My first blog post!

I've had many people tell me they wished they were a fly on the wall at our house. With four boys and one little girl, there is certainly never a dull moment in the Romero household. We are a Filipino-American family living in a small town. My husband Ariel, was born and raised (until the age of 14) in the Philippines. He's the most patient, loving, and kind man I've ever known. He's a very hands on father, and is constantly doing things for our children. He's a lover of video games (yes, even at the age of 42), Filipino food, bonfires, and according to our 9 year old, "flip flops and non-funny jokes." As for me, I'm an Emergency Room nurse who loves Jesus, my family, and my amazing friends. I'm known to be sarcastic and emotional (those go great together, huh?). I love Diet Coke (poison, I know), food, basketball, and singing. I start a diet every Monday and usually fail by Wednesday. I really love to write and have been asked by family and friends to start a blog for a while now. I've been told that you need to be good at something or be able to offer something to your blog followers but I hate to tell you guys, I'm not really good at anything! Ha! I CAN offer you crazy, funny stories about life with 5 children, thoughts on faith and love, and encouragement and camaraderie as mom's and dad's going through this journey of parenthood together. Now to meet the (crazies) children:

Our oldest son M is 17 years old and came to us through adoption (from the Philippines). And I didn't write that because he is our "adopted" son, because he's really just our son. I wrote that because I don't want him to ever feel ashamed that he was adopted. It's a part of his story, and one that is his to tell. Also, I write that because adoption holds a special place in my heart and if any of you have questions about adopting, please don't hesitate to ask me! We first met our son on his 16th birthday. How cool is that? If you want to see the emotional part of me, just ask me about that day. He's an amazing kid who loves sports, Filipino food, dressing like he came out of GQ magazine, and eating (please pray for our grocery bill). He's the best Kuya (that means older brother in the Filipino language Tagalog) and watching him with his little sister makes my heart melt. He will be driving soon so BOLO (ha!). We plan on going back to the Philippines when he graduates high school and will be staying for a year (more on that later).

Our second eldest son, Z, is 10 years old and came to us through an extremely long and painful birth (I like to joke with him that beauty is pain). He is very smart and extremely witty. His personality is the most like mine, and guys, he gets my sarcasm and my jokes which really makes our conversations fun. He is probably one of the funniest people I know (is that correct grammar or do you say persons?). He loves video games (he wants to be a video game designer or computer programmer when he grows up), basketball, and playing with his buddies. He's a very go-with-the-flow kind of kid and adapts well to most situations. He adores his older brother and wants to do everything he does. I'm so proud of the little man he's becoming. 

Our next son, C,  is 9 years old and is one of  the sweetest kids in this world. This child would give you the shirt off his back if you were cold. He's very sensitive and really aims to please. He's the one who asks how my day went, who offers hugs all the time, and who makes sure everyone is taken care of. He loves to be outside and play with his buddies, and would be out there all night if I didn't make him come in. He also likes to sing, play video games, and ride his bike. Also, he loves medical shows and wants to hear about everything I did in the E.R. I've always felt like God has a special plan for his life and I don't know what it is yet, but I think it will be big. 

Our fourth son, H, is 6 years old and is our firecracker. He's very strong willed and independent (see "making me work at my parenting skills" haha). He doesn't like the word no unless he's using it. He loves cars, swimming, playing outside, and doing math. He's the biggest snuggler and will hug me all night. I absolutely love  it!! For some reason, thinking about him growing up makes me want to curl up in a fetal position and cry. 

Our only little girl, H, is 4 years old. She rules the roost with all her siblings. She is sassy and full of personality. She loves all things girly, but will put her brother in a headlock in no time (this really happened once). She understands Tagalog but will speak back to you in English. She is obsessed with animals (our poor dogs), loves to sing, and generally refuses to wear pants (if it's not a dress, she automatically hates it). She is tough for having to live with 4 brothers and I hate to say that she will probably never have a boyfriend. That works out well for me. 

Anyways, if you've made it this far, thanks! Welcome to my blog, Raising the Romero's!