We Made It!!!

Yes folks, Jeremiah and I finally made it to Disneyland today! I am (almost) the proud first-time owner of a Disneyland pass. Almost? How does that work? Well, it just so happens that when I went to pay for my pass today, I realized that my poor debit card was sitting at home, by my computer, having just paid some bills online. However, thanks to miraculously having enough cash on me to purchase a two-fer ticket (where you visit one park one day and go to the other park for free next time, within a month) and some new policies (which I still don't understand completely), I am able to put the $ I paid for my two-fer ticket towards my season pass when I return to go to California Adventure. The only loss from today was the $ I paid for parking. Had I been able to pay for my season pass today, the $12 (yes $12- it costs more to park your car at Disney than to watch a movie!) I paid for parking would have gone towards my parking pass. Now I have to pay for it again. A small price for absentmindedness.

I woke up around 6:00 this morning, after Jeremiah's first morning sippy (where he goes back to bed for another hour or so) and scoured the weather reports on the news and online. It appeared that the rain that was supposed to come around noon was going to hold off until 3:00 minimum. I really (and I mean REALLY) wanted to get out of the house today (and go to Disneyland!) so I decided to arrive at Disneyland around an hour before it opened (which was 10:00) so that I'd have enough time to purchase my pass and get a few hours in before possible sprinkles hit. It couldn't have worked out better. We had less than 5 minutes of rain the whole time I was there, and when I decided that we did enough Disneyland for the day, it was still warm and semi-cloudy. The gush of rain has yet to fall. God is Good!!

Needless to say, Jeremiah and I had a wonderful time today. The only difficult part about braving Disneyland by yourself with a 13 1/2 month old is getting on and off the merry go round. I was rather leery of having Jeremiah sit by himself on it, even if I was holding him while I stood, so we had to ride together. It was quite difficult to get on and off the darn horse but I did. Twice. The crowds weren't horrible; we went on tons of rides, some twice. The only ride we didn't make it on that I wanted to was Nemo; the line was nearly half an hour long by the time we made it over there. I really feel that Jeremiah and I made up for all the lost time between us from the past few weeks of chaos and sadness. We were with each other the whole day, and if he wasn't in his stroller he was in my arms. I love that little guy so much. We had a ball. His favorite ride this time was Dumbo and his favorite character was Tigger. I can't wait to take him back; Michelle and I might take the boys next week. If not... well I'm going to take Jeremiah myself again! I really want to make the most out of the slower season before it gets crowded with spring breakers and summer vacationers. Besides, I"m definitely not a fan of going to theme parks in extreme heat conditions. This weather was perfect. Enjoy some photos of today!

Dumbo

TeacupsJer Jer and Mommy
Tigger

Jeremiah made some new friends

Will We EVER Make It??? =(

I swear, it must not be in the cards for Jeremiah and I to make it to Disneyland and get a pass. This will be the third week in a row that I have planned on taking him and it most likely will not happen. Two weeks ago I was going to go with Michelle and Braden, but then Braden got sick and I found out I was pregnant. Last Friday.... well you know what happened. I was planning on taking Jeremiah tomorrow or Thursday until I saw the weather report for Wednesday -RAIN. For the rest of the week. When I saw the weather report on Monday I planned on taking him today, until my mom reminded me that I had my doctor's appointment today. I'm hoping the rain will let up by Friday... if it doesn't I'm going to go nuts! I need some sort of positive distraction right now. Marissa was going to meet up with us at Downtown Disney to have lunch when she got off of work on Thursday, but now we're going to have to move our lunch to somewhere else. Unless it's pouring, and I can't take Jeremiah out at all.

