San Diego

I can't really remember the last time we (kids and I) joined Jeff for one of his many work trips but he said he was going to San Diego and we tagged along.
I love visiting San Diego, it's such a great place to visit.

Anyway, we stayed in Downtown right on the Marina. I guess one of Jeff's people is a Platinum Marriott Rewards member so he hooked us up with keys to the Concierge Lounge where we had an unlimited supply of breakfast, drinks, happy hour snacks, and late night desserts. It was pretty nice.

I didn't take many pictures...everytime I'd go to pull the camera out I realized the batteries were dead. So, you'll just have to take my word for it.


Here's an example of a hook up from Jeff's people. They pulled some strings and we ended up on a boat checking out the sights. It's free and something the kids really enjoyed it.


That's Downtown S.D. in the back, so beautiful.


Right before we took off. David was a bit skeptical but managed to have a good time looking around.


This picture is my favorite. During the boat ride, Vanessa was wide awake for the first 2 minutes then I guess the sound of the motor or the waves put her right to sleep. Anyway, she's a thumb sucker and this picture is proof. It's so cute. She slept and woke up as soon as we "parked" the boat...what does one say ...I guess it would be dock.


We took a walk to the shops on the Marina. The kids enjoying some cookies from the Concierge Lounge...I was sneaking water bottles and cookies and pretzels all the time!

Summer is here.

I know I'm crazy but I love the beach and figured I would pack up the car and the kids, 3 now, and head out to the beach. I had to plan ahead and pack for a couple of days so that I could just take it easy that morning and not be out there without something that I needed. It turned out well and I was pretty amazed at how organized I was...up until we got there and I couldn't find anything. If I did find it ... it was covered in sand. We had fun.

David checking out a sand crab. He sat next to me the majority of the time. His idea of going to the beach is not wearing a shirt and eating snacks next to mommy.


Vanessa's first trip to the beach...she slept the whole time.


Veronica doing what she does best...using her imagination and "creating" cakes and ice cream.

Jeff went to Hawaii for work and brought back some souveniers. The kids look so tan you'd think they went with him.

Vanessa loves to lay on Veronica's lap. Good thing Veronica loves having her rest her head on her.

House!

When we found out that we were pregnant with Vanessa it kind of forced us to rethink our living situation. We were living in a one bedroom apartment with Veronica and David sleeping in toddler beds out in the living room. We figured we could stay there for a little while longer since it was so expensive to rent a bigger place. BUT, things all changed when we knew that #3 was going to come. We simply didn't have space and ventured into the world of house hunting. Due to an unfortunate incident, that I will spare details and won't even mention what it is (some of you may know what I'm talking about), we had to downsize our first home. Anyway, we found a really good realtor and we went to work on looking for a home that would fit our needs and came across this townhouse and made an offer. We were rejected and they took another offer but that fell through and we made a second offer and were rejected again! THey took another offer and that one fell through and this time we kept the same offer and figured if they were desperate enough they would take ours and they were and they did! It took quite some time to actually get to the point where we had the keys but it finally came and now we own something! The way the housing market is it is going to be slightly less for the mortgage than it would be to rent a 2 bedroom apartment...crazy, huh? Anyway, we certainly got lucky and we're so grateful for everyone who helped and supported us with this. It's funny because when Jeff and I first moved out here to LA we thought we would never own a home because that's when the price for a house was ridiculous expensive and now that it's hit bottom here we are with the keys.


During escrow. The living room. Any ideas what to do with that giganto mirror over the fireplace?


Kitchen. It has a dishwasher!


During our move. We did some painting.

Dining area. Still not finished but we're getting there.

Stairs to the 3 bedrooms. So far, David has tumbled twice and Veronica once and me once. I've never had stairs so this is quite the workout especially when I'm carrying a heavy kid.

4th of July fun!

David was loving the attention. The girls made sure to put sunscreen on him. One less thing for me to worry about.


