Oscar Simon Barillas II, Chapter 13

Oscar (46) his wife Brandi (46)
Narrated by Brandi

We decided to take some time off of work and go to our beach house on Tikki Island. Both Simon and I had planned to finish the renovations on the house. It had been a while since we came by ourselves. Usually we had Joshua our son with us but now that he is in college we come alone.

Simon had asked if it was OK for my sister-in-law Brianna to come over and visit us. I thought it was a great Idea for Brianna to get away for a while. After Neil's death she needs to get away and relax with the kids.

Brianna loved the new guest bedroom. Taylor fell in love with it as well.

Isaiah slept in Joshua's old room. It seemed that Simon was in there all the time trying to complete a last minute writing assignment from work. Here we are trying to get away and yet Simon was more on the pc than with us.

While Simon worked, I managed to get some long overdue reading in. It had been a while since I got the opportunity to sit back and just read.

Everyone was having fun at our house. Taylor and Isaiah usually skipped breakfast and headed straight for the pool. Lunch time was a time for all of us to get together and talk about our day. While they ate I played peek a boo with Samira.

Samira was put down for her afternoon nap and Brianna caught me checking in on her. She told me that she wanted to take the opportunity to thank me for inviting her and the kids over. I told her that it was no problem. I hope that Brianna will get better in the near future. I can tell that she misses Neal a lot.

On our last night we all did some shopping and I decided to finally cut my hair. Brianna thought it was a nice and bold haircut. My niece and nephew thought it was fun and hip. I just hope Simon likes it too.

Turns out that Simon loved it. Its our last night and Simon did finish his work on time. This last week he has been laying by the pool and relaxing. I dread going back home but soon we shall be able to retire here.

Oscar Simon II Chapter 12--Old place versus new.

Oscar Simon II (44) and his wife Brandi (44)
Narrated by Brandi

Simon and I have been living a carefree life since our last child left the nest. I have to admit that I love coming home for our lunch adventures. As much as we love being carefree we are also noticing that we have an empty nest.

I started looking at our finances and we have finally paid down some debt.We used to owe close to hundred thousand and now we owe $53,710. Now we can focus on fixing our vacation home.

I talked to Oscar and he thought it was a great idea to fix up the vacation home. We both got some vacation time and we needed to get away.

Its weird how fast we can get things ready to go back to twikki island.

Once we got there we met with an architect and we are finally fixing our vacation house. We are planning on adding an extra room on the second floor. This will allow both of our kids to come and spend vacation with us.

For some reason Simon asked what I thought about us renewing our vows. I was a little stunned because I actually didnt think about it. These are the times that I am happy how romantic my husband is.

Oscar Simon Barillas II, Chapter 11

Oscar Simon Barillas (42), his wife Brandi (42)
Oscar Joshua III (17)
Narrated by Oscar Simon II

My son is a couple of years away from going to college. I wanted to surprise him with a present. He was so excited to learn that it was his own personal cellphone. We got one for our older daughter too when she went away for college.

Joshua and I have been really bonding lately. We both get up to work out and well I basically tell him about the legacy and how one day it will be his. He seems to be grasping the concept. Its hard to think that even now the third generation will soon bring the fourth.

I guess it was a little much for him because he would sit for hours and stare at the screen. I showed him the family tree logs that I have been keeping. I also emphasized how important it is to keep in touch with everyone.

he has also started dating. He told me that he was trying to date a girl named Ava White. So far it sounds that it was not successful.

After many tries she finally agreed to go out to dinner with him. My son has never really dated so I am a little worried that he will fall in love fast.

Months went by and I see Joshua less because he is with his friend Ava more. I think that she is his girlfriend but he doesn't want to bring her home yet.

Brandi and I sat down and reminded Joshua that he had a curfew and he needed to focus on college. Brandi looked at me with worried eyes and I reassured her that Joshua would indeed be going to college.

I came home by surprise and walked in on my son and Ava half naked. I gave her a moment to leave and Joshua confirmed that they indeed had slept together. I did not know what to say.

I told Brandi who the next morning told Joshua she was disappointed that he was not taking school seriously. She told him that he better be taking precautions unless he wanted a son at such a young age. Poor Joshua just sat there and turned beet red. Serves him right!

I am proud of my wife because she has taken the legacy role wife quite seriously. She has made the effort for the wives to get together at least once a month to talk about what has been going on. She gets along with the ex's so she invites them as well. It will get dicey if Ian marries Mary but for now its good.

They chatted and according to Brandi they all loved her new hair cut. She also mentioned that Debbie seemed a little more depressed and that Linda Chalmers (Marcos' ex wife) didn't show. In the end, they all had a great time catching up.

I in the meantime was finalizing my novel which got me a commission of $2,330.

Soon it was time to bid Joshua a farewell to highschool and hello to college. Melody and Joshua came over for a family dinner. I still hug Melody too much for her taste. After her accident both Brandi and I knew we were lucky to have such great kids.

Ava came by to talk to my son. She was greeted at the door by Melody and asked to see Josh. Joshua and her talked and then Brandi told me to get away from the window. I hope they manage to work things out. I am not sure if Ava is going to college or not. I just hope that Joshua finishes college.

