Thursday, May 3, 2012

The Merry Month of May

Ahhhh, May.  It's always been my favorite month...ya know, because it's my birthday month!  But little did I know, it would just keep getting better and better!!

Two years ago I became a Mrs.  What a day that was!  Some people might say that the wedding of the century was William and Kate's (and I admit, theirs was pretty spectacular...they brought trees inside Westminster Abbey!)...but I say the one that will go down in the history books took place 3 short days later :}  I couldn't have imagined a more perfect wedding day.  Looking back, I wouldn't change a thing.  The morning of the wedding, my bridesmaids, my mom, and I spent a few luxurious hours at the salon...complete with Mimosas.  We all had manis, pedis, and our hair and makeup done...and I must say, we all looked stunning!  After that, being the coffee adicts that we are, we stopped at McDonald's (yes, this was 2010...pre-Starbucks in my hometown) for iced coffees, then headed to Wolf Mountain Vineyard's to get dressed and ready for the big moment.  In my dressing area they had glasses of wine for everyone and a cheese and cracker platter- amazing!  Then, time seemed to fly by; the next thing I knew they were telling me to go stand my my dad because we were about to go down the aisle!  Whew...I was so nervous.  But everything during the ceremony went great, except for a brief awkward moment when we weren't sure if it was time to kiss or not (it was :} )!  After the ceremony and pictures were done, we went up to party and have dinner.  What a great time.  It was so much fun to see friends I hadn't seen in a while, celebrate with our families, and dance and have some great food and local wine (yes, we got to eat...we made sure it was a priority!).  Here are some pics:




It's been two of the most eventful years of my life!  We moved three times; once three hours away from home, once across the country, and once across town!  We went through a pregnancy and the birth of our first child.  We went through a miscarriage.  Josh got promoted from Second Leiutenant to First, and from a Platoon Leader to an XO.  We've been through many days and nights apart.  Every experience we've had in the past two years has done nothing but strengthen our marriage.  Would I do it all again?  In a heartbeat.

Sunday, the 6th is my 27th birthday.  Yikes!  How did this happen?!  Why can't we all just stay 25?  Oh well...at least getting older is an excuse to get presents.  I'm all about the presents.  Just kidding!  Not really.  I'm really looking forward to my party this year...it's going to be Kentucky Derby themed.  We'll be eating lots of Southern food while we're watching the race.  Super exciting!  While planning my party this year, I've been thinking about my birthday parties.  Two stick out in my mind.  The first one is my 7th birthday.  It was my first and only surprise party.  It was a Hawaiian Luau theme.  My family pulled it off without a hitch.  I started asking my family what we were going to be doing for my birthday and, mysteriously, my grandma (who was catering at the time) said she and my granddad had to cater a party that night and wouldn't be able to celebrate with me.  I was crushed...as I proceeded to help chop some fruit and veggies (yes, I helped cater my OWN party!), still not catching on.  I don't remember exactly what my parents told me we were doing that night, but I was told that I would be spending the afternoon with my aunt.  She picked me up and said we'd go do whatever I wanted (or something to that effect), but she had to stop by to see a friend first.  Well, great!  My fun birthday afternoon with my aunt was going to be put on hold by a boring trip to see some lady I didn't even know!  So we pulled up to a building, opened the door, and there were my family and friends yelling "Surprise!" and throwing confetti!  I was so stunned I was speechless for pretty much the entire party!  Wow.  Such a great memory.  The party totally made up for all the lies ;} 

The second favorite birthday was my 25th.  Josh and I were on our honeymoon and I got to go horseback riding through the jungle in Mexico!  I know!  That morning I woke up to a beautiful bouquet of flowers, room service breakfast and a Champagne cocktail.  Then we went on our horseback riding excursion.  We finished the day off with probably the most amazing meal I have ever eaten at a restaurant on the ship.  Each of seven courses was served with a wine pairing.  We at foie gras, risotto, and lamb.  Amazing!  What an experience.  Here are pictures of my flowers, me riding my horse (the long sleeves were to avoid sunburn and the bird-sized mosquitoes!), and the beautiful cantina where we were treated to ice cold cervezas!  I've been so blessed to enjoy so many happy birthdays.



