Mia singing her favorite song! 8-28-10

Mia is still obsessed with the "We Will Rock You" song by Queen. We always hear her trying to sing along to it or even singing it by herself. I was finally able to capture it on video... though when she sees me she freezes up and stops singing... typical for Mia haha

Finally we get to go outside!

Current mood: accomplished

It has been so CRAZY/INSANELY HOT... errr.... SCORCHING! this whole week with the heat wave, that we haven't been able to really go outside. Today, however, the temp finally cooled down.. by ALOT! Infact it was in the low 80s!!! So we took full advantage of the break in heat.

Mid-afternoon Adrian mowed the lawn while Mia and I colored on the porch with sidewalk chalk. After the yard was done we made a trip down the road a bit to a brand new park they unveiled a few months back (ya its been too hot to check it out lately). It was so nice and modern. Mia LOVED it! They even had swings!!! No park in our area has swings so it was a nice treat for her.

She was only the on the jungle gym a few short mins and after sliding down the slide by herself once... she was ready for the swings (what she calls "weee weee") and she refused to get off of them. So Dada and I took turns pushing her and after we spent close to an hour pushing her we decided it was time to go. The sun was getting ready to set and Mama was getting hungry and tired.

So we had to take her off the swings... At first she didn't seem to mind but once her feet touched the ground she blew up and demanded that we put her back on "weeee weeee". Once her screaming and crying got worse, Dada picked her up and put her on the slide to distract her. Of course she didn't want to slide down and fought it, crying and screaming, the whole ride down. Once she hit the bottom she ran back to the swings.. UGH! haha So we knew it was time to go.

So we picked her up and put her in the car and off we went. She was NOT a happy camper. But the park was really REALLY nice so I can see us going back again real soon... well if the heat lets us!

Week 111

Current mood: energetic

Happy Friday Everyone!!! It's been one hot, Hot, HOT! week! With the temp. outside reaching near 110 (and getting unexpected thunder storms), its been CRAZY! So needless to say we have stayed indoors pretty much all week.

We heard about the impending heat wave ahead of time, and knew Mia would be on "lock down" all week, so Daddy decided to take her to visit her cousins in Sunny San Diego last Sunday before the brunt of the heat kicked in. It was a nice treat for all of us, Mia got to see her cousins again, Adrian got to visit with his Sister, nieces, Mom and brother while I got the whole house to myself. (Of course it wasn't to fun without my little family... but I got TONS of house cleaning done, and not to mention REST!)

Adrian and Mia had a great time in SD. Especially Mia who got to hang out with her cousins Natalia (6yrs) and Brianna (almost 5 yrs). She got to play with their toys, jump on their trampleen outside, ate special snackies her Tia made her, and even met their neighbors dog! haha Everyone was happy to see her again and she had a great visit.

Like I mentioned before, most of the week was spent hanging out indoors. Mia has been alittle restless to get out and play but has been pretty good. I keep her pretty entertained in the morning with her favorite PBS shows (like Clifford the Big Red Dog, Sesame Street, Word World and Between the Lions), plus I play with her and help her learn her ABC's which she is obsessed with lately. In the afternoon Dada takes over and its more fun time. So we have been lucky, we have been able to stave off cabin fever for her.

Yesterday was a big day for all of us. I had a baby ultra-sound appointment (which Mia could not attend) so her Grandpa Pizano came to visit for the day to help babysit her. She was so excited to see her "Grandpa-bug" again and they had LOTS of fun together. I have lots of stories about their visit together but you will have to read the previous blog! haha

Thats about it for the week. Luckily the heat-wave is over and it is starting to slowly cool down. This weekend is supposed to be really cool (for summer that is) so we might take Mia out to the park or at least outside to play a bit to stretch her legs and get some fresh air. I am sure I will have more stories to share! Till then, I am off to get the little munchkin out of bed!

Another fun visit with Grandpa Pizano

Current mood: accomplished

It's crazy how fast time flies by, a whole day has already passed me by and it literally only feels like hours!

Yesterday was a big day for us, Mia's baby brother had an ultra-sound appointment to make sure he is growing ok. I have been losing lots of weight (and am currently under my pre-pregnancy weight) due to my strict diet and the doctors were concerned. So they ordered an early ultra-sound to check up on him. Unfortunately, kids are not allowed in the ultra-sound room so we needed help with Mia. Of course her Grandpa Pizano jumped at the chance to see his little "Amazin' Mia" again and offered to watch her for us! YAY! That was a big treat for all of us, especially little Mia who is CRAZY about her "Grandpa-bug"

So my Dad got here early yesterday afternoon. Unfortunately, we are in a horrible heat wave so he was literally sizzling by the time he walked in the door. (And when I say HOT I mean 105+!) I keep the blinds closed to help keep out the heat, but I was keeping a close eye on the front yard to see when my Dad would pull up. Mia was also playing in the room with me and of course destroying everything I just cleaned up!

Once I saw the good ol' Celica, I told Mia "Look look its your Grandpa" She had been so excited about his visit since she woke up when I told her Grandpa was coming. She kept running around repeating "Grandpa Coming! Grandpa Coming!" So when the big moment arrived, she of course didn't know how to act, shy? happy? scared? We both greeted my Dad at the door and once she saw him she quickly ran about two feet away, and ran in circles about three times before she decided she wanted to hug him and be picked up! It was so cute!

They caught up a bit while I threw together a quickly lunch and got ready for my appointment. She was so happy to see her Grandpa she literally went NUTS!!! She showed off her ABC, counting and jumping skills! not to mention her ability to sing "we will we will rock yooooooooou!" haha They had lots of fun, especially "bouncey time".

I let her stay up a bit later than usual for her afternoon nap and soon that started to backfire on me. She became moody and whiney and it didn't take long before she was off to bed! haha Adrian and I left a short while later to our appointment.

