December 2009

Two More Days!
Anticipating the birth of our baby sure is Fun!
Our Baby's due date is December 31. Today is December 29, so this means two more days, or any day now:-) We as so anxiously waiting:-)!

Lots has happened since my last post

Last Week With My Students
The last week of school went well with all the Christmas activities. The Christmas musical play went well. Darena decorated the gyms so nice. It was a very joyful night. Friday the PJ/classroom parties were a lot of fun and there was a lot of food. Connected with kelsi, the new teacher at our school, she is such a sweet girl. It was my last day with my students. I won't see them fo a while. I will surely miss them.

Long Term Substitute
Gordon has been going the last three Fridays to Loma Linda to help his mom unpack and help here get settle. This week he even went this Thursday, December 24 to help move and put together her new living room furniture.

My Birthday
For my birthday was so good to sleep in and be in my PJs all day. I want to get a new camera for my birthday girt so we spent the day searching on line and learning about different cameras. We went out to a few stores to look at cameras and then out to eat at the Olive Garden. We did not buy a camera, but decided in which one we want. Now we have to spent the money to get one. Don't know when that will be.

Decided on the Baby's Name
Finally decided on the baby's name. We wanted our family input so we shared the name with my family is Sacramento and they liked it. Gordon's family also likes it. His name is going to be Ezra Michael Harty.

Christmas Vacation
The first week of Christmas vacation I have spend getting ready Mrs. Linda Fint, my long term substitute. She will be teaching my class. I worked all the way until about 6:00 in the evening Christmas Day. Gordon stopped by the school on his way back from Lona Linda to help the last hour. LOVE him so much:-)!

December 25
Christmas Day was at our house with the Hartys, Gordon's family. We had a late lunch, Gordon, Stew and the boys played catch at the big field next to our house. It was fun seeing them climbing the fence:-) The day ended with us opening gifts.


December 26
We went to church and decided to invite some friends (Tim and Fanny) over to help us eat the left overs from the Christmas Day lunch. They liked my food. They liked my rice and my black beans I cooked in the slow cooker. After sunset, worked until 1:30 a.m. getting the last of the school things ready for Mrs. Fint.

December 27. First Baby Laundry
Visited Mrs Finn and deliver the school things ready for her to use. visited with her and her friend for a while. Was fun visiting with them. Then went to Winco and bough new HA All detergent to use to do the baby laundry. Spent the afternoon going through our gifts and separating the newborn baby clothe. Was very fun! Such small and cute things:-)
Did 3 loads of baby clothes and blankets and bibs laundry.

Putting the Crib Together Was Fun!

The teachers (my co-workers) from my school gave us the crib

Gordon had fun putting it together

I had fun taking pictures

Done!
No one had giving us the mattress yet. It has no mattress yet.

MSACA Baby Shower for Tirzo

Demcember 3, MSACA(Murrieta Springs Adventist Christian Academy) Baby Shower

The parents of my students were so kind to organized a baby shower for me:-)
Tina Kimes, the mother of one of my second grade boy was a key person in putting all together.
She made the invitations and organized the parents and everything.
The baby shower started right after school at 3:00 pm. and was in one of the classrooms of out school. The classroom that is connected to the gym and is used as a school kitchen.
It was a very fun and special time together. Love all the gifts they gave me. Our little baby is going to have so many cute things.
I am so very grateful to all of them:-)

At the door, entrance to the party

These center peace were on the tables that were just outside the door of the classroom in the gym.

Decoration.....so cute!

This was part of the decoration and also gifts for our baby.

A beautiful dipper cake with highly recommended kind of baby shoes for when he starts standing up to try to walk. Lot's of advise and and baby tips from all the mothers. LOVE it!


My chair next to the gifts

Played some fun games!

Opened lots of gifts!
Got lots of cute baby clothes, a couple of toys, lots of cute stuffed animals, bath, bath needs for the baby, lots of miscellaneous baby things, gift card ,a big stroller that has everything a and a small light stroller for when he is bigger, ..... and my co-workers, Sonia and the teacher gave us the crib. I feel so bless:-)



Favors

Cup cakes

Food table decorations, a beautiful green plant surrounded with gorgeous stuffed jungle animals.

Among was a Freddy for me, Freddy the frog:-)

Jungle Theme....LOVED it!!!


There was lost of good food!

