This is what Happens when . . .

There is just too much to read. Just before leaving Phoenix to come and visit with the Velez side of the family, I found Orion like this and couldn't resist taking a video. I was trying hard not to laugh so I wouldn't wake him.

More Orionisms:

Just wanting to keep track of those moments that make us laugh. Here are some recent conversations that have taken place with my son:

1. Our family is driving around delivering cookies to friends and neighbors and ding dong ditching, and in order for us to all fit in one car, we pile up into my mom's Durango with Orion in the very back seat strapped in with a normal seat belt. We go over a huge speed bump a little too fast.

Orion: "Wow, we go big bump!"
Grand Mamita: "That was a big bump."
Orion: "We go bump on the wump of gump."

Can you guess which children's books we've been reading lately?

2. Orion sneezes 7-8 times in a row. Normally I ask him if he's okay. This time he beat me to it.

Orion: "Mommy, I'm okay. I sneezed."

3. We made plans to go to Parnell Park. For those who don't know, it's a little park I grew up on that has a tiny zoo, with chickens, a few ponies, a pig and a donkey or so.

Me: "Orion, you want to go to the zoo?"
Orion: "YA! I want to see animals. I wanna see Caribou, and Hippopotamos, and Giraffes and Ghosts (goats)."

Making Do, continued

Here are some more photos.

Making Do

So here are some fun family shots we took ourselves and my sister and I fiddled with on photoshop. Don't know how great a job we did but here's some I thought were all right. Hope you enjoy.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!!

My Baby Doll and some Fun Facts

At 10 Months, 1 week, and 3 days old, here are some things I intend to brag about my daughter (C'mon mothers, you know we all do this):

-Chrys likes to eat quinoa, dates, fruits, bread and oatmeal.
-She likes to drink green smoothies, rice, almond and soy milks, and even wheatgrass juice.
-She likes to be sung to sleep.
-She weighs 20 lbs. exactly.
-She crawls like a pro.
-She has 6 teeth (four on top, and two on bottom)
-Her grin is to die for.
-She walks and wobbles but can take about 10-15 steps on her own without holding onto anything.
-She loves to sing or at least make long noises in an attempt to sing. She covers and uncovers her ears when she does this to hear the drowning out of noise. It's funny to watch her do this.
-She says: Hi, Mama, Dada, Baba, Brrrrrrrr (and does the equivalent of rolling her tongue but with her lips instead - does that description have a word?), Nene, Nana, and Wha!
-Chrys likes to blow raspberries on Mommy anywhere and everywhere. If I'm lying on my back, she'll blow them into my tummy. If I'm on my stomach stretching, she'll crawl up to me and blow them into my calves. If I'm cuddling her, she'll blow them into my cheeks, neck and yes even into my chest.
-She still loves to nurse.
-She loves to read. She can read about 10 words that I know of so far. Maybe more. But the few that stand out are clap, tongue, ear, nose, dog, cat, wave, and hi. When shown the word without the pictures, she'll either do the action, point to the body part, or make the animal sound.
-She loves to talk gibberish to me like she's actually having a conversation. It's really quite funny. She'll just lie in bed with me sometimes and roll onto her side and just talk to me, making eye contact and everything. And if I start to dose or am not paying attention, she not so gently slaps my face.
-She loves being pushed around in a stroller. She hates carseats. Probably because she can't see anything. She loves shopping and being pushed around in a walmart cart.
-She'll let everyone know she's upset with her brother when he takes something away from her. She'll grunt and squak until she gets her way.
-Lately, she likes draping things over her shoulders. She'll drape clothes and baskets over herself like purses or something.
-And the thing I either love the most or hate the most depending on the time of day and the current situation, is that she loves to be held, specifically by Mommy. She's definitely a Mommy's girl. And I love her. She's my baby doll. My butterfly. My Chrysalis.

Bathtime

I love my babies in the bath. It's the time of day when all the chaos gets picked up, when all the sticky stuff gets washed out, when all the giggles and wiggles are let loose, and when all is said and done, a very tired Mommy gets to plop onto the bed without worrying about getting her hair pulled by either Thing 1 or Thing 2. That said, don't you just love naked babies? Too bad I can't keep them this little forever. So while I still can, here are some naked babies. Enjoy!

What You Can Do with $1.25 Can of Snow Spray

Here are some fun photos of the real thing.

