C'est La Vie

Kissing!

2009-11-12T10:50:00.000-08:00

I've been so busy, but I had to post this :) Gabby's figured out"kissing" today - she's actually figured out quite a few things the last week or so, but this is the one that's spurred me to blog :) In the video, she doesn't quite do it, but right before we pulled out the camera, she was puckering up and leaning in for kisses!

Over the last little bit, she's also figured out how funny we think it is when she shakes her head "no" (i.e. "Are you stinky? NOOOOO", or "Is Daddy Funny? NOOOOOO"), she's figured out how to push obstacles around and walk with them, she's discovered the joy of knocking over towers that we take the time to build for her, she's learned exactly what the remote control is for (well, sort of - she turns the tv on and off by using the button ON the tv, but she changes the channels with the remote - today, we've had the privilege of seeing "Dr. Nancy", "The View", and "What Not to Wear") and she's figured out that crawling is so much faster than letting us help her walk.

:)

While I'm at it, I guess I should update what else we've been up to! Gabby's birthday was on the 21st, but we did her official bday part with the family on the 25th. Here's the cake I made for her with a Deceptively Delicious recipe - I hid pureed pumpkin in the chocolate cake mix, and added chocolate chips, and it was really yummy. AND the mommy in me was satisfied that there was at least some nutritional value goin on.

We served hamburgers and funstuff for dinner, but all Gabby wanted was vegetables. Ah, do me proud... :)

And of course, Halloween! Last year Gwamma bought Gabby a candy corn sleeper, and that was the extent of our celebrating (she was 10 days old) but this year, we went all out and I made her a costume. A Fairy Princess! (Paul wanted to know if that made him the fairy king??) I'm going to take a moment to gloat: I made this costume with NO pattern, and in the end, no sewing machine - by hand and by serger... it turned out alright :) Not sure what the problem with my machine was...

The Wednesday before Halloween, we went to our church's Trunk or Treat (Gabby is wearing a warm fleece sleeper under her costume) - she seemed really interested in seeing everybody else in their costumes, and she liked waving her wand around when she wasn't trying to chew on it :)

On Actual Halloween, we took Gabby to the mall for trick or treating.

She seemed pretty tired, and most of the stores weren't giving out candy after all, so we went to Gwamma & Gwampa's after to hand out candy with them, but realized within an hour of getting there that Gabby was burning up. So we took her home, and she had a temperature of 103 for the next 2 days. That was stressful. She's fine now.

Aside from that... I've been busy with activities like Enrichment (I'm on the committee), baby showers, feeding the missionaries, being with friends, and getting people ready for Christmas with Heritage Makers, filling in as primary pianist for the primary presentation... it's been (and continues to be) a crazy busy month, but it distracts us from our biggest thing - waiting to get results back from Paul's entrance exam for the CMA program.

I guess my last thing would be that I'm going to be a speaker at tonight's Spirit of Heritage tour, and I'm both really excited and really nervous about it. Wish me luck! :) Oh, and I'm also playing background piano music and singing in a duet as part of the program for the Christmas dinner party for our church on Saturday. Which I still have yet to finish preparing for (guess what I'm doin tomorrow after my visiting teaching?!) Somehow, I'm managing to just barely hold it all together - I guess stay tuned to hear about my head exploding/success :)

Our Baby is All Growed Up.

2009-10-21T21:39:00.000-07:00

I can't believe she's 1 today!

A year ago, I was a brand new mom. like, BRAND new. Lots of crazy mixed feelings.

And now she's huge. :)

This morning she woke up, and it was like any other day cuz I was tired... but it's a special day, because she's ONE!Along with all of this growing-up, Gabby received her 2nd package ever. It went something like this:
Me: "Hello?"
Guy on phone: "Hi, is Gabby Spackman there please?"
Me: (confused) "Pardon???"
Guy: "Is Gabby Spackman there, please?"
Me: "Well, she is, but she's just turning 1 today and doesn't know how to use her words yet!"
-- the long and short of it was that it was the delivery guy, and it was a gorgeous Edible Arrangement of fruit from my parents/siblings to Gabby for her bday :) Fun! And around the vase part of it is a Princess Crown :) Today at Gabby's 12-month checkup, we discovered that she is 21lbs 2oz and a "hair" over 30" tall. 2 1/2 feet.

After her checkup (where she was determined to be healthy-healthy, 50th% for weight, 75th% for height) Gabby and I met up with Gwamma for a little shopping excursion :) Presents to be wrapped and opened at Gabby's Official Birthday Party with the family on Sunday :)

Then we came home, where Gabby had a much-needed nap, and Paul and I made chicken'n'vegetable lasagna for Gabby's (and our) enjoyment - this little girl is all about feeding herself, and all about REAL food now. Which means I get more satisfaction out of cooking more often :) Our kitchen has not been so consistently messy since we got married, and now it feels nonstop :)
There were presents from the other grandparents to open, dinner to be enjoyed, a bath to be had, and then bedtime - lots of cuddles for the birthday girl :)

After bed I made test #2 for a suitable birthday cake recipe - I've been really hyper-aware of what Gabby eats, and I'm not comfortable just letting her go to town on an honest-to-goodness sugary cake, when the kid has never actually had sugar before. Tastes, yes - Tons, no.

The first cake... I liked, but Paul didn't. As in, he spat it out. Into the garbage :) (thanks, dear) It was a lemon-almond torte dealie, very fancy-bakery... lots of work. steam a lemon. grind the almonds. find "fructose" at the grocery store. Make sure it doesn't burn :) Still not a winner!

Test #2 is from "Deceptively Delicious" - chocolate devil's foodcake with pumpkin puree hidden in it - so far so good :) Hopefully everybody else likes it, too :) If you haven't tried this cookbook, it is my favorite one EVER - all the yummies, and still getting in those fruits and veggies!

Anyway, enough babbling and onto the goods!

At 1 year of age, Gabriella Claire:
- has 5 teeth (the last one finally popped last week!)
- Won't let us brush her teeth; she has to do it if it happens at all! This is a typical mornin for us:- is still a Cruiser and a Fast Crawler, not yeta Walker
- likes to pick out and MATCH her own clothes (like, a white blouse and a blue sweater go together, that sort of thing)
- babbles a lot, says "mum mum mum" and "dadadadada" and "bababababa" and "nonononono".
- has a TON of curly, honey-colored hair that is long enough for pigtails- still has blue eyes, but they're not as vivid-blue as they were when she was born, they've gone a little more silvery-grey.
- loves to pull things out/down/up and throw them behind her until she finds something interesting.
- has several beaux!- knows how to point with her index finger
- also knows how to POINT to the button on the TV to turn it on and off - it's one of her favorite things to do
- has figured out where the piano is at Gwamma & Gwampa's house and likes to sneak up the stairs and go play on it :) AND if you're playing on it without her, she'll bug you until she ends up in your lap to play along, too!- will not be still for diaper changes unless you give her several things all in a row to look at.
- is a fantastic eater, eats almost everything you put on her tray - rice, veggies, meat, tofu, pasta, whatever. She eats best on "big people" utensils - no more little plastic spoons, she wants the big metal cutlery!
- makes the funniest face pursing her lips just under her nose - Paul can do it exactly, so she must get it from him :) - this isn't exactly it, but the best picture we've got of it so far! - loves bathtime, gets excited after dinner because she knows she's messy and it's time to get clean, and LOVES being without clothes and dancing in the air (naked) in front of the mirror :)
- still run-run-runs if you hold her up and away from you
- She loves being growled at and chased, and understands that shrieking at the top of her lungs is an integral part of the game.
- still loves books, still will just sit and read a book, turning the pages by herself, and she loves to be read to.
- adores cell phones and remote controls and calculators... anything with buttons/lights/noises!- is very possessive of her parents' affections - at Thanksgiving, when I was cuddling her 1-month old cousin, Gabby was playing on the floor with her other cousins, looked up and saw me with another baby, and had a complete melt-down.
- loves the word "poop". we're not sure why. but we'll say it to her, and she'll laugh and try to say it back to us. No other word gets quite the same response.
- is fascinated by straps. Straps to her high chair, straps to her carseat, they're all really interesting to her and will keep her entertained for 10+mins at a time.- does this really funny thing where she'll sit on the floor and kick her heels on the floor lots (our neighbors downstairs are just as entertained as we are, I'm sure) and turn full circles on her bum, propelled by the heel-kicking.
- is GREAT at lifting her arms up and giving FANTASTIC hugs.

