Busy, busy,...quiet /Happy New Year)

So, it's been pretty busy around here for the past week or so and now it's so quiet. We had a very nice Christmas here at our house and then spent time with Gabe's family and then my family came to visit. Now, it seem so lonely because everyone has left. My Dad, Claudia and Gianna have been staying with us for the past 5 days (they're on an airplane heading back to CA as I write this) and it's been awesome. It's been so fun to watch Maddie interact with them and for them to really get to know her at age 2. I have to say that there's just something about spending time with your parents while they play with your children. Something special happens. You see your parents in a youthful light as they get down on the floor to do a puzzle with their granddaughter. I kept having the thought of how thankful I am. Thankful for God, for family, for health, for airplanes (so we can all see each other), for our dogs, for so many things. My dad got an email that he forwarded to me yesterday because I liked it so much, but one thing it said was "I'm too blessed to be stressed," and I think that should be my motto for 2009. There's too much good in life to be so worried, angry, irritable...you name it. We will be staying in tonight and just keeping quiet. 2008 has been quite a year in our household, but I'm choosing to see it as a great one. It's the year that Gabe got sober, that God became the center of our home, that Grace was born, that the girls got dedicated and that Gabe and I were baptized. To me, it's been amazing. Happy New Year.

Merry Christmas!!!

Matching Pajama's courtesy of Nonnie :)

To see more pictures of our Christmas, click here.

Merry Christmas Eve

*this was meant to be read yesterday!*

Well, the big day is here. Yes, tomorrow is the biggest day, but today is the big for a few reasons. Every Christmas Eve something not-so-good happens to me/us. Two years ago, I fell down the stairs holding a 2 month old Madeline on Christmas Eve. And let us not forget last year when we were trying to drive from Missouri back to Virginia and then decided to get on a plane and just get here faster. Only to be at the ER in Alexandria by 10pm that night with Maddie terribly sick. So, I'm determined to have a better Christmas Eve than we've had for the past 2 years. We're staying home, making a ham and opening one present (it's going to be the one from Nonnie that's for all of us-Pajamagram anyone? :) We're also going to leave cookies and carrots for Santa and the Reindeer and read "The Night Before Christmas." We're also going to continue to play with our Nativity Set that I bought for the girls. It was suggested to me to get a Nativity Set that kids could touch-so that they could play and I could tell them the story of Jesus' birth. It was also recommended that no mom get too upset if their children put baby Jesus on the roof of the manger or any other crazy thing they come up with. Their just kids. Well, Maddie has made a pretty funny scenario with her Nativity Set. No matter how many times I tell her which one is Joseph and which one is Mary and how they are the parents of the baby, she continues to make Mary and the one of the wise men kiss each other! Pretty funny. She likes this particular wise man because he is carrying what we think is Frankincense and she thinks it's a bottle that she tries to drink from! It's wild to watch but I know she means no disrespect. Love to all!

12/20/08 (approx. 15 weeks old)

Grace is really ticklish and so I took this video this morning to share with you! Enjoy :)

Baptism

Okay, so to start off, our baptism was AMAZING! It was a moment I will remember for the rest of my life. With that being said there's something else that's been on my mind. In the past couple of weeks, we've been telling people that we're getting baptized. We kept finding that people didn't really know what to say to us. Many people whom are close to us didn't even really ask us what it meant to us, what it was (if they didn't know)- nothing. So that got me thinking. Maybe people thought it was weird; weird because it's something they thought only babies did or to some it may seem "too religious." Who knows? I want to be clear what it meant/means to me: It was an outward sign of an inner change that I made 7 years ago when I asked Christ into my heart as my Lord and Savior. That's one of the best decisions I've ever made and last night completely affirmed that choice. Gabe and I were the only married couple to be baptized together last night and so many people came up to us afterwards and thanked us for our testimonies. I could tell that Gabe's testimony really reached several people; one man told us that Gabe's testimony gave him hope for his brother who is battling alcohol and drugs. It was an awesome experience and I hope you enjoy the pictures. We read our testimonies side by side and then we were baptized together. To me, I felt more connected to Gabe last night than on the day we were married! Pretty amazing. There's a reason for this season that we're in :) So, thank you to those of you who kept us in your thoughts and prayers last night. I'm off to bed.

Think of us...

If you read this today please think of/pray for Gabe and I tonight at 6pm Eastern Time. We are being baptized together and could always use a prayer :) I'll have more to write about tomorrow!

We're in the Christmas spirit...Finally!

It took a while, but I think we're there. We finally got our tree decorated, put our wreath up and sprinkled a few Christmas trinkets around our family room. It was tough this year to be motivated after the basement disaster, but now we are all set. The new carpet is really nice and we are definitely enjoying it. I'll take a few pic's and post them for those of you who want to see :) What else is going on?... Well, on Thursday night Gabe and I are being baptized. I'm really excited. I've been waiting for the past 7 years for the opportunity to do it and it really is true that God works in mysterious ways because I had no idea why I had to wait so long! I guess it's because He wanted me to wait for Gabe :) It's really neat because we are actually standing up together and reading our testimonies side by side. If you would have asked me a year ago if I ever pictured this happening I would have thought you were crazy! I did not expect to see change in Gabe the way I've seen it. I like to think that even though 2008 has been a tough year for us, it's ending in a really special way. A funny thing has started to happen with Grace. She is slowly but surely finding her fingers (just like the ones that Maddie sucks). It's really cute and A LOT easier than a pacifier because they are always with her :) She's been really working on this, so we'll see if it sticks. We are also in the middle of refinancing our mortgage which is a task in itself. It's funny how life works. You can go many months with not much going on and then all of the sudden it's like the days fly by because you're so busy. At least that's the case in my life. The last thing I want to share is that I'm reading a lot lately and one book I'm reading nightly is called Creating A Charmed Life by Victoria Moran. My mom sent it to me and I just think that it's amazing. I just read this part about "living your life in chapters." She's saying that we should just live our life in the chapter that we're in (for me it's the stay-at-home mom with little kids chapter) and not worry about the chapters that came before or after this one. It helps to live in the present which has been a huge goal of mine for the past few months. I'm trying to hurry less...in everything. I'm not totally successful, but at least I'm paying attention and attempting to change. It occurs to me that to even attempt something different is to already be successful :) Happy thoughts.

Take a minute and watch...

