Tubing at Gorgoza

On Monday we went tubing with Dave's sisters and their families. It was our first time going and it was a very nice time. VERY cold, but very nice. Leah rode the snowmobile on the track for a little while. Then Mylo and Milli joined in the fun at the kiddy area. We spent about an hour going down a little slide and on the tubing "merry-go-round". Milli LOVED it! LOVED IT!

It really was so much fun, except for the very end when our fingers felt like they were about to fall off since we were so cold. We got some fun pictures and some fun memories. It will be so fun do enjoy this activities when all our kids are older and one of us isn't pregnant :) Its so wonderful to see the kids so happy!

Locks of Love...

Leah has been wanting to donate her beautiful hair since her cousin Gabi did it earlier this year. She wanted to do it for her B-day back in October, but it was not long enough. When we measured it again last night we were so excited that she had enough to donate. The minimum requirement is 10" and she was able to donate 10.5". Although she loves the change and the new look is quite cute on her, I think it was wonderful of her to have waited the extra two months and give her hair to a good organization.

I LOVE this hair! I have loved playing with it and I also loved cutting it this morning.

Now she is sporting a darling bob! When she finally got to see herself she said, "Oh my goodness, I look so old. I look like I am 19!" HAAAHAAAA... That was funny to me. I do think she looks older but I also think it suits her. We will let it grow again and maybe do it again.

She was SO proud of that long pony! It will be fun to try some short dos for a while. Way to go Miss Leah!!!

OUR Christmas

We were woken up Leah at 6 am! We had her go back to bed until 7 and then we waited until Milli woke up to go open presents. The kids had Santa, mom and dad and family presents to open. It was really nice to see the kids SO happy. I almost cried...let just blame that on hormones :)

This year the kids got "snuggie" jammies (that is what Leah calls them). They are very cozy, they look so cute in their footed jams.

This is my favorite picture. Leah was SO excited about her Mario DS game. That was on her Santa list, along with a mini computer, a tv for her room, an ipod and a camera. Santa can only bring one gift so she was not disappointed to have only gotten the DS game.

On Mylo's list he had a Nert gun (he ended up with three!), an Indiana Jones DS game (he got that), a Transformers Helmet, a mini Lego ship and a Star Wars gun. He was happy with his Indiana Jones DS and played it all day... I hate it but, he can play all he wants during the winter break, after that we are back to only once a week for thirty minutes.

Milli was kind enough not to write a letter to Santa... but she has been such a good girl that she got a musical piano. She loves music and loves to dance, so it was just right for her.

It was wonderful to see the kids so happy. Not once did we hear a complaint! They each got a bag of clothes they could have cared less about... but they needed it :)

Uboldi Christmas

This year we all got together Christmas night at our house for a relaxed dinner of pizzas, appetizers and deserts. We had a great time and like always we were all spoiled by abuela. The kids got the traditional Christmas jammies. The girls got watches and scarves, the boys got random things and the kids got anything from coloring books to nerf guns and random toys. They loved it. We watched the Nativity movie and that was also a nice treat. We laughed and hugged it was great! We are quite the bunch. Four moms and eleven + grand kids, plus the husbands... its quite the crew. It was wonderful!

Trevino Christmas

On Christmas Eve we celebrated with Trevino's at Bob and Amy's house. We had a delicious dinner and some great treats. The kids exchanged gifts and played wonderfully.

After a few attempts at taking a picture of all the kids, which was unsuccessful, the kids rolled around and were silly... it was fun to watch them.

Then they dog piled on cousin Jake. They all loved that!

Mylo got a Nerf gun from Megan... and that is exactly what he wanted! (Mylo gave Nicholas a ball and a spy gun)

Milli got spoiled with some bath toys and these darling pink heels. She loved them! (Milli gave Jake a DSi point card)


Leah got a Barbie (that is just beautiful) from Jake. (Leah gave Ryan a set of Bendaroos)

It was a great night. Aunt Carmen had just arrived from NY and its always wonderful to see her. We have a great time with Trevinos and often enjoy some great laughs. We headed home and in the morning we enjoyed a yummy breakfast with Grandpa Al and Diann. It was very nice to see all the kids so happy with all their Christmas gifts.

Winter Break Activities

Since the kids have been on winter break this is what they have been doing...

Stayed in their jammies most of the day while playing their DS until who knows what time. Milli got in on the action as well.

They played dress up with their Halloween costumes from two years ago. Mylo's dinosaur costumes was ridding up his rear and to his knees and elbows, still he wore it ALL day and wanted to sleep with it on. Milli wore part of Leah's which costume and loved it.

