Haircut & Blankey

Caleb got a super cute haircut today. I am so excited. Finally after 2 years of haircuts I found one that really works for his face shape. It is probably a little over the top to be concerned about that with a 3 year old, but leave it to me. My little buddy has a bit of a long forehead, so I like to keep his bangs long, but the result has always been very shaggy. I feel like he looked a little unkept. I found this haircut in my Internet search. It is called the short brushed forward look. It also solves the widow's peak problem because there is no part. Comb it forward from the crown, texture the front, cut the sides and the back short. I love it and he and daddy loved going to the Sport Clips and watching ball while they got a haircut. Great male bonding time.

Sister turned 15 months, so I thought I would write a few of the things that stand out to me right now.

*She has really started loving her blankey. It is so cute when I get her out of bed she won't go unless blankey comes with us.
*She finally walks all the time. She is done with crawling altogether.
*She, like her brother, is developing serious attitude at the 15 month mark. I really think for both of them it is asserting their opinion.
*Still so petite. Compared to the other kids her age in the nursery at church she looks like a little baby with lots of hair.
*Saying thank you.
*Loves to put the phone to her ear and say hi.
*Very social. At the softball game yesterday she saw two older girls playing, walked over and sat down with them. With a sweet little face invited them to play with her. The older girls happily played and even shared their jewelry.
*Leading me to my final thought. She loves purses and jewelry and Cory thinks she is going to be a princess. Welcome, to the world of girls, Daddy.

My New Signature

I saw a few blogs with signatures and thought what a cute idea, so I decided to add one to our site. I came up with a name that best describes the 3 things in my life I am most extremely thankful for.

First I get to be Momma to my sweet, adorable, precioso children. They grow and bring me joy every day.

Second, I became a Ru after marrying Mr. Ruiz a man that loves me so well there are days that I wonder if this is really a fairytale dream and I pray nobody pinches me. I sure don't want to wake up. Cheesy I know, but it is true.

Finally the Butterfly is a symbol of new life. I am so grateful for Christ's love and giving me eternal life and hope in this life. He has brought beauty from ashes.

On the Move

Okay so we totally bought a house today! I can't believe it. It may seem haste, but we did tons of research and feel really good about what we are getting. The house is the floor plan we were wanting and the interior I love. It has a mural on the wall with cows. I am sure that seems odd to some, but I don't mind it and Caleb well he has a love for farm animals. The backyard is beautiful, it has a creek with a waterfall and a wooded area. And it is only 10 minutes from Cory's work. We negotiation and got it for exactly what we felt comfortable with. We set our amount and said if it was more than this it wasn't meant to be. Well, I guess 106 Nevin Drive (mls-774728) is supposed to be home for the Ruiz clan. We have a 15 day option period, so we could always back out, but I am very thankful at this point and I am not freaky out with buyers remorse. I believe we are being wise according to all the financial advice, housing expenses -- mortgage payment, homeowners insurance and property taxes -- don't exceed 30% of our gross monthly income. The school district is number 5 in the state overall and we have heard from everyone including our neighbor, the Principal of the number 1 district in the state, say he would send his kids to Peters. I am pretty pumped, but praying that if this is not a good decision we become aware in the next 15 days.

What's for Dinner

One of the hardest things for me about being a Domestic Engineer is coming up with dinner 365, okay lets be honest 150 nights of the year. I found this fun website that is simple and has great recipes for moms to help with this daunting task. There are also coupons to help pinch pennies in these economic times.

White Trash Water Park

I told the kids we could go to the pool today and after getting all ready I realized today is Monday. Sadly, the club is closed on Mondays. I was in a bit of a pickle. I sure didn't want to rain on my sweet little guys parade. He was extremely excited to go, so I came up with an alternative. Last year our WT pool, as Cory calls it, was a great form of entertainment for Caleb. He loved sliding down our little plastic slide into the water, so we set it up. Then we got a little more creative and stuck the sprayer through the whole and we had a three year old's paradise, a White Trash Water Park.
Spraying water and a slippery slide lead to hours of entertainment. Makaylee enjoyed the fun too, but her temperature gauge is too much like mommy's and the warm concrete was much more appealing.

I thought I would write down three ideas for each of the kiddos that describes them best in this stage.

