Unscripted October Moments

October 2020

How quicky time pass us by. I wrote down in my agenda about, "how quickly October seem to come around". This is the reason why I try my best to live intentionally. To not live life with haste. To live in the present. To document life from the ordinary mundane moments to fun outings. And this is why I don't ever rush time by saying, "oh, I wish it was Friday, or I wish it was summer, or I wish it was Christmas break". Because I know better. When you think that way it prevents you from living in the present moment.

There's a pumpkin patch about five minutes from our house. Around early October is when you spot a tractor pulling a wagon filled with a huge load of pumpkins driving from their pumpkin patch to several blocks down the road toward their farm store. These were huge pumpkins.

For a few months I began to notice my eyes becoming a little blurry and burn when I read so, Jacob and I both went to see the optometrist. We got our eyes checked and we were both prescribed reading glasses, unfortunately. Fast forward six years to today and we still think having to rely on reading glasses to look at small print is a big inconvenience. I'm still not used to the idea of having reading glasses.

It is such a de-stresser to me to take the backroads whenever possible when I'm feeling overburdened. Driving along pine trees and seeing farm animals lifts my spirits, more so when it is cloudy. I'm keenly aware of my surroundings, observant, and I'm very detailed oriented so at times too much mental overload tends to cause overwhelm. Thankfully, I also know healthy ways on how to relax and decompress.  

This girl, wherever I go especially when I rest, she's sure to follow and lay next to me. I love her fur. She's got a very soft coat. I like to say she's my comfort animal because she feels so familiar to me. She's very patient when I'm holding her and loving on her. I wish she was just as loving towards other cats though.

For those of us that appreciate cloudy weather this scene never gets old. I get excited about cloudy weather as if this type of weather hardly happens, but we know that cloudy weather is a staple in the PNW, still it gets me every time. 

The above cloudy weather brought on a storm. It rained hard late at night which caused a power outage. Power came back on around 5:00 am. I'm glad it did because a cookie bake was planned on this Saturday. 

Riley enjoys helping his dad bake cookies. Sydna grabbing some lunch.

Now adding the icing. I failed to write down what type of cookies they made so I don't have a clue what they're called but I'm sure they were tasty.

This one I know. It was pumpkin cheesecake with crumble. It looks amazing! and I'm sure it was. 

Lila looking pretty.

I had a birthday in October. Riley had the day off for school. After a delicious breakfast we headed N to Redmond and Woodenville. We like taking the scenic route. 

The gorgeous colors of autumn leaves just beg to be displayed.

One of the coziest things to do when it's cloudy and cold is to curl up on the couch and watch a good movie.

After a while though I do feel the need to get up and move around, so we went on a long walk around a couple of neighborhoods.

Spotted these two pretty flowers.

Slow living isn't about doing less; it's about being present in everything you do. It's about connecting deeply with loved ones, nature, and the quiet beauty of daily life. 

This time it was Lila who wanted to sit near me. She's giving me side eye. I love her furry paws. 

Taking the back roads near our home just so I can look at these beauties. Such gorgeous trees.

Nathan dressed up as Bob Ross. So silly.

All ready to head out to a Halloween party.

The devotional book I was reading at the time. (I read it as a book not one devotion a day.) This devotion really caught my attention. We should all heed what it's talking about. We cannot do life on our own. At some point we have to realize that we cannot do life without God.

October was a fun month. It is my favorite month of the year. Anytime I can spend time by the water is always a relaxing enjoyable time for me.

Our lives are made up of time, and the quality of

our existence depends on our wise use of the moments we are given.

Sydna's 23rd Birthday

 March 2020

Sydna. My first born. She was so cute when she was a little child. I remember her sitting in her little rocking chair my brother gave her in front of her bedroom bookshelves "reading" a book. She used to have short hair, just above her shoulders and her hair would curl just at the ends, it looked very cute.

Still, to this day she enjoys reading. It makes me happy she has a love for books.

Given I was 21 years old when I had her, young and inexperienced as a new mother, now looking back I wish I could have slowed down and really cherished her more while she was little. If it wasn't for all the pictures I took of her and our life back then I wouldn't remember all the cute and funny things she used to do. I am glad I have all those pictures though. 

With her brothers, Nathan and Riley. I love my kids.

I will be next to you in times of sorrow.

I will watch over you when you are weak. I will 

guide you when the future looks bleak. I will be there

for you whenever you need me. I will always love you. 

Tamale Making and Cookie Baking

It is tradition in many Hispanic households to make tamales for Christmas. I remember watching my mom make them every Christmas when I was a child. She would make about two hundred when it was our turn to host Christmas Eve dinner (that's another thing Hispanic families do, we gather on the 24th and open presents at midnight).

In my family everything is scaled down a lot! It's just us living in WA so we tend to celebrate more on an intimate level consisting of us and two of our children that like tamales. Riley doesn't eat them.

I've eaten tamales with no vegetables in them but my mom would make them differently. She would add a green olive, a slice of jalapeño and a slice of potato. That's how I continue to make them except I use black olives. I believe this was our second time making them and although they came out decent they weren't great, not like Mom's. It was the masa. It needed more salt and needed to be softer which means I didn't add enough lard. At least I know where the problem is that way next time we make them we know where to focus on.

Sophie ever so cute wearing her Christmas collar. She really does like it because she doesn't try to take it off or bite it. 

I've been blogging for a while now. Gosh, I think I started when we moved to Tucson which was thirteen years ago. Crazy! I especially enjoy blogging when it's cold and cloudy outside because I like to put on a good movie and get cozy on the couch. One of the cats is always bound to be laying next to me. Just a perfect combination.

