good friends, good food, good times

today was the big backyard bbq, and it went off without a hitch.. it was a blast! everyone had a great time including Cruz and myself. of course, i made way more food than was needed, but that only mean my hubby will be able to enjoy soem leftover when he returns from his business trip tomorrow. i'm sad he missed out on such a great party, but all our friends will get together some time again in the near future, so no worries ;)

my son had a lovely time too. he played with a friend in the sandbox and got really dirty as toddler do. he woke up with a runny nose this morning, so i'm glad he got to play outside before it gets any worse.

today was a good day for a bbq. i'm glad it went well! i love throwing a good get-together with friends :)

it's a good day for a BBQ

tomorrow will be a good day for a bbq! i've been planning a backyard bbq all week. everything is in order and today my husband calls me and says his job is sending him out of town saturday through monday. unbelievable! well, there's nothing we can do about it, so i'm going on with my bbq plans.

my guest list looks to be about 10 people which is a pretty good turnout. i invited a mommy friend who is bringing over her daughter to play with Cruz. the sandbox is all set up. the great thing about the backyard is, we can close the gate and let the kids run around and the grown-ups can relax and not chase them around ;)

i'm going to miss my hubby and i hope i will be able to pull this party off all by myself! just take in a deep breath and think good thoughts. with good food and good friends only good things can happen!

it's not always peaches and cream

so this early time change is kicking my butt! i'm having a hard time getting up at 6:30am to start the day. i'm not much of a morning person and i'm a little cranky before my morning cup of coffee. that being said, i bit off my husband's head the other day and i shouldn't have, but it happens sometimes. i overslept and was having a stressful time getting everything done in the morning and getting out the door to make it to Stroller Strides on time. when i woke up, the kitchen and livingroom was a mess as it is sometimes because my husband and i are too tired at the end of the day to cleanup after we get out son to bed. but as much as i hate doing dishes at night, i REALLY hate doing them first thing in the morning. to make matters worse, i didn't have time to clean up at all because i overslept, so my day was not off to a good start. the Stroller Strides mommies were staying after class for a picnic at the beach, so i had to pack extra food for Cruz and myself.. this was making my normal routine take even longer. Cruz was upset and i was rushing to get ready, and i was wishing i had an extra pair of arms to get everything done. instead of asking my unsuspecting husband for help, i gripe at him for not doing more to help me out. that wasn't the right thing to do, but sometimes i get so stressed out trying to manage the household and take care of Cruz.

plus, my husband wants me to work because we could use the extra income. i've been trying to get back into freelance work, but it's so hard juggling putting together a portfolio and being mom. so later that night, i explained to my husband, that if i was going to have time to work, i was would need him to help me out more with the house work. don't get me wrong, my husband is a great dad and he helps me out a lot, but even then, half my day is spent just doing housework. the only breathing time i have is during Cruz's nap, and that's always an unpredictable amount of time. not to mention, some days i am so tired it's hard to get motivated instead of taking a much deserved break. but that's just part of being a grown up, i guess.

so yeah, it's not always peaches and cream being a mom. i get stressed out sometimes and i get mad sometimes, but i love my son and i love my husband. i'll learn from my mistakes, and things always seem to work themselves out over time. i'm gonna try to relax more and try harder to wake up on time regardless of the time change. my husband will help me out more around the house, and Cruz will be Cruz and smile at me every morning.. that's a start!

blooming into an inquisitive toddler

i had to edit my page description today because i've realized my baby boy is not so "baby" anymore.

he's a full fledged toddler!

he's growing up so fast!!!

i'm so proud of him. he's so inquisitive and wants to know everything about the world around him. he points at everything asking what it is, and he learns so fast. Cruz is so smart, of course he's got good genes for that kind of thing.. lol ;)

stickers stickers everywhere

i started giving my son stickers as rewards. this works great for my toddler!

i was having all kinds of trouble getting him to hold still to change his diaper, but now that he knows he'll get a colorful sticker for being a good helper, he sits right down and gets the business done. same goes for getting dressed, brushing his teeth and hair.

oh glorious reward system.. a mom's best friend!

haircut drama

Cruz got his first haircut yesterday. we took him to this place that specializes in kids hair. instead of the standard salon chair, they have cars and trucks for the kids to sit in. we put Cruz in the Wiggles car and he seemed to enjoy it.. turning the steering wheel and beeping the horn. Blue's Clues was playing on the TV in front of him so i thought it was gonna be a breeze. then the lady started cutting his hair. a river of tears followed. my poor baby was so upset. despite the traumatic experience, the haircut turned out pretty great! he's looks so much more grown up now.. my little man :)

we spoiled him a little at Toy R Us after the haircut. and we picked up a potty so we can start potty training. nothing too serious yet, we just got the potty and pull-ups. he's already bringing a new diaper to his daddy or me when he's wet, and my son HATES wearing diapers, so we thought it couldn't hurt to get started. i can't believe how fast he's growing up.