In my mind, God is the Great Artist.

And following are some of our family's immitations.

I remember doing this a long time ago with my Mom and have wondered why we haven't done it since. So I decided to buy a can of snow spray and start up the tradition again. Orion was very excited to spray my cut out snowflakes onto the window. He doesn't quite have the right arm maneuver yet but here is an example of one he sprayed himself and I was quite impressed with how well it turned out. It was a little clumped up over to the left, but not bad for a two-year-old.

Here it is up close and personal.

These fun doors at the house we rent were fun to decorate. We started making them lower but quickly realized that was a mistake because of the baby girl wanting to eat the snow by rubbing her fingers through the freshly sprayed-on flakes.

It was fun to see all the different patterns we could come up with no matter how many of the same kinds of cuts you made in the paper. I suppose it's almost like real snowflakes. Go figure.

Here are some more I made with Orion while helping him to guide the can in order to get a nice and even spray.

Okay, so I got a little carried away. Well, it just goes to show that even on a tight budget you can still get creative. I've discovered that a lot this year. But somehow my list of expanding creative projects doesn't cease to amaze even me.

And yet some more.

Here is one Alex made that doesn't look quite like a snowflake. I think it looks more like a ninja star of some sort. I guess that's the look he was going for. Or so he says.

This one of his turned out a little more like something you'd find over a sewage drain in a city. But we laughed and used it anyways.

This one looks something like a quilt because it's not quite so round like a snowflake but it has a pretty cool design, I thought. My hubby can be crafty if he wants to be. I guess he just doesn't like to admit it.

And here are some more he did. He didn't like his at first cuz he thought they didn't look like snowflakes. He described the big one as being more of a Native-American-looking snowflake because of the desgin. And the one on the bottom right corner, he said looked like something that belonged on a skateboard. I had to agree. But I loved them all anyways. I look forward to the day when Orion and Chrys can handle the scissors better so that I can see what kinds of snowflakes they design.

While my imitation of God's intelligent design of real snowflakes still lacks quite a bit, I marvel at the brilliance of such a mind. I'm convinced God is an artist. My talent is but a small fraction of what his is, but it surely is fun to try and mimic his frosty skills. Here's to a fun Christmas hobby and perhaps more to come. Arizona needs a little snow anyways.

Some Holiday Happenings

We went to the mall today to have a little Rainforest Cafe appetizers and then headed over to see if we could get some pictures with Santa. Turns out we didn't get pics with Santa. But the day was still fun. Here are some random Orionisms. The last one explains why we couldn't get pics, but I have to love it when my little boy reminds me that life is still great.

Orionisms:

"Mommy, Cwistmas twee has lots of colors." Yup it sure does. I'll post some pics of our tree later.

"Cwysawis! No no no! Mommy, she eating snowfakes!" Here is a big brother making sure his sister doesn't poison herself with the can of spray snow that Mommy left within her reach.

"Cwysawis! Stop. No scweaming." On the car ride to the mall.

"Mommy, let's go to Walmart. Let's get some wice milk, some bamanas, some gween leaves, some cars, and some blue balls." I think he really wanted more Christmas ornaments. I got some blue and gold balls to decorate our tree this year from Walmart. I love $5 boxes of ornaments. Apparently Orion thinks we need some more blue ones.

"Mommy, Santa is just a man!" This is apparently how exciting Santa was today, which is just as well for us too cuz when we got to the front of the line, we realized you had to pay $30 for the cheapest package and if you didn't want to get a package, you had to pay $15 to take your own pictures with your own camera. Who wants to sit on Santa's lap anyways? I miss the Provo Town Center. So we opted for a Merry-Go-Round ride instead. The kids never missed Santa. My son is too understanding sometimes. Gotta love him.

Eating Popcorn through her Nose

She just looked too funny not to snap a photo. She loves popcorn.

A Prayer for a Dancer's Knees

Alex's sweet little cousin Sofia is a beautiful dancer currently battling osteosarcoma of the knee. She is about to have a surgery on her knee and as any dancer knows, our knees are crucial. Any prayers or words of encouragement to her blog which is linked to mine are welcome. Let's all pray for her to be able to dance long into her 90's. My heart goes out to this beautiful girl. Sofi, we love you and think about you.

