Happy Thanksgiving

I think Thanksgiving came early this year...maybe not but it sure seems like that. Where has this year gone? At least this has been a better year than last =)

First things first this week. Leroy and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary! That was the best and easiest decision I ever made. Never once have I gone "why did I get married?".....it's awesome to be married to your best friend because I know so many people end up in divorce. He completely surprised me at work by bringing these to me himself. See I'm usually upstairs at work but this month I'm down in the lobby so he got to come and see me and we had an awesome lunch together. I don't know where 8 years has gone, it seems like yesterday we got married and were both sick on our honeymoon.

Now on to Thanksgiving 2 days after our anniversary....Danae made this super cute Indian costume at school, Derrick had a pilgrim one but he didn't feel like posing for me.
Here is our yummy bird. And guess what?! I actually cooked it all the way this year! Yup, after 7 previous attempts at cooking turkeys, this one came out completely done with no pink. I think my problem was I never thawed it completely and there was always a little bit of ice. Not this year, I followed Butterball's tips tricks and ideas and did it! So proud of myself. Now to get some rest before we go out at midnight for those awesome Black Friday deals at Walmart =)

Yes, I'm finally on the blog again

Hey whaddya know, we are still alive! I've just been lazy about blogging. I like seeing my kids more than I like typing about them, I know, crazy huh?! While getting things for Thanksgiving I realized that maybe I should show Halloween pics before Thanksgiving gets here. Here they are! This was the first year since 2008 I got to decorate for Halloween. With more space, I got to get everything I could find and put it out. There are still A LOT of things we couldn't find though. But after 2 moves in 2 years I think we did pretty good. We had Spiderman and Princess Cinderella this year. We trick-or-treated around the neighborhood (along with the rest of Fillmore) for about an hour and then the kids were exhausted. For the last half block all we heard was "my feet hurt Mom" "can you carry my candy Dad"....we all were glad to see home again.




We also had our first parent teacher conferences of the year. Both kids are doing great in their studies. Both right on track and Derrick above level on reading! Danae surprised us and is doing great, she even surprised her teacher which is so cool.

Leroy is still fighting pain and I'm still fighting with customers but we are still here and getting ready to celebrate our 8th wedding anniversary on the 23rd. THE best decision I ever made was to ignore everyone and get married....I haven't regretted a day and am happier everyday =)

One of THOSE Weeks

I don't think I've ever been happier to see a weekend as I am to see THIS weekend. Work had more grouchier and more colorful complainers this week. I was called quite a few names I don't dare to repeat. Normally it just rolls off, but once you get called names one too many times you just want to hang up on people. Don't get me wrong, I love my job in Consumer Affairs but some days are worse than others.

To make things worse the kids pictures came in, well Derrick's came in, Danae just had proofs. See when they took pictures, Leroy found Danae's order form in her backpack, and took it right back and gave it to her teacher. (Mind you, shouldn't the teacher checked bags since they are only 5 year olds?) The teacher took it and said she'd put it with the other "left behinds". Weeks pass and I notice only Derrick's check got cashed so I email, get this, consumer affairs, for the picture company and no reply. Picture come in miraculously 3 days after I write the email. Derrick's was complete but Danae only had proofs. Leroy asked the teacher and she hadn't a clue what happened to Danae's money. Lo and behold today I get a response email from picture company and Danae's pictures are being processes! Yahoooooo I will have my baby's first ever school pictures. I even did good, I didn't yell or get upset over the confusion, Leroy was ticked but I stayed calm. Maybe getting yelled at is making me mellow, either that or I'm getting mellow in my old age =)

I also wrangled to get a week off next week. I tried a few weeks ago to get it off, the kids have Fall Break and the Hot Wheels convention is in LA the 13th-17th but it wasn't available. My amazing boss said if anything came up she'd give me first dibbs on it and she did! So I get to have 9 complete full days off. I can't wait!!!! I haven't had a vacation since August of 2009.....I'm psyched!

Let's see.....oh Danae loves her new teacher Mrs. Enriquez now. At first she was so-so on how she liked her because, of course she wasn't like Mrs. Moreno. Now after a few weeks she is enthralled with learning again. Thank goodness! Derrick is doing good. His favorite subject is computers but he's really reading well.

Ok I'm off to start on my Fall cleaning....yes I Fall and Spring clean...it's a sickness really.....

