Just for fun

I saw this on Pinterest on thought it looked fun and maybe one of my pins that I will ACTUALLY see through:) lol

It's been awhile since I blogged and I have so much to catch y'all up on, hello we moved, but we will get to that another day!

READING: just finished The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks. It was perfect! Cody had given it to me for Christmas 2013, with a sweet message in the back and "I'm glad you're here" highlighted in the text of the book.  I decided to start his 2014 Christmas book to me next The Narrow Road to the deep North, but it was a bit intense for me in my instability (hello we moved), so I decided to start Looking for Alaska by John Green. Completely not age appropriate but since I sing T-swift songs at an insane decibel, being age appropriate is irrelevant at this point 😬

PLAYING: Pandora, all day everyday, usually on toddler radio

WATCHING: redbox! Umm, it may sound weird but we JUST rented our first redbox the first week of January! For a family with no cable or internet, they are a God send. We watched The Good Lie last night, so moving and Cohen, Miayla, and I all cried afterwards.

TRYING: to not start day drinking 🍹

COOKING: (baking technically) cupcakes, because it's Wednesday and I am ☝️☝️☝️

EATING: pretty much everything I shouldn't be

DRINKING: water, I haven't had a pop or sweet tea since MAY!!! that's huge for me

CALLING: mostly Cody BC I like to meet my daily quota of how many irrelevant phone calls I can make to him. "I found a bug in the bathroom." "Pancake (dog) pulled a branch off the tree"... You know alllll things he can help with 40 minutes away. Whoopsie

TEXTING: well my phone is acting up so my texting is hit or miss today. Sad day

PINNING: pool house ideas for the pool!

TWEETING: Don't tweet

CRAFTING: not so much crafting as I am moreso decorating

DOING: the laundry... When am I not doing laundry?!

GOING: to get in trouble for the jeans I ordered today👖

LOVING: the stage Belles is in right now!! The tiny tiny toddler stage but she's not tiny and talks all the time

HATING: the uncertainty I feel about everything that has happened the last few months

DISCOVERING: life in the country

ENJOYING: a cupcake! HOLLA

HOPING (for): more sunshine

CELEBRATING: the little things (New years resolution)

SMELLING: hello the cupcakes ( cherry and GF chocolate)

THANKING: God that I am blessed with awesome roommates and that I live in an amazing country (reference to what I watched)

CONSIDERING: washing this cupcake down with some moscato

FINISHING: this bad boy!

STARTING: to have a more positive outlook on everything starting NOW

The #7 & DiRt

I believe God writes the plan for our lives.
I believe that everything happens for a reason and in His time. The good, the bad, the uncertain.
Here is a post about all of those in Gods plan for my life.

The number 7.
I have "7"s all over our home, obviously because there are 7 of us.  Seven is also a factor of 14, which we all know is my all time favorite number, which assists in it rising to the top of my favorite numbers list.

Dirt.  Have y'all heard the song by FGL "Dirt"?  The first time I heard it was the day they premiered it on the radio.  It was one of those songs that made me feel all "holy smokes you're gonna remember this song" kind of feeling.  I immediately thought of my Cody J. I have heard of so many stories of his life growing up in the country that they touch on in the song.  I've caught glimpses of it when we go back to visit and from the beginning, it has always been his goal to one day get back to the country.
"You know you came from it (dirt)
And some day you'll return to
This elm shade red rust clay
You grew up on...
makes you wanna build
a 10 percent down
white picket fence house on this dirt"

A few weeks ago, July 6th to be exact, Cody was going out to the country to visit his momma when he came across a sign.   A sign from God you ask?! maybe.... But for sure a sign from McCurdy Auction about a house going up for Auction. He kept it in the back of his mind and we carried on with life..... For 2 days, to when at dinner, the kids asked us if we could move our 5 year plan of moving out to the country up to NOW.  Cody and I kind of looked at each other like "now?!" And we told them we would talk ab it. Later that night, Cody asked me what I thought of it.  I wasn't for sure how I felt about it.  The plan was to build our dream home out in the country in 5 years. However, I knew that we were running out of space at our house. I knew the kids wanted more space to run free, and I knew that Cody was getting city fever (close relation to cabin fever) and I knew that I was wanting a change. BUT I also knew that I loved loved loved my home! My dad and Cody built our house and it is gorgeous. It's not fancy huge gorgeous, but happy place beautiful. I knew my family was close and I knew that our parish family (and school) were amazing and the friendships we had created there were some of my most favorite relationships ever! I told Cody if it was meant to happen it would happen. 

The next morning, when we were laying in bed, he told me he found a house. A house that he thought might just be perfect for our family. He showed me the house and I kind of sort of fell in love with it too.  It was an old farmhouse on 15.something acres with a pond and a big shop and a pool and lots of bedrooms and character. It was going to auction July 26th. We happened to be going out to Cheney that night for the parade, so we decided we would drive by the place, and scope it out. As soon as we hit the road leading to the house, I gasped. The road was so beautiful. It was long and winding and lined with big huge trees that made it feel like you were driving through an arch of trees, which is something I have always wanted to have. As soon as we made it to the end of the road and the house was right in front of us, a part of me knew we were where we were supposed to be. We set up a showing with our good friend at McCurdy Auction for the following Thursday, July 17th. We left the showing with a solidified desire to try to buy this house. We had also set up other showings for the following week to see what else was out there and get a better idea of what we wanted because buying a house wasn't in our plan.  I am a type A person with lists and plans and you don't deviate from them. Because here's the other thing, I am completely high maintence. Ill be the first to admit it and Cody will be the first to confirm it.  I knew there was no way I would ever love someone else's house (hence our plan to build) so we both knew that us finding a place to my standards was going to be a feat in and of itself. And we were right. Nothing was perfect, the other houses lacked in lots of areas.  Most of them were big and beautiful and had ponds and land and docks, but they lacked something.  I realized then that it wasn't the house I loved, it was the location and the farmhouses' character was pretty amazing.  Yea, some of the other houses were newer and bigger, but I couldn't see myself in that space, but I could see myself at the farmhouse.  Were there heated concrete floors inside? No. Custom cabinets? Nope. An energy effiecent rating? Not a chance.  How was the concrete? Not only not stamped concrete, but was terrible.  It lacked beautiful trim and super nice heavy doors and pretty stucco, concrete countertops and windowsills, and all of our memories and mementos that lined our home in Kechi. BUT there was space and there was opportunity to make it "homey".  We would have so many projects and changes, but for the first time ever, I was excited about the work. I was excited about making that house our home. And like what everyone says, what makes it a home isn't the walls and exterior, its the people you share it with, and I am blessed with pretty awesome roommates.  We decided that God had put this house in our path at that time for a reason. Cody spent the next few nights up late getting all the paperwork figured out and I stayed up all night praying. Were we crazy for going from thinking about moving in the next 5 years to trying to bid on a house in a week?! And it's not like it is just Cody and me moving to a different house. There are 7 of us and it would be a lifestyle change, not just a location change. (Disclaimer, although it is not in town, Cody doesn't consider it "real country" still, he says its "kind of country"....he says we still need to move further away from people to be "country folk", but hey its a start for me who has pretty much lived in a 10 mile radius my WHOLE LIFE! Baby steps Cody J, baby steps:)  Anyway, this was a big decision and I kind of felt like I may have had an ulcer over it:/ 

