Life According to Cheryl...

Momma Lou and Cooper Dog

2011-09-01T09:01:00.001-07:00

We had to say goodbye to Lulu last year and that was hard, but really it was expected because she was getting so old and so frail. When Lulu died we were sad but we knew that she wasn't suffering anymore. She was 11 years old and for a bulldog that's a long life!

Well, tragidy struck our family Monday afternoon. My sweet Cooper dog passed. It was a horrific accident that should've never have happened. I have never felt so guilty and helpless in my life. Me, Evan and Ellie left to go run some errands on Monday afternoon. But before we left we let the dogs in because it's so hot outside....Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought that Cooper would get in the pantry and could fit his big head in a small dog treat bag, but he did. By the time I found him, it was too late. He was already gone. My heart is hurting so very badly. It hurts for Cooper, for my husband and most of all for my son who does not fully understand the meaning of death. He brings up Cooper all the time. He tells me how much he misses Cooper and how much he wants Cooper back. He asks me when Cooper feels better we can go get him or how long of a drive is heaven and questions like that. It breaks my heart. I'm trying to be strong, but it's really hard. I don't understand out of all the days, why did I have to leave that day. Why didn't I make sure the pantry door was closed. Why didn't we just leave the dogs outside.

Too Big, Too Fast...

2011-08-09T17:30:00.000-07:00

We had the kids pictures done last month. Evan 4 and Ellie 5 months old.

Pita Pizzas

2011-08-09T17:00:00.000-07:00

So, we've been doing P90x for a month now...We did great the 1st month! The 2nd month not so bueno...... BUT...... we are restarting it on Thursday!!!!!

Tonight I made Pita Pizzas!! They were so yummy! For a dinner that is less than 500 calories it was perfect!

Pita Pizza
1 pita pocket
1/4 cup pizza sauce
1/4 cup reduced fat mozzarella
4 pepperonis
couple of mushrooms

3 oz romaine lettuce
3 croutons
1 tbsp parmasan
1 tbsp of ceasar dressing

It's Official....

2011-06-24T10:29:00.000-07:00

We are P90xer's!

Jeremy and I started P90 on June 16th.... We have completed week 1 with success!

Stay at home MOM

2011-06-23T13:33:00.000-07:00

Life as a stay at mom...... well, what can I say about it? I have no time for anything:) LOL!!!!!!

My thoughts were extremely inaccurate before I became a stay at home mommy. I really thought that being a stay at home mom, I would have "time" to do things......................... Granted, there are those moments when I get to do some things....but the life of a stay at mom is just as fast paced as the rest of the world, we just do not have to be at a place of employment by 8 am. We're already at our place of employment. My job does not begin at 8am nor does it end at 5pm. My job is very demanding and amazing at the same time, without the pay, of course (except when I'm doing the laundry! Thank you JeReMy!) I don't get sick days or vacation days or insurance........ But, I do get lots of hugs and kisses all day long!!!!!!!

My life consists of being the best mommy and wife my family could ask for.. I spend my days cleaning the house, doing the laundry, wiping alllll of the little handprints and doodles (that Evan has ever so graciously drawn on my walls!), play dates, coloring, games, oh and some cooking/baking, too!

When God answered my prayers and opened a door for me to stay home. I found myself, suddenly, very apprehensive about it. Besides, the normal question, can we make it on 1 income..... My fear was, that I would lose myself in the process. That somehow, having a job defined me as a person. But, the main lesson that I have learned from this....is............ having an outside job doesn't define me. It doesn't make me the person that I am or the person that I so desperately WANT to be! It's my character that defines me! It's my family and friends and my relationships with people that define me. God made me with great plans and purpose! (Jeremiah 29:11, I know the plans that I have for you, declares the LORD. They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope.)

I know that I don't have it all figured out just yet, but I'm working on it!

My life with my family is 1000x better than I ever fathomed! Thank you Lord for being so gracious and allowing me the opportunity to stay home! Now please will you help me to maintain my sanity, so I can figure this new life as I know it, out!

AMEN!

Z U M B A !!!!!

2011-05-29T08:50:00.000-07:00

So, I've made the decision to become a zumba instructor!!!!! I can't wait!!!!! I take my training class August 6th and then I will become certified to teach classes anywhere!!!!! I'm super duper excited and can't wait!

