The first snow of the year

It's here!!! We finally got 1/2 in. of snow!! My boys could not wait any longer to go out and play with it!!! Thank goodness daddy was here to take them out while I was inside cuddling with Allie.

Thanksgiving was a blast!

For this Thanksgiving we got to go to Washington DC on our way to North Carolina. DC was simply fabulous!! I LOVED it!!! fun as it could be! cultural stuff everywhere!! I know my brother would have loved to see this side of the US!!! Eric really made this trip fun with all the great sites he took us to, including his old house in Columbia, Maryland.

About Thanksgiving dinner...I have never enjoyed turkey or cranberries sauce, but there is something about this American holiday that I really enjoy...the willingness to share what one has with friends and sometimes strangers. What do I mean??? We ended up inviting ourselves to the Kump's house and I am so glad we did!! We love these guys! We talked and talked, played games (obviously! they carry Moss genes in their cells as well =)) and visited their friends for the actual Thanksgiving dinner.

Anyway, I wanted to share about a hundred pictures, but I know it would take me forever to upload them to the blog (our computer is basically dying!!), so I will just share my favorite. I hope you enjoy them!!!

PS Silly me! I actually will have to share only the pictures that are vertically focused! the horizontally ones will have to wait to be photoshopped a little.

Raking the leaves

Eric said that I shouldn't have raked the leaves because he would get them with the lawn mower. I am so glad I didn't followed his advice!!! we had a blast! the boys jumping on the big pile of leaves and me...well, just looking at them!!!

PS Really bad speed effect on the first picture!! bare with me! I'm still learning =)

No time to chit chat

I don't have time to write more than a couple of lines. Sean fighting with Patrick, Patrick screaming, Allie with rotavirus and crying...me? with pretty bad torticolis, Eric...working and it's 9 pm, life???? life is all good!!!!

My best friends.

I did not get to choose my best friends. They chose me.

Kindergarden

Sean's first day of school was great. Eric and I get to go and be there for a while. There was a little "scavenger hunt." The things we had to find were places inside the school (so he knew where they were located), this is bathroom, gym, etc

The first day in the bus was a bummer. He hated it, cried and screamed for help. I ended up taking him to school in the minivan. Next day I bribed him with "ice age" popsicles and voila!! now he rides the bus everyday!!! yuppy!!

Let's hope he gets to enjoy kindergarden!!!

Buy one get one free

We just came back from visiting our Idahoan part of the family, so I was going through the pictures I took. Then, I saw a picture of Allie that totally reminded me of another picture I took of Patrick in Idaho as well. Anyway, Eric was watching a movie. My kids were asleep. Therefore, mommy was scrapbooking. Voila!

Say cheese!

I've checked out a bunch of books from the library. You guys know I don't like fiction, so I check out stuff in order to learn something new. This time it has been all about photo editing. I'm having a blast!!! it is so much fun to know that I don't need to spend hours in the dark room to get the results I want from my pictures. No more wrinkles, pimples, gray hair or anything "not likeable" will be in the models of my future pictures!! did anyone say "cheese"?

Big Brother

Sean,

Como quisiera que supieras leer para que vieras lo que pienso de ti. Eres el mejor hermano mayor del mundo. Gracias por apoyarme al cuidar a tus hermanos. Eres realmente maravilloso.

I'm tired!

Digital scrapbooking is so much fun! oh my! I love it!! However, I am FALLING asleep everywhere!! and that stinks! This whole idea of giving myself some "gaby" time has been awesome for my sanity, but it starts after Alexa's last feeding before bedtime (11 pm). At that beautiful time I get the peace I need to get inspired, but I am definitely not getting enough sleep.

Oh well, I guess I will do it less often or less time every day. I hope you guys enjoy what I have made in the last few days. I certainly enjoyed making the pages.

My brother

There are people that come and go from our lives without leaving any traces of their existence. However, there are others, that no matter how long they happen to be with us, leave their mark forever. My brother is one of the latter ones. To me, he is like the king Midas. Whatever he touches, becomes gold.

He has been part of every single big milestone of my life and my kids'. He has been right next to me, side by side, helping me become the best person I can be. Yesterday, once again he was there for me. It was Alexandra's first time in a swimming pool. He sang to her and cuddled her so she would stop crying. Later, that same day, he was with us during Sean's first soccer practice, cheering him up in the most loving way. Anyway, he definitely is, by far, the best brother anybody could wish for!

