Blah, blah, blah blee blee blah

Words, words, and more words! My boy has been lit on fire for learning new words. Granted, half of it, you have to be a mommy to understand, he's getting most of it pretty close. Here's a list for ya...

1. All done
2. More
3. Woo-woo (Woody from Toy Story)
4. Fish
5. Cracker
6. Mama
7. Dadden (Daddy)
8. Papa
9. Gma (Grandma)
10. Hailey (Our oldest dog)
11. Daisy (Our youngest dog)
12. Be (Phoebe)
13. Juice
14. Milk
15. Shoes
16. Open
17. Help
18. Poo Poo (For when he has a potty in his diaper)
19. Ball
20. Hungry
21. Spongebob
22. Hello
23. Hi
24. Love you
25. Right there
26. Cup
27. Garbage Truck (sounds more like cha cha)
28. Cereal
29. Lego
30. Bagel
31. Thank You
32. Welcome
33. Again
34. What's that?

He learns a new word pretty much every day. I'm so proud of my little man. :)

Flying Time

My, how time flies! It has been quite a while since I last posted.

Gabby is almost 5 months old! We started her on solids this week. She is taking it like a champ. She didn't even choke on it like her older brother did @ her age.  She is also able to sit by herself for over a minute! Gabby can roll over both ways from her back but is still unable to lift herself high enough to roll over from her tummy.

Taylor is hitting his terrible twos, I think. And boy, lemme tell you, they are terrible! This is just yet another little hurdle we need to get through. I know that, just like everything else, we'll get through this. :)

Favorite Things

Taylor's newest favorite is Toy Story. I have to say within the last month, we've each seen the movie at least 10 times.  His new word is "Woo-woo" which means, of course, Woody. I didn't think they started the character worship until later on in toddler-hood. But this is where we stand.

Not much to say..

There isn't much to say because my days go by so swiftly and my mind is pretty much a blur the entire time.  Gabby is getting quite big. She was 17.5 pounds when we weighed her yesterday @ almost 4 months old. She is quite tall, but that definitely does not hide her weight. It's too stinkin' adorable! Taylor is getting a little bit better. He has his moments where I want to pull my hair out but for the most part, he is nowhere near as bad as he was a month ago.

Conspiracy Theory

I know my kids are out to get me.  They have secret meetings while my back is turned.  This is how their meetings go.

Taylor: I don't know. I'm feeling kind of tired tonight. I kept Mommy on her feet all day. It's a lot of work! I think it should be your turn.


Gabby: Seriously? Okay. So, should I get up 3 or 4 times tonight since you'll be sleeping through the night? 

And on other days it goes..

Gabby:You know, I've been doing this waking up through the night thing for nearly 3 months...And I kept Mommy up throughout the night while she was pregnant with me. I'm exhausted. I need a break. Don't you think you could cut me a break, bro?


Taylor:Ok. I'll wake up from 12 am until 3 am and every time someone tries to put me back down, I'm going to cry and pretend like there are shadows on my walls.. That way they'll feel too badly to put me down.  Bahahaha!


Of course I don't really believe this, but sometimes it sure feels like it. I'll catch a break from one and the other decides it is their turn. Which, I suppose in hindsight, it's better that way. It would suck if both were getting up in the middle of the night on the same night and I had to, groggily, tend to two babies.

These past 11 weeks have taught me a valuable lesson.. My instinct is usually right. I had my tubes tied the day after I gave birth to Gabby because I was about 99.1% sure I would never want any more kids, but the doctor had doubts because I'm "so young".  Something told me that I should just do it and I would not regret it later, but there was that .9% part of me that was a nagging pest. It told me that the pregnancy hormones were clouding my judgement. Well, after 11 weeks of a toddler and an infant, I am glad to say that.9% of me packed a really big suitcase and hitchhiked its way outta here!

Taking a chance at creating an agonizingly long blog, I'm going to leave some pictures of the Maili Cove pool. I got some great shots that I'm proud of and I would like to share them!