My mom received this today from a friend of hers and we watched it together and thought it had a great message. Take some time to watch it if you can. Click here

Have a great Thursday!!!

Bronchitis, Basement and Baptism

Well, I don't know for sure if I have bronchitis, but I think I do. Going to call the doctor tomorrow and have them listen to my lungs because I can't stop coughing and wheezing. Lovely. The basement is another story. Woke up yesterday to a flooded laundry room and to spare you the details let's just say we have ordered new carpet because a cleaning crew had to cut a bunch of our old carpet out. Gabe and I went and ordered it today and now we are going to have all new carpet in our home :) We've been wanting to do the upstairs too and now we have an excuse! Yay! Baptism is the final thing because Gabe and I attended a class at our church today about getting baptized together on the 18th and I'm really excited about that. Both of us were baptized as babies, but we really want to do it now as adults when we're really making that decision for ourselves in our own church. So, that's all of our news. My mom is here visiting and once we all start to feel better we'll be able to have some fun this week! Also, we had our first snow last night but it wasn't much and it didn't really stick to the ground. Still, it was enough to send Maddie into a frenzy yelling "snowman!" :)

Weekend

We had a weekend filled with taking care of our sick 2 year old :( Yup, Maddie was sick again and we go back to the dr. on Wednesday to try and sort out her asthma. I'm not going to bore you with the details, but let's just say that today is a good day because she hasn't thrown up on me :) Grace is another story...she throws up on me daily. Ahh, child rearing...it is all that it's cracked up to be. So, Maddie is much better and I'm going to go meet up with Alexa and take a break from kids for an hour or so. I have pic's to post of Thanksgiving, etc but here's one in the mean time.

Mugshot

Happy Thanksgiving

Our Gratitude Tree

"Bruiser"

Happy Thanksgiving!

We are having a great day and just wanted to share a couple of pic's so far. We went over to Gabe's parents house for Thanksgiving brunch and now we are home relaxing while both girls nap :) The Gratitude Tree is something I won at the mom's group I go to and it was an idea of a way to think about what we're grateful for leading up to Thanksgiving. Gabe and I have been taking turns filling out the "leaves" with what we are grateful for. It's a nice reminder of all that we have and are thankful for. The picture with Maddie as a bruiser is because she got hurt at school on Tuesday and she got a huge bruise right between her eyebrows which is now starting to give her a black eye! Gracie's picture is today and she is happy as usual :) Hope your Thanksgiving is wonderful.

Don't know

So, I don't know what to write about. I just wanted to write to say that yes, homesickness does pass (thank God) and for now I'm okay with where I'm at. It's cold today and right now both girls are resting. They are not napping in the same room, but last night we had them sleep in the same room for the first time. It went great. We put Maddie to bed at 8pm and then Grace had a bottle and went down around 10pm. We heard Grace first at 5:14am (which woke Maddie) but I took Grace downstairs for her bottle. Gabe stayed with Maddie, gave her some milk and told her it was still time to rest. She went back to bed for about an hour and a half. So, we consider that a success. We figure they better get used to sharing their room sooner than later :) Finger's crossed on how tonight will go. In other news, Gabe is getting excited to cook our Thanksgiving feast and I'm excited to eat it. Every other mom I talk to is under stress/pressure to make a large meal on Thursday to serve lots of people and thankfully I have a hubby who likes to cook and I can just relax. I will do my official job though-taste tester :) Happy Monday.

Totally and Completely Homesick

*This has been edited recently*

There you have it. I'm in this weird space where I'm really missing home. Of course I miss the family and friends that are there, but lately I miss something else. I miss the land- the redwood trees, hills, ocean, fog, vineyards, etc. It's a strange longing that I'm feeling; sort of like missing someone you love. I'm having a hard time with it because we are coming home in March, but I feel myself wishing I could just come there alone for a short time sooner. Probably because it's not something that can happen, I want it even more. I realize that I'm also sad about the fact that Maddie and Gracie will never know my home as theirs. They are being raised on a totally different coast; their home is Virginia. Don't get me wrong. There are times where I see beauty here and I think that I'm lucky to live in such a nice part of the country-but again, it's not where I'm from and truly the beauty of Sonoma County is hard to compete with. I miss other aspects of home too. I miss the laid back style of people-both in how their attitudes are as well as the way they dress. I miss really great food and local wine. About twice a year I feel this way. This time is quite strong and I'm trying to just let it go. My reality is Virginia-not California and thinking about all the things I miss and wish for will not make them so. Like I said, I'm in a strange place and I'm not sure where to go...

The Artiste

My Girls

Ready to go places!

Giving Tuck

a little kiss :)

WTF?!?

So, Gabe's car was stolen last night. It's crazy, I know. We've been having some serious prob's in our neighborhood with people breaking into cars (mine included on 10/29) and going through stuff. Usually the perp (caught some cop lingo today) enters the cars without leaving a mark. Then, on Thursday night our neighbor had her car broken into (literally, her window was smashed) and they stole her GPS. This morning, at 4:45am, Grace woke for a bottle. As I was feeding her, I thought to myself that I should look out the front window to see if I could catch any high crime in action. I noticed one of our neighbor's cars had their interior light on and I was trying really hard to see if anything was going on. Then I realized that the only reason I could see her car so clearly was because Gabe's car was totally missing! I felt like I wasn't thinking right, or quite awake, so I went upstairs and asked Gabe where he parked his car. In a very sleepy, froggy voice he said "in my spot" to which I replied, "it's definitely not there." So, the cops came and put an APB out for the missing X5. Gabe got a rental car and went to work assuring me that his car was well off to Baltimore to be put on a ship to China. {This really confused me at the time and still does- why does China want our BMW? Gabe wasn't in a frame of mind to sort that out for me and I think I'll just let it go} So, a few hours later, I get a call from the cop asking if it's an SUV or sedan. Then I get a call from another cop asking if we have any other children, "any teenagers who have keys to the car?" Teenagers!?! This guy met me in my pajama's holding one baby and feeding a 2 year old raisin toast. How old does he think we are and that would be quite an age gap between Maddie and our teenage felon. Finally a call came that said they found our car. Actually the previous owner had installed LoJack on it and so they located it that way (makes you want one for yourself?) It was found just a couple miles from our home, in a nice residential neighborhood and nothing was wrong with it. No forced entry, no wreckage, nothing. They did take all of Gabe's CD's (Phish, anyone?) and his AA chips (not of any monetary value, but definitely some major emotional value). So, that sucks, but that's really the worst of it. Oh, one more thing. Gabe has kept his spare car key in his glove box for a long time (not a great idea) and that is one other thing the perp took. So, while we do have the car back, we promptly drove it to the dealer and are having the locks changed. It was a long day, with a happy ending. We also purchased The Club so as to deter any more crimes from happening to our cars. Happy Monday :)

They're back :)

Just a quick post to say that Gabe and Maddie are back safe and sound. And, I could be crazy, but it seems like Maddie aged and got many new words in just a few short days!