Happy Birthday Gabriella! We love you so much!

5 years and no cats.

2009-10-18T19:24:00.000-07:00

I've been totally negligent in keeping y'all updated on our mundane day-to-day! For those of you who were anxiously awaiting my next post... I'm sorry! But I'm posting now - better late than never, right?

First, we celebrated our 5year anniversary in true Paul & Julie style. I told Paul what I wanted and he snuck out and bought it for me :) I love my man :D I was really wanting the board game "Blokus" - one of my visiting teaching girls got it for Christmas, oh... 2 years ago? 3 years ago? Anyway, she was totally addicted and wanted to play it with us, which in turn... got me totally addicted. And I've been asking for it ever since. So after 2 (3?) years of begging (ahem, I mean "asking") for this game, Paul's finally gotten it, and we've even played it together a few times :) Paul doesn't like playing games if it's just the 2 of us, because he's too nice and lets me win, and then gets sad when HE doesn't win... so if anybody else is a Blokus addict and would like to play in 4s instead of our 2, let me know :) (other games available :D)

For Paul's gift, I made him a book :) Just a simple book full of pictures of us over the last 5 years, and listing my top reasons of why I love him, but it's his book and so if you want to see it, you'll have to ask him :)

Our wedding anniversary was on the 9th, but Paul had his BIG, HUGE-DEAL, EXPENSIVE exam on the 14th, so we celebrated after. It was his entrance exam to get into the CMA program, and he feels good about it, but we won't know for 5-6 weeks when he's supposed to get his results back. And I suck at waiting! Argh!

Anyway, so we celebrated on Friday the 16th instead (also kind of celebrating our 4year temple sealing date on the 15th!) (another aside: Paul's Grandpa Fred was the one to conduct our temple ceremony, which was hugely special. He died on Oct 15th of last year, so 3 years to the date after our sealing. Very memorable for us. And right before Gabby was born. So we think they were catching up.) I digress! Anyway! Paul's mom, aka "GWAMMA" came and babysat for us while Paul took me dancing :) There's this place by the UofC where they have $7/person dance lessons and dance party, so potentially 4-5 hours of dancing in a booze-free environment for cheap without feeling guilty about crashing the YSA :) We also stopped at DQ and grabbed blizzards on the way home, and found our babygirl fast asleep, thanks gwamma! First time we've had somebody come over to babysit at night, and it was a success! Wahoo!

More updates: It's snowed. Which means hot-water issues in our building that I get to deal with. Along with the noisy kids across the street (at 4am. SERIOUSLY??) and vandalism in the laundry rooms, and the fire alarm going off for no reason, and the senile old lady on the 2nd floor who truly belongs in a care facility... *sigh*

And our most recent news: the cats are gone. I know, I know... some of you are thinking "that's terrible! Just because they're not kittens anymore, you're just getting rid of them??" (yup. that's a response I actually got...) but it's not true. Ever since Gabby came along, our cat situation has steadily gotten worse and worse. We've put up with a lot from our cats. We've gone through 4 couches for our cats (behavioural peeing issues...) and trained him out of it, and taken care of them, loved them, spoiled them... and then one of them peed in Gabby's carseat. Too much! Last Straw!

Rather than taking them to the humane society (where, let's face it, they'd be euthanized. With the overabundance of cats in Calgary, nobody wants a full-grown pair of cats when they can have adorable new kittens!) we called the lady who helped us find them in the first place, and she took them back rather than see them go to the humane society. So that's where they went today. To be quite honest, I'm more sad because Paul is sad than because I'm actually missing the cats. Once Gabby came along, my focus completely changed. But Paul was still the one feeding them, changing their litter, cleaning up their messes, cuddling them, etc... huh. Service really does help you love people (cats) :) So yeah. In return, Loki & Leila love Paul, and actually sit and wait for him at the door when he's not home. See picture below :) But we've been fortunate to find a new home for them, and truthfully, I'm seriously re-thinking whether or not I consider myself a "Pet Person" for the future. Lots of work. Lots of mess. Lots of commitment.

Upcoming news: Gabby's birthday is on Wednesday - we have an almost-1year old! Stay tuned!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

2009-10-12T10:10:00.000-07:00

Wahoo! Turkey Day! :)

I've got a lot to be thankful for, and it's nice to have an entire day to remind me to be grateful.

First, I'm really grateful for my amazing husband. We talk together, laugh together, do lots together. He always helps out around our home, does his fair share of the housework (and probably more - he picks up where I leave off without complaint) is happy to take care of Gabby when I get busy, and most of all, he's unfailingly loyal and I know that he loves me AND his daughter. I'm very blessed.

I'm really grateful for our beautiful little girl. Probably a little too pretty - she's already got several little-boy admirers - when we were at Wendy's last week, the little 2year old boy at the next table wouldn't leave until his mommy brought him over to our table to meet Gabby and say hi. He was quite enamored. We're in big trouble! But all worries aside, Gabby is healthy, smart, and pretty easy to please, we've been very blessed.

I'm grateful for a comfortable home, and for security during difficult times. It's been a little tight for us, but I know that we have a lot more to be grateful for right now than many other people. All of our needs are met, we're still able to do fun things, we don't have to worry about where our next meal will be coming from, or how we will make our next rent check. And I get to stay home with my baby. We've been very blessed.

I'm grateful for the gospel in my life. I'm grateful to know that my Heavenly Father loves me. I'm grateful to know that my family is eternal, and that I will be with my loved ones forever through the blessings of the temple. I'm grateful for our ward family. I'm grateful for my various callings in our ward. I'm grateful for my opportunities to serve, and the abilities that Heavenly Father has given me in order to help others. I've been very blessed.

I'm grateful for good friends. I've got lots of wonderful friends to be grateful for, new friends and old friends, friends all over. Friends I interact with constantly, and the friends who surprise me with a call or an email. Women need friends, and I've been very blessed :)

I'm grateful that we are healthy. It's priceless. I know it can be devastating to have health issues, and to not be able to do anything about them. We've been very blessed.

I'm grateful for music. :) I love dancing to it, playing it, making it, listening to it, and sharing it. I love helping others with music. I'm grateful that that is one of my gifts :)

I'm grateful for good books :) I love that we live in a society where access to literature is not limited, where we have easy access to good reading! And along those same lines, I'm really grateful to live in a society where I feel safe, where I feel safe to raise children, to do the things I enjoy, to live the way that we feel is right, and where I don't need to live in fear of others. That is a huge thing, and we've been very blessed.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody :)

5 years!

