As the end of 2013 draws near...

Well hello December.....already?!!   As I gathered photos to make this blog entry I realized I need to not take so many photos...it makes for organizing a blog really time consuming :-)

Also what makes organizing a blog time consuming is waiting SIX MONTHS since the last entry. Ya, that too. Soo......


The second half of the year has been filled with all kinds of "stuff"...ranging from birthday parties for all of the kids, starting a non-profit organization,  two trips down to LA, a family wedding, a quick trip to Reno, a bunch of selfies, and a farting dog.

Don't worry, we shall revisit the farting dog later, but I am going to make an effort to stay semi-chronological here, so picking up in June where we left off.

Ryan turned 11 on June 27th. And its no secret that he is a mega superhero fan, so of course we had the rockin' Batman cake for him, along with a few of his best pals down at the bowling alley. Good times for a great kid. He continues to march forward in this world and impress us with his abilities. And, you will see later on, he is reason for a very special inspiration of mine....

July saw our brood heading to Southern California to visit the cousins..not only from LA but from Texas as well. The kids all had a blast, and we adults had a great time catching up too. Frank and Stacey are always so generous with their home....we had a total of four families all under their roof...good times! I just imagine us driving away to go back home, and the two of them walking back into their MUCH quieter home...the sky opens up...

We had some fun beach time with family, and Dave and I decided to extend the trip a tad and take our crew to Pismo Beach for a couple days, which was so nice. Weather was perfect, and the kids were their awesome selves and traveled so well. Almost makes me think we are approaching the time in our lives where we can go on trips further than SoCal.....almost....

...one of my favorite pictures is this one of Dave and Ryan. With his minor sensory issues Ryan was fearful of the big water he saw, and as the other kids ran towards the waves, he became afraid, so daddy carried him.

Of course, this photo screams "Footprints" poem. And I just love the sentiment. And I love my boys!

Almost all of the Hurtado cousins, missing Nick who stayed back in Texas. This day we all took the kids to see the movie, "Despicable Me2". Can you guess which kids belong to the dorky mom who bought matching shirts for the movie? Guilty!

And on the long drive home we always make several stops. Along this way Ryan perfected the spit ball technique. Awesome.

 On the 4th of July we had a group BBQ out in Fran and Staceys court...complete with some bean bag game I was terrible at. :-/

 Uncle Lou is always awesome with the assist on fireworks.

A little backyard S'mores...yum!

 Alex has his BIGGEST fan in Ryan. Always has been, and I have a feeling he always will be.

Tita and Abuelo with (almost) all of their grandkids! We were just missing Nick.

Who doesnt love a Krispy Kreme donut??? Mmmmmm!

So as we headed home, I looked back and saw this familiar sight....and tried to remind myself that not always will our vehicle resemble a clown car, packed to the gills with every electronic device to keep kids entertained on our long journeys....and I do believe I will miss this someday, when I look back in my rearview mirror.

I mentioned earlier about how I was inspired to do something new this year. As with so many parents who have children with special needs, our lives take turns down roads we never would have guessed we would go. Sometimes we go kicking and screaming, and other times we see opportunity to do something that may just make a difference, even if its small. As I talked about before, I fell in love with Challengers baseball last year as I was asked to be the team manager (ha ha...me...) for the Marlins. The Marlins were the FIRST Challengers team ever to play in Dixon, and the group of kids and the community that grew on that baseball field begged for a larger support system for this awesome new "family"...one that extended beyond the season of baseball. Enter Team Dixon. TEAM stands for "Together Everyone Always Matters", and the basis of the organization is to provide opportunity, resources, and support to children with disabilities and their families, as well as an opportunity for typically developing peers to step up and be a positive support and role model for their "buddy" on Team Dixon. We proudly partner with Special Olympics for all sports, and look forward to more community activities and events.  So far, we have received an enormous amount of support and enthusiasm from the Dixon community, and hope to continue to grow and gather children for many years to come. I know that this is not as big as starting Google or Facebook, and of course there is no paycheck involved, as we are all volunteers, but the rewards are never-ending, and the faces of the kids who are happy to be part of their own special community is plenty reward for me. I am grateful to be able to do something like this, and without a supportive husband and friends who also believe in me and Team Dixon none of this would be possible. Stay tuned, great things are on the way for these awesome kids!

Once we returned home we started getting ready for a new school year....shopping and taking care of doctor and dental appointments. You know, the glamorous stuff. But here is what a trip to Target looks like for me and my crew....

Granted, on this day Ryan decided his feet hurt and wanted to ride versus walk, thus the dualing carts. And for good behavior in the store = Icee's for all. Ick! Hey, I know its not nutritious and if I could get the same results with Kale I would, but...no dice.


