Week Vlogs!!

If you haven't notice by now i have been vlogging a lot these past few weekends. I only vlog on weekend because the girls are so busy with school during the week there is really nothing interesting that goes on. I have been vlogging to keep the girls busy on the weekend its fun and the girls really enjoy it. I also don't post all of the footage that i record, i keep that  for keepsake family home videos. so here are some of our most recent weekend vlogs and if you have a YouTube account you can also follow our vlogs for more adventures that we do on weekends!! I hope you enjoy them.

Mommy Birthday Weekend:

Went to a frozen party:

Just a day at the Mall:

Sick all Week!!

I didn't get a chance to write on my blog last week because the girls were sick. Having both girls home away from school was pretty intense. First the week before that, at school in the morning,  Joannelly was complaining that her hand was itching and it bother her. I had baby Zoey at the time and i rush to get Joannelly from school to take her to the doctors so that we can figure out what this mess is all about. It turn out that Joannelly had Coxsackie A.K.A "Mouth, Hand, Foot Disease.  Let me break it down more if you have never heard of Coxsackie, it blister like bumps that appears inside the mouth, the inside of the hands and the bottom of the feet. This is common more on children and contagious, thankfully it didn't pass on to baby Zoey. I believe this occur due to the fact Jojo has this bad habitat of putting things in her mouth and she happen to put a rusted necklace they had but haven't wore it in a few months....Grreeeaaaatttt!! The doctor let me know that these goes away on their own without any antibiotics just keep her washing her hands and give her ibuprofen for pain. Sure that was no brainier, "she would stay home from school until the blisters goes away" I thought until it so happen that the blister pass on to the Drama Queen of the house, Amelia, so this week go pretty interesting. As a mother i made sure they didn't miss any work or homework. To my surprise went i went by the school to pick the homework packet and work for the week, I notice the stack of work the girls had to complete on top of the science projects that were due the week that they were going back to school. We as mother have to always be on top of children to ensure that they get their work done correctly until the day they end up sick the whole week then we are like "Oh shit!" (excuse my french) a week of "mommy she snatch!" "Mommy I'm tried i wanna finish later" later came..."mommy I'm tired can i finish tomorrow" but wait there's more! more whining, loud playing then some quite ready with the some giggles in between and a week filled with headaches and lots lots of love. Ok back to positive thoughts, happy thoughts. The entire week the girls spend it doing their homework any morning work that they do in class and their science project. When our kids get sick its not an easy job for us moms but we do it because they need us, all the sleepless nights and the constant cleaning of vomit or moments where they don't feel like eating anything and we don't want them to starve so we come up with so many meals as if our kitchen is a restaurant menu. And all the whining of being uncomfortable that sometimes we let things sly like letting them sleep with us at night or in their case eating popsicle all day because the doctor said it was ok. I'm
extremely glad my babies are back to themselves it does take a toll on us mom especially if don't we have much help, daddy couldn't help me because he had a crazy schedule that week so i was by myself in my house on "quarantine" like my sister calls it. Every is back to normal and i am ok with that so with that being said....

Until the next Blog.

Taco Family Night!

So last night dinner was a fun dinner..Taco Tuesday? Nope. "Taco Wild Wednesday" I'll get in to more depth with the title in just a moment. The girls for days wanted tacos for dinner...i couldn't say no to one of the no-hassle dinners. Easy to prepare and easier to clean up..only when using paper plates! I went food shopping the other and came across the Old El Paso Taco Dinner Kit (AMAZING!!) I added a few of my favorite toppings for the tacos in the picture below. Dinner was so much fun especially for the girls, I love cooking with my girls only if they follow direction...lol Other then that making dinners like this hands on is really fun, our kids feel more involved in the kitchen. I hope i can make more kid-friendly meals with the girls in the future cause they seem to enjoy it..

  

I warm up the taco shells in the micro-wave for about 40-45 seconds

I then cooked and seasoned the ground beef.

Our Taco Buffet

The girls got a chance to make their own tacos.

Seems like they really enjoyed it!

Taco Wild Wednesday was a huge mess!...I mean success!

 Until the next Blog...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMELIA!!

