What's up!?

I haven't blogged in a few days... I have so much going on so here goes....
Well, Ben's doing well. :) I don't know if I blogged this yet, but he's heading the yearbook committee at his school. :) He's been interested in that for a long time... he was even on his MS yearbook team his 8th grade year! What a dream come true that now he's heading up the committee at his school. He has such a great vision for it and I'm so glad to see him interesting and working so hard at it. He has been taking lots and lots of pics for years and he's shared them w/ the yearbook committee from previous years, so now he's able to pick and choose the pics that he wants to put in the yearbook. :) He loves taking pics. He goes to 1 game/ week to see all the different kids in "action" and takes the pics. He's been really busy,but it's a good kind of busy. Tomorrow, he's going to take a group of kiddos to the UT health science ctr. to experience a science fair. Too cool! I'm so proud of Ben and his drive to success in his career. He is taking his second to last class for his science master course. In May he'll be a graduate student! :) Woooohooooo!

Rachel's doing super too. She's learning more and more words each and every day. She repeats everything, I mean everything she hears! She also remembers everything too! If you say you are going to do something... IT NEEDS TO BE DONE! ;) She is always singing and dancing and talking! It's fun to watch her when she plays by herself. She has her own language that she gives her characters. She also likes to count things. She counted 3 cards today on her own without me telling her to do it! She says, "won, toos, free......uno, dos, fres". Yep, she even counted in Spanish w/o me telling her to do so!! (Thanks to Lala for keeping up with the Spanish lessons!) Recently we got out my old Barbies, so she's been playing super with them. She lets me comb and dress them and then she and I "play". I have to say that it's not the most invigorating time to play w/ a 2 yr old when she just wants to dictate the whole session, but I guess that's how it goes! She loves to watch the Backyardigans too. It comes on at 4:30 pm on Noggin. IT's perfect timing for me b/c that's when I cook dinner. We are both hooked on it actually... I try to watch when I'm cooking too! ;) She loves to eat cheerios for breakfast. She loves her milk warmed in the morning... well during the day too, but I tell her it's too hot to have warm milk during the day. She loves to color. She loves to "show" her artwork. She loves bible class. She loves to play with the boys in bible class. She loves to play with the ball in bible class. She loves to sing songs in bible class. She loves to color in bible class. Get the picture? SHE LOVES BIBLE CLASS PERIOD! They told me last Tuesday (my bible study day) that she is very quiet in class. I don't know if that's good or bad, but at least she's not getting in trouble. Oh yeah, she started to sing "bleen up, bleen up" in a familiar tune the other day. I was like, "Hey, are you singing the clean up song (and started to sing it)?" She got all excited to know that I knew that song. I then asked her if she sang that in bible class and she said "yes!". Well, another cute thing... after her bible class and my bible study on Tuesday we went to La Cantera food court to eat a Subway. She made an art project with a baby in a folder paper plate with fish sticker on it. I didn't know what it was, but I praised her for it (of course). Well, I was sitting her back in her seat after lunch when we were heading home and she sees her project and says (clear as day mind you), "Baby Moses!". I was like "what!?" I repeated what she said and she said "Yes". (Like didn't you know mommy!?) The artwork was Baby Moses in a basket (folded paper plate) in the river (fish stickers). TOO FUNNY AND CUTE!! I have so many more stories, but now my wrist is hurting, so I'm gonna have to end this posting.

I will update about me later! ;)

You cannot add any time to your life by worrying about it.
MATTHEW 6:27

From Max's daily devotional (last week)-
"If you believe, you will get anything you ask for in prayer." MATTHEW 21:22

God wants you to fly. He wants you to fly free of yesterday's guilt. He wants
you to fly free of today's fears. He wants you to fly free of tomorrow's grave.

