Today is Tuesday and it feels like a Thursday. We had a big conference at work the last two days that I helped organize, which means I was living, breathing, constantly thinking about this meeting. During times like this, I am learning that I am not the best multi-tasker. I am so consumed and focused on this meeting, I have no idea what else is going on around me. I am still learning how to turn off work when I get home so that I can give my full, undivided attention to my family. I'm definitely a work in progress.
So, this past weekend we started to transition EV to whole milk. Since I am still planning on nursing her on days that I am home and since I absolutely hate pumping, we decided to give her whole milk with her meals over the weekend. EV, you have only had breast milk and water your whole life; so unbeknownst to you, you grab your cup, sip from the straw, and make a confused look on your face as you pull the cup away from yourself. Then I proceed to give you the milk again, and you politely push it away. So, as stubborn and insistent as I am, I give you the milk again, and again you push it away, this time with a little more force. So, I offer it again to you. At this point, you are not having it, you take the cup and throw it on the floor. Uh oh, momma does not like throwing. So, now comes Monday and I have this meeting and you will be home with grandma all day. I thought, okay, lets try giving you half breast milk and half whole milk. After a long day at work, I come home anxious to know if you drank your milk, and I am told that you drank a total of 2.5 ounces all day. That's no good. I am tired and all I want to do is go to sleep. Papa offers to bathe you and get you ready for bed. As you are ready for bed and as I am nursing you, I attempt to push all the work thoughts out of my head and start to think about what we can do to get you to transition better to whole milk. I remember a conversation with someone who said that sometimes it helps to try out different brands. So, I thought, "okay, maybe EV just doesn't like Trader Joe's whole milk." So, I ask papa to go buy some whole milk from Publix. I started thinking what we should do when you go to school the next day. So, I asked papa to make sure to take Publix milk and pumped milk to school. After a long day of work today, I anxiously go to school to pick you up and to my surprise you drank all your milk. EV, for some reason you do a lot of things at school that you normally don't do at home. For example, you don't eat bananas at home but you eat it at school and you don't drink whole milk at home but you do at school. At this point, I'm not sure if it was cause of peer pressure, the school environment, or the Publix brand of milk. I guess we'll find out tomorrow. That's all to say, you are an opinionated toddler (yes, you are definitely a toddler now).
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Happy birthday, Evangeline!!
This time last year, I had been in labor with you for 15 hours and your heart rate was dropping with every contraction. An hour and 15 mins later, you were born via cesarean section and we were in love. You were ever more beautiful and precious than I could have ever imagined.
At 12 months, you are walking and understanding so much. This morning after you had your morning milk, we went downstairs and you were banging on the fridge, the pantry, and then your high chair. You were trying to tell us you were hungry. The other day after your dol party, I said to you, if you want me to read you one of your new books, come bring it to me. You looked at your pile of books, went over and picked one of the new ones, and brought it over. I never pointed or made any gesture; you just understood. You were for the longest time a very chill, laid back baby. Nothing seemed to ever bother you, but in recent days you have become more expressive, you laugh more, whine more, and you are much more attached to us than ever before. You love to take baths and splash water everywhere. You love music and making music. You enjoy being outdoors. You hate shoes and get very upset when we put them on your feet. You love love love cheese and you enjoy flavorful foods.
This past Saturday we had your dol and it was a special celebration. Although there were many things that did not go according to plan, we had family and friends there to celebrate. For the doljabee, you chose the guitar twice. You were loved by many and that made it memorable.
Happy birthday, my beautiful daughter. You are so special and amazing. We thank God for you everyday. We love you and look forward to many more blessed days.
In this picture: You never ate the cake and you were barely playing with it, so I took your hand and smashed it in the cake. It took awhile but you finally warmed up to playing with it but refused to even take a bite of it.