Caleb
Inquisitive
Loves Baseball
Energetic & Adventurous
Exhibit A. canon balling of the slide



Makaylee
Determined
Affectionate (loves cuddling with Mommy and blankey and giving kisses to everyone)
Wants to do whatever big brother is doing including drinking his sippy cup
As I write this I am watching a movie, which starts out with 2 divorcees dropping their kids off at the airport to go visit the other parent. I started tearing up, just thinking about this terribly difficult situation that is a reality for so many. I understand this struggle well having grown up in a divorced home. This scenario reminds me of how thankful I am that I have such an amazing husband who puts his family above all else. I am thankful we have so much fun together and that I know my children feel loved. In the mist of life's little frustrations it is good to remember what's truly important.

Loving the Proverbs

Reading the Proverbs has lead to a number of teachable moments lately, mostly for me.

We are trying to decide on the house situation and I've loved being reminded daily that we ultimately are not in control we just need to search our hearts and do what we believe is right but ultimately God's will, prevails. This is encouraging unless your heart is being lead by wrong motives. Although, this may sound simple, I'm finding there are many factors that lead to our decisions and I can't 100% with confidence say I know my heart is 100% pure. We are currently searching and praying we make a wise, God honoring decision. I really wish I could hear God's voice. I have always struggled with knowing which purchases are okay. Like for instance if I can buy a perfectly good pair of jeans for $20, but they are not as cute on as the $120 jeans is it wrong to buy the expensive jeans?
Proverbs 20: 5 The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.
Proverbs 21:2 All a man's ways seem right to him, but the LORD weighs the heart.
Proverbs21:5 The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.

I've also been convicted sadly by these verses.
Proverbs 20:3 It is to a man's honor to avoid strife, but every fool is quick to quarrel.
Proverbs 21:19 Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and ill-tempered wife.
I am not sure what my problem is, but I've been amazingly critical of Cory lately. I'm currently working on having the appropriate emotions for the situation. I think because of life I have formed self protecting walls that cause me to be very cold when I am hurt. I guess my pride never wants people to see I am weak. It doesn't work great in marriage, so I am thankful God is showing me this and praying refining goes quick for Cory's sake.

I've been so tired since we got back from Hawaii. I can't seem to adjust back. So Proverbs 20:4 A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing or Proverbs 20:13 Do not love sleep, or you will become poor; Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with food should have been motivators, but with Makaylee sleeping until noon and Caleb happy to watch Mickey Mouse this morning seeing my eyelids on the couch was way to appealing.

Finally, Caleb has been telling lies. I am not sure when it started, but I've really noticed this past week. I don't know if he really understands what he is doing, so I am currently trying to teach him what a lie is and help him understand that when there are eggs still on his plate he didn't eat them all. These verses have been wonderful tools. Now if I could just remember the actual verse and not my sad paraphrased version when I need them.
Proverbs 19:5 A false witness will not go unpunished, And he who tells lies will not escape.
Proverbs 19:22
What is desirable in a man is his kindness, And it is better to be a poor man than a liar.

Independence Day

I want to start out by thanking the brave people throughout history who have fought for my freedom. I love this country and know it is such a blessing that I'm free. I also want to thank my 5th grade teacher Mr. Collins for fighting in World War II and loving children enough to teach us that freedom wasn't free and many sacrificed much. He also made us aware that many great nations were destroyed by following bad leaders.


Cory had a publicity thing for work, so we all went to the Carnegie Science Museum for the 4th. It was so much fun. They had many great attractions for the kids. It was so cute watching the kiddos ride around together on this fun little rocket thing. Makaylee surprisingly only flirted with getting dumped a couple times.
Caleb loved this water fountain and it was pretty fascinating how the water could juggle balls. Caleb really thought it was fun to throw the ball and get it in the whole. He celebrated every time.
There was an area for under 6 that had a number of fun exhibits for the kiddos.

Their water exhibit was amazing and it simulated a river and the flow of water.
There was a conveyor belt that the kids could put balls in and it would move to the top until it was full and then like rain would dump the balls. They loved this exhibit, it brought big smiles to both their faces.

We watched the fireworks on the river on an old Submarine.


It was the most amazing fireworks show I've ever seen and the kids absolutely loved it. Caleb kept saying over and over, "Yeah Baby."