reyesrivera

Grandma Marshmallow

This is Ava's Great Grandma, Grandma Marshmallow.  She is very special and we are so blessed that she gives unconditional love & Marshmallows!

Just Don't See It?

Bruce, the older brother and All Mighty Moderator shared this with us over the weekend.."We saw a lot of Ava's in the Philippines, little dark babies, no hair and boogers"
Not sure what they are getting at because I just don't see it..

Sharing more of the perfectness... MRB

Maribel Reyes Beadle

The little one in the middle being covered by the big headed toddler is Maribel. We're so excited that she is FINALLY here! She is beautiful and all ours. We are very very blessed.

New Year, New President, it's only appropriate to start with a new blog...

Transition.

Over the weekend I had a conversation with a friend about the Inauguration. We spoke about how awesome it would be to actually be there in Washington, but how we would be just as happy to watch it from the warmth of our home/office. “But you know, those people there will never forget where they were that day and how they celebrated,” he said. His point left me wanting to reflect a little. Because I know that while I won’t be in D.C. with 2 million others, I will remember the historical significance of the inauguration and my details of today. 

It’s Tuesday morning: Ava is coming off a respiratory virus as well as a 3 day weekend and it’s very difficult to get her up and going. I try to encourage her by telling her that today is an historic day; we have a new president and it’s a turning point in America as we know it. Of course at 2 years old, she hasn’t had the opportunity to become jaded and cynical under the administration that she was born into. Yet, it’s important for her to understand how much her vision of the world will be shaped by Obama’s ideals and leadership. I mean after all she points to the American flag and says “Obama-Obama-Obama” so she should celebrate in this transition!!! She doesn’t care, rolls over and tells me “NO.”  Ok, second attempt: “Ava wake up, let’s go see your friends at school,” I gently say. “NO!” she half cries, half screams. After 15 minutes of struggle and more crying she gives in and let’s us wash her face and change her diaper.  Another 10 minutes after that she is finally dressed, motrined up and ready to go.  As we are on our way to school, my thoughts are mostly, "got to get to work and logged into CNN so that I don’t miss anything."  Ava’s thoughts I could only assume were similar.   

Once inside her class, Ava clings to me like the strongest tree monkey imaginable wrapping her legs around mine and gripping my neck like it were the last time we would ever see one another. The teachers were trying to comfort the both of us, saying that this is typical after a long weekend, we’re in a new location, etc… All I can think is: great, a 100% meltdown at 7:45 a.m., chalk full of hitting, crying, and screaming.  It’s going to be tough to leave this situation without feeling guilty.  

A whole 3 minutes later, I ditched the crying tree monkey and was blissfully on my way to work. The roads were clear, the sun was shining and things were smooth. I got logged in just in time to catch Obama address the nation.  It is a New Day indeed.

It’s ironic that a difficult morning transitioned into feeling hopeful, peaceful and empowered by noon. My hope will be that Ava too had a good day after the tears as well. 

Feeling all inspired and capable, I will probably give 100% to my job today, only check facebook during my lunch and be warm and fuzzy to all the students that give me a bad time. Then I will go home tonight to my wonderful family, bake a chicken, watch Obama’s inaugural speech again, comment on the inaugural fashion and assure Ava that tomorrow will be an even better day than today. 

Significant enough for me, and I am not freezing my butt off either.