At 12 months, you are walking and understanding so much. This morning after you had your morning milk, we went downstairs and you were banging on the fridge, the pantry, and then your high chair. You were trying to tell us you were hungry. The other day after your dol party, I said to you, if you want me to read you one of your new books, come bring it to me. You looked at your pile of books, went over and picked one of the new ones, and brought it over. I never pointed or made any gesture; you just understood. You were for the longest time a very chill, laid back baby. Nothing seemed to ever bother you, but in recent days you have become more expressive, you laugh more, whine more, and you are much more attached to us than ever before. You love to take baths and splash water everywhere. You love music and making music. You enjoy being outdoors. You hate shoes and get very upset when we put them on your feet. You love love love cheese and you enjoy flavorful foods.
This past Saturday we had your dol and it was a special celebration. Although there were many things that did not go according to plan, we had family and friends there to celebrate. For the doljabee, you chose the guitar twice. You were loved by many and that made it memorable.
Happy birthday, my beautiful daughter. You are so special and amazing. We thank God for you everyday. We love you and look forward to many more blessed days.
In this picture: You never ate the cake and you were barely playing with it, so I took your hand and smashed it in the cake. It took awhile but you finally warmed up to playing with it but refused to even take a bite of it.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Vacation
So, life in 2011 started off pretty crazy and I needed a break badly, so we had a free companion ticket that was expiring in the end of March and saw some plane tickets for cheap so ended up buying two round trip tickets to West Palm Beach, Florida for $190. That's a pretty nice deal considering gas prices are about equivalent right about now. One thing we didn't realize when we bought these spontaneous tickets were that there is nothing to do in West Palm, which was fine with us cause all we really wanted to do was go to the beach. Well, after days of searching for the right hotel and trying to arrange the rest of our travel details last minute, off we go on our mini vacation.
We arrive in West Palm and the wind is blowing pretty strongly. I ask the taxi guy if this is normal and he said that it was absolutely calm yesterday and just started up today. I thought, okay, well maybe the winds will die down. To my disappointment, the wind never died down but it did not make the ocean any less beautiful.
This was EV's third trip to the ocean. The first was when you were about 3.5 months old, we drove down to St. Simon's Island. This was a great trip, except for the fact that the beach was not only windy but the sand blew into our faces and made it very difficult to enjoy. The second trip was when you were about 7 months old, we went to San Diego for a work conference. We stayed an extra day and a half, went to Coronado Beach and the zoo. The beach again was windy but much more tolerable than St. Simon's. Neither times were you too excited or interested. This time you were much more curious. You played in the sand, ate the sand, crawled in it, and even tried walking on it. You are now walking more comfortably, although you still prefer to crawl.
Although it was windy, it was nice to get away from everything and not worry about anyone or anything. As I get older, I have been learning more and more about the importance of taking mental health days and vacations. I am so thankful for all the blessings in my life! I am recharged and ready to face reality again...well, I will be by Monday.
Here is a video of EV approaching the ocean:
We arrive in West Palm and the wind is blowing pretty strongly. I ask the taxi guy if this is normal and he said that it was absolutely calm yesterday and just started up today. I thought, okay, well maybe the winds will die down. To my disappointment, the wind never died down but it did not make the ocean any less beautiful.
This was EV's third trip to the ocean. The first was when you were about 3.5 months old, we drove down to St. Simon's Island. This was a great trip, except for the fact that the beach was not only windy but the sand blew into our faces and made it very difficult to enjoy. The second trip was when you were about 7 months old, we went to San Diego for a work conference. We stayed an extra day and a half, went to Coronado Beach and the zoo. The beach again was windy but much more tolerable than St. Simon's. Neither times were you too excited or interested. This time you were much more curious. You played in the sand, ate the sand, crawled in it, and even tried walking on it. You are now walking more comfortably, although you still prefer to crawl.
Although it was windy, it was nice to get away from everything and not worry about anyone or anything. As I get older, I have been learning more and more about the importance of taking mental health days and vacations. I am so thankful for all the blessings in my life! I am recharged and ready to face reality again...well, I will be by Monday.
Here is a video of EV approaching the ocean:
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