Gabriel's Room Complete (Military Men Photo Gallery)

It has been quite a while since I did a post.  Life has completely changed for me since the twins started preschool and we are gone three days a week in the morning.  I can barely keep up with the daily duties and spending time with the kids let alone doing any decorating around the house.

I have been really ready to finish his room and was just waiting for all the pictures to complete the wall gallery above the beds in his room. If you have not seen the previous post you can see his room HERE.

Here is a picture that I took before I started.  This is not the best photo as my camera battery was dead so I just used my phone for the first couple pictures.  Oh and all the pictures are kind of dark due to the weather today.

I layed out all the frames on the floor to get and idea of the layout.  I then took some old wrapping paper and cut out the shape of each frame so I could get the frames exactly where I wanted them.

Once I got the paper where I wanted the frame, I needed to mark where I was going to put the nail so they were all in the right spot.  I took a little dab of toothpaste and added it to the hook and then pressed the picture against the wall so that it would mark the paper

I then added my nails.  I was just about to tear down the paper and thought that I would check my work before I took the paper off and I am so glad that I did.  I ended have to fix one of the frames so it was level with the others.

Here is how it turned out.

Again the lighting is not the greatest but it gives you and idea.

Here is the breakdown of each picture frame.

I took a shadow box and added some craft paper behind and glued some army men that Gabriel had.

This is my brother that served in the Iraq war and was a gunner on a convoy.

On the (left) is my Dad who served in the Air Force and on the (right) is my brother in-law Jason who served in the Marines.

On the (left) is George's Step-Dad Michael who our son Michael is named after.  He is from Italy and served in NATO during the Vietnam War. This is the type of uniform that they wore back then.  On the (right) is George's father who served in the Army.

The picture on the (left) is a print that I ordered off of the Costco website for $1.49.  They have all sorts of prints and they cost the same as your regular prints.

The last one and the center of all the pictures is my Grandfather.  This was an article done by the Mercury Newspaper in San Jose.  My Grandfather was a Pearl Harbor survivor.

I am so glad to have finally completed his room and I love the way that it turned out.  What a legacy Gabriel comes from.  We are so proud to come from a family of men that have served their country!

10 Years

As of today George and I have been married for 10 years!  I can't believe how quickly the time has gone.

It is amazing how God brought us together and where we are at today.  I am more in love with George then I was the day that we got married.

He is one of the most amazing men I know.  He is so hardworking and an amazing father that loves each one of his kids with an unending love.  He make me want to be better then I am and I am always encouraged as I watch him spend every morning with the Lord!

So many people plan a nice vacation for their 10 year anniversary.  If we were able to get away for a longer time we probably would have done the same.  Over this last weekend we had 3 days to ourselves and we decided to stay home.  We thought of several places that we could have gone to just for the weekend but in the end we just wanted to be home by ourselves.  We also thought that we could do more things without spending money on a Hotel and gas to get there.

Here is a little bit of what our weekend looked like.

We headed down to Omsi to do the Jetboat Tour.  We thought we would check out a couple exhibits while we were there.

We just had to check out the Prenatal Exhibit!  I am always so fascinated by this exhibit but I think even more so since I have had the kids.  It made George and I contemplate having another one.  They are such a gift and one of the most incredible experiences ever!

Any ways back to the Jetboat tour.  You board right by the submarine at Omsi.  This is a fun thing to do with older kids.  It's fun and you get to learn about some of the city's history.  I would really recommend it.

Here is what we looked like before the boat trip.  George forgot his sunglasses.

Here are some of the pictures from the tour.

Here is afterwards.  I looked like a drowned rat!  Warning: do not spend time on your hair or put strong hairspray in.  My hair was left in knots and very painful to brush out.

After we got off the boat we got back to the car and noticed a screw in George's tire.  We ended up having to take his car to get it fixed.  We were give so many suggestions of where to eat but ended up having to go to something close to Les Schwab instead.

Have you ever been to the Thirsty Lion?  We have seen it but never was really interested in going.  It was walking distance from Les Schwab so we decided to check it out.  They have a great patio for sitting outside.  The food was excellent and I had a yummy pear martini!  If you have not been there you must go and check it out.

