My heart feels so torn....

At 6:09 PM yesterday I was informed that my dad had passed away just 20 minutes before. My heart feels so broken, my daddy is gone. I haven't seen him since my wedding in 2006 and have no had much communication with him (not by choice) by the time I was allowed to have communication with him, it was too late. In the last two months of his life he under went 2 amputations, suffered from pneumonia (twice) and infections in his lower lumbar due to his paralysis along with his lifelong battle against diabetes. I just wish I could have said good bye. I can only take comfort in the fact in that he is no longer suffering in pain.

My daddy and Me ~ 1982


Rest In Peace
Nelson Vargas Rodriguez
12/22/1945 - 8/4/2010
You will forever be in my heart

It's been forever and a day.....

Since I've last posted! Lots of things have happened, lots of changes have been made. Since the very beginning of June, I have been running around like a chicken with her head cut off. We moved in June 4th, Ray left June 13th so for school, my mom came in on the 18th, Elena's recital was on the 19th, I left for NYC on the 23rd, stayed there till the 2nd of July, went to visit Ray and we all drove back on the 10th. Ray's cousins Ivette, Nilda, and Charlie are visiting right now. They leave tomorrow and have been here since the 21st. Before they got here we painted our kitchen/dining room/living room yellow and orange, our bedroom blue, and Elena's playroom two different color pinks. The Neazer Clan will be visiting in August and as soon as our current guests leave we will be busy once again painting and getting our house into the shape we want it :-). It's a lot of work but well worth it.

Here are a few pics of the colors we put on the walls:

From our living room looking into the kitchen


Our bedroom, there have been a few accent pieces added since we first painted but you get the gist of it lol


Elena's pink playroom :-)


On another note, Elena is growing like a weed! Today I took her for a manicure while I got my nail fixed and she LOVED it! Actually she love anything that is just about her lol. She has also been asking for a dog so we may have to start thinking about that soon too lol. There is just so much going on and not nearly enough time to put it in words to share with all of you. Here are some recent pics of her.

Elena with Mya, a friend brought her over so that Elena may play with her


Elena on 4th of July in Yorktown, VA

We are finally settled in.....

So two weeks ago we closed on our house and have moved in!! It's so draining but so worth it. I told Ray I will NOT move unless the Coast Guard moves us, It's way too much stress but somehow we managed not to break a single thing!!! However, I will NEVER have a career as a mover lol.

Lately has been crazy but mostly in a good way except for maybe 4 days ago. I lost my phone in a local Walmart. I searched all over and it turns out someone found it, and decided to keep it because when we would call, they would forward the calls to voicemail. It was a pretty new iphone and now it looks like I have to replace it. I guess you shouldn't expect people to treat you the way you would treat them. So disappointing....

So this past weekend Elena had her big dance recital which ended up costing lots of money but it was definitely worth it. She looked absolutely beautiful and had so much fun. My mom even came down to see her. The only thing missing was Ray :-(. Not to worry though, I bought the video and we will all watch it together when he gets home.

Look at my baby, she looks all grown up!


Her ballet costume


Her tap dance costume


My beautiful girl with me after the recital


Unfortunately, we weren't able to take any pictures at the recital otherwise you would see a lot more up here but I'm hoping ot get her pictures back soon so I can post them.

My mom leaves on the Wednesday, and I thought it would be a nice surprise to go back with her since Ray is gone. I will get to see some family and not be cooped up in the house trying to fix it up lol. Once we leave NY we will be heading down to VA to visit Ray for his last week of school. Elena and I are both so excited to see him. We can't wait!!!