2 Month Appointment

Gabriella had her 2 month well baby check up. She is now 14 pounds (OMG, right?) and 24 1/4 inches tall (she's a giant!! lol) It seems she is doing pretty well (Doc said she's overweight. Whatevs) and she got her 2 month shots. She needed to take some baby Tylenol last night because she was just too miserable. I was trying to hold off for as long as possible, but it was necessary. She was screaming in pain. Poor lil baby. :(

Weight Loss After Pregnancy

So a day shy of 7 weeks postpartum, I am sitting (no, literally, i really am sitting..) at 7 pounds less than my pre-pregnancy weight.  Although, I am at the same weight I was at when I found out I was pregnant with Taylor 27 months ago, my body is completely morphed and I no longer fit the same size.  It is very depressing and doesn't leave room for confidence that I'll get where I want to be size-wise.  Therefore, I have dropped my weight goal 5 extra pounds and strive for that.  I understand that I need to exercise in order to come close to what my pre-pregnancy body looked like.  However, after all that is said and done (late night feedings, chasing an almost 2 year old, laundry, and cleaning) I don't much feel like jumping on that very lonely treadmill in our front room.  I look at it and contemplate, for only a second, running my butt off for 45 minutes, and then I very quickly turn away because the thought of anything else on my plate makes me feel sick with fatigue.

I have learned to stop being stubborn and to allow my family to help out with Gabby and Taylor.  I need rest and it has been clearly shown to me through a few really bad nights (at separate times in the past couple of months) of fever-induced chills and pains.  Sleep is my friend. Sleep will allow me the energy to be a better mom. Letting my family help doesn't make me a bad mom.

The end.

Zoo Day Part Two

We took the lil ones to the zoo today. It was a nice, cool Hawaiian day, which was a change from our usual hot, humid weather. Taylor LOVED the animals this time! His face lit up every time he saw an animal that he recognized. It was a wonderful day and now he and Gabby are both sound asleep. I will leave you with some pictures. :)

My kind of night....

&

Need I say more? I think not. 

Pass the Sleeping Pills, Please!

If ever there was a point beyond exhausted, that would be where I am at today. Gabriella woke up a good 10+ times last night. Thankfully, my wonderful husband offered to take Taylor (and in exchange I told him to sleep downstairs so he could get a full night of sleep) but even waking up at 8 a.m was tough stuff.  I am going to have to assume that the little lady is going through a growth spurt and in return wants to eat every hour and a half or more and then spits up and wants to eat again!  It is hard to believe I haven't gotten more than 5 hours of straight sleep in 9 months and only twice have I gotten more than 2 hours (and never more than four) of sleep @ a time in 6 weeks.  I am in a daze and I don't when it will end.

And I know what you're thinking, "You signed up for this when you got pregnant." And that I am truly aware.  The exhaustion doesn't take away from my joy of being a mother to two, but I feel I have earned a tiny right to complain once in a while.  I also know that one day I will be at a point where things will be a lot easier and I will no longer be sleep deprived--I just don't foresee that in any near future.

Potty Training

So I decided to try my hand at potty training Taylor.  I bought him this:

and

I am amazed at how well he is doing!

Day one-He knew exactly what the potty was for. He sat down and made a pee pee sound with his mouth.
Night one-I took him upstairs for bed time and before putting on his clean diaper I asked if he wanted to use the potty and he pointed at it.  I sat him down and grabbed a book and we started reading while he sat. He shook his hands and said, "All done!" I said, "No, you're not done yet.." but he insisted as he started to stand up.  I realized, then, that he had actually used the potty! So I screamed with joy and called GMA and Papa and they both came in and congratulated him as well. He was BEAMING with pride.  As was I. :)

Fast forward a few days (he's been using it kind if on and off but normally only if I am the one who sits him down, he did it one other time for Gma but that's the extent of outside spectations) to today...

He peed once this morning for me and then three times for me tonight. He was so happy. It's so cute that when he's done he says, "All done" and stands up and claps for himself. I love this boy to death. And although "All done", "More", "Milk" , "Dat", "Juice"  and "Daddy" are his only words... No, he's not saying "Mommy" yet :( ... I am still so proud of how smart he is. What he lacks in his vocabulary, he makes up with everything else. He is my pride and joy.

One Month Old

My little Gabby turned one month old yesterday.  I can't believe how quickly is racing by. Then again, I shouldn't be surprised because Taylor just turned 17 months old on the 24th!

My husband and I went out for the first time in a very long time. It was great to be able to enjoy our friends' company and have a couple of glasses of wine. I forgot how much I love watching my husband have fun like that.  MIL watched Gabby and Taylor was asleep. When we got home Gabby was laying on MILs chest and had been asleep for 3 hours! I think she may have only woken up once or twice last night with me but this morning was a different story. Good thing it's the weekend and Papa had Taylor so I didn't have to wake up at early-thirty.

Today it is just me and the two munchkins while MIL and FIL go to a wedding and hubby won't be home from work until 4pm.

