Our Baby "J"

STARTED A NEW BLOG

2007-08-29T23:42:00.000-07:00

PLEASE BOOKMARK THE FOLLOWING LINK:

http://thefablifeofi2daj.blogspot.com

See you around!

Chris ROLLED OVER! ;)

2007-07-26T23:21:00.000-07:00

(@ 11:16 pm at night)

Yay!.... while mommy and daddy was playing poker (uh.... reading Chris a story), Chris decided to reach for some M&Ms inside of a bowl. He was reaching so much that he ROLLED OVER FROM HIS BACK TO HIS TUMMY! :)

Mommy and daddy screamed so loud that Chris started crying :(

Our little guy is growing up!

Chris has a new toy

2007-06-09T23:06:00.001-07:00

So Chris has an activity blanket that can be taken apart and made into different toys. Here he is having a good time.

Let's Go CAL Bears!

2007-06-09T22:59:00.001-07:00

My new outfit

My matching shoes (thanks to Tiffany's mom)

Chris' favorite bear Oscie (does his name sound familiar?)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

So we took daddy to dinner at the Liberty Grill in downtown LA.

How do we look together?

Christian at 4 months old!

2007-06-09T22:56:00.000-07:00

Christian turned 4 months old on June 3, 2007

Daddy gives Chris a bath (June 2)

2007-06-09T22:50:00.000-07:00

So dad wnted to give Chris a bath for the first time. He did real good too, mommy only had to help at the very end.

Happy Anniversary!

2007-06-09T22:14:00.000-07:00

We planned a long overdue trip up to the Bay area for our 1 year wedding anniversary. The plan was to drive up on Friday and hit up Zachary's, before heading to our hotel room at the St. Francis. Saturday we would go to Napa Valley, with some friends, to hang out and (what else) taste wine! Sunday we'd do some of the things that we use to do while we were dating (400 miles apart) and Monday drive down the coast, along highway 1, and take in some good scenary.

So we stuck to the schedule, even sneaking in eating some bbq on Sunday night at Big Nate's (don't bother asking and we do not recommend this place to friends). The only thing that we'd change, if we could, would be the 11+ hour drive along the coast. Very bad planning.

Us on the gondola ride at Sterling's winery

Christian and Briauna playing in the grass at Mondavi's winery

Chris crying because I turned him away from this great view of Napa

One of our favorite crepes from Crepes a-Go-Go (on University in Berkeley)

Fresh strawberries, bananas, butter and sugar! :)

Daddy and Chris at Sather's Gate (UC Berkeley)

Mommy and Chris at Bancroft library

Daddy in front of old BESSA office (are you thinking what I'm thinking?)

Great place to be with mommy and daddy

Happy Pre-Anniversary Mom & Dad!

2007-06-09T22:10:00.000-07:00

Godmommy (and Maid of Honor) Kristen surprised us by keeping the top layer of our wedding cake for an entire year! She kept it in her refrigerator and gave it to us as our anniversary gift 1 day short of our anniversary.

Hmmm..... let's see, would you a) eat the cake that has been frozen for 1 year or b) eat the "fresh" cake that the baker said they'd make for you (free of charge) one year later.

Ryann changes Chris' diaper (oh lord)

2007-06-09T22:03:00.000-07:00

"She that asks shall receive" (or something like that).

Ok, so big sis has been wanting to change Baby Buddha's diaper for the longest. We gave her her big chance on May 20th. She did pretty good.

I mean she didn't put the straps on tight, and she didn't really want to wipe his private parts, but for the most part she made it through it. Chris didn't even wiggle a lot (I think he wanted to take it easy on her).

Christian has a girlfriend (other than mommy and big sister)

2007-06-09T21:59:00.000-07:00

So here's a picture of Christian's new little (or big) girlfriend. Her name is Mariah, and she lives next door. Her little sister, Chyna, comes over to play with Ryann; but as soon as Chris sees her.... he's all drools for her.

Happy Mother's Day (to all)

2007-05-13T23:04:00.000-07:00

We spent much of the day louging around the house. Clif made french toast, eggs, sausage and bacon for breakfast (at around 1:30p). Ryann and Raye came home from their dad's house at 12:30p. After breakfast/lunch we played a couple of games of MLB 2k7 and crashed on the couch for a little while. At around 3:30p we had some visitors (neighbor kids that wanted to play with Ryann and Raye). We were on the road to play some miniture golf at Mulligan's by 5p and sitting at the kitchen table snacking on Little Caesar's Hot-N-Ready pizza by 7:30p.

Today was a great Mother's day.

Gifts included:

*From Raye - a beautiful folder that included a drawing of me on the cover. Inside the book were words from Raye about how much he loved me. Truly precious.

*From Ryann - a 20+ CHOCOLATE recipe book that her entire class pitched in on creating. Parents had to give their child a recipe on a favorite chocolate dessert. The class then turned it into the teacher, who then turned around and made copies for the children to give all of the recipes to their moms for Mother's Day. Truly special.

*From Clif - Some awesome-ly wrapped gifts (my baby was so proud of hisself).

(1) pair of Cole Hann orange sandals (perfect for Summer)

(1) Cole Hann saddle bag (purse) that matched my new shoes perfectly.

High Society Eating (no pics)

2007-05-05T01:21:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let everyone know that Chris has been enjoying some serious 'high society' eating. Well, HE'S NOT the one actually enjoying the food, but he is bassing in the ambiance. Let's see at 3 months old he's enjoyed the smell and decorations from the following restaurants: Chop House (Pasadena); Stinking Rose (Beverly Hills); IHop (Redondo Beach); La Capilla (Torrance); Sizzler (Gardena); Chili's (Torrance); Lucille's (Torrance); Straw Hut (Lakewood); Round Table (Torrance)

....yeah, I know what you're thinking... "Sizzler's is not 'high society' eating." Remember when you use to think that Sizzler's had the best steak in town!?!?!?!?!!?!?

Christian at 11 weeks!

2007-04-30T00:46:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday Maya Joy Flowers

2007-04-30T00:22:00.000-07:00

Our sister Shawna gave birth to a beautiful and healthy baby girl on April 17, 2007 (yes, we are a little late posting this information). Maya Joy was born at approximately 11am and weighed in at just over 6 1/2 pounds. Here are a few pictures of Christian's new little cousin (they are almost exaclty 2 1/2 months apart).

Here's Maya...

Proud Uncle Clif...

Proud Auntie "I"

I make Daddy smile!

2007-04-25T18:26:00.001-07:00

He loves looking at my smile so much, that it makes him smile just as hard.
Aw, what a great dad!

(we apologize for the 'red-eyes')

My First Toy!

2007-04-25T18:22:00.000-07:00

Is a toy made by Little Tykes.
I love the way the crab looks at me... he gets me all fired up to knock off the little starfish that's on the sides off. I'm up to a full 12 minutes of fun and enjoyment all on my own !!!

Let's go Dodgers!

2007-04-25T18:17:00.000-07:00

It was Dodger Day for NTGSL, and the whole family ventured out to Dodger Stadium. Game time was 1:10p so we left the house by 11:30a. Our intentions were to make it to the stadium in enough time to get some autographs (it was autograph day). Little did we know you have to show up like at 10:00a to stand in an already formed line to get (1) autograph. By the time we got to the park there was a line that circled all of the cheap seats, and the only player that was still giving away autographs was "Perez" (bless his heart). Oh well, we opted not to stand in line but to spend $100 on memorabilia.

We made it all the way to the bottom of the sixth when Clif felt a drop. Pretty soon a drop turned into a steady pour, and that's when we made our way to "Blakout."

Chris was a trooper the entire time!

It's cereal for DINNER!

2007-04-25T18:15:00.000-07:00

Yay!
So just to see if Chris would like it, me and Clif decided to see how well he could eat off of a spoon (Lord knows this little boy has no trouble eating from a bottle). Let's just say, we have a lot of work to do. Most of the cereal ended up on his shirt; some ended up up his nose and a little even got on mommy's cheek (from cheek-to-cheek transfer).

