Torta What?

Shortly after M was born I noticed she had a preference for one side, meaning she liked to sleep facing that way, lay facing that way, and eat facing that way. She can go the other way just fine, but really likes that side best. When I brought it up to the pedi at her 2 month well check, he said that most babies are born with some "preference" because of the way there were in utero. He checked her range of motion in her neck (she does have full range) and said she was fine. As the weeks and months passed I knew it something more than that. Something in my gut told me it just wasn't right...that this was more than just a preference.

So last week I made an appointment with the doc last week to have her check out again. And well, always trust your gut because it turns out that little M has a mild case of Torticollis. Torta what? Tort-a-call-is. Also known as a head tilt.

He did emphasize that it is mild, because she does have a full range of motion and can voluntarily turn her head the other direction without a problem. He described the problem to me as try and think if you had a pulled muscles on one part of your leg, when you go to walk, your going to use the side that feels better, its not that you cant use the other side, its just that that one side feels better so thats what your going to use first. That's how it is with the muscles in her neck. She has a right tilt, meaning her head is tilted slightly to the right and she prefers to look left.

To fix the issue she will start with some physical therapy to help strengthen and stretch that muscle out so she will become more comfortable on that side. They will teach us some simple stretches to do at home to help her along. The Pedi also said that tummy time for tort babies is crucial. The more the better because it forces them to strengthen their neck muscles, and lot of times in some mild cases as they start crawling it can straighten out its own. To be proactive we are going to start PT though, and I want to get started right away. Problem is that all in are area are booked out and the soonest we can get in is June 27th! Crap!

Tomorrow my mission is to try and beg and plead to get her seen sooner somewhere, that way we can at least start with some stretching at home. Funny thing is, is that I am really not that worried about it. I know it's mild, and that we are going to take care of it. I was telling some friends that if this was my first I would have been freaking out! But being a second time mom now, I am calmer and my mothering instincts are stronger now. I know my little baby will be fine.

M and her great grandfather (taken on my iphone)

I Eat Fingers For Dinner

Me and my mom were crackin up! She could not get enough of that finger! Funny stuff...

I Might Be Dying

From bleeding to death.

First postpartum cycle: 34 days

Second postpartum cycle: 32 days

Third postpartum cycle: 20 days

Forth postpartum cycle: 16 days

and a whole 14 days later I am on my period again!! Why are my cycles getting shorter and shorter? A 14-16 day cycle is not normal. I went form having extremely long cycles pre baby, to a period every 2 weeks?! She will be 5 months on Tuesday, I never breast fed, so you'd think I would have regulated by now. I'm not sure what to think, or if I should call my OB?

Even though I love my uterus because it carried a nice healthy baby to term, I am pretty sure it doesn't like me. At All.

Sweet Sisters

Kay loves to read to little M before bed, so sweet. These are the things I used to dream of...

Hope everyone has a safe and fun Memorial Day Weekend!

xoxo

It Seems Like Just Yesterday...

I wrote this post and sent my little baby off to kindergarten. Remember how scared she was? It was heartbreaking...

Now here we are at Kindergarten graduation...I cant believe it!

It just blows me away that her first year of school is over. She had a great year and I am SO SO proud of her! She has learned so much over this last year. She's learning to read, is really excelling math (she loves loves math, she will sit and do math problems for hours on her own this kid!), and has learned so much about the world and how things work. It truly is amazing to see how much she has learned and grown these last 10 months.

I can also honestly say that she had the BEST teacher on the planet!! This woman was born to be a kindergarten teacher. She relates to those kids in such an amazing way, and is truly gifted in ways I never knew imaginable when it comes to working with children. Kay now cries because she wont get to see her everyday anymore, but knows she has to move on up to first grade. It's bittersweet. We'll miss Mrs. W!

I now have a 1st grader!!? Really!?!

Everyday.