WISH ME LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I hate this word "weight"

2011-05-29T08:38:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been 4 months since our beautiful little girl was born!!! and
I gained 50 lbs this go round......yikes!!!!
As soon as I had the go ahead, I returned back to weight watchers. After about 2 1/2 months, I started slacking...big time. Where was my motivation? I lost it:( So, Jeremy and I decided to do the HCG diet for awhile. I really don't like that diet. I was starving most of the time, which made me binge. I didn't lose as much as I should've doing that diet. The HCG diet is a very hard diet to do. If you are a very disciplined person, you'll probably do very well. Not saying that I'm not disciplined, but I have room for improvement. Also, I've noticed that I'm an emotional eater, when I'm sad, happy, depressed or bored, I eat. Also noticed that when I gain weight, I eat. When I lose weight, I celebrate and EAT!!!! And it's not always the healthy stuff. I have a sweet tooth that seems to take over my body sometimes. It's such an emotional rollercoaster. I need to fix it!!!!!!!

Well, anyways, I'm done ranting.... On a positive note ~ I am happy to report that I have lost 20lbs to date....

I still have about 30 - 35 more lbs to go.......... I'm off HCG and I can finally work out again!!!!
Weight has never been an issue really in my life and now it consumes me and I HATE IT!!!!!!
I just got a new book called Made to Crave ~ thanks to my friend for referring it to me:) I'm hoping that this new book will help me see the light so I can get this weight off forEVER!!!!!!!

4 years old already!!!!!

2011-05-28T23:10:00.001-07:00

New flowers and dragonfly friend

2011-05-09T13:03:00.001-07:00

Trying something new

2011-05-09T12:56:00.000-07:00

Gardening!

Never done it!

Not sure if it's right, but we'll see............

Day 1: Built 2 - 4' X 4' boxes.. Mixture of dirt, vermiculite, moss and compost.........

Day 2: Planted the seeds - watered.............now let's see what happens!

Where was this when I needed it the most........... Great REMINDER!!!!!

2010-09-22T12:45:00.000-07:00

Stop, Look, Listen.....by Rick Warren

"A fool gives vent to his anger but a wise man keeps himself under control."Proverbs 29:11

Why is it so important to keep our anger under control? Because uncontrolled anger can become a habitual way of responding to life. Pretty soon, your anger controls you instead of you controlling your anger.

The Book of Proverbs is filled with practical steps on how to control your anger. Let me share three. The easiest way to remember them to remember a little phase that you may have learned as a child when you were taught to cross the street: Stop, Look, Listen.

1. Stop. Stop and think before you speak. I don't know why it is but angry words always seem to come to easily. I know some people who, when they get angry, are witty, sarcastic, quick! But a sharp tongue is the quickest way to cut your throat.

Proverbs 14:17 says, "A quick tempered man does foolish things." and Proverbs 15:1 says, "A gentle answer turns away wrath but harsh words stir up anger." The starting point in dealing with anger is to stop and watch what you say!!!

2. Look. Look at the situation from God's point of view, not your point of view. That means be mature enough to overlook minor hurts, frustrations and insecurities. If someone insults you, criticizes you, or puts you down, be mature enough to say, "It's not going to bother me." Proverbs 12:16 says "A man's wisdom gives him patience. It is his glory to overlook an offense."

Anger, like every other emotion, is caused by the way you see a situation. If you want to control your anger, one way to do it is change your point of view.

3. Listen. Listen to the needs and hurts of those people that you're tempted to be angry against. Any angry person is just a hurting person. They're hurting inside, they're frustrated. When you listen to their needs, it's easier to respond and not get angry.

"Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry." James 1:19
If you do the first 2, the 3rd will come automatically. If you are quick to listen and slow to speak, it is going to be automatic that you are slow to become angry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Baby Vetus:)

2010-06-18T13:53:00.000-07:00

Jeremy and I decided that our trip to Vegas would be the jumping off point to start trying to have another baby. May rolls around, no pregnant belly yet. Then June 3rd I decided to go ahead and take a test, I mean b/c I couldn't wait, that was the day I was supposed to start and I hadn't yet, so I took a test. I mean hello, I'm impatient.....and sure enough it's positive!!!!! I was super excited, but nervous at the same time. Jeremy hadn't gotten home from work yet, so I was pacing and figiting waiting anxiously for Jeremy to get home. Finally he got home and was watering the tree and I took the test outside and said well, here it is. I handed him the test and he looks at it and says what does that mean? It's POSITIVE!!!!!!!!! He was like Oh wow! That was fast! Welp, I guess we'd better start preparing for baby #2!!!!

So, we didn't tell anyone til Saturday, we told our moms. You can imagine my anxiety at work. I wanted to tell, but I wanted to wait.

