Baby Caref: The Final Addition

In the beginning of my pregnancy I knew I was having a girl. My face was breaking out just like it did with Kiara and I didn't have the wonderful glow like I had with Lenin. Brian was convinced it was either a girl or a redheaded boy. Then we had our NT scan and the technician gave me her guess but wasn't very sure. Since the tech wasn't sure, I just had to wait till my anatomy ultrasound to find out. In our family things were pretty split. The girls wanted a baby girl and the boys wanted a baby boy. I could go either boy or girl. With a boy, Lenin would have a playmate and I could reuse all the clothes, toys, and supplies. On the other hand, we haven't had a baby girl in the house for 5 years and I love baby girl clothes.

We had our ultrasound on July 19, 2011, which was also Montre's 14th birthday. I was so nervous because I wanted to make sure the baby was healthy. With 5 healthy kids already, I know what a blessing it is to have good health. Brian and I took Montre, Evelina, Kiara and Lenin with us. Once we got into the ultrasound room, the technician asked if we were finding out the sex and then took a poll on each family member's guess. As soon as she put on wand on my belly she was ready to tell us what the baby was. The baby wasn't shy and wanted us to know he was a boy. He showed his parts the whole time.

I had my scan a couple weeks earlier than the doctor wanted. The doctor was going on vacation, so instead of the preferred 20 week ultrasound, it was done at 18 weeks. My doctor and the ultrasound technician were concerned they were not going to be able to see all the body parts they needed to look at. Luckily for everyone, the baby was large and developed enough to see everything. The technician even said it was her best 18 week ultrasound of the day. She even guessed the baby to weigh 9 ounces already.

I am ecstatic that we are having another healthy baby boy! Although I have to say Kiara wasn't so happy that the baby was boy. She was hoping and expecting a baby sister. She cried for a few minutes after the ultrasound. I told her that she'll be happy in the future when she doesn't have to share her toys and how Lenin will have his own playmate now. I can't wait to meet our little Jameson William. He has lots of brothers, sisters, and cousins waiting to meet him.

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Pregnancy and Other Ramblings

18 weeks pregnant with #3

Brian and I are expecting another baby. It'll be our 3rd and Brian's 6th. I found out I was pregnant while Brian and I were going through a rough patch in our marriage. I mean we planned our pregnancy in that we didn't do anything to prevent it from happening. We had a conversation about wanting one more and giving Lenin a playmate. Unfortunately, Brian failed to mention some very important things when we were talking about having another baby.

It has been an interesting time since then. Brian and I are going to marriage counseling and trying to improve our relationship, not only for us but for the kids. We have worked so hard in creating a stable environment for all our kids and we are not about to throw that all away without trying our best to figure how to make things better. Also, I want the new baby to have both parents around. I want this baby to feel the love that Kiara and Lenin have felt. I love watching Brian being a dad to his children. Really that is one of the things that made me fall in love with him when we were first dating.

I am now 18 weeks pregnant. Sometimes I still can't believe I am pregnant. I visually see my belly and have even felt the flutters and kicks, but sometimes I think it's not real. Brian and I were hoping for a baby boy so that Lenin can another boy to play with. We find out this Tuesday, July 19 at 3:15 p.m. Montre is almost 14 and Erik is 10, so they are more like little parents than a peer to Lenin. Evelina and Kiara are kind of paired already since they are both girls and share a bedroom. That leaves Lenin all by himself. However part of me wants a girl. It's been 5 years since we had a baby girl around the house :)

I know this will be my last pregnancy. I love being pregnant but this time around it is hitting me much harder. I now have 2 little ones to run around after and I'm definitely not getting any younger. I am ready to accept this as my last baby. I'm sure I will miss holding babies but I can always do that with my future nieces and nephews. Besides I look forward to growing old with Brian. We have been raising kids since we met and we deserve a time where we can do what we want. Brian and I have been so lucky in that we have healthy, beautiful children. All I want is this new baby to be healthy and to have both parents.

The Graduate

Montre graduated from 8th grade this year. Brian and I are so proud of him. Not only is he smart and athletic, but he is also considerate of others and motivated. He will be heading to Westinghouse College Prep in Chicago. He will be playing football and possibly baseball. We know he will do great things in the future and I can't wait to see it all happen.