Then it was time for dental check-ups, and Ethan offered up some bro-support for first timer, Owen.

And during his annual pediatric neurology check up, Ryan decided to get to the bottom of the whole thing with a magazine on the subject.... ;-)

We squeezed in a nice day trip to visit Nana and Papa and headed to Howarth Park in Santa Rosa, my old childhood stomping grounds.  We always love our time with Nana and Papa.

Katie got to take a weekend trip to my aunt BK's farm in Sebastopol. I LOVE that my girl got to run around the property I grew up on, and she was spoiled by my cousins Kris and Mel, as well as my sweet aunt BK. I am extremely close to my aunt, for she was big part of my growing up and a very positive role model, so I am grateful Katie got this experience.

Tossed into our summers are always swim lessons for two of the kids at least. This year it was Ethan and Owen. How cuuuute is Ethan with his two front teeth missing???

Season Passes to Six Flags were a huge help to keep the boredom down. We got to meet up with various buddies and have lots of fun going on rides and visiting. Here we are with one of my besties from alllll the way back to when we were 12, Brandie. Her sweet kids Jack and Lily joined us for fun on this day!

OK, so the year would not be complete without talking about the selfie.  Urban Dictionary defines this word as,"A picture taken of yourself that is planned to be uploaded to Facebook, Myspace or any other sort of social networking website."

Enter the PERFECT mixture of a teenage girl and cell phone, and BAM! Selfies galore.....Ryan gets in on the fun with Katie here...

 Selfies with aunt Kel....

 And when there is just nobody else around to selfie with, your (poor helpless) kitty will do just fine

 Check out poor Hollybell. She is trying to be in a Zen state above, and clearly not impressed below...

 Even your four year old brother starts to get the hang of the selfie....

 Ok, I am guilty too!

 Oh, and selfies are EXTRA silly with the tongues out. Ethan is taking notes here from sister selfie.

Exhibit A. There are about six hundred fifty seven images VERY VERY similar to the one below but I figured I would just put one up...you get the picture, right?

 I actually love these from Kel and Ryan...she gets the best of him in pictures somehow.

There are also moments over the summer break...few and far between, but they are there, that everyone just plays together SO nicely. Even the cat got into the days "school" lesson, as taught by my super sweet eldest Ms.Katie. See the rules she listed on her wall? She aint messing around. 

So now we arrive at Owens 4th birthday on September 5th. For some unknown reason, this kid has aquired the most obtuse obsession for Chuck E Cheese. Yup. That creepy oversized, pizza-eating rodent we all know so well. Owen adores him. Even makes me "talk" like Chuck E.....and my awesome sister Kel even pretends to BE Chuck E's mom when Owen calls her on the phone. Oh yes, Chuck E is the bomb over here to this four year old. So...of course we had his birthday at Senor E Cheeses....

 Creep-tastic!

Owen even asked for a Chuck E Cheese ornament for the tree this year. And he got one. Just wait for that story....

But a few random ramblings of our daily "stuff" before I head into Ethans birthday. Some of these glimpses are things I want to hold in my head forever, but can feel them zooming past me so fast. This little boy who so eagerly wants to push the GIANT lawnmower with dad....

 This face of excitement on Ethan as mom chose HIM to sneak away for ice cream after dinner one night. Just him...nobody else. THAT is worth a whole lot when you have sibs, let me tell ya. Its also worth alot to mommy :-)

 And times like these where my dad took Ethan fishing (on his property) for the first time...

  and he got one!

In October Ethan turned 8, and his request was to have a Minecraft (a popular video game) themed party. So....this mom went online and whooped up a pretty fab Minecraft party if I do say so myself. Check out his face, I think he approved too. 

 Ethan is one big- hearted boy. I adore his smile and huge heartfelt hugs. He is the first one to think of others, and is always wanting to please. He is a math whiz in school and his teachers report how much of a great friend he is to others. I am so proud of this kid! How quickly time has taken him from this newborn baby boy

.....to the 8 year old he is now. 

This. Is. Me.  True story.

Owen and his best pal, Jacob...both are in preschool this year and as cute as can be! We are so thankful they live right across the street, too!

I decided that every family needs to dress up themed for Halloween at least once. This was our year...

...and Ryan totally approved of his Heroic Hurtado Bunch.

Our friends gather and we head out to storm the hood......and take candy.

