This Week I'm...

Loving: That I am (finally) back in a good rhythm after baby/colic/renovations/moving.  I am eating well, working out, getting my home stuff done, getting my work stuff done (thanks in part to the new daycare).  I even made the doctor appointments I have been putting off for ages.  Making strides... 

Hating: That Mela keeps chewing things up: Roscoe's toys, Ray's parents things (ugh).  I know she is just acting out because they are sequestered in their doggy space all the time and they are used to being with people and sleeping in our room and generally being big spoiled babies, etc.  But C'MON Mela, you're killing me.  You even have a doggy door here.  LIVE IT UP.  

Craving: The pork chops with sweet onions and figs that I have simmering away in the slow cooker.  It is great that I get a head start on dinner; not so great that I want to eat said dinner for breakfast.

Reading: Operating Instructions by Anne Lamott (love her).

Hoping: That the current offer/counteroffer dance we are doing on our condo results in a sale at a stomach-able price.

Pondering: How to slow time or be more in the present or appreciate more every day or better record these times or all of the above.  Roscoe is already growing and changing so fast and I find myself forgetting what life was like and forgetting the little things he did even a few months ago.  And I don't want to forget.  I want to soak up every little thing and store all of the precious memories in little drawers in my mind to retrieve them at will.

Looking forward to: Tomorrow we are going to Hollister (off-roading) as a family.  Ray loves off-roading, I love road trips and Roscoe loves when all of us are together.  Sounds like a win-win all around.  Also, Ray's parents are going to the Philippines for a few weeks and we get to pretend that we are grown ups again and that we have a home and make all of our own meals and take out the garbage and all that stuff.  Might be good practice for if the sale goes through...

Quote of the Day

“Each moment in time we have it all, even when we think we don’t.”

― Melody Beattie

Dum, Dum, DUMMMMMMM.... (daycare)

Yesterday was Roscoe's first day of daycare.  I was so excited about the place we found - it is exactly what we were looking for.  I mean, check out the daily schedule:

8:00-9:30 Breakfast Time (always with fruit and milk)
9:30-10:00 Free play
10:00-10:30 Circle Time (abc's, 123's, nursery rhyme's...)
10:30-11:00 Reading Time
11:00-11:30 Arts & Crafts (coloring, play-dough, chalk...)
11:30-12:00 Music Time (singing and dancing)
12:00-12:30 Lunch Time (healthy home cooked meals)
12:30-1:00 Free play
1:00-3:30 Nap Time (separate room)
4:00-4:30 Snack Time (fruits)
4:30-5:30 Outdoor play (weather permitting)

I am actually kind of jealous.  I wish Roscoe and I could just go there together and hang out.  Did I mention that they will speak to him in either English, Spanish or French, depending on our preference??  We visited for an hour last week and he loved it.  I loved it.  We found the place from a friend of a friend whose daughter goes there.  Perfect.

Too bad yesterday kind of sucked (I didn't know how much it sucked until the sucky spread into today).  He was crying when I left, which is one of the worst feelings ever.  He normally takes 2 one and a half hour naps.  He slept for 30 minutes in the morning and no minutes in the afternoon.  I arrived and his eyes were all squinty and red like he hadn't slept in 2 weeks.  He just waddled over to me like a baby zombie when I got there.  He was cranky when we got home.  I could barely get him to eat anything and then I got him to bed.  20 minutes later he woke up screaming.  I know this USED to be normal, but it's not anymore and I have NO interest in regressing, thank you very much.  I get him back to sleep and the rest of the night was uneventful.

Today he is mostly fine and normal and then out of nowhere pops this tired and crabby monster boy.  He is having a hard time napping (overtired) and I am having a hard time not drinking the bottle of wine I saw downstairs.  My whole body is tense, I have a headache and I still haven't eaten lunch (it's 4pm).  What crazy person decided this was a good idea?!  (me).  Let's hope this is just an Adjustment Period and he will start sleeping like a "baby" (haha) in the next couple of weeks.  Good news is he ate very well and had a giant poop.

Braggin' on My Man

It's no secret I married a man of many talents.  Not only is he the most handsome man I have ever met, he is also uber-intelligent (engineer, duh), creative (photographer), adventurous (off-roader), fit (personal trainer, Muay Thai fighter), loving Tatay (Roscoe's fave!) and just a whole lot of fun to be around.  What's not to love?

The catalyst for the current bragging is that some friends of ours had twin boys in December and they asked Ray to take photos for their announcements and such.  Babies (and dogs) are hard to photograph because they don't really cooperate.  Now imagine twins...  Ray did a stellar job - check out the photos (I'm so proud):

Howdy

The days are flying by at warp speed, it seems.  January is a crazy time for me at work (not to mention we still don't have a babysitter...)  The only thing that gets me out of bed these days is the promise of my pseudo-rice-milk-watered-down-coffee and those handsome boys of mine.  This afternoon I decided not to work (and not to think about what I should be doing either).  Instead I am making Tikka Masala for dinner, blogging and paying bills.  Well, until the Rooster wakes up, at least.  :)

Where to begin?

