Happy Father's Day

When I look at you, being a father to our children, my heart just swells with pride and gratitude. I find myself sitting in a corner, admiring you be your natural self, being in your comfort zone of daddy hood.
I feel so blessed to have a husband like you.
I am so thankful that my children are blessed with a father as caring, thoughtful, and supportive as you.
I pray that God continues to bless us and guide us and I pray for his protection and strength.
Thank you for always putting our children interest first.

We love you from the bottom of our hearts and miss you like crazy!!!

Happy Father's day from Maile, Audrey and Mommy!

Happy Birthday, little sis!!

Happy Birthday, little sister!! Well, i guess you aren't that little anymore, huh?? 19 years old and as beautiful as ever!! (we can thank Mom for those cute genes she gave us)

I remember like yesterday when Mom and Dad announced that I was gonna have a little sister...I remember going out and shouting to all my friends the big news.

I miss living with you and sharing everything. You were still a lil girl when I left for college ( you were only 10) and still so little when I got married and left Romania. There is not a day that goes by that I don't think about you, and wish we could be closer.

I love that child, who is no longer a little girl, but a truly wonderful young woman, with every ounce , fiber and molecule of my being. From the day you were born I have treasured you in my heart and strived to be there for you with my love, guidance and friendship every day. Both of us experienced challenging childhoods and have had to overcome a great deal in our lives, but no matter what came your way, you have always held strong and persevered.

You mean more to me than I can ever begin to put into mere words and I could not ask for a better more beautiful sister.

Happy Birthday, GORGEOUS!!

I am beyond upset....

Actually that is even an understatement...I took Maile to the ENT again today to check back on her infected ear and see what was going on. As it turns out the infection has subsided quite a bit but there is still some remaining. The antibiotic that she was on ( one the 3 items prescribed by the doctor) was very strong so the doctor was somewhat surprised that it wasn't fully recovered after 5 days of very strong medication.

After talking to the doctor, he proceeds to ask me how Maile handled the ear drops that he had prescribed. I looked at him and said..."she's doing fine..after all those drops were only to soften the wax inside." He looked at me and said..."I never prescribed such thing. What I prescribed were some antibiotic ear drops. He looked at me again and said...I am pretty sure I prescribed those to her". You see, on the initial prescription were three items..one was an oral antibiotic, the other one was a nasal spray and this third item which appeared there was a bit of mistery with. I had taken this prescription to the pharmacy in town last week and picked up 3 items, thinking they were all the items that the doctor had prescribed for Maile.

After a few seconds, the doctor wrote me yet another prescription for these antibiotic drops and told us he wanted us to come back tomorrow so he can re-check her and do some more cleaning in her ear.

One of the things in Romania, when you take a prescription to the pharmacy, they actually give you the medications but let you keep the actual prescription...

So I get home and start comparing the 2 prescriptions and it turns out the doctor was right..he had prescribed the antibitioc drops he mentioned only what I had gotten from the pharmacist and administered to my kid was just a ear wax softener...

You see the pharmacist clearly made a mistake and instead of giving me the right stuff, she'd replaced those with the other ear drops ( the wax softener ones)....ahh...not to mention that the antibiotic drops were literally 10 times cheaper.

To say that I am disgusted and revolted, is really an understatement. I have been "treating" my daughter with nothing more than ear wax softener expecting her to get better for the last 5 days....

The sad part about this is 1:...That me as a mother did not spot this mistake until today and 2: That unfortunately I don't have the receipt from this pharmacy to be able to go somewhere and file a complaint...and believe me I WOULD!!

And no, if you're thinking they keep any kind of records when you go to a drug store around here, well..you'd be wrong again.

I literally want to SCREAM right now...how my parents and so many people like them put up with this kind of system is BEYOND me...I guess they just don't have another option...but still...it is such a sad, sad reality...

Please continue to pray that we get over this bump, and we will have a completely healthy lil girl back in no time. Oh, and when you go to bed tonight remember to thank God for living in a better world...I know I certainly will.

