Thursday, November 29, 2007

Random thoughts and confessions...

I love to pick things up and put them away, but I don't care so much about cleaning.

I think I may be addicted to dark chocolate. and nutella on saltine crackers. with milk.

I feel like I'm being a better mom when I give Aimee lots of time-outs.

I havn't gone to the gym to work out yet, or sat through an entire church service because I'm being held hostage by my 2 year old who refuses to be in a daycare/sunday school class without crying like someone took her candy.

I hate buying gifts for people just because they bought me something. I want to give from the heart, not out of obligation.

My children are overwhelmingly cute...and sometimes I think people are surprised by that, but I'm not. Does that make me vain?

Tia Steph


Even he can't help smiling at Stephie
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Bad Habits...

That is Uncle Paul teaching Aimee how to stick her fingers in the cake.
That's what Uncles are for I guess...Posted by Picasa

Just because...



Cute.
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Wednesday, November 28, 2007

In the name of civility...

I'm trying to teach Aimee to be polite and patient. I think it's age appropriate for her to freak out if she doesn't her get MILK! MILK! MILK! MILK! right NOW! But I remember seeing something on 20/20 about a study done on 3 year olds. The researchers gave each kid the choice of one marshmallow right now, or they could have two marshmallows if they waited a few minutes. They followed the kids for 20 years, the children that waited for the two marshmallows turned out to be more successful in life. They had achieved high levels of education, high paying jobs, and stayed out of trouble. While the kids that wanted the instant gratification were worse off in life.

I want Aimee to be a two marshmallow girl. Wish us luck.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Not a moment too soon...

Having Daniel so soon after having Aimee has it's advantages and disadvantages.

Advantage: Aimee is too cute when she comforts him with her limited vocabulary.
Disadvantage: In her baby vocabulary she'll tell me "No hold baby Daniel. Baby Daniel crib. Carry me mommy."
Disadvantage: I thought it would be tacky to have another babyshower, leaving us scrambling at the last minute for baby boy clothes and other gender sensitive items.
Advantage: Lots of friends passing down their almost new boys clothes to us.
Advantage: We are still young and energetic enough to deal with two kids under the age of 3.
Disadvantage: We are the only 30 year olds we know that like to go to bed before 8:30 pm.
Advantage: Everyone is in diapers.
Disadvantage: Everyone is in diapers.
Advantage: A lot of Aimee's toys are still new enough and in good enough condition for Daniel to use.
Disadvantage: Daily outings to the library, zoo, and children's museum have pretty much stopped.
Advantage: Several people I used to call "acquaintances" have become "good friends", since they have been a great deal of support to me.

Most people that I know, even the ones that know how bad some of our bad days have been, are all marveling at how well I'm doing. They comment that they can't believe that my house is clean, that I'm making home cooked meals, and that I try to look put togather, even when I spend the day in the clothes I slept in.

I'm not saying that this transition from one child to two has not been hard. It's been really hard. But even though we've had some rough moments, I can't stop thinking about how incredibly blessed we are, to have this beautiful child become part of our family. He is truly beautiful. He is. And even though a lot of his clothes and all of his toys have been handed down to him, my love for him is not a hand me down. It is fresh and new, created in a space in my heart that belongs only to him. And if anyone dares tell me that I had him too soon, or that I should have waited another year, they are ignorant fools, because my baby Daniel didn't come one moment too soon. I couldn't have waited another minute for him.

Friday, November 16, 2007

Previous Posts

I was just browsing through old blog posts and I'm surprized at how I found the time and mental and emotional energy to write some pretty meaningful and pretty things when Aimee was first born. Now and days I'm feeling like what I wrote a few months after she was born:


Monday, September 19, 2005

Current state of affairs

My brain has been kinda mushy lately. It seems like lately I don't have much energy for introspection or even finishing complex thoughts or conversations with myself. More than anything, I'm trying to figure out how my mom managed to raise the 3 of us, work from 8-4 (more like 6:30-5 with the commute), make meals from scratch EVERY DAY, keep the house spotlessly clean, earn extra cash by supplying area restaurants and stores with my grandfathers famous Chorizo, keep us in check, and still find time to hand wash our whites. I'm exhausted just WRITING about it. I'm appreciating her more and more each day.

Five on Friday

Things to be Thankful For in My Past:

1. How I was raised.
2. Twice a year visits to Mexico.
3. Wanting to move to JPUSA. Meeting Brian because of it. Not moving to JPUSA because of Brian.
4. Healthy Happy Kids.
5. Taking Aimee to the park while a friend babysat Daniel on the last nice day we had this week.

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Baby Steps

Ok everyone, this week I've taken my first steps in completing some of my life's goals. I don't want to share anymore than that just yet, but I do want to ask for any positive prayer vibes you all might be willing to send out for me. I'll share more when I see how far I can go with this in the next few months. I do need prayer though, because some of it is out of my hands.

Life's Joy

One life's best joys is a warm sleeping baby snuggled up to you. It makes waking up every 2 hours in the middle of the night worth it.

Saturday, November 03, 2007