Here's the other thing... Auctions are tricky. You don't know if you're gonna buy it or not. You can go into it hoping to buy it but you can also leave with nothing.  It's not about who has the most money, it's about who has the ability to see the value of the property WHILE not getting so emotionally attached that you overspend on the property value. We knew we loved the property, but we also knew that it was a transition home or as I often sang "temporary home" (cue Carrie underwood music).  Our plan was to still find our dream land and build our dream home.  But we thought this house would be a perfect fit for what we need right now and it will be easier to move two kiddos in school as opposed to 5, which would be the case if we stuck to our original 5 year plan. We didn't need to overspend just bc we WANTED it. We needed to do what was best for us as a family, with the amount that was reasonable.  So you don't want to get your hopes up, but at the same time, you can't stop pinning things on pinterest :)

The morning of the auction, I went to church and read the scripture for the day. It was about Gods dwelling place, I took that one as a sign from God. I prayed that he would give me the strength and ability to trust Him and his timing not if it didn't happen, but if it DID happen. It's pretty easy to keep on keeping on, but it's not so easy to change everything.  I truly felt like all of it was placed in front of us: from Cody finding the house, to the kids wanting to move, to it going to auction soon, to getting all the paperwork in order and approved to buy it, to the house being perfectly imperfect for us, right down the winding road leading to it.  I could see the girls and I baking at the counter, I could see Sawyer outside with his puppy, I could see miayla drawing on one of the decks and Cohen shooting his bow out by the stables. I could see out the huge front windows, cars coming up the drive, all while not seeing another house. I could see laughter at the table and memories in the walls.  Before I left church, I was reminded by God that it was all up to Him and that whatever happened would happen, if it was meant to be it would be and that as long as I had the other 6 ppl in the house, wherever we were, as long as we were together, would be fine.

I won't get into too many details about the auction bc well I honestly can't remember. I was a mess, sweating, almost pissed myself during the bidding (kidding, kind of:), all while trying to play it super cool, not really knowing if I wanted to win or lose the auction even!  Cody James was all calm, cool, and collected and the HIGH BIDDER. 

HOLY SMOKES WE BOUGHT A HOUSE. 

We signed the contracts immediately... But first, some of the neighbors who came by to see who was about to invade the place, shook hands and gave hugs and calmed my nerves. I ended up knowing the seller and they are good folks too.  I feel God put them in our path too. 

I know the next few weeks are gonna be hard (not to mention the day after we bought the house we left for vacation for a week).  Lots of packing, cleaning, renovating, school switching and chaos.  I'm sad to leave our house, our parish, our neighborhood, and move further from our friends and my family.  There were tears having to tell my dad, tears after Cody called our parish priest, tears after an email from our school principal, and tears after sad texts from our parish friends, and my family.   But with the sad comes the happy. The happy dance when we told the kids,  happiness from the sweet email from the new principal who said I made her day with our news, the hugs and cheers from Cody's brother and sister in law who canceled their date night to come into town and hear all about it and just be happy with us, and the happy feeling of looking at Cody randomly and seeing a smile allllll the time.  Yes it will be hard, but it will be okay.  I know it will be another fun adventure we go on as a family.  I know that the 7 of us will find our new happy place, and memories will be abundant.  I know that that we will make another home in our new parish and be blessed with new lifetime friends. I know that I will get to channel my inner Ree Drummond and experience my Cody in his element.  And I know that those that love us, will come visit us, because distance is all an opinion.  And I know that if God brought us to it, He will get us through it.

A picture of our new home, taken from the winding road, right after we bought it :)

Oh, and the house number is 7 and there is a white fence :)

"You know you came from it (dirt)
And some day you'll return to

This elm shade red rust clay
You grew up on"

UNO

So Belle turned UNO last month and I am finally blogging about it :)

My previous post touched on some of my emotions with it all.  It was a sad and happy day.  I couldn't imagine my life without her.  Her giggles, her odd trait of licking things and THEN touching them, her cuddles, and the way she makes the perfect BABY. 

Her actual day came with ups and downs.  I had a thousand things to do that day, there was a WSU basketball game (we have season tickets), my dear friend had a bridal shower (I made the cake), this was all on top of planning the party, baking, and making a meal to feed 40 people (family and friends at the party).  As I was driving back from the bridal shower, an hour before the party, it kind of all hit me.    A part of me felt that maybe I had overbooked myself so I wouldn't have time to sit and think about it...my baby turning one.  The weather turned bad and the roads started to get icy. Many people decided not to come to the party.  At first it really bothered me, why didn't everyone want to celebrate my baby's big day?  I've gone out in ice before for them? I've allowed for later bed times for their stuff?  But then when it came down to it, I really didn't care.  Not that I didn't want them there, but that their being there wouldn't really change anything or the difficulty that I was having with my baby being one.  The ones that came, mean the world to us.  But more than that, they celebrated Anabella.  I celebrated her.  Usually at our parties, I am refilling food, checking kids, taking pictures and it's all a whirlwind.  Not that day.  I ate with family, played on the floor with Bella, and really took it all in.  I think God was looking out for me, and knew that THAT was what I needed.  Not everyone there to see Belles, but for me to really cherish what was happening in that moment.  It turned out to be a perfect little evening.... which coincided with my perfect little girl.

 a picture from each month of her life

 

 all of her IG pics

The Baby....

So it's a Friday, on a surprisingly sunny afternoon for February in Kansas.  I did some shopping at the Cottage Collective, a store I adore and look forward to the 3rd Friday of the month.  I have been baking, redecorating, and playing.  You would think I would be on cloud nine....

But I am not.

I am actually drinking a sweet tea, which if you know me, is like alcohol to some.  It's my "fix" when I am in need of something strong, to take the edge off.  Yes, an exciting life I lead.  However, today, I have dove head first off the wagon.

The reality of this day, is that Miayla has a dance competiton in OKC.  She doesn't dance until Sunday morning (4 dances).  I have been looking forward/dreading this weekend since August.  Looking forward to it because tiny dancer lives to dance.  She is in a constant state of movement and we used to call her Tink because she was like a fairy, fluttering between places.  She works so hard and call me bias, but is damn good.  She is dancing two dances with older girls and one guy.  Most of them are in 5th grade, she is in second.  She likes to practice but loves to compete.  All the practices 5 days a week, Friday nights and Saturday days, all the family time missed, birthday parties skipped, other sports/activities not played, are for this.  She lives for it, and I am beyond proud and happy to support her in it.  This is her weekend to shine and smile, and she will do both brightly. 

