We are back, and boy do I understand why some people say they need a vacation after their vacation. We had lots of fun at Disney but boy do I feel like I could sleep for a week!
The kids were the perfect age, the magic was so real and I will never forget Ava's face the first time she saw Princess Aurora when we had lunch at the castle, and Mateo's excitement when he was chosen to become a Jedi and fight Darth Vader! It was so worth it if only for those moments. Gianna was amazed and in awe of everything, she was constantly dancing with all the music. She loved the rides and was convinced that she was a big girl and required her own seat at all times.
Ava braved anything she was tall enough to go on, including the Tower of Terror. In her words, the drops were fun, but the "thunder people" in it were scary. Her favorite rides were Soarin', Big Thunder Mountain, and Splash Mountain. Mateo loved the two toy story rides best (of course). The new toy story ride at Hollywood Studios is awesome! We had a blast dressing up in costumes and trick or treating at the Magic Kingdom for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party and looking at all the cool special effects around the park and the characters in their own costumes!
I did learn a couple things on this trip.
1) I will not fly anywhere with Gia for at least a year (she was atrocious on the plane with her incessant screaming. Not crying, mind you, but screaming like a little banshee).
2) Bringing glow sticks with you from the dollar store is genius and saves you sooo much money when they bring out the light up stuff at night.
3) If you are planning a trip soon look into pin trading, my kids had a ton of fun doing this!!
4) When going to Hollywood Studios make sure the first thing you grab is a Fastpass for the toy story ride, they run out of them fast!!
5) I'm pretty sure that after this trip I will be having no more children, I really thought I wanted four but this trip has taught me otherwise, three really is more than enough for us :)
I promise pictures soon, Steve is leaving us for Kansas Saturday and we have soooo much to do but once things are more settled I will update with pictures.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
There's No Place Like Home, There's No Place Like Home, There's No Place Like Kansas?
We are moving to Kansas!! We are very excited, it will be sad to leave our family and friends here in Albuquerque, and our amazing church, but it's time to start a new adventure.
We absolutely fell in love with Lawrence and Kansas City while we were there. People are so friendly, it was green, and it felt like a great place to be. We are hoping to have our house on the market by the end of the week. We leave for Disney World in ten days and when we get back Steve will head out, and the kids and I will stay here until the house sells. I just know the end of the year is going to fly by!
Last week I was up in Dallas for a girls weekend, it was lots of fun! I did a couple photo sessions, hung out with a mama friend of mine on her birthday and had a great time, and then on the weekend some of my best girl friends and I had a blast. We went to Fort Worth and saw this great 80's cover band "The Spazmatics", they were hilarious. We all decided to dress 80's style, we laughed a lot and had a great time.
I have lots of pictures to post and will try and get those uploaded today, but I better get back to packing for now.
okay here are some pictures of Lawrence.
one from our night with the spazmatics!
We absolutely fell in love with Lawrence and Kansas City while we were there. People are so friendly, it was green, and it felt like a great place to be. We are hoping to have our house on the market by the end of the week. We leave for Disney World in ten days and when we get back Steve will head out, and the kids and I will stay here until the house sells. I just know the end of the year is going to fly by!
Last week I was up in Dallas for a girls weekend, it was lots of fun! I did a couple photo sessions, hung out with a mama friend of mine on her birthday and had a great time, and then on the weekend some of my best girl friends and I had a blast. We went to Fort Worth and saw this great 80's cover band "The Spazmatics", they were hilarious. We all decided to dress 80's style, we laughed a lot and had a great time.
I have lots of pictures to post and will try and get those uploaded today, but I better get back to packing for now.
okay here are some pictures of Lawrence.
one from our night with the spazmatics!
Friday, September 12, 2008
Kansas?
So far the only leads in the great job search across the country have lead us to Kansas. Steve and I will be flying out on Sunday or Monday to Kansas City, and then driving over to Lawrence, Kansas. The company he will be interviewing with was kind enough to fly the both of us out to check out the town and to interview Steve further. It's where KU is, so it's a college town, and I like that, and it's greener than here!! The thing that scares me most about a move there is tornados. That is not something I want to experience at all, but will have to if we move there.
We have heard lots of good things about it, so I'm excited to check it out. It's about 25-30 minutes from Kansas City, which will be nice if we get an offer and decide to move there. I'm still really hoping that something will pop up in the Dallas area for us, but thankful that we at least have a possibility right now. We are trying to get the house ready as fast as we can to put on the market. It will be hard to leave the family and friends we have here, as well as our awesome church, but it's kind of hard to stay somewhere without a job.
Anyways I will keep you updated in the job search and come back with pictures from Kansas. I hope everyone has a great weekend!
We have heard lots of good things about it, so I'm excited to check it out. It's about 25-30 minutes from Kansas City, which will be nice if we get an offer and decide to move there. I'm still really hoping that something will pop up in the Dallas area for us, but thankful that we at least have a possibility right now. We are trying to get the house ready as fast as we can to put on the market. It will be hard to leave the family and friends we have here, as well as our awesome church, but it's kind of hard to stay somewhere without a job.
