We had another very short weekend with Daddy. They come and go so quickly! Fortunately, he will be home again next weekend and will stick around for a week because TU is on spring break! Unfortunately, we will likely not have him home again for another month because of spring football. We haven’t been out to Tulsa yet — because it’s a little easier for him to do the long drive than for me with two kids, plus he has been staying in a one-bed-no-microwave-or-fridge hotel room for the past month — and we’d be eating out every meal! There is more room and less food money spent when he comes home!
We had another surprise this weekend — Grandma Lavera didn’t tell us she was headed our way until she was on the road! So, we have her here for a couple days! The kids get both grandmas this month, as Gamma Phiyen will be here in a couple weeks!
On Saturday Moco had her last basketball game of the season! She was bummed because she is really enjoying basketball! Looks like we’ll have to find another league and plan to get her into some camps this summer!
My social butterfly, Bubba, went to a classmate’s birthday party at the bowling & billiards center on the ISU campus. He had a fabulous time with his buddies! Air hockey was the highlight of the party.
(Speaking of birthday parties, we still haven’t planned a party for either kid. And, yes, Bubba’s birthday was almost a month ago. Terrible, right?! R wanted to be here to celebrate with them, so we’ll see what we can do while he’s here next week.)
On Sunday, Daddy took the kids and Deacon out to run around at a nearby park, then they came home so we could enjoy a delicious brunch — scrambled eggs, uncured pepper bacon, banana pancakes, and mixed fruit (strawberries, red & green grapes, and blueberries) — before Daddy headed back to Tulsa. The rest of us spent the early part of the afternoon at The Garlic Press (a local kitchen/home/gifts store) and the mall. I finally used a gift certificate from my staff and bought a set of Joseph Joseph nesting bowls, a set of measuring spoons, a new apron, and a few Driin phone holders (for charging cell phones, iPods, and Nintendo DSes)! At the mall, we found jeans for Moco at Gap Kids that actually fit (finding pants for either of us sucks!) and a cardigan to throw over her spring t-shirts and tank tops. After that, the kids had a “rest” at home with Grandma Lavera while Auntie Mariah and I went to get our nails done. It feels good to pamper myself from time to time!
Now it’s back to work for me and back to school for the kids while Grandma Lavera enjoys a few days with Mariah while she’s on spring break!
It’s the month to give thanks! Each day this month, I posted about the things and people for which I’m thankful on Facebook. Here’s a recap (with a few modifications):
11/1 - Today I’m thankful for my other half, Daddy ♥, who is also celebrating his birthday today! 10 years, 2 kids, 1 dog, a new house, a bucket list, and still so many adventures ahead of us!
11/2 - Today I’m thankful for Moco and Bubba, and all the laughter, love and joy they bring to my life. I have learned a lot about fortitude, patience, courage, respect, responsibility, tolerance, flexibility, accountability, prudence, discipline, faith, hope, humility, justice, loyalty, selflessness, trust, trustworthiness, and (of course) love through my children. I’m thankful for the opportunity to be their mama!
11/3 - Today I am thankful for the random little moments in life that make me grin — like Bubba insisting that we raise our water bottles and say “cheers!” as we started supper or our Vizsla draped over Daddy’s lap and loving every minute of the attention…
11/4 - Even though it’s a 12 hour workday, today I am thankful for my job and my career in higher education. On this evening’s agenda: educating prospective students and their parents on the benefits of the community college experience! Go Hawks!
11/5 - Today I am thankful for the inevitability of change and the opportunity to take a deep breath, re-evaluate the landscape, and keep on keeping on.
“Leaders establish the vision for the future and set the strategy for getting there; they cause change. They motivate and inspire others to go in the right direction and they, along with everyone else, sacrifice to get there.”
~John Kotter
11/6 - Today I’m thankful for the opportunity to sleep in! Woke up with curls in my nose, with my boy snuggled up next to me, while R, Moco & Deacon are pheasant hunting.
11/7 - Today I am thankful to be able to spoil my kids a little: cinnamon butterbraid for breakfast, Megamind in 3D, then trading in leftover Halloween candy for FREE Noodles (kids under 12 only). Trading candy for noodles is spoiling, right?!
11/8 - Today I am thankful for the influence of Auntie Mariah on my children. I think.
11/9 - Today I am thankful for my parents for more reasons than I could possibly list… and we’re looking forward to heading “home” to New Mexico for Xmas!!!
