Poppin' the Collar

Spring Break:

Hmmm, let's start with Tuesday.

• I honestly can't remember what we did on Tuesday.

Wednesday

• Slept in.
• Made waffles for breakfast (or was that Tuesday?)
• Picnic with Kurt and Amber in West Chester (well, it was too windy outside, so we had an "indoor picnic".)
• Watched movie #1 with them after lunch.
• Went to Costco.
• Stopped by Macy's to look for the perfect red shoes. Didn't find them there either.
• Drove all the way home, (well, Juan drove.)
• Realized that I had missed Enrichment for the Spanish Branch.
• Immediately called Relief Society President to apologize.
• Kicked myself for the rest of the night because I had been asked to play a piano piece for said Enrichment activity.
• Watched movie #2.

Thursday

• Didn't sleep in because Siena cried from dusk to dawn.
• Drove into town to visit the U.S. Mint.
• Went to see the Liberty Bell.
• Walked around Independence Hall area.
• Drove back home.
• Taught piano lessons.
• Watched movie #3.

Friday

• Didn't sleep in because Siena cried from dusk to dawn... again!
  
• Cleaned up the house, well, sort-of.
• Took a walk around the neighborhood because it was a beautiful day!
• Went to Sara and Isaac's house for a dinner with them, the Ahlmer's and their baby, Jerome & Ebony.
• Had a really fun night hanging out with friends!
• Watched movie #4.

Saturday

• Didn't sleep in. Woke up at 6 am.
• Picked up Shanelle and left for D.C.
• Arrived in D.C. and struggled to find parking near the national mall.
• Visited all four memorials and the Washington Monument.
• Went to Cafe Divan for lunch. Turkish food= deliciously interesting experience.
• Found a prime parking spot.
• Went to the National Gallery's Sculpture Garden. (We especially enjoyed the Lichtenstein.)

This is a 3-dimensional, concaved sculpture. It's true!

• Ventured indoor to the Art Galleries, including but not limited to: DaVinci, Monet, Vermeer, and many Dutch/Flemish painters of whom I am particularly partial towards.

My favorite painting (sorry, tripod out of commission.)


Juan's favorite painting

• Crossed the park to visit the Museum of Air and Aviation. Two words= que. padre.
  
  
• Drove to the D.C. LDS temple (which is technically located in Maryland.)
• Left Siena with Shanelle and enjoyed our first Temple Session since she was born.
• Begged a Peruvian food joint to sell us their last crumbs of bread before locking their doors on us. Two words= yum. o. (Rachel Ray does not own that phrase!)
• Drove home, (well, Juan drove again and I nodded off to sleep the entire car ride home, desperate to keep my eyes open. I always think of the worst-case scenario and I knew that we were for sure going to careen off the road into a patch of concrete or off a bridge if I let the road leave my eyesight. We did, however, see a woman who had high-centered her car onto a divider at the toll-booth. She didn't seem much bothered by it.)
• Arrived safe and secure at home 30 minutes earlier than expected.
• Thanked my husband for driving.

Sunday

• Slept until 8:30 a.m. (Juan didn't. His meetings start at 9:00 but he had to drop Shanelle off and pick up Bro. Garcia first.)
• Finally prepared my class lesson. (I teach the 13/14 yr. old class in Sunday School.)
• Bathed Siena and got her ready for church.
• Got myself ready for church.
• Had time to practice the piano.
• Caught a ride with Sis. Garcia to church.
• Found Juan and sat down just in time for the meeting to start.
• In Sacrament Meeting I played the song that was originally prepared for the Enrichment activity. They weren't letting me get out of that one. ;^)
• Went to Narberth and enjoyed a lovely Kosher dinner with the family that Shanelle nannies for.
• Fell in love with Shalom Pizza and the Benjamin family!
• Enjoyed the rest of the evening with Juan and Siena.
• Slept until 7:30 a.m. the next morning!

Monday

• Started a new week....

Spring Break

Since Juan is on Spring Break right now, I will probably be doing something other than blogging this week. But before I say goodbye for the week, I'll let you know what we did yesterday. We started the day at the Dental Clinic at Temple so Juan could get some x-rays of his teeth. Then we headed over to the famed Temple Hospital Cafeteria where supposedly they serve the absolute BEST cheese steaks! It turns out that they were out of steak, so we settled for a chicken cheese instead. (It was still yum-o.) Juan said he wanted to check out the outlets in North-East Philly, and I couldn't complain, so we headed out there. After walking and walking for hours, we decided that we had had enough shopping and headed home. It was an exhaustingly fun day.

Siena loves chewing on her comb more than anything else. She never tires of it.

Our Fun Day

In Case You Needed a Laugh,

Many of our clothes (and towels) are now pink.