Time to try...

I made Taylor's 18 month appointment for next month and I realized how few words he actually says. I've been reading up and if we don't give him a reason to say the word, then he won't. From today forward when he grunts (I usually know what that grunt means and give him what he wants) I am going to say the word a few times and try to make him say it if he wants it. I know that it won't work at first but, from what I read, it should work eventually. I am sure that it doesn't help that he is at home with MIL and myself all day. He has no peers to encourage him to speak.  I have to try to push the thought that I'm failing as a mother aside, because I know that I can fix it and that crying about it won't help.

I'd like to report that the days, with two children under the age of two, are getting easier but should I say that, I'd be lying. The days, so far, are getting even tougher. Gabby has an almost colicky cry at the end of the night.  Sure, putting her stomach down over your knee works for a while.. but then the crying starts back up eventually. Then you can try to walk around with her and she'll fall asleep, but the second you put her down, she starts screaming. You can feed her, and sometimes it'll stay down but most times she'll spit it back up or get gassy, which makes her start crying some more.  It's just a fit that has to be pushed through because for the most part there is nothing we can do. I am just so glad that Taylor is such a sound sleeper that he doesn't wake up crying while she is having this fit.

Gabby makes one-month old tomorrow. The nights are long, but the days are longer.  I just pray that God gives me the strength to push through the next couple of months, when she should get better about sleeping for longer intervals @ night and is less fussy during the day. I am surprised @ how well Taylor is doing. He has his little bouts of jealousy but for the most part he is doing way better than I could've ever hoped for. 

Week Days

Week days often go by at lightning speed. After spending all night getting up with Gabby (she eats every 2 hours on a good night) I get up with Taylor at 6 am. We spend the morning locked up in the den so we don't wake up everyone else in the house (our house has a noise problem. You can hear EVERYTHING). As soon as everyone is up, we explore the house. We run back and forth until Taylor starts to get fussy at about 1030a. And then it's nap time. GMA puts him down for his nap (it's their bonding time). Taylor will normally sleep for 2- 2 1/2 hours until lunch time. During this time, I try to lie down with Gabby and catch a few more winks (trying to keep the bags -under my eyes- at bay). After lunch we play some more until about 530p when it's time for dinner and bath and books for bed.  After Taylor is in bed, it is time for me to eat my dinner, relax, and then watch House with the hubby and MIL. We watch it until 1130p and then I go to bed because I know I have to do it all over again tomorrow.

Thank God for weekends! I am fortunate enough to have a father in law who absolutely adores my children. He offers to wake up with Taylor on Saturday & Sunday morning, allowing me to sleep in with Gabby.  For so long I had forgotten what it was like to have an actual weekend to look forward to, and now I remember. It's amazing!

 In hindsight, as I type it, this is a long day but it rarely ever feels like it. I find myself unable to do everything that I want to do and therefore leave it behind for someone else.  Which, if you know me at all, you know that I hate not getting things done and I especially hate other people picking up the slack for me! I know this will soon change. Once we get into a routine that makes life a little simpler.

My family and I made a deal. We are going to start doing things. We live in Hawaii for Godsake! We were talking about taking turns to get scuba diving certified and eventually all going out and diving together. We talked about me going out with my husband. I don't even remember the last time he and I have gone out on a date. Apparently he's starting to feel this because he has asked twice in the last two days when we were going to be able to go to the movies together. We are going to start taking the children to the beach on his days off. We need to stop being hermits and get out in the world!

Photo Session With Mommy

I did a photo session of Gabby today. I must say they came out pretty good! Maybe I'll stop wasting my money with professional places and just do them myself. I often find myself more satisfied with my work than I am with theirs.

Can't believe Gabby is going to be one month old this coming week. My, how time flies! Anyway, here are some of the pictures we took. :) Enjoy!

Update on Life

I recently took Gabby to her 2 week appointment. She is now 10 pounds 8 ozs., 22 3/4 inches tall, and very healthy. I am really glad I chose Dr.Hino to be her pediatrician. He is very informative and very kind. He kept joking that I wasn't feeding her enough. Ha! She's going to be a little chubster, just like Taylor was!  I can't believe how much she grows every day.

Of course, she does not like to sleep at night. Her brother didn't either, but at least he slept for 3-4 hours at a time. I don't know if I'm just being impatient but I was sure he was much easier to  keep asleep @ night. I find myself waking up with her every 1-2 hours. I get so exhausted that she ends up just sleeping with us.. because I fall asleep while nursing her!

