Corona

Before I had kids. I had a cat. He is the coolest cat. Even people who hated cats, told me that this cat was different. He was cool. But I already knew that.

There was this one time, that I had dated a guy. He looked a little bit like this movie star guy:

And then this guy came over. He took one look at my cat. He started to sneeze. And then he said, "Babe. This cat has got to go." And that was the end. I said goodbye to Mr. Hottie who looked like Matthew Mcconaughey. (because seriously, he did.)

Have you seen my cat? His name is Corona. We used to hang out together. All. The. Time.

And we watched TV together, and we slept together. (dh didn't like that so much)

He followed me everywhere. Like really. Every. Where. My dh used to joke that the cat is so far up my butt he didn't know where I ended and the cat began. (mom, I'm not making that up). Sometimes when I walked up the stairs, I would change my mind and come back, just to see if he would follow me. He did. Always. Going to the kitchen? Not a bad idea. Bathroom? Of course. Bedroom? Not without me you don't. Just going for a walk? Me too. Answering the phone? Don't leave me here with him.

When I left Miami to take a safer path from an impending hurricane, he went too.

We surfed the net together. OK, I did most of the surfing, he was just there for warmth and support, and approval of the shoes I might select. Or if you can see the screen, I was on a pregnancy website! (in a hotel.... those aren't my sheets or comforter!)

He never fussed when I would dress him up for Christmas.

And then when I got pregnant, he let me dress him up in Eddie's

new clothes. I had to practice right? He was such a good sport!

(I washed the clothes before I put them on my newborn! I'm just saying..... )

Not only is he the best cat ever, he was soooo good to the kids.

Here is Miss Alexa in Oct. 2006 at 6 weeks old.

And then of course, here he is with Eddie. The tough kid who

was at times (too many times) a little too rough on sweet Corona.

I miss my cat. Really.I do. And I was just thinking about him lately. If you are at all tuned in with what's going on in the world, then you probably know that the housing market sucks. We own a home in Arizona. And because we were unable to sell it before coming here, we rented it.

So we let the renters take care of my beloved kitty. I've been thinking a lot about him lately. And wishing he were here. I hope they give him back to me. I mean, they will right? I am certain dh doesn't care if they keep him. But I do.

I actually wish he were here now. Now that we are all settled in. It doesn't seem the same without him. Eddie has been asking for a dog. I keep thinking of Corona. I wonder if my brother can go over and get him and send him to us.

But then again that might be wrong. Maybe it's not fair to my kitty. The plane ride would be stressful. And that's just selfish. And maybe I should just leave him where he is at for the time being. At least he is being well cared for. The lady is a cat lover. She was overjoyed to take care of him. But I don't want her to get too attached.

Just thinking about my key-key. Miss you Corona!!!

Who's with me on this?

I am totally not a huge fan of the Crocs shoes. But admittedly I do own 3 pair. Have worn them religiously to work, and yes they are comfortable. But come on, they really are kind of ugly. Let's be honest here.

I almost didn't believe something I read today, when I heard that Crocs has a new line of shoes. I couldn't even picture it. Apparently it's true. They are called You by Crocs. Now I am in love. I want to try them. And would love to buy a pair, or three. But I haven't looked at the price. And honestly, I am afraid to.

Well, as fate would have it, Ohmommy is having a giveaway. I've never read Ohmommy, I've never seen her blog before. But already I love her. Love her style and her grand idea to contact the company to offer up a pair of shoes. Isn't she just brilliant? That's my kind of woman. Bravo!

Go check it out. But secretly, I'm hoping you don't win. Because I want those shoes!!

Time Flies

OK, so it actually passed by a few days ago. But I just got a reminder email that my domain name was going to expire. And I literally had a few days to get my original blog posts transferred over to this blog. I didn't want to lose it all. So my little blog here suddenly grew overnight.

It's hard to believe that on August 24th of last year, I started to blog. I was looking back at some of my older posts and it made me miss my old house. It also made me smile to see my babies. They looked so small.