Missing them

So, Gabe and Maddie have been gone for 37 and a half hours (but whose counting). They took off for a dog show in Maryland and it's just been me, Grace and the dogs holding down the fort. It's been pretty quiet (which was nice yesterday and seemed a bit lonelier today). I've talked on the phone with Gabe several times and it sounds like Maddie is having a blast with just her daddy, Grammy and Auntie all to her self. Grace has started something new this weekend. She's come to the realization that we have dogs and she seems particularly attuned to Tuck. He's been sitting at the foot of her baby bouncer chair and she just looks at him and talks and talks. Because he stays put for such a long period of time, I'm sort of convinced they are speaking their own special language. Either that or he's waiting to lick the baby puke off her chin :0 Anyways, it's been a nice weekend, but I'll be glad to have Gabe and Maddie back. With all the free time I've had the past 37 hours, I joined facebook and have been getting a kick out of that. That's all there is to report tonight. Hope your weekend is well.
Here's a second video I took of Grace the other day. Just now getting around to posting.

Video of Grace 11/6/08

:35 seconds is my favorite part! Enjoy :)

What a feeling!

I have to say that never in my life have I been this emotional about a presidential election. To be totally honest, I never cared as much as I have this time around. I'm so moved by the fact that my daughters are alive in a time where history was made. As I watched all of the news networks last night, I felt unsure for a while. Sort of like disbelief. Then, as the numbers kept rising for Obama, I started to just feel joy. I felt like my vote counted for something. I felt a sense of total hope but mostly I felt moved. When I went to vote yesterday, I had tears in my eyes, which really caught me off guard. I think I welled up because I was so proud to be voting for Barack, but also because I was truly fearful of the other side winning. I am one of those people who is fed up with the way things have been for the past 8 years and I couldn't bare the thought of 4 more of the same. I heard something on TV this morning from a McCain supporter. She said that even though she didn't vote for Barack, she is getting in the line to support him now because that's what you do as an American; you support your President. That idea to support your President no matter what has been tough for many of us currently, but it's nice to see a light at the end of that tunnel. 1-20-09 :) {76 Days away}

Halloween & Lizzy Visits

Lizzy meets Grace for the first time, Maddie just got into her costume, "Trick-or-Treat!", Walking through the neighborhood, LadyBug, Lizzy & Gracie sharing a laugh, Daddy & Maddie, "Choose 1 piece," Lizzy, Tucker, and Grace snuggling.

Here are the pic's from our weekend. Maddie loved trick-or-treating! She didn't eat any candy, but she loved the idea of ringing people's doorbells and getting something from them to put in her bucket. It was so great to have Lizzy here too. We had so much fun just hanging out-doing the sister thing. She loved meeting Grace and Tucker was very happy to see her too :) My friend, Raina, was also in town this weekend visiting her sister-in-law and so she came over to visit on Saturday. We had a blast just talking and hanging out. I told her I haven't laughed that much in a long time! What a good feeling it is to be with friends who have known you since you were 10 years old. To be honest, having both my sister and Raina here visiting from home, just made me miss CA. I remembered what I always tell myself and that is that Virginia is nice, but it's definitely not home. I wonder if that feeling will dull with time. It's been 4 years and not so much :) This week should be interesting. Tonight Gabe is going to Monday night football with his sister Patrice and won't be home til really late. Then, tomorrow we (Barack the) vote! Yeah!!! I'm ready to vote and stop seeing all of the political commercials :) Then, on Friday at the crack of dawn, Gabe and Maddie are leaving for the weekend. They're heading to Maryland with Sandy and Patrice to go to a dog show. Gabe is showing a lot of dogs, but dog showing is usually just a few hours out of the day, so they have a lot planned to take Maddie to. They are going to a petting zoo that Gabe went to as a child, probably the ocean, the arcade, etc. She's going to have a blast and hopefully remember what it feels like to be the only child again! Grace, the dogs and I will hold down the fort and just relax. So, that's what our week looks like. Hope yours will be great!

Friday

Well, Lizzy gets here in a few hours and we are pretty excited around here. It's been a week of cold weather (it even snowed in Maryland) and getting ready to have Liz here. Tonight Maddie is going to Dog School with her Grammy to watch the Doggy Halloween Costume party :) I think she'll get a kick out of it and hopefully it gets her in the mood to wear her Lady Bug costume tomorrow. When it arrived in the mail, I asked her to try it on, she said "no" and I pretty much wrestled her into it so that I could check if it fit. It fits really well so I have my fingers crossed that she'll wear it gladly tomorrow night. Gabe said "good luck making her wear the hat part." (It's the antennas)

The only other news around here is that my car got broken into 2 nights ago :( Whoever did it, didn't break anything; they must know what they're doing because there was no sign of how they got in. They basically went through my glove box and put all the stuff on the ground in my car (they left the tampons alone :). They went through my garbage thing in there and pretty much everything else, but nothing was missing so I consider myself lucky. I was saying to Gabe that it figures the night both of our kids actually sleep through the night without waking up, is the night someone breaks into my car right in front of our house. Normally, we're up at least 2 times a night but on that particular night even our 7 week old slept in until 6:30am!!! She's such a good baby and Maddie has been sleeping pretty well again too. So, tomorrow we'll trick-or-treat and then just hang out on Saturday. Hope you have a good weekend and Happy Halloween!

