Mia's Fever: Update

Current mood: tired

Well here I am.. almost 24hrs since my last blog and I am exhausted. Man what a day. Last night went pretty well, actually better than I expected. Mia didn't wake up until about 4:30am this morning. She was doing this soft quiet whine. My Mama radar kicked off and I woke right up. I waited to hear her cry out but she never did. I got up anyways to check on her and she was sleeping on her tummy. Her breathing was very bad and congested.

I went downstairs, grabbed her a bottled water incase she woke up thirsty, her medicine, and a warm blanket. We haven't moved the spare bed into her room yet so I laid down on the floor next to her crib. I wanted to be near her incase she woke up and needed something. Thankfully she never did wake up.

It was really chilly and the blanket I had wasn't cutting it. The ground was hard and uncomfortable but I didn't want to leave my sick baby's side. Then I heard a weird noise. I sat up... hmm... there it goes again. Almost like low growl. I sat there motionless trying to figure out where and what that sound was. It got louder. I thought for a second maybe the cat snuck in and was snoring under Mia's bed. I checked under her crib.. nothing. I heard it again! So I stood up and went to her wall that shares our masterbedroom. Sure enough I heard it again.... no it wasn't a monster.. (though it sounded like one) it was Adrian snoring in the next room. His cold has plugged up his nose too so he can't breath very well either. There goes me ever going back to bed now. Even with Mia's soft music playing and her light snores I couldn't drown out Adrian's snore! I had no choice, I had to leave the room if I was to get any rest. I didn't want to leave Mia but I knew if I didn't get some sleep I would be no good to her during the day when she needed me most.

So I picked up the blanket and headed downstairs to sleep on the couch. I turned on the kitchen baby monitor and turned up the volume incase Mia made noise. All that it picked up though was Adrian's snoring!! I KNOW!! it was really bad.. poor guy hes really sick. So I got comfortable on the couch and tried to get some sleep. It didn't really work out because I would wake up to any little noise or movement Mia would make. I literally had 3 dreams back to back about waking up and getting Mia out of bed. I couldn't relax enough to fall into a deep sleep. Eventually the sun came up. I could hear Adrian walking around upstairs, he woke up and couldn't go back to sleep. Then I heard Mia wake up and she was upset and started crying really loud.

I ran upstairs and took her out of the crib. I quickly felt her for a fever and thankfully it seemed to have broke. She did still seem a tad bit warm but nothing like she was the day before. I rocked her in the rocking chair a bit before taking her downstairs. She was still crying and whining and you could tell she was not feeling good at all. Her breathing was still bad and she sounded stuffed up. I changed her diaper and did the thing she hates.... sucked out her boogies with the snot sucker. She got super mad but she could breath better. I then offered her some food but her appetite was still not there. She munched on half a banana and alittle bit of toast. I decided to spoil her a bit so all day we watched nothing but her shows.

The rest of the morning was spent watching TV and tending to her. She ate a pedilite pop and really liked it. She still didn't want to drink any water, juice or milk. I had had a hard time getting anything in her tummy. Eventually it got late and it was nap time. I was dragging by this time. I put her in her crib and she blew up again. I laid down next to her on the floor and she calmed down. I decided to just nap there while she did. I hoped that if I napped with her she would nap for a long while. I slowly drifted off to sleep but it didn't take long before I was startled awake by her screaming and crying. Only 30mins had past and she was extremely upset. Nothing would calm her down. I tried talking to her, carrying her, rocking her.. nothing. She screamed bloody murder all the way down to the livingroom. She still cried and cried even around all her toys. Tears streamed down her cheecks and she just stood there not moving. Snot began rolling down her face as well and she just looked like a total mess! I felt horrible for her. I tried to cuddle her but she didn't want to be touched. I gave her some space and just let her cry. I gentally talked to her and sympathized with her on how bad she must be feeling. Eventually she started to finally calm down and she let me hold her. She was doing that shaking inhale/exhaling and was complaining in her little baby talk.

Adrian soon came down and I cooked Mia up an egg. She ate a tiny bit of it. I then headed off to Walgreens again because this time Adrian was out of medicine. So while I was there I picked up some other things we needed like diapers and water. I also picked up a tiny toy braclete for Mia that jingled. When I got back home Adrian and Mia were watching TV. She seemed to have perked up abit. I gave her the bracelete and she was happy with it for a bit.

The rest of the day was pretty much the same. She never fully perked up and often times just started crying and whining out of no where. She hardly ate anything but did started drinking her milk again. The tylonal seems to be helping a bit because she will be ok for while until it starts to wear off. Her nose gets stuffed up with nasty sticky green boogies so I have to suck them out alot now. She has also started going poopies ALOT!!! I think its because of all the fruit I have been giving her. Its all I can get her to eat and even that isn't very much.

Now she is in bed. I laid on the floor next to her until she fell asleep. She seems to be doing better. I have a VICKS vapor plug-in that I have in her room to help with her congestion. I bought it for her last year when she got her first cold, but she was too young to use it so it just sat there in the box unopened. I found it and she is old enough for it now. It seems to be doing ok, though her room reeks of VICKS. The tech center just outside her door does too since Adrian put some rubbing VICKS on.. man this house smells like an infirmary!!!

Thats about it, I hope she feels better tomorrow and the same with Adrian. It isn't easy being Nurse Mommy/wife but I am doing ok. I do feel the bug trying to invade me too but my body is pretty resiliant to that stuff. I haven't let it take me down yet.. I have to much at risk. If I get sick the whole house will come to a standstill and collapse! haha Great now that I said that I probably jinxed myself...sigh... well I should go get some rest now. There is no telling what tomorrow will bring... Man what a way to end the year!

Mia's First Fever!

Current mood: worried

Well it was bound to happen eventually... yep Mia is officially sick with her first fever. We have been EXTREMELY fortunate that since Mia was born she has only been sick once (last winter) and that was just a head cold. We have never experienced a fever before... poor baby. She still has a slight temp. now but nothing like earlier. Here is how today went....

I was woken up early in the morning by a snoring bear in my bed! Yes I am talking about Adrian. He usually NEVER snores... but today he was and it was BAD! I couldn't take it anymore, so I woke him up and made him sleep on his side. He told me that he had caught a cold last night and his nose was all stuffed up. (Explains the snore) I stayed away from him as much as I could and tried to go back to sleep. Sure enough the snore returned. I couldn't get any sleep so I decided to get up and just start my day early.

At around 9 I heard Mia stirring in her crib. She wasn't jibber jabbering like she normally does but I knew she was awake. When I walked into her room she was just laying there. Usually she pops right up at the sight of me, but this time it took her alittle longer to come around. I picked her up and rocked her in the rocking chair a bit so she could clear her head. I usually do this when she wakes up groggy like that. Normally it takes a few mins. before she perks up, picks up her head and jibber jabbers to me letting me know she is ready to start the day. That didn't happen this time. I found that extremely odd. She just laid there on my shoulder refusing to get up. So I carried her downstairs and sat with her on the couch. Usually when I am in the livingroom she looks at all her toys and wants to get down and play then runs to the kitchen for a snack and milk. However, that didn't happen either. She just insisted I hold her close and not put her down. I rocked her a bit and when she didn't get up I offered her some milk. She still didn't budge. This was really odd behavior coming from her. So I took her to the kitchen and gave her half a banana. She took the banana but only wanted to eat it if I held her against my shoulder. She did manage to eat most of the banana before spitting the rest out. She didn't seem to interested in eating or drinking. Thats when I knew she must be under the weather a bit.

We don't have any OJ so I did the next best thing. I cut up an Orange (one of her favorite things to snack on) and gave it to her. She munched a bit then tossed it aside. She refused to eat breakfast and just wanted to be held. I put one some of her favorite shows to watch while I cooked Adrian some homemade Chicken/Veggie soup. She just sat on her chair and watched TV. She didn't play with her toys or run around. When the soup was done I spent some time with her before nap time. When 12:45 hit I decided to try to lay her down. I wanted to make it out to the gym while she slept so I was eager for her to go to bed.

I took her upstairs and she threw her normal fit for being put in her crib. I didn't want her cries to wake up Adrian so I ended up laying down on the floor next to her bed until she fell asleep. That didn't take long. I slowly got up and snuck out of her room. Thats when my "Mommy intuition" kicked in and made me second guess about going to the gym. I felt something bad would happen and that I should stay at home, so I did. I went downstairs and started to write her "Year in Review" blog.