First Baby Gift

November 10 and 11
I though the name thing was over but, no, the children kept asking the rest of the week about if I have decided on a name for the baby. They sure have taken such interest in this. My students are only in First and Second grade but want to hear from my mouth the assurance that I have given in and will name the baby Freddy.
The kids from last year that are in third grade now gather around me at recess asking questions about the baby. The name question comes up all the time. I say I'm thinking to name him Tirzo. They laugh so hard every time because they think that is a very funny name, I don't know why? They keep on insisting that his name should be Freddy. But I can't name him Freddy because then I can use that name for my pets and the flies and bugs that come in the classroom any more:-)


Thursday November 12, First Baby Gift

Hailie's mother, Tina Roller, gave me a big white bag full of baby cloth. She has a one and a half baby boy. I opened it and it had beautiful newborn baby cloth and baby shoes. So Cute!!!! I cried! I loved it! I cried the whole time I was going through the clothe:-) Thank you Tina and Hailie:-) My baby already has enough cloth for at least the first three months of his life, I think:-)Baby clothe and baby shoes

We don't have a dresser of a place to put the baby clothes so fro now they are on the floor.

Baby shoes and our shoes. So cute!
Close up of baby shoes. They look big in this close up but in reality they are very tiny.

Friday November 13
Friday school is out at 12:30. I managed to leave school about 1:30 and met Gordon at Babies R Us. We were at Babies R Us until sundown. We were able to decide in the crib, changing table, rocking chair for the nursery and a lot other essentials we need for the baby. I did not wanted to leave the store for too reasons; I did not feel like we were finish and we were having so much fun! I think I'm discovering that I love babies sores:-) Is like being in Disneyland:-) LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!

Fun Doing our Baby Registry!

We have had so much fun doing the baby registry the last few weeks. Be learned we do not know much about babies. It was overwhelming and very educational. After going to a few stores that sell baby things we decided to morrow it down to just two stores. We are so excited!!!!!

I have learned I Love this store. Our baby has in noteven born yet and I think I have been here five time already. I take any excuse to go back to this store any day:-) Love looking at baby things!

So many things to look, learn about them and decide weather the baby we will be needing them or not.

Doing the registry was fun. They gave us this gun and we mark things we want to have for us to have to care for the baby:-) It reminded us when we were doing the wedding registry....so much fun!

It took us going back to the store a few times to decide on the straller and all the baby gear we need.

This store has awesome things for babies. LOVE this store!

So cute! Fell in love with this little lamb. It is for the crib. It plays sound the baby is used to hearing in the mother's womb. The tell us it's very relaxing for newborns.

Deciding in a nursery theme took some time. Was hard to decide because there are so many beautiful ones. Visited Target, Big K, Baby R Us and Pattering Barn for Kids.


I think I like this nursery theme!

Gordon likes it too. I think this is it!!!!

Pay Back Time........with Freddy

My students are so excited about my baby! They are excited for me but they are excited for them too like if it's going to be a baby brother for them:-) They are so celebrating the soon coming of my baby!!!!!! I did not know it was going to be so joyful like this! I LOVE it:-)!!!

Pay back Time........ with Freddy
One of the questions that my students asked me about was, what is the baby's name? I told them that we had not decided on a name but we have a list and one of the names we are thinking about is Tirzo. They all laugh very hard, like belly laugh hard because the name Tirzo was very funny for them. Then they said that I should name my baby Freddy since I like that name so much. There is history with the name Freddy and me you see. Freddy is the name I give to each of our classroom pets we have every had. We only have one pet at the time and I always name it Freddy. Then that pet dies or is taken back to the home that let us borrow it and we get another pet, the new pet's name is Freddy. Also, every time a fly comes in our classroom I named it Freddy the Fly......get the picture:-) When they suggested Freddy I immediately said "No, children, Freddy is a name I use for all my pets. Freddy is not the name for my baby." The kids all got excited insisting that I have to name my baby Freddy. They started chanting; "your baby boy's name should be Freddy.......Mrs. Harty loves that name!" It took me great effort to calm them down and get them to stop.
O.K. I admit, it's pay back time. They are getting me back for all the times they wanted to name our classroom pets a different name and I have insisted in Freddy. Now they are insisting that my baby boy should be Freddy because I name everything Freddy:-) But the reality is that I am not naming my baby Freddy, but I'm not telling them that just yet...he,he,he:-):-)

Loma Linda Hospital 100th Year Anniversary

The Sabbath of October 31 we attended a Loma Linda celebration but had not time to blog about until today. It was a great sabbath! That weekend, the Loma Linda University School of Medicine was celebrating their 100th anniversary.

They had great Music!

Listen to Pastor Robert Randy's inspiring sermon

Very informative and moving interview of Baby Fae's mother by Dr. Baily himself.

There were some children present age 2-23 that have had hear transplants at Loma Linda since Baby Fae died.......very moving.