Everyday I tell my kids I love them. Everyday I tell Kay that she is my favorite person in the world. Everyday I ask her if she will be my best friend forever, even when she gets older, and everyday she says yes. Everyday I thank god for allowing me to experience motherhood again. And everyday I think of those that cant.

Everyday I look into their sweet eyes and wonder how I ever got so lucky. Everyday I realize that my children are a true blessing, not a right. Everyday, even when they drive me crazy, I don't take a second of them for granted. Everyday their smiles and laughs bring a tear to my eyes. Everyday I want them to feel special in some way. And everyday I wonder if they know how much I love them.

Seriously. Everyday.

Wordless Wednesday

Whatch you talkin' bout Willis?

Then last week I captured this tender moment between sisters....it brought a tear to my eye...

Until someone got hurt...

Sittin' Pretty

Yes, that is the baby I just had practicing sitting up all by herself. Sigh. Really now, someone make it stop!

Can You Really Do It All?

My answer, yes. But you cant live to blog about it :)

But really, can you do it all? And I guess what I am really asking is can you do it all and not feel overwhelmed?

Now that I am not so sure about.

Recently I have piled quite a bit more on my plate. I try and think I can do it all. I had this very conversation with my husband last week. He sees me running around constantly and thinks I am stretching myself too thin. Running around like a chicken with my head cut off from the gym, to the office, to school, to the baby, back to school, to a meeting, to swim lessons, to a party, to dance, to the office, to the grocery store, you get the drift. This is my life. There are simply not enough hours in the day to accomplish everything I need to.

As if I didn't have enough to do, I was elected to be the treasurer of the PTO (parent teacher organization) at Kay's school. I accepted, so I am now a member of "the board" which has much more responsibilities that just volunteering. Boy was I in for a big surprise! I though the PTO was a group of moms, getting involved in their children's school activities. WRONG! PTO is a non profit LLC that is in charge of every extra curricular activity and every school function they have. It is run like a business, they file tax returns, have to follow strict guidelines, and are a real organization....not just a group of moms like I thought. PTO is in charge of so many important things. But honestly I had no idea what I was getting into. I thought it would just take up a little of my time until I was in a 3 hour budget meeting with the Principal last week. Whew. I will now be in charge on handling all the teacher reimbursement, monthly budget reports, and keeping everyone and everything on budget. What the fuck was I thinking!? (btw, I just have to add how funny I think it is that I, yes me the impulse spender, is in charge of ANYONE's budget...bwhahahahaha!)

Did I mention I also have a real job? Yes, I get to work from home, and yes it is part time and I can set my own hours, but I do work and have responsibilities that I cant ignore. My job duties include handling all of our A/R, A/P, taxes, payroll, and HR for our business. Even though my office is at home, we do in fact have a office warehouse where our employees are, so I do have to go in a couple times a week to check on things. But since having little M that has proved to be nearly impossible. It seems like I cant get anything done between the two of them!

By now you might be asking how can I manage to do all this with a infant? Well now that's impossible people! I cant do half the things I am supposed to do between feedings and naps, so I went and got my very own Nanny McPhee! Yep. I hired a part time nanny to come 2 days a week so I can get some work done, spent some time at the office, and at school. Is that cheating in the doing it all scenario? Nanny McPhee is older, has nannied for 22 years, and made me feel very comfortable with her from the start. She was a referral from a friend, so that made me feel better too. She has only been with us 2 days so far, but I like her a lot. It is hard to let anyone other than myself care for my children (especially the baby) but how else can I expect to get any thing (work related) done?! And I have to remind myself that it's only 2 days per week...

So here I am trying to do it all. I do feel a little overwhelmed, but part of me wants to see if I can do it all. I may fail miserably. I may not. I may surprise myself and be super mom after all. But don't hold your breath.

Oh and in case you were wondering, it took me 3 days to write this post! I've been so busy : P But school is out Thursay (which is also B day!) so hopefully things will calm down for a bit.

My Brown Eyed Girl?