However.....

My heart is heavy. 
I have an empty feeling in my stomach.
My throat is dry. 
I had a small-large anxiety attack. 
If I had a gallon of sweet tea, I would have OD'd on it by now.  Because you see, it is also the weekend I leave Bella for the first time ever for a period longer than 10 hrs.  And even with that, I've only left her for 10hrs once...and I cried twice.  And I guess its not alllll just Bella.  Since July 2012, I have left the kids for 4 nights.  One was for my best friends bachelorette party in KC, one was when Sawyer was in the hospital to have his tonsils and adenoids removed, and the other two were when I was in the hospital bringing Anabella into the world.  Something about this time is different though.  Something about this time is gutting me harder than any other time before.

When I got pregnant with Cohen, I didn't want kids.  Something during that pregnancy changed though, or maybe not something but someone (me).  When Cohen was born, I decided I wanted 5 babies, preferably before the time I was 30, God willing.  So maybe it is because after each baby, I knew (hoped, prayed) that there would be another one, if God so saw it.  Cody and I were willing to try everything on our end to make it happen ;) lol.  But what happens now? Now that I am 30 and have 5 kiddos?

 It's been weighing on me a lot in general, I guess.  I've thought about this time of year, over and over and over lately.  I think it is because we are getting ready to celebrate this:

With each first birthday, deep in my heart, I hoped it wouldn't be my last first birthday.  And it's not that we are "done".  (I despise that term, what am I, a turkey?!) It's just I hadn't thought about a 6th or 7th or 8th... I have only thought about 5.  And for so long, I pictured the 5th as my baby.  The baby.  The last piece to our family puzzle.

So here I am... with Cinco.  Getting ready to leave the 5th for the first time.  (although right now, I am seriously contemplating NOT leaving her).  I know I could take her.  But it would be purely selfish, and difficult.  I will have to help Miayla change back stage 4 times in a hurry.  I will have to carry bags and food and costumes.  And Anabella has pneumonia... a competition is not the best place to avoid germs.  And, Miayla deserves my undivided attention, which would not happen if little sister followed along.  I know I could take my mom, or a sitter to help with Anabella, but again, its not place for a sick baby who loves to crawl.  She doesn't sleep as it is, so I feel a hotel room would be a disaster.  I had thought about just getting up super early Sunday morning (which I still may do) and drive down...but the seems like a long day for tiny dancer...and I had a nightmare I overslept...and left all her shoes at home, lol.  I know leaving her will happen eventually (especially because I have two overnight trips planned and Miayla has two more competitions out of state).  But for some reason, this moment, it is so hard. 

How does time go so fast?

How do we make it stop?

Miayla got upset last night (at Cody, not me...I'm her favorite....she pinky promised me in her closet last night that she would NEVER not talk to me:) ...Anyway, she was upset because Cody was playing old videos of her when she was little and singing and dancing.  I told her that I wasn't sorry he recorded her (she was "mortified").  I can't remember her voice at age 5, the words she said wrong, the innocence in it all.  And it breaks my heart.  Its all a blur and it scares me. 

So maybe that is it.  The realization that what I live for is them.  Everything about them.  Their silliness, their orneriness, their playfulness...Them.  "Let me hold you longer" by Karen Kingsbury is my favoritest children's book.  It talks about how everyone always celebrates the Firsts, while she is wondering about the lasts. 
"I've watched you grow and barely noticed seasons as they pass
  If I could freeze the hands of time, I'd hold onto your lasts."

So what if Belle is the last? What if this is the last first birthday?  The last time I leave a baby for the first time?  As I am typing this, I realized, that is it..... OKC is a tiny speck of it....  The reality is that  I can't stop the lasts or the firsts for that matter.  I can't change any of it.  I can't do it all, be everywhere, remember it all... and that kills me.  I would give anything to be able to though.

 I guess all I can do is thank The Almighty for what He has blessed me with and pray that He gives me the strength to handle this trip, this next week as I prepare for B's party, and this life, to cherish my babies.  All 5 of them. .... and maybe take some tea with me :)

Taking names....

and you know the rest of the saying :)

For a LONGGGGGGGGGGGGGG LOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNGGGG time now, I have been going slightly crazy in our home. 

How in the world did we get so much stuff?! unnecessary stuff?? It's insane! And I have felt like I am drowning in it....And not just in the "stuff" but the feeling of not having time to deal with the "stuff".  I think the overwhelming feeling of not being able to get stuff done that you genuinely want to get done is a bummer.  I mean have you ever tried to deep clean with three little people following you all the time? One of them obsessed with licking things and putting them in her mouth and the others not allowing you to "rid" your life of any "stuff" because "I NEED IT".  It's impossible.

I know we are blessed to have the home we have.  Is it big, no.  Is it small, no.  Is it my dream home, no.  But I know there are many people in the world, with bigger families too, that would love a home, no matter the size.  So I have tried to keep that in perspective, along with the 2014 motto, and take a new cleaner approach to our life, home.  Simplify it, cozy it up, and then spend the rest of 2014 cherishing the moments made in it and breathing because I am not drowning in "stuff". 

I am half way through with the house, thanks to my AMAZING brother who has been watching the kiddos a few hrs a day so I can clean and organize.  Although I feel like a big loser even having to ask that of him, I am feeling substantially better daily and I think that counts for something, right?  He has only watched them for a few hours for 5 days now, but I still feel so guilty.  It probably doesn't equal two days that most kids are in "daycare", but for some reason it is weighing on me. I don't ever have anyone watch them for "me" time and we don't have a cleaning lady.  They are not in any kids day out program, so up until today when Sawyer started preschool again on Tues/Thurs mornings for 2.5 hrs, I am with them alllll the time.  Don't get me wrong, I love time with them, but it is unreal the amount of stuff I can get done when it is just me and some country music to clean to.  I am justifying it by knowing that this is just temporary and we will all be better for it in the end.  It helps that they LOVE LOVE LOVE going to see him, and since he spent a year in Spain teaching English, I feel like they are making up for lost time.  See, totally justified. (haha)

And because I can't JUST purge and organize, I have decided to redo a couple of the rooms in the house. Not complete redos, just a couple of pieces to refinish, wall hangings to switch out, rugs to buy. :)  I am getting stir crazy being in the same space for this long and since a new house isn't in the cards for a while, I am changing things up a tad here.  A Casa face lift you could dub it.

