Piano

For at least 2 or 3 years we have needed new couches in the living room, but we have been waiting to get them for 2 important reasons: Bella, and the dog. The dog chewed a spot in one of them, and we are afraid she will do it again. And Bella is still messy, highly likely to spill something or clean her hands on it.

Tonight, as I was sitting down here, I told Lionel: "Maybe when we get rid of these old coaches we can put a piano in this corner", to which he responded: "We are never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever , ever going to get a Piano". He then added, thankfully in a lower voice so Sofia didn't hear him, "I HATE pianos".

And what did I think of that? That he had a bad attitude, that thankfully Sofia did not hear him say that and - more importantly - that we'll see about that! I am not going to rush and get one now, but if Sofia keeps up with it, I think we should keep an open mind.

Enfermita

My poor Bella was not feeling well today. She was running a fever, and was tired all day. We were supposed to go to Gabi's house for Thanksgiving dinner, but we stayed home instead. Thankfully my parents brought us some food so we didn't have to cook.

After dinner I went upstairs to put Bella to sleep in my bed. Lionel and Sofia watched the cooking channel for a little bit, and then Sofia also went down for the day. It was a quiet day overall, which was needed by all of us.

First 10K

This morning Gabi and I finished our very first 10K. The last mile was very tough for me, but I made it to the very end. I had the super stretch goal of finishing in less than 1 hour, and although that didn't happen I still ran it at a pretty good pace. My official time was 1hr, 1 min, and 9 seconds, much faster than every time we ran during training. Although Lionel didn't train for it he also decided to run, and finished only 4 minutes after us.

Throughout the entire 2 months of training we were very lucky with the weather during our Sunday runs outside, and today's weather didn't let us down either. Although it started quite chili, it was also sunny, and beautiful, and it quickly warmed up.

It was a great race, and I am very proud of all of us.

Taking a break

Last night, before I went to bed, I turned my work phone off and put it away. If I keep it on I get tempted to look at it throughout the day, so since it is a long weekend I am giving myself a 4 day break.

Thanksgiving 2012

I didn't grow up celebrating Thanksgiving, but it is one of the Holidays I've been happy to adopt. The fact that I get two days off work certainly helps, but what I like the most is the intent. It is a good thing to stop and think about all the good things we have in life. The things I am thankful for are too many to list, but my family, my health, and my overall good fortune are some of the obvious ones.

Thanksgiving Feast

This afternoon Sofia had a Thanksgiving celebration at her school, and parents were asked to bring a family favorite thanksgiving dish. When I picked her up she asked me "Mami, what did you bring?" ... to which I proudly answered: "I brought the apple juice!"

Day by Day

Lately I've been way too tired by the end of the day, so despite the fact that I am a planner I have totally been living day by day. I am glad this will be a short week, because I am in real need of a long weekend. Maybe I'll get to take a nap. Maybe I will at least get to sit around.

Almost there...

It is hard to believe, but today was our last Sunday run before the 10K. Tomorrow we rest, on Tuesday we run for 15 minutes, on Wednesday we rest, and Thursday is the big day!

Pozole

Tonight I made Pozole for dinner. It had been a while...

The kids liked it, and Bella let her piggy sit by hers and even asked me to take a picture after which she proceeded to ask: "Mami, was that a pretty smile?"

Birthday Dinner

Last night, after Bella's party, we went out for dinner to celebrate Tio and Lionel's birthday. Among the guests there were two couples from Tio's work, and one of the guys kept standing up to do a toast, to tell stories, etc. I of course thought he was drunk, so I proceeded to ignore him and do my own thing. First of all I was very tired, and second of all I don't like drunk people at all. Turns out though, that is just the way he is and Gabi and Lionel thought that I was very rude. But truly, since I don't know the guy, how was I supposed to know?!?

Bella's Birthday Party

Bella's birthday is always around Thanksgiving, so it is a bad time to have a birthday party because everybody is traveling or spending time with their families. But I did organize myself and planned the party for this weekend. Bella decided that she wanted to have her party at Recreations Outlet, so we went back one more time. I invited her friends from Sands, Goddard, our neighbors, and the kids of couple of our friends. I invited a lot of kids, but I wasn't stressed because I figured that not everybody would make it, and I preferred to have too many kids, than not having enough. After all, that place is not meant for an intimate gathering. Of course turns out that every single kid - 23 total - showed up, but that was ok. We had plenty of pizza, cake, and fun for all of them ... especially the birthday girl!

Sunday at the park

Last Sunday the weather warmed up a lot, so while Sofia was at Samantha's house for her birthday party, Gabi, my mom, Dieguito, Bella, and me went to the park. Being able to run around without even a sweater in the middle of November is a real treat. It doesn't get better than that.

Tennis Explorers - Week 2

Last Saturday Bella had her second tennis class. The country of the week was China, so at some point she had two racquets to catch the ball as if she was using chopsticks. She also got her t-shirt, which looked huge on her. But she was a good sport and put it on at least for a little while.

Today I voted!

Today I voted in a presidential election for the very first time. I was happy to exercise my right! Still, I do find it ironic - given the separation of church and state - that my polling location was a church ...

Just wow!

Today I took Sofia to the orthodontist where they took pictures, X-rays, and some digital scans that allowed them to create a 3D model of Sofia's teeth - right on the spot! Even working in the technology field I thought it was pretty wild. They definitely did NOT have this "in my times".

Bella's new shirt

I got this shirt for Bella just the other day. It was too cute so I couldn't help myself.

Gymnastics Central

Today Bella had a birthday party at Gymastics Central.  We had never been there before, but it was a fun little discovery - a real Gymastics place. Gymnastics was my favorite sport as a little kid, so it was nice to spend couple hours in there and feel the softness and bounciness of the floor under my feet.

5.1

Today I ran 5.1 miles for the very first time. It was tough at times with all those hills and running without Gabi, but I did it in really good time and my last mile was the fastest one. So just like the running coach suggested, I tried not to crawl to the finish line.

Tennis Explorers

Yesterday Bella started "Tennis Explorers", her very first Tennis program: It is a program for preschoolers and although there isn't much tennis playing per se just yet, it is meant to get them interested in the game. Lionel took her and said she really seemed to enjoy it ... up to the last 10 minutes when - in typical Bella fashion - she started to do her own thing.

Easy Bake Oven

When I was a child I always wanted to get an easy Bake Oven for Christmas, but I never did. Maybe it was too expensive, or my parents didn't consider it safe. Regardless, I really wish I had gotten one. So when I saw one yesterday at Target I was very tempted to buy it for myself. But even though I could have gotten it, at this stage of the game it wouldn't do me any good.

Halloween 2012

This year we had really awful weather for Halloween. It was freezing cold and raining, but we weren't about to disappoint the girls; If they wanted to go trick or treating we would be right there with them. Tia and Tio came over with Dieguito, and they handed out candy while we walked around chasing the girls. Lionel walked with Sofia, and I chased after Bella while she ran around keeping up with everybody else. Sofia was dressed as a purple fairy, and Bella was Strawberry Shortcake.

Even though the night started a bit slow, we had plenty of kids come by. The girls walked around for at least an hour before we finally came back home. Tia and Tio couldn't stay for dinner because unfortunately Tio is allergic to Zoey, but it was still nice to have them here and continue our little Halloween tradition.