2 Days of Nothingness

So this is day #2 of doing absolutely nothing! Yesterday Leroy watched college football, the kids drove each other crazy and I read a book, it was so awesome. Today Derrick woke up before 7 and dragged me out of bed...BOOOOOOO! I did realize something the other day and I missed it, I missed our 2 year anniversary of being relocated to crazy Southern California. September 21 was that date. Year one was full of missing Fresno and year 2 has been a year of adjustment. Now that I have a regular job the idea of moving to a different place is nearly impossible so we've just accepted that this is where we will be. I like the kids school better and I like where we live better and I love my job better, so here we shall stay.

3 Clarks and a Little Lady

Here's our "Little Lady"....we went to a Hot Wheel KDays event in Goleta today, and as usual the kids got a toy if they found a Treasure Hunt (bribery works!). Here's what Danae got, the shoes on her tootsies. She comes waltzing in while we were watching TV and said, "Do I look like a lady?"

Is it Friday yet?

This is the first week I was wishing for Friday by noon on Monday. I've learned a downfall of Consumer Affairs and that is getting yelled at for no reason. The first time it happened I was a little upset, now that it's happened numerous times this week I just sit and laugh. Seriously now, do you really think your going to get what you want after yelling at me and calling your mailman names? I highly doubt it. I've made a few people hang up on me because I wouldn't give in and yell back at them. The saying goes you catch more flies with honey, some people really need to use more honey and less vinegar =) But I can still say I like my job and am not tired of it yet so all is good.

Danae is getting a new kinder teacher, her current one doesn't have full credentials so they are going to bring in a teacher with full credentials. I'm a little nervous because these are 5 year old kids they are changing up. Danae seems fine with the change but we'll have to see come Monday when it's her first full day with the new teacher.

Other than that we are heading to a Hot Wheel event this weekend, Leroy loves these things so he's psyched! This is the first one I get to go to in about 6 months so hopefully it will be fun. =) All I hope is the rest of the week goes fast and I don't get yelled at half as much as I already have!

Aspiring Architect

Take a look at our aspiring architect! Derrick is one of those kids that can look at something and build it. This was his rocket that he built. I asked if he looked at anything for tips on how to build it and he said "duh Mom it's all in my head" with a smile =) He does the same thing with building Lego houses. We managed to get a great deal at the swap meet in Saugus for bags and bags of Lego's, needless to say Derrick is in heaven. He's even been building pink Lego houses for Danae.
(Notice the missing teeth on the bottom? The tooth fairy is gonna go broke soon)

So Far So Good

We are now almost a month into school and no troubles like last year =) Both kids love their teachers and are doing great! Derrick is getting better and better at reading and his handwriting has greatly improved. Danae is learning her sounds and letters. She's now able to write her name the correct way, for a while she was writing her A's backwards and using a capital E. It's hard because I keep having to remember Danae is basically 6 months younger in school age than Derrick was when he started kindergarten. They are both doing great so no complaints!

In our backyard, the kids keep finding and chasing lizards. Derrick in particular gets a kick outta these. The other day one was hanging on to the screen door so you know he had to take a pic with it.

Leroy has been put on some new medication which controls his pain a little better, the downfall is he is constantly drowsy. I can deal with seeing him drowsy than in a mess of pain though. Luckily he got the medication before his birthday on the 3rd so he didn't have to be in excruciating pain the whole day. Speaking of birthdays, I saved up and we got Leroy what he's been wanting for a while now.......a laptop! He loves it. He's going to use it to put his entire inventory of Hot Wheels in. If you know Leroy you know how many Hot Wheels and other collectibles he has so you know this will take a while =)

Work for me is great, I'm finally getting the hang of everything and learning more and more everyday. It's so nice to have a regular schedule and know what time I go in and go home everyday. Regularity is awesome! I've also been able to start making more cards lately. Not without pain but I couldn't stand looking at my scrapbooking room anymore without doing something....it was so lonely! I'd love to open my Etsy store again soon but we'll see how I feel and go from there.

1st Day/Week Down

The first school week of the 2010-11 school year is over! It was quite a change from last year. This time last year I was already debating whether to homeschool Derrick or send him to private school...not this year! This year is going great so far. Derrick started 1st grade and Danae *sniff* *sniff* started kindergarten *sniff* *sniff*. Derrick is loving it so far, he's made some friends and so far no trouble. Danae actually switched teachers her first day and seems to like the new one better. They are both doing great. I keep trying not to compare the two kids because in actuality Danae is 6 months younger than Derrick when he started kindergarten. They are both great and I'm so happy we are in a new school and they are both having fun! Heren's the famous First Day of School pics....

