Noah's First Superhero Youtube Video!

There are times when I give Noah time to play on the computer. Sometimes he'll practice on his math skills which is my favorite, and because of that I'll reward him with internet time to play games. I'm not a big fan of the internet except to blog, and catch up on current events that are going on in the world, but for the most part I'm an old school momma who handwrites letters, and still owns, and watches DVD's!

Inspirational Thought - Childhood.

"Somehow, in our hurry to steer our children toward accomplishment and independence 
we seem to have forgotten what childhood is all about. 

Preoccupied with managing their lives, and our own, it is so easy to lose sight of our children-their tenderness and innocence, their joyousness, their capacity of wonder, their hunger of enchantment. 

A touch of magic can reawaken the childlike spirit in all of us allowing us to revisit, for a time, the secret realm of childhood." 
-Katrina Kenison, 
Mitten Strings for God

Wake Up. Explore. Repeat.

The weather has been absolutely agreeing with summer this whole week, and have been keeping our days low key lately. The past two days has consisted of somewhat doing the same routine which in all honesty is okay! Sure it's nice to be able to get away and venture to unknown territory, but sometimes cruising along highway130, and finding various parks you can venture out to can be quite the adventure. Which is why I am happy to have found Noah a t-shirt that reads "wake up. explore. repeat." Every time he wears it I am reminded that it's okay for us to repeat the same things especially during the summertime. 

On Always Being There For Our Children.

With the way life has been for our family with relocating to a whole new town, starting new schools in Central Jersey, and the way the world is getting in terms of telling us what's good which is really wrong as well as all the travesties that have been happening in the world (such as Europe, Texas, and Florida), I am extremely grateful for the continued strength that I have in raising the kids I have left at home with true, and honest principles. Having a temple so close to us now where we can attend weekly will give us that extra strength, and help us draw nearer to God as we attend more often. I see in each of our kids a unique light that shines so bright in which i hope others will see. I often remind them that anytime they feel that light going dim to fill it with doing something good. It's so nice to see them contributing small acts of service to one another as well as others. They may not notice it, but I do. I know that their generations can do better than we are today. They all have the potential to move mountains, and to pass on their smile, and love. Having our children growing older is okay with me...sometimes! 

Even though Sierra is on her own we keep in constant contact with each other. We pray for her 24.7. She may be 21, but I am so grateful for the phone calls i continue to get from her. Whether it's about a boy, her job, her education, or texting me a photo of her latest T.J. Maxx find, or calling me from REI asking me which color rainbow sandals she should get this time brings a whole bunch of happy to my days. 

See, thing is I didn't really do anything like this with my mom. I didn't call to lament to her enough about life, how fast my kids are growing, or any of the bad things that were happening at that time of my life, or anything that I needed advice on. Even though I feel as if I don't need my mom now at my age, I really do! And I'm so grateful for the talks we have over the phone, and for the sweet texts that she'll send from time to time (she prefers phone calls!)

One thing I know is that i hope those phone calls from Sierra keep coming. I want her to know that she can call upon me for anything, anytime. I want her to call me when she has an issue with her future kids, and lament to me on how fast they're growing up, and current events that will happen in her lifetime.  I want her to know that even though she's 2100 miles away I will sacrifice my time just to pick up the phone to talk to her.

It's bittersweet that at 21 she is continuing to find her own way, and learning from all the experiences she has faced in the past. And as for the rest of our kids, I want them to know that they can all rely on me, and their pa for anything when their time comes to permanently leave the nest. With school starting soon it's so interesting to see them growing up, and to notice their voices changing, standing up for what they believe in, and watching their personalities becoming fearless and bold. Love that my girls feel like they can talk to me, and ask for advice, and it is my hope that they will also have that special relationship with their future posterity. 

I have faith that they will, and that they can all do better than i did when I was their ages!  

 

Thoughts On My Little Boy Growing Up.

