Blogging Failure

So, I guess I am a blogging failure. Four and a half months since my last post? FAIL!! That is some serious less effective blogging there, Alicia.

But will this make up for it?:

 
Oh, the chub! The delicious, delicious chub! So I get to spend all my time with this tasty morsel and his equally stunning sister. Here are some pictures of her from her ballet performance last month)

 And in case you missed it on youtube, here are the videos of her:





So since we have been out of the loop so long, here are a few things by way of catchup:

Evi:
* Misses her ballet class
* Likes dressing up in all the clothes Auntie Judd gave her. Like these:

 * Also, she loves contorting for her pictures. All the pictures I have of her are with her leg sticking out or bending to the side. Weird
* Is so big and tall, no one believes me when I say she is only 3. But that will change very soon!
* Still wakes up some nights and does wild things through the house just because no one is awake to tell her no. (watches youtube, eats food, reads books, plays Barbies, makes messes, changes her clothes, opens the front door to let the dog out. Oh, the list goes on and on)
* Speaks great Spanish and decent English.
* Is sooo persistant, tenacious, strong-willed.
* Is obsessed with all birthdays and especially the fact that her birthday is very soon. Whenever we meet someone, she says, "I'm Evi. I'm 3. It's my Happy Birthday." Which it isn't!!
* Has started to really like her brother and resent him a lot less. But you'd better believe she will be jumping in if there is a camera around!

* Has the biggest feet. I am talking massive. Think Sasquatch. Or Hobbit. And she grows out of shoes almost faster than we can buy them. Thank heavens for cousins and friends that give us hand-me-downs.
* Is so sweet when she wants to be. Loves hugs and kisses and being silly. Loves to meet new friends and play with them. And loves to help mommy through the house

And now for the tub-o-love. Presenting Sebastian in all his 2-teeth glory.

 Here are some facts about him:
* Loves to snuggle and cuddle.
*Sleeps especially well through the night
*Loves to bang things. i.e. clap hands, hit table, bang computer, smack dog or your face. 
*Likes to coo to himself, and blow super spitty raspberries
*Has a 3 day "perfection" period. Meaning that once he learns a skill, he perfects it in 3 days and then moves on to the next skill. This happened with holding his head up, pushing himself up off the ground, sitting up, crawling, (first on knees, and then on the balls of his feet) pulling himself up on things and independently standing alone in the middle of the floor. And then he did this about 2 weeks ago:



(Notice the bewildered look on his face. He isn't so used to everyone staring at him. He is confused by all the attention.)
Yeah, we have a walker. a 7 1/2 month walker. It's that 3 day period! He just wants to move onto the next thing. I just need to stop being surprised by it. But if you saw the size of his chunk legs, you would be surprised too! (Next post will be all about the chunk legs. I must record them before they melt away with all the walking)

So that is us, that is our life. I hope you forgive me for the long absence. I won't make any promises that I will be better at posting here, but I am going to try!

Worst mother of the year. . . .3 years running

It's 9:16 pm.

My child has just run back to the bag of generic Apple Jacks to grab a handful for the 3rd time.

I am annoyed with her because I am trying to put her to bed.

And then it hits me.

My child didn't eat dinner.

FAIL, Alicia. MAJOR FAIL!

I have been told this frequently happens to children during a move, but it didn't make me feel any better.

She ate a whole quesadilla and a bowl of corn flakes after I realized she was starving. Serves her right for not telling me she was hungry!

P.S. I really don't blame my child for not telling me. Just so you know. That was a jok

Held Hostage

So Bibbers has this new thing that she likes to do She holds me hostage by locking me out of the house and then demands a ransom to be let back in. The ransom thing is really my fault. Let me esplain.

So a few weeks ago, I had to take Raya down to go pee in the rain. If you will remember, Raya turns into a PRINCESS when it rains. The snow she deals with. But rain? OHHHHH. She'll pace by the door whining, nearly wetting herself because she doesn't want to get wet. She won't go out in the rain unless you walk by her side coaxing her the whole way. And then she goes and basically finds the part of the grass that is under the roof overhang and pees there as fast as possible so she can get back up in the dry part of the house. Like I said, princess.

