My name is Catalina. I am a mom to four great kiddos and the wife of my best friend.
Cephas is my oldest kiddo. He is 12 and in seventh grade. He has ADHD, ODD and aggression. It is something that we work on with a team of professionals. However, he does really well and has been doing even better recently. He is an improving student, having realized the importance of setting goals. He also plays football for our city's youth Midget Football league. This is his second year playing for them and he generally plays as a lineman. This year, he has also played as a center for his team. He is actively involved in Boy Scouts, having earned his 1st Class rank last December, just one month before his birthday.
Koren is almost ten years old and a fourth grader. He is a more serious, stoic child, although he has recently began acting more like a child. It's been quite the transition for me, as his mother, because I have to remember that although he is acting immature for him, he is simply acting like a child and that is not necessarily a bad thing. He is also playing Midget Football this year. It is his first year to play for them and he can run! He is a fast child! Much like his brother, he is also involved in Scouts. He is a Cub Scout and in Bear Cubs, although he is about to become a Webelo.
Oralee is seven and in second grade. She loves to read and write, play with dolls and listen to music and sing. She is and always has been Daddy's little princess. Last year, she turned from a princess into more of a diva and now, she just has major attitude most of the time. We are working on that though. She's isn't spoiled by possessions or privileges and I'm not quite sure where all of the attitude came from, but it's a work in progress to get her back to a sweet little girl. She was in Girl Scouts and while I don't really like our school's Girl Scout program, I have considered doing Juliettes with her. She just finished up a session of dance classes and is currently not in any extra activities.
Jeriah is my youngest. He is almost six and is in first grade. Jeriah has Asperger's Syndrome and we work with a team of professionals for him as well. He is extremely smart. He can read the entire list of high-frequency words for all of first grade and second grade. He can do first and second grade math with ease, He understands computers and electronics so well that it is just incredible to watch him and he has an amazing level of recall. He loves to play soccer and we had him signed up for soccer this past spring, but his social disorder kept him from being able to participate as much as he would have probably liked.
Hubby is my best friend. We have been married for 13 years. We met at our place of employment just after high school. We were eighteen years old and just kids really. I was a cashier and he was a sacker, although he ended up cashiering as well. We worked there together for eight months, four of which we were dating during. We had a whirlwind romance and moved in together after only two full months of dating. We did things totally the wrong way in life and we have suffered greatly for it, but we have also defied all the odds against us and are all the stronger for all of the things that we have come through. He still makes me smile and my stomach flutters at the thought of him coming home each day from work and being able to see him.
Hubby is a line cook at a restaurant. He works varying hours. His job has a start time, but no specific end time, which is such a huge pain to try and deal with and plan around. His schedule also changes constantly and just recently, without even actual notice. Their schedule is completely done online and it isn't updated with changes as often as they happen. Many of them are verbal changes to the schedule.
I am a CNA, currently on the payroll for two separate families. Although, I am on the payroll, I do not work regular hours. I am on a PRN (as-needed) basis instead, which allows me to set my own hours, which is important as I am also a mom and a full-time college student.
I am going to college for my Associate's Degree in Business Administration. I have been focusing on accounting. I love numbers and accounting! It is almost an illness. Most of my friends are convinced that I'm actually a little insane about how much I enjoy accounting. In addition to accounting, I am also focusing on some medical insurance and coding as well.
I also take care of some kids part-time. Hubby has a number of co-workers for whom I babysit either regularly, semi-regularly or occasionally. The first child I will mention is the one that I have the most frequently. Her name is Angel. She is five and she actually kind of lives with us. I have educational guardianship for her, but no actual legal rights. She goes home to her mom's about one night a week. Or at least, that's our goal to make happen. Other than that, she's with us pretty much 24/7. She is a kindergartener and shares a room with Oralee. (All three boys share a room as well.) She also shares chores with Oralee and Jeriah.
The next most frequent is a newborn named Paytin. She was only fifteen days old the very first time that I had her. Then there are the twins and their older brother. The twins are boy/girl four year olds. Their older brother, I think, is eight or maybe nine now. Then there was Babycakes, who is now two. He is so big! That kid will always have my heart! I don't have him much, if at all. Then, there is also a little boy, who I have only watched once and his baby sister, who I have never watched as she wasn't born yet. There's another little boy, who is also four, almost five, who I have watched, but his little sister wasn't born yet at that time either. All of these kids belong to Hubby's coworkers. Whenever someone needs a sitter, the store's General Manager tells them to call me and he gives them my number. It was never set up or agreed upon or anything, it just happened. It's totally okay though and I love having a house full of kids! Usually though, we only have five here.