10 weeks old!

2007-04-25T18:13:00.000-07:00

Ok, so finally my hair has begun to grow. My daddy was worried for a little while, but now that my hair is coming in all is well with the Jones' baby boy! (not that mommy cared if I didn't have hair)

Partying at 10 weeks old!

2007-04-25T18:09:00.000-07:00

Whoever said that babies don't know how to party was wrong. Christian stayed out (and up) until past 11:00 pm on Saturday, April 14th to celebrate Brenda's 40th Surprise birthday party. He was talking it up with all the lovely ladies and having a good time keeping dad comfortably entertained as mom prepared for the party.

The next time we go out we're taking him to a club!

Birf-day girl is in the HOT PINK! :)

Happy Birthday Daddy!

2007-04-09T23:49:00.000-07:00

So today Daddy Clif turned, umm, well.... it was his birthday. We celebrated by taking him to Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles in Long Beach for lunch, giving him a nice birthday card that everyone signed, and a "I Love My Daddy" picture frame. Then we he got home we took him to the Arroyo Chop House in Pasadena where he ate like a king. We had the Cowboy Ribeye, some caramelized corn and chocolate souffle. Mmmm, mmm good! :)

Weight Watchers for babies!!!

2007-04-06T22:59:00.000-07:00

So Christian Isiah had his 2 month check up today and guess what? Baby Buddha weighs 12lbs 14oz.

What?

OMG!?!?

I think it's time to put him on the Weight Watcher's Point System. Does anyone have that book that tells you how many points 7oz of Enfamil is per serving? Sheesh!

Baby Face...

2007-04-06T22:56:00.000-07:00

...you've got the cutest little baby face!

Pimp My Ride!

2007-04-06T22:52:00.000-07:00

Who said driving a mini-van has to be a boring experience. Check out "Blakout7" (<--what the license plate will say) and all her glory. It comes equipped with DUBs and T.V.s. All we need now is satellite hook-up, lamorgini doors and an umberella that pops out when the side door slides open.
"Bad ass moms drive bad ass vans!"

I'm ready for some Base/Softball

2007-04-06T22:47:00.000-07:00

So this year's Winter season has begun. Ryann is playing on the team 'Total Chaos' and Raye is playing for the Rookie League 'Baltimore Orioles' (check them both out at bat).

Now check out the way I watch the game. I'm ready for an all nighter. BRING IT ON!

8 weeks old, I'm a BIG BOY!

2007-04-06T22:37:00.000-07:00

It's March 31st and I am now 8 weeks old (technically 2 months). Mommy decided to dress me in a big boy outfit. Do you like? My daddy came home from work and was so impressed. I'm wearing his favorite color.

Check out my side profile!

I'm 7 weeks old!

2007-03-25T06:13:00.000-07:00

..and ready to par-tay! :P

I had a Knottie visitor!

2007-03-25T06:10:00.000-07:00

It's LilCee and Mr. LilCee (YAY!)
They came all the way from P-Town just to see me, and bring me a cool present. You guys r-o-c-k!

I'm 6 weeks old!

2007-03-25T06:08:00.000-07:00

Power to the People!

Ahh, to be a baby (is a sweet life)

2007-03-25T06:04:00.000-07:00

I sure am glad that all I do is eat and sleep. This way, my brother and sister can take care of me and let me know how much they love me.

Fuzzy Wuzzy Feet

2007-03-25T06:01:00.000-07:00

Wow... it's been kind of cold lately. I'm so glad that I have these warm slippers to keep me warm at night. Aren't you?

I'm 5 weeks old!

2007-03-11T22:07:00.000-07:00

My sibling love (h-e-l-p m-e)

2007-03-11T22:04:00.000-07:00

Big brother Raye makes sure Chris doesn't have any bed bugs.

Big sister Ryann thinks I'm a doll baby (oh my goodness).

All I need is...

2007-03-11T21:55:00.000-07:00

...my elephant, my bassinet and YOU! ;)

(I know you don't really believe that I sleep in this thing. Do you?)

We worked hard today, can you tell?

2007-03-11T21:53:00.000-07:00

Two hard working men asleep.

Christian goes high tech

2007-03-11T21:51:00.000-07:00

This bloggin' thing can't be as hard as it seems. Let me take a look mommy.

Mommy and Daddy to the rescue!

2007-03-11T21:46:00.000-07:00

Here is daddy getting ready to give me my liquid steak and potatoes!

Mommy I like having "poop" in my pants!

Happy 1 Month Birthday!

2007-03-04T20:36:00.000-08:00

Take THAT remote! (day 20)

2007-03-04T20:33:00.000-08:00

Ok, so here is Christian getting his revenge back on that ol' funky remote control.

Just hangin' around

2007-03-04T20:25:00.000-08:00

So, this is what my hand tastes like, huh? How come no one told me how good this thing was?
Are you looking at me?

Viewer discretion is advised!

2007-03-04T20:23:00.000-08:00

Please be careful when looking at this photo.
X-rated photo included.

"Daddy, can you change my daiper?"

2007-03-04T20:15:00.000-08:00

Ok, so for all of those that are wondering how Clifton changes diapers... here you go.

Cover me I'm goin' in Damn... what did you eat?All is well between father and son :)

R.I.P. "Donita Shante Gibson"

2007-03-02T22:19:00.000-08:00

Today I (Iisha) attended the funeral services for my children's auntie. She died of skin cancer at the young age of 32. She leaves behind a daughter, Kayla, who is 6 years old. Shante was a beautiful person and a wonderful mother. She will truly be missed.

May your soul rest in peace Shante.

Now that's what I called T-I-R-E-D (!!!)

2007-02-21T22:05:00.000-08:00

Ok, so everyone knows that a baby is upside down inside a mommy's stomach during the pregnancy. Well we wanted to find out just how comfortable Chris would be upside down. Well, you judge for yourself... (this is crazy, and please disregard the lady in the photo)

Happy Birthday to Mommy!

2007-02-20T12:37:00.000-08:00

Our little Heart Breaker (day 16)

2007-02-19T16:40:00.000-08:00

They LIED!

2007-02-19T16:21:00.000-08:00

Attention: All soon-to-be Mothers...

...breastfeeding does hurt! Do not believe anyone that tells you differently. Yes, it is a wonderful and natural experience that you share with your newborn. Yes, it is the best food you can provide for your little one... but DAMN it hurts.

We were told by EVERYONE that breastfeeding would not hurt. Even in our brestfeeding prep class the instructor told us that "if it hurts, you're doing something wrong!" Well, I don't know when the last time she actually breastfed, but on day 3 I was ready to scream bloody murder. On the first day it only hurt briefly, but I think I was too proud of the fact that I was breastfeeding to really notice. The second day was pretty much the same, as I was really trying to stay on track with my schedule and all. When we were discharged and I was able to sit back on my couch... all hell broke loose. There were some pretty rough times where I asked Clif to make a bottle of formula. Of course we didn't use those bottles, but we came very close.

Beware is all the advice I have to give!

The 3D/4D Comparison Test!

2007-02-18T19:29:00.000-08:00

Ok, so here it is...
If anyone wanted to know if the results of the 3D/4D were accurate here's proof:

Here are some fun pictures

2007-02-18T19:14:00.000-08:00

My first time in my swing (I really don't like it yet)

My fist tastes pretty good

Ok I think I'm ready for a nap

I'm almost as big as the remote

Introducing...CHRISTIAN ISIAH.....(our little Bam Bam!)