After 20 mins had past I heard her wake up. She didn't just wake up, she blew up. She screamed uncontrollably and horrifically. I didn't know what happened so I raced upstairs to her room. Once I got to her crib she was just sitting there crying hysterically. I looked around to see if anything was wrong but couldn't find anything. I quickly picked her up and rocked her on the rocking chair trying to console her and calm her down. She would stop crying for a second then start up again really bad. Thats when I noticed that she felt really warm to me. Boarderline hot! I felt her forehead, cheeks, back, neck and chest and all were burning up! I quickly got concerned and took her to Adrian who was still sleeping. I knew he was sick too and didn't want to wake him but I was very concerned that Mia might be sick and have a fever. I woke him up and asked him if he thought she was warm too. He felt her but said no she felt normal. I was confused.. I was sure she was warmer than usual but I figured maybe I was just being a paranoid Mama. I took her back to her room and took her long sleeve shirt off and replaced it with an oversized cotton shirt. Adrian got up and followed me. Mia started crying again and you could tell she wasn't feeling good at all. All she wanted to do was cuddle and be comforted. She was acting really lethargic too. So I took her downstairs to change her diaper and clear out her nose (yes she had a runny nose too I forgot to mention that). Once I was down there Adrian felt her again, this time he agreed she did feel a bit warmer than usual. So we decided to take her temp. Since she doesn't let you hold down her arm to take her temp, Adrian just held her and I put the thermomitor under her arm. Sure enough it started to skyrocket and show no signs of slowing down... 98.3, 98.4, 98.5, 6,7,8,9... 99.1 and so on. When it finally stopped at 101.1 I was concerned. I quickly got dressed and ran off to Walgreens for some medicine and pedialite.

As Adrian stayed back and watched Mia for me I drove to Walgreens. I also called up my best Mommy mentor, my sis in law Lauren (who has 4 kids) and she gave me advice. I also called up my parents for their advice as well. I picked up some medicine for Mia AND Adrian and rushed back home. Once I got home I stripped Mia down to shorts and a shirt. I couldn't fully undress her since our house is very cold right now. I didn't want her to get worse. I gave her some baby tylonal, some ice chips (she loves ice), and a pedialite ice pop. After eating that she finally started to perk up some. She didn't have much of an appetite at all today and pretty much just snacked on and off on some bread, rice, crackers and water. She rested while we all watched Movies. She perked up for awhile and it seemed like her fever might have broke but she was still warm. Then about an hour before bed she started to heat up again. I gave her some more tylonal put new shorts on her and put her to bed early.

She went to sleep pretty quickly and now here I am. I just hope she has a restful night tonight. She needs to fight those germs that have invaded her tiny body. Hopefully the fever will break by tomorrow. I am not used to this, she never gets sick and this is nerve wracking. Well I better get some rest, taking care of both sick Adrian and Mia is no easy task.. I need to make sure I don't get sick myself!

2009 Year In Review (Mia Version)

Current mood: blissful

Well the end of the year is finally here.. and it couldn't come fast enough. This has been one of the hardest years I have ever experienced in my life. Many heart aches, losses, and negative things happened left and right. If you take Mia out of the picture I really don't have to many positive things to say about this year other than its finally over!

So now that you know how I feel about this year, you can understand why I will not include my own thoughts and reflections in this specific blog. I am sure I will rant and rave in another upcoming blog, but as for this one I am just going to focus on the one precious thing in my life. Mia. She makes me so happy and I could have never gotten through this year without her. Shes my little butterfly princess and I love her dearly.

At first I was going to write out all the big events and milestones that happened to her during the year. I started to jot down some specific events to write about, but after my note pad was getting filled up and I wasn't even through March yet, I decided to cop out and do the lazy thing. Hey being a Mama is all about efficiency!! So in order to avoid an endless blog of me jabbering on and on and ON.. I decided to keep it short and sweet. I am going to just cut and paste the "New Things" summary section from each month. There are 12 total so I am sure this will still be a big blog.. but hopefully a blog thats easier to get through haha ... So with all that being said, here is Mia's version of the year in review... ENJOY....

January: (6 months)
First New Years, staying sitting up unassisted, reaching out, jibber jabbering (mamama..wowowo..), first juice, moving backwards and really getting around the floor, gives kissies to Daddy, playing with two toys in each hand, going to the duck pond, first restaurant (Red Robin), kicking her fishy tank on and off with her foot in her crib, holding her bottle with one hand

February: (7 months)
Eating baby foods, drinking from a sippy cup, eating her first solid, being able to stay sitting up when placed on the floor, using toddler side of the tub, her first word "mama", "Mia dance", gives kisses on command, shakes her head yes and no on command, met Pizano relatives for the first time, sleeps on her side consistantly, can roll on her back to tummy by herself now consistantly, first Superbowl, first Valentines Day, first pres. ignauration, first balloon, eat oatmeal, and graduated to med. flow bottle, no longer breastfeeding

March: (8 months)
She went to the park with her Mama and Daddy for the first time, mimicking more, teething on carrots and jicama, learning to stand up straight, crawl with her knees, throw little balls, put a ball in her spiral toy, clap, war cry, hit her first pinata, tasted her first candy, eating desserts, pulled herself up, sleeping on her face and side, used a walker, chases shadow, listens to Yanni, Armin Van Buren, and other music, fell off the bed for the first time, using her big girl seat in her stroller, and stage 3 diapers

April: (9 months)
1st teeth, going backwards in the walker, moved crib down, eats snackies, likes water, met with Pastor Scott, got the "Amazin' Mia" title, went to first baby shower, hit her first pinata, tasted her first candy, lime and popsical, plays ball, chase, stood unassisted for 17 seconds, pulls herself up on stuff, climbs on stuff, used a high chair at a restaurant, got her first cold, sit in front of cart while shopping, graduated to stage 3 foods, obessed with "Yo Gabba Gabba" and DJ Lance Rock, met Easter Bunny, First St. Patty's day, Rawr.. rawr.. rawr.., stood up in crib, learned to sit up by herself, learn to take steps with feet, throws tantrums, news about her first younger baby cousin, and jumped in her first jump for joy,First Easter, Celebrated her Mama's birthday, Colored eggs, hunted for eggs

May: (10 months)
Mia's first Mother's Day and Cinco De Mayo, visited the Emu farm, ate a few new foods, pull herself on furniture more, sits and bounces on feet, dances to music more, tries to stand up unassisted, attempted to take steps by herself, Grandpa Pizano visited for a week, assisted walking, first tan, letting go of furniture, big girl bath, ate her first home-made babyfood, climb into her chair and climbed onto couch, says "Hat", throws toys, carries toys as she crawls, waves "hello" and blows kisses, and unfortunately first big ouchie where she bled.

June: (11 months)
WALKING!, combing hair, greediess with toys and blankey, first ride, first steps, standing up by herself, 2 new top teeth, Baptism, new baby jibberish, sticks out tounge when you do, peek-a-boo, met Koa, climbed stairs all the way to the top, eating table foods, dances with hips, listens to commands, first Padres game, and hopped off the ground while standing.

July: (12 months)
she plays with puzzles, loves avocados, jibber jabbering more, tries to use a spoon to eat, first sculptures and fingerpainting, she makes faces, 1st fathers day and celebrated Daddy's birthday, went to Frys for the first time, and loves to walk on the grass barefooted. Said byebye and agua, popped out her 5th tooth, went to Disneyland for the first time, and celebrated her first birthday. Turned 1 years old!!!!!!, celebrated her first 4th of July and saw her first fireworks. Retired her bottle and stopped drinking formula and learned to use a straw. Had 2 bday parties, rode the swings for the first time, ate bday cake and a cupcake for the first time, went to the beach, met her Great Grandpa Ordonez, rode her first real ride, slept in her stroller

August: (13 Months)
Got 5 shots at once, got a big girl car seat, eats cheerios in a cup, learned to climb on the couch, new words: up, dog, water, here, she is more helpful, learned to share, interacts more with the TV, experience the sprinklers outside, played in her kiddy pool, loves her box house, ordered from the kiddy menu and ate restaurant food, ate her first Maui Gold Pineapple, grew her first Molar, and ran

September: (14 months)
learned to take off diaper, doesn't like us hugging, feeds others with her spoon, grew a new molar and another new tooth in the same month, loves to be rocked to sleep during bedtime, likes super soup and celery sticks, refuses to go down quietly to sleep at Grandpa and Grandma Pizano's house, threw up from over eating, and lost her little sibling to a miscarriage =(

October: (15 months)
She had a taste of her first coffee brean drink (her Daddy's pure chocolate ice blended), her first taste of soda, got her Tinkerbell Halloween costume for Halloween, went to her first wedding, danced at her first party by shaking her bootie and hips, slept without her bumper on her crib only to have to have it be put back on haha, becoming more rowdy at restaurants, loves her brocolli steamed or raw, walking at the mall and holding hands with her Daddy, running aorund in stores, met her first ferret, ran around in Great Grandma's backyard, became an expert leaf collector, went down the slide with her Daddy, found her nose, got her first Barbie, helped celebrate her Mama and Daddy's 11 and 2 year anniversaries, says Gabba and Kitty more, gags herself for attention, learning how to throw tantrums, tried to tickle Daddy, for a 9th tooth, loves Elmo's World, put a dirty diaper in the toilet, ate pop rocks, wears her Mama's butterfly necklace, loves blueberry pancakes, went to her Mama's doctors appointments, went her to first buffet and knows the difference between her water and milk sippe cup, Throwing pumpkins, cleaning out her first pumpkin, first So. Cal Fair, liked barn animals, climb up and down stairs, Adrian solo bathed her, Went to SD with Daddy by themselves, two new teeth, first bad word "Crap", Tinkerbell for Halloween, tick-or-treated around the block at night, had her first popsical from the icrecream man (Bombpop)

November: (16 months)
Says "OW!" out of anger, hits you, dances when sang to, she needs more space, limited TV time, solo shopping trips with Grandpa, her new baby cousin Sophia was born, likes Turkey and stuffing (Mama's only)

December: (17 months)
likes the slide and can climb up and down the stairs and jungle gym, plays the recorder aka flute, plays more by herself, talks to her toys and play phone, copied Elmo counting, slept in the big person's bed for multiple naps, plays in her tent, tooth number 12,, got her potty, learned how to gag herself by coughing to hard, throwing more tantrums, reaching on the table and using stepping stool to get things out of her reach, loves Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, put sippy in tree, ate a chunk of wood off her crib, dancing with or without music while looking up, learned to feed herself with a fork, made friends at the park, says "No" when she doesn't like something or want something to happen, fell out of the crib.. again!, first fever

And that concludes little Mia's year in review 2009. Wow I can't believe another year has gone by.. before I know it she will be 2!!! YIKES!!! Well time doesn't look like it will be slowing down anytime soon so I better just buckle up and enjoy the ride!!!