Some Calm in Chaos

Ahhh finally some calmness around here! The last two weeks since I started my new job in Santa Clarita have been the most calm and happiest weeks since we got excessed down here. Finally, nearly two years later, I can finally relax a tad. I don't have to worry how many, if any hours I will get this week let alone the next. We aren't cramped in a teeny tiny 2 bedroom apartment anymore. The kids are so much happier and so am I. I know that I go to work and get off the same time everyday and look forward to my weekends off, we are a normal family again!

We chased a yard sale in Ojai today. It ended up disappointment, the lady really didn't have anything and her ad was bigger than her yardsale. But it was an adventure we got to take on as a family, all together. Plus it's beautiful there!

The kids start school Wednesday....Danae starts kindergarten =( I am so sad my baby is in school. She's grown way too fast. Monday we go and meet her teacher so she's excited about that.

Leroy has another round of epidural injections on the 24th. He went to a neurologist to see if they could pinpoint the nerves that were causing all the pain, shortly after that we got a call to get the injections. So maybe this time they can stop the pain. He has some great doctors that we like and trust so hopefully they can eventually get Leroy outta pain.

I set a goal to make 4th of July cards and that didn't happen, so my new goal is Halloween cards, if only I could get my neck outta pain long enough to make some cards. I'm itching to get in my room and craft but some days are so hard to do anything. Eventually I know I will feel better, but when?!

On the bright side Derrick told me we needed to decorate for Christmas today, I think he may have beaten Walmart on that one! =)

A Whole Hand

Danae is 5! Yes she has made it to the "whole hand" age and is loving it. Actually she's been 5 for 4 days now, I'm just now posting it =) Our baby is officially a little girl as she says, "I'm not you baby anymore Mom, I'm a little girl". =( Really, did she have to grow up so fast?! She had fun, it was just us as, decorated house, cake and presents.....and she loved it! Here's some pics....

Good News A-Coming

Alrighty, here's the good news I've kept my mouth shut on for a good two months now........I got a new job!!!!! Well not technically a new job with a new company but a new position in the postal service. Back in May we had another postmaster detailed to Fillmore while our postmaster was in another office. The new postmaster knew I wanted to move up and get out so to say in the postal service. He let me know of a job posting for a Claims & Inquiry Clerk in Consumer Affairs at the Sierra Coastal district office in Santa Clarita. I put in my application not really expecting a good outcome but hoping for the best. Getting this job would mean regular hours and days off, something I really haven't had since I got excessed down here. About a month after turning in the app I get notified by the detailed postmaster and my own postmaster that the head person in Consumer Affairs needed them to write a letter stating basically whether I would be good in the position or not. They both wrote excellent reviews because I got an interview a week later. It was between me and 2 other ladies. I thought the interview might have gone good but didn't want to count my chickens just yet. One week after the interview I get an email saying they needed me to turn in some paperwork so they could get my driving record. Um, ok I guess I'm still in the running. That very day I got a letter in the mail saying I got the job and just needed to pass a Defensive Driving test and the job was mine!!!!!! Yessssssss I did it! Yesterday was my test for Defensive Driving and I passed meaning I am officially a Claims & Inquiry Clerk in Consumer Affairs for the Sierra Coastal District =) I will have regular hours, with regular days off and am guaranteed these hours. I move from a PTF (part-time flexible) clerk to a Regular clerk. This means if I for some reason get excessed again they must find me a job with 40 hours guaranteed, such a relief! I had a permanent smile on my face yesterday. Although I'm going to miss all my little office, I am so fortunate and thankful I now have a regular job. I'm supposed to start July 31 which means August 2 so hopefully all goes well and I love my job as much as I hope I do!

Fun Adventures

Well since last time I blogged, we've had a couple recent adventures. For the 4th of July we took a trip to visit all the Grandmas & Grandpas.....this was very successful! I got off work early and we drove up the 3rd and came back the 5th. We got to see Grandma Shirley & PoPo Richard, Grandma Connie & Grandpa Jerry, and Grandma Clark! We also got to see 2 of Leroy's sisters, Pam & Dorothy (who got to see Danae for the first time). It was an awesome trip. We went to Clovis Freedom Fest at Buchanan High school and the kids loved seeing all the fireworks. Grandma Connie & Auntie Lurraine grabbed the kids as soon as we got there and took them to the bouncy houses. Good thing because bounce houses freak me out with all the germs in them....eeeewwww. I usually don't let the kids go near them but how could I say no when they were already gone....thanks Grandma!