2007-02-18T17:32:00.000-08:00

Hello. I know, it's been a while. Well, I told you all that you wouldn't hear from us until after the birth, and well it's after the birth! Let's just say that we've been extremely busy settling into our new lives as parents, so blogging hasn't been something we could find time to do. Here's a little bit of information on what's been going on, I promise we'll explain everything when we find the time.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2007:

After not feeling well for an entire day, and experiencing some spotting and cramping, we decided to head to the hospital and get checked out. We finished up a couple of errands because we knew it was probably going to be a long visit, and made it to the hospital around noon. After being observed for a few hours Dr. Chen decided to instruct the nurse to admit us into the hospital since I was already at 3cm dilated and my cervix was extremely thinned out (it's now 3p). By 5p I had an IV bag hanging next to me, an epidural had been ordered and an on-call doctor was asked to come and break my water. The doctor decided against rupturing my water because bam-bam's head was still too far up.... which meant we had to let the medicine (pitocin) do some work. At around 6p Kristen arrived and was ready to ride out the day/night until Bam-Bam made his entrance. We decided to play some cards (I-Declare-War) to pass the time, and in between contraction I was being checked out by various nurses to see if the meds were working. After 8 hours of me sitting at 4cm, the nurse decided to call my doctor (it's now 4a) to get new instructions. At 6a, he arrived and decided to not completely break my bag but to make it leak instead (whatever!). The leak turned into a full break, and at 8a we are panicking that he was not going to be present for the birth (he had left the hospital and was called to return immediately). At 832a, on February 3, 2007, Christian Isiah made is entrance into the world and into our lives forever!!!

6lbs. 3.5oz and 20 inches long

Here's is one of his diaper changes!

Here's big sister Ryann...

Here's big brother Raye...

Thank you to everyone that made it up to the hospital to visit us. We truly appreciated all the flowers, food, gifts and warm wishes that we were blessed with during this very special time.

This may be it!

2007-01-31T16:55:00.000-08:00

So today at my doctor's visit (if you are keeping track, yes it was one day early) we found out that I am now at 3cm dilated. My cervix is apparently "paper thin" and the doctor does not expect me to make it through the weekend. I'm not sure if I'm going to be up to blogging much in the next few days so consider this my last post pre-Bam Bam.

Thanks so much for tuning in (whenever you could)... be sure and come back to see the first pics of our little blessing! :)

Signing off until after delivery!

-Mommy & Daddy

The Doc has spoken!!!

2007-01-26T12:42:00.000-08:00

So yesterday I went for my normal weekly visit to the doctor. Of course we had the interesting news, that was given to us at the hospital a couple of days prior, to discuss. After measuring the size of my belly, listening to the heart beat and cracking a few jokes, we went outside the exam room and began looking at the calendar.

Doctor Chen has decided to induce labor on February 8, 2007 at 8:00 pm, if little Bam Bam does not make his grand entrance before then.
Although we're a little sad that he will not be a "Valentine's Baby" like we all thought, we are very pleased to know that 2/8/07 is "D-day" :)

We'll see what happens...

1cm down.... .... 9cm to go!

2007-01-26T12:36:00.000-08:00

So early Tuesday morning we had another labor scare. At around 3am I noticed that I was having some pretty strong contractions. I began recording the times, etc., and at around 5am Clif picked up the phone to call the hospital. They advised us to either take a hot bath or put something warm on my back to help ease any pains. With nothing else ordered I decided to go back to bed while Clif prepared for work. Returning home for lunch he found me balling my eyes out on the couch because of all of the pain I was in. We then called the hospital AGAIN and was now told to come in.

3 hours, 3 blood vials, 1 urine exam, 1 pelvis and back ultrasound later, the triage nurse decides to take a look and see if there's anything going on. To her surprise she found that we were already 1 cm dilated and that my cervix was thinned out.

At this point they will do nothing to stall labor, I'm already past 37 weeks which means the baby is healthy enough to be born at this time.

Softball Evaluations & Basketball games

2007-01-26T12:31:00.000-08:00

Ok, so Ryann had softball evaluations today, and if I don't say so myself, she did pretty good. The stupid pitching machine wasn't working too well (all the president had to do was scoot it up a little bit) so none of her balls made it across home plate (they all went into the dirt).

Anyhoot, she looked great out there and she made us proud.

-------

Raye's Pacers had a 'bye' week, so he didn't have a game to play. Woo Hoo. Current Pacer stat: 1-0

Ryann's Monarchs on the other hand did have a game, however someone must have told their opponent to run and hide, because they never showed up (not even thr coach). The game was a forfeit. Current Monarch stat: 2-0.

Lamaze Class, day 3.....NO SHOW!

2007-01-26T12:27:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I think we all knew that it was coming. Me and Clif were so bored with this class that we ended up not going to our third class. Mainly because the teacher's style was (for lack of a better word) BORING! even our fellow students were lame-tarded. I told Clifton that I'm glad to have met him after college, he would have really put hurting on my studies, influencing me to be such a bad student. :)

We've decided to just 'wing it' and see how it all turns out.

Wish us well!

Baby Shower (take 2)

2007-01-16T13:31:00.000-08:00

So we were blessed with having a second baby shower, planned, organized and run by our very special cousin/auntie Patty. This shower was held in sunny San Diego (on the day the Chargers lost to New England by the missed field goal). All of the family was in attendance, and we feasted on the best bbq (thanks to Garett and Maria) known to man. It was great being able to see all the babies, and kids run around and have a good time, as family should. We were able to get some great gifts for little Bam Bam and even enjoy a little bit of the game before heading back home (to beat any traffic).

Here are some pictures from the day.... THANK YOU SO MUCH PATTY FOR EVERYTHING! And thanks to the rest of the family for all of your wonderful gifts, hugs, kisses and support. See you all at the next shower..... SHAWNA'S!

Winter Season B-Ball has begun

2007-01-16T13:24:00.000-08:00

Introducing the Torrance Pacers (5-6 year old divison) and the Torrance Monarchs (9-10 year old divison).

This year's basketball season started off with a BANG! Black top basketball is always fun, especially with a bunch of over eager little boys that all think their Michael Jordan, Yao Ming, or Big Shaq! At first Raye wasn't too into shooting the ball (or passing it for that matter) but as the game rolled on (and with a little help from his competitive father) he settled into a rhythm (one that didn't result an any baskets).Final score Pacers 10; Lakers 8.

The girls' game was a little more intense. A few girls dove for the ball; some blocked shots and one little Ms. Lisa Leslie even dribble between her legs to get the defender off of her. I have to say that Ryann did a great job closing the lane to the basket and protecting the paint. She's getting off to an awesome start.Final score Monarch 15; Fever 4. ^---- yes, it was a blow out!

Lamaze Class, day 2.....CHECK!

2007-01-16T13:22:00.000-08:00

Boy oh boy... this class is extremely hard to get ready for. Especially if you have a kid who has a basketball game that starts just as the class is suppose to end.

On our second day at lamaze we had to end our session 1 hour early.
(to be finished later)

3D/4D Ultrasound is truly amazing (!!!)

2007-01-07T18:57:00.000-08:00

After going to our first lamaze class, we got prepared to meet our little Bam Bam for the first time (while he is still in the womb). We headed to Pasadena to the Mothercare Ultrasound & Preparation Center for a 4D ultrasound image of our little one. It was a very emotional experience for us to actually get to see what he looks like (I had to shed a few tears). Some of the images did not come out so well. He's pretty cramped in there, being as though we're now at 35+ weeks. Still, we were able to see his huge cheeks (thanks to daddy), full lips (thanks to mommy) and his cute little nose.

Tip: the best time to have this procedure done is after 28 weeks, but before 34 weeks. You have to be far enough along so that the baby begins to have some fat on his skin, but not too far along where he has no room and therefore is cramped and balled up inside your belly.

Here are a couple of the images we were able to capture:

His hands are up

He's sleeping

He's still sleeping

Lamaze Class, day 1.....CHECK!

2007-01-07T18:52:00.000-08:00

So yesterday we attended our first of four lamaze classes, at LCOM. For the most part it seems like it will be a very 'entertaining' class. The instructor is an older lady, who is pretty much against pain medicine and any pregnancy intervention other than those made my mother nature. Clif has mixed emotions but is willing to see it through to the very end. Stay tuned for weekly updates.

As for now the only tip we have is bring "FOUR PILLOWS" not 'floor pillows'. We were the only couple there with small, decorative pillows to use, everyone else had big, bed-size pillows. (Thanks Clif)

Breastfeeding Basics Class.....CHECK!

