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halloween 2012.

We love Halloween here at Casa Arrocena.  With five daughters ranging in ages (currently) from 9 years old all the way to 24, we have been celebrating this holiday full force for many years.  Chances are pretty good that we'll keep it going for no less than a decade more! 

The Halloween celebration began on the Saturday before the official holiday with a costume party thrown by one of the triplets' classmates.  They were so excited for the party, but I was stoked that it was another opportunity to wear their costumes! Heck, they usually only get one wear per year.  This year was definitely better!

 (Japanese Anime Schoolgirl)

 (Alice, from Alice in Wonderland)

(...and Mulan)

Then finally, on Sunday, we decided that it was time to hit the pumpkin patch and get the usual pics I love to take, as well as pick up our batch of pumpkins for the house. Thankfully, there is a pumpkin patch on a farm just about 10 minutes from our house... (another benefit to our recent relocation!) The triplets had fun riding a tire swing, taking a quick hayride, and getting a little dirty around the farm. Good stuff. Kid stuff.  Exactly the experience I want them to have. 

October 31st began very early for us; I had to pack up treats for three 4th grade classes... Pretzel Hugs, which seem to be our go-to treat that everyone loves.

Next, we had to help the triplets get dressed up in their costumes again for school.  Costume parades at school are the best.  I swear, I live for this stuff... 

And because I love Halloween just as much as the kids do, of course I had to doll-up with my super-big hair bun accented with my "Lily Munster" bow.  Any opportunity to wear that bow is not lost on me! 

Back at home, the Daddy had done some magic with more of that spider-web-stuff that we love to use every year... He's such a great daddy, and I love that he shares our enthusiasm!

And as dusk fell... the little ones got increasingly anxious... 

Unfortunately, it all has come to an end and I'm ready to pull down everything down today... Pack it up, until Halloween 2013 arrives. The candy stash is tremendous... I think I'll chuck some of it before the kids get home from school...

2012 Goals.

I'm back today... Not sure why I picked today to resurface in Blogland, but it seemed like a good time to say hi. :)

Lots going on here. I'm pushing through a 2012 de-cluttering goal I'm working on with a few online friends... I'm also back on the Project Life journey (after taking a year long break) so I'm trying to stay up on that one. Posting pictures to my iPhone app, "my 365". I like it a lot and I know it will be helping me with Project Life.

Take a closer look at the list I have going for clutter removal and reorganization:




Do you think it's too much?


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

keeping up with my December Daily.

This is my second year creating a December Daily album.  I am loving it, although I admit that I was less prepared for it this year than I was last year.  I think having a job this year has everything to do with it.

It's the 15th of the month so I am only 1/2 way through my album and still need to pick up more photos from processing.  But here are some random shots of the photos already going into the album:

{All photos were taken exclusively with my iPhone this year... }

this is what 40 looks like.

I'm 40 today.  I can't believe I just typed that.  I always felt like my 40th birthday was light-years away... like it just couldn't possibly happen yet... but it's here. 

Not too sure how I feel about it... Am I bummed out?  Not really.  It's a milestone for sure. But I'm the type of girl who's thankful for each and every year I'm given on this earth.  Although I will admit... I'm slightly obsessed with remaining wrinkle-free and... so far so good.  But the calendar doesn't lie. I'm 40.  For REAL. But I'm good with that, you know?

I'm looking forward to a special 40th birthday "celebration", courtesy of my amazing husband of 23 years (please don't do the math...). I'm not a "party" type of girl, I don't like to draw attention to myself and/or throw parties for myself; although I DO love to throw a good "kiddie" party for my kids at least once a year.  So we're going with a quieter celebration, just how I like it.  More on that when we get back... (yes, we're going out of town for this one... FUN.) But not until he gets back from his business trip.  Aaaaah, work!  Sometimes, don't you just hate it!? :)

In honor of my 40th-- my 4th decade, my 14,600 or so days on this earth... I'm taking one of those random quizzes that everyone loves.  Remember those "SLAM" books everyone used to have in Jr. High?  Wow, I AM old, huh?

