The things we take for granted pre-baby

1. Sitting in the front seat with your husband :-)

Jose and I do a lot of talking (typically the important introspective kind) in the car; probably a habit that started on those regular drives to see family. That kind of talk gets tough when I'm in the back seat to help Charlie calm down/stay asleep. It's a gamble because if he's going to sleep or is doing well I like to sneak into the front where I can hold my hubbie's hand. But we run the risk of being in a spot where we can't immediately pull over when he starts screaming bloody murder. (and though he's probably fine for a few minutes it's not exactly relaxing for us)

2. Sleep

Well no duh - everyone would put this as #1 and I put it as #2 just to buck the system. Yes, sleep does get better as you go on but then you always hit a new patch. Our new patch this week is moving Charlie from his bassinet to his crib (in our room still for now, one new thing at a time) which he doesn't seem to like much.

3. Chewing your food-not even slowly-just thoroughly

A shout-out especially to the stay at home moms who have missed a meal or two just based on "forgetting to eat" or because your baby is so dang fussy that you can't even slap a sandwich together you are so fried! (I try to have something already prepped in the fridge these days though Charlie is taking a regular nap now so that helps)  Did I mention a quiet dinner? Forget about it. By the time Jose is home and dinner is on the table it's 7:00 or better and that is the WITCHING HOUR. Out to dinner you ask? It'd better be the early bird special or you'll be asking them to make a miracle speed doggie bag.

4. Any kind of significant date with your spouse:

Especially going to the movies. Jose and I LOVE to go to the movies so much so that we buy the discount tix at Costco so when we go at night we still pay matinee pricing. When I was prego it was so insanely hot that we were going to the theater to see anything just for max a/c. Now I have a whole list of movies I want to see!

a. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Short Story by F. Scott Fitzgerald....DE-licious

b. Nights in Rodanthe - love Nicholas Sparks and could it get better than Richard Gere and Diane LANE???

b. Marley & Me: Looks cute and like the portrayal of a REAL relationship

c. The new 007 - one of the only action series that I like

d. MILK - Ohh how I've been waiting to see you. Sean Penn I heart you

e.  4 Christmases - every new parent needs a good laugh

5. No cart ditching

Let's face it - sometimes you're in the grocery store/target/costco and your baby gets so worked up you have to ditch your cart. Most recently I was in target and Charlie had a blow-out. Once I returned I found that my cart that already had about 15 items in it was gone. I later passed an associate restocking my items and practically tackled her. Of course there is no great service until you don't want it. The trick is to hide the cart you're ditching if you intend to return to it :-)

6. A long shower

You might laugh at this but it's so true - a good shower is a primo vacation to a new mom. Bath? Forget about it, we're not getting THAT much time!

Disposable Income:

Sure, we all make adjustments - but when you're out after being up every 1.5 hours and trying to find a special butt cream for the mysterious diaper rash that won't go away (which costs ANOTHER $10) and you suddenly realize your starved and haven't eaten all day - the last thing you want to do is WAIT until you get home, get unloaded, get the baby to settled and then fix yourself something to eat. Yeah, I should have thought ahead to pre-make/pack lunch...YEAH that's EXACTLY how my brain works these days.

My view from the back seat... "What was that honey? I can't quite hear you...."

Back Seat Buddies

Charlie enthralled with his baby einstein video - I read for 12 minutes...whoo hoo

4 month appointment today

UPDATE:

Charlie's appointment went well - I LOVE our pediatrician. Our little man is up to 15 lbs. (not as much weight gain as last time but still quite healthy), and 26.5 inches long (90th percentile). He's hitting all of his developmental milestones early or right on cue. We were excited to talk with Chan-Sizzle today about starting baby cereal in 24 days and then at 6 months incorporating a new food every 3 days. More food = less boobie and I'm good with that, especially with any tooth developments. We're also excited to try the advent sippy cup and maybe we can skip the bottle altogether.  We're clear for our hawaii trip, she just said to be sure to pack a medical kit including hydrocortizone and benadryl (though not be used until 6 months, can be used early if really needed as advised by her) and sunscreen! Apparently you can use it before 6 months. She had a good suggestion to try a small amount on the inside of his wrist for two nights in a row to see if he has any kind of reaction before we slather it on.

DONATE

As a family we typically donate to St. Vincent de Paul but they are not able to take children's items or toys so they referred Jose a short time ago to the St. Francis center around the corner. I went to donate a large bag today and was surprised to find about 30 people waiting out front at 11:45. (I learned that families can't even go in until 1:00)  I was trying to drive the stroller up the block (as there was no parking) and carry the large bag when a nice man came to greet me, carried my bag and  helped me navigate the crowd from the sidewalk into the lobby.  The St. Francis center is so well-kept and very inviting...it made me want to volunteer right away. I signed up on the spot to see if anything in their future need will fit what our family can do.  Since my first experience volunteering with Toys for Tots (where I met Jose in 1995, he says 1996 because he doesn't remember me in '95 :-) I have always wanted to donate my time where I could be in immediate contact with the recipients. I'm not a person who likes to hide behind the scenes or do a quick donation drop off when no one is around. I want to give of myself directly to those who need assistance, or just a friendly face, someone to talk to; Jose is of the same spirit and that's what made me fall in love with him (the first time). Now that we've started I've been struggling with our very limited budget on one income and practically having no money for eating out/pedicure etc. (Thank god we had the forethought to pay for hawaii while I was still prego and working). Today was a nice reminder that though we are really short on fun money some people are short on food, housing, and clothing for their babies - money.

