July has been busy

A little update since I haven't done that here in a while! 

July is turning out to be a busy month for our little household.  Besides having Wooky injured earlier this month (still don't know what happened to the poor animal), it's been a costly one too. 

The first weekend was 4th of July!  My DH likes to go in with his parents and buy a boat load of fireworks.  This year we skimped a little, meaning we didn't have any leftover like we usually do.  Ya, we go nuts.  Even after 9 years in Texas, crazy fireworks are still a novelty for us wayward Californians!  

Here are a few pics!!

My girls!

The following weekend, we headed to Houston for a family reunion.  Yes, I know I'm from CA, but most of the extended family on my mom's side, are all from Texas.  It was just an overnight trip for us, but it was nice to get out of town, and even nicer to be surrounded by our dear family.  My mom & grandparents flew out from CA.  My Aunt's family drove from CA and my Uncle and his family drove from CO.  After the reunion, my mom and I took the girls to the beach for a few hours.

P2 HATED IT!!!!!  She screamed for the first hour and a half.  While P1 was having  a blast swimming all around, P2 wasn't having any part of it....UNTIL the last 30 minutes we were there.  She played in the sand and had a great time.  Silly girl!!!  It was gorgeous there.  Refreshing, clear (no oil!) water, and soft sand!  I could have spent a week there.  Maybe next summer!  Here are some pics of the beach!

I also took this video and I think I need to send it in to AFHV!  It's pretty self-explanatory!

Next weekend P1 and I will be attending the theatre to see my all time favorite musical!  Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat!  I LOVE this show so much!  I've seen it many times and can't wait to share the experience with P1.  My inlaws bought us (DH & I) the tickets for our anniversary back in April, but DH has since opted out.  Fine with me!  I'm always up for mother-daughter bonding with my princess!!  We'll do lunch downtown and then head off to our show!  We both are excited!  Which reminds me, I need to load one of the soundtracks (I have many!) onto my IPod so we can listen every day this week in the car!  She needs to be able to singalong too! :)

THEN...the next weekend, we have my FIL's 60th birthday!!!!! Now my DH is only 33, so to have a dad that is in his 60s, seems SOOOO old to me.  Shhh, don't say anything!  My mom is in her late 50s, but still, that sounds better than being in your early 60s.  Anyway, so that will conclude our busy July! 

Big Changes

Hello friends!  Long time, no blog.  Life sometimes gets in the way and when big changes are happening in your life, the blog...Correction: the family blog, is the one thing that gets neglected.

For my friends on SK, I've been laying low on there too.  I've noticed I'm not the only one.  Our DIM board looks like a ghost town and although I still 'see' most of you on FB, I feel bad for the others that aren't on FB.  It probably looks like we vanished off the face of the earth. 

Well, I'm still here.

So as I was saying, big changes on the horizon.

I feel like I've been keeping a huge secret from most of you.  Truth be told, I have been.  I didn't want to seem like a failure.  I didn't want to appear to be 'taking the easy way out', and I didn't want to make myself seem vulnerable to my friends.  If you're reading this, I consider you a friend.

So as most of you know, I've been struggling with my weight my entire life.  Despite only gaining a few lbs during pregnancy, and losing a bunch shortly thereafter, the weight always finds me.  After P2, the same thing happened.  After a year of having her, I gained back roughly 30lbs and there wasn't an end in sight.  I was starting to having difficulty getting around with P2, going up a flight of stairs would kill me, and in general, life was not good.

After much research and soul-searching, I decided to have weight loss surgery.  With my husband's and family's 150% support, I made the call with the surgeon back in April and I'm happy to report that as of this past Tuesday, June 29th, I now have the Lap-Band. 

I'm in recovery now, and am in what we call Bandster Hell.  For anyone who thinks this is taking the easy way out, I highly recommend you to research all that comes along with the band.  Yes, many great things will come (I've already lost 16lbs in 2.5wks), but with it comes a lot of work.  Mostly to the tune of diet and exercise.  So, no, it's not an easy ride, but the results will be long-lasting and the health benefits will be priceless. :)  I'm excited for my new life with the band and I intend to make it work for me. 

I have two beautiful girls to live for, and an amazing husband to share the rest of my life with, so I needed to be around for all of them.   No, I'm not trying to be a bikini model (bwahahahahah), I just want to be 'normal' and at a normal BMI.  Where I was heading, I was at the cusp of developing serious health problems, not to mention strokes and heart attacks. 

I've been keeping another blog, and if you'd like to follow it, it's http://www.fatchickbgone.com/  I welcome new followers and positive comments.  It's taken a lot for me to share this with you, and I hope I made the right decision. 