2007-01-04T17:15:00.000-08:00

So last night we took our first (and only) breastfeeding class at LCOM. From 7-9p we sat, watched 2 videos and were taught the proper way of holding a baby while breastfeeding. The course was very informative and well worth the price ($35/couple) and I'm glad that Clif wanted to take it.

There were moments when I couldn't bare to watch the television screen anymore. Like seeing this mother of twins attach both babies on her breasts at the same time. What the ?!?!?! Is that even possible? According to the video it is. I know I'm not ready for any of that, let's just get through the first 24 hours, and then I'll tell you if I can handle any other hungry babies.

Breastfeeding helpful tips to remember:
1 - breastfeeding should not hurt (so they say). It may feel strange at first, but it should not be painful. If it does, you're doing something wrong. Detach the baby and try again.
2 - wash all of your bras (plus anything that will come in contact with the babies face) in the same detergent that you use for the baby. This will prevent any rashes on the babies face.
3 - use lanolin or pure-lan on your breasts ONLY (and only if you have dry skin). There is no need to use anything else. Remember, whatever you're putting on your breasts will end up in the baby's mouth.
4 - it is not recommended to borrow/use someone else's breast pump. If you do, replace any/all parts that have come in contact with the other baby, mother and breast milk (this means more than just the tubing used)
5 - Evenflo/Avent breast pump have the highest customer complaints than any other brand. Our instructor recommended the Medela Pump in Style (over the Advance) out of all over brands.

Hope some of this helps... ...next up LAMAZE!

Happy New Year!

2007-01-01T12:26:00.000-08:00

So we started off New Year's Eve at church (11a service). We then headed to the mall to cash in some of our baby shower gift certificates. Afterwards, we ate McDonald's before attempting to rest. At around 6p we headed over to Shawna's house with Universal Hollywood as our final destination. We hung out for a few hours at Citywalk; ate some crepes, sausages and cinnabons. Purchased a $7 candied apple; picked up some cool Skecher boots (for Ryann); snagged an action hero toy (for Raye); met up with some friends (Tonya and Malika) and finally headed home.

By the time 11:59 came around we were standing in the livingroom, holding glasses of Sparkling Apple Cider, ringing in the New Year (until around 12:47a, when we were all passed out from exhausion).

From Universal Studios Citywalk

Baby Shower (take 1)

2006-12-30T20:58:00.000-08:00

Today we had our first of 3 baby showers. The party took place at El Nido Park in Torrance, CA at 1:30P, and was mostly attended by friends and a few family members. We were very happy with the turn out and received so many cute outfits, shoes and hats that we're sure baby Bam-Bam will always be 'dressed-to-impress.' We also received the cutest little shoes and two banks (named: Mommy's Shoe Fund" and "The College Fund"). The day started out very sunny with calm winds, but that all changed around 3p when the coldness sprang out of nowhere and began freezing the hot wings! (Here are a few pics)

Thank you to everyone that made the drive to come and hang out with us at the park. We had a great time and we hoped you enjoyed all of the desserts!

Better late than not at all!

2006-12-28T16:58:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Sorry people... I've been extremely busy (and therefore too tired) to blog lately. This holiday season is kicking my pregnant butt. With peeps in town, presents to drop off, family to visit, gifts to wrap and hide, re-hide and then ultimately surprise the family with, I just couldn't take anymore.

Christmas weekend recap: Saturday morning we were up cleaning and moving refrigerators. By the afternoon we were sitting in traffic to return the pick up truck we borrowed from Uncle Tom (in Palm Springs). By 9p we were on the road (from Palm Springs) to Temecula to spend the night at Papa Jones' house. Sunday morning we were at church service (for 3 hours) and then it was time-out on the sofa for the Chargers game. At 5p we were headed to San Diego to play Santa to our neices/nephews and by 8 we were sitting on the 405N heading home. The kitchen was in full swing by 11:30p to prepare Monday's dinner, and by 2a we were asleep.

By 9:30a (Sunday) we were headed to the hospital for our fetal monitoring doctor's visit then we picked up my mom at 11a. We stopped off to pick up the kiddies (in Inglewood) and then it was off to Uncle Teke's house for early dinner and family time in Victorville (last city before Las Vegas :). We were back on the 15S by 6P so that we could try and make it back to Torrance in enough time to actually open up Christmas gifts at home.

Here are a few pics...

Phew!... I think that covers it.

The game of LIFE

2006-12-21T23:23:00.000-08:00

Well, well well. It's been quite some time since I've been able to blog. Please forgive me. It's not that I haven't wanted to, but the powers that 'be' (mostly my kids; my husband and Bam-Bam) have not allowed me a moment of rest. As a result any available down time I've been using as my sleep time. Let me see if I can re-cap what's been going on:

12/11 and 12/13 I attended Parent-Teacher conferences for both kids. Everything is going good. Just a few things we have to work on (shaking my head at the thought of my 1st grade son).

12/16 Clif and I took the kiddies bowling. As you can see, the game was very entertaining between "Sugar Raye" "Sparkle" and "Flash Gordon"... (lord help us).

12/17 I had brunch with my SFAMily. These are my buddies from the Knot. We met up in South Pasadena at Firefly Bistro (um delish)for our first ever Holiday gift exchange. Although I didn't 'officially' participate in the gift exchange (I kept my attendance 'hush' until I arrived) I did manage to pick up something for my sistas! Thanks to 'Wan-terrific' sibling for planning such a wonderful GTG. Sorry there are no other pics... but this one should do!

When I got home we had our weekly 'Game Night.' Do you remember the game "Life?" Man, this game can take forever. It is very funny to see my daughter complain about 'having' to get married, and ending up with a car load filled with children. She even had the nerve to complain about paying for them to go to college. Ha! Maybe I should have her sign a contract or something to let me off the hook when the time comes.

12/18 I dropped off the Quest for a full body detail. There were a few scratches on the drivers side that were there when we purchased it, so we had to take it back for repairs/detailing. I picked up a 2006 Toyota Camary... I'm not impressed. I want my van back damn it.

12/18 Clif began his new job. He's only 10 minutes away (20 w/traffic) from home and we were able to have lunch a few times this week. I love it!

12/18 I had my first of several hospital visits for fetal monitoring. The baby passed all of the tests he was given, and we're all set for the next appointment (Thursday).

12/20 I completed the family calendars I volunteered to do this year. They turned out great... I hope the family enjoys them.

Today I baked 50 cupcakes for Raye's class' Christmas party and I finished up my Christmas Day dinner grocery shopping and now I'm ready to relax. Clif is off tomorrow (he gets every other Friday off) so we'll be hanging out and enjoying life (after we drop off pizza for Ryann's Christmas party at school).

Infant CPR Class.....CHECK!

2006-12-12T10:10:00.000-08:00

So last night we took our Infant CPR class at the hospital where we'll be having our little Bam Bam (sorry no pics). The class began at 6p and was suppose to last until 9 (ouch). Chris was a wonderful instrctor and his assistant (who was basically on "mute" the entire evening) kept the class fast upbeat, quick and painless.

Aside from Clif trying to inflate the Goodyear blimp inside the lungs of our infant dummy, he did great. I'm proud of him. I've been certified in Adult/Child/Infant CPR before so this was a refresher course.

CPR Basics: First, remember... anything you do will ultimately help your victim. They are in a better position if you TRY SOMETHING than if you do nothing..even if that's just calling 9-1-1.

ABC's of CPR: A=Airway (check to see if the person is breathing); B=Breathing (you may need to blow into their mouth to give their lungs some air); C=Circulation (compressions. You will actually be making their hearts beat by compressing their chest).

Don't panic. Do what you can. Scream for help while your helping the victim... call 9-1-1 from a landline if possible (so they can trace the call if need be).

It's in your best interest to take this class at some point in your life. Normal hospital charge $25 per adult.

Clif was happy that we took the class.... so am I. Next up, Breastfeeding on 01/03/07! [wake me when it's over]

It's been hot in my kitchen

2006-12-09T18:26:00.000-08:00

Just trying out a few recipes that have caught my eye. This first one is chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and they're sprinkled with peppermint and chocolate shavings on top.