Sin, fear, and death. These are the mountains he has moved. These are the prayers he will answer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I take great comfort in this scripture from the Gospel of Matthew! God can give me anything that I ask for as long as I believe. It's so easy to do, all I have to do is trust in Him completely. That's something that I'm learning how to do in my life. I know that HE is in control of everything. He knows what's best for me. :)

God's goodness in my life: He's given me such peace these past few days. I've been able to do things that were starting to be a burden b/c of the anxiety. He continues to help restore my mind and body to live life w/o anxiety (panic). He's given me good rest this past weekend and these past few days too (sleep helps me so much). I praise Him for all the answered prayers He gives to me! :) Thank you LORD!!! :)
Another thing before I go, today He sent some men to come help my family bring a drawer up the stairs of my apt. My dad and mom and I were trying to bring this big drawer up 19 stairs to my apt. and thank GOD 3 men were coming to inspect my fire alarms in the apt. and they were able to help Dad bring it up safely. It was too much for mom and I! He also sent those guys here at that time early in the day, rather than right now, when Rachel takes her nap (I didn't want them to disturb her during her naptime.) It's the little things that make a HUGE difference! :)

Happy Monday! :)

I pray that your day is going well. We've had a busy morning. I needed to clean up (a good deep cleaning) the apartment, so I started pretty early this morning. Rachel did great, she kept herself entertained with her toys and watching Sesame Street.

We had lunch about noon and she continued to play while I finished the kitchen and some things in my room.

I finally was able to sit down with her and play. We colored for a while and then we played Barbies. She loves that I took out my old Barbies for her to play with. She let's me comb them and dress them for her and then she and I try to have conversations through the Barbies of course! :0) It's fun!! Well, she likes to hold them and let them dance and kiss and hug. It's so sweet to watch. :)

** I was going to add some pics of Rachel playing with the Barbies, but it's not allowing me to at this time. I'll try again later! :)

Remembering!!

Just remembering... I can't believe how fast times has gone by!! This was her 2nd day on earth. I was very sore (from the c-section) and tired (of course), but I can see how mother's do it again even after all of that! It's funny b/c I never thought that I'd ever forget all of the work it takes to have a baby, but I have! (NO, I'M NOT PREGNANT!) Ben and I are not planning on having another one, but only God knows that. God has truly blessed me and my family.
I just wanted to share this pic! How fast time goes!!!

2 years later!

Here we are having the time of our lives. :)

His Work in my life

Well, I wanted to continue to give thanks to GOD, He's given me such peace and rest. I was not sleeping well for some time, but I'm starting to sleep good long hours at a time again! Yes! :) He says for us to go to Him who are burden and heavy laden, He provides rest for us, and He's done that for me! :) Matthew 11:28
I want to share HIS wonderful work in my life for ALL to see! :)

I pray that you are doing well. Keep in touch. :)

What God did for me today

I wanted to start to blog/journal of the things (small or big) that my God does for me. There are so many on a daily basis, but I want to get as many as I can in.... so, here goes...
I was a bit anxious yesterday afternoon and my night didn't turn out so well (lost some sleep). So today when I woke up feeling tired and drained, I prayed. I asked God for peace and comfort as I went about my day (at work especially). He's so good. He gave & continues to give me a spirit of peace and comfort. He gave me all the energy that I needed to get through the day. I was able to do all that I needed to with great patience (which is sometimes hard when I lose sleep) and to the best of my ability (which is ALSO hard to do when I lose some sleep). I am just so amazed at how wonderfully, awesome my God is!!
He has given me a wonderful group of friends from my bible study group that I was able to notify to pray for me too! They have prayed for me before and there is great power in prayer too. I'm a testimony for that!
He's so good to me! I am typing now and hearing Him tell me to remember these wonderful things He's done for me. He's asking, "If I do these wonderful things for you on a daily basis, why do you worry or get anxious???" I am going to TRUST Him with all my heart!

