He is risen...

He has risen indeed!

Today we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Thank you Jesus for humbling yourself and dying on the cross for our sins.

Today we are relaxing, spending time together as a family and enjoying our last day of spring break.

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That Beauty Judy's Birthday Gift

This is how it began...



Well, it was an idea actually, not a canvas...

about Judy, and the wonderful woman she is and all the people that love an appreciate her.

I asked a group of her friends and family to think of three words that come to mind when you think of Judith.

This are the words people think of when they think of her:

So the words were collaged, the canvas distressed, and painted a little too.

This is what the collage looked like...

Thank you Teresa, Linda, Karen, Pat, Benta, Debbie, Rob, Anthony and Kathy.

You obviously know a great person, someone I am proud to know and love.
Happy 60th birthday Judy.
We love you!!!

ground hog or guinea pig?

nothin' like finding a dancing ground hog (that looks like a guinea pig) at the flea market. (and having your sweet brother jimmy buy it for you is even better!) i wonder how Cali will act toward her new friend?

weekend fun

It was great to spend time with family this weekend. I haven't seen my dad since march I think (?) so it was a blast to hang out with the 3H's and of course my tio joe ;0)

a nice surprise

i haven't had a chance to post the halloween pics yet, but yesterday when I arrived home from work I was greeted with a pleasant surprise.

these shades have been sitting in the corner since june when i painted the house. I attempted to install them myself but wasn't strong enough to get the screws into the wood. i have been 'patiently' waiting for them to magically appear in place. Now here they are in their rightful spot over the windows.

thank you jim and rea! great work!

back to routine

the kids started school this week and I went back to work. Besides the most obvious trauma that caused me, I have taken well to the fact that I am at least 50% more organized than I would have been going into this week by 'sort of' planning the week than not. I think so much faster than I can do. by the time I can articulate what I am thinking, I have changed that thought at least 3 times. Not a good trait to have, indecisivness, as it always feels as if things are not done, not resolved and not put to rest. This is something I have been thinking of for 2009 as one of the placed where I need to make a change, since it would lessen my stress level and allow me to practice more compassion and love toward those who reside in my house.
So, steps I need to take are:
1. planning out weekly meals. (it will save $ and eliminate the crazy what to do every nioght after work)
2. picking out M - F outfits for all the kids and myself. (i will not waste pecious time in the morning looking for clothes or helping little people choose theirs)
Right now, there are really just two, but two big ones that would really ease the amount of pressure I feel each week.
But that being said, out of my two, I have done 1, and I can already feel the pressure down as we ease into Wednesday.
I think this might just work :0)

Yeah! I excercised self control today! and my comitment to eating frugal...

Today we took my mother in law out for 'dunch' (dinner and lunch) b/c she was craving Mexican food. YUM! We went to Ay Carumba in Park Ridge. It was a yummy meal and I was very proud of myself for excercising portion control and not allowing myself to fill up on chips and salsa (although the salsa is FAT FREE and healthy) and I had a portion of a steak I split with Jim and 2 fajitas (on corn tortillas). No beans or rice (count up those calories saved baby!)
I was thinking (later of course) that we have such an abundance of everythting in this world and the first thing that comes to mind is obviously food. I know in this country 'we' as a nation are blessed, but my family is blessed beyond belief. As I have been thinking about the crab legs we indulged in on new years eve, i find it amazing that we have so much. I feel like my family wastes SO much food every week. I go to the store and place all of the food 'wants' and 'ideas of meals' into my cart and walk out without a second thought. i don't purchase the store brand all the time, nor do i worry about the price of too many things in my cart. i also don't worry a week later when i open the fridge and wonder why i didn't make half the things i purchased and why the $4.00 buttermilk is sour after I used the 1/4 cup i needed for that 'one' recipe.
i have been wondering this week about the reason why these things don't bother me, and the only resaon I can come up with is desentisization. I have become desensitized to the needs that others have. yeah, i know about the food crisis in other countries and it breaks my heart when i see, hear or think of the suffering, but that is not what i'm talking about. i think i am numb to the fact there are real people and real families here in our country, in our state, in our, my, city that are not as blessed as my family is.
so now here is the verb part.... what am i going to do about it? truth is, i'm not really sure. yeah, of course i have ideas, but when you don't have the time, tools and resources to make thoughts turn into plans then turn to action, it is still, well, just an idea.
so i have an idea (and i'll call it what it is. for now at least), that i want to try, and i know it's not going to help another family eat this week (at least not right away) but it is a step that i need, my family needs, to start becoming more aware.
so stay tuned... i will lay out my plan this week. in action of course.
have a great evening readers.
nikki

Introducing my new blog!

