Getting Her Ears Pierced - A Rite of Passage

Almost one year to the day from when we first caught a glimpse of our baby through the 4-D ultrasound, she goes through her first rite of passage...piercing.
I had been putting this off but the time has come to give her that little girl look. Gloria was the nice lady who performed this special rite. Ya no parece una bebe :( She no longer looks like a baby/infant.

Now she can bling bling on her birthday. We decided to record this momentous event so all her family could in a way be part of this moment.

The Countdown Begins!

Happy 11 Month Birthday N!

Today you have entered your 12th month. OH my gosh how fast. To think that its one down and only seventeen more of these years to go before you are a legal adult. Gosh thats too little of time for me as your guardian if they all go this fast!

Well, I need to start planning your first birthday so we have a location thus far. A cottage by the beach. Now its just putting everything together. The weather better be ok!

Updates

Play Dates:
Lately, we have been attending many play dates. Today we went to MLK jr park to meet up with about 20-30 moms and babies. You surprised me when you crawled up the steps of a large play set all the way to the top! No steps at home so it was amazing to see you knew how to go up up and up. You smarty!

Bloody Hands!
Last week you killed your first bug :( I was taking a shower and you were waiting for your turn outside of the tub. I then saw you smear a tiny moth on the floor. You reminded me of the cats when they catch bugs :).

Hurting Mami
The other day you caused me to hurt my pinky toe...hard. It was PAINFUL and you saw me moaning and in pain. You started to cry with feelings of guilt I think, then you looked at me and smiled with tears in your eyes as you tried talking to me to make me feel better and I guess saying in your own words "ok, better mama? your ok no more pain?". But my pain was so much all i could do is tell you it was ok and it wasnt your fault but kept moaning and you started to cry again. It was so touching. I carried you and comforted you.

Steps
Your walking more and more now. Still crawling too but you attempt to get up and walk a lot now. You fall then you try again. Or you crawl instead.

Pointing
You do this a LOT. You point to everything and babble. Sometimes I think I know what you want and other times I just name things to you.

Immitating
You do this more and more now. If i bang something so do you. I try to blow kisses and you slap your mouth but thats as far as you go. I tried patty cake the other day and you clapped each time I said patty cake. Still gotta work on that. And the other day you saw a man clean his hands and you started to do the same too!

Speak No Evil
That is the one thing you still have not done - no real words yet. I hope you say something by next month. Mama or Dada. Other than that, you have pretty much reached all your first year's accomplishments and are ahead by a few months according to "What to Expect the First Year" :) I can't believe that even a few months ago I was scared that by the time I reached the last chapter you would be behind. I'm glad my fear from last year is behind now. Don't really know when it happened. One day I just realized it was gone.

I love you,
Mami.

Your Walking!

Mamita, you started taking your first real official steps this evening. Daddy put you down in standing position and called you. And you took 3-4 steps towards him! We were so happy but pretended it was no big deal. He did it again, and again you took about 3 steps. So I've been practicing with you this evening and you keep doing it. You fall on your butt but youve lost the fear now and let go without as much hesitation as before. I'm so proud of you!

Love,
Mami.

Climbing

Well Princess, soon I will have to be watching your every move even closer. Last night you were able to climb up onto the futon several times. Granted you used your boppy pillow to give you some lift, but you now know the moves it takes to get up. Lifting your right little leg to the top and then pulling yourself up. It helps if mami is laying there so you can hold on to her pants while your doing it too :)

Last night you also slept well. That is two nights now in a row but last night was a really good night. You only woke up around 4 this morning. I felt you sit up. You do that sometimes, you just wake up and sit up and stay there dazed, probably wondering where the heck are you, its dark! I normally hug you right away and lay you back down. So I gave you your "baba" and changed your diaper and back to sleep you went.

You didnt use/cry for your pacifier this past night!

An hour later I heard a neighbor using their saw. How inconsiderate to work on their yard at 5am on a Friday! After daddy went to the gym around 6 I could no longer sleep and here I am, typing away. Come to realize that "saw" noise was coming from our kitchen? Could it be? As I got closer and closer to the fridge I realized the fridge was making the noise! GREAT! Now I know why daddy was going through the fridge before he left. The stupid thing is broke. I better go clean it and cook the frozen meats we have later today. I doubt we will get the darn thing replaced in time to avoid our food getting ruined.