While we were gone, Mia slept for about an hour and a half. Once she woke up, Grandpa got her and fed her a HUGE lunch! She was a good girl and ate all her food without a single incident (which is surprising since its always a battle to get her to eat). They played a bit more and we came home a short while later.

When I walked in, Mia was going nuts jumping on the guestbed (she LOVES to do this) and screaming! You can tell she was having a blast! We all then went into the livingroom area and I started on some dinner.

Mia kept her Grandpa on his toes the entire time, making him hold her toys, sharing her "A C's" (her little ABC magnets shes obsessed with) and playing "horsey". She even learned how to say "ready..... set.... go!!!!!" It was really cute to watch them play. The only bad thing that happened was, after I made some salsa she touched the knife I was using then rubbed her eye and got chili in her eye!! OH NO!!!! We quickly took her to the bathroom and we cleaned her up and she was fine.. phew!!

The rest of the night was spent playing some more. After dinner (Grandpa made her a quesadilla) it started to get late but Mia wasn't ready for bed just yet. She was having to much fun with Grandpa! Infact she would never let him out of her sight, she would cry with tears! everytime he went to use the restroom or went to the car to get something.

It got later so I put on her jammies and got her ready for bed. All three of us played on the guestbed a bit more then it was off to bed. She REFUSED to let me take her to bed and demanded that Grandpa do it!! So my Dad took her to bed and stayed with her until she fell asleep.

We all felt sad that the day had gone by so fast but we had lots of fun together. It was an overall GREAT day! The next morning my Dad had to leave bright and early, even before Mia woke up, so it was sad to say goodbye and see him leave. Mia just woke up a few mins ago (I can hear her chatting on the baby monitor) so I am off to go get her up. I wonder how the morning will be, I know for sure she will be looking for her "Grandpa-bug" and will be really sad when she can't find him. (after a visit, everytime, she will check every room and call to him... its so heartbreaking) Hopefully I will be able to distract her with some breakfast and her favorite.... milk!!! Wish me luck!

A fun time with her Cousins

Current mood: happy

The older Mia is getting the more we want her to be around more family and friends. She seems to really enjoy interacting with kids and since we are so isolated out here in Riverside, the interaction is very minimal. Poor thing has to make friends with kids she doesn't even know in the stores Daddy brings her too. Like this little Asian girl she met at Staples the other day, they both were around the same age and ended up being best friends (I have no idea where the girl's parents were) but Mia and her walked around the store together, even held hands!! and shared toys. It was really cute.

Anyway, so yesterday Adrian decided to bring her down to San Diego to see her cousins Brianna and Natalia. I have TONS of house cleaning to do (which isn't easy to do since I am now 8 months) so I took the chance to have the house to myself and really clean up and get some much needed rest. Goodness knows that I can't get ANYTHING done with the little Mia-Monster running around.

So Dadda got up early, I packed her diaper bag and off they went to San Diego. From what Adrian said she had a BLAST with her cousins.

At first he said that her older cousin Natalia (6yrs) was a little hesitant in sharing her toys or playing with Mia but after seeing her younger sister Brianna (4yrs) (and who ADORES Mia ever since she was a baby) play with her and share toys she quickly warmed up and the three girls played in their room together.

Soon all of them were screaming and playing and having fun together. They jumped on the trampleen in the backyard, played with the neighbors dog (even though they weren't supposed to haha), and had lots of goodies her Tia Rebeca made them. Her Grandma Santos stopped by as well and got to really catch up with Mia.

Most of the day was spent running around and having fun together. Adrian and Mia spent the whole day down there and when it was time to go, Mia was so pumped up she didn't even sleep in the car!! Instead she made Dada sing "We will rock you" all the way home!! haha

Once she walked in the door I kneeled down and she ran to me with the biggest smile on her face and gave me a big hug and told me all about the "bouncey". It was the cutest thing. I know she had lots of fun. I put her to bed a short while later and she still couldn't stop talking about the "bouncey" (the trampleen).

I know once we are back in San Diego she will be able to visit Natalia and Brianna some more and even more cousins. I am looking forward to that, she seems to have lots of fun.

Week 110

Current mood: sick

Happy Friday Everyone! Its that time again... blog time!!!!

Well this week went by extremely fast! I can't believe its Friday already! The week started off fun, we took a quick turn-a-round trip to Oxnard to take care of some things. While we were there we dropped Mia off at her Nina and Nino's house to spend some time with them and her cousins. She had an absolute BLAST!!! She went nuts! They have never seen her come out of her shell like that before, she was all over the place. I am glad to see that she is comfortable enough to be her crazy self in front of others and is comfortable at her Nina/Nino's house.

I have also realized how much she wants to be like her Mama. She is constantly trying to copy me and do/wear things I do. Including my maternity belt, clothes, and bra! Haha She even watches me take my blood sugar test and always takes her toy and says "Ouchie" as she tries to prick herself in the finger! haha Shes so cute!

She ate her first bug this week too, an Ant! And she is still tramatized by this. If you ask her "What happened to the bug" she will answer "Bug.. Mouth!" and point to her tongue!

Well I need to get going, my lunch isn't agreeing with me right now so I need to go lay down. That pretty much sums up the week, I am sure I will have more stories to come

Mia ate an Ant!!!!! EWWWW!!!!!

Current mood: amused

I don't know what it is lately, but Mia has regressed like she is 6 months old again, in the fact she wants to put everything in her mouth!!! I am not sure what brought this on but its very annoying when she puts things in her mouth that are gross... like today!

