A New Year and Already no Time for Breaks

It’s a new year and we’ve been extremely busy since day 1.

After 5 ½ months of taking care of Wyatt, I went back to work right after the New Year and Wyatt started going to daycare. It was tough…but being busy with my new assignment helped a lot. He enjoys daycare so much and it helps get through the day knowing that.

So we moved into the new house at the end of last year but can’t say we are fully settled in. The main things have been put in place but we still have a 2 car garage loaded with boxes and other items that need a home. Ugh. We are NOT looking forward to tackling that. :( We have done a few things around the house but had to put ‘settling in’ aside to focus on getting the old house ready to put on the market. We still had many things left to move from the old house to the new house and had a list of ‘to do’ items before listing it. But at the new house, my handyman (Brent) installed a fence to keep the dogs in the backyard (I am so proud of him!). He also installed all of the cabinet pulls and knobs in the kitchen and bathrooms…which was a chore but we were very thankful once the job was done. I broke all of my nails because of the opening and pulling without any knobs or pulls. :( Wyatt even helped…he is going to be very handy someday! He tagged along as Brent was getting things done around the house. He really enjoyed helping put up the valances in his own room. We also bought some gas logs for the fireplace, which Brent installed himself, and had a few opportunities to enjoy the warmth during those cold days! Slowly but surely…we’re getting things done.



Brent drove over to the cabin in Colorado in the early part of the month to get some snowboarding in this season. It was a very short trip. When he arrived, there was no heat in the cabin. The propane tank was completely empty and it was a Friday night so chances of getting it filled over a weekend were not looking good. That night was a very cold night indeed and on Saturday, he decided to head back to Houston (he must have missed us). At least he was able to try out the new split board at Wolf Creek so it was somewhat worthwhile. He got some great shots during the trip. The one of Edie running towards him is so awesome. She loves the snow! We will be going back to the cabin in March sometime so we’ll definitely be more prepared this time around! I've already got my snowboard boots and helmet! Yay! In the first picture below, Brent is getting his split board ready for the trip as Wyatt looks on. He just loves to be involved!!!



Wyatt did very well with cereal last month so I knew it was time for more solids when he kept asking for more. We started him on veggies at the beginning of the month and he continues to eat like a champ. He makes the funniest faces when he tries a new veggie but he eventually eats the whole thing. In fact, he eats anything we give him (he must take after me!! Haha). So far, he’s tried squash, carrots, sweet potatoes, and for fruits, we’ve given him applesauce and bananas. He is soooo happy. We are definitely enjoying this stage. He still loves his bouncy swing…as well as the dogs. :) But Molly won’t even acknowledge him (just look at her in the picture below). I think she’s still mad because she is no longer getting the attention she once had. :( I understand.



So you’ll notice he's sitting up very good now. He was toppling over in the beginning of the month but by mid-month, he had it down. His two bottom teeth are also coming in pretty strong. You’ll notice them in one of the close-up pictures below. And of course, I just had to include a picture of his pouty face. I am sure he was just tired of mommy taking pictures. :) He really likes bath time now. We now give him a bath in the tub since he can sit up. He forgets about us the minute we put him in there. He is so captivated with the water and his toys. I hope he’s going to enjoy swimming this summer!!



We took Wyatt to Cedar Creek for the first time this month. It was such a nice day and we needed to get out and enjoy it. Everyone there took turns holding him and he got a few chuckles from them when he kept wanting to put his toes in his mouth. While he puts everything in his mouth these days, it is quite funny to watch him put his cute little toes in there. We tell him to enjoy it since he won’t be that flexible forever. LOL.



Our little Wyatt made 6 months on Jan. 22nd. At his checkup he weighed 17lbs 4 oz and was 27 ½ inches long. He is in the 50% for weight and 80% for length. He grows out of his clothes so quickly because of his length. I am sure he will be wearing 9 months clothing pretty soon!! We did get portraits taken for this milestone. Thankfully, he was sitting up by then so we were able to get some really good shots.




At the end of the month we scheduled another date night...this time, we actually had to pay for a babysitter. :( Our first time! To ease things a bit on all of us, we asked one of the ladies from the daycare that we already know and that knows Wyatt very well to babysit. She takes care of him in the afternoons so mommy felt very comfortable leaving him with her for a few hours. So, Brent and I finally had a nice sushi dinner (we had been craving it FOREVER!) and then we headed to the Warehouse downtown to watch Brent's favorite band - Yo La Tengo (great show!). He even bought a shirt and got the courage to ask the lead singer to autograph it! Thanks Ira!