I thought Kay would have brown eyes, without a doubt!! Both her bio father and I have brown eyes and he is Filipino! So we were totally surprised after she was born as we watched her eyes change into this beautiful crystal blue color by the time she was 8 weeks old. Turns out she got a recessive gene, both her grandfathers had blue eyes and she got lucky. We only had a 6% change to have a child with a eye color other than brown, and well she was one of those 6 %. They are so beautiful!

So when I got pg with M, I thought for sure this one will have brown eyes. I will finally have my brown eyed girl! But fast ward to now and M's eyes still aren't a color. I totally expect her eyes to be brown (again we both have brown eyes), but wondering when they will change? They are a little brown right around the pupil, and then the rest is a dark murky green. They defiantly aren't going to be blue because at this stage Kay's eyes were already very blue. It's funny because some days you look and think okay, they are defiantly turning brown, and then the next day you look and think they might be hazel, and then the next day you have no idea in hell what color they are gonna be! Bottom line, they still aren't a color yet....you cant really tell in this pic, but I'll post it anyways :)

Not brown, not green, not hazel, just a dark mixture of all of the above. Can you go through your life without a definite eye color? I am just dying to know what box she will check!

House Projects

Like I didn't have enough going on right now, I went ahead added a few new house projects to the mix! These are things I have been meaning to do for a while, but have been putting off. Mainly because I have been SO busy, but I went ahead and bit the bullet.

First, a large photo collage on one of the walls in our living room!

I went to IKEA and got a bunch of black matted frames in varying sizes to start my project. I placed them on the floor in the arrangement that I wanted, but realized once you go to put them on the wall that's a whole other story! So, we cut construction paper out the same size as the frames and taped them to the wall mirroring the pattern we liked on the floor. Problem solved!

We could easily move and play around with the frame placement without worry. What a great idea that was! In the end, I still need a few extra frames to make it complete. But now I have the daunting task of actually choosing and printing the pictures for all these frames! It's so hard to decide, but I am working on it little by little. It is a little overwhelming to be honest.

I also am working on putting all the finishing touches on M's nursery.

The room has been done for a while now, but it was never "finished". It still needs a rug, curtains (it does have nice white wood blinds already), and some wall decor. I have now hung her pink mirror and the framed picture that was in my room as a young girl (I refinished the frame) . In addition, since that wall is so long, I added 2 long white photo ledges on either side of the picture with some white matted picture frames in varying sizes. It looks great!! I am very happy how it turned out. But again, I still need to chose and print the photos for her room too.

Although I have so much going on and this probably wasn't the best timing to start (or finish?) all this, I am already feeling relived that these little projects will get done one day!

Pictures to come once I pull it all together : )

Wordless Wednesday

M in her new exercsaucer

Kay on the computer

The beautiful huge brussels sprouts I got in my Bountiful Basket this week

And here's Little M again....Enough of the hairbows already Mom :)

The "B" Word

I hate even saying the B word. Most people think the B word at my age is completely inappropriate, ridiculous, and un called for. They think I am crazy for even thinking about the B word right now. Yeah, I get it....it's a little crazy, but then the other high maintenance side of me thinks that the B word is in fact necessary at my age! My blog is in fact titled "Tales From a High Maintenance Mother of Two" in case you hadnt noticed...

Enough of the innuendos already....so exactly am I talking about here?


Botox.

There, I said it. I am 27 (28 in August) and am going to get Botox for the first time next Thursday. See now you can hop on the "Lisa you are nuts" bandwagon. Or maybe your like me and wont :) No, I don't need botox right now, nor do I really have wrinkles yet. But at this rate I will have a nice fat one right in between my eyebrows!! I squint a lot, and in fact now I am starting to notice that even when I'm not squinting I can see the line. The idea of getting Botox in your late 20's is to in fact PREVENT you from getting wrinkles. I don't want to wake up one day, have tons of wrinkles and then go get botox...I don't want to get them in the first place! It's simply preventative measure at this point.

