The Sanoja Family

Doggy Tales

2011-09-23T21:52:00.000-07:00

I know that it has been ages since I have written but tonight I figured I would start up again with my unexpected turn of events. I had just gotten done with a photo shoot and I headed home. Home is not very close to the bank so I decided to stop on the way. As I left the bank, I noticed a very worried lady starring towards the busy street in a panic. When I asked her if she was ok, she pointed to 3 stray dogs running around, a big, a medium and a little. They came back over towards the Vons parking lot and weaved in and out of cars to get through. A couple of us followed behind trying to herd them into safe areas while I called animal patrol. They circled around several times in and out of the parking lot acting like this was the last place they saw their owner. So sad :(. They were all nice and fairly well behaved but the midsize one seemed very friendly but scared. I ran into Baskin Robins and asked for some bowls of water which they kindly provided for me and I got all 3 of them to drink. The big one and the little one ended up wandering off but the middle fella, or gal was sticking around. The other sweet lady with me had to leave, so there I was...a parking lot away from my car, sitting on the curb in front of a nail salon sitting with a stray dog. Then I had the idea of asking if someone would grab me a leash from target or Vons so that I could actually walk with him and keep him with me, so I began to ask..... "excuse me, could you help me with the stray dog....." I truly expected someone would quickly help. I mean, I'm on an iPhone, I'm in nice clothes, my hair is done ok, I don't look threatening, but instead of helpful hands, I got several people glancing over and completely walking past me. Tears actually filled up in my eyes realizing how so many people do the same thing every day of their lives, but not in the same situation as me. Unfortunately their situation is a lot worse. Finally I got up the courage to ask another couple who gladly came over and pet the dog and went to the store to get a leash. Great! Now they're really gonna think I'm nuts cause their Christ like generosity made all the tears start fallin. At this point I had already called animal patrol again because 45 min had passed. They again told me someone would come as soon as possible. This same nice couple went in to get their ice-cream and when they came out they said that they would like to bring it home for the night and bring him to the shelter tomorrow to see if he has a micro-chip. Im obviously being a total big baby today because when they said that, i totally started crying again! We exchanged phone numbers and will both make sure that it gets taken care of.....possibly take him myself :). I hope those others have found their way somewhere safe too.

Dream Morning of March 16 2011- Finding Christ...

2011-03-16T11:27:00.000-07:00

The past 5 mornings I have woken up around 6:30 am or before to study the scriptures. A wonderful friend of mine inspired me to do so....along with Heavenly Father obviously. After reading yesterday, I visited several other scriptures relating to riches and money. I often battle with this in my head because I don't ever want greed to be part of me, but during this day and age, saving, planning, living, etc. requires money. So how do I find the balance in desiring wealth and financial abundance while still maintaining my humility.

In Psalms 62:10 it reads: "Trust not in oppression and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your hearts upon them."
Ecclesiastes 5:19: Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God"
And in the Book of Mormon...Jacob 2:18: "Before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom."

Trust me...this is leading into my dream, I promise!

So I can see here that yes, many times in the scriptures, money and riches caused a lot of problems, but they have also been used for good and have been given as gifts from God.

In my dream, I was taken to this underground excavation of what looked like a VERY wealthy ancient society that had been buried underground over time. It was the largest collection of gold ever found. there were golden statues and tons of other things made of pure gold. This women (I have no idea who) secretly led me to a path that had a secret, off limits gate at the end. We went in and it was like a shopping mall, but there was artwork everywhere. Most of this artwork was ancient and special drawings or paintings of Christ. I looked around in amazement and with a small but humble feeling of pride and honor to be in the presence of something so sacred. The collection of gold had left my mind as I entered into the presence of something worth more than anything else.

Preserved, more than the largest collections of fine gold & riches ever found, was Christ. He took first priority over all else.

When I woke up and was review and journalling this dream, I felt as if I had subliminally passed a test. I felt like Heavenly Father testes me in my weakest, most revealing, unhindered and truthful state.....(dream land). Was I going to be able to look past all the gold, and blindly follow someone I didn't even know to the real sacred treasure? Yes. I did. I truly know that God heard my question and revealed to me my own personal answer.

Dream- Night of nov 6th

2010-11-08T15:27:00.000-08:00

I had a dream that I came outside to a beautiful sunset. On the horizon was what appeared to be a large hand imprint in the sky. We all gazed in wonder as we spoke among ourselves wondering if it was a sign that Christ was coming! People started coming out of their houses bringing their cameras wanting to capture this moment. All of the sudden under this handprint in the sky, a huge cross lit up on a hill. We again thought this must be it! A man stood near by the cross and with a microphone began to preach. My heart was all of the sudden filled with fear. While he was talking, he was walking around almost flirting with the women including me. I quickly realized that he was a false priest trying to sway believers before the coming of Christ. I woke up pretty quickly after.....

consistency...