"Some men have thousands of reasons why they cannot do what they want to, when all they need is one reason why they can."
-Martha Graham-

How do I make it through the day?

Because at the end, I see these little bundles tucked away and think to myself, "That's how." Sometimes I really do wonder. But one day at a time right? Just put one step in front of the other.

Happy Thanksgiving!

So here is my "I'm Thankful for....." List of the Year 2009:

1. The Gospel - Because real truth is sought for everywhere and so hard to find for those without the knowledge of the Gospel.
2. The Atonement - Because I have a tendency to fall short time after time after time. You'd think I'd learn. I'm just glad the Great Mediator has made it possible for me to return to my Heavenly Father.
3. Joseph Smith and Modern day Prophets - Because I'd be lost without revelation to apply in this day. Our trials are so different, but we are equally in need of consistent reminders. I'm blessed to live in a day when the gospel has been fully restored.
4. The Scriptures - Because whenever I have questions about life and its trials, Alex always responds with, "Well, what do the scriptures say?" as if it were the most insightful source available. I suppose he's right.
5. My Husband Alex - Because, and I hate to be the bearer of bad news to all other wives out there but, he really is the best husband in the world. Jk. But he is the best in my eyes and therefore the best for me.
6. Orion Athen - Because Heavenly Father somehow saw me fit to be the mother of this super understanding and mild-mannered little boy. Because at night he asks, "Mommy, will you cuddle me?" and because that in itself is enough to melt me into a puddle of goo.
7. Chrysalis Rae - Because in the Chinese language, the symbol for happiness is made by depicting a figure of both a boy and a girl. Most Chinese families are only allowed to have two children so if they don't "get it right" the first two times, they are left incomplete. I am thankful to have been blessed with my first dose of happiness. Chrys has completed that for me. But who knows. . . perhaps in a few years I will have a second dose. In any case, I'm grateful to have a little mini-me who loves to wave, clap her hands, stick out her tongue, and say, "Amamama!"
8. My mother and father -For all that they give and continue to give, and for loving me no matter how differently we may see things at times.
9. My grandparents and all my ancestors who left their mark on me in both the obvious and subtle ways that are now who I am today.
10. For my siblings because I know many siblings these days who don't get along and we all do. And especially for my partner in crime Gio.
11. The Constitution - Because it protects our freedom.
12. Wheatgrass - Enough said.
13. Raw and living foods.
14. Bike trails.
15. Internet.
16. Music and the Invention of the piano.
17. Paint and paintbrushes.
18. Whoever invented the sewing machine.
19. Dancers and Choreographers alike.
20. Yoga and Pilates.
21. Friendly neighbors.
22. Seeds that grow.
23. Sun and snow.
24. Books.
25. Blenders and juicers.
26. Oh, and sippy cups.

And I can't think of anymore at the moment. But I think I needed to write this down because I've just now realized that I truly am blessed with so much more than I ever dreamed I would ever have and I'm only 27 years old. I haven't even fulfilled 1/3 of my life yet. Hee hee. Here's to hoping I make it to 100 like I've always wanted to. Well I challenge you all to write an "I'm Thankful For....." List because I would love to read yours and I actually found this silly tradition to be quite therapeutic. Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Our First Little Garden - Part 2

Our spinach sprouts that we started from tiny seeds.

Here's how the rest has been doing so far.

From left to right, we've got a patch of fresh wheatgrass that has already been cut about three times. We've sure been downing the wheatgrass juice like no other. I had no idea wheatgrass grew so quickly. Then, we have the collard greens that we didn't start as seeds but they have sure grown quite a few extra leaves since then. Next are some Jalapeno and bell pepper plants and all the way to the right, are the tomatoes.

Here are some baby green cherry tomatoes. Not quite ready yet, but soon to be for sure. I've been wondering if tomato leaves are edible. I've read from different sources that they are and then also that they're poisonous. If anyone can tell me or has eaten them, will you let me know? I haven't tried them yet for fear of eating something poisonous. But if they are, I sure wouldn't like them to go to waste. Please leave me a comment if you know.

Here is a close-up of our collards. There's something so exciting about watching plants grow that you have planted. I don't know exactly how to explain it. I guess it just feels like you're one with the earth. I suppose you feel a little closer to the heavens and it gives you a whole new outlook on what God must have felt when after each day of the creation he "saw that it was good."