The lake, a boat and much fun

 This weekend we were invited by some friends to go on a boat ride. Weather was perfect and I didn't have to work. yay! (I'm still adjusting to working 12 hour shifts, because they really become 16 hour days, luckily the following day is a rest day so I can't complain much).

  Beli changed into her bathing suit and she was ready.

 View of the city.

One of our friends' daughters is wake boarding? (I thought this sport was called water boarding, but then again, I don't know much about water sports...)
 She made it look so easy!

Have you ever tried it?  

All I did was sun tan and take photos.

summer days

Summer days are here.

sunshine and smiles.

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a keeper of books

I still can't bear to get rid of my college books. 

I think part of me keeps them to remind myself of how far I've come. Is this silly of me?

Other books I've read on my free time and they can be found all over our apartment! Have you read any of them?

I really need to make a commitment to begin my Croatian lessons once again.  The books are collecting dust! I  only have four to five months before my Mother-in-law (hopefully) visits us and I don't want to rely on hubby as our translator. I just need more hours in my day! I had forgotten how exhausting (retail work) can be, so on my actual free time, I just want to sit and not think!  And speaking of work, I'm grateful for my job, but I can't stop complaining about it. My friend's advice, "Welcome to America!"

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I'm working tomorrow through next weekend, but hopefully I can squeeze some time to tell you about a meetup I attended with Beli and meeting one of the co-founders of Spanglishbaby.com.

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stay tuned..

Have a wonderful weekend! 

busy little bee

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First week of preschool.

Beli not so happy to go to 'school' after the second day. 

New routines, new ideas. 

I completed my first week of training on the job. 

Embracing every single moment of my free time to be with hubby and Beli.

Saturday morning arrived and Beli announced she didn't want to go to school.

We tried to explain that it's the weekend and it's a stay at home day, not sure she understood,

because when we told her we were going to the playground she insisted on staying home!

After some convincing we left the house to go to another 'fun' place (the park).

We don't want to give her the idea that school is not fun.

She dressed herself and off we went!
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How is your weekend so far?

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I love this phone!
I thought it was just for decoration when I was saw it at my Aunt's house. She told me that it's her actual house phone and she still uses it from time to time.
Do you have a house line or solely rely on your cell phone for your phone calls?

Our mini trip to see all sorts of animals and amazing mountain views

"We are going to see giraffes, and.....more giraffes," was Beli's reply when we asked her where we were going. This weekend we drove one hour south of Denver to the zoo in Colorado Springs. We had beautiful weather and breathtaking views (more about the zoo here).

Tucked in the mountains, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is a must on your list of~ things to do in Colorado. We were going specifically to hand feed the giraffes and we weren't disappointed. It was a very unique experience. Beli initially fed them crackers but then she wanted to keep her distance.

 We spent about 5 hours walking and taking in the beautiful views. Beli was a real trooper. She walked and walked and never once complained. 

We missed going to the top of the mountain, do you see the tower? We weren't sure what it was until the end of our zoo tour when we asked one of the girls at the gift shop and she told us it's the Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun. The road up there is suppose to offer spectacular views of the Rocky Mountain range. I'm sure we'll be returning later in the summer or early fall when my sisters visit us with their kids.

Beli feeding the baby giraffe, yet keeping an eye on the other giraffe!

Beli's request to me, "Mami, take a picture." 

She was so happy to see the horses (horzees, as she calls them). I asked her is she wanted to ride a horse and she said yes. I felt so emotional watching her, she looked so grown-up, yet only 3 years old!

First pony ride. she was so brave, not scared at all. 

petting a baby wallaby.

A beautiful day.

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First day of work went fine. Lots of forms to fill out, training, etc. Why was I worried? LOL thank you for all your good wishes.  Beli is also adapting well at her new school. Hubby drops her off and picks her up. She is learning new rules (like at lunch time, Hubby said all the kids wait until everyone is served to start eating, but not Beli, she starts eating right away. One of the boys said, "look teacher, she is not waiting." And another kid said, "it's OK, she doesn't know the rules." She is not napping either, rather she patiently and quietly waits for the other kids to wake up from their naps. It's all new for her and for us ,but I think it's also nice for her to socialize with other kids her age, right?