Easter 2011

I got so many great pictures through out Easter weekend so I am going to post a lot and I am not going to apologize because I love pictures!!

Easter weekend was fun, fun, fun.

The kids and I slept at my parent's house Friday night so we could make it to the Easter Egg Hunt in Santa Clara on Saturday morning. The egg hunt turned out terrific. It was not crowded at all and the kids were so CUTE!! Allie jumped right in and began filling her bag. AJ on the other hand, took a minute to get going. He walked out into the field and then just stood there looking around. I told him to start picking up candy and he looked down and said, "Is that the candy?" I said it was. So he picks one up and says, "Should I get this one?" I told him he could pick up ALL the candy and put it in his bag. So he starts picking some up and telling me, "Look Mom, this one is pink. This one is yellow..." I think he was confused because the candy was taffy and we (me) are chocolate people so they have never had taffy. When it was all said and done, they both got way too much candy.

Later, we colored Easter eggs at my mom's. I usually love the way our eggs turn out, but for some reason our colors were not too awesome this year, but it was fun to try and keep the kids from breaking eggs and mixing colors.

On Sunday morning, all 3 kids woke up early so the kids did the egg hunt and looked for their Easter baskets. This year the Easter Bunny left each of them a new church outfit on their chairs. He also hid a basket for each of them with another outfit, candy and a Book of Mormon.

We went to church and then after naps headed to my parent's where the Easter Bunny also hid some eggs and several gifts. The kids were excited to get more new clothes and some outdoor games.

I was really surprised how excited they were to find each egg. I think finding eggs was more exciting than finding the baskets.

9-Months

Today Anna is 9-Months! We decided to knock out her well visit while we were getting her rash checked on Monday. She weighed in at a little over 19 lbs (60%tile) and she is 28.5 inches (82%tile), so while she is still a big girl, she has slowed down a bit. I guess it is a combination of her hair and long body, but most people think she is a year old already. I even had an old lady ask me if she was 18 months and then a few weeks later a different old lady asked me if she was 2 years old. Both women were astonished when I told them she was only 8-months. I guess you really do forget what it is like the older you get.

The great news is that Anna's crazy rash is almost all the way gone. I am so happy she did not have to deal with that for 4 weeks! In addition:
Anna is a crawling machine. She goes all over the house-in and out of all the rooms. My favorite thing is when I am vacuuming she follows me into each room and then sits in the middle and watches me vacuum. The twins used to do this as well.
She can pull herself up on all sorts of stuff and from time to time will let go and balance for several seconds. The other day at the park she kept crawling up to my lap, pushing herself up and standing all by herself.
Her favorite things to say now are "AHH BOO!", "Boo-boo-boo", "OU" (like ouch without the "ch"). She also says mum, mama, dada, nana, baba (but I don't think she means any of it yet). She also growls and makes all sorts of deep throaty sounds.
She is starting to wave "bye-bye".
She L-O-V-E-S me. She wants me to hold her constantly. Since she has had this whole rash thing, she has been super cuddly and will lay her head on my shoulder and hug me. It is really sweet.
She is starting to have some anxiety around people she is not used to and will occasionally cry if someone looks at her the wrong way, but only occasionally.
She loves to eat and is happiest right after a good meal. She always wants the snacks that the big kids are eating. Right now she loves graham crackers and will get all excited and grabby when she sees them.
Still loves a good bath, sleeps great when she feels good and loves her brother and sister.

Allie and AJ are good too. They are getting so mouthy. I never anticipated back talking, but they have both mastered that.
Lately they live to ride bikes with their friends.



Brad pointed out to me the other night how well they articulate their thoughts. It is amazing that they can put together such complex sentences and express themselves so well.
Tonight Allie was brushing my hair and told me I looked like a beautiful horse.
Lately when given a choice like, "AJ do you want Life cereal or Chex?" He will say, "Lets go with Life." I think he must of picked up that phrase, "Lets go with..." from my dad.
AJ also likes to say, "Tear it up!" Alberto always tells him to "Tear it up" when he is doing stuff so now AJ will tell others to "Tear it up!" or he will ask, "Dad, did I tear it up?"
Allie talks and talks and talks lately. She will tell these crazy stories and likes to ask "Why" A LOT. She also copies what we say. Tonight she was playing a little game on the ipod and when it told her she earned a sticker she said, "What the hell?" Alberto and I were busting up (bad parenting, I know) then once we composed ourselves we talked to her about how that is not a nice thing to say.
Anna just loves playing with Allie and AJ and wants to be in on everything they are doing and they love her too, but often times they get really annoyed with her knocking there stuff down or ripping their papers. I think it is a good lesson for them in patience.

Seriously...