Decade in Review!!!!

****** I wrote this blog on another site, I decided to include it here on Mia's site anyway, since she is a part of the later half of it .... enjoy!*********

Current mood: optimistic

Wow! As we come to the end of 2009 and close the books on another decade, I can't help but reflect on what the past 10 years has brought me. I decided to write a short... well hopefully short... blog just about a few of the milestones and big events that happened in my life this past decade 2000-2009.

2000-
Ahh... the year of the Y2K scare haha. In the year of 2000, I was 20, Adrian and I were only together for 2 years and I was a Sophomore at San Diego State. Adrian also gave me a promise ring that year and promised not only would we get married one day but he would propose to me in 3 years... (ummm ya that didn't happen haha he ended up proposing 5 years later! but meh close enough). Anyways, a big event that stands out in my head for this year was, it was the year I moved into my very first apartment without roommates. Good Ol' Polk Ave.. deep in the heart of City Heights (aka the Ghetto) haha hey it was all I could afford at the time. The rent was alittle over $500 for a cute little one bedroom quadplex that I would stay in for the next 4 years!!! I got my first job during the summer at Guitar Center and most of my paycheck would just go to rent and school supplies. This was also the year that I bought Princess Mew Mew my little kitty. She is still with us today!

2001-
This was a big year for me. I officially turned 21 and could legally drink, however, since I am not a drinker I did the next big thing. VEGAS!!!!! I went spent my 21st birthday in Vegas with my family and later that year took a trip back just Adrian and I. It was our very first vacation trip together and needless to say my Dad wasn't to thrilled about that. This was also the year of 9/11. That event changed the world. I remember that day like it was yesterday... I was informed of the terrorist attacks while in my 7am class at school. Later that day, all classes were canceled and the school was evacuated. There was concerns that San Diego would be next to be attacked due to the large amount of Navy vessels stationed here along with the San Onfre Nuclear powerplant. San Diego State was also the largest populated university in California. It was a scary time for everyone.

2002-
I was still going to San Diego State and trying my best to graduate on time. This was the year I started to take classes at different community colleges around San Diego just to knock out classes while still attending State. Adrian bought his famous little blue hatchback, that he turbo charged, and I was introduced to the world of street racing. We spent many late Saturday nights zooming around the "hot spots" for illegal street racing. After almost being caught by the cops errr... 5-0 haha we toned it down a bit and just raced at the Carlsbad Speedway (now closed down) and Qualcomm "Race Legal". 2002 was also the year that my niece Sarah was born. I was able to just barely make it to the hospital in time to be there when she was born. I saw her only mins. old and was in love!! She was the first newborn I had ever seen and I was so scared to even hold her.

2003-
This year was not one of my most favorite years. Not only did I get in my very first car accident, my beloved Chevy Cavilier z24 (my first car) was totaled and it wasn't even my fault. A stupid lady lost control and slammed into me on the freeway! Thankfully my injuries were not bad.. the worst thing that happened was I found out I was allergic to Sulfa after breaking out in hives!!! (the hospital perscribed me) I was not the only one to get into a serious accident that year. After buying a brand new 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX ... 4 months later Adrian was rear ended on the freeway and his car was smashed up like an accordian. Adrian did have whiplash and still feels the pains of it to this day. 2003 was also the year of the horrible San Diego Wildfires! We were surrounded by them from every angle. The air quality and ash were so bad they cancelled classes most of the week. We were forced to stay inside, but with Adrian recovering from his accident it wasn't like we were going out anyways.

2004-
This was a landmark year for me. Though it didn't start off so great. My little comfy apartment was being torn down to make way for a new elementary school so I was forced to move. Luckily, I was paid off and given close to 4 thousand dollars to relocate. So I up'ed and moved back to the nice area of La Mesa on Jessie Ave. It was my first apartment with a balcony and I grew many plants there. I was happy with the move and enjoyed my new apartment that had AC!!! I also graduated from San Diego State!!!! with TWO degrees. I was excited to start my life away from school. My parents also threw me a HUGE graduation party for me at the Hueneme Navy Base. All my family was there to congrats me. I felt so optomistic, loved, and proud of my accomplishment. I got my first full time job at Electronic Data Systems (yes same place where Adrian works) and was making a pretty good amount of money, which I was saving. Another big event that happened this year was my Brother got MARRIED! It was a beautiful wedding and I was a bridesmaid.

2005-
Another big year for me. Adrian and I decided to get a house together. After house hunting for months we finally came across a new housing track that was just being built in Sun City, Riverside. We put our bid in early in the year and 6+ months later our beautiful home was built and finished. We got to see it being built from the dirt up and took many trips from San Diego to see the house. We were both extremely excited for the huge change in our lives. So after living San Diego for alittle over 7 years, I packed up and moved out to Riverside County. I left EDS and got a job for Riverside County working in Juvenile Hall. It was one of the WORST jobs I had ever done and it didn't last to long. In Dec. of this year, Adrian and I took a trip up to Big Bear for a few days and thats where he finally proposed to me! I was on cloud nine!!! What a great way to end a great year. One bad thing that happened this year was, I started to get bad stomach aches. HORRIBLE ones.... I went to the doctor to get it checked but they could not pin point what it was. They believed it could be ulcers and treated me for that, but it turned out to be something else. It wasn't until 2 years later did they finally correctly diagnose me as having gall stones. This was also the year I was introduced to the wonderful World Of Warcraft where I spent many MANY hours playing. Only recently have I finally hung up my Rogue after spending 4 years of my life playing!! haha

2006-
This was the year of the horrible stomach aches. The ones that started the year before. The gall bladder attacks made me experience the worst pains in my life, even worse than labor pains!! I was still mis-diagnosed and nothing seemed to be helping. I was rushed to the ER many times by Adrian when the pain got to bad I was passing out and and was unable to walk. Sigh... 2006 was not a good year. I was unemployed for most of that year due to leaving juvenile hall. I fell into a depression and didn't find another job until about 9 months later, at the District Attorney's office. Needless to say 2006 was not one of my finer years.

2007-
This year was a HUGE landmark year for me... for us. As bad as 2006 was, 2007 sure made up for it. It started off with my buying my very first off the lot car! My Mazda6. It was the first car I bought myself and it was beautiful. My niece April was also born in the begining of this year and I was able to be there when she was born. I had been getting baby fever for the past 2 years and seeing her after being born just made things worse. I was still working at the DA's office and was promoted in April of this year. I was making more money and was very happy. I was FINALLY correctly diagnosed as having gall bladder disease after suffering with it for a couple of years. I finally had surgery to have my gall bladder removed, and it was my first surgery ever. Everything turned out great and other than having some gnarly scars I never had those pains again. YAY!!! A horrible thing that happened this year was, Adrian got into the worst car accident in his life. A hit a run driver hit him and caused him to spin out on the freeway going 70+ mph. He ended up smashing head on into a concret barrier. Thankfully he was not killed and walked away with minor injuries, ie. a few stitches (one less than an inch from his eye) and a cuts and bruises including a bruised lung. His recovery was long and he still feels the pains from that accident today. On the brighter side of the year, a HUGE event that happened, I GOT MARRIED!!! Adrian and I tied the knott Oct. 7th after being together for 9 years. We couldn't be happier. We spent the next two weeks on the island paradise of Maui. I have to say it was definately the happiest time of my life. 10 days after coming home, I found out I was pregnant with our little Honeymoon baby Mia! We were so happy and couldn't wait for our little bundle of joy to be born. Another bad thing that happened this year was, I was fired from the DA's office a week after informing them of my pregnancy. As fishy as it was, I could never prove to anyone that being pregnancy was the reason for me being fired though I know in my heart it was. I mean why else would they fire me 7 months after getting promoted, being employee of the month a month before AND getting a pay raise about a week before. Ah well, its ok I qualified for unemployment which allowed me not to have to work throughout my pregnancy AND for over a year after Mia was born... so it all worked out.

2008-
Another big year for us. I gave birth to our beautiful daughter, Mia.. July 11th by unplanned C-Section (yes my surgery #2). As prepared as we thought we were, parenthood was not easy at first. With the lack of sleep, stress, and exhaustion it wasn't easy those first couple of months, but we soon got the hang of it. Mia brought so much joy to our lives. Things were great on that end, however, with the strain of me not working and Adrian's job not giving him more money we started running into financial problems for the first time. The big thing was this house... This was the year we realized that we just might lose it.