Yesterday was a special day for a little girl...she turn a whole hand, 5 years old Amelia. She was pretty excited for months now and i believe it had to with the fact that she is having a "Spooky" theme party this weekend. I have been her mother for 5 years now and I enjoyed every year with my little baby who is no longer a baby. She just keep getting smarter and smarter each year, there's just no words that can describe how I feel every year my kids get older. All I think about is how grateful I am to be able to hold them another year, to kiss them good-night another year. I am grateful for all the whining and crying, for the laughter from when my girls do or say funny things.  Nothing warms my heart then to know I could wake every morning with my girls in my bed.
Hearing their voices and how much they love their mommy makes my heart melt. Just to watch every milestone in their life gives me hope, which is why I am a big believer in prayer...I pray every year for my blessings which are the ones that I love. Every child is a child of God, who protects them anyway He can. We may not agree with some of His protective ways and we may thank Him for his protective ways. I have many fears for my girls just like every parent does but i do thank Him each year for their life. Being a parent means putting their needs before your own, if its freezing outside you give them the only coat you have to keep your child warmer. Parenthood is not all candy and cookies, its hard work and rewarding at the same time. So for Amelia's birthday I went to her class with cupcakes and her classmates sang "Happy Birthday" Later that day after dinner, I had asked daddy to get Amelia a cake and he got her an Oreo ice cream cake. She loved every minute of her special day and no matter how many "bad days" I get with just her happy high pitch scream it's a reminder that I am doing my job just fine. I love you baby girl wish you nothing but the best in your future and I will be by your side no matter what.

Until the next Blog...

New School...New Friends...New Teachers.

New school, new experience.... this moment I have been waiting since the day that Amelia was born (2009). Since then it was the most hardiest motherhood experience I have ever been through in my entire life (I know I'm being dramatic ). I say this because I did it without my mother,.my girl never got to meet their grandmother, she left too soon. OK tears are dry up now, I'm ready to keep writing. This past September was the day the girls started a new school...together!! I felt like a million dollars about this, it just makes my life a little bit less stressful. It was Amelia's best friend mother that push me to put the girls in charter school, I had my bad experience in Joannelly previous school and I didn't want Amelia to start kindergarten in that same school. Jojo was in public school and I'm not saying that ALL public schools are bad then again I just felt that I did my part as parent to help my child in school but I felt the work wasn't enough. I had another public school I wanted the girls to attend a pretty good public school closer to home, Amelia got accepted but it would be a little difficult for Joannelly to get in. I didn't want the to deal with the transferring Jojo to different schools it worried me a little, I had bad experience with transferring schools growing up, it sort of affected my social skills.
From preK- to elementary school i have attended about 5 different school before i reach the 4th grade, i was known as the "quiet kid" I rarely made any "close" friends. As a patent I didn't want my girls to go through that experience, I'm sure other parents have their concerns about transferring their child depending on the circumstances and then there are others that don't have a problem because they are looking out for their child best academic interest. The reason why I decided to take the risk of transferring was because I got tired of getting no answers in Jojo school, tired of hearing other parents saying "my child is in 1st grade reading at 2nd grade level" or "the teachers didn't go over that in class". I needed to do something about it...make that change that will improve their intelligence, cause Yes these kids of this generation are much smarter these days, it's the school system that needs to update their hardware of teaching. Their are kids doing homework or projects on all these new technologies. And I want my kids to be one of them, although we do get the "I can't do it" phase with our children but we they just don't to do the work, that's when we find alternatives in their learning. OK back to the new school....it's a charter school however it's still a public school it just doesn't follow the public school systems or teaching technique.

 I have my pro's and con's about charter school but what I can say is that the school really embrace the students abilities to learn and that outshines the con's. My girls love their new school, teachers and made friends pretty quickly. I love love love LOVE..it's the same homework for each grade! what I mean by that is...all first graders have the same homework and all kindergartners have their homework the same. So no matter what class they are in the students would be on the same page. I like that the students can move up a grade or if the teachers feel that the student needs just a little more help goes down a grade but never hurt their self-esteem because the student has a chance to go to the grade they started before the end of the school year. I like this idea because it doesn't back track the teachers and their lesson plan, it keeps a steady academic flow. I love my girls and I want the best for them like all parents do however I'll be just as excited if they WANT the best for themselves because they love the challenge of learning.

