Sunday, November 27, 2011

Happenings of Raquel and Sofia

Sofia posing with her new Elephant.

 And Raquel posing with her new Little Lamb


Con Abuelita!

It was a night when John was bored and created this...


A new trick, washing hands upside down.

The Turkey Carb Lowdown 2011

Family, carbs, Black Friday, more carbs, Weekend, more and more carbs...and lots of naps.

Here's Raquel napping with Mocha.

Turkey defeated Vanessa on the first round. 

Mandy didn't stand a chance either...

The Fantastic 4! 

Raquel was fascinated by Mocha.

Sofia and Super Coco Beware!

On Black Friday, we got up late, ate breakfast late and went shopping for our Christmas tree and our individual ornaments. This year was the very first year that I didn't do anything but help John with the Christmas tree stand aside from that the girls took over decorating the Christmas tree! yippee!



To end the night, the girls decided the animals needed to be shown the way to Noah's Ark.

It is not a Seaman Reunion without dancing!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

For What Shall I Give Thanks?

This year has been another year with its usual ups and downs and looking back I want to give thanks for,

1. Making peace with a friend even though it was very hard, I was able to find peace.

2. The Doctor who operated on Sofia's Adenoid Glands and successfully removing them, now she's breathing better and we haven't gone to the doctor since August for Sinus infections.

3. I give thanks for having a job that helps us pay our bills, our house and the girls school and not occupying some city public park, and even if I didn't have a job, I wouldn't blame Capitalism.

4. For my Stephen Minister Counselor who advised me to write and in doing so I have found an outlet.

5. Yesenia and David who were so kind in including us in their wedding; we felt very special.

6. For the few friends that I do have even though nowadays it is hard to go out and mingle, thank you for being patient and understanding.

7. For family! Even though we are crazy and dysfunctional, we are there when it matters.

8. For my Nanny, because she shares the same principals and values that John and I do. She's amazing!

9. Retrouvaille, because every time we give our marriage talk, we grow stronger every time.

10. For the Corporation that invented running shoe insoles, because they allowed me to run again and lose my pregnancy weight.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thank You, God, for sustaining my breath, and thank You, God, for preserving my life. Thank You, God, for providing what I need this day, for I do not know if tomorrow will come, nor what it will bring. But if it comes, and if I see it, thank You, dear Father in heaven, that, in the midst of all the wrestling, and despite all my weakness, You will bring me along.

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Movies We Watch

Movie: X-Men First Class

Going back to 1962 where Magneto (Michael Fassbender) and Professor Xavien (James McAvoy) met in their younger years by discovering they were not alone in the world and together they convince other mutants who were not so lucky with their physical appearance to accept who they are and fight against Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) whose goal is to bring the U.S and Russia into a war collision. It was a rather good movie, not a spectacular movie. Hugh Jackman's small cameo was great and I did wish he was on it, but this movie was not about Wolverine but Magneto and Professor X. There was something missing and I cannot put my finger on it. Keving Bacon was amazing as Shaw, John and I both agreed he's an underrated actor.

Overall, I think it lacked connection between the younger mutants it sometimes fell unbelievable. It only left me wanting to watch the first X-Men movies.

2 1/2 First Class stars from me.

TV Series: Downtown Abbey

Upon looking for more period pieces drama movies on Netflix, I stumble upon Downtown Abbey and I immediately fell in love. Set in pre World War I England, it tells the story of the Crawleys who live in their Downtown Abbey castle and their servants. If you have seen Gosford Park and loved it, you will also love Downtown Abbey.

Lord Crawley has lost his next heir in the sinking of the Titanic who was to take ownership of the Abbey but now finds himself scrambling to find who will take his place upon his death, unfortunately, back in the day, his first daughter does not stand a chance to inherit the Abbey because only males inherit land. They are able to find a very distant charming cousin who is a lawyer who finds the Crawley's way of life not to keen with his own or the new way of life in London. He soon falls in love with the Lord's daughter Lady Mary Crawley who dislikes him.

Totally amazing series! Unfortunately, it plays in England first then it is shipped to the U.S for us poor Yankees to view it second. Season two will air in January here in the States. I can't wait! Huge cliffhanger at the end of season 1!

