Gunna scream.....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ARYA!!

did you think I was screaming over something eles? :)

~hyuu!





Christmas

How was everyone's Christmas?  Ours was good.  I'm not going to lie, I was kind of in a little bit of a "bum-humbug" mood, but I still had fun.  Hailey seemed to really enjoy it.  She ate so much and it was so funny to watch her and the dogs beg for food. 
Hailey got some clothes, and of course quite a few toys.  We totally need a toybox now.  We have no where to put her stuff.  There is a huge pile of junk sitting in front of the tv haha. 
I got a couple shirts, A Dolphin Tale, and a couple gift cards.  Matt got concert tickets (that I got him), some shirts, and some movies.  We also got a popcorn maker that I'm excited to try out!
Hailey got to see Santa on a firetruck.  I don't have any pictures, but other people do, so I'll have to track them down.  I do have some video of her opening presents, but it's on Matt's phone. 
It was a simple, but fun Christmas.  I can't wait till next year when Hailey understands even more what's going on.  It'll be fun to see her get excited :)
Well, I'm going to go practice making my paper lucky stars.


~hyuu!

Hailey's Check-Up

A couple days ago, Hailey had her one year check up.  She had to get four shots...it was so sad :(
She was not happy.  She probably cried the most on the third shot. I think that it was because they switched arms and she had thought she was done. 
She weighs pretty much the same as her 9 month check up.  She eats more but she moves a lot more so she just burns it all off.  I can't remember her exact length but the doctor said she was long and I know it was in the 30's (inches).  But everything was normal and gotta go back in three months for three more shots. 
Can you believe there are only 3 more days until Christmas?  Hard to imagine. Good thing we're pretty much ready.  I still need some stocking stuffers for Matt and he needs to get his dad's gift but than we're done! 
Well gotta go turn on the heater....this wind is cooold!


~hyuu!

Dreams

Do you ever had dreams that were so real and so awesome!  And when you wake up you try your hardest to make it continue, but it's not the same.  Or just have really weird or interesing dreams?  I know I do! 
People say dreams can mean something, and if they do I wish I knew what they were saying.  I don't know why, but I find dreams so interesting and I wish I remembered them all.  I'm thinking of getting a notebook and keeping it by my bed so when I wake up from a cool or weird dream I can write down everything I remember at the time (since they seem to fade as the day goes on).  I heard once that you shouldn't try to write complete sentences, just key words so you don't forget or try to hard to make something that makes sense.  I always tell Matt my dreams in hopes that will trigger my memory...doesn't really work.  This is when I wish I could draw even half well so I could draw the faces I see.  Matt also told me the other day that he heard that all the faces in your dreams are people you have seen somewhere because the brain can't make up people.  But I don't know....The person in my dream last night was like a mix, but hey maybe I saw them at Target haha :)
On another note....Hailey has her one year checkup tomorrow.  I think she has to get shots.  So sad.  She is not going to be happy now that she's more vocal about her dislikes.  Sigh my poor baby.
Well time to go fold laundry!

~hyuu!

9 Days Till Christmas!

It's coming up quickly, but slowly at the same time....the story of life right?
How are you coming along in your Christmas plans?  Matt just needs to go get his dad's gift, and than I need to send my parent's.  Once that's on it's way I can say we're done!  I mean I guess we're done (all but his dad's) but I don't count my duty done till what's in the mail is in it!  So I know they'll get it on time. 
As for holiday spirit....well I guess we're kind of lacking in that department.  I mean, we don't really have the money or space right now, but still.  I have a "Merry Christmas" on the front door but that's it.  We have one string of lights that we can't find, and the tree we were going to get from Target is all sold out because we waited too long.  Sigh.  Oh!  We do have mistletoe in the doorway haha.  It's more than last year. About this time last year I was struggling pretty hard with baby blues so I didn't really care haha.
I'm so excited though!  I love Christmas.  And all though I can't do as much as I'd like for people, I still try to make the best of it.  I can't wait for Matt to open his gift, I want to see how he reacts.  When I found it I was all excited.  When I asked him for the money (so he wouldn't look at it on the statement and be like what is that) he said yes so after that I realized I could of probably gotten something he liked better, but oh well...too late now.  So I want to see if he likes it or not.  Even though I doubt he'd tell me otherwise.
I also want to know what he got me...but at the same time I LOVE being surprised.  It's quite the dilema haha.  I always want to know my gifts but I love opening them and being surprised on Christmas morning.  The gifts you weren't expecting usually are the best! 
Well I'm going to go write a letter to my parents to send with their stuff.  Happy Holidays!
P.S. It's way windy and scary!!



~hyuu!

Gotta Say.....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LACEY!!

~hyuu



13 more days...