Cruz's first hair cut this Saturday

well, i finally gave in and made an appointment for Cruz to et his first hair cut. i lvoe his long surfer hair with the cute little curls at the ends, but his hair keeps getting in his eyes, so it's time for a trim. i hope it all goes well. i wouldn't want to get near him with scissors so i'm leavng it to the professionals this Saturday.

stay tuned...

what a way to start the morning

ok, i'm still not feeling totally well, but i thought i would try to go to Stroller Strides this morning and get Cruz and myself out of the house. the morning started off pretty normal. i made a cup of coffee and cooked breakfast for everyone. as soon as i got the eggs on the plates i looked into the livingroom to check on my son who was hypnotized by Blue's Clues, and what do i see?.. to my surprise, a naked baby. he had managed to remove his diaper and then pooped, getting some on his feet and tracking it in a trail around the couch. oh gross!

Cruz was just standing in place looking at his brown covered foot not sure what to do. i ask him to stand still while i grabbed some wipes to clean him off. once he was washed off, i tackled the floor picking up a little piece here and a little piece there, working my way to the pile from which the poop originated. oh what fun! LOL

so i guess this is my first poopie adventure story. i'm sure more will follow in the next years.

this reminds my of my poopie stories from when i was a baby. my mom told me about the time she heard me wake up in my crib but she decided to lay in bed a little longer. so while i waited in my crib i entertained myself by sticking my hand into my poop filled diaper and finger painting my crib. my mom said she always got up and took me out of my crib the second she heard me stir after that.. LOL!

my husband told me his poopie story from his childhood this morning. he said he stuck his hand in his diaper and scooted around in a circle leaving a poop print behind on the carpet.. oh my!

so i guess things could be worse and this poopie adventure was not that bad. needless to say, i decided to take another day off and stay in instead of working out. now were hanging out in the backyard and trying out some of the new sandbox toys i bought yesterday. it's not much of an outing but it's something. hopefully by tomorrow i will be better and well enough to venture out to the beach. i hate being sick!

moms need sick days too

ouch! my poor throat has been sore all week!

Cruz just got over a stuffy nose and sore throat, and sure enough, i caught it next. i feel terrible!!! i can't even imagine how bad it must had been when Cruz had this cold. poor baby!

the only difference is, i gave Cruz medicine to help comfort him through his cold and i held off on medicating myself since i'm still breast feeding. but enough is enough! after a couple of miserable days, i gave in and bought some relief.

i still am not 100% but i was able to get my son out of the house for some fun at Gymboree today. this mom needs some sick days off.. lol!

being sick is a mom's worst nightmare. when Cruz was sick, i made sure he stayed in and rested up and took good care of him till he got better. now that i'm sick, i don't get to slow down. i still managed to do all my mothering duties, but Cruz doesn't understand why i'm not as bouncy and playful as usual, and he gets frustrated when i don't take him outside when he wants to play.

ugh, i just hope i get over this cold soon, for me and for my baby boy!

here's a funny story..

last week i took Cruz to the pediatrician for his 15 month check up. his appointment was with a new doctor at the office since i spaced on his original appointment date and had to reschedule, but that's not important.. lol.. a mom is allowed a mistake every now and then ;)

anyway, the doctor was asking all the usual questions like what does he eat, does he sleep through the night, etc. then she asked if he was drinking whole milk. i answered, "yes, but sometimes i mix the milk with toddler formula, especially the last bottle before bed time."

she responded by saying that i could take him off the formula completely because kids don't get enough hydration when you add milk to powered formula. puzzled, i paused and thought for a second about what she just said. people use milk instead of water when making formula?

i replied, "no, no, i mix the formula with water as i did when he was younger and then top it off with milk. i make 4 ounces of formula as directed on the label and then add another 4 ounces of milk to that. when Cruz drinks only whole milk, he doesn't drink much but if i add the formula, he drinks a full 8 ounces before bed which helps him sleep."

after clarifying, the doc assured me that was ok. what a relief.. lol