2010-09-21T14:36:00.000-07:00

Consistency. Oh consistency, why do you hate me so?
Why do you come around and lead me on and then pick up and go?
I get all excited when I see your face and think "your staying for good!?
You'll be around, here by my side, I'll do just as I should!"
But once again, you let me down, and leave me in the dust.
Where else do I turn for help like yours, tell me who else can I trust?
There is no one like you to help me out, nothing quite as good as you.
So I'll put my faith in you again, just please promise to be true!

-by Kira Sanoja :-)

(if you didn't figure it out..."consistency" is ME!)

The Ducks from the Block (by Kira Sanoja)

2010-09-07T20:55:00.000-07:00

I wanted to once again give a little book shout out! The Ducks from the Block is for sale!!!

PLEASE support it and buy a copy for yourself, friends, family, teacher, co-worker, etc!

I would be happy to come read it to your child's class or share it at their school's book fair!

You can find my book at www.authorhouse.com

Author Preview:"Betty and Chuck have it made hanging out in this beautiful neighborhood. Fun kids to play with, green grass to rest in, and refreshing sprinklers to cool off in. Take a walk with Betty and Chuck in this real life picture book as they explore and share our block with us."

La La land..."Attack of the killer hotdog!"

2010-09-07T10:18:00.000-07:00

Dream September 6 2010

Ok so this one totally blows my mind. Usually I have some sort of philosophical explanation for my dreams, but this one...I don't know! Please have at it if you have a clue :-)

The earliest part of the dream I can remember is standing in my kitchen talking to someone. There were others around and someone yelled that there was a mouse by my feet. I could feel it run over my foot and then my foot began to burn in pain. I picked up my foot and saw that there were these nasty blister looking welts on them and another person told me that the sores were not from the mouse. We went looking around and found the big cracked open rotten wiggling hotdog, hiding. Yes, I said hiding. We grabbed it with a kitchen towel and I begin to remember that we had put a bag of trash in the attic to keep the smell out and it must have falling out and due to the attic temperatures, its cells began to multiply and it had began to come alive! I remember thinking in my dream that I could understand evolution a little more if an old hotdog could have intelligence. [OH!!! as I am writing this, I think I have figured out why I dreamed this! I will explain at the end!!! FHEW! I thought I was totally crazy!...I guess I still am a bit :-)]. ANYWAY... My mom realized that if I were to eat this nasty, rotten, old, smelly, living hotdog, it would heal the venomous bites it had left on me. So....she prepared it for me (like a good mother would) in a bun with ketchup and mustered and I reluctantly took and bite! The taste was the most horrific taste I've ever tasted and I gagged it out of my mouth. I figured I would rather live with these bites and have to be rushed to the hospital than eat it....and that was the end!

WTH ('what the heck')!!!! So the boys have been watching Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. At the end of the movie, some of the food has become "superfood" that can think for its self. This is the only explanation I can come up with, but I'll take it!

La La Land..."New York rumble"

2010-09-04T09:18:00.000-07:00

Dream September 3rd 2010

I was walking around in New York I think, where there was a lot of big buildings. Not like Las Vegas (they were not hotels, the were tall office like buildings) I had my camera with me and I went with this person (don't remember who) up to one of the buildings were there was very artistic photography going on. Lots of models, some dressed, some painted, just kinda weird. It was almost like they were going to try me out as their photographer. As I was explaining to the boss lady what kind of equipment I had, the building began to shake. All the girls started to scream as the building began to tip. I remember thinking that there was no way of surviving a fall like that, but I calmly asked the girls if they believed in the power of prayer and they kind of looked at me like they didn't know what I was talking about so I began to pray. One of the girls cut in and began to pray with me. The building stopped shaking and tipping and Im pretty sure that was the end, or all I can remember at least....weird...

Things I wanna do...

2010-08-23T14:41:00.000-07:00

in no particular order....

1] Right now I have a big desire to witness the northern lights with my family and get it on camera! Hope that will happen when we go to Canada in December!

2] Stay in the Treetops Hotel in Kenya Africa with my family. Your room is high above the ground and they have different animal feeding times so you get to see all of the exotic animals out your balcony!

3] Go on a cruise pretty much anywhere at this point one with kids...one without

4] Photography in magazines (fashion/ photojournalistic)

5] A couple Cd's in stores (Christian music)

6] Couples mission for church with Andrew (anywhere Heavenly Father takes us)

7] Go on a Safari with family

8] Sky diving with Andrew

9] More books in stores

10] Go to Antelope Canyon, Az.