Hopefully we'll have the old house on the market pretty soon so we can finally relax and put our focus somewhere else. Next month is going to be very exciting with the family in town for Wyatt's baptism! Stay tuned! :)

Goodbye 2009 and Thank You!

The year 2009 was full of many blessings for us. In the beginning of the year, we purchased a cabin in Colorado, in the middle of the year, we celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary and then had Wyatt, and at the end of the year, we purchased a new home in Houston. Wow. We were definitely busy! Thank you 2009….we look forward to many more blessings in the future!

December was the fastest month ever…at least for me. I knew my ‘stay at home mom’ stint was coming to an end and with the holidays, I knew it was going to be over before I knew it! And boy was it!

We started Wyatt on solids earlier this month…specifically, rice cereal. He wasn’t too sure about it at first and the first few feedings were a challenge but he managed the change very well (eventually) and is now eating cereal like a champ! He is eating both rice and oatmeal cereal twice a day now. Soon we will start him on veggies. Looking forward to squash! Maybe he isn’t, but I am! Haha.



Another great event we had the chance to experience this month…snow in Houston!!! Yep! On December 4th to be exact. We definitely had a lot more than last year. This time it stuck long enough for us to enjoy it. There was still snow on the ground when we woke up the next morning! Yay for freezing temps!



I took Wyatt to the mall for the obligatory Santa pic. I had been dreading this. I mean, who wants to stand in line for hours and hours (thinking of A Christmas Story here) just to get a picture with a guy who barely looks like the real Santa??? But boy did we luck out. I went during the week right before lunchtime. We walked right up to the front (no line). Mind you, Wyatt was still sleeping when we got there so I had to take him out of his car seat and wake him up. He was so distracted with the decorations and music that he didn’t have a chance to cry. And the Santa was just perfect. We sat him on his lap, mommy made a few funny faces, and here is the result:



This month, I also experienced my first evening without Wyatt. We went to New Braunfels/Gruene for the Partner’s Christmas party. Good times. It was hard to leave him but I know he was in good hands with his aunt and cousin (thanks Meche and Aidan!). Aidan enjoyed spending time with his cousin. I couldn’t bear being without him for 2 nights so I decided to meet everyone out there on Saturday. So I drove 3 hours (very early mind you) on Saturday morning to take a 4 hour nap with my hubby (it was either that or play golf in the rain). Haha. We were just so exhausted and had to take advantage to catch up on our sleep. But that evening we definitely enjoyed ourselves…we started out with a white elephant gift exchange (great gifts btw!!), followed by a lovely dinner at the Green River Grill and then headed back to the bed and breakfast where we were staying (Gruene Apple Inn) and hung out/played games (shuffle board, air hockey, pool) with the others. I think we made it until about 1:00 am that night. I think. :)



To ease the transition of me going back to work and Wyatt going to daycare, we decided to do a trial run this month. We took Wyatt to daycare for a week so it wouldn’t be so hard for him (let’s face it, for me!) when I go back to work. I am glad we did this. The first day was so hard. I cried the minute I got back in the car. But I was a trooper…I let him stay there and I drove away. I have a great husband…he brought me flowers that evening. :) So I took him to daycare everyday for one whole week and I was extremely happy at the end of every day when I picked him up. Thankfully, he really enjoyed it and was a very happy baby. It helped knowing he was happy during the day.

We spent Wyatt’s First Christmas in Gonzales, LA at my sister’s house. My mom and her husband drove from Miami and my brother also joined us. It was nice not to have to fly anywhere. But we just enjoyed spending time with the family. We also played Jenga and dominoes, drank, roasted a pig (well, the guys did), ate lots of great food (thanks mom!), drank, opened presents (of course!), watched football and A Christmas Story, and did I mention we drank too? :)The adults opened gifts on Christmas Eve and the kids just loved to help us! We were thrilled that Brent’s parents sent us our Christmas stockings to have with us (thanks Bill and Jeanie!). How thoughtful! On Christmas morning, Wyatt fell asleep right when we sat down to open gifts (the kids’ turn!). Go figure. So we opened his gifts for him although he woke up from time to time. He did play with a few of his new toys later on. And my nephews got really nice gifts also! They definitely enjoyed the motorcycle bikes their Tio Marco got them. :) As I mentioned, the guys roasted a pig one of the days we were there. They woke up bright and early in the freezing morning to get started. Too bad they all ended up getting sick a couple of days later. :( But the pig was yummy! Thanks for your effort guys! Oh, and in case you were wondering, kissing the pig is tradition. :) That’s my mom in the pic.