2009-
I thought 2006 was the worst year I had ever experienced but I was wrong. 2009 definatey has been the hardest year for me EVER. Our financial situation was still not improving so we finally had to throw in the towel and the foreclosure process has begun. Its the hardest thing ever to be living in your dreamhouse knowing it will be taken away from you soon. Another HUGE devistating event happened this year. After planning to get pregnant at the end of the year, I unexpectedly got pregnant in the fall. We were shocked but overjoyed by the news of our new addition to our family. Unfortunately, I did lose the baby to a miscarriage at 8 weeks. This was a horrific event in my life that I still suffer from to this day. Then a month later I was forced to have bi-lateral surgery on both my arms to remove axuillary breast tissue (surgery #3). The operation was a success but the recovery was awful. Luckily my Dad stayed with us for a month helping out with Mia and other things I could not do. I developed an allergic reaction rash from both the bandage adhesive AND the ointment they later told me to use for the rash. That was an awful experience but I am glad its over with. The only good things that happened this year was we got to celebrate Mia's first birthday(s) and the birth of my niece Sophia!!

Thats about it. There is so much more, but those are pretty much the big events that happened... well the ones that are on the top of my head right now. Wow how time flies. I can't believe we are on the brink of a new decade. Most of the years of this past decade have been pretty good... though I did experience some bad ones (all within 3 years of each other, 2003, 2006, 2009). 2009 was one of the worst but it just gives me hope for 2010 and the new decade to come. I am looking forward to having a fresh start. I wonder what I will be writing 10 years from now when I am 39 and reflecting. Mia will be 11 and hopefully we will have another 1-2 kids after her. All in all this past decade has been one giant whirlwind of milestones but I am ready for my new chapter in life...... 2010 HERE I COME!!!!

Mia uses a fork successfully for the first time

Current mood: pleased

It amazes me how fast Mia is going. Each day seems like she is getting older and older. she is following a tons of commands now and really seems to understand things. As much as I would like to keep her as my little baby forever I know she is growing up and therefore she needs to start her journey into "Big Girl-hood" with my held.

I have been doing things here and there to help guide her to independance. One thing is mealtime. I no longer just put the food on her tray for her to pick it up and feed herself. I have been giving her food in bowls ie. strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, eggs, you name it. She has finally understood the concept of eating from the bowl and not just dumping all her food on the tray and eating it off of there. Granted she still plays with her food now and then but most of the time she will use the bowl. Next step?... utensils. She has been mastering the art of the spoon for awhile. Just other other night I let her feed herself her mac and cheese with her spoon with no help from me. Yes, there was a giant mess but she did really well and ate half of it before she decided to start playing with it and mac and cheese went flying all over the place. I slowly started introducing the fork to her and feeding her with it. Once she realized it was alot like the spoon she took to it very well.

So for Christmas Santa brought her some new bowls AND a brand new set of toddler forks. When she opened that present her eyes immediately lit up and she was excited. I think she knew what they were. They were "Mia's forks". So for lunch today I decided to let her do a test drive with her new forks. What was on the menu?... eggs! Since she does not like to eat crumbs (her scrambled eggs have to be cut in large fat chunks or she refuses to eat it) I figured the pieces will be big enough for her to stab with her fork. Sure enough after showing her a few times she picked it right up and actually fed herself most of the egg before resorting back to her hands!!! I was so proud of her! She stabbed the eggs and ate them from her fork all by herself!! YAY!!

Just another reminder of what a big girl my little baby ... girl.. is becoming!!! Sigh.. Mia slow down!!!

Whoops.... week 76

Current mood: blank

With all the hussel and bussel of Christmas Eve and Christmas I completely forgot to write Mia's weekly blog summary on Friday!!! I know I know... bad Mama!!! Well to be fair, not much really happened during that week. Well a HUGE the ing was going to Oxnard to spend Christmas but I am going to attach that to this coming Friday's summary. So not much to report, for the 76th week. Wow thats a first!!!!

So I guess I will rest my fingers so I have lots of engery to write on Friday!!! See you then unless something cute, funny, disasterous happens haha

Status Update

Eventhough Baby Einstein doesn't do anything to help your kid, Mia loves it and goes completely nuts everytime I put it on for her. I don't mind it since its nice music and gives me a break from the constant screaming of Elmo and Gabba hah

Christmas with the Cardoso Family

Current mood: exhausted

One last stop.... down South in Sunny San Diego. This is the final year Adrian, Mia and I are seperating Christmas Eve and Christmas between families. Starting next year we are going to start rotating the full holiday between the two families. Splitting them is just too much for our little family. So needless to say after spending the day before Christmas Eve with my parents and Christmas Eve with my Brother and his family (both in Oxnard almost a total of 500 driving miles total), and having our own little family Christmas in the moring, by the afternoon we were bushed but ready to press on. We were on a mission... we were determined to see the Cardoso family and nothing was going to hold us back! So after getting ready, we headed down South. First stop? Great Grandma Estrada's house.

Mia did good on the road, the drive is alittle under a hour and a half. She didn't start getting upset till about mid way through San Diego. Then we had to turn on her little DVD player (the life saver) and she was fine. Once we pulled up to Great Grandma's house we ran into some of Adrian's cousins just as they were leaving. We got to see Oscar, Daniel, Summer and Baby D for a short while. I can't believe how big Baby D is getting and he was so cute just hanging out with a candy cane in his hand. We said hello and caught up as fast as we could, then headed inside the house. Everyone had already visited and left so all that was left was Adrian's Tia Gloria and Great Grandma.

As soon as we got there we were served the best ledgendary tamales and potato salad on the planet. Mia loved them both!! Yes she even ate the beef tamale and liked it! After we got stuffed on awesome food and visited for awhile, Mia wanted to be put down. Just as I feared she went nuts! She started tearing into Great Grandma's Christmas tree, decapitated a snowman, and was zooming around the living room like the tazmanian devil!!! It didn't take long before we decided to go, since we still had to make another very imporant stop at Mia's Grandma's house. So we said our goodbyes, loaded up the car and off to Eastlake we went.

Once we got to Grandma's house we were greated by Grandpa Fernando's best childhood friend Chuy. He was a very nice man. Unfortunately Grandpa Fernando had to work so we were unable to see him, however, he did call us up to wish us a Merry Christmas and to send his love. Grandma was still getting ready and soon greeted us as well. Mia was all over the place and got into everything. She rememebered where Grandma keeps her puzzles and books and soon tore into them. I then put on Mia's new little Elmo slippers and we all got a kick out of watching her run around the hardwood floors in them. We then spent some time visiting while we waited for Adrian's sister Rebeca and his nieces to come by. Adrian's mom made some very tastey roast beef so we chowed down on that. Mia liked it too!!! I quickly asked for the recipe and I can't wait to try cooking it myself!

Soon Tia Rebeca and Mia's cousins Natalia and Brianna showed up. It was a big treat to see them all again since its been awhile. They are getting so big and looked so adorable as they wore matching Christmas dresses. Right away they wanted to open presents so the gift exchanged started even before the grown ups could visit!! haha. All three girls sat together by the presents and just went nuts. Wrapping paper went flying, screams of joy and excitment echoed through the house, and toys flying. Mia was right in the middle of it all, picking up her presents and unwrapping them unassisted!! It was so much fun to watch. Mia of course made out like a bandit. She got two very adorable winter dresses from her Tia, some new giraffe snackie cups and two tiny Sesame Street/Elmo books from her Cousins. Her Grandma and Grandpa got her a big nursery rhyme book, her first talking baby doll, and a couple of new puzzles for her to play with. She was so happy.

After all the presents were opened the girls played with their new toys. Natalia and Brianna both included Mia in their play as well. Brianna kept kissing Mia and saying "I love her". It was so cute. Mia ran around the house and played with her cousins new walkie-talkie. She really liked throwing it down the stairs!! She talked into it as well and was having lots of fun. After visiting, catching up, sharing stories and drinking some hot chocolate it was soon time to go. So we loaded up the car once again said our goodbyes and back on the road we went. However, it wasn't time to leave San Diego just yet. We had one final pit stop.

Adrian's cousin Carina had bought Mia a gift and really wanted her to get it so we stopped by her Mom and Dad's house (where she was staying for the holidays) down the street. Once we arrived there we were greated by Carina who was so excited to see Mia again. She gave Mia her present and Mia opened it in her car seat. She got two new books to read! One was a dinosaur book and the other a little girly book. Carina said she saw the dinosaur book and right away thought of Adrian who LOVED dinosaurs as a kid. She said Adrian could read her the dinosaur book and I could read Mia her other girly book. How sweet!!! We thanked her and soon we were back on the road again... this time to go home.

Mia refused to sleep on the ride home (which was odd since it was late, dark, and she had been running around so much earlier) however she was actually really well behaved. It was the first time in Mia history that she made the trip fully awake and didn't even fuss once. We didn't even need to turn on her DVD player. I think she was happy and didn't want to spoil the day by crying and fussing. She jibber jabbered in the back seat and just hung out. Soon we were home, we unloaded the car, I fed Mia a snackie and off to bed she went. After spending some time with Adrian I later went to bed myself... completely exhausted.

