I feel naked.

This is all I'm carrying on my person. Granted this was a super fast trip, but it sure makes a difference when you're traveling with kids, or not. :)

Us

We had a terrific time tonight. Now time for a wonderful night's rest!! :)

Extraordinary Carrot Cake

And happy birthday to my babe. :)

Dinner Cruise

Eric and Jill have chartered a gorgeous boat for a small dinner party to celebrate Eric's birthday. So fun!! :)

And we're off!

Flying on 9/11. A little spooky. Nice thing is, the airport's practically empty. ;-)

A few things to share

I need to post this quickly because it's ridiculously late and Callum will be waking up soon.

1) HAPPY BIRTHDAY JONATHAN!


Today is my honey's birthday. He turns 12. Or 13. Or something like that. He's a young kid so I can never remember.

We, unfortunately, didn't get to do anything for his birthday today. The week - due to me returning back to work and Callum being sick and Jon having to work late every night (including tonight) - was too frenetic and crazy for us to even think about it. Perhaps next weekend. Or something.

2) HAPPY BIRTHDAY UNCLE KAI!


Today is also Uncle Kai's birthday. I think he turns like -5 or something like that. Damn kids these days.

3) 33 months old!


Today Logan turns 33 months old. Which is like -85 years old in relation to the above two numbers. Or something like that. I plan to write a dedicated post later for Mr. Logan but let's just say the theme of the post is going to go something like "My little one has turned into a defiant little punk who's primary vocabulary now consists of screaming NO to my face".

4) Callum had a follow up appointment with the doctor about his bronchitis and things are looking great! The doc says his lungs are 75-80% better (how do they come up with these numbers? seriously.). He can still hear a bit of congestion and wheezing but it's not nearly as bad and he thinks after we finish up the doses on both meds through the weekend, we'll be good to go. We actually have his 4 month shots and check up scheduled Tuesday morning - which will be a perfect time to do a final check on his lungs to make sure everything really has cleared out.


His daycare has definitely noticed a difference these last two days as well. He's had MUCH better days at school - crying less, eating and sleeping more - slowly getting back to his old self. We still battle a bit in the middle of the night - I think he's most miserable after just waking up when his congestion is probably the worst after sleeping on his face all night. But, again, it's slowly been getting better with each day so I'm hopeful we've turned the corner.

5) What else. First week back to work is behind me. YAY. It took me 2.5 days to get back onto our corporate network and connected to the tools I use day to day. Apparently if your account isn't in use for 30-45 days, they shut you down. Which makes TOTAL sense for all the hundreds of people in this massive company who are taking leave every day. Right? Right. I'm slowly going through my thousands of emails and filing them away never to be seen again. And I've applied for a new job which I'm now interviewing for because this week just couldn't get any busier.

6) Jon and I are off to San Diego tomorrow for a quick 24 hour trip to celebrate Eric's 5th birthday. Or something like that.


They're chartering a boat complete with open bar, beautiful dinner and sinfully delicious birthday cake for dessert. But none of that is as cool as the fact that it's an adults-only evening. Which means, for the FIRST TIME EVAH, we'll be leaving town without our kiddos, who will be spending the night with my parents. Wish them luck. I'm nervous for them.

But, not nervous enough to not look forward to a full night's sleep. ;-)

Ready for takeoff!

Logan just told me he's ready to go! We had a great time down in San Diego and are now about to takeoff and head home. The weather was crazy stormy here (as it was up in the Bay Area we hear) with several delayed flights but we somehow made it onto our flight just fine. *phew*

Go Chargers!

Amelia is really into this football game. She can't even contain herself next to the rowdy boys jumping up out of their seats and yelling at the screen.

Chillaxin'

Just hanging out after a bath. Logan's so huge now, especially next to Amelia. :)

Happy 4 Months Amelia!

Amelia turned 4 months old today. She's absolutely adorable and we're having a great time visiting. Logan thought she was particularly funny kicking her little legs like crazy. He'd put his hands or face in front of her feet, waiting for Amelia to kick him and then laaaaaaaugh hysterically once she did. :)

Sunny San Diego!

Here's Logan, flying in his OWN seat for the first time! What a big boy!