5 Abbey Stars!!!

Thursday, November 17, 2011

5 Things About Me Today

1. I looked up the meaning of the word: Vulnerable: capable of being physically or emotionally wounded or hurt. I lived in fear of being vulnerable for many, many years up until four years ago that I realize that being vulnerable to family and close friends is OK; It is a risk nonetheless, but how else are we to reach out when we need a lending hand or emotional support from others if we do not come out and say: I need help, I feel defeated and I don't know what to do? So, without saying much, I urge everyone to please reach out to family members for help without the fear of rejection and/or judgement.

2. Depression: sadness; gloom; dejection. Or the squelch of my appetite. Yep, I have this mental disorder, another definition for this gloomy word that comes and goes like a roller coaster and I'm able to hide it very well from my love ones until a colleague of mine finds me in my cubicle (work place) crying my heart out.

3. Thanksgiving is coming and I will pig out. yey. Then I will run for miles and miles on ending until I burn everything I ate then I will repeat the same steps for Christmas and New Years.

4. We gave our marriage talk this past weekend and one lady came to us and said that she was giving up on coming for more marriage talks but decided to give it one more try and she was happy she did because she felt our talk was "warm" and she was happy that she came. It is never easy to talk about your own failings in your marriage and past struggles but it is very fulfilling that we are helping other marriages find hope.

5. I am not doing Black Friday...I think they are for freaks who wake up at ungodly hours just to shop. I have been a freak in the past myself and I have always found it exhausting and unfulfilled. Just saying.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Five on Friday - Illness

1.When you’re sick in bed, do you prefer to be left alone or to be taken care of?

Pamper me please! with a delicious hot soup and a remote control.

2.How difficult or cooperative are you as a patient?

I'm pretty cooperative and talkative. I like to talk to the nurses and get to know them and ask them why they chose their profession and all their stories vary and then they start telling stories about bizarre patients. It gets pretty interesting.

3.It’s just a really bad cold so all you can do is ride it out. What are your strategies?

1. Aspirin
2. TheraFlu

If these two don't work then I do:

3. Z-Pack

4.How ill do you have to feel in order to shut it down for the day?

Temperature must be over 100 so that I can call quits.

5.Waves of nausea are washing over you and through you. Do you fight them off, or do you just throw up to get it over with?
 
Throw up and keep moving. No sense of fighting the inevitable.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Putting on the Brakes

A First Look at ''Second Chances''
By: Chuck Colson

Divorce is epidemic in the culture and, I’m sad to say, in the Church. Can that change?

In her 1968 country tear-jerker about her divorce, Tammy Wynette sang about her son and about-to-be ex-husband, “I love you both and this will be pure H. E. double L. for me. Oh, I wish that we could stop this D.I.V.O.R.C.E.”

New research shows that Tammy is not alone.

Working with the Institute for American Values, principal investigators Professor William Doherty of the University of Minnesota and retired Georgia Supreme Court Justice Leah Ward Sears discovered that “About forty percent of couples already deeply into the divorce process report that one or both spouses are interested in the possibility of reconciliation.”

According to their study, “Second Chances: A Proposal to Reduce Unnecessary Divorce,” this means that a significant number of divorces are preventable and thus unnecessary.

Most people believe that divorce is the result of long-term marital strife, but this turns out to be false. As Dr. Doherty and Justice Sears wrote in the Washington Post, “[O]nly a minority of divorcing couples experience high conflict and abuse during their marriages. Most divorces occur with couples who have drifted apart and handle everyday disagreements poorly.”

And they add, “It is these ‘average’ divorces that research shows are the most harmful to children.” And because the state has a compelling interest in the wellbeing of children, the state also has a compelling interest in preventing these unnecessary divorces.

That’s why Doherty and Sears have gone beyond research to develop a proposal for changing state laws.

First, they recommend a one-year waiting period before a divorce is granted. The decision to divorce is often made when emotions are hot. Once the papers are filed, couples find themselves on what Justice Sears calls “the divorce superhighway.”

