Caiosaurus Rex

We had so much fun on Halloween. Everyone thought CJ was so cute (and I really can't blame them because I thought so too). No trick-or-treaters came by our place, but we did have some family over to eat pizza and watch movies. I made the costume with the help of my next door neighbor, Peggy, but I think it looks at least as good as a store bought costume. I was so pleased with how it all turned out. My parents' wedding anniversary was on the 29th and I showed it off there. Unfortunately for Caio, we had to put it on him about four times just to show it off to everyone who kept coming. Anyway. I also wanted to show a great picture that my friend, Tammi, took of my baby boy. She is doing so great with her photography. She has been working extra hard and I think she is fabulous!!! Right now I am getting ready to attend a book club on the 9th that is being started by a TJEd (Thomas Jefferson Education method) homeschooler. Our first bookclub book is A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver Van DeMille. It is really good (and since I have my own copy and am planning on using this method to homeschool my own children, I am really happy to read it again). I also watched my sister's kids over the weekend so she could attend a conference and she bought me a copy of the new book A Thomas Jefferson Education Home Companion by Oliver DeMille, Rachel DeMille, and Diann Jeppsen. I am really excited to start reading this as soon as I am through with the book club book.
Well, the whole reason I am going into all of this is because there are three questions that a Thomas Jefferson Education asks and I thought I would take the time to answer them here.
1--What books are your companions through life?
This is kind of a tricky question for me. When I think about how this question is phrased, I immediately notice the word companion. I think of a companion as a person that stays with you and walks with you through everything--someone who will be there no matter what no matter where. Then there is always the stipulation "through life." I think the books that have been and that I choose to be my companions through life are the Book of Mormon, the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Doctrine and Covenants, the Pearl of Great Price, the Hymns of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and Shakespear. I am sure there are others, but these are the books that I am always coming back to over and over in my life that I think of right now. Books that are with me through a lot of things.
2--If you were evacuated to another planet and could only take one book, upon which to base the whole teaching of your family and establishing right and wrong for your community, what would it be?
Hmmm... I wonder if a Quad counts (this includes the Bible, Book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price, and Doctrine and Covenants). If not, I think I would have to say the Book of Mormon, bar none.
3--What is good? What is evil?
Well, as politically incorrect as this may seem: things that draw men toward God's presence are good; things which take men away from God's presence are evil. The End!

Well, now that I have answered those things, I think I will get back to reading this book.
Toodles! :-D

CAPOEIRA!!!

Wow! My husband just had me watch a few videos on Capoeira (a Brazilian martial art that originated in Africa, but came to Brazil with the slaves). We had already toyed with the idea of having our kids do Capoeira (pronounced: cap-oh-aid-uh), but after seeing this I keep thinking that I really do want my kids to be a part of this. It is really athletic, and amazing to watch.
We'll see what happens when C.J. is a little older. ;-)
(By the way, I linked two different you tube videos of Capoeira demonstrations to the word: Capoeira in the previous text :-D).
In other news. Tomorrow I am taking my mom to Idaho. We are going to see her oldest sister. Marcio and I have been together for almost 3 years and married for 2 1/2 years and he has never met her. We are going to take Caio with us and show him off and everything too. I hope he does okay with the trip.
Wish us luck!

Great Day!

We had such a nice slow morning today! CJ crawled all over the bed pounding on our faces and running away and giggling over and over while Marcio and I talked about nothing and everything. Then we got up and did a few chores while Marcio worked on fixing a broken TV he picked up (one of his latest hobbies). All together, this was one of those really nice slow days that I love. And I really needed it--this week has been really hard, long and stressful.
Anyway. This afternoon we decided to head out for a drive with the intention of having a picknick at a park, but CJ fell asleep instead. We drove about 15 to 20 minutes away to a place we go fairly often and found a park that was right across the street that neither of us had ever noticed before. We got out of the car and walked around and found a huge stone amphitheater right in the middle of it all. There was a plaque that said it was built at the end of the Depression to provide government jobs. It was really, REALLY cool and we had a ton of fun exploring with baby boy.
We finished with just enough time to go shopping for a present for Marcio's brother and make it to the birthday party (his brother turns 17 on Mon. and we bought 4 EFY style cds and dvds (J. Bytheway and 2 others)). By the time we got home we were all a little burned out, I think.
I don't know what I am going to do about a costume for Caio. I want to make a dinosaur costume. My next door neighbor is willing to help, so hopefully it will be done soon. Wish me luck!

Lots of Pictures

I haven't put pictures on here forever. I have been trying to get some in here, and now that I am finally able to do it I am going to try and catch everyone up on our pictures. There are some of Caio before and after his hair cut. All of the pictures were taken on the same day. I will have to put some of the pictures of the actual hair cut later. Marcio and I are having so much fun being parents right now.
Caio has begun saying "Bah-bah" and waving his hands every time we leave. He did this the other day (completely un-provoked). Marcio was walking out the back door and C.J. called out "Bah-bah" and we bothed looked with open mouths and wide eyes to see our little boy waving his hand at Marcio. We were stunned but excited. It was late at night but I called and bugged half my family anyway. LOL! I couldn't help myself. He has been climbing onto the couches and getting into everything. He is just so much fun that I can't believe it.
Today I was giving him a bath and turned my back to put something away in the bathroom. When I turned back he was standing up and had one whole leg hanging out of the tub and he was trying to climb out. I was so scared for him! I said, "Hey!!!" and he looked up at me, quickly pulled his leg back into the tub and sat down again. Then he looked up at me and smiled, swishing his hand back and forth in the water as though he hadn't done anything. I just can't believe how much he is growing up every day.

For My Dad

My dad asked me why I wasn't posting anything any more lately (yes, my dad reads my blog to keep informed about everything that is important to me). I hadn't realized, I guess, that I haven't posted for a while because I have been working on my blog... I just haven't been successful at what I was trying to do. I have some really cute pictures of baby boy taken by my friend. She is always doing such amazing things. She is quite the talented lady!
I guess I will put some of our most recent stories here.
The other day, my mother-in-law showed me something I didn't know about my baby boy--he says "Brum-Bruh-Bruh" whenever he plays with a toy car. I didn't know this because I don't have any toy cars at my place, but I guess that she has one and whenever she gives him the car she makes a "Bbbbbrrrrrruhm!" noise and then gives it to him to play. :-D
He claps his hands a lot too and says "Yeah!" over and over. That is one of my favorite of his tricks. And whenever Marcio changes his diapers he says, "Bluck!!!" (that is what Marcio says every time he changes Caio's diapers too :-P).
The past couple of weeks have been pretty busy, but I am hoping things slow down soon (like that will happen). My sister-in-law is due to have her baby one week from today and I am really excited for her too. I am hoping to begin sewing a Halloween costume for C.J.
Okay... my writing is really in trouble tonight and I think I need to try and put things up.... Baby boy is getting fussy here in my arms, anyway, and I can't think about writing and being a good mom at the same time.
Goodnight everyone!