Great words of wisdom

Here's part of Max's devo. It's has spoken to my heart. I thought that I'd pass it along! :)

God did not keep back his own Son, but he gave him for us. If God did this, won’t he freely give us everything else? ROMANS 8:32 (CEV)

What do we do with…worries? Take your anxieties to the cross—literally. Spend a few moments looking again at the pieces of passion.

Blood he bled for you.
The spear he took for you.
The nails he felt for you.
The sign he left for you.

He did all this for you. Knowing this, knowing all he did for your there, don’t you think he’ll look out for you here?

Watching the Fishies!

Here's Rachel enjoying her fishies. :) She loves to look at the 2 smaller ones chasing each other always! Enjoy! :)

Writing for my God

"Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the LORD ..."

Psalm 102:18 (NIV)

The following is from my daily devotional today, I want to do this too! :)

What an amazing purpose of writing ... that sometime in the future, some man or woman not yet born would read our writing and praise God because of it. What an encouragement to start writing down stories of God's faithfulness to our family, of how He answered prayers, and of the daily miracles of life. Today, we have many avenues to capture stories of God's work. We can start a blog, scrapbook, or even self-publish a book. It doesn't matter how we record our experience with God, just that we do it.

I hope you can try it too! What a blessing it is to share what the Lord does in our every day lives. It's amazing to see those small things, there are so many. When we discouraged we can look to the times that He's blessed us so dearly to lift us up again. :)

Happy Sunday! :)

Hello all!! :) I am going to add a quick blog.... First I have to say that Daddy's is doing a good job of "brainwashing" our child. He has taught her about A&M meaning "Aggies" so she's wearing her Aggie shirt yesterday (game day) and we go to Costco to pick up a few things. Well, she sees another lady wearing an A&M shirt and Rachel goes crazy saying, "More Aggies! More Aggies!". We're like, what are you talking about Rachel and we look to who she's pointing at and see the shirt and realize that she's happy to see another Aggie fan! ;) That happened more than once yesterday! ;)
Also, we went to church last night and took Rachel to her bible class. She loves it! She make so many cute art projects and loves to show them to us. Well, they work on bible verses for the kids to memorize (memory verse). Last week they asked us (the parents) to work on the bible verse throughout the week so the kids can learn them! Well, I have the toughest time memorizing bible verses, but it's helped that it's something I can do with Rachel. (Plus they are so short, I CAN do it too!) We've been practicing it all week! :) I even know it now! I'm so happy!
Nahum 1:7
HE takes good care of those who trust in HIM. (Each time we say it Rachel ends with Jesus! She is learning that we need to trust in HIM!)

Well, I wanted to share that with you. Have a blessed day! :)

Hello!

Happy Birthday Grandma!!!

Just a quick hello for this morning. I am getting ready to get Rachel and wanted to post some pics before I do! :) I tried to add a video, but wasn't able to, I will do that later! :)

Yesterday was my grandmother's b-day ("Grandma Moran"). Here's a pic that I took just this past weekend. She was staying the night with my parents and we were visiting so I had to get a pic of Rachel with her Great grandmother. She was just "chillin'" in her lap.

Game Day

Yes, it was game day (Aggie's football game) and Daddy was so sweet to watch Rachel for me while I went on a nice date with my cousin Chrissy (my be-fri couldn't make it out). It was so much fun. We got to talk and talk and talk and eat and talk and eat and you get the picutre!