Some Romanian ..."facts"

Before I begin this post, let me just say I am really not trying to sound naggy although there are some things I'd like to mention in case any of you ever decide to take a trip to Romania. And despite the fact that this blog contains a lot of "negative" things, Romania is indeed a beautiful country, a land of natural beauty,medieval monuments and modern treasures. The sad reality though is that a lot of people, despite the hard working lifestyle, are unable to really afford to see their own country. People like my own parents that have worked soo hard their whole entire life, are often times not able to afford even a weekend trip. That being said, here are just a few facts about our trip so far.

FACT: I have been sharing a room with my sister and my 2 girls for the past few weeks...a room that is smaller than even my kitchen at home.

FACT: It might not get hotter here than Arizona but it is REALLY HUMID.

FACT: Somebody please tell my mother that me putting my kids in timeout isn't gonna "hurt" them and her making silly faces at them during this time is pretty darn childish.

FACT: Somebody also please tell my mother that giving ice cream or cold drinks to my kids isn't gonna give them tonsillitis or a ear infection...despite Maile having gotten the first ear infection since her tubes. Oh yeah, and having a fan on is also not the cause for a ear infection...although I have even heard that from some of the doctors around here. Have I mentioned recently how incredibly grateful I am to not live here anymore? Please..don't get me wrong, I am not by any means ashamed of where I come from or my roots. I have had a good upbringing and parents who gave me their all and they worked darn hard for it. But I am grateful to have seen a better side of this world.

FACT: Due to my mother's love for me, I haven't cooked more then twice in the last 3 weeks and haven't washed a single dish since I left home. She has her mind set that she wants me to relax and enjoy my vacation here...Now if only, my kids would actually allow somebody other than me to help them in any way shape or form...be that with changing their clothes, feeding them lunch or even take them to to potty...perhaps I would start "relaxing" a bit more. But I guess that's the price I am paying for making the decision to move across the world and raising my kids so far away. I don't exactly blame them..this is a process for them, these people who adore them beyond words are somewhat strangers in so many ways. I am happy to say that Maile in particular though has become quite attached to my dad and her face just lights up when she sees him come home from work every day.

FACT:Prepare yourself to not only pay for your grocery bags but bag your own groceries if you decide to go shopping around here...ok..I am not talking about the grocery stores in bigger cities but at least around where my parents live.

FACT:Being greeted in a "clothes store" isn't something most people expect..as a matter of fact the sales person, more often than not will carry on a conversation that has nothing to do with work and completely ignore you...until you decide to approach them with a question...again, not exactly a general rule for Romania but at least the places around my parents.

FACT: The first day that I arrived in Bucharest, I decided to take my kids to McDonalds for a quick lunch since it was the only decent place around the train station. I had to order a number 3 meal in the form of : "I'd like a number 3 menu"...didn't realize how ridiculous and funny that sounds until I met Eric 8 years ago and took him to KFC at one of the malls in Bucharest. Oh, and their kids small drinks are really about as small as a "tea cup"...literally...so if you do decide to order a "menu" at one of the few fast food places around here...you might wanna get the extra large drink to go with it. Needless to say, it won't come with ice...why?? Because there's no ice in Europe?? I dunno why...People just don't have ice with their drinks..So weird for me, after having lived in the states for so many years.

FACT:Prepare yourself for a pretty crazy ride if you're gonna jump in a cab...there are no seat belts around here or air conditioning in cars ( or at least they don't turn them on). And did I mention the buses? They are even HOTTER and STINKIER if that's even possible.

FACT: The other day, the city had shut off the water around here leaving us with no running water for almost 24 hours. Lucky for us, there's water you can bring in the house (using large buckets) just down a flight of stairs...Not so lucky for us...or for me I should say, my 3 year old decided to poop her undies...Ok...enough said about that.

FACT: My girls are LOVED and TREASURED and maybe even a little spoiled. Whatever my girls want, my parents give. They are enjoying the attention for sure.