 These charter school scholars work really hard with their teachers practicing for the state exams which is why they have longer school days and shorter holiday off, they waste no time. So as I sit in on my with my tired scholar (Jojo) who is taking a nap as I write this it's only my first experience at a charter school and it may not apply to most charter schools but I know my girls are getting the education they deserve. OK now I have to stop writing cause my little one (Amelia) is climbing the walls in my room dancing in her sister Christmas dress from last year showing me her "Dancing Queen" moves beside that, I have to start dinner before daddy gets home or else I would be getting a survey title "Why is dinner not done yet I'm starving". So......

Until the next Blog....

School Lunches!!

I have been excited to do this post because i have for some time now, taken pictures of the girls school lunches. It may seem weird to be taking picture of what my kids eat for lunch everyday but to me it helps to know what lunches I already have made just so I can change things up a bit. It all started two weeks into the new school year, JoJo begged for a couple of days that she wanted to bring school lunch from home. I had explained to her that school provided lunch and that why I needed to bring lunch, she insisted that "everyone" (a little exaggeration I might add) in her class brought their own lunch at school. I never had a problem with school lunches I figure it has changed since that last time I was in elementary school back in the 90's. I have read that the parents make their children school lunches from home for allergies reasons or the different foods that their family eats, I on the other hand enjoy making these lunch for the girls. The one problem I have is that on some days I get full lunch bags, on the bright side i only make these lunches 4 days within the week because every Wednesday is half-days for the girls. So here are the lunches I made these pass couple of days and keep in mind that every week I will be our weekly school lunches, hopefully this helps other mothers out there for more ideas for their little one school lunch bag!  

• Oscar Meyers Lunchables 
• YoplaitGo-Gurt
• Market Pantry Raisins
• Mott's Grape juice

1. Horizon Organic Cheddar cheese stick
2. Market Pantry Raisins
3. Spring Water
4. Ham and cheddar cheese rolls
5. Quakers chewy granola (chocolate chips)
6. Blueberry Mini Muffin

1. Chedder Cheese Crackers
2. Go-gurt
3. Home-made pasta shells w/ ground-beef
4. Home-made Parmesan cheese bread sticks
5. Mott's Grape Juice
6. Market Pantry Raisins 

1. Yoohoo Chocolate Milk
2. Dole Fruit Squish'ems (apple mixed berry)
3. Cheddar Cheese Cubs w/ Multi-grain crackers  
4. PB&J burrito rolls
5. Annie's Mac & cheese

1. Gold Fish Crackers
2. Dole Fruit Squish'em
3. Yogurt with granola 
4. Market Pantry Raisins
5. PB & J Sandwich
6. Apples and Eves's Fruitable juice

1. Ham and Cheese Burrito
2. Green Grapes
3. Raisins
4. Go-gurt
5. Yoohoo chocolate milk

1. Chocolate Drizzled Rice cakes
2. Carrots w/ ranch dressing 
3. Fruit Snack gummy
4. Chicken Salad Sandwich

There you have my girls school lunch from the past week and a half. Most of these lunches are pretty basic but i do want to incorporate more healthier lunch. I will do my best to post more pics of their lunches in the future.

Until the next Blog....

Weekend Vlog (Vlog-tober Month)

Here is another weekend vlog for you guys! I have been vlogging for some time now and i like that i can share them with my readers. Vlogging on the weekends are our days off of our busy morning rush week. And i decided to vlog on the weekends because i know we will be doing a lot of stuff on the weekends. The girls enjoy them and we hope you enjoy watching them too, i also have other vlogs that i have done in the pass if you would like to watch. Our biggest hit was our trip to Disney World in Florida, it was an amazing first family trip. Keep a look out on our family weekend vlogs on YouTube!

Click here -----> Birthday Weekend

First Dental Appointment

FINALLY! There teeth have been taken care of...I'm pretty sure I'm not the only parent who is late taking their kids to the dentist and still not too late to go either. Don't get me wrong they have been to the dentist before but on those mobile dentist office by my college years ago. This time my girls finally have a dentist of their own that they can keep going to,  I'm pretty excited about that. I don't know what it every time a make appointment or an errand it's like I'm earning what my sister calls it "Mommy Points" so doctors appointment completed that's 1 mommy points, groceries done mommy point. It may seem lame..whose counting mommy points anyways, but knowing that when an errand is completed it feels awesome. So for this dental appointment I got a mommy point!! 

