Raffle!

Today I wont a raffle at a work event. The girls were excited to check out the prize, especially Sofia. So she made an inventory of it when we got home. It had some  good stuff.

Morning run

This morning I managed to squeeze in a 3.1 miles run on the treadmill. I was glad I was able to start the day that way.

Xavier time

On Tuesday nights, while Sofia is in swim practice at Xavier, Bella and I sit outside the pool (since Bella gets got inside) and this is our spot. Here we talk, we read books, and sometimes I let her play on the kindle for a little while. 

Feliz Cumple Abuelita

Tomorrow is Abuelita's birthday, but since it is a Monday that means I have to go to work, and the girls have to go to school. So we celebrated a day early, with a home made orange pound cake I made just for her. Feliz Cumple Abuelita!! We love you very much!

Snow day

This Friday the girls had a snow day at school, in anticipation of a snow storm that never arrived. I still had to work all day, so it is not like I could play with them. But luckily they entertained themselves. They even played outside for a little while, even though it was freezing cold out there.

Seattle runs

While we were in Seattle I managed to get in a couple of runs. One of them was outside, on the best weather day we had while were there. Cool, but sunny and dry. 

Seattle girls trip

This past weekend I went on a girls trip with my work girlfriends, to visit one of our friends who move to Seattle over the summer. We explored the city walking, worked out, had some good meals, went wine tasting, and went to the movies a couple of times. I enjoyed the trip, except for one not-so-small detail I had forgotten about. Our friend has a cat, which of course I am allergic to. I took allergy medicine while we were there, which helped, but it was definitely not ideal. 

Brrrrrr

The little boss

This evening the girls were playing together and preparing for a "Concert", so Bella let Sofia do her hair and get her dressed. Sofia dressed her all cute and formal, and they both said Bella looked like a mini-worker, more precisely like a little boss.

Bella's singing lessons

This afternoon Bella had her very first voice lesson at the Children's Theatre. She always goes around signing, so I asked her if she wanted to go and she said yes. I signed her up for the group lessons that were starting this month. I hope she enjoys it, has fun, and learns a thing or two about stage presence and self confidence. Those are two things that no matter what, will help her in life.

First snow

Today we woke up to everything covered in snow, the first snow fall of the season. It was also very cold, which invited you to stay inside unless you had a really good reason to go out. So inside we stayed all morning, and I even stayed in bed late reading a book I started over the Holidays. It is quite uncommon for me to stay in bed that late, or late at all, but today it felt like I just needed to do so.

Today's memory

Today's memory, from exactly 6 years ago, is a picture of my little angels together.

Good bye (for now) dinner

Jan 8,

Last night we took Isabel and Cesca out for dinner. Isabel was heading back to Colorado for school over the weekend, so it was our bye (for now) dinner. 

Dia de Reyes!

Dia de Reyes - and Rosca -  is one of my favorite days of the year. I will hold on and celebrate them for as long as I can. The girls made their letters and a Happy New Year sign for the Reyes Magos, except that Bella got the year wrong and wrote 2061 instead of 2016 - which is exactly 45 years from now. The girls opened their gifts in the morning, before going to school, and in the evening we got together to cut Rosca as a family. Everybody was tired, and Diego and Adrian were cranky, but it was still nice to keep the tradition going. It was also the first time we celebrated in the new house - hopefully the first one of many years to come.

Christmas Break Day 14 - Today's memory

Today's blast from the past is a picture of Bella from exactly 3 years ago. We were ice skating in fountain square, and she was just 4 years old. I love that sweet face.

Christmas Break Day 14 - Squeezing it all in

This morning Sofia had a swim meet ... which required us to be there by 6:50am! Getting up that early was tough. It would have been tough anyway, but it was even worse because last night I barely slept. Between Bella waking me up, and the dog barking on and off, I barely got any rest. After the meet we came back home for Sofia to take a shower, and then went to Panera for lunch. 

Then, in the afternoon, I was finally able to remove the earrings Bella had on since she has a baby - something that was long overdue. The earrings were "stuck", so I literally had to cut them with some small jewelry scissors I bought at Michaels. Bella was a little scared when I told her we were cutting them off, but was excited when they were gone. Of course now she is talking about how often she is going to be changing them, which is not exactly what I had in mind.

We were at home the rest of the afternoon with me doing chores, the kids playing around with their friends, and Lionel bouncing back between the football game and the computer. When it was time to take a shower Bella asked if she could take a bath instead, so she did. I am pretty sure she has enjoyed that bathtub way more than either Lionel or I have. Lionel put a little bit too much bubble bath soap, which he didn't realize until it was too late. Bella had fun with it though, playing and making shapes with the bubbles while Sofia was helping me prepare dinner.

By now the girls are in bed, and I will be right behind them. We all wish it was not the case, but tomorrow is back to reality.

Christmas Break - Day 13 - Almost at the end

Today is technically no longer a vacation day, but it is still part of our Christmas break. We have tennis and Sofia has swim practice, which are part of our regular routine. But I didn't get up to run, and the girls didn't have French class, which is good. That way we can get back into the routine step by step. I am really bummed that Monday we have to go back to work and the girls have to go back to school. I'd be lying if I said that I am not totally dreading it. 

Vacation Day 12 - Movie and hanging out

Jan 1,

In the afternoon Gabi, my mom and I went to see Joy, a new movie, while Lionel and the girls stayed at home. Actually Lionel stayed home, but the girls went back and forth between ours and the neighbors. Jack, the neighbor, had come looking for them right when we were about to eat lunch. So Lionel told them they could play after eating. 

After the movie I stopped by Kroger to buy a few things, but since I was already there I decided I might as well get food for the week. I made sure I was back at home at 4:30, so Lionel could go meet an old high school friend for a coffee. He hadn't seen his friend in years and years, so he enjoyed meeting her again.

By the time Lionel came back it was already time for dinner. So we ate, played Life at the girls request, and that was that! The girls went to bed super late again, despite my continuous attempts to get them back into the routine. And Bella asked me to stay with her until she fell asleep, which took so long that I ended up passing out in her bed as well. Going back to the routine is going to be tough all around.

Vacation Day 12 - 1st run of the year

Jan 1,

Like at the start of every month,  my running app reset to zero miles run. I normally run on Saturday mornings, so I could have waited one day for my first run of the year, but I decided it was better to have my first run on the very first day of the year. It was cold outside, so I bundled up and ran 5 miles. I pushed myself and kept a pretty good pace, while also enjoying the sunshine and checking out the trees, the houses, etc, as I was passing by. It was cold, but it felt good to be outside.