Oregano-Lemon Chicken

I've been trying to have a new recipe every week. I get tired of the same old meals so I've been on a hunt for new favorites. When I look for recipes I make sure that it is simple and quick. Especially on the days that I work. This chicken recipe I really enjoyed. The family also said it was good. I think that next time I will rub the chicken and see if it changes anything.

Oregano-Lemon Chicken w/ Roasted Red Potatoes

Ingredients
4-6 chicken thighs on the bone (this time I used breast)
3 tbs lemon juice
2 tbs honey
1 tbs olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp oregano, dried

Instructions
-Place chicken in baking dish.
-combine lemon juice, honey, oil, garlic and oregano.
-pour over chicken.
-bake uncovered at 350 for 45 mins

Roasted Red Potatoes
-cube potatoes, throw in plastic bag.
-add Lipton onion packet and 2 tbs of oil.
-bake at 450 for 40 mins

Dinner Table Confessions

Last night at dinner we had your normal conversations; activities coming up, every one's day and such. Christina talks a lot at the table. Mostly because she's trying to avoid eating. Man, I remember when she use to eat everything!
Well this little girl blurts out that she needs to see her boyfriend!! We all weren't sure we heard correctly. Kenny asked her what she said.
Tina: "I said, I need to see my boyfriend, your friend"!
Me: "who exactly"?
Tina: "_ _ _ _"
(yep, it's who we thought it was. I don't want to out anyone, unwilling)
I looked over at Hubby and just started laughing. He does not like this subject. LOL! He says;
Hubby: Tina, you don't mean that. Don't say those things".
Tina: "But DAD, I love him"!
OMGOSH! If I wasn't at the table I would've rolled onto the floor with laughter!
This conversation is definitely for the books/blog!

Crafts and Decor

I've slowly been working on projects. I've had so many projects that I've been waiting to do. The hard part is finding time to do them! I recently noticed that as soon as I'm planning on having some friends or family over I want to quickly get projects done. That's because I have nothing on my walls!
So here is a recent one. Right after we moved in I took this picture of my kids feet. I originally found this idea on this site. I loved it and had to copy it!


I just love the way it turned out! (quick side-note) Right after I finished the frame, Tina went to pick it up and dropped it! It put a nice little crack in it that I had to glue. It took everything in me not to yell! I mean I've been planning this for months. But how could I get mad at that sweet face saying, "I just wanted to look at it"!

Funny Girl and The Things She's Says!

Sometimes I can not believe what comes out of my little girl's mouth. I really have to try hard not to laugh. Here are some recent quotes, conversations and such;

1. Anyone who's had a young child knows you can't get a moment of peace, even in the bathroom! This story begins with ME trying to use the bathroom...
Tina: "Mom?"
Me: (in the bathroom) "I'm busy, just wait"
Tina: "Mom, can I have an otter pop"?
Me: "NO"!
Tina: (running down hall) "Mom said YES"!
This happens quite a bit!!

2. (We're sitting at the dinner table)
Tina: "Mom, what do green beans do for you"?
She likes to know what benefit she'll get out of her veggies.
Me: (thinking what to say) "They help make you strong" (you can't use the "Popeye" bit anymore, these kids don't know it) "give you big muscles".
Tina: "I already have muscles" (flexing)
Mateo: "you don't have muscles like me" (trying to help)
Tina: "yeah, I do, wanna wrestle after dinner"? "I'll win"! (quick side-note; Tina loves to wrestle with her brothers and Dad)
During this conversation, Kenny was also saying Tina already had bigger muscles than Mateo! LOL!

3. One morning I was trying to get Tina to get dressed. I'm brushing my teeth and she's laying on the bed, avoiding getting ready.
Tina: (farts) Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha! (she's cracking up)
Me: "Why are you laughing"?
Tina: "I just farted"!
Me: "That's not funny"
Tina: "yeah, it is", "I can't wait till I'm a teenager"!
Me: "WHY"?
Tina: "cause this GIRL farts and burps"! Ha, Ha, Ha!

That one just blew me away!

Pumpkin Patch Time

Last weekend we went to the pumpkin patch. It was perfect weather; not too hot, enjoyable weather. I just love seeing the pumpkins in their patch. It's such a pretty site. Tina was scared of the scarecrows. We had to keep moving her inch by inch to get near it. Then she realized it was fake.

They had a lot of fun centers for the kids. This was the bubble station.

Tina was disappointed the horse/pony couldn't move.


We got to take a wagon ride w/ mechanical horses, so funny! Can you tell she's excited!