...Til Christmas!  It's coming slow and fast at the same time - but isn't that the story of life?
I'm trying to put into perspective how many days I have so I can get all the gifts I need together to ship to Utah.  It'll be close this year so we probably won't do Christmas cards this year.
Having to send gifts to Utah at all bums me out.  This is the year we were supposed to go there, but because Matt can't afford to miss that much work, we can't go.  He offered for just me and the baby to go, but that feels just as wrong. 
Hailey has graduated to a big girl carseat.  I think she'll be much happier in it than her old one.  This way she can face forward.  It'll be sad though when she falls asleep and her head falls forward haha.  It's actually a Christmas present from Matt's mom, but we opened it early so she could use it.  We were going to clean out the car and put it in today, but it's been raining all day.  That and we park kind of on a hill so we'd be sliding in the mud.  One day I'll have to take a bunch of pictures so you can see I'm not making it up haha.  I do like the wildlife and the view is great, but that's pretty much it.  Well that and I can be as loud as I want and I have no neighbors close enough to care. 
Hailey is such a girl!  She loves shoes.  And any shoes at that.  She will carry around her shoes and try to put them on.  Than she grabs my shoes (most of the time my black wedges) and tries to put them on.  When she can't she brings them to me to put them on her.  It would work if she'd slide her feet like most do when they wear shoes too big, but she tries to lift her feet.  She also will step into Matt's shoes.  Silly girl.
Well I'm going to go wake up Matt so we can figure out dinner, I'm getting hungry :)

(as you'll notice Lacey, she still crosses her ankles haha)

~hyuu!

Mission Birthday Party - Success!

Well, today was the big day...Hailey's birthday party!  I was nervous all day, not sure why.
The day didn't start out too well.  I didn't finish my workout, my shower went cold, the cake I made last night went really weird...something I've never seen before, the laundry wasn't done.  Anyway I was frustrated.  But we did get her cake for free from Albertsons since it was her first birthday!
Once we got to Pizza Chalet things went smoother.  We had a surprising turn out.  More people came than I thought would.  Only people who didn't come that were invited really was Odette and her family and they were out of town. 
It was funny to watch all the awkwardness though.  Everyone looked out of place.  I guess that's what you get when you mixed a divorced family together haha.
Hailey was hesitant to get into her cake but she eventually enjoyed it and laughed the whole time she picked at it.  She got some cool gifts, mainly clothes, which she needed since her wardrobe was being grown out of quickly.  And some fun toys that I opened when we got home and she's been playing with all night.  Thanks to everyone who came! <3
After her party we ran to the mall since we were already close and did some Christmas shopping.  We got almost half done, so I'm happy.  Now I just need to get some wrapping paper.
This is the only picture I have right now.  I'll have to upload my video and track down other pictures tomorrow.  Night!

~hyuu!

My Pregnancy Story

Today I'm making Hailey's birthday cake for her party tomorrow.  It got me thinking of my pregnancy.  And with people I know either just having babies or being pregnant, I realized I love hearing different peoples pregnancy/birth stories.  It's interesting how different they are.  So I thought I'd share mine for fun.  If I happen to say something gross....sorry haha.  Beware - may be long.
I remember almost the exact day I started getting sick.  We had gone to Disneyland for my 21st birthday (since we couldn't get to Vegas haha).  A couple days after that I felt sick.  I figured maybe it was just from eating badly and running around.  But it didn't go away.  I remember being sick on our anniversary...I felt so bad, like I had ruined it.  I had been sick for a weeks time before, so I didn't think anything of it.
As time went on and I was still sick, that's when the first person - Matt's aunt Odette, asked if I was pregnant.  The idea of being pregnant was so weird to me that I said no way.  I'm one of those people who never thought I'd even get married, let alone have a baby (even though I wanted to, just never thought it would happen to me, that and I still feel the same as when I was in school).  She told me she'd buy me a pregnancy test, but I told her she didn't have to because there was no way.  As I was almost into three weeks of being sick Matt bought me a pregnancy test.  I took it and it was positive!  I didn't know what to think.  To be honest I was still in denial.  The next morning I took the second test in the box....another positive.  We had to call Odette to tell her she was right.
Because we don't have health insurance we had to get back on Medi-cal.  I had been kicked off after turning 21.  To get a proof of pregnancy they would accept, we went to Planned Parenthood.  Another positive test.  It kind of threw me when the lady asked me what option I would choose (keep it, adoption, abortion).  Forgot there were people who came for that reason. 
As soon as we got accepted for Medi-cal we went to the doctor.  She told us that we were about 14 weeks and due the day after Thanksgiving - November 26th.  As weird as it sounds I still didn't feel pregnant.  Almost like people were pulling a prank on me.  Than she sent us over for ultrasounds.  That's when it hit me.  It was the weirdest feeling to see something on the screen moving.  We asked if we could see the sex yet.  She said it wasn't for sure, but it looked like a girl. 
After I finally got over my three months of laying on the couch and throwing up, I had a pretty uneventful pregnancy.  From all the throwing up I had lost a ton of weight.  But after that I gained just what I needed. I had no cravings and for those that know me...I had no McDonalds and no soda my whole pregnancy. The one thing that I knew made me sick was fruit for a long time.  Sucked.  I didn't work while pregnant so no swollen feet.  I never had heartburn or really any back pain.  I had to take an Iron pill everyday with my prenatal and I had to have a shot for the rh factor since I have a negative blood type (don't remember what it is haha).  I also was told that I was bigger than I seemed to myself.  I never felt like my stomach got that big, but I guess it did.  She was also a very active baby, mostly at night.
Since I couldn't travel for Thanksgiving because it was so close to my due date, my family came to me for Thanksgiving.  And since I couldn't get to Utah for a baby shower with my side of the family, my mom and Sonnie took me to Babies-R-Us and Target and got me pretty much everything on my registry.  Which I am so thankful for.  Matt also made her changing table/dresser with his dad. 
We all hoped Hailey would come early or right on time so my family could be here for her birth.  No such luck.  As a matter of fact, she would make us wait for another almost two weeks!  I was feeling contractions for almost three days before she was born.  They would keep me up all night.  The first night we went to the hospital they were going to break my water, but without telling me why, he changed his mind and sent me home.  We had a doctors appointment that day and than we walked around the mall (a lot).  Two night laters we decided to go in again even though I was afraid they'd send us home again.
They offically hooked me up to everything and we spent the night there.  I was progressing kind of slowly so they gave me very little pitocin.  Than I was finally able to get my epidural.  After I got that my body relaxed and I progressed fairly quickly.  I didn't even feel my water break. 
All of a sudden they told me I could get ready to push.  I pushed for about an hour and she was out.  Her heart rate never dropped inbetween pushes, she was kicking me on the way out, and she also had no redness anywhere like I saw a lot of babies with (on tv of course haha).  The doctor even said she had great skin.  7lbs 8oz...exactly what I had guessed. 21 inches long.  Born at 5:21PM on December 5th.  I had to get an episiotomy.  One thing I really did NOT like about our birthing was that the doctor there wasn't the one I had picked and not only was he weird and hard to understand, but he didn't let Matt cut the cord.  I was so mad. 
Well, there ya have it.  My uneventful pregnancy.  During the whole thing I ended up losing almost 30lbs after she was born.  Sadly, being in a depression for a while and slacking off, when I stopped breastfeeding I gained a lot of it back. 
I was going to put pictures in here, but it would make it so long, so I put this slideshow instead. :)