Gordon, him mom, Stew and I ending the day enjoying a meal!

One Month and One week and Six Days Until our Baby is Born!

We are very busy and excited getting ready for our baby boy! He will be born in just a few weeks.

One of the my student's mother, Tina Kimes made this cute invitations. MSACA is giving me a baby shower! They mailed invitations to all the families of our school. They did not mailed me one but two were put in my box in the school office. I opened one and when I saw and read it I cried. A very moving moment for me!

At home I showed it to Gordon and his that was mom. It was so fun to just talk about the baby together. I put the invitation in a very visible place at home to see it every day:-) LOVE it!!!

The invitations for our baby showers have gone out! I am so excited!!!!! Tina Kimes it's being a key person from the beginning in making our adoption experience a great joy! She is such a blessing:-)

I put the invitation in a visible place in my house among the family pictures. I look at it every day:-)

The baby shower invitation among the family pictures.

My Classroom

Group Area and students desks

Classroom library and students desks


Computers and teacher's table

Celebrating Mom Harty's Birthday

Celebrating of Mom Harty's birthday and wedding anniversary.
First celebration without Dad Harty

Took Mom Harty for a day in San Diego

Enjoyed Beautiful San Diego!

Painting our Home

Eating at P.F. Chang's with Carlos one evening

Carlos painting our home


House painted! Great job Carls:-)!!!!!!!!

2009 MSACA Fall Festival

Gordon and I in front of the Grades K-2 Booth. The room mothers did a great job!

Lots of food!

Our principal

Mrs. Shetler

In jail a few times

A Day at Lake Arrowhead

Ada came to visit us at the end of July and we went to Lake Arrowhead for the day.

We took the boat ride around the lake. Very informative if you want to know the history of the lake.

Houses surrounding the lake

View of the lake. Our first time visiting this lake.

Fourth of July Weekend

Paul and Lani came to visit us the Fourth of July weekend



Enjoyed the Temecula Fourth of July fireworks

We visited the San Diego Zoo

Our Summer 2009 Vegetable Garden

My Students and I

Done by Elena Gipson Fotographer

March Field air Museum

To celebrate Gordon's birthday we went to a place he has been wanting to go for a long time, the March Field Air Museum. Gordon is a pilot and likes airplanes..... so he was in heaven here!

Captive, reading the history of the activities of each airplane before they were bought here.
Airplanes here have play and important role in history.

This is the B-17 that flew in Europe with England dropping
bombs over Germany

B-25 Mitchell. Same type of airplane in the Doolittle raid on Japan.
They flew the plane off an aircraft carrier to bomb Japan a few months after Pearl Harbor.

Early fuel air tanker

SR-71. Fastest thing in the sky -- or used to be.

This is the largest airplane. Longest serving aircraft the US still uses -- B-52

Gordon looking inside

Atomic bombs were carried inside here before dropped

Gordon did ride in one of this kind when he was in aviation school at PUC

A Day at Balboa Park - Ethnic Food, Garden and the Zoo

We visited Balboa Park about three weeks ago and had the greatest day! There was an Ethnic Food Fair, cultural music and cultural dances that day. They had a stage in the middle of all the food booths area with a full schedule of entrenchment one after the other all day long.

Our favorite was guitar music

There were also all kinds of dances

There was an Ethnic Food Fair.
Hundreds of countries had their own booth selling their typical food.
We ate at the house of Lebanon.

Enjoying the flowers at one of the Balboa Park gardens

The flowers were just beautiful!

We also enjoyed a complete organ concert. This organ is huge and is outdoors. Pretty neat:-)
After the concert, they lead us in a short tour of the inside of the organ. Impressive!

Us enjoying the organ concert. They have umbrellas to protect us from the sun while enjoying the organ music.

We also visited the zoo. The zoo is also in Balboa Park.
The zoo is very big, so we were only able to visit one section before it closed and 5pm.
Following are just a few pictures of the zoo animals.

The elephants were great. It was feeding time so they were busy eating.

Lot's a fur for a camel. This is because this camels are from South America.
I did not know that there were camels native of South America

This camel was walking around staring at me.

I never been in such a close approximation to zebras. They were so close that I was able to appreciate how beautiful they are.

The hipos were swimming so close that people felt like reaching out and try to touch them.

They have great birds exhibit in this cages that are so big that people are in the cages with the birds. This bird was giving us a show.

A Visit from My Parents

My parents came to visit us for a few days. We were so happy to have them in our house.
My mother cooked delicious meals for us and we had a great time eating them.

Gordon and my parents eating at our back yard.