I am really excited about life right now on so many aspects!!  I love new beginnings and I feel like 2014 was just that for me, or maybe it was turning 30.  Who knows.  I feel like I am finally becoming "me".  Figuring out what I am about, and how I feel on so many issues. Its fun and interesting.   I am also slowly getting this whole mommy of 5 thing down.  Routines are getting easier, or adjusting to lack of routines is less chaotic I should say :) I CANNOT wait until summer is here and I have all the babies all the time with lots of fun to be had.  I used to hate summer, mostly because I am a cold weather fan, but I am counting the days to this summer.  Kids give me so much to look forward to, I love the world through them.  The last few Sundays in Mass, I have almost been brought to tears by various things that I see at Mass, or just realize during Mass.  It is such a peaceful feeling and God is so great, and I am eternally blessed. 

14 random things you may or may not know about me

14. I am obsessed with Target and have been "grounded" from it most of my adult life.  I can spend an absurd amount of money in there and find stuff I didn't even know they made let alone need.  One of my best friends actually got me a gift card there for Christmas with the message "for when you get a chance to get away and walk around target."  It's like my oasis.

13. My hair used to be spirally curly when I was younger.  When I became pregnant with Cohen I started to lose my curl and after he was born my hair was virtually straight.  They say that hormones are to blame.  The UPSIDE though is with each subsequent pregnancy, I regained some of my curl back, so 5 pregnancies later, it's curly again. yay me!

12. I have ran the New York City Marathon and the Walt Disney Half marathon.  I hope to run both again, especially NYC.  It's magical.

11. I have been going to Chiefs games since I was 5.  I have gone to at least one game every year for the last 25 years.  Many a memories have been made in section 129 row 32.  My dad actually taught me to drive going insanely fast down the turnpike, following a caravan of chief cars.  I used to also want to be a Chiefs cheerleader when I was little...either that or work at Dairy Queen ;) pretty glad neither of those panned out.

10. I HATE cats....with the passion of a thousand suns.  I am deathly allergic and fiercely scared.  They freak me out and people that take pictures of them on their counter in their kitchen...GROSS.  You can bet I will NOT be eating anything from your house. Dogs are cool though. :)

9. I have never been to Colorado and/or skiing. I keep hinting to Cody J that I would like to get away with him...apparently the hints have been to subtle... maybe I'll send him the link to this blog:)

8.  A year and a half ago, Cody and I went on a trip to California.  It was AUH-MAZING.  While there, we went to Crystal Cove Beach.  I LOVED it and decided that we will definitely be taking a family vacation there.  Morbidly though, if I were to ever find out I was dying (at a faster rate than I am), CC would be my place in the world to cherish the end.

7. I have read and do read with the kiddos daily.  This is nothing big with babies, BUT now that Cohen and Miayla are older, we read big books together, classics, every night, and I wouldn't trade these times for anything.  I enjoy reading, but like with most things with kiddos, watching them experience it is so much cooler.  Watching a story come to life and being with them on that journey is so fun. 

6.  When I learned to crawl, I crawled over to my sisters bed and stole her baby blanket, Blankie, and have slept with it every night since.  That's right folks, I am 30 years old and sleep with a blanket.  It is disgusting, barely any of the original of it still there, but it means soooo much to me.  Cody has accepted it, you should too.

5. I wish I was from the south.  I love everything southern, especially the style and accent.  I wouldn't mind moving to a big ole spread, with willow trees lining the drive, enjoying sweet tea on an enormous porch, watching the sun set on the pond.  Bless my heart for not being from the south :(

4. On the flip side of that, Cody and I own a decent chunk of land here, and for that I am grateful.  We have 270 acres out by his folks and 200 acres northwest of where we currently live, named Jester Creek.  Although I like the land by his family, I REALLY like Jester Creek.  It has a river that runs through it and a creek, and wooded areas, and big stones, and wheat and corn and is tucked away from the world.  It has become a great escape, I hope to escape their permanently one day.

3. I have three tattoos.  One is the typical, "I am in college" placed at the front on my lower hip.  I don't regret it, just wish it had a tad more meaning, but I do like it.  I also have the kids' names in Hebrew down my spine.  Well 4/5 of them ;) and then I have "Liebe" on my left wrist for Cody J.  It means "love" in German, since that is how he has come to say it to me.  Liebe my little German boy :)

2. I am completely fascinated with my faith.  I love Catholicism and it's history, universalism, and comfort.

1. Cody J and the kiddos are my everything.  I would die for them, die unto myself because of them, and would go to the ends of this earth to bring them happiness.  {that one you probably knew}

My Favorite Number

My favorite number is 14, so you can imagine my delight to be entering the year 2014.  It has always been my lucky number for as far back as I can remember and chances are if I ask you to pick a number between 1-20, you will probably win with 14 as your pick.  Cohen has figured it out, but so far he is the only kid to.  He is a sly one ;)

A lot has changed since the last time I blogged.  Yes, it has been almost a year.  Clearly I get the awesome blogger award.  :) Although I have started many drafts, they all seem a bit untimely now to actually publish, and I feel I have changed a lot over the last year so some of those views are not mine anymore.  So instead of catching up on the past, I decided to focus on the future, after all, that is where we are headed.  I think the BIGGEST change this last year is this....

 



Miss Anabella Marie joined our lives in March.  With her came a swarm of feelings, some unexpected, some traditional, but all changing me in profound ways.  You would think with the 5th kiddo, all would be same ole same ole. Not at all.  Everything is different.  Yea, changing a diaper, bathing, that's all the same.  But how they change you, and make their OWN little place in your heart, is so different.  Cohen was the first.  The scared, "how in the world did God think I was capable of being your mom?" trial and error, living for someone else kind of love.  Miayla was the little girl, sweet and cute and princess-y can't believe I actually have a girl love.  Sawyer was the slower love.  Everything was the same at first, but as he grew, in his differences, he made my love kinder, my heart softer, our world better. Then you have the bug, Kaia, who I adore because she is me.  Every little ounce of her, is a tiny, tiny Jeny.  I empathize with her on so many levels and I love her for loving me and seeing my struggle.  And then Belles.  Truth be told, Belle and I were kind of on the oust while she was chilling inside.  Something about that pregnancy was so different, kind of sad, kind of not ready, that my heart was just different.  Its hard to explain, but I am so thankful for two friends that knew the truth of my feelings and got me through it. The SECOND she took her first breath though, she truly did take mine away.  (cliché I know) She has been by my side since then.  She filled my heart with a love that I never knew was missing and I am eternally grateful to God that He knew what I needed and when I needed it, even though I didn't. 

So here we are, in 2014.  Thirty years old, with 5 babies and so much to be thankful for.  So I guess comes the typical resolution section.  Although I have many, one thing I have learned over the years and kids is to not bite off too much, so I am going to keep it simple with my motto for 2014 :

Do less from habit and more from intention.

