Tikka

Hello Family and Friends,

The reality of life is that I don't seem capable of posting anything on time...nevertheless, better late than never!

On July 14th (yes, that would be nearly two months ago) we brought home Tikka, who was 6 weeks at the time. She is a female Vizsla (a hungarian pointer breed).

Tikka on Day 2: 6 weeks old

Having her has certainly been a new experience -demanding to be sure!! By the second week she was pretty much house-trained and kennel-trained, so that has been good. Other than that, I'm just started to appreciate the need for so much consistency in her training. Being that she is just a pup (now 3 months old) she wants to chew on everything she can get a hold of -so that has been a challenge at times. The most costly victim thus far have been Fede's glasses...but no shoes or sofas yet :)

Tikka has already grown so much from the time that this picture with Antonio was taken. Here she weighed about 6 lbs and now she weighs about 17 lbs!

At first she could easily nestle in Francisco's lap (and initially she slept quite a bit!) but now, there's no way she can cuddle in his lap!

watching a dog sleep is one of life's simple pleasures. what peace! 

She is a beautiful dog and very fun to have around. Definitely we would consider Tikka high-energy dog, as she needs lots of exercise. Every night Fede puts on his roller blades and goes as fast as he can around the neighborhood to tire Tikka out. When the come through the back door Tikka immediately sprawls out on the cool kitchen tile to cool down -so funny! I take her out on weekend mornings for a walk-run, which doesn't tire her nearly as much but still does the job!

Tikka has found a second home at my Aunt Marisa's home. Earlier this year, they got a bolonka puppy named "Chicharito" and so we've had the opportunity to take her there for a "playdate." It is like taking her to Disney World! she couldn't be happier running around, visiting with Chicharito and even jumping in their pool! She is a water dog, although we haven't had many occasions to practice with her.

This picture is actually from 10 days ago, so it is more true to life. I took Tikka out on a Saturday afternoon at 5 pm in the scorching heat. Not surprisingly, halfway through our jog she found a shady spot and promptly spread herself out on the grass. I couldn't get her to budge! Finally after a few minutes I managed to drag her to a stand and get her going again. She has also started chasing her tail, which is so darn funny!

Ok, next on the line up is Ana's August visit to Houston and our family reunion. After that, pictures of the kids in school :)

And finally, in case you are wondering about the name "Tikka" -well, technically "Tica" is a Hungarian name, but we decided to spell it with "k"s because she kind of looks the color of one of our favorite Indian dishes "Tikka Masala."

Best to all of you!
-The Martinez Family

Home, Sweet, New Home

Hello Family and Friends,

After a terribly long absence, I am finally back on the blog :). While it has been quiet as far as posts go since April, in reality our lives have been something resembling a hurricane...but now, it is the calm after the storm.

The big news is that we have a home of our own once more --thanks be to God. Finding a home was not easy at all. In fact, it took 4 months to get to where we are now and a whole lot of prayers!! Really, we cannot thank God enough for this huge blessing.We first saw in in late April, after seeing numerous homes and having several offers fall through. We were actually surprised when this one didn't! On June 3rd we closed and June 15th we moved in. So, here it is -the new place! (chopped off part of the garage in the picture, sorry...) and as you can vaguely see, Francisco is standing in the doorway looking very happy.

After 5 terrific months living with my parents -which turned out to be such a special experience for all of us, but in particular the kids- we packed our bags once more, but this time we hope that it will be to stay for quite some time in one place. I also want to thank my parents in a very big way for all they have done to support us (and just put up with us) all of these months. Without their help, things could not have gone as smoothly and happily as they did.

Per the request of several of you, here is a quick tour of the home: Formal living and dining rooms...

The family room below -we (that is, Fair Contractors!) added the skylights which can be seen in the reflection of the mirror above the chimney) and this made a dramatic difference as far as lighting goes (it was a very dark room before, if you can believe that..). The orange decor comes as no surprise, I am sure, as it is my favorite color!

The kitchen. Everything was in great shape and really we made no modifications (short of the skylights and painting the family room). The appliances we did have to purchase though..

The upstairs game room (it's really more of a multi-purpose study & work room)..

The kids' rooms...(Fede did a great job putting together the bunkbeds, whoo-hoo!)

The master bedroom/bath..

The backyard...

I haven't included a photo of the guest bedroom as that is a disaster in progress... which is to say, all of their toys are dumped in this room and until we have visitors, it'll probably stay like this!

So, that's our home and we do hope that you all will have the chance to come visit us, now that we are getting settled. The saying is that "Everything is Bigger in Texas" and there is a lot of truth to that, so ya'll don't be shy! Come on and visit :)

In other news, the kids are very much enjoying the new-found space and they play hide-n-go seek, run around like bandits and in general find niches where to hang out (like the formal living room, which Alejandra has claimed as the official "puzzle-making area.") They are happy rediscovering all of their old toys and books and this has kept them busy, as we unpack and organize.

One day, out of the blue, I decided to dress Fran up as a vampire. He took to it rather nicely!