Wow what a holiday!!! We did it!!! We completed all the goals we set out to do. It only took a total of 3 days, 9 hours total in the car and 700+ miles, but we did it! I am so hapy it all worked out. Now we can all sit back and enjoy the weekend to catch our breath. We don't have anything big coming up so we can finally get some much needed rest for awhile....well until next year... only 364 more days till next Christmas.. YIKES!!! haha

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!!

Little Cardoso Christmas #2!!!

Current mood: blessed

Merry Christmas!!!! We had our little family Christmas together early yesterday morning. I would have written about it yesterday but we spent the rest of the day down in San Diego with the Cardoso side of the family and got home so late I just didn't have the energy to write. Sooooo... with Mia zombified infront of the TV and Adrian up, I can finally break away to write before I forget.

The three of us celebrated our little Christmas soon after breakfast time. We turned on the tree, seperated our gifts, set up the DVD camera and prepared for choas!! haha We sang our traditional Christmas song before we opened presents (we choose Jingle Bells this year since its Mia's favorite) and Mia danced. She then sat on my lap with her little piece of toast and was ready to open presents! We each took turns, though Mia had far more gifts than Adrian and I combined!!! Mia is a pro at unwrapping gifts and she had a blast. She would open a gift and get this shocked look on her face (her eyes bugged out and her mouth open) as she revealed the gift. She would get so excited and quickly start playing with them. She wouldn't let them go until we had her open another present. Once she opened a new present she would chuck the old toy and start playing with the new one. Soon she was surrounded by tons of toys and gifts. She was having fun. She even opened her stocking which was stuffed with all kinds of goodies, like a toy necklace (which she quickly put on), fuzzy socks, bracelete, clippies for her hair, and new cereal bowls. She had fun going through that too.

Soon all the presents were opened and we all laid around the big pile of torn wrapping paper and unwrapped gifts. Adrian played with his new MP3 player, I played with my new "Slap Chop" (a food chopper), Mia switched between playing with her Elmo jack in the box and xylophone, and the cat zoomed all around the house going completely nuts. Mia was having lots of fun with her xylophone until Adrian took it out of the box. She threw the biggest fit over that and refused to touch it again! haha I am still having a hard time getting her to like it again. I guess she liked it in the box.

After resting a bit it was time to pack up and head down to San Diego to make a special visit to Great Grandma and Mia's Grandma. Stay tuned for that story since I am just about to write it next.

Overall Christmas together was fantastic. I couldn't ask for anything better. I never felt so happy. Being a parent sure makes these hoildays so much fun now, especially when watching your little one get so excited over presents. I also realized something this year. Unlike previous years over the recent decade my desire for a certain type of present has sure changed. Before I was always asking for electronics, games, toys and such, however this year all I asked for and got revolved around being a Mama. I got the warm robes I really wanted and new cooking pots, oven mit, dishes, spoonds and chopper. I was so excited and happy for them all, I love cooking for my family now and I take pride in it. Wow how times have changed! I would have never thought I would be so excited to open up a cooking pot 10 years ago! Guess I am growing up and I am loving it! Its great being a Mama!!! Merry Christmas!!

Christmas with the Pizano Family

Current mood: jolly

Merry Christmas Eve!! We just celebrated Christmas with the Pizano family in Oxnard! Due to uncontrollable circumstances, for the first time in our family history we had to celebrate Christmas a day early (the day before Christmas Eve) and had to split between my parents and my Brother and his family. Everything worked out though and we got to spend time with everyone, which is a huge treat! Mia had a blast and was showered with gifts!

Since we were going to celebrate a day early, Adrian, Mia and I left to Oxnard on the 23rd. We got ready bright and early and were on the road by early afternoon. We were afraid of what traffic would look like, but it wasn't to bad. There were a few spots of bad traffic but nothing too bad. Mia slept half of the way which was a treat for us, but when she woke up she quickly became bored. I stuffed her with snackies which appeased her for only a short while so soon we had to bust out her BIG Christmas Gift early. Santa had brought her a mini-DVD player that you can mount on the headrest by a buckle. Very easy to install/uninstall. So we turned that on and was forced to listen to Yo Gabba Gabba the rest of the way. She was happy and content and was kicking back eating her Kix and watching her favorite show. We on the other hand couldn't listen to the radio anymore but it sure was better than listening to her cry and make a fuss. We soon made a pitstop in Moorpark and stopped off at the exact same Carls Jr. we always stop at since she was a newborn. We bundled her up and got off the car. Once we were inside, I changed her diaper in the restroom while Daddy ordered some food. I found a booth to sit in and and put Mia on the seat. She was so happy to be out of the car. There were no toys to play with so she made due with the salt and pepper shaker. Yep, soon salt and pepper went flying all over the place and after she made a HUGE grainy mess it was time to go back in the car. So loaded up and back on the road we went.

Soon we reached Grandpa and Grandma's house. Grandpa was still out and about so we were greeted by Grandma. She was happy to see Mia and Adrian and I finished unloading the car. We spent the next hour playing with Mia and resting a bit. Of course Mia ran to their tree and started to "undecorate" it. She pulled ornaments, pulled on lights, tried to bite the lights and then ended up putting toys in the tree (her little blocks and a snowman). Next she started terrorizing all my Moms decorations and I found myself getting up and down off the couch every 5secs saying "don't touch! Mia no!" and chasing her. She hid the Christmas tree light controller and my Dad ended up staying up all late at night looking for it because he couldn't turn off their tree. It was later found hidden behind their DVD player! haha Anyways, soon my Dad showed up and after eating we got to begin our Christmas!!!

My Mom played Santa and handed out the presents. Mia was all excited that she got presents that she soon wanted to open everything wrapped. All you had to do is say "Mia want to help me?" and she would run over and tear apart the wrapping from the gift. It was so cute to watch. She made out like a bandit of course, she got these cute little white sneakers, adorable fuzzy Elmo slippers that had a giant Elmo head on the end, and Elmo toy that had a microphone on it so she can sing with Elmo and her Rock n Roll Trike!!! We were so happy that she got the trike because it was something we were going to buy her but couldn't. Its a toy that first starts off as a rocker, then converts to a big-wheel that you can push her in, then finally a stand alone big wheel she can ride!!! We were happy but Mia was more happy just to play with the box!!! The rest of the night Mia was on and off that box having fun. She did fall off a couple of times but got right back on. That was HER box and she was happy. Adrian and I both got tons of presents too! I even finally got my huge soup pot that I have been wanting for YEARS! I am a soup monster and love cooking soups from scratch. The pot was so big Mia climb in it and sit in in it! haha

Soon it was bedtime and she refused to go to sleep. After Grandma attempted to sit with her and it didn't work, Daddy had to come to rescue. He always sits with her if shes upset and doesn't want to sleep. Soon he worked his Daddy magic and she was asleep.

The next morning I wanted to get an early start and visit my Brother and his family. Unfortunately, Mia had other plans and decided to sleep till 10!!! After 10 I finally woke the sleepy head up. She was bright eyed and perky and went right back to destroying her Grandparents house. After breakfast, I got her all dolled up in her Christmas outfit and off to her Nina and Nino's house we went.

Once we got there we were quickly greeted by everyone. Her Nina, Nino and cousins had not seen her since Aug. and were shocked on how big she has gotten. Her Nina commented on how much she looks like Adrian now. I agree shes his little clone!!! I quickly went to Baby Sophia and held her. We introduced Mia to her brand new cousin but all Mia cared about was running around, playing with her cousin April's Gabba guitar and dancing. I held Sophia so much while we were there, I couldn't put that little pumpkin down!! She was so cute and getting so big. Adrian held her alot too, hes an old pro now and loves to hold babies. Meanwhile, Mia got to play with her cousins.. especially her cousin April who is only alittle over a year older than she is. They shared toys and watched Gabba together. At one point, they were both sitting on the same couch together (one on each side) eating a bowl of goldfish crackers and watching Gabba. It was a priceless moment and I just had to take a picture. Tracy and Sarah were having fun as usual and we really got to catch up on things. April followed Mia everywhere... not really sure if it was because she was curious about her or that she wanted to make sure Mia didn't destroy her toys! haha. At one point Adrian followed them into April's room. He wanted to see if Mia would like April's crib and decided to put her in. BAD IDEA!!!! Mia started screaming because she thought it was nap time and April got upset saying "My bed My bed!!!" So he quickly took Mia out and they left the room haha. They later played in the playroom and had more fun. Then the chain reaction poopies happened! Sophia started it off. I was holding her then soon smelled that familiar smell!! I ran her over to her Mommy and went to help her change her then I heard a yell from the livingroom "Angie Mia went poopies too!!" Oh no! So I ran over and took care of my little one. Once Mia and Sophia were all set it was April's turn and sure enough she joined in and pooped herself!!! This all happened within 10mins of itself! It was crazy but really funny. We visited some more and I got to hear my second youngest niece, April sing her "Lady Bug" song. It was so cute I just kept making her sing it over and over again. Its a made up song that her big sister Sarah came up with and taught her. Its to the tune of "Ol Christmas Tree" and has to due with a little Lady bug that is loved. I wish I would have captured it on video it was too cute!!!

