An interview with Naomi: Age 8

This last July I interviewed Marco for his birthday and Naomi wanted me to do the same. Glad she reminded me!  
You can read Marco's here, but this is my Naomi's. She just turned 8 this past Sunday.

Naomi Age 8
1. Who is your favorite person in the whole world?
God
2. What is your favorite color?
Turquoise
3. What's your favorite television show?
Austin and Ally
4. What's your favorite outfit?
My One Direction shirt and dark denim shorts
5. What sport do you like best?
Soccer
6. What is your favorite cereal?
Cookie Crisp
7. Who is your best friend?
Citlali
8. What do you want to be when you grow up?
A professional artist
9. What is your favorite book?
"The Day the Babies Crawled Away" by Peggy Rathmann
10. What are you really good at?
Singing and painting
11. Where do you wish you could go on vacation?
Universal Studios
12. What song do you love?
The Best Song Ever by One Direction
13. What's your best memory?
When Mommy surprised me and Taryn and took us to the One Direction movie, "This is Us."
14. What would you buy if you had $1,000.00?
I would buy an iPod and a phone.
15. What vegetable do you hate the most?
Corn
16. If you could have a wish, what would it be?
For daddy to find a job. 
17. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Vanilla
18. Who is your biggest hero?
My Grandpa Rudegeair 
19. What do you like to do best with your friends?
Play and talk about stuff
20. What do you hope to do before your next birthday?
Get straight A's in school.
She was very thoughtful with her answers. So sweet. Almost made me cry with number 16.  She's daddy's girl for sure.

We are having a little sleepover party for her this Friday. It is a first for her and the girls that are coming.  I'm sure you will get to see pictures once it's over and I recover. haha!

hello monday|ten

hello monday. You've managed to sneak up on me again. Looks like our regular Monday dental appointment has been cancelled so I actually have a bit of free time to try and catch up on some projects... or I could just lounge around and make my sister proud.  I seem to have issues where I can't let myself relax.  Still trying to work on my One Little Word: MINIMIZE. *sigh*  It's a work in progress for sure.

We have Hannah's Water Polo banquet to attend tonight. I'm sure there will be pictures to follow. :)

hello  Monday Mugshots. So, here's my mug this a.m. Filled with Folger's Black Silk coffee and Almond Joy creamer.  It's in the middle of my messy art table because that's what's going on this morning.  I really feel like I have not had a break all month.  I need to clean up this mess before I can think straight and get to work in my journal.  I have a prompt from A Year in the Life of an Art Journal that I want need to work on.

hello new hair style and locks of love. Naomi finally decided that she was ready to cut her hair.  She also decided that it would be really nice to donate her locks to Locks of Love.  I'm so proud of her and I love the new look.  Ready for summer!

hello Easter mantel. I usually do a new look each month on my entry way table. However, we have two holidays this month that we like decorating for around here.  Bring on the Cadbury mini eggs to finish this look! ;)

hello Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour Restaurant. My husband decided, on a whim, to take us to Farrell's last night.  We recently had one open near us and he remembered how much fun he had there when he was a kid.  We had a blast.  Good food and even better atmosphere of fun for the whole family.  The servers there were awesome!  Will be great for special occasions in the future!  

So there you go. hello monday and new beginnings.

Inspired by my friend, Lee at Embrace Life, Hello Monday provides a peek into the coming week - in all its glory. Join us and Lisa for the Hello Monday fun.

hello monday|five

hello monday.

hello dreaded dental appointment. i went to see a new dentist today. i know there is lots of work to be done. i will be returning for more appointments in the upcoming weeks. thankful for the opportunity to go, but not looking forward to the anxiety i am already feeling at the thought of it.

hello swim season. with only one game of water polo left for my Hannah, we will be going right into the swim season.  i'm excited that she may be doing fly this year. her coach encouraged her to try it last year because he saw some potential in it, but she was scared to try it at a meet. i'm proud of her for wanting to take that chance this year. it's better than not ever knowing.

 Camarones (Shrimp)

 Ceviche 

hello ceviche. we used to go to this little hole in the wall in the city of Bell to get the most amazing ceviche. i've missed it since we moved out of the area, but my father-in-law treated us to some after our dental appointment. it was so good. very fresh and tasty!

hello soul journaling.  i haven't been working in my art/soul journal as much as i'd like to, but i am starting to realize that whenever i get super busy, it's the important things that usually get pushed to the back burner.  some people may not think that journaling or art journaling would be important, but it is for me.  it is therapeutic and relaxing for me and i know i must make time. 

it is definitely my happy place.

hello tutoring. i've been helping out at Marco and Naomi's school in their classes during the week and i really enjoy it. i don't know if i'll ever go back to full-time teaching, but i love getting a chance to be in the classroom every once in a while.  i learned about a really cool gadget that my daughter gets to use in her class. it's called ACTIVOTE and it is a little remote control type voting system that lets them participate in the lessons presented by the teacher. she gives answer options on the promethean board (also very cool) and each child has their own ACTIVOTE and the teacher can see who answers, who does not answer, if they answer correctly... it's great!