Finally, the 13th will be my first Mother's Day.  There is no way to describe the feeling of being a mother.  It's crazy.  Sometimes it doesn't even feel real.  I look at Cameron and think, "This is my son."  He's part me and part Josh...but he's him!  He's a person.  It blows my mind to think about it too much!  But he's such a blessing and I can't imagine life without him. 

Since I've only had seven months of experience being a mother myself, I thought I'd talk about my mom a little.  I'm not a fan of getting too sappy.  But I just want to brag on her a little.  This Saturday she's going to graduate with her Specialist degree in teaching (she's already a great teacher, I don't know why she thought she had to learn how to be a better one ;} ).  She's been working on this for a year and a half, and she already has her Bachelor's and Master's degrees.  She's way smarter than me!  But, I'm really proud of her...I admire people who go to school on top of having full time jobs.  Not to mention, while she was getting her Master's, she had a full time job, was going to school, AND taking care of me when I was a baby (which apparently was no easy task)!!  Mom's incredible!  She has always been my best friend.  She's pretty much the only person who would go see first Lord of the Rings movie 13 a few times in theatres.  We spent nine years together, day in and day out while I was being homeschooled, and still managed to remain on speaking terms!  She's always supported and encouraged any endeavour I've decided to pursue.  I know that couldn't have always been easy, but it is definitely appreciated.  She's my movie buddy, travel buddy, and just sit-and-chat while having coffee buddy.  warning: sappy part coming  I don't tell her enough, but I love her very much :}

So, that's why May is my favorite month!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Seven Months

Well, my son is past the half-way mark on his race towards one year.  Yesterday was his seven month mark.  I cannot believe how fast he's growing.  Insert cliche here...I know, I know!  But before being a mom, I had no idea how much babies grew and learned in their first few months.  I've been around babies before, but never for long periods of time, never enough to see them growing day-by-day. 

This past Saturday we hit a major milestone: Cam learned to crawl!!  He had been trying for a while, but apparently he wanted to wait until his Dad was home (Josh had been in the field for five days).  He has a small, nerf-like basketball that rolled away from him while he was playing with it, and, well, he just decided to go get it!!  It's amazing!  One day babies can't do something, and the next, they can! So crazy. We're so proud of him! But we're really going to have to start baby proofing :/ Any must-have or tried-and-true products I need to know about?  Because right now I'm thinking about just taking all of the furniture out of our house for a couple of years!



So, here are some other important things to know about Mr. Cameron Joseph:

December 25, 2011- Rolled from tummy to back
January 1, 2012- Sat up by himself
Janyary 24- Ate his first solid food (banana)
February 25- Rolled from back to tummy
April 18- Pulled himself up (my mom said he pulled himself up while she was bathing him while we were visiting...around the first week of April...but I didn't see it, so it doesn't count :p )
April 21- Started crawling!

His favorite foods are still avocados and sweet potatoes, but here's a list of all the food he's tried in addition to those two:
Bananas, butternut and acorn squash, sweet peas, pears, apples, prunes, carrots, green beans (his least favorite, I think), ham, a mixture of corn and sweet potatoes, and most recently YoBaby banana yogurt.  I read that I should start feeding him three times a day now and that I can start adding some herbs and spices like cinnamon, cumin, and basil to his food, so I'm sure our food choices will start getting a little more exciting.

He loves music. His favorite songs are Hey Jude, Blackbird, Scarborough Fair, and the ABC song is growing on him :}

His favorite things to do are play peekaboo, give Mommy "kisses", grab and chew on anything and everything (especially paper), get tickled, get thrown in the air, play with his plethora of fun toys, and now crawl and pull up on things!

He's a little social butterfly.  He seems to get along with everyone.  He's started to really enjoy spending time with all of his little friends (I think mostly he just wants to grab their hair!), and all of the day-care ladies say he has a great time while he's there...I was even told that he was giving "kisses" to one of the workers!  Little flirt!!

I'm so looking forward to watching him continue to learn and grow...maybe on the next update I can add "teeth" to the list!

Friday, March 30, 2012

Calling All Mommies!!*

*Even if you are not a mommy, your comments, tips, tricks, theories, sage advice, or magical spells are more than welcome!

Dear Comrades,

Here's the question of the century: Will my chile EVER sleep through the night?!?!