Here's some pictures:

Cream Cheese frosting (w/help of red food coloring)

Topping supplies

Naked cupcakes

Here's the finished product.
Thanks to CQ for her wonderful recipes and cupcake inspiration.

-----------------------------------------

Our next recipe comes to us from my wonderful SFAM buddy Nannette who loves to bake just as much as I do. These are 'Mexican Wedding cookies' and Clif gives them 2 thumbs up!

More pictures:

Into the oven they go!

Here's the finished product.
They're yummy!!!

False Alarm

2006-12-09T15:22:00.000-08:00

So this morning at around 9:30 I noticed that I was having some slight cramping. This can be a normal thing from time to time because my uterus should be 'doing it's thing' to prepare for the birth of the baby. At around 10a I noticed that I had already had 3 contractions, 5-6 minutes apart, lasting for around 20-30 seconds. No big deal right. I sit there and begin to really look at the clock and see if this 'uneasiness' has a schedule. Clif turns over and asks if there is anything wrong. I tell him what's going on and the first sentence out of his mouth is.... "Do you think I'll be able to take a shower first?" [immediate desire to back hand him is what I felt]"Sure, go ahead."

While he's in the shower for 20+ minutes (yes... 20+) I have another 3 contractions. These ones are stronger than the ones I felt earlier. While he was still in the bathroom, I call the hospital and ask for some advice. 'Heather' tells me to drink lots of water, stay off of my feet (which I was never on to begin with this morning) and keep my bladder empty. Clif comes out of the bathroom, gets me some water and I begin to drink. Now the contractions are coming even stronger and they're at 3-5 mintues apart. We wait for a few more pains and then decide to head to LCoM.

Upon arrival I'm hooked up to the monitor. It's detecting both my contractions and the baby's heart rate. All is well with the baby and the nurse sees my contractions. After talking to my doctor's weekend replacement, I was given a shot of terbutaline to stop the contractions. One hour later we were released to go home, hopefully not to return for another 7-8 weeks. Phew!

Got Sleep?

2006-12-09T15:15:00.000-08:00

I don't.

Little Bam Bam has decided to sleep all day and play soccer at night (until the WEE hours of the morning). To top that off he also likes to give his MAMA a horrible case of heartburn while kicking goals. Clif appears sympathetic in the beginning, but he always seems to fall asleep just as I'm getting more and more irritated. Complete the above off with me not being able to get comfortable (due to the fact that my stomach is now the size of a basketball) and you have a pretty darn good recipe for 'no sleep.'

Oh well, I guess I'll be able to sleep after he's out right?

Wrong!

Time to deck the halls (or at least the tree)

2006-12-07T10:57:00.000-08:00

It's the time of year... full of laughter and cheer. Well, let's just say that after a long day of house-work, chores, homework, grocery shopping, washing clothes, re-organizing pictures/papers.... decorating the tree this year proved to be a TASK (to say the least). We still need to get a few more decorating items for the tree, but here she is... Ms. Green 2006, complete with a 'gangsta lean' ;)
[please excuse my son's ashy elbows]

Magic Bus 2.0 (well, it's a 3.5 actually)

2006-12-07T10:48:00.001-08:00

Well, we did it. We purchased our first "family" vehicle a 2007 Nissan Quest, and we love it. Of course we didn't get all crazy when picking out add-ons and accessories, but it's ours all the same (note: moon-roof and dvd player to come later). It's been a 3-4 month long decision making process. We considered only 1 other van (Honda Odessy) and multiple SUVs. As it currently stands we would need something that would fit 5 comfortably (with Bam Bam on the way). Most of the other SUVs we looked at, and sat in, didn't have ample interior space. We even went so far as to look at the big-big Yukon, Tahoe and some large Ford models. If you can believe it the Quest had more 'room' on the inside than all of them. Clif is still confused over that (foreign cars with more space than domestic ones....go figure). Mostly the other vehicles just had more CAR than room.

For now, here are manufacturer's pics of the van... we'll upload our own in a few (we're getting it detailed first :)

30 weeks and COUNTING

2006-11-30T22:16:00.000-08:00

So today we went for our 30 week check-up and all is well. The doctor said that I've gain 1 pound since my last visit (he cleared me for lots of chocolate, sweets, etc.). The baby is doing great. He's approximately 3 pounds (well, 1.388 kilos) and 15 inches long. The baby's head is so large that it took up the entire ultrasound screen. His belly is fat and he has a cool looking femar bone (yay!).

Well from here on out it's doc visit every 2 weeks (all through Dec.) and then I upgrade to weekly visits in Jan. Estimated due date is still Valentine's Day so be ready for the latest heartbreaker to debut on the most romantic day of 2007.

Maybe I'm not pregnant?

2006-11-25T23:41:00.000-08:00

Hmmm, let's see, the last time I checked I was at least 28 weeks pregnant. This translate into me being 7 months pregnant. 7 MONTHS.

Negative 2 1/2 months in counting before little Bam Bam arrives. I don't think my husband knows this or understands because:

1) Wednesday at 7am I wake up to prepare an entire Thanksgiving dinner. Followed by at 8pm beginning to bake dessert for the next day's activities. I fall asleep at 12am.

2) Thanksgiving Day I wake up at 7am to cook breakfast for my family before heading out to San Diego (normally a 1 1/2 hour drive) which took 4.

Thanksgiving night, at around 11pm, we drive back to LA and get to bed after 1am.

3) Friday morning I wake up at 8:30am to get dressed to drive out Temecula to visit Grandpa Jones' house, a 1+ hour drive.

We leave Temecula at 6p to head to Santa Monica to hook up with Teddy KGB before he goes to Vegas. Of course by 8P he's not available, so we head to Woodland Hills to hang out with some other friends who will be moving to San Diego to start grad school next semester.

By 10:30p we're leaving Woodland Hills to go back to Santa Monica (Hooters) to finally hang out with KGB. We get home after 1am.

4) Saturday morning we get up at 8am to drive to Long Beach, to pick up a friend and then head to Hollywood to have breakfast at The Griddle Cafe.

From Hollywood we head back to Torrance so that we can wash the dog, clean up the house a bit before heading over to Redondo Beach to have an early dinner with my mom (and watch The Jerk).

At 6:30p we leave the South Bay to head to Beverly Hills to have another lite dinner with friends in LA from out of town at The Stinking Rose at 7p. According to Chris Rock married people tend to close down restaurants, which is exactly what we did. So at 10:30p we leave BH to go home... maybe I'm not pregnant because DAMN I feel like I'm training for a marathon.

Post Thanksgiving schedule

2006-11-24T10:45:00.000-08:00

Well this morning we will be venturing off to the city of Temecula (Menifee to be more specific). Off to Grandpa's for another day of family time. Hopefully the 91fwy (along with our Fast Trak pass) will be a little more gentle to us than the 405 was yesterday. After hanging with g-pa we're suppose to head 200 miles in the opposite direction to hang out with some friends in Woodland Hills. Our buddy "D" has been accepted to UCSD's master's program so we want to hang out with him and Yassi before they become a 2 hour ride away.

I'm sure at some point we'll get a reasonable amount of sleep, but for now we're chalking it up to it being 'the holidays.'

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2006!

2006-11-23T08:08:00.000-08:00

Well, I hope that all that will read this post has a wonderful, safe and filling Thanksgiving 2006. We will be having breakfast with our kiddies and then heading out to San Diego to have dinner and also to take an entire family photo (Clif is calling it his family photo 'the remix'). The family hasn't taken a photo in almost 20 years so you can imagine how hard this is going to be. The start time is SUPPOSE to be 1:00pm.... but I tend to think that it's going to take place sometime around 3P (I'll provide an update later).

It's just after 8:00am and I have successfully completed an entire Thanksgiving dinner/breakfast. Dinner: turkey, mac-n-cheese, dressing, yams, greens, cabbage, deviled eggs, honeybaked ham, and homemade biscuits. Breakfast: pancakes, eggs, bacon, homemade blueberry muffins and orange juice.