And this is the focus of my intention

There is so much I do out of habit with them, all aspects of my life in general, that when you step back and think about it, how much of it is done out of genuine intent? 

Our parish priest also talked about that exact thing this weekend, which I thought was a small sign from God.  He spoke about how its so easy for us to get in this "go through the motions" of Catholicism and not live in a Christ-like way.  Do we practice the corporal works of mercy, do we help where we can, do we love completely?  Or do we go off of habit and let other organizations take care of this cause and that cause. Do we stand up, sit down, kneel at Mass without ever PRAYING at Mass?

Intention vs habit

For the curious cats out there, this is also why I nixed my FB account mid December.  I decided that I would try to reach out to a handful of close friends than know about 737 other "friends".  It was sooo easy to get into the habit of checking up on friends that I didn't call them.  I could see what Ash was doing that week, or what Mel was thinking about, that it took the friendship aspect out of it for me.  I wasn't trying to be a friend.  My curiosity was peaked about many people and their lives, but a sense of loss was going on in mine.  I NEEDED close, good friends.  I have been lacking that the last few years and I honestly think FB was some of the reason.  There was no intention, just habit. I was going through the motions of being a friend, but not actually being one.  Another reason I deactivated my FB was about the time I was thinking about all of the above.... some one made the comment that I couldn't get off facebook because I was "such a good mom".  I know she meant it as being a testimony to having lots of babies and being open to life and loving God, but it didn't settle well with me.  I decided to be a good mom, I would actually BE a good mom, whether or not the world could see it.  that if later down the road, I saw someone from my past and they knew nothing about my kids, they would learn from their character and know what kind of house they grew up in, not what was shown on social media.  Facebook is good for many reasons, don't get me wrong.  But for what I needed to do to live more out of intent and less out of habit was to say adios to it, so I did.   

And with saying adios to ole FB and 2013, I said hello to my favorite '14!  I am really excited and hopeful for life in 2014.  Six days into it and I've been trying harder than ever to do more from the bottom of my little heart than I have in a long time.  I've had some successful days, and some not so successful, but I am more at peace with myself now than I ever have been and that is an amazing feeling.  :)

God's peace to you and yours and here is to having a 2014 full of intention !

Cinco's Corazon (heart)

I thought I would give a little update on Cinco since some have asked about the babe!

Cody. 

I LOVE THIS MAN. 

He is such an amazing and ever present father.  This is our fifth child and he has NEVER missed an appointment. Not one. If you have ever had babies, there are many appointments and some that take a total of two seconds...ya know, the ones where he measures and tells ya you are still pregnant and to come back next week.  Not a one was missed.  Granted some of them were a HUGE blur because half the time he is wrangling already birthed children, but never the less, he is always there.  And it means the world to me. 

But one day, he wasn't there, and as luck would have it, I would want nothing more.

On December 28th, I had an appt at the Drs office. It was gonna be a quick check, 31 weeks and I'd be on my merry way.  My appointment was at 8:40 so instead of waking all the kiddos (Christmas break), we decided that I would just go by myself.  My mom has been gracious enough to come over on her Friday mornings off and watch the babies when I do have appointments, but her and my dad were visiting my brother in Spain on this particular day.  Anyway, I go to the appointment and get weighed, which I was super excited about because I had actually lost an ounce! Big news when you have gained as much as I have:/  Then we go to hear that one little thing you never get tired of hearing...the beat of your baby's heart.

But today's beat was different and when I heard that....my heart stopped beating too.

The nurse went and got Dr. K and came back.  He listened and said "why don't you go check in at Wesley, and we will do a sono and start monitoring you?  Hopefully we won't have a baby today but I hope you didn't have any plans this weekend."-- I am sure the look on my face said it all, which was good because I was speechless.  All I wanted was Cody there and for this to all be a bad joke.  But it wasn't.  Dr. K said it was probably fine, but he wanted to double check.  I told him that we had planned to deliver at St. Joe but that I would go wherever he wanted.  He decided to send me upstairs at his practice and run some tests there instead because although it would still be costly, not nearly as expensive as checking into the hospital.  We decided if I needed to go after the initial tests, we would.  So he sent up to the sonographer and as I waited, I decided to call Cody, who last time I saw was snoozing under the covers at home.  I called....no answer.  I then called and text about 20 times...nothing.  So then I called the neighbor boy.  Nate answered the phone and I'm sure he thought I was crazy, but in a very tear filled voice, I said "Nate it is Jeny down the street.  I need to get ahold of Cody.  Will you please go down to the house and knock until he answers and tell him to call me?  Are you allowed to leave the house?"  Nate said "yea, I can go, no problem."  About 5 minutes later, I got a call from Cody.  I informed him what was going on and you could tell he felt terrible for not being there.  There was so much racing through both of our heads that neither one really knew what to say, but yet, we didn't want to get off the phone.  The sonographer called me back.  I think she could tell something wasn't right because I was 1.crying and 2.shaking.  She was incredibly sweet and sat there and rubbed my arm and explained everything at a slower level and in "layman" terms.  She did the sono, then called the doctor.  He wanted an echo of the heart done too and some more monitoring so she did all that.  A few hours later, I was back in the doctors office, waiting and praying.  He came in and said that structurally the heart looked good, but that the beat was still irregular.  I was free to go home but to rest and keep an eye out on any sudden changes.  He said that they would have the fetal heart doctor look at everything and we would go from there.  So I left and went home.  

I had a small meltdown when I got there.  It was a culmination of a lot of things. 

1. walking into the house and all four kiddos playing on the floor together.  It was kind of a surreal moment to think, what if Cinco isn't ok? What if he/she will never play on the floor with them?  

2. My parents were out of the country.  They always watch the kids when we have a baby.  If I am going to be up having a baby, I take great comfort in knowing that Uella and papa are holding down the fort.  Not to mention, who wants to have a baby when their parents are gone?  

3. All of Cody's family was going to Nashville to celebrate his mom's birthday.  I wasn't for sure on the day they were leaving (either the 28th/29th), but one of the reasons we were not going was because we did not have someone to watch the kiddos.  So in my head, I was thinking, I can't have a baby, who will watch the kids? If I had someone to watch the kids, I'd be in Nashville! Cody didn't want to have a baby with all of his family gone either.  (Luckily I was able to get ahold of two close friends who were more than willing to help out! My mom called my aunts from Spain and they were texting too and offering to get kids or go to the hospital if that was where I ended up.) 

4. I wasn't ready for any of that. I did not expect to hear him say those words, so just being caught off guard was like, "wow"!  And  I'm not ready to have another baby as odd as that sounds.  Yes we have four kids, but that doesn't automatically make you ready to go from a family of 6 to a family of 7 at any time.  I still had at least 6 more weeks to go!!  