So, Cam is 6 months old.  He wakes up *at least* once a night...most nights two, and occasionally three.  His bedtime is 7:00, which he's gotten used to.  It's pretty easy to just do our routine, lay him in his crib, and walk away.  However, he wakes up pretty much every night at around 4:00am and wants a whole bottle (6 oz.).  Lately, he's been waking up between 10:00 and 11:00 also wanting a whole bottle.  I'm feeding him solid food (1-1.5 oz.) and a bottle around 5:30 or 6:00.  He's sleeping consistently from  7:00pm to 6:00 or 7:00am, which is great!  But when will his sleep be uninterrupted? 

At his recent 6 month check-up, the doctor asked if he was sleeping through the night, and I told her what I've just mentioned.  She said that it's probably out of habit that he wants to be fed, and that I need to stop feeding him at night.  Yikes!  It seems like if I do that, then we'll get even less sleep because when he wakes up and doesn't get any food, he will scream and be inconsolable for who knows how long!  Do I slowly wean him off night feedings?  Maybe give him one or two ounces less until he's not drinking anymore? 

Another question is, how long is "through the night?"  I read somewhere that 6 hours is sleeping through the night.  If that's the case, 1:00am would be time to wake up and that is just plain unreasonable!  Maybe that was for newborns...either way, I don't believe that.  How long should a 6-month-old sleep without waking up?   

Don't get me wrong; I still love this sweet, precious, little angel face to death!  Who wouldn't?!



But what gives??

Growth spurt?

Teething?

Just to spite me?

Help!

Sincerely (if a little cranky),
Sleepless in El Paso

P.S.  Mommies who can say, "My baby slept through the night after the first week," need not respond ;}

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Catharsis

Where to begin?  There seems to be no good/easy way to get this out other than to just say it: I had a miscarriage a few weeks ago- March 9th.  I was about 5 weeks along.  Dealing with this has been much more difficult than I thought it would be when it first happened, even though I am thankful it didn't happen further along (I don't want to think about how hard that would  be).  I understand that this happens to so many women...It would take more than two hands to count the number of women I know personally who have had to go through this.  But it's still a loss, and it's still difficult.  I'm having a hard time interacting with people, and I can't really figure out why.  I just want to be alone the majority of the time...maybe because for some reason I'm embarrassed about how long it's taking me to get over this.  I just feel kind of awkward trying to act happy and social when I'm still hurting so much.

I want everyone to know that I'm not writing about this because I'm looking for sympathy...I'm actually terrified of posting this because I hate calling attention to myself...but I feel like I need a way to just let it out so I can continue to move on.  I've been over what happened in my head countless times, and I've talked to a handful of friends about it, and Josh of course, and I've been praying about it a lot, but it doesn't seem to be getting much easier to deal with.  Maybe I need to work through it on "paper," and hopefully find some peace.

We decided we wanted another baby.  I was hesitant at first because I'm an only child and never really had any desire to have siblings.  I had a wonderful childhood and believed that a sibling for Cam wasn't really a necessity.  Then, being a practical thinker, I thought about how Cam having a brother or sister could actually be beneficial for our Army lifestyle.  We will be moving frequently (something I never had to experience as a child), and having a companion with him when we move and change schools would be nice, and would hopefully make the transitions a little easier.  On the other hand, I also thought about how amazing being a parent is, and that I want to experience that feeling again with another baby.  As I'm writing this, I'm thinking about how selfish that sounds.  Maybe it is a little selfish, but I think it's more than that.  After having a baby, I realized that each pregnancy and child is a little miracle...a physical sign of God's awesome power.  When I look at Cameron, see him grow both mentally and physically everyday, see how perfect he is, I feel God's presence in a way I don't think I ever have before, and I can't help but think about how undeserving I am of this blessing that I have been so freely given.  And I think that I deserve more?  There's no way.  I can't even begin to list all the blessings in my life.  But why have i been given so much?  All I can think of is that it is all thanks to God's Grace.  He gives us things we don't deserve, and I am so so grateful for that.  I'm just trying to work out why He gave me the hope and excitement of another baby, then took it away.  Maybe He wanted to remind me who is in charge of my life.  I can make all the plans I want, come up with all the reasons I want for why I should have another child, but it's not my decision.  If it is not His time or according to His plan, then it won't happen. 