We just landed safely in San Diego, here to visit our friends Eric and Jill and their little baby girl Amelia (who we haven't met yet!). Looking forward to a nice long weekend with friends. :)

(unfortunately I forgot my camera so iPhone pics are the best I can do this weekend)

B is for Baby

Wowza - so where do I begin? I had a jam packed week last week, at a fun, but pretty technical, conference up in Seattle. However, the time I had getting to know my management and colleagues better was well worth it. I flew home Thursday night pretty beat but in time to see Logan for about an hour which was wonderful. It was the longest I had been away from him and I was really missing him after a couple of days. So, I was relieved and excited and choked up with motherly emotions, seeing him smile big and bright the minute he and Jon picked me up from the airport Thursday night.

I spent Friday morning cuddling and lounging around with Logan before taking him to school, so that I could get a few calls and work done later that day. I crammed as much work as I possibly could into a few hours before I spent the rest of the afternoon packing our family up to get ready for our trip down to San Diego.

In addition to the regular mountain of crap we bring with us anywhere we go these days, we also brought with us Logan's old infant car seat, two bases that went with it, and the stroller that the infant car seat snapped into. Eric and Jill are taking it off our hands to enjoy with their new little one, who will be arriving any week now! And we get to clear out a bit more space in the garage. It's a win-win for all. :)

None of us had quite thought through how much stuff it all added up to - especially when Eric and Jill drive a small 4-door sedan with not much room to spare! We somehow squeezed our two gigantic suitcases and backpacks in the trunk and laid the stroller bag across Jon, Logan and I in the back (I had thought ahead enough not to bring our own car seat, fitting Logan into the infant seat - barely - for the drive to/from the airport instead!). The stroller was so huge, however, that it literally covered me and Logan completely. Thankfully, Jon and Logan could see each other from Jon's side, since I don't think Logan would have been very happy could he not see either of us during the drive home. ;-)

For most of our visit, we just hung out with Eric and Jill, enjoying each others' company. Saturday afternoon we went to a nearby park to get some of Logan's energy out, however it was sooo ridiculously hot outside that we ended the excursion pretty quickly, stopping by a frozen yogurt shop on our way home. :) Saturday evening we drove to Murrieta to visit with Eric's family (some in from out of town) for dinner, which was very nice.

Both Friday and Saturday night Logan had a really tough time sleeping in his tent - I'm not sure if it was because of the heat, the new/different place, the fact that we were in the room with him, or what. But, it caused for some restless nights for Jon and I. Both nights when Logan woke up we brought him to bed with us - but because he's gotten so big now, he doesn't sleep well in bed with us and moves around constantly. Saturday night, Jon finally gave up and left to sleep on the couch, while Logan slept soundly, using Mama's belly or thighs as a pillow while he rolled around on the bed (and me!) all night long. Aiiieeee.


We spent the majority of Sunday at Jill's baby shower. Her family really knows how to throw a great party! There were a ton of women at the party and a few kids too - one, Anna, is a sweet 9 yr old (going on 16) girl that Logan has met before and really loves. When he wasn't chasing balloons around the house he was by her side. Thankfully, she's wonderful with kids and really puts up with Logan like a champ. When she finally had to leave, Logan actually had a meltdown at the door, throwing a fit, asking to go outside to follow her, and looking out the window saying "bye bye". It was pretty damn cute. :)


Jill (and Eric) made out like bandits with a ton of awesome presents - the best from us of course! ;-) They have just a few more weeks before Amelia joins their small family and I think everyone is getting very excited to meet her. It was so much fun being a part of the celebration - I remember exactly what it was like for me, exciting and overwhelming all at once, and very grateful for the network of friends and family around me. I know Eric and Jill are in the same spot and though we're hundreds of miles away, we are definitely going to be there for them every step of the way.

In addition to fond memories of my pregnancy coming back, Logan caught onto a new word in a blink of an eye.

BABY.

And, he loved saying it, repeating it over and over. He was even calm and quiet around another baby at the baby shower, wanting to touch her, but not using his jerky erratic fast movements that he does with the cats or the dogs. Somehow, without me saying anything, he knew he needed to be gentle and calm with her! He was also interested in Jill's belly - particularly after we told him there was a baby inside and when Jon tried to get him to feel the baby kick. Luckily, Jill was very agreeable and didn't mind my kid coming up and lifting her shirt to touch her belly every few minutes. :) It's moments like these that definitely make me want to have another some day - since I know Logan will be a wonderful, loving and fun big brother.