My father got sick while visiting us. He suddenly had a Gout Attack. He had two of this attacks before so he knew the symptoms. His feet swelled, got purple and they hurt him very bad. It happened very fast. His feet got very bad in just a couple hours. He was in so much pain. We had to call his doctor back in Sacramento in the middle of the night and were able to get him on a medication to help with the gout attack and the pain. We had to help him walk every time he needed to walk. But he was in good spirit and enjoying the visit. He is a good patient:-) He did not want to miss anything. He participated in everything.

My sweet parents and I.

They were not able to come to church with us like we planned because it was hard and painful for him to walk. He was trying to not do much walking and rest his feet because he wanted to be able to walk better the next day for the reunion with his sister Marta in San Diego. (His sister Marta, her husband Beto and Janet one of their daughters had come to San Diego from Miami for a business trip for just a few days. The plan was to meet with them for a day). So they stayed home resting while Gordon and I went to church. We borrowed a wheelchair from our church for my father to use. The wheelchair helped him so much.

Dad eating some of Gordon's homemade popcorn.

His feet were hurting so much. He could only walk a few step and had to sit down.
We felt very bad for him. But he is a good patient. Very optimistic and positive. He wanted to enjoy every minute of their visit and did not want to miss in anything.

The Mini Reunion

We drove to San Diego to take my father to meet with his sister Marta. She and her husband tio Beto live in Miami Florida. One of their daughters Janet had to come to San Diego in a business trip and brought them with her. They have not seen each other in over 5 years and now they were face to face. They were so excited! We met at the lobby of their hotel. They looked so much forward to spending this day together. It was a mini reunion of one day full of joy!

Brother and sister did not know what to do with each other. They were hugging, holding hands, talking and kissing each other. There were a lot other chairs in the hotel lobby, but they just wanted to sit on the same chair together very close to each other. This went on for a good half hour. It was so beautiful to watch:-)

Gordon and tio Beto connected right away and had long conversations.
Tio Beto speaks English fluently.

We went up to their hotel room on the 28th floor to be in a more private place to visit with each other. From their hotel room they had a great view of the San Diego harbor.

Tio Beto and Dad sitting by the window of their hotel room.

Tia Marta and Dad (beautiful brother and sister)

They were so glad to see and be with each other. Lots of catching up to do:-)

Taking My Parents and Tios for a Walk at Balboa Park

Since my tio Beto and tia Marta had already been to the coastal San Diego's sight seeing areas when they visited five years ago. We decided to take them to Balboa Park. We also needed a one stop place that was wheelchair accessible. Balboa Park was perfect because it is mostly flat and full of sideways and ramps. This was the weekend of the Earth Day Fair at Balboa Park and it was full of people. There were hundreds of booths, outdoor shows, entertainment, and outdoor music..... It was also an unusual hot day for San Diego.

Dad, tio Beto and tia Marta.
Tio Beto pushed my dad in his wheelchair everywhere we went.

We stopped at a shaded area and did a lot of people watching and great conversation.
It was very joyful to hang out with the family.

My mom. The first Zulita:-)

Enjoying the Botanic Garden at Balboa Park.
We sat her for a good hour enjoying the garden and great conversation. Bother and sister had a lot catching up to do.

Dad, mom, tia Marta, tio Beto and Gordon

Dad trying to listen to one of my tia Marta's great stories as tio Beto pushes him and we walk around Balboa Park.

Tio Beto, dad, tia Marta, mom and I (Gordon took the picture)
Enjoying some drinks and great conversation at one of the eating places at Balboa Park.
We sat here at this patio for some good two hours. There was a great breeze at this patio, perfect for a hot day. It was so much fun!!! Tia Marta is sure a great storyteller! I can listen to her all day:-)

Helping dad walk to the car

Mi prima Janet did not go to Balboa Park with us because she was here in a Business trip and was busy all day. But we met her in the evening and we walked one of the streets of the San Diego Gas Lamp Distric and ate at a Mexican restaurant.

My parents and tio Beto and tia Marta at the Mexican restaurant.

All of us after eating. My parents, Tio Beto, tia Marta, Janet, Gordon and I.
Thank you for the Mexican food querida Janet:-)

After enjoying the beautiful sunset of the San Diego harbor from the hotel room window where they were staying. It was time to say, Adios:-(

Dad thanking tio Beto for pushing him in the wheelchair all day.
Tio Beto is by nature such a noble soul:-)



Back at my house a different day.
My dad and I the morning they were going back to Sacramento.
Here is when he is about to enjoy the fresh fruit/vegetable smoothie I prepared for him.