Tina got to pick her pumpkin and then paint it. I think that was the best part of the day for her. She loves to paint!

Here the kids were getting ready to enter a dark maze. Tina was scared but wanted to go in. By the time she came out she wished she hadn't. She was crying! She told me, "I had my eyes closed the whole time"!

The pumpkin patch is always a fun family event. Although it sure is hard getting Kenny excited about it, but I know he enjoys the family time!

A Little Music

We just attended a concert for Mateo's band. It was also a chili fundraiser. Most of the family came out to support Mateo and the band. The band sounded great! I wish I would've gotten more pictures but it's kinda hard when they place them on the stage. Mateo is about 3 rows back on the left. Trust me he's there and he played!

I think Steve got a kick out of being at his old school.
Next month Mateo will be starting drum line and band reviews. I hope to get some great pictures of that.

Girlfriend Week

A couple of weeks ago we had to prepare Christina and Katie for a long separation. Katie is moving to Japan for 4-6 months. Now to four year olds that seems like FOREVER! So we made sure that they had plenty of time to play together before Katie left. Everyday was a different activity; park, tea party/dress up, swimming and sleep over.
These girls are funny, curious and very creative when they get together. We're always having to keep our eye on them. I couldn't believe that they chose not to use the pool and use this bucket. I just had to get a picture of it.



Before Katie left I found this cute BFF book. I thought it would be great for girls to have something to look at while they are away from their best girlfriend. We picked some pictures of the two of them and put them in. The girls also drew pictures of each other in the books.

We'll miss you Katie!

Minute To Win It

Recently for a church youth activity they played Minute To Win It. Have you seen that show yet? It's hilarious! They do crazy-off the wall challenges. Each challenge has to be completed in one minute. Well I just had to make sure to get pictures of this, check 'em out!

Stick The Landing- They had to throw a water bottle and have it land standing up. It looked so hard and so many had problems. I was really surprised that some were able to do it.




Bucket Head- They had to bounce the ball and land it in the box on the head. This one was pretty easy, they just had to gauge it just right.


Elephant March- with pantyhose on your head (ball inside) you had to knock down the water bottles. It took a lot of coordination for this one!



Junk In The Trunk- They had a tissue box wrapped around them w/ ping pong balls. They had to shake their booty and get them all out in under a minute. Now I have to say Kenny was probably the quickest @ "3" seconds. No Joke! It took most a full minute! (and of course while I'm taking the pic there's girls running around, LOL)




Cookie The Face- This was hilarious! They had to put a cookie on their eye and wiggle it down to their mouth. Many dropped the cookie and had to start over, but at least they get a yummy reward in the end!

Never Anytime

I need more time in the day, truly! Life is just moving so fast, I can't keep up. So many things have been going on. I wish I had more time to write about it. The weeks go by really fast since Tina is in school. At first I wasn't sure if I would be able to keep myself busy but I'm finding plenty of things to do. Mostly shopping, LOL, small projects and cleaning of course.
Recently Uncle John took Tina to a picnic. They had some ponies and Tina loves ponies! She was so excited she got to ride. These pics are just too cute!


I have so many pictures that I need to get uploaded but my camera and computer don't want to work together lately. Hopefully I can get that fixed this weekend and get caught up.

First Day Of School

I'm so happy to say that Christina finally began school. No, not kindergarten. I wish! This week she started her speech class and I signed her up for a pre-kindergarten class. She was so excited and could not wait for school to start. The week before her speech started we found out that she could ride the bus. She was so happy to be like the BIG kids.
Check out the grin on her face!

She said the ride was fun! She wasn't too excited about the class. All she could say was, "it's boring". Sad, I know. Well because we moved she had to switch speech classes. Her last teacher really made it feel like a pre-school. This class is all work. Poor Tina!
Well at least she has her other class to keep her occupied. Today was the first day of that class and she loved it! The teacher said, "she's really advance". Yeah, it's too bad she can't go to kindergarten.
When I picked her up all she could say was, "I'm tired". It was a long three hours! So funny!
While Tina was at school I went and got a pedicure and manicure. Oh yeah, me time! That was the first thing she noticed about me. She said, "Mom, you went to the nail place?, I want to go"!
Now of course I can't go get a pedicure and shop every time she's in school or I'll go broke. So I've decided to make a To Do list for myself. I've got to stay busy. I mean, I don't even know what to do with all this free time!!

Updated Photos Soledad

We recently got together for Soledad's blessing. It was a good day. Granny came into town along with Kathy and Lani. Here are some pics of her blessing dress.
Isn't she cute!

Just When You Think It's Getting Better...