Such a GOON!!!

I can't believe how embarrassed I am! I shouldn't even say why... I am not even sure I will...
Long story short (and without revealing my secret embarrassment), there has been something that has been bothering me about my blog/blogging that I have not told anyone besides Marcio and last night I discovered that it was all my fault. I corrected it and am thinking that I am really, really glad that I haven't told anyone about what I was thinking. Now I am blushing shamelessly and at the same time, I feel so much happier now that I figured it all out.
As for today, C.J. is just getting cuter and cuter every day. I am so in love with my little boy. He is also so attached to me! I guess I never realized what it would be like to be on this side of the parent/child bond. Wow! Is it great, or what?
Tomorrow I am going to be watching my sister's kid's overnight. They will get here around 2 PM and they will pick them up around noon on Sunday. I am both excited and nervous. She is the proud (and wonderful/awe-inspiring) mother of six, 5 of which will be staying with us. They are really good kids, though, so I am not too concerned. I am just hoping to be helpful.
Tonight my mother-in-law watched my baby while we went on a much needed date together. We went out to eat and then bowling and then home. I had such a blast bowling again. I actually did better this time than I have since I met my husband. I got a strike and about five spares on our first game and actually was able to score more than 50 points (I know that shouldn't be something I ought to brag about, but :-) for me it is :-D). Marcio took me bowling on our very first date together, so it kind of feels reminiscent every time we go together.
Well... I think I hear my baby calling for me (and my husband trying to take care of it alone).
Good Night everyone!

Happy Love Thursday!!!

I was reading a post on my friend's blog entitled "Love Thursday" and I thought I would follow the links to see what she was talking about. If you want to know more about it you will just have to visit the site yourself. :-) I really like the idea of Love Thursday. Really, I like thinking about all of the people I love. I wish I could put all of them on here. Actually, mabey I will. Maybe I will begin making every Thursday a "Love Thursday." We will see I guess.
I know that technically the day has already expired and it is now Friday, but I get my best blogging done when everyone is sleeping quietly and my house is still. So for me it is still Thursday and I have a lot of love in me to carry over anyway.
I wanted to post this picture as a representation of the two biggest loves of my life. This picture was taken shortly after five of the most challenging days of my life. All I have to say is, I am so in love with both my baby and my man and I don't want to picture life without either one of them.
I wish I could make this post longer, but I hear my baby waking up for another nursing.
Happy Love Thursday everyone!!!

More and More...

Caio just keeps growing up. It is amazing to watch.
Saturday afternoon he began trying to clap. Every time he gets really happy or excited he hits the sides of his fists together and calls out, "Aaay-ee!!!" He is also getting into everything!
I already mentioned his love for his stuffed animals, but Caio also likes us to play with him with the stuffed animals. Saturday we each took one and had some family stuffed animal fun. He climbs everything and is trying to figure everything out.
Sunday, in Relief Society, he decided to try his voice out again. He just kept getting louder and louder until I was pretty sure that nobody around me could hear the teacher. At that point I took him into the foyer until I was pretty sure that it was disrupting that ward's sacrament meeting. Then I took him into the bathroom where he flirted shamelessly with the baby in the mirror until I was pretty sure he would be okay for the rest of Relief Society.
I am just very happy to be his mom.
Wednsday we are going to get family pictures done with my parents' family. I will have to see if I am able to post any pictures from that for everyone to see what he is looking like today. His hair has grown so long, but we are planning on cutting it within the next week or two (just in time for more pictures of him). Anyway. I have to go now. Check back in with y'all later. :-D

Churrasco!

Churrasco (pronounced: shoo-hah-scoe) is the Brazilian word for barbecue. And tonight we had one at our house for my husband's brother and his wife. They have been away in California and are finally back. I have been so excited.
Last night we got very little sleep because CJ had such a hard time staying asleep. I could tell it was hard on him too. And I think even my husband felt as though the baby was really trying to sleep, but just couldn't for some reason. Tonight he seems to be doing better so far, but I can't sleep because my hair is wet and I can't sleep with it like that. I usually like a shower in the morning or late afternoon, but I will be up for a little while longer tonight to let it dry a little more.
I think things went pretty well tonight. For those who have never been to a real Brazilian churrasco (or a real Brazilian restaurant) the food is always great. I love Brazilian food. And to think, I probably would never have tried it if not for my husband (just one more reason to be grateful for this one :-D).
In Brazil it is a very masculine thing to be a great grill master and my husband has been working on this skill ever since we acquired our very own propane grill. Tonight he made steaks and skewered bacon wrapped chicken. A real Brazilian barbecue usually serves up a much bigger variety of meat at one sitting, but we were only cooking for a small gathering, so we didn't need as much.
I cooked Pao de Queijo (which even impresses the Brazilians I have met, because none of them have ever even tried to cook it from scratch). The recipe is really, really simple:

Pao de Queijo

2/3 Cup Cooking Oil
2 Cups Milk
4 Cups Tapioca Flour
2 Eggs
1 1/2 Cups Grated Parmesan Cheese
Oven 350 degrees

Put tapioca flour in a bowl. Heat the oil and milk in a sauce pan until boiling. Add to the flour. Mix thoroughly. Add eggs. Mix thoroughly again. Add parmesan cheese. Mix thoroughly again.
Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes. Lightly greese the palms of your hands with the cooking oil and make into 2 inch balls. Make sure to keep your hands oiled. Place on a greased cookie sheet and cook at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes or until the outside of the balls begin to brown.

There it is. Pao de Queijo literally means Cheese Bread. The texture is a little different, like real cheese. I find it difficult to use a spoon to mix in the last couple ingrediants and usually end up using my hands to mix it up. It was a real hit tonight.

I also made banana bread. I love making banana bread. I remember that I used to kind of hate it and think that it was a really hard thing to make, but then one summer we ended up with a box full of bananas and my mom asked me and my sister, Heather, to make it all into banana bread to share with the neighbors (and to have some for ourselves, of course). After a few days of baking it over and over I realized that it wasn't that hard and I had a lot of good memories linked with it. Now it is probably my absolute favorite thing to make. It is definitely my favorite baked good to share with anyone. This is my favorite recipe:

Banana Bread

1 3/4 Cups Flour
2/3 Cup Sugar
1 1/4 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/3 Cup Butter, Softened
2 Eggs
2 TBS Milk
1 Cup Mashed Ripe Bananas (2 to 3 medium)
Oven 350 degrees

In a large bowl combine 1 Cup of the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the mashed ripe banana, butter, and milk. Beat on low speed with mixer until blended. Beat on high speed for 2 minutes. Add eggs and remaining flour; beat until blended.
Pour into a greased loaf pan (8x4x2 inch). Bake in 350 degree F oven for 60-65 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Remove from pans and cool thoroughly on wire rack.