Today we had a nice breakfast at a new place Eric wanted to try - the food was tasty but more than that, they were next door to a little nursery which also happened to have a number of different animals as well. It became Logan's own little petting zoo - complete with chickens, geese, turtles, bunnies, fish, butterflies, goats and horses. We headed home so Logan could nap while the adults had another round at Settlers of Catan (I won, mwahahhahaha), and then it was finally time to pack it up and head out. We stopped by Target before the airport - buying Logan a couple new pairs of shoes (his feet seem to grow 10 times faster than the rest of his body!!), jeans and socks. We bid our goodbyes to Eric and Jill - the last time we'll probably see them childless (wow!) and headed into the airport to check in.


Our flight over and back home were both pretty uneventful, which is always nice. The only minor snafu was the ride home tonight, where neither Jon nor I were keeping a close eye on how many pretzels Logan was stuffing in his mouth. And, before we knew it, he was choking/coughing them back up, and then actually managed to puke two handfuls onto Jon's shorts, the seat/floor and mostly my cupped hands. Ahhhhhhh good times. :) We cleaned him up and the area around us - I didn't dare look at the gal sitting next to me since I'm sure she was freaking out being so close to VOMIT - and then went on our merry way enjoying the rest of the ride home.

All in all, a wonderful weekend with our dear friends, which is always much shorter than it really should be. Amazingly, I forgot my phone at home and somehow survived without it for THREE WHOLE DAYS (it was tough). So, now I've got to catch up on a bajillion emails, prep for a hairy work week, and sort through a couple hundred pics from the weekend too! Ah yes, never a dull moment.

18 month checkup

Just finished Logan's 18 month checkup. All looks great as usual. We've got a strong active healthy little boy. But, we all knew that already. ;-) Here he is, playing up a storm after his Hep A shot, which he didn't even flinch from!

He's definitely continuing his growth spurt on the height curve. His stats are 26lbs, 3oz (55%), 34.25" tall (95%), and 49.25cm (77%) round head.

Short post today. We have a funeral service to attend in San Diego this weekend (for Jon's great grandmother - she lived a long and full life but we are, of course, sad to see her go).

So, I've got a number of errands to run before we hop on the plane later this afternoon. Toodles!

San Diego Summary

My son is off to bed and my husband is off to another country (more on that later), so I finally have some moments of quiet in the house to blog a post on our recent trip.

Jon's old high school friend, Ryan, got married this last weekend. Since Jon was in the wedding party, we had to go. We contemplated about leaving Logan here with my parents but finally decided it was better to bring him with us. It wouldn't have been right visiting San Diego without him, especially since he hadn't yet met either of Jon's grandparents!

So, we woke up bright and early on Thursday morning for a short flight down to San Diego. It was pouring here in San Jose so it was nice to be greeted with some sun once we landed. The flight was fairly uneventful. Logan was pretty tired and should have taken a nap, but he was way too distracted with everything around him to fall asleep on me or Jon. However, by the time we got to our rental car, he finally DID conk out on me (in the Ergo carrier) which was great news. So, I quietly swayed back and forth letting him sleep while Jon quickly loaded up our car, messed with the car seat to get it buckled in properly, gingerly loaded our snoozing son into his seat, and then plopped ourselves in the front to take off.

Only, when Jon started up the engine, we discovered the brand new spankin' - I only have 500 miles to my name - rental car was dying. The poor thing was shaking and shuddering and sputtering like a beat up old Chevy truck (rather than the sporty red Chevy Impala that it was).

GREAT.

So, we got another car, took all our luggage out, transferred it to the new car, gingerly pulled our sleeping son out of his car seat, took that out and installed it in the working car, and loaded him back up again. He was exhausted and thankfully, never woke up during the transition. :)

We took off to see Jon's Grandma Negrete first, who lives in Coronado. Since Logan was still sleeping, I waited in the car with him while Jon went to get his grandmother, and then we all took off for a late breakfast/early lunch. Logan woke up once she joined us in the car (I'm sure the new voice is what did it), but at least he got about a 45 minute nap or so....

We had a nice lunch. Well. Nice minus Logan throwing up all over himself in his high chair because we gave him a tortilla chip to munch on, which then proceeded to get lodged in his throat (because he SHOVED THE ENTIRE THING IN HIS MOUTH all at once) and caused him to gag. Thankfully, I had packed a change of clothes, shoes and all, in the diaper bag. So, we stripped him down right there at the table, washed everything with millions of baby wipes, and then went back to finishing our lunch. Eeks.

