Camo

every day this week i am practically at the school along with the other moms volunteers. the schools art vistas program is displaying all the artwork at gallery night tomorrow. we pick at least 2 pieces from each kid out of 6 projects. aside from sorting, picking, mounting - we are in charge of putting them up. ariana's class has 2 great docents (kat & shika) that take care of everything, all i do is help. i am also coordinating the teachers scrapbook for each kid - all 25 of them. we have been taking pictures throughout the year, the teacher prints them up via shutterfly or snapfish deals, and we slap them on the pre-printed titled pages. its like a mini scrapbook crop. ariana is wearing the tcp camouflage outfit.

Butterfly Kisses

local weatherman says its going to get warmer (temperature-wise) but leaving out the wind factor info. ariana is wearing gymbo butterfly blossoms patchwork skort, but this time with the lavender top and matching socks.
Nana-ism: i have a couple strands of gray hair. i probably have more in the back that "nobody" tells me about though. i know for sure of the ones on each side by my ears. ariana told me if i cut them, "you will be young again". oh only if it could be that simple.

Popsicle Party

heres to hoping the weather will warm up after a very disappointing memorial day weekend of clouds and wind. it even snowed up in the sierras (reno & tahoe). its just plain crazy as florida got hit with the first 2 hurricanes - alberto & beryl. and halfway into the concert in washington dc was cancelled due to severe weather. people were asked to leave the national mall and seek shelter. ariana is wearing gymbo popsicle party, the caption on the the shirt says "you make me melt".

Wind Festival

Let's all remember and give thanks to those who have given their lives, and those still serving in the armed forces to protect our country and our freedoms. Happy Memorial Day! every memorial day weekend, we go to the san ramon arts & wind festival (aka kitefest). the one day byron puts aside to fly a kite. it wasnt that windy, but every once in awhile we would catch a good gust to get it up and stay up. she's wearing a harajuku tee & nautical hoodie.

Open House

its open house at the school tonight. i have been asking ariana all week if its okay if we pass on it tonight, since i'm always at the school or in the classroom. the kids are going to sing (with sign language) and play "are you smarter than a first grader?". i'm surprised she's perfectly fine with it. we were able to purchase books at the book fair right after school, other than that we would go back at 5:30. so really she wants to stay home and read (or look) at all her new books. ariana is wearing a carters dress purchased at kohls.

Coloring Bug

ariana has the drawing/coloring bug, at the same time playing with everything else. i keep her markers all organized in pails. even her crayons - all different types of reds in one little container, all types of blues in another, etc. ariana has a habit where she will color and leaves it out. so if she draws on the dining room table, all her supplies will lay there. and for sure you will know if she colored in another room. i have been on her case trying to remind her "put them back when you are done". problem is she moves on to another project or toy right away, not cleaning up. when i clean up while shes at school, i go around picking up all the markers, pencils and crayons laying around, and put them back accordingly. when ariana got home, she noticed "hey something looks different" that i picked up after her. we talked about it again. her response with her hand over her forehead "oh i know. i dont know why i do it. i have no idea where i get it from??" meaning if its a mommy trait or daddy trait. ariana summed it all up "guess its a mystery". altho we know who, don't we??

The Uncles & the GodFather

when we went to chicago to visit byrons family, ariana was able to see 2 uncles in one day; and at different times. one before we went to the museum, the other afterwards. uncle tim and uncle brent, both are byrons younger brothers. ariana could practically pass as either one of their daughters. uncle tim has the biggest heart in the world, and one of the most hardest working guy around. he is so great with kids, as he has 3 of his own. uncle brent was the "chosen one". him and his wife do not plan on having any children, and we picked him to be one of ariana's godfathers.

Happy Birthday Brianna!!!

Brianna is ariana's first cousin, the daughter of one of byron's brothers. they could pass as sisters. in fact, sometimes ariana could pass as his brothers' daughter than byron and mines. i always remember brianna's age, as its the same year as our wedding anniversary. she was born premature a month before our wedding. byron and i are shopping around for prescription sunglasses. hoping to get a pair by vacation in july. ariana tried on a pair and said "look at me, i look smart and like brianna."

