Family Updates

Dear Readers:

I started this post back at the end of Feb, and I am just now getting around to posting it. So sad! I don't know why I waited so long. But here it is, and I will add more at the end:

Here are some of the going-ons around our house. Kind of like a roundup, but encompassing more time than a month:

Bibbers:
The baby's eye is all better. A few days of anti-bacterial drops and things are looking good again (pun intended). However, she got sick a few days later, and now we are dealing with the coughing/vomiting that always hits my poor girl. She coughs so hard, that she makes herself vomit. She hasn't had very much food for the past 3 days, and whatever she eats, she pukes up, usually at night. And sometimes in our bed (delightful). Or sometimes in her own bed (revolting). But the best is when she can make it to the bathroom and puke in the sink or toilet. We are very proud we taught her that one. Saves lots of time and laundry. But she always seems to coat her hair! Oh well, can't win them all.

She is super funny and so stubborn/determined. She knows what she wants and she has NO problem telling people how she's feeling. When she wants to say family prayers, she lets us know. And then if we (heaven forbid) try to prompt her, we are brusquely met with a "SHHHHHHH" sound while she puts her finger to her lips. She shushes us! And frequently. When we want her to listen to us, and she's not interested, she turns around and shushes us and goes back to what she was doing. When we try to take something away from her, she tucks whatever she has behind her back and tries to shush us. The problem with the shushing is that it's just SO DANG FUNNY. Usually Marcelo and I have to turn away and laugh before we turn back to her (serious now) and tell her that she cannot do that and continued shushing with get her in timeout. I hope I can get a picture or video of her shushing, because it really is the funniest thing you will ever see.

As for her language, she is definitely progressing. Back in January her speech therapists asked us to name all the words she could do. It was 10. In a year of speech therapy and only 10 words! Shortly after that, she was tested (they test her every 6 months or so) and she tested almost off the charts for every other category but her verbal communication. Problem solving, adaptive communication, understanding, everything like that she was testing in the 4 year old range. Her ability to dress herself, wash her own hair, pour her own juice go to the bathroom 100% alone things like that were all very advanced for her age. Not only that, but her understanding of prepositions (on, beside, under) and possessives (Daddy's baby, Mommy's daughter) was very startling to the testers. And remember, the test was all in Spanish! So it made me happy to realize and really see that even if her communication was slow, she was understanding so much of what I said to her.

However, even with those 10 words (and other non-verbal communication she was doing) she tested exactly at the level where she doesn't qualify for their services anymore. I was very sad to see them go, but I had a good surprised waiting for me. 2 weeks before they called and told me the test results, something clicked inside of her. She started to imitate so many things that I was saying. Words that I had said for months (and maybe years) she started to attempt to say. I was not prepared for it, and it caught me way off guard. My husband was much MUCH better at deciphering what she was trying to say. And slowly I got it too: she only says the last 2 syllables of whatever word she is saying. Estrellas turns into "ellas" Biblioteca becomes "teca". Conejo becomes "nejo". I don't know why the husband got it sooner than I did, but I am so thankful he did! Because she would start getting very frustrated if we didn't understand her two syllables.

The speech therapists told me that in order to put 3 word phrases together, she needed a minimum of 50 words. And I sat down and counted them all out, and she definitely has 50 words now. And while I wouldn't say it was an "explosion" of speech, she definitely is more willing to try to say new words. Sometimes I have to remind her of a word, but once she hears it again, she's pretty good at remembering it and repeating it. I think that's the best part. She will attempt to say what I say to her. It makes me feel like she's not going to be a total mental defective he whole life. (I of course kid about that. I am aware that she is not at all below normal intelligence).

Marcelo:
2 months away from graduating and now looking for a job, Marcelo is in full busy mode. Oh, plus he is working at a job every hour possible. And he is looking for a car to buy. These weeks are super busy for him, but I am hoping that his car search is a priority. HA HA! As soon as he gets a car, then I GET MY CAR BACK! Hello trips to Jump on It!. Hello trips to indoor play parks. Hello trips to parks. Hello play dates. Hello to driving myself to Scouts. Hello Life! It's been almost 3 years with only one car. And let's just say I'm very excited to get my independence back. And very excited we got a good tax return this year to help with the down payment. We couldn't do it without you, IRS!