The Lupus Walk was today.....

and we had a great time!!!! It was held at Tropicana Field in St Pete. We raised over $400 and had 11 people in join our team which surpassed our goal. It was so great to see how many people were out there trying to spread the word about what Lupus is and how it not only affects one individual but can affect an entire family. From the bottom of my heart I am truly grateful to all the wonderful people who donated and for those who walked with us. You've not only given me hope that more people will be aware of Lupus but also that one day there may be a cure. So that the next generation, such as my daughter, will not have to struggle in the same way many of us who now have Lupus do. Here are few pictures from the walk:







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On to yesterday:

Since Ray gave himself 4 day weekend we decided to take yesterday and explore the area surrounding the area of where our new home is. We had such a great time. We checked out the local YMCA which we can't wait to utilize and a performing arts preschool for Elena. I really want her to keep up with her activities and we were thinking that this may be the way for her to do it. Lastly, we checked out the beaches. Now since moving down here I have fell in the love with the beach. We love going to beach and just relaxing while Elena attempts to build a sand castle lol. Anyway, we thought we've got a glimpse at all the great beaches, well apparently we were wrong. We went to Coquina beach yesterday in the Bradenton area, and absolutely fell in love with it. Sugar white sand and waist deep clear water was just so beautiful, not to mention how NOT busy it was. All 3 of us were able to go and play in the water and still be able to see our stuff and not worry about anyone taking it lol. I guess it's just one more perk to buying our house :-)

White sand, blue water, big heron


So happy


My beach baby :-) It's like pulling teeth trying to get her to leave lol

Exactly one month ago....

I posted a realy quick update about the house....well here is another...It's done!!! Tomorrow we do our final walk through and on June 4th we move in!! We are so excited...this is so big for us, especially since we never really thought we would ever own a home. Here is a pic of it completely done.



On another note: I'm down 25 lbs since January first!!! Slow and steady wins the race!!

A quick update!!!

So our realtor just happened to be visiting a property close by and decided to send us a little update of our house. The drive way is being set and I am also including a picture of our backyard with a beautiful view (just picture grass and a picket fence instead of dirt and black plastic lol)

This week has been crazy.....

Well as some of you know we put in for a short sale on a house in February, well it just didn't work out. Not our fault, BoA dropped the ball thus losing buyers. BUT....when one door closes, another one opens!! On Tuesday our realtor took us to a new development she happened to find in passing and we were absolutely blown away. It's not a house with a pool or anything like that but it's a 4 bdrm/loft/flex/2.5bthrm/2cg. It's absolutely beautiful! They house is still being built but I will make sure to post pics as the house is coming along. For us this is a huge deal! Neither one of us have ever owned a home, so to see all of our hardwork pay off is a wonderful thing.

Here is a pic of the house, I won't show you the inside just because it's not done yet. Let me know what you think!



We are so ecstatic!! I love my family! I love my life!

Easter Sunday =o)

Happy Easter All!! We had a wonderful Easter Sunday. The sun was shining, the temps were in the 80's. We could not be happier. We went over to Sector St Pete where a friend of ours threw a big Easter Potluck luncheon. Elena had so much fun and it was nice to be out and about. She got to play with lots of other kids (as always), had lunch, did some crafts, and participated in an easter egg hunt. My little beauty had such an awesome time. Here are some pictures.

She held on to that Capri Sun for dear life!












Swinging on the make shift swing attached to the grill hut thingy.













All the St. Pete/Clearwater Coastie Playgroup kids



Hunting....


Her efforts paid off, here's her loot...



Me & Elena


Ray & Elena

Are we still in March????

It seems so!! Today is March 27th and we went to the beach!!! Yeah, I said it! We went to the beach!! I know some of you are telling me to stop rubbing it in but that's not going to happen! I lived in Kodiak, Alaska for 2 years and it's never been hot there as hot as it was today....a whopping 80 degrees!

It looks like my lil lady is a beach bum. She absolutely LOVED the beach and getting into the water. She even was practicing her sun bathing lol. Take a look at my baby enjoying the beach today.


Don't mind my very very white legs in the background lol


Elena decided she wanted to sunbathe


We had such an awesome family day together and I really can't wait till we do it again which hopefully will be very soon!

Walk For Lupus Now 2010

I am so excited to announce that I will be able to Walk for Lupus this year. Five years ago I was diagnosed with Systemic lupus erythematosus also known as SLE or Lupus. To date, there is no known cause or cure. Funds need to be raised so that we can create awareness within our community as well as to support research in finding a cure. We need a cure! I need a cure!