11] Visit Fiji (hopefully where our friend went on his mission)

12] Go to Ireland (the beautiful greeeeeeeeennnnn everywhere and castles and stuff!)

13] pretty much a lot of traveling....Visit somewhere in every continent even in Antarctica (Ice Hotel!)

14] Visit Temples all over the world

15] Go on a helicopter ride

16] Walk in as many places as Jesus walked (while on earth)

17] Own a lake house in the mountains...with boats, sea-doos and stuff

18] See the pyramids in Egypt

19] Cancun with my family

20] Send ANYONE in my family (parents, siblings, in-laws, etc.) on there dream vacation

21] have a paid off dream house....Dream house: master bedroom, room for each kids, kid play room, office, nice kitchen, studio (photography), beautiful 2 level backyard (top level with pool and big tree with treehouse, slides, swings from it) (bottom level with club house, garden, fruit trees)

22] have extra money to give whenever

23] Cadillac STS V

24] buy Andrew the motorcycle of his dreams

Im gonna have to get back to you on the rest.....I want to list 100!

When dreams become realities....

2010-08-03T13:36:00.000-07:00

Maybe Im being a little dramatic, but the recent flood in Northwest Pakistan leaves me feeling a little sick to my stomach. If you remember in my last blog post about my dream, I say...."I talked about it like it was Las Vegas though, saying that I needed to go Northeast to get to safety (we are Northwest Vegas right now)."

Then, to make things even more strange, I was looking up more information about the flood and found this picture which sent chills down my spine, because of this sentence..."we made a stop at this little place that was very populated. It was kind of in a valley surrounded in mountains with a bunch of little shops along the mountain side." This place below is located in northern Pakistan

I know that my dream was actually about Mexico...but this still freaks me out a little bit....

La la land..."Waves are raging"

2010-07-30T13:30:00.000-07:00

Morning of July 30th, 2010

I have had some dreams since the last one I wrote, and I just haven't been writing them down....oops :-), but my dream last night really stood out and I thought I would share it while it was fresh in my memory.

Me and Andrew were at this house were there were dogs up for adoption. there were a lot of people around and the caretaker let all the dogs out to mingle with the people. 2 dogs in particular took a really huge liking to us. They were so sweet and loving to each other too (like they were married). They seemed kinda worried about something though. For some reason, we couldn't take them at that moment so we left. This is where the dream gets really interesting...

We were on the road about to go under an over pass when we notice that it was pretty flooded. We hesitated to drive through, but we did anyway. We continued driving and as I looked to my right, I saw that the ocean was over flowing pretty much. I could see houses underwater and people struggling all around. The waves were out of control and the entire freeway was a couple inches deep. For some reason, even though I was living there, it was in Mexico. I talked about it like it was Las vegas though, saying that I needed to go Northeast to get to safety (we are Northwest Vegas right now).

We tried to get back to our house (in Mexico) but we made a stop at this little place that was very populated. It was kind of in a valley surrounded in mountains with a bunch of little shops along the mountain side. I was telling everyone to get to safety, pointing up to the mountain above showing them that the ocean was now at the top of those mountains and that another wave could flood the whole valley. No one was listening to us. We left and as I looked back, water started to splash a little bit over the mountains and the people finally started getting up.

We drove to this place, I don't know why we went there, but it was completely tipping over. We were on the second story with the rock band that was trying to set up for something and no one could stand straight because it was sinking. Although it sounds scary, I knew that at least we were going to get to safety, but I was sad for everyone else...i think I woke up at this point. Ummmm pretty weird huh!

The Ducks from the Block (by Kira Sanoja)

2010-07-28T17:13:00.002-07:00

So, I am really excited about the debut of my new little children's book called The Ducks from the Block! (by Kira Sanoja). It all started back in the summer of 2009 when these cute ducks made our street their home for a while. On the first day they arrived, me, Tony, Aj, & Jordan followed them around and took pictures of their journey around our block. I will keep you posted on when it is ready for retail. If you know anyone with kiddos, please share the link with them if you would like!

xoxo

Kira

by the way...I only use my name for search engine purposes...Im not just trying to sound all vain :-)

Again...click here for the link

Don't give up on me!

2010-07-07T01:58:00.000-07:00

Don't give up on me! I really promise that I have been continuing to read the scriptures! I haven't been very diligent about journalling everything and I know I need to.

