2014 has come to an end....LET'S RING IN 2015!!

HOLA MY LITTLE BLOG!! who knew it would be MONTHS since i posted something. life has come speeding by and it has been a whirlwind of a year!!! really, it feels like i have been in a FOG this year...could be my FIBRO and what they call FIBRO FOG, i guess any excuse i will take it! right?

Well, this year my boys turned ALEX 12, MATTHEW 10 and JOSHUA 7....these boys keep growing and growing and THANK YOU GOD they do! who knew that i would have such amazing boys and that they are just so wonderful and loving....they have grown into such beautiful and loving boys...they show us each day how much they know that they are LOVED by us their parents and how much we want them to know GOD'S LOVE....that HE is the most important person in the world and that they should love and honor him every moment of their lives...

This year we have had so many things happen to us. we bought a new BOAT for our family...this boat we call MATTHEW's boat because it is a PONTOON and that gives him the ROOM to roam around the boat so that he can go on the water. he had not been able to be on the water in our other smaller boat because he had no where to go. but now with this bigger boat, he is more comfy and he LOVES being back on the water!! we also love being able to take more family out on the boat with us.



MATT got his new KAYE WALKER and he has started to do his walking and getting stronger and doing SOOO GOOD! we are so proud of all his new accomplishments! He has been walking to and from the bathroom and also up and down the stairs....soooo proud of him and how much better he is getting on walking!! <3

EASTER 2014 was really a nice family time with so many people there joining us at our home. The kids enjoyed being there and having all their cousins there to crack cascarones on each other! The food was amazing and all the goodies you just can't beat!!



Matthew started in a BASEBALL LEAGUE called the MIRACLE LEAGUE OF SAN ANTONIO....he was on the DODGERS team and boy, he LOVES it soooooo much! he has such a good time hitting home runs and being on his team....he played 2 seasons...the spring and the fall and he always gets so happy and excited when we pull into the parking lot....such a HAPPY BOY!! GO DODGERS!!






ALEX AND JOSH have also started their 3rd year of CYO BASEBALL THRU PRINCE OF PEACE! This will be Alex's last year playing baseball...this year he was with the ROYAL TITAN'S....and Josh was with the PADRES...and it was the first time he was with an all male team!! no more T-BALL for him!!! He's in coaches pitch and he did so well this year! Both boys did amazing! so proud of both of them!!






This year, we ended up going to GREAT WOLF LODGE for our summer vacation. we had soon much fun and soon enjoyed being with our little family, splashing around and just getting wet. what memories our boys will have of this time with each other.....they are just young for a little while and then they grow up and don't want to be with us anymore, so we have to enjoy. Life is amazing and we have been so happy that GOD has granted us each other...

Towards the end of this year, we have continued to be BLESSED with good health....ALL OF US, THANK YOU JESUS!! Matt has done amazing and we thank Him everyday for every moment...just watching all of us growing and getting healthy and happy is amazing....

So, as we closed 2014 and are now in 2015, we can only PRAY that we continue to grow and give THANKS to GOD for all the blessings in our life and Pray we have continued GOOD HEALTH and happiness...in HIM!!! BLESSING TO ALL!

MATTHEW ISAIAH IS 10 YEARS OLD!! :)

MATTHEW “GIFT OF GOD”
ISAIAH “GOD IS MY SALVATION”
GONZALEZ
BIRTHDAY MAY 21

MAY 21, 2004

MATTHEW PLAYING BASEBALL 2014

Matthew Isaiah is 10 YEARS OLD, THANK YOU GOD! Wow, what an amazing and wonderful life we have had with matthew in our life. GOD IS SO GOOD! HE IS IN DOUBLE DIDGITS!!! wowowow, that is just such an INCREDIBLE AMAZING WONDERFUL MIRACLE OF GOD that little boy is! I sit here just in amazment that my beautiful boy is growing and getting bigger and stronger and just LIVING day by day. Such a MIRACLE he is, THANK YOU GOD!

