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Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Christmas Questionaire

1. Egg Nogg or Hot Chocolate? Egg Nogg with the sugar cookies Amiyah and I bake, and Hot chocolate with a mini candy cane hanging from the side of my mug. Oh... and don't forget the marshmallows.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? We have shared with Amiyah years ago that Santa is just a character. She knows that Jesus provides Mommy and Papi with the money to be able to buy them presents.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? We always do white lights on the tree. As far as the outside goes... we put our Menorah in our kitchen window for everyone to enjoy.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? Every year. My Obe and I love meeting under it on Christmas Eve, when the little ones are fast asleep.
5. When do you put your decorations up? It used to be the day after Thanksgiving. As the years have gone on, they seem to go up earlier and earlier... we just love transforming the house into a Christmas wonderland.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Sweet Potatoes. Oh wait... can't forget the COLLARD GREENS!!
7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? Well it really wasn't my favorite, but, when my sister and I and my four brothers would go for our stockings, and in them all the way at the bottom we'd find fruit. It was pretty funny. I mean hey, you gotta fill the toe somehow.
8.When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? My parents never had us believe in Santa.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We did when we were little.We decided we'd wait until the kids are a little older to start that tradition with them.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? White lights, silver and burgundy balls, burgundy bows, and snowflakes. Sorry people, I like a themed tree. Not to worry though, the kids have a tree of their very own that they (Amiyah) decorates. And of course it has tons of colored lights, and every ornament that was ever given to us, plus the new ones they receive from Papi and I every year on it.
11. Snow! Love it or dread it? I love it! That's of course because I don't live in it, so, no shoveling for me!
12. Can you ice skate? Yes. But it has been MANY years since the last time I did.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? When I was a kid, it was a boom-box with detachable speakers... Ahhh-yeah! Last year, it was my Rachael Ray pans from my Obe, they are the best!
14. What is the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Celebrating Jesus!
15. What is your favorite Holiday dessert? Banana Pudding, and Ambrosia.
16. What is your favorite Holiday tradition? Taking the kids to see Christmas lights.
17. What tops your tree? A star... because my Jesus IS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD!
18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving? Both. But I love buying and making things for other people, it brings me so much joy.
19. What is your favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night. Although Little Drummer Boy is right up there this year.
20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? I only really like them in my hot chocolate.
21. What do you want for Christmas? Peace for my family, a new Bible, a new pair of jeans, running shoes, a new lens for my camera, and a really good book.
22. Do you attend an annual Christmas party? We are all over the place during Christmas, we never have just one party to go to.
23. Do you dress up on Christmas or wear PJ's? We open presents in our pajamas, but when it's time to leave to visit all the family, we dress up.
24. Do you own a Santa hat? Nope.
25. Who do you normally spend Christmas with? My hubby and the kids in the morning. The rest of our families later in the day.

Phew! That was long. Your turn!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

New Favorite Thing
























Both of my kids really enjoy taking a bath, and always have, even as little babies.
But recently my poor bean has protested every single time by shaking his head and saying, " nooooo."
Usually after I remove all of his clothing and his diaper, he makes a run for it.
I always let him go, knowing that he's going to hide somewhere in the hopes that mommy will somehow forget about the bean needing a bath, and just give Amiyah one all by herself.
My bean has been doing this because he HATES getting his hair washed. He hasn't quite caught on to the fact that if he only tilts his head back a bit, the water won't run into his eyes.
So... I was on the hunt. I was looking for something that would keep the water out of my poor babies eyes so that he's not gasping for air every time our big red cup full of water comes towards him. My best friend once gave me these foam visors that babies can wear, the only thing with that is he'll take it off the second I go to pour the water. So I found this cup. The yellow part is made of some type of soft rubber, and it gently rests on their forehead. The inside of the cup also has two compartments so that the water doesn't rush out all at once. This cup has saved bath time in the Zarazua house , and now when I say " bath time!" The bean runs straight to the tub.

Thursday, October 23, 2008



Baked Apples

So I thought this year I would get an early start on the holiday desserts I have been dying to try. Tonight when the kids went to bed I made myself and my hunster baked apples. They were delicious! My plan was to bake them, pour some of the drippings over them and take a picture to post on my blog. But what can I say, after about 15 minutes in the oven the smell of apple, brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon all mixed together was making our mouths water. As soon as they were done I plated them, drizzled some of the drippings over the tops, and my hunster and I devoured them... literally. Oh I also added raisins which gave it a nice texture.
So the next time I make them my Poopy will be my special helper and I think we'll add a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side... yum-o!