This is a bitter-sweet month for myself and my family. Next week will be two years since my Mom passed. It took me a long time to admit to anyone (and it wasn't many) that I was having a hard time the first year. I was telling everyone that I was fine, when of course I wasn't. I didn't want to talk or see anyone, but life must go on when you have a family. If I didn't have any responsibilities I would have shut myself in my room and never came out. I knew better! I knew my Mom wouldn't want that for me or from me. She wanted me to live a happy life with my family. She would want me to make memories with my kids. She would want me to give all of me to them and not just 10%.
So I picked up many hobbies/distractions. I began sewing and started getting crafty again. I picked up some books to read (Twilight, more than just a good book, my life-saver). All of these things, my Mom was good at. I'd hoped that I could become as great as she was at these things. For a year I distracted myself.
Then came the beginning of year two. I slowly was getting better. I didn't run from anyone in the grocery store, I wasn't afraid to talk about it or her anymore.
Most of you probably wouldn't have even known that I was having troubles. I hid it pretty well. Which brings me to a favorite quote. A friend contacted me when my Mom passed and told me about her friend who had lost a baby. She said read her blog and see if it helps you. This girl who was going through a loss also, said something that explained exactly how I was feeling. It's stuck with me all this time;

"It has been interesting to just go to the grocery store or be out in public knowing that all the pain I have inside is completely unknown to most people I come in contact with. There is no outward indication of what is going on in my heart. As I watch people now, I find myself wondering what they might be experiencing that goes unnoticed to everyone else. If I can feel such intense heartache and still appear to be functioning normally I wonder what all these "normal looking" people are thinking about, worrying about, what burdens are weighing them down"

Do you ever stop to think about what a stranger or a friend might be going through?

Well here I was getting better...then this week I was hit with something hard. I won't go into detail but for the last three days I have felt like that first year all over again.
I'm numb, again.
I'm hurt, again.
I'm making myself function when I don't want to.
I just can't believe that I could be back in this state.

A friend of mine recently went through some personal stuff and we both talked about how you never know what anyone could be dealing with.
For two years now I constantly look at people and wonder what there life is like. Are they going through hard times right now.
Today I finally decided to write about it because I had a moment where I knew that I can overcome this. My family can overcome this. When hard times come, we fight together and stay strong.

Doctor's Visit

Yesterday I had to take Mateo to the doctors. Not any doctor, mind you. We saw the allergy specialist (asthma control). Mateo has been having small flare-ups with his asthma lately. We figured we were doing everything we could. Usually within a week of heavy meds he's feeling better. This time was different. We weren't seeing progress, it was more of a decline.
I called to have some prescriptions filled and they said we should bring him in. It's been a little over a year since they've seen him. So they checked his vitals, did a breathing test and found that his intake (air) was low/below average. When the doctor came in we tried to figure out why. We went over our routine at home and that really wasn't a flag. Then the doctor noticed that Mateo grew 5 inches since he saw him last. Okay, I didn't know what that had to do with anything. The doctor then ask what his peak flow (device to measure lung capability) numbers were..."280", I say. the doctor tells us for his height, weight and age he should be blowing 350..."What"!! I've never seen him hit 300!!
So basically Mateo has been breathing at very low numbers. He has been coping with his asthma. It all makes sense now. He doesn't sleep very well, he can't wrestle with his Dad or brother without getting out of breath/exhausted, he complains of headaches and light-headness. Let me tell you, I felt horrible/sad that my son has been living like this for so long.
He is now on a new inhaler (stronger) and the doctor is going to monitor him every 1-3 months. The doctor says within weeks he should be at normal numbers. I really cannot wait for that day and I'm sure Mateo feels the same.
I tell ya, after coming home I was so stressed out. I know I shouldn't beat myself up but I just feel horrible when I miss something or don't follow my instinct.
Lesson learned!

Tina's Photo Shoot

It has been so long since Tina has had professional pictures done, figured it was about time. We had so much fun shopping for a new outfit and accessories. Then it was off to the photo shoot. Man, this girl loves the camera! Next to get the family in the studio.