So, anyways, we told our moms, then we waited til we went to Dallas and told Steven and Misti! We had to tell our friends, that we were planning a trip to Vegas in February of 2011, that we wouldn't make this trip, that we'd be having a baby instead.........then we told our bosses.

We're so very excited! Though it's still very early in the pregnancy it's still overwhelming and nervousness sets in. But, I know that everything will work out and happen the way that it's meant to. Please pray for our little family and our soon to be new addition!!!!!!!!!

I did it!

2010-04-10T17:41:00.000-07:00

Well, I hit it today! I reached my 10% goal with weight watchers!!!! I've lost a total of 16.2 lbs!!!! Now it's time to think about my long term, ultimate goal!!!!!!!!

Hanging by a thread...

2010-04-07T14:30:00.000-07:00

So, this is my 12th week on weight watchers. And for some reason, this week and last week have been the hardest weeks so far. I haven't been tracking, eating right or exercising right....

Thus far, I have lost 15.4 lbs. I'm almost about to hit my 10% goal and Lord help me....I keep self sabotaging myself. Why do I do this to myself?

success

2010-02-14T09:53:00.000-08:00

I weighed in yesterday and I am happy to report that I reached my 5% goal!!!! I have lost 9.2 lbs so far and am super motivated and excited about it!!!!!!

BITE IT ~ WRITE IT

2010-01-31T10:10:00.000-08:00

So, I joined Weight Watchers 3 weekends ago!!!!!!!! I just attended my 3rd meeting yesterday and I gotta say I really do like it! I love the tips, recipes and the women there, they just boost your motivation and help you stay on track!
So, far I'm down 4.8 lbs....which may not sound like a lot, but hey, it's a start!
It's not as hard as I thought it would be.
I'm getting in the habit of tracking everything that I eat and making better choices as to what to put in my mouth........ I bite it ~~~~ I write it:)
I've been going to the gym on a regular basis and am lovin' it!!!! Never really thought I could enjoy working out so much, but I do!!!!!!!!!

I've never paid much attention to things that I eat, really. Even some of things that I've eaten in the past that I thought would be a healthy choice have really not been that healthy of a choice.

Anyways, here's a breakfast sandwich that I've been eating and it's wonderful!!!!!!!!!!

1- Orowheat english muffin - extra fibra - toasted
1/4 cup egg beaters - scrambled
1 slice of canadian bacon - heated
1 wedge of garlic and herb skinny cow cheese

It is soo yummy and it's only 4 points!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, anyways, just wanted share my success thus far and will keep posting!!!!!!!!!!

Back on track....

2010-01-18T11:20:00.001-08:00

Well, trying to get back on track anyways.....

I went to my first weight watchers meeting on Saturday morning! It was very inspiring!
I know that I've got to loose weight and dieting (for me) is not the answer.....it's a lifestyle change. It's making a conscience effort to watch and control what I eat. So, here we are again......
I have a different mind set about it this go round. So, we'll see what happens!!!!!!

Day 1: was really good! Exercised and ate (almost perfect)
Day 2: was ok. Ate good and cleaned house....which is an aerobic activity in itself.
Day 3: Off to a great start!!!!!! Will go to the gym tonight!!!!!!!!!

I weigh in on Saturday!!!! I'll update!!!!

Wish me luck!!!!!!!

This is a Home Where Children Live

2009-11-12T17:57:00.000-08:00

I loved this..................... so I wanted to share it:)

This is a Home Where Children Live

You may not find things all in place,
Friend, when you enter here.
But we’re a home where children live,We hold them very dear.
And you may find small fingerprintsAnd smudges on the wall.
When the kids are gone, we’ll clean them up,Right now we’re playing ball.
For there’s one thing of which we’re sure,These children are on loan.
One day they’re always underfoot,Next thing you know, they’re gone.
That’s when we’ll have a well-kept house,When they’re off on their own.
Right now, this is where children live,A loved and lived-in home.

Halloween 2009

2009-11-03T12:26:00.000-08:00

This year for Halloween, we went to Turning Point's Fall Festival which was at Vintage Township, the cutest neighborhood in Lubbock! I made brownies for the festival!!!! Which I was kinda disappointed, b/c I made 3 boxes of brownies, but b/c they requested that the brownies be 3" and 2 per baggie..........I only had 16 baggies to contribute:( boooooooo.

