Family Pictures

Catch-Up

Ok...I have a minute to write, here it goes...

It's been a busy few months for the Enriquez household with Mothers' Day, Birthday parties, and Emery in the Academy. I've hardly had time to sit on my bottom and blog about my life. We had our Family pics taken by Tash about a week ago and I can't wait to get them back and post them for all to see. Tasha did a great job and was very patient with my rowdy bunch. Emery is working his tail off in the San Diego Police Academy and might I add he's looking rather good since his days first began. He's lost a lot of weight which only inspires me to get my butt back in shape. 7lbs down for me 15 left to go. He has been training me and the ladies at the stadium and really whipping us into shape. He's a killer with those stairs! I am busy getting the boys ready for the new school year. I haven't decided which school Azlan will be attending but Adrian will start pre-school this fall, part time. As for the other two ACEs, they will be at Grandma's if all goes well in getting Momma up and running in her internship at the Poway Unified School District. Who knows what's in store that far ahead (GOD does!) so I guess we will just wait and see. Time is going by so quickly!I can't beleive Aris is already 4 months old and in a few weeks I will have a 2 year old on my hands! This summer has a busy itinerary: Fathers' Day, Atticus' Birthday, My 24th Birthday, Azlan turning 5, and everyone getting ready for school. I will keep you updated as the days progress. Adios for now

Easter Weekend

Spring Break 2009

Ahhhh, where to begin... It was a rather busy and festive week with Ryan and Sis at the house. We started off the week at the beach...Me, two teens, and 4 kids...not a good idea. It was a bit hectic trying to get my posse in and out of the car in one piece while trying to tend to my OCD about sand being in my car and on the bodies of my children.



We made it home safe and sound then headed to the park the next day for some more fun in the sun. The girls (Cheyenne, Chanel, Charmagne) stopped by for the night and ended up staying. They really wanted cookies so we made a contest out of it. My team won in the presentation factor but I must say theirs was rather creative. We ended the week in SD with a rainy day and packed our bags for good ol' BakersDozen. Heading into town I was surprised by how clean and green everything looked, an unusual look for Bako. We went to Eva Jo's house and settled in with some good cookin' from Eva Jo's kitchen. It was nice to see everyone together for the first time in a while.

The next day was Easter. The boys were excited about their baskets and I was excited that I had finally learned how to use the "color accent" feature on my camera. I had too much fun dressing Aris up in her Easter dress and Tutu and my nieces looked too cute prancing around in their little Easter tutus.



I don't get to Bako too much these days and it was nice to see everyone together and having a good time. I finally got to hang out with my two "homies" from highschool at Mesh's little Annual Easter BBQ. It was great seeing a happy ending for everyone since our highschool days of trouble-making. Who would of thought...Natalie and Coco with some little troublemakers of their own. I missed my sisters and mom and I really enjoyed spending time with them again. All in all, it was a good time.

Thank God for Jesus, the reason for such a wonderful holiday.

Just another neighborhood abduction, no big deal.

So, there was another attempted abduction in the neighborhood today. This is getting kind of crazy now. I live smack-dap in the middle of upper-middle-class suburbia, it's not like I live in TJ! The first attempt happend to a mother as she was walking her two children home from school, then a little girl in Poway, then a little girl by Willow Grove, 2 boys in Poway, and now 2 girls right across the street from my neighborhood.They all describe the same white van and hispanic male in his 20s. It's pretty scary when you can't even walk your kids to school without worrying about getting kidnapped by the Mexican drug cartel! Anyway, I guess the kids and I will remain hermits until Aris is a little older. 3 was cake, but 4 is just too many to keep an eye on in public.


In other news, the boys were sick today. I kept them locked up in the shower so they couldn't give me and Aris cooties.














As for me, I'm on a mission to get back into shape after gaining 55lbs with Little Miss 6lb Aris. I went to the gym last night and I'm happy to say I can still get down on the weights, now I just need to shed the fluffiness on top of those beauties and all will be good.It helps that Aris is my little fat-sucking machine, but I need to get back into the routine of working out. It also helps that I loovvveee the gym, really, I do. It's like my Prozac. It gets those endorphins flowing and puts me in the best mood. Who's down for Monday night S.E.T. Class? Let's do it. Monday marks the 1st day of my 3rd attempt to cut out sugar. I will do it this time, I swear. I had a bowl of cookies n' cream icecream for breakfast and that made it easy to have one for lunch too. I'll probably need one tonight too since I know it may be my last. I needed the calcium was my excuse. 147lbs now, 22 to lose. This is not the most flattering pic but it sure does provide some motivation.

I will keep you updated...

Here's a pic of Princess relaxing, watching her bros play on the computer. Good times.

My Little Leprechauns

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Did you Know...