And ultimately I knew that should Cinco come, we would not be leaving with him/her anytime soon, and that broke my heart.  Just being at the hospital with Sawyer overnight was hard enough with being away from the kids.  To do that all the time, would be tough.  But we would definitely not be one of those parents that goes home often, leaving their baby there.  I may have to sleep in a waiting room chair, but cody or I would not be but a hop away.  

So Cody held me and I cried and he was the voice of reason, like always.  We knew there was nothing we could do but pray, which also, was the only thing we knew would comfort us.  So we did that.  On that following Monday, the doctors office called and said the fetal heart doctor looked at the tests and wanted me to have weekly sonograms for the duration of the pregnancy.  He also ordered Cinco have another ECHO of the heart and an EKG at delivery.  With each sono, we would decide if we need to increase them to twice weekly or not.  The last two weeks since then at our sonos, the heart beat is still not regular, but luckily, all the valves and chambers seem to still be working.  As of today, 1/11/13, baby's head is down and I am dilated between 1-2.  I could stay like that for awhile though so I am not getting too excited, plus we would still like to keep the bun in the oven.  I am thankful we have made it to 33 weeks!

As for what the diagnosis is, we don't know.  Doctor said it could be a slew of things or nothing.  He said sometimes, they have a way of working themselves out before delivery.  Sometimes they are heart murmurs, sometimes they are bigger issues.  It is hard to say until delivery because some of it plays off of when we actually deliver.  We are thankful that we live in a day and age where technology catches things like this and we are able to monitor and be prepared for anything.  We know there are people in the world, even unborn babies, that have bigger issues, so we are trying to keep it in perspective.  Although scary, it could be much worse.  We are thankful and hopeful. 

As a family, because we have discussed it, we think Cinco is just soooo excited to become a part of our family that we make his/her heart skip a beat...or a few...and then pause and go really fast...then jump and then pause again..and then start the whole process over.  

It still breaks my heart to hear it.  Cody finally heard it today and it broke his heart too. To know what it is supposed to sound like and what it does sound like, and the difference between the two. We are praying for the best and know that everything is in God's hands, which is the best place to be.  Thanks to all those that have prayed, are praying, or will pray! We are so blessed to have so many caring people in our lives.  

The Adventures of Holas~ Part Tres

Here is the third installment of  The Adventures of Holas, our Advent Elf.  As all things that go so well in my head, execution is ANOTHER thing.  Our sweet Sawyer had to have surgery on December 17th, to have his tonsils and adenoids removed and his ear tubes replaced.  Because he is younger, just turned 3, Dr. said it would be an overnight stay, possibly more.  With that in mind, Holas was in our thoughts, but not at the forefront of our concerns.  

Also, if you recall, during their last "mission" there was some arguing so Holas had to stay away.  When the kiddos awoke on the morning of the 17th, he was back with a note that read:

"I am soooo happy to be back home with you guys! Thanks for apologizing to each other and to your parents and for forgiving one another.  There is plenty of God's love that we do not need to fight over it! Keep up being kind."

MISSION #11

 "These are some magic beans.  Plant them in this pan before you go to school and see what happens. "

My mom was with the kiddos when they woke up because we had to check in at the hospital at 5:30 am.  She said they thought the beans were really cool, but their main concern was little brother.  

After she picked them up from school, they ran home to get a "get well " present for Sawyer.  When they went inside, they saw that their magic beans had turned into cookies!! With the cookies, was a new note that read "I miss Sawyer too.  Please take these special cookies up to the hospital for all the nurses that are taking care of our little brother."

They brought the cookies up to the hospital and apparently had a few on the way, because the pan WAS full at one point:) They also brought Holas up to see Sawyer, but Sawyer was not the happiest to see Holas...

The nurses LOVED the cookies, well the ones that got them.  One of the nurses even recognized our little elf and told the kids all about how her kiddos had an elf when they were little...40 some years ago!!! 

We also finished our novena for Sawyer on this day.  There is so much comfort in Christ, we are blessed to know of His love. 

 Here are a few pics of Sawyer too.  The top left is after the surgery, then he was slowly getting better (first smile in 36 hours!)...then we were trying anything and everything to get him to drink by himself so he didn't need the IV ( 7pm night #2), then we got the ok to be dismissed and he was out of there!!!

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #12

"Hanging around is not always fun.  Say a special prayer for the souls in Purgatory that are "hanging around" hoping to get into Heaven soon!"

I stayed at the hospital with Sawyer overnight, and Cody came home to take care of the other three kiddos and let my mom finally go home.  I told him to hang Holas from something....he chose the light.  

I informed him that Holas had already hung from the light but it was too late...The kiddos had found him and he said they seemed fine with the fact that Holas had chose the light again.  

Before they went to school, they all three prayed for the souls in purgatory!

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #13

 "YOU HAVE THE NICEST NEIGHBORS! I went for a walk and got lost and ended up on Patsy! I got to hang out with your neighbors and had fun! Make something nice for all your neighbors.!"

A HUGE thanks to my amazing neighbor Dawn for helping with Holas! They were such good sports about hosting Holas and the kiddos thought it was hilarious that Holas got lost.  The top picture is of Patsy and Holas.  Dawn sent me a text in the morning asking the kids if they recognized this elf that ended up at their house?! Then she sent the picture of Holas sleeping with Ben.  What I love even more than the gracious heart Dawn has, is the fact that above Ben's bed (in the corner of the picture) is a picture of our Diocesean seminarians, such a great family!

 Here are the kiddos making neighbor treats and getting ready to deliver them. Holas helped deliver them too:)

 Here are a FEW of the treats we also received from our wonderful neighbors! Some had already been enjoyed when I took this picture:)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #14

 "Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men. ~ Say a Rosary for all the seminarians, priests, and retired priests."

Holas was just fishing for goldfish, but when Jesus was on earth, He fished for great men to continue his work.  Originally it was my intention to make some goodies up and go visit the retired priests.  But at this point in the week, I was spent and decided the treats would have to wait.  Either way, the kids and I talk about vocations a lot and Cohen talks about being a priest, although I know he has YEARS to change his mind.  I love that they think highly of any religious life and see it as an honor.  It was kind of ironic because on the day of this mission, December 20th, at school they were visited by one of their "adopted" seminarians.  I had no idea Issac was going to visit them at school when the mission was chose, but Miayla was so excited to tell me how cool it was to pray for him in the morning and see him at school later that day! There are many things I love about them going to a Catholic school, one of them being the presence of visitors like seminarians and priests.  It warms my heart to have them have these positive influences interact with them. 

We prayed the rosary later that night for all religious life.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #15

"It's ok, I'm a doctor.....JUST KIDDING! But lucky for you, you do have an amazing doctor and he has an amazing team! Please take a special treat up to Dr. Sanchez and thank him for all he does!"