11/10 - Tonight Bubba said he wanted ‘the song about 2nd base’. We couldn’t figure it out, but then George Strait performed on CMAs: ”Life’s not the breaths you take/The breathing in and out/That gets you through the day/Ain’t what it’s all about/Ya just might miss the point/Try’n to win the race/Life’s not the breaths you take/But the moments that take your breath away”. Today I’m thankful for that reminder.
11/11 - Today I am thankful for the service men and women who serve and sacrifice for our country as well as the families and friends that love and support them!!!
11/12 - Today I am thankful for Sherry and all she has done for our family over the past 4+ years. She has helped shape Bubba’s sense of humor, his love for Troy Polamalu & the Steelers, and his attachment to a fringed piece of fleece named Boo. It’s hard to find people you can trust with your children, but we’re fortunate to have Sherry and her family in our lives!!!
11/13 - Today I am thankful for a final game win vs. EIU and a winning season for the Redbirds. I am also thankful for a full house with “Uncle” Tommy, Uncle Danny, Aunt Lisa, and Cousin Mattie this weekend!!!
11/14 - Today I am thankful for our new house and those who help us fill it with love and laughter. This weekend the table leaf came out… every bed and couch was claimed… wings, pizza, honey crisp apple cider, & Dunkin’ Donuts coffee were consumed in obscene amounts. My only complaint is that the weekend went by so quickly!!!
“The ornaments of your house will be the guests who frequent it.”
~Author Unknown
11/15 - Today I am thankful for my brothers, Tío Javi and Tío Gabi. We have had a lot of fun times over the years, and some not-as-fun times (thank goodness they outgrew the pesky little brothers stage), but I’m very proud to be their sister… and I can’t wait to see them next month!!!
11/16 - Today I’m thankful to start my morning at 5:45am for a 35 minute walk with the dog. My cheeks are rosy and my thighs are numb, but I feel productive already…
11/17 - Today I am thankful for the funny things my kids say. This morning Moco told me, “Dinosaurs aren’t house broken, you know” while explaining a short play about cavemen. And Bubba told me, “You smell like beef and cheddar”… to which I conveniently replied, “You mean I don’t smell like Santa?”
11/18 - Today I am thankful for Unks, the sister-in-law otherwise known as Auntie Mariah. She took us up on an offer to live with us while she knocks out her first two years of college, and we’re glad she’s here… although she’s probably thinking “3 months down, 17 more before I can escape these fools!!!”
11/19 - Today I am thankful for the AAWCC Lunch & Learn with Terry Mullin… he made 12 different holiday hors d’oeuvres and and desserts in one hour in Heartland’s new demo kitchen. The baked brie and caramel pie were out of this world!
11/20 - Today I am thankful for a weekend with Papa! After a lazy morning at home, he took Moco & Bubba to the park. Auntie Mariah & I made homemade hibachi chicken & veggies with rice and a caramel pie. Papa and the kids are going to watch a movie OnDemand while Auntie Mariah & I see Harry Potter!!!
11/21 - Today I am thankful for the creativity and frugality that runs in our family… Moco saw a doll bunk bed she wanted, but Papa and I decided we could probably do something for cheaper. Two free boxes from Sam’s Club, four pieces of wood @ 97¢ each, a few minutes with a hot glue gun — and here it is! Still needs to be decorated and mattresses & bedding added, but it fits 2 American Girl dolls perfectly!
11/22 - Today I am thankful for the last couple hours of peace & quiet, just lounging in bed with the laptop. Kids are asleep, Daddy and Deacon are out of town… sometimes I just need some “me” time while still in the comfort of my own home, you know?
11/23 - Yesterday I was thankful that Daddy called to say he was headed back from Kansas. Except now it’s today and he won’t be home for several more hours… but at least he’s on the way!
11/24 - Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday bc it’s all about food, family & friends. Growing up, we spent many Thanksgivings with our Iowa State “family”. Today I am thankful for our spin on tradition: Daddy & I are also Iowa State grads and now spend turkey days with family in Iowa. We wish we could spend the day with all of our extended family & friends… much ♥ to each and every one of you!
“Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family.
Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.”
~ Jane Howard
11/25 – Happy Thanksgiving! Today I continue to be thankful for everyone and everything I have posted about each day this month… Here’s to family, friends, food, health, happiness & love this holiday season and always!
11/26 - Today am I thankful for a dog who hardly ever barks. The guests across the hall went out for the evening and theirs won’t stop!!!
11/27 - Today I am thankful for another great day with my family. Sleeping in with Daddy & the kids, spending time with Grandma Lavera & Great Grandma, driving back in the crammed truck, grocery shopping and prepping meals with Auntie Mariah… I wish these long weekends didn’t have to come to an end!