FACT: I love this time with my family soo much but I do miss my husband every minute of every day. We haven't been apart like this since the very first months of our marriage, when we were still working on getting my visa. At that time, Eric had to be in the States to initiate the paperwork, while I was still here.

FACT: On July 4th of this year, Eric and I will have known each other for 8 years...8 wonderful, amazing, precious years..Can't wait to be with you again, sweetheart!!!

My sister, the Prom Girl

My sister had her prom last night and can I just say? She looked STUNNING. There are way too many great shots to share but here are just a few of them.

I don't have any more "trusses" in you

This week has been quite hard on poor Maile. She got diagnosed with her first ear infection since she's had her tubes placed in, and she had to go to a whole new doctor, try all sorts of unflavored medicines, and dealing with the pain I am sure has not been easy at all.

This morning I am sitting down with her after just having tried to wipe her boogies and clean the wax melting out of her, and she's completely bothered by it and screaming that I should leave her alone.

After a few seconds of that, I picked her up and I tried to tell her that she needed to trust mommy, that all I wanted was to make her feel better...

Her reply: " I don't have any more "trusses" ( trusts?) in you...I trust daddy, and Audrey has to trust you."

I have to say, although I didn't take it personal it kinda of broke my heart. I knew that all she was trying to tell me was that I had been causing her pain and she just wanted it to stop.

I pray that this second round of stronger antibiotics does the trick, and that poor Audrey stays healthy.

Times like this, I miss my sweetheart more than I could ever express.

My sister, the Graduate!

Today, I am a very proud Sister. Today I sat with my mom and my daughters as we watched my sister Dana graduate high school. As a parent, it’s a day that sneaks up on you so fast. It’s a day of a lot of “It seems just like yesterday . . . “. And it’s a day that you realize that your child really has grown up. Most importantly, it’s a day that truly makes you proud. My moms's little girl overcame challenges, leaped hurdles, and reached her goals over her school career. She made it. Words can't express the feeling of pride we all experienced today.

As I sat and watched the 300+ "Gheorghe Rosca Codreanu" High School Graduates of the Class of 2010 each coming up and receiving their diplomas, I couldn’t help but reflect back. I began thinking back on my own graduation, the dreams I had, and many paths life has taken me down. Although some of those paths were not always what I would have ever hoped for, they have all lead to better things.

Congratulations, sis!!!

Romanian version of beignets

Today Maile had a craving for doughnuts. My mom had made a bunch yesterday and I guess my lil girl decided she wanted another batch. Needless to say she did not have to ask twice. Within a second, my mom had run to the store to get more flour. She came back and both girls got to watch her knead the dough and let it rise. Maile kept asking while the dough was sitting in the bowl, waiting for it to rise..."Is it cooking yet...is it done?"

I guess I've never made them doughnuts before...cause this process they were not used to..but they certainly LOVED the end product.

New rides

One of the things that I hate about the pavement around here, is its soo uneven and bumpy and it needs some serious work. I tried taking the girls out in the double stroller that I brought over with me and it seemed like it was taking some pretty serious work just to navigate all the holes.

Even just going to the park was so hard, with the girls constantly wanting to be picked up. I finally got soo tired of it that I bought them these to make my life a little easier. If only I could bring them back...

Girls will be girls

I wish I could say that my girls have always been incredibly girly and asking for tutus and painted nails but the truth is...it wasn't until this Mother's Day that my lil girls have asked to have their nails painted. And that was only because Maile fell in love with the color of my toenails. Eric had given me a pedicure for that day and I decided to get my nails purple.

As soon as I got home, both of the girls were asking for the same thing. Until then, I had tried to get them both to paint their toenails and Maile's reply was always..."Maybe tomorrow, I think it hurts"...Well I guess she finally decided that wasn't true.

The other day, aunt Dana had gotten her toenails painted red so we all decided to copy. ( Audrey to the left, mommy in the middle, and lil miss Maile to the right).

I love my girls, I love them when they're girly and I love them as tomboys just the same.