I've missed my son terribly lately. Between his weekend at my parent's house last weekend and various doctors appointments left and right, I feel like I've barely seen him. He learned how to say "grandma" (Amma!) and "grandpa" (Abba!) last weekend. Very loudly and very strongly, and directed at the right people. All we have to do is pull into their driveway now and he starts shouting those names from the rooftops. My lil guy is growing up. And just tonight he figured out how to fill his drippy cup with water in the bathtub and watch it drip out (although most of it tips out). Tomorrow I want to teach him how to color. He's at that wonderful age where he's like a sponge and I can't wait to put my teaching skills to good use on him. He absolutely adores it when I sing the ABC song, and this song where I count to 20 to the tune of "Brother John." They're tied with the Itsy Bitsy spider for his favorite. Now if only he would sit still for a story... at least he loves to go through big board books on his own.

As far as everything else... I can tell that this pain just isn't going to go away as quickly as I thought it would (or thought it did). I thought I was over it... until I got to the doctor's office today, and realized that the nurse I was on the phone with all day on Friday didn't put it in my charts what happened and I had to tell my OB why I was back after only a week, and stop the nurse that weighed me and took my vitals from double checking my due date. Between that and being locked up in a waiting room full of pregnant women (half of them being teenage girls confirming a pregnancy or receiving prenatal care), I almost started crying several times. However I was able to hold it in until I got home. I'm going to have to be careful to control my emotions and my temper. I can tell I'm getting rather snappy with Louis, going off for the smallest things. I let the person in the drive-through at McDonalds have it tonight (granted they were really rude to me first!) and I think they got a silent revenge on me by not putting the lid on my soda on properly, and half of my soda wound up in my lap on the drive home.

Anyway, Louis is on his way home. We're going to cuddle up and watch a movie. Anything to distract me right now is a blessing. By the way... even though I didn't cast a vote for Obama today, I felt really proud that he is our president when I was listening to/watching the coverage today. I can't wait to see those girls grow up the next few years and see what God has in store for this country. Goodnight!

With apologies

To those faithful readers who do check in every day, I'm sorry I haven't been around much this past week. I have had a lot on my plate lately with helping my mom out at her shop, Jeremiah, pregnancy... and something else. I'm not broadcasting this all over Myspace or Facebook, but since I did mention on here that I was pregnant, I guess I have to announce that I had a miscarriage on Friday. No, it's not something I really want to talk about, but Louis and I are both doing alright (emotionally, or as alright as to be expected- we've come to terms with it but it's still sad) and I am doing okay physically, pending a trip to see my OB tomorrow. We are also looking forward to trying again sometime in the near future. Thank you to all of our family and friends who knew what was going on and were praying for us. We know that God has a plan for our family and feel very confident that our family is not done growing yet.

So, since I obviously didn't make it to Disneyland on Friday, (God had his hand in that one, too- I don't know what I would have done if I were alone at Disneyland with Jeremiah when my miscarriage happened!) I am going to try and take him one day this week. Rain is in the forecast for Wednesday and Thursday, but my mom thinks that it's not supposed to rain until the evening on Wed. Hopefully I will get our trip in during the morning; if not then Friday. And on Saturday, I have the pleasure of going bridesmaids dress shopping with my soon-to-be sister, Lindsey! All 7 of us bridesmaids are meeting with Lindsey at Davids Bridal to fight for (er.... graciously choose!) which dress we each want to wear for the wedding. All of us get to wear whatever dress we want, as long as it's floor length and in her choice of color, preferably with each of us wearing a different dress. Lindsey is truly a girl after my own heart- I had 8 bridesmaids, she had 7.

To be honest... I'm not really in the mood to blog tonight; I just noticed that I had a request for an update and I'm more than happy to oblige. Louis and I just got back from treating my parents and brother to dinner in honor of my dad's birthday (Happy birthday, dad!) at this wonderful Japanese restraunt, and as soon as I can pry him in from his cave, we are going to watch "The Secret Life of the American Teenager." Yes, he is still anxious to watch it every week, despite what he said before the season premire. Check back soon, and perhaps I will include some pictures! Those are highly overdue. Goodnight!

It's Back!

American Idol was Jeremiah's favorite show last year. There were a few nights towards the end of the season (pre-crying it out days) where he would be up around 9:30 pm and would NOT go back to bed. An hour of watching American Idol on our projector did the trick! He was mesmerized; he LOVED the music, and went to sleep peacefully afterwards. Tonight is the premire and I"m watching it as I write this. I'm not personally a fan of the whole audition process; I like it when the competition gets serious, maybe around the final 8 or so.