It's all about the importance of any kind of hygiene and teaching our kids how to take care so we don't have to do all the time even if it means to remind them every day to take a shower or brush their teeth. My sister and I, from what i remember, were never raised with the understanding of hygiene, my mother would just tell us "go take a shower" or "go brush your teeth". I remember going to the dentist once before in my life and i was told i needed braces after that appointment i never wanted to go back to the dentist. My mother did the best that she can when it came to our hygiene the rest was taken care of the young women in our lives....old friend, older sister and our aunts. Now that i have my girls , I will also do the best that I can to help my girls understand why it's important to take care of their hygiene and I know there are many reasons for a young girl to develop low self-esteem despite that i don't "I'm not pretty" to be one of them. I love my girls and I would always want them to always have a beautiful smile as they do now.

Until the next Blog...

Parent Meetings in New School

The other day was the first parenting meeting at the girls new school (reminder: i will write about their experience in a new school and how they fell about it in another blog) this meeting focused on the first-graders academic progress since the beginning of the school year. I thought (as thought every parent does) that Joannelly was doing so well in her grade...turns out they weren't but it was expected from their teachers. Every kid is not going to reach their teachers expectation just yet so it didn't bother me at all. So in the parent meeting i decided to take notes in what might help JoJo do a little better without hurting her self-esteem. I know my child is smart especially the kids in this generation with all the new fancy gadgets out there, as a parent i know encouraging our children that they can do better is pretty important. Growing up i felt i didn't get that encouragement,  it was always the method of "tough love" but i knew that method did not always worked for me. Being in this parent meeting not only did i get great insight from JoJo teachers but i got a chance to see her class room. Mind you that this is a new school, so they had some new gadgets to help teach the students. The notes that i took down were based on how to help my child in their homework whether it's math or reading...trust me when i say this...i was amazed of the tips that the teacher offer to the rest of the parents. And i wanted to share with you all some of notes i jot down from the meeting, i believe this would help for other grades besides first grade...so here are they are:

1. Label and Circle the total number...This method was mentioned in the meeting because the majority of the students where getting confused by the number total of objects or whatever the category may be. The teacher stated that the "Label and Circle" method would help the students not only be organized but can get a clear answer to the math question.  For example: if the question asked there's a fruit basket on the kitchen table..how many bananas are there? how many apples are there? and there's a image of the fruit basket with the bananas and apples; that's where the "Label and Circle" method kicks in. Our kid can label how many bananas are there first then circle the last number of bananas and sort forth with the apples. I found this method a genius method because our kids won't get confuse of how many things/objects are there and have a well organized answer.  GENIUS! 
2. Language used to describe the situation... Growing up i had very few teachers,tutors and even my mother who weren't good at speaking to me about the school work that would help me get the answer on my own. I had family members say to me "you know the answer but you are not trying hard" or "you know the answer, your just so distracted pay attention!" Just to clarify that i would be able to tried harder if the way the school work was explained to me in a way i could understand. The language use to explain a problem or lesson was a challenge for me growing up so i made a promise to myself that if i ever had kids i would do my best to describe any situation to my kids in a way they would be able to understand...speak in their level. One way the teacher at the meeting spoke of was questioning our child..ask if they can see if the number is bigger or smaller. Another question that can help with homework is how is the number changing.
3. Organized objects to help skip numbers.... The definition of skip numbers is referred to when the math problem is being counted by a specific number such as 2's 10's or 5's. Jojo really hasn't been doing this at home but i know its been done in class. I want her to be able to use this method when trying to count a large group of numbers and that's what it was created for...I'll elaborate a little more. So our kid has a math problem where they need to add such number and such number together. The counter objects that are being used in this number math problem are pennies and the numbers they need to add is 23+56. The pennies can be use to organized each group numbers that needs to be added so for example: to make 23 the pennies can be organized by a group of 10's which will look like this...two sets of 10 pennies and 3 pennies. By first grade the kids should know how to count by 10's, once all the numbers that are in the addition problem is organized it would then be easier to count how many 10's are there and how many ones are there altogether.