What is Lupus? Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease that can cause damage to any part of the body. In some ways, lupus represents a kind of allergic reaction by the body, in which the immune system sees the body’s own healthy tissues and cells as foreign, and attacks them. It is an incredibly unpredictable disease that can range from mild to deadly. There is no cure for lupus and more than 1.5 million Americans have lupus; that’s more than the combined number of those affected by MS, cystic fibrosis, cerebral palsy, sickle cell anemia, leukemia, and HIV.

When you donate or walk with us...


You place information in the hands of patients.

You fund cutting edge lupus research.

You make lupus seminars a reality.

You raise awareness about lupus.

You provide lupus information to medical professionals.

You give live, compassionate support.

You train support group facilitators.

With research advances and a better understanding of lupus, the prognosis for people with lupus today is far brighter than it was in the past. It is possible to have lupus and remain active and involved with life, family, and work. As current research efforts unfold, there is continued hope for new treatments, improvements in quality of life, and, ultimately, a way to prevent or cure the disease. The research efforts of today may yield the answers of tomorrow, as scientists continue to unravel the mysteries of lupus.

When: Saturday May 22nd, 2010, from 9am to 12pm
Where: Tropicana Field
One Tropicana Drive
St. Petersburg, FL 33705

Any amount that can be donated would be greatly appreciated. Every little bit helps!

Sincerely,

Sonia Surita

Follow This Link to donate or Join our team and walk with us!!

So much has happened lately.....

So lots has happened since my last post. Elena turned 3!! Whoever said 2's were the worst they were lying!!!!! My once sweet little girl turned into this stubborn attitude having diva who is so strong willed that she is going to give me a heart attack. Yes, it is that bad! Ok, I'll stop complaining because i know I am blessed with her but yeah she is trying my patience! Anyhow, I have taken her out of daycare because I just didn't like the habits she was coming home with and I think the last straw was when she came home with hand, foot, and mouth disease. I know it happens, and kids will get sick and pick up stuff from other kids but really?? If you're kid has rashes all over their body, do what I did and take them to the doctor instead of daycare where all the other kids can get it. Luckily for us, it was gone within a week. So yes I took her out of daycare and decided to enroll her in several different activities. She was already doing gymnastics but now she is also doing, tap, ballet, and ice skating. She is doing really great in all of them. Everyday I am amazed at how big, beautiful, and bright she is. Here are some videos and a pic of her ice skating, gymnastics, and dance.

Elena ice skating

Ice Skating


Elena in gymnastics



Elena dancing



We've also decided to buy a house! We are trying to purshase a house in Ruskin, FL. It's a beautiful house, the only thing that is making it take so long is the fact that it's a short sale. We already put in a contract for the house, and the sellers agreed to it, now it's just waiting to see what the bank says. We are hoping to find out soon so keep your fingers crossed for us!!! Click here to take a look!

Ray has also decided to move forward and start an apprenticeship so he can learn to tattoo. The artwork he has created thus far is amazing! I'll try to post some pics of some of his artwork soon!

I'll try to update soon....if I can remember lol!!!

Happy Holidays!!!!!!!

So today is January 6th, Three Kings Day. The official end of the holidays for us. The tree was taken down, gifts are away where they belong and it's time to look forward to a fantastic 2010. Ray's cousin Bryan visited for a few weeks which was nice, first time we've had anyone around for Christmas. Kenny and Sharon stopped by on their way back to Miami which was great because Elena was so excited to see them....especially Gizmo :-). We also had a really nice New Year's Eve party. It's really nice to be able to have our friends and family get together and spend the holidays together. Now we are on to get ready for Elena's birthday party at Planet Jump. I am really looking forward to it as this is the first year she is truly excited about her party and can't wait to have all her friends in one place so that she can play with everyone. She is also looking forward to her grandmas and her Tio and Titi coming just to see her at her birthday party. Her birthday has become my Christmas. All I want is to see her happy and that makes me happy. I've pulled her out of daycare and have decided to give this SAHM thing a shot again. It's going well so far. I see a change for the better in her attitude and I hope it continues. Here is a photo with Sanata along with our family Christmas card.