I suppose it was a catch 22 for me. I really wanted a good night sleep so I couldn't wait for her to come (I was waking up every 3-4 hours because I was in so much pain) but I had the bed all to myself (well, to include hubby of course). But now that she's here, I am not in any pain and I could probably very easily sleep 9 hours straight but she wakes up so much throughout the night that it's impossible.  It is all for good though. I don't find myself angry when I wake up with her, just mearly exhausted at the thought of getting up at 6 am with Taylor.

Speaking of which, getting up in the mornings with Taylor is one of the best moments of every day. The smile he gives when you walk in that door. It just takes the tired all away (at least for a few hours). He is an amazing boy. He has not really started talking yet (he is going to be 17 months old tomorrow) so he is soooo frustrated that we can't understand everything that he wants. He throws temper tantrums and we are hoping that he will leave those behind along with his terrible twos in a couple of years.

He is a great big brother. He loves giving Gabby kisses and he even held her today! I am amazed at how well he is handling the fact that there is a new baby in the house. It makes it so much easier to have 4 adults in the house because, really, he is never without someone by his side.

All I need to get through this next year, or so, are my iced caramel macchiatos and lots and lots of chocolate.. and maybe a glass of wine once a week. :)

EDIT
I forgot to write about how we took some family photos @ Sears.  They sent me a link to the online viewable prints. We get to pick up the real deal today.. but I'll post the online version here. 

She's Here!!

Gabriella Dawn was born on July 2, 2010 @ 7:02 AM

So, i had my 38 week appointment on Thursday and I was told that I was 4 1/2 cms and what not. I started contracting heavily but I figured it was due to my cervical check and thought nothing about it. About 6 pm that night I felt a small gush of fluid come out. I wasn't sure if I had just lost complete control of my bladder if my water broke so I went to the bathroom and sure enough as soon as my butt hit the toilet, more fluid came leaking out. Of course, I still had it in the back of my mind that there was no way my water broke already so I put a pad on and told MIL to give it 5 minutes t see if there was any more fluid that would come out. Sure enough some more kept gushing out so we decided to go to the hospital. We were trying to hurry because I was already dilated so much and the hospital is 45 minutes away so MIL was going 75 MPH!! lol. Well, we got to the hospital and I was only 5 cms so they admitted me. 

The laboring was taking too long and I wasn't dilating any so the nurse said she wanted to give me pitocin to speed things up since my water bag had broken and she didn't want to risk infection.  Strangely enough, the more pitocin she gave me the more my contractions spread apart! So she just kept upping it until about 5 am when she upped it just enough so that the contractions started getting strong enough.  She told me that once I got over "the hump" that my labor would go by fairly quickly. She checked me and I was still a 6!  Next thing I know, 20 minutes later I felt like I had to push so she checked me again and I was a 10.  I still had to hold Gabby in until the doctor got there.. which was really hard to do.  They wanted to let me labor down. So instead of pushing they just let my contractions do all the work.

By 645am I was ready to push and Gabby was born in 3 sets of pushes. We all made bets as to how big she was because... well, she looked HUGE.

Gabby is 9 pounds 7.5 ozs 21 3/4 inches long and beautiful. She took right to breastfeeding and she's very cuddly.

I was scheduled to get my tubal ligation done at 2 pm that afternoon but it got pushed back to 430pm which I said, "Heck No" to because I hadn't eaten since 10 am the previous morning. I did get it done the next day.  I woke up half way through and felt them cutting and whatnot, it was VERY weird but I couldn't say anything because I was so drugged up! 


We got home on July 4th, 2010 and we are enjoying our two blessings!

Progress.. No Progress

I went to my 36 week appointment almost a week ago. Surprisingly, the doctor said I'm 3 CMs dilated but still "very thick" so I'm making progress. She said she doesn't suspect that I will go all the way to my due date, but I have read stories of girls who were 3-4 cms dilated until 2 weeks AFTER their due dates and I could possibly become one of those stories.  I've been having Braxton Hicks contractions here and there but nothing worth mentioning really. I have been trying to walk on the Treadmill daily but other than that, there is nothing that will really help move my body towards labor.. other than waiting and indulging myself in some silly wives tales (IE Pineapple and Papaya).

Taylor is doing great.  He has become a lot more clingy so I think maybe he knows something is going to happen in the next 3 weeks. I would like to take him to do something fun since it won't be just him soon enough.  We'll probably end up taking him to the Lagoons at Ko'olina or maybe even Chuck E. Cheese. We'll have to wait for Daddy's next day off though.