This tastes great warm, but slices easier as it cools. I think it is recomended that the loaf is cooled over night before cutting into it, but like I said, I think it is up to personal preference.
Also, you can store the loaf in your freezer in a freezer bag for up to a month with great results. Just thaw it out to room temperature before serving it up. (I have tried this with great success).
You can eat it plain or spread butter on it. I have seen some people enjoy it with cream cheese. It is up to you.

Well... back to the barbecue. Actually, I am really tired.
I think that everything went great tonight. My baby was adored by all (no surprises there!) and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and the food.
I will definitely try to jump in here again and keep this updated.

Lots of Stuff

It is the middle of the night and I have thought about getting back in the swing of things and updating this for the longest time, so here it goes. Please forgive me if this begins to sound a little unorganized or rambling. I just want to talk to someone and my husband and baby are both so tired and they both need their sleep.

My husband gave me a new computer for my anniversary. Because of all of the changes (I always hate getting reaquanted with my electronics) I didn't get back on here right away. It was an unexpected present (I guess that is probably obvious). When we first got married (on our honeymoon) he told me that he built a computer for me from scratch as a wedding present and it had all of the features that he thought I would find important for the things that I liked to do at the time. I thought that was so sweet. I felt bad because I didn't think to have a present for him. He said I was his present (cheesy, I know, but it made me melt :-D).
This year I remembered my anniversary about three days before the fact. I got all worked up and called him at work and said, "Honey, with all of the distractions this year like the baby and the move and everything else, we forgot our anniversary is this Saturday!!!" He replied, "We didn't forget..." I felt so stupid! He told me that he had been looking forward to it for over a month and had been "putting some things together" for the occasion. He bought me a treadmill I had been drooling over forever, and he took me out to buy a whole new set of clothes (just because he knew I was wanting them), and then he brought home a new computer that can handle more of the things I am into now (like video/photo editing and music and extra storage).
Because I had forgotten that it was our anniversary I had already RSVPed that I would be at a bridal shower that night, so I thought I was doing really great to frantically arrange for a babysitter for the afternoon so I could take him to a really nice Chinese food place for lunch (his favorite food, right). Then I arranged to have a family friend watch Mission Impossible 3 with him because Marcio had been wanting to see it but hadn't because he knew that I didn't want to. When everything was said and done I felt pretty bad about what a romantic clutz I am. He just gave me a hug that night and told me that it had been a great anniversary and that he is just happy to be my husband every day. I think that kind of thing is exactly why I married him.

Caio is getting bigger. He is always into everything. He has learned the joy of getting into my house plants and eating the dirt. I am always vacuuming and sweeping up the dirt on the floor and cleaning mud off of his hands and face and out of his mouth. It is a little disturbing to me. He is really mobile. He crawls and pulls himself up to things and walks along the edges of surfaces. He has two little teeth right up front and on the bottom of his little mouth and he likes to bite me, but he is getting better about it every day. He did bite my bottom lip while I was at playgroup today though.... that wasn't very fun. He has these stuffed annimals in his crib that he absolutely loves and he has begun to play with them a lot more lately. One is a blue Whinney the Pooh and one is a blue bear that says "My First Bear" on the front and the other is a little monkey with a red sweater on. He especially loves the two bears. He will pick all three of the toys up and bite their noses and he will hold one in both hands and hit them into each other and giggle. I have also seen him give them hugs and lay down next to them and snuggle his face next to theirs while he smiles up at me. Yesterday he began bouncing a little yellow bouncy ball on the kitchen floor. He would bounce it and then crawl after it and bounce it all over again. I just watched him and laughed and laughed. I love him SO MUCH! More and more every day!!! What a special joy to my heart. I am so blessed to be his mom.

I have been looking forward to my sister-in-law, Ruth, coming back from California for the longest time (a couple of months, actually). She got back last night and we invited them over again tonight to watch a movie. She is expecting a little boy in about 4 weeks. I am really excited for her, her husband and her baby. I am also excited for CJ to have a new cousin.

I teach Relief Society once a month now. The second sunday. When I taught this last Sunday, all these ladies wanted to hold him. I was so grateful for the help and also very happy that he was a hit. This one lady asked what his name was and I said Caio (I always am thinking should I say Caio or CJ or both???) and she said, "Cai....OH???" "Yep," I said, "Perfect!" I usually say perfect because most people come pretty darn close anyway, and I'm not all uptight like that. Then the sister who finally ended up with Caio said, just as I was getting up to teach the lesson, "Come here, Chacho."!!!!! I just about busted up laughing!!! I have had a lot of funny things said about his name and some people have tried to change it to Tchao (brazil) or Ciao (itally) both pronounced "Chow", but that was the first time anyone has ever changed it so drastically. I kind of like it, though. Maybe Chacho will be my new pet name/nick name for him! :-D We'll have to see. ;-)

Friday-Saturday of last week was actually our ward campout and we decided to go and try out our first family campout. It sounded fun at the time we first talked about it anyway. In fact it seemed like such a great idea until Friday night/Saturday morning. We went and bought a tent and borrowed sleeping bags and got all of our gear together. We were all set. We were going to be an outdoorsy, nature-loving, ward-camping family! We set up our tent next to the tent of my husband's youngest brother and joined in the campfire fun and ward dinner. We were doing so great! We even went back to our tent and put the baby to sleep. We snuggled into our family sleeping bag and whispered to each other about what a great idea it had been to come and do this, finally. Right about then a bunch of loud, giggling, teen-aged girls came by screaming and laughing and making a lot of noise. Baby Boy woke up and began screaming with them, but for quite a different reason. That was the end of our peaceful night. He screamed non-stop from around 12:30 AM (when they woke him up) until around 2:10 AM (when we finally decided to leave the campground for our own sanity and to be nice to the other campers around us). We grabbed only the most necessary things and promised to come back first thing in the morning for our camping gear and my brother-in-law (and his friend). CJ basically cried the whole ride home and then continued to cry until between 4:00AM and 4:30 AM when we both finally fell asleep while I nursed him. I woke up late Saturday morning alone with Caio. Marcio was back at the camp getting our stuff. I don't know if we will be camping again any time soon.... but then agian???? I guess we will see.

I guess that is enough for now. I will try to get back in here and keep things going again.
Good Night!

First Tooth

I was at CJ's appointment with his doctor talking about cleaning his little ears when he (CJ) bit down on my finger and I felt something that wasn't there before we left this morning (Tues 20 June). I was so shocked that I exclaimed and turned my son around to see this newest miracle. I couldn't stop exclaiming over and over (I probably looked like a bit of an idiot). The doctor asked if he could see and he too was impressed with my baby's talent with growing things in his mouth. I am both excited and nervous about the whole thing (nursing and stuff).
YEAH!!!!

Defending the Family

I am so inspired! I really encourage anybody reading this to take time and listen to this broadcast of a BYU education week. What an amazing talk! It takes less than an hour to listen to and is probably one of the best things I have spent an hour of my time on lately. It makes me want to take back everything I have ever thought or said about only having a few kids and it makes me feel sad about how many years I said disparaging things about marriage.
Families are so important! Of course they are! There are so many important things we learn from family relationships! There are so many things we gain from family units. After listening to this phenomenal talk I want to be a better wife and mother. I am totally refocussed on those things that really matter. Wow!
Notes on CJ:
He has started sucking his big toes, especially the one on his left foot. He used to try them once in a while and make funny faces as though they tasted bad (which they probably still do, but I guess the taste grew on him). He has also hit the talking really, really loud phase--especially when we are in public (like shopping). I heard him laughing so much while he played alone earlier today that I almost started crying just because it made me so happy to hear him being so happy. Sometimes I watch him and my heart aches to be the sole witness of every single moment of his life--good or bad. He kisses me all the time. He will kiss my lips or eyes or nose or neck... basically whatever he can get his mouth on before I can stop him (Marcio has become a recent target of Caio's kisses and doesn't appreciate them one bit).
Caio's absolute favorite place in the world is home and he is so much happier here than anywhere, although he does love company (especially other kids) and short drives and shorter visits at other people's homes.
I never knew being a mom could bring such joy, heart-ache, love and longing! This is by far the hardest thing I have ever embarked upon in my entire life, but WOW! what a trip! I am so glad I am doing this with my life. I love this baby more than air.

Been A While

I know I get distracted sometimes and forget to keep things up here. I don't mean to, but things just get so busy.
CJ is getting so big every day. I love him so much. He rolls all the time and sits on his own for long periods and loves to explore everything and is just so oppinionated that it kills me. I am both excited and filled with dread over the idea of him becoming more mobile.
Today I saw my midwife again. She was gushing over my baby boy (as she should have been) and we talked about how things are going right now. It turns out that I have moved just around the corner from her. That just about blew me off of my feet.
We also talked about the possibility of me having a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) and she gave me some stuff to read before I make that kind of decision. I think I am at least going to try unless there is anything that tells me I shouldn't.
Anyway. It is late. I shouldn't be on here, really, but I couldn't sleep.
I am trying to do so many things right now and still keep my head on straight. We'll see how it all goes.

FINALLY! COOL AIR!

We have been suffering all weekend long with this unbearable heat! CJ has really been having a hard time with being so hot. We have been trying to keep a fan going in our bedroom and then leaving the baby in just his diaper most of the time, but he still would move around the way you see people doing when it is just too hot and he cried a lot.
Today was really bad because we went to my mom's this morning in a car without A/C (Marcio took my car to get it registered, and his A/C is there, but it is really slow to kick in). Well, it wasn't a problem on the way there because it was still the cool of the morning, but this afternoon as we went to play group and everything it became really bad and he was all sweaty. So I thought, Well, maybe the house will be a little better. And the house was a little better, but that was it. Caio did okay for a minute, but then he was still a little grumpy.
Then, my landlord came over around 6 PM to hook up the swamp cooler. He told us that it is the nicest, newest cooling unit out of all of the apartments he manages (his grandma and mother actually own these places). Well.... HALLELUIAH!!!! This unit works fast! and is so quiet!
It is GREAT!!!! (can you tell that I am in love?) Well, CJ is in love too.
He has been so happy and playful ever since. I changed his diaper in the room with the cool air and he started kicking his legs and giggling and smiling and he has been almost hyper ever since.
We put him in his saucer and he has been playing and laughing, jumping and spinning ever since we put him in there. He is like a brand new baby boy. He is definitely feeling the difference! I love that kid!
I am so glad for our whole family that this is finally taken care of. In fact... I can't even remember the other things I have been meaning to put on here because of how happy/excited/woo-hoo! I am about finally being comfotable again in my own home!

Mother's Day

Mother's Day went really great. Marcio took me for a crab dinner (yum!) Friday night and yesterday I woke up with some flowers and a card on my table. It was great. I have really been loving crab the last 3 months or so. Every once in a while my taste buds seem to kind of change a little. I used to love shrimp and now it is one of the most detestable tastes in the world to me. I also used to not enjoy crab, although I could handle a little of it when pressed, but now I could do one of those dinners a week :-).
Anyway. Marcio is going to take his mom out for dinner tonight (one on one) to celebrate how wonderful she is and I am going to go and clean some things for my mom tomorrow morning (although this is a surprise that she doesn't know about) to let her know that I love her and care about what matters to her. Her health is bad and she can't do as much for herself as she used to be able to so I want to step in and do some stuff. I just thought that this year the presents that I want to give I can't find at WalMart anymore.
Oh, yesterday we also got some pictures scanned and stuff.
I wanted to share. I am trying to get a slideshow done as well and hopefully I can share a whole bunch of pics with that on here soon.
This was taken when my baby was 2 months old.
These have been taken within the last week or two (he is now 5 months old).
Isn't he CUTE!!!

Splish Splash

I forgot to write that while we were at the hotel CJ discovered splashing. It was so funny! I never got to take any pictures, but he was going strong and then when we took him out he kept staring at the water and kicking his legs SO hard.
Yesterday was pretty good too. He is doing better and better at sitting through church all the time. I am also meeting more and more people at church which is making me feel a lot better about the move and everything. I just want to get to the point that I feel like I have a spot to belong again.
Today CJ nursed a lot. I don't know what that means. I thought he just got through with a growth spurt, so I'm not expecting another one for a while. He didn't let me put him down very often or for very wrong. Am I doing something wrong? I also realized that he is practically 5 months old and he doesn't really role over very much. He doesn't like to be on the floor for any extended amount of time. He just doesn't seem to know how to play and relax while he is there. I just don't know if that is normal or if I am too quick to jump in and pick him up. I just don't like to hear my baby cry and stuff.

