Summer, School, and Other things...

I can't believe how long it has been since I wrote in my blog.  I am not good about remember to do so.. For my family and friends who are so far away, here is an update for you on our family.

The KIDS:

The kids had a quick and eventful summer vacation.  I worked throughout the summer as usual and the kids spent the night with their friends, went to amusement parks, parties, swimming, and vacationing.  Sounds pretty typical of a summer break huh?
If you asked them, the summer went by much, too quickly. I agree and disagree.  Although it seems easier for the kids to be out of school and not be bothered with the stress of driving and picking up, homework, projects, etc, I actually like it when they go back to school too.  I think they need the interaction with other kids and work that the school season provides.  Yes, it causes more stress for them and for us, but in the end, they need this too, so I am always excited for them to return.

Ariana - will be 14 next month.  She is a BIG Freshman this year.  She was very nervous to start 9th grade and enter into high school, but after the first day, she got her nerve. :)  As for activities, she is going to try out for the high school play GREASE and has been taking voice lessons all summer.

Elissa- just started 3rd grade and will be 8 in October.  Ironically, she got the same teacher Noah had last year.  This is the second year in a row that she had the same teacher as Noah.  Hopefully we don't have a repeat of last year... :(  Anyway, she seems happy with her teacher so far.  She realized there are many kids in her class from last year, so she seemed happy.  Elissa wants to take gymnastics so, this is something I am looking into for this fall.

Noah - turned 9 in March.  He finished his baseball season in June.  He had a blast and said he really wanted to play again next season. Noah started 4th grade this year.  He also just lost another tooth tonight!  Surprising because we didn't know he had a loose tooth.  Looks like the tooth fairy will pay us a visit tonight.  Anyway, this year we are going to work on getting him organized and ready for middle school next year.  So far, things are off to a good start.  The teacher even told Kelli to tell us today that he had an OUTSTANDING day!  There is hope yet!!!!  LOL.

Connor - is getting so big and is a busy 2.5 year old.  He is so sweet and always give me lots of kisses and hugs whenever I am with him.  Don't let that fool you though, he has his normal 2-year-old moments too.  He can be very loud and throw some mean tantrums, but most of the time, he is a sweet boy who loves to sing, and talk.  For a boy, he sure can talk.  Wonder who he gets that from.. -_-

Dan has been busy at work.  He did really well this last quarter.  I really hope he stays on target so we can go on another FREE trip.  For those of you who didn't know, he won a free trip for both of us in May to the Grand Cayman Islands.  We had a blast!  Other than that, he just started softball again and is working hard for our family. :)

As for me, well I am almost fully recovered from the gallbladder removal surgery I had at the end of June.  For a while there, I was pretty sick and slow at recovering, but I seemed to be doing better every day and by the 4th-5th week, I felt almost back to normal.  I am now 7 weeks post surgery and have been allowed to return to normal activities.  So far, I am loving getting back into my exercise routine.  I am sore, but I am glad that I can do activities again, especially since I had to sit out on all the fun activities in Tahoe last month. Other than this, it is same old stuff, work, kids, exercise, etc, etc..

Some recent pics from Tahoe...

Lake Tahoe 2012

River rafting on Truckee

Giuliacci Family 

Blah Blah Blah...

One thing everyone knows about me is how much I LOVE the RAIN.  NOT!!  I realize that we do need rain and I am fine with it in small amounts, but this cloudy, overcast weather just makes me feel DEPRESSED.  Literally, I have that seasonal depression stuff, so when I see that there will be NO sunlight for several days, I am already panicking.   

Anyway, I decided to try to not think about how ugly and dark it is outside, and in my house.  I decided since I can't be outside in beautiful weather, I guess I will stay inside and clean, clean, clean. I started in on my 6, I KID YOU NOT - 6 HEAPING hampers of laundry, and this was just from this week.  I have gotten through 3 of them and I hope to at least get them all done by tonight.  I know what the problems with the laundry are... and their names are Ariana and Elissa.  These girls will try clothes on and change them several times,without picking them up and putting them away.  Instead, they throw them in the dirty clothes.  I can't tell you how many times I have talked to them about this.  What is it gonna take...? Anyone got any ideas?  I would just go through it and hang them up, but they throw dirty wet towels on top and the cat hair gets on them from being thrown all over, so now they are dirty. 

Then, I scrubbed my bathrooms, swept and cleaned the entire downstairs wood floors, vacuumed, dishes, kitchen, and now I am going through the kids clothes trying to see what doesn't fit anymore.  I am running out of time and I still need to go pick up groceries, make dinner, take Elissa and Ariana to rehearsal and take Rachel home as soon as she starts to feel up to it.  Oh, I forgot to mention, she started vomiting again last night.  She had the stomach flu a couple weeks ago like me, and got it AGAIN last night!  I really hope we aren't going on round 2.  I can't deal with it anymore, especially since Connor has another virus too.