Weekend

It was a really great weekend for us! Gabe surprised me last week by telling me that months ago he had planned a one night get away for us. We were gone for a little less than 24 hours and in that time we drove to Richmond, I went to the spa for some pampering, we went out to a fabulous dinner and went to an amazing concert. We saw the Trey Anastasio Band (lead guy from Phish) play and I'm even surprised to say this, but I really enjoyed myself. We ran into an old friend there and had a blast-Sober. It was pretty special to be in one of Gabe's old environments and to watch him have such a blast as a sober person. Great memories. Grace went and stayed with her Grammy and Poppi and Maddie stayed here at home with her Auntie Patrice. Both girls did really well and we were so thankful for the small break. It brought us back with a renewed energy for them :) Today we took Maddie and Gracie to get some pumpkins for Halloween. Lizzy gets here this week to visit and to trick-or-treat with Maddie, so we thought we needed to be festive. After driving for a few hours to Richmond and back, Gabe and I weren't interested in driving any more to go get pumpkins. So, we went to this really cute church that had pumpkins for sale. Maddie loved it and Grace slept through it (what else is new?:) Enjoy the pic's!

Hospital

Saturday was a nightmare! Actually, it all started Friday evening when I watched as Maddie's breathing became worse and worse and her breathing more labored and rapid. I started to Neb her, but it wasn't helping. I called the dr. in the middle of the night and debated taking her to the ER, but figured I could just take her to the pediatrician in a few hours. So, I waited, all the while freaking out (mostly in my head) about Maddie's breathing and the fact that she could barely take in air. We went to the pediatrician at 9am and by the time they'd tried 3 different breathing treatments and a course of oral steroids, they sent us to the hospital. They said she could be better monitored there and could get a chest x-ray. So, Gabe stayed with Grace at home and I took Maddie to the pediatric ER in Fairfax. There they gave her several breathing treatments, monitored her oxygen levels, tested her for the virus RSV (which it turns out is what she has) and did a chest x-ray to rule out pneumonia. After 6 hours, we were allowed to go home and she had started breathing much better, but not normal in any way. She was seen again yesterday to make sure she was on the mend, and she is, but she can only talk a little before she starts coughing horribly and we are still doing Neb treatments every 4 hours for the next 2 days. It was a long, tough weekend, but we are doing better. Grace seems to be stuffed up now and not sleeping as comfortably as she has been, but hopefully her lungs will stay strong and not be affected how Maddie's were. Today we are laying low and trying to just get better. Hope your weekend was less eventful :)

Update

Maddie & Aibha playing in the park together
10-10-08
I'm sorry that I can't blog as much right now. Being a mom to a newborn and a 2 year old takes a serious amount of attention-and that's how blogging gets put on the back burner. I have lots to write about, just not lots of time. I'm sure as Grace gets a bit older, it may be easier to find time to blog. A quick update is that we are doing well. Maddie had her 2 year old check up today and we all got our flu shots; not Gracie-she's too young this year. We went and had pancakes after because Maddie was so brave (and we were starving :) Maddie and I just got back from playing at the park with Aibha, Siobhan and Aisling. We may not see them again until January!!! They are off to Ireland on Wednesday for a looooooooong time and we are definitely going to miss them. I've been seeing how fast weeks go by (Grace will be 6 weeks already on Monday!), and hopefully that's the case with our friends being gone. January will be here before we know it :) I need to mention here that I just had a long break from typing this post (dinner, Target run, babies to bed, etc.) and realized that Siobhan has already posted a comment similar to what I've blogged above :) So, it'll just be me and the girls for a few months without our little friends. Hopefully busy and not too lonely. Can't wait to hear about the flight with 2 little ones; it'll prep me for March :)

Quick Post

Just wanted to say that both girls are napping right now at the same time and so it seems I should blog and then go catch up on all the Project Runway's that I have TIVO'd :) It was a busy, awesome, at times stressful, memorable weekend and I have LOTS of pic's to post... hopefully I can get to that tonight. Hope your weekend was wonderful too.

Maddie's Birthday Celebration Part 1

Here's a link to see the pictures from Maddie's birthday celebration tonight at her Grandparent's house. We had a blast and by the end she was saying "more presents please?" Very cute :)
Click here to see the pictures.

Madeline's Birthday!

Happy Birthday Madeline Elisabeth!

Wow! I cannot believe she's 2 today... I was up with Grace at 4:30am and I thought to myself that 2 years ago and 2 hours before, Maddie had been born and my whole life changed. She's been such a blessing to me; there are barely words to describe my complete adoration for her. She's a loving, kind, funny little girl and without her I'd be totally different. I love the independence she's gained in the past 2 years, not to mention the amount of words :) She's a beautiful girl on the inside and out and that is ALL I ever wished for when I wished for her.

More Pictures...

Go Redskins!

Funny Face

Tired Mommy & baby

Tired Daddy & baby

Maddie today before we left for school :)

Just wanted to say that we're doing really well. Maddie is loving going to school and Grace is allowing us to get just enough sleep at night. We sleep in shifts, but at least we sleep! We are in planning mode for Maddie's 2nd birthday which is here next week! And we are getting ready for the girls' dedication ceremony which is next weekend. Lots to celebrate around the Mejias house :) I'm trying to take it easier than I have been; my midwife told me to yesterday. It seems that even though I feel great, I've been doing a bit too much too soon and I need to slow down. Hard to do with a newborn and a 2 year old, but I'm trying. Thank God I have a helpful hubby :) Speaking of Gabe, I'm so proud of him and really in awe. Today he celebrates 6 months sober!!! Actually, we celebrate 6 months. We've come to learn it's a family thing and I think we've done/are doing a lot of hard work. Gabe's sobriety is a miracle and to be able to see an actual miracle is a true blessing. It's a great day all around.

Pictures

Exhausted :)

Maddie wearing the new dress Nonnie made for her!

Grammy, Maddie & Gracie

Maddie helps Gracie with her first bath

Nonnie & Gracie

I said the other day that I would post some new pic's and shockingly, I never got around to it. I have a feeling that may become my catch phrase for a few months! The days are passing quickly, but the nights seem loooong-probably because I'm so tired. But, we're doing well. Gracie had her 2 week appointment yesterday and she's doing well. She's in the 50th percentile for length, and 25th for weight. She weighed 7 lbs. 10 oz. yesterday, so she's gained just about a pound since birth! Maddie is still doing well at preschool. Yesterday when I dropped her off, she walked right into her classroom and said "bye-bye Mommy" without any tears. She's so independent and if I remember correctly, that's something I blogged about a long time ago-wanting her to be independent and be okay. Pretty fun to watch. "The Office" is back on tonight (so excited :)- Now it feels like Fall...