Every year we take treats up to Dr.Sanchez's office and every year he is soooooo thankful.  He always takes pictures of the kids with said goodies and is very humble about his skill.  We adore all of his nurses as well and are so grateful that when we get sick, those are the arms that help heal us.  And since Sawyer was feeling better, he helped in the making of the treats!!

However, because like many things, it played out much better in my head:) The morning we were taking the treats, we were waiting for Kaia to wake up.  She rarely gets up before 9:30 am (yes she sleeps from 8pm-9:30am every night), but I noticed it was getting later and later.  Since I also go by the rule you never wake a sleeping baby, I let her sleep....but then it got a little too late (she had been asleep for 15 hrs straight)  and I freaked out.  When I went in to wake her, you could tell she was sick immediately.  I took her temp and it was 103.2 :(  I called the doctor ASAP and two things happened, 1. They said they were booked for the day and I would have to take her to immediate care and 2. Dr. Sanchez had taken the day off :)

So with this information, I decided that we shouldn't spread Christmas cheer since he was gone and she was sick.  I loaded her up and went to immediate care where we waited for a few hours and found out she had a double ear infection.  We went ahead and sent our Christmas thank yous and decided we would make treats again for them soon. 

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED...SORT OF:)

Adventures of Holas~ Part Dos

I went to post the third part of Holas' adventures and realized that I never actually published this one:( One day in this life I hope to catch up....today is probably not going to be that day and tomorrow is not looking too hot either :) 

The Ayres Family is still trucking through this Advent Season and trying to do some good out there.  There have been lots of opportunities for lessons, humility, and forgiveness.  Remember our elf is different in that we have "missions" to do daily.  Here are a few more of our missions:

MISSION #6

"It is the Feast of our Lady of Guadalupe 12/12/12!! Have a great day learning all about this special occasion and have a special Mexican feast tonight! Don't forget to continue your novena for Sawyer."

Our family is blessed with going to a Catholic school where their faith can be embedded in them even more. The school and church had set up a few special activities for the kiddos that went perfectly with our mission of learning all about the special feast day.  They met in the gym before Mass and saw a reenactment of the story of Juan Diego, then they processed over to Mass singing a traditional hymn and presented Mary with flowers.  Unfortunately Kaia did not get the memo that it was early Mass and was a bit of a stinker and we missed the whole thing:( However, we did make it over to the school after Mass for the rest of the celebration.  The Matachine dancers performed and then they had prepared a native cider for the kiddos to try.  

Sawyer wasn't for sure how he felt about the drums and the wolves....

After school. I took the kiddos down to Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church and we watched some more dancing.  They really liked it.  I have a special place in my heart for Our Lady of Perpetual Help here, it is the church where my mother grew up and it reminds me of her family.  The front pew on the left is dedicated to my beloved Grandma Toni, who I never had the privilege of meeting but who I feel I have come to know through memories.  When we got home, Holas was waiting in a bowl of chips for the rest of the fiesta.  While I prepared dinner, Cohen and Miayla watched a video about the miracle of Our Lady.  We had tamales, Mexican egg rolls, and churros as part of our feast.  By the end of the night, Sawyer had more than warmed up to the drums and became our own little drummer boy!

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #7

 December 13th is the Feast of St. Lucia! St. Lucy is the patron saint of those with visual impairments and her name means light.  Jesus is the Light of the World. Say a special prayer for all those with visual impairments and have a fun family activity tonight. Novena.

There are a lot of fun things you could do for the Feast of St. Lucia and next year I plan to do more.  This year we kept it pretty simple and just learned about her. 

 The fun family activity was going to Illuminations.  Through out our walk, we talked about Christ's light and the light of everlasting life. I don't think they really got any of this part, but they smiled and nodded anyway :)

 Sawyer absolutely LOVED Illuminations and it was nice to see him so happy knowing in a few days he wouldn't be so happy.

Holas enjoyed it too:)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #8

BABIES, BABIES, WE LOVE BABIES!! 

The miracle of life is such an amazing gift and must be cherished.  Please make a donation to A Better Choice to help moms who are making the BEST CHOICE-LIFE.  Say a special prayer for all the unborn babies in the world.  Continue your Novena.  

We try to make a few donations through out the year to A Better Choice and the Gerard House. I love that after they read their mission, Cohen knew exactly the place Holas was talking about.

We took some baby clothes, bath tub, diapers, and some other baby items.  

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #9

HOLAS was hiding inside the Krispy Kreme box! 

"Donut-cha just LOVE cookie day?! We are so blessed to be part of such an awesome family! Enjoy today with everyone and say a special prayer to the Holy Family on your way to Cookie Day"

Right before Christmas, every year, for the last 21 years, my mom, her three sisters, and all of their kids and now their kids' kids get together and make a big assortment of cookies.  We look forward to it every year and it is such a special day.  Overwhelming, a tad...trying to help 4 kiddos frost sugar cookies can be a bit chaotic, but the memories are definitely worth it!

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #10

Well.....there was some misfortune on Mission #9 day.  The kiddos kind of became crazy about who the first one was to find Holas.  Miayla said she was first because she spotted the donut box.  Cohen said he was the one that actually opened the donut box and found Holas...and they argued.  Big time argue and we were NOT happy about it.  So Sunday morning, when they awoke, they found a note that read:

"It is with a sad heart that after I reported back to St. Nick last night, he said I could not return home until your behavior changes.  No one was happy with the arguing yesterday and MY mission is to help draw your hearts closer to Christ this Advent, not make you become mean to each other.  I hope you will apologize to each other and practice forgiveness.  Keep trying and hopefully I can come home soon.  I miss you sooooo much!

~Holas"

They were pretty shocked to see this.  Cohen called me out on it and said that I talked Holas into writing the note because on Saturday I had said "I wouldn't be surprised if Holas did not come back after that little episode." :) Either way, They got the memo.  Behavior on Sunday was much better and they both apologized to each other and forgave each other.  I am glad that we had the opportunity to have this little lesson.  I felt that they had a "mission" that was more relatable than others.  Yes, the good works of making donations should be practiced frequently, but humility and forgiveness are everyday occurrences that I feel reaches them at a different level. The fact that others "noticed" their nasty behavior and it was not okay, made them rethink their actions.  We have been working on "responsibility for our choices" a lot and this unintentionally tied in quite well.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

"Holas"--Welcoming Advent with an Elf

When you have kids, you get to make BIG decisions! God entrusts you with these little tiny beings.  You are responsible for them, for loving them, for being their biggest advocate, their protector on earth, their hero, their teacher.  It is not an easy task.  Sometimes they pick up your good traits and sometimes your not so good traits.  (the last one applies more towards Cody since we all know I am pretty close to perfect, lol:) What you put in front of them is what they will know.  It does not matter how much money you have, or the clothes you wear when it comes to matters of the heart.  How their heart grows is what matters. 