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September Updates

Well we have entered Madam N's 11th month. Here is what's new:

• Yesterday evening she started smacking her tongue against the roof of her mouth. After I noticed it, I would do it and she would immitate. This went on all evening. Cute.

• She has been pointing for a few weeks now. She will point at her videos or things she sees.

• One morning, when her dad and I were playing with her, we asked her to bring two toys to us from her toy shelf. Out of ALL her toys, she brought the correct ones to us in the right order!

• She throws things and grunts (is that the right word?) - like if she were mad. Especially when she no longer wants to eat that item or, like yesterday when I would grab her sock and throw it on the carpet and make the noise, she would pick it up and do the same. So cute, she even makes a "mad" looking face when she grunts.

• Today, we went to our first play group at the library. There were other mamas and babies. She liked it! I think I will do that every week from now on. Tomorrow we may go work out at the beach with the stroller in another mama group.

Hmmm, i know there are more updates, so I'll have to remember them and post them soon. For now, thats all folks!

Oh we went Halloween shopping today too. We bought Halloween decorations and i also got her some lilac fairy wings that will match her fairy skirt.

Just to dress her up and she can prance around our home with :)

I can't wait till Halloween. Its my baby's week! Her dad always wanted our baby to be born on Halloween and by coincidence she was born that week. We are decorating our place this year :) How fun.

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Happy 10th Month Birthday!

My baby turned 10 months yesterday!

How fast! Almost one year! Scary. I can't believe that I took you to Mexico City when you were in your 5th month because 5 months since then have gone by, twice the age you were when I took you. It makes it seem like I took you there not too long after you were born but at the time it felt like you had already been born for a while. I have to say, these last 5 months went by much faster than the first ones. Oh baby your looking more and more like a toddler now!

...was really fricken tall!

Ok, so I'm sort of tripping out with Madam N's third toe. Its long and as tall or slightly taller than her second (index?) toe. She curls her index toe so it makes it look even taller. The tallest of all her little piggies. Her dad doesnt have it. His second toe is actually the longest one.

On mami's side, they go from tall to short to shorter, a common "flow" of toes.

So its not mami's or papi's toe. WT Heck! Cute now, but I hope for her sake it blends in when she grows :)

Bye-Bye's and Poo-Poo's

Madam N now knows how to wave bye bye. Finally, she really picked up on the concept this past weekend and will wave her right hand left to right when we say bye bye (most of the time). Her wave is very floppy looking and exagerated. But this is how I made my waves - so she could easily distinguish this movement and figure out how to mimick it (as oppossed to opening and closing my hand which I figured would be too hard for her to immitate.)

Its so cute. It is another set of words I know she understands for sure and its very exciting to see her "communicate" in what is considered one of the first baby sign language signs. I can see why parents teach this now; it is a faster way for babies to communicate vs. talking which is still far away. But still, I don't know/think we will jump the baby sign language bandwagon. I still think it may just delay talking since babies may get too comfortable with this form of communication and not feel the need to learn how to speak properly.

She has also been a bad baby and still poopin every now and then in her bath tub. Yes! It is gross! I have to rush her out because she starts playing/splashing with it, then wash everything in the tub with hot water. More work for me. I think she gets too relaxed in there. It has happened like 5 times now! How do I stop it? I havent even seen any other mommy's talk about this on any sites. I'll have to keep searching.

She takes off her diaper too if I let her so I have to keep undies and bloomers on her at all times. No poo so far when she rips her diaper off, so far...thank God!

Diaper Cake

My latest baby craft is a diaper cake. I came across these on the web and also saw it not too long ago on Sex and the City (my sis Loves that show!). I figured it couldnt be too hard to make and looked up instructions. It was very easy and made my diaper gift look better. Just added a few baby items and tada! These have been around since 2003 I think but weird enough I hadnt seen them before I had my baby and neither had the baby shower guests at the latest baby shower I attended. I'm sure I started a trend there but its on record that I was the first to make them amongst that group! :) Next time I'll try the harder unrolled style.