My amazingly incredible husband set up an entire new computer system for me for my birthday coming up! Aint he the freakin bomb!!! Anywho...all of my word documents are on the other computer that seemed to have taken a dump the day after the new one was set up....Doesn't that just make you feel like....@$%&$%%&^$*%^&(*$%#^&^^&*^. :-). So Im hoping that we can get that back to "normal" so I can at least retrieve some of those things and get on a roll again.

xoxo

La la land..."photography scare"

2010-06-23T09:11:00.000-07:00

Night of the June 23, 2010

There are only little bits and pieces that I can remember, but I know that at one point I was going to be headed over to a wedding that I was photographing. I got there and realized not all of my stuff was together. There was another photographer taking pictures of them already when I got there, but I just kinda scooted my way in there. I knew that my settings were off, but I didn’t want to waste any time so I didn’t care. The ceremony was about to start and I didn’t have my flash hooked up or anything. I felt very flustered and frustrated with myself for not having it all together (I think this is because I had a bride in real life that was saying I didn’t have a flash even though I did and had been using with her for the past hour). I then ran up to where I needed to be and began to take the pictures. I felt fine finally. I saw my dad in the crowd and he tried to hand me a memory card even though I already had one. I turned to the person next to me and started bragging to them about how my dad was in a rock band. Then I woke up. That’s about all I can remember.

Like I said, I think part of this dream had to do with this one real life bride that talked about me like I was inadequate when I really actually did feel all together. Her pictures turned out great. She had told the coordinator that I didn’t have a flash and I didn’t even have a website. It really frustrated me. Although another part of me just thinks that the dream was playing out what I fear most about weddings. I never fear being able to take good pictures, I fear not having all of my equipment together or for something to malfunction. I don’t exactly know what the part about my dad and the memory card was all about, but I do know that I do brag about him to people about him being in a rock band so that I’m not surprised!

I hoping that from now on, when I have these dreams, I can write them down on a hand written journal right away and transfer it later. Well that’s it for now!

Scripture Journal

2010-06-21T14:02:00.000-07:00

June 23, 2010
2nd Nephi Chapter 18- Chapter 33 (completing 2nd Nephi)

Today I read 30 pages from the Book of Mormon. My heart is so full of understanding right now. It blows my mind that I have waited this long to receive the fullest of what I have been taught since birth. I was overwhelmed with confusion once more when beginning to read today. I could hardly understand one word. I felt like giving up within 3 minutes. I even got up and took a break. I was pulled back to the book many times though. At one point I even lifted up my head and laugh as I said…”really? Is this supposed to be this hard to understand? Please help me understand so I have a desire to continue!” I was inspired to carry on reading and I would be given guidance.

The next chapter began and I continued reading. 2nd Nephi 21:2-3. “And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of council and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; And shall make him quick of understanding in the fear of the Lord; and shall not judge after the sight of his eyes neither after the hearing of his ears.” That was enough to keep me going for a while longer J

Nephi speaks with such plainness (as he says). He is so calm and collected with his words. Every word he speaks has such strength yet can sooth you at the same time. Again I say that so much of this has to do with what is going on in the present day. A couple more that stood out to me. 2nd Nephi 28. Saying that the day will come that people will say that God’s work is done and has given the power to men. They will deny the Power of the Holy Ghost. People will begin to say that they have received enough of God’s teachings and that they need no more. Just as I can never know enough about photography…I am always learning new things according to the changing of times, we can also never learn enough about the teachings of our Heavenly Father.

I love the end of 2nd Nephi. I was balling my eyes out for the last 3 pages. He says in Chapter 33:10 “…hearken unto these words and believe in Christ, and if ye believe not in these words, believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ, ye shall believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ, and he hath given them unto me; and they teach all men that they should do good.“

I can’t wait to start reading again!

June 22, 2010
2nd Nephi Chapter 9- 2nd Nephi Chapter 17

Today I read 16 pages from the Book of Mormon! These chapters had a lot to do with explaining what was to happen to the wicked and proud. Nephi and Jacob talk a lot about those who think they are wise and learned. One scripture that stood out to me was 2nd Nephi 9:28-29. It’s amazing how much this pertains to the latter days. The scripture says “O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness and the frailties and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise and they hearken not unto the counsels of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not and they shall parish.” “But to be learned is good if they hearken until the counsels of God”. Just as my last scripture journal talks about not putting our trust in flesh of men, this talks about not putting trust into ourselves alone. Being vain, being a “no-it-all” will not get us to where we need to be. We are constantly in a place of learning. We do not have all the answers yet.

I think Heavenly Father tries to teach me this lesson often. I forget that the best teachers are those who lead by example. I want to be more like that. I want people to learn from me even if nothing comes out of my mouth. It’s hard not to get caught up in what I am learning and how I am growing, and get frustrated when others are not trying to learn too. Heavenly Father always brings me back to the same answer when I pray…lead by example if you want to make a difference.

June 21, 2010
1st Nephi Chapter 20- 2nd Nephi Chapter 8

I am very proud of myself today because I read 26 pages of the Book of Mormon. I made a decision recently that I would read as much as possible, but at least 12 pages a day so that I could finish by my birthday July 30th. I was already a little bit into it so this is where I am starting from.