So I had to walk her down. And I didn't worry about leaving Bibi alone in the house because Marcelo was in the back bedroom dozing before his soccer game. WEEEEELLLLL. Bibi decides to lock me out (with no jacket and no bra on, in the freezing hail/sleet/rain) and then LAUGH at me as I beg her to open the door. Seriously, I begged her for a full 3 minutes! I rang the doorbell. I knocked on the door. I pulled on the handle. I tried to use Raya as bait and pretend to have Raya open the door. But she just looked at me and LAUGHED OUT LOUD in a pretty clear mocking tone. And then she decided she wanted to go back and get on the computer and she was going to leave me there. (Marcelo was of course useless. He stayed comatose on the bed through the whole ordeal)

I finally got her to open the door by telling her I would give her a fruit snack pouch if she did it. Bribery,pure and simple. Well now, she has taken to "tricking" me to go outside for some reason or another and then she locks me out demanding I give her a fruit snack or a piece of gum to be let back in. Sometimes when we go down and are walking in the park, she will tell me to wait (she actually says "es-pay-ya, mami" which is pretty close to "espera") and then she will run up ahead of me and lock me out of the house.

So, as you can see, the ransom idea was mine. All due to that first situation where I was bra-less and desperate to get inside. Now she thinks that the best way to get a fruit snack is to kidnap mom for it. What a little turd.

I love her so much.

Here is a picture of her in her favorite outfit. I actually bury these close in the BOTTOM of the hamper, next to stinky towels and pairs of pee underwear. But she has a 6th sense about where they are and can find them no matter where I have put them. The good thing is that the moment they are clean, she puts them on, and they are usually dirty within the first 2 days. So then they go in the hamper and I don't have to deal with them until the next wash day.















And here is Bibi in a side hat. We took this camera with us on vacation when we left her behind and we would see it as we were flipping through our pictures and get sad just looking at it.
















I need to post about our vacation, but I don't think anyone really cares about what we did each day in Hawaii. So maybe I'll just post a few pictures and some stories. Because oh, do I have the stories!

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!

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!

Sure your child is great, but can they. . .

I know all of you think you have the greatest child in the world. You think they are the smartest or the most clever. You think they are the cutest and that when they learn to sing songs they hear they are going to be the next Beethoven.

I mean, we all have bragging rights. My kid walked at 8 months. Your child probably could put together whole sentences with complex prepositional phrases at 13 months. (oh, on a side note my child now says "si" every once in a while. Actually, it's not really "si". She says "gee" or "dee". But it's something!!! The funny thing is that she can TOTALLY make the "sssss" sound. We ask her " what does a snake say" and she does a little lispy "sth sth sth" sound. Adorable. But she won't put it with the "eeee" sound. Strange. Back to topic) And some of you boast a child that taught themselves how to play the piano or read at age 2.

I say this is all well and fine. But I trump you ALL. Case closed, pack it in, this show is over.

My child can fart on command.

She does it to make me laugh. Whenever we hear her fart we say "gasiosa"! and she knows what it is. And so she makes herself fart just to hear us say gasiosa and laugh. She usually does it in the bath or just getting out of the bath. And one of these days she's going to strain herself too hard and poop in my arms. I just know it.

But until then I'm not going to stop her. Because seriously? A child that can fart on demand before her 2nd birthday? This kid has "going places" written all over her. Just you wait.

. . . Can You?

So after nearly 3 months of speech therapy I can tell you that she's had almost no difference in her speech. Oh, I know what you think when you look at those videos. And that's pretty much how it goes around here. Babbling non-stop her nonsensical words and wildly gesticulating. And yet, no words.

I mean, we are talking basic things like "yes" and "milk". I think I read somewhere that by 2 years your kid should speak like 100 words. I have heard her say 2. They are "no" and "esta". But she's great at recognizing words. She knows around 20 animals and can point to them. She knows colors and shapes. And she knows hundreds of commands. I would say that when it comes to recognizing and responding, she can recognize over 200 words and phrases. But what good does that do me when she's hungry and she won't tell me but instead whines non stop? I mean, I can ask her if she's hungry, and she makes a "uh huh" sound (again, she doesn't say "SI" but just makes a sound) but that's not what we are going for! We want words here!!