As of right now, I will be keeping the two blogs separate.  Maybe once I get down to my ideal weight, I will merge the two.

So that's that.  A few of you already know, and I thank you for keeping this on the DL until I was ready to come out of the fat closet :). 

OH- I HAVE NOT GONE PUBLIC ON FACEBOOK- SO PLEASE DON'T TALK ABOUT IT!!!!!  THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!

Scrapbooking Retreat!

A few months ago, a friend contacted me and asked if I would like to attend a scrapbook retreat!  Is a pig's ass pork?!?!?!  OF COURSE!!!  JEEZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So that's where I'm writing from!  Yes, yes, I should be scrapbooking, but I'm taking a break for now!!! 

The group of gals I'm with are hilarious and we're having a good time!!  The food has been great, the inspiration is plentiful and the atmosphere is heavenly!! 

Here is a pic of one of my creations!!  I think you'll recognize the subject.

Hi Neglected Blog

The man took away my access.  Yes, my work cut off our access to blogs and personal sites, so now I'm left to update this at home.  Boo Hiss.  :(  Don't they know that's what work is for?!  Jeez.

Anyway, so I hope all my beautiful mom friends had an awesome Mother's Day.  Mine was OK.  I've certainly had better.  The day started with my waking up to the tune of an upset P1 and an irate DH.  They were arguing about breakfast.  She wanted eggs.  He wanted to give her cereal.  Keep in mind, P2 was still asleep, but as loud as they were, I expected to hear little one start wailing any minute.  Uggg "Happy Mother's Day to me".  P1 came in my room and asked me to make her breakfast.  I said "ummm, no, it's MD, go ask daddy."  Then she started getting all super-sonic on me and I told her to go ask him nicely. 

Nope.  Didn't work.  I hear more arguing and such.  So I get up, walk over there and say I'll cook my own damn breakfast.  Nice way to wake mom up on MD morning.  Grrrr

We made plans to go meet the inlaws in their town and have a picnic at the park.  M's grandma is in a rehab center and she has Alzheimers.  She's been living there for a few months now and it's been really hard on the family.  Especially for my MIL, who goes to visit her everyday.  It's quite sad.  Anyway, so my MIL thought it would be a good idea to check GG (great grandma) out of the facility on MD to see the kids. 

In theory, it sounded like a decent plan. However, it didn't occur to my MIL that it would be cold that day, that GG would have 'episodes' since this was her first time out of lockdown since she went to live there, and I was already in a mood to begin with (remember breakfast). 

Anyway, so we drive the 40 min out there and it's freezing.  Colder there than it was at our house when we left.  Thankfully I made P1 bring a little jacket, I had a jacket in the car, and I brought a little sweater for P2 along with her blanket.  It was windy, drizzly, and just plain cold.  LOVELY.  We pull up and my FIL is there with a few of the kids.  M's sister isn't there, but her two older Js are.  My MIL isn't there either, nor is GG.  Ummmm, OK, where is everyone. 

When we start setting up our stuff, my FIL tells me that my SIL and J3 are at the ER.  Earlier in the day he was being pulled up by his arms by the older kids at church.  Oh, he's 19mo old.  I guess during that time he was playing, his elbow was dislocated. OUCH.  So they needed to take Xrays just to be sure that's what the problem was and then they had to put it back where it belongs.  OUCH again.  Great MD present for her too!  They arrive after about 45min and little J3 is fine. 

A little later GG and my MIL come and from the minute we see her (gg) things start going downhill.  She has started hitting herself while having delusions that someone else is with her and trying to hurt her.  It's very sad, but the kids are watching this and trying their best to ignore her.  Again, so sad.  Then she starts crying, then yelling, then hitting herself.  Oh, she's also 80 years old.  My MIL and SIL do their best to distract GG and make her aware of what is going on, but sadly she is too out of it. 

So the day went on.  Thankfully P2 was being a dream baby. She spent most of the time in her stroller because she was bundled up in it.  I'd say it was about 60^ out there and she was in shorts, sandals, and sleeveless top.  Mom of the year, right here!!!  OMG.  So ya, she stayed bundled up the best way I could keep her warm.

We ate, chatted, and then GG really started to head south.  We hurried up and did gifts and then my MIL decided it was time to take GG back.  It took them about 30 min to get her in the car and head on back.  It was heartbreaking to watch, but thankfully all the kids (5 of them) didn't catch most of it. 

THEN, being outside, my DH and his allergies started acting up.  We're on the way home and he said he's taken allergy meds and is real sleepy.  OH GREAT.  I offer to drive home, but he says he can make it.  I keep watching him like a mother hen to see if starts to show the slightest indication of dosing. 