I had just returned home from a baby doctor appointment and after being greeted by an overly excited Mia "Mama!! Mama!! Mama!!" I sat and chatted with Adrian abit about the appointment. Mia sat on the floor between us (I was sitting on the floor as well, Adrian was on the couch). As I was talking to Adrian I saw Mia playing with something on the ground. She picked it up with her fingers and said "bug! bug! bug!" I noticed it was ant, (a bug she really doesn't like much) but ignored her since I figured once it started to crawl on her she would put it back down.. WRONG! Instead she looked at it and then put it in her mouth!!! GROSSS!!!

I screamed!!! "AHHH MIA NO!!!!" Adrian jumped up because he didn't know what was going on and Mia started to panic! I am not sure if it was because she realized there was a "bug" in her mouth, if it was crawling around in it, or if it was hot (I have been told ants are spicy!) but she quickly ran to me with her tongue sticking out!!! I tried to wipe it but she kept trying to get it out of her mouth. Of course there was no way I would be able to locate the bug and all I needed was for her to panic more and induce vomiting so I tried to tell her it was ok and the bug was gone. She didn't believe me and ran to her Dada with her tongue sticking out trying to lick him to get it out of her mouth. She was still scared!! So I called her back to me and checked her mouth again, I knew unless she saw some hard evidence the bug was gone she wouldn't stop... so I found a piece of black lint on the ground and picked it up without her noticing. I then quickly showed it to her and said "see bug gone!" and threw it away. This seemed to convince her that the bug was gone and she settled down, but for the rest of the morning she kept saying "Bug! Mouth!" and pointed to her tongue!! Haha

Well I hope she has learned her lesson not to put everything in her mouth! Especially bugs!!!

I want to be like my Mama!!!!

Current mood: adored

At first, I didn't think much of it, but the more I share certain stories of what Mia is doing the more comments I get that she wants to be just like her Mama. I really didn't believe it at first, but now that I really look at what she is doing it makes sense.

It all started a few months back when I noticed that she always wanted to wear my bra!! Whenever she found one she would say "Bra Bra!" and try to put it on. One day I actually put it on her to see what she would do and she was so happy! She was walking all around all proud of herself. Now it has gotten to the point to where if she sees me getting dressed she instantly demands my bra, if I don't give it up she will say "My Bra! My Bra!" and get really upset. Now I always have to make sure I have a spare bra around whenever I get dressed in front of her.

Also, she does this with my maternity belt. Whenever she finds that she DEMANDS "Belt!" and makes me put it on her. If she finds me wearing it she starts throwing a huge fit and cries "my belt!!! pleaaaase! please please please my belt!" Of course I am wearing it for a reason (usually her baby brother is hurting my stomach) so I can't just take it off and give it to her. So now I have to hide it or not show her I am wearing it. However, she always manages to find it anyways and makes me put it on her. Today she found it, made me put it on her and then looked at my tummy to make sure I was wearing one too! I told her there was only 1, and she seemed pretty sad about this. She wanted to match. Eventually she walked away wearing my belt and didn't take it off till the afternoon!!!

She always wants to eat what I am eating and if we are eating breakfast together in the morning she refuses to start eating until I sit down with my egg and eat with her. Sometimes she finds my clothes and tries to put them on too! She mimics my mannerisms and just tries to me like me.

Again, I didn't realize this at first till Adrian pointed it out. Then a few others did as well once I told them the stories. Adrian mention how she never does that to him. She doesn't care about wearing his hat, glasses, or anything that belongs to him. She only wants my stuff. I think its pretty cute... didn't know that she could look up to me at such an early age! I feel so loved!

A Quick Trip to Oxnard!

Current mood: amused

Ahhh..... sooooooo..... tired! We did a quick turn-a-around trip to Oxnard yesterday to take care of some stuff. The best part is we got to see my Brother and his family and for the first time EVER (other than when my Dad comes to our house to watch Mia for us) Mia was babysat somewhere besides home or my parents house!! Thats right, while we ran our errand we dropped Mia off at her Nina and Ninos house with her cousins and she had a completely blast with them. Even "a blast" doesn't quite describe the level of fun she had!

When we first got there we weren't sure how she would react. She is usually pretty shy, but we hoped that since we had just seen the family alittle over a month ago for her birthday that she would warm up fast... and she did!!! Right away once she got into the house all her little cousin's greeted her and it wasn't long before that house became filled with toys all over the place. Mainly, her best buddy April (3) was dragging out toys for them to play with. Mia loves all her cousins but since April is the closest in age to her, and when those two are together they always become inseparable. Soon she didn't even care we were there and was too busy running around and joining the fun.

Unfortunately, when we arrived her youngest cousin Sophia (8 months) came down with an unexpected fever! OH NO! So she was in the back bedroom with her Mama. Mia actually noticed her absence and kept asking for "Baby? baby?" We all thought that was so cute. Thankfully, it wasn't long before the fever was under control and she made an appearance. Mia was happy to see her and was back to playing toys with her cousins.

Then Adrian and I decided it was time to leave for a few to take care of some things. We figured Mia was pretty adjusted and wouldn't even miss us, WRONG! She picked up on us leaving right away and right away was trying to follow us out of the door and started to get upset. OH NO!! So her Nina and Nino and cousins managed to distract her by taking her to the other room while we snuck out! haha

We weren't gone to long and when we came back the whole house was alive with laughter and fun. They had told me that Mia was going nuts! and having so much fun. Her Nino chased her and her cousins all around and they even placed hide-and-seek. He said he had never seen her get so excited and cut loose like that before. She was literally screaming and running full blast all over the house! Her cousin Sarah (7) managed to really get her going and soon she was dancing and bouncing all over the floor. Her oldest cousin Tracy (10) also helped make Mia excited by tickling her and bouncing on the couch. My brother then showed me a quick video he took of all of them playing and boy it was loud and rowdy! He was right, Mia was going nuts and having a GREAT time screaming, jumping and laughing! We were so happy to see she was so comfortable there.

