sisters

jos and i had our annual sisters get together with our other sisters, steph and hannah. we've known them for so long. we have that kind of friendship that just picks up where you leave off when you don't see each other for a while. and that happens with us since steph lives in italy. the kids enjoyed playing with them and opening some more christmas gifts. i don't know what i would do without my sister. there's nothing like a sister bond. i'm glad that malia wanted a brother and she got him. but i'm also really thankful that God gave jos a girl. i want malia to know that sister bond, so i'm hoping that she and joelle will grow up like sisters. maybe joelle can calm her diva side!

buggie vegar (pronounced boo-jee ve-ger)

i can't even remember what malia was talking about last night because we were cracking up when i realized she was trying to say "veggie burger." guess you had to be there. even micah was laughing, though he didn't know why. malia thinks faster than she talks, so words sometimes come out backwards or jumbled. like the other day when it was raining, and we were in a hurry to go somewhere. i quickly put a turtleneck shirt on her. she said,"aww i don't want to wear a nurtleteck." that one is my favorite, even though buggie vegar makes me giggle.

my malia?

had a parent-teacher conference with malia's teachers today. they said malia's doing very well in class. she works independently, is reading/spelling some 4 letter words, doing well in math, excellent with her motor skills, a wiz at art, and is social & friendly. of course at every parent-teacher conference, i'm thinking, "really, my daughter?" somehow she must cross into a different dimension once she enters that school gate. but every parent has told me about how kids act better at school than at home. i'm very proud of her and do see all of her potential. she's already in the advanced kinder class and will soon be in advanced math. (future math teacher daddy is proud of that!) as they continued to tell me all the great things malia does, i was waiting for the "but." and sure enough it was, "but sometimes when working next to a good friend she tends to talk a lot." that's when i knew we were talking about the same girl.

a new year

as i listened to obama talk about the time for a change at the inauguration this morning, i couldn't help but think about some changes that will take place this year. next month, i will be furloughed 2 days a month by the governator. micah will need to go to a new daycare after he turns 2. and malia will attend a new school for 1st grade. of course, we face changes every year, but this one seems pretty big for us since we are currently nestled in our routine. but like obama, i have high hopes that all the change will do us some good. so here's hoping this year will be super!

happiness is a spoon

as a mom, i should know to always be stocked with snacks. but do i remember to check my bag all the time? lately, micah hasn't been too happy in the car on the way home from daycare unless he has a snack in his hand. usually i would have done errands during my lunch break, so snacks are always handy. but today, i was frantically searching my bag for anything and came up with nothing but a plastic spoon. so i passed it back to him, and the screaming stopped. most of the time kids don't need those fancy shmancy toys from the store. they are happy with what we adults already have - a remote, cell phone, digital camera, computer, and in my case, a spoon.

malia's view

wanted to blog last night, but we got home a little later than expected. our friend's father passed away and the viewing/rosary was last night. we knew we couldn't take micah because there was no way he would stay still or quiet, but malia wanted to come with me. i had explained to her beforehand where we were going and why. it wasn't in too much detail, but she understood that auntie cindy's dad went to heaven (where grandma letty is) and we were going to pray for him. we sat with the choir and sang during the rosary. then afterward, she kept wanting to approach the casket and i'm not really comfortable with that. so she went with auntie claris. it was later when we came home that i realized auntie claris had explained other details to her, of course malia asked her some questions. just before going to bed, malia asked me why they would bury auntie cindy's dad if he was going to heaven. she also confirmed with me that grandma letty was buried. so i told her about spirits, that they go to heaven when bodies don't work anymore. she really understood all of it and proceeded to tell me that she thought all spirits went inside God because he loves them. she never ceases to amaze me. oh, grandma letty must really enjoy being her angel.

holiday rush

haven't had the chance to blog since the holiday rush started. rush to do the shopping, rush to take the kids' pictures for christmas cards that were never made, rush to bring micah to the doctor for an asthma exacerbation, rush to wrap the gifts, rush to go to church, rush to relatives' houses, etc. too bad i was never rushing to get into bed for a good night's sleep. but as always, everything just seems to fall into place, we had a wonderful christmas. micah could have cared less about opening presents while lia always seemed to be looking for more. santa gave malia a sharpay doll and a dress up game this year and micah got a leap frog guitar. we gave the kids a train table set, but haven't gotten around to setting it up yet. i give it a few months. so i think i can relax for a bit, until it's time to put away all the decor. surprisingly, all of the ornaments are still on the tree. micah pulled a couple off because he thought they were balls, but wanted to put them back. i really don't want him to grow up!

highlights from our christmas rush time:

jumpitz xmas concert @ horton plaza
jonah giving a high 5

cursillo xmas party, malia played an angel with

her friend ella in the kids nativity scene

OVC xmas concert @ st. rose
brown eyed girl...

christmas eve @ the sousa residence

christmas morning! love the cheeks!
malia showing her outfit from micah

micah trying to taste some candy

christmas lunch @ the bringas residence
christmas dinner @ jonah & joelle's house

cousins pic take 1
cousins pic take 2cousins pic take 3
finally, a decent picture. there's always next year!
happy 1st christmas cousin joelle!

last lunch

while packing malia's lunch this morning, i realized that it was the last lunch i'd be packing for her in 2008. where has the time gone?! she'll have her school christmas party tomorrow and then she's on vacation until 1/5/2009. i could have sworn i was just dancing to prince's song 1999, but here we are 10 years later! anyways, malia will be happy today because i made her a nutella sandwich. it's her favorite sandwich i pack. i only give it to her once in a while. believe it or not it does have iron, calcium, protein, and fiber. (of course i check!) her sandwich is shaped like a christmas tree today. i also put in a banana and some graham crackers to even out the sweet. after i pick her up today, the 3 of us are off to daddy's work to watch his performance with the "think positive" teacher band and with OVC. hopefully micah is doing better with his cold, he would love to dance to all the music. malia will be able to burn off the sugar from the nutella sandwich. oh let's face it, that girl is never out of energy!

she's 31

pounds! at last, malia has reached the 30 pound mark. her annual exam was today. she is 0.2% for her weight and i think 0.4% for her height, which was 39.5 inches. such a petite filipino girl. "little" brother micah has only 8 pounds to gain and 8.5 inches to grow to catch up. i've always said i would have a party when malia reached 30 pounds. so how are we going to party? disneyland, of course!

tantrum tuesday

had another tough tuesday today. it started in the car on the way home when the kids were "sharing" a book in the back seat and one of the pages tore. malia had a raging fit that started as we were halfway home and didn't stop until we were in the house and i taped up the page. i don't know what it is about tuesdays but the kids seem crankier than usual, even when daddy stays home from class. and micah is quite the toddler and not my baby boy anymore, screaming when i take something away he's not supposed to play with. it's not fun when both kids are having tantrums at the same time. hats off to those who run daycares, i really don't know how they do it. sometimes their tantrums make me laugh, but by the 5th one (mostly malia), it's a real challenge on my patience. that's when i force them to go to bed early so i can have some peace and quiet before bed. that's when they look like angels, and i can once again count my blessings.