My thoughts are never far away from what a miracle he is and where he has come from and where he is now. James and I are always marveling at what he is doing or things he does on a daily basis. He is such a CUTE kid and such a SMARTY!! Hard to believe that when he was born, they gave him NO real chance that he would live...that after he was born blue, needing an open heart surgery IMMEDIATELY, they didn't think he would make the trip from one hospital to another....that once he got there, that he would survive the open heart operation that he had when he was ONLY 8 HOURS OLD!! but he did, thank you JESUS! He was kept on an ECMO maching (https://www.dellchildrens.net/services_and_programs/ecmo/what_is_ecmo/) for his first 5 days because they could not take him off of the machines after his surgery, so they left him on this hoping that his body would recover and be able to take over the job of his lungs and heart....at 5 days (may 26, 2004), they told us they had to take him off this machine and either he was going to LIVE or DIE...and after doing so, we were told in the waiting room, that he had about 1% chance of survival and to pray for a miracle because that was the ONLY way that he would survive....going in to see our MIRACLE without that big ECMO machine and the room being so silent...the wonderful staff at METHODIST CHILDRENS hospital who took over and got us a CAKE and DECORATIONS for his 'birthday' party that we wanted to give him (since we didn't know if we would have anymore), and having all our family and friends there with us but most of all FINALLY BEING ABLE TO HOLD that precious baby in our arms for the first time!! what an JOY it was to hold him in our arms and FINALLY be able to carry him....thinking back, that hospital was just amazing to allow us to have this 'party' for him and allowing us to have so many of our friends and family there to celebrate his life!!! & at a PICU! I soooo love that hospital!!! They had a ceremony for us and the wonderful doctor read a beautiful poem for him, they did some prints of hands and feets, cut a lock of his hair for us, made a cast of his hands and feet, gave us a grief blanket and just supported us thru this amazing time in our life....and all the nurses came over and sang HAPPY BIRTHDAY to him too!! such a SPECIAL place that is!!!

After holding our beautiful baby boy until 2am, we finally put him down and fell asleep next to his bed only to wake up at 7am SCARED AND WORRIED thinking that we had missed his passing....only to find out he had his eyes open, grabing our fingers and wiggling his toes, all to the AMAZEMENT of the doctors and staff!!! HE MADE IT and is a MIRACLE to all the doctors and nurses that have known him especially those that knew all the personal, medical and private parts of his life while he as there in the hospital during those first days thru the 98 days he stayed in the PICU. They TRULY know what a miracle he is and what he went thru and what an almost IMPOSSIBILITY it was that he survived thru it all....and as I ALWAYS say, it is ONLY thru GOD that our son is HERE today!!! if you want to read about his miracle story, here is alink to the BLOG post: http://blessingsinmylife.blogspot.com/2008/05/miracle-matthews-story.html and one of his YOUTUBE videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4E2QOasHR0A



soooo, now on to the amazing news of the day....MATTHEW ISAIAH IS 10 YEARS OLD!!! double digits!! wooohooo!!! This little guy has been thru it all and ALWAYS with a smile!!! He is eating orally now, but it is not consistant, but we will TAKE IT! He only gets 3 cans of his PEPTIMUM JR formula a day and that is thru a bolus....and he has been able to maintain his weight and keep growing. He is now 55 lbs and 43”...To think this was the baby boy that would not 'make it thru the night'....THANK YOU JESUS!! He is really vocal, although still non verbal, but he CAN get his meaning and wants across for the most part. I think A LOT of his fustration has to do with the lack of being able to communicate...he does have a communication device but it is really big and HEAVY...but GOD WILLING next year he will get the new and improved device on an PAD platform which will be soooo much lighter for him! :) He is learning to use his KAYE walker. He walks with assistance everywhere he goes and he helps with his transfer and such too. He is soooo SMART! He is doing amazing with his teacher and has excelled and made all his goals! He LOVES playing WII resort and playing the SWORD FIGHTING game. He also enjoys WII SPORTS baseball and bowling game. If he could, he could play ALL DAY LONG! On top of that, he LOVES his iphone and enjoys watching YOUTUBE VIDEO's all day....just different stuff like, people playing WII, seasame street, and he especially loves any video's that are of HIM or our family! He can watch those over and over! ESPECIALLY if dad is either talking or in the picture!! and he LOVES playing BASEBALL!! He recently was in a special team called THE MIRACLE LEAGUE OF SA and he was on the LEIJA DODGERS team!! he was soooo PROUD when he hit the baseball and dad and him ran around the bases!!! he LOVED playing on his team!! just like his brothers! Wow, the things he can do! He loves being right in the middle of everything and just BEING there!! He loves his family!! and now that we bought the PONTOON BOAT, well, he LOVES being on the water and then jumping in the water and swimming around!! :) but to get him out is a DIFFERENT story!! boy, that child does NOT want to get back in the boat!!!!!! ;)