There it is my notes that i jot done and a brief explanation about each jotted note. The rest that i had written down were just reminders of other things that are non-related to school work or homework. So i hope this makes sense and also can help a parent out there in encouraging their child to do extra better in their homework because they do know the answer, they just need the confidence to just say it. I also wanted to mention that the teacher  talked a little about reading, which is more about reading to them every night a book...but that's something else i wanted to write about in another blog....

Until the next Blog...

Our Summer

Since the last post, I've been contemplating on doing the things i needed to do. looking at my dashboard of all the drafts i have yet to complete on, so i decided to just combined them all into one post. I have a lot on my plate right now to spending so much ( not really) time on one that is 3 weeks old. Don't get me wrong i love writing on my blog, i just days where i am least paying attention to it.I'm still dealing with the lost of my job, however i keep putting myself out there, just like my motto for this year "Make it Happen"
How back to this past summer that the girls and i had. This summer wasn't an all out of this world summer but it wasn't a bad one either. I can say the girls have enjoyed their summer, needless to say it wasn't that hot they some how made it their summer. Back in June daddy and i took the girls Lego Land Discovery Center in Westchester ( although i could use a trip to California) It was a friend of mine that told me about so it was our first trip their. So we went and it was an amazing adventure. I grew up with Lego because my brothers and cousin would stay playing with Lego so it was nice to share that experience with my girls. As a family we were pretty busy at Lego-land, the girls enjoyed the Lego class and especially the Lego-land indoor playground. Our fourth of July was an incredible family getaway  to Pennsylvania, we spent the weekend going to Hershey Park. I came to the realization that i love road trips and wish my family did that more often. Joannelly is really a thrill-seeker, we didn't go on all the rides but that didn't stop JoJo. There was this one ride where it looks like you will end up with a headache even though its a ride for kids, Amelia on the other hand did not like that ride at all.

Despite the fear that Amelia had about that roller coaster she was brave enough to ride...i have really brave girls!! Before we went to P.A. my older brother had plan a BBQ for his youngest son 3rd birthday and guess what the theme of the birthday....LEGO! I also made my nephew some lego cupcakes for his birthday, i love baking so i was excited to make the cupcakes for him. Last month my older sister and i had planned to go to a Hindi Color Festival at Staten Island, somehow our time management wasn't so great that we ended up in Staten Island for just Panera Bread, can't complain the girls got a chance to the Statue of Liberty for the first time. Its these unexpected trips that makes every minute worth cherishing.


The rest of the summer was spent with one of my nieces, i was babysitting until she started school in Sept. The remaining summer was spent at my local playgrounds and eating free summer meals. I tried to keep our summer fun and affordable even with my financial concerns. I know the girls had fun, we also got a chance to go to a couple of fun birthdays which most of them where circus theme. The one moment that changed our lives and couldn't be any grateful to have in our family is the birth of my baby niece Zoey! she is the most adorable human being the world. we just can't get enough of Zoey and i am very proud of sister so far doing a great job as a new mother( i guess since is known as the fossil aunt).

Overall our summer was a pleasant summer, we enjoyed being around family, lots of sun, beaches, BBQ and memories we can keep embracing as we get older. Good bye Summer of 2014 you wasn't as hot as we all expected but we did enjoy the time we shared. Now that school had started the year is still not over.

Until the next Blog...

Amelia's First day of school!

I am so excited that today was Amelia's first day back to school, this time she is in kindergarten!! My baby is growing up too fast. So here is a video i made about Amelia first day. Just so you guys know i have a link to where i got the first day of school signs (Just click on the underlined words). I hope you guys enjoy watching her experience and our "day in the life" vlog!

Until the next Blog!

Mommy Gets a Time Out!

