Tiger Woods '08 (Wii)

Jorge 69
Linda 78
'nuff said.

We're still shopping...

I took Maya to the store with me last night. She has some gift cards that are burning a hole in her pocket. Her birthday is in November and then came Christmas...she has squirreled that money away (MOMMY! I never had a HUNDRED dollars before!)and now she is ready to spend it! She refuses to spend her cash but the cards are driving her crazy!

WELL! My daughter, my only child, is spoiled rotten. She literally has everything that was on her list to Santa (laptop included, thank you Abuelo & Abuelita!)with the exception of a cell phone...HELLOOOOO..she is eight!So, here we are walking around and around the store...no more Bratz, no more CD's, no more board games, they don't have the Wii game she wants...on & on we went... I was DONE! So, she says to me, "Mommy, you know, I have lots of new stuff at home that I haven't even opened yet. I must have been a really good girl, wasn't I , Mommy? I think I know what I am going to buy." She goes over to the dolls and I am curious...didn't we just turn up our noses at these dolls? She picks one up, scans the price and looks at me with a smile (I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that smile!) and says, "I'm buying this doll for Sheena!"
I blindly (I couldn't see for the tears) hugged her so tight I hurt her, oops. Sheena is the daughter of a friend of ours. Our friend lives here and Sheena lives in Jamaica with her father. Our friend works as a nanny and sends home money to Sheena along with whatever she accumulates between packages. We have given her hand-me-downs, both clothes and toys. We have sent her birthday presents. But today was a step up for Maya. It wasn't all of the money that she had, it wasn't even half but it was the money that she had allocated herself for that day's treat and she thought of someone else instead of herself.

It made my heart sing. I'm touched by this little gesture. I'm proud of my daughter. Thank you Lord for giving her a generous heart.

Good will come to him who is generous...Psalm 112:5

Wii like to play!

Wow! What a whirlwind season! Since I last posted so much has happened!

We had an AMAZING Christmas party here in our home with our very closest friends~ the Pridmore's were here from Tennessee and the Naskov's literally walked in and surprised us from North Carolina! We had such a great time! It's been labeled the Vazquez Annual Christmas Party (how original...I did not label it! LOL!) and this year was the best one ever! I can't say more because...well...let's just say what happens at the VACP STAYS at the VACP!

My mom arrived on the 23rd and stayed through Christmas afternoon. We were very happy to have her here, however short the stay.

Then we celebrated the birth of our Savior. Happy Birthday Jesus! How blessed we are by the gift God gave us!

Santa was very, very good to Maya this year! She was gifted a Wii. Santa even threw in a Tiger Woods '08 game for the Wii...wonder why he thought Maya would like that one? So, as the commercial states, "Wii would like to play!" Wii LOVE to play! We are having WAY too much fun with this game. I am, without a doubt the resident golf pro...sorry Jorge, you MUST admit it! It's awesome cause I can't beat him on a real course, I do try though, but I have consistently spanked him on this game! GO ME!

We start our new Bible study subject in a week or so...Jorge is suggesting one on humility!

Have a wonderful New Year!

Fa-La-La-La-La...

I went Christmas caroling with 12 little girls and one little boy tonight! They are members of the children's Bible study group that meet at my house every Thursday night. We had such a good time! We actually went out in our cars and visited older couples in our church (my 50 year old friend was horrified that she had been labeled an 'older couple', sorry Maria!). It was so, so beautiful! The children didn't want to stop.

They were amazing. Their little faces were joyful. I was watching them singing their little hearts out, at the top of their big ole lungs. Man, they were belting em out! There was not a shred of self-conscieneness! They were praising and singing about the birth of their Lord.

Too often, as adults we sing softly, try to at least keep our voices in harmony...these kids simply did not care and they blessed every single family we sang to.

I told them that I was certain that Jesus was watching them, smiling and tapping his feet along with them!

1 Chronicles 16:9 says:

Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts.

It doesn't say to sing in key or sing a little more quietly. Simply sing!

Fa-la-la-la-la la-la-la LAAAAAH!

Who Are You?

I was somehow signed up to receive a 'Quote of the Day' from a website that generates these type of things...my quote today was pretty cool:

Love Quote of the Day:

Tell me who admires and loves you, and I will tell you who you are.Antoine de Saint-Exupery

It took me about 1/10 of a second to answer that...I'm a MOMMY, WIFE, DAUGHTER, FRIEND and preschool teacher.

Maya loves her Mommy (lucky me!).

Jorge admires and loves me (doubly lucky!!).

My mother loves me (and not just cause she has to!).

My friends love me (and I, them).

My preschoolers love me (and I get AT LEAST 25 hugs a day, snotty noses and all to prove it!).

