Las Vegas Mama

Alright, so you think I won the money lottery. Fair enough, that is the title of my post. But the truth is that I won the BABY lottery! And that is so much better than the money lottery. You probably think that is a ridiculous statement, but in my world its the truth. Because I am pregnant, not with one baby, but with TWO! In my world, that is the most amazing news I could have ever gotten. See, I am not a cute, perky pregnant lady. I am a sleepy, cranky pregnant lady whose patience thins as her belly grows. For this reason, the fact that I am getting two snuggly babies out of the deal instead of one is amazing news! Twins don't run in my family, and I had no reason to expect this. But at my first ultrasound the ultrasound tech casually said, "Alright, here is the baby and the heartbeat. And...here is the other baby, and the other heartbeat." You guys? I nearly jumped through the roof. I was like, "WHAT???????" And then I started laughing and crying all at...

Pay attention, people!! I have words. Look alive!! I wanted to tell you that I am expecting again! I don't mean I am expecting like a present of some sort. Nor am I expecting company. I mean I am expecting another baby. Another WHAT??? This puts me squarely into the "one of those people" category. I am now one of those people with enough kids to make heads turn. Well, not quite yet actually. Number 5 is still in utero for the time being. So I have about 7 months of being incognito as a fierce baby making machine. Watch out, world - we've got an undercover baby-maker at large! It's like I'm a spy or something. I have always wanted to be a spy. That's why I want to learn Russian. I feel that all proper spies should speak Russian. Unfortunately for me, all I know how to say in Russian is "What time does the train leave the station?" and I can't even write that in Russian for you because I don't know how to spell it. I'm...

Las Vegas is known for a lot of things, mainly involving entertainment for adults. But families do actually live here, and what do they do for entertainment? This is the eternal question for our family, because we want to make sure that we are protecting our four kids from the inappropriate things that are out there. These days even things that are supposedly family-friendly reveal values that are less than wholesome. Fortunately for my family, and for all you families out there with young kids, there is a beautifully traditional attraction here in Las Vegas, but it will only be here for a few more days. I am talking about the circus! And more specifically, Circus Vargas . We went down to Boca Park yesterday, where the girls and I were able to enjoy the show together.  They were so excited when they spotted the big top tent! And the first thing that saw made me fall in love with Circus Vargas - the looks on the girls' faces when we walked in there! We were a little late bec...

As some of you may know, Advent is not quite Christmas, even though you wouldn't guess it by the decorations at the mall and the songs on the radio! We are still preparing for Jesus' arrival on Christmas as a newborn child, born to give hope to mankind. At Mass we have been singing "Oh come, oh come Emmanuel" and other beautiful Advent hymns. Here are some excerpts from our Mass the past two Sundays, the first and second Sundays of Advent. Our singers range in age from 12-17. 1st Sunday of Advent - Veni, Veni Emanuel:  2nd Sunday of Advent - Jesu Dulcis Memoria, Sanctus from the Missa de Angelis, and Rorate Caeli: PS - Happy Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe! I meant to go to the morning greeting to Our Lady, las Mananitas... but sadly I forgot to set my alarm! I will try again for next year. I really would like the girls to have it as a tradition. Maybe when everyone is a little older. :p

Well, that was a lovely hiatus on Mass books, wasn't it! I am not sure anyone is using these though, and I haven't gotten any complaints so I am not going to worry about it! The latest section is the Dominus Vobiscum, Collect and Epistle. As before, save to your desktop and then drag and drop into pages or word to print out. The translations that they will need to write in by hand are as follows: Dominus Vobiscum mean The Lord be with you Et cum spiritu tuo means And with your spirit Oremus means Let us pray So all they have to do is fill in the boxes with the translation, color the bubble words, and jazz up the page. They can also color the light bulb. I'll be working on the Gradual, Alleluia and Gospel next!

I have been teaching my kids at home for over 4 years now, and there is just one thing I have to say about the whole situation. Homeschooling is hard. Well ok, maybe that's just the first thing I wanted to say. Actually, I have a lot more to say about it. The fact is, I have learned a lot in this little adventure. Here are a few things I have learned in our personal homeschool journey. 1. Socialization is a non-issue. When I started this journey I was rather unsure if it was the right thing to do. Mainly because (everyone say it together now!) "What about socialization???"  HAHAHA! Little did I realize back then how much of a non-issue socializing a homeschooler actually is in this day and age. I didn't know that I was going to have to STOP attending social events and play dates and all kinds of outings just so I could do what I first intended - schooling at home. Because to homeschool, you do have to actually be at home. Go fig. And on the topic of socializing ...