Toward the end of the day we decided to get a massage together.  We went to Cosy Foot Massage.  It is a place that focuses on your feet but gives a full body massage for $25.  I know the yelp review is not very good, but every time I have been there I have been impressed. You can beat if for $25 for an hour massage.  

The next day we woke up at our normal time that our body wakes us up at 6AM.  There is no sleeping in at our house with the kids.  We decided to head down to the gym and work off some of the food that we ate.  It felt so good to start the day off that way.

Next, George and I split up and I went and had a pedicure and George sat next door and did some work and had time to himself.  Yes, he did work a little over the weekend. As a realtor it is really hard to turn off the phone to work.  One of the downsides to his job but we have gotten use to it.

I always recommend Galaxy Nails for anyone that is looking for a good place to get a Pedicure.

After the pedicures we did a little birthday shopping for the kids for their birthday party that is coming up next week.

We spent the afternoon at home just relaxing and watching movies.

We also did this.

I know, not something that you should be doing on an Anniversary weekend but this little booger is ruining the yard that we have been working so hard at keep nice since we had it done.

(We still have not caught him) > :(   

For dinner we wanted to go somewhere nice for our Anniversary dinner.  We both got dressed up really nice which does not happen very often, so it was fun!

We have been to Andina once before and loved it, so we decided to go back.  If you have not been there you will not be disappointed.  (Make sure to make reservations though)

Our gift to each other was not a surprise.  We both wanted to get each other a watch.  We bought some watches off my sisters company that she works for and got a great price for a designer watch.  We were going to inscribe something nice on the watch but when we got the watch there was not place to write anything.  Oh well, we love the watches.

Sunday we spent the day mostly at home.  We had a wonderful quite time in the morning which does not happen very often when the kids are home.

We went to a Garden Center to get some plants to finish up our yard before we have people over next weekend for the kids birthday party.

We took a nap and then George had to meet a client to look at a couple houses.  Again, not something we want to be doing but something that is necessary with being a Realtor.  We are thankful for his job and with that we are able to do a lot of the things we did over the weekend.

It was an incredibly relaxing weekend and we had a wonderful time just being together doing things we enjoy.

I love you George Huertas and I look forward to 50 more years together if the Lord allows!!!  Happy Anniversary!!!

Give TODAY Your Attention

George sent me this email today with the words below.  I thought it was a good way of describing life and the journey that we are on.


"I love what former First Lady Barbara Bush said about the future, comparing it to a train ride:

    We get on board that train at birth, and we want to cross the continent because we have in mind that somewhere out there is a station.
    We pass by sleepy little towns looking out the window of life's train, grain fields and silos, level grade crossings, buses full of people
    on the roads besides us.  We pass by cities and factories, but we don't look at any of it because we want to get to the station... This
    station changes for us during life.  To begin with, for most of us, it's turning 18, getting out of high school.  Then the station is that
    first promotion and then the station becomes getting the kids out of college, and then the station becomes retirement and then...
    all too late we recognize the truth - that this side of that city whose builder is God, there really isn't a station.  The joy is in the journey
    and the journey is the joy.

         Sooner or later, you realize there is no station and the truth of life is the trip.  Read a book, eat more ice cream, go barefoot more
    often, hug a child, go fishing, laugh more.  The station will come soon enough.  And as you go, find a way to make this world more
    beautiful.

Focusing on the destination is not a good idea.  Tomorrow may come; it may not.  The only place we really have any power is in the present."

"DO WHAT YOU CAN IN THE HERE AND NOW, MAKING THE MOST OF THE JOURNEY." - John Maxwell

I have been thinking about this a lot lately.  So many days, I am going through the motions and the days all blur into one.  I love this part of the journey that I am on and I want to enjoy the surroundings as I pass through.  It may be dealing with sick little ones or dealing with behavioral issues, but it also is filled with so many joys and opportunities to give the most that I can with these gifts that God has given to me.  I do look forward to the day when the kids are older and able to do more on their own, but I am also cherishing this time that they need me because all too soon they will not need me and they will be moving on in their own journey. 

Here is real life for me today:  Eva is sick and the kids are still in their pj's!

Love them!

# 37

I am so thankful for my husband.  He is such a hard worker and a wonderful husband and father! I could not be happier with who God has blessed me with.

