"I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month." ~Harlan Miller

Oh Christmas, how I love thee! What a wonderful holiday season it has been for our little family. It's been really fun introducing Sofia to various family members most recently.  We actually made it out to Uncle Kevin & Aunt Pam's annual Cookies with Santa Holiday Party, yay!  I was excited to get her all dolled up.

Sofia did really well on the drive up, considering she didn't sleep much during the day.  She was a little fussy at times during the party, but when it came to meeting Santa for the first time; she was all smiles.  It was adorable!

Lately I have been tickling her with my hair or the end of a scarf, and she just loves it.  So when Santa held her, she snuggled up right to his beard and started to smile.  She sure knows how to gather a crowd, hehe.

Christmas Eve ended up being crazy, as usual.  Both of our families always do our celebrations on the same night and it's always been challenging to split the time.  Boy oh boy, we left the house around 2pm and didn't get home until 10:30pm.  Baby girl did really well, considering. It did take her a few days to get back on a somewhat normal schedule though. It was really nice being able to spend Christmas morning with just the 3 of us.  Special shoutout to Michelle for hosting an awesome party with volleyball & to my parents for having such delicious homemade mexican food.  Aaaand for bringing us some Menudo. I love my mom's cookin!

We had a blast doing many photo opps with gifts and toys.

   

Yay for happy baby on Christmas morning!

I'm excited to create our own family traditions, like opening one gift on Christmas Eve: pj's! So much fun, what a splendid Christmas it was. Thank you to all our family & friends who spoiled our precious girl with gifts.

Here are the rest of her "festive" outfits of the week:

She is just too much fun to play dress up with! I'm also super excited to announce that she has passed another awesome milestone; rolling over!  It happened yesterday, right after an afternoon nap.  I heard her making noise and looked on the baby monitor and she was nowhere in sight!  Sure enough, I walk into her room and there she is lookin' at me all sheepish and happy (still half awake, I bet).  Just to make sure it wasn't a one time fluke, I put her on her belly and she rolled over again.  I grabbed my phone and recorded the 3rd one.

I emailed it to Rob & made him watch it while we were on the phone together. So awesome.  It's already making it easier when she wakes up in the morning.  Usually I can hear her stirring (on her belly) and I get up to flip her on her back to play for awhile.  This morning, however, I woke up to her cooing and she had rolled over on her back and was just playing around.  Who knows how long those shenanigans were going on! Haha. 

I *think* I've decided to move her to her crib full time in the next few weeks.  She takes all her daily naps in her crib, and after her 1 feeding around 2-3am, I put her in her crib until morning (unless she sleeps through the night) She sleeps better in her crib, so this mama needs to let go a little. Haha.

Here is her weekly pic:

I just can't believe how big she is getting.  I went & looked at her newborn pics/videos and was filled with so much emotion.  These past 2-3 months have been some of the best.  Challenging at times, but the reward is truly priceless.  I just love being a mommy to this precious little being.  She lights up my life and makes me want to be a better person.  Even if there is a temptation to get sucked into some of the drama that life tends to have, I try to remember that I want to be a good example to my daughter.  Easier said than done! Rule #1 Stay true to your word.  Even if others don't, sadly.

Postpartum Lex update: I've kinda fallen off the Insanity bandwagon, oops.  I could go through a few reasons why, but ultimately they are excuses.  I probably need to wake up early while she is still asleep for my workouts, at least for now.  Sofie hasn't been napping the same since Christmas Eve and there have been a few days I have had my workout clothes on for 5-6 hours waiting for my opportunity! c'est la vie. Just gotta stop talking about it and actually do it!  On a more positive note, I did awesome on my fit test.  Did about 8-10 more reps on each move, boom.  And I'm able to do a few real pushups now. Damn, I miss being in shape.  I lost 25 lbs once before, I can do it again. Yayyy!

Mmk, that's all for now.  Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and has a safe New Years Eve!

See ya next year! (ok, i know it's cheesy.)

Lex

"Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends."-1 Corinthians 13:7-8

Whoa December, slow down! CanNOT believe 2012 is almost over.  It doesn't seem too long ago that I was having a heart-to-heart with Rob about our struggle to become parents and the challenges we had already overcome, and still needed to.  I remember making my new year's resolution to leave it in God's hands and to just live my life. No more dwelling on the what if's of the past, or the what if's of the future. In order to do this, I decided to put together a mini ceremony for our 2 angel babies.  I printed the dates that will always be remembered, and included the following "Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends."-1 Corinthians 13:7-8. Forever in our hearts."  I told Rob I wanted to fold these up and put them inside 2 white balloons and release them into the sky.  The Sunday we decided to have our little ceremony came and it was "one of those days" that I was feeling more depressed than usual.  I think I stayed in bed as long as I could, and Rob secretly went to Party City and got the balloons for us.  This simple act brought me to tears and I knew that he believed in my strength to face this day.  I didn't feel ready to let them go, it's like I didn't want it to seem like I was forgetting their existence. Now I know, that would never happen.  Those 2 experiences and 16 months of wondering and praying have changed who I am and made me appreciate life so much more. Not only this, but it has truly made our marriage stronger and brought us closer than I imagined was possible.  He is my rock.