Anyways I will keep you updated in the job search and come back with pictures from Kansas. I hope everyone has a great weekend!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
In the Midst of Another Storm.
I know I have really been lacking in blog land lately! Things have been a big stormy in our life right now. About three weeks ago Steve was let go from his job (again!). How this happens twice in a six month period is a mystery to me. I mean it's not just because he is my wonderful husband but he is a smart guy and he was working hard. The company decided they wanted to go in a new direction and so no longer needed someone with his expertise and thus he is out of the job.
Right now we have laid out several different ideas. We are trying to find something here in Albuquerque but in all honesty there is nothing here, I mean absolutely nothing. Which brings us to our next plan which is to find a job somewhere else in the country that will pay to relocate us. We are looking at Dallas, TX (would love Plano or Frisco). Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and North or South Carolina.
Again we know that God has a plan for us, and that we will end up where we need to be. It has been harder to deal with this time around. I'm trying to book some extra sessions to help pay bills. We have lots of friends and family helping us out and praying and for that we are so thankful!
This past week at church Todd talked about how we all go through storms in our life. We are thankful that during these storms we can turn to God, and know that He is faithful and that he will provide. Things aren't always how we would like them to be but it's these storms that make us stronger both as a family and in our faith!
Thank you all for your emails, calls and support. We are truly blessed to have such amazing family and friends!!
We love Ya!
Right now we have laid out several different ideas. We are trying to find something here in Albuquerque but in all honesty there is nothing here, I mean absolutely nothing. Which brings us to our next plan which is to find a job somewhere else in the country that will pay to relocate us. We are looking at Dallas, TX (would love Plano or Frisco). Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and North or South Carolina.
Again we know that God has a plan for us, and that we will end up where we need to be. It has been harder to deal with this time around. I'm trying to book some extra sessions to help pay bills. We have lots of friends and family helping us out and praying and for that we are so thankful!
This past week at church Todd talked about how we all go through storms in our life. We are thankful that during these storms we can turn to God, and know that He is faithful and that he will provide. Things aren't always how we would like them to be but it's these storms that make us stronger both as a family and in our faith!
Thank you all for your emails, calls and support. We are truly blessed to have such amazing family and friends!!
We love Ya!
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Happy to Be Sleep Deprived!
Yesterday morning we got up bright and early, it wasn't easy. I am most definitely not a morning person in the least, so getting up anytime before 8 is hard for me. I have to say though that it was completely worth it!
I hopped out of my warm bed thinking I could always take a nap later and that this was important. I went and grabbed clothes for the kids and dressed them while they lay in bed not wanting to get up (with the exception of Gia). Finally coaxed Steve out of bed, he got dressed we grabbed a couple nutrigrain bars for all of us, jumped in the car and headed to the church.
We met up with about another 245 that had also put aside their desires to stay in bed a little longer on a Saturday morning to come be a part of second Saturday.
From the church we headed to a park here in Albuquerque to serve food to the homeless. It was such a wake up call and I really wish I would have brought my camera. Seeing so many people there, made so many things that I had worried about this past week seem so insignificant. One of our friends Amber got out of her car with some blankets she had bought to hand out and was immediately approached by some people asking if they could have them. It broke my heart.
Amber and I made I don't know how many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for sack lunches, while our husbands and kids served the warm meals that had been prepared. I wish I could have taken a picture of all these adults serving food and these three kids barely tall enough to see over the pans on the table, with gloves on too big for their little hands asking people if they wanted some corn bread and handing it out. They didn't ever complain that they were bored or ask to go home. I was so glad that we had decided to come and serve as a family. I would give up sleep for this any day.
I think we are going to continue to head down to the park a couple Saturdays a month to help out. I want my kids to grow up knowing how blessed we are by the simple things that we all too often take for granted everyday like a warm bed and a choice of cereal for breakfast.
I desire to have a servants heart, to continually serve those around me and in my life. To not get wrapped up in the selfish and greed that has become such a stronghold in this country. It is so easy to get hooked on keeping up with the Joneses, to want the latest stuff, bigger houses, with closets the size of a bedroom, cars that have better sound systems than movie theaters, purses that cost more than some people make in a year.
Last night at church Todd's message spoke a lot about serving. It was inspiring as always. Check out the podcast it should be up tomorrow or Tuesday.
http://sagebrushcommunity.com/
I hopped out of my warm bed thinking I could always take a nap later and that this was important. I went and grabbed clothes for the kids and dressed them while they lay in bed not wanting to get up (with the exception of Gia). Finally coaxed Steve out of bed, he got dressed we grabbed a couple nutrigrain bars for all of us, jumped in the car and headed to the church.
We met up with about another 245 that had also put aside their desires to stay in bed a little longer on a Saturday morning to come be a part of second Saturday.
From the church we headed to a park here in Albuquerque to serve food to the homeless. It was such a wake up call and I really wish I would have brought my camera. Seeing so many people there, made so many things that I had worried about this past week seem so insignificant. One of our friends Amber got out of her car with some blankets she had bought to hand out and was immediately approached by some people asking if they could have them. It broke my heart.