11/28 - Today I am thankful for a second turkey dinner… but I’m thoroughly stuffed and ready to get back on track! Headed to bed so I can get up early for a workout!!!
11/29 - Today I am thankful for moments like these… I would have taken a picture of Moco, too, but her hygienist was lightning fast!
I haven’t been very good about posting lately, so let me play “catch up” since I last wrote, which also happened to be Auntie Mariah’s birthday… and I totally failed to give her a shout out.
No worries, though, we have pictures of the birthday celebration, which didn’t occur until much later in the day than she may have wanted — after a long day of being at school, taking her first math test, and working late. We enjoyed ice cream cake from Baskin-Robbins — vanilla and chocolate ice cream with fudge crumble cake. Sooooo delicious!
Of course, we also had to take some goofy self-portraits to capture the essence of a Wednesday night family birthday celebration. These are just a preview of a separate post to come…
Thursday brought rain…
…and the first Redbird football game, complete with Reggie head tattoo self-portraits on Mommy’s cell phone:
We didn’t go to the game because (1) it was a school night, and (2) it was raining. The game was delayed about 90 minutes, and it was very late by the time Daddy got home. Unfortunately we missed an exciting season opener – it was a win! Fortunately, we have a lot of football to look forward to this year!!!
Over the weekend, Grandma Lavera, Ray and Ray’s dog came to visit. They arrived late on Friday night, while Daddy and I were on a movie date to see The American. It was a fairly low-key visit, with lunch at Denny’s, a peek at Redbird football practice, and just hanging out, enjoying each other’s company. Ray put Bubba’s training wheels on his “new” bike from Matthew (Sherry’s grandson), and we enjoyed a game of backyard baseball. Moco hit several balls over the new fence, and Bubba didn’t hesitate at the opportunity to climb over to retrieve balls! :)
Our favorite meal of the weekend was the “cut-up-every-veggie-cheese-and-deli-meat-in-the-fridge-empty-some-cracker-and-almond-containers-from-the -cupboards-and-cook-a-quick-batch-of-frozen-shrimp-with-cocktail-sauce” Saturday night feast!
Food and family… two of the best things in life!!!
On Sunday, Grandma Lavera and Ray headed back to Iowa, and Daddy had to go to work (weights and football practice). Auntie Mariah, Moco, Bubba and I headed to the Corncrib for the final Cornbelters game of the season; Daddy met us there after work. This was Moco, Bubba, and Auntie Mariah’s first time at the Corncrib. It was a sellout crowd and a win! I have a feeling we’ll be attending more games next year.
On Monday we mostly ran errands and hung around the house… it was a beautiful day, and we were just kinda lazy for the first time in a while!
The most productive thing we did all day was grocery shopping and food prep, but the most exciting part of the day was getting our new kitchen table and chairs! We have had our eyes on a table at Furniture Row for a few months, and we have quickly realized that our table and four chairs no longer cut it with five of us in the house now! I remember when Daddy and I bought that table and chairs, on super clearance at a going-out-of-business sale for a furniture store in Ames. It has lasted us close to ten years, seven moves, and two kids. It is scratched and a little wobbly, marked permanently with Sharpies and nail polish, and loved with stickers and Scotch tape. It is way too small for the eat-in kitchen and doesn’t really flow between the kitchen and the new leather couch and chair in the living room… so we decided to pay our favorite sales guy, Brad, a visit. Brad showed us a scratch & dent deal on “our” table — $50! We couldn’t believe it! We did a thorough inspection of the table — barely scratched and not even dented! (Clearly Moco and Bubba haven’t gotten to it yet…) We tested the butterfly leaf — everything is in near perfect shape! We went into the store intending to pay full (well, okay, Labor Day sale) price, but we ended up saving a couple hundred dollars when all was said and done (because we bought six matching chairs separately and not as a dining room set). Just one more reason that Brad at Furniture Row is our favorite sales guy! (Bubba always runs in, shouts “Hey Brad!”, and then gives him a stinger of a high five!) Obviously… pix to come once the chairs arrive next week.
And to end with another “big” purchase… we invested in an ice cream ball! We tried out the Ziploc bag homemade ice cream a couple weeks ago, which worked fine(especially when we put it in a Coleman water jug filled with ice and rock salt), but the ice cream ball is a lot of fun, too! We have made French vanilla and Italian sweet cream (using flavored coffee creamers) and mint chocolate chip. Grandma Lavera enjoyed playing on the floor with the kids, rolling the ball between them, and we all think that homemade ice cream is very tasty! Plus, we have to work for our dessert, and it doesn’t make much more than a small serving each — so there isn’t a carton left to sneak bites later! We are looking forward to exploring with more flavors (and already wondering if an electric ice cream maker is in our future, if this becomes a bad habit)!!! ;)
…a Monday evening at home watching America’s Funniest Home Videos with my kids — their laughter is contagious!!!
