So, Have You Missed Me?

I know, it's been awhile since you've heard from me. Christmas decorating, holiday shopping, wrapping, visiting friends, attending birthday parties and doing some entertaining at home and voila, we're near the end of December. December has also been a treat because Larry's service calls would send him to a town closer to our house, so we would end up seeing him more during the weeknights. It's been nice.

We had a great Christmas. Our children are spoiled...um, I mean well-loved. Just when I had the house cleaned up, along comes the unwrapping of presents, the "assembly required" toys, and the chaos of children scrambling from one toy to another while parents looked for batteries and tools for assembly. It was fun!

It was my first Christmas without my parents, and it was hard. I miss Mom and Dad's cooking, but Larry's family made quite a feast and everything was delicious. I've been doing too much eating lately, and I feel quite chunky.

Prior to Christmas day, I was invited to a Christmas Eve Brunch by the mother of Larry's old high school friend. Larry could not attend because he still had to work. I had a great time as I got to meet new people and Larry's high school friend, Lenny, has a sister with 3 adorable children ages 2, 5 and 8. They were very nice to Kari and Gary who enjoyed playing with them. Lenny and his wife, Melody, have a son who's a month younger than Gary. We will be attending his 1-year birthday party next week.

The weather has been quite cool lately. The highs would be in the upper 50's to low 60's and the lows would be in the upper 20's to 30's. It's hard to believe we're nearing 2008. This year of 2007 has definitely been a year of change for me. I am thankful to have a loving husband and family. I feel blessed by my children.

By the way, I now have a Facebook profile. I signed up when a friend told me she had posted some pictures of her children and the only way to view them was to register. Then after I registered, I saw all these longtime friends who also have Facebook platforms and I connected with them immediately. Then I ran into all these neat applications that you could download (i.e., poking, sending a gift, designing your own graffiti on a wall) and I became an application junkie. Well, I still have a few things to pack before we go to Gladewater this weekend. I'll try to connect again soon.

Gary Is a Year Old!

Dec. 6, 2006
1:17 p.m.
20.6 inches long
8 lbs., 10 oz.







Our baby boy is now a year old. My, how time flies. Kari is a pro at singing "Happy Birthday" to Gary; she's been singing it for 3 days now. My mother-in-law, Jerry, went all out and had Gary's birthday dinner at her house. She made quite a feast: Smithfield ham, fried rice, pancit (someone gave her a recipe for this popular Filipino dish), kielbassa sausage, yeast rolls, chicken wings, vegetable medley, mashed potatoes and deviled eggs (contributed by yours truly). I volunteered to do clean-up since she worked so hard on the memorable meal.

Jerry also made Gary's birthday cake using the pan shaped in the form of the number "1." Homemade fudge frosting atop a chocolate cake...decadent.

Lolo and Lola called from Virginia to wish Gary a happy birthday and were sad that they couldn't be there to celebrate with him. They're both feeling a bit under the weather. They already sent Gary's birthday present: a Leap Frog spin wheel teaching the alphabet and the animals associated with the particular alphabet letter in musical form.

Gary received many toys and a couple of outfits from his aunt, uncle, cousins and grandparents.

Happy Birthday, sweet boy. We love you so much!

Help! It's Spreading!

We see Larry mostly during the weekends because he works in Longview, which is about 1.5 hours (one way) from where we currently live. Well, this morning, he called and begged me to pick him up from his workplace. Kari's stomach flu has spread to him. Oh, no.

Yes, the stomach flu has attacked my poor husband. Unfortunately, he's one of those people that when an illness hits him, it hits him hard. If it's a 24-hour bug, it usually stays with him for 3 more days. I dropped the children off with their grandmama before I drove to Longview to pick him up.

He was a sorry sight; my poor baby. During the drive back, he reclined, closed his eyes and didn't want to listen to the radio. After 45 minutes of silence, I thought I would make pleasant conversation.

"Boy, it sure is a nice day today, isn't it?" I remarked. He just stayed quiet; his stomach was in terrible pain. Poor baby. I returned to being silent. Now I have 3 babies to take care of.

When I brought everyone back to the house, I made chicken soup from scratch based on what I had in the pantry and fridge. It's rather bland, but seems OK with rice or crackers. Larry's been sipping that soup and drinking water. So far, his stomach's been keeping them down.

Oh, now our niece Brittany also has the stomach flu. So does her mother. And Larry's mother. Brittany said that the stomach flu is going around her school, too.

I haven't had a chance to do any Christmas decorating or shopping due to a sickly household. Oh well, we'll make do with what we can get done.

I'll Never Forget This Thanksgiving!

I am tired. This past Tuesday (11/20), Kari contracted the stomach flu. I have spent the rest of the week changing clothes and bedsheets, washing, disinfecting and most of all, comforting. Kari has gotten better, but isn't completely over it. Now Gary has it. Poor little guy. I hate seeing my children go through this. The key thing is to keep them hydrated. I heard that this stomach flu is going around the community. I hope Larry and I don't catch it, but it seems inevitable.

On Thanksgiving day, Kari was feeling a little better (no fever) and Gary didn't have the stomach flu yet, so we went to Larry's brother's house for the Thanksgiving meal. It was quite a spread - fried turkey, sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes, deviled eggs, yeast rolls, ham, mashed potatoes, dressing, sweet potato pie, banana pudding, pecan pies...oh, we certainly didn't leave hungry.

This was my first Thanksgiving without my parents and it was hard. I miss them, but I also enjoyed being with Larry's family. We hope to visit Virginia next year. I have a lot to be thankful for: my health, my family's health, the country we live in, our friends... Most of all, I am thankful to have Jesus Christ in my life. He has been my anchor in the many trials I faced in life. I am also thankful for the men and women who fight and fought for our country. God bless you all.

Since the children have been sick, I haven't gone out. I mean, we spent some time outdoors when it wasn't too cold, but I haven't done any shopping and I am getting cabin fever. Somebody save me! Just kidding.

Well, I better get some rest. Check back with you later!

"Next Iron Chef" Comments

I cannot believe it! Chef Besh should have won. His plating was beautiful and he was pretty gutsy making that swordfish dessert. Also, I wished Mario Batali was one of the judges.

Oh well...congratulations, Chef Symon.

Chef Besh, you will always be an iron chef in my book!

Trick-or-Treat on the Square

Our niece, Brittany, was a huge help when I took Kari and Gary out trick-or-treating on the town square. Merchants set up tables by their shops and provided the candy which costumed youngsters eagerly sought. This occurred from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.The police were great in directing people and vehicle traffic.

I did not have a problem finding a parking space nor did I have difficulty with any heavy traffic when I was ready to go home. We all had a wonderful time. The weather was pretty warm: about 75 degrees.

Grandmama made Kari's costume and since she ran out of time (due to working an extra shift), the dress didn't turn out the way she planned. Nevertheless, Kari looked adorable. We were a bit unprepared with her costume. People thought she was either a princess, a fairy or an angel.

Kari was overwhelmed by all these strangers filling her basket with goodies. And some of these strangers were in outrageous garb.

Gary was cute as can be. Dressed in camouflage duds, he passed off as a hunter. His candy bag was filled as well. The contents will later be inspected by his daddy. Of course, if there is anything remotely chocolatey, I may have to check it out.

Waaaahh!!!

For those who have little children afoot and STILL maintain an impeccable house, PLEASE tell me how you do it.

Sorry, I guess I'm just having one of those days. Usually I just tell myself that I can only do so much and to take it one day at a time. Does anyone know how much a maid costs nowadays?