Remember my last post titled, "Sick of Sick"? Remember how I wrote about Anna being so fussy that day and that she was getting a tooth. Well deep down in my heart I knew it was probably not the tooth that was bothering her that day, but I wanted it to be just a tooth, so I went with it. Well later that day she started having a fever which never got too terribly high, but continued through the night along with the fussiness. The next morning I fed Anna breakfast and gave her the last dose of the antibiotic she had been taking for her most recent ear infection. After breakfast I went to change her diaper and noticed an intense rash around the top of her legs. I thought at first that I was the worst mom ever and had left her diaper on too long. Then with further inspection I noticed splotches on her thighs. Once I got her diaper changed, I pulled off her jammies and onesie to get her dressed for the day and found the same intense rash in her arm pits with splotches on her upper arms. I decided with this weird rash and a fever something was truly wrong with her and made an appointment with the Dr.
By the time we arrived at the office later that morning, the splotches were working there way up her neck and under her chin. While waiting for the Doctor (Nurse Practitioner) to come in, her ears turned red and began to swell and the splotches began to show up on her cheeks.
To make a long story shorter, after visiting with the NP she determined Anna was having an allergic reaction to the antibiotic or in other words she was breaking out in Hives. Weird considering she has had the same antibiotic before and she had finished the whole 10 days this time, but apparently it is possible. Although the NP felt quite sure that this is what was happening there was still some doubt due to the fever and the late reaction. So I left thinking in a day or two it would clear up. Unfortunately, this case of the Hives has just gotten worse and worse as the days go by. It was so bad Sunday night that we decided we needed to see our doctor for a second opinion. We took Anna in Monday (yesterday) morning to see Dr. Kaddu and he immediately knew that she had a condition called Erythema Multiforme. He said it can indeed be caused by a reaction to the antibiotic, but is more likely to be caused by a viral herpes infection (or the hand, foot and mouth she had only in her mouth). He assured us that it was scary to look at, but that she would be ok. The bad news is there is really nothing we can do for her and it could take up to 4 weeks to clear.
In addition to the nasty rash it also causes the skin to look bruised, itches and causes some swelling at the joints, which creates aching and discomfort. Here are some pictures of Anna over the last few days. Seriously these pictures look sad, but in real life it is so much worse.

Saturday


Sunday

Monday

Sick of Sick...

Allie and AJ were born in November. I remember being so worried about them getting sick as infants. I bundled them and tried to protect them from all the other germ infested children. Aside from one mild asthma-ish thing Allie contracted around 6-months, they both made it to a few weeks before turning a year old with no sickness. Not even colds. After turning a year it has been a different story, but I am proud to say they stayed well as tiny babies. My poor Baby Anna on the other hand has had too many colds to count since she joined our family and along with those colds she has had (in no particular order):
2 bouts of the croupe
Bronchiolitis
Hand, Foot and Mouth-only the mouth part though
and 2 ear infections-Allie and AJ have never had an ear infections so I was not prepared for how miserable those can be.
I feel so bad for her. This winter all 3 kids and myself just can't shake the colds. We get better for maybe 2 weeks and then it all starts over. I feel sad for all of them, but mostly Anna. I hope this will mean later on her immune system will be strong?? (I am trying to be positive).
We all just got over the most recent cold, and ear infection for Anna, and now she is getting her top teeth and boy-o-boy is she miserable. I just hate seeing such a happy girl feel so sad. I am really hoping they will break through soon because she needs a break.

These are the kinds of looks I get when I try to put her down today:

8-Months

Monday was Anna's 8-month mark!! She is so big, so fun and so BUSY!! She started crawling forward close to 2 weeks ago. When Alberto left for Brazil she was still crawling backwards and then about a day later, she figured it all out and she was off and going. I can't believe how proficient she is. She can make it all around the house and is into everything. I am not sure if she is really that much more busy than the twins were or just that we have that much stuff around the house to get into now!!

A few more facts:

• I am not sure how much she weighs, but I am pretty sure it is over 20lbs.




• She is able to pull herself up on many things and loves to stand up.




• She wakes up SO HAPPY and all she wants to do in the morning is play with Allie and AJ. Lately I can't get her to nurse or eat breakfast.




• She is still waking up once in the night, but I have decided we need to put an end to that in hopes of solving the no breakfast issue.




• She is still exclusively nursing (way to go me), but she is so distracted ALL THE TIME.




• She has started finger foods and prefers to feed herself when ever she can. It is really cute and she is really quite good at it.




• She has started screaming this really high pitched scream that hurts my ears, but I love it because I know it is her way of telling us how happy she is.




• She has become very fond of Nana.




• She throws a big fit when you take things from her.




• Lately, she bites. It is not nice.




• Still only 2 teeth.




• Thinks it is terribly funny when I am mad. The other day I was 'talking loudly' at the big kids and she sat there laughing and clapping like I was so funny.




• Her smile is to die for. She lights up the room with her smile and makes everyone around her happy.




• Likes to sit on her knees; it is so cute. Alberto's mom told me he used to sit like that all the time as well.




• Gives hugs, pats your back and I think she is starting to give kisses.




• Loves her bath.




• Poops nearly every time I put her in the car seat. I guess this is her way of telling me what she thinks of riding in the car seat :)




• She has started throwing her hands in the air like she is showing you how big something is.

Better late than never...

