Wordless Wednesday #59 ~ Iron Infusion

Luncheon With Some of my Favorite Students

 I invited 3 of my very special former Students to my house with their kiddos...I adore all of them SOOOO much and loved having them for lunch and to swim!  Above is Emily and Camilla dancing on the pool deck!

 Here's a group shot of the 3 ladies and MOST of the kids.  I made Chinese Chicken Salad for the adults and they liked it...none of them had ever tried it before!

 This is Eugenia and her 3 beautiful kids.  Lizette doesn't look too happy, but I think she was just tired from ALL of the swimming!

 This is Laura and Camilla...SO cute!

 One of the girls made Barbie a swimming pool...I just love little girls!

 Myself with Graciela.  Graciela was in my class for 5 years, even before her youngest 2 were born.  I feel like she is more like family, and she is such a terrific Mommy!

 A great photo of Eugenia and Laura...such great Mommy's!!

 Emily...I want to kiss her cheeks!

 Ashley is Graciela's oldest daughter and is going into 7th grade.  She started coming to my parenting class when she was 4 years old!

 Daniel LOVED swimming...and the watermelon!

 Camila wasn't too sure about the pool float!

 Cute, cute cute!

 A group shot!

 Carly and Emily...they loved Chloe!

A photo of all the kiddos and myself.  I am excited to see what the future holds for all of these kiddos!! We had a beautiful afternoon of food, fun, and swimming!!

Lizette and Diana...My Girlies!

This is Liz and Diana...they are 2 of the little girls who were in my class a couple of years ago and I have kept up with their lives since moving schools.  When they first came to my class they had never left their Mama, so they screamed when my aide and I had to take over so Eugenia (Mama) went to English class!  It was one of the most extreme cases of separation anxiety I had ever witnessed.  Diana was under a year and Liz was not even 2, now they are 3 and 4 years old.  They are SO DELIGHTFUL...I had so much fun spending the morning with them!  They are bi-lingual, so they teach me some Spanish and I hopefully help them with their English!  They have an older brother who was getting fitted for hearing aides, so Mama let the girls come to my house for a few hours.

 They love strawberries...

 AND we made a lot of art creations.  See that little red thing, it is a new type of hole punch and I loved it.  I am going to go get several for my classroom.

 Diana is just starting to get her pincher grip down and is doing excellent!

 Liz can write almost the entire alphabet and she has mastered the art of heart-making!  Looks at those gorgeous eyes...WOW!!

 The girls wanted to try using my camera, so Liz took a picture of Diana, Chloe (mid-yawn), and I.

 Diana took a self-portrait...cutey-pie!

And then she took a picture of her sister!

I truly adore these kiddos and their Mama.  I hope that they are learning from me each time I see them because I know I am learning frome them!  Thanks Eugenia, for sharing the girls with me!

Wilma Josephine McClanahan

The picture above is a beautiful family in my Parenting class...they are awesome!  Josephine is "the MOMMY."  She is now in heaven and this little girl, Brooklyn and her brother and sister will live on this Earth without her.  It is SO unfair...but they are SO blessed to have had her for their Mommy for a short period of time.  Josephine loved, and I mean REALLY LOVED her kiddos!  She brought them to my class nearly every day in spite of having radiation treatments and Drs. appointments and feeling crappy.  The kiddos were ALWAYS her main concern.  I am honored that I can call Jo my friend and that I got to spend so much time with her.  She loved life and lived it to the max.  I will learn from her, I will try harder, I will make time for my friends and family, and I will love Brooklyn and tell her how special her Mommy was.  Thanks Josephine for the memories...thanks for sharing your family with me...thanks for teaching me SO MUCH!!  May you REST IN PEACE MY FRIEND!!

Breakfast with my "GIRLS"

 I had the pleasure of having breakfast with some of the awesome Mommy's that were in my parenting class last year.  Actually, 2 of them have been in my classes for 5 years!  They keep following me from school to school, and I keep welcoming them into my class!!  I really feel like they are a part of my family, more than my students.  Kelly, in the picture above, has been with me since BEFORE her birth!  She has a darling big sister!

 Diana was with me starting when she was just a couple of months old!  She would scream and cry.  NOW, she is 3 years old and SO smart and articulate...in English and Spanish!  She didn't feel 100% today...poor baby!

 Camilla is a gorgeous baby just like her Mama.  I could kiss her and eat her up!

I adore, cherish, and respect these ladies.  They are here in this country and are doing great and learning the language, and none of them have ANY family here.  They are brave and strong!  I am so lucky to have them as a huge part of my life!!

WORK...Oh. So. SWEET!!

 This is baby Ricardo...he was born just 5 weeks ago during our Summer Vacation and this was our initial meeting!  I am SO happy this was caught on camera...I LOVE this picture...cherish these memories!

So, you all know I LOVE MY JOB...and I say that all the time.  I cannot believe I get paid to do what I do and get hugs from kiddos all day long!  I am blessed to be able to help parents and give them some of my knowledge/advise on their kiddos.  I know that God put me where I need to be, and even though my hours were cut drastically this year, I will give 110% to my families while I am there.  I hope and pray that they learn from me as much as I learn from them.  I CANNOT imagine doing anything else, of being in a different job, of NOT being with my families!  I have around 20-25 families in my classroom each day, and they all have a different story.  BUT...they all have a story...they all have challenges and happinesses...they all need me in a different capacity...and I am honored to be here for them...for ALL that they need!

CHLOE...a new family member

This is our new baby...her name is CHLOE.  It took us over a week and a few arguments to finally settle on a name for her.  She just had her first doctors appt with Dr. Krause yesterday and she is healthy and perfect!!  Her mama belongs to my Mom's neighbor and is a jet-black chihuahua...I know it's hard to believe because she does NOT look like a Chihuahua at all!!  The Dr. believes that her Daddy is Cairn Terrier or some sort of Terrier mix.  Oh...she adds a lot of life into our house.  Molly is starting to play with her and has stopped growling everytime she walks by...she is SO flipping cute!!

Mission Inn in Downtown Riverside = GORGEOUS

Darrell and I spent our 21 Anniversary at the Mission Inn in Riverside.  It is breathtakingly gorgeous, the beautiful flowers and foliage, and remarkable architecture and history, make it serene and relaxing!  This was our 3rd visit and we had such a GREAT time...

 The architecture and grounds are spectacular!!  So calm and serene...we love to walk around and this time took a tour which explained much of the features!

 THEN....we headed across the street to one of our favorite eateries.  MARIOS of Riverside!  Delicious Italian food to eat and enjoy on our Anniversary!

I LOVE YOU DARRELL...thanks for making me your wife!!

My Girls...

Considering I never birthed any girls, I think God sent me many girls to love at work. These girlies are SO precious to me and I feel like they are part of my family...I pray that I make as big of an impact on them and their Mommy's as they make on me!!

Does it get any better than this???

Hello...

ALL the beads...

Shoes to match.....

Then...everyone leaves and I clean up and THIS is what I find! One of these Princesses decided to give the baby a haircut!! Poor BABY!! Made me laugh...every day is a good day!!