L.A. - Staples Center

hubbs wanted to "stop by" the staples center the day before father's day, thinking he could score some cool gear for Luke (you know, another one of those bandwagon Lakers fan ;) i shouldn't say that, really, he is a lakers fan at heart, only he's not big/huge on watching the game regularly, he only watches during playoffs/finals... so, i'll let you be the judge of that ;)

anyway, we arrive at the staples center and it's packed, on a saturday, with THOUSANDS of people. FIDM (fashion institute of design & merchandizing... c'mon guys... don't you watch The Hills?!) was having their graduation ceremony and word was they were graduating some 40k students! wth?! seriously, i was getting claustrophobic with all the people around. and the L.A. Live store?! forget about it! i had to hightail out of there, i couldn't breathe.

here are some pics, of course, of the day.

Oscar

Magic

Chick

our little taquito spot in Downtown (Olvera Street)

Olvera Street

father's day + work + new teeth

**i have a lot of catching up to do, but unfortunately have NO time AT ALL! i'm so overwhelmed with all that's ahead and hate that i already feel so behind, ugh! this work thing is NOT for me... well here goes, my attempt at catching up**

Father's Day

Hubbs' first fathers day!! We spent the morning lounging in bed after a rough night with Luke waking every 2 hours (combination teething + ear infection). Too bad it was father's day because I could've really used the tag team help when Luke woke for the day at 7 a.m. the GREAT wife that i am, i let hubbs sleep in while i zombied my way through breakfast and play time. Hubbs eventually got up and went out to grab us some breakfast, poor guy - getting his own breakfast on fathers day! After breakfast we spent a few hours visiting my grandfather and then met some friends for dinner to finish off the night. Nothing terribly special but hubbs spending the day with his baby boy :) I even kept the gift simple, framed D-A-D pics (an idea I got from my favorite photog board on the bump). Hubbs LOVED the gift, like really really loved it. I'm so glad! here are some pics, of course, of the day.

Luke wastes no time :)

"hey look! that's me, dad!"

here's the storyboard copy

and ahhh! Luke with my grandfather

Work

I started work last Friday, 6/25. Bittersweet (though more bitter I'm afraid). I was somewhat looking forward to getting back into the working field but of course that was heavily overshadowed with tremendous grief about leaving Luke for the most part of every day. I didn't cry on my way to work, after dropping off Luke. Instead I listened to Ryan Seacrest ramble about non-important things and imagined how my life wouldn't totally suck now that I have to spend a good part of the day, every day, away from my baby boy.. That was hard. The fact that I HAVE to work (or pay back $37k) helps ease the guilt and somewhat takes away the idea that this is actually a "choice" (when, in fact, i know it is!). I spent the week leading up to doomsday preparing Luke for what was to come. I did this by dropping him off at both grandma's houses (have i mentioned that my mom and mil would both be sharing in the responsibility of caring for him while we're at work?!) for 4-6 hrs/day.

The first two days of "practice" were hard but the third day was soooo difficult! i cried when i left him and knew that i couldn't go back home without him because that, for some reason, just makes it so much more depressing :( i called hubbs 2-3 times, sobbing, telling him that i felt like i was abandoning my baby boy :( it was absolutely the most horrible feeling i've ever experienced! so here i am, 4 days in and happy to report that i haven't cried or felt overwhelmingly depressed since that horrible horrible "practice" day. It's actually not so bad, other than the exhausting piece of it (that i'll save that for another entry!). In some crazy, bizarre way i actually look forward to the daily routine. weird, i know! Here's a pic of him in his car seat on his first day at grandmas. So hard to leave this face!

New Teeth

Luke cut his first tooth, lower right central incisor, on 4/15. he then cut his second, lower left central incisor, on 4/27. We haven't slept a good night since :( i wish i was exaggerating.. since he cut his first tooth he's been waking 2-3 times PER NIGHT!!! it wasn't so bad when i wasn't working... but yeah, you know how that might be a little challenging now. we're lucky if we get 2 nights a week where he sttn (10-11 hrs). but hey, at this point i'll take those 2 nights and run with them!