Well, anyways, we met up with my sister, Josh and my nephew at the clock tower. We were off to play games!!!!! The boys looked so cute in their costumes, we had buzz lightyear and a monkey and they couldn't wait to get their grubby little hands on some candy! We took buzz and the monk to some of the houses to do some trick or treatin. They did really well!!!! They finally grasped the concept of Trick or Treating.....they would go to the houses, knock and say "trick or treat" and then "thank you". Then Evan would proceed to dig in the people's candy bowls, selecting the candy that he wanted....silly boy! Well, then Jeremy decides to teach them how to say "Give me some candy, for free!" In a deep, growly voice.....hahaha. It was funny!

We finished at Vintage Township around 8:00. So me, Jeremy and Evan went to the Shepard's house for their Halloween party! It was laid back and perfect! We ate and drank punch and visited with some friends we haven't seen in a while!!! Thanks Jeremiah and Angie for having us over! It was the perfect ending to a fun day!!!!!

Next year, Jeremy and I will be dressing up for Halloween!!!!!!!! hahaha, so watch out!!!!!!!!!!

STRIKE!!!!!!!!

2009-11-03T12:18:00.000-08:00

Fun night of bowling, food and lots of beer!!!!

Home Sweet Home.....

2009-08-26T20:40:00.001-07:00

Well, we finally did it. We moved into a new house. We moved in March, just now getting to add it to my blog. We love it!!!!!! PROUD NEW HOME OWNERS!!!!!!!!!

Jeremy and Cheryl

2009-04-25T16:29:00.000-07:00

Baby Shower Success!

2009-04-25T16:24:00.001-07:00

Some girls at work and I had a baby shower for a co-worker whose due May 18th....

It was fun!!!!!!

This is the 1st diaper cake that I've made....I think it turned out pretty cute:)

To Landon

2009-01-31T11:26:00.000-08:00

The other day I was having a pretty emotional day. Well, while I was work, I decided to google my name, then Jeremy's name, then I googled Landon's name. I found of course the normal websites with the events that transpired on April 1, 2004, the pictures of Landon and of course the obituary, which still makes me cry. But, then I found another website that I had not seen before. There were only a few posts from people that loved Landon and one from Stephen (Jeremy's older brother, long story) though he never got to meet Landon, he was very touched and inspired by him, his talents and how many lives Landon had touched in his short life here and wrote on that site.

http://www.memorial.to/php/vmg/decor.php?V00001DA6,Landon+Velasquez

Landon:

You are so dearly missed by all of us. There is not one day that goes by that Jeremy nor I don't think about you. Although we know that you are rockin out in Heaven, that doesn't make the pain go away. Everytime we look at precious little Evan, we can't help but think about how much he favors you. I still remember the very last time we saw you. I remember how much you made us all laugh and how adorably handsome you were. You were going to be a heartbreaker that's for sure. I remember when you would play the guitar for me and tell me all about your new band that you were in and how excited you were about it. Me and Jeremy would talk about how you were going to be famous one day and that we would see you on MTV rockin that guitar. You were the next SRV! We were truly proud of you! You were an awesome kid. I am soooo very blessed and grateful that I had you in my life, for only a few years, but I will never forget you. You were an awesome brother in law and I know you would've been an awesome uncle to Evan. My only wish is that we would've had more time with you. That you would've got to meet Evan and to play in a band with Jeremy. You are terribly missed. I know that we will all get to see you again one day, but that still doesn't make the pain go away. We love you Mr. Landini:)

Oh and by the way, if I never told you thank you for all those times you came down to visit me at Circuit City with coffee in hand, from barnes......Thank you:) You brightened my days:)

I blinked...........

2009-01-02T09:09:00.000-08:00

and 2008 was gone....... We did it, we made it through another year!!!!!!!! I know that God was with us throughout the year and completely blessed us. We owe it all to God!

The beginning of 2008 started off slow and boring......... but then things got busy. I mean, real busy.....and I don't even know why, but our life just started to take on a life of it's own.............

My interpretation of 2008:

Truly Blessed, Busy, Chaotic, Fun, Happy, Depressing, Outstanding, Amazing, Unforgettable, Stressful, Awesome, etc...

I learned new words for my vocab (eventhough I don't use them, hehehehehe)

Blamestorming: Combination of blaming and brainstorming. Used when co-workers sit around trying to figure out who is at fault for a missed deadline or botched project. “The client wasn’t happy. You know the boss will want to have a blamestorming session.”

Swipeout: When the magnetic strip on a credit card wears out due to use. “I just called my credit card company because my old card had a swipeout.”

Friendiligence: The amount of time it takes to maintain friend requests on social networks such as MySpace and Facebook. “I just don’t have time for all of this friendiligence!”

Prehab: A program to prevent young stars from behaving inappropriately. “Looks like Miley Cyrus is the only one who’s been to prehab.”