Through this whole experience I have reflected on one of my favorite Bible verses: "'For I know the plans I have for you,' says the Lord, 'Plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.'" Jeremiah 29:11.  I find so much comfort in this.  I have been so prosperous in my life so far.  And God didn't let this happen to punish me...he doesn't want to harm me.  My hope is that I will have another child one day, but I know that if it is meant to be, He has the perfect time planned, and I will continue to pray for strength and strive to put my trust Him.  In the meantime, I will count my blessings.       

Here are a couple more Bible verses that I thought of:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. Psalm 3:5
I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Philipians 4:13

I'm feeling better already.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Two Tickets To That Thing You Love

Happy Day-after Valentine's y'all!  I hope you enjoyed  a day full of love!  One of my Facebook friends reminded me that February 14th isn't just about whether you have a "Valentine" or not, it's about celebrating love in all it's forms.  And I am SO thankful for all of the friends and family in my life who love me, and I want all of you to know that I cherish and love you all dearly :} 

Ok...enough mushy stuff.

Yesterday was the first day we left Cameron at day-care or the CDC as we call it here in Army Land (no, not the Center for Disease Control, which, of course, I can't help but think about every single time!...the Child Development Center).  Josh and I had plans to go to lunch at a sushi restaurant, so we dropped him off around noon.  I was feeling pangs of guilt as I walked in the building, but as soon as Cam laid eyes on the nice ladies who were going to take care of him, he was all smiles.  So that made me feel tons better :}  Josh and I said our goodbyes and went out to enjoy a very nice lunch, coffee, and a bit of shopping at the PX before we went to pick up the little one.  I couldn't wait to see him and hear how he did.  We walked in, looked around and saw a tiny little baby sleeping in a bouncy seat, facing away from us.  We thought "he can't possibly be ours...he's too small" (the different outfit didn't help either...he had apparently spit up all over the outfit we brought him in and they had to change him!).  But, sure enough the lady picked him up and he stretched and yawned and looked over at us and smiled!  It reminded me just how small and precious he is :} The ladies said he did great...no problems at all! Yay! That really put my mind at ease, and now maybe I won't feel as guilty when I leave him there. No, I'm sure I will  :/  As we were leaving, I looked in the diaper bag and found a sweet surprise ( Caution: it's about to get mushy again)...Cam had made me a Valentine:

 Melt!  I'd say it was a successful first day :}

So, since the hubby and I went out for lunch, I decided to cook him a nice meal for dinner.  We had mini Beef Wellingtons, roasted veggies, and garlic parmesan mashed potatoes.  Then we had apple crisp for dessert.  Here's what dinner looked like:

It was delish!  As we sat there eating dinner, complete with our bottles of water (fancy-schmancy), while Cam was asleep, I was thinking about just how happy I am...then Josh gave me my Valentine's gift, which was presented on  a homemade Valentine (yes, he even used the Cricut!! He probably didn't want me to share that :/ ).  Two tickets to Cirque du Soleil: Dralion for Thursday night!  His sister will be in town and she has already volunteered to babysit :}  I'm beyond excited!  I'm pretty sure I have the best son and husband in the world! :}

Sunday, February 5, 2012

February Photography Update

It is now day 5 of the February picture project and I have more pictures! I have not taken a a picture on "Auto" mode since way back in January; this makes me pretty proud of myself even if I am nowhere near mastering my camera!  Here's what I have so far:

Day 2- Words
Day 3- Hands (I actually have two for this one...)

Day 4- A Stranger
Day 5- 10am (if you had seen the lighting conditions in this room, you'd be impressed!)

So that's it so far! Loving this project :}
P.S. Happy Superbowl Sunday!

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Miscellaneous

It's been a month since my last blog.  So today, I'm just going to get it all out!  Be prepared to jump from topic to topic in seconds flat!

