Happy 4th Birthday Isaac

This weekend we celebrated Isaac's 4th birthday. It is so hard to believe that I-Man is already 4! And again this year we celebrated dinosaur style. (Yes, last year we had a dinosaur party last year also. What can I say, he really likes Dino's! If he keeps up the trend I should have the dinosaur-cake-making down perfect.) So here is Isaac with his birthday cake. He was very excited! (And we were also, for him.)

And of course no Gallegos birthday is complete without a pinata. And I have to say, the kids are getting pretty good at hitting shaped cardboard boxes full of candy. :) He was ready in this next picture.

What can I say, we all like pinatas in our house, especially Isaac.

We had a great time. Isaac invited some of his friends over and we all had a lot of fun. So, Isaac, thanks for a great 4 years and it is amazing how much you have truly blessed our family.

Love Ya Buddy, Mommy, Daddy, Jordan and Sydney

Resurrection Cookies

To help celebrate Easter, the kids and I made Resurrection Cookies. We all had a lot of fun and it was a good learning session for the kids. I don't know if any of you have heard of these cookies but as you make them there is a meaning for each ingredient and there are scriptures that you read after each thing added. It is a very good "tangible" way for the kids to learn and remember the story of Easter.

The first thing to do is put a cup of pecans in a zip lock bag and break and beat them up with a wooden spoon. This is to remind us of how Jesus was arrested and beaten by the soldiers.First we added vinegar to the bowl. The kids smelled it and then we read scripture about how Jesus was given vinegar when he was on the cross.

Next the salt was added. The kids were all given a pinch of salt. They tasted it and then we added it to the bowl. The salt is to remind us of the tears shed for Jesus.

Next we added the sugar, It reminds us that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him.

Then we added the egg whites. Eggs represent life and we talked about how Jesus gave His life for our life. The mixer was then turned on for 15 minutes and I took the kids upstairs to change into pajamas. This is what they looked like by the time everyone got their pj's on.
Then we folded in the pecans, and for Isaac we added in chocolate chips.

Then we placed them on a cookie sheet and placed them in the oven. Then the kids sealed the oven with a piece of tape. Like Jesus' tomb was sealed.

Even Sydney got in on the sealing of the oven.

We had to wait till the morning to unseal the oven and when we did this was our final product. They actually turned out very good. And the even better part about this cookie is that when you bite into it the cookie is hollow!!!

So, with all of these cookies now in our kitchen we bagged them up and shared with the neighbors. The kids explained how we made them and what each ingredient reminded us of. They did a pretty good job overall. I was surprised how much of it they remembered. I think this may be a new Easter tradition for our family. And to add to the fun, Jordan helped me read the scriptures now that she is reading on her own. I was very proud of her. Overall it was a lot of fun. We hope all of you had a great Easter!

Love Ya and God Bless, Tara G.

Breakfast is served!

Today is April fools day and I had the chance to get the kids first thing this morning. A couple of days ago I melted white chocolate and put a yellow skittle in the middle. Making the illusion of "fried eggs" which they would eat for breakfast. The following is a picture of the "eggs."
And another picture of some of the eggs that were made.
Jordan wasn't too sure about these eggs for breakfast but once she saw them she was sure that they weren't REAL eggs!!! (So she figured me out, but I still got the other two kids!)

Isaac was very excited to have white chocolate and skittles for breakfast.

And Sydney was also very excited about breakfast also!

We had a pretty good April Fools day and all day the kids were trying to pull stuff on me. I have to say, it was pretty fun for all of us. I hope none of you were fooled to much today!

Love Ya and God Bless, Tara G.