Girls BFF

every morning starts out cloudy and then clears in the afternoon, except the wind kicks up. its like we're in a transition weather pattern from fall to spring or vice-versa. when i was packing for dc, i took the opportunity to switch out ariana's closet and set up her spring/summer wardrobe. the fall/winter bins are at the bottom, luckily gymbos girls best friend outfits are on the top. i managed to pull these pieces out, this time with the blue doggie top. every morning when i wake ariana up, she pulls the cover over and asks for 5 more minutes. today - she said "no, i mean 5 more HOURS!". i now nudge her 5 minutes earlier, and we have a 45 minutes to get ready for school.

Arts Vistas Project

wearing the pink panda t-shirt from the national zoo in washington dc, paired with white capris. the class worked on the school arts vista auction item for gallery night next month. the kids drew/carved into styrofoam and made an imprint onto paper. almost like making a big stamp. i don't want to spoil the surprise of what we're going to do with all of them.

Happy Mothers Day

ariana showered me with all her art project gifts this morning. my sister called to join them for brunch at a nearby restaurant with 9:00 reservations. i was so enjoying my time in bed. but she twisted my arm, and all 3 of us did a "get up & go". afterwards we went to visit my mother who will be 91 come this october. i've been so busy with going on the trip, that i didnt send mothers day cards out. theres the 2 grandmas, ariana has 3 godmothers (ninangs), and josh has 2 ninangs.

Citrus Cooler

ariana is wearing gymbo citrus cooler. this line came out in may 2010, and i practically got the whole line at a box sale last year. the shorts are kidgirl size 5, blouse is size 6. ariana woke up with a sore throat this morning, really not wanting to go to school. i pushed her since she was gone all last week. dad was about to cave in for his baby girl. i even said i would carry her down the blvd, but was saved by her bff walking with us. after school, she had a popsicle and went on the computer for a bit. i was about to get her ready for cheer, but allergys kicked in and knocked her out by 5:00.
i usually take care of one trip/event before working on the next. unfortunately the system isnt letting me do it my way anymores. everything needs to be reserved way in advance. now that washington dc is over and done with, i'm working on the rest of our travels plans. we have 3 more trips on the book so far. josh is going to walk (graduate) this summer, even tho he doesnt finish getting his masters til the end of the year. the graduation is on sunday, so i had to shift the resv to sat-sun, cancelling friday nite. now ariana will be able to be in the likha filipino photoshoot on sat. we received my nieces graduation/ cotillion 18th bday invitation yesterday in the mail. i was able to book a bed & breakfast inn for one night, not having to do the 2 night minimum. unfortunately we have to leave early to make filipino dance practice the next day. last year we didnt participate in the summer dance session, only because we were practically gone the whole month of july. i am trying to do everything possible for ariana to perform in their big anniversary show set at the end of august. she will only miss one practice while we are on vacation in july. our disneyworld reservation is all set, just counting the days. my family has an annual 4th of july party at the ranch. i'm not sure if i want to do a quick turn around to come home for filipino dance practice again. i might have another hotel room to book. add another hat to my name - travel agent.

Southwest

the official date of the national bike to school day is may 9th. the school celebrated it today instead. kids could decorate their bikes, scooters and even their helmets. ariana chose not to participate. she said she didnt want to mess up her already decorated barbie bike. she's wearing gap southwest dress with all her favorite colors and sequins/beads on it. teacher appreciation week "treat day". be it a muffin, piece of fruit, chocolate, and the suggested starbucks gift card. thats what we gave along with a coffee cup you can personalize like a chalkboard. theres a story behind this cup - joshua gave me this for xmas. it has been sitting the the back of the cupboard for the longest time. i pulled it down to add to the teachers appreciation gift. apparently ariana has had her eye on it for my mothers day gift. she somehow told her auntie (my sister) to take us to starbucks, it just so happen this week fraps are half price.