Perfect 4th of July treat...a snow cone. Veronica would take breaks from the kiddie pool with a slide to munch on the snow cone. Good thing because it was hot! And Jeff thought I put sunscreen on her and I thought he put sunscreen on her...so the result was a really bad sun burn on her back. She hasn't mentioned any pain so hopefully she'll just tan and be done with it. Let's keep our fingers crossed.


Soaking in the pool.


Jeff and Vanessa staying in the shade.


Veronica loved the slide. She even slipped and fell on her back trying to climb it. She got back on and on and on and on...
Thanks to the Kerrigan's for their generosity!
My parents came over later and brought some very yummy rib eye steaks to grill. We ate so much and had so much fun.

updates!

We've had a very busy June so I have not had much time to post. Vanessa continues to grow and to make herself known. She enjoys warm milk, sucking on her fist and cuddling really close.
We finally moved! For those of you who have ever been to our apartment the recent layout was 2 toddler beds in the living room and in the bedroom was our bed and a baby crib. It was quite the setup. We now have a lot more room and don't really know how to fill it.


Vanessa has been growing and is such a sweetie.


Jeff and Veronica right before their "Daddy Daughter Date." He took her to the movies.


Already embarrassed when I want to take a picture with him!

Here are the kids in our new home!

My mom holding the little princess. Her blessing day.

Last week of school.

Tomorrow is Veronica's last day of pre-school. I don't know who is going to be more upset/sad. Veronica really likes going to school and I know that she'll miss going to school. I will miss having her away...that sounds bad...I will miss her being out and learning and growing. Regardless, it's been nice to have some time away from each other, both for her as much as for me.

Anyway, they had a field trip to the firestation on Tuesday and then today they had a field trip to the park.

Here they are lined up to enter the firestation. So well behaved sometimes...it's amazing.

Picnic at the park with her classmates.

Playing a very enthusiastic game of duck-duck-goose. I had a blast just watching.

In front of the fire truck.

Here are some of her classmates.

Pictures...

Even though we live in Los Angeles we still aren't Laker fans. My parents provided these shirts for the kids so maybe despite our best efforts David and Veronica and even Vanessa will be cheering for purple and gold. Veronica is holding up 4 for Kobe's championships. This picture is for one of the biggest Lakers fan, this one's for you Abuelo.


Here they are showing #1.


A pizza we made with fresh spinach, fresh tomatoes, pesto, ricotta cheese, and kielbasa sausage. It was so good. We even made the crust.


Veronica and her class singing at their culmination.


Jeff's parents and sister and husband were in town for Vanessa's blessing and this is David enjoying some pool time with Grandma.

Veronica went in and out of the pool and hot tub and Grandma was close behind. I'm sure by the end of their trip, Grandma was pretty worn out...Veronica definitely took full advantage of the grandparents while they were here. It was really nice to have them here.

The binky is my best friend.

Every time I put Vanessa down to change her diaper David runs in and insists on watching and getting in my way.

A close up of little Vanessa.

David sits and "reads" and it really looks like he is reading.

I had a birthday. My parents surprised me with this cake that I absolutely love. Jeff and I ate cake every night for 3 nights and when it was all gone I was a bit sad.

Blog hiatus

So, about a month or so ago our computer started having issues turning on and finally it decided to never be turned on again. We've been without computer and most importantly without the internet, which I've decided is my only connection to the outside world lately. Now we're back up and running.
I don't have much to blog about...
Vanessa's 2 week appointment went well. She weighed 9 lbs. even. The pediatrician was very impressed by her weight gain. We have small kids in general, so it's nice to have her be on the bigger scale. She sleeps pretty well, only wakes 2 times in the night, which is darn good if you ask me. I still have a hard time with the 6 a.m. wake up...it's just too early for me.
Anyway, Veronica is very excited for her culmination that is tomorrow. Pre-K graduation is a very big deal. They have been practicing for quite some time and Veronica has been singing all the songs they have learned and is very excited.
David is in the very best of the "terrible twos." It's hard because he struggles to communicate and wants to eat snacks constantly. We're trying to potty train him too and that's pretty much not going anywhere.
I will post pictures later.

Perfect day for a wedding...