Marcelo plays soccer about 2 times a week and has won 2 or 3 tournaments now. He saves the medals and trophies like he's 12 and just got his first Little League participation award. I don't know what he's going to do with all of them, but I think they will eventually get thrown away. I know I eventually throw all my medals away. Is that crass and unappreciative? I don't know, I just don't want to crate it everywhere. But he loves his trophies. He usually plays at night (like 8 or 9 or even 10!) so he is here at night to help with bath time/bedtime.

But I do feel badly for him because he is Bibi's favorite. You would think this would make me jealous, but at 3 am, when she is calling HIS name, I really don't mind. He goes and lays next to her and I get to sleep on in peace. It's really not a bad situation for me. And when she is sick (like in these days) she only wants her Papa. I frequently wake up alone in our bed because he has gone to answer her cries in the middle of the night. He's a good Papa.

Raya:
A super sweet dog that loves to run. She's also a "scaredy cat" who stays close to us because she's pretty fearful of the world around her. She loves to poop in the neighbor's yard which I get to clean up every couple of days. She loves that yard because it smells like quail and deer. Which is like crack for my bird flushing hunting dog. She loves to lay in the sun and snuggle up to you with her head on your shoulder. She is the sweetest dog in the world, and it's hard to get mad at her when she breaks out of her cage and eats the chicken I was defrosting for lunch after church. Seriously, how does she break out of that cage all the time? She's the Houdini of dogs. Luckily raw chicken isn't damaging to dogs as it is to humans. (I looked it up.) She was in doggie heaven, you can't blame her for eating what she can get.

Alicia:
I am having a hard time maintaining my exercise routine. But having a sick child will do that to you. I'm hoping she'll recover soon so I can start going back.

That is where I ended. Things have pretty much been the same since then. I am still bad at exercising but I DO have a car now (hooray for me!) and the baby still shushes us, but not as much now because she can tell us exactly what she wants. "no mama! No vayas!" (meaning, don't go) or "tu, mama" (meaning, it's your turn, mom). She can also ask for her favorite shows and videos by name. She still does that syllable cut off thing, but are are getting much better and making her try to break down the word and say it all.

Here are some awesome pictures for you to enjoy:

She wanted her picture taken WITH raya, of course














And here her lips were really dry and they cracked and bled a little bit. Of course, a band aid will fix that!


She looks smashing in that band aid!

Here are some pictures of Halloween

It was cold, so she's got the jacket on ready for massive candy begging


I don't know why I never posted about Halloween. Maybe because Marcelo was feeling sick so I had to do it alone in the rain. But she did look cute. Next year I want to make her a Belle costume and dress Raya up as the Beast. Quite ambitious of me, but I think it will rock.

I have lots more, but who really cares about someone else's kid, right?

Anyway, I hope you like reading about what we are doing these days. If not, stop reading my blog!

Things that I've noticed as of late

Here are just a few things that have been floating around my mind recently. I hope you enjoy my random ramblings:

On Soy Milk:

I don't like soy milk. I think it is too sweet. And too watery. Nasty, nasty stuff. But regular milk? I'm kind of intolerant right now. Well, I should say *I* am quite tolerant, but others around me aren't so much when the bad milk farts start coming. Sorry, husband, about the covered wagon I gave you the other day. Still love me, right? And "lactose free" milk doesn't seem to help the milk toots any. So it's either soy or no cereal. And how am I supposed to go 5 more months with no cereal? Now that's just crazy talk.

On smells around the house:

Our nickel plated shower head smells like maple syrup. Just thought you should know that.

