Grandparents

I was always very close to my biological grandparents since early age. When I moved to the United States I tried to stay in touch with all of them by phone calls. I never thought they would so happy to hear my voice, and I, to hear theirs. I missed them terribly and felt bad for the occasions I postponed visiting them because I would rather being with my friends. How foolish... 

They all passed away while I was in the U.S. 

"They left, and I didn't get to say good bye", I thought while crying for their passing. Gosh, how much I wish I would have been able to say good bye, and tell them one last time how much I loved them, and how thankful I was for all their love towards me, and to my siblings, cousins and rest of the family.

Once, back in Colombia, I cried my heart out when I went to see them in the cemetery. With my other grandmother, I couldn't do it because I was pregnant with baby David; but I did cry - a lot- listening to everything about her last days. I wanted to hear it, even though my aunt didn't want to, she didn't want to upset me. I, on the other hand, had to hear it. At the end, I felt lighter. It was like a emotional cleaning, a huge knot had been untied.

Today, I am blessed with amazing grandparents. They are Joe's grandparents actually, but I feel like they are mine as they are his. 

I could not be more grateful for all the love and support, and acceptance they've had towards me. They received me in the family with open hearts, and that to me is the most special gift. 

I try to visit them at least once a week, if not, more. They boys and I love to hang out at their house. Joe, on the other hand, is lucky to be able to hang out with his grandpa every day. He is able to chat with him every morning, and also gets involved in his grandpa's "special missions". He always has a project going on. 

Anyway, I don't know why this post today. I think is maybe because we don't have all the time of the world, and I want to make the most of the time there is. I also want the boys to be able to enjoy and know their great- grandparents. How lucky they are, I didn't have great-grandparents...

Weekend

What a great weekend we had. Saturday was really relaxing. Joe, Anthony and I hiked up the hill while David took his nap at Grandpa's house.We went up to the Meditation House to check and see how it was holding up, and it is. It looked very pretty surrounded by all the trees full of green leaves.

I had never hiked to the meditation house during the summer because is so hot that I don't even want to try. But this day, it was so pretty! And the best of all was that there are so many trees along the way creating shade, you don't feel the heat. Such a pretty walk. I wish I had the camera to show you all what I mean.

Anyway, Sunday we went to a special birthday party. Our nephew Tanner's first birthday party! Geez, time is passing by so quick...He was a cutie and enjoyed his day very much :)

Isn't he handsome? We love him, he's a sweetie :)

And guess what else we did this weekend? 

Joe and I went to see Matisyahu that night after the birthday party. You know? that guy I have been wanting to see and he was even on my wish list of things to do this coming year before my next birthday? Well, I got to see him! It was such a great show. He is an amazing artist, he truly is. 

I had so much fun and we got to see him really close thanks to the size of the venue where the show was. It was not very big so it was perfect! 

If I had known we were not going to have trouble by bringing in cameras I would have brought mine. Oh well, I guess I at least had my always handy phone :) I got me this t-shirt too, isn't it neat?

Oh, we so enjoyed that show! And if you get the chance to see him, GO, you'll like him :) 

Have a good week! 

And I am going to scratch one more thing of my list :)

Crayola Art

I am a fan and lover of Pinterest. I love to seat and browse around looking at all the different pictures that are there. Many of our blog pictures have come from that site -what a neat idea to be able to pin your favorite images!

Anyway, one of the blogs I read often, put this project up and let us all know that the idea came from Pinterest. Why I have not seen them before? I don't know but I went back and looked at all the different kinds that people have created, and of course I had to try to make one with the boys. Here we go...

Material:

-Canvas (we used a 9x11)

-Crayons

-Hot glue

-Blow drier

Glue the crayons to the canvas, turn the blow drier in hot and low and begin to work over the crayons. 

The boys helped out too. They would get tired sometimes and they would go to play and then they would come back to work on it some more.

The crayons took a little while to begin to melt, and I think it was the fact that they were the off-brand kind, not the actual Crayola brand. They started to melt but it was sort of gooey, at first I was disappointed but towards the end I liked it. It has lots of texture and layers. The boys loved it and thought it was soooo cool ! 

