Monday, November 3, 2014

Wow! Lots has changed.

I was looking at my last few posts in 2013 and a lot has changed since then. My boys are growing up so fast. I feel like I blink and they are a few years older. Danny just turned 11, and Austin is approaching 9 1/2 and Andrew is now 3 1/2. Right now, we have a 5th grader, 4th grader and Andrew will be enrolling for Pre-K this coming March. Yikes!



Trying to blog about everything and keep my head afloat just doesn't seem feasible anymore with all the work I am subjecting myself to. However, I do love looking back on everything that has happened in our lives since the kids were born so I'm making a renewed effort to try and keep up.

We had a wonderful October and Halloween was a lot of fun this year with all three boys running up to the door. Kamal and I got to take a backseat approach to trick or treating this year and it was a lot of fun.

Now we are in November, approaching Thanksgiving and a nice week off. Before we get there, however, we get to celebrate my 39th birthday on the 18th. Dad and Carol will be taking us out to eat and we look forward to seeing them. The kids love their Gramme and Pawpaw.

Our cousin, Stephen, came to visit us from California. We hadn't seen him since he was 15 years old (now 25). A lot has changed, he's such a tall, handsome man now and we were thrilled that the boys got to meet part of the family. We took him to The Oasis to see the lake and surrounding area. It was a lot of fun for everyone.

Soon, we will be hitting December, the busiest time of year for everyone. Looking forward to all that it holds for us and then on to the new year. Can't believe how quickly it is flying but so excited about what the future holds for my family. Until next time!

Saturday, April 27, 2013

The Narrow Gate by Julianne McCullagh

The Narrow Gate by Julianne McCullagh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this quick read. The characters were all flawed and that is what made them human. It was a wonderful story about regrets and forgiveness and how the sins of the parents could trickle down to create sins for the children. Also, without trying, sometimes history is doomed to repeat itself if we aren't careful.

There are many things that I carried away from this book. One of them being that life is too short to hold grudges and you are only given one life, one chance, so you better make it count. Also, sometimes it's best to let things go rather than pressing on to find out the truth. Because the truth WILL hurt.

I gave it 4 stars rather than 5 because of the many spelling and grammar errors I came across. Otherwise, it was a good story.

View all my reviews

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Where's the time gone?

Wow, it's been a LONG time since I blogged... so long in fact that blogger has changed the way they look and I am relearning a new software. I guess that's what happens when you let time pass you by.

This year has been full of wonderful firsts as Baby Andrew is not so much of a "baby" anymore and he keeps making us laugh with all the new things he says or does. I have been trying to video as much as I can because daily, he's changing. He can tell you how old he is, what his name is, point to all body parts, say colors and sing "E I E I O" almost on cue. He is starting to go "potty" and we have even put underwear on him a couple of times. It is all going so fast but we are trying to enjoy every minute.



The big boys continue to amaze me with everything they are able to do. They are both totally fluent in "computer" and I get so surprised at what Danny is able to accomplish by himself and the new things he can teach me. Austin is the same way and is starting to show a real interest in sports. They have started going to the skate park so that they can practice with their razor scooters and it shocks me every time to see them out there with the big kids with no fear. We told them that next year, they will get to go to school on their own - although it breaks my heart - and they are totally looking forward to it. (Also, a side note, I can wear their shoes and shirts, comfortably - yikes!)


Kamal and I have been so busy with our businesses but I guess I'm getting what I prayed for when we first got married. I used to pray to God that I would be able to spend every waking moment with Kamal. It was my dream to work at home with him on our business. This is a perfect example of why you should be careful what you pray for! No, just kidding. Although he drives me crazy sometimes, I am glad to be able to take off when I need to for the kids and have the time to prepare us healthy meals most nights. Even though, having our own businesses can be stressful and not so glamorous, I'm learning how to set my schedule and hopefully soon, we'll make enough money, not to be rich but to just get by. We now have a in-home studio and we have been doing several photo shoots along with the videography, so it's coming along. Also, Kamal is a Realtor, so we have fixed his site up and look forward to him helping out people to buy and sell their homes. This is one area that Kamal excels at.


I'm going to try and post more, although I can't promise anything. I am at the point in my life where I have to constantly divide my time up and try to do it the best and most efficient way possible. While the kids are at school, I am a working mom. After the kids get home from school, my time is cooking, cleaning and homework (and boy, do they have a lot of homework in 2nd and 3rd grade). We are also tutoring for the STAAR test coming up soon, so I feel a little overwhelmed lately but happy. Danny has been putting in good effort on the tutoring and Austin is really improving a lot in his reading. I also try to take Andrew to a playdate at least once a week to have him interact with children his own age and host a craft playdate once a month at our house for all the boys to participate. I am the organizer for the Rockin Mommas and that takes up some of my time too.


However, all of it is worthwhile. Now, I just have to fit the time back in my day for my run. Before Thanksgiving, I was running 5 miles a day and loving it. Up to date, I haven't gotten back on my running schedule since Christmas and I can definitely feel the impact it has on my health and disposition. Exercise does wonders for the mind and body.

Until next time, enjoy and God bless you and yours!

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Photos of Andrew





Since I didn't get to share any of Andrew's photo shoots (yet), I thought I would share a few pictures on my blog. They turned out really great and I am so proud of them. We now have a photo studio out of our home and we have been taking advantage of it. I was really excited that we were able to do his first birthday smash cake photo and video shoot as well out of our own studio. He did excellent and I was so proud of him. Such a blessing he has been. These will be wonderful memories to look back on.

These next photos were from when Andrew was around five to six months old. He was so cute and I just had to share. Time flies too fast. I wish it would slow down some. I really like having him as a baby.




Thursday, June 14, 2012

How Time Flies!

Oh my goodness! Has it really been that long since I posted anything on my blog? A lot has happened since then. I had a baby and now my baby is a 1 year old and running! He does new things every day and it's hard sometimes to keep up. I will be doing more blogging and posting pictures, however, I am just trying to find the time! Yikes!

I love being a mother of 3 boys but sometimes, it's so challenging. And now that we are in summer, I am homeschooling them for summer school as well as working for our business, Austin Pro Video and freelancing as a graphic designer. I'm also trying to lose weight and become a healthy mom but that requires me to take time for myself to do the exercising and log in my food journal every, single, day! The key here: balance. And I am trying very hard to find that balance.

Thank you to all my followers for being patient with me and I look forward to catching up!