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11/30/2015

Funny moments part 1

One of the things I worry about while parenting is forgetting important things, you know, like what are Emmalee's funny words. My daughters do the craziest things and it seems to me their craziness will only continue to grow through the years. It will be too much for me to remember all.
Well, I want to document as much of it as I can.
Here are some of my daughters' funniest moments:

Emmalee and Kaylee playing lift off. So patient for such young girls. Even though Kaylee skips number nine and Emmalee corrects her, there is still a lift off.


Emmalee and Kaylee are climbing a chair.
Dad: Emmalee and Kaylee, you are always looking for danger.
Emmalee stares across the room and asks: Where is danger, daddy?

Emmalee's funny words:
tutota: pelota
saquetin: calcetin
ofipiscina: oficina

Emmalee feeding Kaylee.
Listen to the adorable "nom, nom, nom, nom" from Emmalee!


Rodolfo, Sara, and I talking in the car.
Sara: I bet when Emmalee and Kaylee are older Emmalee will rat Kaylee out and tell you Kaylee has a boyfriend. And then Kaylee will say her favorite word: No!
Kaylee in the back seat: NO!!!!!!

Emmalee eating pancakes:
Emmalee: That pancake is dirty.
Mommy: It's ok. It's toasted.
Emmalee: No, mommy, clean it.

Emmalee and Kaylee laughing from tickles from dad.


Daddy farted in bed.
Emmalee: Dad, did you poop?


Daddy speaking to mommy: We have never taught our girls our real names. They just know us as mommy and daddy.
(Turns towards Emmalee)
Daddy: Emmalee, daddy's name is Rodolfo.
Emmalee hides her face on my chest and gives an embarrassed laugh.
Mommy: BUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!

Quitel, quitel... I mean twinkle, twinkle Emmalee style.
She is closer to saying twinkle in this version, but the star looks like an ipad in the sky! XD


Emmalee and Kaylee are playing. Kaylee took Emmalee's toy away and Emmalee is about to hit her sister. Grandma Martha stops her in time.
Grandma Martha: Emmalee, why are you going to hit your sister? Are you her mommy?
Emmalee: No.
Minutes later....
Kaylee is crying because she was told repeatedly she can't go up the stairs.
Grandma Martha: Kaylee, you are misbehaving and I will have to give you discipline.
Emmalee comes out of nowhere.
Emmalee: Grandma, are you her mommy?

Yes, those are not their toothbrushes. They are mom and dad's. And yes, they were caught infraganti. 
You can't quite tell, but she is wearing a cape, thus the "Super Emmalee" (as she calls it) pose.
What do you think? Did she liked or disliked her ball pool? Maybe she is saying: It needs more balls, mommy!


11/23/2015

It is just a short time

It is only for a short time,
It will pass in a blink of an eye.
It will be gone before I even realize it is gone.
And so, for now, I want to cherish each moment. 
I want to record it while it is fresh to remember what it felt like, remember what is was like to be someone's world.
For this very short time, I am my daughters' person.

You've probably had a friend who was your person. 
It never compares to your mother.
When she is upset, only mommy's embrace can make it better. 
Mommy's kiss can mend any bubu.
She might love her grandfather a lot, but if she is scared, hurt, or sad, she wants mommy. 
She wants to spend her days in mommy's arms. 
She wants to sleep in mommy's chest.
She eats better if mommy feeds her.
She listens to mommy the most.
She will even share the foods she likes with mommy, even if she is stuffing it in mommy's face.

This time is tough. It is not easy to be someone's person, which is why you probably only had one person in your life besides your mom, if you were lucky enough to have your mom as your person. 
It demands time, energy, effort; but it is only for a short time.

There will come a time when my daughter doesn't want to cuddle all day with me, so I will cuddle as much as I can and hold her as near as I can. 
There will come a time when she will bathe on her own, so I will make bath time fun time with games and songs and learning body parts. 
There will come a time when she will dress on her own, so everytime I change her I will tickle her belly and play "This little piggy" and kiss her feet while she cries from laughing so hard.
There will come a time when she won't need me to take her to the potty, so I will praise her for her small victories in responsibility and self control and high five her every time because it makes her glad and acknowledged.
There will come a time when she won't listen to mommy the most, so I have this time to push hard to teach her obedience, compassion, and humility. This is my time to teach her to pray and teach her about her Lord. It is the only time I have to ask her to give me her heart so I can take it to Him. 

So much time will pass and change, but I have today to make the best of it. 
As my heart has been aching for the Syrian mothers and the hardships their children are suffering or the children they have buried, I realize how frail life is and how I only have today to make this day excellent. 
Now, I bury my nose more in my daughters' hair to breathe in their unique fragrance I can't describe or put to words.
I have kissed those little feet so many times the smell of feet is a fond memory now.
I am that mother that instead of sitting on the sideline to watch them play I am twirling them and making them louder. 
I am that mother showing my girls what a grassy hillside is for: to roll down from. 
I am that mother that has gotten inside the Burger King playset to get her toddler down while taking the toddler that can't go own her up and come down with both down the slide.