After lunch, we visited with Jon's grandmother some more at her apartment (and Jon did a little bit of work) which she absolutely loved since it meant some extra time with Loganito. And, then took off to drive up to Murrieta, about an hour north of San Diego, where Jon's grandpa Negrete and step-grandmother Maryann live.

At Grandpa Negrete and Maryann's house we visited with the two of them plus Jon's aunt and younger cousins. Jon's Aunt Diana and Uncle Donald also drove down from Sun City to visit and meet Logan as well. We had a really nice time visiting and ordered in pizza for dinner. Logan got to bounce on a trampoline for his first time which he seemed to really enjoy for about 5 minutes. Jon was on it with him, doing most of the bouncing, and Logan was laughing up a storm - until Jon got a little too aggressive and suddenly Logan's face turned green and he stopped smiling all together and wanted off. :) He also loved playing with Izzy's drumsticks, and watching Izzy do some serious damage on his Rock Band game.

We finally took off and headed back to San Diego to stay with our friends Eric and Jill (who we traveled to New Zealand with). It was really great to see them! And, even though my back was killing me (stressful week at work and the traveling/kid juggling), we all stayed up for a couple of hours after putting Logan down so that we could hang out and catch up on the last few months of life.

Friday morning Eric and Jill both took off for work, and unfortunately for us, their electric company was doing maintenance in the neighborhood so power was out for the entire day. We couldn't really sit at the house doing nothing, so we decided to hit up the mall - which actually worked out well since Jon found out that morning that the rehearsal dinner that night was business casual - no jeans (since when does business casual mean no jeans? is what I want to know...). I'm pretty sure the bridesmaids all knew well in advance the required attire, but alas, the last minute planning is what you have to put up with when it's two boys talking to each other.

So, we got some nice pants for Jon (luckily I had packed two dresses for me), and walked around the mall until it was a little too wet and rainy for us to hang out in anymore. Plus, Logan really needed a nap and we all needed to get ready for the rehearsal. So, we headed back to Eric and Jill's and all three napped for a couple hours like the lazy bums that we are, before it was time to head to the church.

The rehearsal was supposed to start at 5pm but this is a Filipino wedding and everyone was operating on Filipino time. :) The bride and groom didn't even show up until about 5:20pm or so I think. So what's the first thing the rehearsal coordinator (yes, there was a coordinator just for the rehearsal) tells the wedding party?

Tomorrow you must be here NO LATER THAN 1:15pm American time. Not Mexican time. Not Filipino time. American time people.

Heh. The poor woman.

The wedding was at The Immaculata Parish on the University of San Diego's campus. I actually have been to a wedding here before - when I was pregnant with Logan! For my good friend Scott and Karen's wedding. So, I knew the layout well. But, this time with a baby, it was oh so different.

And, I really shouldn't have gone to the rehearsal. I'm not sure what I was thinking, other than, oh! if it starts at 5pm then we should have the dinner around 6pm so maybe it won't go too late and we can take Logan afterall.

HA.

Although, I suppose being at the rehearsal was a blessing in disguise. Since, it quickly made me realize just how antsy Logan was REALLY going to be on the big day.

So, we spent an hour hanging out in the back of the church, climbing the pews, pulling the bibles out of the book racks and throwing the donation envelopes on the floor. We also walked up and down all the aisles, explored the side chapels, and hung out in the church's narthex (vestibule), before finally wandering outside to the fountain and central plaza in front of the church.

And, when I say WE, I mean Logan.

*sigh*

It was exhausting and by about 6:12pm, when the rehearsal was still in full swing and Logan was nearing his melting point, I finally texted Jon with something like....

Leaving now. Find a ride home.

Saturday morning we got up early and went out to breakfast with Eric and Jill at the Hash House a go go. Their plates (particularly the french toast) were gigantic and we all ordered WAY TOO MUCH and stuffed ourselves silly. Luckily, Logan passed out once we got home which allowed me to rest and Jon to get ready for the wedding (he had to take off early). Logan woke from his nap with just barely enough time to get himself and myself dolled up for the big day - enough time, anyway, to arrive to the wedding on Filipino time. ;-)

Of course, Logan and I missed the majority of the wedding since we again, spent most of our time hanging out in the church's narthex, screaming at the top of our lungs, because didn't you know, churches with high ceilings are PERFECT at echoing small childrens' voices? Since it was gorgeous outside, we spent some time at the fountain again, and I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to get some great pictures of my son dressed up with a beautiful church in the background. Only, he did not feel like cooperating ONE BIT with me and the camera ALL DAY LONG.