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Jose is back to work today after a well-needed vacation. Together we've worked on a bunch of projects around the house and he's caught up on his NCIS episodes :-)  All is well over here - we're headed out to Charlie's 4 month appointment today which means more shots...what a bummer. No parent looks forward to those tears but we know it's necessary.  I'll try to post later but it'll depend on how the little man is doing. 

A time out for Love

I've been aching for a time out with hubbie -  here are some pics from our coastal drive...

On the road...

Storr tasting room

Soquel Winery

Dinner on the Santa Cruz Pier

Charlie entertaining himself for a few minutes :-)

Livermore?

UPDATE:  We had a good trip out to Livermore yesterday, and Charlie did remarkably well. I really like the downtown area that they have been revitalizing (my pics below).  There are some great little communities - the first house we looked at was adorable and a great neighborhood but was too tiny to have any guests overnight. (Important to us since we'd be so far out). From that point on, the houses/neighborhoods had more issues but at least now we have a good idea what we can afford on one income.  

It's a tough thing when you're heart is set on the SF Peninsula. I want to raise my family here gosh darn it!

The endless search continues of where to buy a home....Today we're going to check out Livermore. We've had very limited experience with the area outside of an amazing date to the Brad Paisley concert at Wente (when Jose was trying to win me back :-) and prego pee breaks and Charlie feed breaks on the way to my mom's (it's half way there).  I like the idea that this city is big enough to not know "Everyone" around and has enough to offer with stores, a movie theater etc. but is still a safe community.  It's a bit too close to all the crazy christian signs in the altamont pass and huge catholic radio billboards but hey, whatever. (I would normally choose to ignore such things but a blinking highway patrol esque sign is tough to ignore. I know Jesus is King, you don't have to distract me from my driving!)  There is the added plus of MANY local wineries for this whino couple.  Close to Dublin bart for Raider games etc and not too horrific of a commute considering Jose was considering driving from Woodland (note I wrote Jose, not me). Did I mention it's one of money magazine's top 100 places to live? Yeah, number 31 in the nation...we shall see today.

Our Boy is Changing...

I swear that since we got back from the Christmas tour Charlie has changed. I'm sure all of these things have been happening in little ways and while we saw family back to back to back he probably just got exhausted but it was sooooo apparent when we got home.

"Talking"

Charlie has started to make repetitive vowel sounds that are super cute: ewww, ahhh, ohhhh. It almost sounds like what I would think is coo'ing but in reading up on baby lingo he's developing different sounds that  he hears from our language. (good thing he doesn't have the f sound yet :-) just kidding!) Charlie has also discovered VOLUME in that he now, when happy, likes to screech/baby scream to his little heart's content....usually when Jose and I are trying to watch a program.  It's pretty funny - Charlie also needs feedback so that he knows we are listening to him or else he gets the major fuss going. I try to encourage him with things like "That's good talking Charlie"...but it always sounds kind of funny when it comes out. Jose and I are also working on using his name when we talk to him because we constantly call him Papas....we don't want him to think that's his name when he gets older!

"Teething"

Though it's early, our boy is cutting a tooth on the lower right. It seems he's been getting a little more relief the past couple of days so that's a good thing.  Some people say babies put everything in their mouth because that's how they investigate the world. While that may be true for crawlers/toddlers, I'm convinced that for  Charlie he's just trying to get some gum relief. If I hold his forearms to help him sit up he dive bombs my hand (that's right, dive bombs, like a seagull) to chew on any knuckle or finger he can "bite".

Responsiveness

Having Charlie is a lot more fun now that he responds to his environment. His tracking with his eyes let's you know he's interested in you and wants to follow you/see what you're up to.  When you greet him in his happy space he smiles/kicks his legs/screeches.  When you approach him when he's crying he'll stop crying. He loves to quietly check out new environments and loves any cool light. He's obsessed with the blinking vegas nightlight that my mom gave him...he'll come out of anything just to watch it.  Charlie loves his baths and kicks not only the water in the tub but now the water coming out of the faucet. (he's right hand and leg dominant) He loves showers with Dad and will always calm down in the water.

Rolling...Rolling...Over:

Charlie has been quite the little teetering row boat for some time. On new year's eve Jose was "coaching" him in helping him roll from back to tummy a couple of times and Charlie finally got over from his back-side-tummy but got his arm stuck. We're having to keep a close eye on him because when that arm is stuck is face is mushed into the ground! In the mean time he's scooting all over the place on his back. I'll start him out in one position on his playmate (what a godsend...every new parent needs a tinylove gymini mat) and I'll check on him and he'll be rotated at a 90 degree angle!

Here are some cute messy hair day photos:

Happy Birthday JYC

May you live to be 100 and may the last voice you hear be mine ~ Frank Sinatra

It takes a long time to grow young ~ Pablo Picasso

Because time itself is like a spiral, something special happens on your birthday each year: The same energy that God invested in you at birth is present once again~ Menachem Mendel Schneerson

Today we celebrate you - YAME

little guy in a hat