One Long Day

Well, I'm still alive! I knew that having 2 kids would cut into my blogging time, but I guess I had no idea how much :) Let's see. My mom left this morning and I think I've cried about a dozen times since. There's just something about having your mom around. I think that it means more to me because she lives so far away; I don't take her for granted. She was here for two and half weeks and what a blessing that was. Seriously-don't know how I would have done it without all of that help. So today is a bittersweet day. It's the day that I become the mom of 2 little girls and I have to balance my time, energy and love-and I have to figure out how to do that on my own. Gabe's a huge help (probably more so than a lot of husbands) but I'm the stay at home mom and so ultimately it comes down to me and the two of them.
Maddie is doing well. She loves her baby sister and gives her kisses on the head all the time. She's a little less patient with me and spends a large majority of her day saying "Moooommmmmmmmmmmy" and "Where'd nigh-nigh go?" So, me and her blanket are her two favorite comfort items at the moment. She's more needy than usual, but that's to be expected. With the amount (or lack there of) sleep I'm getting, it's hard to be as patient as I normally am with her. But, I'm trying. She's doing really well at preschool and her teachers tell me they love her; and really, that's all I wanted. I wanted the teachers to love her and care about her and I can tell that they really do. What a good feeling! Grace is doing well too, although she seems to have already caught her first cold. With Maddie starting preschool that same week that I had Grace, we were all bound to come into contact with some new germs. I have a weird lingering cough, Maddie has been sleeping/not sleeping at weird times, and Grace has mucus in her nose and throat. Nothing like a Saturday morning at the pediatricians office! So, that's what Grace and I did today. It's funny, but even the second time around, I still get freaked out about some things. A sick newborn is hard to not get freaked out about. Gabe is much more calm about all this. Thank God for him! So, hopefully tonight will bring more sleep than last night-for ALL of us! I have more pic's to post and will do so hopefully tomorrow. They change so fast...

*Please excuse my ramblings but I'm blogging on only 3 hours of sleep*

Gracie is here!!!

A quick post to say that we had Gracie on Monday, September 8, 2008 at 9:36pm. She is a healthy, beautiful baby girl and aside from being tired, we are all doing well. Enjoy these pic's of her and her big sister Maddie :)
Click on this link to see the full web album of pictures: Grace

35 hours and counting

Here's the truth, I'm still pregnant (I know that was the title of my last post :) and this morning I'm okay with that. Sounds strange? I know, I know. But I've been doing some reflecting this morning and here's what I've been thinking. When you find out you're pregnant, you anticipate this certain date for 10 months or so, just waiting for it to arrive. And then, like myself and many other moms-to-be, that date comes and goes and your uterus is still blocking your view of your newly painted toes. (Didn't mean to rhyme there) So, you have to just wait. You have to realize and then accept (that being the harder of the two) that you have NO control over when this baby will be born or even how this baby will be born. You may picture it one way and then something totally different becomes the reality. See, I'm getting a little nervous about going to the hospital on Monday because I don't really know what to expect. I mean, in general, I have an idea of what's going to happen, but I don't know know. So, I'm getting scared but at the same time excited. Excited to see this little girl who I've known about since December, but haven't known. I'm nervous to become a mom of 2 and all that it entails. I'm ready, but I'm not ready-and I'm sure that many women have felt this exact same way. Tonight is Saturday and tomorrow I plan to go to church and then take it easy and really pay attention. It's going to be Maddie's last day as an only child (something she'll probably never remember) and it feels bittersweet. The countdown has now officially begun; in about 35 hours I'll be admitted to the hospital and ready to meet my baby Grace.

Still Pregnant...

Just wanted to say "Happy Labor Day" and alas, I am not in labor :) I'm still very much pregnant and feeling funny because today is my due date and there's no sign of a baby coming today. I've had an urge to clean, but that's pretty normal for me and plus, my mom arrives tomorrow night so I want the house to be just so. That's the news around here. Hope you have a great September 1st!

3 days to go...

39 and a half weeks

So, my due date is looming near and yet there isn't a whole lot that tells me Grace is on her way. Went to the midwife yesterday and she checked and said that I'm 1cm and about 60% effaced (which is progress from last week) but at the same time it's not like I'm in labor. But, that's okay. I've really wanted a September baby ever since I found out I was pregnant. So, I'm okay right now.

Something I've been meaning to write about is a couple of things that I just don't "get." The first is the fact that total strangers (grocery store clerks, nail salon tech's, cleaning ladies) feel obligated to tell me that I "look small." Meaning, they don't think my baby is big enough to possibly be born on Monday and with a tone that questions if a baby that small could be healthy. Just as it would be incredibly rude to tell a very pregnant (hormonal) woman that she is "huge" it is just as rude to say the opposite. To think that the size of one's baby has anything to do with the person carrying it is ridiculous. Meaning that I can't control her size. She is what she is; Maddie was small too and perfectly healthy. I JUST MAKE SMALL BABY GIRLS! At least that's what I feel like saying. But instead, I try to be cordial and smile, but now I'm sick of it and I'm determined to come up with a better comeback for these sorts of comments, but I'm sure that by the time I come up with one, Grace will be here! Making small baby girls brings me to my second point that I don't "get." Why is it that whenever someone (anyone) asks me if I'm having a boy or girl, and I reply "another girl :)" (I say it with a smile-to show them that I'm happy about having another girl) they give me a look and then say something along the lines of "you'll get a boy next time," or "gotta tell Gabe to keep trying." NO. We don't want to "try." We are pretty (90%) sure that we are done having babies and we are fine; scratch that, we are THRILLED to be having 2 girls. Sisters. That's what I've always wanted; is to have girls because I know the importance of a sister. And, no offense to boys, but why are they deemed such a prized possession? I mean, we're not in China and we're not royalty looking for an heir to the throne. So, I just want to say, for the record, that we are ecstatic about having another girl. Another total individual to love and know. Now, if we could just meet her...

