Hobnobbing

September 29, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

Last week I got a call from Dr. Katheria. He is the Neonatologist that delayed Averi’s cord clamping while on his new warmer bed during her delivery. He invited me to a Sharp Hospital event up in Rancho Santa Fe. The event was to help promote his bed and Averi’s news clip was going to be featured so I thought, why not? It was a really nice time, hobnobbing with doctors and very wealthy housewives.

Have you guys made this recipe yet? I have talked about it many times over the years, it’s foolproof! You can use this recipe for the spice mixture and it keeps for a long time in an air tight container. The dish takes no time to prep, cook and eat.

Do I have a 3 year old or an 80 year old?

Averi is the best baby. I don’t remember Kaili being so easy…I hope I didn’t just jinx myself.

A Week in Photos

September 5, 2014September 5, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

Is it really September? Somehow the the past few weeks have been a blur and I find myself looking forward to Fall. I am sure I will regret that statement by NovemBRRR.

Kaili has spent the past week in the water, swimming in our neighbors pool or the hot tub. She has stayed up late playing with friends and making pizza. We had our neighborhood block party and Kaili had her “real” first day of school. When watching her play, the three things I know she is picking up from school are, the months of the year, that Jesus loves her, and you go to time out for hitting.

A Week in Photos

August 28, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 2 Comments

Kaili accidentally dropped her cup of milk on the ground, with a worried look on her face she said “sorry mommy.” I grabbed her, hugged her and told her it’s fine and it wasn’t her fault and then I acted out this scene from Good Will Hunting. I wish you guys could have seen it, I was riveting.

Kaili was invited to one of her little friends birthday party over the weekend. Ariel aka The Little Mermaid made an appearance and now everything is mermaids this and mermaids that. It should last for another 5 minutes and then it will be old news.

I managed to get the kids packed up and we hit the road to walk Kaili TO school, first time for everything.

I finally got around to taking Kaili for a haircut. Little Locks in La Jolla is the cutest place, half salon, half toy store. She sat patiently through the whole thing.

This little girl is 7 weeks old today.

Kaili assures me she likes her baby. She assists me with every diaper change and smothers her with kisses.

Averi is getting stronger, holding her head up more often. She will give you a smile, if you’re lucky and she even giggled in her sleep which was the cutest thing to date.

6 Week Ramble

August 23, 2014August 23, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

It’s been 6 weeks and I am practically pain free so I think it’s time I start exercising again. I’m going to go ahead and start without the approval of my doc since I haven’t had my postpartum check-up yet. It should be okay…right?

In the 6 weeks, Averi has been on 3 different formulas. She has been uncomfortable, grunting and gassy. Just the other night we switched for a third time and so far it seems to be making all the difference. She is happier and sleeping longer stretches, can I get an AMEN.

Okay, so I am a little late on the one month photos….

My next door neighbor has been such a help the past few weeks. Almost every day she comes over and helps me by entertaining Kaili. It’s allows me just enough time to get dinner made or an errand ran without Kaili on my heels… every damn second. This kid says “mommy” roughly 570 times a day. 560 times she doesn’t actually have anything to tell me, she just want’s to drive me bat shit crazy. I have thought about inviting one of the Muslims in for a glass of wine just so she could bother them for a few minutes, allow me some time to make bottles. Wait, is alcohol allowed in the Muslim religion? Well if not, there are always the Lutherans that go door to door, we all know the Lutherans like their wine.

Every day Shane is gone at work, I get a little more in tune with being solo with two kids. I may clean most of the house with baby wipes and Kaili asks where we are going if I brush my hair, but they are both getting fed, I am getting a shower and we are all getting some sleep. If I can keep them both alive then I say “WINNING!”

Slowing Down

August 2, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

Things are slowing down after a brimful week of San Diego fun. We tried a handful of new restaurants, ran into more than one Michael Myers, hit up Belmont Park and took too many pictures of baby face.

