Preschool Graduation

My baby is done with preschool after 3 years. I can't believe it. She seems so grown up and in a blink of an eye. Everyone says it goes by fast but you still want to believe you have all the time in the world, that somehow the rules don't apply to you. Yet, they do and on the last day of school, we arrived for Jasmine's preschool graduation.The kids came into the room, sang us a couple of songs and then were called up one by one and Mrs. Markman read to us what they think the child's profession should be when they grow up based on their personalities. They said Jasmine should be a musician, a singer and an actress. Not much of a shocker there.Afterward, we ate cookies and the kids played a little outside. I took a great picture of Marin & Jasmine who will be a year apart in school as Marin has one more year in Preschool. It was also fun that Jan was in town - he has come for the summer to help us out with our kids and be my personal trainer.

Tortas Fritas

There is a tradition in Uruguay that when it rains, we make tortas fritas. These are fried dough cakes that are covered in sugar and they are delicious and remind me of when I was a kid. It was always a special treat when my mom would make them for us and I have wanted to give them a try for a while. It so happened that I got lucky and it was rainy on a day I didn't have to be at work and there wasn't too much to do so I decided it was the perfect afternoon for tortas fritas.
I made the dough and then began to fry them and they turned out perfectly. Even better, everyone loved them and they didn't last long! I can't wait for another rainy, lazy afternoon to make them again. Maybe if you are lucky, you might be visiting and could try some...is your mouth watering yet?

Playing Hooky

It was the end of a very long week and when we woke up Sunday morning, we just couldn't face going to church. We woke up late and we were exhausted because we had been too busy lately. I had been working long hours at the bakery and I needed some quality time with the family. Plus, I didn't feel all that well so Lorne suggested we stay home and spend time together.
A few hours later, we decided that we wanted to do a little day trip together and so we decided we would go to Monticello. Monticello was Thomas Jefferson's house and it was only a couple of hours from us. Jasmine decided she wanted to have a picnic so we thought we might find a place along the way for one.We took our time getting there and consequently, we ended up having our picnic in the car because we didn't have time to find a better spot. We got tickets to take a tour and we headed up the mountain to start our adventure.The property was beautiful and innovative for the time. They wouldn't let us take pictures inside of course but the ones we got of the outside give you an idea of how beautiful it was.During the tour, Jasmine decided she wanted to participate so she asked the tour guide to tell her a story about Jefferson. He indeed had a story for an almost 5 year old. He told her the story about when Jefferson was the President and got a huge wheel of cheese delivered to the White House and it was a most humongous wheel that stayed in the white house for many many years. He told us that it had been written into a children's book (it is a true story by the way) and Jasmine was fascinated by it. We found the book in the gift shop so we bought it for her so she could remember her trip.After the tour, we strolled the gardens and walked down the mountain a bit back to our car. I felt so happy and so relaxed to spend some quality time with my family. I did feel bad that we played hooky but I am sure Heavenly Father understands and it bonded us a little more as a family. It was a most wonderful day.

Kathy's Bridal Shower

Kathy and I have been friends since we were 6 years old. She lived two doors down from me so we played together all the time. I was so excited when after not seeing her for a long long time, we got back in touch through Facebook. I was so happy to see she had become a pediatrician and that she was in the military. We hadn't seen each other since we had gone away to college so it was so fun to find out what she had done since I had last seen her.
One of the things she had done was find a great guy to fall in love with and get engaged to. I was very excited when I got an invitation to the bridal shower. I love celebrating milestones with people I love.It was a great bridal shower. They did a Tea Party theme and it was gorgeous the way it was set up and done. The food was dainty and delicious, the games fun and when it was time for Kathy to open her gifts, that was even more fun. They asked her questions about her fiance while she opened the gifts and if she got the answer wrong, she had to put on a piece of lingerie. Over her clothes of course. I thought this game was so funny that if I ever get a chance to throw a bridal shower - Laura - when you get married I am so doing this - I am going to do this to the bride. It got lots of laughs and great photos!Kathy has grown into a beautiful woman inside and out and I am so honored to have her as a friend. Congratulations Kathy and I know you will have a most wonderful life!

Mother's Day Tea

I had been looking forward to the Mother's Day Tea at Jasmine's Preschool for a long time. I know her teacher throws the best Mother's Day Tea and Jasmine had been excitingly telling me that they had been preparing for a while. I love that I work so close and that I am flexible enough to be free to participate and be active in my child's school events.
I got dressed up for the tea and arrived at the school at the appointed time and it was so beautiful! We had place-cards where we were supposed to sit and then the kids came in and sang us a song - Skinamarink - and then we got to eat the delicious food and be with our children. It was wonderful. They had even planted us little flowering plants and mine is still blooming! I just loved the whole thing!