This past Monday I sobbed all kinds of tears, and I'm talking on, and off all day long! I hated it because I ended up with a massive headache. I couldn't help but to let all my tears out as I was sitting looking out the window of the house that we have lived in for the past seven years where I remember Noah as a toddler playing outside, and going for walks.  My mind was filled in disbelief with flashbacks of him, and his sisters. He interrupted my thoughts (which was probably good), and saw that I had tears. I began to sob even harder as I hugged him. He immediately asked me, "are you okay mommy? Why you crying? You miss Sierra?" Clearly that was not the case, and although I do miss Sierra being around I was crying because my baby boy....

^^^ one month old ^^^

is now a little adult. 

^^^ five ^^^

Noah's kindergarten orientation was this week, and it was so surreal. I had all kinds of mixed emotions inside of me. Pride, fear, joy, and elation. Although I know he'll be okay I couldn't help but to think that I'm going to feel so alone! See, every five years I've always had a kid, and whenever I've sent off a child to Kindergarten I've always been pregnant, and let me tell you something you guys it felt weird that day taking Noah to orientation without a belly. 

I'll miss the constant feeling of cuddling with him in the mornings before we start our day, making lunches for him, venturing out to unknown territory, taking him to the playground, going to the beach, and taking him to Five Below to pick out a cheap toy. This "being a stay at home mom stuff" for the past 15 years has been a pretty good setting for me, and now I have no idea how I'm going to use my time once he's in school. Luckily it's half-day kindergarten, but still those three hours can seem like an eternity. Although I won't be raising anymore babies my kids will always keep me busy, but I know there will be moments wondering what to do with my time. I think Noah is already preparing me for that. 

There are times when Noah will be taking a nap (which is extremely rare), wanting to play by himself with his legos, dinosaurs, and Optimus Prime. He's growing up, and is able to be entertain himself without me interfering. 

But I don't let him. 

I'll give him his space, but then I'll intervene on whatever he's doing and say "let's go for a walk, and ride your scooter", or "let's paint a picture together." He'll oblige, and we end up doing just that.

There are moments when I'll  oke around with the kids, and quote the father from My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and say, "why you want to leave me?" It's jokes like that which keep me sane, and even though I'm getting used to Sierra being gone I still have my moments of missing her. As each season goes by the kids get taller, more vocal, smarter, and independent. Not something I'm used to especially when it comes to my little boy. Time is fleeting, and all I want to do is hang on to my son's youth. Wishing to run into a spring that he can drink from that will prevent him from growing up. Then again, after watching Tuck Everlasting I don't think I want to put any of my kids through that or myself because I'd want them to live a long life. So as each day passes I hang on to the happiest moments. I don't want to reflect on anything negative. This is what happens when you're nearing your mid 40's, and realizing that you may not have any more children. You just don't want to concentrate on anything that brings negativity in your life. The small, simple things such as Noah picking a wildflower for me on our walk, and your daughters randomly coming up to give you a big hug can become a pretty big deal, and I want to cherish those moments forever. With the weather being beautiful lately (in spite of the cold wind and rain...c'mon spring!) we have taken advantage of our time together. I soak it in, and wait for the sun to shine so that Noah and I can go play outside. 

Waiting for Chelsea to come home makes it more interesting, and although she loves school she's getting a touch of "summer fever".  I don't think it helps seeing all the fun things that Noah and I have done without her, but lately she's been uttering words such as, "awe...he looks so cute" and "did he have fun?" She doesn't sound too jealous anymore, and that is another sign that proves to me that she is also maturing. She'll be in middle school before I know it!

Let's not forget about Lexie who makes time fly even faster!! Her high school graduation will arrive quickly too! 

Ahh..the "mama" turmoil that we mothers go through. Isn't it all worth it though? 

I know three hours of school isn't enough, but once he's in first grade that'll be a different story! He'll be there all day, and then I"m really going to have to figure out what to do with my time. 

My sister constantly tells me to utilize my journals and make it into a book. I can also go back to school (if I have the desire because right now my kids come first), and of course get a job, but to he honest I'd rather be dealing with kids than adults in a workplace. I sure have experienced a lot throughout my life, and maybe publishing a book is in the foreseeable future. Who knows.   

Life goes on, and kids grow up. No matter how old my girls are, I will saturate them with love by holding them in my arms. Not too easy to give hugs and kisses  with my oldest being away, but having three left at home gives me a lot of moments to do just that.

Especially with this little guy. 