 For today blog i just want to vent a little, nothing about what the girls did today or our mini adventure. So right now mommy is taking a time out for herself. I've been feeling down still since i stop working and all, even with our trip to Hersey Park i haven't been feeling myself. Its our human nature to as women to feel overwhelm with work, school, children and just life in general. I felt like i needed a day for myself, we all need those days. We spent almost all of our children lives taking them everywhere we go the supermarket, salon, bank and even the gym. Some days i just want to do things by myself without worrying about the girls fighting or be precaution about our surroundings. It was just one of those days where i can do errands without my babies or have a girls night and every chance i get start to feel bad that i'm leaving my babies behind. I still feel that way til this day, i'm pretty sure its parental insecurities. Today i got up took a shower, got dressed then laid the girls clothes out on their beds, i step into the living-room while the girls were playing store and i ask them "Girls wanna come with me to the supermarket or you stay home when daddy gets here?" I was pretty surprised by their answer "We will stay home mommy, but who will stay with us" as funny as the answer was of course daddy came home just in time. So i took the opportunity to go food shopping by myself...By Myself. For a second i thought the girls needed fresh air but it turns out it was me who needed the fresh air. I enjoyed being outside for a little without the girls, it was very therapeutic the driving and get the things that i needed for myself. I always thank God for everything i have no matter the situation and i would tell myself that the downfalls are only temporary if we only make it temporary. I will get back on track in the work field my plan is to get employee by the time the girls start school (Mid-August), so this summer i will work on my resume and putting myself out there while enjoying the summer with the girls....including my nieces. Mommy time-out still continues even after the girls are sleep and i'm catching up on the show Orange is the New Black at the same time that i am blogging. For right now my mindset is to stay positive in the midst of my storm called "life", i want to be able to find something to be able to help financially at home and yet love doing it while making it my passion. I have my baking, its a passion of mines, when i am creating bake goods for someone its like i have the ability to express myself in baking and reality doesn't seem so dreadful.Then i have my Blogs, i can also express my feeling and thoughts on parenting with our little  family adventures. I still have blog posts that i haven't uploaded yet for distracting myself but they will be post so stay tune. So mommies (and Daddies) go ahead take your time-out that is much needed, enjoy it for a moment its ok to have some time for yourselves. My night continues with mama lion watching her show, papa lion sleeping and baby cubs are asleep.

Until the next Blog...

Z for Baby Zoey...

Time has come to meet baby Zoey. I stayed with my sister in the hospital till monday morning. My thoughts on labor is just as it means...LABOR! For soon to be moms (and moms with more than one kid) its takes alot of work to get to 10 centimetres, with the contractions and the pushing. She went through alot of pain which bought back alot of memories with my experiences of child birth. With Joannelly I was induced at 37 weeks and for Amelia well she was over cooked for two days. My experience with labor was much longer with Jojo than with Amelia, I spent four days in the hospital. After getting induced I waited a day and half to start feeling contractions to then be in labor another full day. With Amelia was pretty quick I was in labor at home for about 8 hours that by the time I got to the hospital and i  got checked,  I was already 7 centimetres.  I guess it's true what they say every pregnancies are different and with my sister it was totally different. After spending a day and a half at the hospital i just needed a break before i had to clean the house, not sure how my mother did this mommy job for so long but it can wear a woman off. It's been 13 years since our mother had passed and I knew that my sister was able to handle this life called "Motherhood". And no matter what she may need im just a call away. 

Baby Zoey is here and now she is the most precious human being in the world. I am so excited to see what milestones she will be going through in the future. And I ask God to protect them as they grow older for they are amazing blessings from above. So Zoey whatever you need something auntie titi will alway be there for you and loves you from the moon and back.

Graduation Week

This week my babies will be reach yet another milstone in their lives....Graduation! These are the first of many graduation but now ill focus on this year. My oldest daughter Joannelly graduated from kindergarten and my eldest Amelia graduated from prek. In the beginning of the school year till now has been a rollercoaster ride but I am grateful we made it through. There were the struggles  of getting up early, then the fights of uniforms to the point of getting to school late no matter how great the night before plans worked out. I feel to believe my one and only struggle in life is time management.  I could never seem to get it down pack. But anyways im getting off topic. My girls enjoyed their school year and learned alot, I was more excited about their graduation because they no longer going to separate school and the are going to a new school..a charter school. I still don't see whats the whole big deal about charter schools I just hope the girls do good in school with good grades and make friends. Im proud of my girls that daddy and I decided to get the girls graduation presents.  They were so surprised when we told them we are going to Toys R Us, its like thats their happy place. I explained to the girls that kids should be rewarded for their hard work in school, I dont typically buy the girls any toys just cause they want it (unless its a birthday..if they deserve it). The girls graduation was Tuesday and Wednesday, the other parents were astound that the girls graduation weren't on the same day, I on the other hand, was relief. We enjoyed both graduations...so off to another school year and grade... but for now its time for summer vacation I guess lets see whats in stored..

Until the next Blog