Flicka and the like

As I was walking out of Walmart yesterday, I saw this movie poster sign advertising Flicka, a story about a horse (judging from the picture on the poster...). The reason this drew my attention is that Ella has been naming all her figurine toy animals by adding an "a" to the noun denoting the actual name of the animal, for example, "Bunna" (for her pink singing bunny from mamaie and tataie), "Elephanta" (for the cute Elephant from Anuja and Kalpak), and most recently "Cowa" for the newly found treasure/miniture plastic cow. It just cracks us up. I bet "Flicka" really comes from "Flicker" (or maybe not) but after seeing that title, I started to appreciate a bit more Ella's newly adopted naming convention for her toys! (BIG SMILE HERE)

Family Home Evening

This is something that's been very regular at our house and we love it. There's something really special  about having that quiet time (although sometimes Ella tends to bring in her beloved animal figurines and tries to play in parallel with one of us giving the lesson, but I digress...), so there's something really special about reading scriptures together, trying to understand how they apply to our lives, and breaking it all down in terms that our four and a half year old can understand... It's great to get each other's insights too. Ella amazes us with hers.

So I treasure FHE every week as it brings us closer to each other and to the Lord. Can't say enough of how grateful I am for this inspired program/commandment. As with every commandment that we strive to keep, we are promised and always showered with blessings of all kinds. One other thing we've started (Hrishi especially) is to read from the lives of our leaders. Now we're reading about Pres. Monson's life. Truly amazing! Just hope and pray that we can instill these things in Ella's life for many many years to come, for many many generations to come, forever. I know that learning about the gospel and practising those teachings daily are the only worthwhile endeavors that will bring TRUE and EVERLASTING HAPPINESS. Last night's lesson was about Jesus, who stands at the door and knocks and about miracles. We read the story of the Jairus's daugther and the stilling of the tempest. It was neat, really neat.

As a treat we enjoyed white oreo cookies with chocolate soy milk. Yummy!
I captured the most recent in this random collage...

Level 1 gymnastics

So after six months of hard work to match up/or catch up with the level of gymnastics taught at Texas Dreams (remember,we're coming from a non-pretentions and very recreational program in Omaha), Ella made it to Level 1 gymnastics before the normal age cut-off (5 and above.) Way to go, girl! You rock! Lately she's been telling us that she's working harder and harder every time so she can make the big girl class! How cute! Love your determination, baby!  Too bad I don't have any pictures for this announcement but I will take some nice ones with our favorite gymnast!!!

Congratulations, ELLA!!!

This past weekend a gymnast training at the same club has won the All-around 2010 Junior Olympic National Competition.

How I love you...

"I love you even if you have not brushed your teeth yet!" (I'm often told this as I cuddle her up in the wee morning hours.)

"I love you so much mommy, all the way to the moon and the stars."

"I love you all the way to Chicago and back!" (Chicago is also her favorite destination when she 'threatens' to leave because she can take care of herself now ... this happens when she's done some mischief and gets a good talk or time out. I must have passed my "I love Chicago" genes on to her...)

"Mommy, I love you 100 weeks long and always and forever."

"This is the best day of my life!" (she says that whenever she's extremely happy or excited about something.)

"I love you this much!" (and she stretches her arms all the way out)

... and I mustn't forget this one: "Daddy, you are my bestest friend ever!"

All infused with the deepest love ever... Thank you, angel for loving us so much!

Mother's Day Treat

I was pampered with yummy breakfast, roses, cards, and other special treats this weekend! So blessed to have such a great husband and daugther! Thank you so much for your love, for all that you do and put up with! I couldn't ask for more. I'm grateful for my wonderful Mother and Mother-in-law who never cease to amaze me with their selfless love and service. And I'm grateful that I can be a mom, too; that I can cook, clean, read, kiss, hug, give back rubs, and comfort in many other ways my sweet family. And not lastly, I'm grateful for the unmeasurable love that I get in return. Last night as we were winding down reading the wonderful articles in the Friend magazine (I absolutely love that magazine), we came across a special poem that made me tear up:

My Mother's Hands

By Lorie Barton

I’m thankful for my mother’s hands, which help me every day.

With her hands she shows me how to work and how to play.

It seems that when I need some help, her hands are always there

To tie my shoes, or make my lunch, or comb my messy hair.

Her hands know how to fix my bike and how to make my bed,

And how to find a scripture verse to ease my worried head.

I want my hands, like Mother’s, to serve others every day.

I want my hands to know, like hers, how to work and play.

I know that when she needs some help, my hands can help her too.

Because she’s taught me well, they know exactly what to do.

I’ll thank my mother for her hands and hug her really tight

And promise her to use my hands to always do what’s right.