LIFE with matthew is just so amazing and wonderful!! THANK YOU GOD, this year has been a HEALTHY year!! hard to believe but we are ever so THANKFUL that he has really only had about 3 illness the WHOLE YEAR!! amazing! I keep waiting for it but nope! LOVE it! And I know he has enjoyed the stress free year without having to have the drama of having to do drs appts, meds, suctions, treatments, oxygen etc! AGAIN, THANK YOU JESUS!! I won't lie by saying I am not 'waiting' for it because I am!! just always worry when it will hit!!! :) as for the other medical issue, well, it's been over 36 months since his last BIG seizure!! and since aug 2010, he has had only 2 seizures!! woohooo!! thank you GOD for that!!!!!! but we are ever vigilant, never taking it for granted that he could get sick or have a seizure at ANY moment! But that has been our life for the last 10 years....knowing that every SECOND of his life is a precious miracle and that because of all he has gone thru, we know that ANYTHING can happen!! but we are sooooo GREATFUL for the last 10 years we have had with our MATTHEW!!! i made a movie for MATTHEW with pictures of his last 10 years...here is the link to it: ***UPLOADING TO YOUTUBE AND WILL POST SOON!****

SOOOO, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MIRACLE MATTHEW ISAIAH!!! with your birth you have brought MORE life, love and happiness to our home and we thank GOD everyday for the true BLESSING you are in our lives!!! WE LOVE YOU AND ARE SOOOOO PROUD OF YOU!!!! PLEASE GOD, GIVE US MANY MANY MANY TO INFINITY MORE YEARS WITH MATTHEW!!!

“WITH MAN THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE, BUT WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE”
MATTHEW 19:26

GOODBYE 2012....HAPPY 2013!!!

WOW...2013 CAME AND WENT IN A FLASH!!!! hard to believe that a whole year went by soooo quickly!! my cousin and i last night were talking about ONE WORD that would describe 2012 and then one word we WANT to describe 2013...i came up with for 2012...DAZED....for 2013...it's a double edge word=BLESSED/FAITH...i'll explain each one...
FOR 2012...the year of MANY ups and downs....for me DAZED is the word of the year because sooooo much happened to me personally in that year...and i don't know if it was because of my pain medication or just everything personally that was happening to me that i was constantly in a DAZE...things that i normally did such as keep up with matthew's appts, meds, numerous phone calls that i NEED to make and just generally all the stuff that comes with having a special needs little guy i was putting off, FORGETTING (a BIG no-no) and just NOT DOING THEM...it was crazy when BEFORE i had been soooo organized, had my book with aaaallllll my notes and such and this year....uh...not so much!! i can honestly say, i have NO RECORD of names i have spoken to when calling for important things or any NOTES other than those on little bits of papers all over the house that i know i can't put together!!! :( so not MEEEE!!! AND THEN with the homeschooling front...i have taken such a BACK SEAT to it and pretty much let ALEX do what he needs to do and nothing else...we have been soooooo busy with appts for matthew, appts for ME, and playdates/extra classes for ALEX that we are constantly on the GO GO GOOOO!!! it's crazy!! but this year has been full of BLESSINGS as i CONSTATLY say about my life...even with all the crazy and dazed feeling, i STILL KNOW and FEEL like i am BLESSED!!! GOD IS SOOOO GOOD and has ALWAYS been in me, with me... He is at the START of me and everyday is such a BLESSING no matter what the day brings...i feel like no matter what, because i have GOD in my life, it will be a BLESSED DAY!!!! :)