Unfortunately, our present time was delayed a tiny bit because my Brother had to take care of an urgent errund, however, once he came back we got to open presents again!!!! The girls LOVED what we got them for Christmas and it was awesome to watch their faces as they opened them up. Soon it was Mia's turn and after a tiny accident where she crashed into their TV stand she got to open her presents with the help of her Nina. She got a cute little bird that chips and can be used as a flashlight (she LOVES it by the way), a "little people" carnival set that spins and makes music and a tiny little snail blockset!! YAY!!!!

After visiting a bit more it was time to head out. We wanted to get on the road back home before too much traffic built up. Traffic + Mia = DISASTER! so we wanted to avoid as much as we could. We went back to my parents house to pack up the things we had there. We visited a bit more and checked the traffic report. Sure enough it didn't look to good. So we decided to kill 1 more hour before heading on the road, hoping it would get a little better. So we spent that time visiting. I still had Mia all dolled up in her Christmas outfit so we took some picture by the tree. She ate some dinner which included her Grandpa's famous Turkey and she ran around playing with her Grandparents. Soon it was getting late and it was time to go home. We said our sad goodbyes and on the road we went.

At first things seemed pretty good. Traffic was light and Mia was knocked out in the backseat, however, once we hit Pasadena we drove right into gridlock! It was horrible!!! and didn't let up for most of the way on the 210. Mia slept through a majority of it but soon woke up hungry and mad! I fed her some more snackies like a celery stick and cucumbers. It was too funny listening to her crunch in the backseat. When those snackies weren't cutting it anymore I turned on her DVD player. Thankfully it wasn't Gabba this time and was Baby Einstein. I love that show because it plays soft music and doesn't consist of yelling and screaming and loud noises. She watched the rest of the way and was happy.

Once we got home, I fed her some oatmeal and let her watch TV a bit until bedtime. She had a blast with her new little bird flashlight and was running around the dark parts of the house with it. Soon it was bedtime, and once she was in bed, Adrian and I spent some time together. I even got to open 1 present!!! He had bought me a nice bamboo trimmed caserol dish! Something I have been needing so bad!!! I cook so much now and presents like that really do come in handy! I was so happy and was eager to open more but decided to wait till morning.

Well here we are. Its Christmas Morning and I am the only one up. Mia and Adrian are still snoozing. I am about to climb back into bed but I think I will enjoy this quiet time a bit more. We are going to celebrate our own little Christmas after breakfast then we are zooming down to San Diego to spend time with Adrian's side of the family. I am sure I will have lots more to write about then. Till then...

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!!!!

Mia plays with her new friends at the park

Current mood: impressed

Today's weather was actually pretty nice out. It wasn't to cold and was actually warm enough to put Mia in short sleeves and shorts! Granted her shorts (which are 18months) turned out to be to small for her (I couldn't button them because of her little belly) so I put her in pants. Since the weather was so nice Adrian decided to take Mia to the park across the street to give her some fresh air.

I have only taken her a few times to the park since my surgery so it is always Adrian who takes her. I always love hearing all the little stories he comes home with and today was no exception.

So while he was there, this older man with his two young Granddaughters were there as well. They go to the park almost everyday. I have ran into them before and the girls are very nice. One is about Mia's age and the other probably around 5-6. They always like to come up to Mia and look at her and say hi, especially the older one. Well today Mia actually started to interact with them.

The older one was riding around on her scooter while holding a big stuffed animal rabbit. Mia would see her ride by and get all excited and scream and then start trying to chase her. Eventually the little girl saw Mia and stopped. Mia ran up to her all happy and just started jibber jabbering like crazy, as if she was carrying on her own conversation. She then reached out and started to pet the toy rabbit very softly. They girl kept saying how cute "the baby" (Mia) was and let her pet her rabbit. Then Mia would touch her scooter and get all excited. Eventually the girl would ride off but Mia was not far behind. She loved to chase her. Then Mia noticed the other little girl (the one around her age). She was eating a lollipop and Mia wanted it so she started to chase her. The little girl didn't want to share and started running away from Mia trying to get away. Adrian told the little girl to keep running because Mia was going to take away her lollipop and this scared her more!!! haha So Mia didn't get to really play with her, so instead she played in the dirt. She loves to throw the dirt in the air and watch it hit the ground. At one point she even tried to eat it and Adrian had to stop her. Soon she was covered in dirt and the older little girl said "Oh no! you got mud on your butt! you are going to have to take a shower when you get home!" haha I thought that was cute.

Overall Mia had fun at the park. She even jibber jabbered to the older man and he talked to her. Unfortunately he only speaks German so Adrian didn't know what he was saying haha. She later climbed the jungle gym and slid down the slide. She had lots of fun. Then it was time to go home. The little girls already left and it was getting late, however, Mia wasn't ready to go home just yet and put up a big fight. Needless to say it wasn't easy getting her back home and when they walked in the door Mia was screaming and crying haha Ah well... at least she had alittle bit of fun.

I shared this story with my Dad over the phone and he recommended that I write it down since it was a cute story. Especially since Mia made new friends!! I can't wait to take her to the park myself so I can see her interact with them... hmmm... maybe tomorrow??? I really want to see my little social butterfly ... errr... butterfly princess in action!

Week 75!

Current mood: exhausted

Happy Friday Everyone! and yet another week zooms right past us. I have alittle bit of time to write since Adrian just took Mia to the park across the street, however, I also want to fit in a nap during my "down time" so I need to hurry!!! EEEK!

This week started off with a big trip to Oxnard!!! We had not been to Oxnard since August so it was nice to go back again. The main reason for our little trip was to finally meet the newest addition to the Pizano family... little baby Sophia!! Mia's newest cousin. The car ride there wasn't as great as we had hoped it would be. Despite all our efforts in getting Mia extra tried so she could sleep on the road didn't work and I spent the later half of the trip balancing the laptop with my hands and shoulder and listening to Elmo scream in my ear!!! We didn't make any pit stops which as a first! Mostly because it was raining heavily and it was really cold. Once we got to Oxnard we dropped Mia off at her Grandparents house (she was still a tad bit under the weather and we didn't want to bring her around newborn Sophia). They had a blast with her while Adrian and I went to my brothers house to meet the baby. Sophia is so cute and so tiny! I just melted as I held her. Adrian got to hold her too and it brought back tons of memories of when Mia was that little. We had a nice visit and I got to see all my little nieces again which is always a treat. After awhile we left and headed back to my parents house. Mia was already sleeping in bed (which was shocking since she doesn't like to sleep in her pack and play) so we got to visit with my parents a bit. The next morning Mia was up bright and early. We all got to run around a bit and play until her nap time. When it was time to put her down to sleep her mood turned a completely 180! She started screaming and crying and fussing BAD! Finally I just had to walk out of the room and close the door behind me. After about 15 mins of constant screaming and crying we heard a loud boom!!! We didn't know what it was but Mia stopped crying soon after. When I went to get her up from her nap about an hour later, I found her out side of her pack and play!!! Thats right she climbed out! and ended up sleeping on the floor on some sheets next to the door! I felt so bad that had happened and that I didn't go checking on her. So of course we spoiled her some to make up for it. The rest of the visit went well with no big disasters. We even let her run around in the back yard a bit to burn off some energy. When it was finally time to go home she actually slept the ENTIRE time!!! That was a first in little Mia history! Adrian and I both were shocked but relieved! Wow what an adventure.

That was the big adventure this week. The rest of the week was pretty much spent at home. We did go out to the store a few times but nothing to big. Oh wait yes there was a big event. Mia got to meet Santa for the second time!!!! I almost forgot about that. We went to the Temecula Mall and had her picture taken with Santa. Unlike all the little kids her age before her, she didn't not freak out when it was her turn. Infact she just sat there like a pro and let her picture be taken. The only thing is she didn't smile, but we still got a good picture of her famous "Mia Stare"! haha She didn't try to pull off the beard either, I was afriad of that happening since she can tend to become rambuncious sometimes.

The week wasn't all good stuff though. Ever since the Oxnard trip she has been refusing to take her naps or go to bed at night with making a huge scene. She hates her crib now for some reason and one day she was so upset she actually fell out of it!!! Yep, thats the second time she fell out of her crib since we had it! It is on the lowest possible setting now but since Mia is tall her for age and a climber she is now learning to get out of it. I now have pillows lining up the whole bottom floor and we had to take out her bumper. That has also fueled her hatred for her bed. She now hits her head hard against the bars all night and is constantly waking up crying. Poor baby... I think its time to convert her bed soon... very soon!

Well thats about it for now. I need to get going, I don't have much time to catch some rest. If they get back without me getting a nap the rest of the afternoon will be awful!!! My eyes are already burning!!! YIKES!! Well I know I will have more stories to share very soon.. tomorrow is another weekend which means more time for adventures!!!

Uh-oh I think we got ourselves a little Raver on our hands!!! haha

Current mood: amused

For anyone who knows me, knows I am into all sorts of music. I have never been one to stick to just one type.. I often roam around and am pretty open to anything. Music has always had a big influence in my life and has gotten me through some pretty rough patches.