Now we are back to Fillmore which is becoming more and more like home. It's not as bad since we got out of the apartment and got the kids a backyard and with the move the kids get to change schools which I love. The new school has a Parent Club for me to join...yay! We are still trying to get to the root of Leroy's ailments. His doctor has now referred him to a neurologist to see what might be still causing the pain. I know we'll eventually find the cause of all this pain, I just wish it was sooner.

A looooooong Dr. visit

I think today we can finally check off "spending more than 5 minutes with a doctor after waiting over an hour" off of our list. Leroy had a follow up appointment with his regular for some stuff and of course I went with him just to make sure the doctor "listened" to what he was saying because we all know we clam up in the doctors office. This visit was somewhat good. The doctor has now ordered some more xrays and blood work to see what is still plaguing Leroy's pain. The surgery on his neck in December hasn't worked, in fact he's in even more pain now than before. The different thing about this visit is his doctor is going digital, meaning everything in Leroy's chart is now on the computer and the doctor can look it up when he see's him instead of going through literally 6 inches of notes. We're kind of thinking Leroy is just rittled throughout his body with arthritis. And this is what the doctor kind of leaned towards as well. So hopefully we can find out once and for all what is bugging my Hunny with all this miserable pain.

Safety First

I had to share this oh so cute picture of Danae in her safety gear. A couple Christmas' ago Grammy Shirley and PoPo Richard got the kids scooters. When we moved from Fresno they got put in storage and the kids haven't been able to ride them. We got them out of storage the other day and the kids have been having a blast. Sunday's are our swap meet days and we found some great deals including all of Danae's safety gear (elbow & knee pads) for only 50 cents! The cool thing is they are also Disney Princess which she absolutely loves.


Derrick decided to hang inside today and color his race car from Gramma & Poppy Pedersen. He did a great job and didn't even color the floor!

We've also decided it's time the kids earn their keep around here. Yup chores are a must now. Nothing difficult, just making sure their rooms are clean, beds made and a couple other easy things. The money they earn is theirs to either spend or save. So far Danae is our saver and Derrick spends his as fast as he gets it. She has at least $7 saved which can almost buy a Barbie =)

Pomp & Circumstance

The day I thought would never come has finally come. Derrick had his kindergarten promotion today and no, I did not even tear up. Now that's a miracle in itself =) Apparently Fillmore School District doesn't call anything besides high school a "graduation" it's all called a promotion. Not me, it's graduation =) Anywho, it wasn't formal or anything, very relaxed and basically his teacher just handed out little awards and their memory books they have been working on all year.

I wanted to make Derrick feel so very special so I stayed up past my bedtime (8pm) and decorated the house with streamers and balloons so that when he came down in the morning he would feel so special.




I went to work for a few hours but Leroy said he was so excited when he came downstairs! He was a little upset I didn't wait and let him decorate, silly child. The events at school started at 11am so the worry wart I am, Danae and I were there in the class at 10:30. Danae hung out with Derrick's class and I helped cut out some stuff for Mrs. Fluke. The kids sang a couple songs for all us parents and then Mrs. Fluke handed out various awards and memory books. Derrick got a very special award, the "Sight Word Wizard" award. When he started kindergarten his teacher said the goal was to finish 6 sight word lists and that would put him at a great start for 1st grade. Well we kinda went past that.....he passed #13 today! He was so proud of himself and was the leader of the class in sight words.





When we got back home it was time for graduation gifts! Derrick is a wiz at doing mazes so we were able to find an entire book of mazes! He's already half way through, but loving every page of it. A couple weeks ago we went to a Hot Wheels show and they had this little rubber duckie dressed up in a cap & gown. Danae wanted to get it for "Brudder"'s graduation gift. The deal was she could get it for him if she kept it a secret from him. Lo and behold she kept the secret for 2 weeks and was so excited to give it to him! She bought it with her own money she earned from doing chores which made it even more special. And what gift giving would be complete without a Monster truck from Daddy?! Leroy gave him a truck he's been wanting for a very long time now, he was so surprised.


I can't believe my baby is going to be a 1st grader now and my other baby will be starting kindergarten next year. They grow way too fast, but it's so much fun to watch them change and become their own little person.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!