Christmas is one of those BIG decisions.  You get to decide what they get, how they embrace it all, and most importantly, what they take from it.  So what will my kids take from it?

If you follow me on pinterest, you know for a while I have been pinning "elf on the shelf" ideas.  I mean how funny are some of those??!!  So I bought our elf back in October eagerly awaiting a more appropriate time to bust him out and let the fun begin......except it didn't happen.  The more I thought about it, the more my heart was drawn away from him.  Cody and I have never been fans of  the "you better be good because Santa is watching." gig, so to have them have this elf that reports back to Santa seemed like not a great fit for OUR FAMILY.  Some families, this may be perfect for, but for us, we wanted them to walk away with CHRIST in CHRISTMAS.  We wanted them to prepare their hearts for CHRIST'S BIRTH, not their behavior for toys.  So as I thought more and more about this elf, this is what we came up with.  

On the morning of Dec 6th, we celebrated the Feast of St. Nicholas.  It is tradition to put your shoes out the night before (this is where our boots always are) and St. Nicholas comes and visits you, leaving a variety of items in your shoes.  If you notice, he also left us an elf and a note.

Cohen, miayla, sawyer, and Kaia~ 
Greetings great big little people!!!
My name is Nico! I am an elf... I am a tad different from other elves in that I do not report back to Santa Claus! Some elves go back to the big guy up north and tell him if you have been bad or good. I expect you to be good all the time, why? BECAUSE that is what God would want! So because you should already be being good, I report back to St. Nicholas (that's why he dropped me off And that's who i am named after, which I guess you could change my name to holas, or las, or nic... But that's here nor there) Anyway, I tell him if you have been preparing your hearts for Christ's birth...which is what CHRISTMAS IS ALL ABOUT!! Am I right or am I right?! 
So each night while you are sleeping, after i tell Nick if you have been getting your hearts ready, I will take a bag from your Advent tree and in the morning, you will have to find me and complete your "mission" for the day. Some elves can't be touched because they lose their powers... Me, you can touch me! In fact, I love being cuddled and prayed with and I love going and doing good deeds so take me along and take my picture. I am Really handsome:) one thing about me though, is like you, I sometimes mix up good and bad. And sometimes i get pretty silly!!!! So you may have to teach me better ways to behave and remind me of God's endless love and forgiveness.  With that, let's go have a great Advent season and get ready to welcome our Lord!!! Merry Christmas!!!
~ NICO

They decided to change his name to something more original, part of our culture, and fun to say and thus "HOLAS" entered our lives.  I kind of like it too because I feel it was a way to say "HI" to the Advent Season.  This may be a far stretch to have an elf be anything relatable to Advent, but for us it works.  We could have done the elf separate from our Advent activities but we wanted for them to make the connection between Holas' presence and doing good.  One day when they figure it all out, which they will, we will still expect them to do good works.  When HOLAS appears each year, no matter their age, I hope they will still be excited about their missions!  We will still expect them to give more than to receive, to be Christlike in all their ways.  But with Holas, they still get to participate in the lunchroom discussions on where their elf was hiding WHILE preparing their hearts for Christ's birth.  When they wake up and find him, they immediately ask what their mission is (he carries them in his bag).  And a week later, they are still loving every minute of it!

MISSION #1

"Being an angel is fun! You can be an angel to someone too! Pick a child from an Advent Tree and buy them a gift for Christmas!"

This mission happened to coincide perfectly with an Advent Angel party we were invited to! (That's another blog entry I am working on)

Our four year old little boy wanted a Robot---which was harder to find than we expected so we are hoping he will like the Rescue Bot just as well!  Holas went with us:)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

MISSION #2

Is HOLAS getting a piggy back ride from Mary??? More like giving Mary a big bear hug, Because Mary is the most amazing mother this world has ever known! And to "Celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, along with going to Mass, say three Hail Marys for all the mothers in the world."

Funny innocence here, Miayla came up to me later in the day and asked if she could take a break from praying? When I asked why she needed a break, she explained that she was on #21 Hail Mary.  I then asked why she was on #21 for Hail Marys she explained that Holas said to say 3 HMs for all the moms in the world and there are a lot of moms:) I re-explained it to her and she was quite relieved:)

MISSION MORE THAN ACCOMPLISHED :)

MISSION #3

HOLAS is in the Doll house

"Having a home is such a blessing.  Make up blessing bags to give to the homeless.  And please start a Novena for Sawyer and a successful surgery."

The kids were crazy about this mission! They could not wait to do it and it was one of those "WOW" mommy moments for me.  This mission was given to them last Sunday.  Cody was gone and I had all four of them at Mass by myself.  Our plan was to go to the store after Mass and get the items for the bags.  It was windy and wrangling 4 kiddos is tough.  When we got in the car after Church, I informed the kids that it was too cold to get the babies in and out again by myself and that we would do the bags later.  As we pulled into the house, Cohen was sad.  When I asked him what was wrong, he said "it's too cold for us to go shopping, but think of how the people that need the bags feel in the cold."  I felt like a terrible person in that instance, but I also knew that he was going to get something extra out of this mission and he did! Miayla and him could not wait to compile the bags, but they also could not wait to share the bags with others!  What is a blessing bag you may ask?  A bag that is carried in your car that you can give out, should you see a homeless person on the street or at a store.  They have various items in it.  Ours had a toothbrush, toothpaste, medicine, chapstick, granola bars, crackers, chicken salad and cracker kits, band aides, socks, body wipes, deodorant, gum, candy canes, comb, soap......

Holas helped assemble some bags too!

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

MISSION #4

"FAN- Being a fan is fun! Be someone's biggest fan today! Do something extra nice for someone today without being asked.  Continue the novena for Sawyer."

Both kiddos did their mission but refused to tell me because they said I didn't need to ask.  They take things very literal...we are gonna have to work on that;)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

MISSION #5

"CAN-CAN- Can you sacrifice a few cans? Please donate these cans to a food pantry. Oh and keep up the good work on the Novena."

HOLAS also wrote "Hi" in cans on the floor.  Very fitting for the silly elf whose name is "hi" in Spanish!

We took the cans up to the food pantry at church and they will take it to the food bank.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED 

We cannot wait for the rest of our missions and all the good to be done! HOLAS has been a great addition to our family this Advent season and we hope St. Nicholas is pleased with our efforts and okay with the name change:)

Holas is currently waiting in a bowl of tortilla chips with a sombrero on for the kids to get home! They are going to watch a movie about Our lady of Guadalupe before we have a Mexican feast! 

I cannot wait to have them back home so we can continue to celebrate all that God has blessed us with.