I want to be that mom that takes them camping for the first time and lay in the ground and count stars. I want to be that mom that makes all sorts of crazy science projects with them.
I want to teach them to cook and bake and try new things with them. I want to build sand castles in the beach and bury their dad in the sand. 
I want to be a parent that is present and active. 

I had been concentrating a lot on my difficulty losing wieght and getting time to workout.
30 minutes of hide and seek with the girls left my heart racing and pumping hard. 
When mothers are worrying about living in tents as refugees when winter is upon them and some will most likely lose their children to the weather and some disease, I feel humiliated my struggle is losing weight. 

We have a very uncertain year coming up. I don't know if my husband will have a job next year. I don't know if I will have a job next year. If I do have a job, the job I currently have has times without funds to pay salaries and they leave us without pay for months. It is very uncertain and unsettling, but it is God Who we trust. We are grateful for each day, we understand today is the only day we get, and today we live to the fullest and joyful. Today I treasure this short time I am living with my girls and my husband, grateful this is the day the Lord has made and I can rejoice and be glad in it. 

Mommy is their favorite couch.

Reading the Bible!
They love when mommy blows bubbles. 
I don't have more pics because we are putting down the electronic devices to be there and take in this short time. 





11/19/2015

What can you do?

I am grief stricken.
I can barely concentrate in my job.
I put a movie on the ipad to distract my mind with no success.
My heart and mind are in Syria and the Syrian refugees.
"There is nothing we can do, so I prefer not to read the stories or watch the videos," my brother said.
"There is nothing I can do?" I ask myself.
And so I google "How to help Syria."
Many webpages of relief efforts requesting financial aid pop up.
I can donate money.
$35 can feed a child for two weeks, the page says. I can do something. I don't have much, but I can find from where to give.
Pray for Syria, the World Vision webpage article reads.
The article is very specific on what to pray for, and I feel now I can pray more powerfully for them.
You can even start praying and seeking to destine your donations to help them overcome the coming winter and the necessities they face in the large refugee camps.
I google jobs in the Syrian crisis response.
No jobs available at the moment.
What if I could get a job as a teacher or somehow serving?
Would I move there alone? Would I take my family?
What would my husband say?
I remember when I wanted to march for the injustice our Social Security Hospital had suffered causing the deaths of many of my compatriots, especially children.
My husband said I couldn't go because it was too dangerous.
"But why is my safety more important than my compatriots dying in the hospital without medicine or medical supplies?" I asked him.
And my countryman marched for several weeks without any results.
Injustice won and prevailed.
And I am grief stricken.
And now the Paris attacks are causing countries to close the borders.
And I find these pictures of expectant refugee children surviving next to the closed boundaries in Hungary.
You can do something for Syria.
You can start a fundraiser at your local church.
You can stop sharing images and videos on your Facebook that are outdated, fake, or unrelated to the event your are trying to bring awareness to by being more savvy in what you post and what you believe in the internet.
You can also share stories of love and hope like this one.
You can do something for the children in your own country suffering by volunteering your time here.
You can grow as true Christ followers and pray for the ones responsible for the war.

Matthew 5:43-44
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”

You must believe His Word.
“And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet The Еnd. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom” (Matthew 24:6).

Psalm 90:12, 14-17 Teach us to number our days,that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,for as many years as we have seen trouble. May your deeds be shown to your servants,your splendor to their children. May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us;establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands. 

Psalm 39:4-8 “Show me, Lord, my life’s endand the number of my days;let me know how fleeting my life is. You have made my days a mere handbreadth;the span of my years is as nothing before you.Everyone is but a breath,even those who seem secure. “Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom;in vain they rush about, heaping up wealthwithout knowing whose it will finally be. “But now, Lord, what do I look for?My hope is in you. Save me from all my transgressions;do not make me the scorn of fools. 

Psalm 37:1-2, 7-9, 12-13, 20 Do not fret because of those who are evilor be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither,like green plants they will soon die away. Be still before the Lordand wait patiently for him;do not fret when people succeed in their ways,when they carry out their wicked schemes. Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;do not fret—it leads only to evil. For those who are evil will be destroyed,but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land. The wicked plot against the righteousand gnash their teeth at them; but the Lord laughs at the wicked,for he knows their day is coming. But the wicked will perish:Though the Lord’s enemies are like the flowers of the field,they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke. 

I have been coming home all this week to stare into my daughters eyes. To put the electronic devices down and roll with them in the floor. I have taken walks with them and cry of gratefulness while watching them sleep safe and sound. I have hugged and kissed them more, and have hugged and kissed my husband more. We don't know when our end will come. Will you have used your time well? Would you have lived in gratefulness for what you have or lived regretting what you don't missing out on what you do? 

Lord, I am grateful for the third world country I live in. 
It is poor, violent, and corrupt. 
Dangers lurk in every corner, but until this day we have lived in peace.
Bring peace to the Syrians. May they ever be in my prayers. 
May we do more where we can. 
May we be Your hands and feet. 
May we open our hearts and homes to the needy. 
May Your glory be shown.
Amen.