just recently he cut two more teeth (and why was i hoping and praying that some how these two teeth would bring upon great sleep?! ahahaha, quite the opposite!). he cut his third tooth, upper right central incisor, on 6/18 and the following day cut his fourth tooth! needless to say these two nights were pure HELL! he woke at least 3 times each night :( and you know what we found?! he actually sleeps better (only waking once/night) when we DON'T give him tylenol or motrin. odd right?! so yeah, he's currently waking only once/night. we haven't tried anything (like cio) to try and curb this, we're just dealing with it. i really can say, wholeheartedly, that we are definitely NOT the cio-type parents. especially, now, with me back at work. i'll be darned if i let my little babe cio, wanting mommy and/or daddy, in the middle of the night - when we already can't be there for him during the day :( see - the GUILT! let's see if i'm singing the same tune 2 months from now!

anyway, sorry to ramble on. just trying to make up :) here are some pics of his lovely teefers!

this was taken on Saturday, the night his second upper tooth came in...

and here just a week later (he just woke from his nap, i was playing peek-a-boo and wanted to catch his silly, giggly expression w/bed head ;) you can see his 4 teeth. he looks soo different, imo.

and this is just because i LOVE my two boys

annnnnnnnnnnnnnnndddddddddd drumroll please.......... mommy's new gift for going back to work (oh ok, so that's not how it really went down but i'll take it as such).

due to arrive tomorrow - Thursday!!! oh you know you'll be seeing photos... Thursday night ;) in a couple/few days i'll also be updating his 10-month stats... 10 months!

My computer is sick... (& update)

And at the apple hospital for 3-5 days :( the fan went out so now I'm out my life source!! Thank God for the iPhone ;) you won't be seeing me around, however, for a little bit. I start work on Friday so this week is Grammy-care try outs (where I take Luke to both grandmas houses for a shorter-than-8-hours period to get him warmed up to the idea). Not exactly how I wanted to spend my last week home with him but oh well, I'd rather ease him into it. So Luke will spend 3 days/week at my mil's house and then 2 days/week with my mom. We're very blessed that both grandmas are available and want to watch him. Let me tell you how hard it is, though, leaving him. I never thought it'd be this hard and I find myself praying for "just one more day" home with him.

On a brighter note - I'm looking to upgrade my camera and possibly get a new lens so yay! I'll try and focus on that more ;)

Luke, in the meantime, has been having a ridiculously hard time sttn! Two nights in a row he woke about 3-4 times each night, and get this one... We've noticed a trend, he seems to sttn when we DON'T give him tylenol or motrin before bed. Odd right? So we tested the theory out last night and yep, it's 5 a.m. and not one peep all night long. Hmmm, that is the oddest thing.

His top two central incisors came in back to back (one on Friday, the other on Saturday) and on top of that he has an ear infection :( poor baby. he does pretty well throughout the day, though. Not fussy at all, just his usual happy self.

And one last update.. I just purchased my first cricut!!! And 4 cartridges :) ready to start tackling Luke's birthday party decor :) I've been researching scrapbooking tips and tricks like crazy (this will be my first attempt at one) so if you have any insider tips please do share, I need all the help I can get!

Well, until next week all my e-friends, take care, enjoy your week and pray and/or send thoughts my way on Friday please. I know it'll be ok but I'm sure the first few days will be hell!

Luke's first ear infection :(

about 4 days ago luke started tugging on his right ear, naturally i was suspicious but he had no other symptoms so didn't think much more of it. 3 days ago i notice he's tugging a lot more, but only around nap/bedtime so i pretty much chalk it up to being tired (again, no other symptoms). yesterday he woke up a fussy baby (which is so out of character for him), nothing soothed him (not even the remote control or my makeup bag!). checked his temp and yep, running a low-grade fever. called the doctor (thinking i'm overreacting of course) and take him in. sure enough, infection in his right ear (redness and swelling - no puss yet, thank God!). his left ear and throat checked out ok, good, and the doctor prescribed amoxicillin and said to bring him back in 2 weeks to make sure the infection has cleared.

two doses into the antibiotic and Luke has this nasty, bright red rash on his bum with what looks like budding blisters (not severe, yet). i wipe him up - poor baby squeezed his cheeks because it hurt, and put desitin (the original paste/purple tube) on and covered him up. called my mom, sis, and sil. stuck luke in the bath (not 20 minutes after changing his diaper) and whatdayaknow?! the dang rash is GONE! DISAPPEARED! seriously no trace of it. i don't get it. i start double guessing what i had just seen and call my mom, she says she's never heard of such a thing. anyway, long story short the pharmacist says the zinc oxide can definitely be a miracle worker if caught early (desitin = savior). but seriously guys, i'm not exaggerating. luke has never had a rash so have nothing to compare it to but it was very red/splotchy with raised bumps (somewhat bubbling) underneath areas. when i tried to sit him on his bum after changing him he cried and rolled over. i know it had to hurt. odd right?! miracle!