~Hyuu!

Do You Trust Your Vet?

I know it may seem that I'm bitter against vets, but trust me when I say I'm not.  I've always wanted to work with animals, and so has Matt(who actually did work at a vets office).  I'm also not mad at vets because of the recent rise in dog deaths in my family....3 in less than one year to be exact.  May was just very old - 17 years.  Wicket had something obvioulsy wrong that could not be fixed.  Now Ruby however...I do blame vets for.  I also apologize now if some people get mad at me for posting this, but when something is on my mind, it usually stays there until it's written down somewhere.
The vet I have the most problem with right now is Alta Vet in Utah.  That's the vet we've always taken our animals to.  But after learning some things about animals and vet teching from Matt, the internet, and the books from a vet school under my bed.  --I'm also not claiming to 'know it all' I'm just sharing my opinion--
One.  Their prices are ridiculous.  I live in California, one of the most overpriced states, and if their prices range above ours you know they're crazy. 
Two. They charged for things even when they were told not to do them. 
Three. They are full of crap!  My mom took Frodo in there to weigh him on their scale.  He yawned and they started saying "oh it looks like he may have this...maybe we should check him for that...." from a yawn on a very tiny dog.   Or telling Sonnie she should just put Wicket down if she wasn't going to get his teeth looked at...because his teeth were somehow effecting his brain?  There has been quite a few times like these.
And then there is the vet office my parents changed to because of Alta.  I honestly don't know the name anymore.  They said they were good and seemed to know what they were doing.  Than came the day they took Ruby in to get spayed.  As far as I remember - they gave them no verbal instructions just gave them a paper.  As they took her home, she acted sleepy and slow.  But because the paper said that was normal and not everyone knows what to look for things got worse.  They wondered if they should take her in, but it was around midnight now.  Not only was it better to go at home in the arms of her best friend, but it would of been a lot for an emergency stop.  She died that night.
From what we were told, we concluded that she either had internal bleeding from the vet not stitching correctly or her stomach flipped (best known from Marley and Me).  Out of my dad's request I didn't contact the vet office in anyway though I wanted to badly, expecially after they told me that they called him to tell them what happened - even if to just stop it from happening to another family (which I doubt since no legal acion was taken...and I'm not even one of those people who likes to take legal action over everything), and instead of saying "Oh we're so sorry for your loss" or taking away the fees for the procedure they said "What are you going to do to us?"  I about died! From my memory, my family has never talked about a dog as much as they did Ruby (and still do sometimes).  My brother's best friend taken away by a careless vet and not even as much as an apology even just out of symathy? 
OR! (Last one I swear) the vet who came to look at a horse we had here and told us that we were lieing about what we SAW happened to the horse because "I know, I'm a vet." .....
Long story short....know who you're taking your animals to.  Do as much research as you can.  Ask friends.  There are even websites where you can look up reviews on pretty much anything.  I know you can't know everything about a vet office.  I'm just saying don't be one of those people that listens to the vet mearly because they have the title vet. 