Well, we were gone for the morning so Ben decide to take Rachel to Emmy's for breakfast where he loves their chilaquiles. Rachel ate a pancake and a bean and cheese taco! (That girl can eat!) Then, he went ahead and took her to the zoo. SHE LOVES GOING TO THE ZOO WITH DADDY! ;) That's their thing... I am totally not interested in taking rachel to the zoo b/c I went so many times as a teacher (burn out). Anyhow, they went for an hour or so b/c it got too hot. Rachel JUST loved the time she spent with daddy and seeing all the animals. She really gets excited when she sees the different animals in her books. She always says, "Daddy zoo!!" and she remembers that Daddy is the one who takes her to that fun place. She and he also work on all the animal sounds and names. It's too cute to hear her say hippopotamus (sp?) . I'll have to get it on tape. :) When they got home from the zoo, daddy fed Rachel and gave her a bath and put her down for her nap. (He's so good! I would have just put her down to sleep after lunch and given her a bath after we were good and rested!) When she got up, he dressed her in this outfit... and aggie shirt to cheer on the team (daddy also wore a maroonish shirt too, btw).
Finally, I got home and I see Rachel and daddy on the couch cheering for the Ags. It was funny because Rachel would help daddy yell and cheer adn she kept saying, "Go Aggies Go!" She even told me what was on her shirt- A&M, she calls it "aggies". ;) At the end of the night, she didn't want to take the shirt off. She wanted to sleep with it on and kept asking for "Aggies!" ;) Look what happens when you have an Aggie Daddy! ;)


BTW, the book in the pic is There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly. That's her favorite book right now. We went to visit my parents after the game to eat menudo and she had to take it with her. We left it there too (oh darn)! ;) I could do without reading it for awhile! ;)

Hello!! & Pics

I am blogging on this site now. I hope you enjoy! Please let me know what is happening with you!! :) God bless you! !!! I'll blog later, when Rachel naps! :)

Charlie, Chance & Rachel read books! (I couldn't get a pic with all of their faces showing.)

I am uploading this pic from last Friday. Play date time! ;) We had Ms. Angie and her boys (Charlie and Chance) come to play and swim. It was a blast!!! We moms got to talk and the kiddos got to play!!! :) It was so much fun! We want to do it again real soon!!!

Saying good-bye to the boys! ;) Too cute!!! :)

Yolanda & Jonathan's B-day Celebration- Posted on Sept 6, 2007

Free MySpace slideshows, photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

On Sat. we went to Clear Springs Cafe to celebrate Yolanda's (my mom-in-law) and J.J.'s (my bro-in-law) birthday!! :) It was so much fun! :) Check out the slide show! :) You may need to turn up the volume on the slideshow. There is music in the background. :)

Sept 6, 2007

Have a great Thursday. I'll post some pics later tonight or tomorrow!! I've actually been really busy, so I apologize for not posting! :( Oh well. Thank God, WE'RE ALL DOING VERY WELL!! Rachel is up so I gotta run! :)

Philippians 2:4-5---- great scripture!!!

Daddy & Rachel are music conductors- Posted on Sept. 1, 2007

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Rachel and Daddy are having some fun!!! :)

Rachel short video clips- Posted on Sept. 1, 2007

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

TEST- Rachel dancing video (From May 2006, to April 2007, and ending with August 2007)

Yvonne's Celebration slideshow- Posted on Sept. 1, 2007

Yvonne's B-day Celebration Yvonne's Celebration @ Carson Elementary

Papa & "Jojo" Play- Posted on Sept. 1, 2007

Here's a pic of my dad (Papa) and Rachel (Jojo) playing!!!
Let me tell you the story. Yesterday (Friday), my dad got off of work early and he took his girls to eat lunch. :) Afterwards, we (mom and I ) wanted to go get a video at McDonald's Red Box station (hey, you can't beat $1 videos). Anyhow, Mom and I wanted to drop Rachel and Papa off b/c they wanted to just go home! Oh well, we did that and left for maybe 10 mins. When we got back home, this is what we found! ;) Yes, Papa had put on PBS "Between the Lions" and made these fun hats out of the envelopes that he'd just opened from the mail. My dad has some very good ideas in his head!! He says it b/c he used to play with paper all the time and make hats and darts out of the paper. (He says that what happens when you grow up with lots of kids and not too much money).