It started off a little shaky. I had a hard time following, but I prayed that I would be able to understand the words I was reading. Interestingly enough…the next chapter was Nephi giving a summary of the previous chapter. I love when that happens!

A few scriptures in particular really stood out to me. 2nd Nephi 3:24 & 2nd Nephi 4:17-35. Nephi was a man with thoughts just like ours. He had temptation just as we do. But he says how God is our support and He leads us through our afflictions. He explains that we can NOT put our trust in flesh (meaning any man or ourselves alone). We must put all of our trust in Him and ask Him and no one else when we are looking for answers.

At church yesterday, one of the councilors of our stake presidency told a story of a man that met President Hinkley. This man was asking President Hinkley some questions about the gospel and scriptures and this was the Prophets response: “If you will forgive me for not answering your question, I will forgive you for asking.” Our Prophet knows that God wants us to think for ourselves and ask Him when we need help. We can be given direction, but it is only in honest prayer that we will find the truth of that direction we have been given.

I am hoping to do a scripture journal daily. Most likely not this long since I kinda had to preface it, but I am looking forward to doing this. Thanks for reading!

The Book of Ely (Movie)...

2010-06-18T23:50:00.000-07:00

My heart is filled with inspiration and faith after watching a movie called The Book of Ely. There was violence and bad language, but the story was so amazing. I had chills from head to toe during the entire movie. My eyes were filled with tears of understanding and my heart was filled with the passion of knowing that we hold such a sacred and true book.

It is a privilege to have the scriptures and to know what we know. There are many that don’t have the chance to read these words. Others have been willing to sacrifice their own life so that we could carry it forth. I have the scriptures in front of me. I know how to read. No one has ever stopped me from reading it. I have always had the free will to take from it all of the knowledge that He has given to me. Yet I let so many chances slip away.

I prayed before posting this, because I know that this movie is rated R. I know that many will not choose to watch it and that is perfectly fine. But please take what I learned from it. Would you remember enough of the teachings and stories of the scriptures if it were taken off the earth? Would you be able to hold it in your heart so close that you could convey the message fully to others? At this point in time, I could not. But...it is never too late to start (again). I am still on this earth and there is so much I still don’t know. I believe that I was put here for a purpose much greater than I can even comprehend. Each day I am ready to be an instrument in His hands.

Bring it on...

Accountability

2010-06-18T00:32:00.000-07:00

I am so darn sleepy, but I am determined to keep up with this so here we go…

My day mostly consists of editing, indulging in my facebook addiction, playing with Jordan and cleaning. Today I took some time to sit down and watch some more of a new favorite show of mine called Arrested Development. It’s pretty funny and it has really drawn me in. It was nice to kick back a bit. Most nights end with me and Andrew cuddled up watching south park or something, but hardly ever during the day

My eating habits have been insane. I really have been eating crappy and I feel it big time. My body hurts and I am way more tired. I am making an announcement to the world that I am going to HALFWAY go on my healthy diet again. Im not going to be as crazy as last time, but I seriously need to rid my body of whatever is making me feel this way. Obeying the Word of Wisdom is more important than we know. And not just in the alcohol, drugs and caffeine sense. I know from first hand that eating crappy can become an addiction. Your body begins to crave sugar and carbs when you eat a lot of it. It is a cycle that can only be broken by cutting a bunch out of your diet until you don’t need it anymore.

In the early evening, Jordan, Andrew and I went to my brother in law David’s to eat dinner and watch the Lakers game! GO LAKERS! They won…woot woot! Then I took off down to Fremont St. down town to help my friend Suzi (TSL Photography) with an engagement shoot. It’s always fun hangin out with her and some clients. I learned of a lot of cool picture places.

Got home, watched some south park with Andrew and our cousin Adrian who just came in to town, then watched a couple episodes of Arrested Development. It has been another great day. I hope to accomplish more tomorrow!

Xoxo

Day of Learning and Success!

2010-06-16T22:12:00.000-07:00

My eyes are heavy. My body is weak. Yet I know when I lay down, slumber will stand firm and strong as my sworn enemy. Falling asleep has never come easy to me. As I am exploring all of the intricate curves, twist and crevasses of my brain, I seem to come across lectures, reviewing what I have learned that day, what went on yesterday, and what I want to go on tomorrow and so on. These internal conversations draw me in like a moth to a flame and as I think of wanting to fall asleep more, the further I am from actually falling asleep. It’s a vicious cycle. Luckily, staying asleep is usually a piece of cake…once I get to that point. Sometime, Advil PM is my friend. And this friend never lets me down.

