Reindeer Run

Today the kids all participated in the Taylor Fit-4-Kids Annual Reindeer Run. It was such a fun event and I hope to make it a tradition every year!





Addison ran the 50yd Diaper Dash



Austin ran the 100yd Tot Trot



Brooke ran the 1 mile Reindeer Run



They were so proud of their ribbons/medals and couldn't wait to take their picture with the Reindeer!

Christmas in Florida

Here is the dialogue from a conversation b/w my Mom & Brooke today while stopped at a light by Pam's Christmas Tree lot:

Granni: "Brooke, look at all of those Christmas trees. They have some of the most beautiful Christmas trees there every year. Don't you think they are just beautiful?"
Brooke: "Yes Granni, they are beautiful.....and you don't even have to put ...them together!.........we have to put OURS together"

For the record, we did buy a REAL Christmas tree 2 years ago, but decided to get a really nice pre-lit one last year when Addison was crawling.

Today we officially enrolled Austin in PK Yonge for next year! Whew....what a relief....
I happened to ALMOST forget that today was the deadline to turn in his $ and acceptance form! Good thing Mommy brain didn't totally kick in, or I shudder to think of the outcome! I have no idea what we would do if we weren't blessed enough to have both Brooke & Austin going to the same school for as long as we reside in Gainesville. The better news is that we don't have to worry about this again for another 2 1/2 years :)

The little things....

So, I know this may seem so trivial to some and others may ask, why oh why would I blog about it, but if you know my husband, this IS a big deal and it came at a time when I needed it the most....

I came home to dinner ON the table tonight. Steak, mashed potatoes, corn, and Hawaiian sweet rolls....yummy! Not sure what I did to deserve this, but it hasn't happened in probably 10 years or so. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my hubby.....just what I needed after a long day! It truly was a treat :)

Blue Wave all the way!

We received Austin's acceptance letter to PK Yonge in the mail today!!! We will officially have 2 Blue Wave students next year and couldn't be happier! Hooray...one less thing to worry about! :)

Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving at my sister's house again this year and had a wonderful feast, as usual! I will be the first to admit though that with the warmer weather(somehow it always seems to be warmer on Thanksgiving day than it does in the weeks leading up to it) it didn't really seem like Thanksgiving for some reason. The food was wonderful and the company was even better and we are so thankful that Mimi was able to join us for the day, but I just didn't have that "feeling" like I typically do on Thanksgiving. Something was off and although I can't exactly put my finger on it, I just know it was a different feeling for me this year. With that being said, we had so much fun with the kids and all of the activities at their school surrounding the holiday. One of the most special moments was Brooke helping my Mom make the Pumpkin Mincemeat Bread using Amie's recipe and I gave her Pipi's old apron(for him it was a bib) to wear. That moment was so special and reduced me to tears thinking about how much we miss having them present in our lives to share such wonderful holiday traditions with.

Cardozo Christmas Card

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VPK Thanksgiving Feast

Open Arms had their traditional Thanksgiving feast for the students and their families. The food was all prepared by the staff and it was delicious. Austin requested to look handsome that morning, so I picked out a collared shirt and pants for him to wear(ones of course I didn't fear getting dirty at school!)
To our surprise when we showed up(Granni had also joined us) for the feast Austin was wearing a tie. He had taken it out of his drawer that morning and stuck it in his pocket so I wouldn't see it. It was a tie that he had worn to my cousin's wedding in October, and apparently he really liked it:) He told us he wanted to be extra handsome for the big feast!

PKY Kindergarten Feast

Today was the PKY Kindergarten Thanksgiving Feast! All of the children and teachers worked so hard and it was so great seeing them all dressed up like Turkeys. This morning Brooke did inform me that "She's not going to have a Waddle," but as it would turn out, she did and it was one of her favorite parts.



They opened with a wonderful singing performance where they got to showcase their costumes and vocal abilities. It was quite evident that so much hard work, practicing, and preparation was put into this event! After the performance we ate dinner, which the children had all helped to prepare. Not only did they prepare it, they also did ALL of the shopping for it at Publix one day. That's one set of VERY brave teachers I tell you!! I can't handle bringing 3 kids to Publix, let alone 56 of them The food was WONDERFUL, and as we ate, Brooke told us all about her experiences preparing each dish.