Sure enough, we got pregnant 2nd week of January. Everything is eventual.

Anyway, didn't mean to bring up the hard stuff.  I was just thinking about where I was in my life a year ago.  In an open grassy field, with Rob, releasing these balloons. Shedding a few tears as it started to sprinkle outside, it was such a beautiful Sunday morning. 

I feel so grateful for the blessings I have in my life.  It's not perfect by any means, but it's finding something positive in each challenge posed in front of you, that helps you endure.

Mmk, time to update happy baby moments!  It was really cute, I was talking to Rob last night and he says, "Are you documenting the new stuff that Sofie is doing???"  This was in reference to this last week, which we feel like has been a week of growing up for her. I said, "Whaddaya think my blog is for?!? Duh!"  Hahaha.  I just love how involved Rob is with our little girl. His face lights up when he sees her after being at work all day, it melts my heart. le sigh

So yeah, about that.  Now that she is awake a lot more during the day, she just loves her "play time".  This used to just mean looking around and smiling, cooing, and reaching.  Even when we first used her gym, she would kinda swing her arms and kick her legs around.  As of this last week, she is grabbing the toys in front of her.  Kung fu grip! She tries to pull it towards her.  We also noticed she has been using her left hand more, which is interesting! Rob's excited because apparently this could be dollar signs for her future as a professional athlete. With her genes, it's bound to happen.   Haha! We would also love her just as well if she was a klutz with no athletic ability, c'mon meow.

  
She really is growing up before our eyes (i know i say this all the time, but for realsies).  There has been less colic lately, more coos and way more playing. No more newborn "eat.sleep.repeat."  I love spending time playing with her while she tries to do new things.  Schedule is getting pretty good, she has slept through the night twice this week. I'm still not ready for her to go to her crib yet, hehe.  Probably next week, we shall see. 

One new, but not-so-awesome trend is not liking car rides or sometimes, being in her car seat in general *YIKES!*  This really poses a challenge for me.  5-10 minutes into the car ride, she gets pretty pissed.  I'm planning on getting some shades for the windows, so I can let her see more and possibly play with a toy or 2. Definitely put a damper on our Saturday evening plans.We were pretty excited about attending Uncle Will & Aunt Patti's Christmas party and then swinging by Bea's Ugly Sweater Party. As we went to drop off cupcakes that I baked for Bea's party, we realized it was not in the cards.  Not to mention, it was raining pretty damn hard.  The minute we left the house, she got upset and screamed the whole way there. Man oh man, wasn't gonna try that for another 30-45 minutes.  Long story short, she didn't even go to sleep until midnight! Talk about throwing her off her groove.  Hopefully we can make it to Uncle Kevin & Aunt Pam's party this weekend.  We really wanna introduce Sofia to everyone!

Today we had lotsa fun with our favorite preggers, Paulina. It was an official mommy initiation because the minute I handed her over, she had the biggest blowout I've ever experienced! Whoa mama!  Poor baby was brewing that one up for awhile.  It went all the way up her back, just after I got her dressed in a cute, festive outfit too! Haha.  Take 2, and she spits up on Paulina.  *facepalm* It's what you have to look forward to. It was too funny.

One last new, and absolutely adorable thing she has been doing is twirling her hair.  It's hilarious! When she goes down for a nap, or is waking up and is in a "half awake/asleep" type of stage.  She puts her hand back there and starts to pull or twirl her hair.  So freaking cute (Yes, I'm obsessed with my child)

 
 Post-partum Lex update:  I ended up taking 4 days off of Insanity (boo!), my cyst is doing much better though.  It was super sore and I had bruising all around it and was still squeezing tissue out. Sorry if that's TMI.  Poor Rob was helping squeeze it out and almost got nailed in the face.  He definitely gagged, haha.  Anyway. I'm playing catch up and am almost done with my 2nd week. I'm curious to see how I do on my fit test. Go team, Go!  

Mmk, that's all for this week.  I'm excited to share another picture of our little munchkin.  Since I went crazy with the Christmas onesies, I'll be able to dress her up every day this week until Christmas. Haha :D.   

Hope everyone enjoys this wonderful Christmas with their loved ones.  I know that we will, no matter what :)

Xoxo

Lex 

2 months old!

Ok, seriously?!  It's so true when *they* say that time flies and your babies grow up so fast.  In just 2 months, I have gotten to see our little love transform already! It's so fun to see her personality develop and to watch her learn new things.  She is doing amazing!

