Birthdays, Parents, and how I know God is our father

What is a birthday? A day in which we commemorate a new life in this world and celebrate continued life.

I've had my share of birthdays and have come to expect the tradition of everyone celebrating me. Which I can't say I don't like. But, really, it should be a day to honor my mother and father for the sacrifices they made in giving me life and keeping me alive. Yet, on this day for so many years when I should have been honoring them, they made it about me. They gave me gifts, made me yummy dinners and took me fun places.

From a self-centered perspective, one might wonder why anyone would want to be a parent. It seems like it's all about sacrifice, about giving, not getting. But, that is where the miracle happens. In a way, it's like that chemistry solution back in high school where somehow by combining two liquids you get a solid substance. In the combination of sacrifice and love, you get a solid substance of joy. Then God throws in more joy and love (and energy) just for trying the experiment.

God loves us! He is our Father! He knows the pure love and joy that come from being a good parent. I am so grateful He has let me try out this amazing parenting experiment. And, I am so grateful my parents decided to try it out about 27 years ago.

Thank you Mom and Dad!

Thank you Heavenly Father!

Happy Love Day!

I am so in love with my eternal sweetheart! He means more than the world to me. The brillant scarlet roses he gave me are just catching the light of the morning sun. They pale in comparison to the love he gives me every day. That love is the glue that keeps these two imperfect people so happy just to be together. What a beautiful life!

This is the cookie I decorated for Pedro.

This is the cookie Pedro decoated for me.Here are more cookies I made for Pedro. Guess which one was his favorite.
This is one of the flowers Pedro gave me.

homemade BBQ chicken pizza is really yummy

and that's about all I have to say.


Okay, I'll just add that Lloyds helped a little with the BBQ chicken and the bread machine helped a little with the dough, but I did the sticky part of putting it together in the right layers and baking it. Hmm. Okay, so the oven helped a little with the baking, but I . . .

. . . I got to play with my boy, instead of playing with chicken. Lucky me.

I love modern kitchen appliances!

ps. I love my new toy - an immersion blender with a chopper attachment. Making soups, bread crumbs and graham cracker crusts was never so easy.

Happy 6 month Birthday to our Little Rocket Man!

First Couple Weeks

1 month

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

6 months

I need your blog address

Hi all you cool people who occasionally browse our blog.

Somehow as I was changing the look of our blog background, the links to your blogs got deleted. I would love it if you would send me the link to your blogs. Pretty please with a cherry on top!

Feel free to comment on this post so I can access your blog or email it to me.

THANKS!

And, have a happy day!

Frogs are made for a little boys pocket

While in the process of giving our blog a new look, I found this fun froggy background. It probably won't be our permanent look, but it is so fun, I thought I'd keep it for a few days - maybe long enough for my missionary brother to see it when he checks his email. So, let me know when you see it, okay, Elder Mills.

A few stories/ thoughts about some of the frogs in my life:

1. The frogs in Bolivia don't croak; they whistle. In several areas where I served an LDS mission, my companion and I often heard and/or saw several hundred frogs after dusk as we walked country roads near ponds or muddy fields. To me, the chorus of whistling soothed like a nostalgic folk song. To my second companion in Trinidad, the sound sent chills up her spine. Hermana Rocha: by day, a fearless, bold commander in God's army not unlike a stereotypical drill sergeant (minus the cussing); by night, a whimpering, squealing school girl clinging to my arm as we carefully sidestepped the puddles and the hopping shadows in our path.

2. With his chubby cheeks, sometimes Pedrito's cute face looks a little froggy.

3. Once I left my muddy hiking boots just outside the door. The next morning I discovered a frog had made my shoe his home for the night. I'm glad I noticed the frog before I put my foot in the shoe. That would've been gross.

4. In the fourth grade, my teacher gave us a turn to take home Billy Bob, the class frog (toy), and write a story about his adventures. I can't remember what I wrote, but I remember someone painted lipstick on another toy frog and wrote about Billy Bob getting married.

5. Though I didn't know this frog personally, I won't forget about hearing the analogy of sin like putting a frog in a pot of boiling water. He jumps right out unless you turn the heat up slowly so he is comfortable until he get cooked. Ouch!

6. I'm not sure if I actually remember this or not, but my mom has a picture I drew of a family vacation to Zion's National Park. I was probably three or four when we hiked to Emerald Springs. I got a kick out of catching tiny frogs in the pools. I don't think I put any in my pockets, but if I did . . . Sorry little froggy.

COMMENT: Share any funny/interesting/not-super-gross stories or thoughts you have about the frogs in your life. This will be fun to read.

Laughing with Dad

Sunday afternoon was one of those moments when everything is perfect and you only worry about the lighting being good enough to capture the moment forever.

Pedro T. laughed hysterically when his daddy made a puff of air sound then Daddy laughed at T's laugh. They kept each other going for more than 10 minutes.

I love my handsome guys.

T is for tease.

What would be a good title . . . hmmm . . . tales of a stressed-out-now-grateful mom who just got her screaming baby to sleep

Yeah, that seems to fit the situation.

This kid better be teething. If that is the case, he has my full sympathy. Tiny daggers pushing out tender gums would merit this kind of screaming. However, if he is not teething, that kid better be in a better mood when he wakes up from his nap.

I had plans to visit some friends from work and show off my adorable baby, but I had one small problem: my baby was NOT being adorable. Such is life I guess. Maybe another day.

The scream session did have a happy little pause. Whenever Little Zi Guy, as I refer to him sometimes, sees me drinking water, he must have some. He leans forward, puckers his big lips and reaches for the glass. Then with help from his mom, he can actually drink from the glass. He loves this!

So, just to see how serious his problem was, I offered him a drink from a glass. His cries stopped instantly as he leaned in for a drink. However, I think his reason for screaming must have been legitimate since he managed only a few slurps before picking up where he left off with the last yell.

One of these days, I'll get pictures of his "I want a drink" face, but for now enjoy his first taste of baby food at Grandma's house on his 5-month birthday, January 8.