Yo Gabba Gabba

Those who know Bear know he has quite the love for his monster friends in Gabba land. On the 22nd Z and I had our first "date" since the Turtle was born. It's been quite the transition for everyone so I needed to take my guy out for some fun. We were supposed to see the show on the 19th in Norfolk but it landed right on Daddys duty day. So we bought tickets for the show up in Richmond. Bear and I left around 3pm and drove the almost 2 hours just to see the gang. We got ourselves checked in and then the show began. I do have to say that I had a great time. At first I was a little nervous about the whole thing since it was a kids show but it was actually a lot of fun. It was a very bittersweet moment for me. I realized that my baby boy is growing up. Gabba used to be the only thing he was very interested in. Now he loves trains, trucks, fast cars, animals, playing pretend, Thomas the train, Pixar movie, superheros...and the list could go on and on. Gabba has been slowly leaving his interest list and it sure makes this Mom wish he would stay little for just awhile longer. So this show was like our last Gabba Hoorah! We splurged on the party package tickets which got us into the after party where Zack met all the characters. It was so much fun and I had to share our good time. Warning this post contains way too many cute pictures.

This is an example of what his face looked like through the whole show

His happy faces when the music started.

The show!

Hugs for Muno

Knuckles for Plex

He gave Brobee so many hugs. He was just in awe.

Giving Tudee a balloon

Playing catch with Muno

Bear watching Muno sing

Muno sang for all the kids

Being read to and dancing with DJ Lance Rock and Glitter Hand Leslie

Finally meeting his favorite actor ever DJ Lance Rock. This guy was a trooper he picked up every kid and talked to them for at least 5 minutes each. Bear was so amazed.

 And like everywhere we go we must make new friends and hold hands....

Favorite Things...for now

Since Friday we have had a non stop weekend. Zack had an ear infection and croup (we think) and Eli had diaper rash and has unfortunately developed some post nasal drip. On top of all that I am still nursing him pretty much every 2 hours during the day and 4 hours at night. With all that us parents all have our favorite things that get us through the tough times and interesting times. These are ours....

For diaper rashes I swear by this stuff. I used it with Zack and now it is working wonders on Eli. Seriously just put it on their little booties and the next day the rash is gone.








Both Zack and Eli have benefited from using this stuff. With this nasty winter weather coming up so does the icky dry air and with the dryness comes sinus issues. At least that's how it is for us. Steven and I also use this and it is AWESOME!

And now a little something for Mom and Dad when and if we get a break.....
Dexter

If you haven't jumped on the Dexter wagon yet, you are officially deemed crazy in my book. The 6th Season started on Sunday and we are so happy that our Fall lineup is back on. A little short about the show is he is a serial killer who works for Miami Metro Police Department as a blood spatter analyst. He only kills people that have gotten away with their crimes. Such as rapist and murderers. It's by far one of our favorite shows and this is what we look forward to every fall.

Much Love everyone XOXO

1 Month!

Well I made a BIG uh oh yesterday. I didn't not do my part and set time aside to blog. Hey with 2 kids it's kind of difficult to remember these things. So as an apology here are some wonderful pics of the boys. Eli is now 1 month and I can't believe how fast time has gone. Everything here has been going some what smoothly. Zack is doing a great job being a big brother but sometimes he goes a little too far when he tries to pick Eli up. But one of us is always right there to teach him that well Eli is not a toy. It doesn't give me (mama) much time for myself. Right now we are working on a routine with Eli. I nurse him every 1-2 hours during the day and then in the evening he sleeps between 3-4 hours but the other night he slept a good long 6 hours. He is growing so much and we have a well baby appointment coming up real soon. He has also been smiling at us and he loves tummy time. The hardest thing for me right now is splitting up my time. I really need to have a set schedule for things to go smoothly. When it's just me and the boys things can get crazy that's why I feel a schedule helps a whole lot. Also Zack started a preschool last week and so far he is loving it. It gives me 3 hours during the day to get any and all housework done or to just relax. Here are some pics of my boys....enjoy!

Crazy!