Anyway, here goes... 40 questions for the 40 year old.  Happy birthday to ME!


1. What time did you get up this morning?


Every morning I wake up at the same time (on days when I'm not starting work at 2am, that is...).  I'm always up just a few minutes shy of 6am.  The triplets' alarm clock is set for 6:15am, so I like to get a few minutes on them before they start their day.


2. How do you like your steak?

Medium/Medium Rare.


3. What was the last film you saw at the theater?

Ohmygosh, I can't even remember. No doubt it was a kid's movie, most likely Disney! Hey, it's sacrifices like never going to the movies to see an adult flick that makes you a real parent, right?

4. What is your favorite TV show?

General Hospital, but GLEE runs a close second.


5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?

Anywhere in the world? That would be somewhere that is no less than one hour's drive from my parents.  Now if only I could convince them to move back to California!

6. What did you have for breakfast?

Pumpkin waffles and a cup of coffee.


7. What is your favorite cuisine?

Man, I go crazy for some good Thai food.  Thing is, good Thai is hard to find.  But Mexican food is my ultimate comfort food, so they're both my faves. Oh wait, then there's Italian food.  I love me some Italian.


8. What foods do you dislike?

Zucchini.  Definitely dislike. No much more than that one. I generaly like ALL food! (Hence, my curves... )


9. Favorite place to eat?

Well, there's this small little Italian place that I absolutely love.  Sort of a mom and pop kind of vibe... and the food is just amazing.  But last night we were at Yard House for my birthday dinner with my parents.  SUCH a good meal.  So I really should mention it. ;)


10. Favorite dressing?

Blue Cheese.


11.What kind of vehicle do you drive?

Typical mom-car, an SUV.


12. What are your favorite clothes?

Anything comfy, soft, cute, and NOT black.



13. Where would you visit if you had the chance?

I'd spend an entire month in Italian countryside.



14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full?

Always 1/2 full.  I'm not a pessimist.


15. Where would you want to retire?

Somewhere I could see my children (and grandchildren if I'm lucky) every day, where I could breathe in the ocean breeze by just opening my back patio door, where the sun shines on my face each morning, and where I could eat ice cream any time of day.


16. Favorite time of day?

I'm defnitely a morning person. 


18. What is your favorite sport to watch?

Football, I suppose.



19. Bird watcher?

Ugh, no.


20. Are you a morning person or a night person?

See #16.



21. Do you have any pets?

Yes, I have a dog and I think she's the smartest dog in the universe.  Cutest, too.


22. What do you want to be (someday)?

A professional traveler and food critic.



23. What is your best childhood memory?

Me and my roller skates.



24. Are you a cat or dog person?

Cats are not for me.  I am a dog person.  Big dogs, preferably.  I don't care much for dogs who are the same size as cats.


25. Are you married?

All my life. And until Kingdom Come.


26. Always wear your seat belt?

Yes, always.

28. Any pet peeves?

Crazy-looking eyebrows, people with bad grammar, chronic tardiness, artificial suntans, writing in my checkbook register in any color other than BLACK, when people forget to wash their hands, etc. I'm sure there are more.  I'm nutty like that.

29. Favorite Pizza Toppings?

Spinach and Garlic.

30. Favorite Flower?

The orchid.



31. Favorite ice cream?

Haagen-Dazs Vanilla.


32. Favorite fast food restaurant?

Chipotle.


33. How many times did you fail your driver's test?

I never did!


34. From whom did you get your last e-mail?

From my Mama. I've been getting one at least once a day lately...


35. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?

Toss up between Gap and J. Crew.

36. Broccoli?

Yes, please.


37. What was your favorite vacation?

Probably camping as a kid.


38. Last person you went out to dinner with?

My parents and all 5 of my daughters... just last night.  It was great!  Any other day, my answer would be, "the triplets"!  They are my constant companions!


39. How many tattoos do you have?

Just one on the back of my right thigh.