Also, speaking of maple syrup smells: Waffle Crisp cereal smells a lot better than it tastes. That is just my opinion. And when has my opinion ever been off? (Don't answer that, ANYONE, please)

On things that Marcelo does in the bed:

Don't let your mind go to a dirty place. This is strictly a PG post. Here it is: Marcelo ruins sheets. And how does he do this? By his constant feet rubbing in the night. I think it is a nervous habit/twitch, like teeth grinding knuckle popping. But this is the second pair we have had to throw away because there are tears in them right where his feet lay at night. And these are REALLY high quality sheets, which I love! I love climbing into a nice fresh bed with good sheets. But there is no way we can afford nice sheets at the rate he destroys them. So I guess we have to buy the $15 Target flannel sheets in a bag.

And it's not just a little tear that could be remedied with a needle and thread. He rubs them BARE and then they shred. Here is a picture:


He tries to play it off like he has NO IDEA why it's only the area by HIS feet that do this. Like different companies repeatedly make JUST THAT ONE SPOT thinner and more tear-able than others. Yeah right! We both know he has the nervous feet rub twitch all night long rubbing it and wearing it down until it shreds. Maybe I need to get him a monthly pedicure so he can sand off all those rough patches. Hmmmm, it would be worth it to be able to get nice sheets again!

On my pregnancy cravings:

I crave totally different things in this pregnancy. I'm not so much about the fries and milkshakes this time around. It's more about Thai food and Panda Express. But I only let myself have P.E. one time a month- the day after my OBGYN visit. Otherwise I would be there every day, I swear and I would gain 1 million pounds like I did the first pregnancy. Because it's all I want to eat! That and some sweet/spicy curry from Bangkok Grill. Oh my, deliciousness.

Also, chocolate doesn't bother me as much as it did my first pregnancy. I mean, I still don't crave it or lust after a candy bar when I see it in the store. But at least now I can enjoy a bite of a Snickers or a brownie and not have immediate heartburn. Same with "sweet breads" like muffins and such. Again, I don't eat them all the time, but now I can enjoy a blueberry muffin conference morning and not feel sick.

I have also started to enjoy drinkable yogurt again. Just like when I was in Ecuador. Drinking it straight from the bottle. Is there any other way? I mean it *DOES* have the word "drinkable" right in the title, and I'm not allowed to use straws right now (more on that in another post) so what should I do? Of course, I should drink it straight from the carton. And I do. And it's delicious. Just don't come over to my house and ask to have a cup of drinkable yogurt: it's full of my backwash.

And finally, the more startling, Jell-O. I know! This was once one my top 10 lists of things I hate eating. Right up there with bananas and pudding. Those two things I still don't eat, but a combo of orange and some berry (raspberry or strawberry) Jell-O is so heavenly. Try it, you'll love it. Throw some pineapple in it if you would like. Or not. Whatever.

So that is a partial list of some things I have noticed as of late. Now I need to go and take a nap. On a bed with new sheets, of course. Because, seriously, did you see what he did to those others?

Answered Prayers

I want to say that the truth behind my lack of blogging is because I am napping all the time (s0 baby can grow, of course!) or because I am out being a great mother to my kid. The truth is, I have just been weighed down of late with many different problems on the horizon.

The good news is that no problem are happening RIGHT NOW (except for the washing machine problem, and that will be fixed for me in 2 week. So that is really more about just being patient) but many problems will be at our front door in the next 6 weeks to 5 months. What are some of these problems? Well, there are child-care issues, employment questions, living quarters, what to do with the dog?, and new baby arrivals. All these things are REALLY big things! (except for the dog, of course. Even though we love her lots, she gets lower priority than employment and pregnancy)

But just today, I had a prayer answered. By none other than my mom. Who is the DEFINITION of a "problem solver". You know that line in "Ice Ice Baby?" It was written about her. ". . . If you got a problem, YO, I'll solve it". I really think that is her mantra.

Anyway, I like to think that I got problem solving skills from my mom. HOWEVER, I know that sometimes this is not always a good thing. Sometime a problem should NOT be solved. Sometimes the person who solved the problem needs to get out of the situation themselves. Or they need to use their brain to problem solve, brainstorm and come up with many different options. Because that makes us better, right?

