This week

There is no denying that this week was tough on everbody. But we survived it, together, as a family. And together, as a family, we will take on whatever comes next.

MLK Day

Today was Martin Luther King's birthday, so most of us didn't have to go to work. Gabi and Raj did though, so my parents babysat Adrian. The girls and I stopped by for a little bit, before we ran couple errands, and in the late afternoon the girls, my mom, and I went to the movies to see Paddington, a kid's movie. I had made dinner ahead of time, knowing that we would come home somewhat late. Sofia decided to set the table in a special way, announcing the menu and giving everybody their own name tag. Bella followed suit, and gave me an extra one.

Green eating

I recently finished reading a book about healthy eating, which has given me significant reasons to improve the way we eat even more. There are some foods that I will be removing from my diet, some that I will only eat occasionally, and some that I will eat even more. It is not about losing weight, because I am at a pretty healthy weight, but rather about feeling better, and preventing disease later on.

Just the way you are

This morning Bella told me that Bruno Mars' song "Just the way you are" makes her think of me, because I am perfect just the way I am ... Does she really have to grow up someday?

Tooth Fairy

I had forgotten that Sofia still has some of her baby teeth, but two nights ago she was complaining about a wiggly tooth and yesterday morning it came out. She left her tooth out for the tooth fairy, but unfortunately the fairy forgot to show up. So this morning Sofia came into our room crying about it, but Lionel and I calmed her down and told her that she probably got busy, but that we are sure she will show up tonight. 

Misc Bella Art

Shit happens

Shit happens to bad people who deserve it, but it also happens to good people who don't. It sucks, and it is unfair. But no matter what, you have to keep your head up, and keep moving forward.

Awwww

Bella told me that since last night I wasn't home, she cried a little when she went to bed. "And what did daddy do then?" I asked. But she answered "Nothing. I didn't want him to see me cry. But I was so sad".

Cinderella

This evening Sofia and I went out for dinner with some of my work friends, and then went to see Cinderella at the Aronoff center. Bella is still too young to sit through an entire show, so I didn't get a ticket for her. I was a bit concerned that she would be unhappy staying behind with Lionel, but it worked out just fine since she had a birthday party right at the time when Sofia and I had to leave the house. So she had fun at her party, and we had fun at the show. 

Sofia is awesome

Earlier today, when we were at my parent's house, Sofia wrote the below sign which reads "Sofia, the most awesome person in the world" and put it on her shirt. I told her I would take a picture of it so she could look at it on days of self-doubt.

Chicas Terremoto 2014

Earlier today we received our latest Chicas Terremoto book. I can't wait for the girls to realize it is here, and to check it out.

Bella's room

Now that the girls have their own room, Sofia's room has been staying organized for the most part. But Bella's? That one is a mess. She takes everything out, and nothing goes back to its original place. Sigh...

Tennis class

Today Bella took the second half of our weekly tennis class, since the teacher was hurt and couldn't hit the ball with Lionel and me. She wasn't too excited about it at the beginning, since she is always tired after her swim lesson, but I promised to give her a little pom pom. This happens to be important because once she fills container I gave her I will buy her something she wants. She is mostly supposed to ear the pom poms by staying in her room, Vs coming to ours at night, but I decided to offer her an extra one.

Frio!!!

The last few days the weather in Cincinnati has been ridiculously cold, to the point where I - who don't like to stay home all day long - have absolutely dreaded going out. This is crazy! I am finally able to deal with 30 degree weather, and now this!

Atardecer

Dia de reyes 2015

This year the girls got lucky again and got gifts from the Reyes Magos. They didn't get exactly what they asked for, but they got some color pencils, American Girl Doll play plates and cups, which Sofia particularly loved, and pretty earmuffs.

Rosca de Reyes!

Following tradition, this year we once again got together for Rosca de Reyes. But since doing it on the actual date (Jan 6) was a bit more difficult, we did it one day early. It was too cold outside for my parents to go out again after work, but Gabi, Raj and the kids did come over.

Five years

I have just ordered the printed version of all my blog posts for the second half of 2014. Doing so is always both exciting and stressful, especially when it comes down to writing the dedication and choosing pictures for both the front and back covers of the book. There is just so much that happens in one year, that it is really hard to narrow down what I want to say with both words and pictures. Sometimes I create a photo collage, but this time around I kept it simple. For the front cover, I choose my favorite picture of the girls. For the back cover, a picture of our Christmas card.

While working to get the book ready for printing, it dawned on me that 2014 was already the 5th year of me writing my blog. It is easy to say, but five years is quite a long time - especially in relation to how old the girls are. My hope has always been that one day, when they are older, and maybe even when I am gone, they will enjoy reliving the memories and getting to know who they were once. But as it turns out, I don't even have to wait that long. Both girls enjoy looking at the books now, and they also come handy when we are trying to remember when did we do what. It is like a good family treasure to us.

Sky Zone

Today was the last day of the girl's Christmas break. So instead of just doing chores, I thought it would be good to do something fun with them. While Lionel watched the Bengals game, we went to a new place - or at least new to us - called Sky Zone. It is a so called "Indoor trampoline park", and it is about 30 minutes from our house. 

I bought tickets for 90 minutes, which was about right. Bella got tired about 10 minutes before then, but Sofia happily jumped from beginning to end. And needless to say, they both had fun and got a significant amount of exercise. 

Since they were all tired and sweaty I thought both of them would fall asleep during the ride back, but neither one did. So instead we listened to music, and talked about getting ready for the week. It is never fun going back to the routine after a long break, but at least I feel like we used our time off wisely- including today.

New Year Resolutions

Instead of just doing my own New Year resolutions this year, I decided to give Lionel and the girls a little bit of homework. I asked them to write one resolution they have for each member of the family, and I did the same. Initially Sofia protested that she didn't know what to write for Lionel and me, but I told her I was giving her a great opportunity to pick the one thing she would like us to do or change this year.

After I gave them their homework I went to get a massage, and told them we would read our resolutions when I got back. By the time I got back all 3 had worked on the resolutions, and the girls were excited about announcing them while pretending to have Sofia as a show host. I was happy to see that after the initial whining they were actually into it, and found it to be a good family exercise. 

Besides my 3 resolutions chosen by Lionel and the girls, I think I will pick a couple more. Last year I did well on some of my resolutions (like continuing to work out consistently), but on others not so much (like going to church once per month). So I may repeat some of my resolutions, and try to have better results.

Love

Tonight, as I was about to close the garage, I noticed that Sofia had written the below on the driveway during the few minutes she spent outside. I love my girl!

Happy New Year 2015!

New Year's Eve

For New Year's Eve we went to Woodland Mound, one of the local parks, for a family-friendly event from 4-7 pm. The weather was very cold, so we bundled up really well, but turned out the event was inside which was a good surprise. They had a magician, a balloon artist, and several kid activities and crafts. We got there right at sunset, so I was able to take couple great pictures, including one of the girls with the sunset in the background.

The kids had fun running around, checking everything out, and I enjoyed the Jazz band they brought in for the last 30 minutes. The music made me feel like I was in New Orleans. The event then closed with the "ball drop", which was really cute as it was literally a styrofoam ball covered with silver glitter, which a lucky kid literally got to drop from a balcony on the second floor.

After the event we stopped by my parent's house to say a quick hello, and for Gabi and Raj to pick up Adrian. We then had dinner at an Indian restaurant, which luckily wasn't a happening place since we didn't make a reservation anywhere, and headed back home to welcome the New Year in the warmth, comfort, and safety of our own house. Because what matters to me nowadays is not dressing fancy, or going to a popular place. It is all about welcoming the year surrounded by the people I love.