Here are pics and the instructions I found.

http://www.craftbits.com/viewProject.do?projectID=1331

Updates!

Well I've been away from this blog for a few weeks. Grandpa was in town at first, then Dad was off on vacation for a while so I've been focused on other things.

But its time to post updates on my princess...

She can bite now! On July 27th, Madam N's two bottom teeth cut through :) Only one week earlier, when her grandfather was here, did we notice that part of her gums was whitish (kind of like when your tongue turns white when eating too much salt) and in the middle was what looked like two little hallow/see through dots that got bigger and bigger.

As of yesterday, you can really see her teeth now, although still growing. We are so proud of her. She wasnt fussy or ran any fevers and so really gave us no alerts at all.

Solos - Last week, she started letting go for just a few seconds. Like she has gained the confidence to crawl up to something, stand up and then let go. Then BUMP she falls on her butt or grabs on again quickly. She is still very very wobbly and no free walking anywhere near yet, but shes getting there.

Kiss, "Muaaaaah" - I started teaching her last night to kiss. I would say kiss, then kiss her and exagerate my "muah's". After a few minutes I'd ask her to kiss me and she would lean over and open her mouth against my cheek. That was so nice! No noise or smack comes out of her yet, but i think she has the concept of kissing her mommy and daddy.

Clapping - As far as her clapping goes, this is the one thing I REALLY know she understands, the word I mean. If I say bravo, 80% of the time she knows to clap now. As soon as she see's her baby videos put on, or heck us starting up the dvd player, she gets soooo excited and claps. She claps all the time now!

Well that is just a quick update on some achievments. I really must write more often. Blessings :)

Bravo!

Madam N clapped today. Daddy came home after being out for a few days and she was so excited to see him she started clapping. Then clapped more and more the rest of the evening.

She had already started clasping her hands in a hard manner on Monday but they werent real claps.

I don't know if she knows to clap when we clap yet, but she seems to do it when she is excited.

Bravo Madam N!

1 Year Ago

Happy Birthday Madam K! One year ago today, little KBoo was born. I just can't believe how fast that went by. I still remember calling her mommy at the hospital late that night and hearing her little newborn cry in the background. I longed to have my baby in my arms too and it was sweet yet sad in a way to hear little K because I was just so sentimental a year ago exactly. I will always remember the day you were born KBoo!

A few months later, my beautiful baby arrived and I was so so happy to finally embrace my little one and hear that little newborn cry too.

So one year goes by and there is no return anymore. No more infant stage for little K. I just realized today how fast my little one's year is also going by and I really need to embrace these months even more.

Still, every time I look at her, I don't know how else I can hold on to these moments even more so! Its like eating your very favorite meal and you want to savor it slowly yet no matter how much you savor it you still can't get enough.

That is what my time is with Madam N right now. I can't get enough and I try and kiss her a million times a day because I know I will be looking at her baby pictures not too long from now and wishing I could hold that baby in my arms and kiss her as a baby again. But that will no longer be possible. I will have her as a toddler, but not as that new little dependent on mommy being. Already she is more independant each day :) Time goes by too fast. Too too fast.

Now I know why people have more than one baby! It is a way to hold on and always have a little one to give your love too. Babies are just so darn cute.

I Too Want A Doll!

I know its mostly a guy thing but I like pinup art. I just think it is beautiful and to me, it is a Barbie dress up game manifested in art. I have no artistic abilities and so I am left to admire stuff since I just don't know how to draw it. I don't think pinup art is sexist or degrading and yes, I guess it is more male fan based but there is a niche of us female fans too! Really, it is just the interpretation of the beauty of womanhood and who doesn't like looking at beautiful things? I mean, as little girls that is why most loved Barbie isnt it? "...that emblem of prepubescent girlhood and sometimes feminist hate figure."

When my sister and I "played" with our Barbies, it took me about an hour to set up my scenario. I would create a home for my Barbies using items from around the home and garden. For instance, I would pick tiny lemons from our lemon tree, tiny tomato looking seeds from our neighbor's plant, small red berries (which became apples to me) and also tiny onions from our backyard and these became groceries for my Barbie. I went as far as making little paper bags from real grocery bags to put these miniatures in. The best part -- they were real and Barbie sized!

I also filled up zip lock bags with water and created "water beds" (hello it was the 80's!) and even sewed clothes for my doll that resembled my mom's fashion dresses of the day. And lets not mention all the goodies I could borrow from my mom's dresser and home decorations that I could easily use in Barbie's home; little paintings became elegant wall size paintings, figurines became statues, oh gosh the list is endless.

So there it was. Everything was set and ready to start playing while my sister waited with great anticipation. Except, unfortunately for her, that rarely happened. You see, when I was finshed decorating and preparing, that was it! All of a sudden I had no further interest in the game . I hardly ever made it to visiting my little sister's Barbie home and actually playing with her.

I never planned it to be that way, I really had the intentions to play in the beginning but I guess the most entertaining part for me was setting up the pretty scenario.

Poor lil sis. She hated that so much. She would complain to mama and wise mama would make her feel better by saying something like, "Ay mija, don't mind her, she is of boyfriend age now!" For some reason, lil sis taunted me with that and made herself feel a lot better. I guess its because boys at that age were still yucky and eww, who the heck wanted a boyfriend? Not me!

Looking back now, I think that is why I like pinup art and how pretty models like Dita Von Teese and Masuimi Max look with some of those retro outfits. They remind me of beautiful Barbie dolls. A bit more risque of course. OK, way more risque but hey we are adults now.

So what is this entry all about? Well, today I found a collection of dolls that brought back Christmas memories from many years ago (around 1982/3). My sister and I stood in a Barbie isle at K-Mart, hypnotized by two beautiful Barbies and immediately hoped Santa Claus would bring these to us. For her, it was Tracy the Bride and for me, it was Pink and Pretty Christie

Years later I would ruin Tracy by convincing my sister I could totally give her a Gloria Estefan look with a haircut

Back to this entry...the beautiful doll collection I found by Integrity Toys is the Fashion Royalty collection and it is just amazing! Pinup meets Barbie like dolls but with more of a designer touch. The attention to detail, the couture-quality clothing,the accessories, WOW.

So here I am, in my thirties wanting dolls again. I may get Madam N one in particular for the future future future, it is afterall because of her that I came across this new goodie. For now, she has her age appropriate Barbie dolls waiting for her to grow up a little.

And now, here is the eye candy of the week :)

Beaded Bookmarks

Being a mommy allows me to get crafty and feed my brain some "food" after a long day of being on Madam N's clock. Its like elementary construction paper time fun :)

Last night, after a visit from Madam N's Nina and auntie C, I made some beaded bookmarks.













I had purchased some of these "bookthongs" before. They start at about six bucks and can get to thirty something for really intricate ones with real gems, silver and completely covered in beads. I really liked them and decided I could also make these as gifts :) The simple ones at least.

After a quick search online, I found a link with instructions and it was super easy. The only hard part is trying to decide which beads make the nicest looking combination.

Overall, the waxed cord ones seem sturdier, but I think the ribbon is kinder to your books. There is still room for perfection (such as figuring out a way to hide the knots) but overall they are nice to look at. Don't you think?

Midnight Snack

Its midnight and Madam N just had a midnight snack. More like a meal. I never feed her this late at all but she fell asleep hours ago and skipped her dinner. She woke up alert and hungry :) So what was for dinner? It was honey baked ham, carrots, apples, grape juice and a cracker. A little too "heavy" as my parents would say but hey when you gotta eat, you gotta eat. She is so awake right now and will keep me up for a while now. Even before she peek a boo'd out into the world she tended to be a midnight baby.

Things that happened today (or yesterday)

She had her first real teleconference with the family. We are all hooked up on the super highway now and the quality of the live feed is soo good. We use to day dream about such technology in "the future" and it seemed so space age like. I'm so happy the net can bring us closer together.

Playdate - One of my best friends came by with her baby today and Madam N got to play with another lil rugrat for the first time! She loves kids but doesnt get the chance to play with any so this was a really great oppurtunity. Funny enough she was kind of stingy with the toys! I kept encouraging her to let her buddy play with her toy keys and ball (her play date has these same toys I think) but she kept wanting to snatch them back. Isn't it funny how so little they already have a clear notion of what belongs to them? It wasnt deliberate but still she knew they where her's and became more interested in them, only after someone else was playing with them.