Comic Con happened last weekend so we hopped on the trolley {Kaili’s favorite} and headed downtown. First, let me take a selfie or an USsie.?

Culinary superstars Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich opened another Pizzeria Mozza in Seaport Village. A “must-do” on my summer bucket list. What a perfect place to have lunch before people watching the entertainers at Comic Con. My father in law has a flare for dramatics when it comes to trying new foods. After having the menu translated for him and convincing him that bufala wasn’t actually buffalo and was just a very good, fresh mozzarella cheese, he decided to have his own panini while the rest of us shared a few pizzas. He just couldn’t leave his comfort zone enough to give the delicious pizzas a try. If you go, I recommend the fennel sausage, panna, scallions and red onion pizza.

After lunch we strolled down the street to take in all the sights and sounds. You don’t have to spend the big bucks on getting tickets into Comic Con, there is enough to see and do on the streets of downtown. We walked, stopping for some wine and people watching, then we ran into this guy times 5.

This was our second year hitting up Comic Con, I think it’s going to be a fun tradition to continue.

Every now and then I have to stop and snap photos of this princess.

One afternoon after Kaili’s nap I thought it would be fun to take her and the folks down to Belmont Park. Lunch by the beach followed by rides, what’s better than that? We ate lunch at Draft, the newest oceanfront restaurant and beer house. I had a french toast BLT topped with a tomato hollandaise sauce, it was something different and really good. After, we let Kaili take turns dragging us on the rides, the carousal being her favorite. I really wanted to hit a few of the adult ones myself but I was urged to squash that idea due to my healing incision.

Shane’s folks left us Tuesday and now we are getting back into the swing of things just the four of us. It was great having them here and it was more help than I could have wished for. Kaili now has Walla Walla on the brain and is eager to go up and see them again soon.

Baby break.

Kaili Meets Averi

July 17, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 4 Comments

Yesterday morning Shane and I headed to the hospital early to feed Averi and hoping to take her home. Luckily Dr. Katherian was the on duty doctor and Averi was first on his to-do list. Within the hour we were driving away, this time she was in the back seat.
On the way to the hospital I couldn’t keep the tears away and I told Shane there was no way I could leave her there another night. I was thinking to myself how sad I felt and how I might need to talk to somebody because the sadness was deeper than what I felt with Kaili. But the euphoria I felt when driving home with Averi was amazing and every bit of sadness was gone. I laughed for the first time in days.

We were able to get somewhat settled before Kaili came home from school. As requested I filmed her walking in to meet her sister for the first time. This will make you smile.

The biggest challenge I foresee having is trying to tend to baby while Kaili is all up in my business. But as far as day one went, I think it was perfect.

Because

June 2, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 4 Comments

I think I have held up pretty well emotionally this time around, considering the last time. I don’t know if it’s because the contractions are coming back, if it’s because the delivery is around the corner or if it’s just the hormones but I am starting to come unglued. I am snapping at my kid for the littlest things and I wanted to grab on to the hubs leg and beg him not to go to work this week, like I did with my dad when I was little. All the while I am doing my best not to burst into tears.

It’s clear the meds aren’t working, I’m not even feeling the side effects anymore. I spent all of Sunday debating with myself if I should go to triage or just wait until Monday, ya know just to see if they go away. I am hoping they tell me to up my dosage, maybe that will buy me a week, at least. The doctors office is supposed to have an after hours nurse on call however I haven’t had any luck reaching anyone.

I’m also feeling some anxiety about the c-section. I wonder if they can sedate me before they wheel me into the OR…I am afraid I will have a racing pulse and look like a sweaty convict. I will talk to the doc about it but in the meantime can we all think good thoughts that nothing dramatic happens again.

Anyway, changing subjects…I have had two pillows on the floor next to Kaili’s bed since she was falling out of it nightly. It’s been awhile since that has happened so I asked her if I could take them away, she said yes. In true fashion I forgot to move them. Before heading to bed myself, I went into check on her and found her curled up on those pillows on the floor, she even had her blanket on her. I wish I had taken a picture because it was really cute. I can only assume she put herself there, why, I have no idea. Anyhow, those pillows are still on the ground.

