Graduation Time

Yesterday we celebrated Joe's graduation. Joe graduated yesterday with honors. He has worked hard in school and I am so very proud of him. We had a nice time with family at our house afterwords. Joe got some money from the family which was a nice gift. Paying for school has made our pockets very empty, it is now time to re-fill them ;) Or I guess just feel them since we have never had them full :) He also got a nice Dallas Cowboys Jersey to wear to the Cowboys game this weekend. The tickets I bought have almost doubled in price. I bought them early, and I am happy I did now seeing the new price. Joe has always been a Cowboys fan and because he has worked so hard I wanted to do something nice for him. I worked a few weeks, and saved all my free spending so I could buy the tickets. I bought them before his birthday in September but I decided I would wait to give them to him for graduation. Since the game is so close to December they are also doubling as our Christmas presents. We are very excited to see Dallas play the Ravens.Way to Go Joe and Go Cowboys! :)

We Did it!

The time has flown by fast. Its almost unbelievable that Joe will be graduating next week. He will be graduating with a double major in Criminal Justice and Spanish. Joe has worked very hard in his studies and everything he does. He will be graduating with a 3.8 GPA and is a Crimson Scholar, which means he has had an A or B average in all his classes. He is also active in the Criminal Justice Honor Society. He even gets wear a fancy sash on graduation because of his academic performance. Joe has applied himself diligently to his studies and it shows with all he has accomplished.

Yesterday, after his very last class before graduation, I told him "You did it!" And he replied "No, we did it." I thought about it and he is right, "We did it" , but he was the one who worked so hard and made it possible. In a sense I almost feel as if I am graduating too! I feel this way because it has been no easy task. I have learned that going to school with a family is not for the weak. It requires much sacrifice on both ends, in almost every possible aspect. I can remember many nights where Joe has had to do homework or study, instead of watching a movie or hanging with me, even if he wanted to so badly. I have always supported this, because I know he is doing it only for our future. But, even with Joe's busy schedule which consists of his honor society, Elders quourm meeting, his debate team meeting, school, and work he has always managed to have time for Sophie and I. He has done an amazing job at balancing and prioritizing his time. With his schedule, one might go insane. Joe has worked very hard and I am so proud call him MINE! :)

Family Pictures!

Today we took family pictures. I took pictures of our good friends the Clawsons, and they took pictures of us. We are thankful to have such wonderful friends as Austin and Bev. Austin and Joe are very similar like Bev and I. Beverley says that we could have married each others spouses and we would be in the same situations as today. haha....

I think we all had fun making silly sounds trying to get the kids to look and smile in the cameras direction. Here are some pictures.

Getting ready for Christmas

Today we decorated the house for family home evening. We dug the Christmas boxes out of the shed, which was a scary task. It was dark so I stood outside of the shed with a flash light so Joe could find them, but he didn't know what he was looking for, I knew how the boxes looked so I had to go into the shed and find them. I found them and Joe pulled them out. I hate going inside of that shed because I always think about Wookie. Wookie was our neighbors dog who got hit by a car late one night and died. Our neighbor Tina, didnt want her kids to see the dog but wanted to bury it the next day. So, to make a long story short, Joe put him in a box and brought poor little Wookie to our shed for the night so the kids wouldn't see him. So anytime I go into the shed, I picture little Wookie :(

Anyhow, we brought the boxes in and unpacked them. We decorated the tree and the house while listening to Christmas music. I made hot cocoa and Chocolate maraschino cookies. They are my new favorite cookies, and I don't even like cherries! They are delicious! We read Sophie a picture book about "The First Christmas." We want to teach her the true meaning of Christmas. I think today many children think Christmas is about recieving presents. Christmas isn't just about presents and toys, its about the birth of Jesus. He has made it possible to return back home to our Father in heaven. He is the greatest present anyone can recieve.

