Hola!  Edith Maria Flores here.  Thought an update was in order, so here goes.  Sorry for not writing since Easter, but things have been crazy around here!

My two grandchildren, Subriano (7) and Morgana (9), are the lights of my life.  They continue to bring me much joy and happiness.  I can't imagine my world without them; I love them so much!!

Morgana is a budding young ballerina.  She is so talented at dancing it's unreal!  In just a month she will be dancing with our city's orchestra, as part of the annual tradition of the "Nutcracker"; Morgana is one of the Sugar Plum Fairies.  She has really grown in her abilities as a dancer; I am very proud of her!

As for Subriano, he had some problems, but is now over them, thank goodness.  He had a leakage in his shunt; his shunt had to be replaced.  He spent nearly two weeks in the hospital; it was a scary time.  I thought for a minute we were going to lose him; he was so sick.  Now he's humming right along, back to the loving, active boy he always was!

Both Subri and Morgana are doing great in school:  Subriano maintains straight A's in all of his classes, and loves being in the Gifted/Talented program.  (He is in the fourth grade, even though he is only seven.  He's always been whip-smart!)  His sister, is in fourth grade as well, but unlike her brother, she is an average student.  It's hardest on her to have her younger brother in her class; he's so much smaller than the other students, and people tease her that her brother is smarter, even though he's smaller.

As for me, I took the kids on a cruise to Mexico over the summer (this happened before Subriano's shunt acted up).  We were gone for five days; we went on the Carnival Ecstacy, and we had a marvelous time!  The kids loved the beach; I loved the nightlife and walking on the beach, listening to the sound of the ocean waves.  It was so relaxing; we'll have to do it again some day!

Other than the cruise, we really haven't done much, especially since Subriano's latest hospital stay/surgery.  We've been taking it easy and trying to get ready for Thanksgiving Day, which is next week.  Then we'll be getting ready for Christmas.  Seems like only yesterday it was Easter; now we have Thanksgiving and Christmas staring at us in the face!  Time sure does go by quickly!!

Hallowe'en was good:  the kids made out like bandits in the candy department.  Morgana was Wonder Woman; as for Subriano, he was an alien.  They looked so cute in their costumes!  It was probably the best Hallowe'en they ever had in a long time!

The kids are looking forward to their time off school next week.  They only have three days to the normal five.  They are looking forward to the turkey and the trimmings as well as watching the parades on television and having a long weekend (including two days off from school).

I am looking forward to seeing my son, Jose', again, as well as his family.  He is married to a bank teller named Clorinda, and they have five marvelous children who are all doing well. I just wish I could say the same for my daughter, Helena.  She is still not acknowledging her children; it's as if she's abandoned them altogether.  I think it's because Subriano was born with a problem; she's had a hard time dealing with it.  Yet I am their mama (as well as their grandmother) now; I intend on showering them with all the love that Helena couldn't give them!

All I can do is pray that Helena comes to her senses before she ends up in the gutter or worse!

Helena has a severe mental illness; I personally think she might be bi-polar.  She's had mental problems for years.

Well,  I have to go:  it's about time to get the kids up for another school day.  I will write in here again soon; until then, this is Edith Maria Flores saying adios!  Hasta luego y vaya con Dios!

~Amor, tu amiga, Edith Maria.  :)