Quick, get some stuff done, Peppa Pig is on! Peppa is the choice of cartoons around here and when she says “it’s a bit cold mummy” I wonder if she is going to pick up the British accent.

She is starting to push it in the attitude department. Her favorite thing to say to me is “stop it mommy!” That is her response to anything I say, “because” is her next favorite word. “Kaili, why are you climbing on the counters? “Because.” “Why are you eating chaptstck?” “Because…STOP it mommy!!”

Interview with a 3 year old

May 19, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 2 Comments

Interviewing kids is the best. Their answers are so honest and random. I decided to ask K some questions about herself, she had the answers.

What is your name? “Kaili”

How old are you? “Three”

When is your birthday? “April 29th”

What is your favorite color? “Purple”

What is your favorite thing to watch on TV? “Franklin”

What is your favorite toy? “iPad”

What is your favorite thing to eat? “Cookies”

What is your favorite thing to do? “Eat”

What is your favorite toy? “Boy” (Um….)

What is your favorite book? “Franklin”

Where do you live? “My island”

Who is your favorite friend? “Penny” (her teacher)

How are you feeling? “I feel sick, cough cough”

The Party

May 8, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 3 Comments

Kaili’s birthday party was a success. Thanks to family I have some pictures to share with you because I didn’t take more than one. Too much on this gals plate and by the time the party came, I was WIPED.

The party was loosely themed around Minnie Mouse so I made Minnie Mouse cupcakes that I saw on Pinterest. These are SO cute that they deserve a blog post all their own.

I also made a Minnie head out of styrafoam balls, also something I saw on…you guessed it, Pinterest.

We kept the food simple ordering pizza’s from Luigi pizzeria and a cake from the local store.

I made a big batch of Sangria for all the lucky ones that can partake in adult beverages and that was about the extent of it. We enjoyed the company of our friends and family and Kaili seemed to enjoy every minute of the day being all about her.

I can’t believe we will have 2 birthdays to celebrate next year.

Three

April 30, 2014 ~ Girlmom ~ 4 Comments

Kaili woke up another year older. Three years old. In some ways it seems like time has passed at lightening speed but when I look at the picture below, well, it seems like three years ago.

Kaili knows her birthDAY, if you ask her when it is, she will say “April 29.” But she couldn’t understand why their wasn’t a party going on. I tried explaining it to her but it went way over her head and in the middle of my sentence she wanted to talk about something else. Typical girl.

She LOVES animals but most of all dogs. She talks about the next-door neighbors dogs as they are her own. When she sees letters in their names she will say R for Roxie, her own visualization. It doesn’t matter where you go, if there is a dog she wants to “meet’ it.

She LOVES cookies, chocolate and cake, who doesn’t? “Kaili, what do you want for breakfast?” “Cookies.” She is a good eater when she is really hungry so I find that starving her throughout the day makes her the best eater EVER at dinner. She will eat spicy food that some of her family members wouldn’t even touch and knows she needs to try everything at least once, that works about 95% of the time. It just so happens that she ends up liking it…95% of the time.

She is still a great sleeper but has an internal alarm clock than canNOT be reset. We are lucky to have her sleep to 6:30. It doesn’t matter what time she goes to bed. Actually she sleeps in a tad longer the earlier she goes down.

She might ask to see your nipple and I apologize for that…awkward. She doesn’t actually want to see your nipple, she is just performing a routine skin test and wants to check out your freckles and pimples. I don’t know why she can’t get that word out of her vocab, probably because it makes me laugh every time she says it.

She enjoys the beach but won’t go near the ocean…still. I try to get her to put her feet in each time we go but she clings to me as if I am dropping her off at a concentration camp. One day she will let go.

Kaili woke up to a present and then we hit the beach.