the pharmacist said to continue the antibiotic (since the rash had vanished), pay special attention for possible reactions and contact his pedi in the a.m.

all of this happened to a very sleepy boy with only 1-hr of rest throughout the entire day. my niece graduated from 6th grade so luke missed his nap. and can you believe that my otherwise-crabby-sleep-deprived-baby-boy actually was a champ throughout the almost 2-hr ceremony and let mommy run around snapping pictures?! hubbs and i are always so amazed at how happy this boy is, running on empty WITH an ear infection! after the ceremony i nursed him and put him to bed but that was a complete fail. between the infection and teething forget about it.

here are a couple of pics taken at the ceremony. he stayed chillin' in his stroller, peep-free, for the entire ceremony. love this boy! doesn't he look so tired (or can only i see that with my mommy glasses on?!).

Luke has been keeping me on my toes!

it just seems like he's been growing in milestones by the second! everyday is something new. he's now fully crawling (and FAST!), is getting into EVERYTHING (drawers, baskets, cabinets, countertops, pretty much anything within reach). he so not into nursing these days, would much rather get down to play and explore. he nurses for a few minutes, at best, and then fights to get up and down from my lap so i just let him be. i'm thinking this is why, though, he's waking every night around 12-1 a.m. to nurse, he's not getting enough during the day. i'm cutting him some slack since his top two central incisors are coming in and it can't be helping matters (poor baby). but check out what he did yesterday morning while i was making his breakfast (i was in the kitchen while he was playing in the living room).

by the time i realized, "hey, it's pretty quiet in there..." this is what i had to pry out of his little chubby hands! he ATE part of his baptismal invitation! i had this one specially printed in a 4x6 for his baby book, left it out on the ottoman (along with the baby book) so i could work on putting it in the album, and he ATE it! the pieces were no where to be found! i gave him a little scolding (though it was completely my fault for leaving him alone) and he replied with the biggest, cutest gummy grin! of course i wanted to laugh and smile but i didn't, lol, didn't want to send mixed messages. needless to say, breakfast preparation this morning was spent playing on the kitchen floor.

so yeah, he's just into everything, giving mommy a good run for her money. gone are the days when i could leave him playing on the floor for a few moments! i even sit him in front of the restroom while i go now (sorry - tmi)!!

here are a few snapshots taken over the past few days. these are the pics that are going to trigger memories years down the road ;) i just love my curious little boy!

playing in the basket while mommy folds the laundry

peek-a-boo

Luke is 9 months!!!

no WAY has 9 months come and gone! and even 9 (ok, 10) months before that when he was hibernating in my belly. awww, my little boy is growing up so fast. too fast, especially, these past few weeks it seems. he's gone from sitting, to pulling himself to standing, to crawling, to sitting from a crawling position, to crawling to mommy & daddy, to crawling to every.single.thing he's NOT supposed to have (like paint buckets, extension cords, computer cords, storage totes, the kitchen trash can, the fire place cover - yeah, we desperately need to child proof this place!). ALL this within the past 2-3 weeks!! and the term crawling, yeah, i use that loosely. he really did first learn to crawl the right way (on all fours), and then something happened 2 days later when he plopped on his belly and found he could get there a lot faster this way. he still practices on all fours, though. i'm really in no hurry. believe me ;)

luke's also managed to develop a temper, and has lost all patience, in the past couple of weeks. man, try and take something away from him and see how loud he can get! it's the only time we can be sure of hearing his voice since he still is a pretty quiet boy.

these past 9 months have been pure heaven for me (i can defiitely speak for dh, too, when i say this), we are blessed beyond words and only God knows what we've done to deserve this life. every day with luke is a blessing, a gift that i treasure beyond comprehension. i hope this feeling never fades, i want to be in this state of awe and miracle forever! THIS is the life!!