Every moment of being a stay at home mom, and raising babies has been so worth it. 

Just watch this video. It'll give you a whole different perspective on raising kids and being a parent. Enjoy time with your kiddos cause they are only little once! 

Noah-isms.

Noah's choice phrases are becoming more and more funny, blunt, and a bit more mature. I never get tired of hearing him. 

Jon is awesome when it comes to reading bedtime stories to the kids. Sometimes I wonder if he's giving me a break for all the years I did it when the girls were little, and so Noah insists that he reads to him. I could hear him from downstairs, and instead of Jon reading to Noah, Noah was reading to him. The book was Green Eggs and Ham, and the one sentence I heard Noah read to Jon was "I will never eat green ham, and eggs!"

Noah has become a transformers freak, and star wars geek, and has been bugging me to buy him a larger Optimus Prime, and lego star wars. Hs words, "I shouldn't have to tell you to buy them for me mom. When daddy gets paid can we go get them?" I told him we'd have to see about that!

The other night before Jon tucked Noah into bed my kisses with Noah were intense. I told Jon how when it comes the time for Noah to be married that I'm not going to be his "number one" person in his life. So I hugged Noah so tight, and then kissed him again, and said to him, "Be sure to marry someone kind, and lovely, honest, and true." He then said to me, "Like Sofia the first?" That made me smile when he said that! He obviously wants to marry a princess! 

Noah sometimes is good at using the bathroom, and wiping on his own. But when i went to use the potty after he did I noticed a couple of brown friends floating around unflushed. I asked him if he wiped. He said, "Yes, daddy did it." I then asked Jon if he wiped him, and he said no. That's when Noah said to me, "Mom, I shouldn't call everyone to wipe me I can wipe myself!" 

There was a commercial about a brother and sister eating lunch, and playing on their phones. When Noah saw that commercial he said, "Awww, that's like me and Chelsea. Kids need phones mom. The sister has a phone, but not the brother, and I need a phone too!" I then said to him, "When you're 12 Noah you'll get a phone, and most likely it'll be a flip phone!"  He smiled and said, "ok". 

A Little Bit Of A Snowfall.

I find such comfort in the winter. 

It never fails every time it snows I feel a little bit nostalgic because in all honesty, there are days when I actually miss the winters in Utah. I think the fact that we lived close to so many ski resorts got me a bit spoiled. Not that I'm a skier, or a snowboarder, but the fact that we actually got a lot of snow back there, & had a nice view of the mountains was very tranquil to me. The other night I somewhat had a bit of a face time/daughter date with Sierra. She decided to drive up to Big Cottonwood Canyon, but unfortunately was cut short due to black ice. She stumbled upon it as she reached the s curve. She turned around, & her words were "I think I'm going to turn around now because I don't want to die!" Good choice Sierra!! We had a nice talk and she made it home just in time to go to her choir class. 

So when we finally got our first snowfall a couple of weeks ago I was excited. I had been longing for snow since then, and fortunately got some this week. As soon as it came down I told Noah to quickly log off the computer so that we can go outside & feel the snow fall on our faces! These photos were not expected to be taken since it was just us outside being in the moment. Luckily Chelsea came home and because I'm always taking pictures of them asked if she could take some (we seriously need to get her a camera!) I of course never say no to picture taking so I obliged. Especially when the kids ask! She took a few of me and Noah, and then I captured some moments of them two. 

The fact that it was National Hug Day made it so sweet too! It became even more fun when Lexie came home! Yay! Her sibs adore her, and always hover around her when she comes home. Life for her has been pretty busy lately with school that every time we take pictures she's hardly around. I'm so glad I got to capture a few shots of her (which I'll post at a later date), and that Chelsea captured this one of us! 

We had some fun until Noah began to get cold. I was surprised because normally he's all about the snow, and playing in it until darkness falls, but because this snow fall was "wet" it was super cold!! And  we walked ran inside!

The snow here is obviously different than the snow in the Rockies out west, and I've pretty much already gotten used to it being so different. I'm grateful though that we get some snow although it's been pretty mild lately. I'm hoping to get more snow so that the kids can go sledding. Winter is just not complete until we go sledding! We're still in January with two more months of winter left so hopefully mother nature will bring us more snow...and not the wet, wet kind! 