Well shes dosing off now so maybe I will get some sleep afterall.

Good night.
~ Mami

The Lamp Shade Is In!

Well the lamp shade arrived today! Dad will install it and we will have to place the lamp where Madam N cannot reach it :)

Today when she woke up, I took her to the living room to hang out. Right away she crawled to the window and opened the drapes in order to look outside. She understands now that there is something behind the drapes. That brought a smile to my face.

Then she decided to torture her pets. Poor guys. One of them lets her do whatever she wants, which consists of yanking their hair and rolling all over them with a giggle. The other one RUNS. Doesnt even give her a chance to get near. I don't blame her! Madam N has a strong grip and can deliver pain with a yank here and a pinch there.

This weekend its off to the 4th of July celebrations! Her first parade and carnival. Hopefully there will be age appropriate rides for her. I will buy her a flag because she likes an old little flag we have at home. Its all faded and broken now but she swings it this way and that way. I think she will be asking for flags every 4th of July, just like uncle N :)

Will she cry during the fireworks? We will have to find out if its a thumbs up or down. I'll have to keep you posted :)

First Broken Item

Madam N has broken her first household item. It happened this past weekend, while cruising around the futon. She went over to the lamp near the corner of the futon and either tried standing while holding on to it or just simply pulled on it. I was leaning on the futon and saw her fall in slow motion. Yes you do see things in slow motion - Trust me! (ghetto slip and slide memories when I think if seing things in slow motion, another story for another day)

Anyhhoo, I sort of remember getting up to go towards her while at the same time the lamp crashed on the floor. The glass top of the lamp shattered completely and Madam N began to cry. the lamp post was on top of her but didnt really land on her because she was caught in the gap between the lamp and the carpet. But I think she got scared thats all. So I picked her up and comforted her since she was crying. Her Daddy woke up at this point (catching up on sleep after a long work week). I took her to him in the bedroom so he could keep an eye on her while I vacumed the pieces. But then the vacuum cleaner broke! My thong undies got caught in there somehow.

Now I know what your thinking and no! They werent hanging out in the living room after some nightly escapade with the hubby :) My mom jokingly thought of that! double anyhoo. They were clean and most likely got sucked up after cleaning in the bedroom where two piles of clean laundry still sit with no more closet space to go to. Well long story short, we had to run to Lowes and buy a new lamp and vacuum! Well thank you Madam N...I needed a new one anyway. This new one is great. I emptied out a whole canister of dust, like 2 cups full! along with cat hair and dust bunnies.

Prior to heading over to Lowes, we put Madam N on a time out. Well it was for her own good so we could get ready to go out the door and couldnt leave her crawling around so her crib served as a double purpose for being a bad little girl. She cried so much. I think she knew it was also time out and not just "hanging out at my crib"... Gee that sounded like ghetto talk but I meant it in the literal sense :)

Oh tidbit to this....apparently, someone took the vacuum from the garbage bin, probably our next door neighbors. Great! our neighbor is always fixing his car such as installing whole engines and anything else his car needs. Get what i'm getting at? Hes the type that will sit and pull things apart and fix them. Oh lord. I realllllly do know they were clean (agg or hoping for sure now).

My baby is growing up :(

Today, Madam N crawled to her baby car seat (the portable one we sit her in around the house), and sat in it and fell asleep all by herself! Considering it is only the 3rd time she has put herself to sleep since she was born, it was a surprise to see her A) sit herself in it and B) for the purpose of taking a nap. I had seen her trying to grab on to it and manuever herself in it this week but didnt think she would actually do it.

A couple of days ago, she was able to get out of it safely. She turned and did a backup and sit on the carpet maneuver. Now, I wonder if she finds comfort or some sort of attachment to her car seat. I mean it was the one item from home we first sat her in (while still in the hospital) the night we brought her home. Since then, we really havent used it much, other than our trip to Mexico last month. We use another one instead in our vehicle which feels more secure and less wobbly and so this one just kind of got stored in any corner of our apartment.