Leah was a very good entertainer for her siblings. I could only pray and wish for days this wonderful, when I don't have to tell them to be nice and they simply choose to do it on their own.

Then, more DS game play. After all they must warm their fingers up for the "hopefully" new DS Games they will be recieving.

Delivered neighbor gifts. This year do to time and money we gave out light bulbs that said "May the light of Christ be with you now and always." I thought it was clever, plus who doesn't like to be thought of? The kids had a great time delivering them, Mylo took part in getting in and out of the car this year and he loved it. Milli spent her time watching a movie in the car.

Pants Down...

Milli was caught with her pants down the other day. Not sure if she wanted her diaper changed or a bath. She couldn't take them all the way off, so she waddled around like this until she found Dave to help her finish the job. She was pretty proud of herself. She is so cute... I just love this little stinker.

Battleship

A little friendly competition of Battleship. Good Times....!

(This is what Milz and I were doing. The kids playing, Dave in the office and Dru trying to put Takeshi to sleep while he slept on the couch.)

Gingerbread House

At the beginning of the month the kids and I made this Gingerbread House. It has become some what of a tradition and its a lot of fun. The kids and Dave want to destroy the house as soon as its done but I make them wait at least one week before starting to pick all the candy off of it. I hate seeing it destroyed since it takes quite some time to finish it... but it looks pretty and its good to get the kids to get their chores done. I hate that it never turns out as nice as the one pictured on the box.

Feliz Navidad!!!

My Christmas gifts are with me always, not just in December. I have....

My darling husband - Who is supportive of what I want to do, encouraging, loyal, hard working and all he wants for me is to be happy. He loves our children and spends time with them and is an example to them. He has a strong testimony of the true gospel of Jesus Christ and He guides his every decision.

My children - I am found daily in awe of these blessings that have come to our home. They make me so happy and just looking at them brings me joy. I cant get enough of them!

The blessing of having another child - What a beautiful miracle to have the ability to have a growing baby. We feel so blessed with a yet another child blessing our lives.

My extended family - Our Grandmother has always brought us close together and we are all very good friends. Although distances have taken us to different places we are still able to connect with each other as if we were together just the day before.

My in-laws - I love them all. They bring happiness to me and I feel like they (each of them) are part of my real family. I always have a great time with them and I am thankful for the laughs we can share.

The gospel - With out it I would be lost.

Most of all: FOR CHRIST - With out Him I would be lost forever.

May your Christmas blessings surround YOU through out the year!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I use this " !!!!!!!!!!!!! " way too much! I need to stop!!!!!

A Happy Day at Our House!!!

We are expecting our 4th monkey/angel/baby !!!!!!! We are so excited!!!!! Can you tell????!!!!!! This has been the longest I have waited to tell, ever! I love to share good news with people and I think this is just the best news to share :) I guess my Christmas present came early :) I am 12 weeks and we got to see the little "gummy bear" (that is what my midwife called it) today. The baby was moving around all over the place. The heartbeat looked really nice and strong and nothing could have made me happier today. Tears of joy flowed down my face as I saw that little baby wriggling around in there. I have been feeling much to well to even feel pregnant, I guess I shouldn't complain, but I would like to "feel" pregnant to feel a bit more reassurance that all is good... but I feel that it is.

We told all our family today and that was a lot of fun as well. Milli has known since the beginning and she is really good at keeping secrets :) She hasn't told anybody. When I showed Mylo the ultrasound picture he said, "is that Milli?" We said that is was a new baby, he was slow to catch on that it would be our baby, but once he realized it, he smiled and said I hope its a boy (me too). Leah was last to find out. She looked at the picture and said, "is that me?" Nope, not you! She also asked "when did this happen? You just got pregnant and that was it?" Oh boy... here we go....

Candy Train, Dubious and the letter Z

Mylo has said some funny things later and I must share.



CANDY TRAIN

While getting ready for school:

Me: Whats your favorite part about school?

Mylo: I don't like school. I only like recess

Me: Why don't you like school?

Mylo: Because I don't like to color. And I don't like to do my name 'cause teacher does it little and she is really fast at it and I can't!

When I picked him up He has a huge smile on his face and I asked..

Me: See school is fun, you get to do fun crafts.

Mylo: Well I only like school when we get to make Candy Trains!

Ok... well I guess that is understandable.


DUBIOUS

That same same I had to go my dreaded grocery shopping. I had Mylo and Milli. We were by the apples when Mylo says...

Mylo: Mom, Milli is very dubious!