 

Today is George’s birthday and he is now 37 years old!  So close to 40!  I remember when I was young and my mom threw a Over the Hill birthday for my dad.  I remember thinking that they were so old!!!

Even though my husband is getting gray hair’s here and there he still looks as good as he did when I first met him!

Happy Birthday Babe!  I love you!

Deuteronomy 6:6-9

Deuteronomy 6:6-9 ~ ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

George and I have lived in our house now for a little over 3 years now and we love it.  We feel so blessed to be here!

The couple that we bought the house from Dacer and Brittany are Christians and we had an instant connection with. They now live in southern California and we still remain friends to this day!  She left me a wonderful welcome basket and with the basket she left me this frame with the floor plan of our house that she made.

When they were having the house build just after they put the dry wall up and the texture and paint they wrote out these verses over the door frames and the windows in this house.  She then made this floor plan and put what verses she put in over each window and door.  I loved this idea and wanted to have this up in our house as a reminder.  I decided to decorate the bath room around these colors and here is what is looks like.

I love the home that God has provided for us and feel his blessing over it.

What I Am Thankful For Day 23-29

I guess I really should have thought it through about blogging everyday!  It has been really hard to keep up.  Last week was a busy with with Michael here and the kids were extra moody! So…I am now catching up.

Day 23 ~ I was thankful for the little snow fall that we had.

Day 24 ~ George was able to have the day off! George originally took the day off to spend the week with Michael.  He then found out that he would be doing Jury Duty for 5 weeks and that he would have to work that Wednesday that Michael was here.  George asked the Judge if he could get that time off to spend the time with Michael and the Judge let him.  They are usually pretty stringent about letting people off.  Praise the Lord!

Day 25~ Thankful for time with family on Thanksgiving!  We ended up doing a Thanksgiving breakfast with my family and then a small dinner at home with the kids.  It was a nice day.

Day 26~ I was thankful for a warm house!  It has been pretty cold outside and I keep thinking about all the people that can not afford heat or are homeless and am reminded of how thankful I am that we can afford to heat our home!

Day 27 ~I was thankful for a day at home with the kids and my husband!

Day 28 ~ I was thankful for a worship.net DVD that we had that we were able to watch. We had stayed home from church because George was not feeling well!

Day 29 ~ Today I am thankful that even though I and the kids are not feeling well we have made it through the day and it not being too stressful!

So, there you have it.  All caught up and only one more day to go on What I Am Thankful for!

Day 17 ~ What I Am Thankful For

Today I am thankful for Gods gift of music!  Oh, how I wish I could sing.  I love to listen to music and sing along, but I would say that I have not been given the gift of a good voice. 

This morning I played a CD that was given to me by my cousin Ginger who has blogged about this CD before on her blog Raising A.B.L.E.  The CD is called Hidden In My Heart. It is a lullaby journey through the scriptures!  I love how worship music just calms your spirit.  The kids were enjoying it as well and it really calmed Selah.  She just wanted to sit and cuddle with me! That moment will not be forgotten.  I think that I might play it tonight for the kids and see if they go down easier??

If you go to their website you can download a free song as well as the full album. http://scripture-lullabies.com/

Day 15 ~ What I Am Thankful For

Today I had Eva’s 2 month check up.  We were a little late on the appointment as she is 2 1/2 months old now.  I really enjoy seeing how much she has gain and grown in length. She is now 11lbs and 10.5oz.  She has almost doubled her birth weight!!  So thankful that she is doing well!

Not the best picture…she was moving around a lot!

Day 14 ~ What I Am Thankful For

I am thankful for the wonderful church that we go to,Solid Rock!  God brought us to this church a little over three years ago and we have been so blessed by it.  We love the preaching by all the pastors that speak, as well as the worship.  We also are very grateful for the children classes as well.  We could not ask for a better church!

Day 11 ~ What I Am Thankful For

Today I am thankful for my immediate family.  I am not as close with some of them as I would like but so happy to have them in my life.  It’s nice to know that I family family to walk this road of life with.  I love you all!

My Parents

My Mom

My older brother Steve and his wife Caroline

My younger brother

David and his wife Danielle & two kids Josyln & Dustin

My younger sister Kristi