I'm happy to share that a routine has finally started to set itself.  Ever since we let her sleep on her belly, I only hafta get up once to feed her. *score!* She will typically sleep a long stretch(anywhere from 5-7 hours) get a good feeding and sometimes go right back to sleep for another 3-ish hours.  Other times, she plays for about 30 minutes and I hafta rock/bounce/pat-that-booty back to sleep.  Kinda sucks when I've been in a deep sleep myself, but I would rather do that than get up every 2-3 hours. There have been a handful of times she has slept through the entire night, so awesome.

When she wakes up in the morning, she is at her Sunday's best.  Very active, all smiles, and loves to coo.  I'm loving all the coos and enjoy having random conversations with her. She is usually up for about an hour, and likes to take 40 minute-1 hour nap right after.  This has been our every morning for the last 2 weeks, spot on.  During the day and evening can vary.  Some days she will only take 40 min naps at a time, other days she will take a 2-3 hour nap.  Keeps it interesting for me! Hehe.  As long as she sleeps like a champ at night, she can do what she wants in the day.

The dreaded 2 month appointment was this week. One word: vaccinations.  I know she has gotten some already, but that was at the hospital and this time she was getting 4 (1 was oral, thankfully).  I decided to get them all done versus spacing them out.  I know there is a lotta research behind this controversial topic, but my mommy instinct and my desire to not put her through another day of *possible* fever and fussiness took over.  She did so great! By the time the first needle was coming out, the confused expression turned into a scream.  The lady did it so quick, thankfully.  After I held baby Sofie close and whispered to her it was ok, she calmed down and fell asleep.  Poor babe.  She has been sleeping a lot more the last 2 days, but otherwise happy.  And no fever, Thank you God.  I still gave her extra cuddles, even though she was more interested in laying in her crib and watching her mobile. Haha.  Mama probably needed the cuddles more!

Here is her 2 month update:

And a few other pics from our little photo shoot.

This puts it into perspective for me, a side by side:

She has officially outgrown all her newborn clothing items. Even though she has gained a whole pound, she looks so much thinner, but definitely longer.  She'll always be my lil chunky monkey.

Of course I gotta include the weekly pic too!

Here are some cute faces she likes to make (usually first thing in the morning, hehe). I've noticed these last few weeks she has discovered the use of her eyebrows and it's hilarious.

Now that I have some sort of sanity in my life AKA sleep, I'm back to doing some artsy fartsy crafts, and made this super cute and easy headband holder.  Monica sent me the idea from Pinterest (of course). Made from an oatmeal bin, scrapbook paper, and my handy hot glue gun.

Aaaaaand, my other awesome friend, Ashleigh, inspired my holiday craft. Also using my handy hot glue gun, scrapbook paper and jute.

Yay for craft time!  Now if only I could get my dang office organized....haha.  That room has been a hot mess since we moved in, pretty much.  Oh wells!

Everyone always asks me "How has your dog reacted/dealt with a new baby?"  I'm proud to say that she has done awesome.  She was very curious at first, and now is protective of Sofia.  It's adorable, really.

You can also see that Sofia loves to play in her deluxe play gym.   Yay!  She gets so excited and interested in all the bright colors and sounds.  She coos a lot more and sometimes does this giddy, high-pitched shriek. Haha! So fun to see her actually do something besides eat.sleep.repeat ;)

Here she is completely mesmerized by her mobile that we finally got around to purchasing and installing:

Today my mom watched baby girl while I ran a few errands and enjoyed my adjustment/massage.  Mommy time is essential! Bre also came to hang out and brought little Rico as a surprise.  He misses his mama bear and made himself right at home, as usual.

I am so, so thankful my parents took him under their wing so I can still see him.  He is such a sweet boy!

Tidbit about post-partum Lex:  I've started Insanity and it is kicking my booty!  I can already feel the energy boost and my muscles coming back.  I took it easy the first week, and am in the middle of my 2nd week.  Had to take a few days off due to a stupid medical issue.  Long story short: I have a cyst in the middle of my chest (between the girls) and it got inflamed/infected and I had to get it cut open to drain. Boo!  Gonna test the waters tomorrow and make up for those 2 days.  Note to self: Need to get my eating habits right.  My candy bowl is almost gone and I hardly have any visitors, haha.  Oops!  Damn sweet tooth, :D

Welp, that's it for this addition. Really, really gonna try and update again soon.  Until then, here is a pic from this morning. I kiiiinda forgot to turn off the flash, bahaha!

Her hair has seriously grown!  It's pretty fabulous, if I do say so myself. Hehe

Xoxo

Lex

P.S.

I want to take a moment to send prayers of strength to the community of Newtown, CT.  What a senseless and horrific tragedy!  It's hard to fathom someone going to an elementary school to murder innocent children and school staff.  What a sick and deranged individual!  As a new parent, I can't even imagine the pain the parents of the 20 dead children are dealing with.  No parent should witness their own child pass before them. So sad :(