40. Coffee drinker?

I pledge allegiance to Starbucks.

today.

Today I am spending the morning at Starbucks, websurfing and enjoying my Naked OJ, a multrigrain bagel + my Toffee Mocha.

Today I look tired.  {I can totally admit that, I'm not in denial!} I feel tired, too.  It was a long, but fun weekend and here I am on Tuesday still in recovery mode.

Today I need to work on the finishing touches to the triplets' Halloween costumes.  The problem with being a "Crafty Mama" is that we NEVER buy costumes; they're always homemade.  It's been that way for as long as I can remember.

Today I drove my 22-year old daughter to school.  That's a rarity; she usually drives herself everywhere on her own.

Today, for the 4th day in a row,  I woke up next to my husband after he had been on a month-long business trip in the Philippines.  I'm hoping he can stay close to home at least until after the holidays, but his employer might have something else in mind.

Today I'm thinking about my plans for Thanksgiving, my 40th birthday and Christmas.  We're spending Thanksgiving at home as we do every year (we prefer it that way), and hosting a family (my parents + siblings) Christmas at our home this time around.  As far as my 40th birthday goes, I'm still undecided about what to do but I'm considering a one or two day getaway with the Hubz.  We NEVER do that.  Vegas, maybe?

Today is my last FULL day off from work before I begin a 5day-in-a-row stretch on the night shift.  That usually doesn't occur in my schedule but my co-worker is taking 5 days off around the Halloween weekend.  Sucks for me and my kids, but I'm pretty sure we weren't part of her consideration when she made her plans and laid them on me. :/ Oh well.  What goes around will come around, eventually.  We'll have OUR time... I'll just stay positive.  The alternative is not who I choose to be!!!

Today I'm wearing a cozy scarf (my daughter knit it for me) and my warm and toasty Ugg boots.  {Can I just say that there is NOTHING like a pair of genuine Uggs?}

Today I'm going to prepare a hearty beef stew to warm our tummies on this chilly Fall day.  Can't think of anything better for dinner.  YUM.

Today my swollen lymph nodes are not as painful, I've hardly noticed them since I woke up this morning.  They are in my armpit area (both) and one above my collarbone area. I'm pretty sure they are swollen and hurting on account of the vaccinations I received at work last week.  I'm not entirely sure about the complete cocktail of immunizations I received but I do know that it included a tetanus, a flu, a whooping cough and an H1N1.  After Googling my symptoms over the weekend, I found the swollen lymph nodes to be common after these vaccines.  Hope it goes away soon.

Today I really need to get a handle on the triplets' laundry and to begin some type of organization of their closet.  The Hubz and I were discussing it last night and decided to go ahead and take off their closet doors to start with.  Hmmm... Maybe I could begin my day shopping for some cute new curtains for their closet?  Sounds like an excellent plan. :)

Today is early dismissal day at the elementary school.  Kids are out at 1:15pm.  This means I have less time to run around and do my errands.  Better get off this laptop and get down to the business of my day. 

Today I'd really like to scrapbook but I doubt that I have the time.  I can't remember when I DID have the time... :( Gotta set a date to scrapbook with my *best scrapbooking buddy*!

Today I'm gonna text my husband, kids, siblings and parents an "I love you".  For no reason, just because. ♥

Have a great day today!

still learning something new everyday.

Yes, I'm still working on my project, "Learn Something New Everyday" on Shimelle's website.  I'll share more on the project later.  For now I want to share a little hardcover book I made on Shutterfly a few weeks ago.  My family loves this book!

Click here to view this photo book larger

What do you think?

learn something new everyday.

I'm beginning another exciting class with Shimelle. I can't say enough about her online classes, they are my absolute favorites. She's such a clever girl and has challenged me to do the neatest little projects.  The thing about Shimelle's classes/projects is that I believe they all bring something valuable and insightful to my my life!