What a wonderful day it has been for sure! I was woken up this morning to my two munchkins bring me breakfast in bed. Derrick cooked by himself (with some help from Dad) yummy pancakes, and Danae made her famous toast with grape jelly =) It was very delicious and they filled my tummy! They we headed off to the Saugus Swapmeet where Leroy made out like a bandit. They had so many cool Hot Wheels for him to look at. Then we window shopped at televisions and headed back to Fillmore. After a relaxing afternoon Leroy cooked steaks for dinner and finished it off by watching Popeye, the new favorite cartoon of the kids. This was one of the best mother's days yet. Having babies are nice but when they can come in and actually say "Happy Mudder's Day Mommy" is the absolute best! I love being a mom and I have two of the best kids ever! Thanks for everything!!!!!

Blast from the Past?!

Do I dare say we're back?! Well kinda...no other excuse than just plain busy. Busy with life, school, work and family. Don't wanna blog too much today but here's a quick update for what's been goin' on in our lives:

Leroy-still in constant pain, just finished physical therapy and it didn't work. Neurosurgeon said surgery worked but it may take a year or more to actually feel any relief from surgery. His nerves basically have to regenerate and that is a very slow and painful process.

Me-still working like crazy. Haven't been crafty since January, hence no one has received birthday, or any holiday cards. Hoping to feel better by the summer and get 4th of July cards out....that's a goal at least for now that I can hopefully reach.

Derrick-doing absolutely wonderful in school! Just received his first award at school a few weeks ago for being above grade level in every single subject. He's on his 10th word list now and reading so great. I got to go with him on a field trip to a farm where we both had a great time. Kindergarten promotion is on June 10th and then he'll be promoted to the 1st grade =)

Danae-busy being a princess. I've learned not to compare the two, so she is doing great. We're working on letters and sounds but going at her own pace. I can't push her like Derrick so we've learned just to be patient and she'll get it in her own time. She's our artsy kid. Loves anything to do with music, dancing, painting. If you can express creativity, she loves it =) We signed her up for kindergarten and she'll start in August at the same school as brother is. She's excited!

We also got some fun news! Leeanne, Leroy's youngest of his older 3 kids is working for a Senator at the US Capitol in Washington D.C!!!! She called a few weeks ago and told us the great news. She's been in DC since July and we couldn't be prouder =) She sent us a postcard with pictures of the Capital building on it and I explained to the kids that that was where their sister was and Danae was so excited because "sister works there and doesn't get lost!" She thought with all those windows and columns she might get lost but I explained that was not the case. So now it sits on our refrigerator where they can both be reminded where Leeanne works =)

I'm hoping to keep this updated better, it just kinda fell to the side. But to everyone who didn't get a birthday card, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Here's a few pics...Enjoy!

Shoelace Master

We had an amazing thing happen last night......Derrick tied his shoelaces all by himself! Such an amazing thing to us. We've been working with him for what seems like forever then all of a sudden he goes "Aha! Oh yeah I did it!" And he was all smiles!

Here's Danae's creation she made today out of Tinkertoys......
All righty I think that's it, I'm headed off to rest!

An abduction

Ok I was abducted by aliens and and haven't blogged in.....oh about a month......ok maybe not =) Life has just been one crazy roller coaster! Lives have been busy and crazy things have happened but everyone is OK and doing as well as can be at this point. I won't get into details for fear of boring you with all the cute things the kids have done HEHE but I'm going to share a hilarious event that happened on Sunday.....

Derrick has had some itchy skin lately due to the crazy weather we've been having down here in SoCal lately. He was itching so bad I said "dude take off your shirt and just run around shirtless". Little did I know my son would take me so literal! I was laying on the couch and I hear footsteps running behind me. I turn around and Derrick is running around in circles behind me. I asked what he was doing and he said "Mom you told me to take off my shirt and run around". Oh my goodness! I couldn't stop laughing, it was so hilarious. I explained I didn't mean to literally "run around" that he could just hang out without a shirt on. He was cool with the idea of going shirtless but I don't think I'll ever forget that it was just too priceless!

Oooh ooh Derrick also turned 6 on the 1st.....he got an awesome surprise call from Leeanne! I don't know who was more excited, him or me =) The kids talk about her nearly everyday. Danae is always pretend talking to her on her play phone. I love when she calls 'cause it gives me someone to "card talk" to! Ok enough typing for one day, I'm off to bed. Work comes too early in my world here =)