I am a little nervous, but mostly excited to see the results. I don't want to be completely frozen or end up looking like creepy post op Heidi Montag by any means. I just want to get a teeny tiny bit to help prevent wrinkles in the places where they will be most prominent. I am getting the very minimal treatment done.

If any of you have ever had Botox please share your experiences!! I will be sure to post some before/after pics too!

Meal Planning Monday

Here's whats for dinner at my house this week:

• Spicy Tofu and Green Bean Stir fry served with Brown Rice- my own recipe
• Caprese-style Stuffed Chicken Rolls (from the June issue of Rachael Ray magazine) with Roasted Brussels Sprouts and a Garden Salad.
• Grilled Wasabi-Honey Shrimp (also in the June issue of Rachel Ray magazine) and Veggie Kabobs
• Chicken (Lite) Ceasar Pita's- my own recipe
• Salmon with Asian BBQ Sauce- Kay's Fav!! Served with Brown Rice and Broccoli.

Feel free to drop a comment or email me if you want more info!

Making Baby Food

I am one step closer to becoming a domestic goddess I tell you, because yesterday morning when I saw 2 beautiful butternut squashes in my Bountiful Basket pick up, I knew exactly what I was going to do with them. Make baby food! Sure, little M wont be eating solids for another month or two, but this way I can have a little stock built up for when she does start. The food co-op thing makes it a lot easier too with the large assortment of fruits and veggies each week and some that I wouldn't normally buy (like butternut squash!). I hopped on the computer this morning to find out how to tackle the squash and found this website . It tells you everything you need to know about making baby food, storing it, preparing it etc. So once the babes was taking her morning nap I got busy.

First I cut the squash squash length wise and scooped out the seeds...

then you place them flesh side down in a baking dish with about 1-2 inches of water...

and bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes or until shell/skin looks puckery and turns a darker tan.

After it cooled a bit, I scooped squash “meat” out of the shell and into a large bowl...

and used my trusty hand mixer to puree it.

and since I know this will be one of her first foods, I kept adding some of the cooking water little by little until it was a nice smooth, thin consistency.

Then I placed the squash puree into ice cube trays and stuck them in the freezer for a few hours.

After they were frozen solid, I emptied the tray and put the cubes in a freezer bag with the date and use by date, you know because I suck terribly at math. Even elementary math, so I how I ended up doing bookkeeping/financial work is way beyond me. Anyways, this is perfect because each cube is a 1 oz. serving and I can just take and thaw as we go!

I am pretty proud of myself and it was so easy! If I can do it, anyone can!

Next up: Applesauce! I have been getting a bag of apples each week with the co op. And although we eat them regularly we have a lot left over!

And for my baby food makin' momma's, please feel free to share your favorite websites/books/and recipes! I'd love to hear them.

Bath Time

Bath time with Miss M is such a special time for me. It's just me and her, in the quite warm bathroom. She calmly stares into my eyes and kicks her little feet around while I talk to her. Sometimes she talks back, and sometimes she just stares. It's a very peaceful time for both of us, almost a little mini break at the days end. I really enjoy that little quite time we get to spend together. Just me and her.

After we get all bundled up and she gets her jammies on, we go get Kay and all hell breaks loose again :)

Bath time is a little more dramatic eventful with her. She's at that age where she has found her independence and wants to exercise it! So even though most nights she wont let me help her wash her hair anymore (and therefore always has conditioner still left in her hair when she gets out) and it drives me crazy, I have to stop and remind myself that she's just navigating her way to becoming a independent little young lady and doesnt always need her mommy now.

The Secret (or not so secret) World of Play Groups

Finding the right play group is like going on a blind date, your never quite sure how its going to go or what your going to get until you get there. The truth of the matter is, it can be difficult! The group has to fit you and your lifestyle. Obviously a group centered around mommies being green, cloth diapering, and exclusively breast feeding is not going to be for me (although I don't see anything wrong with any of those things). They would think I flew straight out of hell with my pampers (with dry max!), fake boobs, and formula! What I really want is to surround myself with a diverse group of moms, with like minded values and in the same age bracket as me. Over the years I have found that some groups are very political, with a president, VP, etc. and expect you to be just as dedicated to it as they are, some groups will drop you if you don't go to X amount of play dates per month, some are invite only, some aren't welcoming of children outside their groups age bracket, some groups meet too much, some not enough, and did I mention that some are chatty? yes, very very chatty. It's brutal out there people!