And during all of this…we managed to find and purchase a house. The house is not very far from where we were (~2 miles north of the other house). It’s a little bigger and was recently renovated. Best of all, it’s in a cul-de-sac so that’s a plus for when Wyatt is old enough to play. It still only has 3 bedrooms but it also has a study and the kitchen is amazing. We moved in just yesterday and it seems like we still have a long way to go before we get settled in! It’s not easy doing it with a 5 month old! But thankfully my mom and her husband drove over from Louisiana to help out. They were SOOOOO helpful (thanks mom and Noel! Couldn’t have done what we did without you!). Now we just need to finish getting everything out of the old house and get it ready to place it on the market sometime next month. We need to get rid of some property! We’ll post some pics of the new house next month but here is one of the kitchen and another of I am with Wyatt, my mom, and my brother toasting!




And the year is now coming to an end. And what a way to come to an end…Wyatt got his first tooth today!!!! No wonder he’s been cranky. LOL. He also started sitting up a couple of days ago (tripod position…see below). So he’ll be sitting up much better pretty soon. And he’s rolling around like there’s no tomorrow. Our little boy is growing up way too fast. A few more favorite pics from this month: Falling asleep on his bouncy swing, taking a bath, with daddy after a bath, with mommy, and our Christmas card family pic.




Happy New Year!!! I'm done writing (for now at least)!

We are thankful for our family

This past month was all about spending time with family. From our trip to Miami, to Brent's birthday, and then finally, Thanksgiving in Weimar, we definitely didn't neglect the family. :)

Wyatt's first Halloween was very low key. We decided not to dress him up (I know, how boring are we??) but we'll make up for it next year, I promise! We just stayed home and watched college football that night (surprised?). At least he dressed festive. :) But one noteworthy development...Wyatt giggled for the first time on Halloween morning. We were in his room and I was changing his diaper and getting him dressed for the day and there it was...full blown giggle. There was no mistake. Brent and I just looked at each other...kinda like...did you hear that?? It made our day. We can't get enough of it now.



For Brent's birthday, Brent's family came over and the birthday boy grilled some steaks for all of us. Yes, we put him to work. Ha Ha. But the grandparents enjoyed little Wyatt and we enjoyed steaks, wine, and brownies. It was a good time. Thank you guys for coming over and making it extra special!!



November was also about Wyatt trying new things and just continuing to discover his hands and toes. He has really changed in the past 4 weeks. It's amazing the difference we see every single day. We started to let him practice the sitting position by sitting him in a bebePod. He likes it for about 5 minutes and then he screams bloody murder (like 'get me out of here!!'). Lol. We also bought him an ExerSaucer so he's been getting used to that. He gets bored of it after about 10 minutes since he can't reach everything yet...but at least he seems to like it sometimes. He also officially rolled over from his tummy to his back. He hates to be on his tummy so it has been a struggle to get him to practice this maneuver but he finally did it. He still doesn't like it very much but I make him do it. Yes, I am evil mom. :) NOT! Brent also got him to start sitting in his swing thingy. Our friends gave us one so we thought we'd give it a try. He wasn't sure about it at first but everyday, he gets more and more used to it. I think he kinda likes it....as long as he gets to munch on his fingers.



Wyatt and I flew to Miami for a few days earlier in the month to spend time with Abuela and Abuelo and also meet Titi Naty and his cousin, Luly. Luis had already met him when he was born so they just got reacquainted. My grandmother was also visiting from Puerto Rico so we got to see her as well. What a treat!!! She fell in love with Wyatt (of course!). After all, he was her newest great-grandchild. Overall, it was a really nice trip and they all enjoyed him very much (it's not about me anymore...at least I keep telling myself that!). :) He slept the entire flight back. Thankfully we had the entire row to ourselves so I didn't have to hold him the whole time.



Thanksgiving is always a great holiday. We were fortunate to spend it with Brent's family in Weimar. His grandparents and aunt were also there so we got plenty of family time in. Again, they all enjoyed Wyatt....even during his fussy times. :) Thanksgiving dinner was delicious. My favorite was the sweet potatoes...yummmm!!! We were all so full afterwards (it isn't Thanksgiving if you can't stuff yourself, right??). Anyway, during our time there, we tried to take some family shots (just the 3 of us) but I don't think we succeeded. We'll try again soon so we can have something for a Christmas card!!!



Looking forward to many more opportunities to spend time with our wonderful family!!! Christmas is next! Yay!