So, here's the traditional monthly update (you know you're dying to know!!!):

• 23 lbs, 28.5"
• luke has his 2 bottom central incisors (his top 2 look to be making their debut any day now)
• sleep has been disastrous since the arrival of his first two teeth (almost 2 months ago!!), he sleeps a total of about 11.5 hrs every night if you count the 1-2 times he wakes to eat - and then goes right back to sleep, as part of the 11.5 hrs.
• he *usually* takes 2 good naps a day, a 2-hr a.m. nap and a 2-hr p.m. regardless, he gets about 4-hrs of nap time in daily, however he so decides to break it up.
• i have him on a 4-hr eating schedule, so nurses every 4-hrs during the day with solids (3 times/day) about 30-60 minutes after he nurses.
• i still make all of his foods, he's a GREAT eater and loves to eat finger foods! all his *purees* have tons of texture so maybe that's helped transition him, idk just a guess.
• iron test came back great, no longer deficient though i'm still keeping him on an iron-rich diet (lentils, beef, spinach, etc.) until his follow up next month.
• he's still not talking much but i swear, one day when dh got home from work luke looked at him, beamed, and said "daaaadaaa!" my hubbs practically passed out, lol. it was so sweet.
• loves army-crawling around the house and pulling himself to a standing position as often as possible.
• he clearly clearly moves towards what he wants now, most often it's the floor (while we're holding him) or our junk on our night stand while i'm nursing him.
• he's a nosy nosy boy, always distracted while eating so will delay that process as long as he possibly can.
• he sits up on his own now, so we're always pleasantly surprised when we go to get him out of bed and he's looking at the door, waiting for us. LOVE.
• i've never shared this, but it's hilarious. when he's tired and i nurse him, his eyes roll to the back of his head and he rubs my breast, lol, it's the funniest thing. i give him his burp cloth to rub because rubbing usually turns to pinching and yeah, ow!

this is all i can think of for now, lol, as if it's a short list! now for his 9 month pictures. i apologize in advance, i'm trying to work on quality vs. quantity but he's just so dang cute it's hard not to take 20 million pictures (but really, why do i need 20 pics of the same pose?!). maybe i'll have learned by baby #2 ;)

hehe, love this one.

and this one...

and the double chin in this one...

and the hair... well, you get the idea...

probably my favorite pic. too bad i cut off his cute little toes :(

the GREATEST assistant EVER!!

and then after, lol.

sorry daddy, but this is all luke!

ok, i just DIE at all his cute little faces. it's obvious.. i'm sure ;)

practicing his crossing guard skills :-]

Bad Blogger! - update

ugh, i've been a bad blogger. things have been so crazy busy around here i can't find a minute to get my thoughts together and jot them down. what have i been up to? first birthday planning (i know! can you believe it?!), getting ready to get back to work (so, a lot of emotional breakdowns pretty much), editing pics from our cabo vacation, processing pics from a senior/graduation session, trying to document Luke's milestones over the past couple of weeks, visiting family, making baby food, a *little* housework (like little!), and just the other day-to-day happenings... so here are some pics, of course, to hold you over until i can update Luke's 9 month progress. 9 months!!! Ack!

9 month shots. such a big boy, recovered very quickly :)

singing to mommy
in action. just learned to crawl!!!

taking a moment out to watch Ellen's stand up, lol.

on the move

pulled himself to standing, taking a break to laugh at Ellen, lol.

Cabo pics part II

i apologize in advance that all the pics pretty much look the same... luke didn't age much while we were there, lol, and we pretty much did the same thing everyday. it gets a little redundant but again, any excuse to show off my cute little boy (it's not just me right?!).

i just adore any photo of these two together. dh is really such a great dad.

look familiar?! yep, everyday!!

loved drinking the water. ewww, gross!
too bad luke's hand is blurry, i really like this one

can you tell i just love these chunky thighs?!
umm, we ran out of food... poor luke. hehe.


there're those teeth
lol. this one cracks me up, i have a whole series

(count your blessings they're not all here!).

the pigeon totally ran up in the bkgrnd unexpectedly,

but what a funny shot, Luke really wasn't looking at her.




had to crop these lovelies :)




hubbs has always wanted a pic like this, not necessarily in the sand...

mommy are you almost done?!


yay!
and there's that double chin mommy loves so...

you're so funny, daddy!
awww. showing some love to his glo pal
finally looks like a little baby here...
the only family pic we have. thank you taxi man!
flying into the clouds, so beautiful - behind the dirty glass of course
helllllooo LA! oh how i've missed you!