Last but FIRST is Daughter of the Almighty King (that, of course, makes me a princess!)...I know I am loved and strive daily to be admired by my Lord!

Who are you?

Friendship...comfortable friendship

Today I had a wonderful afternoon hanging out with some women I love, admire and have fun with. I'm blessed because I also work with them! As I was sitting there, in between the laughter and the silliness I realized that what I enjoy about them is that I am comfortable with them. They are women like me...


Ahhhh...the qualities that make me,'ME' are sometimes pretty puzzling to people who don't know me (...hey, anybody know that song, "I wanna talk about me"..I just used the word "me" waaaay too many times!).

Romans 12:3 says;
"...don't think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves..."

Here we go:

I am sarcastic...VERY sarcastic.
I am easy to read.
I am vocal.
I am someone who speaks without filtering.

People always know where they stand with me.

I wonder why I have friends at all...LOL!

As I am evaluating myself I must add that I am an extremely loyal friend. I am also an available friend. My friends know that they can count on me.

I tend to make friendships with people who share my sarcastic humor. People who are transparent. It makes it easier for me to relax and feel comfortable with them. I enjoy my friendships and I am blessed DAILY by one or more of them. God has surrounded me with confident, funny, loving women.

It's nice to be in a place that I don't have to walk on eggshells or worry about what I say...it's great to be with people who understand me and see my qualities...both good (loyalty) and bad (no fltering!) and still hang out with me.

God is good!

"Friends are the family we choose for ourselves."

April

I went to a funeral yesterday. It was for the mother of a good friend of mine. It would have been her mother's 70th birthday.

It made me an emotional wreck. I didn't even stay for the whole thing. My friend is an only child. Her biological father passed away when April was very young and she was raised by her mother and step-father. She and her mother were extraordinarily close. My friend is a police detective and has a very 'tough girl' attitude. When I heard her crying it tore my heart out. I never know quite what to say. These are the times that I wish I was more eloquent.

As my heart broke for her, the little band-aid that was on it, healing the wound of my father's loss was ripped off. I am having such a hard time this month. I don't feel much peace. I am praying.

I know that the Lord feels our hurt. I know He understands. I want to run to Him and turn it over to Him. I want April to do the same. I just don't seem to ever be able to let it go. The holidays, birthdays, anniversaries are like a punch to the gut.

Please pray for April, her father Steve and her family.

I'm a jolly happy soul!

I took a quiz to see what kind of ornament I am...I'm a SNOWMAN ~ Snowmen are my favorite Christmas decorations. Maybe it's because I'm from Florida and we don't have snowmen (I have made quite a few SANDmen at the beach, thought!)! Or maybe 'cause I'm kinda rotund? LOL! I don't know, I do know I like them so it made me happy when I got my quiz results back! What kind of ornament are you?

You Are a Snowman

Friendly and fun, you enjoy bringing holiday cheer to everyone you know!

What Christmas Ornament Are You?

Please pray for:

My friend Paula & her husband.

My friend April, who will bury her mother this Saturday on what would have been her 70th birthday.

My friend who is working on her adoption plans.

My friend Ivy's business to sell.

Families who are struggling this Christmas season. Whether it be financially, spiritually or emotionally.

Friends and family that are travelling for the holidays.

That we can all slow down and remember to say thank you.

If you have a prayer request, please add it and I will happily pray for you!

This lil' light of mine...

I'm gonna let it SHINE!!!! Well, that's the way our Sunday school song used to go, remember? 'Don't let Satan blow it out...' Wellllll, Satan hasn't blown my light out but he's huffin' & puffin' ALL the time. I can feel the breeze!

Mark 4:21 says, "Would anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket or under a bed to shut out the light? Of course not! A lamp is placed on a stand where its light will shine."

I've found my light flickering just a little these last few weeks. I think more than anything else it's burn out (hey, a pun! I didn't even mean to do that!). I'm tired. I think that it becomes so easy for me to allow my daily routine to become so overloaded, that especially during this busy season my quiet time becomes less of a priority and there isn't much fuel for my fire...add frustration, resentment, hurt feelings...how could God's light shine through something like that?

I am going to try to find my alone time with God again and make it my number one priority...I was CREATED to do this! God specifically tells us that the closer we are to Him the more light He will reveal in out lives. Imagine that if you HAVE more liight you can SHINE more light. SIMPLE! I will pray that my attitude gets better and I can let go of the hurt and resentment.

Please pray for me.

ahhhh...girl time!