Yeah, I'm blogging again- Posted Sept 1, 2007

I took this pic last week when I was doing house work. Rachel played for a good 30-45 mins. on her own. I snapped a pic of her to remind myself what a helpful little girl she is (she let's me do house work and entertains herself). What a blessing! :)
Well, she loves playing with her "Little People" and puzzles and books. She's such a wonderful little girl! :)

We were finally able to buy new fish last Sunday, Aug. 26th. It was so much fun to go to the pet store with Rachel. She just loves Petco! Whenever she sees the sign, she says, "Pishies...Yoyo Pishy, buu pishy." (Translation: Fish! Yellow Fish and Blue Fish)
WEll, now that we've got new fish she's interested in watching the fish again! She loves the 2 yellow fish that we got and the red (it's really pink) fish too. They are so active and that's fun for Rachel to watch! :)

Long time no blog- again!- Posted on Sept. 1, 2007

Hello all. I've not blogged in awhile, due to a new schedule and just being busy! I was working 1 day/wk for my part time job and now I"m going back to 2 day/wk, so I am in the "transition" process there. There are lots of updates and input that I have to do for that, so I've been doing that. On top of that I've not been sleeping well (wake up at night and sometimes stay awake long), so I've tried to take some power naps when Rachel sleeps! :)
Well, everyone is good and we're just really enjoying our time together this Sat. :) Oh yeah, Ben and I had a date night last night (my mom took care of Rachel), and it was FABULOUS! We went to Chili's to eat dinner and afterwards.... we went to get our haircuts! ;) Yep, that's our date night now! :) Ben didn't want to wait for me at the salon, so he stopped by Radio Shack. WEll, we ended up getting new cell phones (we've had our other models for 2 yrs, almost 3). WOW!! That's a long time to have an old phone... you know you need a new cell phone when the battery starts to die after 2 calls!!! Yep! We were having a hard time with those old phones. :)
Well, I have some pics, but Rachel is in my lap as I type wanting some mommy attn. :) I'll see when I can write and post pics again! :)

Julia's 4th B-day Party- Posted on Aug. 29, 2007

I never did finish what we did during our busy weekend... on Saturday, we went to Julia's 4th B-day party!!! (She's so big now! BTW, she's one of my cousin's daughters.) Here is a pic of Rachel, Danielle (Julia's little sister), and Julia. "The girls!" They were so cute! Just wanting to hug each other and play with the balloons and eat chips! ;) Too fun!!! :)

PRETTY GIRLS!! :) They just loved their crowns! :) I should say Pretty Princesses! ;)

Desiree & Julia (My cousin and her daughter- b-day girl)

Yvonne's B-day Celebration- Posted on Aug. 27, 2007

We had a fun weekend, it actually started on Friday... my old team (1st grade team at Carson Elem.) had a b-day celebration for my Aunt Yvonne (who was my old team mate- that was a dream come true to work with my family). :) Here is a pic of Yvonne and Mary. They are the best of friends and teammates. They really helped me so much as a new teacher and became very good friends forever! :)

Here is Yvonne, Paz, and Dotty!! I really loved working with these ladies... mainly b/c 2 are my aunts and Dotty is a true kindred spirit! :) God has really blessed me throughout my life! :)

Mom and Rachel... btw, mom worked at Carson too. :) I really had a blast working professionally with my mom, and my two aunts! What can I say, working with children just runs in our family! :) Rachel did so well. We stayed to help yvonne set up her room a bit and Rachel wanted to help too! It was cute! She loved playing with her sorting manipulatives too! :)

Fridge Fun- Posted on Aug. 27, 2007

Rachel recieved this My Little Pony ("paya" as she calls it) for her b-day. She loves it! Well on this day earlier in August, she found out that "paya" can "stick" on the refrigerator! ;) It was funny! IT has a magnet on the foot and it stuck on the fridge here in this pic.

Oops, this is the pic w/ the pony "stuck" on the fridge!