Ok…that’s enough complaining for now. Today was overall another really good day. Minus the fact that I ate leftover spaghetti for breakfast, 2 corn dogs for lunch and 3 slices of pizza for dinner. Not a very nutritious day for me, but I still got a lot done. I got my house cleaned before 10. Which was pretty good considering I blogged until 1am and Jordan woke up at 6…blah! Then my sister in law Lucy came over for some pictures. Those turned out freaking awesome! I worked on some more pictures. I went to Costco. I got a learning DVD for my external flash in the mail and watched it later…not very impressive unfortunately. Got Jordan to bed…didn’t climb out of his crib once!

I then took some time to learn a couple things on my own about my camera. I love taking something by the wheel and just working it myself. I think that it is AWESOME to at least read manuals and figure out what buttons mean, but for the most part, it’s all about taking your camera out and taking a thousand pictures and taking note of different settings you used. That has really worked for me and it continues to help me improve my images. In the picture above, Jordan was so kindly helping me learn some more about my camera :-)

Then suddenly I hear sounds of distress. Poor Andrew realized that he hurt his leg pretty working out so I made an emergency run to the store for some Bengay. I hope he gets better quickly. I lathered myself up pretty good too. A part of me thinks that the only thing Bengay does is distract you from the pain by giving you that weird sensation of freezing.

Anyway, that’s 2 days in a row that I’ve blogged and wrote a journal entry! Yay for me! Peace out!

xoxo

The day of much productivity!

2010-06-16T00:33:00.000-07:00

Today has been a great day. I woke up around 7:30 with the baby and Andrew. I immediately started laundry…hasn’t been done in a while (like a week). I made myself a note of everything I wanted to get done before turning on the computer and I achieved it! I even added a couple of things on and got those things done too. I called this guy James from tourguy.com. He will not return my phone call…boooooooo! Hopefully he will call back someday soon. I finished getting my book The Ducks from the Block together and I sent everything to the publisher! Woo-hoo!! I’ll be talking more about that in the future for sure!

My visiting teachers Lori Jayme and Amber Cooper came over to see me around 2. We talked and they gave a quick lesson on sacrament and why it is so important to really remember why we are taking it each week and to not just take it without thinking. We also talked about making our ward [ES2] a little more united. Planning dinners, game nights, girl’s nights, etc. We decided that we are going to try to start a ward blog. A blog that we could update and keep events posted on a calendar. I think that would really help everyone come together. We’ll see how it goes.

I worked on pictures. I finished 4 loads of laundry. I played with my little cutie Jordan. I talked to Tony and AJ on the phone (they are in California with Grandma) and I freaking miss them. I sold our old mattress, box spring and frame on craigslist for $20! I was planning on dumping it or donating it so $20 was awesome! I made yummy chicken parmesan with spaghetti and bell peppers. I dyed my hair again. My blonde roots were coming in WAY too much…I needed to tame that. While my hair was cooking, I vented Andrews ear off about a bridezilla that I had recently and he expressed that he wanted to doo-doo on her pictures and mail them to her. I thought that was rather funny. I will try not to let him get a hold of her address.

Jordan climbed out of his crib 4 or 5 times, but finally gave up. So, after a long productive day, Andrew and I snuggled up on the couch with a big bowl of ice cream and watched a movie called “Taken”. It started off kinda slow, but once it got going, we were on the edge of our seats….or the couch. It was PG13 and pretty clean. I would highly recommend it!

Now I’m sitting down and writing a little journal entry. I will keep this one going daily. I will be getting off the computer and making a list of “to-do’s” for tomorrow cause it sure worked out for me today!

xoxo

A New Beginning!

2010-06-11T00:33:00.001-07:00

So as you can see....the last posting I did was back in May....OF 2009! But tonight I came from a friends house who gave me inspiration and motivation to get going again! Thanks Keshia! This time its gonna be about blogging. Not all about pictures. You can see my pics on my website, photo blog or facebook. Here...you will learn about me and what is going on in my life. Now I'm not gonna tell you my life story, maybe I'll go into detail another time, but I'm gonna start from scratch with what has been happening lately.

My 2 oldest boys went on their very first plane ride yesterday by themselves to California. My stomach was in knots and I probably had high blood pressure, but I made it...and so did they. They had the time of their lives and are so excited to be spending time with family on the coast.

I am super tired right now...I just wanted to get the ball rolling. I will write more about some exciting stuff going on in our lives right now tomorrow.

Pray often, give thanks, don't be afraid to ask & smile for at least a minute when your day's not going good...that will make it better :-)

xoxo

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-06-01T17:03:00.000-07:00

Me and the boys took a trip up to Las Vegas for Memorial Day weekend! We had a blast visiting with daddy Lake Mead ;-) Here are some pix!

Now you see me.......

Now you dont!