Irritainment: A celebrity spectacle that, like a car wreck, you just can’t turn away from. “Brittney Spears provided enough irritainment for 2007.”

Bromance: Combination of brother and romance used to describe a strong heterosexual relationship between to males. “Ben Affleck and Matt Damon have a great bromance.”

Earjacking: Eavesdropping on a conversation. “That guy at that table over there is earjacking us!”

and last but not least, and my favorite that I have used is: (drum roll)

Ginormous: Combination of gigantic and enormous. “That sandwich I just ate was ginormous.”

Evan turned 1!!! We had a birthday party for him at the park. Great birthday party, except for the wind and dirt blowing 5000 miles per hour......... * mental note, NO BLUE ICING AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I turned the big 3 - 0!!!!!!!! I'm hoping that my thirties will be magically and unforgettable!

Jeremy and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary!!!!!!

I got a new job!! Score!!! It's an awesome job, I no longer get belittled, cussed at and treated like the scum on the bottom of someones ostrich leather wanna be cowboy boots!

We did some traveling to Dallas and Colorado! Went to the nascar race, some concerts, of course to the movies, went to our share of birthday parties, weddings, wedding and baby showers.

Made some new friends and lost some friends:(

I lost 30 lbs!!!! Now my new year's resolution is to lose at least 20 more lbs and TO KEEP IT OFF!!!!!!!! (easier said than done)

Overall, 2008 was great!!!!! Here's to another blessed and amazing year....

I pray that all my friends and my family have a blessed and prosperous year in 2009!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today I learned.........

2008-12-28T18:40:00.001-08:00

that the oil from the wallflowers (bath and body) are not poisonous.

So, I'm sitting in the computer room checking my normal websites and all of the sudden I hear Evan making this gagging noise. I look over and there is wallflower holder in one hand the oil in the other.......I pick him up and he smells like evergreen. It's all around his mouth.......so of course, I'm about to freak and I'm asking him if he drank it.....which hello, he's 19 months old, of course he's not going to tell me that he drank it. All he kept doing was making this gagging sound and this little face like he just ate something nasty. So, I'm maintaining my composure and get my phone....Thank God for Poison Control.

~ So for future reference, should anyone's child ever consume this oil (not too much though), here's what they told me to do......

It's not poisonous, it just leaves an unpleasent, burning sensation in the mouth.
1. wipe out the child's mouth.
2. give the child something cold to drink.
3. monitor the child.

That's it. So, needless to say I was very relieved.

All Aboard........

2008-12-05T08:22:00.000-08:00

Finally, it was here. We were going to get to ride the train!!!!!!!! We made our way to the ticket counter, they had our tickets waiting for us! As we were lining up, the conductor was there greeting us as we made our way up the stairs. We found our seats and we were ready to go..

All Aboard the Polar Express!!!

As the train began to pull away from the station, you could feel the train rock back and forth. They dimmed the lights, began to read the story of the polar express and away we went to the North Pole. We got to the North pole and that's where Santa and his elves were awaiting our arrival. They climbed on the train and we sang and danced (well, the kids danced) and we ate cookies, drank hot cocoa and santa visited each child, checking to see who's been naughty or nice and of course, what they wanted for Christmas. It was so cute to see the kids and their happy little faces as they were greeted by Santa Claus. Evan was a little afraid of him at first, with his big red face and white long beard and his gruffy sounding voice. But, once he gave Evan a tiny little bell from him, he was fine.

We had a great time.. But I do highly suggest, that if anyone ride this and/or try to book your reservations for next year, do so early (like in October) and take some dramamine......that train rocks back and forth, pretty bad..................... Merry Christmas everyone!

Evan's first year pictures........They were done a couple of months ago....

2008-11-18T14:30:00.000-08:00

You wouldn't even know that he was a little toot that day.........

Might as well...

2008-11-18T14:19:00.000-08:00

Might as well give this a try..........since blogging seems to be the new rave, thought I might be part of the rave and start blogging. Hi, I'm Cheryl, I have been married for over 5 years to Jeremy and we have a handsome little 18 month old boy who has been such a blessing in our life:)

I have a pretty average, run of the mill life. When nothing is going on, life is pretty boring, but you know what they say....when it rains it pours, so when we are busy......open up the flood gates........somedays I feel so busy that I can't even breath.............but that's our life. busy one day and boring the next...... But, overall, life couldn't be better. God has poured out his blessings on us. We both have great jobs, all 3 of us have good health, we have a house, 2 cars and food on the table! What more could we ask for?