 ACTIVOTE Controller

My Naomi demonstrating how they use them.

So there you go. hello monday and new beginnings.

Inspired by my friend, Lee at Embrace Life, Hello Monday provides a peek into the coming week - in all its glory. Join us and Lisa for the Hello Monday fun.

Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'! 

~~Audrey Hepburn

March Photo A Day: Day Six|5:00

This is what was happening at 5:00 this evening. Naomi is wearing her new glasses.  First full day of school and first homework with glasses on.  Let's see if her grades go up. haha.  

Photo taken with my Android Revolution. Edited with pixlr-o-matic 

Just a regular day...

I had a migraine headache for the last two days.  Today, I woke up feeling better, but with just a hint of headache lingering somewhere in the back of my neck.  I didn't sleep well, but got up at 5 a.m. to be sure that Hannah got up on time to leave for water polo practice.  She just started playing on her school team.  It's the first time for her to ever play this sport, but she loves it.  Morning and after school practice - just about every day.
After I was sure she was off to school, I fell asleep for a little while longer and then got up to get the other two girls off to school.  Naomi would have her school Christmas program today.  She has been practicing her songs and was quite excited, so I didn't have much struggle when I called her name to wake her up.
She decided to make her own lunch today - I have no idea why - and that was fine.  Marco got the girls off to school and it was my turn to get ready and have my little guy get ready too.
"Oh, God!", he says.  I tell him not to say that because he's using God's name in vain.  He then proceeds to tell me that he really needs a hair cut.  What four year old even cares about that? hahaha!  He's looking at himself in the mirror.  It is quite funny.  His hair is going in all directions.  I told him to make sure and tell his dad when he gets back home.

She's in the back row...with a super tall boy right in front of her. Gah.  Oh, well. Good thing she had her eye on us the whole time. =)

The three of us went to Naomi's school to watch her perform.  There were so many parents there - I couldn't believe it!!  I was glad to be able to get a few good shots of her.  She sang very well and kept her eyes on us the whole time.  So cute!  My girl, she's growing up so fast.

Marco saw Naomi walking in line to her class.  He snuck in for a quick hug from his best friend. Love them together!!

The children went back to their classes immediately after their performances, so we left too.  My husband decided that Marco really did need a haircut.  So off we went.  I waited in the car and read a book called "Remembering Christmas" on my Kindle.  It's a loaner and I only have 14 days to read it, so I had to get busy. =)
It wasn't long before my little guy came out with his new hair cut.  His hair was all "spikey".  He looked so grown.  I took a couple pictures of him since I had the camera with me already.  Of course, he obliged.
haha!

 He had two "Lily Pops" in his hand.  The lady always gives him an extra for his sister, but I don't think she's going to see any of that today! LOL

Then it was back home and my husband decides he's going to make some burgers for us.  They were so good.  Now he's gone to go meet with someone from church.  He'll be doing church work for the rest of the day and then he'll be picking the girls up from school.  I've been working on getting some Etsy orders done.  I am sooo thankful that those are coming in the way they are!  I don't think we have any plans tonight - although with church - that could change at any time.  We have our mid-week service on Thursdays now, so hopefully it will be a quiet night at home with the family.
Just a regular day for us - just not as busy. =)
I'm saying a prayer and thinking of so many of you right now.  You are on my heart, I want you to know that!

Philippians 4:6-7~"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

Today, I am grateful for...

12 - I am grateful for great coffee and seasonal flavored creamers to make my cup of joe even more decadent.  I enjoy a good coffee any time of the day or evening.  I especially enjoy good company while I sip said coffee.  This weekend has been especially nice because my dear friend Erin is here and she makes sure that there is always fresh coffee in the pot.  She picked up this great coffee and these amazing flavored creamers. Yum!

13 - I am grateful for our church and for the people that make up our church.  We have been pastoring this church for 5 years now and I can truly say that I am excited to see what God holds for us in the future.  We are at a new location and we are starting new ministries within the church.  I am very close to my family, but we all live miles and miles apart.  The church family has become my family here.  I am humbled by their love for us and inspired by their love for God.  Thank you Lord for putting each of them in our lives.

14 - I am grateful that my sister, Esther, decided to send my daughter some Skechers Twinkle Toes shoes that Abby had outgrown.  We love hand-me-downs, but these were especially nice 'cause they were like NEW! Naomi has been wanting a pair for a while, but they are a bit pricey!  She wore them to school the very next day.  Thank you Esther for thinking of her - they are perfect!!

Naomi's Art Party

 I bought two empty cans at Home Depot. I could not believe I had to pay $8 for two EMPTY cans. Anyway, I took plastic table cloth and taped one end inside.  I hung them upside down using fishing line and then tacked the line to the wall. I cascaded the table cloth over the table and hoped that it would look like spilled paint.  Saw this idea on Pinterest and you can get the link at the bottom of the post.  The original link doesn't say much about the photo, it was just from a party.

