burning down the (coffee) house

so today at work we had to call 911 because we could smell
an electrical wire burning under the espresso machine.
we had to evacuate the store
and within about 12 seconds there were
3 firetrucks
and about 20 firefighters there.

so the firefighters came in and said they could only smell coffee
which is hilarious because after working there so long i can no longer smell the coffee
but we were totally overwhelmed by the smell of smoke.

so while they were looking things over barista j. and i were sitting outside.
several customers walked right past us and tried to enter the store
like there was nothing going on.
seriously, not even noticing the huge engines
and dozens of firefighters...
it's like they would have walked right into a blazing inferno
just to get their white mocha.

"we are closed" i would say with a very disappointing look on my face.
and my barista j. would just yell "no, closed" as people would get out of their cars.
it was interesting just how oblivious people were.
j. said the most hilarious thing ever
something along the lines of how much she was enjoying telling
the customers "no" because we are always having to tell them yes
I mean she REALLY enjoyed it.
we both threw our head back in laughter
and enjoyed the fleeting moments of freedom together.

it was all over too soon
it ended up being the refrigerator wires.
we all felt pretty horrible after a few hours of those fumes...
i still have a headache.
i'm just praying that our bodies will
naturally detox from the toxic fumes
we inhaled today.

and now, the song in my head...

"my house is out of the ordinary
that's right, don't want to hurt nobody
some things sure can sweep me off my feet
burning down the house..."

talking heads

separate

matthew told me it's time to "separate" for Christmas.
after a few minutes i realized he meant decorate...

i do kinda feel like decorating early this year.

yay for the holidays!

lunch time.

today is the thanksgiving feast at the kid's school.
i've gone the last two years AND eaten the cafeteria food
mostly for memory sake...it tastes just the same as
cafeteria lunch when i was a kid...somethings never change.
today though i'm going to pass on the food.

there's something about being in the lunch room
and seeing the pecking order of the kids
the cool kids, fat kids, weird kids, quiet kids,
the kindergartners that still look a little lost.
watching the special need children
giving so much effort just to complete a small task,
i just want to scoop each one of them up for a huge hug.

being it's the few minutes of the day when the kids are not micromanaged,
i watch as they throw away entire trays of food, unopened milks,
sandwiches that never stood a chance to be eaten.


the lunchroom is a strange place
full of life, laughter, rejection, and questionable government issued food.
somethings never change.

venting.

so the kids are feeling better-ish
they all stayed home from school today.
they've really been troopers considering
they've been confined to the house for a week.

they've all taken turns having various symptoms.
including my personal favorites...
fever induced delirium and all night coughing.
even gunther had an emergency trip
to the vet this week for a severe allergic reaction.

carlos and i are now feeling under-the-weather
and i am also feeling drained/overwhelmed.
life doesn't stop to give moms a chance to recover from such troubles
and with no family nearby to help
well, i'm a mess.

but being the chronic overcomer that i am
i will get over it...
venting always helps right?

thankful.

yesterday matt and i ran a few errands
first stop was starbucks to get a cup of my new favorite
thanksgiving blend...
it's a mixture of two of my favorites
guatemala antigua and sumatra
actually i got a tall eggnog 2 raw sugar misto since the
aforementioned thanksgiving blend compliments fall spices.
it was really good.

when matt and i were leaving i saw one of my regular customers
and we said hello.
in the car matt asked me a few questions...it went something like this:

matt: is he your friend?
me: he's a customer.
matt: but he's your friend right?
me: yeah, i guess he's my friend because i see him most everyday and we talk.
matt: what is his name?
me: i think his name is stan.
matt: is his real name stanley?
me: I don't know.
matt: WELL...when you asked him to be your friend did he say
"hi, my name is stanley, but you can call me stan"?

then i remembered when you are in kindergarten you ask people to be your friend.
i hope everyone matthew asks to be his friend says yes.

and because the season is all about giving
the first person to leave a comment gets
a pound of my new favorite coffee.
i will mail it if you're not local but it has to be in the U.S.

*starbucks partners are not eliglible for this offer.

dancing trees & and the flu.

last year i wrote this about my back yard.

we're enjoying it again this fall...
it seems that everyone likes being outside
when the breeze is blowing
and the leaves are flying around like snow.

it's our 4th year here and i'm still amazed by the colors.
there is no dramatic changing of the seasons in florida.

the boys aren't feeling well
abraham slept for about 36 hours
waking only to drink sprite and take medicine.
matthew is now feeling ill...
it's pretty heartbreaking.
but this stuff works wonders!

decision 08. the way i see it.

now that the election is over
i feel like talking about it
before, i was at too much of a loss
too conflicted...
who/what are we supposed to believe?
campaign promises?
smear tactics?
internet rumors?
it all seemed pointless to me.
i think it all came down to obama's composure
and confidence vs. mccain's deer-in-the headlights look and
his frustration over not being able to get his words out.
basically obama is a rockstar
mccain is a grandpa...
that's how it seemed to me.

did the right man win?
i honestly don't know.
it is impossible to know
because I can't see into the future.
i was totally freaked out at the thought of al gore
becoming president but i don't feel that way about obama.
afterall all i do not put my trust in man
but in a God who sees all things and is sovereign.

one thing is for sure...
i was proud to tell my children
that the first african american man was elected president
because that my friends is awesome.

issues aside,
i'm proud for the history that was made yesterday.

"we hold these truths to be self evident that all men were created equal..."

p.s. it was fun (and stressful but mostly fun)
to serve free coffee to all the voters yesterday.
I have NEVER been so non-stop busy at work the line was HUGE all day!
To steal michelle's word it was epic!
I enjoyed the high energy and excitement in the air,
it was like americans were awakened to what a privilege voting truly is.
I commend companies like starbucks, krispy-kreme, chick-fil-a
and ben & jerry's who gave away free stuff just for voting.

happiness.

i've been using bare minerals for a few years
and i LOVE it.
i recently heard about everday minerals
and that they offer a free sample makeup kit by mail
so i ordered mine today
and paid only $3 for postage...
follow this link
and scroll down
you get to pick 3 foundation samples
1 concealer
1 blush
all for free...

my wiggly niños...

thanks again chris for taking the pictures.

tag. i'm it.

my girl michelle tagged me.

the rules:

1. Link to the person that tagged you done!
2. Post the rules on your blog done!
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself done!
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs done!
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website. done!

1. i was born in the same hospital that i later had my daughter in.
   
2. the only time i've gotten pulled over i was 15 and joyriding. i talked (lied) my way out of getting arrested.
   
3. i want to open a cupcake bakery.
   
4. i have low tolerance for know-it-alls. in general, conversation is better if the participants are not being constantly corrected with useless facts.
   
5. i once saved a hamsters life by giving it breast milk through an eyedropper.
   
6. i've never seen "gone with the wind."

i tag whomever reads this blog.

almost big.

matthew choose popsickles
to share with his class for his birthday
when i picked him up from school and saw him
sitting there with his hat on i thought to myself...he's still little.
little enough to still think it's cool to wear a birthday hat
little enough to still kiss me in public
little enough that it seems like just yesterday, he was still a baby.

i love you matt-matt!

every mother's dream.