My sweetie

The other day while we were on the way to school, Austin was being, well......Austin! When he drives me crazy I always preface everything with "SON!" When I said this to him(which was of course followed by some diatribe after it to complete the sentence....err....or paragraph, his response was: "Why do you always call me son?" To this I simply replied: "Because you are my son." Quick as lightning his response was: "I'm not your son, I'm your sweetie!"

Seriously....where does this kid come up with this stuff?!?! It gave me my laugh for the morning and of course a few days to follow!

Back to work

Last week I started another new chapter in my life and am now employed once again. I was blessed to be offered the position of Program Assistant to Children's Ministries at Trinity United Methodist Church. I have been affiliated with TUMC for the past 4 years due to our MOPS group being hosted there and have become friends with quite a few members of the staff. The position allows me to think creatively and surround myself with the love of God and most importantly work closely with such wonderful women and children. I am blessed that the hours work well with my crazy schedule of driving here, there, and everywhere to keep up with the kids, their school, and my gym routine. The past 2 weeks have been great and as I get my feet firmly planted in the ground I find myself smiling because I know what a HUGE blessing this is going to be. The best benefit to it all is that the kids get to join me for most of my shifts and partake in the many great programs Trinity has to offer and so far they are LOVING it. My heart truly smiles each Sunday as we leave and they tell me how much fun they had in Sunday School, especially knowing that their relationship with Jesus is growing.

Do we really have a Kindergartener???

YES we do, and here is the proof:

Like Father, Like Son

The other day I was standing at the computer trying to get my email to work(what else is new!) and Austin came up behind me and punched me in the butt and walked away laughing. I turned around and said "Did you seriously just punch me?!?"(And you must picture this in a VERY annoyed voice because he had been pushing my buttons all day). His reply......"That wasn't a punch, it was a love tap!"

Of course my annoyance was soon replaced with shear laughter and all I could think to myself was this boy sure is the product of his Father!

A little something for myself

Today I finally did something for myself and joined Gainesville Health & Fitness! I have put getting back into shape on the back burner over the past 6 years while we were busy creating our beautiful family, but I decided enough procrastinating! My main inspiration for getting back into shape is the commitment that I have made to run in the Disney Princess 1/2 Marathon in February. My girlfriend, Kelly, is taking the time to train me and I am forever grateful! Now I'm not going to lie and say this is easy by any stretch of the imagination.....it is hard work people.....hard, hard work! I am pushing myself to maintain a routine of working out 4-5 times a week and to be mindful of what I am eating. Aside from running in the 1/2 marathon I have also set a goal of losing 20lbs. I am feeling stronger and stronger each and every day and couldn't be happier every time I complete a workout and walk out of the gym. The best benefit to this whole experience is that GHFC provides free childcare while you workout. This makes things so much easier knowing that I can just bring the kids with me and drop them off to play for an hour or so while I sweat it out in the gym. Working out with Kelly can be slightly intimidating, but she does well in reminding me that this is the 1st time I have ever weight-trained and she used to do this for a living. She is definitely a wonderful inspiration to have around. No "Mom Jeans" for me please!!

Introducing Albert Cardozo

On August 7th Jeff and the kids went to Gainesville Pet Rescue and came home with a new family member. We had been toying with the idea of adopting a cat for a few weeks prior to that, but neither Jeff nor I were really sold on the idea. We knew how much the kids wanted a pet of their own, so we decided that if they went and fell in love with a puppy, we would allow them to adopt it. When they set out that morning, they had their hopes set on Jojo, who they saw online and fell in love with her sweet little face. Unfortunately when they pulled up to the Rescue she was walking out the door and had just been adopted. Albert, formerly known as Bubba, was the second puppy they played with. Addi and I were in D.C., so they texted me pictures and I fell in love with him. He has been such a wonderful addition to the family and keeps Nala and Maddux on their toes. Albert was born on June 6th and so far no one can tell us what breeds he is made up of. EVERY puppy from his litter was completely different from one another. We think he is a combination of a Lab and Dalmatian or Great Dane. Of course we are hoping for Dalmatian when taking into consideration the size of a Great Dane, but his paws are massive, so I guess only time will tell!