How can I not be eternally grateful for a day with these girls:










11/17/2015

Mommy, the word

"Mommy" She says as I pretend to be asleep and pray she will turn around and go back to her bed.
"Mommy." She starts off as a soft whisper for a few tries.
"Mommy..." Still softly but not buying that one didn't wake me up.
"Mommy!" And if I let her go any higher she will wake up her sister. 

And so, mommy reluctantly lets her crawl into my bed where I will hold her and fall asleep with her waking up with a bad backache. 

This happens now and then; but yesterday, for the first time, I pondered on what it meant that she called me that. 
First, I reveled on the true wonder it is to hear that word and have it refer to me. I am her mommy! 
Second, it made me realize the responsibility behind the word. 

Think about what your mommy means to you.
Mom is the one who is always there for you.
Mom is the one that keeps you healthy.
Mom is the one that keeps you safe.
Mom is the one that listens and understands.

What does this all mean that I am now Mommy?
Being there for her means that I come second. What I want to do, what I want to watch, where I want to go, what I want to listen, how I want to spend my time... All comes second. But it is so much more than that. Sometimes that involves that I feel lonely or left out. Conversations with adults are always cut short. Date nights are rare. Sitting in church to listen to the sermon in peace has not yet happened. It is a little annoying when people vex you about not seeing you that often, not attending all meetings, not having time to go out. You wish they'd understood you would really like to go, but you are needed and you must be there. It is even harder for working mothers. I watch my coworker suffer because her work doesn't allow her to be there for her daughter's science fair presentation. Every morning when my daughter questions me repeatedly as to where am I going. It is hard for her to understand what must take me away from her. My heart breaks every morning.

Keeping her healthy means that every decision Mom takes is carefully thought. Mom makes sure she has a good and balanced diet. She makes sure she eats home cooked meals and is eating enough. Mom stays up all night to take care of her when she is sick. Mom takes her to the doctor and cries with her when she is feeling discomfort and gives her courage when she is feeling scared (if Mommy is not also crying). Sometimes it means Mommy also gets sick either from exhaustion, stress, or contagion. It means that Mommy and Daddy put off going themselves to the doctor because they can no longer afford it.

Keeping her safe means that Mommy makes an environment in which she can grow well. It means Mommy keeps the places where she plays clean and tidy. It means the things at her reach are not harmful or dirty. It means she watches over her while she plays and ,for me, even while she sleeps. It means she has a good place to sleep, even if that is my arms. It means that discussions with Daddy are either civil (which they always should but not always accomplished) or postpone. It means Mommy and Daddy protect their marriage and keep it strong, because that is the best thing they can do for her safety. It means Mommy prays for her life everyday and teaches her about the wonderful Saviour. It means the house is free of yelling, fighting, and bad attitudes from the grown ups (to the best of what their Lord has taught and equipped them). It means she watches firsthand Mom and Dad seek the Lord daily. It means that what she hears and watches on any entertainment device is carefully scrutinized. It means that Mom is vigilant and constant in discipline and teaching her obedience and manners.

To listen and understand means Mom keeps her cool even when she is talking through screams and tantrums. It means she feels she can come to me with any situation. It means a hug from Mom or a kiss in her bubu from Mommy can calm anything. It means that I try to put myself in her shoes and try to understand why what she is making such a big fuzz about is actually a big deal for her. It means Mommy is her example on how to handle situations and hopefully that example is a good one she can follow because she will even if it is not a good one.

This is what my Mom is for me. I hope I can be for her what my Mom is for me. This breaks my heart because I realize not everyone has a Mom like mine and not everyone desires to be that type of Mom. It breaks my heart because Mothers decide to terminate their children's life in their wombs. I don't even know if they can be called Mothers, but to that murder child they were.  It breaks my heart because Mothers resent what their children take from them and decide to leave, neglect, not be there, and hurt them. It breaks my heart because there are little children growing up without knowing love, safety, or understanding. It breaks my heart that there are Mothers who can't help their kids be healthy because they can't afford it and some must watch them die helplessly. It breaks my heart because there are Mothers being taken away from their very loved children through violence, war, and domestic violence. It breaks my heart that many kids today saw their mothers murdered in the war zones of the Middle East. It breaks my heart that here at home there are Mothers seeing their children be consumed by drugs, gangs, and poverty. It breaks my heart that not all kids feel they can call out Mommy in the middle of the night because they had a nightmare. It breaks my heart that Mothers are losing their children while running aways as refugees. Mothers and children are drowning, being sold for slavery, and are being separated.

Mothers suffering, there is hope:
Act 3
18 But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Messiah would suffer. 19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, 20 and that he may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. 21 Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.


If your heart is discouraged, remember how lucky you are to be Mommy and be that kind of Mommy. Remember the Mommies in real hardship and pray for them.
Dear Lord, come quickly!