I joined my first play group with Kay when she was about 6 months old. It started off as a story time/play hour our local library, then as we all became friends we kept it going and took turns hosting play dates and had meet ups at the park, that sort of thing. I was introduced to the "playgroup world" and it was fun!Then I met my husband and we moved across town, so I had to find a new group. I did, and we are still going strong! Our kids are all school aged children now, so our play dates are less often now; but summers, spring break, and holidays we always get together. It's a great group of woman and I get along with all of them well, and the funny thing is that almost all the kids are GIRLS! So I am set there...but now I'd like to find a group of mommies with babies for me and Miss M.

At this age it is more about interacting with other moms with children around the same age, and a way to meet new friends, and less about "playing". As they grow it evolves into something they really enjoy. They get a chance to socialize, make friends, learn how to interact with others, and visit new places. I simply cant imagine having kids and not belonging to SOME sort of play group. And since I am fortunate enough to work from home part time, I want to get out of the house and build relationships for myself. I have met almost ALL of my current friends because of Kay!

So now I'm putting myself out there on the play group market again! I have already been researching some groups in my area, now it's just time to get out there and meet up with some of them and see which one fits us best.

Wordless Wednesday

Meal Planning Monday

I know, I know I haven't posted one of these in a while. Its because I haven't been meal planning in advance the past few weeks and boy does it makes dinner time challenging. So I'm back to Meal Planning Mondays! You know I've been doing the food co-op thing for the past few weeks, so I have been planning meals incorporating those ingredients. I picked up my basket again this week, but they also offered an "Italian pack" for an additional $ 7.50. It included a eggplant, 2 zucchini squash, 1 big white onion, 1 small yellow onion, garlic, mushrooms, and TONS of fresh herbs!! I love cooking with fresh herbs, but they can get pricey. So I was thrilled when I say flat leaf parsley, oregano, basil, and fresh rosemary. Heaven!

Here is a pic of all my produce from this week's Bountiful Basket.

Here is this week's meal plan:

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Roasted Vegetable Ragu- I will also add my eggplant to this reciepe.

Shrimp Fajitas

Sweet Potato Crock Pot Chili- I try to make crock pot or other easy meals on my busiest days during the week, this one is interesting so we'll see how it turns out.

Spinach Stuffed Shells

I Finally Gave In

And joined Twitter.

Go ahead...laugh if you want to. I know I am really one of the few on the planet that hasn't already done so. But for the longest time I just couldn't imagine adding something else to the mix. I already frequent Facebook, the bump, another board, and I blog. So keeping up with something else seemed like a task. But I finally gave in and now I need friends!

Why now you ask? Well honestly there is so much more I want to share with you all that doesn't really deserve an entire blog post. Take last night for example; I was simultaneously baby wearing, cooking that also involved a grill, and drinking a little vino. I'm am pretty sure in some book somewhere it says not to do that. Plus there are so many more pictures I would like to share!

So if you want to join in on the insanity that is my day to day life, click the box below to follow me on twitter...gawd I cant believe I'm even saying that...but I look forward to following some of you too!

Happy Mother's Day

On this Mothers Day I want to thank my babies. I want to thank them for allowing me to experience the true meaning of life, for giving me purpose, and for showing me what real happiness is.

So to Kay & M, Thank you for allowing me to be your mother. I am truly the luckiest woman on the planet. I love you more than you will ever know. You are my best friends!

And to my mother, thank you for all you've done for me! No matter what, you've been there for me, whether wrong or right. You gave me life and I cant imagine my life without you!

