Some fun stuff you might now know about me...

I was tagged by my cousin Cambrea. She is so fun. We got together for a Sosa Cousin reunion and had a blast. I need to be better about keeping in tough with them. I loved meeting their spouses and their kids. The funnest part was seeing how much we all looked alike. I think the Sosa gene is very dominant because I think we could have all passed as sisters. I'll post pics latter so you can see.

My 4 Favorite T.V. Shows:
* Desperate Housewives
* The Office
* Arrested Development (no longer on air-so sad)
* Cuidado con el Angel (my new addiction-Mexican Novelas)

4 Favorite Restaurants:
* Bombay House-they have the best Chicken Coconut Kurma (Provo)
* Thai on Main- best curry ever (Park City)
* Good old Applebees (memories from Moscow and all the girl's night outs)
* Argentine Bakery-best empanadas (Denver)

4 Things That Happened Yesterday:
* Jamie threw up all night
* Isabella needed to be fed last night at 5 am
* Christian had an "accident" at 5:15 am
* Slept a total of about 3 hours

4 Things I'm Looking Forward To:
* Spending time with the Townsend's for Christmas (Jamie's twin brother is here from Cali)
* Meeting my new nephew-Calvin Wallace Townsend
* Christian to go back to school
* Summer (my favorite time of year-I love the heat!!!)

4 Things On My Wish List:
* Jamie to get more clients
* Isabella to get back on her 10 hours of sleep
* My kids to have a good Christmas-without all the fancy stuff
* A date with Jamie-we are so busy these days.

People I'm Tagging:
* Anyone who wants to take some time off to do this-it was kinda fun!

New Venture

Since life wasn't crazy enough around here with Jamie's new law firm and new baby, I decided to jump in and start my own accounting practice. I've been wanting to do this for a while now. So, after the learning curve with Jamie's firm in Quickbooks and some help from my friend, Jeff Conley, I will be doing taxes this tax season. So, if anybody needs their taxes done, I'm good and cheap!

Thanks!

Thanks to those of you who answered my plea for help. It was actually very helpfull to know I have resources. Thanks Shauna for leaving that link to quickbooks-Awsome! I had no idea that Erin worked for a law firm in accounting. Erin, I may be calling you in the future!

I will be in Utah for thanksgiving and then the kids and I will stay for another 2 weeks. Christian is off track until January 5th (don't you just love year round school?). When we get back I'm hoping that Steve and Keri will be here with their new Baby (Calvin Wallace-is that not such an adorable name?) and I'm thinking it will be a bit crazy around here. So, if I don't get to posting, I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!

HELP!

I've been crazy busy with Jamie's Law Firm, my online teaching job, the other accounting job I picked up cause I thought it would be "fun". Not to mention I'm also a full-time mom. So, just for fun, here is a breakdown of my house chores and how often they get done:

• Laundry-once a week, sometimes I wait two weeks.
• Bathrooms-once a month-if I'm lucky
• Vacuum-Three times since I've lived in this house (been here 6 months)
• Weeds-Let's just say I'm praying for snow to cover the ground
• Make beds-Three times since I've been in this house (probably the same day I vacuumed)

So, now you know when you come to my house to stay away from using the restrooms and what ever you do, don't lay on the floor. I feel like my house is always a mess. I'm hoping many of you are experiencing the same thing, but doing a better job of keeping your homes organized and clean.

So, I'm actually writing to see if anybody has any Quickbooks experience. I'm dealing with a retainer account (liability account), which needs to run through my invoices. It's for Law Firms. I need someone to walk me through a process. I've completely messed up my books with trial and error, and now I know I have hours ahead of me in order to get it all straightened out. If it wasn't for the invoice, I would have it figured out, but that dang invoice is complicating my process. Here I am an accountant and for the life of me can't figure out how to process a retainer account! Alright, so I'm venting. But, if anybody knows what I'm talking about, I would LOVE the help!

Check this out!

I was going through old photos for my Dad (who is working on a top secret project), and came across these great memories. Ah, those were the days! Funny, these are only a few years old, but it feels like such a long time ago.