Anyway, the way this problem was solved could not have been done on my own. Let me tell you, I had brainstormed up a TORRENT and had come up with about 5 different options. All of them were not great. They were ok, but not the best. And then today, my mom throws at me another possibility. And the clouds parted. There was a solution to my dilemma.

This is just a shout out to our family's problem solver. We are going to have a great time together in Hawaii, and it's all thanks to you, mom!!

Here is a picture of the problem solver and her newest grandchild. Passing on the problem solving strategies to the next generation

A Day in the Life-March 17th

I got this idea from my ex-roommate Beth. But I was hesitant to do it as I compared her days to mine. See, her days always seem so much more exciting (and productive). (Probably about 3 times exciting, because she has 3 times as many kids) But I happened to choose a day that was super nutso, so maybe this will be interesting to read. You know, for you. For me it's not that interesting anymore. Because, you know, I lived it.

So I wrote it all down, and then proceeded to forget about it until my mom left town. Which was last night. So here it is, over 2 weeks late:

March 17th, 2011
4:06 am-Get up and go pee. So necessary. I always try to fight it and lay in my bed for a few min to try and wonder what possibly could've awoken me at 4 am. And then it slowly comes to me.

4:15 am-Due to squeaky bathroom door, baby wakes up. Happens just about every day. Today is obviously no exception. Marcelo goes in to lay next to her in the bed next to hers. Hopefully this will get her right back to sleep.

4:38 am-Doesn't work this time. She's still awake. I'm still awake too. I allow my mind to wander. Think about the following things: half marathons, my recent scary snake dream, upcoming baby shower i need to buy gift for, invitations for the R.S. activity I have to do for Sunday. I hear baby talking to Marcelo and try to engage him in a conversation. She is obviously succeeding.

4:39 am-Stomach growls and realize I am starving. Can I get something to eat? Better not. Would disturb Bibi too much.

4:51 am- Changing of the guard. Marcelo comes in and says it is my turn to lie next to her. I realize I have to pee again. How is that possible?

5:20 am-She has tried to engage me in conversation. She is halfway successful. After the requests for water, and then throwing her cup out of her bed, I have had it. (pregnancy makes me really irritable) I say "no more, good night" and leave her alone. The crying/screaming for her life begins. We lay in bed and listen to it.

5:37 am-Marcelo finally can't take it anymore and goes in and talks to her. He tells her it is time to sleep and she mercifully does.

6:00 am-When alarm for gym goes off, I don't get up and go like I should. I go back to sleep

6:55 am-Mom calls me from the train station. I was supposed to be there 10 min ago to pick her up. Whoops!

6:57 am- While on the road I realize I have missed 2 calls and a text from her. Sorry mom! I'm hurrying!

7:35 am-I get breakfast for myself. It is a breakfast I have been thinking about since 4:30am. My homemade "MacDonald's" breakfast: A Sausage egg & cheese McMuffin. It is delicious and everything I have been dreaming of. Baby wakes up just now, mom starts to unpack in their shared room.

8:58 am-Bibi has suckered mom into reading her the Disney Spanish Dictionary. Mom's Spanish is so hilarious and the source of much family mockery.

9:59 am- Bibi gets breakfast. Yes! She eats this late every day! Don't try to feed her right when she wakes up! She will reject your food and it will only make you frustrated. Wait till she asks for food, then give her the planned breakfast. She'll eat it cold, no need to make something new.

10:41 am-Mom volunteers to watch Bibi so I can go to gym. I do. They go to the park and have an awesome time.

11:45 am-Back from gym. Into the shower

12:15 pm-Off to lunch with my brother and his very pregnant wife. Jason's Deli. Marcelo meets us there. It is awesome, as always.

2:17 pm-Drop mom off at BYU. She has a meeting with her acadamic advisor. Oh, did I forget to mention that she got accepted to BYU in the fall? So if she graduates from BYU, that will mean every girl in our family has graduated from BYU. Um, I don't think I need to state how awesome we are.