Graduation of Shelsi Stolworthy

2009-06-01T13:37:00.000-07:00

After 2 years of fighting cancer and many more life challenges and changes, my amazing sister Shelsi graduated with her Associate Degree in Child Development this month! Congrats Shels!!!!

Daddy visits Cali!

2009-06-01T13:32:00.000-07:00

Andrew came to visit for a day on the 17th of may. yayayayayay! I love him so much! We went to the park and had a bunch of fun with the kiddos!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TONY.....AGAIN!

2009-06-01T13:22:00.000-07:00

Tony was pretty lucky to celebrate several times this birthday. This was a sleepover that we planned on very short notice for him! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TONY!!!

Mothers Day 2009

2009-06-01T13:15:00.001-07:00

Happy Mothers Day MAMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sleepy baby boy {~_~}

2009-06-01T13:08:00.000-07:00

Wanted to share these cute pictures of slumber. He is too darn cute!

Rainbow

2009-06-01T13:00:00.000-07:00

Woke up to find a beautiful rainbow covering a wall in my room. It was coming from the sun shinning onto a cd in the perfect spot. It shinned on this family picture of the other Vegas Sanoja family. I thought it looked very special! It made me smile :-))

"The Ducks From The Block "

2009-06-01T11:43:00.000-07:00

Once apon a time there were two little ducks....

One named Betty and one named Chuck.......

What a day they will have playing with friends......

What a day they will have, these ducks are in luck........

They will sit and relax, in the field of flowers......

And then they will leave after an hour........

Lets go Betty, lets go Chuck! What else can we do as little ducks........

These kids are so nice, but the day's getting hotter.......

Where oh where can we find some water?...........

Listen Chuck! across the way!......

Here is some water for us to play!........

A nice little drink will hit the spot.......

I hope this shower will clean me a lot!.....

Lets stand in the water, it feels like the rain.....

Where did it go? Did it go away?.......

So these ducks found a spot to sit and to think.....

What a nice day of food, baths and drinks.........

Together forever, these ducks from the block stay.....

Happily ever after, come again soon some day!

Pictures and story are property of Kira Sanoja June 1st 2009

May Fun in the yard!

2009-06-01T11:28:00.000-07:00

Below you will see the boys getting their splash on and the baby workin out with some pushups!

Tony's 8th Birthday weekend

2009-06-01T10:04:00.000-07:00

Wow! There is a lot to say in this one! Tony had quite the birthday this year. Tony started his day off with getting an award at school as Student of the Month!!! Yay Tony, we are sooooo proud of you. He is a lucky dog too cause his name also got picked out of a bag to eat pizza with the principle. How cool is that, second time this year!

Then just the 5 of us had some yummy banana splits to celebrate on his actual birthday. You will see in the pictures, Andrews idea of birthday candles. I love that man ;-)

Then on Saturday, we took him and a few of his friends to Lazerstar to have a little celebration. Its not cheap so we told him that he could have another sleep over with more friends in a couple weeks. They had so much fun!!!

Now the most special part of his birthday this year was his Baptism. Tony Turned 8 and recieved the Gift of the Holy Ghost. Aunt Shelsi sang "Teach me to walk in the light of his love" while Grandpa Ric played the guitar. It was amazing! Uncle Jamin and Grandma Esther gave absolutly BEAUTIFUL talks and all of our family and friends were there to make this day soooooo special for us. Thank you all!!!

Go Tony!!! Jog-a-thon!!!

2009-06-01T09:59:00.000-07:00

Tony was running laps around his principle this year for his annual jog-a-thon! Last year he ran 14 (elementary size) laps and raised $180. This year, he ran 21 LAPS and raised $225!!! His school has raised close to $20,000 this year alone with the jog-a-thon. Great job Tony! We are still waiting on some of his neat prizes and to see if he placed #1 in his class, it was a close call......

Spring Love, Fun & Beauty

2009-06-01T09:33:00.000-07:00

These are some of the cute tiny little birds that come out during the spring and take over a big tree we have in the back yard. Such beautiful colors! Another picture is of a friend of AJ's. They seemed very cozy on the couch together so I had to take a picture of them ;-). And a few more spring fun pics of flowers, Jordan and daddy!

Easter at Grandma Sheri's House!

2009-06-01T09:06:00.000-07:00

Grandma Sheri and Steve planned a big easter egg hunt for the boys when we came out! The eggs were spread out all down their path way and into several grassy areas. We had a BBQ with yummy salmon, potatoes, hot dogs, turkey and other yummy goodies! Thank you Grandma sheri and Steve for the wonderful day!!! And also..........HAPPY BIRTHDAY PEG! WE LOVE YOU!!!

aj's stories of the day

2009-05-08T12:04:00.000-07:00

2 funny stories from AJ in this past week..........

