitely be on that show "Hoarders." I haven't been to her house in probably 10 years, but I remember going over there as a child. I think I counted 100+ bars of soap, toilet paper rolls, and towels....each! There is such a narrow path to walk everywhere in her house, and you don't really want to move anything around for fear of roaches scurrying past your feet. If you were to move a picture frame on the wall, I'm sure roaches would run amuck too! Eww! She has a room, that is supposed to be the living room but she doesn't use it. Why? Because she has two feet of clothes covering the ENTIRE floor...I'm not exaggerating or kidding. It's hard to picture, but it's true.

I'm not sure if that has sent ME over the top by trying to keep my house so clean that I don't enjoy precious time with my kids. I almost feel like it's crippling me. I'm sure other moms might struggle with this, but I feel as if I might be the only one. I've been praying and asking God to help show me a happy medium. I'd like to be able to enjoy life, and do what I enjoy in some free time while Isaias is at school and Lily is napping. I've been stuck in "Mommy mode" for a while and have come to lose focus on what I really enjoy doing.

In the meantime, I'm asking for your prayers, because as small as it seems, it has begun to take over my life. If the devil can't make you bad, he'll make you busy.

Memory Boards

I'm here, I'm here! It's been so long since I've blogged! There have been lots of events that have been happening lately and haven't been able to blog like I've wanted. 

I just wanted to share my recent (by recent I mean in the past 6 years) hobby I picked up. :)

Memory Boards!!

I gave my niece the memory board that says LOVE all over it for her birthday. After she opened it, Isaias said, "We got you that motherboard!" 

Lily's bow holder

One I made for a friend

My niece's

My sister-in-law (she turned 10)

I've thought about selling these on Etsy...but...haven't decided yet!

I have another blog I'm working on too....Isaias' 6th birthday party!

Isaias starts Kindergarten!

I've thought about this day for years. I knew I would miss Isaias once he started school. I've had many conversations with him about kindergarten and how long he will be in school. 7 hours a day. He always tells me, "Mommy, I'm going to miss you." I always reply, "I'm going to miss you too!" It will seem like an eternity to us both to leave each other for so long. I've stayed home with Isaias for almost 6 years. His birthday is September 10th, and in order to start kindergarten you have to be 5 by August 31st. Which means he got to stay home with me for another year. :) God knew what he was doing! The longest I've been away from Isaias was 2 days when Erik and I got married and we went on our honeymoon to Kansas City. Other than that it might be for a night away here and there.

I'm so blessed to be able to stay home with my children. It's not something everybody gets to do or is called to do. Isaias and I have had many fun days throughout the years being at home. I've loved watching him grow from a tiny baby to an almost 6 year old beginning kindergarten! I was looking back through pictures and reminiscing.

Starting him out early!

He reminds me of Lily!

I didn't think there were enough pictures taken of Isaias at our wedding so a month later I took some more...before he outgrew this precious little outfit!

Isaias loved playing with the food from the cabinet so I designated a cabinet with things he  was allowed to play with. :)

Preschool time! He matched uppercase and lowercase at 3 years old! He has always loved learning.

Sink or float game

Using fine motor skills. :)

He LOVES what he calls the "Elephant Park." 

We got FREE tickets to see Elmo on stage!

This is probably my top 3 favorites of me and Isaias

I found these pictures we took using the computer. Must have been about 2 years old here.

I'm trying to look at this new phase of life as an adventure and something fun to look forward to. He LOVES learning and I know he'll do great. He has been ready for so long. By the time he was 5 1/2 he didn't want to go to preschool anymore or church. He said it was boring. I know he's ready but it's hard for me to let go. However, it's very necessary for us both to grow.

A friend of mine who is a kindergarten teacher shared this with me.  It made me cry, but it was comforting at the same time.

The First Day

I gave you a little wink and smile

As you entered my room today.

For I know how hard it is to leave

And know your child must stay.

You've been with him for five years now

And have been a loving guide,

But now, alas, the time has come

To leave him at my side.

Just know that as you drive away

And tears down your cheeks may flow

I'll love him as I would my own

And help him learn and grow.

For as a parent, I too know

How quickly the years do pass

My baby boy will be in kindergarten

I must do the same and leave him at his class.

So please put your mind at ease

And cry those tears no more

For I will love him and take him in

When you leave him at my door.

Here is my baby on his first day of Kindergarten! He did great! No tears at all. He actually has two friends from preschool in his class now. I choked back my tears this morning, and I knew God was with me because I didn't cry and I had a peace inside me. :)

Per Isaias' request we walked to school, actually he ran! He wanted to ride his bike but that would have made it challenging to get back home with it.

His cool pose

Waiting for Juli to get to school

Isaias with his cousin Juliana. She's starting 4th grade.

Blowing us kisses right before we left

My prayer:
God, Isaias is in your hands, just as he always has been. I pray that you watch over him and guide him through these crucial early years. I pray for fun times for him and that he is able to make friendships that will build him up. I pray for his teacher, God. That you give her the patience and guidance throughout the year that she needs. That she is loving and has a heart for her classroom. I also pray for myself God. That you would continue to hold me up and be able to continue to see this as a new phase of life and be able to fully trust in you, God. I love you and thank you for my beautiful blessings.