1 Down, 3 To Go

With my first semester of Nursing School under my belt, I can finally sit back (for a second!), take a deep breath, and reflect on this crazy semester. I really had no idea what to expect except that everyone told me how hard it was going to be and that I would have no life and my house would be a mess and my kids wouldn't know my name anymore...I do believe that all of these happened at one point!
But,...I made it! I honestly was scared to death the entire semester that I was somehow going to blow it or wouldn't be "smart" enough to make it. I met some really great people that I get to spend the next year and a half with but we never really had time to relax and enjoy each others company. I think that's why this past Tuesday after the final (when we found out EVERYONE passed the final!) was so much fun and we finally got to let loose and enjoy ourselves for a few hours. The hard work has paid off! I am truly so happy and relieved to be done with what most say is the toughest semester in nursing school, and I'm so thankful I had so many amazing people to share it with.
I could not have gotten this far without the unconditional support from my RIDICULOUSLY AMAZING family and friends. I am one lucky girl!

Class of 2012!

These are the only people who got A's in the class...So proud of them!

Yum!

Jen and Natasha:)

Wendy and Natasha:)

Jen-The girl who laughs until she cries, EVERY SINGLE DAY!

Professor Ngo and Natasha

A visit and a Race

Our East Coast Riordan's came for a visit and what a fun time we had! The kids had such a blast together and they all wished they lived closer to each other. Nicole and I were able to squeeze in a nice run together, we all took a trip to the WAP, did some swimming in Pat's pool, and Butch made us a FEAST one night. Love those peeps...too quick of a trip but hopefully we can get out there to see them before too long.

Lily had a race at Dos Picos that was technically for the 3rd thru 6th graders but since she is in the running club at school, they let her participate. She had a great time and got to run with some friends. I'm so proud of her for kicking butt and running a whole mile!!

Mean Bean

Spring Break

Oh how I will miss you Spring Break...
We had a blast...what a treat to hang out with the kids without having to study every minute! We did all sorts of fun things...here are a few of them:

SO proud of himself!

Beach Day with our Dear Friends, The LaTour's

A hike at Iron Mountain

Padres Game!

Random Bits

I play this precious lullaby to kids from time to time. I think it is a perfect expression of a mother's love for her children. One day I will make a video of my own family to go along with the song:)


Jackson calls people with dark skin "chocolate" people and I find it too innocent and cute to correct him (yet). He heard Oprah's name the other day and asked me "Is she the lady that's made out of brownies?" I think this is a sign that we need to travel and see other parts of the world:)  A little sheltered in our little town? Maybe.


This is what happens when Jackson picks out his own jammies:

Sleeping angel with her monkey:

Jackson was so proud of his "HUGE!" radishes from our garden:

Lily and Jack worked their fannies off on this Ancient Egypt project for the history fair at school. I think it turned out pretty great:

Here's our girl all dressed up for Foreign Country Day at school in her outfit from Aunt Nicky's trip to Dubai:

The Tale of Boone

Lily gave Jackson a dog named Boone for Christmas in 2007 when Jackson was only 9 months old. Since then, he has become his favorite dog and has gone everywhere with him for as long as I can remember. I was going through old pictures to see if I had any of Boone and came across SO many, not realizing that he was always in the background.

He has been on every trip we have ever taken and even came on the boat with us at Poway Lake...

Well, you can see where this is leading...
A few weeks ago Boone went missing. Jackson and I had made 5 stops around town that day and we both remember him being with us. He was near tears that night when he was getting ready for bed and realized he didn't have him and couldn't remember that last place he had seen him. So, I called all 5 stores and left my name and phone number in case someone turned him in. After a few days and another check with all the stores, he didn't turn up. Jackson was so heartbroken and said how much he missed him and how sad Boone must be that he wasn't home with us.
SO, i got on ebay and found "Boone" and had him shipped to us ASAP. In the meantime, I told Jackson that someone had found Boone! and that they had given him a bath, made him really fluffy, and that they were mailing him to us. He was beyond excited and we checked the mailbox daily until he finally arrived. I quickly opened the box and tore off the tag before Jackson could see it. PURE JOY! My son was the happiest I have ever seen him and it melted my heart to see him squeezing his sweet Boone that he had missed so much. Pheeww...it worked!
Here are Jackson and "Boone" today: