Christmas is almost here!!

It has become a family tradition to decorate our home the Saturday after Thanksgiving... this year was no different. As soon as we woke up we pulled out all of our Christmas boxes from the garage and got to work. The first part of the day, Nevaeh and I decorate inside while Jacob gets busy with the lights outside, that alone takes half of the day. The evening is spent decorating the tree, baking cookies and listening to wonderful holiday music. We had so much fun this year, even more than last year. I always think, "Nevaeh is so fun at this age... this is the best age EVER" until the next year when I think the exact same thing. Nevaeh had a great time attempting to put the ornaments on the tree and she couldn't wait to top the tree with the star.
Here is a glimpse...
**Please notice my daughter posing in the first picture**

Happy Halloween

Nevaeh had such a good Halloween!! She dressed up as a Chargers cheerleader. She had such a good time yelling her cheer that Elissa (my cheerleading niece) taught her. She looked so cute and at daddy's command she would yell "go Chargers"!! Gotta love it!

We didn't go trick or treating but we went to the harvest festival at our church, where there was rides, games, music and tons of food. Nevaeh really enjoyed looking at all of the costumes. When she saw little girls dressed up as Belle, Cinderella or Snow White she would yell, "hi princess". She also got to eat A LOT OF CANDY... she couldn't believe that every time she would ask for a piece we would just hand it over!! (Hey it was Halloween, we had to give in) Once she went to bed we threw all the candy away. I am hoping she will forget all about the candy in the morning!!

Any way, hope you all had a happy and safe Halloween!!

Jen

My birthday in Maui....

Our vacation was ridiculous!!! It was so much fun, we didn't want to come back! Our flight there was 5.5 hours long but only felt like 1 because we were just so excited to get there. The weather in Maui was just spectacular (a nice relief from the smoke filled air in S.D.) Our hotel was so perfect... it had penguins in the lobby!! The pool was huge, which included 2 waterfalls, a kids area, 2 water slides and it was on the beach!! 4 days just wasn't long enough. Nevaeh had such a good time, she was such a trooper and handled the time change very well (3 hour difference). We went to a luau and Nevaeh volunteered to dance on stage in front of many people. She loved dancing the hula so much that she cried when Jacob told her it was time to get off the stage!!
We lounged around most of the time, hung out by the pool, played on the beach and ATE!! Can't wait until next year so we can do it all over again!!

here are a few pictures...
1) Our first day there (getting ready for the pool)
2) Nevaeh ready for the luau
3) Cute couple on the beach
4) The view from our room
5) Our last night in Maui
6) Nevaeh's first luau performance

Why did I get married?

Because Jacob is the most compassionate, understanding, loving, sympathetic and passionate man I had ever met... and still is.
Last night, I went out to get the mail and along with the junk mail and bills there was an additional letter for me. I haven't received a letter since I was in high school!! Anyway, I opened up the envelope and I found an itinerary for HAWAII... yes HAWAII. Jacob surprised me and is taking the 3 of us to HAWAII for my birthday!! We are going to be there for 4 DAYS and I can't wait. I have been nagging him about Hawaii since the day we met 8 years ago but I never thought we would really go because it always seemed to expensive or just not the right time.
Well I will make sure to take tons of pictures of us on Vacation and will post as many as possible!! Can't wait to celebrate my birthday the way I've always dreamed!!
Thank you to my wonderful thoughtful husband who just knew I was in need of a vacation. Thank you for never taking me for granted and appreciating all the hard work I do... I appreciate you too my love.

Hi Dad!

Okay, on Saturday I went to a friends baby shower and my SIL's mother asked me if I was pregnant and when I said no she quickly glared at me and said "you're not pregnant, yet you better hurry up before it's too late", I don't know why but that bothered me a lot. Why would she say that? She knows that Jacob and I have been "trying" for a few months. I don't think she meant to hurt my feelings but she did. She made me feel like there was something wrong with me or I was doing something wrong (like I don't feel like that already!).
ANYWAY
So Nevaeh had dropped daddy and mommy and has decided instead to simply call us mom and dad! Jacob came home for lunch one day and she said "hi dad" and then just kept walking. Then the other day she needed help with the potty and all I hear is "mom, help me pweeze"... if she would have said please correctly I would have flipped!!
I really miss being mommy! When she really wants something then I will get a mommy but usually it is just mom... what is going on here? Where is my baby? Jacob has even suggested we put her in preschool?!?!??!!? Who does that?!?! She is only two! Right? He wants to put her in school twice a week for 4 hours, I think it is great and awful all at the same time. I think everything is hitting me at once... I haven't gotten pregnant yet, I am having a birthday next week, Nevaeh is sleeping in a toddler bed, she is practically potty trained and now she is calling us mom and dad!! I don't think I am ready to have a big girl who dresses herself and decides what she wants to do on a Saturday afternoon. I can't believe I am one of those moms I always swore not to be!!
Don't get me wrong I don't want to be breastfeeding a 27 month old or giving her a pacifier but seriously, where did time go? Time just flew by. It was just yesterday I was crying because it hurt to breastfeed and now I have a big girl who tells me exactly what she wants for lunch! Maybe I am just letting the "you're not pregnant, yet" comment bother me.
All I do know is that I need to continue soaking Nevaeh's every move in and appreciating every headache and frustration because my baby will only be 27 months once!

Jen

Big Girl Bed

After frightening Jacob enough he agreed with me and we went out to buy Nevaeh a big girl bed. We got home with the bed around 7:30 p.m. We also purchased Cinderella and The Jungle Book to entertain Nevaeh will we put her bed together (YEAH RIGHT!!).
After taking her crib apart and putting the bed together it was about 10:15 p.m. That is when our battle began...We bought brand new Mickey Mouse sheets because Nevaeh won't want to get out of bed if Mickey was on her sheets… right?!?! WRONG. I had the first shift, which by the way went smoothly. I read to her and prayed and we sang our usual twinkle twinkle little star song. She stayed in bed and I was amazed. I walked into the living room and proudly said, "okay she is down"... seconds later (as I comfortably get on the couch) she is up and walks into the living room saying "no more na-nai (night-night)." Jacob calmly walks her back in her room (she is in tears) and reads to her again, puts her down. As soon as he walks into the living room she opens her door, Jacob doesn't miss a beat and meets her in the hallway and walks her back to bed (no story this time). They continue this song and dance until 11:30 p.m. when I finally said, "enough, come to mama's bed", Jacob gives me a dirty look but I can't do this all night long!!
***Side note: Jacob is an awesome parent. He spoils Nevaeh rotten (buys her any and all Disney movies, buys her clothes all the time, buys her toys) but is strict when it comes to discipline. He has somehow found the perfect balance. He has GREAT parents!! ***
The next day I wasn't home... I had a mother's night out and let Jacob handle Nevaeh on his own. He put her down and did the same song and dance for about an hour until she finally fell asleep. I thought we were home free until she walked into our room at 2 in the morning. Listen... at 2 in the morning I really didn't feel like arguing with a two year old so I let her climb into our bed. The next night she slept a little longer (5 a.m.) but again I let her get into our bed!! She has climbed into our bed every morning and I haven't said anything to her but "hurry up climb in". Last night Jacob got her out of our bed and walked her back to her room and put her back in bed... she cried but eventually fell asleep and woke up at 7 a.m.

I think we need to take her back to her bed when she climbs into ours but seriously at 5 a.m. she could stay in my bed for all I care!! But I know it will be better for her and us in the long run if we teach her to stay in her bed all night!

SAY IT AIN'T SO...

Well, my little angle has decided she no longer needs a nap!! Heaven help me!! She may not need a nap but I still need my time alone. She has not napped since last Friday, even though I know she is super tired. It all started when she started getting the sniffles. I thought she just couldn't breathe out of her nose very well, then I thought the tylenol was working against me, now that she has a full blown cold I am blaming it on that.

I have tried getting her super tired by running around outside...nothing. I tried leaving her in her crib sobbing for about an hour (more on that later)... nothing. I tried letting her watch a movie... nothing. I even tried lying down with her... nothing. I really hope this doesn't mean she is out growing her nap phase, does it?

What is a SAHM to do when her toddler had decided that nap time is for babies!?! I take my lunch break during her nap.. I get to watch "the view" during her nap... I unwind during her nap... what am I supposed to do now??

It is sort of funny, even though she has tired me out today, I still managed to have a whole bunch of fun with her outside. We played with Kona, we had our weekly photo shoot and she even got to take a few pictures herself. I got to give it to her, even though she is pretty sick (with a cold) and she hasn't napped, she is still in good spirits (she gets that from her daddy, always in a great mood no matter what).

***When I made the mistake of letting her cry in her crib I found her holding on for dear life (she had climbed up one of the sides of the crib), she was saying "pweese, mommy help"... I had to laugh but inside I was crying.***

Anyway, due to the "pweese, mommy help" incident we are going to break down and make our way to furniture row to find her a big girl bed. We are going to price the twin/full size beds but if they are way to expensive we will stick to the $89 toddler bed. I will let you know how it all went.

til then,
Jen