Just want to share the picture from one of my earliest posts:

Happy 1 Year Blogoversary to me !

Mail is good.

Today dh went to the post office. I personally would have gone myself, but alas, I do not have a car. And the post office is no longer in walking distance of where we live. So when he got home from work, he had a package for me. I was a bit puzzled, because I was expecting at least 3 maybe 4. But he went over to his laptop bag and started pulling things out like it was Christmas! I got quite a few!

Here are some of my recent online purchases from New York and Company. First up I bought a brown cardigan button down sweater, with the tank shown in the next picture.

I figured that this color looks much better with the brown. So that's what I got.

Also got this heather gray 3/4 sleeve twist front tee.

And then there were these very cute, must have ankle pants. I got them in black...

And in sand color.

And I'm quite sure this one is my favorite.

Although I bought these things looking at only these pictures, amazingly enough everything fits perfectly! I gave dh a mini fashion show. He too is pleased with the purchases. I guess I kind of had to show him what was in all those bags. Oh and I also got a textured coin necklace from Banana Republic, but I can't get an online pic because they are sold out! Also my camera battery is being recharged right now. Trust me, it's cute!

Oh and a bit of news about our car. It has reached the port this past weekend. Let's see how long it takes for them to get all the "paperwork" taken care of and for them to release it to us. Not going to hold my breath though.

I've been tagged!

Littlemansmom, over at A brand new day, with no mistakes in it...yet has tagged me to do this meme. I have to come up with 6 words that define my life. This is definitely harder than it looks. I've actually had to think about this for a while. But here it is.

1. Juggler- As in, a mommy who masters simultaneously the continuous and always ongoing tasks, responsibilities, and activities of the family's daily lives.

2. Empathizer- to all.

3. Loved. By my husband, family and friends.

4. Thankful. For my life, my health and for the many blessings in my life.

5. Curious. I want to learn more, see more and experience much more of life.

6. Tenacious. Because I am.

Please feel free to play along. Tag yourself and then leave me a comment so that I can stop by and take a look!

Some new things around here.

Today we had some guys come over to build stuff. First you buy it, then you schedule an appointment to have it delivered. And if you think that your cable guy coming sometime between 8 am to 1 pm was bad, get a load of the fact that these furniture delivery people would like you to keep available a time frame of between 8 am until 8 pm. Yes, you read correctly. They may come sometime before breakfast or just before you get ready for bed. But just because you receive your shiny new furniture, don't think it's going to look all pretty. No sirreee Bob. What these folks are here to do is drop off a bunch of boxes. No more, no less. Now, it might be entirely convenient to try to schedule your furniture assembly for the same day as your delivery. But it doesn't work like that. When you buy furniture, it doesn't already come pre-assembled. You get it in a box, with a thousand screws and 67 pieces of weird hardware and clamps and hinges and stuff. And foam, there is always an ungodly amount of foam in these boxes too. Once you receive your boxes of furniture, you must schedule the assembly man (or woman) to come out. Once they finally do come out, they zip through the assembly with lightning speed and leave a pile of crumbled peanuts, foam and packing materials and chewed up cardboard in their wake. Or most importantly, in the middle of your home where little kids are ready and chomping at the bit to run through and jump in and play in it. Why? Why do kids do this? Don't they remove their packaging? Again, no more and no less. That's just good customer service and they aren't all about that here in Chile. At least I haven't seen any yet.

OK, despite that. I cleaned up the mess and took some pictures to share. I have a question for my readers. Please help me decide what to do with the chairs at my table. The first picture shows the chairs spaced out quite a bit because of the wide base legs of the table. Does it look better like this? The chairs can be pushed all the way in here. And you see more of the rug.

Or do you think it looks better with the chairs slightly pulled out? They can't be pushed in all the way, but at least they are more in the center. What do you think? Honestly?

Same way, but side view. You can see how far the chairs are pulled out.

This is a picture of the buffet we got to match. We are planning on hanging a mirror over it soon. I need an extra set of hands, or this would have been done tonight.