I'm so proud of myself.

Happy Gobble Gobble Day to all!

After Thanksgiving update:
First of all, I hate the beast that is known as the 405fwy. What normally takes 1 1/2 hours took almost 4. We ultimately missed the family picture (the remix) which really bummed us out. When we finally arrived in San Diego the temperature had dropped almost 10 degrees and everyone who was once hanging eating/drinking/talking out in the backyard at Grandpa's house was now sitting inside trying to stay warm from the cold air.

We offloaded the car, made our way up the driveway, gave out our normal hugs and kisses and then made our way to the food table. I was starving. Everything looked great and the dinner conversation made it even better. I mean imagine having a conversation about BREASTFEEDING with Patty, Garett, Jaime and Clif. It's funny because we started off talking about how the house was going to change come this time next Thanksgiving. There's going to be so many new babies, and soon-t0-be babies (Garett keep drinking that wine.... you'll remember that you gave in) that we're going to have to serve dinner on a tarp in the driveway to prevent all the kids from breaking dishes.

After the "G-man" blurted out the word 'nipple' we went inside to partake in some of the many desserts. (3) pumpkin pies, (1) whipped pumpkin pie, (1) apple pie, 2 doz of chocolate w/ white chocolate chips cookies, lemon and chocolate cupcakes, (1) cream cheese pound cake and some tangerines :)..... (I had to through that in). We sat, nibbled, chatted, drank and just had a great time with the family.

Thanks Patty for always understanding my (ahem) frustration with 'female friends'.... you're the bestestest!

Yay... a new blogger!

2006-11-20T11:49:00.000-08:00

My pal Wan has started blogging. Check out her site and give her
some nice feedback. You may recognize her... she gave Bam-Bam his first ever Mickey Mouse hat. Oh, and did I mention she's a fellow knottie? I <3 her.

Family Pictures Taken

2006-11-19T21:34:00.000-08:00

So today we went to the Picture People, in the South Bay Galleria, and took our first ever 'family Christmas pictures.' I know this may not sound exciting to you, but it was really nice and enojoyable. A few days prior I went out and picked up some red sweaters for the kids to wear. I knew that Clif would want to have some say in what he was wearing so I left what 'we' would be wearing to his decision. Friday night, while the kids were over to grandmas, we hit up the mall to look for some sweaters. Although JC Penney's was having an awesome sale, it proved to not be good enough for Clif's tastes. We decided to just pick me up a white, button down blouse and he would wear one of his work shirts (all white, button down).

Today arrived and we were just a little bit late for our 5P appointment. After a few minutes handling paperwor we were off to our studio room where the picture posing, decision making began. We ended up taking only 3 poses, and we ultimately only like 2 of those (mainly because now that my nose is starting to spread across my face like butter on breakfast toast, I'm very picking about pictures we'll be handing out). 30 minutes later we walked out of the store with new pictures and a new 8x10 frame for our first family photo.

Today was a Good Day.

SIL/BIL bought a house!

2006-11-18T10:00:00.000-08:00

(if you do not know what 'sil/bil' means (because you're not a knottie) sil= sister in law, and bil = brother in law)

So today we are off to help our sister/brother move into their new house. They closed escrow and received the keys to their Bellflower home this past Tuesday. Aside from the normal moving of furniture, we will be pulling up carpet, tearing down cabinets and pretty much destroying all that they thought was beautiful to begin with... ...funny how that is. I'll try to post some pics of the new place (address not included) so you can all celebrate with us. ;)

UPDATE: We did not move any furniture today. We (well I didn't do anything) helped to rip up carpet, tear down cabinets, remove all kitchen appliances and partially tear up the flooring. There was some old linoleum left under the carpet in the livingroom and 2 layers of a different vinyl left under the marble tiles on the kitchen floor. After a while: backs were hurting, stomachs were growling and feet were aching. Enough was enough... I had to get some food :) Clif stayed another hour or so. I've been completing this blog update during his time away.

ALL BABY weekend!

2006-11-13T20:31:00.000-08:00

This weekend we took care of some serious "baby" business. On Sunday we took our hospital tour at Little Company of Mary Hospital, in Torrance, CA. This is the hospital we've chosen to have our baby delivered. They provided mountains of paperwork and brochures for us to 'read in our leisure' and lite snacks. We were also one of 5 couples to win a pair of baby booties (Clifton picked out the 'hunter' green and white pair). After a 45 min discussion we watched a 15 minute movie and then it was off on the hospital tour. We saw the different rooms that are provided, the newborn nursery, the NICU, C-section room, emergency room entrance, labor + delivery check-in counter, pharmacy and 3 sets of elevators - YAY! We were also able to pre-register to get some of that day's madness out of the way. We're all set to go to the hospital (when the time is right).

After visiting the hospital we stopped off at El Burrito Jr. (I'll save you the trouble, DON'T BOTHER). From the restaurant we headed straight to Babies-R-Us to complete our one and only baby registry. You would have thought Clif was "Neo" with that stupid scanner gun. He kept trying to figure out how far he could stand back and actually scan the item's barcode (I guess you had to be there to get the full effect). Anyhoot, the proud papa was able to pick out his own choice of stroller and carseat, all while I sat down and shook my head (I didn't know it would take so long :)

Two hours later we were exiting the store with a discounted baby bouncer and two hampers for our current set of rugrats. We were tired but happy to get all of that over with - woo hoo.

Now if we can only pick a location for the baby shower.
Stay tuned...

Volunteer day part DEUX

2006-11-10T21:22:00.000-08:00

Because I didn't get enough on the first day I returned for another day of volunteering at the Brides Against Breast Cancer event in West Hollywood, CA. Today was the first day of the actual sale of gowns and let me just say it was very 'interesting' to put it mildly. God Bless all the many volunteers (young and old) that stuck it out through all of the hard times. A very special thanks to the poor UPS man (1 single driver/delivery man) that had to deliver 20+, 25 pound boxes of donated dresses during the middle of the show. This poor guy was blocking a lane on Sunset Blvd. (which severly pissed off many motorists) while single handedly offloading and delivering the gowns to the second floor (all while the valet guys and hotel personnel watched)... you are truly a saint. I even got the chance to see one of my SFAM family members Amber :).

Thank you (Making Memories Foundation) again for all of the wonderful memories that I've taken away from everyone involved in making the event a success. For once the extensive media coverage was a good thing!

Yay for PINK!

2006-11-09T20:08:00.000-08:00

Today I helped set up the Brides Against Breast Cancer event that will be taking place from Friday, November 10th through Saturday, November 11th at the Hyatt West Hollywood. Former, current and future brides are able to either donate gowns, or their time, to the sale of wedding, bridesmaid and flower girl dresses. Everything is donated for this event right down to the table, chairs and clothing racks. All of the money that is made from the event goes towards the fight against breast cancer. The Making Memories Foundation's goal is to grant wishes to people who have been diagnosed with terminal brest cancer. This year the Los Angeles show was almost cancelled when some idiots stole the trailers that were carrying over $3 million dollars worth of dresses, and all of the supplies needed to produce the event. The clock has been ticking for brides, organizations, bridal salons/studios to donate dresses and anything else so that this show could happen. I am so happy to report that not only were there enough dresses but the response was truly a blessing. Thank you to everyone that donated anything for this cause.

My day started off with a doctor's apponitment. My glucose levels are fine and I do not have gestational diabetes. I then headed to West Hollywood and began stuffing the Nordie goodie bags for the brides/people that will be at the event (note: love the "pink" lipgloss). I also helped with unwrapping, tagging, hanging and organizing the bridal gowns and their racks into the destination ball room (I even assembled plastic champagne glasses for a celebration at the end of the day - I didn't have any of course). I loved every minute of it and can't wait to help out again really soon.

Lions and Tigers and Smog, oh my!!!

