Christmas Pictures. Enjoy!

Thanks to all our friends and family for the thoughtful gifts we received and for making it such a great holiday season with lots of happy memories. I'm very grateful to have such a delightful family to be with at this special time of year. I just wish more of us lived closer together so we could share all the fun with everyone.
As a reward for making it this far, please click here to watch a short, funny video from Christmas Day at my dad's house; just a sample of the goings-on.

Saturday Doings

We spent a lovely evening with in-law's yesterday. This is a picture of Maxine walking away from me, toward Guapo who is behind the wooden fence where lies his dog house. In the background you can see Raquel and my nephew Ricky talking to Guapo. Guapo is still a puppy (a pretty Boxer) but he's just about full-grown and very hyper. He would knock over any of these kids with his happy love if he were let out. Maxine isn't afraid of him one bit--she even knows how to say his name.

Also, I made homemade gnocchi yesterday. This is something one must make when the baby takes a nap. It's a bit time-consuming with lots of repetition but the process is extremely peaceful and simple and yields a beautiful thing you don't see in many restaurants here in Southern California.

Great-grandbabies Round-up!

My sister, brother-in-law and their son, Lucas, are in town for a couple of weeks. They drove from Virginia and Lucas isn't even one year old yet! I couldn't do that with my one year old but Lucas is really good at travelling--what a blessing. This weekend they spent at our grandparents' house in the San Fernando Valley. I took the girls over there yesterday. It was our first time meeting Lucas and it was their first time meeting Maxine. My cousin was also there with her husband and their newborn daughter, Evie. She is a little doll. Maxine was very curious about her and tried to wake her up by shaking her seat and touching her little face. Maxine was also interested in her cousin Lucas and he in her. I think my grandma was in Heaven having all her great-grandkids at the house. Everyone was happy and well-behaved :)
Here are Maxine, Raquel, Lucas and his mommy (my little sister) Samantha in Grandma and Grandpa's backyard swing. Samantha is pregnant with Olivia and happens to be due on Lucas' birthday, which is also her husband's birthday--wow!

Poolside at Dad's

My dad has a GREAT backyard. Not only does it have a pool, a jacuzzi and a comfy covered patio (with a bar area) but it also has a smoker and about eleventy barbeques. Think he likes to cook?

We took the girls over for a pool day earlier this month to celebrate the birthdays of Maxine, Raquel, Debbie and Jose, who are all July babies. This was Maxine's first time in a pool. She loved it. I'm positive Raquel had a blast, too.

Dad and Debbie got two new puppies. They went from "none" to "two" and they're so very well behaved!

The last shot is Raquel playing on Dad's homemade putting green. She's been playing on that thing since she was born. She looks like a mini pro.

The Birthday Bash

(This beautiful photo was shot by my friend Hektiklyfe)

Hey! My life was ruined for a few weeks but it's getting back to normal now that I'm not spending hours a day researching and writing and rewriting for school. You would have thought I was taking a full schedule. I think I'm really a perfectionist and the older I get, the more that is true. Today is my first day of relief and relaxation as this morning I turned in my paper and did my oral presentation. I am thrilled to be done and not even half-worried about the final tomorrow.

For this post I will tell you about Raquel and Maxine's birthday bash that happened about a week and a half ago. The party was great. I've never seen Raquel have so much fun. She had lots of kids to play with and couldn't wait to finish opening her presents so she could get back to playing. We had very hot weather that day but Jose installed misters outside to cool us off and they worked quite well. Maxine did not take a nap all day. She, too, was excited. You can see her sleepy face in the picture of her about to eat her cupcake.

Grandma and a bunch of our friends brought food and Jose ended up hiring a taco man so he wouldn't have to BBQ in the heat. A friend I hadn't seen in 13 years showed up with her cute little family. And my sister, Susan, was in town from Virginia. It was a happy day.

(The picture above is by my friend Kitty) And then I took some pictures of myself cleaning up the next morning. Hehe!

Updates Grab Bag

This is Westminster Presbyterian Church-- the back of it, anyways. Maxine and I were walking last Friday and took several pictures of it. It looks best in sepia, I think.

*****

Raquel stayed at her great-grandparents' house last week from Monday to Saturday. Poor Grandma! Not only is Raquel relentless with activity and conversation, which is more than enough for a great-grandma to handle, but also Grandpa was feeling ill the entire time Raquel was there. So Grandma had no help at all with Raquel and no time to herself either. Wow! She did say that Raquel was very well-behaved and of course taking care of a well-behaved child is tons easier than the alternative. This was Raquel's first time spending that many nights away from home and not to my surprise, she never got homesick. Jose, Maxine and I had a nice quiet week. To me, the peace was very refreshing. Thank you SO much, Grandma Emma.

*****

I found these sweet potato fries in the frozen food section at Target a few weeks ago and I'm hooked. They are healthy enough for me to eat and stay on my diet and I'm so glad because they are delicious. Maxine really enjoys them, too. It has to be this particular brand though because the other sweet potato fries are covered in an evil batter. These are innocent and plain.

*****

This is my second week of school and I'm so glad this class is only five weeks long. I highly prefer to do my own work but in this class we "pair up" or get into groups of three DAILY. I am against compromising the level of work I do for a grade but in groups you cannot avoid this. Being paired with people who cannot write in complete sentences quietly frustrates me. But the teacher did say last week that she does not grade on spelling and grammar and that she is only concerned with our critical reading skills. So, technically, it doesn't matter but it still REALLY GETS TO ME.