Monday, September 22, 2008

A-Z All About Me

Yeah so I totally don't have any clue why my a-z all about me post looks the way it does.
I apologize for that but no matter how many times I go in to edit, and change the size of the text it still comes out ginormous.
Argh!

A-Z All About Me

I have been tagged once again! This time by my girl over at minikitklan.blogspot.com
Thanks Gabbs! If I tag you, you must do the same thing on your blog!

Attached or Single? Happily married to the man of my dreams! We're going on 5 and a half years.

Best Friend? I would have to say my mommy. We have become so close through these tough times.

Cake or Pie? I am definitely a chocolate smothered... not covered, but smothered cake girl! Although a nice slice of sweet potato pie with whip cream ALWAYS hits the spot!

Day of Choice? Friday... DATE NIGHT! My Hunster and I usually wait until the kids are in bed and then we order in from our favorite wing place and snuggle up on the couch.

Essential Item? My journal. I carry it with me everywhere I go, jotting down random thoughts or poems that come to mind.

Flavor of Ice Cream? I loooove Moose Tracks. But for some reason I always go back to Butter Pecan.

Gummy Bears or Worms? Neither! Not a big fan of things that take the rest of the day to get out of my teeth.

Hometown? The original 5-6-1 ya'lls

Indulgences? Getting my nails done. After wearing gloves all day just about everyday because I'm scrubbing toilets, washing dishes, or doing some other kind of grease fighting it's nice to pamper them every once in a while.

January or July? January, most definitely!

Kids? Two beautiful children, Poopy (5) Beany (19ms)

Last Movie I saw in a Theater? My mom and sister took me out for my birthday to see Mama Mia. It was so good. We were cracking up. I downloaded the soundtrack a few days later on itunes.

Middle name? Maria. Named after St. Mary

Number of Siblings? I have 4 brothers and 1 sister.

Oranges or Apples? I prefer apples.

Phobia or Fear? Lizards. I'm serious! I'm deathly afraid.

Quote? " I am not moved by what I see, I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved by what I believe." Smith Wigglesworth

Reason to Smile? My family. My wonderful husband, my hero, and my two beautiful children.

Season? Fall/Winter. I love to wrap up in my scarves, put on my furry boots and go out for a nice chai latte with my girls.

Tag five more: Yeah ummm... Gabbs you pretty much got everybody. None of my other friends blog... they just read mine.

Unknown Fact About Me? I am completely obsessed with anything having to do with money management. I get so excited every Friday to sit down and do our budget for the coming week.

Vegetarian or Oppressor of Animals? I could be a vegetarian... but my husband needs his meat.

Worst Habit? Drinking Coca~Cola. I have a weakness for the stuff.

Xrays or Ultrasounds? Both... they were kinda cool.

Your favorite Food? I would have to say Sushi.

Zodiac? Leo

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Mmmmmmmuuhhh!




Beany just loooves his papi. Everyday when Emilio hears my hunsters keys in the door he makes a mad dash for the door creaming "Daaaaaaddyyyyy."

In the first picture I left the Bean with the grandparents while taking Amiyah to a classmates party one Saturday, and my hunster was working that Sat as well.
When I came to pick up my bean I come in the house to find him laying on the floor napping in his papi's arms. Ok people this is a big deal... he doesn't even fall asleep with ME anymore! It was really sweet.

In the next pick my Hunster was on the computer and the bean came in for some papi time. He screamed to get up into his lap and once there all he wanted was his sweet papi kisses. All I could hear from the other room was mmmuuuhh... mmmuuuhh.

Art Lessons




Since starting school Amiyah will come home and teach Emilio a little something she learned on that particular day. Today was cursive b. Of course Emilio just does his usual scribble scrabble. But Amiyah being the great teacher she is just goes on encouraging every scribble he makes.

It's spaghetti time!




So I think I mentioned in a previous post about my beany and his picky eating.
Well it wasn't until recently when we placed a bowl of spaghetti (something he would never eat before because he doesn't like meat... or so we thought) in front of him with a spoon that we noticed he took right to it. Ate every last bite... meat and all!
So we have come to the conclusion that it was just a matter of independence. He wanted to be the one to feed himself. Of course with me right there making sure the spoon was right side up so that it actually made it in his mouth and not all over the floor.
Mealtime around the Zarazua house is a lot more peaceful these days.

Now, on to the BIG BOY CUP...


This is an example of letters that Amiyah writes almost daily to Jesus.
She's so incredibly thoughtful, always thinking of the hurts and needs of others.

Here I am again!

Ok ok... so I'm not the best blogger.
I think I could be though... if I just made time for it.
So I'm back in action. Now if I could only get these pics to upload...