Speaking of tearing up, we got a lot of those moments on Saturday morning as we "inaugurated" our first 1 mile family walk in the local walk/run in support of the Special Olympics children. It was a neat experience to see all those folks gathered in the early morning hours, chirping excitedly, all there for a special cause, all different age groups, sizes, t-shirt colors, yet all there to show love and support. There were quite a few emotional moments there as we watched parents and grandparents of special needs children either jogging or walking behind their precious wheel-chaired bound children. And then I once more counted my blessings for being, for being able to be there, for having fought my "I'm- not- a- morning-person" self and gotten up on time, and dragged Ella with us. Great opportunity to teach her about service and the many different faces of it, and of God's love that we felt so strongly throughout that morning.

A few pictures to capture the moments...

I am so very very grateful for my mother and her love and example to me. The sacrifices and service she rendered year after year in rearing and nurturing me! I love you mom, you mean the world to me! Love you for your energy and optimism, for your unwavering faith and testimony, for your great cooking and dancing! Mama, esti minunata!!!!!

And I'm very grateful for my dear mother-in-law who is so wonderful in so many ways! Thank you aai, for being so loving, so patient, for having such a great smile and being such a great cook and masseuse!!!!! :-)

The fox is in the box

"The Fox is in the Box,", is the sentence our awesome ("possum") child read last night off of a sight word practice worksheet while riding in the car to Walmart! We couldn't believe our ears/eyes! She is reading! Ella can read. She can read sentences with the sight words she's learned so far, and per my previous post/entry, there are lots of them... . We got so excited and wanted to reward her (not only for this huge milestone but also for being a good little girl throughout the week) so we let her pick a toy. Boy oh boy, does she take her time?!!!! She changed her mind so many times.. I think we were in the toy isles for over half an hour but I don't blame her with so many choices it is hard to make up one's mind. Finally, with some "help" from daddy, she picked a Ford Truck with a Horse Trailer so she can carry her horses around. We usually don't buy a lot of toys for her, only on special occasions, such as birthdays and other milestones (like this one :-))  Really proud of you, baby! Now on to making cards for Teacher's appreciation week coming up...

Busy busy

Move:
-Set move-in date & movers: check
-Change utility providers: check
-USPS address change: check
-Select paint colors: check
-Change address with current providers: working on it
-Select painter: still working on it...
-Order refrigerator: still working on it
-Shopping/selecting rugs: still working on it...
-etc. ...
The list goes on and on... lots to do but we're so excited! Can't wait!

Ella: will be attending private kindergarten at Primerose starting in fall. We're so excited as her teachers said she's ready and up for the challenge. Our concern was that maybe the challenge would be too big but they assured us she's ready. In less than six months she's learned and mastered things others have been learning over the past couple of years (having had the benefit of being at Primrose from their preschool, toddler/infant years.) This kiddo knows a ton of sight words, can count to a 100, can write all the numbers up to a 100, knows the coin denominations, can do additions and subtractions, and many other things. Amazing indeed and I give such much of the credit to her wonderful teachers, Miss Ashley and Miss Brenda. Miss Ashley's teaching style and perseverance helped Ella immensly in her transition to the new school. Grateful beyond words for such a sweet little girl we have! We love you, darling!!

Hrishi: is winning the dad of the year award again this year! Love to watch him spend time with Ella, take her to her swimming and gymnastics classes, coach her and be there for her every step of the way. He's so very busy at work but never fails to bring his best at home, never complains, has a cheerful and happy attitude which is so refreshing. He's been doing great with his golf game too! Hurray for all the (many) beautiful golf courses in the DFW area which he's happily exploring with his friends. He makes the best banana bread and muffins I've ever had, the best chicken/beef/lamb kobabs, and the yummies pan seared trout! He helps so much with house chores and he jokingly calls himself the best "houseband" in the world! Recently he launched a great initiative at work tied to simulation that's going to save the company tons of money. And not lastly, he's the most loving and supporting guy ever. And has a great sense of humor! Love you, honey! So happy to be in this together!

OK, I never want to write about myself but since I made the decision to document our life on this blog and make it into our family history (thanks to the Print to blog feature), here I am.
I've been a little better about eating healthy (at all times, I'm very good before 6 pm when I get home!) Still need a little more work on the excersise front. I've been eliminating most processed foods/ingredients from our daily meals which I think it's pretty great, thanks to my buddies here who are starting to love whole grain everything, buck-wheat pancakes, this will take us long ways. Also manage to have two leafy green/veggie sides with every meal. Work is going great, pretty busy with  more complex projects but I'm enjoying it. I'm so grateful for the growth opportunities and recognition, the people I work with and especially my boss. She's great! I've been doing good too on my daily scripture study so plugging right along. Hope and pray to keep it up.  I love being a mom and a wife as primary profession(s) and also having a challenging and fulfilling outside-the-home job/profession. I can see now that all those hard-working and sometimes heart-breaking and exhausting years at BYU have paid off.

We feel blessed beyond words and I pray to always remember and be the best that we can for all those around us.