The Outcast Puppy

This post is coming late and will probably be quickly pushed down by another one, but I wanted to get it off my chest anyway.
A while ago now, my old dog, Wicket, got put to sleep.  I didn't get a chance to see is odd behavior, but I heard from multiple sorces that he basically lost his mind.  We're thinking brain tumor.  Of course we won't know for sure because their local vet is crazy...but we'll save that for later.
I originally got Wicket thinking he was going to be a small(er) dog.  When we got there the lady explained that he was a Yorkiepoo (mix of Yorkie and Poodle).  He was adorable, but already twice the size of the other puppies there.  He was the last one from her last batch and needed to get rid of him since they were moving or something.   She said he would stay the size he was.  I'm assuming it was a tactic to get us to buy him since I had said I wanted a small dog.
He didn't stay small.  He, of course, wasn't a big dog, but he was no Yorkie...quickly passing May in size.
He was one of those dogs that was dumb, yet smart.  Learning to sit and go potty outside were quickly learned and he slept in his kennel at night almost silently.  When he would cry I'd stick my fingers in the door and he'd lick them and fall asleep.  He soon became my alarm clock.  If I put my alarm on snooze he would whine till I got up.  Annoying, but very helpful in getting ready for school.
Knowing that I had really wanted a tiny Yorkie, Sonnie found some.  Frodo, who was/is indeed very tiny.  She got Frodo for me for Christmas and offered to take Wicket.  After holding Frodo I agreed.  I think part of me was still mad that people pointed out to me that I had been duped by the other lady.
So Wicket moved in with Sonnie.  He was one of those dogs where he was adorable - had a teddy bear face, would lick you, I don't think he ever bit anyone. But was a pain!  He was fat...always taking everyones food if he had the chance....something he learned from his new brother Rascal.  He loved to bark!  Another thing people don't like.  In my mind I always kind of saw him as the outcast.  Passed onto another owner for a newer dog (which happens a lot sadly).  He wasn't even old, he was just too big to be a pocket dog.
I remember doing a science project with him, using doggie vitamins to see if they helped him at all.  When my teacher saw his picture she asked where I got him because I guess he looked just like an old dog of hers that was taken.  It took a lot of convincing to tell her it was my dog.  We used to make fun of him because he was so fat, his butt was square.  I called him my table.  One day when he was out for a walk with Sonnie, he got attacked by a dog that wasn't on a leash.  I, again, wasn't there, but I heard it really traumatized him.  The next day, he saw a dog walking and attacked him out of fear of being attacked.  But as far as I know that was the only time.
Than I got a phone call one day telling me he was acting weird.  He would walk and walk and walk and never stop.  And not just walk, but walk behind things.  Behind the couch, the tv, through plants.  He also would open the cabinets, knock everything out, and sit in them. He stopped barking at people also.  I guess on his last night he was acting like he was trying to walk through the wall.  Pushing so hard against the wall he flipped over. 
They all came to the conclusion that he was suffering, and to not let it get to the point of our old dog, Tippy, who also had a brain tumor.  Taking him to the vet, and asking just to check, if they thought they knew.  They didn't give an answer and just said they'd need to run tests at about $600.  Not having the money (and that's overpriced anyway) Sonnie just put him down.  I don't blame her.  That's not Wicket.  And it's better to help him before it gets too bad.  Save him his dignity and remember him as a spunky little fat dog that he was.  Love you Wicket!  <3

~hyuu!

Thanksgiving

How was your Thanksgiving?  Ours was good.  At first Matt had to work early at Target to get ready for 'Black Friday'.  He came home around 10:30AM and we got ready to go and headed up to Arrowhead to Matt's mom's family.  They eat their meal as lunch so we missed the beginning.  At first I was feeling sick.  I was reading on the way up, but I've never gotten motion sickness before.  Maybe it was the milk I had on my cereal :(  So I didn't eat anything but a couple pieces of turkey at that meal.  After that we headed to Matt's Aunt's cabin (dad's side).  We got there early and watched some football as dinner was finishing up.  After dinner we all hung out and Hailey danced around for everyone.  She also has a new thing of trying to go up the stairs walking not crawling.  So eager to grow up.
Speaking of growing up.  Hailey is so big!  As fun as it is to see her grow and learn new things, I'll probably cry on her birthday.  Time has just flown by.  She now has 6 teeth, would rather walk than crawl, dances, almost weaned off a bottle, and doing stairs.  She no longer fits in her carseat and would love to face forward so she can see.  She loves pressing buttons, and always turns off mine and Matt's computers.  She even turned off the Wii the other day.  Ms. Piggy is going to be her new nickname since she loves to eat anything and everything.  Love her to death!
Time to go clean out Matt's shoes of my hair clippies and pen.  Silly babies.
Days Till:
Hailey's Birthday - 9
Christmas - 29

~hyuu!

A Year Ago

Where did this last year go?  We went to our towns 'Christmas Stroll" the other night and it got me thinking of this time last year.
This time last year I was hanging out with Momma, Austin, and Sonnie who had come out for Thanksgiving since I couldn't travel.  We were praying Hailey would come early or right on time so they could be here....no such luck obviously.  She would put us through almost 2 more weeks of waiting.
I remember barely being able to reach my feet to tie my shoes. Going to the laundry mat with two big baskets of baby clothes to wash.  Mom picking at her Wendy's sandwich as we waited and getting snacks from the vending machines.  We also hung out at the mall and saw the coming of my favorite store in the mall...the Japanese store!  We went to this cartoon store that has some anime stuff as well and Momma got me an Inuyasha key chain.  He hangs on my jewelry box.  Also fighting Austin off from my belly that he kept touching....didn't like it when people rubbed my belly haha.  It felt weird and an invasion of personal space.
It's hard to think that I was so close to having a baby a year ago, and now I have a little girl who walks, dances, climbs the stairs, and makes us laugh everyday.  She is so silly!

What were you doing a year ago?



~hyuu!

Mia

It's been quite a while since I posted about my beautiful doggie.