New red linen + load of colors + Stacia in outer space = pink!

I have done this once before in our married life and it wasn't that bad. I guess it didn't really teach me a lesson. Now, well now, I have learned it. Yellowy-Pink, Hot Pink, Greeny-Pink, Pink!

The Best Papa

Juan is officially the best dad and the luckiest Ebay buyer out there. He went online the other night looking for Baby Einstein DVDs, mostly on a whim, and came across an Ebay item with only 15 minutes until the end of that auction. This is the entire 25-disc set of Baby Einstein DVDs that retails for over $240.00! He used his fine-tuned Ebay skills and procured the set for us for only $20. Can you believe it?! We got the box in the mail today and I could hardly wait to play the first DVD. This is the best part- it comes with three language options: English, Spanish and French. Finally, Siena can be exposed to even more Spanish. We started with the Old MacDonald (Farm-themed) Baby Einstein in Spanish and I was so impressed with the quality of the translations. Not only are all of the words and narration in Spanish, but the songs are too! Each DVD comes with extra bonus features like games and more learning activities... bonus! Siena and Hazel, needless to say, were glued to the TV (in a good way,) and I got some laundry done. Yeah, pretty much Siena has the best papi ever!

p.s. Anyone who likes shrimp should definitely check this out, we had it for dinner tonight and it was fabulous!

Finally, It Worked!

This girl loves to stand!!!

From Me To You.

I'm participating in a Pay It Forward Exchange, thanks to Tay. I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this Pay It Forward Exchange. You will receive your gift within a month from leaving your comment, I promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog. Apparently this has been going on for over a year. It sounded like fun so I am helping to keep it going!

Thanks Genevieve!

I owe it to my friend Genevieve (and her friend, Annika) for the awesome instructions on how to make sidebar pictures into links. (Took me long enough!) Anyway, I have found that I love editing html! I can't believe it, I'm slowly turning into a computer geek! It's like putting together a puzzle and I can't get enough. I was very, very intimidated by it at first, but with the proper instructions, it is not hard at all. Anyway, thanks again Genevieve!

I Couldn't Wait Any Longer

(I have had our March blog header done for a few days now and I can't wait another day to put it up, so please just assume that I forgot it was Leap Year.)

Too Good To Be True?

Apple Hill Apple Cake
serves 10-12

Combine:

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
-----------------------

Add:

4 cups apples, peeled and diced
-----------------------

Combine in separate bowl:

2 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp. salt
-----------------------

Fold everything in together. Bake in greased pan at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes (but periodically check because some apples will carry more moisture than others and will require longer cooking times.) Will appear very brown, but don't worry, it's not burnt (unless you really messed it up.) ;^) Oh, it's so good!!!!


(Nope, it's not my own! Recipe taken from the Sweet Endings Creative Cookbook. 2007)

The ABC's of Me

The ABC's of Me

Attached or Single: Attached!
Best Friend: Juan. (Ohhhhh, how sweet!)
Cake or Pie: Depends on the cake and the pie. I love them equally if it's between Kentucky Derby pie and Tres Leches cake.
Day of Choice: 4th of July.
Essential Item: Adobe CS3 in its entirety. I'm lost without it.
Favorite Color: Moss. Always has been, always will be.
Gummy Bears or Worms: Gummy Bears. I will eat an entire bag in one sitting, no matter the size.
Hometown: I've actually moved more than 15 times in my life (not counting to and from college every year,) but I consider Salina and Provo to be my hometowns as I spent an equal amount of time living in those places.
Indulgences: Turkey Hill Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream. It's made with really creamy milk and chocolate shavings that still melt in your cold mouth. There are so many cookie dough chunks mixed up with brown sugar and molasses-flavored ice cream that you are completely satisfied with your purchase. If that isn't enticing, I do not know what is.
January or July: How about May? Yep, May.
Kids: One down, 35 to go. Oh, you better believe it!
Life is incomplete without: Family.
Marriage Date: November 19th or 20th of 2005, I think. (Juan sometimes forgets, so I have to tease him.)
Number of Siblings: 4- Harper, Tristan, Sierra, and Spencer/Chad (I don't know what name he goes by these days.)
Oranges or Apples: I'm copying Genevieve's answer word for word--"I love them both but oranges take to long for me because I have to peel every last shred of skin so I definitely eat apples more- pink lady or honeycrisp to be exact."
Phobias: Snakes (and dreams about Germans trying to kill me.)
Quote: "It takes each of us to make a difference for all of us." -Jackie Mutcheson
Reasons to Smile: Spring is coming!
Season: Both of the Equinoxes.
Tag others: Consider this a special invitation for anyone who can't think of what to blog about today.
Unknown fact about me: My childhood dream was to become an orchestra conductor.
Vegitarian or Meat eater: I love vegetables but I eat meat, too.
Worst Habit: Tearing my fingernails.
X-rays: Hmmmm, only of my teeth.
Your Favorite Food: Probably the kind you eat. I love too many dishes to choose just one for a favorite.
Zodiac: Pisces.