this year, my children, THANK YOU GOD, have grown sooooooo much!!! my ALEX turned 10 this year (double digits, baby!) and he is now in 5th grade! he is a couple of inches shorter than me and keeps getting BIGGER!! he is sooooooo smart!! REALLY not an exaggeration or mommy prejudice! :) he has such an INCREDIBLE mind and such an AMAZING memory! he can recall things that i don't even remember and he has to remind us about it. and wowowowowow, on his schooling...watching him figure out all his subjects and KNOW how to do it and also, impressing the HECK out of us when a cousin 2 years older than him, bringing over some HOMEWORK for school (math) and the cousin was having a problem and didn't understand the math and alex coming over, casually looking it over in 2 secs, KNOWING THE ANSWER and answering CORRECTLY!!! crazy! and him HELPING that cousin with the rest of his work! and then same with other subjects he had brought over!! MY BIG BOY!!!! and he started CYO BASEBALL this year with our church and watching him GROW from NEVER having played ANY sport before to joining a team that was ESTABLISHED, intergrating himself and really coming from never played baseball (batted/catching balls/RUNNING/throwing balls, etc) to after the season, LOVING it and really knowing how to PLAY the game and do everything he NEEDED to do without being scared!!! my, how he has GROWN!!! and in his FAITH, he is AMAZING!! he LOVES GOD and he probably knows MORE about the bible and our FAITH than james and i combined!! so proud of our little boy!!

and then there is MATTHEW....he turned 8 this year...another miracle in our life!! wowow...time has FLOWN with this little boy too..watching him get BIGGER, is just so amazing and we MARVEL at everything he has DONE and is LEARNING!!! this year, he made his FIRST COMMUNION!!! wooohooo! we are sooo proud of him and what an ACCOMPLISHMENT that is! and he is now in 3rd grade and is doing WELL with his amazing teacher. unfortunately, this year has brought FUSTRATION to him which in turns causes him to lash out sometimes because we DON'T UNDERSTAND!!! :( he does not do it often but he gets sooo frustrated! poor guy! can't wait and i PRAY he will either learn to talk or sign or use his TALKER! :) he has taken off on EATING like a champ orally and has gained weight. he KNOWS HOW TO SPELL HIS NAME PHONICALLY and if you give him the letters, he can spell it that way too! he is also learning to READ and knows all his ABC, NUMBERS, PHONICS, SHAPES, OBJECTS, ETC and we are just crazy proud of all he has done!! on the flip side, HEALTH WISE, it has been an UP AND DOWN YEAR...seizure wise, it was 27.5 MONTHS without seizures until dec 9th when he had one at 0430 and lasted for at least 20 mins...so, our count down is back down to 1....his LUNGS have been a BIG PROBLEM this year with CONSTANT illness, wheezing, junky, on crazy amounts of STEROIDS, TREATMENTS, antibiotics, doctors appts, etc ALLLLL YEAR LONG!! :( NOT a good year for his health...he is doing well with his CPAP, and through all the illness, he is STILL OUR HAPPY BOY!!! so proud of him!

and our SURPRISE BLESSING JOSHUA...he turned 5 this year and it has been a BLESSED year for him!! he is such a HAPPY boy and full of life and mischief! we were sooooo BLESSED that he was our little surprise. he is our BABY and just watching him grow up is bittersweet because we know there will be no more after him!! :( even though i wanted another little one but GOD has other plans and that is ok. but he is our little sports guy. he LOVES to be playing ball...this year, he started CYO BASKETBALL and he was soooo good!! he is still so good and one of the better players! :) and then he also played CYO BASEBALL T-BALL!! awwww....watching him out there is such a JOY!! :) AND this year he is in KINDERGARDEN!! and he is learning all his phonics and such and is doing REALLY good in his schooling....soooo proud of this little guy!!!