2009-10-10T17:05:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was our 5 year wedding anniversary :) And I didn't post, cuz we were busy doing laundry :D

Because Paul has his CMA entrance exam this week, we're waiting until next weekend to celebrate - it'll also be our 4year Temple sealing anniversary, so that'll be nice to celebrate too :D

My friend Nat (I typed "gNat" first, but not sure if that is still okay or not :D ) tagged me, and it seemed like a fun thing to do as we're celebrating 5 years of wedded bliss...

What are your middle names? Lynn & Andrew
How long have you been together? 5 years married, and about 10 months of dating/engagement before that.
How long did you know each other before you started dating? eeek, I don't actually know. A semester, maybe?
Who asked who out? Paul asked me. In person, even - he first tried to ask me online, but I wasn't having any of that!
Whose siblings do you see the most? Paul, since none of mine live in Canada, and all of his live in the same city
Do you have any children together? Yup. We have a Gabby-mookin-bum :)
What about pets? yeah... anybody want 2 cats?
Did you go to the same school? We both went to Mt Royal College - but the sameness ends there!
Who is the most sensitive? I'm louder about it, but he's pretty sensitive sometimes too :)
Where do you eat out most as a couple? Yup - Paul's parents' house :D Good Company!
Where is the furthest you have ever traveled as a couple? Washington D.C.
Who has the worst temper? not sure - we're both pretty mellow. Probably me - I threw a glass once.
Who does the cooking? Mostly me, but Paul likes to remind me that he cooked our first homemade meal ever after the wedding - I think it was pasta.
Who is more social? Me, no question.
Who is the neat freak? we both like things clean and organized - he's more consistent about it, but I'm more thorough.
Who is the most stubborn? I think it's him. Apparently, he thinks it's me :D
Who hogs the bed? We both get half. Just, my half is in the middle. :D
Who wakes up earlier? Paul - I'm so not a morning person. Not before, not ever.
Where was your first date? To see the movie "Honey" (*embarassment*) with my roommate and her bf, who ditched us...
Who has the bigger family? I guess it's me, even though technically I'm an only child, and Paul has 3 siblings. But I've got lots of halves/steps, and so Paul has more in-laws than I do (poor guy)
Do you get flowers often? Not anymore - I've told Paul I'd way rather get a gift than flowers, cuz flowers have to be taken care of, and then they die, and then you have to clean up after them... Truthfully, I'd way rather go dancing :D
Who eats more? Paul thinks it might be me, and I think it's probably Paul... but it probably depends on whether or not I'm pregnant.
Who sings better? I take this one - I sing more and I've been trained, but Paul has a really nice voice, he just doesn't like to sing when people hear.
Who does the laundry? Paul, but hopefully that'll change as he gets work and we move to where we have laundry in our home instead of going to the in-laws (which we appreciate tons!!)
Who's is better with the computer? Paul. altho, I'm alright myself :)
Who drives when you are together? Paul, but that's cuz he's a terrible backseat driver.
Who picks where you go to dinner? Me, as long as they have a Bacon-Cheddar-Burger - as long as the place I pick has that, Paul is fine.
Who is the first one to admit when they are wrong? Paul - I'm never wrong. :p
Who wears the pants in the relationship? Paul thinks he does
Who eats more sweets? Paul likes candy more, but we both like cookie dough!
Who cries more? Paul. jk!! me. It's me. Altho, I haven't cried much since Gabby was born. Less hormonal.
What's your best day together? Eek, that one's hard - I barely remember yesterday... I like the days that we move... or that there is dancing... :)
Where did you honeymoon? We went to Banff for the long weekend.
Favorite date night? Dancing :) Or concerts :)
Favorite TV show to watch together? We watch Friends a LOT, but our current favorite is Britain's Got Talent
Couple I imagine us growing old like? Paul's Grandpa Fred and his wife Clara (I never knew Paul's biological grandma, she was gone before I was around) - they had their basement tricked out with mongo bookshelves full of church books (for Paul) and the other side was all crafty quilting stuff (for me!)

Thanks babe for tagging me, it was fun :)

I tag: Rhonda, Erica, and Monica.

Make me go Oooh...

2009-10-07T18:57:00.000-07:00

These 2 little videos have been shown to me over the last 24 hrs... I loved them both so much I had to share!!

This one just made me miss living stateside...

And this one was just insanely cool :)

11 months and counting

2009-09-21T20:04:00.000-07:00

Gabby turned 11 months today. She has one more month left until her 1st Birthday!

Today, she discovered the joy that is shrieking. She especially loved it when she realized that there is an Echo during bathtime :)

Also at 11 months:

Gabby is cruising the furniture, slowly, but she's doing it.
She'll walk with help
She understands simple sentences such as "Stick out your tongue!" and "Where's mommy's nose?" and "Arms up!" and "Clap!" and she'll totally do them. You don't even have to show her to clap, she'll just do it if you say it :)
Gabby is not wanting to get off of pureed food. She adores peas and "eggy bread" and Nutrios and MumMums, but anything else that's too big and chunky, she's not a fan.
LOVES books. She'll sit and read books for a long time by herself, even big kid books, and she doesn't rip pages.
However, she doesn't have any problems ripping apart Ensigns and flyers. :)
Gabriella adores being chased and growled at - it makes her giggle and shriek the most :)
She still only has 4 teeth, but we're really sure there's a 5th (bottom right) trying to make its debut.
Gabby knows how to slide off of the couch backwards without falling.
She loves taking things "Out" or "Down" - mostly she just loves undoing organized shelves and drawers :)
She's super active and curious about everything - she always wants to know what's going on :)
Which means she's still only taking one nap, BUT she goes to bed about 7/8, and sleeps until about 8/9 (still snacking at night. I'm okay with it, I read :))
Gabby has big smiles when somebody she loves is around - when she hears Daddy growling, or hears Gwamma saying "Ga---bwi---ELLA Cast-a-Spella!" or hears Grandpa whistling, she gets a big grin on her face :)
She's starting to hold her own with her cousins :) She and Caty get along great!

We're so glad Gabriella is a part of our family. She makes life fun.

Right Now:

2009-09-19T13:37:00.000-07:00

my friends Rhonda & Jenn have both done this the last few days, and I like the different way of writing...

Outside my window there are lots of trees, which I love

I am thankful for PreSpot. get those berry stains out of pretty white baby shirts.

I am praying that Paul will get a good job soon. Really soon.

I am thinking about getting that quilt out and finally finishing it. We'll see.

I am celebrating a lot of things next month. 5 year anniversary. 4 years since we've been sealed. 1 year since Gabby was born.

From the kitchen Yams. nothing fancy lately.

I am wearing Jeans and a grey hoodie. Shocking, I know :)

I am reading Breaking Dawn - the Twilight Series again (blush)

I am hoping to be in a house of our own sooner than later!

I am hearing Gabby playing with my keys. Which means she's in my purse again.

I am creating Primary poster, Gabby's 1st year album, and October class stuff

Around the house and yard things are tidy, because I sucked it up and cleaned after all!

One of my favorite things is Gabby-Cuddles.

A few plans for the rest of the week getting the work-computer fixed, having some people over, some shows starting (Heroes & Dollhouse!!!) and a baby blessing!

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you of my 2 mostest favoritest people in the entire world.

We might be in trouble.

2009-09-08T22:31:00.000-07:00

10 months old!

2009-08-21T20:49:00.000-07:00

Today, Gabby turned 10. Months, that is.

She still has blue eyes. And curly, golden-brown hair. And super-long eyelashes. And as of today, she has FOUR teeth. bottom middle, and then the top two - the top right finally cut through this morning!

As of last week, Gabby is officially a Standing Girl. She'll pull herself standing on anything - the edge of a table, the couch, our jeans... The other day, she pushed herself almost standing just from the floor, but she was wearing a sleeper and got to almost do the splits instead. But she is sure trying! And she still loves walking with help - it won't be long now.