2006-11-05T21:27:00.000-08:00

So today we headed out to the LA Zoo for some fun with the animals. We started out pretty late in the day because the kids were with their grandmother hanging out. When we finally arrived, it was a mad rush to see as many animals as we could before the park closed. I think we did pretty good. Dealing with 90+ degree weather, mostly all up-hill trails and a 6+ month pregnant woman proved to be no match for us. We did see tigers (no lions though), hippos, giraffs, ibex, koala, elephants kangaroos and more.

With admission being only $10 (adults) $5 (children) I think it's safe to say we'll be visiting that wonderful place again real soon.

Here are some pictures below...

Happy Halloween 2006

2006-10-31T21:55:00.000-08:00

From our family to yours!

(left to right): Peekachu (sp?), Capt. Flirt, Glenda the Good Witch (more like the resident Gypsy) and Superman.

Bam-Bam's Present

2006-10-27T13:11:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite knotties in the whole wide world, Wan-naBe, and her daughter got involved with a wonderful, charitable organization and joined "CHOC" to walk for the children of Southern California. CHOC Walk 2006 took place on October 8, 2006 and it's mission is to nuture, advance and protect the health and well-being of our chilren.

Little Bam-Bam gave a small donation to help sponsor Wan's daughter's effort and in return Auntie Wan sent him his first ever Mickey ears. Thank you so much, I can't wait to see the little guy in it!

Bam-Bam's first Mouse ears!

Here's the special Thank You message.

Hopefully we'll be able to join you guys next year!

O-KAY! It's a boy.

2006-10-26T12:30:00.000-07:00

Today was our 6 month check up and everything went well. The baby is moving around a lot and has a very strong heart beat. My blood pressure is a little elevated but the doctor said that a little pressure is needed to be able to pump blood to the baby. I have gained 5 pounds, to mine and the doctor's surprise, and no word on the weight of the baby at this point. There may be a change in the EDD (estimate due date)to February 10th, but we're just going to stick with the thought of this baby being our Valentine's Day 2007 present.

Now, on to the ultrasound.

So I've been fighting the fact that all of the medical professionals that I've seen so far have advised us that we're having a boy. My only reason for not believing in their diagnosis (well I actually have 2) is that I truly believe that I'm having a girl. I did have a mis-diagnosis before, and I also have 3 friends that ran out and purchased items only to be completely surprised in the delivery room, now you can understand the reason for my doubt. *sigh*

Well again today the doctor, who will be delivering this bundle of joy, told us that we were DEFINITELY having a boy. This time Clif was present and he even had the nerve to say he "SAW" it. Whatever!... I'll believe 'em when I'm holding the little guy.

yeah I know... what are you looking at? Well first click on the picture and if you can see that small, white "+" sign (look up towards the middle of the picture) our little guys' 'private part' is immediately to the right of that. The round, whitish area above and a little to the left of the "+" sign is he bottom of left foot!

Supercuts SCHMOOPER-CUTS

2006-10-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

Let me just start off by saying that I TOTALLY LOVE MY HUSBAND. He's such a good sport.

Ok, so Tuesday night is 'Hair Night' in our household. It's the night that I wash/braid my daugther's hair before she goes back over to their dad's house for a week. Well, last night Raye asked Clif if he could 'line him up.' Without blinking Clif said "sure" and off Raye went to the bathroom to get all the tools he needed. Before long Raye was combing out Clif's hair, parting and referring to the look he was stylin' as 'Elivs-like' and at one point he told him that he looked like George Washington (I wish I had a pick of that style). This went on for about 30-40 minutes. Long enough for me to get finished with Ryann's hair, whip out the digi and take a few flicks.

I'm just happy they decided to do this before I was further along, I may have gone into early labor seeing what was taking place before my eyes.

First here's Ryann..

Now, here's Clif with hair combed out..

Raye is putting on the finishing touches..

Finally.. here's the GLAM SQUAD and their victim (I mean client)..

6 years later

2006-10-23T10:15:00.000-07:00

My little man has made it to his 6th birthday. We celebrated at Chuck E. Cheese, on Saturday, with some close family and friends. Raye was able to take some pictures with Mr. Cheese himself and had a blast with all of his friends. Today (on his actual birthday) we'll hang out at Toys-R-Us with Papa, enjoy Raye's favorite meal, play Avatar on XBox and just have a great time (with the family) being a kid. Happy Birthday Raye, we love you!

Who told you that tasted good?

2006-10-16T15:00:00.000-07:00

So I know that everyone is entitled to their own opinons about the food they eat. All taste buds are different, blah blah blah. Take my friend Brenda. When I first met this crazy bride-to-be all I ever saw her eat were ice cubes. My other friend Kristen (nicknamed 'Spokane') can do wanders with salsa poured over cream cheese and tortilla chips. Now aside from me liking ketchup and hot sauce on my pizza/spaghetti or mixing peanut butter and jelly in a bowl and then eating it (like it was caviar or something) with Club crackers, my taste buds are pretty normal (I'll deny anything different). But there are some people that like to eat things that are just down right NASTY, there's no other way to put it. Example:

Boiled hot dogs on a regular slice of bread with grape jelly (my mom)

Peanut butter and sweet relish sandwich (my cousin)

Blue cheese stuffed olives (my husband)

...excuse me while I go into the bathroom and call my uncle Earl.

5 Reasons NOT to piss off a pregnant woman.

2006-10-13T17:00:00.000-07:00

1. She will remember EXACTLY what you did to make her mad the entire pregnancy.

2. Your name will not be among the millions considered for the baby.(nor will any variations of your name)

3. Pregnant women have been known to SNAP in a heartbeat, and usually the wrath is deadly.

4. You will not be able to hold, visit, or inquire about the baby once it arrives.

5. No matter how expensive or cute your baby shower gift is, IT WILL BE RETURNED TO THE STORE.

Food - Schmood!

2006-10-12T19:06:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. This blog is full of food right? Right! I mean what did you think you were going to get with a preggers?

Anyhoot, today I tried out one of "30 Minute Meal" Diva Rachael Ray's dessert recipe, a mini mudpie. Let me just say that it's great.... .... and it works with any kind of ice cream. I've tried it out with (4) different flavors from Ben & Jerry. The trick is you have get a small plate and on one side fill it up with small, bite size graham crackers and like 6-8 scoops of any flavored ice cream will do (altough it recommends coffee flavored for the full 'mudpie' effect. Now I'm just waiting for Clif to come home to try out the Chubby Hubby flavored one. It's vanilla ice cream with fudge covered, peanut butter filled pretzels. YUM! I may have to sneak it into his veggies tonight for dinner, but he will try this doggone ice cream.

New favorite smoothie

2006-10-10T12:58:00.000-07:00

So I am not very hungry these days. Sometimes I go the entire day without really wanting anything to eat or drink. Well the other morning, after dropping the kids off to school, I decided to head to the local Robek's so I wouldn't have to cook a breakfast when I got home. Unlike Jamba Juice they don't have a Strawberry Tsunami to quench my thirst so I had to try something new. Well, I have to say that the Lemon Breeze is a great alternate. It's made with raspberry lemonade and pineapple sherbet, you have to try it. It's delish!

Cupcake Madness

2006-10-07T21:25:00.000-07:00

Cupcakes, cupcakes and more cupcakes.

OK so yesterday I woke up with this brilliant idea that I was going to make a kitchend filled with different flavored cupcakes. I thought about all the different ones I could make with just the ingredients we already had in the house. Some of the flavors I came up with were:
Lemon cake with mixed berries (rasberries, blueberries & blackberries), white cake with coconut flavoring and chunks of pineapples on top; chocolate cake with marshmellows inside and butter cake with Jamaican Rum cream. Yea, I know, I was wrong for doing the last one. I know I'm not suppose to drink while I'm pregnant, which is why I didn't drink, I simply tasted the batter that I was creating which just so happened to have 5 dropper-fills of Jamaican Rum Cream inside of it. Do I even need to tell you what that tasted like?