James is doing GREAT!!! he has a GREAT position at work and his working sooooo hard and doing SOOOO GOOD!! we are so proud of all the hard work he does for our family! he is now also a COACH for CYO sports so he is active with the boys and their practices and games...he is in his ELEMENT with all of them and enjoys being out there with the boys and the KIDS! it's been a crazy year for all the traveling and away time the military has had him doing this year....and next year promises more of the same but it is ALLLLLL for PROMOTION as he makes his way to E-8!!! so we will take that!! he soooo deserves all of that and MORE because he is one of the BEST EMPLOYEES the military has and that is not just a PROUD WIFE talking either!! :) he has gotten a lot of recognition from his superiors and we are really just soooo proud of him!!! and this year HE EARNED HIS 20 YEARS OF MILITARY SERVICE FOR OUR GREAT COUNTRY!!! wowowowowowow....what an ACCOMPLISHMENT!! again, so proud of him!! unfortunately, it is not ACTIVE years so we still have a little over 8 years left to reach 20 YEARS ACTIVE DUTY FULL RETIREMENT years!! and that is what he is working for....we PRAY that the US ARMY continue to keep him employed!! we are SOOOOOO BLESSED to be ACTIVE DUTY MILITARY!!! THANK YOU GOD!!!

AS FOR MEEEEEE....hmmmmmmm...it has been as always a BLESSED YEAR!!! this year, my pain in my arm had unfortunately gotten WORST...sooo bad that i couldn't even shake hands, play wii or any other activities that required me to use my right arm WITHOUT EXTREME PAIN!!! i had complained to my DOCTOR (dx TENNIS ELBOW (for the 5+ year), i had complained to my rheumitologist also and gotten a STEROID SHOT and told it was TENNIS ELBOY (for the 2+ year) and put BACK into PHYSICAL THERAPY (JAN 2012)...and during my evaluation the physical therapist found a BALL on my forearm and told me that that didn't feel right and i needed to get an MRI....and what a LIFE SAVER THAT WAS!!! :) because, after FINALLY getting an MRI (IN APRIL), it was found that i had a TUMOR and was IMMEDIATELY s (within 4 days) was being seen at the ORTHOPEDIC ONCOLOGY DEPARTMENT AT SAMMC!!! :( yep, they didn't know what type of tumor but they felt that it COULD BE CANCER....and ultimately IT WAS SYNOVIAL SARCOMA===CANCER....i really never thought i would ever have that DX but there it was....and the doctor was concerned enough that he needed it out NOW....so on JULY 31ST, 2012, it was roomed and thru the GRACE OF GOD, because of HIS BLESSINGS, they were able to get the WHOLE THING OUT due to the MIRACLE that it was ENCAPSULATED so i didn't have to have CHEMOTHERAPY/RADIATION!!! PRAISE GOD! but now, i have to have PET SCANS every 3 months and see the doctor ever 3 months for 2 years and then move on 2 twice a year for 3 years then yearly for the rest of my life!! :( and now i know WHY we could not get PREGNANT again even when it was timed right on etc....GOD HAD OTHER PLANS!! :) so, again, BLESSING BLESSING BLESSINGS!!! other than that, just a regular crazy, DAZED YEAR!!!

AND FOR THIS YEAR, 2013 my word(s) of the year would be FAITH/BLESSED....WHY 2? BECAUSE I HAVE FAITH, I AM BLESSED.....I AM BLESSED TO HAVE FAITH!! GOD will be utmost in my life and MY FAITH will be front and center. i pray i will learn more about GOD, learn more ABOUT MY FAITH and just get closer to that which has LOVED ME UNCONDITIONALLY, that has BLESSED ME AND MY FAMILY, that who has GIVEN ME SO MANY REASONS TO BE HAPPY!!!!! and that would be GOD! i am going to devote this year and ALWAYS to learning more about GOD and about my faith....I LOVE LOVE LOVE HIM!!!

sooooo, that is it....2012 is gone and 2013 is here...i will plan to make this year a BLESSED year and a YEAR OF FAITH....this year will GOD WILLING bring a new blessing in my brothers life.....a BABY!!!! and we will GOD WILLING be going to see her and my family and i will be traveling to HAWAII IN MAY!!! WOOOHOOOO!!! yes, all 5 of us!! wowowowowow....we will keep trucking along and just enjoying life, loving my family!!!

GOD'S BLESSINGS TO EVERYONE AND FOR THE YEAR TO COME!!!! love ya'll!!!

AWWWW....LAST DAY AT GREAT WOLF LODGE..