We visited a bit and Mia never slowed down. At one point all the adults were sitting in the family room and Mia came running out from behind the chair her Nino was sitting in, and just started screaming and running full blast across the room and into the livingroom and back. Then she would laugh, throw herself on the floor and stick her leg up! As we all looked at her shocked and laughing, she ran around full blast again and was screaming at the top of her lungs, it was the funniest thing to watch.

Most of the time spent there she again was with her cousin April, playing in her room. I found them once going through her toy box and sharing toys together while chatting. I thought it was cutest thing to watch the cousins playing with each other. Another time Adrian said he went in there to check on them and both of them were playing in this tiny tent just chatting with each other and playing. He then asked April if she liked her cousin Mia and he shook her head yes! Then he asked if she wants him to bring Mia by more often and she shook her head yes! haha how cute is that! What I found cutest is every now and then I could hear April calling to Mia to come with her or to see something and Mia go running over!

Overall the visit was great. We wished we could have stayed longer but we had to go. I can't wait to make another trip up there, hopefully soon. Getting the cousins together like that is so much fun and I know Mia really enjoys her self.

Week 109

Current mood: exhausted

Ugh.... sooooo..... tired! Between Mia and her brother I am seriously exhausted! But I am here to review her week anyway, a Mama's work is NEVER done haha!

Actually this week was pretty mellow, THANKFULLY! My pregnancy tiredness has really come back so we haven't gone out as a family much. I spend every ounce of free time sleeping pretty much. However, we did go to a couple of places to shop but thats about it. All I know is that it is getting harder and harder to keep Mia in the cart! She always wants down so she can run around.

The main thing that happened this week was Mia turned 25 months old!! WHOOHOO!! oh and WHOOHOO is her new expression haha. She will lift her hand in the air and go "Whoohoo" when she is really happy haha, I think she gets that from Mama!

She has learned how to say her baby brother's name "Alex" which I think is super cute. What is even cuter is when you ask her "Where is baby Alex?" and she will point at my tummy! I hope she still likes him when he gets here! haha

She is getting better at her alphabet and can repeat almost the entire thing when you say it along with her. She has added a few letters that she actually knows and recognizes to her list as well like "I, E, Z". I am so proud of her.

Well thats about it for the week, I know I know this is pretty short but again I am really tired! haha

25 Months Old!

Current mood: happy

Wow this month went by really fast. It just seems like we were celebrating Mia's 2 year birthday! Now shes 25 months! Goes to show you, time never stops speeding up... before I know it she will be running around here with her little brother chasing her!! ACK! Overall the month has been good. Many new experiences and things happening. She has definately started her 2nd year with a bang!

SUMMARY:

Mia celebrated her 2 year birthday in Oxnard at her Nina and Nino's house with her cousins, and grandparents and us.

She got a Foofa cake which she still talks about

She got to jump in her very own "Jump for Joy" at the party

Mia is becoming a hand-full when we take her to Toys R Us now since she wants to play with EVERY toy there and refuses to leave isles

She has a new "Queen" song she likes: "Flash" she sings along and says "Trash.. AAHHH"

She is starting to sing along to songs played on her radio, and sings many lyrics to the song "If I ever fell in love" -Beatles as long as Dada sings with her

She helped celebrate her Dada's 30th birthday

We took Mia to her very first company picnic for HP employees and we ALL got ROASTED from the 105 heat!

Mia took her first shower!

Mia went to Incredible John's Pizza Co. for the first time

She rode her first fast roller coaster and played many games

Grandpa Pizano came down for a week to visit!

She got to play in the pool in the front yard and almost got blown away by a tornado! haha

She no longer sleeps in her bed for naps, and usually sleeps on the floor behind her door

Mia peed on the guestbed! Oh no!!!

She has learned to BLARE the volume on her radio in her room and turn on and off her fan

I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes, and she knows when I need to test my blood. She will say "blood" and follow me to my mete and goes "Ouchie!" when I prick my finger

The house is being invaded by Ants and Mia scouts for them and said "Oh No! Bug! Bug!"

She went to her little friend "Abby"'s 2nd birthday party. It was a Gabba theme!

She went to her 2 year check up at the doctors! and got to wear her very first hospital gown!

She is starting to pretend more

SHE COUNTED TO 10 ALL BY HERSELF!!!

She now asks with "please" which sounds like "peace!" haha

She eats gummie vitamins now and calls them "candy"

GOALS MET FROM LAST MONTH?
WHOOHOO! She has met her goals for this month. She is starting to eat lunch buckets if her Dada feeds them to her... of course its a battle but she will tolerate some of them. TV is not the main thing in our day anymore, we do play without having the TV on and she does play by herself more. She does eat at the table now, no longer in the livingroom AND she is saying a whole lot more words!

GOALS FOR NEXT MONTH?
If the weather permits, take her to the park more. Add more letters to her vocabulary (so far she only knows A, B, C, D, R, W, Y). Add another meal item to her menu.

Week 108

Current mood: productive

Happy Friday Everyone! Well what is left of it, in 30 mins it will be Sat. Ya I am up a little later than usual but I have been running around like crazy trying to take care of things.

Well this week has been definately one full of fun and surprises. We started off the week with a fun trip to San Diego for Mia's friend Abby's 2nd birthday party! It was a Gabba themed party so you KNOW she had a blast! She had lots of fun eating candy and cupcakes and she even got to play a party game. She also got to bash the Brobee Pinata, but she still cried when we took away the stick. There was one tiny incident that did happen where her and Abby ended up in the ice bucket! but you will have to read that blog to hear more details on that hahaha. Anyways she came home with all kinds of different treats from candy, to prizes (her favorite is a set of little tiny ponies, she LOVES those), and Foofa decorations! We had a blast and can't wait to get the kids together again.