Maddie's Picture

I just wanted to post and say that the picture to the left of Maddie is not one I took. It's beautiful and I love it so much, but a man named Tim, who works at Dog School is studying photography and he took this picture of Maddie yesterday when she was there visiting. Just didn't want to take the credit :)

The Update

So, the official update is that there still isn't anything to report :( Went to the midwife today and she finally checked me and came to the conclusion that I'm not dilated at all! Now, they always tell you that just because you aren't dilated today doesn't mean you won't be tomorrow. But, who knows. She also said that I'm measuring small again (which is what happened 2 months ago and they sent me for that second sonogram to find that nothing is wrong-she's just a small baby). She said maybe the baby has "dropped" (ya know, into the pelvis to get ready to be born) and that's why I'm measuring small. Last week and the week before I measured right on track with what I was supposed to, so this is a change, but not one that concerned me. To be honest, if she just dropped now, maybe we'll start getting somewhere :) But, as I was reminded when I told my mom about it, I really want Grace to be born in September. Plus, Gabe really thinks she isn't due on the 1st but more like the 9th (that's the due date given by the sonographer) and that would also account for her being a little small. So, anyone's guess is as good as ours. To not be too boring, I'll only post the most pertinent information as it comes along. My next appointment is next Wednesday.
On another, totally different note, I got an exciting phone call today. The preschool that is less than a mile from our house, half the price cheaper and more Christian based called today and they have an opening for Maddie!!! The bonus of this school is that it's also a co-op so I have the opportunity to help out and meet the teacher's, etc. So, we're in. I called the other preschool and said we are withdrawing. It just feels so right for her to go to this preschool instead, but it had been March, the last time I heard from them and it was only to tell me that we were on a wait list. So, prayers are answered :) Now, her first day of school will be on September 8th and my mom will be here for that which will be a really great memory. So, I'm glad this happened today because it kept me distracted from thinking about when on earth Grace would be born.

Monday

We had a great weekend, but still no baby :) To be honest, I was up at 3:30am today thinking "this might be labor" but then the contractions and crampiness stopped :( Plus, everything I've heard/read/experienced tells me that if I'm wondering if it's labor, then it usually isn't. So, another week ahead. I don't go back to the midwife until Thursday so we'll just wait until then.
This weekend, Gabe and I got to go out on a date on Friday night, then on Saturday we just did family stuff and bbq'd ribs and then yesterday we went to church and then hung out and went to our meetings in the evening. At church, when we went to pick Maddie up from the nursery, she said "bye-bye park" and I reminded her that we're at church, not the park and so she said "bye-bye church; bye kids." The teachers were laughing. It's pretty funny to hear. She loves going there though and we're so glad because it's been good practice for pre-school. She has her orientation for pre-school on the 10th of September and then she officially starts on the 17th. I'm really looking forward to her going because it's only a couple days a week (Wed. & Thurs.) and she'll get to play with other kids her age and have a break from me and the baby. But, I'm also sad at how old she seems getting ready to go to school. I'm sure that lots of moms feel this way when their oldest is starting some sort of program outside of the home, but deep down I know it's so good for her; I always said I wanted her to be independent and this just seems to be one of those stepping stones. I'm hoping that I can maybe have the baby in enough time to be out of the hospital by the day of orientation because I really want to go to that. We'll see.
We don't have a lot planned this week. The weather seems nice today so maybe the park? Happy Monday :)

Still waiting...

Well, there's no real news to report. Went to the midwife yesterday and she didn't "check" me or anything. I think maybe next week they will... not that it makes a difference because the only real sign that the baby is coming is contractions! I've been crampy for days, but nothing that makes me feel like it's EVER going to happen :) So, that's where I'm at. Maddie is feeling much better and hopefully we can stop using the nebulizer on Saturday. She's still coughing/runny nose, but not contagious, so we've been laying low waiting for her to get better. We made it to open gym at Gymboree yesterday for about 40 minutes and she had fun. Since we missed our class on Tuesday because of Maddie not feeling well, the people who work there thought that I must have had my baby. Well, obviously not :) Gabe has dog shows tomorrow and Saturday and they are sort of far away, so he won't be around much. Maddie and I will have to come up with things to do. I ordered Maddie and "I'm the Big Sister" t-shirt for when she comes to the hospital after Grace is born and it came in the mail the other day and it's so cute! I may take a picture of it and post it later. Have a good Thursday!

August so far...

A quick note about some of the pic's: The first one is Maddie lounging in my bed after her bath one night (all she needs is a cup of tea and she'd be me:) The next one is of her playing with Daddy's shoes which she does every day lately. She puts them on and tries to walk, but usually doesn't get very far. The pic in the middle is her "getting dressed" over her pajamas-she thought this was pretty clever. The next pic is her modeling an outfit that her Nonnie sent her. Then, there's the pic of the tummy last week. The final 2 pictures are her trying to wear our dishtowels :) Enjoy!

Doctor appointments and Nebulizer treatments

So, as you can tell from the title of this post that Maddie has gotten worse! She was having trouble breathing yesterday (wheezing) and I called the doctor and had to drive to Fairfax to have her seen at the other office. So, the doctor there gave her Singular to take last night, but wasn't feeling like she needed asthma med's yet. He said "let's see how she does." Well, to answer that, we woke up this morning to Maddie's breathing being shallow and rapid with lots of wheezing/coughing mixed in. It really scared me. I have asthma, but I can't remember the last time mine was so bad that I sounded like she did. Thankfully the doctors office was open this morning and they took her as the first patient; they could probably hear the worry in my voice over the phone. We went to the doctor and Gabe met us there and sure enough, they decided she needed a Nebulizer treatment. If you have kids and you've never done this, count yourself lucky. Here's the thing; I'm sure in time, she'll get more used to it and it won't seem so scary, but this was not that time. It's a loud little machine and I have to basically hold her arms down and simultaneously hold this little mask over her nose and mouth. She screamed the whole time and I thought that the stress of that was enough to make me go into labor! It's one of those parenting things-you know that what you're doing will help her in the long run, but in that moment you want to make her feel safe and not so scared. I think that can be an analogy that is useful to parents of children that are any age. So, we survived. As soon as the medicine was done, the crying and screaming stopped. Her lungs sounded better the doctor said, but now we have to do Nebulizer treatments every 4 hours for the entire weekend and then take her back on Monday to have her listened to again. Hopefully each time we do the treatments, she'll get a little less scared; I'm sure watching a little Elmo can help in that department. Too bad they don't have a DVD about Elmo getting a Neb. treatment :) So, that's been our Saturday so far. Gabe and I are supposed to go to the Redskins pre-season game tonight, but now I'm not sure. I want to go because this is probably the only game I'll get to all season, but if Maddie is still as bad as she is now, then I can't put that on Sandy to deal with. So, we'll see how the day unfolds. Also, I'm 37 weeks pregnant today (no big deal) and to be honest, I almost feel less pregnant than last week. Not sure how that's possible, but maybe because my mind has been so preoccupied with Maddie's sickness I don't have time to focus on me. That's the news for today :)

Nothing to report

Just a quick note to say we went to the midwife today and there isn't any news to report. She didn't check me like I thought she would. She just did the usual stuff and thinks that Grace is probably around 5 and half pounds at this point. Gabe and I both think she'll be just a little bigger than Maddie at birth, but maybe not by much. I go back to the midwife in a week. So, other than that, Maddie has come down with a little summer cold (runny nose, sneezing, clingy, etc.). Which means we may just be laying low tomorrow. We'll see how she sleeps tonight-hopefully well because I'm exhausted.