T-Jedi

The conference this weekend was SO GREAT! I really learned a lot and (for those of you who know about the method of homeschooling that I am looking at) I decided that I want to begin my 5 pillars training. My husband asked me what I thought the bennefit of that would be and when I got through telling him, he said that he liked that idea so much that he is going to begin the 5 pillars training with me. I thought that was so cool.
While we were there, durring a Q&A period there was a dad that got up and said that if they changed the name to Thomas Jefferson Education Institute he thought that more dads would be interested in learning about it because instead of calling it T.J. Ed. for short you could call it T-Jedi. Everyone laughed and later Dr. Demille (spelling?) referred to it as that too.
I was so inspired. I decided that I have to work on sollidifying some of my core before my baby is old enough to be negatively influenced by it (i.e. better work ethic and no grumbling and stuff like that). I also am going to work on my 5 pillar education (as I said before). We are also going to throw ourselves into getting out of deabt ASAP! I want to actively search out my callings in life and begin working on those things. Also, I met some people who live really close by and one of them has a baby my baby's age and her husband served in Brazil on his mission and he is from Mexico. I don't know, for me this is really great so that I can begin making contacts close to home.
I know that I still haven't put pictures up, but I will put all of them up at once one of these days. We took more pictures on our trip this weekend. Mostly we forgot to until we were in the hotel or the car, so most of the pictures have a similar theme :-) but they are still very cute and stuff.
We also stopped by Bryce Canyon National Park on the way home and got some really great pictures there too. I will put those up as well.
My baby did so well on the trip, but I still feel like I am recovering. For one thing he didnt let me sleep very much (but that wasn't completely his fault, so I am not counting it as such). Everything was so great. I really am afraid that I am going to start getting really preachy about this whole thing because it is just that good.

On Our Way

We have everything all packed up and ready to go for the most part. Tomorrow at this time we will be learning all about educating our kids and stuff. I am SO excited! We are leaving for the hotel tonight and we are hoping that everything will be okay for the trip down there and back. I am afraid that CJ will have a difficult time on the long drive (somewhere between 6-8 hours non-stop... i can't remember).
Our hotel is supposed to have internet connectivity and we are taking our laptop as well, so I am hoping that I will be able to keep up on all of my internet activities from there.
I think this will be a good diversion from our daily routine. Yeah!!!

The Sweetest Things

CJ woke up from his nap today and when I came in to get him he was so excited that he rolled over and grinned. I cheered and put him back on his tummy and he rolled over again and grinned.
Just now I was holding him on my lap while reading and he turned and looked up at me and put his hand on my cheek/chin. He then proceded to pull my face down and began licking my other cheek.
I know that he probably didn't see it as a kiss, but more as exploring his environment, but my heart was all a flutter all the same. :-D

I think he loves me!!

My baby has started reaching for me. It looks so cute. He will hold his arms up high and out toward me and whine (which is usually just really cute and not annoying at all). And if I walk into a room and someone else has him he will just stare at me as I walk around the room and if I look at him (I don't even have to be fully awake or in a good mood) he will start grinning and giggling and doing that cute shoulder shrug thing that kids do when they are being so cute and cuddly.
Yesterday I was nursing him and he latched off, so I looked down at him and he was just staring at me and grinning all big. He then waved his arm around and started giggling like he couldn't help it. I thought maybe he was done, but then he suddenly dived at me and started eating again. I started laughing so hard and he looked up at me and made these happy noises while he continued to eat. Last night he nursed to sleep and was still latched on (he does that a lot) and then he started to smile really big over and over again. I realized that his eyelids were moving so I think he was dreaming. Then he started to giggle. I wondered if he was dreaming of me.
When he wakes up in the morning he looks for me and if he sees me he smiles and is really happy. When we nap I put him in Marcio's side of my bed and when he wakes up he always scoots and rolls until he is pushing up against my body and then he really starts to smile and grin and giggle.
I really love this kid so much and... well... I think he loves me too. :-D

So Tired...

Sunday night I got through writing my blog and went into the bedroom to go to sleep. The house was so hot and muggy, so I opened some windows on the way, but when I got into bed I felt my husband. He was burning up!!! He rolled a little so I figured he was awake and asked, "Honey, are you okay?" "Yeah," he said, "It is just so cold in this house." Then I told him that the house was really warm but he was really hot. I then got the thermometer and took his temperature. It was 101 degrees. I just about freaked out! He said he didn't know it was that bad, but that he felt sick to his stomach and went into the bathroom. The noises that ensued told me everything and I decided that he was not going to work in the morning, no mater what!!!
He went from the bathroom to the couch and I got a wash cloth and sponge bathed him and stayed up with him for a while. When he said he was feeling better I took his temperature again and it was now up to 102. He said he was going to sleep though, and asked me to sleep to so that I let him rest through the night. I told him I would on the condition that he let me call him in sick in the morning. He agreed.
Yesterday morning he was down to 101 again and we started the whole thing over, but now CJ was awake and demanding attention too. I worked with it though and took care of my baby, who didn't want to be put down very often or for very long, and my husband, who was too sick to do anything for himself by this point. I finally got Caio down for a nap and my mother-in-law came over so that I could go to the store and get stuff for Marcio (crackers, 7-up, Tylenol, etc). When I got home I took over everything again. Even with all of this his temperature was up to 103 by noon and I was going crazy trying to keep it down and take care of my baby, who was awake again, at the same time. About this time my mother-in-law came by again and asked if it would help if she took the baby. I told her it really would. I devoted most of the rest of the day to taking care of my husband.
At one point (around 5 or 5:30) his temperature got up to 103.9 and I thought, that is it, if it gets any worse I need to get him to a hospital and he even started talking about where the closest emergency rooms are if I needed one and where our insurance works. Suddenly a thought came into my head and I said that I was going to give him a bath (which he didn't particularly want--only rich people have bath tubs in Brazil and he can count on one hand the times he has had one in his life since he has been in America). I got him in and he was too drained to even do much, so I just kept using a wash cloth to move the water everywhere. He was so sick and out of it at first, but the longer he was in there he started seeming more awake and even a little more energetic. I took his temperature again and it was back down to 101. I was so happy. My mom-in-law also came by with CJ for another feeding. Marcio layed on the couch. He fell asleep and I took care of Caio in the other room. Between 9 and 10 I decided to check on Marcio again. His temperature was down to 98 degrees and he felt cool. I was so happy and relieved. He said he felt better but still a little queezy.
Caio went to sleep closer to midnight and the house was finally quiet and worry free. I think I stayed up reading some email and some of my favorite blogs. I also got a very little excersize in. I finally went to bed between 1 and 2 this morning.
Needless to say, this morning I am exhausted. CJ is much happier and better behaved though, so that is a plus.
I really do love my little family so much!

One Long Day

I dont know if it is because we got to bed so late last night or if it is because all three of us were under the weather today and stuck in the house, but today just seemed long and hot and hard.
Baby boy was doing a little better, but he has a cough that sounded a little worse. He had more energy, though, and played a lot today. I feel worse for my husband, who got so bad by tonight that I thought he should stay home from work tomorrow, but he said he needs to go in because he needs the time off Thursday and Friday.
Oh... good thing to point out... we are going to a homeschool convention that will be held on Friday and Saturday, but we will need to leave Thursday and stay the night so that we will be up for everything Friday morning. I am pretty excited about the whole thing. I want to learn everything I can so that I can be a really good homeschool mom for my kids (and husband too I guess). We are looking at the Thomas Jefferson method of homeschooling. I think it will be really good for my family.