What do you think? I also like how in the right bottom corner there are some splashy parts -as you can see on the picture. 

I like our end result. It is a fun, playful, happy, gooey rain of color :)

Now, I have to clean my hair drier because look how it ended...ha! 

Have a fun weekend!

Dalai Lama Wisdom

  source

“Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive.”

Now with Kraft Paper

We have a bunch of paper at home, but I thought it would be a neat idea to get a kraft paper roll, and let the boys paint away. We are gonna work it out in layers and see how it turns out. I want them to create a big painting and eventually frame it.

This is what we did the other day, and notice how we begin out in the open, and move into the shadow- hot hot day! Specially when the sun was shinning.

It dries really quickly and I love that. It has been way too hot and the boys get really thirsty and tired so we'll see when we finish. I think it is almost done. I'll show you all the end result :) 

Keep checking back!

Dream Catcher

Some day last week, Anthony and I made a dream catcher while David slept his nap. I've been wanting to post pictures of the boys doing some of the crafts we do at home but I get really busy sometimes that I completely forget and then never do it. However, I thought I would take a little bit of time to show you the dream catcher A and I made.

Materials used:

- Disposable plate

- Scissors

- Yarn

- Bead

- Feathers

- Glue (not shown in picture)

- Hole puncher

Cut a circle in the middle of the plate- leave it as if it were a ring. Punch holes around the edges of the plate. Pass the yarn through the first hole and start adding the beads. Once finished, leave a string extra in the bottom so you glue the feathers to it. For the top, you can add a handle from the same yard. 


I didn't get to take a lot of pictures during the process because I was holding the plate while Anthony was passing the yarn through the holes. And towards the end he lost interest but I called him when it was time to glue the feather to the bottom. 


Here it is...

Mobile

A few weeks ago the boys made a mobile. I got this book for Christmas and the idea came from there. The only thing we changed was that instead of magazine paper we used felt sheets.

Materials used:

- Felt Sheets -different colors
- Scissors
- Glue
- Yarn

- Stick -from your backyard. 

Cut the felt sheets in circles of different sizes and colors. Glue them to the yarn strings. Tie the strings to the stick. Wait until fully dried and hang.

See, easy peasy!


And this is the end result...

Snoopy

Let me introduce you to Snoopy - David's sleeping buddy. It is so interesting to see how each one of your children is completely different from one another. Anthony never had a sleeping buddy and David has had Snoopy for a while now. One night he picked him up and ever since they have slept together.

This day, he woke up from his nap and brought him over to our room. D and I snuggled for a while and I decided to take some pictures of him and his little friend. 

 

He loves Snoopy, don't you think? 

The Help

My friend Jayma and I went to see the movie The Help on Friday night.

I had been hesitant on watching the movie before reading the book, because with the movie you usually miss a lot of details. But I also think that if you read the book first you would expect too much out of the movie and maybe be disappointed because all the details were not compiled the way they should have been.

Anyway, the movie was really good. I really enjoyed it and even though I have not read the book, I think they did a very good job getting my attention. The movie made me laugh and cry -literally.

Go watch it, I think you'll like it too.

Have a happy Monday :)

How great thou art

I woke up thinking about my grandmother. My mom's mom. She was a really sweet lady, she was happy and full of energy. She also was a really good cook and always invited me for spaghetti  on my birthday. She used to bring me some of my favorite fruits and ate them with me. She taught me how to play the piano and her favorite song to play was How Great Thou Art.

Every time I hear this song, it remains me of her. I used to cry every single time I heard it. It's gotten better. I don't cry anymore.

I miss her...

MMJ

We are going to see these guys tonight!

Off the Record by My Morning Jacket

Sorry Bout The Things That I Had To Say
- And I'll Make It Up To You Right Now At The Penny Arcade.
In An Open Car Or Wherever You Are
- Push Yourself Too Hard And It Might Get Hot.
Well I Really Don't Need The Confusion
- And You Know I Just Ain't The Type

To Get All Wrapped Up In The Illusion Of Doin' Something
That I Know Ain't Right - Right. Right.

You've Got To Want To Re-Arrange
And Keep It Off The Record. Off The Record.
You've Got To Know That We Will Change
And Keep It Off The Record. Off The Record.

In A Crowded Room Near The Box Of Boom,
To An Artificial Tune, I See You Swoon.
Well You Knew All This Would Turn To Mist
If Your Idea Wasn't Kissed - Why're You So Pissed?
Well I Know You Don't Need The Confusion
And I Know You Just Ain't The Type.

To Get All Wrapped Up In The Illusion Of Doin' Something
That You Know Ain't Right - Right Right

Right. Right. Right. Right.Right. Right

You've Got To Want To Re-Arrange
And Keep It Off The Record. Off The Record.
You've Got To Know That We Are Strange
And Keep It Off The Record. Off The Record.
You've Got To Know That We Will Change
And Keep It Off The Record. Off The Record Come On.

Out of diapers?

Oh Boy! 

I think we're gonna have a little boy out of diapers soon! 

You read it right. David has been using the potty and the toilet for a while now. Not often. Just occasionally. Maybe in the morning and at night before their bath. Not every day either. Just whenever. 

But tonight he couldn't go to sleep and the reason was because he REALLY had to use the bathroom. And he did! What a big boy he is! 

We bought some big boy underwear on Monday and I think we are gonna start using those pretty soon. I never used pull-ups with Anthony and I think I'll do the same with David. 

Another stage has began...

Artful Parent

The lady who runs this blog is simply amazing! 

She is a huge inspiration to me and to many other parents who are curious about arts and crafts. I thought I would share this, because she comes up with the neatest ideas. She keeps everything simple -something I like- specially when you are dealing with toddlers. 

Her blog has been on my bookmark menu since my last semester of collage. How did I get to this blog? I don't even remember, I think it was through another blog. Who knows, it's been a while. Anyway, she provides great information about material, paints, and projects, among other things. 

I'll share with you some of my favorite "art/crafts for kids" blogs:

artfulparent.typepad.com/artfulparent

pinkandgreenmama.blogspot.com

artprojectsforkids.org

www.artistshelpingchildren.org

belladia.typepad.com/crafty_crow

teachkidsart.blogspot.com

artlessonsforkids.wordpress.com

These are just a few of what I usually read. Many of them have a list of their own favorite blogs, so make sure you look them up. 

One last thing, I need to make myself to try a lot of the projects shown on those blogs. Sometimes, if I don't have the stuff to do them with, I just don't do it. We are truly running out of room in our house to go and buy more things and then don't have anywhere to put it. It is specially not good when you are trying to sell your house. But I will definitely give a shot to the small/less messy projects for sure...

LIFE

source

Weekend Recap

The weekend began with some fix-ups around the house. I scraped, sanded and painted the floor of our front porch. We have our house for sale and we want it to look as nice as possible. Let me tell you, THAT was a lot of work!- specially painting brick. But it was so worth it. It looks nice and clean. It went from red to gray.  

The next day we took it easy and went for the first time to the McWane Science Center, and I have to say that is such a neat place to bring the kids. There are so many things so see and play with. It is educational and fun at the same time. 

Doesn't look fun? The boys had a great time!

The next day we rested, everyone took a nap after lunch, and later in the afternoon, the boys spent some time in their little kiddie pool while I pruned my roses and Joe cut the grass.

Now we begin one more week that will be pretty busy. We'll see how it goes...

I wish you all a week full of good and positive energies!

Dream

Dream by Priscilla Ahn

I was a little girl alone in my little world who dreamed of a little home for me.
I played pretend between the trees, and fed my houseguests bark and leaves, and laughed in my pretty bed of green.

I had a dream
That I could fly from the highest swing.
I had a dream.

Long walks in the dark through woods grown behind the park, I asked God who I'm supposed to be.
The stars smiled down on me, God answered in silent reverie. I said a prayer and fell asleep.

I had a dream
That I could fly from the highest tree.
I had a dream.