Once home, we're bringing in the girls and all of the stuff and my DH disappears.  P1 says she's hungry, P2 needs her bottle and bed and DH is nowhere to be found.  I walk to our bedroom and he is snoring.  It's been like 10 min since we walked into the house!!!  So, being the nice wife that I am, flipped on the light and said "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?  The kids need food and I need help getting them ready for the week and you're asleep?!?!?"  He just looked at me and grinned. 

Now, i could have handled that one of two ways.  The first, going totally pyscho on him and demanding he get his derrier out of  the damn bed ASAP and help...OR, I keep this little gem of a Mother's Day in my back pocket until I REALLY need it...

Yes.


FATHER'S DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

(the day wasn't a total bust...I did get the sweetest cards from both girls and my DH, and I also got two new charms for my Pandora bracelet.  The girls birthstones, which also happen to be mine and DH's too!!) 

Birthday Pics... A LOT OF PICS

Saturday 5-1-10, the Ps and I headed to the mall to have P1's 1st birthday pics taken.  My appt was at 5pm and of course Pen decided she wanted to take a late and long afternoon nap that day.  It takes about 30min to get to the mall (since there is ALWAYS traffic on the highway, no matter what stinkin' day OR time it is... I digress) so I had to wake her up by 4pm to get her fed, changed, and dressed to head out in 30 min.  Dumb, I know.  But whatever.  I kept waiting for the cake lady (now known as CL) to show up.  She was supposed to call in the afternoon to find out how to get to my house so she could drop off the cupcakes for the party on Sunday AND to bring the smash cake for P2's photo session. It was 4pm and I still hadn't heard from her.  So as I'm feeding Pen, I called a coworker to see if she had CL's number.  OH, CL is a coworker too.  Anyway, thankfully she had her number and I called to find out if there was a problem.  Umm, ya, she thought the pics were supposed to be at 6pm instead of 5.  Luckily, the cupcakes were ready, she just needed to make the drive to my house.  Lovely.

After Pen was dressed, I loaded both the girls in the car and headed down to our local McD's to meet the CL so I could quickly get to the mall.  She was going to give me the one and then take the rest to the house where DH was waiting for her.  Finally we got them, I called the studio and told them we were running late.  They said it wouldn't be a problem and they would see me when I got there.  We finally make it and we have to wait a little bit, but thankfully both girls are in a great mood. 

Finally, it's our turn and Pen is starting to be the little stinker that we know and love.  She doesn't want to stay put, she doesn't want to look at the lady, and don't you dare ask her to smile.  It's amazing we got any decent pics of little Miss Priss!!  After a few clothes changes, it was time to disrobe for the cake smash.  Before I go into detail, here are the first of the pics. :)

I DON'T LIKE IT!!!!!!

So now we attempted the cake smash.  I placed the pretty little cupcake in front of her and then I let her go!

She grabbed the little frosting off it and then...

Just looked at it...

And looked at it...

Notice this child still has a clean face!! 

Finally she got some in her mouth (and eye and hair) and made this sourpus face!

You want me to eat this junk???

No way!  I'm outta here!!

That's it!  Everytime she would touch her fingers together she would shiver like it was giving her the willies!!  It was SOOOO funny!!!  Not once did she ever try to bite the cake.  I even tried to break off a piece to let her try it, but nope, she wasn't having any part of it!!

So, I don't know who this child belongs to, but she does NOT like cake or frosting!! 

Introducing WOOKY!!!

Isn't he sweet!?!?! 

So this is the bday present for two of the May babies in my family; P2 and I!!!  He is about 8wks old and he's the sweetest kitty EVER!!  I can't tell you how wonderful he is with Pen.  He hasn't scratched her or bitten her once.  P1 and I haven't fared so well and we have the battle scars to prove it!!  He's such a sweet boy though.  He is so calm and gentle and very sociable.  He is always underfoot and wants to be where the action is.  As for getting along with his older relative, Groban (I found out Wooky's grandma is Groban's sister, my bad.  I thought Groban was his uncle!)...well Groban seems to be a little freaked out by the little guy.  Could be due to the fact that Wooky makes this pathetic little spitting sound that is supposed to be a hiss and G doesn't know what to think of that nonsense!  I think, in time, they will be buds.  I hope. :)

I have a ton of pics with the girls playing with their new friend, and I will post soon!   

Has it almost been a year?

We're quickly approaching P2's FIRST birthday!!  Man, where did the time go???  Seriously, WHERE???  It seems like yesterday I was trying to get pregnant and here we are celebrating the first year with our precious little PenPen.  This Sunday, on her actual bday, we're having M's side of the family over for dinner and cake.  Since my family is mostly out of state, it will just be a small group.  That's OK, I'm sure Mimi will go crazy and buy enough stuff for 100 relatives!!  It's always nice having a shopper in the family. ;)  I wonder who else I know who loves to shop?!?!?  I digress.