Witte Museum Here we come- Posted on Aug. 24, 2007

The week before ben went back to work, we went to the Witte Museum here in SA. It was Rachel's first time and we had a great time! :) I didn't get to take many pics, but Rachel LOVED the different animals that she saw displayed. She was running to and from each display and shouting for joy. Everyone around could tell she was excited! ;)
The dinosaur exhibit was there when we went and we got to go in, eventhough rachel was a bit intimidated by the roars! She got to play in the dig site that they had for the kiddos! ;) It was cute to see her trying to dig for bones and then trying to clean off the bench on the sides b/c it had the stuff (not sand, but some rubbery stuff) all over it! It was funny!

Here is another pic of Rachel at the dinosaur exhibit at the Witte... she loved the "dig-site". Here she's trying to brush off the bench around the site! ;) She is a bit OCD at times! (She gets that from me!) :)

Here's another pic of Rachel at the HEB treehouse (at the witte). There is a section for the younger kiddos & it has this puppet show stage! Daddy was holding the puppets and Rachel wanted to hold them too!

Having Fun with Play-doh- Posted on Aug. 22, 2007

Well, as I'm typing at our kitchen table, Rachel and I are playing playdoh... we made it last friday night and it's so much fun! I am thinking, when do adults ever get to just play during the week!? I love it! I am also listening to KLOVE online and it's helping me get energy and boost me up at this time of day when I"m usually ready to just stop and do nothing! :) Anyhow, I have to get a pic and post it soon! I will do that now! :)

Here is an older pic of Rachel playing with Play-Doh. I didn't get a chance to get a pic this last time we played with our home made play-d0h. Oh well, we did have a blast! :)

I love Dad- says Rachel- Posted on Aug. 19, 2007

Rachel's shirt says it all! ;) (I love Dad!)
Anyhow, I had her hair pulled back this day b/c she had some sort of heat rash and I was trying to get her hair out of her face, so it wouldn't irritate her forehead. She looked so cute in this lovely outfit that "Yaya" gave to her for her b-day (one of the MANY outfits). I am going to post more in a sec.

She poses like a model sometimes! I may be biased, but I think she could be one! ;)

This is what happens when Daddy helps her fix her headband!! ;) I had to get a pic! It's too funny when he does her hair (I give him credit for trying)! :)

Long time no blog- Posted on Aug. 17, 2007

Hey all, sorry it's been awhile since I've blogged about our life... it's been pretty busy and I've just been lazy too! When I get a chance to sit, I rather just sit and eat and do NOTHING! I need to start a new routine now because Ben's getting back to work now... can you believe that, summer is over. We'll see how soon we get into that new routine. I am going to try to possibly sub for one day a week. (I've been really getting that teacher "itch" recently.) Don't get me wrong, I LOVE being home with Rachel. I'm doing what I've always wanted to do being a stay-at-home mom. I guess I just really miss being with my friends at school, being in a school atmosphere, being the teacher in charge of a class.... I really do love teaching. I just don't want to do it full time right now. I am so happy that there is an opportunity to teach part time and not have the full responsibilit that a class room teacher has. I am still praying about this thought of subbing. (Sorry, I'm blabbing now. I just have had this on my mind for a few weeks and needed to get it out!)
Now about Rachel, she's so CUTE!! She is too funny! She is always repeating so many of the words we say. She's getting better each day. I know that she's a bit delayed because of being an only child (that we baby some), but she's very bright too! Anyhow, I've been calculating the number of words she says and it's up to about 70-80. I think that we only understand her though. Alot of times I have to "translate" for her... Ben's getting better at understanding her and my parents are too! It's fun.
Yesterday, Rachel had her 2 yr wellness check up. She weighs 25lbs 2 oz and she's 37 inches long. The dr. said that she's looking very healthy and growing well. She did so well during the shot process too! We prayed about it and she just tensed a bit before the shots, but SHE DIDN'T CRY AT ALL! I wanted to cry, first because she has to go through that and I just have to sit through it and not help, and second, God is so good for answering our prayers. HE is so good!
Well, I best be on my way. I have some pics to upload. I'll be back soon! BTW, I'm here watching a movie with Ben too, so this is kind of taking me long to do, but it's a funny movie so I have to stop and watch and then continue this blog.... The movie is called Sky High... it's pretty funny... it's about super hero's kids... it's silly, but fun. (Better than those R-rated movies out there.)

