Preschool & New Teachers!

Tomorrow is going to be a day of "New" for the Hinojos' kiddos... Isabella starts Preschool (where has time gone!) which means new teachers and Jameson is moving to the bigger kids room, which again means new teachers! I pray that all goes well tomorrow and that the transition is an easy one. I LOVE Calvary and our school choice for our children!! Isabella has been very attached to her teacher, so i'm nervous on how she's going to handle it in the morning and throughout the day when it really sinks in that she is no longer going to be in Mrs. LaBranda's class... but i've reassured her she will still get to see her everyday and say Hello! :) Jameson's teachers he is already used to and knows and I love them... so I think it will be ok!!

My mother in law will be here Thursday and on Friday the hubby and I head to the beach for a weekend trip, alone! I sure am going to miss the kiddos, but we never ever get to go on dates together and this will be a nice way for us to relax and get some time together-- yay for nice mother-in-laws! :)

Pray that this week goes well for the kiddos and for us! :)

Attitude-- a small thing that makes a BIG difference!

A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly.  You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.  ~Roald Dahl

I definitely believe our outlook on things/life at the end of the day makes a huge difference!! I've definitely realized that if you don't like something, CHANGE IT... if you can't change it, change your attitude. Oh, how true this is! It is so important to realize that when we surround ourselves with kind, caring, and happy individuals-- that tends to bring out the best in us. I remember being in high school and my mother complaining about my grumpy attitude and I never seemed to "get it" back then... but I totally get it now. When I was having a bad attitude or in a bad mood it definitely had a negative effect on the whole house. That goes the same for life-- when you have a negative attitude that has a negative impact on so much. Sometimes we are the only smile a person gets, so it is so important to make sure that we let our light shine. Nobody is perfect and I am FAR from-- so, i'm definitely not claiming to be... there will be days where we are just grumpy and have a bad attitude. However, I think we need to remember the impact we have on others and even ourselves when we have positive energy, thoughts, and a good attitude!

Girl time!

Today was Mommy-daughter time and goodness did we need it! :) Isabella and I had a blast! We went and watched the Smurfs at the movie theater... where of course she insisted upon the expensive smurf cup, some popcorn, and to sit in my lap!! Afterwards she told me she wanted a "quesadilla," so we enjoyed some delicious mexican food at La Parilla!! The date didn't end there.... we went shopping for a bit and rode the carousel at the mall!! It was a *great* day!! Now my little munchkin is EXHAUSTED and hasn't napped ALL day so she is in FULL brat mode!!!! She is getting a bath right now as we speak and then off to bed it is!

I *love* the days that we have together as a family, but I also truly love and appreciate the days we have one-on-one time!! Jameson had a blast with his daddy today too... they played a lot and had a great time!! I truly feel so very blessed and know that God has truly blessed us with amazing children. It's not always easy, but it is most definitely WORTH IT!! I wouldn't trade these babies for the world. I keep thinking of all of the fun things we will continue to get to do together as a family!! I'm hoping Disney is in our near future... and i'd LOVE to be able to get the time to take them to Brazil to visit my family! Maybe one day!

This weekend flew by entirely too fast-- which means i'm keeping my fingers crossed that the week will fly by even faster!! Lots of exciting things going on next weekend... :)

Isabella

That little girl --------------^ is super special!! She has the heart of gold and is the sweetest child ever. She is so concerned with everyone and everything-- and ALWAYS happy. She is wayyyyy too smart for her own good and everyday teaches ME something new. I will never forget when I first found out I was pregnant with my 1st child I was excited, nervous, scared, because I had no idea what to expect or how life was about to change. Life changed that's for sure! My life would NOT be the same without this sweet little girl. She is so affectionate, loving, and caring even in her just 3 little years she has been on God's green earth. She loves sharing, giving hugs, kisses, and Lord knows she LOVES her
 baby brother. She is very attached to my mother which has made the move to Alabama very difficult-- because I wish they could see and be with each other everyday! They were used to being with each other everyday when my mom helped watch Isabella in her 1st year while I finished school. Her teacher, Mrs. LaBranda, that she is VERY attached to might I add... shared a story with me that just reiterated the fact that my little Bella Bear has a heart of gold. I feel so blessed to be her mother and also I feel blessed that during the day when i'm working she is surrounded by people that love her and truly care for her!! I just love my sweet baby, Isabella Augusta Hinojos! :)

Patience

“The keys to patience are acceptance and faith. Accept things as they are, and look realistically at the world around you. Have faith in yourself and in the direction you have chosen.”

I just realized that I have not blogged since my 1st day of work! I have been a busy bee for sure!!! Being a stay-at-home mom kept me busy in a different way than being a working mom has! By the end of my days i'm just so mentally and physically exhausted that all I want to do is come home, fix dinner, snuggle with my kiddos, and GO TO SLEEP!!!!!! I miss the freedom that being a stay-at-home mom gave me, but I know that I have chosen the right thing at this point in our lives. Being able to go to work everyday has made me hopeful for the future and to start saving up for stuff for the kiddos and things we want to do as a family. I know my kids are also in a good place during the day--surrounded by teachers that I know truly care about them and love them. It amazes me to see all the different activities they partake in and all that they are learning. It just makes my heart melt!! I miss them so so so so much during the day... but I am content and I know that they are truly benefiting from being around other children and that I am also benefiting myself by working, learning, and continue to grow in a career.

I have found myself very stressed lately for more reasons than one... and I have tried to talk myself into realizing to have a little patience, strength, and faith and the rest will fall into place. I do miss home for more reasons than one, but I especially miss home when I know people from back at home need me and I can't be there! My mother-in-law has been going through a bit of a difficult time lately and I wish I could be there for her more on a daily basis. She is coming to AL this week (should arrive late Thursday night) and I requested for Friday off so we can take a family trip and try to get her mind off of things. I know it is something she desperately needs and I want to make sure that Cesareo and I can do all that we can to make her forget about her worries for a bit. I know this trip is something that is desperately needed and hopefully everything will work out. I have also had a friend going through some major changes in her life and I just want her to be happy and to trust in God that he has made all of the right choices for her and that everything will work out in the end. Lots of unspokens right now-- that I've just been praying hard for :)

C must be sensing my stress level-- because yesterday he bought steaks to be grilled and bought me a bouquet of flowers :) They are BRIGHT orange, HOT pink, and BRIGHT blue flowers! I love them! They are so, so, so gorgeous!!! We both are working a lot, but we are both very grateful for the amount of work. That means our companies are doing well and that's reassuring. Michelin here has been so great to him and to the family! They are having their annual family day in August and that is always soooooo much fun for kiddos. Even though it is production based they have been great with working with him if he needs a day off for any reason, he has co-workers that send Bella home coins because they know that's how we reward her for going potty and all of the other things she does well! We give her change to put in her HUGE crayola crayon piggy banks. They really are a great organization and he is very blessed to work for them and to have the co-workers he has. I feel like I work with an amazing bunch too. I work with individuals who always try to help out, make a bad day better, and they have taught me a lot.

Cesareo has gotten called back into work for who knows how long.... so the kiddos and I are going to snuggle on this rainy Sunday and then I have some errands to run and I promised to take them to the mall to ride the horsey. Hoping for a fantastic day before it's back to the working grind. I am realllllllly hoping to get back into my working out grind! That is something that has majorly effected me is not being able to work out as much as I was used to. I need to get back to my Zumba and Booty Camp!

It's a NEW DAY, a start of a NEW WEEK, and hopefully a NEW attitude.... about a lot :)