As I've said in a previous post...if I'm not careful I get bogged down in the craziness of Christmas. This weekend is a prime example. Friday was just a mess at work...people are all feeling the stress of the season and we are all just a little off...and it spreads! Friday night Maya had a birthday party to go attend. This morning she had another birthday party to go to...she has another one tomorrow (no, I'm not exaggerating!). Add to the mix, a women's ornament exchange/party at my house this evening...yes, my house, starting at 5:30 pm...I got home from the b-day party at 4:00 pm...I have to tell you I was gritting my teeth the whole time thinking of the 1,001 things I still needed to do at home. We made it home, I scrubbed the bathrooms, mopped the floor,showered, put on some makeup and answered the door with a smile at 5:23! You know what though...time with the girls, just sitting around, eating, & chatting was just what the doctor ordered! It was great to just laugh & hang out for a few hours. Time with girlfriends is always a hard earned treat and something I don't do nearly enough. It's a great 'spirit improver'! Goodnight...my spirit is recharged but my body is exhausted!

Feliz huh?

I asked my 3 year old students if they remembered how to say Merry Christmas in Spanish (I taught them last week). One of the boys raised his hand and said, "I know Mrs. Linda! I know! It's 'FELIZ LA-DEE-DA!'" Ya gotta love three year olds!

Makin' Memories

I had some free time for thought as my daughter was in dance class today...it's so funny because normally I would have run over to the grocery store or Hallmark or SOMETHING but I decided to be still.

My mind began to wander back to my childhood. It started with Christmas and ended with me smiling from ear to ear...and then...ding! ding! ding! A revelation!

The things that made me smile were memories of me with all of my cousins at my grandparents house. We were there as often as we were allowed. When I was very young we lived close to them...my cousins and I would change into my Pop's plain white T-shirts, hop on the floor (sometimes we even had pillows!) and go to sleep. We would spend all day outside making up games, catching tadpoles, riding on the lawn mower with Pop, fun stuff! My cousin Kristie & I thought we were singers (wellllll, we still do but neither of us can carry a tune!) and we held shows and our grandmother was always a willing audience...we fought over who was Sandy & who was Danny! There were broken bones from trampoline accidents, stitches, darts in the head (yes, there was a dart in a head!), fist fighting, name calling and all sorts of childhood things! I'm not sure why we had those helmets on in this photo...

Of course I remember Christmas there also. What I remember about Christmas there was just being with them. I don't remember what I got. I don't remember if their house was clean. I don't remember what we ate. I remember that we laughed a lot. I remember that we truly loved each other and were so happy to be together. Aren't those the things we should remember?

I am going to try harder to have those moments for my daughter. She won't remember what we are buying her 30 years from now. Hopefully she will remember that we loved her, we made her laugh & we did our best to show her the right thing to do.

Thank you Jesus, for them!

Okay, here's the scenario...

We are all three at the kitchen table.

Jorge is working on a Bible study.

Maya is doing homework.

I'm doing some work, work.

The house is quiet (WOW! No TV, music...???) and I glanced up and was overcome by a feeling of contentment. I mean, seriously...we have a home, all we NEED and each other. It was such a blessing to finally have a baby and eight years later I don't take a moment of it for granted. I have THE most wonderful husband EVER. Some people might have husbands as great as mine but I guarantee you that no one has one better! I just loved the moment I was in...so...I said, "This is my favorite moment of the day!" and my husband looks up...kinda stunned, I had just pulled him out of the gospel...and smiles at me. My stinker of a daughter looks at me and says, "Really momma? Cause we're all here together? Awww...well, enjoy it cause I have one more sentence to write & I'm goin' to watch Hannah Montana!"

See why I love her so?

I am so grateful for all of the things the Lord has provided me with. I am abundantly blessed but nothing compares to the blessing of my family.

Don't you know how you feel when you give a gift that you have picked out for someone and you finally get to give it to them...wouldn't it hurt if they didn't say 'thank you'? Imagine how God feels sometimes...Take a minute, heck, take thirty seconds and just thank Him for your gifts.

Thank you, Jesus.

So many babies, so much red tape...

After suffering for many years with infertility (and finally being gloriously blessed!) I have huge, heartbreaking empathy for people going through this ordeal. We have godly, funny, happily married friends that are going through this unfair scenario. My heart breaks...

They have decided that they will adopt a child into their home and into their heart. It has been such a long time since they made this decision and they are still waiting. They have been disappointed.

She told me on Sunday that they have been matched! That means that there is a mother out there somewhere who is making a difficult decision to let her child go and she has decided that she likes the profile that my friends submitted to the agency! They will meet with her on Friday to get to know one another. Even as I type this I feel so happy that it brings tears to my eyes. They are apprehensive. They have been burned before.

It seems like such a no-brainer to me. There are so many precious babies out there that need a home and so many people who long to have a baby of their own...why do they make it so hard?