Anyway, today I had my first official prenatal appointment. I met my new OB/GYN and I love her to pieces! She's so patient, takes her time to let me think about questions rather than rushing me in and out, and was a heck of a lot gentler with the initial internal examination than my other OB! She changed my due date by one day to September 4th. So far it's looking like our baby could be sharing a birthday with several people. My friend Ashmi's birthday is September 4th; my grandma Arlene's birthday was September 7, grandma Sally's birthday is Sept. 14, and my brother's birthday (and parent's anniversary!) is Sept. 15. Somewhere in the midst of all this is my uncle Ken's birthday, Lindsey's mother's birthday, and I believe her father shares Joe's birthday as well. All I had done today was the internal examination (pap), but I go back in 4 weeks to hopefully hear the heartbeat. My dr. didn't even try to listen for it today; I believe at 6.5 weeks it is still too early.

I'm still hungry (more like famished!) nearly all day long. I don't want to use pregnancy as an excuse to eat like a pig, so I've been making sure I'm just eating regular meals with a few small snacks and plenty of fluids. I'm way hungrier this time around than I was with Jeremiah. Tomorrow I'm going to Trader Joe's to stock up on lots of yummy (and healthy) pregnancy snacks.

And on Friday... I'm getting my very first Disneyland pass! I was debating on whether or not to get it any more once I found out I was pregnant, but it dawned on me that this will be my last time to get one for a while. I don't want to take a newborn to Disneyland with a two year old (next year!), and not only will walking around Disneyland provide me with lots of exersize, it will be a good way for Jeremiah and I to have some really good quality time before he becomes a big brother. And bond even more with his buddy, Braden! I'm so glad Michelle has a pass as well; we're going to have the most awesome playdates. Louis refuses to get a pass... and is pretty against me getting one, but I'm putting my foot down on it =)

Anyway, back to American Idol. Goodnight and thanks for reading!

September 5, 2009

That's right, Jeremiah is going to be a big brother- I'm PREGNANT! I'm so excited I can hardly stand it. I found out on Wednesday night(the 8th), and even though it has been a work in progress for a while, it was still somewhat of a surprise to find out that indeed, I was pregnant. I took a test on New Years day and it came up negative, but when a week went by and still nothing was happening, I figured I'd better test again. I was praying it was positive because, of course, I wanted another child, but also because I was hoping that my sudden chocolate obsession was normal. I wanted choclate 24/7. I was even dreaming of chocolate, believe it or not. I polished off a piece of molten chocolate cake last Saturday in a matter of minutes, and scarfed down an entire half-pound box of Sees candy, by myself, in less than an hour. I didn't have food cravings like this with Jeremiah. Now that I know I'm pregnant, I'm staying away from the chocolate- because, no matter how much I may want it, I want tons of post-pregnancy baggage even less.

That's not the only thing that is different with my pregnancy this time around. My reaction alone to seeing the positive pregnancy test was a big one. When I found out I was expecting Jeremiah, I yelled out a big "OH SHIT!" upon reading the pregnancy test, even though it was a work in progress as well. I was scared out of my mind finding out that we were indeed going to be parents and my life was about to change forever. I was up until 4 a.m. that night, panicking and worrying, and didn't even feel the least bit excited until the following day when we got a doctor's pregnancy confirmation and estimated due date. This time? I'm surprised Louis's friend, who was working in our garage when I took my test, didn't hear my screams of joy. Louis wasn't home at the time, so I ran into Jeremiah's room, screaming in elation, and telling him over and over "you're going to be a big brother!" Poor guy must have thought I was nuts. I was so excited that it was a miracle that Jeremiah was fed, bathed and put to bed without a hitch. Louis didn't come home until a few hours later, and when he did, his cousin Monique was with him, wanting a little bit of girl time with me. Ironically enough, she mentioned that night that she thought we should start trying for another kid so they would be close in age. I bit my tongue- hard! Finally, she left and I had Louis go find the "present" that Jeremiah and I bought him at Target on our pillow- the positive test. Just like when I told him I was preggers with Jeremiah, he was THRILLED and instantly swept me off my feet. We told the family the following day. I purchased a "Big Brother" shirt for Jeremiah at Babies r Us and let our moms read it and try to figure it out. Needless to say, everyone's excited. Our kiddos are going to be 21 months apart!