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Life without my camera

So I lent my camera to my BIL (Brother-in-Law) and was told that he misplaced it. Now I'm not angry or even upset. I don't know exactly what I'm feeling. I have never really been without it. It's always in my diaper bag along with it's partner the gorillapod (a small flexible tripod for digital cameras), ready for anything.
Over the past week I have reached for it numerous times, only to remember it's no longer there. So I have been using my big canon rebel. I actually like it a lot better than my little canon, it takes better pictures. My only issue... it's not digital. So it's a PAIN IN THE NECK, having to continuously drop off and pick up film, get the prints put on a disk, and then upload them into my iphoto. NOW WHAT DO I DO WITH ALL THESE PRINTS!!!! I'm not into scrapbooking AT ALL, it takes to much time. So for now it's me and my Rebel, I'm kinda happy to be using it again though, I've missed it. I feel so professional.
So, it will be a while before i put any photos up. Until then...

Saturday, May 3, 2008

He's Walking!

We thought this day would never come. For about a month now he's been walking, but only while holding someones hand. Last week we noticed him let go of the couch quite a few times. With video camera ready, we waited and waited. Until... HE FINALLY DID IT! He let go of the couch, turned towards the middle of the living room, and walked all the way across the area rug to the wood floor. We all cheered and clapped. Of course he loved that part, he was smiling and clapping right along with us. Since then, every chance he gets he's up on his feet, ready to run across the house.
I'll post pictures later. Right now I'm trying to figure out how to upload the video onto my computer. Hmmm... I think I'm missing a cable.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

She's 5!!

Our princess Amiyah is 5, we can't believe it. Joey and I were just thinking back the other day to when she was just walking, and how proud of herself she was.
One of my greatest memories was when she first learned to point. She was so excited that now instead of screaming for whatever it was she wanted at the moment, she could now point it out to us. And she did it with such pride all the time. You could see in her face she couldn't believe we could finally understand her.
Her Birthday theme this year was Alice in Wonderland. These are a few shots I took for her invitations. I ended up using the one of her sitting on a tree stump. Later I'll post pics from birth to now. But for now, this is all I had time for. Enjoy!



Story Time

Before Beanies naps we play silly games, sing crazy songs, and read stories. On this day Amiyah wanted to read the book to him herself. She can read most of the words, but the rest she knows from memorization. It was cute to hear her read it to him, and as you can see in the picture he was enjoying it as well.

Rainy Day Dress Up


Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Look at my big boy!

I cannot believe it, he's feeding himself...sorta!
The Bean has been really upset lately when it would come time for meals, and I felt like such a bad mom because I just couldn't figure it out. I thought maybe he was being picky, or just wasn't hungry. But it wasn't any of those things at all. A couple of weeks ago when he started acting like this I said " ok fine Emilio, I'm not fighting you this time." And i set his bowl and fork on his tray. He then picked it up and began poking at it and then bringing his fork to his mouth (there was no food on it). Again he was frustrated. I helped him poke his pancakes, and then he brought them to his mouth all by himself. He's been doing so ever since.
These pictures are from breakfast, and later on during lunch. He had an easier time with the pancakes. The mac n' cheese kept falling off the spoon.

A day with friends!

We got together with some friends and headed to the museum for a day of WILD and CRAZY fun... literally. No, I'm not talking about the animals and exhibits we saw. I'm talking about our children, yup our sweet loves of our lives. I actually think they didn't pretty good this time around though. They had their moments, but then again... so did we.
After walking around for what felt like hours, we ended the day with some ice cream outside next to the fountain. After the ice cream had finished we gathered our wet sticky-faced children, and headed to our cars.
"We have to do this again sometime" we all said as we were loading up our vehicles.
Well... until then ladies!







Wednesday, April 9, 2008

He's so handsome, just like his Papi!


I had to post this one. This is my Bean all dressed up for Church. I just think he looks so handsome!


So there have been a lot of new things going on in the home of the Hunsters. One of the most important to me is the development of Amiyah and Emilio's relationship.
They really love each other so much. Lately whenever Emilio sees his big sister sitting or playing on the floor, he quickly makes his way to her, stands up and throws his entire body on top of her for a big hug. His hug is usually followed by this sound, "mmmmaaaaahhh". For those of you who don't recognize that sound, it's the sound of him giving her a big wet one. Of course Amiyah absolutely loves every minute of it.
Now if you have ever been around a 13 month old, the one thing you will find out very quickly is, whatever you have belongs to them. I don't care if it's another toy, the seat your sitting in, or even a snack your about ready to sit down and enjoy, it belongs to them... or so they think.
While Joey and I continue to hide from the Bean, in an effort to enjoy our snacks in peace, Amiyah has actually become extremely smart about the way she handles it.
Realizing that whatever she's eating her brother is going to want as well, she came up with a plan.
I walked out of my bathroom the other day while cleaning it because the house was a little too quiet, I had to know what was going on. I came across this scene. Before I could say anything, Amiyah began to explain, "Mommy, I wanted a snack, but I knew Emilio was going to cry for it. I put his bib on, and got his baby spoon (it's actually a fork) so we could both have have some."