I tried to choose very colorful, fun foods.  Not pictured, but the main event was a baked pasta dish that had all kinds of pasta (bow tie, cork screw, etc) with a meat and maranara sauce. There were meatballs in a separate pot as well as dinner rolls.

This mini paint palette cake was made by my good friend Lorany. She is so talented and makes the cakes, cupcakes, cake pops and cookie pops for all of our kids' birthdays.  She is so creative!

Of course we had a piñata !

Here's Lorany with Naomi.  She made some super yummy cupcakes and then put them on a palette.

Blowing out the candles...with a little help from a special little boy. hehe

So colorful and more importantly... YUMMY!!

The birthday girl - my little artist - Naomi AGE 6

My girl...

Naomi and Hannah Joy...hard to believe that she went thru surgery just days earlier.

Marco and Naomi - best buddies

Naomi and Taryn - check out her Play Doh shirt

She is definitely "daddy's girl"

This was the set up.  Cake and candy party table to the left and art supply and project to the right.

I took brown paper lunch bags and punched the top of them with a Martha Stewart lace border punch. When the kids arrived, I had them go to the table and decorate their bag and put their name on it.  This bag was used to hold the supplies I gave them as well as candy from the candy bar.

I had a lot of these items already from my teaching and Sunday School supplies.  The rest was purchased at a dollar store.  There were little watercolor palettes, pencils with glitter gel, puffy pom poms, styrofoam shapes, glue sticks, packs of Crayola Crayons (Wal Mart for 40 cents a box!!), play doh, colored plastic clothespins and glitter.  

I bought some door hangers at the Dollar Tree and had them decorate them with styrofoam stickers.  We also  covered some notepads with scrapbook paper and decorated them.

Dipped marshmallows, Spree, gumballs, licorice, marshmallow twists...

Pixie sticks, rice krispy "paint brushes"... 

Colorful fruit kabobs...

As a special surprise, Lorany made some cookie pops! They were so cute and again, more importantly, very yummy! haha.  It was a great party and I am pleased to say - really did not cost that much.  Next up, Hannah's SWEET 16.  Yes, that is what I will be working on during the whole month of October.

Several of these ideas were found on PINTEREST.  It's one of my favorite "habits".  Click on the link to go to my ART PARTY board and there are different pictures with all the links to take you to the original ideas.  Some of the ideas have been copied so many times it's hard to give credit to the original person, but you should be able to follow them to their links.

Wordless Wednesday: Hello? Hello?

Simple Things ~ Just the box!

I love how close my two youngest children are with each other.  They play so well together. There's an almost two year difference in age, but they don't seem to mind. They are best friends.  A friend ended up giving Marco her whole Sponge Bob collection and it came in the box.  It was loaded.  Sponge Bob lunch box, games, puzzles, basketball, clock...all kinds of stuff.  He loved it.  They played with a lot of it right away...but guess what?  They ended up playing in that box mostly.  They built stuff with it.  They hid in it and acted like they had a gift for one of us and of course, we had to play along and open it only to be "scared" by a little person hiding in there. haha  They played with this box for a few days until it was too torn up to do much more.  I love that. So much imagination.  Ahhhh.  Just the box!

It's summertime and the livin' is...

easy?? Well, that's how the song is supposed to go, right? School is officially out and I now have one child going into pre-school, one into first grade, one into jr. high and one that is a junior in high school. What were we thinking when we had them almost 4 years apart?? Oh, yeah. We weren't thinking. haha! Well, it keeps us on our toes that's for sure.

Here's Taryn and Hannah. Hannah curled the back of Taryn's hair for her. I thought that was very sweet of her. =) Taryn chose this dress on her own for promotion - of course we found it at TJ Maxx! Hannah got her dress at TJ Maxx too, I think. She just wanted to wear it for last day of school. My beautiful girls...

This is Taryn's main teacher. She has two others that teach different subjects. They work as a team and have a goal of preparing the kids, not for junior high, but for college! She loves them and they love her and show it!

Here's Naomi with her teacher once again. They had a fun "field" day for their last day of school. They got to play some water games, as well as the giant, colorful parachute!

I was so pleased with all three of my girls this school year. They all made incredible progress and did so well. We are now preparing ourselves for our family vacation and I just really can't wait. I feel like I can't even get excited though, because so much is going on. Once I get on that airplane, I'm going to take a big SIGH and try to just let it all goooooo....
Next time I post, it may be from Washington state!!

Kindergarten Promotion...

Here's Naomi's wonderful teacher, Mrs. Saucedo. I have had the privilege of working with her for this last school year and will continue next year as well.

This is our principal, Mrs. Ausman-Haskins. We will miss her as she transfers to a new school next year. Naomi is receiving her award here for getting A's in Reading, Writing, and Mathematical Reasoning. Kindergarten is a full day program. There is no nap-time, but they do have fun. The learning starts the moment they walk in to the class and continues - literally - until their parents pick them up. Naomi worked hard and did her best! She also received an "A" Student pin for her academic achievement. =)

Naomi's best friend is her little brother Marco. He gave her some congratulatory kisses...whether she liked it or not. =)

Daddy's girl.

Proud mama.