St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, is one of Christianity's most widely known figures. But for all his celebrity, his life remains somewhat of a mystery. Many of the stories traditionally associated with St. Patrick, including the famous account of his banishing all the snakes from Ireland, are false, the products of hundreds of years of exaggerated storytelling

St. Patrick's Day is celebrated on March 17, his religious feast day and the anniversary of his death in the fifth century. The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for over a thousand years.

On St. Patrick's Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink, and feast—on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.

Today, St. Patrick's Day is celebrated by people of all backgrounds in the United States, Canada, and Australia. (thehistorychannel.com)

THE MAGIC SHAMROCK

Three is Ireland's magic number. Hence the Shamrock. Crone, Mother and Virgin. Love, Valour and Wit.. Faith, Hope and Charity. Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Numbers played an important role in Celtic symbolism. Three was the most sacred and magical number. It multiplies to nine, which is sacred to Brigit. Three may have signified totality: past, present and future OR behind, before and here OR sky, earth and underworld. Everything good in Ireland comes in threes. The rhythm of story telling in the Irish tradition is based on threefold repetition. This achieves both intensification and exaggeration. Even today in quality pub talk, a raconteur can rarely resist a third adjective, especially if it means stretching a point. "Three accomplishments well regarded in Ireland: a clever verse, music on the harp, the art of shaving faces."
THE LEPRECHAUN
The Leprechaun is an Irish fairy. He looks like a small, old man (about 2 feet tall), often dressed like a shoemaker, with a cocked hat and a leather apron. According to legend, leprechauns are aloof and unfriendly, live alone, and pass the time making shoes. They also possess a hidden pot of gold. Treasure hunters can often track down a leprechaun by the sound of his shoemaker's hammer. If caught, he can be forced (with the threat of bodily violence) to reveal the whereabouts of his treasure, but the captor must keep their eyes on him every second. If the captor's eyes leave the leprechaun (and he often tricks them into looking away), he vanishes and all hopes of finding the treasure are lost. Near a misty stream in Ireland in the hollow of a tree
Live mystical, magical leprechauns
who are clever as can be
With their pointed ears, and turned up toes and little coats of green
The leprechauns busily make their shoes and try hard not to be seen.
Only those who really believe have seen these little elves
And if we are all believers
We can surely see for ourselves.
(Irish Blessing)(theholidayspot.com)

So here it is...

Finally, I have joined the Blogger domain. I've decided to rid myself of the insane world of Myspace and commit to keeping my family updated through more civilized means ;). So here it is...what's going on in the Enriquez household:

As many of you know, we've added a new ACE to the crew. Baby number 4, Aris Carmela Enriquez (hence, ACE) was born January 26 of this year to kick off the first day of the Chinese New Year! Our Doc exclaimed, "She's an OX!" thought to be the sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work. The boys have been adapting to the new addition with open arms, literally. Azlan often picks Aris up off the bed and carries her around while I'm in the shower or out of the room. The first time he walked in the room with her in his arms our mouths dropped! Emery and I walked slowly toward him.."please don't drop her and hand her over, Azlan...no more holding baby without Mommy and Daddy's permission." He means well though. They have been very protective of her and are being such good big brothers, reading her stories, playing with her, talking to her, singing, etc. Every once in awhile Atticus slaps her or pinches her just to make sure she still works but he means well nevertheless. She is a sweet girl and lets me and Em sleep through the night. We are so happy to have such happy, healthy, and beautiful babies and have decided to move on to a new hobby rather than have more babies every year ;0).

In other news, I have been busy preparing for Student Teaching which I should be starting in Fall 2009 if all goes as planned. I finished my Masters in Education coursework last October and must finish my student teaching in order to get my credential to teach at the Elementary level. I'm a little sad to go back to work with the boys and Aris still being so young but it's only 4 months and then I'm back at home, at least for the next year. Emery has been working harder than ever over the past few months with school and work. He has decided to look into law enforcement as a career option since that is also his field of study (Criminal Justice). He will not be coaching football this year because of his full plate, but don't count him out for the following years once the boys get a little older. Azlan will be starting school this fall and he is ecstatic! He has successfully gained phonological awareness and is now learning to read thanks to some fun computer games and activities we've acquired. I highly recommend Reader Rabbit to anyone prepping their child for Kindergarten, Azlan and Adrian both love it and are learning so much from it. Azlan is quite the talker these days. Just last night, as we were coming home, he got out of the car and asked a neighbor walking by why he let his dogs go to the bathroom on his Mommy and Daddy's yard....can we say, uncomfortable? But, it was quite funny because Em and I were thinking the same thing. He is also blooming as a football player and loves any sport he can play. Adrian is becoming quite the musician, singing and playing his guitar. He is such a funny guy too, always making jokes and clowning around. Atticus is still Baby Atticus, although he is growing like a weed; he turns on the charm and does his own thing.The boys are doing great and just as wild and crazy as ever. Poor Aris will have no chance of ever having a boyfriend with these guys around, lucky for us. Well, that is the story for now. More later!