Joshua left. Now Brandi and I hugged and watched our son go in the cab. Now we were officially empty nesters. I couldnt believe we were 44 and empty nesters?

Oscar Simon Barillas---Chapter 6

Oscar Simon (40), Brandi (40), their children: Oscar Joshua III (15), and Melody Sofia Ruben(23) her husband Ruben (26)
Narrated by Oscar Simon.

I could hear my daughter and wife whisper something about the vacation house. No matter how hard Brandi tries to keep our traveling plans a secret, I always find out. I only hoped that what they had up their sleeve would not be as bad as their other plans. I was busy trying to brainstorm for my novel project. As much as I tried to concentrate, I could not amid the constant whispering. I yelled, "Whats going on in there? I can hardly hear myself think".

Brandi and Melody had come up with the idea to vacation at our vacation home. At first Melody wanted to borrow the house. I thought that it would not be such a great idea. After all Melody has only been to our house once and I doubt that she would not get lost. In the end, I agreed for all of us to take a break from our hectic lives and go on vacation. I was not making any progress on my book so I figured I was due for a change of scenery.

I am always grateful that despite their age differences, Melody and Joshua have always gotten along. I see so many tragic stories at my job about family arguing for whatever little reason. I thank my lucky stars every day that my nucleus of family is small but supportive of one another.

Melody helped iron out the details of the pending vacation. In a blink of an eye she called Joshua (her husband) to confirm that he could get the time off. I was glad that I was going to take vacation with my daughter and new son-in-law.

We packed our bags and off we went to our vacation home for some much needed rest and relaxation.

After everyone got settled in, we had a little breakfast to plan how our days would be spent. We had four days to enjoy the home. I already knew that my son-in-law Joshua would like to do all the scuba diving activities while I just wanted to relax.
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On our last day there, everyone was pretty much tired of the confined space. I realized that I needed to save money to build an extra room here. As of now we have room just for ourselves and Joshua.
Everyone used the last day to do things that they wanted to do. Joshua (my son) got some sun rays with my wife Brandi.

I on the other hand indulged in my favorite activity. "yes thats the spot right there...ahhhh". I loved getting stone massages. I could not believe that this luxury was not available at home. The masseuse told me that she could teach me this massage but I didnt have the brain to learn anything new. I was on vacation for crying out loud.

We finally said goodbye to each other and Melody mentioned that she had a great time. They left a little early because her husband had to work. As they left I thought about how this was probably the last vacation with both my kids. Next time it would just be Brandi and myself.
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At home it was no vacation. Now that I am 40 I tend to pack on the pounds rather quickly. My clothes are fitting tighter and I refuse to let this big belly be my owner. I told Joshua that I needed to work out and burn some stress and calories. My son agreed to join me. There is something different with working out with someone and working out alone.

Thank goodness that I had quite a few ideas for my second novel. I just hope that it sells well. Brandi was just happy to be home safe and sound.

Chapter 9--Oscar Barillas II

Oscar Simon II ( ), Brandi ( ), Oscar Joshua III ( )
Narrated by: Brandi

Simon is so excited because we have finally made the next step and have bought a vacation home. At first I was against it but then Simon convinced me to just let go of the reins and buy the property. The property of course will go to Joshua.

We finally went to the new house and I have to admit that it was more than relaxing. Its so different only vacationing only with Joshua. Before the whole family used to vacation together. Now with Melody out of college, she is busy with her own life. Simon and Joshua head out to fish every second they get. I on the other hand head over to catch up on some reading.

Simon and I also catch up on other things. Its amazing being married for so long and still having that spark between us. I look at him and I still feel my heart flutter. The saddest part of our vacation was realizing that it was over. Well I guess its back to the daily grind.

Once home it wasnt long before my sister-in-law or shall I say former sister-in-law Deb came over. She wanted to make sure that she was not out of the family just because she and Ian are now divorced. Of course I calmed her down. If it were up to me she would not be out of the family at all. I really dont know what happened between them nor do I want to know. As the Legacy leader it is Simon's job to know all these things. I had to talk to Simon about Deb and Ian's situation the first chance I get.

Amarilis also came over the house. It seems that she needed to get a break from her new triplet babies. I dont blame her. Sometimes I wish that Simon and I would have more babies but now that Joshua is almost a college student...well lets just say that Simon and I are happy. Amarilis was so happy to know that we have a vacation house.

Because of the divorce of Deb and Ian their boys have been spending more time with Joshua and Simon. At first I wanted them to spend more time with Ian their dad. Simon does not agree. He thinks that he should also play a role as their uncle.

Therefore Simon comes home and talks to them about guy things. I just make sure they are fed and then I leave them alone. I sure miss having Melody here to keep me company.

Dont worry because I too manage to get the girls over for some bonding. Today I decided to invite over Deb, Consuelo, Brianna, Amarilis and to my amazement my former sister-in-law Linda decided to accept my invitation. I am so happy that she decided to come along. Unlike me, my son Joshua decided to tag along our lunch date. Either way I am happy that we all got together. I think that Linda and Deb are feeling welcomed in our family.

The minute that I get a moment..I make sure to sneak away with Simon and make sure he knows how much I miss him. Have I mentioned how much I love my husband?