I made this for D and Michele while they were visiting and they wanted the recipe. So here it is

Nana's Pumpkin Bread*

*makes enough for 2 loaves

5 eggs
1/4 c. vegetable oil....can substitute olive oil
1 c. solid pumpkin (15oz. can)
2 c. flour
2 c. sugar
2 pkgs. vanilla pudding mix (cook & serve or instant it doesn't matter)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat eggs, oil, pumpkin until smooth. Gradually add other ingredients beating until smooth. Pour into loaf pans. Bake 50-55 minutes or until a knife inserted in middle comes out clean.

It all began with this.
I can't believe it myself that here I am, 1 year and 244 posts later and counting.

Just a week ago, a mom from Ana's playgroup came up to me and said, "I have to tell you I have really enjoyed reading your blog, I mean I knew you before but now I feel I really know you."

That is one of the many reasons why I started this sideline. There are sufferings and joys behind every face of every person in this world. I am just one of those faces. In the past year I have written about my sufferings, and my joys in recounting our seasons, my faith, birthdays, pregnancies, cancer, house guests, friends, travels, football and so much more.

In the process this blog has blessed me by giving me:

A way to put my life in perspective.
A home for all the moments I previously would file away in my head.
A permanent residence for the first time in my forever changing life.

And...

I have enjoyed writing it!
I hope my faithful readers and those just passing by have enjoyed reading it.

Stay tuned....

Win/Win

It was a soggy homecoming win last night 41-6.

In the first groggy minutes of my morning after a late night of cleaning up after the post game party, Doug thanks me for last nights festivities and declares to me that he gets really really nervous before a game. Then he leaves to watch film and practice. I drink my coffee slow and relish that our house is quiet, our house guests gone, Camryn at a friends house sleepover and Cade and his father watching film with the team. I start to wake up and then the understanding slowly comes. He gets nervous before a game that is why he gets further away as game day gets closer. He gets nervous before a game that is why he goes back to the office every night of the week until 11 to watch film. He gets nervous before a game and he is grateful I take care of everything else so he doesn't have to.

Yes honey, I understand and your welcome.

Pumpkin Patch

Food for thought

I was watching Rachel Ray's show or more like the Rachel Ray show was on in the background of my day yesterday and I heard her making this recipe (which I am sooo trying really soon) and when she got to the blue cheese she said something like, "if you are making this for your family you can make real blue cheese sauce for dipping like blue cheese and buttermilk, but if it is just for guests fake it with store bought blue cheese." When I heard this I turned my attention to the TV. Then I proceeded to have this conversation with myself:

"Did she say to use the store bought for your guests and make the real stuff for your family? "

"Yes, I believe that is what she said."

This made me stop and think for a minute. Yes this is the right thing to do. You give your best to your family and the second best to the world. But too often I bake brownies and give away the "perfect" ones and keep the broken ones for us. Or the cookies that came out too dark on the bottom? Those would be ours too. I will go out of my way to find a great new recipe to try for functions I go to. Or if I am having guests over I buy flowers for the table and set it with a tablecloth. I finally realized the truth that I give the home made blue cheese away. And give my family the store bought kind. It made me sad to think this because I never ever would have realized this otherwise but it really is true. So I am wondering do I do it because I get tons of praise and accolades from guests? Then that's a bad thing too because I am motivated by my pride.
There is a song that plays a lot on this Christian station I listen to. I don't know who sings it but the lyric goes, "This is your life are you who you want to be?"
No not yet but I am trying.

Wildfires

Please pray for the people of Southern California. Thankfully most of our family is not there but Jaja still is. Pray for an end to the fires, and for the firemen and women who selflessly and tirelessly do their job.

Waiting for a star to fall

Lately, Ana is only content in the car if she is holding my hand. It works fine as long as I don't need to turn, adjust the radio or answer my phone. Then usually after about 10 minutes, the blood flow to my arm starts slowing down as a result of my front to back reach and the numbness sets in. I am in agony at this point but I dare not let go, lest she cry and wake up her backseat sleeping companion. So that is how we roll these days. Tonight as I was sitting with her holding her hand before she fell asleep, I felt her grip get lighter and lighter as she fell deeper and deeper into dreamland. I thought to myself this is how life is isn't it? That hold I have over her that makes her feel she needs to hold on to me, will gradually loosen until one day she will be gripping something or someone else. Sigh.

I know this truth from experience.

I also know that my baby, the way she gazes at me like I am the most interesting thing she has ever seen. And you bet I probably am since she only has about 3 months worth of experience, only lasts as long as it takes for her to realize there are so many other interesting things to catch and hold her gaze as I once did.

