First weeks of 2008

For Christmas and New Year's we spent it in Greensburg, PA with Ben's family. One of the biggest accomplishments for Isabel was that she no longer got too fussy when she was on her tummy. She can actually enjoy tummy time and watch tv for awhile before getting tired. She had a wonderful time with Grandpa and Grandma Bayani. It even snowed while we were there! Her first white New Year's!

After spending a lot of time in both Grandpa Bayani and Grandpa Chih's La-Z Boys, we had to get one! It would take only 5 min to get her to sleep and napping in those chairs. Most of the time, we fell asleep in it with her cuz it was so comfy. We came home on Friday and on Saturday we bought one at a furniture store on Stevens Creek. This one is great since it's super oversized and it's not microfiber but soft brushed cotton? I actually think it's like teddy bear fur.... We hunted for it at 4 stores and saw a few different styles but once we saw this one, the hunt was over!

Isabel on her way to her 4 month check up for more shots. Poor thing doesn't know it yet. All she knows is that she's warm and comfy in her white coat! What a cutie! She looks like a snow bunny when you see the whole outfit on.

First Boo Boo!

This afternoon while Ben and I were taking Carlo (Ben's older brother) to the airport, Isabel decided that she could get out of her swing all by herself. Unfortunately, being 1 foot off the ground and lacking most of her hand and eye coordination at 4 months, she fell flat on her face. We weren't there to witness the fall but Ben's parents were. I definitely think the grandparents were more traumatized then we were. I have heard of a lot of stories from other parents but I didn't think ours was going to come but it did. So now, yes, we understand why there are safety belts on those swings! She is actually outgrowing her swing too so I think she was trying to tell us something. She's a big girl and she can get out herself! So today was her first OOOPs! I think she's fine and she didn't cry very much so I'm sure everything is ok. So if all you parents can give me some reassurance please do!

Jessica: I remember your story about Lexy falling out of her swing... Now I know what you're talking about!

Updates on Isabel: For the past two months, Isabel has been sleeping through the night. Her last feeding is at 9:30pm and she sleeps till 7 or 8am in the morning. Occasionally she'll wake up during the night but I just rock her back to sleep. Depending on the consistency of her feeding schedules, she's usually asleep by 10pm. Oh what a difference than when she first came home! The funny thing now is that Ben and I totally think that we've got it down and with our 2nd (when that time comes) I think we won't be amateurs anymore! Isabel can hold her head up really well and is great in her bouncer. She can also laugh, giggle and babble. She responds to conversations and talks a TON. This was her first plane ride and on the way here to Pittsburgh she was really good. She pretty much slept the entire time. Now for the way back...I'm a little more concerned since it won't be a red eye flight. She is curious about everything and can track images and people. She especially loves TV (I know, I know...) and movies like Die Hard (yes, I know!). Oh and she hates to lie down, she constantly needs to be held like she's walking or doing push ups so she's sitting. I've ordered that Bebepod so I hope she'll like that. Wheeew! Lot's of updates but she's a growing girl!

A Happy New Year RANT

Today is the start of another new year and this time around we have Isabel here with us. She is a wonderful baby and such a joy to Ben, Ozzie, and I (well I hope Ozzie thinks so). So don't misunderstand my feelings for her as I go into this little rant of mine.

With each year of course there are the creations of optimistic New Year's resolutions. I don't know if this year is a year I want to make a list of resolutions or even attempt to. I feel that although Isabel is here with us and makes me really happy, I feel that 2008 is a year of upcoming hardships. I think these are obstacles that I've never faced before and feelings that I don't think I ever had.

One huge piece of news is that I AM returning to work. With the help of my family, it's possible for me to return to work and see if I can work out the whole "working mom" thing. I guess if I didn't then my decision to stay at home would had been SO much easier. I have mixed feelings about this of course with the larger portion of the "mixed" portion leaning to the disappointment that I have about returning to work. I don't mind work, it's not hard at all. I think the hard part is dealing with stupid crap as with all jobs, stupid people making stupid decisions and creating ridiculous reasons to do this or that. I think if we all cut out that part of our jobs we would be such happier and productive people. And then there is the absolutely ridiculous cost of living here in California that requires us to ignore our families just so we can make it by... somehow, this doesn't make any sense yet we do it everyday till the day we die.

One thing that I made me feel really guilty about returning to work was a little incident that happened today as I was surfing the web. I was looking for a play group, a moms group, any group that I could find in my area that I could take Isabel to so she can get some baby to baby interaction. Unfortunately, the cold hard reality was, um... mothers needed to be AVAILABLE during the day to take their babies to these activities. OKAY, a big strike for me and here comes the wave of guilt.

I guess in conclusion my only glimmer of optimism that I have is that hopefully something will work out this year. I don't know what it is but I hope it's good - Isabel is worth it.