This is what it meant to go study at the law school. Meating at Stans for shakes and then stopping by our house for some video games. Who said law school was hard?

I love this pic. It's Summer and Christian when Christian is only a few days old. How precious.

Nico and Hallie. It's Nico's birthday and look who's blowing out the Candles! I LOVE it. I laughed so hard when I found it, I had to post it!

Look at these two love birds. I think they are still dating in this photo. Don't they look cute?

So life is super busy these days. We've been blessed with more clients for Jamie and more work for me. I hope we get the hang out it soon. Life doesn't seem to slow down and I find myself wishing everyday I had a few extra hours to finish all that I have to do. Does anybody else feel that way? Sometimes I want to let it all go and do NOTHING. I was so behind on watching my shows that I finally sat down to watch Desperate, and had 6 NEW episodes. Who does that? How did I let it get so far?

One thing I have accomplished this past week is put up my Christmas stuff. I keep getting comments about how Thanksgiving is this poor holiday people don't celebrate anymore, blah blah blah blah. I'm going to be gone for 2 1/2 weeks after Thanksgiving, and I dont' want to pull my Christmas stuff out for 1 week, only to take it down again. I love Christmas and would seriously consider keeping my decorations up all year-but I bet Jamie wouldn't be down with that. Anybody out there with me? Anyway, hope you enjoyed the pics above-it was a fun trip down memory lane.

Isabella's Blessing

Isabella was blessed on September 28th. It was such a nice beautiful day. We had my family and Jamie's family together. How fun that such a small thing can have so much power to bring two families together. I loved having my brother Adrian with his family, Elli and her family and my parents there. Jamie's family came up from Colorado Springs so we had the Ogdens and Mom Townsend. Dad Townsend was in California, so we missed him. We also had the Hunters come and that was fun because our boys have had so much fun with their girls. I wish Isabella could know how much she is loved. She is only 3 months old, but she already has the love of her parents, brothers, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. She is one lucky girl. All these photos are courtesy of my super talented sister Elli. I love having such a talented photographer in the family.

Look at those baby blue eyes! She looks so content in this photo-I love it.

Our baby girl in her cute blessing dress. Why do they make those dresses so slippery?

With Grandma Townsend


With Abu and Papa Sosa. My Dad has a very cute relationship with her already. She will talk to him on the phone. She'll talk to him more than she does to anybody else I know including myself. It's so cute to watch her try so hard to tell him things. Ah, those precious moments. If they could only last forever...

Random

After a long day, we like to play with Isabella and see all the new things she's learned to do. So far it consists of smiling and hitting her head with a rattle. Some day she'll learn to control those muscles!
This is me multi tasking. I'm breastfeeding, on the computer and answering Jamie's questions at the same time. Sometimes I'm even on the phone. But, I can only multi-task sitting down. Once I'm standing up, I can't do it anymore. If I'm on the phone, I can't vacuum or clean the bathroom-my sister Elisa rocks at multi tasking all the time. I need to be more like her!


Look how cute these two are. I love Isabella's puffy hair and Jamie's killer smile! I fell for that smile 10 years ago and it still gets me every time.

Sock Hop

Last Friday, Christian's school had what they call a Sock Hop. It's a fund raiser for some parent organization and they invite the families of the students to come and partake of some festivities which include dancing, cake walk, face painting, pizza, root beer, fake tattoos and pretty much anything else they could come up with to get more money. The neat thing is that all year (remember these kids started school july 7th) they teach the students how to dance to the popcorn song, the macarena and a bunch of other dances. They even teach them to dance with a partner. It was so fun. Christian had been telling me his favorite class was PE, which is when they do all the dance teaching. Anyway, the dancing reminded me of Argie. I remember being a kid and going to the Christmas, New Years, Quincenieras and many other bailes that our ward would have. They all started late, but kids (like myself who was only 5-7 for these memories) would dance until 1 in the morning. Good thing the Sock Hop only lasted 2 hours and started at 6:30 because I was ready to be done! How fun his school does such a good job of preparing the kids to dance and teaching them how to get out there and boogie!!!