Christmas 2010 was wonderful for our little family. Of course the best gift was having Anna there to celebrate with us this year. Having the excitement of children is what makes Christmas the best time of the year. Some of the holiday fun included:
Making our first ever gingerbread house and then remaking it the next day after it fell down.
Listening to Christmas music and watching Christmas shows and movies
Making lots of Christmas cookies
Reading Christmas stories
Spending time with family

On Christmas Eve we went to Nana and Papa's house where we relaxed and had a great dinner. The kids opened the traditional Christmas Eve jammies.
Christmas morning we were surprised the all 3 kids slept in until their normal times. Allie and AJ came into our room and didn't believe that Santa came because he didn't come into their room and wake them up. When we took them out to the tree Allie said, "Hey, who brought all these presents?" It was pretty funny. Once they realized Santa really did come and that all these gifts were for them, they were thrilled.
Nana and Papa and the Uncles came over to watch the kids open presents then we ate a yummy breakfast.
Later that day we went back to Nana and Papa's to open more presents and have dinner. It was a great holiday.

PS-I just realized that I wrote 2011 on my picture collage, but obviously this was Christmas 2010 (just for my own future reference).

February Fun

Anna earlier today at my mom's house. She almost always has one sock off. Socks are her favorite toy. I can't wait until it is warm and I don't have to try to keep her socks on.

We went to Vegas last weekend just for a little get away. Uncle Wes took us to a place where we could watch the planes land. Allie and AJ loved it!

Alberto got an ipod for Christmas. Allie and AJ love to listen to books on the ipod. Shanaynay just loves a good snuggle.

Anna is now crawling backwards. We frequently find her stuck under furniture.

Earlier today at my mom's house. AJ got a new haircut and looks so handsome.

Alberto's mom came to visit at the beginning of February. We had some nice weather so we took her to Zion for a picnic and did a little hike.

AJ and his best buddy Mason at the Hidden Valley Park. We have had a few fun park days in the past few months. Although this winter has been long and cold (in my opinion) we are very blessed that our weather is nice enough to spend so much time outside even in the winter.

Allie and AJ at Hidden Valley Park.

Anna figuring out the crawling position at the park.

Anna enjoying prunes. YUM!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Happy Valentine's Day

I had big plans for taking the kids into town and surprising daddy at work with lunch and cookies and possibly decorating his car, then at 4:00 am he got called off; which of course was even more fun. Allie and AJ were so excited for Valentine's Day. They love holidays or any reason to celebrate.
We ended up going into town and getting lunch and then planned to take Nana a Valentine's Day surprise at work. However, she came home for lunch while we were at her house so we just gave her the surprise there.
We gave Allie and AJ some new markers and drawing paper. They have been busy creating all sorts of pictures and I am pretty sure Allie has already used up all her paper.
Valentine's Day was also Anna's 7-month mark. She is on the verge of crawling. Today she got up on her hands and knees about 5 different times. She gets so angry when ever she is working on this skill. I don't really want her to crawl on one hand, but on the other I wish she'd learn so she can relax a bit.
I can't believe how busy she is. She has to see everything that is going on and grab everything in sight. She loves to play with her toys and especially loves Allie and AJ. She can be all but asleep in the evenings and hear Alberto come home and she suddenly gets a second wind. He loves it. It sort of annoys me because I have to work to get her to re-focus on going to sleep and nursing.
Poor baby has been sick a lot over the last couple months. We keep getting these dumb colds. I feel so bad because the twins were never sick until they were about a year old and poor Anna has had the croup twice, bronchiolitis, an ear infection and a form of hand, foot and mouth where you only get it in your mouth, plus a couple little colds. She is just about over the most recent round of junk and I am hoping against hope that it has run its course and we can have a break for a while.
Between sickness and distractions, she is becoming a little stinker at feeding time.
She is turning into quite a copy cat. In addition to shaking her head "No" and clapping, she is trying to wave and will fake cough when she hears someone cough. She also does a little fake laugh at times and likes to try to make clicking and motorboat noises if you do them to her.
She has 2 little teeth on the bottom and still loves to feel them with her tongue. The last few days she has started sticking her tongue out and then curling the tip up. She does it constantly. It is pretty cute.
Anna still wakes up once in the wee hours to nurse and often times wakes up crying, but will usually put herself back to sleep fairly quickly.
Allie and AJ are fun and funny as ever. Alberto has introduced them to Capoeria, Brazilian martial arts, so now we spend most evenings looking up videos on line and watching the twins try out the moves. I actually don't mind it because in Capoeria they don't actually touch each other so its not violent. It is essentially dancing.
Allie and AJ still play really well together for the most part, but lately when they play with friends, it goes so much better if AJ has a buddy and Allie has a girlfriend over. It is funny how boys and girls just naturally play differently. Today AJ's "best buddy", Mason, was over all day. Poor Allie tries so hard to keep up with the 2 boys and get in on their "boy stuff", but she just gets frustrated and ends up sad. Luckily, her little friend Ayla invited her over to play dress up. Watching them grow and change is so interesting to me.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

One Beautiful Baby

Maybe I am partial, but I do believe Anna is the most beautiful baby around. Most of these pictures are from January. She was even sick in most of these and beautiful all the same. She has the most amazing big brown eyes and these gorgeous lashes. I truly don't know where they came from, but they definitely catch people's attention.

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