Gabby is down to 1 nap a day, anywhere from 45mins to 3hrs. She completely refuses to nap more than once. She goes to bed around 7pm and sleeps *mostly* all night long (she still wakes up once or twice for a snack, but it's about 5 mins and she's back in her bed) and doesn't wake up again until 8am.

She is an excellent eater - especially if you give her something that she can feed to herself. When she thinks she's feeding herself, you can put anything in her mouth and she'll totally let you. She's still a big broccoli/yam/cauliflower/squash/avocado/rice cereal fan... she's still in love with Nutrios... and she's added peas (she thinks it's hilarious when we throw them up high and catch them in our mouths) and bits of "eggy bread", and yogurt, and applesauce (Mott's makes lots of unsweetened varieties, and she loves them all) and even tofu and cheese. And she's had her first tastes of Wendy's Frosty, but she didn't seem to be a huge fan. Maybe the cold?

Our little girl has become a pro at the "fake-cough". She did it once, maybe a real cough? and we did it back, and she thought it was hilarious, so we kept doing it. And it made her laugh. And now she does it to get us to do it to get her to laugh.

Gabby still loves books. She'll sit for 20minutes or more just looking at a board book all by herself. She's really good at turning the pages. And she's really good with big-kid books, too - she's never ripped a page, and knows now not to crumple the pages and is very gentle turning those pages, too!

We bought Gabby her very first coloring book and crayons. I was just too, too excited. Mostly, she just wanted to turn the pages of the book, and wanted to chew on the crayons. :)

Gabby loves clapping! Especially during meals, probably because we're sitting together, and she has my complete attention. She'll clap a bunch of times (measures? :)) and then I'll clap it back to her, and then she'll clap a new "rhythm" (a loose usage of the word, I'll admit) and then I'll clap it again, etc. It's her favorite new game.

Her other favorite rhythm-thing is pounding her heels on the floor when she's sitting. I'm sure our neighbors below just love it. It's pretty loud.

She is especially fascinated by her carseat and its straps/buckles. She will abandon all of her toys and books and crawl (and she's FAST) over to play with her carseat. She got into it the other day, and just kept looking at the buckles.

Gabby's latest game is playing face-dive into the blankets on our bed. It's a special occasion if we've made our bed, so usually there is a pile of sheets and blankets for Gabby to play in - she loves to roll around and crawl and crash and wiggle and cuddle with all of the blankets on our bed.

She's a really affectionate little girl, gives bright smiles and great hugs.

A few firsts:

Gabby's had her first professional haircut.

Gabby's had her first big wound - she did a faceplant into the corner of our entertainment unit, bruising her forehead, cutting her nose, and making her top lip puffy. She only cried for a little bit, but the bruise is still there :(

Gabby's had her first trip to the lake - she didn't really like the water, but the rest of it was fun :)

What do you think of slumber parties?

2009-08-16T22:58:00.000-07:00

I've got lots of fun memories of sleepovers growing up, but some of those memories are also tinged with things that make me totally nervous now that I'm a parent. What do you all think about slumber parties/sleepovers for your kids?

I just read this article about slumber parties and parenting today, and I think it's totally worth reading for all you parents out there faced with the decision: do we let our children stay overnight in somebody else's home when we're not there, and in a place where we don't have control over what may or may not be going on?

Read the article HERE and let me know what you think!!!

This cracked me up :)

2009-08-12T21:12:00.000-07:00

still busy, still all over the place... but it's good :) Paul's family just left, but all the girls and kids went to the zoo on Monday, and our friend, Tiff, got to come with us :)

Busy Week!!

2009-08-08T19:21:00.000-07:00

We have been insanely busy here this last week!

The biggest news: Gabby cut her 3rd and most difficult tooth. It was a hard week, with lots of fussing, clinging, and generally not-letting-mommy-do-anything-but-cuddle. Which I didn't mind, except that mommy has gotten used to being busy and Gabby being a little more easy-to-please. When she got a little bit of a fever that lasted for 2-3 days, and then we felt the swollen gums... it all made sense. And the new tooth is huge. Ouch.

Earlier this week, we had some friends over with their son for an all-around play-date. We were all in prenatal classes together, so our babies were born within 2 weeks of each other. It was a hoot to see them interacting together - there was some kissing, some hugging, and some ignoring.

Also, Gabby's started pulling herself standing. Independence, here we come!!

On a work-note, I've re-designed my HM website :) Anybody out there who's ever tried to design their own website, BE IMPRESSED!! I figured out how to do it ALL ON MY OWN and I did it ALL ON MY OWN!! (if you can't tell, I'm having an extreme Proud Moment here!) check out the beautiful changes Here - there are still a few changes to be made, and there will be constant adding and updating as I do more stuff, but I think it's a big start :)

On a church-note, I've gotten a new calling! I'm the new Primary Secretary (because Candace, who also used to be my VT companion, has moved to Airdrie! I think we were comps for 3 years, and I miss her!!) and even though I miss Candace, I'm really excited about the new calling! In case you didn't already know, I'm hyper-organized, so the thought of keeping track of all of the Primary "stuff" is pathetically exciting for me! (just call me "monica") Plus, it is a lot easier to take care of Gabby in the back of the primary room, and have the freedom to leave whenever she needs to eat/be changed/whatever, as opposed to interrupting Sunday School and Relief Society to leave. So, it's perfect for us. Inspired, obviously. :)

And our coolest thing this week (after my website, right?) is that Paul's aunt/cousins/etc are visiting, and my BIL/SIL took us all to the lake to go SeaDoing! (sp?) (this is a total colloquialism, right? there's not actually a way to spell that, right??) Anyway, Gwampa has all of the good pictures, but we got this one of Gabby right at the end, looking all grown-up sitting by herself in this chair!!
She totally wouldn't go in the water. The Tragic Face was making an appearance today whenever we tried it. But she really enjoyed walking on the beach with mommy, and giggling with daddy, and playing with all of the toys that her far-away cousins brought with them, and watching everybody else have fun. And mommy LOVED getting to ride the SeaDoo (I didn't get to last year, since I was 7 months pregnant, and nobody would let me...) and going FAST and getting SOAKED and yelling myself HOARSE with all of the FUN... :) okay, you get the point!

I AM:

2009-07-30T19:29:00.000-07:00

When I was in high school, one of my teachers had us write a paper entitled "50 Things About Me". I've been thinking about that list lately, and feeling the need to update it! So here you go, happy reading :)

1. I am a Mommy

2. I am a Wife
3. I am a Daughter of Heavenly Father

*this picture is of me - does Gabby look like me? :)

4. I am an Organizational Neat Freak :)
5. I am a dang good cook when I take the time!
6. I am musical
7. I am a dancer, be it a good one or not - my fav is Salsa!
8. I am multi-lingual (English, Spanish, and Korean)
9. I am funny! At least, Gabby thinks so :)
10. I am smart - I graduated 3rd in my high school class.

11. I am an avid reader
12. I am a frugal shopper :)
13. I am a thorough researcher
14. I am a resident manager
15. I am still a music teacher at heart
16. I am a Heritage Maker
17. I am a sewer
18. I am a sometimes-quilter

19. I am a cuddler
20. I am a tree-climber
21. I am easily entertained by movies
22. I am a Joss Whedon fan (SO excited for Dollhouse, Season 2!)
23. I am a Twilight-series fan!
24. I am a picky speller-and-grammar-person. If you find an error in one of my blogs, please tell me so I can correct it - but know that I'll be mortified :)
25. I am a total wuss when it comes to scary movies. Joss Whedon is as scary as I can take.
26. I am a pianist.
27. I am a vocalist, be it Jazz or Classical.