Me: Oh yeah?!?! (as I quickly speed dial Dave) "Hey Dave, can you look up a word for me?"

Dave: Ya. What is it?

Me: Dubious?

Dave: Why?

Me: Because Mylo just said Milli is very dubious and I have no idea what that means.

We both chuckled a bit. Not sure where he got that word. Dave and I didn't know what it meant! It means doubtful. Not sure why he said that but it was certainly funny.


THE LETTER "Z"

And just a few minutes ago I asked him (as we played on the floor, he would 'tackle' me and I would tickle him)...

Me: what is your favorite letter?

Mylo: (thinking carefully....) I think I like the letter Z because that is the last letter and that means there is no more school after that letter.

Me:.... (Laughing on the floor, literally) Hang on buddy, I gotta go write this down!


He is seriously such a crack up every day!!!! What a witty kid.... He for sure got that from his mom ;)


LOOOOOVE being a mother to this monkey. LOOOOOVE IT!!!!!

OUCH!!! I think I broke my toe...

I know I don't have the prettiest of feet... BUT, they will look even worse now! I was walking from Mylo's room to Milli's room to grab a new shirt for her and I must have been very mad at something that I kicked the door jam SO hard. It killed! I almost cried. I didn't look at my toe for a while but I was clearly in pain and it was (and still is) really hard to walk. I feel silly limping around, but it hurts! Its now purple and hurts worse than before. I don't think I need to go to the Dr.'s since they won't do anything, but it really hurts!



side note: Mylo just saw me typing this and saw the picture and said, "is that your toooooe?" with a big yucky face :) HAHAHAAA. He is right that is yucky!

Losing... Will it ever come back!?!?

My heart hurts today (no need to call...) But yesterday my dad came by. I still love to see him and I still love him a lot. But he has hurt me so badly. His choices have been so difficult to take in. Feeling as though he has yet to really change is hard to see. I have always put him on a peddle stool (not sure if that is how you say that) and he has more than disappointed me. During the Holidays or Birthdays or Family get-togethers I think of how his choices have made him so sad. I have never been able to stand up to him. And yesterday before he left and after some small talk, he put his hand on my shoulder and looked me in the eyes and said "God has forgiven me, and I need you guys to forgive me. I need a reason to live". What I wanted to tell him, but I couldn't, was that he has yet to ask for our forgiveness. He chose this and we are the ones that have to live with the consequences too. Why is it so hard?!?! I was pregnant with Milli when all of this happened, I was in a fragile state yet he chose what he wanted. It still so hard to swallow. I have felt for a long time that he is gone. He certainly is not the father I grew up with, the father that taught me about the gospel, the man I admired and looked up to. I am not sure I will ever be able to fill that void in my heart. It really hurts.

It's hard to see those you love make choices that will affect you and those you love so much. yet they are being selfish. When people change but want you to be the same person. I wonder if I will be judged for not helping? Even when I have helped in the past. There is nothing in this world that I love more than my family, nothing.

I miss those I have lost, whether they have passed away or made choices that have taken them away from my life. I feel like I try to do my best to help those around me, but it simply doesn't seem like enough. We have to watch out for ourselves as well, why is our help not enough? Why do we hurt so much when we feel like we have done our part? Yet, we feel like we have nothing more to give.

Family Pictures

These are our first family pictures in TEN years! I think they were worth the wait. We will have to go back for Milli's individual pictures and for just the kids together. Thank goodness Dave's partner, Quinny, was able to do this for us. We thought about doing it on self timer but that would have been a total disaster. I think the outcome was pretty good.

Dave and I love this one of us with Milli keeping a close eye. We didn't put her up there, she just stood there on her own! So cute!!!

This little monkey is getting way to big! Somebody please stop time!!!!!

Mylo was not being cooperative, but I guess it shows his personality. He has always pulled some very crazy faces.

I am excited to see how Milli's will turn out. I can't wait to update our mantel with new pictures.

Trevino Thanksgiving

This year we had Thanksgiving hosted by Al and Dianne. I know they worked for days to get this all put together and it was a great success. All of Al's kids were there with the exception on Carmen, who was in London, and all of Dianne's kids were there as well (she only has two). It was nice to see them again. the last time we saw them was at the wedding. The tables were set beautifully and there were place cards for each of us, which made us mingle with Dianne's family so that was a great idea. I really enjoy her son Todd and his family, they are very nice. The food was a great buffet of Thanksgiving traditional, very yummy! After cleaning up, we played Bingo with some great prizes. Each family member could have a card to give you more chance to win. It was really fun and it made us all be in one room. Then we enjoyed some yummy pies and mingled some more. It was a great night. Al and Dianne are making a great effort in trying to blend their families and traditions. After Al and Dianne's we went over to Sarah and Dave's for some more games, we mostly talked and had some good laughs.