This year I took the kids out to the arboretum for our annual family photo attempt. Its AMAZING how much easier it is getting as they get older. I am going to post the outtakes one of these days of all the past years attempts at getting JUST ONE picture of them all looking. I think it will be hilarious...but for now, check out these cute kids~

36. Thirty-six is the number of birthday parties we have had for the kids, combined, over the years. Really?!! Yep, from Sesame Street themed parties to Bowling alley parties to Dora the Explorer, we have pretty much done it. And we have several more years of those ahead of us....but this year as sweet Katie turned FOURTEEN (ugh!), she made the comment that she would just like, "...a day at the mall with a couple friends". OMG. Like, she is really getting bigger. No party favor bags, no figuring out games to keep our guests happily occupied..nada. A trip to the mall......and, of course, the green that goes along with it. I mean, she IS a teenage girl, after all.

Happy birthday to my darling first born...my sweet beautiful daughter, Katie Rose. We adore you and you continue to make dad and I so very very proud.

And its Christmas time! This year saw many fun visits and happenings around the holidays....the first was actually not a Christmas event at all but a wedding. Uncle Louie married Aubrey in December and we went down to LA for the wedding. Owen was THE cutest ringbearer, and Katie played piano for the wedding ceremony. She is one talented young lady, for reals. Uncle Louie was the happiest we have seen him yet, and Auntie Aubrey made a beautiful bride.

 Owen wore an earpiece a la' secret agent and carried a metal briefcase. It somehow fit him quite well.

 The fabulous wedding party

 LOVE this shot of Ryan. Soooo handsome!

 The new Mr. and Mrs. :-)

So we returned from the wedding festivities, unpacked, and re-packed for a quick visit and holiday celebration with my younger sister, April and her family in Reno. We loved seeing them all and the kids all had so much fun.

 Me and my "baby" sister...I am trying to stand on my tip toes to get somewhat up to her level...nice try.

hooray for cousins! and hooray for cool boots!

So it was homeward bound to finish up the holidays by hosting a nice size crowd of 24 at our home on Christmas Eve. We had a great time and a surprise visit from Santa himself, which got the group of little ones all giddy for awhile.

Well hello there, Santa!

 The crazy scene

 Ampy and Grandma and their six treasures :-)

This is the masterpiece we made this year, using the boys hand-prints and Katie's footprint as Santa's sleigh. Oh how I love this time of year....it just goes by wayyyy too fast.

Check this scene out. Is this not the MOST romantic thing ever? My awesome husband did just about ALL the dishes from Christmas Eve dinner (of course he left the stove area untouched...but hey, he IS a guy)! I actually got a chance to visit with everyone for a little while! Whoop!

Aunt Kel got Ethan a coupon book filled with the things he loves most to do with her....going to get ice cream, washing the car, and other special things. She knows her nephews!

 Clarification here: Ethan is in to CAMMO this year...not a thug life.

 Here sits a man who shall remain nameless but...until about two months ago, SWORE he would NEVER EVER get "one of those smart phone things"....and that they are "useless".  I just wish I would have wagered a bet on that one....look at the two lovebirds on their modern day devices...hee hee.

And so Christmas morning came...and remember that farting dog I mentioned earlier? Well, he also arrived. Yep. Folks, by the time you are on your fourth child there is really not a whole lot out there they wish for, as they have three older sibs to rummage through their things. Owen spotted this spiffy pug on a commercial one day and it was THE ONLY THING he asked for. I even tried to entice him with other, less foul, toys, to no avail. I have a video clip where you can actually hear the nasty-ness of this animated dog...you can actually adjust the sound of the burps and farts--yes. I will have to upload that gem soon, but for now, here are a few photos from our Christmas morning.

"Santa, I LOVE my burping and farting dog"....oh, how sweet.

 The loot from Santa!

 Ethan, the much more sensible one, asked Santa for a telescope. He and dad have now spent a few nights outside finding all kinds of cool things in the sky.

These are a few of MY favorite things....for real.   They ARE Christmas for me.

And after we were done with our own festivities with just our family in the morning at home, we headed down to Nana and Papas in Santa Rosa, where we always enjoy a beautiful Christmas. Nana adds all kinds of little touches in how she decorates the house and the food is always so yummy, and the company is great too.

 Santa leaves a letter (read here by Papa) telling EVERY one of the 15 grandchildren what he saw them do during the year, and praises them for being good. Owen got on the nice list by the skin of his teeth.

more cousin love!

The culmination of all these everyday moments is an overwhelming sense of gratitude. After my cancer scare in March I am never too far from God and/or the focus of what is important in life. Yes, I have a big ugly scar on my leg where the cancer used to be, but that scar is a reminder to me that I am alive...and I thank God for each and every day.