Driving to piano lessons....

Well, as some of you may know...both of my kids play the piano. At times they love playing, other times...it's like asking the impossible from them. Oh how they pout and try to find any excuse to not play or practice. It's in the schedule now, so Hah!

We've had to make a few adjustments in the kid's schedule due to Joseph starting Webelos at the same time as piano and with speech services starting up. The first thing Mr. Joseph asked was ....
"Mom, do I still have to go to piano?"
"Of course, we'll just have to move things around." I said.
"But you know I can't do two things at once...I only have one body"...
"I know you can't be in multiple places at once...it will work out....don't worry about it little man."
"How long do I have to take piano?" the little man asked.
"Until you're old and gray mister" was my answer.
"That's a VERY long time! Will you still be alive?"
.....end of conversation....

It was so convenient with both kids going to lessons at the same time and not having to make multiple trips...not anymore...We now have the kids going at separate times and it can be challenging at times...

On Tuesday, Joseph and I picked Alycia up from school and headed to piano lessons. I had a Paramore song playing to which both kids started singing. Yes both kids!
"Joseph, stop singing...You're ruining the song! You don't even know the words!" my dearest Alycia said to her brother.
....more singing from little brother...many made up words being sung...
"Uh, Mommmm! Can't you have a rule in the car? No singing unless you KNOW the words!!!" my tween asked....
.....uncontrollable laughter.....(from myself)
"Sorry my dear, but I can't adhere to that specific rule...I would be in constant violation of that rule" I said. (more giggles)
"uhhh" grumbled my Alycia

As we pulled up to Mrs. Buffie's house, I saw that Alycia was happy and anxious to get out of the car.
Why?
Was our singing THAT terrible?

Bad memories....bad eggs...

As many of you know, I am Chilean...born and raised here in Los Estados Unidos...to be politically correct...The United States. So of course that would mean that my parents are foreigners to this wonderful country of ours. Well holidays can be a bit tricky in the Puentes household. Easter was filled with going to Mass, myself wearing a fancy frilly dress (which I absolutely hated), dyeing eggs and spending a whole weekend with family.

This can be tricky...The whole concept of dyeing eggs was very foreign to my Mother. She read the directions (or at least I'd like to think that) and attempted to dye them. It was a fruitless effort...you see....She bought natural brown eggs...No matter how many dye tablets she put into those cups...they stayed BROWN...Oh how I cried that morning...My 4 year old self couldn't comprehend the situation. Why can't I have eggs that look like the ones on TV. What happened to the pink and green eggs I envisioned? BROWN? (more weeping)....I had such great plans...I was going to make my eggs look like the ones in the commercials with the PAAS bunny...That was one of the most traumatizing Easter's I've ever had.

Why might you ask is Anna writing about this....I went to Sprouts the other day and opened a carton of eggs...and to my horror....they were BROWN eggs! That memory came to me...and the feelings I had as a young 4 year old came...Oh how I dislike brown eggs...
I didn't end up buying them of course...

BTW.....To this day, I have Brent take care of the dyeing of the eggs with the kids...LOL

Alycia and Joseph....

What parent doesn't want to brag about their kids? But I have the best kids ever! I love my kids and I can't believe they're growing up so quickly. Oh how I wish they could come up with a pill that freezes your child's growth, just so that I could enjoy them just a little longer....I took these pictures of my wonderful little ones (well...technically Alycia's not so little since she's past me in height)...anyhow...I took these pictures after church last Sunday.

Alycia's officially in Young Women's and enjoyed her first Mutual activity last night. She was beaming when I picked her up. This is so bizarre to have tween. She's now a beehive and officially babysitting ready. She thinks she's ready for it since she took classes through our City and is CPR certified. (big sigh)....Now she's just waiting for a gig.....