Aside from making my own cupcakes I also made some plain (or just not as creative) batch for a friend of mine baby shower that was taking place on Saturday. They were received well and after returning home from the shower I remembered visiting a blog page, Cupcake Queen, and reading about one of her creations. (See her blog under 'my favorite blogs'). I then decided to make my own batch of cupcakes with pieces of Milky Way on the inside. BOY WERE THOSE GOOD! The way the candy melts on the inside... .... ... simply heaven! Clifton loves them and he wants to know what will I think of next.

Hmmm, I think Skors, 3 Musketeers, or Mounds sounds good right about now. :)

21 week check-up update

2006-10-05T21:32:00.000-07:00

So today was our 21 week check-up. Everything is going good. We got the results from our blood test and all is well. No signs of any problems and my blood pressure is under control. The next doctor visit isn't until the 6 month mark. For those who aren't math savvy, that's in just another 3 weeks. Stay tuned for more updates.

Daddy is a culinary genius!

2006-10-04T09:18:00.000-07:00

Wow... what a treat.

Clif called yesterday from work to tell me that he'd be preparing dinner for us. He was all excited, he already knew what he wanted to prepare. Now I know I shouldn't have been thinking what I was thinking but one of the last times he decided to venture into the unknown area of dinner preparation, it didn't turn out so well. Breakfast is a different story... ... my baby has skills with (1) loaf of bread and (10)sun-dried tomato eggs for two(um, um, yum!)

So when we hung up the phone and I immediately began to think about how this meal would turn out. Ohh, I forgot to tell you what was on the menu:
chicken marsala,
potato samosas,
with jasmine and cilantro rice. Sounds great huh? Sounds like the Iron Chef of Torrance, right? Funny how my first thought was... why does he do this every time? Why can't he just make something simple. Baked chicken, mashed potatoes and/or rice. Simple. Would have gotten the same effect and everything. Oh, but no! He has to add lime and seasoning to the chicken, experiment with Trader Joes Marsala sauce, chop up cilantro that he has no idea what it is going to taste like with already jasmine flavored rice. Damn this could turn out bad.

Ok, so he arrives home at around 8 or so, with a big bag from the store. He comes in with a big smile on his face and 'are you ready to eat some good food' on his lips? "Yup, I'm ready!" He's off to the kitchen. I hear the sounds of the dishes being washed, and opening/closing of the refrigerator door. Boy... he's really working his stuff in there. Then comes the question I was waiting for, "Baby, how long does it take to make chicken?" I knew it.

Well, he finished up the dishes, made the dinner he said he was going to and then walked out of the kitchen like a defeated bull fighter. "Or you ok baby?" I asked. "Yeah, dinner took longer to make than I expected" he said. He went back into the kitchen, plated us up some grub and guess what.... ... IT WAS GREAT! The chicken was tender, juicy and very spicy, with just a hint of lime juice. The rice (although very sticky) was also seasoned perfectly with poetic sprinkles of cilantro throughout. Even the samosas' were flaky (although a little soft) and a nice addition to the meal. At approximately 10:30pm Clif was able to declare himself to be a threat in the kitchen.
Long live Iron Chef Clifton!

A Poem for the Mommy-to-Be

2006-10-03T18:33:00.000-07:00

Our good friend, and fellow blogger, Tonya wrote a poem just for me and my sudden cravings for food and sweets. Check it out here. I think I would buy a book of her creations.

I want pizza!

2006-10-02T19:03:00.000-07:00

Well last night before going to bed I told Clifton that I wanted some 'New York style' pizza. He looked at me like I was crazy of course because we were already in bed and there was no way we were making a run to Westwood to get my favorite pizza. All night long I tried to go to sleep; tossing and turning to the thoughts of pepperoni, italian sausage, thin crusted pizza. I'm still feeling under the weather, but as my mother use to say to me it takes a lot to take away my hunger.

Today, after lying around in bed not being able to watch cable (Time Warner had some 'technical difficulties' for 2 hours) I took a shower to try and clear my stuffy nose. Fresh from the shower I decided to pay some bills online, and then it hit me. PIZZA! So, I got up, got dressed hopped in the "X" and off to the pizza place I go. To my surprise my favorite pizza place was closed observing Yom Kippur (sp?) DRAT! My plan was foiled... ... or was it. A little ways down the street there's a Frankie & Johnnie's Pizza that I am also very fond of.

Geez, I have to find places closer to Torrance to eat at. Two trips to BH is getting to be insane. OH Yeah, also while I was out I picked up a new sweater for Creme Puff.... doesn't she look adorable?

5AM Sprinkles cravings

2006-09-30T12:26:00.000-07:00

Man, it's starting to get bad. I woke up this morning (at 5am) thinking about those dog-gone Sprinkles' cupcakes. Now if you haven't tried them than you have no idea the effect they can have over you. Did you ever see that episode of the "Jaime Foxx Show" when his aunt Helen baked her secret recipe sweet potato pie? If you didn't her pies were said to be as addicting as 'crack.' Now I've never done (or wanted to do) crack but I can tell you that if the way t.v. shows how a person acts when they're hooked is correct, than I'm addicted to these cupcakes. My favorite is milk chocolate, although the red velvet is running a close second. Other preferred flavors are black/white and strawberry.

So after tossing and turning until around 8:30am I tried to call my good friend Kristen to get her to come to BH with me for the cupcakes. She was busy and couldn't make it. I turned over in the bed and asked Clif, but he had a class in the morning and it was too close to the time he had to start getting ready. A few more phone calls later and FINALLY my buddy Carla (and her 1 year old daughter Jayla) agree to take the 20 minute ride with me to Sprinkles. In exchange I promise to buy her her first ever cupcake.

Well, I couldn't just get 1 or 2 cupcakes, not after all of that effort. So I picked up a measily dozen and walked out of the shop just as the crowd began to form on little Santa Monica Blvd.
Ahhh, life is good. :)

Fo Shizzle My Nizzle

2006-09-29T17:36:00.000-07:00

I'm a bad motor-scooter!
I've been bloggin' all day long (we'll I've been learning to blog) and I'm so proud of myself.
I've added a 'my favorite blogs' table, which really only has 1 blog in it- Nannersp's blog was my inspiration. She's the greatest ever.
I also added a slide show of pictures of my family.

What's really cool is that I've learned where to place these things on my own. [high fiving myself]

How am I feeling today?

2006-09-29T12:58:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I've reached the 20 week mark of this pregnancy. Let's see what the book "What to Expect When you're Expecting" (2002, Murkoff, Eisenberg & Hathaway) says about what I should be experiencing (page 206):

*Fetal movement - CHECK (he's moving a lot)
*Achiness in lower abdomen - only if I lie on the floor
*Constipation - NOPE... pretty regular
*Heartburn, indigestion, flatulence, bloating - Heartburn yes; all the other stuff NOT
*Occasional headaches, faintness, or dizziness - none of the above (knock on wood)
*Nasal congestion and ear stuffiness - YES (and it's annoying)
*"Pink toothbrush" - not yet (knocking on wood again)
*Heart appetite -YES, LORD, YES! (someone pray for me)
*Leg cramps - I've had a few but nothing horrible (yet)
*Mild swelling of ankles and feet - only when I scrapbook for too long :)
*Varicose veins - none yet (banging on the wood)
*Faster pulse - yes!
*Backache - YES
*Skin color change on abdomen and face - Clif said my stomach looks lighter
*Protruding navel - NOT! I'm an outty :)

Now for the ones that the book does not mention:

*Hair dandruff - what's up wiht that! I've been washing my hair like crazy
*Weird dreams about things that make no sense at all - almost nightly
*Unsatisfied appetite - why can't I decide what to eat, and why am I never satisfied
*Indecisiveness - why can't I make up my mind about anything

Slow Blog Learner

2006-09-29T10:49:00.000-07:00

It feels like I've been trying to learn how to blog forever now. I want my page to be cooler than I'm capable of making it, so bare with me. Good news is that I thought I was just too dumb to figure out how to 'spruce' up my page, but I found out that I could pay someone to do it for me. Which is kind of cool, BUT, money is tight, so this site will look broke :)