Once the wedding ceremony was over, we were able to find Jon to visit for just a little bit before he was swept away again for a series of pictures and hoopla. During this brief time, I captured my favorite picture of the entire weekend. :)

After the ceremony, hundreds of guests poured into their cars to head to The Westin, where the dinner reception and party was held. I was really looking forward to it because I thought okay, finally. Jon will be done with his wedding party duties and I'll have a little relief.

HAAAA!!

I walked into the hotel and read the board directory for the wedding. 4:30-5:30pm was cocktail hour, with the dinner reception to start at 6:00pm. Jon was nowhere in sight - off participating in the millions of pictures that the 6 hired photographers and 1 videographer were shooting. So, I was left to fend for myself, juggling a quickly tiring baby amidst a sea of faces I did not know, all drinking and partying it up at the bar while my son was trying to topple down the grand entrance staircase with a few other boys at the wedding.

These boys, Jacob and Jeremy, were probably the only reason why Logan lasted as long as he did that day, being quite the entertainment for my son. He was fascinated by the "big" kids - watching them run and play and laughed anytime they came near by to make a funny face or give him a hug. And, they in turn, were completely in love with Mr. Logan. Jacob (a mature 5 yr old) turned to me and said, I just love babies. I said, Really? And, why is that? He said, because they are so fun and tiny.

So true Mr. Jacob, so true.

I'm proud to say we lasted until about 8pm, which was a really long day for Logan (he woke from his nap at 1pm and the wedding started at 2pm). So, he and I took off early (at least I got to eat dinner this time) so I could put him to bed.... when I picked up Jon later that night, I got to hear how the rest of the party went (it was probably one of the most expensive and lavish weddings we've ever been to - so there was a part of me that was really disappointed I couldn't enjoy the party and dancing with my husband), and was glad to hear Jon had a good time.

However, I also told him, under no uncertain terms, would I ever - EVER - agree to doing that again. That day was one of the most exhausting days I've had - and I'm not exactly sure WHAT I was thinking when I said Logan and I could join Jon at this wedding, but I definitely was not thinking about cranky kids and no nap times and quiet serious ceremonies and echo-y churches and formal dresses and late parties and early bedtimes.... Yeaaaaaaaaahhh.....

I must've forgotten for a split second that I am now a mom.


Our Sunday was uneventful - we had a nice leisurely brunch out with Eric and Jill and then hung out at their place the rest of the afternoon, enjoyed a dinner together and then headed out to the airport to catch our flight home. Our flight wasn't too bad - it was pretty late in the evening, well past Logan's bed time, so the last 30 minutes or so we played multiple distracting games to pass the time and keep him from disturbing any of the other passengers. He conked out on the ride home - which was great since we quickly moved him to his bed, and then passed out ourselves.

Yesterday was a blur as we caught up with work and visited with friends from out of town all night. And tonight, we had a quick couple hours as a family before Jon took off for the airport, on his way to the Dominican Republic for a work conference the rest of the week.

I'm beginning to think that for every trip we take, no matter how big or small, I need an equivalent number of days to recuperate and catch up with life back home. Having your husband turn around and leave the country less than 48 hours later doesn't quite work with my "decompress and recuperate" philosophy. Heck, some would say it's downright stressful.

But, what can you do? I'm trying not to think too hard about how hairy the next four days will be without him, juggling chemo appointments for Lola, PT appointments for myself, daycare drop offs and pickups, busy work duties and oh, a cranky teething toddler who's bottom left molar is starting to come in. It's not going to be easy, but I'm sure I can do it.

I'm a mom now, afterall.

Sunday Brunch

Just finished a leisurely brunch with Eric and Jill and enjoying the
beautiful day before we have to start packing up to fly back home.

Lazy bums

Any time *not* spent doing wedding stuff this weekend was usually
spent lounging at Eric and Jill's watching tv. :)

Sunny San Diego

Flew down to San Diego early this morning for a wedding this weekend...

I'm currently sitting with a very tired snoozing baby in the rental
car, waiting for Jon and his grandmother so we can head out to a late
breakfast.

This is just a quick snapshot of what's next to me. A little overcast
but it sure does beat the rain we just left behind! ;)