I went to the doctor's on Friday to start my bloodwork and paper work (medical history, etc.) I am using a different OB/GYN this time around, because the one we had before is in West Covina, and since we now live in Whittier, it is pointless to drive 30-40 min. each way for appointments and the delivery. We have a fantastic hospital just blocks from our house. In fact, I can see it from our yard, and that is where we are going to deliver Baby #2 (Whittier Presbyterian). I get to meet my OB on Tuesday when I go in for my physical. I heard that she's a woman (YAY! no more 85 year old man looking at me!!!) and is very, very sweet. She won't be delivering my baby because she works out of the other (crappier, from what the nurse told me) hospital in Whittier, but the nurse also said that the doctor who will deliver me also comes highly reccomended. The office I'm going to is the same office that I take Jeremiah for his pedi appointments. It's going to be a bit of a challenge to find a sitter for him during my appt's, since my mom is half an hour away and both Louis and his mother work late. I'm praying that Monique will be able to watch him during my appointments because her house is right down the street from the office.

Okay, before I completely bore you with my pregnancy excitement, I'm going to say that, once again, we will NOT be finding out the gender of our baby. I could go either way on the issue, but Louis loves being surprised. In all honesty, it was a lot of fun with Jeremiah, even though that motherly intuition told me towards the end that he was a boy. PRAY for a girl!!! I'd be happy with a son, but I would LOVE a daughter. Thanks for reading and sharing in our exciting news!!

Tune in tomorrow...

.... for a BIG post!

♥, Me!

New TV tonight, yeah!

Last summer there was nothing good on TV. Nothing. Thus, I resorted to watching two shows that, under normal circumstances, I would not waste my time with.

Show #1- The Bachelor(ette)

Previously I had not watched the show for more than an episode or two per season, usually right around the finale time. I thought it was pointless and lame. However, once all the good shows ended (American Idol, Survivor, Law and Order SVU), Marissa convinced me to watch the Bachelorette with her. I admit it, I was hooked. We even threw a party for the two of us the night of the finale. Tonight the show starts up again, with the guy pictured above (Jason, the rejected bachelor from this summer's "Bachelorette," my personal favorite!) as the new Bachelor. Marissa isn't able to come over tonight to watch the two hour premire with me, so she is coming over tomorrow night. Lemon herb roast chicken, mashed potatoes, broccoli, and a wonderful friend that I haven't seen since the beginning of December- should make for a great evening!

Show #2: "The Secret Life of the American Teenager"

Another show that, had there been no other options, I would not have previously wasted my time with. A high school drama involving a freshman getting pregnant after a one night stand, meeting a new guy and falling in love, having loser friends and a cheating father. Why would I, someone that has been out of college for nearly 8 years, and is happily married with a perfectly legitimate baby of my own, watch this? After one episode I was hooked. As was my husband, who happened to be in the room with me when I turned it on. (This was a major shock to me!) We spent the summer counting down to "Secret Life" night and now it's coming back again tonight. ABC Family was running a marathon yesterday of Season One, and Louis claims that this show was way lamer than he remembered and wants nothing to do with it now, but we'll see what happens =)

Tomorrow one of Louis's high school best friends is moving back out to southern California from Denver. The last time we saw him was 2 1/2 years ago when we went to Denver for Shiloh and Ryan's wedding. I believe that was the only time Louis has seen Mando since their graduation in 2000, because Mando joined the military not too long after graduation, and moved to Denver following his (less than honorable) discharge. He's beyond excited to have his friend back, and I believe all of their old group are going bar hopping on Friday night. That just means I get to have a girls night =)