We have been going frequently to the pool and Alejandra just recently learned to float (what a pro!): 

Last month, Fr. Jorge (my father's brother) stopped over in Houston for a couple of days on his way from Mexico to L.A. and it was *so* great to see him:

The kids are all set for the fall as far as school goes. They will all three be attending St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic School, which is less than 10 minutes away. All three are very excited, but also in no hurry to see the summer go by quickly. The days have been filled with visits from friends, some 'homeschool' work, trips to the library and lots of board games.

Fede has begun working, which is wonderful. His dedication and tireless motivation impress me so much.

Anyway, stay tuned to more posts and definitely with more frequency! Hope you all are having a marvelous summer.

Love,
The Martinez Family

A Surprise Visit to Ana

Marisa, Maria, Sofia, Ana, Mariana, Ana and Lucia in front of Blair Arch, Princeton Campus.

Hello family and friends!

This past weekend I had a once-in-a-lifetime chance to surprise visit my sister, Ana. I hadn't seen my sister in almost two years and during this time, she had given birth to her fifth child and had moved to a new home. My aunt Marisa and her three girls were planning a trip up to Princeton, so when they invited me to come along I absolutely jumped with joy at the opportunity. Ana knew that relatives were coming to visit, she just didn't know that I was tagging along too! The surprise was a huge, happy-tear-filled, success.

Ana met us with her five kiddos (Lucia, 8, Mariana, 6, Felipe "Pepe", 4, Belen, 2 and Daniela 3 months) at the hotel, where we proceeded to reek havoc in the hotel bedroom, throwing pillows and chasing after the kids! Suddenly, we heard a forceful knock at the door and we all got very quiet, fearing that we were already being reprimanded by the hotel staff for the riot. However, it was Diego (Ana's husband) who had joined the reunion. He has this very cute ritual whereby all of his kids (save Daniela) run up, jump into dad's arms and they do this "ta-dah" pose, as seen below:

Tummies were rumbling by now and so we headed to "Magma Pizza" -a terrific little pizza place nearby for dinner.

9 girls and 2 boys: that's what you call an "Estrogen Pizza Party!"

Day 2: A Tour of Princeton University. Friday our plan was to see the Princeton campus, which by all objective measures is probably one of the prettier university campuses in the U.S.

We had terrific weather (a bit chilly but sunny) all week, which made walking a joy. We walked by several of the dorm rooms were Ana and I lived (above, middle-left, you can see Ana's window from junior year -the ornate one smack in the middle of the top floor of the stone building). To Marisa's disbelief, Ana proceeded to tell us how she had to scale up the outside of the building to her third story window one time when she locked herself out. Indeed "Tarzana" has been tamed by motherhood and her five bundles of joy, but this takes nothing away from her risky and glorious past!!

We found it comical that Marisa's daughters kept saying "this looks just like Harry Potter!" -indeed, Princeton found inspiration in the architectural designs of Oxford and retains much of the rich, traditional English college style.

Good ol' Nassau Hall is above (the ivy-covered building) and is the Princeton icon, below left is the University chapel and to the right is Chancellor Green (classes are held here). Being back on campus brought wonderful memories and also surprises as to the new construction that has taken place in the last ten years.

Day 3: Saturday -a day trip to New York City. Being that Ana lives an hour from New York City, it is easy to go in for the day by train. Above we are walking to the university train station, called the "Dinky."

The plan once we arrived was to go to Central Park to have brunch and then walk around the upper-east side of Manhattan. Both Ana and I agreed that it was such a great trip, unlike so many others to NYC because it was so relaxing and stress-free. We didn't really do any touristy things, we just strolled around and lived a day as a typical New-Yorker -very fun!!

Brunch at the Boathouse was outstanding. The ambiance was terrific (complete with gondolas passing by on the lake) and the food was both delicious for the eyes and taste buds.

We were nearly-stuffed as we strolled out of the Boathouse, with only enough room for a small macaroon from "Laduree" -a French bakery that is all the rage in the city right now. When we walked into this little boutique bakery it was filled to the brim with people and after tasting the macaroons I know why- delicious! From there we stopped to see street performers, went to the Crown Plaza and the Eloise store for fun, then tried to go into the beautiful Synagogue of Emanu-El but it was closed. Shopping was also on the agenda and as was Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral. Afterwards we had just enough time to snatch some hot dogs on the street before catching the evening train back to Princeton.

I'll end the retelling of this wonderful and so memorable weekend with a few more pictures of my darling nieces and nephew. We really hope you all can come down and see us in Houston this summer!!

Spring Break

Hola Amigos!

Esta vez, para varear un poco y ser justos con nuestros amigos que solo hablan Espanol, he decidido hacer el post en Espanol (so, for our non-Spanish speaking friends, this time around you guys will have to decipher it!). En fin, pasamos nuestras vacaciones de primavera -lo que seria la Semana Santa de descanso- en la Isla de South Padre. Este sitio queda a 5 hras en coche de Houston y para nosotros de Texas nos resulta "cerca" -algo quizas increible para nuestros amigos de Espana :) Los ninos estan muy acostumbrandos a este viaje asi que no dieron nada de lata y llegamos enseguida. Queda en la pura punta de Texas, a 30 minutos de la frontera de Mexico en el Golfo de Mexico.