Since I'm going to be busy cleaning my house like a mad woman, and getting the party together, I thought I would post the story of P2's birth now.  If it makes you feel better, don't read this post until May 2nd, and then it will be EXACTLY one year to the day!!!  bwahahahaha  :)

Friday 5/1- It was my second day off from work and I had my last Peri appt in the morning. Everything was perfect so I figured I was safe to get some last minute shopping done. I got a little carried away and was gone over 8 hrs! By the time I got home, I was whooped. In the evening, I started having Ctx but nothing too painful. I did notice they were more consistent than normal though. I had been doing laundry and stuff around the house so I figured it was just from me being so active. I did make a list for my hospital bag and P1 was packed to go stay with the ILs so that was done.


Sat 5/2- 3am I had woken up with the urge to use the facilities. Nothing new. Then as I was thinking about getting up, I felt this GUSH. I hopped up out of bed and ran to the bathroom, leaving a trail as I did. I started laughing hysterically and DH thought I had lost it until I told him what had happened. Well, we started running around like crazy. I had an entire day to get ready, this shouldn't have happened!!! I hopped in
the shower and he found the number to L&D. When I was done I called to let them know I was on the way. After throwing everything in a bag (thank goodness I made a list!) DH could not find the video camera charger. Of course. Then the CTX started. OUCH. I told him we needed to go NOW. So off we went. Even though we live like 7min from the hospital, we didn't get there until 4am....still didn't find the charger (my camera takes movies so we were OK). When I got hooked up, Pen's hb was great and I was dialated to a 2-3. YIPPY! Then shortly after I was about a 4-5 and then I asked for the Epi. He came in, did his thing. No problem and I was numb. But when they upped the Pit I felt this odd pain on my right side. My right hip, gut, and lower back just on that side started killing me, and it was happening when a CTX started. I suffered through it for an hour thinking it would go away. Of course it was shift change by then, so I asked the new nurse to call the new Anthes. He came in and just thought I needed more medicine. So more I got. Nope, didn't do anything. It was about 10am and the nurse checked me and said I was at a 7! Yippy. So the Anthes said maybe the cathetir needed to be adjusted, so he pulled it out 1cm. Nope, still pain and it was getting worse (along with the CTX). By this time I was crying through each Ctx. The Anthes came in again and gave me more medicine. It was finally enough to knock me out. I think I slept for an hour and when the dr. came in to check me again, I was still at a 7. It was now after 2pm. Oh, during the 'nap', Pen's hb was dropping after each ctx and I woke up to an O2 mask on me. My OB said she could stretch me to an 8, but it was looking like I would probably need the vacuum to bring Pen out and it could end up being like P1s birth. NO THANKS. So we opted for the C-section, reason being failure to progress.

After being prepped for surgery, Penelope Rose was born with a healthy set of lungs at 3:11pm, weighing 6lbs 3oz and 19in long. She was perfect! Agpars were 9/9. When they told me her weight I said "that's it?!" LOL So much for my big baby! Her head wasn't even that big, but for some reason she was getting hung up on the way out. The surgery was fine, but the shaking. OMG, I couldn't stop shaking. They had some heater hooked to a hose and even then I could not stop shaking. I had to spend a few hours in triage but we never found out why. That first night was a nightmare. They had all kinds of tubes hooked up to me, the foley cath, these blood pressure type compresses on both my legs to prevent blood clots and then the nurse wanted me to sleep on my sides for three hours at a time. The first night was rough. Pen was great though and latched on right away! The nursery said she's tiny but she's tough!

Today is Saturday, she's a week old and I'm still on the pain meds. C's SUCK. I applaud you moms who have had more than one. The hematoma of P1s birth was worse, pain wise, but this C is in a class by itself. Driving home from the hospital, I thought my guts were going to fall out. Then forget about laughing, coughing or sneezing.

Anyway, so that's her birthstory! Oh, the diabetes is gone, Pen was never effected by it, & yesterday at her first Pedi appt, she's back up to her birthweight! She is a little jaundice so we're having to keep her in front of the window and yesterday she needed labs to check her levels. It was OK but we were told to supplement the BFing, which we were already doing.

My milk just came in on Thursday. I'm also suffering from a touch of PPD. I'm already on meds but I see my OB on Monday to have the sutures removed and I might talk to her about something else as I've been super weepy since we brought her home.

In all, we're all adjusting well. DH has been an incredible help, I couldn't ask for a better husband/daddy. P1 is just in love with baby sister and is a HUGE help. I'm so blessed!!!