Sunday I asked her nursery teachers about her language. We are very blessed that one of her nursery teachers got back from a mission to Argentina less than a year ago and loves speaking Spanish to her. And so I asked him if they notice that she speaks when not around me. They said that she just babbles and babbles but nothing recognizable comes out. They said that last week she went and sat down next to Elissa (a little girl about 1 year older than her) and just blabbed and blabbed for minutes. After she left, the teachers asked Elissa what Bibi said to her. She shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't know". Nice

But the real kicker is what happened a few weeks ago at the park. A little boy was playing with her and she was running around and just generally not talking. And he said to her "I can talk. . . . Can you?" OHHHH!!! BUURRRNNN!!!!

No, junior. The answer is no. She cannot talk. But if you want someone to show you how to destroy the house while your mom is in the shower, she's your girl

Butter

Today before Marcelo left for school he said, "what is the baby eating"? And I said, "butter". And he jumped up shocked and ran to where she was eating on the counter. As he was running I further clarified, "well, she's eating a piece of bread with butter, but she picks all of the butter off and just eats it plain."

Here is some video attesting to that fact. While I was in the shower, she got into the freezer and found the butter that I keep frozen there. And here is what I found when I got out:



Seriously, if I let this kid eat nothing but dairy all day, she would be in heaven. Cottage cheese, ice cream, yogurt, milk, cream cheese, string cheese, or just plain cheese from the bag. Actually, I buy cheese in bulk and use my food processor to shred it and then I freeze it. And again, while I was taking a shower she got in the freezer and was eating the frozen cheese straight from the bag. That wasn't a problem. I mean how much cheese can a 2 year old eat in 7 minutes?















That is a picture of here enjoying the frozen cheese, and then she's telling me to "back off" so she can eat more. And, if she has an accomplice in the form of a constantly ravenous dog, well, then this is the kind of damage she can do: That whole bag was emptied in 8 minutes. Disgusting.

More food related news: Here is what happened when I was vacuuming the other day.

















She found this little bag of flour and seasonings (some dredging flour) in the freezer. Are you seeing a pattern here? I think we need a freezer lock.

Some cute pictures of a baby in a crock pot? Why yes, I have those too!
















(She's eating cold, day old rice right from the pan. She loves that!)

And finally, my last "food related" presentation is what happens when you decide to make pooping "me time". I still maintain that I should get to poop in peace, but it's difficult to rationalize that when I come out and find scenes like this.



Happy eating!

Here's some extra credit: If your child goes silent for a while, you can assume she has found a tube of chap stick and is trying to eat it slash apply it.















And if it's cherry chap stick it counts as a fruit in your daily food pyramid.


Delicious!

More Overt Racism

Have you seen Disney's Peter Pan in a while. OH MY GOODNESS!! You will be shocked at the "Injun" portion of the movie.

The phrase "Me smokem' peace pipe" is used. Also "Hoow" and "squaw" and calling Native Americans "The Red Man". How has the ACLU not banned this movie yet? It's good racist times.

On a similar note, Lady and the Tramp has those Italian guys that are also quite stereotypical. But for some reason, they make me laugh. Super Mario accent? Funny. Why is that? Maybe it's because of Tina Fey. "I want-a make-a the prank-a phone call"

Anyway. I'm going to try to teach my kids not to be racist. Well, I'm going to tell them not to "war whoop" in the presence of people.

Or ever, really.

Seriously Frustrated

I cannot find a good pair of shoes for the Bibbers. I thought I found a steal at Kid 2 Kid when I found a great pair of Stride Rite black patent leather t-strap mary jane's in her size. AND THEY WERE ONLY $4!!! I almost peed myself.

And then I got them home and put them on her with nylons (I didn't try them on her at the store because she was wearing the wrong socks) and they were too small!! Not just "oh, we can make them work for a few weeks until we find something better" small. Oh no! I put them on her and she started LIMPING around the house. Actual limping.

But the baby loves them!! She pulls them out of hiding and brings them to me to put them on (without socks, of course). How do you tell a little girl no to shiny black shoes!?! I tried to find replacement shoes that are the exact style but they are discontinued. And I looked for them online and I can't find them anywhere

So then I moved on to looking for ANY nice black basic Sunday shoe for the baby. They are NOT easy to find. They are either discontinued or sold out or no longer in stock. I'm so frustrated. Can I please just find a pair of shoes for my baby that have none of the following:

* Lights
* Dora The Explorer
* Covered in glitter
* "Jellies"
* Fur puffing out the top or
* Some sort of garish iridescent color?