Christian dancing with Anika from his school. She is also in our ward and I found out on Sunday from her little sister that Anika has a "crush" on Christian. Nico was told by the little sister and came to tell me. These are his exact words "Mom, Anika just has a crush right on my brother!" Then he proceeded to tell me that he had a crush on me and Isabella. What do you say to that? I tried to set him straight, but I still think he's still confused. What a ham!

Snow Angel

So our first snow of this season was on Christian's birthday. Nicolas was set on getting all dressed up and going outside to play in the snow. So, we hauled on downstairs, found the winter box, found his winter clothes, put them on and 20 minutes later he was ready to trek through 2 feet of snow. Well, he went outside, tried out two snow angels and decided it was time to call it quits. He was out there for a total of 3 minutes. Was it worth it? ABSOLUTELY!!!! I made him clean up all his gear (took him two days, but he did it). We'll see if he wants to pull that same stunt any time soon.

Drum Roll Please.....

So, I pulled my sewing machine out recently to put it to some use. I had to brush off the dust and clean out some parts, but it's still working and running great. I thought it would be a good idea to make the boys Jedi Costumes for Halloween. While at Disneyland, they were trained in the ways of a Jedi at the Jedi Training Academy. They received diplomas and everything. As I watched the program I thought, "hey, I could make those costumes". So I got online, downloaded some instructions and a trip to wal mart and 10 bucks later I had made these costumes. Not bad for 10 bucks! The Karate tops were hand me downs from Max and Cassidy. I love hand me downs!

Happy Birthday Christian!

Christian turned 7 today. How time does fly. Our baby boys is in first grade and doing all sorts of things. He's been playing the piano and has told me that he wants to be famous for playing the piano someday. As a mom, I gotta love that statement! Here are some memories that Jamie and I have of Christian:

I remember being pregnant with him and watching the twin towers come crashing down and wondering what this world would be like for my unborn baby.
I remember how he always needed the perfect "symphony" as my dad called it, in order to fall asleep. That is where he got the nickname Beethoven (my Dad re-names all the grandkids what ever he wants!). The perfect symphony meant it had to be dark, quiet and no distractions.
I remember him at 18 months with these cute navy blue overalls trying to climb the porch steps in our Orem house.
I remember him holding up his hand to my and in a deep dark creepy voice saying "no mom, no."
I remember his first day of Headstart in Moscow getting on the bus. I wanted to cry, but I had to run to my classes and couldn't give myself that luxury.
I remember how he used to tell everyone at his preschool he loved them. His teacher said he must have said it to everyone, except maybe the male bus driver.
I remember how he used to hum himself to sleep. He would sit in the car and make this crazy one tone sound in order to fall asleep.

He is such a unique kid. We love how much joy and entertainment he brings into our lives. He has always been a good kid. he loves to make sure things are fair. He is especially good at obeying rules. He loves rules, math, science and is beginning to appreciate reading. We love you Beethoven!

Bubbles Liquor World

If you have ever been down from Denver and exited at the Castle Rock Outlets exit, you have probably noticed the large store called Bubbles Liquor World. It's written in blue and yellow making it very vibrant and cheerful. Check out this conversation in the car today as we drive by the liquor store:

Christian: Bubbles....World (has a hard time reading the 'liquor' part).
Nico: How come we never get to go there? (in his new whiney voice-can't wait for that to end.)
Me: Because it's really called Bubbles Liquor World and liquor means stuff like beer and alcohol.
Christian: Why do they call it Bubbles?
Me: I don't know, just for...-(interupted by Christian).
Christian: Oh, probably because the beer has bubbles and stuff.

I can't believe I was outsmarted by my first grader. How many times have I driven by Bubbles Liquor World and actually wondered why they use 'bubbles' in the name? MANY times. I've been reading it far longer than he has-he just learned how to read!