I am SO thankful for my family!

A memory from the past:

As I think back to how grateful I am for my family I am reminded of my cousin's wedding in 2006. The wedding was the best wedding I have ever attended, but the part that i will NEVER forget was during the wedding reception we were all dancing together and there was my mom and all her siblings and her mom. They hadn't seen each other since the death of my grandpa (their dad), I could see and feel the love they all had for each other. That reunion and all the fun they were having at that exact moment brought tears to our eyes. We can only imagine what the reunion will be like in the eternities.

Families are eternal and I so grateful for them, each one. The one I belong to, the one that is my very own, the one I have married into and the ones that will come. I LOVE THEM ALL!!!

Cold ZOO Day

The zoo was free the last Wednesday of the month until February. So we got together with Maria and her boys and Maricela and her family. It was a great day. the animals were more active than they normally are. Although it was very cold, we had a great time. Everything seems more enjoyable when its free, right? We had some great times with the kids. Mylo and Dylan were super cute together. The kids all got along and we did things that we normally don't do. For example, we all rode the carousel and we all got treats and we stayed in the stinky places longer, because it was so cold outside. It was our fist time seeing the baby elephant, Zuri. She is the cutest thing I have ever seen. Seriously who knew such a big animal could be that cute?!?! I don't think I will be going back in December or January, but perhaps back in February. :)

We shall never go hungry...

... with Leah and Dave around. Leah found a perfect stick the other day to make a bow and arrow. Dave was out of town and I was not in the mood to get creative. She patiently waited for Dave and when he arrived they put together a bow and arrow that actually worked! I was impressed with Leah's dedication. Although we will not be relying on her skills, or Dave's for that matter, to hunt for our food, it was great to see them work together to make this work. They have always had a very close bond since Leah was a newborn, its great to see its still there and so strong.

Gotta Love Skype

A couple of weeks ago we were able to sort of talk to Aunt Carmen, who lives in London, via Skype. She had recently installed it on her computer. Its a great way for the kids to 'stay connected' with her. And its always fun to see Carmen. We were laughing pretty hard since she had some glitches. She could hear us just fine and we could see each other just fine as well, but, and that should be a big BUT, we could not hear her more than a very quiet whisper. She was having some mic issues. None the less, its great to have Skype and to have seen Aunt Carmen, live!

We also used it this past Thanksgiving, since she was the only one not there. She got a tour of the newly renovated Trevino House and got to say hi to all who were there. You gotta love skype!

New Moon

Last Thursday night/ Friday morning a few of us crazy girls got together to watch the new twilight movie. We went to the 3:00am showing and we were so tired but excited too. The movie was better than the first and over all enjoyable. I think next year I rather go a little more into the morning rather than so late in the night. Not everyone that went with us is pictured and I would say not everyone looks so happy to be up at that time... hahaaa... It was a good time. Amy had tickets for free popcorn so that was a nice treat :) I am excited for the next movie and I am glad it will be in the summer :)

I am interested to know what others thought for the show... please do tell.

A very tired Milli

Last weekend the kids and I went up to help Amy, my sister-in-law, finish her kitchen table. Well, the kids didn't help, they just played. We were not on our normal schedule and Milli was getting fussy. I sat her on the high chair and gave her some snacks.... apparently she wasn't hungry as her milk was practically full, rather she was SO tired. Her head kept bobbing up and down, it was a bit funny but poor thing, she was pooped!

(she wasn't wearing her glove when I took her picture... you can really see her scar if you enlarge the picture)

I am TOTALLY in LOOOOOVE!!!

with these kids. I JUST LOVE THEM MORE THAN WORDS CAN SAY!!!!

Our Halloween....

Our Halloween was not very exciting this year. Leah has been VERY sick for about six days now. Mylo didn't want to go trick-or-treating without her so we only went to Mike and Mary's. It was as good as going all over the neighborhood. :)

I've decided to have a belated Halloween dinner at our house as soon as Leah gets better and we will dress up. The kids were all Star Wars people this year. Leah was going to be Padme Amidala, Mylo was Anikan and Milli was an Eewok. They all looked super cute but... the real picture will have to wait until Leah is ready to party. I have noticed she is the life of the party at our house. I REALLY hope she gets better VEEEEERY soon!