I was just thinking how crazy it is that this time next year I will be in Japan! March seems so far away and it's actually not. I think of all the amazing things we have done here in Virginia and pretty soon we will be saying goodbye to this great state. We have gone through a deployment, brought two beautiful boys into the world, survived a earthquake and hurricane in the same week, we have been through tornados, ice storms, tropical storms, and a nor'easter. We have seen our nations capitol and have also seen historical sites like jamestown and williamsburg. I have been on my first roller coaster at Busch Gardens which is now Zacks favorite destination. Steven has moved up in rank, drove for a Admiral, won a NAM and has thankfully been home for 3 years straight. Zack has started school and made many friends as have I. For a small town girl from Las Cruces, NM I would say that I am very lucky to have experienced everything that Virginia has given us. I will for sure miss it here but I am very very excited to start this new chapter in our lives. I was thinking of all the things I want to do in Japan here is a list of a few of them...

• Go to Tokyo Disney
• Visit Tokyo
  
• Climb Mt. Fuji
• Learn Japanese
• Go to an onsen (spelling?) it's like a big hot spring
• Buy a kimono
• Go to the cherry blossom and autumn leaves festivals
• ski up in northern Japan
  
• help rebuild fukashima
  
• Learn to cook traditional Japanese cuisine
• Eat REAL sushi
• ?????

And the list is going to continue to build. I am so excited to experience everything with my family. My boys will be exposed to another culture before they even understand ours. I am so grateful to be in this life with an amazing husband and two sons. I always told myself that I was going to get out of Las Cruces and here I am now. Thank you honey for giving our family the opportunity to travel the world. I love you!

Dr. Mom/Don't freak out!

Don't Freak Out!!!

Everyone knows that kids gets sick and when that happens it can be very stressful on the parents. One thing that Steven and I do because of the stress when Zack gets sick is let our tempers rise.We don't get mad at the kid but we get upset with each other. We both want to so badly do the right thing for our little guy that we have found ourselves getting a little short with each other. Looking back it's all actually pretty funny. I understand that all we want at the time for our little one is to be healthy and to the pain go away as quick as possible. But us being snippy is for sure not very productive.

So I was thinking that to fix this little quirk of ours we just need to CALM DOWN! Surprising concept isn't it? Things get more stressful if you're disagreeing on something so small as whether he should nap on the short or long couch. Yes we seriously bicker about these little things but that's marriage right? So just take a step back listen to your spouse because they might actually have a good idea to make the whole process a lot easier.

Another thing that I feel is a great tip for any and all parents out there is Have a Plan! What I mean by plan is sit down and decide what you would you do in this and that situation. For example: "If Zacks fever is 101 or higher give him motrin and schedule an appointment, if the fever doesn't break or gets higher go to the ER." Simple right? I know that sometimes things are new to parents but at least decide on the basics.

These things should help us in the future and hopefully you too. Just remember to always have patience and respect for what your partner has to say. This is their child too and they made have a secret remedy up their sleeve. You never know.

Now for a pic of my minions....

Back To Blogging/Elis Story

I'm back and ready to get this blog moving again. The end my pregnancy was by far the most painful part of the whole thing. I don't want to get into it because then I will just sound like a big whiner but all that matters is I am back and ready to rumble. To get this blog moving along like I want it to I will be doing the 365 day blog challenge. In a nutshell I will be blogging once a day for 365 days starting well...today. I will start this off by telling you all a little story about a prince named Eli.

The Story of Eli

Elijah Rafael graced us with his presence on September 2nd 2011 at 5:36am weighing 7Ibs 9oz and was 21 inches long. He had quite a procession the 2 weeks before with the East coast earthquake and Hurricane Irene hitting us. I thought for sure during the whole hurricane he was going to come because this mama was stressed but nope he wanted to have all the attention. This is his birth story I hope you enjoy.
After we got settled back in after the hurricane I made an appointment for Tuesday the 30th of August. I was supposed to be seen that Friday but rescheduled because my midwife was going on leave for 6 weeks and I wanted to see her one more time. She checks me and tells me I am 3.5cm and 75% effaced at a -2 station. Totally fine by me because I had been this for about 2 weeks so I didn't think much of it. Everything was going perfectly aside from all my icky pains and discomfort. Eli was perfect and I had made it to 39 weeks. We said our goodbyes and I went on my way home. Wednesday came and went with a few contractions here and there. Then came Thursday I woke up feeling very heavy and my mind and body were just not feeling normal. Somehow that morning I had a feeling I was going to have the baby real soon. After lunch my contractions got to about 10 minutes apart. When Steven finally got home I really wanted to go and do something to take my mind off of possibly being in labor. So we went and ate then drove down to Yorktown for some ice cream and to walk on the beach. On our way back the contractions got down to 5-7 minutes apart. We decided to go to the hospital.