And to all the woman out there still struggling to become a mother, I hope this is the last year you will have to endure mothers day with empty arms. Hopefully by next year year, your hearts will be full. I am thinking of you all today.

Belly Laughs

Little M just started laughing this week! It is the cutest thing ever. She laughs when I tickle her, and at her sister which is even cuter!! Just hearing her little laugh makes me so incredibly happy, it just instantly fills me with joy! How could you not smile when you see this?

4 Months

Oh wow polka dots! I love polka dots...

Okay, are we done yet?

I am about a week late posting this, but I wanted to wait until we went to her 4 month well check to get her stats. My little babes is 4 months old now! She is learning new things and growing more everyday! This was the first time after vaccines she ran a low grade fever, but she is happy and in good spirits today. The pedi said we could starts solids anytime between now and 6 months, but for that babies at 4 months of age formula or breast milk is still usually sufficient. So unless becomes ravenous, or starts to show more readiness signs, we are going to wait another month or two before we introduce solids. Well that and because I can bear the thought of her growing up ; )

- She weighs 13 lbs. 6 oz. (50th percentile), is 24 inches long (50th percentile), and her head is a whopping 16 3/4 (90th percentile!) Wowza! Kay had a big head too, but never 90th percentile!

- She eats 5-6 oz. every 3-4 hours during the day.

- She still STTN, sleeping from 8-8:30pm to 6:30-7:00 am. She goes down awake in her crib, I turn on her seahorse, give her a binky and within 10 min. she's out. No fuss, no muss.

- She is still in size 1 diapers.

- She really gets around! She can roll from her back to her stomach, but has only gone the other way once. Usually when I go in her room to get her in the mornings she is on her stomach. She rolls, and wiggles and cant be trusted to stay in one spot now. If you put her on her play mat, within 5 min. she's on the carpet somewhere.

- She wakes up and talkes to herself, she never cries in the mornings. She'll just babble and babble.

- I think we might be teething. She is drooling constantly and EVERYTHING goes in her mouth.

- She is becoming "socially aware" as my pedi called it. She will cry at a unfamiliar face that she doesn't like. (She cried every time she looked at my grandpa this past weekend, and cried when she looked at the pedi yesterday).

- She's found her feet! And even puts them in her mouth from time to time.

- She JUST started laughing this week...like real belly laughs!

- She loves: her Cindy doll, Sophie, bath time, rolling around on her play mat, chewing on stuff, and her feet, specifically her left one.

- She hates: being cradled, her sister smothering her, being on her tummy (for the most part), and getting in her car seat.

If At First You Dont Succeed

Every year of my adult life I have tried to garden (not even really garden just plant a few flowers for christ sake!) and every year I fail miserably. I defiantly was not born with a green thumb- more like a black thumb. I kill everything. I mean everything. Even the things they say are low maintenance end up dying after a month or so in my company. But I never give up! Every year I make a new attempt at gardening, hoping that maybe just maybe this will be the time that whatever I plant will flourish.

See, it always starts out great. I water everyday, give them plenty of sunlight, I talk to them and beg them not to die, and promise them that I will do better this time (because your supposed to talk to your plants right?!). I do it all! I really do try! Then all of a sudden its like watching a plane crash in slow motion and it all goes down hill. Soooo they die.

So here I am again...another year older, attempting to keep something other than myself, husband, or children alive. I think I keep trying because I really want to be able to grow things, and at this point it is almost like a challenge. So the other day I picked up some potting soil and headed on my merry way.

This year my victims are a early girl tomato's and sweet basil. I really wanted to plant some Italian flat leaf parsley because I cook with that all the time, but they were out...

Kay had a 1/2 day at school today, so while little M was napping we got to work. She had so much fun "gardening".

 

And here it is, all planted. Mr. Tomato Head, that's what we named him.

And here we are hoping, wishing, and praying we can keep it alive. Daddy was laughing at us.

How long will it survive? Now that I don't know.

But I promise you, I am really going to try my hardest to keep him alive!! I want this to work for once!