Regardless...I have fun with these kids. I love them so much, and we are going to make the best out of this winter whether we spend it indoors, or outdoors....with snow, or no snow! 

Happy weekend! 

It's a Beautiful Season Of Gratitude.

Having a house that is 1500 sq feet has its pros and cons. Cons because it can get a little too crowded where everyone can hear everything, and see what everyone is doing, hence sometimes getting on each others nerves, and pros because it can be the most coziest and intimate setting to a family. I personally choose the latter, and for the past six and a half years of living in this "cape cod" style house of ours we have made it a heaven on earth, and a place where our  kids can home to feel safe, comfortable, and loved. 

This time of year brings a lot of cozy moments into our home. Cozy because fall is officially in full swing. This is a period where the girls begin to play Christmas music on the piano, and sing like crazy people. This is a  time where I don't mind all of us sitting down on the couch watching a hallmark movie, or reading a book while the kids are entertaining themselves doing crafts, coloring, or  playing "restaurant" where Noah's the waiter, and Chelsea's the cook, and if Lexie's home, well...she pretends to eat the fake food! Right now with school still in session Noah and I have all the time in the world to do things together during the day, and as much as I would like to sit down to catch up on my reading, and my journal writing, I make the choice to pull myself in the direction of a beating heart. Not mine, but my children, and my focus is all on them. I have long since realized that time quickly flies when your raising teenagers, and now even toddlers. Especially when I see my 19 year old daughter making decisions on her own, and praying that they will be wise ones. Yep...the days just keep passing by way too quick for me these days especially for this little munchkin who just turned five, and you know what that means. 

Once they turn five, time seems to fly by even quicker and the next thing you know they're in kindergarten! Therefore spending time with him during the day is my priority, and sometimes my selfishness tends to creep out even more these days. I don't allow him too much "alone time" entertaining himself because this is the time where time with our little ones should be cherished. There are days when I look at him and thank my lucky stars because for the past five years he hasn't broken a bone in his body, gotten too many boo boos, or overall cause me any major stress & I'm extremely thankful for those blessings. I think having three sisters has helped him not get hurt too bad because they spoil him & treat him like a little prince. They aren't rough with him except maybe for Chelsea who can provoke, poke, and egg him at times, but luckily there have never been no trips to the e.r., or major punishments for serious drama. I thank the girls for loving him and expressing kindness to him more than any kind of resentment. He's as sweet as they come packaged with hugs, kisses, and a lot of  "I love you's, I'm sorry's mixed in with "don't spank my butt." 

At times I'll reflect back on the time spent raising the girls (including Sierra who is not pictured in the photo above) at this age, and never want to see them as the "lost years." I chose to be a stay at home mom for the simple reason of "time", and I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity that I have had for the past 14 years to be a "stay at home mom" with my kids.  I love them all, and this time of year gives me many opportunities to express my gratitude towards them. Thanking the Lord for sending them down to me one by one to nurture, guide, protect, and love them. Even when they're 20, 30, even 40 years old I want them to know that I'll be there for them to give advice, and continue to love them. This time of year is very sentimental to me, but also a very happy time. It reminds me to be kind, and give thanks in all that I do, and for all that I have. This is such a beautiful season of "life" not only because of how nature shows herself off with beautiful colored leaves, and cooler temperatures, but because it is a time for family get togethers, and expressing gratitude in all things! And I always want my kids to know that no matter how old they are that they will always have a "heavenly" home to come home to...no matter what! 

appreciating distance & time when it comes to our children.

Nothing matters to me most than finding quality time to spend with each of these kids individually. It's kind of impossible to do that when Sierra is out west going to school, but thank goodness for technology, and instant communication such as texting, and FaceTime. I am realizing the reality of life when it comes to a child going away for school. It doesn't matter if she's in good hands living with her grandparents I still wonder about her well-being. As much as I trust her in the hands of my in-laws I can't help but to find myself worrying just a bit. I've also come to terms that worrying is not good for the soul physically as well as mentally. Alleviating the worry by thinking happy thoughts and having faith in seeing the positive side of things really helps. I guess you can say that these past four months of being without her has been quite an adjustment, and amazingly have gotten accustomed to it. That doesn't mean that I'm not going to stop calling her, writing her, or sending her "thinking about you" texts every now and then. We are a very close family, and as far as her sibs go...they miss her too. Every now and then I'll ask them if they miss Sierra, and of course they all say to me, "mom, that's a dumb question." Hearing that kind of a response made me feel good knowing that in spite of all the sisterly disagreements, and little brother annoying moments they've had (which is very rare) they all love each other. 