This was just a rant at the beginning...sorry. What I would ask from you is your prayers. Please pray that they will go into that meeting without any nervousness, knowing that it is in the Lord's hands and that He already knows what is going to happen. Pray that this woman will be able to see their hearts and see them for the wonderful people that they are. Pray that her heart will soften to them.

Pray that ultimately they will have their baby to love.

Let's all try to remember...

It's 5:50 am and I have been up for an hour. I have had my quiet time this morning. I get up sometimes (when I am not so lazy) and have a quiet time of prayer and reflection. I really felt like I needed it after my one-on-one with God yesterday.

So, I am sitting in my living room...where we never sit except this time of year...drinking my second cup of coffee and staring at my Christmas tree. It is so beautiful. There are even 4 tiny presents underneath it (Maya found something to recycle for her Papi and me & we reciprocated). As I sit here and look at all of my decorations and think about all of the parties, cooking, shopping and wrapping that still needs to be done (not to mention the homework, work, dance classes, girl scouts...) I said a little prayer for myself and all the magnificently busy women that are in my life that we can find time for these quiet moments and REALLY think about why we go to all this trouble...

Happy Birthday Jesus!

'He came to pay a debt He didn't owe because we owed a debt we couldn't pay'

Take time for you & Him.

A Slap from God

Have you ever prayed for something and heard God give you an answer? I don't mean like how I prayed for my daughter and FINALLY got her...no, no, not that sort of answer...the scary, tear inducing, goosebump raising, OH MY WORD, HE IS TALKING TO ME answer!!! That kind of answer!

I have been praying through something for weeks ( about myself and my mother) and I REALLY wanted God to be on my side...even though I knew He might not be on this one. Well, my Pastor began his sermon today, I was listening intently, my husband was in the back of the church doing Spanish translation, and suddenly WHAM!!! Now I have to tell you this was not a case of, "maybe that applies to my situation", this was very, very specific. At the end of the message Jorge, my husband, said (with tears in his eyes),"Did you get that?"

I called my mom and had a heart-to-heart.

Sometimes the Lord just has to get it across to us with a little more than a nudge. I needed that slap!

Thank you, Jesus.

Did that ever happen to you?

I'm Sorry Mommy...

"I'm sorry, Mommy. Sometimes I try too hard to make my friends laugh and it goes too far. I didn't mean to have a fresh mouth. Do you forgive me?" These are the words my 8 year old, Maya, said to me tonight. Things did get out of hand and she realized that she hurt her mommy as she was trying to make her friends think she's 'cool'.

Her eyes were brimming with HUGE tears and her lip trembled as her apology spilled out of her. I did not doubt for one second that she was sincere and remorseful.

Of course I grabbed her, hugged her and forgave her immediately. I told her to be more aware of how her actions effect others. I told her that I love her. I told her that it's very easy to fall into the trap of trying to make others laugh or make them think you are cool at the expense of compromising your values. I told her that even I do that sometimes.

Can you believe I admitted that to my 8 year old? Neither can I!!!

As Christians we are warned in Galatians 1:10

Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.

We know that it was necessary for Paul to constantly reprimand believers to guard their lives against confusion and the lure of sin. This was thousands of years ago when the lures were smaller and the temptations fewer...we are in South Florida where 90% of the population is unchurched!

I know that I fight temptation daily.
I pray for God to help me live a life that is pleasing to Him.
I know how easy it is to fall.
I know that no matter how hard I try to be perfect, I will fall short.

I also know above everything else that my Father will grab me, hug me and forgive me immediately when I come to Him with a sincere and remorseful heart.

That's grace!

Happy WHAT?

Okay, here I go...my first blog and I have to let loose with a RANT!

Why in the world do people say, "Happy Holidays"???? Okay, I KINDA get it...there are several holidays in the month of December but c'mon, people...It's CHRISTmas!!!
It really, really bothers me when I see the HH signs in stores when we are celebrating the birth of our Father! It INFURIATES me when fellow Christians, Christ followers, use HH instead of the appropriate MERRY CHRISTMAS! Aaaagggghhhhhhhh!!!

Just think, if I am infuriated and offended by this what does He think?

Now, please, don't get me wrong...I am as guilty as the rest when it comes to overspending to get my daughter an awesome gift...we do the whole Santa thing...my house has plenty of snowman and Santa decorations, but this is the kind of stuff that gets to me...I have a Jewish friend that has a Christmas tree, Santa Claus trimmings, and presents. I have asked her several times what kind of message she is sending to her daughters and she says, "Christmas is for presents". Okay, I'm not angry anymore, I'm sad.

Luke 2:11 'Today a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.'