She also had her 2 year check up this week. We really didn't think she was due for any shots but low and behold, they sprang a new one up on us! GRRRR! But Mia took it like a champ, like always, and was treated with a lollipop afterwards! The whole check up went great (other than battling her to take off the gown they had her dressed in) and shes right on track with everything. She now weights 29 lbs and is 2'11! We are so proud of her.

The BIGGEST thing that happened this week was she counted to 10 all by herself for the first time! I am still shocked by this and it wasn't a fluke thing either because she has done it at least 2 more times since then. She loves to count and to count things, especially when she is jumping! I love my little smart girl so much! Mind you, when she counted she did it completely on her own with out being asked and without copying. Now she is moving on to her alphabet. She can now point out and recognize the following letters: A, B, C, D, R, W and Y. Infact yesterday I was wearing my "Baby" shirt and she pointed at every letter one by one and said it, B-A-B-Y! She is growing up so fast!!!

Mia counts to 10 all by herself!!!!

Current Mood: Shocked!

Holy Cow!!! Is all I can say! Mia never ceases to amaze me! She truly is, what her Grandpa Pizano calls her, "Amazin' Mia!". Today she counted to 10 all by herself!! No she wasn't repeating what I was saying, or copying, or anything like that. She did it alone, and completely by herself! Granted she has been attempting to count since she was 20 months old (she repeated Elmo from 1-7) but never has she counted on her own with zero encouragement!

Recently she has grown more and more interested in the concept of counting and counting things. I have always tried to incorporate some sort of counting during our daily routines and she loves it. She has counted to 10 but its always when I do it with her. Well today was completely different!

It happened right after her nap. Both Adrian and I were in her room chatting on her bed. Mia was running around playing with toys and just doing her own thing. Then Adrian and I really got into our conversation and weren't really paying much attention to Mia. I had my leg hung over the bed and before I knew it, Mia tried to straddle it as if it was a horse. Then she started to bounce up and down. I was ignoring her, not purposely, but I was really into my conversation with Adrian. I could hear her playing in the background (you know a Mama never truly takes 100% attention off of their kids) and sure enough I started hearing her count!

It caught my ear right away since she rarely gets past 3 when she counts alone.

"5....6.....7..."

Now my attention was fully on her. I looked at Adrian and we both had the shocked look on our face and were thinking the same thing, "Is she going to count all the way to 10?" We also knew not to bring attention to it since Mia tends to get shy and stops whatever she is doing if you bring attention to her.

"8...9..."

"Go Mia Go!" I was cheering her on in my head!

"10!!!!"

I sprang up so excited! I couldn't believe I just heard her count all by herself for the first time! I went to hug her but of course she got mad. She didn't want the attention and ran off. Oh well... at least she isn't a big ham! haha

I am so proud of her!!! She is growing up so fast and before my eyes. She barely turned 2 less than a month ago and she can already count to 10!!!

Whats next?! The alphabet. I have semi been working with her on this only recently. She has little magnets with the letters on them that she loves to play with so everyday I teach her a new letter. To my surprise she does retain whatever I taught her the day before. Before I started doing this she already knew and could point out and recognize the letters "C, R, and Y" (I give Elmo and Between the Lions credit for those) but now she can say, recognize and point out "A, W, and B"!! I am so proud of my little munchkin!!

The invasion continues

Current Mood: Antsy

Ugh! Its official, we are being invaded by ants! Ants, Ants, Ants ... EVERYWHERE! Where we kill them, a ton more will pop up in another location in the house. Its so frustrating! The only amusing thing about the invasion is Mia's reaction to them!

We had a BAD and I mean BAD! ant problem last year but Mia was to young to notice or remember. This year has been getting worse and worse and now Mia sees them. She likes to look at them but as soon as they get on her she panics! She comes running to me all worried saying "oh no! bug bug bug!" and makes me take them off of her and kill them. Now she knows not to mess with them but instead tell Mama if shes finds some. So shes my little ant informant haha.

Today the invasion crossed the line! They ended up in her room!!! Mind, you they are not getting food since we have ZERO food upstairs (due to our horrible outbreak last year we have learned!) but they still scout around looking for food or water. I am not talking about a couple of scouts either! They send in TONS of scouts, its horrible. Anyway, I went to put Mia down for a nap this afternoon. She was a bit wound up so I let her play in her room for awhile, while I laid on her bed.

After playing, she grabbed some blankets and made herself comfy on the floor next to the door (something she has started doing lately and I have no idea why). All of a sudden she sprang up and said "Bug! Bug! Bug!" I quickly sat up and asked her "Show Mama! Wheres Bug?" she pointed at her bed! I quickly jumped off and searched and sure enough there were about 10 or so ants crawling on the bottom part of her mattress!! "Bug! Bug!" she kept saying as I squished all that I could find. I searched all around and didn't find anymore. I laid back down in the bed but Mia was up and running around searching for more ants.

Shes into a new thing, she pretends alot so she started to pretend she found some ants and would grab them, and put them on a box nearby. I watched her do this, thinking it was pretty cute, and she seemed to be enjoying herself... I slowly closed my eyes and started to relax. Then all of a sudden the alarm went off again, she said "Bug! Bug! Bug!". I thought she was just pretending to see them again but she refused to stop saying it and when I wasn't reacting to it she had to take drastic measures. She saw them on the baby monitor and unplugged it and walked it to me saying "Bug!" sure enough a tiny black ant was running all over it! So I squished it and started to search the box where she was playing. Sure enough more ants! I squished those and really checked the rest of the room. I haven't seen anymore but man they are annoying.