Esta semana de "Spring Break" suele ser la mas popular en la Isla de South Padre, lo cual quiere decir que hay muchisima gente joven y cada vez nos parecemos mas viejos nosotros que no compartimos de esos habitos de gente loca.... por esa parte, no es la semana ideal para visitar, pero podemos ajustarnos un poco para evitar el flujo de gente (tanto en la Isla como en el puente para cruzar la Isla, que se vuelve un embotellamiento horrible de horas de espera) y asi la pasamos bien.

Para los ninos, la playa y el mar es magico y les encanta estar ahi. Francisco le tiene miedo al mar asi que el si se queda perfectamente contento en la arena. Antonio, por otro lado, le encanta estar en las olas. Esta ves todavia estaba un poco frio el agua, y mas que eso, habiamos visto bastantes agua-malas (Portuguese Man-of-Wars) que tienen un veneno horrible y peligroso en los tentaculos asi que por lo general nos quedabamos en la playa o en el jacuzzi!

No pude resisitr tomarle foto a Francisco en su traje de banio! es un osito empanizado!! La tentacion de morder esas piernitas es muy grande...

Los ninos la pasaron genial construyendo castillos de arena conmigo, mientras que Fede llevaba a Antonio a brincar en las olas.

Todos los dias era la misma rutina, desayunar y salir a la playa. En la foto arriba Ale y Francisco estaban tomando el te en el balcon (yo espiando!).

Cuando se cansaban de la playa, teniamos la opcion de estar en la piscina -aunque el agua estaba bastante fria!

 Todas las tardes, mientras que dormia la siesta Francisco, nos poniamos a estudiar. No podia dejar pasar toda una semana sin aprender!

Antonio esta leyendo muy bien y aprendiendo a tocar la guitarra. Alejandra acaba de aprender a andar en bicicleta (sin ruedines) asi que tambien esta feliz.

Gracias a Dios, pasamos una semana muy linda en la playa y ahora estamos de regreso en Houston para empezar de nuevo con los estudios y el trabajo. 

 Esperamos que pasen una Semana Santa muy santa y una Feliz Pascua. Los echamos de menos mucho!

Un Fuerte Abrazo a todos,
Los Martinez

Antonio's 7th Birthday!!

Hello everyone!

Antonio turned 7 on February 23rd and we were able to celebrate it a number of times (lucky kid!). That Saturday we had cake with the immediate family. Uncle David gave him a great guitar and Uncle Fern (pictured below) took the time to teach him a few chords.

Then, the following day we celebrated with our friends Suneet, Randeep and Rohan (seen above and below).

Then the following Saturday, March 3rd, we had a little party for him with friends and family.

It was so great to see some of our longtime friends whom we had not seen since we returned to Houston. We organized a terrific soccer game and then a baseball game!

The kids gobbled up the chocolate cupcakes....in particular a little munchkin we all know:

Thanks for everyone who came out to celebrate and to our loved ones and friends in New Jersey, San Francisco, Spain, UK, Mexico, Colombia, Brasil, Chile and all over the world --we wish you all could have come!!!

Love from the Martinez Family to yours!

Camping in Texas

Hi Everyone! This past weekend we took the kids on their first camping trip. Some dear friends of ours, the Prado Family, invited us to their ranch near Navasota, Texas to go camping in their property. Saturday afternoon we loaded up my uncle Alf's SUV and the five of us, along with his two youngest kids (Maria, 11, and Pablo, 9) headed an hour north of Houston to Navasota.

As soon as we arrived, the kids were in heaven. Lots of wide open space, the peace-filled countryside, cows, horses, a cat and a dog. Fede and Alf set up the tents near a creek as we hung out at the Prado's home and fed the cows and a horse. The kids were literally tickled pink by the cows' long, wet tongues and Antonio was brave enough to let the horse munch the grains straight from his hand.

Pictured here are the kids with the Prado's youngest member of the family, Barbara, who's 16. She was sweet enough to take us to feed the cows and the horse.

After seeing the animals, we drove to the camping grounds and started our fire with the help of the kids...

Here we are getting our dinner ready: charro beans, "chori-pan" sandwiches, hotdogs, corn on the cob, and smores.

After dinner one of the Prados, named Andy, took the three kids individually on horseback and they were absolutely thrilled..

 

The kids were so happy eating smores after dinner and sitting around the campfire. It is noteworthy to mention the spectacular star-filled sky that we were privleged to see.... it's something that you can only see outside of the city, on a crisp winter night. Then followed a very chilly night (upper 30's) and the sound of coyotes and the Prado's beagle took off after them!

 

Daybreak brought with it beautiful tones of pink and orange, and the wonderful sight of Alfredo reviving the smoldering campfire with new twings. After enduring a night of cold, to warm near the fire brought to our minds that the small pleasures in life are truly magical.

After we packed everything up, we were treated to a delicious breakfast at the Prado's home of scrambled eggs and ham with Venezuelan arepas filled with cheese. Then it was time to hit the road back to Houston.

Hoping everyone is well,
The Martinez Family