I'm so frustrated. I want my child to be rocking a cute style. Classic cute. Not a bejeweled, glittered, Nickelodeon-pimping style. I'm so frustrated.

So when you see my child at church and she's wearing a pair of white Keds, you'll know why.

It Has Arrived

The Terrible Twos has arrived at our house. When my child feels like she isn't getting the attention that she deserves, or when her needs aren't met immediately, there is a strong . . . .um. . .how you say. . . REACTION. The word "no" from my mouth is met with this same reaction. When she is displeased, here are a few things you might get:

* kicked
* hit
* scratched
* hair pulled
* ear pulled (if you are a furry friend named Raya)

And finally if no on is around to inflict physical pain upon, you can always hit the computer or throw something. Anything . If you can pick it up with ease, it can be thrown with ease. Telephones, remote controls, iPods, food, drink cups, water bottles. Shall I go on?

Time outs are well known around our house. Sometimes she goes from one time out to the next. I pick her up, explain why she is there, ask for an apology and get a slap in the face. Back in time out she goes. I'm sure our neighbors can hear her through the door (her time out spot is right by the front door) and they think that I either 1) beat my child or 2) like the sound of my child's screams. Or maybe a combo of both. I don't blame them for thinking this.

I realize it's a phase. The fact that she's still not talking I'm sure is adding to her frustration. I know it's adding to mine!! And to answer your questions, yes, she's still meeting with a speech therapist. No, there has not been any development in the language department. Her babbling is getting more advanced, so I have hopes that there will be a breakthrough every day. HOWEVER, we have a new development: In her babbling I've noticed that she thrusts her tongue forward. The speech therapist noticed this and said that she might have to be evaluated again because of this development. Basically, my kid is all kinds of messed up when it comes to talking.

Anyway, I'm not writing this to complain or ask for advice. Just to let you know that WWIII is happening at my house with my child. And so if I come to visit you and put my child in time out the whole time I am there you will know what is going on. At least I'm not slapping her back. . .yet.

P.S. I'm watching "Lady and the Tramp" with my daughter today. It's been years since I've seen it. Have you seen it recently? Are you as shocked as I am by the horribly offensive and overtly racist "Siamese Cats" and their song? Why not just give them buck teeth and put rice patty hats on them? Seriously!! Ahhh, the 1950's. Such innocence. Such naivete. Such blatant racism.

SLUUUUURRRP!

As the baby is getting over her cold/flu, It's now moved from a fever to a full nasal assault.

Which is kind of horrible, as any mother knows. Waking up with streams of snot down her face. Sheets covered in it, everything covered in it. She climbed up onto Marcelo's side of the bed and left a little streaking reminder. I pointed it out to him, and then I laughed.

And then this morning I was getting breakfast ready for her and I heard a loud slurping noise. I thought she was done with her milk, so I turned around to look at her. I saw a current of snot pouring from both sides. Ever so delicately she lifts her tongue up and SLUUUURRRP! Drinking it down super nice.

Delicious. Absolutely delicious. It's days like this that make me know that there is a God. Otherwise we would all be dead from our own nose bacteria.

Afternoon Delight

What do you give your child as an afternoon snack? Piece of cheese? An apple? Maybe a glass of milk and some crackers? Do you give your child frozen bread?

My child love LOVES frozen bread. See, since the diet started, I've been eating less bread. So I freeze the loaf so it doesn't go bad. (You can easily break off one individual piece and toast it if needed) Another thing about the freezer, we have one of those pull out drawers. Which a 26 pound 20 month old can open with super ease. Especially after she figures out how to use her body weight to open it. So when she wants a piece, she opens the freezer and brings me the bag.

What is it with frozen food? I can't get my child to eat cooked peas, but frozen peas? She'll eat enough to turn her poo green. Berries on her french toast? No way. But frozen berries out of a bag? I have the stained clothes to prove how much she loves them.