Easter



My beautiful kids all dressed up for service.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008



On this day I was so shocked to see these two together... I just had to take a picture.

Usually when Amiyah goes into her bedroom to play, she slams the door shut because she doesn't want Emilio in there messing with any of her girly things. On this particular morning, I happened to be walking by the room when I overheard her talking to Emilio. "Emilio, I always like to play by myself or with mommy, cause you always make a mess with my stuff. Today I thought I would play with you instead. You can touch my stuff Emilio, oh... but not my Hannah Montanna necklace, that was very expensive."
Isn't that cute? She's such a good big sister, Emilio absolutely adores her.

Friday, March 7, 2008



The day after Emilio's party (yeah we're crazy) we had his dedication to the Lord.
It was great! We watched a slide show that I put together of pictures of the Bean, my Pastor fixed the music. Thanks Pastor G, we love you!
Our Pastor prayed over us, and the Bean, and we gave him back to Jesus.
We realize that it is our job to raise this little boy to be a mighty man of God, who will one day part from his parents and set on FIRE this world for the Lord! Such a big job Joey and I sometimes think, but the Lord, He is so great! He chose us to be the parents of these two children for a reason. We pray always for our friends and family, but especially the ones who have children. The things we do to them, with them, and teach them now will have a tremendous impact on the people they will one day become. Will they be strong courageous men and women who will not crumble under the pressures of their peers? Will they be the ones drawing their friends, and neighbors to the Lord? Joey and I pray so, but more important that is what the Lord Jesus Christ wants for His creation, for them to one day become His children, and then bring others to him.
God bless you all, be encouraged in your ministry, your family!
ONE GENERATION SHALL PRAISE THY WORKS TO ANOTHER,
AND SHALL DECLARE THY MIGHTY ACTS.
PSALM 145:4

Happy 1st Birthday Emilio!




The Bean is a year old, I can't believe it! We celebrated in true Zarazua style, a big birthday bash... that he won't even remember having.
The theme was Curious George. Only because he's the cutest monkey that ever lived, and we think the bean looks just like him. We had it at Monkey See Monkey Do Art Studio for Kids (my best friends studio).
It was so much fun. They did circle time, singing, dancing, coloring, play-dough, and they even made a canvas of Curious George's face.
I think 1st birthday's are absolutely hysterical. The birthday child has no idea what's going on, or that any of this is even about them. All Emilio knew was that people kept screaming in his face "Happy Birthday", and trying to snatch him from his mothers arms. So he pretty much looked at everyone with his usual blank stare almost the whole time.
I say almost because I think I got one shot of him actually smiling. When was that shot taken you ask, well when he started digging into his little cake. Well, I shouldn't say digging, he was actually very careful about it, he wasn't exactly sure he was allowed to eat it. He kept looking at me for the ok.
It was a great party, all the kids had so much fun!




So lately I have been experiencing extremely horrible headaches, possible migraines.
Not knowing exactly what was causing them, I decided to pay closer attention to some things I thought might be the reason. I recently stopped drinking so much Coke, and thought that I was going through a major caffeine withdrawal or something, but... that wasn't it.
Then I starting tracking my eating habits. I didn't even realize it, but I have been maybe eating , twice a day. Can you believe that? I mean what was I thinking? Oh wait, I know what I was thinking. I have three kids here all day, who has the time to sit and enjoy a nice healthy meal?
So I put myself on a nice healthy diet this week, complete with 3 healthy meals a day, and of course healthy snacks. After starting this I have come to notice that if I don't eat about every 2 hours I start to feel the pain in my neck, and if I don't feed myself right then, it starts to work it's way up the back of my head.
This has made me realize that we as women, can become so caught up in caring for everyone and everything around us, and that we really need to focus more on making sure that we are taking care of ourselves as well.

I am happy to report, since I started actually feeding myself this week, I am feeling great. I have so much more energy for the kids, I have a much better attitude, and even though I have to be munching every two hours, the headaches are gone, and I think I'm actually gaining weight! I lost a lot while not eating.



Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Emilio's First Year

Birth
























1 Month























2 Months

























3 Months


















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12 Months