Mia is one of the best dogs I've ever had!  She listens....most of the time.  She potties outside, she cuddles, doesn't bark, and is an ace pest catcher!

Of course, she does have her flaws.  She has the runs a lot (a husky stomach problem), she's a runner and will go if she has the chance (even though she does come back). 

When we first saw her she was one of 3 girl, all white puppies.  Originally I had wanted a black and white, but I didn't want a male dog.  When we saw her I melted.  She had the prettiest blue eyes and a spotted nose.  She wasn't as puffy as her sister, but wasn't as flat coated as her other sister.  And shes ran around and played in the long grass.  I had to have her.  She was actually a pretty good value (seems funny talking about a dog haha).  The lady gave us like, $100 off since Matt was giving her to me as a 'wedding gift'.  We paid about $500...I'd have to ask Matt to be sure.  But that's pretty cheap for a purebred AKC registered parents (who were both there for us to see) Siberian.  If you look at petshops....which I would never buy from...they go for $800-$1000.  We also got a small bag of dog food so we could switch her to our own brand.  She had dewclaws removed, first set of shots, a bath, and a collar of our choice.

She was potty trained in a week.  And at one point we could let her outside at night and she'd potty and come back in.  Than we left her for about 3 weeks when we got married.  Dogs are pack animals, and since she was still young she picked up habits from Matt's mom's dogs that aren't exactly the best.  That and she had seperation anxiety.  If we'd leave her alone in the house she'd chew things up, but she didn't if we left her with other dogs.  Bad part...she likes to dig after animals :(

Once we put in the doggy door she began to be fine at home.  She loves being out side and keeping any kind of critters out of our yard.  Luckly she seems to know the difference between regular snakes and rattlesnakes.  We know there is something in our yard when she barks, since she never does.  She has also killed many a mouse.  That I am soo greatful for.  She just caught one last night :)

She also 'talks'  and when she does Hailey tries to copy her.  It's so cute!  Hailey also loves to try to get Mia to lick her feet, which she does sometimes.  Mia also isn't that much of a licker, which some people like.  The shedding I could live without though....haha

Moral of the story...I love my puppy! <3

 

~hyuu!

Saying....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAXSON!!!

Love you!! <3

~hyuu!







Birthday Plans

Hailey's birthday is coming up fast!  I'm excited, and sad all at the sime time.  I've never really thrown any kind of party before, so I didn't know how much in advance invited needed to go out.  A couple people told me about 2 weeks.  So we called the pizza place to see if we could even do it there, and if they'd let us bring our own cake (some places won't).  Matt called them yesterday and ended up confirming the whole thing.  We also decided not to send out paper invites seeing as my printer is broken and I don't know addresses and most is family anyway.  So I put a thing on Facebook and on here.  That and including texts we should be fine.  Anyone who wants to come can, even though most people don't even live by me haha.
It'll be at a place called Pizza Chalet (you can text me or look at the event on Facebook for the address)
On Sunday, the 4th (figured Sunday would be better than Monday)
At 1:00 PM
There will be pizza (duh) and cake!  Pizza Chalet also has pasta, salads, and sandwiches. :)
So come join us for lunch!



~hyuu!

Just gotta say....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!

You are the best Dad ever! 

Love you <3

~hyuu!



11 months and walking!

Today Hailey is 11 months old.  One more month and she'll be a year!  Where did the time go?  Everytime she turns another month older, I sit and remember when she was wee.  Especially now that she's walking.  I declared her an official walker when she walked on the tile floor and socks and didn't fall haha.  She actually walks more than she crawls now....just slowly.  Also, still a little piggy!  You can't eat anything without her begging for some like a puppy. It's not too bad unless it's something she can't have because than she gets louder and louder haha.  She is also a wiz at the stairs.  She'll be up them in the 5 seconds I've looked away.  Coming down is another story.  I have seen her go down them once but not very often.  She also has a long body - making none of her clothes fit anymore.  We just bought this shirt at Target on clearance ($3.50 woo!) 12M size and it's almost too short on her.  Sigh. 

Should we officially start the countdowns now?

Days Till:
Thanksgiving - 19
Hailey's Birthday - 30
Christmas - 50


~hyuu!

Halloween

Yesterday was Hailey's first Halloween!  Halloween is one of my favorite holidays.  We made Hailey Rapunzel from Tangled.  I went cheap and just wore a Batman shirt.  I tried to make my face batman-y but I don't think anyone saw it anyway.  Matt went even cheaper than me and wore a skull shirt haha.  But we had a good time.  At first Hailey was just sitting in the stroller surprisingly quiet, but awake.  So we took her out and Matt held her for a while before putting her on his shoulders where she was the most talkative.  We didn't stay out for too long because Matt's back was hurting after working both jobs that day (4AM to 9AM than 11 to 5).  But we sat out on his dad's porch while Emma handed out candy.  Hailey almost enjoyed that more.  You'd give her a piece of candy to hold, she'd give it to you, than you give it back and she'd giggle in her new laugh she has that is so funny.  And now that she can stand up on her own we just let her walk (slowly) around the porch. 

I also got my pictures I ordered (for free - thanks McDonalds Monopoly) from Snapfish that day too.  So I'm going to take today to remember where they are supposed to go in the baby book. 

Oh and Happy Birthday Carter!



~hyuu!

