Happy Halloween

We played soccer.

We carved pumpkins.

We saw Jenny off to Homecoming.

We got dressed up.

We went trick or treating till someone couldn't walk anymore (Spencer).

We ate all the candy we could. (mama's rule - eat all the candy you want on Halloween, then I am in charge :)

Got ready for bed while the parents did a little dance in celebration of the time change.

And that, my friends is our Halloween in a nutshell.

Sophie and her new best friend

Sophie is on the move.

Watch out.

Her motivation for crawling all over the family room is.....

Tucker.

(doesn't he looked thrilled!)

I don't quite know how to feel seeing this all day long. I am not a "let your dog lick you...especially in the face!" kind of a gal. But Sophie is completely fascinated with Tucker. Luckily, he just takes it and cleans off the sweet potato mess on her face :) Love, true love.

Doing good

Dave is doing better. He has drank more water this week than ever before. His blood clot in his arm is a wee bit better. He is slowly getting back to his regular self. His spirits are much much better which makes me so happy. It is hard to watch your man be down and out.

My brother Adam came up Thursday to help out. The kids were so excited to see him. He is a "cool" uncle. He helped take kids to school, babysat a little, worked on the pool, picked up kids from practices and watched five games (1 football, 4 soccer). It was so nice to have him. He came bearing gifts from the bakery which is always such a special treat. I think we had toast for all three meals yesterday :) Thanks Adam for coming up. It was so sweet of you to leave your family for a few days to help us out. Thanks Stacey for giving up your hubby for a little bit and letting him come up here. It really meant a lot to us.

This is the smile he decided to do....nice.

Dave and Adam were a traveling pair this weekend. Don't they look cute together :)

You Never Know

You never know what life has is store for you.

Saturday the 17th, Dave and I were out eating a yummy dinner at Macaroni Grill celebrating our 9th anniversary. Three hours later, I receive a phone call saying that my hubby is being transported to Methodist Hospital because he had a seizure at the grocery store.

What?

Life is fragile.

Dave is fine. He is home now. He is extremely drowsy from his medication for seizures. He has a 2-3 inch blood clot in his arm. So he is on blood thinners for that. He is taking more medicine now than he's ever taken. But he is ok, and that is what matters.

They said he had three seizures and it took 10 people (the fire dept had to call for Code 3 back up) to hold him down. He had to be restrained (strapped down) while they transported him to the ER. I could have sworn I married a lover not a fighter...guess I was wrong. I thought the paramedic was joking when he told me my hubby was in an ambulance because he had a seizure at the grocery store.

What?

Good news is that all the tests they ran came back normal. Thank the good Lord. The reason for the seizures....lack of sleep, dehydration and low potassium.

Working two jobs has taken it's toll.

Diet Mountain Dew is not the most hydrating drink out there.

I don't know if it counts, but he did have bananas in the cart before he went down.

So a lesson has been learned. Life is so fragile. He could have died.

Our bodies are a gift.

We need to treat them like that.

(I guess I shouldn't have finished off that plate of brownies just now :)

Thank you for all your prayers. We love you all.

2009 has definitely been an eventful year for our family.

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to the man I love.

It has been 9 years since we got married and I coudn't be happier.

I love being his wife.

I love being the mother of his children.

Nothing could make me happier.

Who knows, maybe we will go out on a date all by ourselves today.

(or Sophie might join us :)

Either way it is great.

It is funny the paths life takes you on.

9 1/2 years ago,

I would have never imagined living in Northern California,

taking care of a darling hubby,

six kids

a dog and a cat.

The Lord has watched over me.

I am eternally grateful for that.

My dreamboat

Dreamboat is Spencer. That is what I call him and always will :) He thinks a lot about things I wouldn't expect a 7 year old to think about.

Example: last night he told us how we have two families in Heaven... The one that we are with now and the one we have when we are married. He said, "We were all really good friends and that's why we decided to be in a family together." Love it.

Then today on the way home from school, he said,"I am going to start my own business. I am going to open a bakery up here just like the one Grammy and Grampy have down there. That way we can always have one nearby. Mom, you can bake your cookies and stuff and the rest of the recipes I will get from them. I think it will do really good because there are no bakeries around here." He has mentioned this before but he talks about it a lot more lately. Isn't that funny?

Here he is with one of his recycled artwork pieces. It is impossible to throw anything in the recycle bin without Spencer finding a artistic purpose for it.

On a totally different side note...I have been trying to write more on my blog. I don't keep a journal (the horror!) and this is my way to remember all the fun (and not so fun) things in my family. So hang in there...you might get smothered in my sappiness sometimes, but it won't harm you. I promise.

A Full Heart

I love staying home. I have No idea how our home would run if I worked full time. I am so grateful that my hubby has two good jobs that allows me to be home.

Right now we are going on Day 5 of the flu. We suspect it is the swine flu, but I am not taking them in for an official test.

I love that "mom" makes things feel better with a snuggle or a kiss. I love that "mom" is the name they call out to soothe them. Call me selfish...but that is one of the perks of the job.

I remember my mom taking care of me. Oh how I loved it. When she would give us 7 up to drink and crackers to eat, somehow she made them taste so much better than they were. I want to be like that. I think I may actually be like that with my kids. I hope so.

I remember coming home from school and every so often, our house smelled of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies. It put an instant smile on our faces. If we had a rough day at school, it was suddenly forgotten by cookies and milk. (She made crispier cookies so they dunked really well :)

Now I think I will go make some chocolate chip cookies. Mine aren't crispy, but I know they will put an instant smile on their faces after school. (well, Filippo and Bridgete are home sick...maybe I will set some aside for them in the freezer :)

A little bit of this....

A little bit of that... (now I am singing that song :)

Days have been going by so quickly. I can't believe it is already October 9th. Our house has been a busy house with school, my hubby's new work schedule, football and soccer. I am happy to say that our fall decorations are up and I am already making Bridgete's costume.

I am loving the change in the air. Bring on the soups, stews and casseroles!

We had VISITORS! Uncle Gery and Ken came by to see us. It was great (a little chaotic: at dinnertime Sophie was hungry so Dave was holding her while I was serving up enchiladas. Neither of us could sit and Gery and Ken weren't to sure if they should sit or stand or wait or what. I eventually got everyone their food; Dave sat down as the official adult representative of the family and I nursed in a chair close by. Just a little awkward :) but it worked out.

And this little cutie is sitting up and moving all over. She is growing up WAY too fast. She doesn't "officially" crawl, but she gets around pretty darn good.

"Hi. I am Sophie and I am a big girl!"

"Hi. I am Sophie and I like yoga. This is my downward dog."

Speaking of growing up fast - when did Filippo grow? He has almost caught up to me! And his feet are like flippers. Got to love those middle school years when all they do is eat and grow.