I find it comforting as well when Sierra calls or texts me first. Waking up in the morning to see that she tried calling me at midnight (which is 10pm her time), and a text that she left me way early in the morning makes me feel confident in knowing that she is seriously growing up, and beginning to realize that there are times when she really needs me. It gives me assurance that she trusts my advice when it comes to school, work, boys, major trials, or your basic everyday drama. As a mother I want my children to be able to trust, and tell me anything. I don't ever want them to feel like they can't come to me when there's a problem, or when they need help. My solution may not be a perfect one, but it's gratifying to know that they have enough trust to tell me what's going on in their lives. I know that on occasion they'll go to their dad for advice, but I firmly believe that a child no matter how old they get will always need their mother. (I know this because there are times when I need my mother as well.)

Appreciating my kids is something I hold extremely solid in my life, and I never want to take them for granted. Distance truly does make the heart grown fonder. Again, I know this because at times I feel it being away from my sister, mother, and girlfriends. Fortunately for our family whether we're distant or not our hearts have always leaned towards love, and time. Time for us to spend together whether it's one on one dates with our kids, or family time. Sierra has been missed a lot lately when we've gone on our recent road trip to D.C. and New York. Especially when we go to the temple. I am very grateful for distance, and time because without those two things we'd never be able to appreciate family, and sometimes families need that. I personally can't fathom when the time comes for my girls, and Noah to get married. One thing for sure I'm definitely going to appreciate the whole distance thing even more. 

Being the mother of these four kids is the greatest thing on earth, and I can't imagine my life any other way. I'm hoping and praying that Sierra will find time off of work to come visit us this summer so she can bring her bubbliness, and act goofy again in person with her sibs.

Moab, Utah.

Moab. 

This was one place where I loved venturing out to get away when I lived in Salt Lake. I can't believe it has been eight years since we left Utah, and I'm sure missing it right now. Especially since we've been hit some massive, windy, cold weather. What happened to spring anyway? It's like it just sprung us over! 

I love looking back at old photos reflecting on the good times we had when the girls were little. Don't get me wrong...I love all the memories we're making now with a boy in the mix, but this part of my life watching the girls grow up, and developing into their own personalities was amazing. 

Still is...

Especially since these two girls are now teenagers, and one of them is about to turn nineteen in a couple of months. Now that Sierra is back in Utah going to school I hope that she is taking advantage of her surroundings and hope that she'll get the chance to go back to Moab.

The years fly by way too quickly especially with this cute little girl who is now nine! It seems as if she was this small yesterday. There are times when I look at Noah, and see Chelsea all over again. It's beautiful to see the way God creates our children, and how they all carry the same resemblance. 

Memories of a four drive to Moab was certainly worth it. The singing in the car with their squeaky voices, and giggling all around. Toys scattered about, and crayons rolling back and forth as we'd make a turn. The drive down is so peaceful, and the sun...oh man that sun can shine on my face for eternity if it could. The great part of my life while having three daughters was taking them to the most beautiful places out west. I think moving from a small town in Texas to a state like Utah gave me many opportunities to want to explore the western hemisphere, and we sure did a lot of that before moving out here. 

Jon is such a great photographer. I always tell him that he should go back and take up photography as a career. I love the way he captured the girls in all their beauty. I wish I'd been in some of these pics, but I was too busy taking in the beauty of Moab too! I was also making sure Chelsea wasn't running off, or putting rocks and dirt in her mouth! Living on the east coast is great and all, but sometimes you just need to get away...far away, and venture out to the other side of the hemisphere, and that is what we hope to do soon!

Cross country drive in our plans for the future? Who knows.  Right now all i want is some warmer weather. Taking it day by day, and living in the moment...for now.