Coyote Hills

this field trip was originally planned for last week just for all the first grade classes. since 2nd grade and up were STAR testing. coyote hills is around the corner from the school, probably the shortest field trip bus ride ever. ariana is wearing gymbo safari fashion (april 2010) top with gap khakis.
teacher appreciation day - school supply. a memo went out suggesting the teacher only needed dry-erase markers. i was going to make a trip to the office store, but imagined all the kids bringing markers. we brought boxes of kleenex tissues and ziploc bags.

Glamour Girl

teacher appreciation week - note of appreciation. either write a thank you note or draw a picture. ariana did this all on her own. come to find out she has a tradition to go to the teacher's house during the summer. giving a heads up to her teacher to be expecting her. ariana has only had one teacher prior, which happened to be her kinder teacher. we went to the house last year to give a photobook gift. ariana is wearing gymbo spring sparkle (march 2009) outfit.

Back in Class

a classmate made an annoucement "guess what everybody, ariana is back!" that just made her feel so special knowing she was truly missed. the weather in the bay area is on a warming trend, to be 80 degrees with a slight breeze. ariana is wearing a naartjie jiejie dress. she originally had on ivory saltwater sandals, but put on her gardening clogs afterschool. teacher appreciation week is celebrated throughout the country. each day there is a special theme day. to give something simple yet meaningful to show our appreciation for those who educate & inspire our children on a daily basis. monday is flower day - bring a single flower, flower pot, even a bloom from the garden. some kids brought a packet of seeds. ariana picked a bunch of irises, since purple is the teachers favorite color. we also brought back a panda stuff animal from the national zoo to add to her collection.

Filipino Likha

its the beginning of the LIKHA filipino folk dance session. the children will perform in the 20th anniversary show in august. the kids usually wear their black tee with leggings. and i think she might need a new pair of black crocs (bigger size).

Flying Home

flying home, although we could've stayed another day, but we have so many things to take care of over the weekend. we caught a flight one hour later than originally planned, where our chances of sitting together were better off. we really just need at least 2 seats side by side, as ariana isn't ready to sit by herself yet even if i was in the next row. we ended up getting the whole middle row towards the back of the plane. this worked out great, we put all the arm rests up for ariana to stretch out and take a nap. for some reason i always pack a matilda jane outfit (this time the field trip chrissy dress) for 30,000 feet in the air. they are so comfortable and no wrinkle-wear at all.

Science Museum

byron has been wishing to take ariana to the museum of science & industry. we used to take joshua to it all the time, especially with united airlines boeing 727 airplane. this time we discovered the fairy castle. ariana is wearing gymbo tropical bloom dress.

Chicago Stop

we had 8:40 tour tickets to the Library of Congress (courtesy of our Senator). we thought this might be too much for ariana, and decided to sleep in. plus add to the fact - my feet hurt!! it all started on sunday walking back-n-forth from concourse B & C at chicago ohare. then 2 days worth walking around washington DC. we brought the stroller for ariana, which happens to be on its last leg. this stroller has racked up thousands of miles in the past 6 years, wish we put a meter on it. we decided to take ariana out of school for the whole week, and made a stop in chicago to visit grandmommy. we haven't seen her since last summer, and not sure if dad has enough vacation time for this year. ariana is wearing gymbo santorini sweetie outfit. its a size 5T and thank goodness for adjustable waist, or else these capris will be falling off my skinny-minnie.

The Capitol & Memorials

our senator was able to get us in a tour of the capitol. ariana was excited as she recognizes the infamous shaped dome silhouette. unfortunately we werent able to get a tour of the white house, you need at least a good 3-6 months advance notice. we walked around it (surrounded by the black fence). ariana waved hello, hoping sasha or malia would be looking out the window. we went to the newly built MLK memorial. there are 3 stones, where out of the mountain of despair - is the stone of hope where MLK was carved by a chinese sculptor. along side is the inscription wall engraved with 14 of his most notable quotes. ariana read them, as we helped make out the "big" words. made it up the stairs to the lincoln memorial, and celebrated with ice cream at a nearby shop. ariana is wearing a top from crazy8 paired with matilda jane denim ruffles.