Blast from the past

Scotty ~ my favorite bartender!

Stac and Megan, being.....Stac and Megan

Mom and DJ sharing a big ole Margarita

I think he could pass for being Mexian, dont you?

The girls

Back in my single days I used to frequent Las Margaritas in Kirkland. Me and my girls would go there often because it was like we practically owned the joint. It was great, we could play our own cd's and the bartender, Scotty, would make us some nice strong drinks. Anyways, flash to present...a bunch of us went out for our friend Jamie's birthday a couple of weeks ago. We met up at her place in Issaquah then walked to the.....wait for it......wait for it.....local Las Margaritas! Where lol and behold my old pal Scotty is now the bartender at! We started off the night right with a few Scotty Specials which made our tummies all nice and warm inside. We then to the party to another local hang out for some karaoke, then called it a night. Time flew by and by the time I realized it it was already 2am! I really cant believe I lasted that long. Especially since I stopped drinking after Las Mas (since I was DD)

Thank you to Joss for watching Maya for the evening so we could go and have some fun with our Renton homies! ha!

A Maya Moment

Maya is definitely a Seattle girl! The other night I was carrying her up from the car and it was pouring down rain. I was trying to protect her from it but she kept squirming to get away from me. Since we were almost to the house and I need to get my keys out to open the door I freed one of my hands and stopped sheltering her from the rain. She instantly looked up in the sky and stuck out her tongue. All she wanted was to taste the rain. She had the biggest smile on her face. I thought it was a miserable, nasty, rainy day and Seattle and my little girl reminded me that any day with her is good. She makes me stop and realize the small things that bring me joy in this world. That is one of the many things I love about her.

She is also in LOVE with the show Hi-5! Have you ever heard of it? She is a girl after her Daddy's heart because all he watches is National Geographic and the History Channel and Hi-5 is on.....Discovery Kids! Ha! They are two peas in a pod I tell ya! Of course.....we captured the moment for all of you to enjoy as well.

Maya watching Hi-5

My two peas..in a pod! (look at Maya letting her gut just hang..ha!)

It is starting to get more and more difficult keeping up the tradition of taking a picture of Maya being weighed at every appointment!

Maya had her 12 month appointment yesterday!! I cant believe it has already been a year. WOW! It was a rough appointment. The poor thing has been waking up between 4-5am the last three weeks and it is taking a toll on all of us. So at her appointment she was getting sleeping (since she had been up since 5am) so we had sort of a hard time getting through it. She weighs 25 lbs 13 oz and is a little over 33 inches long (if I remember right?) In the picture DJ was holding her so the weight register is a little off. Right after we took her off the scale and she was safely in Daddy's arms she peed all over him. Oops! She is in the 97th percentile for height and weight and is off the charts in head circumference. She is hitting all her milestones plus some. She isn't quite walking but she is talking up a storm these days. She says "No, way!" and "You do it". Very advanced I might add. But she is still doesn't want to walk and many times isn't even interested in crawling. She likes to sit! ha! Here are some thing we are working on with Maya:

• Her waking up early (between 4am-5am) Somehow she has gotten off in her sleeping routine and all of us are feeling a little worn out. We are now "sleep training" her. We'll see how it goes. So far this morning....not so good!


• She has become a picky eater. Dr. Wu said it might just be a phase but to keep trying and introducing new fruits and vegetables. Right now she just likes anything with cheese...quesidillas, grilled cheese sandwich, pizza, etc. ~ it makes me cringe writing that because I want her to be a really healthy eater. We'll keep you posted on that as well


• Maya has been making this screeching sound when she wants our attention. It has got to be the most irritating noise I have ever heard. When you combine that with the lack of sleep you have two very grumpy parents. So..... we are to acknowledge her, tell her to stop making that noise, and then ignore the sound after that. We are not supposed to let her know that she is irritating us or that she in any way is getting more attention. This is quite hard and with my patience level right now I think this might be the most challenging thing for me out of everything.

Anyways, that about sums up her appointment. All I truly care about is the fact that she is a healthy, growing, smart little girl. We count our blessing every day. Bring on the sleepless nights, that does not compare to what other families are going through with their sick little ones. We are so grateful to have all that we do.

Happy Wednesday!

Daddy's Girl

This is my happy place.....

........does it get any better than this?

One Year Later.....