Another item of baby business. I have 2 private times to myself. The first one is shower time. I have no problems locking the door and putting on a video and enjoying a nice hot shower. The second "me" time is when I'm pooping. I get to poop in peace!! I do NOT feel badly as I close the door and I hear my little girl knocking on the door while I poop. It's my 3 minutes! I get 3 min of pooping time to myself.

However, one day I forgot to shut the door when I went into the shower. I enjoyed my blissful body cleaning time in peace, even though I could hear her rustling about outside the door. And when I got out, this is what I found:

I'm sure all of you have had moments like this. I'm sure your pictures are much better. And I'm sure just like me (if you are cheap and poor) you spent 7 min rolling it back up onto the roll again.

Next, my little baker. I'm putting her to work and going making some money off of her.



Excuse my horrible voice. I'm much closer to the microphone than she is.

Ok, that's all for now.

Please tell me you agree with my "bathroom time". I know you are considered a "bad mom" if you let your child cry right outside the door. But seriously! I don't need my child pointing to the faults of my naked body. AND THERE ARE SOME HUGE FAULTS.

Just in case you were wondering. . .

Super glue and carpet don't mix.

Just in case you were wondering.



This will serve as my "The Facebook" status update:

Alicia is. . . . Cutting Superglue out of Carpet

What is your current status?

(make sure your status starts with "(your name) is:")

Diga. . .DIGA!!!

The Bibi doesn't talk. I know I have mentioned this before, but apparently my pediatrician just became aware of the fact and has referred us to a specialist.

We have now had 3 home visits by 4 different women. A lot of time they ask the same questions. And both on Tuesday and again today they played a lot of the same games. But they all come up with the same conclusion: A very bright child, ahead of schedule for problem solving, motor skills and logic. A bright child who can communicate in other ways, but just chooses not to talk.

See, Evi DOES communicate when she wants something. She points to the fridge, or pulls me over to the bedroom to point to her videos, or puts her shoes on and points to the door. I mean, that's pretty dang clear, right? And when I ask her to put her shoes on, she goes right and does it. She can point to things in books and can match items we give to her. She recognizes the names of things and does the commands i give her. And yet, no words!!

Sure, she makes sounds, like she'll make a "ma ma ma ma" sound sometimes, but she doesn't come to me and say, "mama, afuera" when she wants to go outside. or "mama, leche" when she wants milk. The kid just doesn't talk. She just refuses to.

And to answer your questions about sign language, I don't think that would help us at this time. It's not like she is frustrated. She makes her wants very clearly known. I know what she is saying (well, not really, but you know what I mean) so the sign language is kind of not needed at this point. I mean, it's for kids that need to get what they want. And she has no problem getting what she wants from pointing, dragging and gestures. So in a way, I guess she does her "own" signs.

Anyway, we'll probably have these visits for a little while longer. I'll let you know how they all go. But in the mean time, I'll just keep taking my kid outside when she puts her shoes on, brings me her coat and points to the door. It seems to be working for now.

Whipping Rabbit

My first child loves this rabbit. It was given to me from someone at a shower. I can't remember who. I kept it around even though I never thought she would like stuffed animals. But she proved me wrong. Here is how I found her during nap time one day.















And here she is sharing dinner with him. "One for me. . . One for you". And I love how she makes sure he stays hydrated. That is applesauce she's got there, if you were wondering.



But my favorite activity she does with him is the "whipping" rabbit. Much like the book of the same name, Bibi often tries to make this rabbit take her punishments. Namely, her time outs. (She gets time outs for ripping ornaments off the tree). And so when I came around the corner, this is what I found:

(That's her time out corner, of course). I'm sure the rabbit deserved it, and he took his punishment well. What a good whipping rabbit.

I hope everyone is having a good Christmas season. Marcelo finally got his grades back from this semester, so he told me that his vacation has OFFICIALLY started now. So on this night before Christmas I'm going to sign off and watch White Christmas with my husband. Yes, he is willing to watch it with me. Wait till he gets to the dancing numbers. I'm not sure he'll be into it then.

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope Frank Lloyd Wright visited your house as well this season. He is so generous around the holidays.