Our little man Joseph loves taking goofy pictures...It's so nice to have him around...He's our little jokester and loves to scare people with his fake bugs...(he's put them in the dryer and scared me a few times)..naughty boy! I guess that's what boys do....He still likes walking around the house with his quilts...His favorite is the one his Aunt Charlene made with the animals (he cannot sleep without it)...I made him a quilt for his bed that he uses, since Nemo is no longer age appropriate (per Joseph). Now he drags the twin sized quilt I made him throughout the house. I need to make a smaller version now. He can be very particular...that little man of mine...All his blankets need to be accounted for and HAVE to be in his bed in order for him to sleep (it's 110 outside!). That can be quite frustrating, since they need to be washed and dried. Oh...he'll wait for them though...We've had some issues with him lately...He had to see his Pediatric Orthopedist a few weeks ago, due to our concerns in his running abilities. A few years ago they thought he would need surgery to correct the tightness in his acchiles tendon, but with PT twice a week that procedure was no longer needed. Now, we need to be diligent with him using his orthodics and wearing shoes with support in the house. This will keep his feet in the proper position and will (hopefully) keep him out of the operating room. We have one more week to wait for his new inserts and we hope he won't mind using them. If you have a child with flat feet, Birkestocks are highly recommended since it has arch support. No flip-flops for our little man....bummer....

I hope you enjoy the pictures....these kids change too quickly!

Alycia's 12th birthday party...

Alycia had a fabulous 12th birthday....

The girls had a wonderful time playing American Idol, DDR, swimming, playing games, eating, and decorating flip-flops..It was a fun filled evening and everyone had a great time. Alycia said we should have parties like this more often.... Alycia's friend Erica made an awesome card...I took a picture, since it was such a wonderful idea...Enjoy!

Etiquette and dancing...

Our church/stake had a Teen Elect night last night. I believe the age groups were 12-17, but they separated them by age groups. The 12-13 year olds were where Brent and Alycia were. Since Brent's our ward's Scoutmaster, he was over the deacons (12-13 age group). At this meeting they were taught proper etiquette like no texting at the dinner table, place settings at a fancy dinner, they even taught the boys to stand up and pull out a chair for the young ladies (the young man sitting next to Alycia did it for her), making a good first impressions and modest dress were also part of some of the lessons. There was even dancing involved! Oh...how I wish I were present to witness that! I really should've had Brent take my Blackberry to take pictures and videos....(big sigh)....

Brent had a great time helping out at this activity. As the kids were being served their fancy dinners, some of the men played waiters and served them. Brent was one of them. Brent balanced 3 plates on one arm and 1 on the other. Many folks were impressed and asked if he had done that before. As some of you may know, Brent worked as a Banquet waiter at the Marriott hotel while in college. (My dad helped him get that job)...He said that it was easy to get back into the groove of things...His other role last night was as a chaperon...There were more girls present than boys, which made things a bit tricky when it came to dancing. There were several deacons hiding out in the restrooms, and Brent and others had to escort them back onto the dance floor. He said there were several boys that were terrified to have to dance with the girls. There was one boy that had a cup of water in his hand hoping that would get him out of dancing...nope! You can't fool those old timers, mister! Several of the Scoutmasters even tried bribing the boys to dance with money. One was even offered $5, and still said no. While on the drive home, Brent mentioned to Alycia that several of the boys were scared of dancing with the girls to which she replied..
"Boys...scared of us girls? We're not scary!"....
"Roaaar!!!"
hahaha...Brent thought that was funny....

Alycia danced with several boys and Brent even took a picture. We promised her that we wouldn't post it, so sorry...no picture. She said she had a lot of fun at this activity. The dancing, fancy dinner, and hanging out with friends was the best part of the evening. She's so excited to go into Young Womens this Sunday. Girl's camp was such a great experience for her and she's anxious to move on...I'm not ready for this....

Well that's the latest and greatest from our little lives...

Oh so busy....

This is week 3 of my kiddos going back to school. They're doing well. There hasn't been one complaint about it starting so early...I wonder if they were tired of the many chores I had for them to keep them busy.

Alycia's in 7th grade and is not thrilled about the many projects she has to do. The workload and expectations can be a bit overwhelming for her at times. She's doing 9th grade Algebra now and hasn't really struggled with it...yet. She came to me the other day and asked a question on her math homework...