*****

How do you throw a party for your kids' birthdays, invite everyone you know and not get caught up in the stress of planning? If you know how, I am seriously asking! I feel like if things aren't perfect then I might as well not do them at all. There is no changing that about me. So I guess I'm probably doomed to feel this way every year around this time! And then when the party's over, I'll be fine.

*****

And here is a snapshot of Maxine dancing to her new favorite dvd, Rufus Wainwright at the Fillmore. Yep, she's got taste. I'm telling you she stares at him singing and it even calms her down when she's cranky.

Backpacks Are Unfashionable

I just don’t want to look like a turtle, OK? But after my first three days of school, carrying a folder, a dictionary, a big text book, a notebook, a journal, a sweater and my purse, and walking to and from my car parked at least 4 blocks away from campus (on purpose for exercise) I went and bought myself a bag (not a backpack) I found on clearance at Target. I can’t wait to see how it feels to walk all that way and have fairly free arms and hands.

School is fun, so far. I’m just taking an English class right now for that’s all that was left by the time I registered. It is transferrable to any university, not a prerequisite or a just-for-fun course, so that makes it feel even more worthwhile. I have to admit, I am surprised at how remedial the work has been these first three days. Yes, we have had homework every night and we also do writing assignments in class daily but it’s all easy stuff, like a high school class—“Ok, partner up with someone and answer the questions on page 248” (ugh, I’m not a fan of partnering up in class), or “Who would like to read the next paragraph?”. We answer tons of true-or-false and multiple choice questions, as if the teacher only wants to know that we’re reading the passages she assigns. Just like high school. The class is only five quick weeks long and I can’t help but wonder if and when it’s going to get challenging. Maybe this is exactly what I need to ease myself back into studentry.

(that's the Pasadena Public Library)
Since when does it cost $14 for a paperback novel? It seems like yesterday I paid about $4.95. Those days are over. Well, I’m not paying that much for a paperback. Thanks for my new library card, Pasadena! By the way, this library reminds me of the one in Ghostbusters! I want to start spending more (alone) time there. Raquel is spending the week at her great-grandparent’s house. I dropped her off on Monday. We had a nice visit before I left and I also brought home a giant zucchini from their lovely garden. It's as big as a newborn baby human... Maxine is such a sweet thing. She does a lot of dancing now—twisting, bouncing and bobbing her head. She has a favorite commercial, too. It’s an El Pollo Loco ad about their chicken sliders (I think). Maxine suddenly is afraid of some things: the face of James in the Thomas and Friends series and also the little Collie statue next to Grandma Emma’s piano at her house (see picture above). She laughs and shouts funny things all the time but she has not yet said a real word. She enjoys feeding herself and wants nothing to do with baby food but I actually enjoy being able to give her pieces of what I’m eating now that her digestive system is ready for it. Oh, a funny thing: if your feet are in her reach, she lays on them, like she’s snuggling or kissing them. I think it’s because we have always kissed her feet ever since she was born. She’s returning the love. Jose is still looking for work but I’m confident he will find something soon. He knows a lot of people, people who can help him find what he’s looking for. We’re living on our last bit of cash but I have to say it’s been nice having him home since his restaurant closed down last week. He’s very supportive of me going to school and I am grateful for that support.

Thanks for checking in on us!

Maxine is Mobile/Jenny's Baby Shower

(I bought that walker for her for $8 at a yard sale a couple weeks ago)

She started crawling fluently this week. There is a big difference between dragging yourself with your arms (mopping the floor with your belly) and actually moving palm-knee-palm-knee (belly completely off the floor). She goes where she hears voices. She goes where she's never been. She is very curious about the laundry room and 1/2 bath towards the back of the house but she seems to know she's not allowed over there.

Also, on Monday, I walked into the living room and was startled by Maxine doing this:

She pulled up onto that coffee table to reach a toy she spied. She got it. This marks her first time pulling up onto furniture. After five minutes in this position she cried because she realized she couldn't get herself back down to the floor! This means we have to take the crib apart and lower the mattress. Why they make it such a hassle, I don't know. But she pulled up holding onto the crib rail this afternoon so it must be done. Last weekend, the girls and I attended Cousin Jenny's baby shower in Grandma Emma's backyard (my favorite backyard in the world). I brought Maxine's walker in case my arms needed relief but as soon as I put her in it she threw a fit. Grandma came and picked her up and she stopped crying. She stayed on Grandma's lap for a long time, talking, grabbing buttons and beads, nibbling her little shoes and being plain adorable. The affair was catered by Brent's Deli which is WAY better than Subway--not even comparable. So I ate lunch while Maxine played with Grandma and then we switched. Later, Maxine also spent a lot of time on Grandpa's lap, equally at peace and equally playful and adorable. She already knows and likes her great-grandparents, huh?! Raquel at this age was the opposite--she couldn't stand Grandma. It brought a lot of joy to Grandma that Maxine was so happy on her lap.

Here's Max trying out the grass in the front yard. She tried to eat it.

Cousin Mary made Rainbow Sherbet Punch that was so pretty! I didn't try it but Maxine did, hehe! Grandma was giving it to her and she liked it so much she tried to pull the cup to her mouth for more! She didn't get a sugar high or a tummy ache, just so you know.

Raquel socialized with everyone and played all the shower games. Grandpa gave her a mini agriculture lesson in the vineyard. I took several shots of this. I don't want Raquel to forget these things.

Easter

What lovely weather we had on Easter Sunday. The day was spent at my in-law's house. We ate machaca and fruit tarts, took about a billion pictures of the kiddos and let Raquel hunt for eggies. My nephew Ricky is such a cute little boy and so strong! He cried a little at first but by the end of the day he let me hold him for a long time.