Can I keep my new butt??

My new, rounder, more voluptuous butt. But lose the rest? The belly can go. The thigh fat can go. The arm fat can go. The back fat. Oh... The back fat. How I used to make fun of people who had back fat spilling up over the backs of their too tight britches. And now I'm one of them! I am a "back fat girl".
I *should* buy a few larger pairs of pants to wear for now. I have maybe 2 pairs that I can wear now without looking like a hussy. (The jeans I have on now.... Whoa baby. Painted on. I'm NOT leaving the house in them, for sure.) But what if I get comfortable in them? What if I am destined to keep these 20 pounds?? I swear I had lost more than this by now the last time I had a baby. Maybe not. I didn't keep track. But I hate being this fat! No, I don't have issues. I swear, I don't. I just don't like weighing 140 pounds. 20 extra pounds on someone my size SHOWS. And right now, it's showing in the middle. Noticeable.... The back fat.
But I'd like to keep the butt. Ok?

Woweee. I could be a juggie!

My wonderful husband has nominated ME to be the next juggie on the Man Show. I got these boobs for the general purpose of feeding the baby. Funny, he's supposedly a butt-man. At least he IS while I have no boobs. But while I'm breastfeeding, and they elevate me to juggie status... he's a boob guy.
I say he's swine.
But I love him.

My husband, the hero....

Alex was recently awarded a bronze star. I am so proud of that man!

I swear!

And I KNOW I say this every year. Every.... single.... stinking....YEAR. I am going to do my Christmas shopping all year long.
If I see something on super-clearance (I could have snagged some of the coooooolest things) I think I'll just buy it. I'll put it in a box labeled "gifts". And whenever we need a gift, I can go in the box and get one. And by Christmas... it'll be full and we won't be scurrying around at the last minute trying to find presents for the zillion and one people that expect them.

I'm going to do it. I am. I know it.

I kind of miss it....

I miss being pregnant!!
I'm SO glad Carmen is here. But I miss the excitement of not knowing what she looked like, when she'd come, what her name would be. The kicks and rolls. The discomforts. (OK... I *can* do without those) I miss that. I'm glad she isn't our last baby. I can't wait to do it all over again.

It's amazing... this family that we're building. Now there are 5 of us. And God willing there will be more! It feels perfect to me. I know Alex REALLY wants a boy... and I do hope to give him one. I love the fact that I have all girls! I love saying "The girls" or "My girls" and making fun of my husband... "You know you are outnumbered....... For LIFE!" Because I don't think we'll be having 3 more children. And even if we did... what would the chances be that they'd all be boys?? Slim, right?

You never know, though.

Sneaker, sneaker, Christmas peeker!

Yes, you! You know who you are. You know what you did! You know you peeked!

I bought my lovely husband some merchandise off of ebay and he logged in and peeked. And I got my present back in October... so there are NO surprises in this house, this year! Oh well.... we still have LOVE! And that is all that really matters!

Dear Alex,

My husband.... I love you!!
Never in a million years would I have thought that I'd be so lucky as to find a man as amazing as you. You are perfect. You are selfless. You are brave. You are caring, loving and warm. You make people laugh. You put people at ease everywhere we go. You're a wonderful father and husband. I could go on and on and still, I could never tell you enough. Words can't even begin to express how I feel. I love you, I love you... a thousand times. I love you! I love how when we kiss I still get butterflies. I love how I melt right into your arms when we go to sleep. I love how I fit right under your chin when we embrace. I love the way you love ME! I am just so thankful that you are in my life.
Te amo, mi esposo. I NEED you. You are my air.
Love forever, your wife.

Love.....

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love."
Rebecca- age 8
"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth."
Billy - age 4
"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other."
Karl - age 5
"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs."
Chrissy - age 6
"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired."
Terri - age 4
"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK."
Danny - age 7
"Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss"
Emily - age 8
"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen."
Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)
"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,"
Nikka - age 6 (we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)
"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday."
Noelle - age 7
"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well."
Tommy - age 6
"During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.
He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore."
Cindy - age 8
"My mommy loves me more than anybody
You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night."
Clare - age 6
"Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken."
Elaine-age 5
"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford."
Chris - age 7
"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day."
Mary Ann - age 4
"I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones."
Lauren - age 4
"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you." (what an image)
Karen - age 7
"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross"
Mark - age 6
"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget."
Jessica - age 8
And the final one --Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge.
The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child.
The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.
Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.
When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said,
"Nothing, I just helped him cry"

Not that terribly impressed....

With the Dyson vacuum. I just HAD to have it. So we bought it last summer. Don't get me wrong.... It's an OK vacuum. It's just not SUPER.
I like how it empties with the squeeze of a lever (one handed). I like how it has no filters to replace. And I also like how you can clean the inside parts.
But....
The attachment hose is awkward at best.
It really doesn't seem to suck any better that my old vacuum.... But I will say that when the filter is clean, it does a good job. Again...My old vacuum did a good job too.
I haven't even used the accessories. Like the low reach tool that I was going to use ALL THE TIME. But that's really because I can't vacuum under my bed anyway.... where else would I push/hide/store all my crap if it weren't for the space under the bed???
So... Was it worth the money?? Maybe. And that would be just for the way it empties. Plus it's purple. But if you were to ask me if you should get one.... I'd say buy a Hoover for $100 and spend the other $300 on something fun. :) Like photography equipment, or cloth diapers!

Christmas shopping!!

We've finished buying Sofias gifts. I want to get Carmen something.... but I don't know what yet. I am half way done shopping for Miss O. I still need to get her her *big* present... I think she wants a robosapien, but she may still change her mind. We'll see what she says by the end of the week. Her list was funny. Erasers. All sorts of them. The funniest thing she wanted was a set of cheese erasers. I assume they're just cheese shaped?? I need to ask her.

I have NO idea what I'm going to get for Alex. He always says not to get him anything and we all KNOW that I can't just get him nothing..... so I am stuck. I wish he'd just tell me what he wants!! Maybe I'll get *him* some really cool cookware (I've had my eye on some bakeware at Macy's).
then maybe next year he'll tell me what he wants so I don't have to buy him something *I* want and pretend it's for him!

My poor Carmen!

She needs to see the kidney specialist. She still has a back up of fluid in her kidneys..... Bilateral hydronephrosis to be exact. The had found the fluid during my prenatal ultrasounds. They said it usually resolves itself before or shortly after birth and it hasn't.
What does it mean?? Well.... she has to take prophylactic antibiotics daily (until the problem is fixed) She needs this because the fluid that backs up can cause kidney infections. The antibiotics should prevent infection. We'll see the specialist and he will decide if Carmen needs close observation, more ultrasounds and antibiotics until resolved, or if she needs surgery because there is an actual obstruction.
Most likely, as she grows... the ureters will grow and the flow will improve. That's what they hope will happen.

I hope my little baby doesn't need surgery.

My beautiful baby.....

She is so beautiful... I need to remember every little part! Here's her baby parts collage. Something I know I will treasure forever!

My first day home alone.

It wasn't as scary as I thought it'd be. Everything did get done a little later than usual. Showers didn't happen until noon. But that's ok.
Carmen hasn't cried once. Then again, I've only put her down once. I managed to wash and dry 2 loads of laundry. It's not folded.... but it's clean! The dishes got put away. But I didn't wash any of the dirty ones.
Mostly all I did was love on my babies, and that's all I really need to do.

Carmen

Newborn babies. The smell, the fragility, the awe, the beauty, the smallness, the absolute intensity. I am amazed all over again. Words cannot even begin to express this love.