Pics from Vegas

There really isn't that much to do in Vegas when you have a baby besides shopping for your baby and taking pictures of your baby. There are so many places to shop at in Vegas that after awhile it's just exhausting. It was already exhausting pre-baby and now post-baby, it's practically impossible. You really have to be organized and focused when you're toting the little one around. My mom and I spent a day at Fashion Show Mall with Isabel and literally spend probably only have the time in stores, the other half was spent in the women's lounge in Nordstrom and Macys.

Here is the little munchkin totally out for a nap. To maintain our sanity we bought her a swing for the week...going to take it back when we leave. It relieves loads of stress!

Here is the cutie watching Sex & the City dvds with mommy.

Baby hanging out with daddy in front of the webcam talking to Grandpa and Grandma Bayani in Greensburg, PA. We're going to see everyone really soon!

Almost Christmas!

My dog is the CUTEST dog ever.
My baby is the CUTEST baby ever.

We are currently in Las Vegas right now since Ben has to do a little bit of work before the holidays. We drove Isabel and Ozzie on the 8 hour trip and both of them were incredibly well behaved. I knew Ozzie would be fine but Isabel I wasn't sure of. She had a new car seat which I think really helped out, so much roomier than her other one. She only fussed when we were 30 min outside of Vegas and then she fell asleep. It really wasn't too bad. The true test will be on a plane! More on that next week... Right now I'm on the search for the perfect travel accessories.

Happy 3 Months!

Isabel turned 3 months old just a few days ago. Time flies by fast! It has been 3 months of ups and downs, a true test of patience and relationships. The maternal instinct that people talk about for me was a progression through time. I don't believe at all that one could fall in love with their child the minute he/she is born. I believe that it's through the connection and experience as time goes by. I do love my daughter more and more each day. There are things that she does that crack me up hysterically:

1) She laughs out loud in her sleep for no reason at all...or maybe she's dreaming about milk.
2) She laughs and smiles when you get mad at her. She loves that.
3) She tries to entertain you while drinking her bottle which of course makes eating go by much more slowly.
4) She falls asleep in the bathtub cuz she's treated like a royal princess.
5) She talks to her stuffed animals when no one is around.
6) She is a super happy baby in the morning. She wakes up and just hangs out, no crying. The minute you walk by her and see her, she laughs and smiles. Then she starts a morning conversation.

She's going to be a little talker... We can see that already!

Isabel has been wanting to stand up or do sit ups anytime she gets a chance too. She's totally trying out her legs. It's super cute watching her grunt and try to do crunches! In a couple of days we're going to be going on our very first road trip with her and we'll see how she does. We bought a new car seat from Graco, the Safeseat which is much bigger than her Chicco infant seat so she's really a lot more comfortable. She and Ozzie both love car rides so we'll see how the drive to Vegas goes.

Diapers.com is a website that I found that sometimes gives really good coupons and always has free shipping. They're not necessarily the cheapest in the market but with their coupons, they're priced better. I use it for wipes and diapers. They carry Kirkland wipes AND all the major diaper brands. Their December coupon was $10 off a $50 purchase so that makes the diapers and wipes such a steal compared to the normal $1.50 off ones. Plus they ship really fast and you get your stuff in like 2 days.

Oh the joys of collecting coupons!

Isabel's New Toy

I've been researching online about the best baby toys to buy for our little princess and found two really cool items. Both of them are from Tiny Love. For some reason, Tiny Love is hard to find and I couldn't find them at Babies R Us, Toys R Us, or Target. They had have sold out of them or something. The one pictured here is the Symphony in Motion Farm Animals mobile. The cool thing is that it has all the black and white swirlies that catch her attention. She LOVES this mobile. Plus for me and Ben, it has a 15 minute timer and it's battery operated, so no more winding up an old school mobile that lasts for only a minute. It plays Mozart, Bach, and Beethovan too. The other item I got her was a Clip and Go mobile which is battery operated and can go with her anywhere. We haven't really tested that out yet but for our Vegas roadtrip in two weeks we'll see how that goes! By the way, I have to say that even though I despise the brick and mortar Walmart stores, I am so happy with their online service. I paid only $1.50 in shipping and I received both items in 2 days. They have one of the fastest shipping services EVER! And their photo department's speed is insane! It costs just a teeny bit more for one hour service and it's totally worth it!

An update on the Bugaboo.... We tested it out today at the mall and it has awesome handling! It's super smooth and can really turn well. I purchased the Graco adapter, the cup holder, and a new Graco Safeseat for it so now she can just sit in her new carseat without getting out. It takes a little getting used to but I have no regrets! Also, we went to Fresh Choice for dinner and the Bugaboo's handle bar can be adjusted so Isabel can sit right next to me at the table with the wheels underneath so she's super close. I can't wait to test it out at the park!