Joe took some pictures and recorded videos of him singing. hahaha.......... so to embaress him I had to post one. This is one of the many reasons why I love Joe, he sure can make me laugh. Enjoy!
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Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! Sophie and I went to watch Daddy, Aunt Sara, and cousin Daniel play in the ward Turkey bowel. They had lots of fun. They played from 8:30- 10:30. Both teams scored so many times they stopped keeping track of the score. Today we celebrated Thanksgiving with Grandma and Papa Payne for lunch with my Dad, Claudia, Grams and Pops, Merci, Mary Lou and Vince Chavez. We had a nice time eating and talking. Grandma as usual made a delicious feast. We ate, but tried not to eat too much because we knew we were to eat again Joe's parents for dinner, which included Mom and Dad Pawloski, Carley, Sara, Dallas, Granny, Daniel, and our little family. We another yummy meal. Joe and Sara played the X-box, while the others just talked. We then play a game called "Things." Its a hilarious game. Joe's family aren't much of gamers other than video gamers, but they enjoyed this game. We stayed out till about 10:00. Sophie ate and ate and ate today. I really think she gained at least a pound. She never refused the food, in fact she begged for more. I think her favorite holiday is Thanksgiving like her Mama.

Top 10 things the Pawloski family are thankful for:
(These are in no particular order)

1. Eternal Families
2. The Gospel
3. Health
4. A beautiful little girl
5. A loving family
6. Parents
7. Second chances
8. Living in this Country (USA BABY!)
9. Food
10. And how could we forget Football season! (Go Cowboys!)

Sophie's 1st Birthday!

Yesterday we celebrated Sophia's first birthday. Its unbelievable that we have a daughter who is one! Time goes by so fast. We had a wonderful time with friends and family. All her little baby friends were there. Since Sophie is our little Princess we had a Princess themed party. I put lots of work, time and money into the party to make it special for Sophie, even though she wont remember it. I love Party's and planning them. Joe was scared to ask but finally asked me if I plan to do with every party. I don't plan to do this with everyone, but the important ones. Like the 1st, the 5th because they are finally old enough to go to school, the 8th because they can be baptized, the 12th because they can go to YW or YM, 16th because they can date and drive, the 18th because they can finally live on their own! haha j/k about the last one. I also wanted to make this one a special one because I wanted all the family to be there. This will probably be the only party Sophie will have here and I wanted the family members who lived here to make. Things for us are still up in the air as far as where we will be living next year since Joe is graduating and applying to Jobs and Grad school.
Carley (Joe's sister helped me make the cake) Which turned out beautiful. Her grandma Riehl made her a beautiful princess dress. Sophie wore her dress and crown. She didn't mind wearing them at first but after a while she got frustrated. She is usually a very well behaved baby. She normally doesn't cry much, but she cried at her party, And then I began to sing "Its my party I can cry if I want to." Sophie got lots of clothes, some toys, Diamond earrings from Granny, a forward facing car seat, lots of Diapers and wipes, her own little throne (her potty chair), A princess night light, and a beautiful origami flower that my friend from China made, with a little china doll. We ate sub sandwiches from Corner deli, chips, dip and carrots. Her Uncle Jim Played the Piano and she danced to his music. We found out that she loves the Beatles, just like her Daddy and Uncle Jim. She was a little ham. Thanks to all those who helped with the party, it really helped me relax... (a little) I sometimes can be a perfectionist and this was one of those times. I hope you enjoyed yourself at the royal palace :) Love you all!