* Roscoe is saying some words.  I thought our pediatrician was nuts when he asked me a few weeks if Roscoe was saying any words.  But then I started to pay more attention and Ray and I both noticed him saying Ikaika first.  Well, more like "KaaaGA" but the pointing and laughing at Ikaika gave it away.  He also says NANANANA (banana) and MAHMAHMAHMAH (more).  I use caps because he doesn't speak so much as yell.  I am sure he is talking more nonsense that we just haven't figured out how to decipher yet.  Maybe this week we can work on that enunciation...

* One of Roo's new favorite tricks is dancing.  This involves vigorous swaying back and forth (from the waist up) and laughing hysterically at self.  The first time I noticed this was when I was wearing him in the Beco at the grocery store and my cell phone rang.  He was LOVING the "seville" ringtone and went loopy.  He was laughing so hard and having so much fun I just stopped and cracked up.  And then everyone around us just stopped and started laughing.  What a HAM.

* Another highlight of my week (to Ray's dismay) is when Ray let Roscoe have nakey time before bed and he stood up next to the bed and peed squarely into Ray's work shoe leaving a puddle of piss in the heel.  I felt (a little) bad, but I was quite impressed with his aim.  Let's hope he aims as well into the toilet bowl someday.

* Roscoe also morphs frequently into a monkey and climbs everything in sight.  Step stools, ladders, the fireplace, stacked boxed, his toys, opens the dishwasher, climbs in and tries to empty it, onto the bed/chairs/couch/ottoman, shelving units, you name it.  I am losing track of how many bloody mouths he has gotten.  Sometimes I never even find where the blood is coming from.  I think I can safely blame him for every wrinkle I have to date.

* Our son is obsessed with good dental hygiene.  He has a baby toothbrush and we brush our teeth together. Sometimes we brush for (what feels like) hours and when I tell him "all done" he throws a tantrum.  He HATES having to stop brushing his teeth.  It's not like I put any toothpaste on his brush, so I don't quite understand the obsession.  He also obsessively flushes the toilet.  Interesting.

* Too bad he doesn't teach the dogs his new toothbrushing tricks because their breath is, ahem, a little "ripe" at times.  Roscoe should know because he now likes to sneak up on them and kiss them (open mouthed) and then screech at them and laugh hysterically.

* Ray's cousin Steph got Roscoe this cat keyboard karaoke thing for his birthday and Roscoe adores it.  He likes to turn it on and then "sing" into the microphone.  Now, there is this blanket stereotype of Filipino people that they can all sing and dance and every family has a karaoke set... I'm not saying it's always true, but he IS half Filipino... Just saying.

* We (finally) uploaded Ray's photos from our trip (check out his website for the full almost 300 pics...), but here are a few of my faves (and, yes, I shamelessly favor my son.)

Aw!:

Love it:

Monkey pile:

Stealing Ramon's breakfast:

His first White Birthday:

I think the cousins wore him out:

 Papa Top and his grandkids:

We've got this "multiplying" thing DOWN:

Proud mama:

  Trying to get a picture with Oma (I LOVE Ramon's face in this one!!):

Toy hog:

 Showing off his new ChooChoo from Lala:

And the boys at home in their new Raider gear watching the last game of the season:

Big Day for My Misters

Roscoe just experienced his first earthquake (well, first noticeable one, I am sure there have been a few already...).  It was only a 4.1, but he was just waking up from his nap and I felt the house swaying and heard things rattling around.  I went in to get him and he was just sitting there smiling and pointing around the room (normal behavior).  Maybe he didn't even notice?  It was my first (noticeable) earthquake as a Mama where I mentally pictured where he was and what was around and may fall onto him, etc.  A California Mama Milestone.

And... Ray just found out he passed his PE!  That is his official Professional Engineer's licensing exam.  He couldn't even take it until he had passed a preliminary test and then had years of work experience and recommendations from a bunch of PEs.  Anyway, we have been waiting months for the result and I am uber proud of him.  Roo and I can't wait for him to get home from work to give him some love.  This afternoon will be extra sweet because it is Friday and Ray hasn't seen Roscoe since last weekend, so he is hoping to come home a little early and see him before he goes to bed.  Hooray!

Bring It On

Let me take a moment right here and just welcome in 2011.  Another year of memories past, another year of possibilities on the horizon.  Sometimes the days seem slow, but the years sure seem to be going fast.  I suppose it is because I am all long in the tooth now.  My baby is not really a baby anymore.

[Wait... I have a baby?!! And I'm MARRIED?!  Jeez, when did all of this growing up happen?]

I have all of these ideas about where life might take us in 2011, but I will keep them to myself.  Every year I am proven wrong and every year I am reminded that God's way is better than what I had planned.  So, do your thing, God.  This control freak is going sit back and enjoy the ride with only minimal Excel Spreadsheeting and Obsessing.  Ready, set...