Now I'm old and feeling grey. I don't know what's left to say about this life I'm willing to leave.
I lived it full and I lived it well, there's many tales I've lived to tell. I'm ready now, I'm ready now, I'm ready now to fly from the highest wing.

I had a dream

How to climb a mountain...

Paulo Coelho is one of my favorite writers. 

His books are inspiring, easy to read and always leave you with lessons that can be used in your daily life to be a better person... or at least try..., see the beauty in life and in you, how to overcome challenges and never surrender.

I follow his blog often and recently I found this insert from one of his books, Like the Flowing River.

The following is the manual for climbing a mountain, your mountain....

1. Choose the mountain you want to climb 

2. Know how to get close to it

3. Learn from someone who has already been up there

4. When seen up close, dangers are controllable

5. The landscape changes, so enjoy it

6. Respect your body

7. Respect your soul

8. Be prepared to climb one kilometer more

9. Be happy when you reach the top

10. Make a promise

11. Tell your story

Read them in their entirety  HERE  

Reading Nights

Every night before the boys go to sleep, we read books. A chooses one and D chooses another one. Sometimes more or less, depending on the size and how late they are going to bed. We also take turns in each other's beds each night, one night in A's and the other one in D's. I get in the middle of both and begin to read.

We have a large selection of books that have come from my sister-in-law, my mother-in-law, birthday and Christmas presents. We love books! What can we say? I've read to both of them since they were newborns and I still am. 

It gets better every night, because the older they get the more attention they pay, and they don't want to go to bed before a book is read. It is our little routine and snuggly time together. Reading is one of those special moments you spend with your children. Not only they learn bunches but you connect with each other.

These are some photos I had in my phone and I wanted to share. 

 Each one with their book

 

 Anthony hiding

 

I tried to take a picture of the three of us, but it didn't work

 

 

 

Do you have some favorite books you and your kids like to read? Or any that you used to read when little? If you do, I would really like to know. Leave a comment... Thanks!

Thanks Crayola for washable paints!

Many times I've tried to do crafts with the boys, but I am the one who ends up doing the whole project-almost always. I've found out that painting and coloring is the easiest and less complicated thing to do and better yet,  they love it! 

 

 

They get to choose the colors they want to use. One boys chooses one color and the other chooses another one.( Disregard the acrylics on the left, I was the one using those)

I recently bought them some brushes with a bigger handle (like the ones in the pictures) and so far they are a lot easier for their little hands, but they still like to use the thinner ones every once in a while. Specially if they see them.

I want to cultivate art in them. My dad is an artist by nature, and even though he does not practice that much, he is really talented. I personally believe that I inherited that gift. I love colors and paints, museums, and have a good eye for painting and drawing. My art professor at the university told me I needed to take some more art classes to keep learning and cultivating my talent. Gosh, I fell really good when he said that, because I personally though my paintings sucked! And some of them did, I don't lie. That's why I can't wait to have a space on my own to leave everything out and paint anytime.

It's a special day

...Because it is my mom's birthday!

My best friend, my inspiration, my guidance, my sunshine, my harmony and happiness motivator, my balance and my wisdom.

I just simply adore her

I thank God for blessing me and my family with such a special angel. 

Te amamos muchisimo !

I don't need to think it through...

These boys are so funny! Here it is an example ...

More birthdays!

Oh yes, there are lots of birthdays in August in my family. Today is my sister's Birthday! 

She truly is an amazing woman. She is a wonderful mother to a sweet little boy and she is one of the most driven and responsible women I know. She is beautiful, smart and kind. She is one of my best friends and I love her to death.

We love u sis! You deserve the best and may God continue to shower you with all His blessings...

Rocking my Big Boy

Yesterday, I rocked A to sleep.

The day before yesterday he didn't take a nap and yesterday afternoon, he was really fuzzy and tired. So, I told him we were going to sit down and I was going to tell him a story. 

At the beginning he was restless and moving a lot. He even told me he was not a baby anymore. But I didn't pay attention and continued to hold him and rocked him until he fell asleep.

Once his eyes were closed I wanted to keep him in my chest like the old days...to me he will always be my baby.