First, I know you're all dying to hear about my weight loss progress.  I've lost 3 pounds.  Not stellar, but it's three less than I started with.  The really frustrating thing is that I lost those 3 pounds within the first two days of the diet during the "jump start" phase!  I guess I should consider it a success that I've actually kept them off!  I did really well at first with the healthy eating; it was about 2 weeks before I started to slip down the proverbial slope.  But this week, I've gotten back on track.  Last night we had pretty amazing turkey lettuce wraps (recipe to follow)!  The 10 minute workout videos aren't going so well either.  That lasted about a week :{  But I'm going to try to start those again.  However, Jessica and I are going to start going to the Power Pump class at the gym (hopefully twice a week).  I went with her last week and was sore for 3 days!  She's been 3 times now and is starting to get some muscle definition...she's definitely a beast :}  I haven't been more than the one time because I've been trying to get Cam registered with on-post child care.  Which is hopefully complete now and I can start taking him.  I'm extremely nervous about it.  I wasn't at all before, but the more I think about it, the harder I think it is going to be to say goodbye to his sweet face!

Speaking of Cam...this leads me to the second topic :}  I haven't talked about him much on the blog, and I just wanted to let everyone know what he's up to these days...he's quite the busy four-month-old!

Milestones:
Smiling (at pretty much everything and everyone!)
Laughing
Rolling from back to tummy (almost ready to go from tummy to back)
Sitting up with his hands propping him- "the tripod" :}
Reaching and grabbing
"Babbling" (he seems to have a lot to say!)
He's just starting to hold his bottle by himself

Favorite Things:
Eating his hands
Playing with and eating his toes
"Flying"- throwing him in the air or running around the room while making swooshing sounds
Dancing with Mom (especially if it's to Yellow Submarine!)
Blowing raspberries (hilarious!)
High pitched squealing
Playing and spending time with Mom and Dad

He's such a good baby :}  So much fun...exhausting, but fun!!  This week has been tough because it's the first time he's been sick.  I think he just had a little stomach bug.  Subsequently, this brought on our first experience with diaper rash, too.  We were just about to start adding rice cereal to his bananas when he got sick, so I stopped the solid food altogether until he get's well.  So, more to follow on the solid food adventure!

Thirdly, as some of you know, I've been really into getting my house decorated.  It's going really well and it's pretty exciting!!  I actually can't wait to have visitors (i.e. my Sister-in-law in two weeks!)  My recent projects have been the dining room, laundry room, my bathroom, and the living room.  Here's what I've done so far (with some help from Josh :} ):











And finally, during the month of February I'm going to start taking a picture everyday.  A pin on Pinterest has a list of "subjects"- one for every day.  I'm so excited to practice my photography and use my awesome zoom lens that my hubby got me for Christmas! Today's subject is "Your view today."  Here's my pic:
It's called "Positive."  I view today with positivity :}  I like the way it turned out, except that it's slightly blue tinted.  Any photography tips?

So, thanks for hanging in there for the entire post!  I promise to blog more often so they're not quite as long :\  And now, for those who are interested, the recipe:

Quick Sriracha Beef Lettuce Wraps
(Makes 3-4 servings or 6-8 lettuce wraps; recipe adapted from Nigella Fresh.)

Ingredients:
2 tsp. neutral-flavored oil like grapeseed or peanut oil
1 lb. lean ground beef [I used ground turkey and it was delish!]
1 T fish sauce (I like Three Crabs Fish sauce by far the best)
1-2 T Sriracha Sauce (depending on how much heat you want)
1 T water
zest from one large lime
juice from one large lime (about 1 1/2 T juice)
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onion (or double that amount if you're not using the cilantro)
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1 head iceberg lettuce

Instructions:

Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan, then saute the beef until it's cooked through and starting to brown, breaking apart with a turner as it cooks.  

While beef cooks, mix together the fish sauce, Sriracha Sauce, and water in a small bowl.  Zest the skin of the lime and squeeze the juice.  (You may need two limes to get enough juice, but only use the zest from one lime.)  Thinly slice the green onions and chop the cilantro.  (Most iceberg lettuce doesn't need washing, but if yours does break the heads apart gently and wash and dry the lettuce.)

When the beef is done, add the Sriracha Sauce mixture and let it sizzle until the water has evaporated, stirring a few times to get the flavor mixed through the meat.  Turn off the heat and stir in the lime zest, lime juice, sliced green onions, and chopped cilantro.

Serve meat mixture with iceberg lettuce leaves to fill with meat and wrap around it, to be eaten with your hands.

Recipe courtesy
Kalyn's Kitchen

El Paso friends: I have fish sauce and Siracha if you would like to borrow them :}