By the time we dropped Zack off at the sitter and parked we were in triage at 9pm at Riverside Regional (Langley was full so we were routed to another hospital). They hooked me up to the monitors and of course my contractions slowed down. They decided to have me walk around the hospital for an hour. So that's exactly what we did. I walked and walked and walked telling Steven that this baby was coming tonight whether he liked it or not. I was NOT being sent home like I had been with Zack. Finally the hour passed and they checked me again I progressed to 5cm!!! WOOHOO!!! We were being admitted!!! Praise the Lord I wasn't going to be pregnant anymore! Well at least that's what was going through my mind. Not sure about what Steven was thinking but by the looks of it he was having a mini panic attack on the inside.

Once in our room I got hooked up to monitors again and they started on my IV which because of my tricky veins took some time and made the husband angry. I on the other knew what was coming and some minor pricks in my arms weren't compared to what I was about to feel in a few hours. We waited and waited. I can't say what time my contractions got bad because I honestly don't remember. It felt like I was in pain for hours when they came and checked me and I was at 7cm, they decided to break my water. After more labor I finally asked for an epidural which I think made Steven very happy. After receiving my epidural I was able to relax and even almost fell asleep. My nurse came in to try and find the babys heartbeat because kept moving away from the monitor. After trying to find the heartbeat for 20 minutes they decided to put in a while on his head. But when they checked me to put it in I was 10 cm and he was ready come out. They got me all set up and ready to go. Again I am sure Steven was having a panic attack at this point. After a few pushes Elis heartrate started dropping the doctor told me they were going to use a vacuum to ease him out quicker. It took one push and he was out.

When I saw him he was blue and steven said the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck. I didn't get to hold him right away. They had to take him to the warming table immediately to get him to cry. I was very nervous because with Zack he started crying immediately and he was put on my chest before being rushed away. All I heard at this point was Steven asking them why wasn't he crying. Then we heard him and his little cry sounded so sweet and perfect. Eli was here and we were a family of four.

"It's cold out here put me back in!!!"

Big boy 7Ibs 9.9oz

Daddy got to hold me first.

Finally meeting my Mommy

Life Lessons...

Do you remember your favorite part of Summer when you were a kid? I remember riding my bike up and down my street, jumping on the trampoline with the sprinklers running, going to the pool and never wanting to get out, spending a whole day reading the first few Harry Potter books but the biggest memories I have is going to the beach. My family would make a yearly trip down to South Padre Island. I only remember a handful of times that my parents actually took us but they were the most memorable summer vacations we had. I used to love the beach. We would spend at the very least 4 days on the beach. The days were filled with sunshine and the nights we would hunt for crabs or should I say we would find them and run away screaming. They were some really good times that are embedded in my memory forever.


Continuing with the beach tradition we took Zack to buckroe beach this past weekend and it was interesting to say the least. Of course I am pregnant so I felt like a whale but it was so nice to bury my feet in the warm sand. Now being a mom of a very adventurous boy I should have realized that he would find a big hole and just dig in the sand. Seriously I don't think I have seen a child loves sand so much. The downside of all the sand is I think he got some in places that even he hasn't discovered yet. The other downside is even with sunblock my back got burnt :( not too bad to where I have a fever but it really itches and I have a giant red and white X on my back. It's very attractive since it goes well with my stretch marks. Then of course with our luck the cleaning station was broken so we had to drive home in salt water and sand. I don't think Zack cared too much about it but Steven and I felt really gross. To say the least this was not the best trip to the beach we have had.

This week while thinking of something creative to write with the beach pictures. I realized how negative I was about being at the beach. With the sand, sun and fishy water I wasn't being the most positive mom in the world. I have decided to change that everyday from here on out I am going to try and live happily. I am going to remember always how I felt at the beach when I was little and tell myself that this is their moment. Before I know it Zack will be all grown up and I will miss the joy on his face at the beach. I don't want them to remember mom complaining about the heat and sand in her crotch. I want them to tell people how cool mom was because she would let them bury her or that she would be the first in the water. We are our kids greatest influences and I for sure don't want to raise a bunch of whiners. Not that we were whining but we were for sure complaining about it. So that is my life lesson this week. Be happy, never regret, and make things the best for my kids regardless of how icky I feel or how huge I am. Life is short and we need to take advantage of these moments while we can.