The Flu Flew By Our House

Lights. Camera. Back in Action. The title explains why I haven't blogged for days. Here are a few pictures we took last weekend. Other than that, there's nothing new to blog about.

Juan is always thinking of me; he got me tulips when I was ill.

Siena got all "dolled-up" for the web cam on Sunday.

Is it just me, or does this photo make her look older?

We Are Officially Fat (and Nerds)

The fact that we actually took an online "Are You..." test proves those two things. We knew better, but it was fun making up names and addresses for the mailing lists and free offers. After spending about 15 minutes filling out info., we get to this page:

A Million Apologies

To all of you millions (okay, okay, maybe "hundreds of thousands") of people who read our blog, please accept my apologies for neglecting the blog this weekend. I have not thought of a good excuse yet, but give me time and I will come up with one that blows your socks out of the water (Yes, I said "socks out of the water!"... for double emphasis, of course.)

I would like now, to take a moment and reflect on our day yesterday. Hmmm. Okay, done. Yep, mostly pretty boring. Oh! Except when I buzzed Juan's head o' hair. That was fun. Afterwards, we rearranged the living room (still in the process, actually,) because we inherited some furniture. We were FINALLY able to get rid of our plastic $20 TV stand! (Thanks Vests!) That inspired me to actually make an effort in coordinating our living room. I don't know if what results will be an improvement overall, but it's worth a try. We finished the evening with a few rounds of Rummikub with Jeremy and Genevieve. Dad, if you are reading this... let this be a lesson to you: I am scarred for the rest of my Rummikub days because of one of your made-up rules. The runs and sets with the Joker CAN be broken up before the Joker is replaced! Do you know how many times I could have won the game had I known this?! Hmph!

Moving on...........
Today has been pretty uneventful so far. The only exciting thing is that Siena tried carrots for the first time. I thought that carrots would be her favorite vegetable because as far as I know, they are the sweetest. She GaGGeD them down! (...and it stained the Onesie I love the most! Tears are flowing between the two of us.)

Next topic: I want to do one big shout-out now.

Congrats:
Chad, for completing his He-Man Firearm Safety Course.
Tristan, for doing homework on V-Day.
Shanelle, she just got a new job as a nanny out here (would this be more appropriate in the "Good Luck" section?)

Good Luck:
Dani, she is an accountant and we're heading into the thick of tax season.
Temple dental students, mid-terms.

Thank You:
Janine and Tyler, the baby food book, spoons, and hand mixer are lifesavers.
Familia Chavez & Camp Family, for getting on the web-cam with us every Sunday.
Genevieve, for explaining the real way of playing Rummikub.

Sorry:
Punjab (Harper, I think), for mistaking your identity on the telephone. I still want to hear from you. Oh, and please apologize to your camel for me.
Facebook people, I have neglected my page for about 4 weeks.
Sierra, (I mean Siena, oh, I mean Sierra,) for doing that.


For those who I have missed: don't worry, your day will come....

If We Were Super

(We both get what we have always wanted: for me, long locks blowing in the wind and for Juan, permanent facial hair and a mullet.)

We've had some great photo ops lately:

We are still waiting for her booster chair to come, so I tried feeding her in her swing today. Needless to say, her rice cereal went a-flyin'. I looked about the same as she did after we were done.

Snuggling with her bunny in the rocking chair

A Reason to Celebrate!

Siena is officially 6 months old today! She got her 6-month set of vaccines today as a present from the doctor. (I think she is a little "toughie"; her developing diaper rash bothers her more than her pokes.) She's 17 1/2 lbs and about 25" long and has pretty much stayed in that 75th percentile ever since her 2-month checkup, the little porker. We love her to pieces and can't get enough of her smile. It's been so fun to get to know her mannerisms and see her sense of humor come out. She's definitely developed Stranger and Separation Anxieties because she always wants Mommy to hold her and if anyone else so much as looks at her at the wrong time, she'll start to cry. Yet Siena is still so independent! She refuses to accept either a pacifier or a bottle from anyone... she has to be the one to put it in her mouth. It's so funny to watch because she doesn't have that "hand-eye coordination" thing down quite yet-- she can't ever actually get what she wants, where she wants it. (After about 2 minutes of trying, she starts to scream out of frustration, and THAT'S where it becomes "fun" for me.)