August 7 & 14, 2007

Hebrews 11:6 (New International Version)
6And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

What a great scripture... it is so true and words that I needed to read today (it was the 700 club's scripture for the day today). Well, I am so happy that the Lord has been finding ways to talk to me and this was one of them. He is so good to me... I love you Lord!

My God will use his wonderful riches in Christ Jesus to give you everything you need.***Philippians 4:19
What a reassuring scripture! I am amazed daily at how wonderful God is to me. HE has shown me such joy and peace that is always encouraging me. As a stay-at-home mom, times get tough and I am contstantly reminded of His presence wherever I go and with whatever I do. I know that I'm not writing about Rachel and our daily life, but this is something that I MUST share because it's seems like it will burst out of me if I don't.

I've been tagged- Posted on Aug. 7, 2007

I've been tagged! I don't really know what that is, but I think that I'm supposed to answer the questions that Christi has answered on her blog and tagged me! (I feel special that you thought of me Christi!! )
Here goes....
4 jobs I have had: Bill Miller BBQ (did all the jobs there), USAA Child Dev. Ctr. (daycare teacher), 1st grade teacher, and Gigglebytes computer teacher 4 films I could watch over and over: Pride and Prejudice, Bride and Prejudice, Anne of Green Gables (the 3 DVD's), and Ever After.
4 Places I have lived: San Antonio, TX (I know it's boring, but I love my hometown!)4 Favorite TV shows: Dancing w/ the stars, 700 club, Living the Life, and Ugly Betty
4 Favorite Foods: Ice cream (pretty much any kind), Fetticcuni Alfredo, Green Enchiladas, and CAKE!!! (2 are desserts, but those are my downfalls!!!)
4 Websites I visit everyday: Yahoo Mail,Hotmail, Myspace, and my friends blogs (too many to list)4 Places I would love to be: I'd love to be at a place where mywhole family could come together , spa (what girl wouldn't want a day of pampering), pool with Rachel and Ben, and in bed sleeping peacefully.
4 Favorite Colors: blue, purple, pink, and red4 Names I love but would/could not use for my children: Cassandra
4 People I tag: I don't know, maybe Angie, Desiree, Kelly, and possibly Ben! ;)

Having fun with the camera- Posted on Aug. 2, 2007

Rachel & I were having some fun! It was too funny! She kept posing for me and telling me to take pics of her head, hair, nose, eyes, hands, neck (even). It was a little spur moment of silliness. :) I have other pics I'll post. :)

Take a pic of me mommy!!

Take a pic of my feet! :)

Random Thoughts- Posted on July 30, 2007

I can do all things through Christ who stengthens me. Phil 4:13
That's a great scripture that I learned when I was very young. It was on a tape that mom got me and it had a story that young kids would narrate and then sing verses from the bible. This was one of the verses that I memorized b/c of the song. :) I am still singing it today! I think that I learn bible verses better through music. I am going to be on the lookout for something like that now so I can learn more bible verses. :) Well, I am not able to post pics b/c I am on my laptop computer right now. I'll post more later or tomorrow. :)
BTW, I am so thankful for...
*the time I am able to spend with Ben. He's been home more now that he's only taking one class these last few weeks. It's been great to have him home during the day, at the table for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It's the best! We've been able to just sit and play with Rachel and spend such quality time w/ each other before school starts.
* Rachel's best sense of humor. she makes both of us laugh all the time with her little antics. She is such a blessing from our Lord. She jsut loves to make us laugh. SHe's full of energy and joy! THe other day we were saying goodnight to her and giving hugs and kisses and she turns her hands on our faces and pushes our faces together so that we kiss. IT was so funny and cute at the same time! SHe's always doing such funny things!
WEll, I gotta go, there is so much more that I'm thankful for, but duty calls!:)Another pic, just because!