So the invasion continues .... ugh! I am sure I will hear "Oh-no! Bug Bug Bug!" again tomorrow haha

2 Year Check Up

Current mood: sleepy

Well its that time again... Mia's annual doctor's visit. We were supposed to have her scheduled near her birthday but the office couldn't get us in until last week. Then my doctor's appointments interfered with her appointment so we had to reschedule her ... again. Today was the big day, with nothing to get in our way or make us reschedule again it was off to the doctors we went.

Before we went, since her appointment would be late afternoon, I decided to have her lay down for an early nap. Well that didn't work out to well ... I could hear her running around and playing in her room for almost an hour!!! Eventually the room grew quiet and I knew she fell asleep. Unfortunately, her playing ate into most of her nap time so we couldn't let her sleep to long. We tried to put off waking her up as long as possible but when it got later and later we decided it was time to wake her up.

I slowly walked into her room, to find her on a big pile of her blankets on the floor, completely asleep. I slowly woke her up and right away she wanted to cuddle. I wanted to cuddle her so bad but by then we were already racing the clock. Her doctor's office way out in ....Moreno.. ..Valley.... (25-30 mins away) and traffic is always a wild card. So I got her up and with the held of Dada we changed her diaper, dressed her and out the door we zoomed. I had packed her a lunch for the road so she munched on her cheerios as we drove there.

She has had the same baby doctor since she was born. His name is Dr. Brusch and hes awesome. Unfortunately, at her 18 month check up, the doctor was out and we had to go to a stand-in, but today he was there... YAY! She has not seen him since her 12 month check up over a year ago! They were doing some small remodeling to the doctor's office but we still found our way and checked in.

The place was PACKED ... I guess Monday's are the worst days to have appointments. The waiting area as jammed with coughing, sick kids. We couldn't wait to get out of there. Soon it was our turn and they called her name.

Dada carried her in while I carried in all her stuff! She just HAD to bring both her chicken and Brobee with her. As soon as we walked in they had us weigh her, and for the first time she got to use the big people's scale! That was bitter sweet for me to watch, she no longer sits in the baby chair scale but now has to stand on the big people's scale all by herself!! She did good for the most part, but the scale was taking FOREVER to measure her weight! Eventually we got our result, and she is 29 lbs! (I could have sworn she weight ALOT more since she is so HEAVY!) Next, the measured her height and had to learn up against the measuring stick on the wall. She did really well with that as well and is one inch shy of 3 feet!!!! Yep, shes 2'11! She just need to grow one more inch and two feet before shes my height! YIKES!!! hahaha. After that, the nurse took her vitals and measured her head and brought us back to the room to have her undress.

Another first happened in the room. She got to wear her very first hospital gown!! We have never had to have her dressed in one before. She didn't want to put it on at first but after she got it on and tied she fell in love with it!!! It was the cutest thing to see!!!

She didn't want to be left on the examination table so Dada had to lean on it with her. Still munching her cherrios, she destroyed the paper covering and put hand prints all over the mirror! haha Soon she began to relax and was literally laying down on the table acting silly. Then the door opened and the doctor came in.

Right away Mia got shy and wanted ....Adrian.... to hold her. The doctor was happy to see us and we updated him on how well Mia has been doing and the fact she is going to be a big sister soon! We chatted a bit then he asked if we had any questions for him. I did had a few. I commented (again... almost ever visit since before she was one I have brought this up) on the tiny red blotch she has on her right cheek. It has been there since her very first excema breakout back when she was only a few months old. Its barely noticeable but I know its there and I refused to take the answer of excema from the doctor (its the same answer I get EVERY time and I know its not since I am an expert on the condition since I have it myself, Adrian has it, and Mia has had it). Finally he agreed it may not be excema but still nothing I should be concerned about. It may fade over time or it just as well might be a birth mark or irritation. Only time will tell but its nothing to be worried about. My other concern was her finger sucking and how and when to stop it. He said its not a big deal until after 3-4 and only then could I make efforts to curb it since I will be able to reason with her more. The other issue was her teeth. Adrian and I are not sure if its due to the finger sucking but it seems that her two front teeth stick out slightly more than the rest of her teeth. I wanted to know if that was a result of her finger sucking since neither ....Adrian.... nor myself have teeth like that. He said only a dentist could really answer it but he doesn't think so. He said thumb sucking is worse and can cause that to happen but since its her fingers and she sucks them with palm down rather than palm up (like thumb suckers) that shouldn't be the reason, but again only a dentist could really answer that. My last question was her tiny lisp. Ever since she learned how to talk she talks with a slight lisp. He chuckled a bit and said it was completely normal and that his own 4 year old daughter has it as well, and both will grow out of it in time. YAY!!! All our questions were answered.

He then asked a few questions regarding her development and shes right on target with everything. He commented that her weight is very good and that both her weight and height are in the 75%. Then came her head size and before he read the number he stopped himself and said what every doctor who has seen her before says with regards to her head ... "well umm.... well you know she already has a large head... but its growing normally" Adrian and I smiled and said what we always say to that comment "well it just means she houses a big brain!" and its true she is so smart! He never gave the actual measurement but from her 12 month check up we know it was already way off the chart.

After all his questions were answered it was examination time. Mia did awesome with that! She never cried once but she did give him a dirty look the whole time. The only thing she struggled with a bit was when he wanted to check her mouth with a tongue despensor. ....Adrian.... had to step in and help open her mouth because she refused to but he did a quick look and stopped. Again she never cried! What a big girl.

After her physical exam was done we chatted some more. He said she wouldn't need to come back to see him until she was 4 years old! YAY!!!! however, we did mention we are relocating back to ....San Diego..... We told him we wouldn't want to change her doctor and would be willing to travel to see him. He was happy to hear that but knows its unpractical since ..Moreno.. ..Valley.. from ....San Diego.... would be almost a 2 hour drive! So he gave us some personal referrals for doctors in ....San Diego...... YAY!!! He then gave us some parenting tips on how to treat Mia after the baby is born and to be aware she may regress a bit but only for a short while until she is fully adjusted to the new baby. That was about it, and he said his goodbyes and off he went.