Birthdays and Baby Blues

Sunday went really well. We went for a drive and I had chocolate covered strawberries (provided by my loving in-laws) and everything just went really well.
This is the week for birthdays. Mine, my brother's, and two nephews' birthdays all smashed together. Donald was born a couple days after my third birthday and for years I thought that he was my birthday present. I really love my two younger brothers a lot.
Some time in the middle of this week (and I don't really know when it started coming on because everything has been so busy, but I think it was in full swing by Wed.) CJ started getting sick again. He was coughing all the time and he had a fever of between 101 and 102 for over 24 hours. He has been more clingy than ever before in his little life, wanting me to hold him 24/7 and nurse him all the time and everything. At least he was more cuddly yesterday (it makes the clinginess easier to bear when he isn't as wiggly and is willing to snuggle up to me all the time). I love him more than most things I have ever loved in this life, but I have gotten very little sleep the last few days and I have had almost zero moments of alone time to recoup my sanity.
Today was my mother-in-law's and my brother-in-law's graduations from law school and accounting. It was really great, but really hard and long. Tonight, though, my mother-in-law has CJ for a little bit and Marcio is with them while I have time to catch up here, take a shower (which I just did) and just catch up with myself and have a little alone time before going to bed. I am so grateful for everything.
The biggest excitement of the day for me is the fact that we got a couple good pictures of Caio on the digital camera today while we were at the graduation and I will be able to put those up in the next couple of days. He really was doing better today for the most part and he was a GEM at the graduation ceremonies. I love that kid!!! I really want him to feel better and be happier (for all of our sanity).
Oh... Almost forgot!!!
CJ began rolling over purposefully on my birthday and has been doing it from time to time almost every day since. He gets all excited when he is doing it and giggles a lot. I love it!!!
The first time he did it, he rolled and then got all excited and did it again. He worked so hard to shift his lower half and then would lift his arm to gain momentum to swing the rest of him over. But after a while he got so excited that he forgot to work his lower half first and just kept lifting his arm with this huge grin on his face and looking around like he was waiting for something to happen. When nothing did he got a little frustrated and cranky, but we picked him up before he was really upset. It was just SO cute watching him lift his little arm up over and over again trying to get the momentum to get onto his back. LOL!!!

Ballets and Birthdays

My birthday falls on Sunday (tomorrow). I will be a 26-year-old wife and mother. I have celebrated 25 birthdays so far, although I can only remember the last 23 of those, and I have found that my favorite presents are those intangible things that I receive from people--things like doing things together or experiences instead of items. I also love presents from the heart that you can tell somebody put a lot of thought into. My husband found this out about me fairly early on and loves to make me happy! Therefore, yesterday (Fri) he took me to the ballet and today he invited both of our families over for lunch and birthday cake. He really went out of his way to arrange both.
We left Caio and some pumped milk with my sister and headed out. I was kind of worried because he has never successfully taken breast milk in a bottle yet, but I was hoping that they would have better luck this time. We got to the theater in pleanty of time and were able to take in the atmosphere of everything without feeling rushed. I loved being all dressed up and feeling like one of the "grown-ups." The ballet we saw was Swan Lake and I loved every minute of it. The costumes were spectacular and the dancing was superb! I expected to enjoy everything, but I ended up loving it and being entranced by the entire performance. We called to check on CJ during first intermission and I could hear him screaming in the background. I felt so bad, but when I picked him up they said he had eaten a little and he was actually smiling and playing in my sister's arms. He was really glad to see me though, and I was overjoyed to have him back with me again.
Today we were getting ready for the lunch as soon as I woke up. We got a phone call saying that my brother's son has pneumonia in both lungs and had to go to the hospital, but that everyone else was still going to be here, just 2 hours later than we expected. We hurried and told everyone else who was coming that it was being postponed and were actually glad for the extra time to prepare. Later we got word that my nephew is going to be alright. My mother-in-law cooked most of the food and it tasted so good. Everything was perfect. We visited for a long time (probably a little too long, but I hope nobody minded) and we ate and we had cake and then everyone went home and I sat back and felt so happy. The rest of the evening has been far more layed back and relaxed and I have been loving it. Today might as well have been my birthday, because I can't immagine anything better. I think this is the best birthday that I have had (even though it is technically tomorrow) since I was 3 or 4 years old (those were both really good birthdays for me).
I expect tomorrow to be a good day too, but I don't think anything will top today.

The Creation Story-The Devil made me do it!

My aunt forwarded this to me and I had to share it somewhere. I think this is kind of funny and kind of sad at the same time. If anyone wants to know my latest book endorsement (and most of you have probably already listened to me hopping on my soapbox about it) it is called "The Culprit and the Cure" by Dr. Steven Aldana. It is really amazing! I really think it is the best book out there on nutrition and lifestyle. Read it! I dare you to!

Anyway. Here is the email:

In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth and populated the Earth with broccoli, cauliflower and spinach, green and yellow and red vegetables of all kinds, so Man and Woman would live long and healthy lives.
Then using God's great gifts, Satan created Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream and Krispy Creme Donuts. And Satan said, "You want chocolate with that?" And Man said, "Yes!" and Woman said, "and as long as you're at it, add some sprinkles." And they gained 10 pounds. And Satan smiled.
And God created the healthful yogurt that Woman might keep the figure that Man found so fair. And Satan brought forth white flour from the wheat, and sugar from the cane and combined them. And Woman went from size 6 to size 14. So God said, "Try my fresh green salad." And Satan presented Thousand-Island Dressing, buttery croutons and garlic toast on the side. And Man and Woman unfastened their belts following the repast.
God then said, "I have sent you heart healthy vegetables and olive oil in which to cook them." And Satan then brought forth deep fried fish andchicken-fried steak so big it needed its own platter. And Man gained moreweight and his cholesterol went through the roof.
God then created a light, fluffy white cake, named it "Angel Food Cake," and said, "It is good." Satan then created chocolate cake and named it "Devil's Food."
God then brought forth running shoes so that His children might lose those extra pounds. And Satan gave cable TV with a remote control so Man would not have to toil changing the channels. And Man and Woman laughed and cried before the flickering blue light and gained pounds.
Then God brought forth the potato, naturally low in fat and brimming with nutrition. And Satan peeled off the healthful skin and sliced the starchy center into chips and deep-fried them. And Man gained pounds.
God then gave lean beef so that Man might consume fewer calories and still satisfy his appetite. And Satan created McDonald's and its 99-cent double cheeseburgers! Then said, "You want fries with that?" And Man replied,"Yes! And super size them!" And Satan said, "It is good." And Man went into cardiac arrest.
God sighed and created quadruple bypass surgery. Then Satan created HMO's.