Hello Spring!

As i was organizing my pics in iPhoto I stumbled upon these pics, and realized they never made it into the blog last year. Now why is that?? These were taken while we went out for a drive in the outskirts of Jersey and stumbled upon this beautiful garden of flowers. I couldn't help but to get down, and capture my kids enjoying the beauty of some of the earth. I love flowers, and hit myself silly because I wish I could be a green thumb like my mama, and not kill every flower that my kids want to plant. I leave it in their hands to keep up any small garden they plant whether it's inside a huge pot, or out in our little back yard. 

^^^ matching shirts & american flags they actually grabbed from their garden...I made sure they put them back!  ^^^

^^^ a little sweat & gum in his mouth...a sure sign of spring ^^^

Even though it's 40 degrees right now looking at these pics gets me so excited for warmer temperatures, and going out on nature walks. Spring and summer are the seasons which bond us even more as a family, and the older my two younger children get i see that they are beginning to "really" catch the meaning of how beautiful God's creations are. 

Here's wishing everyone a Happy Spring wherever you are, and if you are in colder temperatures hang in there...it won't last very long. Unless we get more snow just like we did last year on the fifth day of spring! 

Happy Thursday!

"No...I'm not expecting."

After reading this post I've decided to write something similar but with a different vein of thought. 

I don't know if it's a trend, or the fact that the weather was so brutally cold in different parts of the country causing some of us to eat a lot of warm foods that a few of us are being asked the same question, "Are you expecting?" 

A couple of weeks ago a dear sister in my ward asked me if I was expecting. You can imagine my surprise along with my answer when she asked! "I wish!" is what I exclaimed. In the past almost 20 years of my life I have never had anyone ask me such a question...even when I was pregnant. The good thing about the outcome of it was that I didn't get upset. It didn't make me feel insecure, it didn't make me feel fat, and I certainly didn't take it personally. The fact that my last two pregnancies resulted in C-sections leaving me with a muffin top, mushroom, or whatever you call that piece of extra fat, skin, layer, what have you didn't offend me in the least. It also didn't help that this winter has been brutally ice cold which prevented me from serious exercise. I can't help it if my belly craved all those warm foods in the past two months! Luckily spring is just around the corner, then summer and then I can go walk on the bike trail every morning (or at least three times a week!)  

A couple of weeks went by, and because I hadn't seen this sister at church in a while decided to pay her a visit. I was checking up on her to make sure she was okay, and as I was leaving her apartment I happened to tease her about the "pregnancy question." She chuckled, and said, "You know Rose...I don't know even know why I asked you that because as I see you now you don't even look it. It must have been the skirt you were wearing that day." 

True. True. There are certain clothes that show off my muffin top because I can't suck that in, but I can't help it if that layer of skin due to c-sections sticks out. It did feel good having a conversation with her telling her the why's, and shouldnt's about getting pregnant at my age, and how I basically have given up. I was flattered when she said to me that she was not aware that I had already reached my 40's. She was nonjudgmental, easy to talk to, and the fact that I told her two years ago how I would love to have another boy gave her the conclusion that I might be pregnant. 

But...

Let's face it...I'm 42, and don't think I'm going to have a fifth. It's been four years since I gave birth to Noah, and I do remember telling her that it would be nice if Noah had a baby brother to hang around with. As much as I would have loved that I honestly don't believe it's going to happen. I know that there are many women out there who are having babies clear into their mid-40's early 50's, but as the years go by that lovely vision slowly diminishes.

I have numerous friends who have suffered miscarriages, and infertility at various ages, and I commend those who share their experiences about that online. I thank my Heavenly Father that I have never miscarried or had trouble making babies. I'm extremely grateful for having four healthy children, and if Noah is the only boy that I get to share my life with in this mortal life then so be it. He is so special, is spoiled by his three sisters, and because he was my surprise baby I count my blessings even more. 

I have to admit though...it was a bit of a shock to me when this sister asked if I was pregnant, but if anything I took it as a compliment only because she thought I was younger! haha! I have also trained myself to not take anything personal. 