"ahh...I just finished up my Intermediate Algebra just last semester..I should know how to do this"....were my thoughts.
...click....I was actually able to help her. After I answered her questions, I directed her to Brent...the math wiz...He enjoyed helping her, and they even had a few laughs. It's so nice when she comes home from school and tells me about her day. I don't remember having these conversations with my mom, she was always at work and I was a latch-key kid. I think I'm a hip mom, since she likes to wear my t-shirts and jeans. Yes...she can fit into my clothes. She's taller than my 5 foot self and my jeans are getting to be too short. Scary, huh? The one thing we're thrilled about is, we now have full access to her grades via the school's website. Missed or late assignments...hah! You can't hide that from us missy! She is not happy about this...and I personally wouldn't be either. I'm so glad they didn't have this fancy technology back in my day. Well, she missed the bus this week. You may ask yourselves why? Jamba Juice. Jamba Juice was at the Jr. high after school, so she decided to buy herself a smoothie. I have a very resourceful little gal...That morning she gathered up all her pennies, stuffed them into a ziplock bag and paid for her smoothie with her change. Yes...$2 whole dollars worth of pennies. She said the guy behind the counter's jaw dropped, gave her a look like "what am I supposed to do with this?" and proceeded to count the 200 pennies. Mind you, there were a ton of kids waiting anxiously to order their smoothie. Well, by the time she got her smoothie, ran to the bus area, her bus was leaving. She even ran alongside the bus...oh that mean bus driver! (were my thoughts).. I hope she learned that time doesn't stand still when you need it to, and neither does the bus....

As for my little guy Joseph, he's really enjoying school. No complaints so far. His teacher is a very kind and patient lady. Joseph's best friend is in his class and they're both happy about that. He'll be turning 10 tomorrow and just had a birthday party. It was a swim birthday party with 6 of his friends attending. I seriously thought I was going to cry this morning, not over the fact that he'd be turning 10, but the rain...There was a monsoon storm that hit last night (I spent all morning yesterday cleaning and spraying the deck in 108 degree heat)...Grrr...When I woke up this morning it was raining. What was I to do with all those boys if it continued to rain? It almost NEVER rains here! We live in the desert! (sniffle, sniffle) ...Well, great news! The rain stopped and the party went as planned... I wish I remembered to take pictures. Brent took a video of the birthday cake festivities...what a great hubby I married...

As for an update on Brent, he's enjoying being the Scoutmaster. He plans on taking the boys camping late September, once he's done with training. It's been weird not having him at home some weeknights and weekends due to training and 0ther youth activities...I guess I didn't realize how much I miss having him here at home 'til now...

As for myself...I'm finished with Joseph's birthday party and Alycia's is next! It's going to be a sleepover/swim/birthday party. The stress is on! We have a theme, but I just need to get the party supplies. I start school on Monday...Anatomy and English 101 are the courses I'm taking for the semester. I think Anatomy will be interesting as well as very difficult. As everyone knows, I'm all about getting great deals. Well I must boast a bit. At the campus bookstore they were selling my Anatomy textbook for $215, I found the international version online for $80...and that included shipping. Hah! Take that campus bookstore! As for my English class, I'm not happy I have to take it since it will require a lot of writing. I do enjoy writing, just as long as the subject interests me. A thought just occurred to me...English 101 is a freshman class. ugg...I'll be dealing with freshmen...they can be soo annoying! Okay okay, I will stop my grumblings. (deep breath...exhale) Much better.

I hope this next week goes well...It will be utterly stressful and busy... I have enjoyed the break from school to spend time with the family and getting to know them better. My family is what's the most important thing in my life...and I have treasured these brief 3 months I have had to spend one on one time with them... Now I need to get back into school mode...not fun...

Wish me luck! I will seriously need it!

Fat dog.

Brent and I noticed that our dog Copper had been rapidly gaining weight. We don't feed him scraps from the table on a daily basis and the kids forget to feed him at times...I know...we're bad dog owners...but he's looking more like a sausage dog than a weiner dog. I found out why just a few days ago...

As I was on the computer ordering my books for school, I heard him eating his dog food.

"What good kids, I'm glad they remembered to feed the dog"...were my thoughts...

I then turn around to see that he's nowhere near his dog bowl. I could hear him chowing down. I followed the crunching sounds and found him eating out of his food bucket. He lifted the lid with his nose and when he saw me his ears fell back, tail tucked in, and he avoided all eye contact.

He was caught red-handed...poor dog...

The mystery has been solved and Copper no longer has access to his all dog can eat buffet...

My poor little fat dog...