Surprising Grandma

Yesterday we worked hard to surprise my mom.  We were supposed to meet at her "old" apartment @ 4:30 p.m. to clean it completely and turn in the keys to the landlord.  I decided to surprise her since she would be coming straight from work and be already tired.  Angie, Emma, Pedrito and I got there at 1 p.m. and started the messy assignment.  3 hours later the carpet had been, first sweeped then vacuumed, bathroom and walls cleaned, shelves dusted, tile floors sweeped and mopped, nails and pins taken out of the walls, dishes washed and put away in boxes (yes, there were some still left over), Pedrito was sleeping on the floor, Angie having "facetime" with a school friend, Emma had a nap and woke up to watch sister have conversation with friend, and I was collapsed on the floor tired and thirsty.  We wanted to see my mom's face when she came in the house and saw how clean it was.  The only problem was that she didn't get there until 5 p.m. and I was about to leave before my kids and I were dehydrated.  It was worth it.

I told Angie:  'It's Monday and your lesson for today's Family Home Evening was -"When you are in the service of your fellowmen, you are only in the service of your God".  Hope you learned this lesson well.  :)

Pretty in Pink



I am exhausted.  I started my day at 6 o'clock in the morning to help my mom move to her new duplex.  It was a LOT of work, especially because she lived in an upstairs apartment so the whole morning was about going up and down the stairs carrying stuff to the moving van.  But it was exciting to see how happy she was.  We (Pedro, Erik and Me) practically stayed at this the whole morning and I should say we did this on a day where the temperature was 110 degrees.  Yes, I sweated A LOT. 

But then we came home, took a nice shower and then we headed for the adult session at stake conference.  This particular session is my FAVORITE!  We have a WONDERFUL stake president whom I love and respect very much.  He is a great leader and truth to be said, he is very spiritual without being boring, which is why I love it when he speaks.  This time, he and his two counselors, President Rapier and President Shumway, chose 3 different mormon messages to share with us, and they based their talks on them.  I loved the first one and it's main message:  For some, blessings come soon, for some blessings come later, and for some, blessings don't come until heaven.  But for members of the church, they always come.   I've seen this truth in my life unfold many times in many different circumstances and I do testify of that.  I also thought about some sisters in my branch who could have felt the spirit so strong while listening to this, but I don't think they were actually there.  :(

The second one was just as powerful, about 5 different people testifying how they found the power to change their lives through Jesus Christ.  Isn't He THE answer for us all?  Yes!  All he is waiting for is for us to open the door and let Him in.  Everything else in this life is SO secondary.  Only God and our families are what's truly important.

The third one I've seen before.  It's about Stephanie Nielson and her new life.  How she emerged from this trial triumphant and more strong spiritually than ever before.  She counsels us on how we should view our role as mothers as something divine and cherish motherhood for the privilege it is.  Motherhood and beauty go together.

Then I remembered something that happened this morning while I was driving to my mom's new house.  My niece Karmina was riding in the front with me and she was wearing her pink sunglasses.  When I saw them I thought "Oh I guess she likes to see life through pink colored glasses, like little girls usually do.  Then they grow up and discover life is a little harder and bad things happen sometimes to good people.  BUT then...as I was at Stake Conference I realized the gospel is my Pink Glasses.  Life is still hard, we still face trials, we still cry...but the gospel lets me see that there is SO much GOOD in this crazy world. It is the gospel of Jesus Christ that gives us hope amid the darkness and there is so much to learn even from those ugly storms.  So yes, I am grown up and I still CHOOSE to see life through "Pink-colored glasses" because it makes me happy and it gives me peace...

The Move is On

 

I am so happy for my mom.  She was finally accepted in a discounted housing duplex and she is moving to Guadalupe!  It's a four bedroom little house and no neighbors on or below her.  We took a few boxes yesterday and now the plan is to officially move-in this coming Saturday (2 days).  It's a little strange to see my mom move away instead of closer like she usually does, but it's not that far anyway.  She'll be 5 min. from the Arizona Mills Mall and that's a plus in my kids' minds; they love the Arizona Mills mall.  I know it's for her own good since she is not getting a lot of hours at work, and this way, she can always report when she gets less hours and therefor pay less rent.  It's a blessing from above.  I thank God for every blessing my mom receives since she is taking care of my 2 nieces and even at 60, she continues to be a "single mother".  Only 2 more days...

Shopping Day



Yesterday was a busy one.  I had a planning meeting with Carmen Lopez and Ramona Martinez to plan the Relief Society activities all the way to December.  I was glad to have their input and we came up with what I think are pretty good ideas for each month and now we just have to get them approved by President Solorzano.  Around 2 o'clock I was already starving, so I took Erik, Emma and Pedrito to Carl's Jr. to eat and then it was on to Wal Mart to buy Emma a new swimming suit, a leotard, leggings and ballet shoes.  She starts swimming and ballet classes on Monday.  Unfortunately we couldn't find a short sleeved leotard in her size but we'll try again today.  She is SOOOOO excited about these classes, it will be her first time on both and I'm just happy when she's happy.   We also bought Pedro two t-shirts for Father's Day.  By the time we came home, Pedro was already here frying some eggs because there was no dinner, but it was all cool with him.  Thankfully. 

We've been a little lonely without Angie.  She left last Wednesday for Girl's Camp and they rode a charter bus so it must have been a nice trip up to Camp Lo-Mia.  She's coming back today and I can't wait for her to tell me all her adventures and experiences.  Since I never had the chance to go to Girl's Camp as a young woman (I was baptized when I was 15) because I had to stay home with my younger brother and sister, I do feel like I was deprived of what would have been an unforgettable experience.  I don't want any of my children to feel like that, so I always encourage them to go to "every" camp or activity the church has.  These years in the young men and young women will go so fast and I don't want them to miss anything, I want them to create wonderful memories they can share with me, and later on in life, with their own kids.  Sometimes they resent me for doing this, you know, they tell me how such and such person didn't go, and how missing one or two activities won't kill them or their leaders....  But they always come back happy, always...  I was born in Mexico and I never had the kind of activities or trips that LDS children in the U.S. have.  Sometimes I wish I had been born in this country and be from an LDS family.  Sometimes I wish I was my children's age to participate in EVERYTHING.  But I'm not, and I guess there is a reason for how our life is the way it is, like me not having the gospel from the beginning and being born in Mexico.  I love Mexico, don't get me wrong, but there is a lot more opportunities here.  At least I live here now, I'm a naturalized citizen, and my children have the opportunities I didn't have.  I am truly BLESSED.