I never get rest on my days off.  I am really dreaming about the Cayman Islands right now!

It's been a while.....

Well, I haven't written in my blog for over a year now.  I can't believe it has been that long!  Where does the time go?  When I started this blog, I really intended to write in it often, but I find myself writing almost every detail of my life on Facebook so my friends and family can stay updated and in touch.  I mean, who has time to read blogs, right???

Many things are going on in our family right now.  We all just recovered from the stomach flu last week and now, Connor came down with a cold overnight.  I swear, it seems like he is sick every few weeks.  Hopefully this means, he will be healthy by the time he gets to school.

The kids have been quite busy with school and extracurricular activities. Boy, have I been a busy mom too!   I have no "me" time any more.  I think I turned into a chauffeur, mainly.  From driving to work, then driving the kids after work here and there, and to auditions on the weekends, it's crazy!  At least they are enjoying themselves, so it makes it all worth it.

As most of you have heard, both Ariana and Elissa will be performing in the Annie Musical in May.  We are all very excited and can't wait to see them.  Too bad we can't take video footage of them as it is against the rules, so, if any of you would like to see them, you will have to see them live.  You can purchase tickets here.. http://sa1.seatadvisor.com/sabo/servlets/TicketRequest;jsessionid=7234AC922BC0ADF792556F289C8B85B7?eventId=478586&presenter=TRACY&venue&event.  I have already purchased ours.

Noah just turned 9 this week and is now playing baseball.  He seems to be having a great time with it, but gets a little frustrated when he can't hit the ball.  They tied their first game on Friday, and won their second game on Saturday.  He got on base a few times.  I am sure he will get much better with practice.  I am just glad he is out there meeting new friends and having some fun.  We can finally afford to let each kid do an activity right now, which makes me feel like I am giving them more opportunities in life.  I think kids need all the opportunities they can get.  I just hope this is something he truly likes to do, if not, we will move on to the next thing. :)

Connor, is 2 and is your normal toddler...into everything, throwing tantrums, being defiant, breaking things, and being a sweet, funny little guy, who melts your heart with his little smiles and affections of love.  I am truly going to miss the toddler years when they are over.  Again, time goes by too quickly.  I wish I could hang on to it for a little longer.

Dan is busier than ever too!  He has been with his current job for about 1.5 years.  He won a Sales Achievement award for hitting over $1 million dollars in sales for his company this year.  In addition, he gets an all expense paid trip to the Grand Cayman Islands and guess who he is bringing.. YEP!! I finally get to go out of the country!!!  We will be going in May.  We just applied for our passports this weekend and will soon be scheduling the trip.  I am sad to leave my children so far away, but I am hoping to have a great time with Dan, ALONE!!!

As for me, I am still working in Pleasanton.  The job is going fine and the people there are very nice.  I am not doing all the work I used to do for my last company, and I am only there 3 days a week, but I am TOTALLY  fine with this.  Too much stress causes me anxiety and this is something I have been dealing with a lot more lately, especially with taking care of Rachel now, since she moved back.  She is in her own apartment, and things seem to be going well.  I see her at least once a week, more if needed.  Aside from that, I would say, life is going just fine.  Sometimes in life there is more good than bad, and sometimes more bad then good, but it all eventually evens out in the end. Guess that is just a fact of life!

Need Help Deciding on Headshots

Hi Everyone!!

My friend just took some pictures of my kids for me and I need your help deciding which pictures I should use for the kids head shots.  Please help me choose one for each kid.

THANKS!!!

CONNOR'S PICTURES

 #1

 #2

 #3

ELISSA'S PICTURES

 #1

 #2

 #3

 #4

 #5

ARIANA'S PICTURES

 #1

 #2

 #3

 #4

 #5

NOAH'S PICTURES 

 #1

 #2

Family Updates and Family Fun

I haven't written for a while on my blog, so I thought I would give everyone an update.  Last Friday, we met with an Talent Agent for Elissa.  She is going to represent her and Connor and eventually Ariana once she takes some acting workshops and learns the industry terminology.  That makes them very excited because they will get some work soon, hopefully. When they do, I will be sure to post it!  :)

My friend Leisa offered to take new headshots of the kids.  I can't wait to see them.  She does an amazing job with her camera and Photoshop.  When I get the pictures back from her, I will post for you all to see.  I will need help choosing the best pictures so I can get the headshots printed for the Talent Agent.

Ariana is doing a musical for her school in April called "Into the Woods".  She is playing the part of Rapunzel.  Not sure how she feels about it, but I am sure she will do a great job!

Connor is getting over his cold and starting to become more independent.  He is fighting me with everything I try to do for him including putting on shoes and socks, or even feeding him.  I decided to let him try to feed himself last Saturday night because he kept taking the spoon away from me.  I recorded part of this experience for you all.  Enjoy...