4 days til Halloween

I'm so excited for Halloween!  It's funny how time flies.  Just a week ago it felt like Halloween was forever away.  We got Hailey a pumpkin today at Target for $1.  She loves it.  She likes to put her blocks in there haha. As far as my costume goes....I had to go cheap and just get a Batman shirt.  I like it though.  I used to have a Batman shirt in highschool and loved it.
Some updates with Hailey bug.  She is soooo close to walking.  She's taken quite a few steps, even being able to stop without falling to the ground.  But she has a hard time standing up on her own.  She did once today so I don't think it'll be too long.  Shaking her head yes and no is also a new trick of hers.  Sometimes her timing is just perfect it's so funny.  And now she likes to sit on the stairs and dangle her feet.  She is growing way too fast.  She's long for her age, and is almost out of clothes. 
Now that Halloween is coming close to an end - the countdowns for Thanksgiving and Christmas begin...and Hailey's first birthday!  We're trying to decide what we should do for it.  I also got an email for 4 free introductory classes at a little gym that I'm thinking would be kind of fun.
Oh and another Hailey likes to do now is hug her elephant or baby doll and pat their back hehe.  So cute!  We need more space bad.  She gets so excited when we go to someone else's house where she can actually wander around.  (and no mice....sigh)
4 days till Halloween!!

~hyuu!

Mall Adventures

Yesterday Matt and I went to the mall to look for Halloween costumes.  First we stopped by a friend's jewelry show.  She had some great stuff!  After hanging out there for a while, we headed to the mall (well actually King Taco for Mr. Matt haha).  It was so busy!  Probably the hardest time we've ever had finding a park.  The thing I like about our mall is that it's pretty family oriented.  Recently they added parking spots marked for people who had kids.  They are a little bigger spots for you to have room to get out the stroller - or if you have a car like us, climb in the back seat to get the baby out.  Anyway, we found one open, and as we were about to pull in Matt sees the guy in the line opposite us has his blinker on, so Matt lets him in - trying to be nice.  And what does this single 30 year old gangster looking man do?  Slide right into that family spot.  Where did we find a spot?  The very back of the lot...I'm not being sarcastic haha seriously the last spot.  I was so annoyed!  Given....I was already feeling a little annoyed because I was trying to look up directions for Kimberly on our phones (reading the address on mine and using Google on Matt's).  In the process they both restarted and Matt's froze once.  Than Google kept losing the addresses...anyway back to crappy car guy - he was just sitting in his car too!  Didn't even get out...what a jerk.
So the mall was way busy!  I don't think I've ever seen it that busy besides a weekend in December.  First thing we did was head to the food court to get lunch and feed the baby.  Our mall has this family center by the bathrooms where you can take your kids to chill out and whatnot.  Hailey happens to be very vocal when it comes to food....so I took her in there to feed her and let her play with the toys while we ate.  They even have rooms for women to breastfeed which is awesome!  Even though a lot of times teenagers go in there to talk or mess around - which also makes me very annoyed - but that's a story for another day.  (I think I really do need to get an opinions blog for frustration so I'm not bulking up this one) 
Now...we didn't end up getting my costume.  Why?  We wanted to look at other stuff and have a fun day out and in doing so forgot it was Sunday and that the mall closed at 7....
Either way it was still fun.  I'll probably just do a cheap costume (since I is poor kid) and wear the awesome batman shirt Hot Topic has.  Now they have a Sailor Moon shirt too which I love!  But it looks kind of silly on.  I don't know....I might still go with it. 
Also Hailey is getting better at walking!  She can take 4 steps before she either falls or decides to dive for you instead.  Love my baby


~Hyuu!

Halloween Costume Confusion

Ok so, Halloween is 16 days away and I have NO idea what I'm going to be.  Why do I want to dress up?  Because That's why! Haha, no really I love Halloween.  It's pretty much tied with Christmas on my favorite holidays.  And even though the only thing I'll probably really do on Halloween is take Hailey trick or treating I still want to dress up.  I haven't dressed up for the past 3 years, and the year before that I did the classic "cheat" costume and wore scrubs. 
Matt said we are going to the mall tomorrow to get one =D. Originally I wanted us all to match.  But since I fell in love with the Rapunzel costume and got that for Hailey we wont be matching (unless I get a big Rapunzel costume or find a dress to match her mom's).  So now my options are pretty much wide open.  Oh and bugs are out (lady bug, bee, butterfly)....those costumes are cute but...don't ask haha.
I also can't decide if I want to wear an actual costume, or go cheap and just get one of the cute super hero shirts from Hot Topic.  But there are so many cute costumes I just can't decide.  So hey! What do you think I should be??  I love your opinions!
Please and Thank You


~hyuu!




Oh, and even though I know barely anyone reads this blog - I'm thinking of starting a second one just for my opinions....kind of like a vent blog where I can get out how I feel about something haha.  I don't know about you, but I kind of consider this blog to be more for family updates and stuff.

Dolphin Tale

A couple day ago Matt and I went on a date to see Dolphin Tale.  I was sooo excited when I saw a commercial for this movie....it's not a secret that I LOVE dolphins. 

This movie was even more amazing than I thought it would be.  Matt even really liked it.  And a little known fact I didn't realize is that Winter is playing herself in the movie!  That's why the dolphin was bigger than when they actually found her.