Last but not least, we also purchased this cabinet of sorts. Right now it is in the entryway. Not sure if we are going to leave it here or move it into the dining room. I didn't use to be a fan of dark wood, but after living with a natural wood bedroom set for 5 years I'm kind of aching for a change. So there you have it. My new dark wood dining room set, buffet and cabinet.

"Take a pitcha of me mommy!"

"Now one on my moto." No. She's not bossy at all. (being facetious here.) Actually her moto, is Eddie's motorcycle but she likes to say it in Spanish. And she's in Eddie's room. Because somehow playing in your brother's room is fun. Either that or it makes him mad when you play with his toys!

Valium for kids? Really?

I swear, people really make me laugh. A few of the blogs I have been reading lately have written about what keywords people have used in order to find their blogs. So I decided to do the same thing. So far, I haven't found anything out of the ordinary. Unless of course you consider medicating your child with a habit forming anti-anxiety medication unusual.

Here are just a few of the entries:

1. I need Valium free. (get in line sister, I'm the one with the kids and the blog.)
2. Joovy Caboose (what can I say? Love it. It's pretty cool. See review.)
3. 9 year old unbearable tantrums (yup... got that too. here)
4. kids to do list (hmmm? Maybe. But I think mine are a bit too young.)
5. spanking my kiddos (Who me? Depends on what they destroyed.)
6. Mad house mama (Yes. All the way.)
7. honda odyssey (Man. Do I ever miss my van.)
8. back to diapers (yeah. I'm thinking we may never get out of diapers here.)
9. silly valium picture (lovingly displayed for your viewing pleasure on my side bar)
10. I'm 16 my back hurts (Dude. I am so sorry. Back pain totally sucks!)
11. Valium que es? ( Google it )
12. Can you drink one or two drinks after taking Valium? (well, you really shouldn't.)
13. my blob ( ??? )
14. can Valium be shot up? ( really, that's not such a great idea.)
15. getting Valium through customs (Just how much are we talking? I gather you don't have a prescription.)
16. how much valium can I give my kids & Valium for kids (really?? hmmm...)

And there you have it. Some of the things that helped people to find me!


Now without further ado...

I would like to pass this lovely little gem of an award on to some of my bloggiest favorites. I'm going to make this short but sweet, as it is getting to be my bed time. Either that or I feel just a little guilty that dh is looking at the back of my head while I blog. OK, maybe not that guilty. But he did make lunch AND dinner today. WOW! I know, I know, lucky me. He cooked spaghetti and then he made a chicken soup with squash. So yummy! I think I am very lucky that he can cook. And he does it so well. Ooops. Sorry. Sometimes I get sidetracked like that. My mind just works that way.

OK, so like I was saying... The following bloggers, you have probably heard of. I'm sure you have. You must have. They are like the super popular kids in the blogosphere. They are the kind of people that make you laugh. Out loud. Each of them has a distinct way of interpreting their life and sharing with us their special moments. With hilarity. They are so much fun to read. That's why I am passing this award to Dorky Dad, Mcmommy over at The McMommy Chronicles, and Sue at Happy Meals & Happy Hour. These guys really deserve this. And they may have received this award already. Or some other *blingy*bling* award like it. But not from me, so I just thought I'd let them know that I think they are pretty cool!

Yay!

OK. As I was doing my nightly blog stalking, I happened to stop in on one of my favs. Her name is Chelle and she runs the show over at Creative Momma. Not only is her blog quite pretty, but she is an absolute doll. I love her writing style and she has the most adorable little girl Bella. (Our sweet Alexa was almost an Isabelle/Isabella herself.) Um, OK. Well I found that she has given me an award! Yes! Really! Little ole me. I'm so surprised and honored all at the same time. Thank you so much!

Now I am supposed to pass this honor forward to 7 deserving bloggers. I ask that you please be patient. I will get this passed along. For now, I have a sick husband to tend to. Seriously, he's not at all allowed to leave ever again. He keeps coming home sick. He has a fever, and is a coughing, phlegmy mess. I have a rather sizeable mess to clean up in the kitchen. My son helped himself to blueberry muffins and ate the remaining 8 mini muffins I had in the ziploc bag and proceeded to leave crumbs from the counter all the way through the kitchen into the living room. Thanks Eddie. And Miss Alexa just woke up from her early bed time. Cranky. Mommyhood. Because we are never off the clock.