I was exposed to many different types of music growing up, from hard rock, metal, grunge, blues, folk, pop, punk, alternative, oldies, regge, R&B ... you name it. So I always felt Mia should be exposed to all sorts of music too so she can gain the appreciation for music like I have. (Adrian is also into different types of music as well, but his selection isn't as diverse as mine)

At one point in my life, I got really heavy into "rave" music. This was when I used to live with roomates that were hardcore "Ravers" back in my early college days. That phase didn't last too long for me but Adrian got into it and he still listens to it alot even now. It helps keep him stay awake on the long drives back home from work and helps him stay up for his over night shifts. Though I don't really listen to it much anymore, I still can appreciate some good songs and beats.

So ever since Mia was very small, even while she was a newborn I would play different types of music for her. Mostly soft soothing music at first, like classical, and slow songs. As she got alittle older I started exposing her to more music with different types of beats like Regge, Marenge, Salsa, Dance, Techno, Trance aka "rave" music and she seemed to like it. I can still remember sitting with her on the floor in the living room when she didn't even know how to crawl yet! She must have been alittle under 6 months old. I put the music channel on and we sat there and listened to some music together. Then a song came by Armin Van Buuren called "Love you more". It was a rave type song and right away she lit up and got so excited. She immediately took a shine to it and liked it. I memorized the name of the song so I could look it up on Youtube and play it for her again. Sure enough she liked it again. Unfortunately the music video is EXTREMElY explicit and I wouldn't want her to watch it when she gets older... actually I don't even care for her to watch it now.. but I can put the music on without the video. The song is pretty good, it has an pretty good dance beat to it and I like it too. I later told Adrian about the song and he was shocked that she liked one of his favorite DJs. He told me he listened to Armin Van Buuren alot!! I thought it was cute that Mia and Daddy shared a special little interest together. Well as time went on I had forgotten about that song..... until today.

Mia was getting kind of bored playing around and watching her shows. I was getting tired of hearing Elmo screaming and laughing every two seconds. Adrian was out BBQ'ing in the back and we still had some time to kill before bedtime. So I decided to put on some music. I didn't feel like putting on her current favorite song of all time "Billie Jean" by Micheal Jackson since we play that so much for her. I then suddenly remembered that Armin Van Buuren song. It has literally been almost a year since I have played it for her. I quickly looked it up on YouTube and found it!. I turned up the volume and played the video for Mia.

Right away Mia stopped what she was doing and started to dance. That little stiff legged dance she does. She really liked it and kept going and going. She didn't care to even watch the video (which is good because its way to explict for a 1 year old haha) and she just stood there dancing. After awhile she stopped and started to play with her toys.. every now and then she would stop again to dance. Then the song finished. I didn't think she would notice but she did!! She quickly ran back to the livingroom saying "Nooooo!!" "no no Noooo" Ran up to the TV and was upset. So I went back to the computer and turned it on again and right away she started to get happy and dance again. It was the CUTEST thing ever!!!! Again, after the song stopped she did the same thing again. She ran to back to the TV saying "noooooooo" so I had to play it again. I have no idea how many times she made me repeat the song but it was cute and funny at the same time, so I didn't mind. Plus it is a pretty cool song.

Well thats the story about my little Raver Girl! What a cutiepie... guess now I should go buy her some glow sticks! haha

Mia meets Santa for the Second Time!!!

Current mood: happy

We were finally able to take Mia to meet Santa at the mall today. We have been planning this FOREVER but things kept coming up. Today we didn't have any huge plans so we made meeting Santa a priority!

I got Mia all dressed up cute in her little Christmas outfit, which wasn't easy! what with the tights, bows, dress shoes, necklace, choonies, and dress! Sheesh! but in the end she looked like a total DOLL! and it was well worth the trouble.

Once we were all ready to go, off to the Temecula Mall we went. We weren't sure what kind of line awaited us but we hoped for the best. Last year the whole process took over an hour!!! however this year we lucked out. Since we went earlier in the day and earlier in the month (plus it being a work day) the line was actually pretty decent. We only had a few kids ahead of us. While we waited for our turn we got a kick out of watching all the little ones freaking out when they got up to Santa. This one little girl was all smiles and laughter in line and once it was her turn and her Mommy brought her to Santa she totally flipped out! She clung to her Mom for dear life as she screamed like she was being sacrificed!! Poor thing never did get a picture with Santa after all.

I was nervous that Mia would see all the little kids getting scared over Santa and it would make her scared too. Soon it was her turn and we didn't know what to expect. Since I was the one who brought her up to Santa last year, it was Adrian's turn to bring her to him this year. I was armed with my camera to take some video and pictures. She did suprisenly well! She just sat there and stared at the camera. We knew she wouldn't smile since she NEVER smiles for the camera. We just wanted her to at least look at the camera and she did. Once her photos were taken she looked at Santa. He talked to her a bit and we went up to get her. She wasn't afraid one bit. He then let her take a candy cane sucker and that made her happy. She walked off holding her Daddy's hand and we got back in line to pick up the picture. Mia was content just eating her sucker and made sure to get all the red sticky candy all over her Daddy's shirt. Once we bought our photo we shopped a bit then went home.

Overall I am happy with the results. Granted it would be nice to have had Mia smile and show of those cute little dimples but I am still happy with the way the picture came out. The look she gives is SOOOO a "Mia look" so I couldn't ask for anything better. Even if she did end up smiling it still wouldn't be "Mia-ish" haha I am happy everything went well and the day was great.

THUMP!!!!.... it happened again

Current mood: sick

Well it was bound to happen sooner or later, especially with Mia growing
like a weed, but she fell out of her crib again today!!! Sigh!!! I thought she had learned her lesson from falling out of her pack and play yesterday at her Grandparents house but I guess not... instead she now gained the know-how on how to escape!... ah well..

Today started off pretty normal. I actually got to sleep till 9 which I had not been able to do in almost 6+ months. Mia was pretty tired from the fun weekend so she didn't wake up as early as she normally does. I got her up, cooked her breakfast and we hung out watching TV and playing with her toys. When she began to get fussy I knew it was nap time. Last night, I went to bed with a slight sore throat that turned into a full on bad sore throat by morning, so I was eager to get her to take a nap so I could go back to bed and rest.

I let her climb up the stairs to her room and laid her down in her crib. She was fine until I walked out the door and thats when the protest began! She was screaming and crying but all I could think of was getting back in my warm bed again and cuddle up to Adrian who was still sleeping. I climbed into bed, turned on my heating blanket and got all warm and comfy. Mia was still screaming and hollering but I knew she would stop soon enough. I was just about to drift off to sleep when....

BAM!!!!!!! A huge thump rocked the house! Literally! I opened my eyes trying to figure out what that noise was.. then came the horrible scream! I knew in a instant it was Mia and that she fell out of her crib. I jumped out of bed with speed I didn't even know I had! I ran to her room, opened the door and sure enough there was Mia screaming and crying walking towards me. I picked her up and made sure she was ok and comforted her. Adrian soon walked in the room, he already knew what happened. I asked him what we should do now, she still needed a nap. He suggested he put her in bed with us and see if she would fall asleep. Something she has yet to do ever in her whole life!

I let Adrian take her while I investigated how in the heck she got out of bed. Turns out she used her crib bumper for leverage and to give her height so she could climb out. We still have the bumper in her bed because she is such a wild sleeper at night she is constantly bashing her head against the bars which makes her wake up screaming and crying. Well.. now that we know she knows how to use it to get her out of the crib, out the bumper went. I then grabbed all the extra pillows we had in the house and lined them up on the floor next her to bed along with all her big Carebears. I unplugged all her electronics and put socket covers on all the outlights. I then went into our room to hopefully catch at least some rest.. my throat was really hurting by then.

I crawled into bed with Adrian and Mia and of course Mia took one look at me and thought it was fun time. She was literally rolling around between us, kicking Adrian in the stomach, scratching his neck and face, and head butting me. Adrian and I took turns scolding her to "lay down" and "its mimi time!" When we tried everything and nothing worked we both knew it was time to put her back in her bed.

I was a bit nervous. Adrian has convinced me that without the bumper she won't be able to climb back out again... well at least until she grows about another inch or two. So I put her back in bed and of course she got mad and threw a fit. I left the room and went back to bed. Eventually she stopped crying and I figured she went to sleep.. thats when I finally relaxed enough to fall asleep myself.

It wasn't even 20mins before she woke up screaming and crying again. I was so frustrated by that time because I wasn't feeling good, had a bad night sleep and all I wanted to do is stay asleep for longer that 20mins! Adrian quickly picked up on my frustration and got up to take care of Mia while I got in another hour of sleep (which helped by the way)

The rest of the day was alright. She was a bit cranky since she didn't get a good nap. I just put her to bed alittle while ago. I am hoping she stays put. I heard her trying to climb again but she still hasn't been able to get over. I hope tonight goes well. All I know for sure is we need really consider converting her crib into a toddler bed now. We have a few ideas on how to redecorate her room so its completely baby proof once she does graduate.

Sigh... hopefully there won't be any more thumps tonight... I need rest!!!! haha

A fun trip to Oxnard AND we finally get to meet Baby Sophia!!!!!

Current mood: accomplished

We just rolled in about an hour ago from a very fun visit to Oxnard. We finally got to meet the newest addition to the Pizano family... Sweet Baby Sophia!!! It was amazing and lots of fun.