Another pic, just because!
Old pic that I found of my cousin Chrissy, Aunt Paz and Me. It was taken about 3 years ago.

Lee goes home- Posted on July 27, 2007

What blessings I have, my family is my foundation, after God. I thank Him daily for what He's given me. :)

Uncle Lee ("Coee" as Rachel lovingly calls him) has gone back to Norfolk, VA. :( We had a fun time with him. He was such fun. We even went swimming on Monday and he finally got Rachel to like the deeper end! ;) I will miss him so much. He drops in and it seems like he's never left and then he goes again and I have to go through missing his presence again. We thank God that we've been able to see him 3 times this year! God is so good! I will add some pics of him next. :)

Coee, Lala and Rachel

The "Moran Men" and Rachel

Finally- These are the loves of my life. I am so blessed to have them in my life! :)

BIG difference- Posted on July 25, 2007

Here's Rachel in her first carrier carseat....

Now here she is in her carseat, My BIG girl!

Just Because- Poste on July 25, 2007

Just because!!! :)
I am finding myself remembering our first few days home from the hospital 2 years ago with Rachel. I was terrified of being alone with her. Thank God I had Ben home for a few weeks before he went back to school and my mom was always over to help me out! :) I'm so blessed to have such a supportive husband and family!

Visit from CA cousins- Posted on July 25, 2007

My cousin Chad and his family came down to visit a few weeks ago from San Diego. It was great to see Gina (his wife) and t heir kids, Malia, Cade and Caleb. Here's a pic of Cade and Rachel playing tea party. ;) They were running to each other, but then running away for most of the afternoon. They couldn't make up their minds if they wanted to play or just hide from each other! It was too cute! I am so sad that I didn't get any other pics. :(





I found a pic of my cousin's kids.... they sent it at the beginning of the summer, but here they are! They are too cute! :) I had fun getting to know them more during this last visit and catching up with their mommy Gina! :)
Cade, Caleb, & Malia





Aha! I did find a pic of my cousin's wife, Gina! I didn't thnk that I had one. Here is a pic of Gina holding Rachel and me holding Cade. (They are only 2 months apart.) BTW, Caleb was in the pic too. ;) (Gina had just found out she was pregnant with Caleb.) :) Sorry, I'm jumping around in my blog, but I am having fun posting older pics too. :)

Happy B-day Rachel- Posted on July 22,2007

Happy Birthday Rachel Marie Reyes!
On July 21, 2005 we were blessed with Rachel Marie's arrival into our world. She is a joy in our lives. We continue to pray God's blessing over her for many, many, many more years to come! Thank you Father for your loving kindness.

Desiree's Party- Posted on July 22, 2007

Happy Birthday Desiree!!!
We had a blast last night celebrating Desiree's 27th b-day at a Karaoke place. It was fun to see so many cousins there having fun. :) It was nice to just have a get together with just grown ups! ;) I will add some more pics of the fun time we all had.
It was Rachel's b-day too, but I already posted pics of her party. :)

Ben and I - date night (last night).

My brother has been visiting for a little over a week now. He was having a blast with all the cousins too. :) Fun times!

Richard and Desiree singing a duet at the Karaoke place last night! Aren't they cute! :) Very daring and bold to go up on stage too! It was great!

Me, Chrissy(best cousin), and Kelly(bestest friend).
We were catching up and having fun remembering old times! Aren't Chrissy and Kelly gorgeous!

My god-daughter and I... she got up to sing too!! I was so proud of her and the guts she had to go up and sing in front of everyone! It was GREAT!