Playing Catch Up

The end of summer finally came and I just lost track of time. Actually, I was making sure to spend quality time with the kids before they went back to school. We finished off the summer with trips to the park with marshmallow gun fights, school shopping, a garage sale and the movies.
Before summer ended we went to see Toy Story 3

I really wasn't sure if I even wanted to see this movie. You know, sequels usually aren't that great. I mean how many times can they come up with a story for Woody and Buzz? It turned out to be a really cute movie! That night started off pretty interesting...we bought our tickets, got snacks and found our seats. Then we began to notice how many adults were seated and not many kids. Finally the previews started and there were no cartoons. Hubby had me check the ticket stubs and...we were in the wrong theatre. The ticket counter sold us the wrong tickets. I couldn't believe it. We quickly got the kids out before any major mishaps and found our correct theatre just in time. The funny thing was we were in a very LARGE theatre and ended up in a very tiny theatre.
After the movie, we asked the kids if they enjoyed it. Kenny said, "that was a really tense movie". I just had to laugh! Hubby also said he had tears, even funnier! Without ruining the movie, at the end you begin to worry about the toys. Now I knew they couldn't end the movie in such a sad way.
Most people know that I get teary-eyed very easily but I just couldn't believe that my fourteen year old and husband were the ones all emotional!
I also found time this summer to take the family to see Eclipse. Tina couldn't wait to see it. She has become such a fan of "the vampires"! One week she'll watch Twilight and New Moon the next. Hubby will come home and say, "Please tell me she wasn't watching this"! I have turned my little girl into a "Twi-hard"! She just cracks me up...if your not in the room watching it, she will come and tell you, "the good part is coming"!
Now you'd think a 4 year old would be a little scared of vampires but this little girl likes scary movies/shows. She always says, "Mom, I'm not scared" or "Mom, I wasn't scared". I told Hubby at least one day he'll have someone to sit and watch all those horror movies with. I can't stand watching all those zombie movies, but he sits through my chick flicks! It's a good trade off.
That's probably enough catch up for now. I'll try to post again real soon.

Another Niece!

Another niece in the family. My brother and his wife just had a little girl. Man, if you had told me years ago that our family would consist of so many girls, I would've laughed (hard)! See I grew up with all boys. My Dad came from five boys and one girl. I had two boys. My Hubby came from a line of two boys. Do you see where I am going! Now four out of six of my siblings have a girl. Same with my Dad's family.
Hey, I'm not complaining! I'm just amazed!
Well here are the pics of this sweet angel sent to our family. She was born on Aug. 2nd and named Soledad Clemencia. Soledad was my Mom's name and Clemencia is my Grandmother's name. What a lucky girl, named after two wonderful women!
Samantha and baby

Look at this angel!

Tina couldn't wait to hold the baby

Kenny's turn

Keeping Busy

I'm trying my best to keep up with posting our happenings. I just can't believe how fast time is going by. In two weeks the kids go back to school. I've been trying to throw some fun things in there before summer ends. Here's a few things we've done. I'm sorry I don't have pics of everything. Like I've said before I'm just trying to enjoy every moment with my family and sometimes that means not being behind the camera.
One day last week we went to the Wildlife Center. We were all very excited to see the animals and learn about what they do there. I'm sorry to say it was very small and we didn't get a whole lot of information from anyone. Although there was one nice man who gave us a little info on some animals. I wish the pics were better but it was really hard to take pics from behind the cage. Here is a coyote with a missing eye.

Here is a bald eagle with a broken wing.

We also saw a raccoon, hawk, and snakes.
Afterwards we headed to our local waterfront and saw some boats. All in all it was a good day with the kids.
Later in the week we headed to Stinson Beach. After all these years of living in the bay area I've never been there. It's right next to San Francisco and Muir Woods, both of which I've been. We made plans with Marci (John's girlfriend), Katie, and Marci's brother and girlfriend. We left our house around 9:45 and ended up on a scenic route. Now, I knew the way but decided to let the kids put it in the GPS. That GPS took us on the LONGEST ride ever! I really thought we were lost and were never gonna see a beach. An extra 25 minutes later we made it @ 12:30. It was a little cool but we were just so happy to be there! We had lunch then headed to the water.

The kids didn't care how cold it was, they had a blast. The girls especially loved running from the waves.

We literally had to pull them away.

We made sandcastles, played beach games and just hung out. The kids can't wait to go back. Tina said Dad has to drive though!!

Marshmallow Gun War

Last week we headed to Home Depot to pick up some ceiling fans and paint. I've also been wanting to make some marshmallow guns for the kids. So we found a site on how to make them, made our shopping list and began the fun! I found this site (I also like this site for many other ideas) but Mateo liked this site.
As soon as we got home they went to work making them. They're real easy to make. Here's Tina waiting for hers to be made and looking cute (as always).

Here's the boys with their finished guns.

They couldn't wait till the morning so they had a little war in my living room. FUN!
Here they are in the backyard the next day.


I gave them a whole bag of mini marshmallows. Funny thing was, they didn't realize they had to be picked up!