"But I'm back again," said Nora...

....with a monumental crash!!!

That is the final line of one of my favorite books from when I was a kid (Noisy Nora for those interested).

Well... I finally have my computer back! Woo-Hoo!!! These last few weeks have been a whirl wind. Our first week in our new home CJ was sick--REALLY SICK. The first couple of days he was vomiting horribly and was constantly becoming feverish. Then as we were gaining controll over that he began coughing really badly and he was battling congestion. Those two things together made it so that he was almost always struggling to breath and a couple of times we were afraid he wouldn't be able to breath at all. It also interfered with nursing and sleeping and he was vomiting a lot again, but this time it was because of how much he was choking just to try and breath. When we called the doctor we were told to give him baby tylenol with a decongestant and cough suppressant. That helped with the cough and cold, but then my baby started getting hives all over his body (it began feeling like some kind of sick joke--I was so near tears all of the time). We think that he is allergic to the red #40 dye found in the medicine. The hives were HUGE and all over his face and legs, arms, torso.... well, EVERYWHERE!!! This time the doctor was a little more worried and said that we needed to get him some dye-free benedryl. Anyway. Long story short: we then were giving my baby dye-free benedryl, cough suppressant and spraying saline sollution up his nose for the rest of the nightmare. Luckily enough this is all well past us now.
Today we went for CJ's 4 month doctor appointment and he is doing really well still. My doctor is still rather impressed with Caio's strength and activity levels. The doctor asked if CJ rolled over any more since the 2 month appointment. He has only done it one more time (from front to back, this time, in our new home). He seemed so scared afterward that he got really upset if we put him on his belly anymore. Before this we had been giving him tummy time almost everyday and he was scooting across the floor. Oh, Well! I guess we'll just be a little patient.
We still have more unpacking to do. Sunday is my birthday and my family is coming over to celebrate with us on Saturday so I have to try and get things ready so that I can feel all spiffy when they come to "check out my new 'pad'" and stuff. ;-) Also, Marcio is taking me to the ballet Friday night as his special present to me. I really can't wait!
Well, I really want to write so much more. I am so excited to be back online, but it is past my bedtime and my husband has fallen asleep on the floor next to me waiting for me to get up and go to bed, so I guess it is time to say goodnight.

Moving: Day 4

We packed a lot today. I was able to help my sister out and keep an eye on her children again while she went out. My husband did a ton of dishes and most of the work and my baby was doing a little better, but he is still a bit more klingy than usual. He is an absolute doll, though.
Tonight I left for Le Leche League an hour late and therefore missed it altogether. I felt so bad. I love Le Leche League and I know I won't be able to attend next month. I think I should subscribe to the magazine or something, just so I can get a more regular fix.
Anyway, since LLL was canceled, my husband and I had time for a special date tonight. We had take out from a great Mexican food place and watched the newest version of Pride and Prejudice. I think I like the A&E version better, but this one still had its merits.
Tomorrow is the last day for packing. Marcio is going to go to a LAN party with some coworkers (at my urging) and my sister is coming over to help me finish packing. I hate this part, where my home really stops looking like my home. One more real day of living here and then I will be gone forever. Unfortunately, I don't know how soon I will have internet access in my new place, so it may be a while (i.e. a few days, I'm sure) before I can get things up to date on this blog.
Well, goodnight!

Moving: Day 3

My baby was a little sick today. All he wanted was to nurse and sleep and be held all day and I had more packing to do. Thankfully, my little brother Andrew (A.J.) had the day off of work and was here to help me out. We got a lot of stuff ready and out to my new place. Things are coming more and more together, so I'm trying to count all of my blessings here. I just felt bad for everything Caio is dealing with; he is really hating the time I am spending working on the move all of the time.
My husband got home today and practically crashed. He is so sick and it looks like it is what I just got over (I told him not to kiss me while I was sick). Anyway, he is going to have to stay home tomorrow and get better. We only have tomorrow and Friday to work on getting ready for Saturday morning's move, so I guess I am going to have to fit packing in with taking care of my two sick men. It's a good thing I love them both so much, otherwise it wouldn't be nearly as worth it.

Moving: Day 2

So... I missed half of my day today waiting for the milk man! Yesterday, in preparation for the upcoming move, I called to have my dairy service moved to my new home (yes, we have our milk delivered once a week because my husband wants to try the whole organic thing) and they said that it would be delivered there next week and here (for the last time) today. Anyway, today I went to get my milk and it wasn't there! I called to see what happened and they told me that they accidentally said I had already moved even though the computer had the note saying that I was moving at the end of this week. Then they told me that they would send someone over with our milk and juice right away. Well, 6 hours later they finally came by with my order. I missed our play group and a lot of packing time watching the door for my milk to show up. Well... At least it is really good milk and juice! I was very happy when it finally was here.

I also told my sister that I would watch her kids today. She wasn't going to ask me to, but I found out that she was going to go out of her way for someone else to watch them and I told her that I would be more than happy to help her out. But just before she left, her son, Collin, came in with a bleach pen in one hand and talking to his sisters and brother. He looked up and saw me looking at him and said (with a huge smile on his face), "This burns!" I was confused and said, "What burns?" "The pen," he said matter of factly. "You mean, the pen is burning your hand?" I said, feeling more and more panicky. "Yeah!" I just about freaked out! I said, "Collin, that's bleach!" "I know, it's a bleach pen." "There is a chemical in that pen that burns you when it touches you! Go wash your hands!" If he weren't so smart most of the time I would probably write something here like: "Cute as a button, but dumb as a rock!"
Good thing I love the kid! :-D

Moving: Day 1

I was sick over the weekend, but today I am doing much better. Saturday I bought 3 beautiful houseplants and 3 equally beautiful planters for my new home. We took all the pictures over and set up the plants and hung the pictures. My mother-in-law was so excited.
This morning my husband told me it was time to start packing our things for the new place. He wants to start taking things there today. I am working on everything, but I am feeling a little overwhelmed.
I keep wondering how my baby is going to do with the new environment or if he will notice very much of a change at all. He is such a good kid! I love the way he gets so happy when I look at him. He never seems to be as happy as when he knows I am watching him play. It makes me feel so wonderful all over.
Anyway. I guess I have to get back to packing and moving. I think I hate this week already.
Wish me luck!

Sorry for taking so long

I feel bad for not writing for a while now. I have been so caught up in feeling great and having so much fun with my beautiful baby boy. Today CJ is exactly 3 months old. (This is the birth announcement that Tammi made).

I have been so excited and over-joyed that CJ is now playing with things. He has successfully taken things with one hand and then moved them to the other hand (WOW!). He also (today actually) began reaching for things that hang over his head on his toys. He has shaken his own rattle and he laughs and giggles at almost anybody who pays the slightest attention to him. It is SO GREAT! I must say, I never thought I would find all of this nearly as fascinating as I do now.