Hello everyone! I have decided to start a blog for the New Year.
One of the goals I have set for myself this year is to live a much more Simple life. (don't laugh!).
I want to make my life more about Compassion and Gratitude and less about the world and what "it" tells me I need.
This will be a place where I can record my families experiences and daily "doses" of compassion.
I will be exploring different themes all year of how my family can make this world a better place. Remember, Compassion is a verb!
I hope you will come along for the ride as we blast off into the exciting year of 2009!

oh what a tangled web we weave

It started off as fun and games. but fun and games witha fan and long hair doesn't always end up the way it should.
we started off crying. not crying that we didn't listen to our mommy, but crying that our hair was tangled up in the fan. the fan we were told would get caught in our hair if we kept looking down on it while it was on.
huh, who know? oh yeah, mom did.

so the cry,

turned into mommy singing songs to distract the young and bold and very independent rea-rea.

and finally, the newly freed, laughing and now experienced hair in a fan rea-rea, laughing all the way. (is that a nursery rhyme? it should be)

and no, in case you are wondering, mom's don't always know best.

appearantly little bold and independent girls think they know best and within a day, Rea was back in the kitchen having moming remove her hair from the fan.

(wait, doesn't that mean I was right?

what's that Rea, you said no?)

Fantasy Land

We were invited to Fantasy Land for Alyssa's birthday this year. What a fun place. A huge warehouse room painted, decorated and stocked to the brim with everything a little one can imagine. There were different stations for becomming a knight or a cop or robber or a mom or a princess. The kids could safely run and play in a clean and environment . The owners had kids take off their shoes and use sanitizer and wipes to keep things clean. It was a fun place for a party.

I hope this is no indication of the future! lol!

Payton thought the only on call was pretty funny. He couldn't decide who to call!

Reagan and I played construction for a while. I'm surprise I was allowed to wear the pink hat, but it was way to big for her and it kept falling down over her eyes. After she built a house, she decided to have a mid party crisis and change professions.

This is peasant woman Reagan and her wizard Payton. He wore the costume for about 30 seconds then said he was hot and was done with the whole dress up thing.

But there is always one in the group and Jimmy is usually the one!

I will keep this pic for a very long time and make sure it is brought out at all the appropriate times a mom should embarass her oldest son. Hehe!

Look at those legs, those teeth, that fine green skin. Jimmy, I have to say, you make a might fine Aligator, young man!

(can you say blackmail?)

A quick shout

I'm greened out. I have had enough of the green things this year. easter is going to be all pinks, blues purples and yellows. no green. one more night, i can make it. awana tonight is a st. patricks day theme so it will be the last day wearing it, seeing it, eating it. it's time to move on...

yesterday we found out that frankie died. they said he went to sleep and didn't wake up. hmmm. with out divuldging to many private details, it appears it was more than that due to the people and the age group of friends he chose to associate with. I feel really bad for Grandma Jean. She loved him and it is breaking her heart to have to bury a child. it is something no mother should have to do because even when you are 58 years old, you are still someone's baby.

i'll like you forever, i'll love you for always, as long as i'm living, my baby you'll be.

the kids and I have been singing that song over the past week. reagan brought it up and told me that if i die, she will still love me. how sweet.
I told her I wasn't planning on going just yet, but my life is in God's hands and I kind of have to follow the path in front of my feet.
last night we had a great cry on the bed. 4 people and a lot of tissues later (jim was out) we turned it into a really positive discussion about choices. how everyone has them and how they are either good or bad. about how the consequences from choices are given and most of the time they are determined by the choice. it really gave Jimmy and I a chance to talk about honesty and love and drugs and family. it's sad about frankie, I hope my babies can take something from this experience that they can use as they live their lives.

I found this the other day and it seems overly appropriate now.

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument.Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone.It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God.He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others'.You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood.But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie.Don't save it for a special occasion.Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words:"In five years, will this matter?"
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone, everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
31.. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick.Your friends will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
36 Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Don't audit life.Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don't ask, you don't get.
49. Yield..
50. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

"May the Lord's face radiate with joy because of you"

(oh darn, I just remembered, I am SOOO glad the tooth fairy is a man, at least he can take the blame for this one)