Anyway, it's my smarty pants birthday tomorrow and I'm hoping he has a good day. I still haven't planned his birthday party, but I did get him a present. The plan is to make Mickey Mouse pancakes for breakfast, go to his school with cupcakes and finish the day at Nico's end of season soccer party. We'll have a family party Sunday and I'm trying to put a Video Game party together for him and a few friends (thanks Elisa for the idea).

California, Knows How to Party!

Warning-this post may be too much if you're not related to the Townsends or Sosas in some way. Here we go...

California was great! We had so much fun hanging out with family, going to Disneyland, Seaworld and shopping by Steve and Keri's house. We can't wait to do it again. I'm already on the lookout for cheap tickets to Cali. Next time we wont spend as much money cause we've already done all the "fun" stuff! Our trip started out with a cold saturday at Steve and Keri's house. Keri was 8 months prego and look AMAZING. How funy that pregnant women look so beautiful when you're not pregnant. I know how she feels though, it feels great to get that bundle of joy out. Christian, Nico and Steve James had a great time playing and ripping Steve James' room apart. If you see the pic below, you will notice the beginnings of a gynormous mess. By the time Christian and Nico got ready for bed, Jamie and Steven had to literally brush all the toys to one side of the room to make room for the pull out bed. The boys had a great slumber party that first night. Steve and Keri were great about letting them party-what fun our boys had. We can't wait for the slumber party at our house in Colorado!

This room is temporarily clean. It eventually turned into such a mess that you couldn't even see the floor. They had a blast!

Look at these cute boys! How much fun we had with Steve and Keri. All three of them are so much alike in their likes and dislikes, it was very fun to see. Notice the Lego Star Wars shirt-my boys totally dig that kind of stuff.

Saturday we took the opportunity to walk through this great shopping center by Steve and Keri's house. It's called the Grove (sp?) and has fabulous outdoor shopping. I ran into the GAP and everyone else got together for a great pic in front of a fountain.

Sunday we took it easy and hung out at the Hotel, which was like 2 blocks from the beach. We hung by the pool and Steve, keri and KT and Brett came by. Elisa and I made dinner with the help of Alan at the grill. It was so fun hanging out and chatting. It felt like old times. The pic above cracks me up because Isabella looks like she's wearing a wig. I love all her hair.

I miss living by these guys. KT is also prego and due in the early spring. Can't wait to find out what she's having.

Monday was Disneyland with the Arthurs. We had a blast with them. The three older boys got to be in the Jedi training academy and were so excited about it. Crazy thing about this day. Very crowded and very hot. Who thought a Monday in October would be so busy. I was glad when Disneyland closed at 8 pm for the day. It was a long day and Isabella did fairly well. The cousins LOVED being together.

These cousins are two months apart and love each other. It's so cute to hear them talk on the phone. Hallie always has a nice compliment for Nico and Nico loves to talk to anyone who will listen.

Not the best pic. I didn't have as many pics of Summer, Jaxon or Hallie-Elisa you need to send me some. Tuesday was Seaworld and we LOVED that. The Shamu show was great. I could have done without all the cheesy "believe" crap, but it was amazing. We sat in the soak zone and got soaked! Jaxon and Hallie didn't love getting wet as much as everyone else, which I thought was hilarious.

Shamu-what a fun show to watch!

Wednesday was our day off to relax and go to the Beach. Jamie, Steve and Alan got up early to get in some surfing before any of us got up. Steve ended up pushing his teeth through his skin and had to go to the emergency room for some stiches. Poor guy didn't even get to surf, I think the first run they did Steve gets hurt and Jamie busts his board in two. These two guys have had bad luck lately. We hope that things don't continue to turn out so badly when they get together.

Thursday was Disneyland with Steve and Steven James. The boys had a blast and so did Jamie and Steve. We had such a good time with them. Friday we spent the day at their house again and Christian, Nico and Steven James put on a play for us. It was so cute. They all had speaking parts and rehearsed at least "seven" times, as Christian told us. The play involved light sabers, fighting and someone dying at the end-too much fun.