Moco and Bubba are limited to watching TV on weekend mornings, so this was a rare treat for them. It is so nice to unwind with my family, cook a good meal, bake some cookies, and snuggle with my babes before they fall asleep.
Tonight we had salmon, using my homemade habanero jelly in a variation of the peach jalapeño salmon, and potatoes au gratin. I have never actually made potatoes au gratin before, and I was quite pleased. I didn’t have all the ingredients for any recipe that I found, so I made up my own version with what we had on hand: Yukon gold potatoes, shredded sharp cheddar, shredded Mexican blend cheese, heavy cream, 2% milk, nutmeg, paprika, salt and pepper. I was very pleased with the outcome, and the flavors blended really well with the salmon! I also baked a double batch of the big, soft ginger cookies. I made modifications to this recipe, and while they are still tasty, they aren’t as good as last time. I used half brown sugar and half white sugar and I didn’t use orange juice like I did the last time. I’m pretty sure that the white sugar and lack of orange juice are the culprits. Still soft and tasty but not quite as flavorful as the last time.
Can’t wait for this short work week to be done so we can enjoy our long weekend. Daddy is technically off this week (university is closed), but he is still working with men’s and women’s basketball. Moco has school tomorrow but will go to Sherry’s on Wednesday. I get off Wednesday at 5pm, then we will drive to Iowa for Thanksgiving Day with Grandma Lavera. We’ll visit with Great Grandma as well. Daddy has to work Friday afternoon or evening, so we’ll be on the road back to Iowa that morning instead of hitting the Black Friday sales (not like we ever do anyway)!
I’m going to pour myself another glass of milk and a couple warm cookies before bed… hasta mañana!
The past couple weeks have brought about a flurry of announcements of weddings, graduations, new babies, and other big events in our family:
My brother Gabi married Catherine on Saturday. Another reception is planned in New Mexico at the end of July to continue the celebration!
My cousin Doan and her husband Chris had their first child, Alexis, on Tuesday morning.
Daddy’s niece Mallory graduated from high school and will be attending Drexel University in the fall.
My cousin Quang and his wife Shana announced that their son Nicholas is going to be a big brother this winter!
Daddy’s cousin Adam will marry Erin in August.
Daddy’s cousin Abbye (Adam’s sister) graduated from cosmetology school, and she and Brad just had their first baby (Kayley Ann) and are now planning their wedding!
Gamma retired from her position as a curriculum coordinator and will spend this month keeping up with Moco and Bubba.
Gabi received a huge scholarship to the University of Denver Sturm College of Law; he starts their evening program in the fall but will likely continue into their full-time program after this first year.
Javier’s girlfriend Margareta is recovering well from gall bladder surgery.
Grandma Lavera will be having knee replacement surgery in a few weeks.
Auntie Mariah started a great summer job at Effigy Mounds National Monument, and she just found out she did well on the ACT!
We are blessed with an incredibly diverse, amazing family that stretches from Washington, D.C. to Iowa to Seattle to Vietnam and Spain. They are lawyers, chemists, farmers, teachers, entrepreneurs, police officers, construction workers, factory workers, mailmen, business managers, software developers, and engineers. They are white, black, Vietnamese, Spanish, biracial and multiracial. They are Catholic, Jewish, Mormon, practicing, non-practicing, believing and questioning. They drive pick-up trucks and sports cars, motorcycles and bicycles, Chevys and Fords and Hondas and Toyotas. They are as different as they come, but they are our family all the same.
I am so proud of our heritage and the experiences that have shaped and influenced who we are as a family today. Some of the stories are sad, frustrating, tragic; others are funny and inspiring. There has been talk about creating a website to record the stories from our family’s journey from Vietnam, but perhaps I need to designate a space to record the stories from Iowa and Spain as well. I already have a potential name for this site: The Adventures of Moco and Bubba’s Ancestors. Blogging has been a way for me to capture every day life with Moco and Bubba, but I hope that we can also use it as a place to capture the stories of our family history as well. What an amazing gift to our youngest family members: the story of our family from all different angles.
What do y’all think? How can we set this up and get everyone to contribute?
On Sunday morning we headed up to Northeast Iowa to visit family and friends and take the kids to a few places that we have been wanting to go to now that they’re old enough to enjoy them.
Our first stop was to Great Grandma’s house. We had 2Mit burgers for lunch – can’t beat the onions and honey mustard – before heading out to Big Springs Trout Hatchery. The kids loved feeding the trout (who loved being fed – jumping out of the water to get the pellets!), and they are looking forward to coming back to try their hand in the kid’s fishing pond. Great Grandma has requested that we take her with us; she wants to go fishing too!
From the hatchery we went to Cabela’s in Prairie du Chien, WI, because Daddy needed to pick up a replacement shotgun barrel he ordered. (I’m sure my mom is rolling her eyes right now.) Daddy said he was going to “be really quick”, but that is never the case when we go there (which is every time we’re in the area), so the kids and I went in to use the restroom and find Cabela’s S’mores bars, which I saw on an episode of Food Network’s Unwrapped last week. These were a handy bribe for the rest of the trip — if they were good, then maybe, just maybe, the kids could have their S’mores for snacks.
After Cabela’s, we made a stop for a quick visit with one of Daddy’s high school coaches and his family. We also got to meet Samson the English mastiff. Daddy wanted to see how the kids would react to such a large dog because he swears he’s going to buy one for Moco. We’ll see about that.
Next, we met up with Grandma, Auntie Mariah, and Auntie Therie at Effigy Mounds for a quick late afternoon hike on the Fire Point Trail. Moco loved seeing the Indian burial mounds and learning a little about the local history as well as the local fauna. Grandma Lavera is an awesome resource when it comes to identifying plants, animals, and bird calls, so she showed us different plants and trees along the way. We also found a nest that had fallen out of a tree!
The overlook view is gorgeous – that’s the Mississippi River between Wisconsin (on the left) and Iowa (right) in the picture of all of us with Auntie Mariah, who took a break from studying for finals to hike with us. The picture of Daddy and the kids is from the trout hatchery; that’s the Turkey River in the background.
We hiked back to the cars and headed to supper at Old Man River in McGregor. It’s a new brewery in the area. They have a delicious home-brewed root beer and a nice beer sampler. For dessert Daddy had the root beer cheesecake, and I had the root beer creme brulee – delightful! And instead of after-dinner mints, you get A&W root beer candy barrels!
Sunday night we stayed up in Decorah, which is one of our favorite places to visit. The kids were asleep by the time we got to the hotel, and in the morning they tried to get Daddy to try on Auntie Therie’s wig (he refused). Moco put it on instead, and now we know what Bubba will look like at age seven:
On Monday, we attended the Memorial Day ceremony and parade. Bubba loved seeing the military vehicles and fire and rescue trucks. We also got to visit with our friends Fish and Kristin, Lorraine, and John. Fish has been a great friend to Daddy over the years. He has a great house and is always such a great host when we’re in the area. Kristin is the co-director of the Art Haus in Decorah, and we’re looking forward to seeing more of her productions and maybe even sending the kids to some of the arts camps/classes that are offered through their Little Masters program. John is Daddy’s hunting buddy when he’s up there. His daughter Sonja and Memphis can spend hours together and not get sick of each other – they are so similar in personality and temperment. The people we know in that area are a major reason why we love visiting!
After the ceremony and parade, we headed to Burr Oak to visit the Laura Ingalls Wilder Park and Museum. This visit was a dream come true for both me and Moco. Auntie Therie also really enjoyed it, and Daddy was excited to see Moco totally into the guided tour, but he spent more time wrangling Bubba who was not quite as excited to see things that he couldn’t touch in an old house that he couldn’t run through. He did ham it up for the pictures, though, so you would never know that he was repeating “I wanna go home!” and “Can we go now?” over and over again. Moco absolutely loved the tour and was soooo excited to see what it was like to live like Laura and her family did. It was a great history lesson for all of us! We have decided that we are going to have a Laura Ingalls Wilder themed birthday party next year for Moco’s 8th birthday. (Lindsay laughed when I told her this; 10 months to plan the birthday party of my dreams – yes!). Despite my desire to buy rag and yarn doll kits and a calico dress with matching bonnet ($60 – yikes!), the only purchase we made was a Little House cookbook. The first thing Moco looked up? The recipe for jonnycakes. That’s my girl!
At the end of the visit, the kids were allowed to climb up on the replica covered wagon. Bubba was thrilled to finally get to climb on something and not be told that he couldn’t.
We stopped in to see Great Grandma one last time before we headed home. I told the kids if they continued to behave well, they could enjoy their S’mores on the back step at Great Grandma’s house:
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