Today's the first day of "Learn Something New Everyday"... I'm busy creating the crafty part of the project while I have the day off from work. At the end of each day in September 2010, I'll document something "new" I've learned at some point during that day. Seriously can't wait to see this project when it's complete.

makes me happy.

From a to z, this is a bit of what makes me super-duper happy! (photos for just a few select things, or else this post would have been extremely LONG!)










A- Arizona road trips

B- my Blackberry










C- cupcakes

D- Disneyland

E- eternal love

F- friendships










G- my girls










H- Hawaii

I- iPod

J- jewelry

K- Kawaii-style









L- local-kine-grindz

M- marriage

N- newspaper on Sunday

O- ocean views

P- prayer

Q- quiet time

R- romance

S- scrapbooking










T- triplets













U- ukulele music

V- vacations

W- winter

Y- yogurt smoothies













Z- zippered hoodies

this was soooo made for me...

A Swedish Furniture Name Generator!

If you love IKEA as much as I do, you'll get a kick outta this one. Funny!

february love.

( photo: frydogdesign.blogspot.com )

I don't care what the haters say about Valentine's Day... Claiming that we should express our love for one another every single day, not just on a "designated holiday"... Saying that it's a sham, a holiday created by the greeting card companies...

Blah. Blah. Blah.

Seriously?

I agree with the part about expressing love every day (very important). And maybe the greeting card companies, florists and candy makers make a ton of money on Valentine's Day, too. So what? They also rake in the $$$ Big bucks $$$ on Mother's Day, does anyone object to that one? Shouldn't we love our mothers every single day???

I'm a romantic at heart. I LOVE love. I'm not sure if I believe in "love at first sight", but I do believe in true love. It's happened to me, it's real and it's possible. I feel sorrow just thinking about a life without true love.

And I LOVE Valentine's Day! It's my number 3 favorite holiday behind Thanksgiving and Halloween. I look forward to all the red and pink, the lace and ruffles, the sweets and especially making valentines!

It's one week away and I've got nothing but love and Valentine's Day on my mind.

♥ ♥ ♥

neglected.

I am watching Martha Stewart's Blog Show today (on DVR, I'm a day behind... what does that tell you?). Obviously, it's all about blogging and it just made me remember my long, lost blog... Gosh, I haven't blogged since Christmas and before then, who knows?

So, I just wanted to say hi... I miss my blog. I wish I were here more. But honestly, I can't promise I'll be here more often in 2010. Really, I'll do my best. My intentions are good. But tell me...

How do I find the time?

So for now, Happy New Year! Happy MLK day! And Happy Valentine's Day! *just in case* :)

See you soon!

Christmas blessings.

happy birthday, Mom.

We love you like crazy...
(turn off music player at bottom of page before you click PLAY)

Make a Smilebox greeting

Christmas memories + traditions.

It's week 2 of the 12 Weeks of Christmas. If you'd like to know more about the 12 Weeks of Christmas event, be sure to click the link. I LOVE participating in blog-hosted events, ESPECIALLY when they are holiday-related in any way.

So, this week's entry is focused on the memories and traditions of Christmas. One of the most beloved of our Christmas traditions is focused on our family and our faith. For us, the Advent Wreath is at the very top of our list of favorites...


photo taken December 2007 in our home

I treasure the quiet moments each Sunday when a new candle is lit and we spend a some time together for prayer and reading scripture and talking a little bit about how we wait for Christ during the Christmas season. It's a good reminder, especially for the little ones in the house, that Christmas should be Christ-centered. It's hard to remember that when you're little... we understand.

I also believe it's so beneficial to children to celebrate traditions like the Advent wreath from year to year... We've had an Advent wreath in our own home for at least the last 10 years, probably more. I believe that the tradtion will be passed down through our daughters to their children someday and it makes me feel like we will be sharing a bit of what is meaningful to us today with our loved ones in the future.

I love tradition. What's your family's favorite tradition?

small world.

Back in May, Wendy and Tyler of Blue Lily Photography took the most beautiful portraits of our five girls in Old Town Temecula. Of course, we think our children are the most gorgeous ever, but isn't the photography equally amazing?