As much as I am realizing how difficult parenting is, and is going to be, I wouldn't DREAM of changing my life as it is right now. Siena has brought Juan and I so much happiness on a level that we couldn't even have imagined before she was born. They say that the "pre-children years" are the "Honeymoon Stage" and that "life will never be as blissful once your first child is born"; to that I say "What-Evah!" It's true that Juan and I were so incredibly happy-in-love those first two years before Siena was born, but we get so much more marital happiness in Siena's "Rice Monster" face than any ol' "high school reunion show-and-tell". WHAT I MEAN IS..... seeing the little family that we've become is not "replaced joy", it's a higher degree of well-being.

Help! I've Lost My Changita!

Has anyone else out there had a manipulative 6 month-old? Siena has started screaming and screaming when it is time for bed and refuses to stop until someone holds her. Who stole my child and replaced her with this one?

I know that she's not sick and not in pain because once she is held or brought into the room where everyone is, she starts giggling and flirting. My suspicion is that she knows it's bedtime and she also knows that she can prolong her waking hours if she gets Mommy to laugh and play with her... so she acts alive and funny so she doesn't have to go to bed. I can't help but laugh because she does this thing where she throws her arms above her head and moves her head from side to side in a really fast motion while she's giggling. It's hilarious!

This has happened for a few nights now and I know that I need to change my reaction to that in order for her to realize that she really does have to go to bed. There have got to be more solutions than that (I really like playing with her, and it's so rare that she is so animated.) Am I missing something? Anyone? Please, all mothers out there, I need some advice on dealing with this. Thanks!

Anyone Know Tofu?

We want to try cooking with tofu just for the experience, but we want it to be a good experience. So if anyone knows of any delicious tofu recipes, please let me know.

ps (Janine, if you are reading this... do you know of any "tofu cheese fondue" recipes?)

Capogiro Date

Oh how lucky we are! Shanelle volunteered to babysit Siena last night so we could go on a date. We decided to go to the Art District in Downtown Philly because there was this gelato place that looked oh-so-delicious. It's called Capogiro and here is there website. It won "Best Dessert" in CitySearch last year, so we knew it would be good. Besides the city atmosphere and the cool mood at the 13th street location, the main reason we went there was because they claim to have uncharted flavors of gelato. As Juan was researching this place before we left, he saw that they had a Cilantro-Lime flavored gelato. New=Good. Although we tried many interesting combos, we ended up ordering: Basil (our top pick,) Bacio (choco-hazelnut... "you say 'gelato', I say 'Bacio!',) Pineapple-Mint (innovative,) Blood Orange (pretty,) Papaya (so fresh and so clean, clean,) and Valencia Orange (really, really sour!)

Anyway, we enjoyed our solo evening thanks to Nelly. Today we went to the King of Prussia mall. Fun. Tiring. Glad to be home and off our feet.

Now I'm preparing my lesson for class tomorrow and finishing laundry; it's been a great weekend.

if ALL else fails

We have tried everything, but Siena has put her foot down on using a bottle. She will not do anything but gnaw on the side of it. After buying a couple more different bottles for her to use (translation: after wasting money and time,) I decided to just try a sippy cup. We had a little improvement; at least she likes to bring it to her mouth to munch on. She has yet to actually suck with real intent. So we busted out the boon spoon (courtesy of our always-thoughtful neighbors.) Siena couldn't get enough! We would like to share part of that experience with you:

We have more good news!!! Shanelle is living with us for a while, which is a great help; she helps me out by watching Siena and keeping me company. She's looking for a nanny position, so if you know of any opportunities like that on the East coast, more leads would be nice. Thanks to all of you who have already given her suggestions.

For Your Political Amusement

Can you guess who these people are?

answers in order:

1. John McCain
2. Ron Paul
3. Mitt Romney
4. Fred Thompson
5. Barak Obama
6. Bill and Hill Clinton
7. John Edwards
8. Rudy Giuliani
9. Mike Huckabee

For Those Who Apply:

Remember to vote today. That's all I have to say.

Pictoral Update

Lovin' the little drool queen

Electrical projects with friends

The semi-finished product

Out of focus, but still cute

The negotiation

I'm Purple At This Moment

After watching the Republican and Democratic debates over the last two days, I am getting more and more curious to see what will happen in November. I have no wish to discuss politics, but I want to highlight my favorite topics of debate: healthcare, illegal immigration, and tax reform. These are very hot on my brain right now because I have now either had personal experiences or close ties to these issues. Evidently there needs to be some change; however, I like multiple solutions that many of the candidates have brought to the table. By the same token, I don't agree with at least one thing with every candidate. This presents a problem: I cannot choose one single person to vote for. Luckily I have until April when the PA Primary is held. Good luck to all of you Utah voters this upcoming Tuesday.