See...when you've been through some pretty rough stuff such as I have in my life, you have the tendency to be able to handle any adversity, and I strive to not let anything get to me. I really try to not let anything get in the way of my happiness. Hitting my 40's and gradually maturing in the gospel of Jesus Christ has helped me to let all the little things go...especially when it comes to intrusive & personal questions. 

Still...one should never, never assume.

The world (unfortunately) is full of people who don't think before they speak, and many of us do not know the full story behind someone's home front, and we should really be careful of the things that come out of our mouth, and be mindful of that person. Most importantly we should never judge as to why someone is not having babies close in age, why they're having a baby late in age, or why they're not having babies period! These choices are our own, and not anyone's business. Furthermore, we need to reevaluate our brain before the brain asks a stupid, and hurtful question. 

Luckily for me I have a heart so big, and the ability to create great relationships with people that if anyone asks me something out of the ordinary I know I'll be able to handle it. Just be prepared to have an 'out of the ordinary' answer from me if you do (smiling.) 

I want to be that person that doesn't take anything offensive. I want to be one of those understanding, think before you speak, not hurting anyone's feelings kind of gal, I want to be able to laugh about the silly & stupid things people might say, & when I do that's proof showing me that I am indeed a true grown up...with feelings. 

Now, seriously...do I look pregnant?? 

Rockaway Beach

Even though I'm not a true new yorker, a brooklynite, or a born and bred "jersey girl" I really feel as if I'm beginning to feel like a true "east coaster" and have become extremely comfortable around my surroundings. My family and I have developed such a strong love for New York for the mere fact that this state has gone through so much heartache throughout the years. From the World Trade Center bombing in '93, to the 9/11attacks in the year 2001, and the devastation of Hurricane Sandy that occurred at one of New Yorks most popular beaches...Rockaway Beach.

I had never been here and have always wanted to check it out, and if I had the time to help the community of Long Island by cleaning up the mess that Sandy left behind I would have, but Sandy also left a huge mess to clean up in South Jersey. 

It felt surreal being at this beach. I never had the opportunity to go before Sandy destroyed it, and it would have been interesting to see how the boardwalk looked like before Sandy took it apart. Luckily our friend google provided us with a ton of pics to peek at to see how it once looked like before. 

This winter has been a little rough in our neck of the woods, and because of it we have been going through major beach withdrawal. Since the weather was gloriously beautifully this past Saturday we decided to go to the beach, and all that was needed was a hoodie. 

We are so fortunate to live in an area where we are an hour away to south and north jersey beaches. We have always gone to Ocean City or Spring Lake, but we heard Rockaway Beach calling our name. 

There were a few people, but not as many as we thought. I could see that they are still trying to rebuild. This area suffered more, and the destruction was brutal. 

I was amazed at how big the parking lot was. Then again I can see why they have such a big parking lot to accommodate millions of people that live in the new york area! Apparently it was filled up with mountains of trash while cleaning up after the storm. Here is a photo from my friend google, and my oh my I can't believe all the debris... it literally looks like the trash in the movie Wall-e. 

^^^ can't believe this is the Jacob Riis parking lot where we were at
Picture via google. ^^^

The kids had a blast and as soon as we got out of the car Noah & Chelsea ran straight to the playground to release some much needed energy form the 75 minute car ride!

^^^ apparently water comes out of the holes not the rings. Perfect for the kids on a hot summer day. ^^^

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They didn't last too long as they wanted to dig for sea shells, and we all just enjoyed walking down the beach and having fun as a family. Captured this moment when everyone is running away from the tide.

^^^ amazed at all the baby swings they have! ^^^

This day was so much fun, and these kids are looking forward to going to the beach more this summer. 

*****

As I was deleting some of the photos on my iPhone I decided to keep this one. It's dark, blurry and grainy but it truly is one my favorites. It reminds me of the good times I had when my mother used to take my sister and I to the park until it way past our bedtime! Swinging in the swings and catching fireflies in between. Running around from the merry go round to the monkey bars & back to the swings. Because that was our favorite thing to do when it was just the three of us. 

Seeing my family as a whole swinging away warmed my heart...too bad I couldn't get in the photo with them!

It was an old school kind of day, and it is going to be documented as one of my most memorable moments in this blog's history.