Other than that, there is nothing in my life worth mentioning right now. We may have some news in the next few weeks though, and if that is the case, then I will share at that time.

Time Flies is a Lie

Oh, my. It has been too long since I have updated my blog. I didn't even realize they had added a feature where you could change your layout in such a specific way. I love it! I would like to use the excuse that I have been terribly busy, but that would be a lie.  Granted, I've been doing lots of laundry, cleaning, and basically just preparing myself for the soon-to-be new addition to our little clan.  Anyway, 'nuff with the excuses let's get the skinny.

Since I last posted Taylor has been sick 3 times. Yes, 3 times! I am not worried. I am glad.  His immune system is in the process of becoming stronger than Chuck Norris.  The first time he got sick, he had caught some kind of cold/flu sort of thing from me (which I caught from Jake). The second time he had gotten a 104 fever from his Chicken Pox vaccination. And now he is just getting over some kind of congested cough/runny nose deal. In the midst of all this, he has been quite the trooper and I have to say, I am quite proud of the little dude.  The scariest one was when he had the fever from the vaccination. He would kind of just lie there and seemed almost limp.  Now, if you know my little man, you know this was VERY strange. But, he was just not feeling well and didn't feel like running around and tornado-ing everything in sight. Understandable.

MIL, Hubby, and I took him to the Waikiki Aquarium on Tuesday. He liked it for about 10 minutes and then he was bored. I almost feel like we should've just gone across the street to the zoo, that way, at least I would've gotten some decent exercise. The day ended nicely, though, with a lunch at the Cheesecake Factory and then I got a snow cone!  Any day that ends with a snow cone is a good day in my opinion. :)

As for Gabby, we are at week 35 day 4. Soon I will be considered full-term and they won't stop me if I go into labor.  I am increasingly losing interest in being pregnant. She's so lucky I'm in love with her, otherwise this would be all for naught.  This pregnancy is much more painful and uncomfortable than my pregnancy with Taylor was.  Hopefully this is not a sign of things to come!  Everything is perfect, though, and I couldn't ask for anything more. I am completely, wonderfully blessed and I thank God every day for those blessings.

Some pictures from aquarium day for your entertainment!

Happy Mother's Day 2010

My hubby and Tay Tay are too sweet. These were sitting on my nightstand when I woke up!

Happy Mother's Day to all Mommies and Mommies to Be!

Tick Tock

"Patience is a virtue," they always say. Well, I'd like to know who they are and why I should be listening to what they have to say.

I feel like life is spent waiting for bigger things to happen. 2 1/2 years ago I was waiting to see my little man, and then when he was born I was waiting to go on a trip to see my family, and when we get back, I was waiting to move into the house we're currently in, then I was waiting to find out if we were moving off the island, and now I'm waiting for Gabby. I remember being younger and waiting for Christmas and my birthday... and well, pretty much every holiday that covers the entire calendar year. Maybe half the fun was waiting because once the fun actually started the fun sort of started to dwindle.

I am trying my darndest to enjoy this time before little Gabby gets here but all I can think about, as she's kicking and rolling and hiccuping, is what she looks like in there. I want to hold her. I want her Daddy and grandparents to be able to hold her, too.

Patience is a virtue. My whole life is about virtue. Then again, I guess you could say if I weren't spending my entire life waiting, it would be a boring one. Tick Tock Tick Tock.

Personal Commitment

Taylor has 2 new teeth coming in the top back.  It may explain his moodiness. It just goes to show you how awesome he is.  Even through his grumpiness, he has many more moments of laughs and playfulness.

I ended up at L&D yesterday with contractions and a really bad pain in my left abdomen.  The doctor could not find a solid reason for the contractions and pain, but I will talk to my actually OBGYN tomorrow to see if we can do some more tests. This pain has been pretty persistent for the past 3 days.  We spent the better part of 5 hours waiting around for them to even take us into triage and then another hour or so in the room doing a non stress test and then waiting to be discharged. We hadn't eaten for almost 12 hours and so I ended up losing about 3 pounds when I checked the scale today.

In better news, in 5 days I will officially be in my third trimester.  I'll be in the tail end of this flight. Seeing all those girls waiting to be taken in to deliver their babies made me feel twinge of anxiety.. In a good way. I'm very excited to be at the end and then to see my baby girl's face for the very first time. I know I've been told many times to enjoy the time without a crying baby, but all I can think about is holding her in my arms. :)