Reunited

Right before we left the states I had made a few purchases. ((giggling a little bit here)) Yeah. Right. When don't I make a few purchases? Well today I was just looking into the closet and unpacking one of the boxes.

I found them. My total steal. Never even worn. Sshhh. Don't tell dh. Because he totally thinks that I own enough pairs of shoes already. But that is just plain silly. Who does? Now I love a good pair of boots. And sometimes these boots can be um, expensive. But super sale shopper that I am, I bought this particular pair of boots that had a retail price tag of $149.00, for only $37.25. Yes folks, they were 75% off. At Dillard's. Because they are one of my favorite stores of all time. They have the best sales. Now what person in their right mind would actually not buy them? I mean, you couldn't just leave them there! They are totally must have. And even if I didn't have anything to wear with them, which I'm quite sure I might, I would have bought them anyway. They were just too good to pass up! I have no idea what brand they are, I just know that I love them. And I can't wait to wear them! So I have. Since I can't go anywhere right now, I just wored them around the house a little bit. Up until I had to chase a small child who had something metal and dangerous looking in his hand. {Note to self, start exercising again. That little boy is getting really fast.}

And here is the second item that I have recently been reunited with. Our new printer/scanner/copier/fax machine. We literally bought this the day the packers were at our house. We needed a new printer, and our scanner was pretty much dead. And every once in a while we have had the need to fax something, but did not own a fax machine. So we went to Best Buy and looked at other models of printer combos. Little did we expect to run into a Kodak representative in the store. He happened to share a few gems about this printer with us and basically sold us on it. The quality of pictures it puts out is outstanding. I can't wait to get it plugged in and working. I have tons of pics to print up! The best thing of all, is that the ink is cheap! $9.99 for the black and $14.99 for the color. Even though we have only printed a few test pictures when we first unloaded it, I already know it's a winner. I totally recommend this printer!

OK, now this is for you Stephanie. I've been asked to supply a few pics of the view of my balcony. Well, I decided to throw this one in too. I snapped this as we were driving through town. Just your basic city street. Nothing exciting, but wanted to share a little of Santiago with you, my readers! ;) OK, not these are not the best pictures ever, but they are indeed taken from my bedroom balcony. Oh, and the net is a safety feature required by the US embassy if you have children. It's also a good feature for me, as I am terrified of heights.

And although the mountains in the background are not that clear, they are in fact the Andes Mountains! Not the best view, but I can see them still! (from my bedroom)

And here is another picture of them from my dining room.

Enough from me right now. I'm off to read some blogs. I've discovered that I really like doing this. And last night I was up waaaaay past my bed time!

This is the best part of my day.

Because my children didn't listen to me when I asked them not to jump on the bed. Because they ignored my instructions to stop screaming "yee-haw". Yes. I know. It's kind of funny now. I'm totally loving this mommy time at the end of the day. I don't have to watch Barney. The Backyardigans, or Dragon tales. I can watch a movie. Or CNN even.

And I can eat whatever I want without having to give the other half of it to them. I can be totally selfish.

I had to take a picture for the blog. Here they are after literally wearing themselves down into a peaceful sleep.

The only thing missing here is a nice bottle of red wine.

PS.... This bathtub is really big. I'm 5'7" and with my legs outstretched, my toes just touched the end of the tub!

The kids...

I don't have any "new home" pictures to share yet. Everything is in a serious state of disorganization. Also, if you had read before, my husband is conveniently out of town. No work is being done on our new apartment and there are still a few boxes that need to be unpacked. But I do promise to share when I get things looking nice. Here are the pictures that I did snap the other day. Miss Alexa:

Here is Eddie being cute. Mommy just cut his hair for the 2nd time ever!

Alexa talking on the phone with Na-Na.

Eddie giving me "the look"