I brought it out this week because we are both sick and she has been very clingy and doesnt want me out of her sight. I figured I could sit her in it and she could fall asleep, seeing that I was nearby and wouldnt leave her. Now that it gives her another reason to feel more independent, I will definetely leave it out for her to sit in.

Other accomplishments that took place this past month:

This week she started cruising. She will crawl to the futton, get up and stay standing. Then, if I call her to the other end of the futon, she SLOWLY moves her feet side to side until she reaches me. A stumble here and there but she understands the coordination it takes to get from point A to B.

Last Wednesday (6/31/06), was when she made this leap from the carpet to her feet. She stood up and stayed up while holding on to the futon. She had been grabbing on to the railing of her crib and standing up for over 1 month and a half but would stumble down rather fast. Now, she stands up like its cool! I hope she starts bouncing to music in this position soon. That will be so cute.

Further back, around the week 6/7/06, she just sat up on her own without me even helping her learn this new trick. At first I wasnt sure if it was intentional but she sat up 2 more times that same night and I knew she had taught herself how to sit. Somehow, Madam N would push herself backwards (while on her tummy) but her feet wouldnt move. She would then use one of her legs to lift her butt up a tad so her legs could move forward and tada! The foot lever thing was cute. It looked painful the way she would sit up but I guess babies really are very flexible and acrobatic at times.

Just a couple of weeks after that new trick, she began crawling. Her papi credits himself for this since she started crawling during a play session with him. No credits for me who stays home with her all day! :) I have to admitt however, she gets excited a lot more with him and very playful. What a flirt.

I am so proud of her for sitting up and crawling in her sixth month. Just two days before, I had called her auntie and was worried my baby was no where near crawling (I was trying to find out how Madam K got started). A bit of a weird crawl at first (using that lever leg to push herself off the carpet while her other leg crawled). But now she crawls the typical way and this week started following us from one room to the other.

My baby is growing so fast now. Its sweet yet bitter. Only 7 months into her life and I can already say "remember when...". I picture how tiny and new to the world she seemed and its nostalgic. This week I realized that I see her as a toddler now and not an infant any longer. As a new parent you really don't realize how fast that infant stage goes away and by the time you get the hang of it, its over and time to move on and learn how to care for an exploring toddler.

I wish I could have enjoyed my pregnancy. I wish I could have prepared for our baby's arrival earlier than I did. I realize now that expecting is part of the infant stage. Buying baby things, sewing, crafting, preparing the nest, etc. all that time you spend doing these things combined with the first 6 months of a baby's life means you get a year+ of that stage. At least that is how I see it. And I knew it would be this way -- that I would want to go back in time and do things differently. Yet, I'm also realistic and know that my situation was as difficult as it can get and it would probably replay itself the same way over and over again no matter what I think or know now. I guess I just wish life hadnt played such a wicked game on me during the most important few months of my life. Some timing! Anyhow, I can't think about those months too much or it brings too many emotions to come about. So many.

For now I better enjoy every day, and yet I know tomorrow and the day after that I'll say the same thing..."I wish I could go back to a couple of months ago" or "A couple of years ago" and of course although my baby will always be my baby, she will always be growing up.

Shopping Cart Cover

I finished my 2nd cover and I Love it! It looks way better than my first prototype for Madam N. I hope Madam K likes it :) I made it with Hello Kitty print on the top and a hot pink print on the bottom for her.



I deviated from the original pattern (great home made pattern by the way at:

http://www.makethemyourself.com/

I used 2 layers of extra thick batting, omitted the leg flaps, used the quick release belt material for the toy loops, added a front pocket (in addition to the side ones also with loops) instead of the front toy loop and gave it a square pillow instead of two round ones. Looks like I'll be known for the cover gifts from now on :)


This other one with butterflys is my first prototype. I think the print is beautiful. I should have used more batting on this one so it wouldnt be as floppy and maintain its shape better like the Hello Kitty one.






I use it on high chairs, and shopping carts. I have not tried it on public swings yet but I know it will also work.

My first post

I've created this spot to share my latest goo goo updates with friends and family.