March 14, 2008 ~ Me and my baby girl

March 14th 2009

She hasnt slept in my arms for months now, but today she did for both DJ and I. Its like she knew that her Daddy and Mama needed this moment!

A year has pasted since the day Maya came into this world. I have enjoyed every second with her and I know every parent says this but man, time flew by. I could not ask for more in a child. Maya has given me such joy and taught me the art of being patient and selfless. She is so amazing it is truly hard to put the last year into words. A year ago we were at the hospital not knowing what to expect being new parents. We could have never even imagined what we were in store for. Maya is my life and she makes me a better person. Everyone she comes in contact with she makes them smile and happy. I don't know another person out there that has the effect that she does on people. I have cherished every single moment we have shared and all the ups and downs of the past year. I wouldn't trade it for anything. I am so lucky to have her and I feel so honored to be her mother. To Maya Jo....may we have many more happy years, I cant wait to watch and help you grow. I love you boo boo.

~ Mama

Arnies in Edmonds

Bawa and her grandbabies

Emma, Renee and Britty

Maya and Nikki ~ they definitely look related! :)

The Mima and Maya

Pres and DJ grubbin on some food

Our baby girl (she was pretty excited because we were the first to arrive!)

Mima treated the family to Arnie for brunch today! It was a beautiful day and we were all so happy to be together. The brunch was great, the food was awesome and the drinks were free! Who could ask for more, free Mimosa?? We all spent a much needed afternoon together and walked down by the water afterwards. It was a fabulous Sunday well spent.

She's finally crawling...well sort of.....

Maya is finally crawling! On Saturday morning DJ woke up with her and was playing with her in the living room. I was sleeping in because I have been battling this nasty cough and cold. Anyways, DJ came into the bedroom to wake me up and told me the news....MAYA'S CRAWLING!!!!! Finally, after 11 long months of waiting our little girls is finally on the move. It was her first time crawling so she is a little unstable so when you watch the video remember that! Ha! Anyways, I hope you enjoy and are as proud as we are of her recent accomplishment!

Maya's first bank account

Baby's first bank account

Auntie Britty opened Maya's first bank account the other day. We are now accepting donation for college, first car, shopping spree, etc. Just kidding! Of course I had to still capture the moment.

Vancouver

DJ and Grandma

My Dad and Maya after she warmed up a little to him

The boys in the park

Maya and Grandma Charlotte

Maya, Kaylyn and Nay Nay

We had a wonderful time down in Vancouver a few weekends ago. Me, DJ and Maya headed out after work on Friday night and had a really nice drive down there. We hit a little traffic on the way but not too bad. We stopped and gave Maya dinner and then our sweet angel slept the rest of the way down. Saturday we all woke up and headed to Starbucks. Our family took up most of the place! Then we went and visited Grandma then went to James restaurant to have lunch. Maya took an awesome morning nap which lasted until the afternoon so Autie Tay Tay stayed with her while we went to lunch. When we got back Nay Nay laid down and Maya woke up so I watched the girls while everyone else went to the park. It was a beautiful day to play outside. I didnt mind staying back though cause I got to have a good chat with my Aunt Gail and catch up since last summer when we were there. All of us then headed over to Grandma's for some Corn Chowder and home videos. DJ got to see me as a kid and I think we both agreed that is where Maya gets her "Ham-iness" from. I was quite the entertainer! When we got back from Grandma's we started up a poker game and Britt kicked all the guys butts!

Sunday morning we woke up and DJ cooked another awesome breakfast for everyone. After breakfast we said our goodbyes and headed back home. The whole weekend was so great and we had such a good time. Its so hard not being able to see this side of the family more often.

Maya was a little freaked out with my Dad, I think its his big face ..... just kidding! She actually ended up warming up to him towards the end of the weekend, but Maya loved my Grandma Charlotte. It was like she knew that she was her Great Grandma. She lunged to her to be held. It warmed my heart and I hope that Maya and her will have a close relationship for many years to come.

Here are some pictures that Carol took...they're awesome :

The whole family at Starbucks

Maya, Pappa and Nay Nay....Maya didnt want to say goodbye to Pappa

Pappa and Maya

Daddy and Maya ~ this is my FAVORITE picture!

Grandma, me and Maya before we left

Nay Nay, Pappa and Preston

Auntie Tay Tay with the babies