Te amo Papi!!!

Enjoying my new "learning process"

This is so much fun!! and it's free!!! I definitely like the real scrapbooking better. However, I have a couple of angels who like to "touch" my material, and I am not sure I like that. Let's say this is "safer" than having knives and funny scissors on my kids hands. Loving it!!!

Felicidades Nena!!!

Como no pudimos despertarte todos juntos, se me ocurrio que los ninos te cantaran su parte.

Te adoro mi nina!!! Eres la mama mas maravillosa del universo! y nos sentimos inmensamente felices de poder festejarte una vez mas. Pasatela padrisimo y comete una rebanadota de pastel de Antares a nuestra salud.

Te amamos con locura!!!

Pochis, Papas, Pato, Gorda, Ewee y Pan

Chicago my kind of town

It's been a week since we came back from Chicago. However, it is necessary to say that it really is "my kind of town." It was a wonderful trip!

This great city has everything I am looking for...this is people, museums, parks, buildings, enough smog, gorgeous suburbs, an lds bookstore, and at last but not least, a temple!!!

Besides the ups and downs of our trip (I left our lunch in my kitchen, the only thing to eat in the car was rotten crackers, our minivan broke down, the temple had some construction going on, the lds bookstore was closed, it poured on top of us, I forgot Patricks clothes in Michigan and Allie's blanket at the hotel room so she was freezing, etc...) everything went great!!! I mean, all those things are just the "salt & pepper" of our life, right? Anyway, I loved loved loved this city!!! therefore, from now on I will agree with "old blue eyes" Chicago is certainly "my kind of town."

MagMyPic

Create Fake Magazine Covers with your own picture at MagMyPic.com

New talent?

In my patriarchal blessing says that I will acquire new talents to bless my family. I honestly don't think that Photoshop can be a blessing for my clan; however, it feels nice to try to learn something new. I am having tons of fun playing with this program!! why? because I have an excuse to give myself a little "gaby time."

Mi munequita

Make a Smilebox photobook

Playing with Photoshop.

A very good friend of mine told me where to start with digital scrapbooking. Therefore, I've been playing with Photoshop for the last 3 days. Today I came up with this and I am having a blast!!

My biggest blessings call me "mommy"

Party animals

OK, It's been forever!! I need to post something if not you guys might forget us!!! (just kidding). We have been very busy lately. Americans have too many excuses to celebrate...4th of july, my boys birthdays, church events...anyway, party all over the place!!

Let's start with the 4th of july. We did have a BBQ. It was special taking into account that this was my first 4th of july as a US citizen. It was quite a different experience.

To start the day, we went to a splash park (metro beach) here in Michigan. What a fun thing!! the beach was entirely covered with bird poo!!! and later that same day, we went to Stony Creek Park to see the fireworks. What an awesome experience that was!! However, let me complain about something...men in my family. First Jair said " we should have brought something to snack on" meaning Gabriela should have brought something. Eric did not hear this. He was a few feet away playing with the boys. When Eric came back with our kids he said: "yayi, did you bring something to eat?" Then Jair said "we should have brought something to sit on". Then Eric said the exact same thing. Come on guys!!! YOU should have thought about it. I packed the blanket, the camera, the water bottles, baby bottles, blankies for my baby, light jackets, baby carrier, diaper bag (with EVERYTHING a baby might need), and a few other things I cannot recall right now...oh yeah, the kids!! Anyhow, it was a great day. My mom LOVED the fireworks. She looked like a little girl playing with her first barbie.

Then we had Patrick's birthday. It was a family thing. We had cake with some cousins who came over from Howell, MI. It was fun. Patrick and Sean helped me make and decorate the cake.

Finally, we just came back from our last trip. We decided to visit the east!! Niagara Falls was absolutely awesome! and what can I say about church sites...incredible, wonderful, spiritual, perfect! Well, taking into account that we had a terrible thunderstorm during the Hill Cumorah Pageant and the show had to be canceled for the third time in 80 years...I think everything went great!!! It was amazing. During the trip we also celebrated Sean's birthday. We are having the b-day cake tonight and next week a little get together with some of his school and church friends.

As you can tell we like to party!!! fun, fun, fun.