So that was our trip to Cali. We loved it. Thanks Alan, Elise, Steve, Keri, KT and Brett. We had a great time with all of you and wish we could see you guys every day!

A Day in the Life of Baby Isabella

It has been almost 6 weeks since I had Isabella (Jamie's very excited about that), and I can't believe how much she has grown. Everyone's favorite question to ask is "is she sleeping through the night". No, she is not. She likes to wake up 1 to 2 times at night, but goes right back to sleep. Except for last night of course. Jamie was gone, so she woke up 3 times and the third time she was ready to party! With Christian I was a wreck thinking I would never sleep through the night again-with her, I know it will all be over soon and I don't want her to grow up too fast. I used to dislike the infant stage, but everything she does is so magical that I have to say this is by far my favorite time. Anyway, it has been an adjustment for everyone. Christian and Nico have quickly learned that she consumes much of my time and they have been very patient about that. Poor Jamie feels like he never gets to hold her because she's always eating. I think we're all getting used to some changes, but we love having her and wouldn't have it any other way.

Elli, my little sister took pics of Isabella and designed the cards. She is very talented. People keep asking me if she does this for a living. Nope, she does it for fun. I think she makes more money in her Nursing career than taking free photos for family and friends. Although, I believe she has started to charge some money because it is time consuming. Anyway, I love her great talent!

This is a tentative schedule. We need to clear it with the Bishopric and make sure it will be okay. She sent them to me today, so I had to post.
This pic is for my mother-in-law. She is the only person I know that giggles when babies cry-she thinks it's so cute (I think she's secretly laughing because they aren't her kids to deal with, she gets to spoil them and then go home. I can't wait to be a grandma-did I just say that????).



Typical morning at our house. I just finished feeding Isabella and Nico and Christian are all over her trying to kiss her or hold her.

Isabella Elise Townsend

Isabella Elise Townsend 8/06/08

Yeah, she's finally here! We are so excited to have her and to find out that we had a baby girl! The boys are very excited. I kept telling Nico we might just have a boy because he was convinced we were having a girl. So he says "that's okay mom, we'll just put the boy back in your belly until it comes out a girl." I don't think that is an acceptable return policy with babies. Anyway. She was born on Aug. 6th around 6 pm. Weighed 7 lbs 2 oz and 20 1/4 inches. But I think the funnest news is that it was a girl. The surprise of not knowing what we were having was so exciting! I recommend it to anyone. So, here are pics of Isabella and that amazing day!

This is where it all begins. It's hard to imagine that a 7 lb baby is swimming around in there.

Jamie and I hanging out before the contractions got too bad. It took about 3 hours for the oxytocin to kick in and start making me feel the pain.

Isabella Elise Townsend 7 lbs 2 oz and a full head of hair!

I finally got to hold Isabella for the first time 45 minutes after she was born. I don't like that about hospitals these days. Must they wrap them up so tight and make me wait so long to hold my baby?

The proud boys!

I swore I wouldn't breastfeed, but in this picture I actually look like I'm enjoying myself. I think I don't mind it so much this time.

She looks so peaceful!

She has lazy eye and you can almost tell in this pic. I think all babies have it this early in life, or we may have another Christian-how cute!

They were so excited to hold her. They did and still do point out her ambilical cord and ask me about it everyday. It was the first thing they noticed about her when they saw her for the first time. They can't wait for it to fall off-what a funny thing.

She looks so serious!

Tired baby! I know I was.

Also, this was the first time we brought a baby home from the hospital without a name. She was Gabriella Elise for the first day and somehow it didn't fit. So, we went home and had to think about it. Jamie really liked Isabella, so I had to do it. I think it fits her now. My dad kept calling her "it's-a-bella", so now Nico thinks her name is Abella. Her middle name Elise is after my sister Elisa. We just had to change it a bit because two a's at the end of each name was too much. So, it's pronounced like Elisa without saying the "a". I also think its a perfect middle name because it reminds me of my sister Elli as well. Good thing my sisters have such similar names-it worked out so nicely!