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Kiara's Month of May

Kiara was born in a unique way. I think that was a sign about my baby girl's future because she continues to be a unique and shining light. About a month before my due date of May 18, we found out during a routine ultrasound that she was breech. Instead of following nature and turning head down, she stayed head up. My doctors thought that she might turn on her own, and because she was estimated to be over 8 pounds, they didn't want to try to manually turn her. I was fine with that. We scheduled a c-section for a week earlier on Thursday, May 11, 2006.

On the day of her birth, we arrived at the hospital bright and early at 6:30 a.m. They took me to a triage room and did another ultrasound to confirm she was breech. And she was. Then, they wheeled me into my room and we waited till they were ready for the surgery. I went into the operating room by myself so they could do the epidural. A few minutes later Brian joined me. I couldn't see anything that was happening to me. I could feel tugging and pulling but had to rely on Brian to tell me what was happening. Kiara was pulled out by one leg then they started pulling out her butt. At this point the doctor said that the baby had a big butt and Brian replied, "Like her mother!" The doctor then had to cut a longer incision so Kiara could come out the rest of the way. I remember there was a long silence after they pulled her out. I didn't hear any crying right away. All I saw was the nurses whisk her to the table. Brian said they cleaned her off and then I heard the most lovely sound, the wail of my beautiful newborn baby girl. They wrapped her up and then brought her near me so I could see her chubby little face. I was in love. Kiara weighed a whooping 9 lbs 11 oz and measured 23 inches. She didn't have much hair but you could see a little red tint to the hair that was there. I don't think I put her down for the next year. I remember not wanting to share her with anyone.

This year Kiara turned 5 years old. Kiara reminded us about her birthday for about a month. She kept asking how many days til her birthday. Finally with a week left, we received a daily reminder of her upcoming birthday and Kiara even suggested we don't forget to buy her a gift. I can't blame the girl. I always thought birthdays were special and might have annoyed my own parents with birthday reminders. On her 5th birthday, she had to go to a doctor's appointment but then got to pick out cupcakes to bring to her classmates. Later in the day she had a t-ball game to attend. Her coaches were so thoughtful and bought her some balloons. After a quick game due to lightning, we came home and celebrated her birthday with an ice cream cake.

Kiara wanted a princess birthday party and I planned one with a company I found online called My Party Princess. Kiara and her family and friends had a wonderful time dressing up as princesses. The girls played games, had a fashion show, and ended the afternoon with a tea party complete with a birthday cake. Kiara looked beautiful and she shined bright that day.

A few weeks later, Kiara had her graduation ceremony from Pre-Kindergarten. She attended a wrap-around care preschool program so thankfully they scheduled the ceremony at 7:00 p.m. for all the working parents. Kiara and her classmates performed 3 songs and then received their diplomas. Kiara's smile was ear to ear as she received her diploma. I was so excited to see Kiara graduate but also a little sad that my little girl is growing up. I know Kiara has great things in her future, but letting go can be hard.

This has been a big month for Kiara. I am so proud to be her mother and watch the beautiful person she has become both inside and out. She will always be my unique little girl with the curly red hair, bright blue eyes, and dimples. I wouldn't trade her for the world!

Tech Savvy 8 Year Old

We recently gave Evelina her own cell phone. Our old phone contract was up and we were changing carriers already. Overall, we wanted a way to contact her when she is at her mom's house. Evelina loves texting and has already sent text messages to some of her friends. Unfortunately, most of Evelina's friends don't have cell phones yet so the friends have to use a parent's phone or a home phone to talk. That hasn't stopped Evelina from communicating. When checking her phone, this is one of the conversations I found:

8353: Your message was successfully delivered...

Evelina: Thanks

8353: Your message was successfully delivered...

Evelina: Who is this and why did you send the same thing again

8353: Your message was successfully delivered...

Evelina: What

8353 Your message was successfully delivered...

Evelina: Are you Sprint I'm Evelina and I'm 8 years old I don't understand this text message


I laughed when reading her replies to an automatically generated message. Her innocence and curiousity made me smile. It was also a good teaching point to inform her about the importance of phone safety and not sharing her information with strangers. It's crazy to think my 8 year old has her own phone, but it's also reassuring to know she can contact us whenever she wants and no matter who she is with.