A Message from Evelyn

So Evelyn Turn 14 months a while ago. (Since starting this post she's actually turned 15 MONTHS!) I decided to document her life at this point again with one of those "Baby's Favorite Things" Blog. I have also decided to add lots of cute pictures and videos of her. So if you don't want to be smacked in the face with cuteness, please look away riiiiight NOW! (Lots of videos and pictures. Be warned. Scan if you must.)

Hey everyone!! It's me Evi! Well, I'm now 14(o sea 15) months old, and I thought I would let you know how I'm doing these days. I've decided to make a list of "Fours". You know, four of this, four of that. I'm sure you can follow along. I mean, most of you have been blogging longer than me!! So please enjoy getting to know a little about me!

4 of my Favorite Foods:
1. Peas. Here I am eating some frozen peas while mom was trying to cook. They are so good I don't wait for them to be heated up!

2. Chicken
3. Noodles!!!
4. Popsicles, Here I am sharing a popsicle with Raya.




4 of my Favorite Actives with Papi
1. Sleeping on his shoulder









2. Reading









3. Waving "chao" to mom (More on that later)
4. Jumping on him while he's on the bed and doing my best to jump on his "package" I get it just about every time!!!

4 Things I Recognize
1. Papi's picture on the fridge. I want mom to pick me up every day so I can stare at it and point to it and smile. I love my Papi!
2. The song from the annoying gift my Mamita gave me in Ecuador. I make mommy dance to it when I turn it on. Also, I love the following songs and will stop crying when I hear them: the Gilmore Girls theme song, "Poker Face" by Lady GaGa (I don't know how Mom figured this one out! But she's happy it has stopped playing constantly on the radio), Wiggles Theme song and any hymn sung by Papi.
3. My "bedtime" song. Mami and Papi sing it to me, and when I hear it, I put my head right on the shoulder of the person holding me. (Mami's note: The song is Juanes "Time to change" but we've changed it to "It's time to sleep. . .Es tiempo de dormir")
4. I notice ANYTHING that mami does. If she does it once, I can remember and do it myself the next time. Like talking on phone, opening cabinets, opening Raya's cage,prying open Raya's mouth to get something out like Mami does. Things like that. Mami has to be careful what she shows me now!!!

4 Things I just learned to do
1: Wave bye-bye and say "Chao" while I do it. (Mom's interjected comment: OH MY GOSH!! IT'S FREAKING AWESOME. Here is a video of it. The best is the "over the shoulder" chao. Breaks my heart.)



2. I just learned about books! And I found my favorite one. It's call "La Ratita Presumida" and I bring it to mami and then sit in her lap so she will read to me. I especially love it when mami makes the sound of the cat eating the mouse at the end. I have her do it over and over again. Here I am looking for my favorite books. I feel that if I climb ALL the way in, I might get them better.




3. Getting off the bed by myself. Actually, I've been doing this since we were in Ecuador, but I forgot to tell you all about it!! I'm an expert now. But I'm not so good getting off other tall things.
4. Run away from mami. See, if I want some "alone" time to like, destroy a book, or pull out all the wipes from the big green container, then I have to find a little spot to be alone or mami will take those things away from me. And if I see her coming? Then I get up and run away from her, screaming and further destroying what is in my hand. It's a high cost, but I HAVE to get away from Mami!! She's vigilant!!
4 Things I can almost do
1. Somersault alone. Right now I just go up on my head and legs and wait for mami or papi to push me over.


2.Climb out of the bathtub. I'm ALLLLMOST there!!
3.Talk. I babble, and coo and pretend to make sentences like mami and papi, but I don't really say any words they recognize. Luckily whining still works!!
4.Fold my arms during prayers. I start off good, but it's just so much work holding them still the whole time!! I'm working on it, though

4 Things I do that drive mom crazy or stop mom's heart when she sees me doing it
1. Eating dog Food. I LOVE IT!! If I find a random piece that has dropped, you'd better believe I'm going to snatch it up and have it half dissolved in my mouth before mom finds it! Papi keeps yelling at Mami to keep the food off the floor, but Mami feels badly that Raya is starving all the time because of my actions so she puts it down and forgets about it. And you know I take advantage of her short term memory! I CAN'T HELP IT!! I GOTTA GET ME SOME DOG FOOD!!! I also like to play in her water dish. Please observe:



2. Climbing up on the dining room table chairs. I've fallen a few times. But I love it. Give me a chair and I'll climb it. I also like to pound on the keyboard of the computer, but the chair mysteriously moved away from the computer so I can no longer do that. OH WELL!!