Adrian had taken Friday off from work so he would be well rested for the trip on Saturday. We were planning on getting Mia's picture taken with Santa but unfortunately she was under the weather. Her nose had been running for two days and by Friday it was really running, plus she was sneezing, had watery eyes and just didn't look so good. It had been storming bad for a couple of days so we knew the cold wasn't helping. So once we warmed up the house with the fireplace, heater, room heater, and bundled her up she did much better. We were concerned about taking her to Oxnard on Sat. but we were on a mission! We just HAD to meet her 3 week old cousin before more time passed. So we decided unless Mia was full on sick we would go up anyways and leave her with my parents while Adrian and I saw the baby. We really wanted to have her meet her new cousin too but couldn't chance it that if in fact Mia was sick we didn't want her to pass it on to the new baby.

So Sat. came and we packed up (which took HOURS! as always), Mia was 100% better than the day before, so we decided to brave the storm and head out anyways. Since Mia HATES long drives in the car and cries horribly after about 30-45 mins. we decided to try a new thing before we left. We kept her up and didn't let her take her usual morning nap, I gave her a hot bath before we left and fed her a big lunch. Things looked up, once we hit the road. We just went down the street to the nearest gas station and she already was OUT like a light. I was a bit concerned because we had not even hit the freeway and she was already sleeping! If you know Mia you know she is NOTORIOUS for cat napping and it doesn't take much for her to become rested and wide awake again. I tried to tickle her feet, calling to her and moving her and NOTHING woke that sleepy head up! So I gave up and just let her sleep. After the gas station, we were on the road again and made our way to the freeway.

The weather wasn't to bad in Riverside County but once we hit the county limits it started to POUR and didn't let up until we were in Oxnard. Mia did good at first, she slept all the way until NORCO which is only about 45mins away from our house. Then she woke up. She did fine for awhile then she started to get bored. I forgot to put her snacky pail up front with me and instead it was packed in the trunk!! OH NO!!! I then remembered the banana I had packed earlier in the back seat so I grabbed that and gave it to her. She ate most of it and smashed the rest into Adrian's jacket in the back seat. I then handed her toys one by one to try to distract her but that didn't last long. Soon she was really upset. I ended up splitting a bag of chips with her which is a RARE treat since I don't like giving her chips. Once the bag was empty, I was out of toys and food and ideas!!! We became desperate and busted out the laptop. Adrian had put some of her favorite TV show episodes on it just incase of an emergency like this one. I loaded up some Gabba for her and propped the laptop over my shoulder. Yes, I still had to hold it up and boy did my arm get TIRED!!!! That seemed to do the job. She enjoyed watching her Gabba, Elmo and other shows the rest of the car ride to Oxnard. She was content and happy again, but I on the other hand came into town with a sore shoulder and arm from balancing that laptop up!! haha

Once we drove into town we first stopped by my Mom and Dad's house. They were so excited to see Mia again, they greeted us at the door. Mia became very comfortable very fast. She was happy. A huge part was due to seeing her grandparents again plus she was finally out of the car. We had not made a non-stop Riverside to Oxnard trip in forever!!! I think it has only happened once in her history and it was when she was very little, almost newborn. She played with her Grandpa and Grandma while Adrian and I unloaded the car and set things up for her visit. Once she was all set we took off to my brother's house. Mia waved bye to us as we pulled away.

We made it to my brothers house in about 10 mins. Once we got there we were quickly greeted by my Sis in Law, Lauren. She looked GREAT for just having a baby. I am so envious of her, she bounces back from having kids like nothing!! Lucky girl!!! Then the the big moment came... we finally got to see Baby Sophia!! She was sleeping so peacefully in her little papasan chair. I couldn't wait to hold her. Once her Mommy got her up she put her in my arms and I instantly melted. I was in love!! She was so cute and so tiny!!!!! I couldn't believe how tiny she was and it really made me realize how HUGE Mia is!! I just held her in my arms and just enjoyed being with her. Soon my other nieces, Tracy, Sarah and little April came running around the corner to greet us. We all got to visit and enjoy the new little bundle of joy. Adrian got to hold her to and he loved it. It brought back so many memories of when Mia was a newborn. Wow how time flies. We had lots of fun. At one point Baby Sophia decided to get revenge for her Daddy for what Mia did to him, and yes she pooped on me while I was holding her (the same way Mia did to my brother when he held her as a newborn). Luckily it didn't leave her onesie but it was still pretty gnarly and LOUD! haha We quickly took her to the room and her Mama got her all cleaned up. She is so cute, what a little angel!!! Soon my brother got off of work and we got to visit with him too. It was so neat seeing how proud and happy he was of his newest little girl, actually both him and Lauren were beaming! It was a great visit. I wish we could have stayed longer but it was already two hours past Mia's bedtime and I wanted to get back to the house to check up on her and make sure the house was still standing!! haha

Once we got back we found out she was already in bed. My Mom and Dad said she was great and they all had a good time. She played with tons of their toys and just ran around. However, the night didn't end without her doing one shocking thing.

Whenever we are somewhere other than home and I need to change her diaper, I always use this little fold out black plastic liner thing to change her on. Well she ended up doing poopies and when my Mom asked her "Did you go Poopies" Mia quickly ran over and grabbed her little black changing linger! She has never done that before! She actually knew what "going poopies" meant and knew she needed to be changed!!!! Wow!!! Hmm... I wonder if potty training isn't to far in the future after all?!?!!

The rest of the night went fine. She never woke up once and really didn't even move because she was so worn out from the day. She only had a 30 min nap, played very hard with her grandparents and stayed up 3 hours past her bedtime.... ya she was pooped! She slept in her pack and play in my parent's spare room.

She woke up bright and early (7am) this morning. She was all rested. I got her up and went to change her but she didn't want her diaper to be changed. She started to fuss and cry and thats when my Mom and Dad heard her and got up to greet her. I was beat tired since I didn't end up falling asleep till 4am and got up at 7. So I was a zombie. Luckily my parents were there for the rescue and played and played with Mia while I rested. She did pretty good until she got tired and started acting up. She did her famous "Turtle" tantrum and my parents got to see a whole different side to her. Oh by the way I call it the Turtle tantrum because she reminds me of a turtle on its back when she does it. She will get mad at something, throw herself on all fours on the ground, flatted out on her belly like a belly flop, then slowly (literally in slow motion) roll to her back with her legs and arms up crying. Its really quite funny to watch and my parents got a kick out of it. They got to see it a few times too. Once she started to really act up I knew it was nap time. I had her say goodnight to my Mom, Dad and Adrian and walked her to the spare room. She laid down ok but started crying once I left. I went back inside to try to console her but when that didn't work and I knew she just wanted to get out and play I left the room and let her cry. I knew she needed a nap and the only way she would get it is if she cried herself to sleep. I went back into the livingroom were Adrian and my parents were. We all heart her screams and mad cries and waited for her to tire herself out. After about 15-20mins her cries got louder. I was going to give her another 10 mins before going back in there. Then we heard a HUGE bang. We all looked at each other confused, we couldn't figure out where it came from. We thought maybe it was her but we didn't hear anything again and figured it probably came from outside. She quickly stopped crying and we assumed she went to sleep. About alittle over an hour later we heard her cry again and thats when I got up to get her. I opened the extra room door and to my shock and horror she was standing there right in front of me on the ground!!!!! She had climbed/fallen out of her pack and play and slept on the floor on an old sheet in front of the door!! I quickly grabbed her, made sure she was ok, then checked the room. Luckily my Dad had baby proofed it the night before so she couldn't get into anything. I took her out into the livingroom and we all babied her. I felt HORRIBLE! for not checking on her and letting her sleep on the floor like that, and worse than that, not checking on her after hearing that bang since she ended up falling out of the pack and play. I broke my own golden rule of never assuming anything. Oh well, I made up for it though... we all babied her the rest of the day.

At one point, I took her out in the backyard to explore and play a bit. I did that because her Daddy had said the "byebye" word in front of her and she thought she was leaving and ran to the front door and said "byebye" for the first time!!! I couldn't just leave her hanging so I put her shoes and jacket on and took her outside with my Mom for a bit. She had a great time running around and picking up leaves. Once it got too cold I brought her back inside and she had her lunch. The rest of the afternoon was spent resting and resting up for our drive back home. Her Grandpa and Grandma had a great time catching up with her and us and playing. Mia had a blast and she even got to watch her Gabba show and even said "Gabba" for my mom.

Soon it was time to go so we packed up the car once again. We waited until Mia got sleepy and fussy before we actually left. We hoped she would fall asleep for at least most of the way before I would have to balance that laptop with my hand again. We said our sad long goodbyes and once again we were on the road. Mia knocked out after about 5 mins of driving. We knew for sure she would wake up again and be mad so we prepared for that. I had a big lunch pale of snackies for her and had the laptop ready and waiting. To our SHOCK! she actually slept the WHOLE time!!! Thats right!! for the first time in Mia history she slepted the whole way!!! We were so happy!

Once we got home Adrian woke her up and took her off the car while I prepared her dinner. After eating and watching TV for a bit it was off to bed she went.

Wow what a great weekend! We all had so much fun... the highlight of it all, of course, was finally being able to meet and hold my newest niece Sophia!!! I can't wait until Mia gets to meet her too!! Hopefully all the cousins can get together again and play real soon. Until then it is off to bed I go, my eyes are burning as I write this. Overall, it was a great weekend!! YAY!