Click here (if  you choose the video below without clicking the link, scroll down on this page and pause my music playing in the background so you can hear).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoJ9VvwJLY4




On Sunday, we decided to enjoy our last warm day of the weekend because we are expecting rain for the next week or so.  We took the kids outside and played ball in the backyard.  Connor is starting to hit the ball.  He is so cute and Dan is excited for this!  He has Noah to play catch and other sports, but it has always been his dream to have a son of his own to do this with too.  Now, he has two boys to play.  Perfect!  When Connor gets older, he can catch, Noah can hit, and Dan can pitch and vice-versa. The girls like to play, but not as much as the boys.  Noah is doing really well with catching too!  He is a natural.  I will most definitely sign him up for Baseball next year.  We missed the sign ups for this year already.  :(

Here are some pics of the kids playing in the backyard...

My Baby is on You Tube!

Well, last night I went to bed early and left Ariana up playing on the computer.  She asked me if she could upload a video to you tube that she must have created sometime yesterday.  I am always behind my kids 100%  in whatever they love to do.  Ariana loves to play her guitar and sing.  I'm not particularly fond of her song choice, but anyway, here is the video she posted yesterday.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UK4CGqLBaHY

Elissa's Party City Pics ARE IN...

I just received some of the pictures that are going to be used for the Party City catalog this spring.  Elissa participated in two birthday party scenes, Hello Kitty and Disney Princess.  They want her back for more and said she was really great to work with.  She used her money from the party city shoots to buy lots of hair and jewelry accessories.  She was so nice, she bought some for her sister too!!

PRINCESS SPA SCENE

                                            

PRINCESS PIN THE ...

PRINCESS DECORATING CUPCAKES

PRINCESS CUPCAKE SCENE

PRINCESS WALL ART

PRINCESS BIRTHDAY PARTY SUPPLIES

PRINCESS BALLOON

HELLO KITTY PIN THE BOW

HELLO KITTY DECORATE BALLOON

PIN THE BOW - HELLO KITTY

HELLO KITTY PARTY SUPPLIES AND JEWELRY

These aren't all of them, but you get the picture.  She loved doing these because they are like real birthday parties to her!!  Guess she'll do more for them if she wants to.

Goose Eggs.. Why do they have to happen?

My poor baby fell on his head today.  I was at my friend's house and he decided to climb on stuff and  fell right on his head.  I can't keep him from climbing on stuff anymore and falling.  I wish I could because it breaks my heart when he gets hurt.  He is a typical boy, I guess. You should have seen his bump swell up immediately after.  We put ice on his head for a while and the bump went down considerably, but he still has quite the bump on his little head. My poor baby.

Some snapshots of the kids...

So yesterday, I decided to take some snapshots of Elissa and Connor.  Here are a few for you all to see and a video of Connor playing.  I will get Ariana and Noah on here too if they sit for me.  Enjoy...

A little bit of this...A little bit of that...

So, I had to take my daughter, Ariana out today for some art supplies for a Kite project she was working on for school.  While I was at Michael's, I decided to buy some canvases for this Photo Mod Podge project I was going to work on with the kids pictures.  Click here for a tutorial of this project which my friend Leisa and her sister came up with on their blog The Sassy Pepper http://thesassypepper.blogspot.com/2010/11/mod-podge-photos-on-canvas.html.  They are so creative.  And, since I was at Michael's, I decided to buy some spray paint for my bamboo candle plates in my living room and for my basket on top of my cabinets.  I wanted to make them both a reddish wine color.

Bamboo Candle Plates Before...

Bamboo Candle Plate after with Candle (Red Wine color)

Dinner was a success!!!

And after I painted the candle plates and my basket, I decided to try a new recipe for dinner.  I saw a little blurb in Better Homes and Garden this month about trying a Pea Pesto Sauce instead the regular pesto with pine nuts to cut out fat and reduce calories.  They didn't list any measurements at all, but it listed the ingredients, so I decided to give it a whirl.  This is what I came up with.  

So here is the recipe in case any of you were interested in trying it.  You can make this strictly vegetarian style and drop in some peas to add color, or add chicken.  

Pea Pesto Sauce with Pasta and Chicken 

1 bag frozen peas (thawed but I heated them up too)

1 - 2 cloves of garlic minced

1 - 2 tablespoons of fresh basil 

1-2 small lemons juiced 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

dash of pepper

1/4 cup of shredded parmesan cheese (not pantry style)

olive oil

So while I was boiling my pasta, I whipped up this pesto sauce in my food processor.  If you don't have a food processor, you can always use your blender.

Add all ingredients except the olive oil.  Puree and gradually add olive oil until smooth and creamy. You will want to add enough olive oil until you reach the consistency of thick spaghetti sauce.  Once the pasta is done, drain it and toss with this pesto.  I added cubed chicken which I also cooked while waiting for the water to boil. 

The kids were a little surprised with their green pasta, but they all went back for seconds and so did Dan.  I was good and stuck to my one serving.

Try it, you might like it...  Happy Eats!