28. I am fond of walking
29. I am a board-games lover
30. I am an Optimist
31. I am a hard-worker
32. I am a huge admirer of Ice Cream.
33. I am in love with my hubby :)

34. I am an e-mail and FB addict!
35. I am a hopeful home-owner for someday.
36. I am an aspiring guitarist
37. I am from a crazy, mixed-up family
38. I am a world traveller (AKA Army Brat)

39. I am Creative
40. I am a fast typer (90wpm-ish) whether Paul admits it or not :)
41. I am a "details person".
42. I am learning to relax
43. I am no longer an owner of a watch.

44. I am sassier than I take the time to be
45. I am healthy.
46. I am happy.
47. I am learning and growing.
48. I am a part of a wonderful, eternal family.
49. I am making my life the way I want it to be.
50. I am ME

Repenting and Biting my Tongue

2009-07-25T10:34:00.000-07:00

This post started off as a "yay" but I have to repent and tell the rest of it that I forgot about until bedtime - for the last week or so, Gabby has been AWFUL at going to sleep. As in, she'll fall asleep nursing (a terrible habit, I know... any advice on how to break it?) and then as soon as I put her in her crib, she starts crying. So then I pat her tummy, calm her down for a minute, and then leave (because when we did sleep training months ago, we soothed, left, and let her cry it out, went back 10 mins later and did it again until she fell asleep on her own) but NOW if we let her cry, it turns into shrieking and screaming and choking and all of the dramatics. So I nurse her again. And pat her again. And hold her hand and shhh her until she falls asleep. And the last week or so, it's been a few HOURS getting this child to fall asleep. What do I do???

Back to the "yay" parts of it:

Gabby started crawling last week, and she's still slow and hesitant, but she's on her way!

I'm back to my pre-prego weight :) I'm not gonna share what it is, cuz... it's not my IDEAL weight, but I'm closer than I was! 9 months up, 9 months down, it's true!

Paul and I were looking at the milestones for baby growth and development a few nights ago, thinking about what Gabby IS doing and WILL be doing, and according to BabyCenter, the average baby begins learning to turn the pages of a book at about 16 months. We felt like quite the proud parents, since Gabby already does this :D

Maybe she's too smart for us. She obviously KNOWS that if she screams enough, I'll nurse her some more. But the kid is growing TEETH now... that changes a lot of things for me. I feel at a loss! Help!

9 months old (aka 3/4 of a year!!!)

2009-07-21T21:04:00.000-07:00

Today, Gabby turned 9 months old. I'm not sure where the time has gone, but she's getting big!

At 9 months old, Gabriella:
~ weighs about 19lbs
~ started crawling just a few days ago
~ still only rolls leading with her right arm (as in, from her back, rolls to the left. From her tummy, rolls to the right)
~ can go from sitting to laying/rolling and back up to sitting. And is sometimes sitting when I go to get her from her crib!
~ has 2 teeth (bottom center) and 3 more on the way (we think - the two on either side of the bottom center two, and the top right center one)
~ loves to sit on the floor and kick the floor with her heels
~ loves to clap her hands together, and loves it when you clap back at her!
~ loves anything technology

~ will eat just about any pureed veggie, will feed herself peas, nutrios, shredded cheese, LOVES yogurt, cut up cucumber and bell peppers, cooked pasta... she's well on her way to eating most anything.
~ loves her sippy cup, still is a boob&water girl
~ HATES having her face (nose/mouth/whatever) wiped with a cloth, and will fight it with squirms and arm-flailing, and some whining.
~ Does "the lean" - a few weeks ago at church, we were sitting on the back bench and Gabby was doing "the lean". When we looked over, 5 adults were all doing "the lean" back at her! What a leader... :) We've caught her "leaning" to look sideways at the cat, and she will lean back and forth during meals in her high chair!
~ loves books, can turn the pages of her board books by herself
~ has so many fun faces

~ is super-fascinated by the television, and if it's on and you get between her and IT, she will LEAN around you to see better.
~ loves her dollies, and when you make them squeak, she lights up every time
~ loves her piano (a xylophone with keys)
~ has a nice new rug to play on, but more often than not will scoot OFF of the rug and onto the bare hardwood to pound her heels on the floor and do her "martial arts" yell. I'm certain our neighbors below really enjoy it.

All in all, she's a ton of fun and we're glad we have her :)

Updates and Videos!

2009-07-18T12:42:00.000-07:00

First, Gabby is REALLY close to crawling. As in, she'll get on her hands and knees, and do "The Rock". And we used to let her play on a blanket on our living room floor, but lately, she's been moving around so much that the blanket ends up bunched up on the floor, and Gabby ends up sliding around on the floor. Which seemed frustrating, since there was no friction for her to crawl with. So we got a new rug. It's really soft :)

Here is Sleeping Beauty just waking up from her nap at Gwamma's house! I was trying to get a picture of her sleeping, cuz she was all curled up on her side and it was really cute, but the camera woke her up, so I got this instead. Don't worry - she'd already been sleeping for almost 3 hours, it was definitely time for her to wake up, anyway! :D

And my favorite: Lately, our Princess has been making this face :) Isn't she a hoot? It's been pretty warm in our top-floor apt, so she's been going topless. :)

And Gabby's newest love: Running!

She's always been a strong stander, holding her own weight, and then a few months ago, if you just held her an inch or so above the floor, she'd pump her legs (especially when we said "runrunrun!!!", she loved that!). And when we first started out with trying to help her walk, it was "now lift your foot, move it forward, there you go!" but now see what she does!!

And I know I'll be doing her 9-month update next week (really? 9 months?!?) but a few new things: Gabby LOVES yogurt. and feeding herself. She doesn't like purees anymore, she wants cut up cucumbers and peppers and peas, etc. Also, she's gone from saying "blah blah blah" to "nananananananana" and "dadadadadada" and today, she said "Momma". I'm sure of it.

And speaking of birthdays (sorta) our niece, Caitlyn, turned 1 year old this last week! Which is crazy, cuz she's only 3 months older than Gabby, and it's so weird to watch her walking around and being a whole year old... I'm so excited to see these two little girls get to be friends as they grow up together :)

As for us... Paul's registered for his CMA entrance exam! And things are looking up in the job-hunting department, so we're very hopeful that some things will be changing in our household soon!

Me... I've been busy with Heritage Makers and Resident Managing, on top of being a Mommy :) I finished reading Wuthering Heights (loved it) and am now reading Mansfield Park (loving it) and also reading "French Women for All Seasons" by the same author of "French Women Don't Get Fat" - loved it... you're probably noticing a pattern, but I'm pretty easy to please - I generally just like reading :D

We've been contemplating getting rid of our cable service, since we don't use it. Except that when we called Shaw, they won't let us: in order to get the RM deal, the cable is the main component. After that, we can add stuff for really cheap, but the cable's gotta stay. So when we move from here, the cable will disappear, and I don't think we'll miss it. But in the meantime, we still have access to all of the junk shows and movies and sports for our "free time" :D

Freakin' Awesome Day :)

2009-07-10T22:52:00.000-07:00

So I've been working at the Heritage Maker's Booth at Stampede, and we had a surprise visit from Sharon Murdoch, the co-founder of the entire company! The company who was spotlighted on Oprah last year, the company who was on Good Morning America this week, the company who is making headlines with Direct Selling magazines across the continent... Talk about a busy woman!