Another big piece of important news is that we are moving away. It is only about thirty to fourty minutes drive from where we are now, but I am not really looking forward to this. I know that it is for the best of our family, but I don't really like change very much (good or bad) and this is a definite change. We will be in our new home by the end of next week (wish me luck).

It is really late tonight and I feel like I am coming down with something, so I think I better call this the end and try not to neglect my blog in the future. I already have some pictures that we took a month ago that we need to put on here, so stay tuned for more irresistable cuteness. Also, Thanks to all who are still checking in.

WOW!!!

Today was C.J.'s 2 month appointment with his doctor. I cannot believe he was born exactly 2 months ago today. In a lot of ways it seems like it has been longer, but in so many other ways it seems like he was born just a couple of days ago. While I was waiting for the doctor to come into the room I layed my baby boy on the table and started to play with him. Suddenly he looked away and started to stretch funny and then (with a little effort) he rolled over onto his tummy! I was so excited and shocked that I literally started to jump up and down and shout "yeah!" over and over again while clapping my hands. I hurried and turned him over and yelled, "Do it again! Do it again!" (I know how cheesy this all is, but I am a first time mom, so you have to give me some credit). Then the doctor walked in to view the remnants of this display of ecstasy. I was even too excited to be embarrassed.
If that wasn't enough, later tonight I was holding him in a sitting possition when I noticed that he wasn't leaning on my hands for support so I let go and *Woo-Hoo* he held himself up for a good 30+ seconds (long enough for me to call DH into the room for him to see it happening for a few seconds)!
Today has been so amazing for me! I feel bad about his shot and everyhting, but I have been so happy about the rest of it that (for this proud mom, anyway) it by far surpasses all of the difficulties.

C.J. and the Big Day (Sunday)

Sunday morning went really well. CJ took his bath and got all ready for his big day with a smile on his face (most of the time).
We took lots of pictures just because he was being so darn cute. (We were laughing so hard every time he made a new face).
Despite the worries expressed by some of my family, things went really great all day. CJ didn't even fuss during the blessing and he slept a lot all afternoon (I didn't find out until closer to midnight that he was coming down with the flu).
All day everyone kept going on and on about his blessing outfit. I was so happy. I love looking at my baby boy! He always brings such joy to my heart.

I still want to get some professional pictures of him taken in this outfit, but these will have to do for now.
What can I say? Life is just good right now! ;-)

Blessing My Baby

I am getting so excited for Sunday (technically tomorrow, although this is still Friday night for me... it is 1:49 AM and I just tucked my baby and my baby's daddy in bed). We are going to be blessing our first baby boy in Sacrament meeting. Today I went out with my mother-in-law and purchased the absolute cutest baby tuxedo for the occasion. I have been looking forward to buying those kinds of things for him ever since I found out that I was having a boy.
We found the tux (I wish I could have purchased about 3 other formals along with it, but this was the best of the best) and then we asked if they had shoes to go with it. The closest thing they had was about twice the size of his little foot. Then we went to another store to look for shoes and the closest thing they had was little white baby booties, so we bought those. Then as we were about to leave the mall, I saw a Payless Shoestore and I decided to give them a try.
*Tah-Dum!!!* BINGO *cheering and applause*
I was so excited I could hardly contain myself. Tomorrow we are going to try to get some pictures of C.J. showing off his new threads. Last time we went to get pictures of him, he cried every time we put him down. We'll see if he is a little less clingy now.
I have had so many people trying to talk me out of having the blessing day be this Sunday; they are saying that it will be too much or that I won't be able to handle everything because I am still recovering from the surgery and everything or that I am not going to be able to enjoy everybody being there. I even have had a family member offer not to come at all "out of respect for [me] and [my] feelings." I just wish that everybody would trust me to make my own decisions about what I want and can handle. I am still recovering, but I feel like I can handle this thing. I am a pretty layed back person (most of the time) and I am not worried about everything going "perfectly" or being the "perfect" hostess (I know my limits and I know I need to take care of myself enough so that I can be a good mother and wife). I also do really well around people and I feel like it is good for me to be socializing right now instead of feeling sorry for myself. And I really prefer to have my whole family together to support the three of us. Anyway, I guess I don't want to try justifying myself to myself any more.
Suffice it to say that I can't wait to show off the new love of my life.
;-)

Gall Bladder

Yesterday I went to the hospital and woke up with four holes in my stomache and missing my gall bladder. I just remember them telling me that I would start feeling a little dizzy (which I don't remember feeling) and the next thing I knew, a woman's voice was saying, "It's okay, Ginger. You have to hold still so I can give you some pain medicine in your IV." It was then that I realized that I could hear my own voice moaning and soon afterward I could tell that I was moving back and forth. Everyone kept acting like it was really sad that I was in so much pain, but it was nothing compared to the 6 gall bladder attacks I had already been through. They showed me the laparoscopic before and after pictures of my gall bladder, and I was all excited to put them here on the blog. Unfortunately, however, the hospital said that the pictures had to stay there in my files. :-( So, this is the best substitute I could find online.

I had to check in at 7:30 AM and my baby wasn't allowed to come for obvious reasons. I just felt bad because I wasn't let out until around 5:30 PM. It was the longest I have ever been away from my beautiful baby boy. I am just so grateful for Tamra (my hero) being so willing to nurse C.J. I missed him like crazy, but I knew he was being well taken care of.

I also have to mention that my mother-in-law (seen here holding Caio) and my brother-in-law came over this morning and stayed with me all day to help take care of me and my baby. I was so grateful for everything they did. Who would have guessed!?! I'm so glad I have the best kind of in-laws.

My New Page

I finally have my own BLOG and I don't know if I know quite what to do with it, but I figure I will try my best.
My name is Ginger and I have the best husband in the world. His name is Marcio and he is from Sao Paulo, Brazil. We sat next to each other in college for an entire semester before either of us ever spoke to the other. Ever since that first conversation, however, we have had a difficult time ending every conversation since. We believe in home birthing, home schooling, breast feeding, and a lot of other things that I have been instructed and informed are "not normal."
About one year and a half after our marraige we had our first baby--a boy!!! He is five-weeks-old right now, his name is Caio James (C.J.)and yes! he was born with that much hair. He has been quite the experience. After 4 days of pro dromo labor I was transfered to the hospital and on day 5 I delivered with the help of a caesarean.
He is breastfeeding pretty well now and has begun smiling frequently and laughing occasionally. We are still getting a kick out of the noises that he makes and the little things he does. I am trying to get things together to figure out how to be a good mom and am hoping that I don't completely ruin his life. If I do, hopefully he can recover. ;-)