SO, TODAY, we were ready to leave the LODGE....well, not READY but it was time for us to go...we decided to get everything packed up and then continue on our QUEST to finish all the stuff we had on our PAW PASS...so, we packed up and were out of the room at 1100 and then we walked around the lodge, go all the goodies we needed to get....at 1300 LEGO LAND group was there and they were having LEGOLAND CONTESTS and the boys joined in for a couple of contest! of course, alex had a BLAST!!! and we had lunch there at the LODGE and then after we were done, about 1530, we left the LODGE, drove DOWN THE STREET and checked into our HYATT PLACE HOTEL ROOM!! wow, this vacation had DEFINETLY made our BEST EVER VACATIONS!!! really, we have just had such an AMAZING time here in GRAPEVINE!! so, after we checked in, it was time to RELAX...nothing to do but watch a movie on our HUGE screen TV and then just RELAX, RELAX, RELAX!!! that was the plan for today to recover from the craziness of the LODGE!! so, after we watched our movie we headed out to eat some DINNER at BUFFALO WILD WINGS for some wings....OK, i personally DO NOT LIKE that place but dad wanted to go and it was his turn to pick, so we headed out and as USUAL, i ended up not eating my stuff and sending it back and then ordering something ELSE and then ended up with a HAMBURGER when i asked for a chicken sandwich!! but THANK YOU GOD, we are so blessed and i didn't complain and ate my burger, which was good....it was just nice to be out!! we get back to the hotel and.....EVERYONE PASSED OUT again!!! it was funny to see everyone just falling asleep where ever they were sitting...this adventure had really taken it's toll on our bodies but we would not have it any other way!!! THANK YOU GOD for another amazing day!!!

SUMMER VACATION 2012

WOOOOHOOOOO!! GONZALEZ VACATION IS OFFICIALLY STARTED! :) dad has a week off work and we are going to make the mOST of our time as a family!!! we are starting our vacation at the WONDERFUL GREAT WOLF LODGE IN GRAPEVINE TEXAS! i have heard sooo much about this place from other friends that have come out here so i thought since our RV is out of commission for a bit, we would do some traveling in our car....so i BOOKED us a 2 night stay at the LODGE july 22-24....the boys and us are sooo excited and we can't WAIT for it to start. I NEEDED this time with my family because on the 31st, with my surgery to remove the cancer tumor out of my arm, i knew that for a while afterwards, i would not be able to do much...this week is going to be our get away, and my time to just relax...we are starting to pack our MILLION and one things of STUFF and get everything ready. there is always sooooo much to pack because with 3 boys, stuff gets CRAZY! the only thing is that there are NO TOYS this time...just stuff. i figured that they would not have down time with there being a INDOOR WATER PARK there, i figured we would be TIRED by the end of each night....soooo, HERE GOES OUR VACATION!!

My parents....

well, i came to an AMAZING realization today....it is funny because when talking about my FAITH, i always SAY that as a family growing up, we were ALWAYS at church and we were ALWAYS so ACTIVE in our church community....but i don't think i have ever THANKED MY PARENTS for such an AMAZING UPBRINGING IN THE CHURCH!!!!!!!!!!! i have always said that i was brought up IN CHURCH but i have never come to the realization that it was BECAUSE OF MY PARENTS that that is why i am the way i AM....that is so WIERD! and UNFORTUNATLY, BOTH my parents are gone now...i will never get the chance to tell them FACE TO FACE THANK YOU for the BEAUTIFUL GIFT of bringing me FAITH TO MY LIFE....and even though, as a family, there was a LOT of trumoil in my growing up life, the most BEAUTIFUL thing that i have continued to RECIEVE from my PARENTS is MY FAITH....that was something that they have ALWAYS taught me and THANK YOU, MOM AND DAD for that!!! that is why i was able to meet my hubby, have my kids, go thru what i went thru with my beautiful MIRACLE SON MATTHEW and all the other things that have come in my life, it has ALL been BECAUSE OF MY FAITH given to me FROM MY PARENTS that i was able to LIVE MY LIFE AND BE AND FEEL BLESSED!!!

something that came to me as i was praying today....WHAT A BLESSING!!! THANK YOU GOD!