The Pawloski Frightful Week

So Its been a while since I lost got on. I actually forgot my password and had to get it recovered. This past week was a frightful one for us. Last Friday Sophie choked on some corn she was eating. It wasn't a regular choke, she was turning purple. Joe was doing the child's Heimlich maneuver and I scooping her mouth. During that process I called 911 by the time the paramedics came we got her to breath but, no food came out. They said we didn't need to go to the hospital because she appeared to be fine. I called our pediatrician and she said I didn't need to take her to the Hospital but to watch for symptoms such as, Flem, cough, fever, and vomiting in the next 3-5 days. She appeared to be fine the next few days but surly on the 3rd day I found her making a new sound. She would be playing or doing her normal things she does, then suddenly she would take a gasp of air, cough, and then laugh. I couldn't tell if she discovered a new sound she could make or if her body was doing it naturally. I decided not to risk it and called the pediatrician anyways. After seeing the pediatrician they sent us to the hospital. We went the ER and they admitted right away. We were there for a few hours they did like 6 different x-rays taking about 2-3 each time. I finally got upset because she was sleepy and they made her get undressed for each one. I asked the tech, why they needed another one, she said they found a shadow in her right lung and that they didn't know what it was. The Dr. came back in and told us that an ambulance was on its was to transport Sophie and I to El Paso for emergency surgery. She said she aspirated on the food she ate 3 days ago. They needed to get it out otherwise she could get pulmonary pneumonia and die. Joe and our neighbor Austin gave Sophie a priesthood blessing before we left. In the blessing it said that she would be okay and that she would live a long and healthy life. It also said that there would be nothing in her lungs. The ambulance came and took us to El Paso.When we got there Joe, the anesthesiologist and the surgeon were waiting for us. The Dr. took Sophie out of my arms and started examining her. I signed some paper while Joe spoke with the Drs. They said they would put a wire with a microscope down her esophagus and down into her lungs. At the end of the wire there was going to be tweezers to pluck it out. They then took us to a waiting room and took Sophie to an operating room. While Sophie was in surgery Joe and I just held each other and prayed that she would be okay. I feared something bad would happen. They told us of the possible side effects of the surgery which even included death. I held Joe tight and prayed for the faith to be believing the in blessing he gave her. But it was hard to because in the blessing they said nothing would be found in her lungs, but something was found in her lungs. How could this be? I shook the thought and kept praying for faith to believe. That night felt so unreal. I couldn't believe this was happening. 16 minutes later, the Dr. came in. My heart started racing. He wasn't holding Sophie and I was expecting him to have her in his arms. He told us "She is fine. There was nothing in there. I know something was in there because I listened to her lungs and her right lung wasn't receiving any oxygen. I don't know what happened to it but it is amazing." I quickly asked him if there was anyway they could have missed it. He said he checked and double checked. He went as far as he could with the microscope. We returned back to her room in the ICU and they soon brought her back to us. She was still asleep but soon woke up. The Dr. later said that Sophie had a nice little cough right before the surgery. He said she probably just coughed it up and re-ate it. That maybe true, but I know Heavenly Father watched out for her that night. I know he kept her safe. I am so grateful for the priesthood and the amazing miracles that come to pass when you only believe. I want everyone to know that because of this scary experience, I am in away grateful for it. It helped me put things in perspective. It helped me have a stronger appreciation for the gospel and for the priesthood, and a stronger love for my family. I hope that you can feel the same spirit I felt while reading this that I did that night. The Gospel is real and Heavenly Father loves us all and is there for us if we can only reach out.

I just wanted to up-date everyone on our little family.
Sophie is now 9 months. She is crawling all over the place and putting everything and anything she can find to put in her mouth. Although she is just 9 months she is full of life and laughter. She brings so much joy to our lives. Her favorite words are Dada, Mama, Daddy, Baby and Hi. The other day there was an elephant on the t.v. and Sophie pounded her hands up and down against the t.v. yelling "Dada, Daddy, Dada, Daddy!" I guess she is still trying to figure out what words mean..... or she thinks her Daddy looks like an Elephant ;) either way, I had a good laugh.

School started last week for Joe and I. We feel so busy with school, work and the family. We worked out our schedules so Sophia is always with one of us. I go to school on Tuesdays/Thursdays and Joe goes Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays and has one class Tuesdays/Thursdays . He will graduate in December with a double major in Criminal Justice and Spanish. From there we will see where life takes us. As for me I am planning on majoring in Family Consumer Science and then going back to school so I can become a Marriage therapist. So now you know who to call when your husband wears that ugly shirt you told him not to wear on your date, that causes a huge fight, that brings up past arguments :) I am anxious to finish school, because I know it will only get harder as we start having new additions to the family. I plan on staying home with my children until they are all school age. (NOTICE: how I use the word PLAN, I know life can take you for a spin sometimes, but these are the things I hope to achieve.) Once I send them out to the world, I plan on having a small number of clients, that my main focus can remain on my family. It is extremely important to me to raise my children up with good morals and standards. This world is getting scarier and scarier day by day. It scares me to think what it will be like when my kids are in High School. As you can see we are staying very busy trying to keep our heads above water, but I think we will finish this semester strong.