My brother, William and his blushing bride Angie.
The first photo-op for the newly married couple. Congrats guys, we are all so so happy for you!


Abuelo and David.
Apparently David couldn't contain his excitement so he decided to sleep it off.


Here's the flower girl who stole the show. We had her practice throwing her flower petals and once if was showtime she decided that it was much more proper to place one petal at a time on the ground. When the wind picked up and blew it away she got upset.

Veronica and David were dancing the night away.

One week...

...so far so good. Vanessa seems to have taken the "Sleeping Beauty" role just fine. I guess the first couple of weeks are nice since babies sleep most of the day and don't really fuss much. It's the weeks after that, when they stay up longer and require more attention...hopefully by then we will have figured out our routine. I mentioned to Jeff that I don't look forward to bedtime as much because I know that I will be up constantly and won't really rest. I'm excited to get to know little Vanessa and her unique personality and to watch her fit into our family. David has been "helpful" with his new baby sister. He stands by her swing and waves hello to her and lovingly pushes the pacifier into Vanessa's mouth when she's sleeping. Veronica loves to talk to "her baby" and show her what she's has brought home from school. I just love to watch them all and know that soon enough all three of them are going to drive me crazy but still melt my heart.

Jeff with his little princess. A whole week old...so precious.


A common position for our little one.

...And now there are 3

Baby Vanessa arrives...

Since Jackie is feeling relatively not up to updating a blog, I thought I'd fill in temporarily. Forgive the lack of creativity and everything else about this post. Jackie is a tough woman...no drugs for the delivery "au natural". By seeing our hospital room Monday night, you'd have thought I had given birth, not Jackie. I don't do well missing 3/4 of a night of sleep (Jackie went into labor in the middle of Sunday night.) and I ended up feeling pretty miserable by Monday night. Jackie seemed to have recovered pretty well by that point. Anyways, she got a kick out of it. Basically, I wouldn't want to find myself in a dark alley walking across from Jackie-she's tough as nails (but as sweet as sugar). Here are a couple of pictures...I love you Jackie and Vanessa!

BTW...Her name is Vanessa Marcely (accent on the first sylable). She measures it at 7lbs 11ozs 20 inches long, and arriving Monday, May 11th at 4:18 AM.

And so it goes...

We are still in that horrible place...still waiting. People have been asking us what we're doing this weekend or if we have plans the next day and my only thoughts are ... "we're just waiting around." I feel like I can't make plans nor commit myself to anything because just when I do I will go into labor. For now, I've had 2 days of "false labor" with annoying contractions for most of the afternoon into the early hours then they simply stop. That happened Thursday and Friday. Today just nothing. Today is the due date, not that the due date means anything anymore. I am just losing my patience and know that the longer this little girl stays inside the bigger she will get making it much more difficult for me to deliver her. For now, at least I know she's growing and healthy so I'll be grateful for that. So much for the full moon...

"You can get so confused
that you'll start to race
down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace
and grind on for miles across weirdish wild space,
headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place...
...for people just waiting."

Dr. Seuss is right on with this "waiting place." It's very useless and I hate being there. Anyday now, #3 will make her debut and I've been just anxious to meet the little girl. I know I should relax and enjoy my "down time and rest" but really who can rest with a 4 1/2 year old running around and a 2 year old right in the middle of his terrible twos? I was hoping this next post would be introducing our little girl but that will have to wait.

Look mah, no cavities!

Veronica and I had dental cleanings/check-ups today. Veronica was very excited to go and "be brave" and I was quite dreading it. Veronica was so patient and cooperative and was a great example for me. Anyway, I promised her a special treat if she did a good job and she did and she didn't have any cavities to boot! So, we hit the store and she asked for marshmallows (go figure) and then she thought about smores and so that's what we decided to do.

David was a good helper when we started but then he realized that he would be more helpful if he put the chocolate in his mouth.

Finished assembly of the smores.

Ahh...so so yummy! Veronica inhaled her dinner so she could enjoy her smore. David has yet to try it because he didn't want to eat dinner.

A video of us putting the smores together.