This sweet woman had given me a huge smile and genuine hug before she even learned my name, but then got *that* much more excited about meeting me when she learned my name.

Yeah. So she's "heard about me", and knew my name, knew my recent accomplishments, and was excited to meet me! She called me a "firecracker" :) How awesome is that?!? Yup, my head swelled a little bit on my shoulders :)

check out my business website

July 1 and 4, etc!

2009-07-07T23:45:00.000-07:00

We've been a little busy here! lots of stuff going on, I won't bore you with most of it, but some of the highlights are here:

Family photo shoot with the Spackmans - here is our little family - you can see the rest at www.jewelimage.ca

Canada Day - was pretty uneventful, but Gwamma had bought Gabby a fun Canada Day Shirt so we went and hung out with the grandparents and avoided the tenants in our building for a holiday :) Plus, we were evicting somebody, so it felt nice to get away from it all for a few hours. Here are some pictures of Canada Day:I totally missed out on the 4th of July, envious of all of you who got to see fireworks south of the border... Thought about getting Gabby a USA-flat shirt, so that all of her nationalities could be represented, but didn't have time and also was informed that finding a shirt like that would be tricky up here in the land of ice. (yes, that's me wearing a hoodie in July in Canada!)

Happy Summer, Y'all!

Little Miss Piggy :)

2009-06-27T21:25:00.000-07:00

So there's been quite a lot going on, but most importantly, Gabby has gotten her appetite back! Poor kid, with the teething, she's been turning up her nose to all of the yummies that she normally can't get into her mouth fast enough (broccoli, sweet potatoes, avocado... y'know. yummies.) but today she scarfed down her broccoli and yams, had a handful of cheerios... and wanted more. So I got her avocado and barley. Which she gobbled. So I made her squash and rice. All but the last bite. And lots of water. And Cheerios (which we now call "modified cornstarch! Yum!"...) Anyway, glad she's liking food again. :)

I feel like I'm finally getting caught up with things again. Stuff with our apartment building is caught up. Heritage Makers is going well. I finished that album that somebody paid me to design for them. I've met my goals for the month. Our home is more or less clean again (it was a busy week) So a big "whew!" is how I'm feeling :)

Some fun news: the apartment across the hall from us has been rented by a good friend of ours! Incidentally, our best man who we haven't talked to in about a year - I think we were just growing apart. But he needs a new place to live, and we had a 1bdrm coming available with awesome rental incentives, renovated, etc. and it just worked out :) It'll be fun to have a good friend living really close again, even if it's more Paul's friend than my friend (miss you, Lisa!)

Today, Paul's family did family portraits by this amazing photographer (who also did Gabby's 1-week old pictures, see here) and we all went out to a farm and wore jeans and brown/pink/green... it was a lot of fun. I got to drag Paul to the mall and dress him up. And I got new clothes and a haircut.

Oh yeah! I got a haircut :) It's been about 5 months... I needed it badly... and now it's pretty again :) sorry, I don't have a picture, you'll have to wait :)

Last, I've been reading Wuthering Heights. !!! I started this in high school, and about 2 pages in, it became one of the handful of books in my life that I've put down without finishing. Seriously, I'm pretty easy - I love books, plain and simple. There are very few books that couldn't hold my attention long enough to finish them. I can count them on my fingers. Starting with "Wuthering Heights"! :)

However (and don't judge me!) after reading the Twilight series (5 times) and learning that WH was one of the favorite books of the main character... my curiosity was piqued. And when you're nursing, and there is very little else to do, even the most boring book becomes interesting. Give it 20 pages, and now I'm totally hooked! And having read Twilight, it's even MORE interesting because there are parallels. Seriously fun. Loving the classics :)

What have you been up to?

8 months old

2009-06-23T19:55:00.000-07:00

Gabby turned 8 months old on Sunday :) She is 2/3 of a year. Crazy.

At 8 months, Gabriella:

- hugs back. It's the cuddly nestle-her-head-into-your-neck thing, and I love it :)

- loves to talk. She started out with"blah blah blah!" and then progressed to "dadadada" (which Paul loved) and then to "mmmMummmMummmMummm!" and lately has been saying "nanananana". When we're driving, she loves to yell from the backseat to make sure she's included in the conversation!

- eats lots of solids. She can feed herself mum-mums, and still loves veggie purees, applesauce, bananas (no longer mashed, just in chunks) and cereal. She can almost feed herself cheerios, but that usually means she'll put one in her fist, and then stuff her fingers into her mouth. It's very cute. She's mastered getting water out of a sippy cup. Still a boob girl. :)

- loves bathtime. We just got her those foam alphabet toys today, and she seemed very entertained when I was spelling words for her on the side of the tub.

- loves to play on the floor with her books and toys. She likes chewing the books just as much as she likes to look at them.

- has waved "bye-bye" a few times.

- is working on sleep re-training. I think that it's just as hard the 2nd time around, if not more so now that she can roll onto her tummy. (this picture is of the first time she ever did this after her nap, she was not impressed that rather than pick her up, I ran for the camera...)- can roll from her back to her tummy going LEFT, and we've seen her return to her back from her tummy, but that's still pretty new stuff.

- does the backwards scoot. Sometimes she'll also do the plank (on her hands and her tippy toes, straight body) and will almost scoot forward. Any day, now.

- Makes the funniest faces - we've yet to catch them on camera.

- likes picking out her own shirts. Shockingly enough, she usually goes for the brightest, loudest patterns :) - has cut her first tooth (bottom center left) on Wednesday, June 17

- is still teething and unhappy about it

- loves cell phones and remote controls (to chew on, mostly). And is very curious about the tv - again, if you're in her way, she'll lean around you to see what's going on.

- STILL has blue eyes and curly hair. Seriously, is this our kid? :) (she's got paul's ears. so I think she must be!)
- can work the light switch.

- loves playing Peek-a-boo, and almost always laughs when Mommy or Daddy laugh :)

- loves looking at herself in the mirror, and will lean if you're in the way. And smiles back at her reflection.

- can walk with help, loves to "run run run!!" if you hold her up just an inch above any surface.
I think we love her even more now than when she was first born, as we get to know her better and better. I'm so stoked for her to learn more and more things, and to teach her things. It's so exciting as she develops new skills, and understand more stuff. I'm so glad Paul talked me out of becoming a gypsy 5 years ago :)

Not sure if I should be sharing this

2009-06-20T13:17:00.000-07:00

but I really want to get it off my chest.

My mother has come and gone again. And like with every other visit, the second we drive away from the airport after having dropped her off, Paul and I both heaved a unified sigh of relief. It makes me really sad that our relationship is so strained. It makes me angry thinking of the turmoil our household goes through whenever she's here; it breaks my heart thinking it would be easier, and possibly healthier, to just cut her out of our lives, but knowing I can't out of guilt because she's my mom and I still love her in spite of it all.

After we got married in Oct of 2004, my mom came to visit us for our very first Christmas. That was the first and last time my mom visited us until Gabby was born. 4 years go by, and then she came for 3 weeks straight right when we had our first baby (*ahem* three very LOOONG weeks, which should have been stressful enough as a new mom, but I was foolish enough to invite my mother into the mix) and that was hard. Then she came again in January, at which point I felt like I really should call it quits with the visits, and now we've just had her again. I just can't tell her that I don't want her here, that she stresses me out, that she wrecks our routine, that she can't see her only grandchild. I've been conditioned from childhood to respond to her guilt trips, and I don't know how to get away from it.