Well the story goes that after my shower the other night, i decided to do some sit ups. The sit ups turned into push ups &.....then that turned into dancing around by myself with my ipod trying to get some fun cardio in for the day. Now keep in mind that I just got out of the shower so all of these things had been done still in the buff. The next day, I was making fun of myself telling my sister Shelsi about it and my little 4 year old AJ overheard our conversation and this was his reply......
"WHAT! YOU WERE DANCING AROUND NAKED!!! OH MY GOSH MOM, THAT IS INAPPROPRIATE!"

My kids are the greatest!

NEXT CUTE STORY....

Me: "Aj, do you know how much I love you?"

AJ: "um...like one hundred fifty one?"

Me: "nope, even more than that"

AJ: "One hundred fifty two???"

Me: Nope, way way way more than that, like to infinity!"

AJ: "LIKE TO INFINITY AND BEYOND!?!?"

Again I say, my kids are the greatest!!!

Easter 2009 with Sanoja clan

2009-04-11T23:40:00.000-07:00

Every year at Easter time we all gather together to celebrate. We all hike down Wildwood Canyon. It is so amazingly beautiful down there and it makes me so grateful to be living on the incredible planet!

We eat, play, talk, hike, take pix and at the end we have and Easter egg hunt. One for the kids and one for the adults. The adult eggs are real eggs, emptied and filled with flour. Tons of fun!

Jordan's Sunday best!

2009-03-23T15:19:00.000-07:00

Just had to publish this cute picture of my lil baby all dressed up and ready for church. He looks so darn handsome!!!

Ventura Pier fishing in March

2009-03-23T14:34:00.000-07:00

We had an awesome time this last Saturday going to the Ventura peir and fishing. Tony caught his first fish and the rest of the boys caught many! Our whole family, Grandpa Art, Grandpa Ric, Uncle Tony, Rob, Kari, Carter, and Bella were all there to spend the day with us! it was a blast!

March fun at the park!

2009-03-23T14:30:00.000-07:00

I love the beauty that surrounds us in our lives! Ive been walking to the park a couple days per week and we love it! Ive given a lot of business cards out and Ive gotten several calls back. Yay!

Story of the day - by AJ Sanoja

2009-03-10T10:59:00.001-07:00

As I am folding some of Andrews clothes, I pick up one of his pants. AJ tells me...

"Those use to be my pants....when I was bigger"

I reply "When you were bigger? What do you mean?"

"When I was bigger a trillion years ago" he tells me with such confidence.

"Did you have a job" I asked.

"yes! I was a missionary. And I did lots and lots of work!" He replies back.

"That is pretty amazing stuff to remember" I tell him.

"Yep! I did lots of work and I finished it!" He says, with a big smile on his face.

Children are amazing little beings! I love it!

February fun

2009-02-14T11:45:00.000-08:00

Aj really thinks he's hot stuff with his mail man sticker! The boys have taken a liking to basket ball! They're pretty darn good to!

Tony's talent show

2009-02-14T11:22:00.000-08:00

Tony's rockin out at his talent show. He got so many cheers! The last 2 pictures really show you his skills. He held that position for at least 10 seconds and even looked over at the audience and smiled while he did it! I'm so proud of that boy. Hardly even nervous. I will get the video out as soon as I can!

January 2009

2009-02-03T11:02:00.000-08:00

FIRST PICTURES IN 2009

Crazy Sisters

Brother Jamin and Kelly

Friends, Kari, Rob, Carter & Bella

NEW YEARS WITH MOMMY & STEVE IN LAGUNA BEACH

BEAUTIFUL FALL LEAVES (IN JANUARY) WITH BEAUTIFUL BABY!

TONY & GRANDPA ART WITH NEW TELESCOPES!

FUN AT THE PARK

Christmas/December

2009-02-03T10:25:00.001-08:00

Christmas was so wonderful this year. 5 kids and 5000 presents! At least it seemed that way! Aunica, Jr and their mom spent Christmas with us this year so we for sure had a full house. I sang in many places over the holidays which was fun. I love feeling the spirit of song.

Merry (very belated) Christmas!

Christmas Tree

2008-12-09T12:43:00.000-08:00

Every year we go to the same tree farm and cut down our Christmas tree. Usually there is a lot more of us, but this year it was only me (Kira), Tony, Aj, Jordan, Art & Esther. Tony and Aj were the big boys this year and helped cut the tree down. Our cousin Aunica helped decorate the tree later that night. Its beautiful!

Thanksgiving

2008-12-08T15:38:00.000-08:00

This was our trip to the cabin up in Brian Head. We usually take a trip ever Thanksgiving with all of the Sanojas that can make it. Our sister in law Amy and her dad have had this cabin for years now. I love it!