Carmelita Villalobos Family Reunion

This past Sat. my dad's side of the family ventured out in the 100+ degree weather for a family reunion. It was just a simple gathering of my grandparent's kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids. Cameron made me laugh of course because he couldn't figure out why my cousins from my mom's side weren't going to be there. That led me into a discussion of who's on grandma's side and who's on grandpa's side. A little confusing, but I think he got it! :) The BBQ was great and made all the sweat worthwhile! I was sad that my dad wasn't here to be part of the gathering, and I know how much he would have loved seeing everyone. We definitely had QUITE a few relatives missing, but hopefully we can do this again soon and get more of the family together.


Cameron and I trying to not pass out from the heat!


SOME of my cousins (definitely not all of them)!


I guess these kiddos would be second cousins????? (Kids of all of the cousins)


My sisters and my mom (me too...of course).

A True Legend has Left Us...

Growing up, I was never able to figure out why our lives are affected so much when a famous person passes away. I remember very distinctly when Princess Diana passed away, Tupac, Biggie Smalls, Aaliyah, Lisa "Left Eye" etc. (I am sure I am showing my age here.) It would bother me so much, and then I would always think, why do I care so much? These people don't even know me!!!!

But I think that now that I am older I get it...all of these famous people bring us back to memories of our childhoood or high school. I remember parts of my life, based on the music I was listening to or what movies I went to see.

So I guess that is once again why I am so saddened by Michael Jackson passing away. I just keep telling Val over and over..."I can't believe Michael Jackson is gone!" I cried when I was watching his videos on MTV last night, especially the ones when he was with the Jackson 5. That's what I remember most, the adorable little boy and the cute young man in the Thriller video. The connection with Michael has nothing to do with a child abuse case or plastic surgery, because that is not how he affected my life. I treasure his legacy for the musical genius he was. No one can deny that. Val said it earlier, unless you lived under a rock, growing up most people had a Michael Jackson poster, a glove, a leather jacket, a cassette tape...and that is so true.

There is no way anyone can ever reach the WORLD with music like Micahel Jackson did...and for that I will never forget him.

Vacation Bible School

I am thrilled to announce that Cameron survived the first few days of Vacation Bible School!!! Ok....I survived the first few days! ;) Since he has never been to any type of daycare or Mother's Day out program, I was so nervous! I just wanted to be sure that he was OK, that the kids were nice to him, that he wasn't scared, etc. So of course on the first day I was worried for 3 hours straight, and it was so hard for me to leave him, but I didn't want to be that crazy parent that is stalking her child at school! When Val and I went to pick him up they were singing their final song of the day, and Cameron was dancing all around and trying to sing with them. His group leader said he was so good and so sweet. Oh, all of that worry for no reason!?! The sweetest moment was today though when I was cleaning, and all of the sudden I heard Cameron singing, "This Little Light of Mine." Aww, my little choir boy!



How on Earth will I survive his first day of Kinder??? EEKK!!!!

Summer Days

Every morning that Val would take Cameron to my mom's house, they would pass by the water park we live by. Cameron would always ask when he could go there, and of course he always heard, "Soon." Finally Cameron got the point when he said to Val, "Daddy, when are you actually going to take me there?" I guess he finally had us figured out!

So now that we have hit those dog days of summer, we took Cameron to the Rosemeade Rainforest Pool in Carrollton. It is on a smaller scale than the bigger park we live by, but of course Cameron didn't really care about the size difference between the 2 parks. He was happy to go down their slides there and they had cotton candy...so Cameron was good to go! Please forgive my child and his cheesey smiles! :)


Cameron and Emma


Cameron and Caroline


Seriously...the Cotton Candy was gone in less than 3 minutes!

Lunch Date

Cameron and I were so excited to get to have lunch on Monday with Abby, Lainey and Bethany. Cameron is always excited to get out and eat with the ladies...although I don't know how long this will last! It was great for Bethany and I to get the chance to catch up with Abby, our former co-worker. We miss her SO much, and of course it never hurts to get to see adorable Miss Lainey too! Thanks for spending time with us ladies! Here's the only decent picture we have from lunch, since Cameron tried to take most of them. ;)

Happy Birthday Val!

Summer has arrived for the Mennsfield Family! Val and I officially ended the school year on Friday, and we started our break off by celebrating Val's birthday on Sat. I won't mention how old he is, but it starts with a 3 and ends with a 4. :) My brother in-law's birthday was last week, and Val's nephew's birthday was 2 days before, so we sang Happy Birthday 3 times. It was exhausting, but Cameron loved it because he got to blow out the candles 3 times. Our families came over Sat. night for wings...lots of wings, and for a little American Idol. There's nothing better than wings, an American Idol singing contest, and a fruity drink from the Carribean (if you know what I mean.) It's crazy to think that I FIRST met Val on his 24th birthday, 10 years ago!!!! We've been through a lot in 10 years, college, marriage, having Cameron, our 1st house. I look forward to what the next 10 years bring...Val will be 44 then...and hopefully not in more of a mid-life crisis than he already is! Ha!