I know that every mother-daughter relationship is difficult, but ours has been especially trying; my parents got divorced when I turned 6, so growing up I was constantly having to choose sides; was I my "mother's princess" or my "daddy's princess"? she would ask me. Why should a child have to decide so young? Children shouldn't have to learn diplomacy at such an early age. Also difficult was the difference in culture - my mom is Korean, but I was born and mostly raised in North America. Also, my mom went back to school after the divorce, so I was home alone a lot, and left to take care of myself, and therefore grew more independent than she wanted; to this day, she treats me like a child, and acts as though I am incapable of functioning without her.

Also, over the last few years, I've discovered that we disagree on practically every subject on the face of the earth. While she was here, I was trying to think of "safe" topics to talk about with her, and I thought about the different books I was reading. It made me really sad that none of them were safe to talk about, because one was political, one was religious, and one was a love story. Each of those subjects are non-safe topics of conversation for us. During the last presidential campaign, my mom was a staunch Obama supporter, and while I don't dislike the guy, it was agonizing having my mom here, because she enjoyed villifying the the other candidates so much, and Paul and I didn't want to offend her by saying anything. With religion, my mother told me when I was 18 that she no longer wanted to have anything to do with our church, and the one time she came with me to church recently was painfully awkward because she was clearly so uncomfortable.

The first Christmas visit when my mom came to visit, she and Paul got along really well. It was fun. They both love math and games and teasing me, so we all had a great time. After that, we didn't really see much of her, and then she got re-married. That's a whole'nother story, but basically I was asked not to come to the wedding because her new husband didn't want me there. And not just me; he didn't want ANYONE there. I am my mother's ONLY family on this entire continent (how's that for a load of responsibility and therefore, guilt?) and I wasn't allowed to be at her wedding. I later found out that he didn't even tell his family (who live in the same city) that he had gotten married until several months later.

Because of my divorced-parent situation, we started our marriage deciding to rotate Christmases; one with Paul's family, one with my Dad's family, and one with my Mom. Repeat. So the first Christmas after my mom remarried, it was her turn for Christmas. We had asked if she and her husband would be willing to come visit us, because we weren't sure if we could afford the trip. John (the new husband) said he wouldn't fly because of his "sinus problems" and so my mom said she would come by herself. Which, of course made me feel bad because it's the guy's first Christmas as a married guy, so Paul and I decided to make the 14-hr drive to visit them. Long story short, John and my mom had all of these plans with his family for Christmas celebrations that we were not invited to, not forewarned about (my dad and his family live only 3 hrs away; we could've gone there for a bit) even after we made the trip to include John. When I said something, it turned into John yelling at me and saying I needed to "grow up" and when I tried to explain my side of the situation, he yelled over top of me saying that I wouldn't "talk to him that way in his house" even though I didn't even raise my voice/name call/be disrespectful in any way. I don't like confrontation - my heart is pounding all over again just retelling this.

Paul and I decided that we wouldn't stay where we clearly weren't welcome, and we left a week early. We have let my mom know that we won't be visiting her again in the future, but that she is "welcome anytime she wants". Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Time and again, my mother has chosen this jerk over her own daughter. When she talks to me, she'll sometimes talk about John, but I always change the subject, because I have nothing good to say about him (I haven't even listed the half of it on here) and I'd rather say nothing at all. And to make it worse, since she’s married him, my mother has become increasingly shallow and judgmental.

When she came to help out with Gabby being born, she was amazing when it came to cooking and cleaning and changing diapers and holding the baby, etc. I know she really just does want to be helpful. I know that she does love me (us) in her own way.

Things became strained with my mother and my husband when my mom voiced the opinion that Paul does not love his daughter right after she was born because he wasn’t constantly wanting to hold her. The truth was, Paul knew that my mom would be leaving soon, and so was trying to let her spend as much time with her only grandchild as possible. Since that comment, it has been difficult for Paul to enjoy my mother's company. To add to the already-existing stress, Paul has been looking for a new job to begin once his parental leave is up, and my mom wouldn't leave him alone about it, basically leaving us with the renewed impression that unless he is making "big bucks" he is not worth anything in her eyes. Also, when telling my mom that I would be doing a trades show right after she left on Friday night, and that Gabby would be staying home with Daddy, her response was something to the effect of "is it safe to leave her with him for so long?!?" Sorry, does she think I married an abusive man? Out of the two of our husbands, which one is the safer person to be around?

This visit and the one in January, we did put our foot down and told my mom that since Gabby’s arrival, we no longer have room in our apartment for her to sleep, and that she needs to get a hotel room. This visit, her hotel room had a king-sized bed in it, and when I complimented her on being able to spread out and hot the blankets all she wants, her response was that she reserved a room with a king-sized bed so that if Paul and I have a fight while she’s here, Gabby and I can come and stay with her. What?!?

My mom is constantly trying to improve me. She always tells me I should go to law school or med school (uh, hello? remember how I'm squeamish and faint for needles???) and when I tell her that I've already finished school and don’t really want to do more, her response is "but you only studied jazz" or "but it was only 2 years". It gets harder when she starts to tell me about all of her friends' kids who are studying abroad, or who are in their 5th year of university, or what-have-you. Basically I'm left with the impression that I've disappointed her horribly because when her friends talk about their children, I'm not brag-worthy. It doesn’t matter that I have a successful marriage, that I am a great mom (yup, patting myself on the back. I really need to today) or that I’ve run a successful music studio before motherhood came along, or that I’ve been successful in everything else I’ve worked at.

I read somewhere recently that your biggest task as a parent is to do a better job than your own parents did; my first thought was "well, that's easy - I just have to keep my marriage intact". My next thought was that I can do even better than that: I can love my children and be proud of them for all of what they do, whether they go to law school or not. I can be a positive and loving mother. I can encourage them to do their best, and not criticize them in an effort to "improve".

In my mom's efforts to improve me, she criticizes my weight, my skin, my home decor, my work, my parenting, my marriage, everything. Nothing is safe. This last visit was especially stressful, because Paul and I have been working on sleep training, and we'd finally gotten it down so that she could be laid down in her crib and she would fall asleep on her own. My mother came for 3 days, and now we can't get her to nap at all unless we nurse her to sleep (she'll stay asleep for 30 mins) or unless we go for a car ride. Today has been really stressful. To be fair, Gabby is also teething, so this may have had something to do with it, but it just seems too coincidental that EVERY time my mother visits, Paul and I have to start over again establishing a routine. Because this is what happened last time.

And as far as the parenting thing goes, nothing is more aggravating than to be doing a good enough job that everybody else says "wow, she is so happy. She is growing so well and healthy. You must be doing a great job" and then to have somebody come into your home for a few days and question your every move. EVERYTHING. "Are you sure that food isn't too hot?" "Is her bath warm enough?" (she turned it up to scalding, and we had to add cold water for it to be safe) "I think she will be cold at night with just that on." "Are you sure that's safe for her to chew on?" "Cheerios have modified corn starch in them. You shouldn't give them to her." and on and on and ON. From how I decorated her room to the toys I let her play with to the way I lay her down to sleep (this is an especially aggravating one; when Gabby was born, my mother would not drop the subject of how she put me to sleep on my side so that my face would be "narrow" and how I should do the same, EVEN THOUGH the doctors and nurses specifically said to put her to sleep on her back to reduce the risk of SIDS. I know there are lots of you out there who let your babies sleep on their tummies/sides/etc, but having gone through a miscarriage, I'm pretty by-the-book about stuff like that, because I don't ever want to have occasion to look back and think "what if". When I told my mom that, she said that doctors are stupid and asked everybody else's opinion (uh, excuse me: WHO is the parent?) from my mother-in-law to the nurse who delivered me about their opinion. Even after they said the same thing I had already told her, she wouldn’t leave it alone. Not manipulative at all. And frustrating, because the ONLY reason this matters to her is because she thinks it will make her granddaughter prettier. Not smarter, not healthier; PRETTIER.