3. Eating my bubbles during bath time. I practically inhale them. They taste so good!

4. Demanding my own Popsicle and then running around the house dripping it everywhere. But if Mami tries to take it from me I scream and throw myself on the ground. I don't think she's going to give me any more Popsicles. *frowny face*

4 Things I look forward to doing
1. Playing on top of the counter while mom is making dinner or doing the dishes. I get full range of the whole thing!! It's like Christmas!
2. Going to nursery with Mami and Papi and getting to play with toys, friends and especially snacktime! Those 3 year old just sit and blah blah blah all the time. Don't they see the goldfish crackers right in front of them? What are they waiting for? I do not wait: I jam as much food as I can in my mouth while they waste time and blah blah away.
3. Bath time. You know, to eat those bubbles!! And it's nice and warm. And I get to dump water on myself. But mostly I like to eat the bubbles
4. Going outside with mom and Raya. Raya goes to the bathroom, and I get 30 minutes to do whatever I want! I pick up rocks, (BIG rocks too!! Grapefruit sized rocks are my favorite) and I dig in the dirt. It's honestly the best part of my day. And I get to do it at least 2 times a day!! Sometimes three, if Raya whines enough. *Mental note. . . try to tell Raya to whine more so we get to be outside more often*

4 Things that annoy me
1. When mom takes my Popsicle. Seriously, mom. I'm about to flip my shiz if you do that again!!
2. When mom won't give me the boob. I mean, I'm digging in her shirt, practically pulling it out. Why won't she just give it up? MAN!
3.When mom puts me in my crib for nap time. I make sure to scream so she knows how upset I am. I do this every day. I've heard Mami say to different people that she's pretty sure I shouldn't be crying anymore, but I don't care. I DO WHAT I WANT!!
4. When mom tells me "NO". Mami says it to me and I FLIP OUT!! Like seriously flip out, rolling on the ground, flinging myself all over, full red faced tantrum flip out. Man, why doesn't she just give me what I want?

4 Words that I say
1: Chao
2. Mama
3. Gracias (Comes out "acias" but it's the thought that counts, right?)
4. Raya-My first word. I love me some Raya!

4 Commands or phrases that I recognize and will do when asked!
1. "A Papi" or "A Mami" When I need to take something to mom or dad. They say it and I take it to the other one that isn't giving the command.
2. "A Raya". I know who Raya is and I take her treats and toys too. Or anything else that mom tells me to take to her
3. "Cuidado!" Mom says that to me WAAAAY too much. I think I'm becoming desensitized to it
4. "Chao!" Especially when I hear daddy say this to me in the morning before he leaves. It makes me cry! I hate when daddy leaves me in the morning!

4 Things that I Love
1. My Raya-My best friend. Here are just a few choice pictures of me and my best friend. Here I am trying to show her how she needs to climb into her cage. When pointing doesn't work. . .















I don't really care. I just love my Raya!


And if, as a last resort I have to go to her, it's fine. There's plenty of room for us in here!


2. My Peluches (Stuffed animals and dolls) I see how many of them I can gather into my arms at one time and then take them to mom or dad. Sometimes I roll around with them on the floor or on the tile covering myself with them. Issss for fun!


3. Spinning in circles. I will do this forever if given the chance. I pivot on my right foot, put my head down and go! I do it until I get dizzy, fall down, smack my head on something and start crying.
4. Did I mention the walks we go on? Oh I did? I'm going to talk about them more! Like I said, I love to pick up rocks, wood chips and pine cones. I carry them around for a good 30 min. Sometimes, when mom isn't looking, I try to sneak one into my mouth. Mom NEVER lets me eat them!! I don't mind when she takes them away from me. I'll just get more the next time!
5. Oh, and a super great fifth thing. . . Sitting in or standing on baskets. But of course, first they must be emptied first!













So that's basically my life right now! Thanks for staying with me and reading to the end. I need to give the computer back to mom now. I'm tired!! Can someone sing me some Juanes please?