Lenin Loves.....Food!

Lenin's love for food has been apparent since he was first born. At 5 months, he would try to steal his brother and sisters ice cream. At daycare, the teachers have to hold Lenin until lunch is done being set up. They serve the food family style and Lenin is alway trying to sneak to the table to eat before set up is done. He learned the sign language symbol for "more" when he was about 9 months old and now he shouts, "moh, moh" when he wants some more food.

Here are some food moments I've caught in the past couple of months:

All smiles before we eat at recent meal.

Lenin is all hands when enjoying his meal in March.

Working on table manners in February. 

Lenin finds a bag of marshmallows in December.

Waiting for food at Thanksgiving.

  

Enjoying a donut during one of the girls' cheerleading games in October.





Enjoying dessert for Evelina's birthday.



Eating bread at the kids' baseball banquet in August.



You Can Cook

I don't think I'll ever be known for my housewife duties. For whatever reason, I was meant to work outside the home. I love my house and I love my kids, but our little triad only works well when I am away for about 8 hours a day. I love the summer vacation that teaching gives me too, but I'm also very glad to go back to work in September. I'm very good at going to school, writing papers, working with others, and being a teacher. One of the reasons I don't think I'll ever get the "Wife of the Year" award is my lackluster desire to cook. When I was living on my own after college, I think my daily fare consisted of macaroni and cheese, rice with butter and soy sauce, noodles with butter, and my favorite, take-out. Don't get me wrong, I could follow a recipe and make a great dish, but those times were few and far between. I can try to blame my mom and dad for not involving me in meal preparation, but really the fault lies in me. I think I was born without the oooh-let's-look-in-the-cabinet-and-see-what-I-can whip-up gene, instead I have I-don't-see-anything simple-to-make-let's-order-pizza-tonight gene.

Unfortunately (or fortunately), I now have a husband and a house full of kids and eating out with a family of 7 kills the monthly budget. I have begrudgingly learned to make a few dishes outside the normal heat, boil, and serve routine. I make a pretty good lasagna and I've upped my rice and butter recipe by adding a vegetable stir-fry with baked drumsticks. Recently, I even made a delicious potato soup. I guess what I learned is when push comes to shove, I will do what needs to be done and sometimes I do it pretty well! I can cook and you can too!

Lenin's 1st Haircut

Brian and I finally decided to cut Lenin's hair. We love Lenin's curls, but whenever he slept on it or put on a hat, the curls would get flattened and what was left was a crazy head of long hair.  He had also been mistakened for a girl many times and really I was just ready to have it cut. He now has a big boy haircut to match his big boy attitude. Lenin doesn't want to sit in his high chair anymore, he wants to sit at the table like a big kid. He also sleeps on a cot at his new daycare and wants to feed himself like a big boy. It's kind of sad that he is growing up so fast, but I also love watching him gain confidence as he becomes more independent.

We went to a $5 haircut place close to the house. Brian refused to spend anymore on such a little head of hair. Lenin sat right down on the chair and let the lady cut away. The lady kept a little length on the top so hopefully it will still curl after a bath. I also grabbed a lock of hair for the scrapbook. It's amazing how grown up Lenin looks with his haircut. He is quite the handsome boy.

Next thing to go will be his evening breastfeeding and that pacifier....

And They Call It Puppy Love

We spent New Year's Eve with friends of ours who happen to have a dog, a yellow lab named Wrigley. Lenin hasn't been around dogs too much, so we weren't sure how he was going to react. To our surprise, Lenin was in puppy love by the end of the night. He wanted to lay on the dog and touch the dog. Lenin even got upset if Wrigley turned his head away for a second. Luckily for us, Wrigley is a very patient and loving dog and didn't mind all the attention from Lenin. We ended up spending the night there and Wrigley even decided to join Brian, Lenin, and I on the full size bed we were sharing for the night. It was definitely a cuddlefest. Seeing Lenin and Wrigley interacting made me want to get a dog....for about a split second. Then I remembered the dogs come with a lot of responsibilities and a lot of hair! Maybe when the kids are older and we can delegate doggy responsibilities, but until then we will have to settle for the dogs owned by our friends and family.