Sick as a...

pregnant woman in her last weeks of pregnancy? (Betcha thought I was going to say dog!) So, last night I was up until 12:30am because the nausea that I was experiencing was unbearable. I did not have this issue this late in pregnancy with Maddie. It was reminiscent of the first 3 months of pregnancy where the only thing I could stomach were saltines and ginger ale. It started with heartburn right after dinner and then progressed to I-could-vomit-at-any-minute by 10pm. Then I spent the next 2 and half hours watching TIVO'd episodes of Bridezillas (don't ask) and trying to wash down the acid that kept coming up with some Sprite. So, needless to say, I'm tired. And, unsure of why last night's sickness occurred and determined to not feel like crap today. So, that's where I'm at.
Separate from all that drama, Gabe and I went to see Coldplay in concert at the Verizon Center in DC on Sunday night. It was awesome! To be honest, I've always liked Coldplay, but not enough to want to trek to DC at 9 months pregnant and listen to loud music (it's not the Dixie Chicks-for which there are no obstacles :) But, I went and promised to be a good sport. Well, it turned out to be a terrific show with great songs played. Gabe and I had a blast and I kept calling it my "last hurrah." We didn't bring a camera though, so there's no pic's to post. I have a few funny ones of Maddie to put up and hopefully I can get to that later today.
Doctor's appointment tomorrow and hopefully some news to share. We're off to Gymboree :)

Not much to say

The title of this post says it all. We're pretty much just in waiting-for-the-new-baby mode around here. We put the double stroller together yesterday and Maddie LOVED it. She kept getting in the front seat (the big kid seat) and saying "bye-bye." Gabe and I were saying the new stroller is like a limo for kids. It's so long compared to a regular stroller, but I'm sure I'll get used to it! A couple of other mom's at Gymboree have them and they look normal pushing them around the mall :) Gabe and I finished our Prepared Childbirth class this week and we have all the breathing exercises that we need to practice. Last time I went into labor, my water broke, but no contractions-so the breathing wasn't as necessary. I'm hoping this time will be a little different, but we can't plan these things. My next doctor's appointment is Wednesday next week and that will be the first time they will "check" me to see if I'm dilating at all. Sorry if it's TMI, but that's what's going on. Today is the 1st of August and it's exactly 1 month from my due date. So, not much longer to go. I'm trying to enjoy these last weeks of pregnancy since I won't be doing it again, but that's hard to do when my back hurts bad enough to bring tears, I'm too big to turn over in the night to try and get comfortable, and it's 90 something degrees with humidity. Maddie is constantly talking about the baby. She sees me and says "hi, baby" every morning. She lifts my shirt and uses her stethoscope to listen to the baby and then she says "baby okay." I try not to talk about the baby too much with her, but she's seen and been around a lot of babies recently and she has a natural curiosity about them. I keep thinking about when I'm in the hospital and Maddie is being taken care of by Sandy, Gabe and my Mom. I've read that she'll miss me, but I may miss her more! I'm sure she'll do fine, but it will be a change for her and then when she does see me, I'll be showing up with this baby that we've been talking about since December 28th! (That's the day I found out I was pregnant). Gosh, that seems like forever ago.
So, I thought I didn't have much to say and now I've just rambled considerably. But, that's what's happening at Casa de baby. Also, I plan to change the title/address of this blog once Grace gets here, but I'll post what that is and how to find it when it happens. Have a great weekend.

Dreams

I know they say in pregnancy, women have crazy dreams. Well, mine are certifiable! I woke up really upset today because my dream included someone dying, infidelity, and someone getting waxed. It was BIZARRE. So, no more Milano cookies for me before bed :) I forgot to blog the other day about my doctor's appointment. Maybe that's because it was such a non-event. I went in (Maddie came with me) and we saw one of the doctors and not a midwife because that was just the luck of the draw. He's a really nice doctor. We listened to Grace's heartbeat (very strong) and we measured my tummy (34 weeks and right on track). Blood pressure was great and I'm feeling fine. Oh, if by fine I mean aching feet, back, and small cramps between the Braxton-Hicks contractions I'm getting every once in a while. Yeah, I know... the end of pregnancy is supposed to be like this because then you're not so scared of labor because you have such a desire to not be pregnant anymore. It's funny though. Gabe and I are taking this childbirth class (the last one is this Wed.) and I realize that I don't feel scared about labor like last time, I feel more interested in how it will be different. Like, I really hope the anesthesiologist can put my epidural in the right way the first time so that I don't have to have it done a second time and then get a spinal. And, if this baby is jaundice, I won't be so quick to cry and worry that she's going to die like I did when Maddie was one day old. Don't get me wrong. We watched 3 birth videos in class this week and it's not a walk in the park just because it's the second time I'm doing this, but I have faith in God, the medical staff and myself to do just fine. My baby books say that I should get the car seat for the baby situated in the car and pack the labor bags because from this point on, it could happen at any time. Given my history, it will probably happen closer to the actual due date, but regardless, I'm preparing. Gabe and I are going on a date tonight :) Movie and dinner in Bethesda because he says that's where we're going to get some great sushi! I've been craving sushi since last weekend. Don't worry; I don't eat the raw stuff.

Some pictures of the past few days...

Friday 7:30ish pm
That's my belly she's resting on and Tucker is resting on her leg :)

The Girls' Room: 1 GIANT crib and one tiny crib :)

Gracie's crib

This is where I decided to hang her name. I love the
way it turned out :)

I have a doctor's appointment in the morning, so I figured I'd blog about that tomorrow and tell you all how things are going. In the meantime, here are some pictures of our Friday night (not like they used to be :) and of Maddie and Gracie's room. It's ready for the baby!