The inspiration this movie provides is amazing.  To never give up - to keep trying.  This is a movie I would recommend for everyone.  Trying to get my parents to go see it actually haha.\

If you don't know - it's about a young dolphin who becomes trapped in a crab trap and beached.  She is taken to a rehab center but her tail becomes too infected and has to be amputated (sp).  She teaches herself how to swim without it. But because she's moving in a way that is not natural, it messes up her spine.  So they come up with the idea to make her a prostetic tail.

Go see it. Love for dolphins or not :)

www.seewinter.com

~hyuu!

Dear Rain...

Dear Rain....I used to like you, I used to love you!  But now, not so much...
I liked you before you turned my driveway into a river...
I liked you before I only had a dirt backyard in which my white dog uses to potty...
I liked you before I had to walk down that river to get to my car or do any kind of laundry....
I liked you before I had to carry a baby to the car - causing me to sink in the mud
I liked you before you made my whole living area smell like nasty wet clay/mud
So why don't you go away until I like you again okay? :)
Thanks


~hyuu!

Decided

Well, we officially decided to make Hailey Rapunzel from Tangled.   They have the cutest dress for her at the Disney store.  I'm excited...and also nervous because I want to get it fast.  I think they'll be gone quickly since she's the newest princess right now.  But now I don't know what I should be.  I've been leaning toward American McGee's Alice....but she's kind of creepy and I thought it would be weird to be creepy holding a little princess haha.  That and I don't have the money to go full out on it this year and she almost would have to be. 
Oh and Hailey has been standing on her own a lot more recently.  She'll be standing against something than let go not even thinking.  I'm excited and nervous for her to walk haha.  Oh and her front upper tooth is poking through the gum.  Funny thing is I think she'll get the one right next to it before she get her other front one...so she'll be lopsided for a while teehee.  I think she'll be so happy when she can bite foods and chew them better.  She's getting so big!


~hyuu!

Excited for Halloween!

Halloween is in about 37 days!  I LOVE Halloween!  It is one of my favorite holidays.  But I still can't decide what Hailey is going to me....or myself.  I can't decide if I want us to match and just be like lady bugs or bees or even Tinkerbells!  Or if I should just make her something herself and I'll be something myself ya know?  I saw the CUTEST Tangled dress in the Disney Store at the mall yesterday and I'm thinking of making her that since I love Tangled.  They usually have little Pascel (however you spell his nam) dolls.  There are just so many cute ones!  I'm also thinking I want to be Alice for American McGee's video game.  She's scary!  But the problem with that is, I don't have the money to go all out this year....I plan to next year.  And of course the costume only comes with the bare min.  So I was thinking of just doing something cheap like from Hot Topic....which by the way has a Sailor Moon costume!  How awesome is that?!  Too bad it's really dumb looking :(  I'd also love to go as an anime character, but cosplay costumes are usually in the hundreds beause they are hand made.  I couldn't make one myself for the life of me.  We'll just have to wait and see I guess.
I'm also excited for Knott's Scary Farm!  I really hope I can go this year.  I didn't go last year because I was 8 months pregnant at the time.  And we didn't go the year before because we were even more broke than we are now...and that's saying something.  I love being scared and haunted houses.  Problem is getting someone to watch Hailey from like 10-1 AM
Speaking of Hailey the little booger butt.  Her new tricks include crawling super fast...while laughing...in the opposite direction you are.  Putting things out the doggie door. And climbing the stairs at super sonic speeds.  Oh and this morning she was sitting on the tile spinning herself in circles while chewing on a toy (or smelling my lotion bottle).  She's so funny...even when she's being a pain in the booty.

She's ready for Halloween too!

~hyuu!

Clothing

I LOVE clothes and shopping for them.  And right now I need to so bad.  All my clothes are either too small, stretched out from (stupidly) wearing them pregnant, or are ruined from using Matt's mom's old washer.  I literally have 3 shirts I would consider "nice" shirts...add a couple to that that are long sleeved when it actually gets cool enough to wear them.  Sigh
Another pass time of mine when I get really bored is to go on my favorite clothing websites and make a "wish list"  I don't know why it's so entertaining, but it is!  I make my dream wardrobe haha.
Why don't I have a new wardrobe yet?  Well, it can get kind of pricey.  Some stores have good deals though.  I'm going to wait a little after Christmas probably to get some good deals (obviously I'll have to wait for spring/summer clothes).  But I also fear getting new clothes right now because I want to lose weight.  I really want to, but it's hard to get into a groove of a new routine.  I'm a creature of habit usually and change is hard for me.  I'm starting my diet/work out up again.  I'm going to put a weight ticker on this page (not 100% sure how it tracks) and maybe if everyone can see it'll help motivate me
Well....this is just a boredom post.  Hailey is crawling around with her play phone banging it on the tile.  Crazy baby. 

~hyuu!