As I'm reading back on my agenda to help aid with my blogging I can't help but get melancholy about what I was experiencing back almost three years ago. On Dec. 20th I wrote, " It rained all night long and hard too. Rain kept hitting the windows. I love falling asleep to rain".    - how cozy does that sound!

Later that same day Jacob and I decided to start a new family tradition, cookie baking! Like baking more than just one cookie. For our first year we chose to bake three different cookies.

They were; Pumpkin-Praline with brown butter icing, Minty Chip Chocolate, and imitating Hello Robins Mackles'more cookie.

For the record. I help prep but Jacob is the baker in the family. Maybe one day I'll start baking myself.

Riley's such a willing helper ... only because he would sneak chocolate dough bites every now and then, lol! He looks a lot like Nathan when he was this age.

And here are the cookies. They were all sooo good but we definitely made too many. Even after gifting some away we still had a good amount of cookies left.

It was fun making different varieties of cookies. Looking forward to next years cookie baking.

Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend.

July Snippets

7/2019

Last year I had resumed on getting pictures printed and placing them in photo albums, I had been slacking. Riley doesn't even have a photo album, that's how far I've fallen behind! Can you believe that? All this began when I got myself a digital camera and you know how much easier it is to take pictures, not to mention how many more one can take without having to run out of camera roll. 

Anyway, I began separating pictures ... a stack for Sydna, a stack for Nathan, and a stack for family & friends. I wonder if anyone still gets their photos printed and then put them in photo albums anymore?? I think that's become a lost art/hobby which is a sad thing. I know it takes time but anything worthwhile usually does. 

A favorite past time of mine is to watch a good movie and either journal or blog. This is the best way I destress during the day (because at night I like to read). 

When Riley's on summer vacation I like to make plans to get out of the house every other day. Some days we stay home and other days we sometimes go to the park. I try to take him to a different park each time since there are so many nice ones here. This particular park is right across the street from a library. It also has a splash pad but the weather wasn't warm yet so Riley played at the playground. The city community center is next to the park too so kids that attended summer programs were all over the park. That's why there were so many kids.

During another outing we went to the movie theater to watch Secret Life of Pets 2. I actually liked the movie (and the first one too) but I noticed that the main dog's (Max) voice was not the same as in the first one. Darn, I thought Max's voice was cute. Another character I liked a lot is Chloe, she's a big white blunt sarcastic cat. She makes me chuckle every time. 

Riley loved these reclining theater chairs. They are very comfortable.

Had my in-laws over for dinner. Riley had grandpa play a nerf gun battle with him, lol. 

Sometimes, to change up my reading I select books to read that compliment the season. For the first time I decided to read books about sharks for summer (2019). I believe I selected seven books, but ended up reading only four. I have a thing for sharks. I believe them to be amazing creatures and hope the Mako shark stops being killed because their species is quickly disappearing. Whenever shark week comes around each Summer on the Discovery Ch. I am glued to the tv. I also watch Jaws non-stop which, I end up getting a hard time about from the boys, lol.

I love to read whenever I treat myself out for lunch but it does take me forever to finish my food, lol. I used to think how lonely it must be to eat out alone but now that I eat by myself I actually love it! At least it's a pleasure to eat alone if you're an introvert like myself.

I rarely bake sweets but once in a blue moon I like to bake a little which surprises even me. I found this simple Apple pie bites recipe on Pinterest and have since made it several times. 

They were very tasty and a hit with the kids. I baked them midday and were gone by the evening. I like treats like these because they are small and just having one satisfies the sweet tooth. 

One of my favorite meals that Jacob cooks for us is Alfredo whether it's with chicken, scallops, or shrimp. On this day I was craving shrimp. It is so good. Doesn't it look delicious?! and I can't eat pasta without crushed red peppers. Seriously, I can't. To me adding this precious spice completes the meal. So good.

It starts getting hot here by mid July. I have a treadmill in the garage and I exercise several days a week but during the hot summer days I have to wait until 10:00 pm to walk. Obviously it's hot during the day, so on these days (which I'm thankful aren't many) I keep the blinds closed, lights out and stay comfortable indoors watching movies, reading or playing games with Riley.

Halloween is a favorite, has been since I was a kid. I'm not the type of person that watches a certain type of movies on their respective season or holiday. If I like a movie whether it's a scary or a Christmas one I will watch it year round.  

VBS week. It would be great if it lasted longer than a week.

Took Riley to a fairly new park. It's nice for the kids but I did noticed that it lacked shady areas. Even once the young trees mature there's still not much shade. 

So to cool off we got some Baskin-Robbins ice cream. 

Lila doesn't really like to be held for long or cuddled so it's very cute and funny whenever she craves affection, like in this case. She just jumped up on the couch and laid on Riley's lap. 

This chutes-and-ladder style slides were built in June 2019 on Ruston Way in Tacoma. We visited a month later.

And this park is new as well. It's called Dune Peninsula Park. The views are beautiful. It's a great place for a picnic. However, this area is a popular tourist spot so it can get crowded at times. 

And on a clear day, one can see Mt. Rainier. 

A trip to the beach is a perfect getaway during the long Summer months especially here in the PNW because it can be chilly at the beach even in July. It is such a relief. We got take-out and ate it in the back of my Tahoe. It was cozy.

We saw several dead jelly fish. 

Every time I go to the beach I look for sand dollars but it's been a long time since I've found any (dead or course) in good condition. I've come across a few but they were broken.

She likes to lay on my left side when I'm in bed so I have to scoot out of the right side of the bed when I want to get up. She looks too cozy and comfortable to bother her.

Eating lunch along with my oldest and youngest.

Lila's 2nd birthday.

She looks funny here, kinda like the famous grumpy cat, lol. 

Even though you're grown, you should never stop having fun.