We were not in the clear yet... unfortunately, they added ANOTHER vaccine to the schedule just recently so yep we were ambushed with another shot!! We weren't expecting this since she is fully caught up but since we are no longer rookies to doctor's visits we brought a lollipop with us just in case! So before the nurse came in with the shot ....Adrian.... and I were already developing our plan on what and how we would handle this. We decided to dress Mia so we wouldn't have to fiddle with putting on her clothes after she got her shot. So we attempted to remove the gown but Mia would have no part of it. She protested and screamed when we tried to take it off!! Oh-No!!! So we had to compromise with her. We took off the gown, put her shirt back on, then put the gown back on. She screamed so loud when we took off the gown that you would think she got the shot already!!! but once she had the gown back on she was happy... then the nurse walked in... and right away SHE said "Uh-Oh"

They had us lie her down on the table. ....Adrian.... busted out her lollipop and I took it the wrapper off and hid it behind my back. Then the nurse took out the shot and did the deed! Right away Mia started to cry, not really bad but she was getting there. Thats when ....Adrian.... (like a doctor asking for a scalpel) asked for the lollipop and once she saw that she perked up and stopped crying. YAY for candy!!! We got her shorts back on and off we went. Mia was so happy to have a "candy" that she didn't even care about her shot anymore.

We left the room and thats when I realized they forgot to give us her updated immunization card! Oh-No! So we asked the nurse for one and she said she would print it out and give it to us but it would be a few mins. So out back into the germy waiting room we went.. YUCK!!!

I had to get a couple of blood tests done so I took the chance to get them done while we were waiting. I left Mia and Adrian in the waiting room as I zoomed off to the lab. I got my blood drawn and later met up with Adrian and Mia again so we could head home. Both Mia and Mama had "ouchies" haha

Mia did great on the car ride home. After eating her lollipop she munched on a nectarine. Once we got home she remained in good spirits till about her bed time. Thats when she started to cry for everything. I know it was the combo of the shot and having such a horrible nap so I put her to bed early. After protesting that a bit she finally gave in and went to bed.

Though I don't think Mia will have a bad reaction to the shots, since we have been so VERY blessed thus far that she never does, I don't think we will have a bad night. But you never know... one thing I learned as a new parent is you never say never!! haha So we will see. Hopefully she will sleep well and we all will have a good day tomorrow. ....

Mia's friend Abby's 2nd Birthday Party

Current mood: amused

Mia has a good friend named Abby. Her Mom and Dad used to work with Adrian at EDS/HP and I later met them through playing the online video game called World of Warcraft together. Abby's Mom and I became even closer friends once we found out we were pregnant around the same time. Since we were both first time Mama's and had NO idea what was in store for us we constantly shared thoughts, feelings, and worries with each other haha. Anyways, the girls are only a couple of months apart so they share alot of similar interests and get along pretty well when they are together. So when we were invited to help celebrate Abby's 2nd birthday we jumped at the chance to have the girls together again. What was even bigger was the fact it was going to be a "Gabba" party, and you know how Mia LOVES her Gabba characters.

Though I haven't been feeling the best lately, and with my new diet plan I was a bit leery about going to any parties, however, there was no way I was going to let Mia miss this party. Thankfully the baby was treating me good and I felt confident enough to make the trip to Sunny San Diego.

We got up bright and early in the morning. We decided not have to Mia take her nap, so we could increase the odds of her sleeping in the car. So the morning was spent trying to wear her down and about an hour before we actually left we gave her a nice warm bath and dressed her in her Yo Gabba Gabba T-shirt that I bought her for her birthday. All these things seemed to do the trick because she was out like a light even before we hit Temecula (20mins away)

The drive down was nice, no traffic and the weather was awesome. We did make a planned pit stop before we went to the party. We stopped by Adrian's Mom's work so she could see Mia and visit for awhile. Once we got there Grandma was so excited to see her. She picked Mia up and commented on how big she has grown and how HEAVY she is (shes not kidding!) she also said "Oh my goodness your hair!!!!" Ya, Mia was having a bad hair day to the MAX! It was poof-central! haha

While Grandma, Adrian and Mia were visiting, I quickly bought some rubber bands to try to calm Mia's hair down before we went to the party. After I bought what I needed we all hung out in front of the store and chatted. Mia sat on Grandma's lap and was a very good girl. She showed off her talking skills and laughed everytime she saw someone walk through the automatic doors into the store. After a great visit, Grandma walked us back to our car and gave Mia her birthday present. She got the CUTEST little "Hello Kitty" outfit, complete with a jacket, sweats and shirt. She also got another thinner jacket that will be perfect for those cool days. After our little visit we headed off to the party which was not to far from where we were.

Once we got to the park where the party was being held, we were overwhelmed by the number of different parties going on at the same time. We had no idea where to start or look first. So we unloaded our stuff and began our search... soon we heard a familiar voice calling to us nearby. It was Abby's Grandma from her Daddy's side. We had met a year prior at Abby's 1st birthday party. We were so happy to see her and she helped us find the party. She remembered Mia but Mia didn't remember her and of course acted shy... again.

Once we got to the party and said our hellos, and were so surprised on how awesome the decorations and cake looked. It was really a Gabba party for sure!!! The cake was homemade and the best part. Mia loved to look at it. It had all the characters on it, all were hand crafted and looked really cool. Abby's Mom definately put my Foofa cake to SHAME! haha Then we saw the pinatas! There was a giant Foofa one and giant Brobee. The Brobee one was Mia's favorite and she always had to go up to it and talk to it. She even gave it a hug! (both were taller than she was!)

