Tagged

I was tagged by Nicole so here is by 5th picture from my 5th file. It is Ella and me decorating Gabe's birthday cake this past October. He turned 27 and the cake was delicious!!!

A parent's dream

Tonight we went to Chili's for dinner. I ordered sliders and gave one to Ella with some fries. On my plate was some celery so I gave that to Ella too. She didn't even touch her cheeseburger or fries. She ate all the celery and asked for more. I asked the waitress for some more celery and the waitress said that she had never seen a toddler ask for more vegetables. That's our Ella, she LOVES vegetables especially broccoli. I'm sure every parent has to fight with their kids to get them to eat their vegetables but not us, Ella asks us for vegetables.

Standing!!!

Yes he did it!!!! Noah pulled himself up and was standing yesterday. Sorry the picture isn't great because I took it with my phone. I didn't want to miss this moment. So here it is, my 8 month old is officially standing. Way to go Noah!!!

Happy Birthday Salena!!!!

Today is Salena's birthday and the Espinozas wanted to wish her a very Happy Birthday. Salena has been my sister-in-law for over 10 years and I thank God for adding her to our family. Salena has always treated me like a sister and has always been there for me. Whenever I have a question she is always there to with a solution. She was even in the room with me when I delivered Noah and she was such a strong support to me. I love her so much and I couldn't have asked for a better sister.

Happy Birthday!!!

Moving

I wanted to give everyone an update on the Espinozas. So here goes, ever since we moved from Colorado, we have been living with my mom in Elsinore. We were waiting to get our own place once our house is Colorado was rented. The answer to our prayers came at the end of December when we got renters!!! They took possession our our house January 16th. Ever since then we have been looking to rent a house in San Diego. We finally found one. It is in the Chula Vista area. It is only 15 minutes away from Gabe's job. We are starting to move today and tomorrow. We are so excited to start a new part of our life here in California!!! Thank you to my mom who graciously let the four of us stay with her for 3 months. We will miss you!!! But the great thing is that we will only be 1 1/2 hours away, instead of a few states away. I will post pictures of the new house as soon as we get settled. Thank you all for your prayers!!

Prayers needed

The United States of America has a new President, Barack Obama. Even though I do not agree with many of his beliefs, I believe that as our new President I should pray for him. I wanted to post asking everyone to pray as well. I pray that the Lord gives him the knowledge, the courage, and the strength to lead our country.

Playhouse Disney live on stage

First cookie

A couple of days ago, I bought Noah a box of baby cookies. They taste like banana and are made to dissolve easily for babies without teeth. Last night I gave one to Noah. He loved it!! In a few minutes it was gone. I can't believe how well he did eating it. I guess he is on his way to eating solid food.

Happy Birthday Baby Mason!!!!

This is my best friend, Crystal, her daughter, Haley, and baby Mason. He arrived this morning weighing 6lbs. 9 oz. and is 19 inches long. Congratulations to the whole Maxwell family. Welcome to the world Mason Kyle Maxwell, I can't wait to meet you!!!!

California Adventure

Banana Nut Muffins

Banana Nut Muffins

Ingredients:
2/3 c. sugar
1/3 c. soft shortening
2 eggs
3 tbsp. sour milk (if milk is not sour just add a few drops of vinegar to milk)
1 c. mashed banana
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 c. flour
3/4 c. chopped walnuts

Add sugar, soft shortening, and eggs in a large bowl. Next add milk and mashed bananas to sugar mixture. Add all the dry ingredients together to the wet ingredients. Let dough stand for 20 minutes. Pour into a greased muffin pan. Bake 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees. Enjoy!!!!

Breaking the bank

When we first moved back to California Ella found this little yellow ceramic piggy bank. Ella wanted it so my mom gave it to her. Ella started asking anyone and everyone, "Have any coins?" Well as the bank filled up we realized that there wasn't a hole in the bottom and we would have to break the bank open to get the money out. We realized Ella would need a bigger piggy bank. For Christmas, Gabe found Ella a Sleeping Beauty piggy bank, that did have a hole in the bottom. Once the little yellow piggy got so full that you couldn't put another coin in it we decided to break it open and move the money to the Sleeping Beauty bank. In a little over 2 months, Ella had over $14 in the piggy bank. In addition to money we found my mom's memory card and magnets in the bank. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to Ella's piggy bank!!!

Playing with Grammy

Ella got a play hair kit for Christmas that came with a blow dryer that actually blows, a curling iron, a brush and a comb. She loves playing with the curling iron. I think it is because I use the real curling iron on her hair. She pretends to curl Sleeping Beauty's hair and the other night she pretended to curl Grammy's hair. It was so cute how my mom just let her do whatever she wanted to her hair. I had to get a picture of it. Ella loves playing with her Grammy.

Fun at Abuelitos

Riding her Power Wheels while posing at the same time

Noah with Abuelita
Getting ready to jump
Jumping
Cheese :)

Tonight we went to Gabe's parents house for dinner. The food was delicious and Ella had a blast playing in the yard. It is so nice being able to go and visit whenever we want. I love being back in Cali.

Bath time with Noah

Last night while I was giving Noah his bath I couldn't resist taking some pictures of him. I also took some of him after he came out of the bath while he was in his towel. He is just growing so fast.

Happy New Year!!!

I just wanted to post, Happy New Year to everyone!!! The Espinoza family wants to wish everyone good health, wealth, and happiness for 2009.

On a more personal note I am looking forward to what 2009 holds for me and my family. I am hoping to have another cancer free year with Gabe, potty training Ella, and celebrating Noah's first birthday. Who knows maybe even have baby number 3. I would also like to to focus on working out to finish losing the baby weight, being a more productive stay at home wife and mom, and lastly but most importantly, being a more Godly woman. These are some things I am looking forward to in this new year, what are some things you and looking forward to?

Fun at the beach

Ella and Noah
Me and Kolleen
Kassie
Me and Noah
Jeremaih and Kassie
Jeremiah

My aunt Kolleen, her husband Thomas and their 2 kids drove from Texas to California to visit our family here. My aunt's favorite place to go in the whole world is the beach. Gabe and I took our kids and her family to the beach to hang out. Even though it was much too cold to swim, we sat on the beach and relaxed. Ella got to play in the sand and Kolleen got to visit her favorite place. It is so nice having them here to visit, I miss them all so very much and wish we could all live closer.