Amber and I made I don't know how many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for sack lunches, while our husbands and kids served the warm meals that had been prepared. I wish I could have taken a picture of all these adults serving food and these three kids barely tall enough to see over the pans on the table, with gloves on too big for their little hands asking people if they wanted some corn bread and handing it out. They didn't ever complain that they were bored or ask to go home. I was so glad that we had decided to come and serve as a family. I would give up sleep for this any day.
I think we are going to continue to head down to the park a couple Saturdays a month to help out. I want my kids to grow up knowing how blessed we are by the simple things that we all too often take for granted everyday like a warm bed and a choice of cereal for breakfast.
I desire to have a servants heart, to continually serve those around me and in my life. To not get wrapped up in the selfish and greed that has become such a stronghold in this country. It is so easy to get hooked on keeping up with the Joneses, to want the latest stuff, bigger houses, with closets the size of a bedroom, cars that have better sound systems than movie theaters, purses that cost more than some people make in a year.
Last night at church Todd's message spoke a lot about serving. It was inspiring as always. Check out the podcast it should be up tomorrow or Tuesday.
http://sagebrushcommunity.com/
Thursday, August 7, 2008
My Photography Blog!
Okay so I finally got my photography blog and will now just be using this as a personal blog.
Here is the link to the new blog.
http://mariahaysphotography.blogspot.com/
Here is the link to the new blog.
http://mariahaysphotography.blogspot.com/
Friday, August 1, 2008
August Rush!
Wow I cannot believe that August is already here! This summer really has flown by, we have had lots of fun and I'm so ready for the fall. It is seriously one of my favorite times of year, leaves changing (although we don't see much of that here in New Mexico!), pumpkin carving, hot cocoa and apple cider, warm soups and stews with home made bread, and the smell of cinnamon apples or pumpkin candles burning in the house, Yum! Just talking about it makes me wish it was here already.
Oh and the I have started planning Steve's 30th birthday party! Would love any fabulous theme ideas!! Was thinking of doing the 90's, it will be super fun!!
I will have my photography blog up hopefully by the beginning of next week. My sessions for September and August are really starting to fill up so email me soon if you want to book one and I will have some mini session info coming soon!!
My friend cindy tagged me and I must list 6 quirks and then I will tag some others and leave you with a goofy face from Miss Gianna!
1. I like to eat pickles with a straw at the movie theater (I know that sounds totally weird and I'm not sure why I do it, but I always have and I love it!)
2. I'm obsessed with kissing my children I swear they are the most kissed and squeezed children on the earth, I just can't get enough of them (well maybe some days I feel like I can)
3. I talk to God on a regular basis throughout the day mostly praying for more patience :)!
4. I sing constantly while cooking, cleaning, in the car, in the shower, blow drying my hair, (ask Steve our household is like a 24 hour musical we are always singing, Ava seems to have picked up this quirk as well)
5. I love crafty things and have the tendency to start projects but have trouble finishing them.
6. I have been told I have a mirror face that I make when I'm trying on clothes (in fact I think it was caught on camera once!)
Okay so there are my quirks.
I will tag
My friends and fellow mamas Megan and Erica
Three fellow fab photographers I met at a workshop Rachel Leah and Ellen
One of my Best Friends ever,Beth
These are the rules...
- Link the person who tagged you
- Mention the rules on your blog
- Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours
- Tag 6 fellow bloggers by linking them
- Leave a comment on each of the tagged bloggers blogs letting them know they have been tagged.
Miss Goofy face Gianna
Oh and the I have started planning Steve's 30th birthday party! Would love any fabulous theme ideas!! Was thinking of doing the 90's, it will be super fun!!
I will have my photography blog up hopefully by the beginning of next week. My sessions for September and August are really starting to fill up so email me soon if you want to book one and I will have some mini session info coming soon!!
My friend cindy tagged me and I must list 6 quirks and then I will tag some others and leave you with a goofy face from Miss Gianna!
1. I like to eat pickles with a straw at the movie theater (I know that sounds totally weird and I'm not sure why I do it, but I always have and I love it!)
2. I'm obsessed with kissing my children I swear they are the most kissed and squeezed children on the earth, I just can't get enough of them (well maybe some days I feel like I can)
3. I talk to God on a regular basis throughout the day mostly praying for more patience :)!
4. I sing constantly while cooking, cleaning, in the car, in the shower, blow drying my hair, (ask Steve our household is like a 24 hour musical we are always singing, Ava seems to have picked up this quirk as well)
5. I love crafty things and have the tendency to start projects but have trouble finishing them.
6. I have been told I have a mirror face that I make when I'm trying on clothes (in fact I think it was caught on camera once!)
Okay so there are my quirks.
I will tag
My friends and fellow mamas Megan and Erica
Three fellow fab photographers I met at a workshop Rachel Leah and Ellen
One of my Best Friends ever,Beth
These are the rules...
- Link the person who tagged you
- Mention the rules on your blog
- Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours
- Tag 6 fellow bloggers by linking them
- Leave a comment on each of the tagged bloggers blogs letting them know they have been tagged.
Miss Goofy face Gianna
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