As a result, couples find they don’t have the time, the tools, or the space to reconsider. A slower road, especially for couples with children, will allow couples to consider the consequences of divorce against other options.

Second, they recommend a mandatory early warning letter from the spouse intent on filing for divorce. It’s a way of putting the other spouse on notice that, “we have a problem” before the legal wheels begin turning. And it would trigger mandatory pre-filing education for parents of minor children.

Doherty and Sears go on to recommend that couples contemplating divorce have access to marriage reconciliation services whether they use them or not. While many couples with troubled marriages seek counseling, most therapists aren’t adequately trained in couples counseling and many feel they should be neutral on the question of divorce. Second Chances recommends proper training and a pro-marriage bias for counselors.

Second Chances is “a modest proposal” to reduce divorce, and I am all for it. My question for Christians and for churches is, why wait for a new law? Do we really believe that marriage was instituted by God, that He intended it for human flourishing, and that marriage and the family unit are the cornerstones of civilization?

Then for heaven’s sake, let’s use our creativity and gifts to do everything we can to help struggling married couples stay together.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Raquel turns 2!

Raquel turned 2 this past Thursday


And two days later we celebrated her birthday with Musubi which suprisingly everyone loved and a pinata. Unfortunately, Raquel was afraid of the Pinata, but for Sofia was finally brave enough to beat the Pinata.





Halloween 2011

I'm not a big fan of Halloween, which means that I don't like decorating the house either, on the other hand, John is a big fan and he got off early from work, bought a pumpkin came home and carved it and after dinner took Sofia on her first trickotreating adventure. I decided that Raquel should stay for two reasons; 1. She was sick and I didn't want her outside; 2. She's only two and doesn't know or care about Halloween just yet. So, as soon as John and Sofia left Raquel and I were left looking at a big bowl full of candy and chocolate for the trickotreaters so we decided to start eating the chocolate because there was nothing else better to do than to clean dishes and who wants to do dishes when you have chocolate that has been forbidden by your doctor but for one night only I decided to not give a damn and ate chocolate...lots of it; so Raquel and I bonded during our chocolate eating adventure and when Sofia returned with a bag full of candy, the Seaman family sat in the living room and ate candy until 8pm. Yep, including me who doesn't care about Halloween.



A Bachelorette and a Wedding!

So for the last three weeks since my last post I have been busy prepping for my sister's wedding which happened about a week ago on the 29th, making the ring bearer's pillow, which I forgot to take a picture of because I did it three days before the wedding, finding Raquel's dress, finding Sofia's shoes and socks, etc, etc, etc that I did not have time to blog at all. So, here are some of the pictures from the very clean bachelorrete dinner and wedding.

Surprise Bachelorrete dinner at Gloria's. Drinks, jokes and good food! My sister was very happy!

She was reading some over the top questions we had for her.

My oldest sister, Medith. She's so funny and never shies away from saying it like it is! 


The Cake!


Yesenia being herself!
 The obligatory group picture.

 Salsa dancing was about to start!

 Then we ran into an old drinking buddy of ours when we were single and partying all the time. Good to know he's now married with three kids.

Wedding Rehearsal Dinner

Posing with the Bride and Groom

Posing with my husband who was still positive the Rangers could beat the Cardinals...



This is when we had lost hope on the Rangers winning the World Series, even Raquel was frustrated!




David's parents and my brother who still after 39 years has not figure out how to smile for pictures.

The Wedding!

Posing before the walk down the aisle.


Yikes, me in a dress. My sister's dress on the other hand was beautiful. 


The "I DO" picture moment. 

Picture time!

Medith and Carlos, my sister and brother who have endured the toughest times along with me.


The Seaman's with the Dunn family

Tio Frank with his fiancee.


Posing with the Loup Family.

Gracie with her cousins!

The siblings


 I love this picture!

Raquel at the bathroom stall.

John and Andrew or AKA: Pimple boy


Before the dancing started....


The Grand Entrance!


Sofia danced A LOT...just like her parents did.



Getting tired...

Getting funky without alcohol.


With alcohol....

very drunk...


Still sober and still acting weird and funky...

Totally exhausted.