The other really frustrating thing about having my mom come to visit is that she always brings way too many gifts. We’re lucky, because we have so many nice things from her, but we don’t need them! I know I risk sounding like a totally ungrateful brat, but let me explain. Since marrying John, my mother has adopted his philosophy that you should only own “the best”. If it isn’t “the best”, it does not deserve a place in your home. Sorry, but I don’t need to have absolutely “the best” of everything; cutlery is still cutlery, couches are still couches, and truly, their $10,000 couch is really uncomfortable to sit on. So who’s to say what “the best” is? My mother considers herself the final word on that topic, and everything in our home is “junk” and we should “just throw it away”. Sorry, we’re not doing that. Also, our tastes are really different. My mom has finally learned after years and years of buying me clothes that I don’t wear that she shouldn’t buy me clothing as a gift, but she does still always show up at our place with really expensive gifts, and then we feel guilty when after awhile we don’t really want her there, because she’s spent so much on us. And if we decline her gifts she’s offended. So there’s no winning.

I’ve tried talking to my mom about this stuff before. It always ends up with both of us crying, and then feeling temporarily happy with each other, but then it’s the same story again for the next visit. I don’t know what to do. And most importantly, I don't know if I should be encouraging a relationship between my mom and my children - I don't know if she can have a healthy relationship with them - all indications so far have pointed to "no".

mmmm Toast dipped in Yogurt.

2009-06-13T22:16:00.000-07:00

So after reading my friend, Lisa's blog, I have reverted to an old stuck-in-my-head-for-a-week song... click here if you want to hear something catchy :D

It's been a long coupla days... but so good. Yesterday I rented a total of 4 suites. Yup, 4. In one day. I don't know why, especially considering that I've had 6 basically sitting empty the last 2 months... and all of a sudden, they're almost all gone. Finally. I'm looking forward to that space of time where I can ignore my phone because my voicemail will say something along the lines of "NO VACANCIES, leave me alone!" :D I also have a new boss (another. have I already posted about this? She's like, #5 in a year) and yesterday she almost made me cry for feeling stupid for not knowing what the warranty on a stove or fridge should be. This has never been a part of my job description before... after the phone call, I realized that she is probably just frustrated with her own lack of knowledge, and I just need to be understanding and remember that I am good at my job and not stress so much. That's probably what changed, is I just decided to feel better about myself and things turned for the better. Among other things, I think HF was just wanting me to remember to count my blessings.

Today I did another Heritage Makers workshop :) It was for a girl that I met at our insurance broker's office - she is the secretary, and saw the book that I did for Gabby and got really excited - she's so funny, too; she's been doing this for about a month now, has already published 2 books, hosted a party (and *ahem* won tons of free publishing credits) and told me today that she's got another 11 projects on the go, and a few more already ready to publish. Fantastic! Seriously loving this job, I've met some of the funnest (yup, it's a word now) people and I'm just having a blast doing it!

This picture was trying to capture a "moment" from yesterday; it didn't quite do it, but it's still cute!

Gabby has been ROLLING... except that she usually only does it when we're not looking. So you've all seen the famous scooting/bum stuck under the couch pictures... she's also taken to going from back-to-front and front-to-back, except that we only see that she has magically changed position on our living room floor -- if you're looking at her, she'll just look back at you and wait for you to turn around so she can do it again. Figures. The only time I've actually seen her roll is when I put her in her bed and stood behind her crib so she thought I'd left the room, and then she promptly flipped onto her stomach by grabbing the crib bars and pulled herself onto her tummy, and then she kicked her feet along the bars so that she'd turned 90-degrees, which then put her face right between the bars, and she started wailing because she was "stuck" and wanted us to come help her. And cuddle. Tricky little girl!

Oh, and her favorite thing to say now is "blah, blah, blah" as in "all you guys ever say to me is 'blah blah blah' so I'm saying it back to you!"

A few days ago, I found "Stolen Innocence" at my MIL's house and started reading it, and got sucked in, and so I found it at the library and it is REALLY hard to put down. Insanity. It's about a girl who grew up in a polygamous sect under Warren Jeff's, basically an autobiography... I've always been a teeny bit curious about those "other mormons" and so this book finally offers a glimpse. The way they've twisted things... it's crazy. And I'm still working on Uncle Tom's Cabin. And Glenn Beck's "An Inconvenient Book". All good reads, all hard to put down. As if I had time to just sit and read! :D

So after my crazy-busy coupla days, I'm finally eating dinner at 11:30 at night - toast, which I've discovered is really tasty when dipped in yogurt, and half a baked yam, and an orange. Yum.

My mom is visiting this upcoming week, so be prepared for a bit of a hiatus in my posting! Don't cry - I WILL be back :)

It's Done!!!

2009-06-09T23:36:00.001-07:00

Wahoo!

So after 4 1/2 years, our wedding album is finally finished! I know there were those of you who totally had given up on it (Paul included) but HA! I finished it! :D

Click here for pictures!

By-the-by... Gabby is a backwards-scootin' gal! She scooted right off of her blanket and got stuck under the couch today!

busy!

2009-06-08T21:29:00.000-07:00

Once again, my blogging has fallen into a Gabby-rut! I've been doing many other things, but don't post about them; for example: On May 24th, I sang a musical number with Alana playing the harp in Relief Society! But did I blog about it? NO! Instead, I posted all about Gabby turning 7 months old :) We did the hymn "For the Beauty of the Earth" and I put it into 3/4 and changed some keys and for the last verse went back to the 4/4 and back to the original key for a really grandiose effect. It was a lot of fun. Fun to use my musical talents, fun to be musical with other talented musicians :)

Today Gwamma babysat (well, really, Gwamma stayed home and Gabby napped for a few hours) while we went on another date! This is almost becoming a habit! We went and watched the Wolverine movie. It was either that or My Life in Ruins, but it was determined that the last movie we saw in theaters was Confessions of a Shopaholic, and so today was not to be another chick-flick date. However, I loved the Wolverine movie, and I was sad it was over so soon ("soon"!) It left me wanting to re-watch all of the other X-Men movies!

Resident Managing is hitting an all-time low. Well, for me, anyway. I don't know about ALL time, but it feels pretty low. Apparently we have an 18% vacancy rate (not sure if this is Calgary, or just our company), as compared to less than 1% last summer, if I recall correctly. It doesn't help that we have a household of teenage morons living across the street, who enjoy living it up every night and puking it up all morning (read: 5am) (and loudly. outside. who goes outside to puke? stay inside!!!) And to add to all of that, I've got a new boss. Like, 5th new boss in a year. Something like that. One loses track after so many previous bosses gave in their resignations after less than a week. But I think this one is here to stay. She seems very organized, very on top of things, a little militant, probably EXACTLY what the company needs... but the first time I ever met her, I thought I was showing a suite to a prospective tenant. As in, she secret-shopped me. Apparently I did a fantastic job, but I felt a little blind-sided nonetheless. Not a great feeling. Doesn't make me love this job anymore than I already didn't. Can't wait to get a house and move away. Someday. :)

And, as you all already know, being avid readers of this blog, I've been struggling to get to bed at a decent hour. Gabby finally goes down to bed at a decent hour, sleeps *most* of the night (she'll do 12 hrs, but she wakes up around 4/5am for a snack), but I myself have been averaging about 5 hours of sleep a night. So dumb! So on that note, it is almost eleven, and I am getting myself to bed! G'nite!