And Cade and Camryn? Those two can't even remember that we used to let loose dancing in our living room on many a snowy afternoon because we just had so much energy to get out. And they would mimic my moves and tell me I was a good dancer. Because these days my dancing makes them shake their heads and tell me not to ever, ever do that in front of anyone.

So I know how it goes...One minute your a star the next an old has been.

Check this blog out. People send their secrets to him on postcards and he posts them. What is your secret?

A Good night

Ana turned 2 a few weeks ago and boy did she ever. I don't want to complain about how she screams at us now when she needs something or how easily and readily she uses the word "no". But I do have to say, the most difficult thing has been her changing from being easy to put down for naps and bed, to down right fighting the very thought. So with the experience I have had with the other two I believed that allowing one of us to sit in the room next to her until she fell asleep would be fine but absolutely no back or head rubbing and positively no lying in bed next to her until she fell asleep. This I believed would just perpetuate the behavior and send a message to her that she is in charge not us. That was until I told my older sister about her change in behavior and how I planned to nip it in the bud immediately. She told me, "She's two. Lay with her. Rub her head. Give her what she is asking for right now. She will grow out of it, she is just needing you both right now. Maybe its the potty training, maybe it is Monica who knows just give her the attention she wants." So I did. At nap time I sat with her and held her hand, rubbed her head and sang a song...whamo she fell asleep in 5 minutes. No fighting, no crying, no coming out of the room a dozen times. Same deal at bedtime, I rubbed her head, held her hand... boom asleep again 5 minutes. It was a sweet 5 minutes because I prayed for her and I watched her eyes heavy with sleep close down a day we spent together. I also saw her smile with her eyes closed as she hugged my hand tightly. She was happy and so was I. Happy that I listened to my sister.

For my fellow online shoppers,

Last week I ordered two books from Barnes and Noble online. Today I ordered a shelf from Amazon. And in my usual day-late-dollar-short way I found out about this site that actually pays you back %'s for your online purchases. It is free and I got $5 put in my account just for signing up. The site has coupon codes, free shipping offers and limited sales too. Since I have four children, and family scattered all over the place, you bet I will be doing most of my holiday shopping online so it can't hurt to get a little payback for all the effort right?


If you sign up with Ebates please put in my e-mail address (sochafive at yahoo dot com) in the referring e-mail, and then we'll each get $5. Click here to sign up and Happy Shopping!

wins and losses

I know I have not been good about posting our football scores lately. We won this past Friday which brings our record to 5-1 for the season. I find myself a little busier since we now live on campus and all the before and after get togethers are now in our living room.

Sitting in the stands this Friday I couldn't help but think of the loss of this week as well as the win. Life keeps going on after someone passes away and I guess that is a good thing. But the courage that it takes for those left to go on just amazes me.

All together now...

We were invited to someone's home to watch the Patriots play Dallas today. When Doug called me yesterday to see if we were free to accept the invitation, I had to make sure he had it right, do they mean all of us? Because usually we only get invited to other people's homes in groups. Me and the girls or just the boys or me and the babies, or just Cade, or just Camryn, just me and Doug, etc..you get the picture. Doug assured me that yes we were all invited. Jackpot! Thank you kind friends for having us over we had a really good time!

This is what I found on Camryn's desk this morning. You have no idea how pleased I am that Ana's "teacher" thinks so highly of her!

Three Things

Jen over at et tu? is holding a group writing project and the topic is:

Three Things My Parents did Right so I thought I'd give it a go...

It would be simple to say the three things my parents did right was give life to me and my two sisters. But that was just the begining.

Three things that they both did right and that are important to me in my adult life are;

One, they both taught me to use the talents I have to serve others. My mom sings, plays guitar, can make any spot beautiful and cozy and she can draw and write. My father is a fixer, and he can design and build anything out of wood from toddler beds and bookshelves to front gates. I know this because I grew up watching mom sing at friends weddings and masses, I watched them both decorate and fix up the houses of relatives and most recently a priest, and my dad created one of a kind toddler beds for his grandkids. Where ever they go they leave a place better than it was when they got there. I can't say I have a talent of any kind, but when I bake something I always make extra to share with someone and when I had a turn with knitting I always gave away what I made. I got that from them for sure.

Another thing they did right was teach me generosity by living it. My mother and father are generous to a fault. They would give you the shirts they were wearing if you told them you wanted one just like it. Case in point, on my recent trip back home, I remarked that I liked a wood carved picture of Madonna of the Streets my parents had and sure enough my mother gave it to me before I left. They give away pictures off their walls all the time. Every time I see them they seem to give me something that is theirs. My mom finally told me why she does this. She told me my grandma Carrie used to give her things away too. She told my mom, "I want to enjoy watching people enjoy my things". My mom really got that, and she enjoys watching people enjoy the things she gives away too.