She's her mothers' daughter

Yesterday Maddie went over to her Grammy and Poppi's house to try and swim again. It was 95 degrees here and miserable and Sandy had offered to give me a break by taking Maddie for a while. Gabe and I bought Maddie a new bikini at Sesame Place with Elmo on it and she hadn't seen it yet. I sent that with her to maybe entice her to get in the pool. Well, she LOVED the bikini, but still HATES the pool! She's definitely my daughter. When I was young, I signed up to do both track & field and indoor soccer as sports I'd like to try. The truth was that I wanted the shoes and apparel that went with each sport, more than I wanted to play the actual sport. That's what Maddie's doing! She doesn't want to swim, but she wants to wear the apparel and lounge on the chaise :) I don't have any pictures of this, but I'll get some to post so that we can tease her about how much she's like me when she gets older. Sandy said that when it was time to take the suit off for a bath, Maddie really protested. That must be an almost 2 year old thing. Suddenly she takes notice of what she's wearing. She hasn't argued or protested about anything I dress her in, but from what I hear from moms of kids a little bit older than Maddie, it's just around the corner :)

The countdown begins...

33 weeks (between 4-7 weeks left to go!)

Bed-head but beautiful

So, I've been thinking about this baby a lot lately mostly because she's kicking me all the time and also because of all the ways being pregnant changes me. For example, yesterday I felt like the most irritable person EVER! No matter what I did, I felt irritated and I've come to know that's just part of being 8 months pregnant in July in 90 degree weather. Then, I ate some pizza yesterday, only to be followed by a bowl of cereal an hour later and then I seriously considered eating an avocado that Gabe brought me, but changed my mind and ate an Almond-Roca instead. So, yeah, I'm hungry and none of what I eat seems to really "go" together. Plus, as I'm blogging, I've just heated up a leftover piece of pizza and it's only 10:30 in the morning. Something I normally don't do is eat pizza in the am, but it was all I could think about. I'm eating lots of fruit and drinking lots of water, but I'm hungry all the time. I'm tired too, but it's survivable :) So, we don't have a lot going on this week. Just the normal stuff. Our internet has been on the fritz along with our home phone, so if time passes and I don't blog or email, you'll know why. They're sending someone to fix it Friday between 8am-7pm. Nice window, eh? I was ready to really complain about the 11 hour window of time when the guy on the phone told me that they'll actually call me Thursday and tell me a more definite time. So that's good. Have a good week.

We're Back!

Well, it was a great trip to PA for the past couple of days. Sesame Place was a lot of fun (even though it was 90 degrees) and Maddie did have the best time. She wasn't scared of Elmo or any of his friends whatsoever. When we first got to the park, there was Oscar in his trash can. He was hiding inside and she didn't notice him. We walked over and he came out and the look of recognition and awe in her eyes was priceless. It was like she couldn't believe he was right in front of her. A slow smile crept across her face and she looked at me like "is this real?" It was so cute. We had breakfast with Elmo, Bert, Ernie, Big Bird and Zoe. Maddie visited each of them and mostly leaned in to love them (as you can see in some of the pic's). Sesame Place has a lot of water activities and as you can see from my previous post, she's not that into water right now. So, we skipped water activities and figure that she may enjoy them more next year. Maddie went on one ride with Gabe, they climbed on the ropes course for a few seconds, she played in Big Bird's nest, went through a maze, watched a live taping of "Elmo's World" the show (that was really fun even for adults to see), and she ate an Elmo cupcake. We had a blast and it was a great memory to make with her. I'm 32 weeks pregnant now and that means that I'm definitely slowing down. This was the best time to take a trip and now we're back and just going to take it easy. On the drive home yesterday, Maddie couldn't stop coughing. The cough has been progressively getting worse and yesterday it was bad. So, I took her to the dr. and sure enough, she has an ear infection! Only her 2nd one and even with an ear infection she was a great traveler and hotel sleeper! What a trooper. So, now she's on antibiotics and sort of tired today. Last night Gabe and I went to our first refresher of our prepared childbirth class. We hired a babysitter that I found and she did great with Maddie. What a relief. The class was good; shocking, I know but Gabe and I are the only couple who is having our 2nd baby. Everyone else is first timers. Also, we had to say our due dates and we're committing to September 1st at this point and of course, I'm due first out of the whole group. We're just going to remember all the breathing we learned because it did come in handy during Maddie's birth (especially when the epidural didn't work). So, that's what's going on here. Hope you enjoy the pictures! Click here to see them.

Maddie Swims (sort of :)

So mad!

Getting more comfortable (kind of)

Eating dinner and happy that the "swimming" part is over

She's saying "Cheeeeeeeeeeese!"

Well, we took the plunge. Literally. We decided that it was time to get Maddie back in the pool at her grandparents house the other day. We asked if she wanted a swimsuit, "no." We offered her a new boat to ride around in and she said "no." So, we decided to just carry her in, naked. She was upset, but to be honest, she calmed quickly once I held her and we just sat on the stairs and relaxed. She's been teething, with a fever, for the past few days, so I'm sure that played a role in her mood that afternoon. Here's the pic's that will haunt her when she's a teen :) We're off to Sesame Place tonight and I'll blog with pic's when we get back. Have a good few days!!!

Holiday Weekend

Happy 4th of July weekend! We're staying put for the weekend and hopefully we'll be doing some swimming tomorrow over at Sandy and Carlos' house. We've tried to help Maddie be interested in swimming a couple of times so far, but it's been a no-go for her. Maybe tomorrow will be the day. Just got home from having my hair trimmed and that's always a good feeling. How come the hairdresser people can blowdry your hair so perfectly and as the client you know that it will never look this way again until the next haircut? Funny. Another funny thing that keeps happening to me (and especially with Latina women) is people ask me how far along I am and then they say "boy?" Why does everyone think it's a boy based on how I look? It's so strange. I've had 3 ultrasounds and each time I've been reassured it's a girl. So take that :) Gabe and I are having a date night tonight. Going to dinner, a meeting and then to see a reggae band that Alexa and I used to love in our early 20's. The band is from Northern CA (local for us) and it should be fun to relive our youth for one night. I'll post about how it goes. Happy 4th a day early!!!