The food served there was awesome as well, though I couldn't eat anything but the chicken and a hot dog (due to my diet) it was still VERY good. Mia liked it too, especially the rice and chicken (and shes VERY picky when it comes to chicken).

Later we let her run around and explore a bit. Adrian was grabbing his plate of food and I was chatting with Abby's Grandma Robin about our new baby when all of sudden I heard a big CRASH! and commotion! I looked over to find both Abby and Mia laying in the giant ice bucket full of juices and sodas!!! I, along with a few others, quickly ran over to help get Mia and Abby out of the ice. Both weren't crying but were shocked. What had happened (I didn't see but was told) was that Abby went over to Mia to give her a hug (she is extremely lovable), I guess Mia either didn't want a hug or Abby hugged Mia a bit to hard but both lost their balance and fell into the ice bucket!! haha Both girls were ok, Mia was alittle wet but fine, Abby on the other hand felt bad she had made Mia fall over and ran to her Daddy for some comfort. Eventually she said "sowrrie" and the girls were friends again haha.

After everyone was done eating it was game time! I wasn't sure if Mia would be able to participate since she does tend to get greedy with items she has to give up. So we sat out and watched the other kids play. The game was transferring cotton balls from a big container into another container using a spoon while blind folded. It looked pretty simple but still we weren't sure if Mia would be able to play. Then we saw the birthday girl, Abby play and she actually did pretty good! That gave us confidence that maybe Mia could play so we put her in line and let her have a shot at it.

At first Mia wasn't sure what to do but after some encouragement from Abby's family and ourselves she quickly got the hang of it. If she couldn't get the cotton balls on her spoon she would pick them up with her hand, place them on the spoon the dump them into the other container! It was so fun to watch her play and actually learn how to do it! She even won a prize! A tiny set of 4 tiny little ponies! Mia loves the "horseys" and wanted us to open them up right away!

Soon it was Pinata time. I wasn't sure how Mia was going to act with the pinata. The last few parties we went to turned into a crying disaster because she refuses to give up the stick and let other kids hit it after she does. Also, we weren't sure how she would react to seeing her two favorite characters (Foofa and Brobee) get a beating and ripped apart. So when it was her turn we really weren't sure what to expect but she went right to it and for the very first time in Mia history, she went up to the pinata and hit it all by herself with NO help from Dada!!!! My little girl is growing up so fast!!! She did pretty good, though she did struggle a bit with holding up the stick that was taller than her! haha Of course when her turn was over and she had to let go of the stick she threw a big fit and had to be carried off by her Dada crying. Everyone felt bad for her but it was Grandma Robin who came to the rescue. She quickly went over to Mia and started blowing bubbles for her. Mia quickly came around and started laughing and having a good time again.

Eventually the pinata's were destroyed (and I meant this literally, Foofa ended up headless and Brobee was so demolished that there was nothing left put pieces of green cardboard laying on the grass) and Mia walked away with lots of candy. However, when she saw the scattered remains of her gabba friends everywhere she kept saying "Oh no! Brobee broken!" or "Oh no Foofa!" and when the Brobee pieces were thrown in the trash she kept going back to the trash can, would point at the green pieces and kept repeating "Oh No! Brobee Trash! Brobee Trash!" She wasn't to happy but she didn't cry about it.

Then it was cake time! Everyone gathered around and sang Happy Birthday to Abby and like the big girl that she is, she blew out her own candle! Mia didn't clap like she normally does after the song but it wasn't because she didn't want to, it was because was too busy munching on her new found lollipop! haha Ya, she got lots of treats at the party, including her very own cupcake!

After cake time it was present time and we watched Abby open up her HUGE stash of presents! She was literally covered in presents and it was so much fun to watch her reaction to them. Mia didn't mind watching her get presents since she was just happy having a lollipop (Mia rarely ever gets candy even at parties!). The coolest present that Abby got was a motorized 4 wheeler!!! It didn't take long before her Daddy and Grandpa got it up and running and Abby was zooming all around the park! That is right about the time Mia decided SHE wanted the "Car". She kept watching Abby ride all around and as soon as Abby got off to grab something Mia ran over and jumped on it! Of course Abby didn't like Mia on her new toy and Mia didn't want to get off of it! Oh no!!! So Daddy had to go over there and take Mia off while Abby's Daddy tried to explain to Abby that she needed to share. Both girls were NOT happy campers about the whole situation .... especially Mia who started making a big scene. So we took that as our queue to head home.

So we said our goodbyes, and Mia made out with MORE presents! She got to take home the eatable Foofa from the birthday cake, a Foofa decoration, AND balloon. That isn't even including all the prizes she got from earlier like her bubbles, stickers, sea animal toys and ponies! So we had alot to carry on the walk back to the car haha. Before we left the girls both gave each other a big hug which was the cutest thing ever!

We then walked back to the car, packed it up and on the road we went. We didn't even make it out of San Diego County before we made ANOTHER pit stop. This time it was for Daddy. He wanted to pick something up at Fry's Electronics so we stopped by there real quick. After Fry's we finally headed home. Mia didn't sleep in the car at all and was still pretty sugared up. Once we made it home I fed her some dinner to help dilute the sugar (if that was even possible) and we watched alittle bit of TV before Daddy put her bed. Once she hit her bed she was out like a light... yay for sugar crashes! haha and that was the end for another great day.

I am so glad we were able to make it out to the party. Its so neat seeing Mia play with kids her own age and make little friends. Abby's family is so great, they really make you feel welcomed and comfortable. They always made sure Mia was included in everything and always cheered her on. Most remembered us from last year and it was great to see them again too. I can't wait to get the girls together again and I know for sure, once we relocate back to San Diego later this year the girls will be come best friends!