Well, Wendy and Tyler travel all around the country taking beautiful pictures of all kinds of people and families. It just so happens that they have also taken photos of Stephanie Nielson and her family... (Stephanie survived a terrible airplane crash and is recovering from her injuries, going strong I might add!) In fact, you could see Blue Lily Photography ALL OVER Stephanie's home when she appeared on the Oprah show yesterday.

Wendy blogged about Stephanie's appearance ... click here to see her post and be sure to click the link for the Oprah video clip. What a story.

Small world.

Week 1 of the 12 Weeks of Christmas

Image from Country Living

I’m participating in Red Writing’s 12 Weeks of Christmas… Yes, it’s only the second week of October and I’ve got “Christmas on the Brain” already! As of last Sunday, we are a little under 12 weeks from Christmas, hooray!

This week's theme is "Christmas List"...

I’ve decided not to post my Christmas wish-list, just because I don’t want to seem like I am asking for things… but believe me… I have one! Mom and Dad will get that list for sure… (Maybe I’ll post it at a later time, we’ll see!) Instead, I’ve decided to put together a list of things that my family and I love to do during Christmastime.

25 Things We Do During The Christmas Season:

1. An Advent Candle Wreath, observing each night during Advent.

2. Make Christmas Cards.

3. Go to the Festival of Lights in our area.

4. Bake and eat as many Christmas cookies as humanly possible.

5. Have Christmas movie marathons, including movies like Elf, A Charlie Brown Christmas and A Christmas Story.

6. A Cookie Exchange. (yum)

7. Create handcrafted gifts of one kind or another.

8. Burn spice scented candles in the house.

9. Check amazon.com everyday to see their Daily Deal.

10. Decorate the house like crazy.

11. Scope out the local craft fairs for holiday stuff.

12. Play Christmas Songs 24/7.

13. Make a new Christmas ornament or two for the tree.

14. Attend the triplets’ Christmas Recital.

15. Christmas gift shopping, of course.

16. Read The Polar Express.

17. Drive around local neighborhoods to see Christmas light displays.

18. Write letters to Santa and mail them.

19. Keep an Advent Calendar that is updated daily.

20. Donate food to a food pantry, usually at our church.

21. Drink GALLONS of hot cocoa and hot apple cider.

22. Visit the public library for story time during Winter Break.

23. Open ONE gift on Christmas Eve.

24. Do our best to teach our little ones about the true meaning of the holiday, Christ’s birth.

25. Spend as much time with family as possible.

I am a winner.

Last week, the fabulous Jessi had another one of her fabulous giveaways on her blog... and guess what?! I WON!

Here is the photo Jessi took of the goodies she was sending me...



It was all beautiful, pretty stuff! Perfect for me cuz I love ALL things feminine (and PINK), and as the mom of 5 daughters (and ZERO sons) it was well suited for me. Made me so happy opening this package when it arrived Saturday afternoon.

Unfortunately, I do not have my own photo of the prize in its entirety. This is due to the fact that the SECOND I opened my awesomely decorated package from Jessi, these little ones...



... helped themselves to my goodies, but especially the sweets inside! Yes, she included exactly THREE candy treats in the box and the triplets spotted them before I had a chance to see what was going on!

Thank you, Jessi! I love everything you sent me!

goodbye, summer.

Today, September 22 at exactly 5:18pm- Summer 2009 will officially be OVER.

I was pretty much absent from my blog for the entire duration of my summer (as you can tell) because I was just having too much FUN. We had a great summer...

Hopefully I'll do a better job of keeping up with my blog now that the kidlets are back in school and we don't have any vacations planned for the upcoming months.

In celebration of these final few hours of the summer season, I thought I would wrap it up with a cute little Flickr slideshow featuring our Summer Fun! Hope you had a great one too!

Press PLAY.




I am tickled that FALL is almost here!!!

Musette Bracelet GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Musette Bracelet GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Just had to share this!