Lazy Sunday

Today, we decided to let the kids sleep in and just relax at home. No church, no errands. Just a lazy day at home. I plan on cooking a few meals and freezing them. Next week will be a busy one, and I want to be ready--cooking will not be a priority. So here I am, enjoying a few minutes of quiet time with a cup of coffee. The time before the baby wakes up, before the middle child gets up and complains about a nightmare, or a wet bed! It's times like these that you do count your blessings for a healthy, happy family. Tomorrow it's on to tackle the world. But for today, it's a lazy day.

Brave New World

Today, I woke up to more news about the Navy Yard shooter. I remember driving by the Navy Yard on several occassions and thinking what an interesting part of D.C. it was. The base looked secure and the houses quaint. There's a part of me that's relieved that there were no children involved in this shooting. This shooting. I think it's safe to say that we all expect others to come. This has become some sort of strange norm. I feel so bad for my children and their children. How did mass shootings become the norm in the United States?

Today I also went to my daughter's kindergarten curriculum meeting at school. The teacher told us how kindergarteners are now part of the standardized testing and are required to read, count to 100 and do certain geometry  problems, all by the end of the school year. Gone are the days when kindergarteners took naps at school. It's a brave new world for my little girl and her classmates. More and more of their time will be spent passing standardized tests so that teachers and school administrators can quantify students' performance and subsequently their own (the teachers). We (parents) are told this is an effort to further our children so they will be able to compete and thrive as professional adults. The real reason seems to me less romantic and much more simplistic: MONEY. High standardized tests scores means more money for the schools and bonuses for the teachers. What we're failing to see is that the good schools will continue to stay good and the bad schools will continue to fail---status quo. Why? The schools that are doing well are usually doing well because parents are involved--making sure their children are studying and passing their standardized tests. This testing puts more pressure on the students to perform--at an early age like kindergarten. I hope my daughter doesn't feel or think she's getting tested--I would think she'd feel pressure and may not test well at all. The notion of her going to kindergarten and being in a nurturing environment is out the window -- my bubble has been burst. Although her teacher is a sweet lady, there's only so much she can do to keep learning fun. I felt her anxiety today as she explained to us the testing and came out with a  new word which she kept repeating: RIGOR.

I came back home after the meeting and read a book to my daughter--just for enjoyment. Tomorrow, when she gets home from school, I will let her play a little longer. Reading and math can always be done another day.

Melancholy

This picture was taken shortly after our little cowboy's birth 2 summers ago. Time does go by fast. It's amazing how both kids have changed, both physically and developmentally. Our little princess is still as cute as ever, although now, slightly more cautious than when she was 2. Our son, or our little jokester, as we also like to call him--he has an uncanny wit for such a young boy.

I'll treasure this picture of them forever. Now that we're expecting baby #3, I hope that they welcome her with the same wonder as we did the little cowboy. I hope that all three children realize how precious they are to each other; how they will become each others best friends, allies in what can sometimes seem a harsh world. My day begins early with almost always a daily dose of squabbles among the kids--at the end of the day, however, they say good night and give each other a good night kiss. More and more, I am starting to notice that bond between them. They do in fact, care and are interested in each other. This weekend, while the princess spent the night at the grandparent, the little cowboy asked about her--I detected a little sadness in his voice. Yes, I do believe they'll be best friends...someday.

Christmas Wrap Up

The holidays were a much anticipated event around here. We were eagerly awaiting for the arrival of my family from Panama. My aunts and their families definitely added some of the Latin warmth and cheer this Christmas.

My intent this year was to make Christmas, just that, a season to celebrate with family and friends the birth of Jesus. Although I tried to incorporate some of the religious traditions, I realized that my children are fairly young and there will be time for them to learn more and get more into the details of this religious time.

So many memories will forever be etched in my mind. It was great to come running down the stairs Christmas morning and see our Little Cowboy as he jumped on the trampoline Santa gave him-- he is so skinny that his pants had fallen to his ankles with all the jumping around. Our Princess was excited to make a gingerbread house for the first time and also to see that Santa had eaten all his cookies except for one he left behind (in her mind this one was for her). I hope my children don't outgrow the wonder of Santa too soon. I know some children as young as 6 that already smirk when you mention Santa. That expression of wonder and excitement on a kid's face is pure magic if you ask me.

Besos,
Vanessa

6 months and counting

It seems like this pregnancy has gone by faster than the others. Although anything lasting 9 months is a little too long for me. I haven't had too many setbacks with pregnancy, I did have a little morning sickness during the first couple of months. My goal of working out during the pregnancy has been a complete bust. I guess I'm getting some exercise chasing after the kids, running errands and the day to day of the household. Sometimes I wonder how I became such a housewife in a relatively short 4 years. This Sunday, hubs and I celebrated our 7th anniversary--time has definitely flown by. We've lived in three different homes, and will soon have three children. Soon, we will be planning our fourth move, location still to be determined--for us. The newborn baby will probably be around 6 weeks at the time of the move--the same happened when we had our second child.

At times like these I try to keep things in perspective and look at all the blessings we have as a family. Even though it can be stressful not knowing where we will be moving to, we do not have the stress of losing a job. So far, we've managed to keep our little family healthy, the kids are growing and make us laugh with their antics. I tell myself, just breathe, take a little time and life will not seem like such a whirlwind. After all, I'm sure it's human nature to want change when you don't have it and to want a state of permanance in the midst of chaos.

Besos,
Vanessa

... and another important number

4-27-2013. That's our baby's expected due date. In case you didn't guess it from the previous post, yes, we are expecting. Yes, this is our third child. Yes, we already have a boy and a girl. Wow, we seemed to get this reaction a lot when we first told our friends and family. But we are simply excited to be adding one more bundle of joy to our family. The little princess is excited to be a big sister, and I secretely think she is hoping for a little girl. Our little boy is too young to actually know what's going on. We keep telling him that mommy has a baby in her belly, but he just laughs and tickles my growing tummy.

Here's one of the more recent activities enjoyed by both kids: painting. Daddy cut some wood and made sail boats for both of them. Princess picked out her colors carefully before beginning the project. She also was very careful and tried her best to make straight lines. The little cowboy's technique was slightly different. He started painting the boat his favorite color--blue. Although blue is pretty much every color for little cowboy right now. After a few dabs of paint on the boat, he found something more exciting: body art.

On paper, wood or skin will do just fine thank you!