The third thing my parents did right is offer hospitality. No matter the size of our house or the kind of furniture we owned we had parties. And not just a bag of chips on the table. I remember watching them both buzz around getting ready for the party. Lighting candles, fresh flowers, setting up tables and chairs, making sure there was food and drink and that everything looked like we were expecting our guests. That's important to me too. I love to have people over, I love to entertain but most importantly I love making things look like I am expecting my guests by the simple added touches.

Las Cruces Part 2
Ok where was I? Oh yeah, I had previously waxed poetic about the scenery in my beautiful home state of New Mexico. Now I have to talk about the food. It's all about the food for me. When I go visit anywhere that I lived for a period of time I have to 'hit' all my favorite places to eat. Now when I go home it is very tricky because pretty much around every corner is a delicious place to eat, and I must add I come from a family of rocking good cooks!

Shortly after I moved from NM, I quickly discovered that what I consider to be Mexican food it is not what the rest of the world considers it to be.

New Mexican food is a fusion of Indian and Mexican cooking. It utilizes the agriculture that is grown in the region such as chile and corn. It doesn't matter where I go I have yet to find it done the way we do it in New Mexico. So really the only place to get this food is there unless I can get a a kind heart to ship me the ingredients then I can make it myself but that is a rare treat.

Given the limited legnth of my visit I usually eat way too much because I try to fit it all in.

However, this trip proved successful thanks to a family dinner at LaPosta.

I ordered the Rellenos (the one dish I am truly unable to make) served with a slaw along side the rice and beans. I had forgotten about this tasty and cooling salad which is a very good accompaniment to spicy dishes and I plan to make soon. I also satiated my 2 year sopapilla longing. Yummy!

Usually the last day of my trip I totally lose control and go way over the edge. This trip was no exception I actually ate a 10 ft. red enchilada. Not by myself I am not that crazy, I shared it with an entire community.

Now I will answer the 2 burning questions I know everyone is dying to ask me:

1. Yes it holds a record in the Guinness Book of World Records

2. It tasted delicious.

I am still glowing from all the antioxidants I consummed from the chile. Sigh.

The Little Things


I met her a year ago. She was beautiful, blond, healthy and strong. She made me laugh then by doing a little thing of snapping pictures of my kids at the games. Then she would give them to me which was always a nice surprise.

I heard she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer this summer. So I was surprised when a package and a very heartfelt note arrived at our house for Monica from her. It was a little thing but considering what she was going through it was a big thing that she went through the trouble.

I heard she was going through chemo. Then I saw her a few weeks ago at a football game. We talked for quite awhile and this time she told me she was a Catholic. I was so happy I gave her a little thing, my scapular and told her I would pray for her.

Today, I went to visit her in the hospital because she is dying. I was so honored that she asked to see me. When you are dying, time is precious and I know what a gift that a moment can be.

While I was there, I realized that all these little things and others I won't mention because my husband is private, just added up to a certainty that Doug and I are exactly where we are supposed to be and he is doing exactly what he is supposed to be doing.

It is in the little gestures that we don't even notice ourselves doing that could mean the world to another. Small gestures are really big when they are genuine.

Little things... I am going to try and take more notice in both giving and receiving them.
And I am going to squeeze my main squeeze a little tighter because his heart is no little thing.

Las Cruces Part 1

We arrived late Thursday evening, and under the cover of night you can be anywhere. But when I woke up I was immediately reminded that this isn't just anywhere. This is my home and this is where my wandering spirit has always felt at peace. This place is so different because of the sheer beauty of it. The sky is so big and open it seems almost like an ocean. An ocean that comes alive with waves of color every day at dawn and dusk.

It is a place where you can just look and look and be amazed at the depth of its beauty. A place where I always know where I am, and feel safe because of the mountains.

A unique landscape, one of the world's great natural wonders-the glistening white sands rising up from the heart of the Tularosa Basin.

The desert itself is an oasis. A place where the harsh conditions force adaptation.

The plants that live here are among the strongest most resilient of their kind. And yet, just a few miles west the land is greener, trees and crops of cotton, pecans, corn and of course the chile abound.

The dunes are ever changing,

growing, cresting and slumping but always advancing. Slowly but relentlessly, driven by strong southwest winds.

There is a spirit here that lives inside me and when I come back I replenish it, breathing it in with all my senses.

I can relate to the humility of the mountains that always sit waiting, the harshness of the hot dry air that forces the constant changing of the dunes. This is the place where I first feel in love with nature. Where I experienced the calming balm it can be while we are busy with the details of life. How it can draw you in and convince you that thriving in any condition is hard wired in all living things.