2:22 pm-Home for naptime. Even though Bibbers is full of food and should be VERY tired, she still fights the nap. All the grandma excitement has got her worked up. She finally goes down, though.

4:15 pm-Wake the Bibi up from her nap. I have to physically wake her up. Which never fails to seriously piss her off. And beware the wrath of Bibbers. It can last for hours, and ruin the rest of the afternoon. The only way to get her in a better mood is to distract her with something else. Which is why. . .

5:00 pm-We head out to the park for the second time that day. This time we take the dog. Every day the dog gets to go to the park, she thinks it is Christmas. It's just so hard not to love a dog that gets so excited about a lame trip to the park.

5:43 pm-Home to Watch BYU game. Which they win! Go Cougars. I do several loads of laundry while watching the game.

7:11 pm-Marcelo tells me that he wants to go play soccer. He is leaving in 15 min or so.

7:36 pm-Start dinner for baby. I don't want anything because I'm still full from lunch.

8:12 pm- Dinner for baby. She eats and then watches Annie on our computer.

8:29 pm-It's bath time! The baby pretends she doesn't want to bathe and she runs away from me all over the house. She really likes her baths, it's just more fun to run away from mom. I give up trying to get her in the bath and I finish loading the dishwasher and folding laundry. She still is kind of snacking on dinner, so I'm not in a rush to get her in the bath. I would rather her eat and be full before going to bed.

8:50 pm-I'm tired of running around and chasing her. I finally become "mean mom" and get her into the bath. She fusses and I ask her if she wants me to get in with her. She of course agrees and gets really happy to be in the bath. I do this about 1 time a month. Usually when it's super cold outside. It warms me up and she loves playing with mom in the bath. Favorite activity? Dumping water on mom's head.

9:10 pm-Out of bath, and now it's time to chase WET EVI around. Especially when I try to comb her hair, put lotion all over her body, make her take her vitamin and get PJ's on. A naked, wet baby is no fun to chase so again, I have to get MEAN to get things done. Easy for me to get "mean" when I'm tired and pregnant. (and I really shouldn't write "mean" like that. As if it wasn't really mean. Which it totally is and I totally am!)

9:35 pm -Brush Bibi's teeth

9:40 pm-Start reading books to Bibbers. Her favorites are the Dinosuar books (in Spanish, of course)

9:46 pm-She's asleep in my arms as I read to her. is 9:46 a late time for her to go to bed? I want to say yes, that this is due to the time change that just happened a few days ago. And it's due to the late wake and then late nap. But as I type this (3 weeks after the fact) we are still facing a 9 or 9:20 pm bed time and a wake time of 6 or 6:30 am. Very standard. She is not kind to her mama. And I know that if I cut out her nap, she will probably sleep earlier and through the night. But you know what, I LIKE NAP TIME! It is time for me to check my email uninterrupted, take a shower or take a nap myself! And getting up at 6am and then going to the gym, sometimes I need that nap! So I will put her to bed at 9:30 and keep the nap, for now.

10:20 pm-Marcelo is home from soccer. I make him dinner. I'm sure it's something simple, because all my 10:30 meals are super simple. I'm still not hungry from lunch (surprisingly) so I don't make any for myself

10:42 pm-Help my mom write an email to her English department counselor. When she gets tired, sometimes things don't come out so clear.

11:07 pm-Now I'm hungry. Why was I so stupid not to make food for myself too? I eat 1/2 of a flour tortilla cold from fridge and some Jello. I know, Jello! Pregnancy lets me eat weird things. Normally revolting things look ok, hence the Jello. All culinary rules out the window.

11:13 pm-I finally climb in bed. I read my book "Black Swan" for a few minutes (not the book that the creepy movie is based on. This book is much more like Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers") I finally drift off to sleep.

So that is it! I wish I would've taken pictures of this day. I promise that if I do this again, I will take pictures. And maybe even a video so you can see my dog's park joy.

My mom's visit was long but super fun. And we get to see her in a few weeks for graduation! So now all I have to worry about is finding Marcelo a job. Shouldn't be hard in this economy, right?

Wish me luck!