9 month checkup

Today Hailey had to go in for her 9 month check up - 19lbs 26inches (I think).  We didn't really talk to the doctor too much, but she said everything was good/normal.  Than we were sent over to the lab for some blood work.  She said they do it for all their patients, but Kim said none of her girls have ever had it done.  I think it was to test Iron and cell blood count.  It was sad because the lady couldn't find a vein.  I guess she was "fish hooking it" (I think that's what I heard Matt call it) which I guess your not supposed to do.  I'm glad Matt held her though.  It would be hard to hold her down to get poked :(  It was sad though because she kept looking at me like "why don't you stop her??" 
She did have fun hanging out in the waiting rooms though.  Seeing the other kids and tons of people, and tons of things to walk across and bang on.  I had forgotten her shoes (since she almost never wears them) so her feet are pretty dirty now.  Probably the dirtiest they've ever been - minus when she got her footprints done haha.
The little stinker is pretty close to walking.  She stands against everything, and walks across whatever she can.  Sometimes she can find her balance and stand.  When she does she tries to take a step and usually ends up on her bum.  The other day she stood for so long it was crazy!  She seems so small to me yet so big at the same time.  Ok Hailey you can stop growing at any time now ;)

~hyuu!

Today (yesterday) is

Arina's Birthday!!

Happy Birthday little girl.  You are a doll!

Also Yesterday was 9/11.  I remember where I was when I heard the news.  I was in 7th grade health class.  Our teacher let us watch the tv.  At first I was thinking "what kind of dumb pilot flies into a plan?" Than when I was explained the situation my mindset totally changed.  That night I cried to my mom saying that I didn't want to die.  When I pictured war in my head I pictured my death pretty much.  Yesterday morning I watched the documentary that Lifetime/A&E/History channel all aired at the same time.  It was clips of footage that random people just happened to capture.  It was really good. 
I can't even imagine being someone in one of those planes or in one of the buildings.  That had to be so scary.  And for the firefighters to run into those buildings just shows me how brave and selfless you have to be to be one of those men. 
I also can't imagine knowing someone in those situations.  The fear of the unknown is so scary.  The heartbreak so painful.  In the words of Philip DeFranco - ...someone called their loved one see if they were alright, and no one answered....
I have a new item on my bucket list: Visit the 9/11 memorial site.
God Bless



~hyuu!

Hello

Well hello there!  I put in a new blog template...we'll see how it works out.  It looks nice at least haha.
I've realized that I would love to blog more.  I just need things to blog about ya know?  That and maybe an audience.  That would probably inspire some.  Right now I know that I'm probably talking to myself (but that's ok!).  But what would I write about?  At the moment our life is kind of stuck in a rut.  We are trying to get out, but before we do I'm stuck at home with nothing to do.  Matt has to take the only car to work. And even if I was in posession of the car, I really don't have anywhere to go.  Sure I could go wander the mall, but who wants to do that all the time, expecially when you can't buy anything haha.   I also still believe it would be super fun to jump on the YouTube bandwagon, but I doubt that's going to happen.  If I don't have anything exciting to write on a silly blog, what would I film that would catch peoples attention on YouTube?  Matt would be the better one to film seeing as he has that kind of personality that draws people in...as where I never really had that many friends.  Oh Well, I figure something out :)
Updates on the babe!  Hailey is gaining balance everyday.  She can stand for about 30 seconds before she falls on her bum.  One time she balanced and didn't even realize that she had let go and was standing on her own.  She stands against everything!  And gets into everything!  She bangs on the doggie door and has learned to climb the stairs.  If she gets hungry on her crawl over to the stairs, she'll stop off at the dog food bowl and grab a snack.  Gross!  But all the pain in the butt stuff is washed away by the funny faces she makes, or her giggle as she is tickled or tossed in the air.  She eats everything!  And begs for any and all food.  Worse than a dog I tell you!  She is also 9 months now!  I just realized I missed a 9 month post.  Sigh.  I'm also trying to decide if I want to put a little picture slide show together of her growing throughout her first year of life. 
Pictures!

Super Hero Ducky!

Petting a cow at the fair

Throwing a fit. 

Being a doggie

Yummy Dinner!

~hyuu!

Updates

I know that no one really reads this, but I'm going to put some updates on here anyway haha.
-Hailey now crawls everywhere
-She also stands on everything!
-She can now walk forward in her walk and turn sometimes
-Mia likes playing with Hailey more now that she's mobile
-Hailey eats everything! She's the bad dog Mia never was haha
-Matt's Vons hours are probably going to change quite a bit because of the workers strike the Union voted on
-Hailey loves music
-We are trying to advance our plans to move out since Matt's grandparents are moving in with his mom and taking her room (so she'll be in the basement) and if we move out, she can move in here (they couldn't do the stairs I don't think)
-Hailey loves to be swung upside down....what a weirdie
-Her hair is not long enough to clip cute clippies in it alone, but is long enough to hang over the headband and get wicked bedhead haha
-No more mice caught so far...but I know they're around somewhere because I can hear them sometimes
-I'm thinking of finally quitting breastfeeding altogether, even though it scares me
-Hoping to see Matt's cousin's band perform soon!
-I need to go do the dishes.....


~hyuu!

Today I gotta say....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TANNER!!

Starting Monday

Hello.  Once again I have to say that I fell off my diet/exercise train.  But that's all going to change starting Monday!  And it's not just going to be that, it's going to be taking care of myself all around.  Like not forgetting to brush my teeth or wash my face...stuff like that.  I believe that it is important to take care of yourself.  It makes you feel better and it makes other people think "hey maybe I should take care of myself too".  Expecially kids/grandkids and what not.  I know Hailey is young for it still, but if I take care of myself and teach her to take care of herself, it'll stick with her.
My problem is all mental.  I tear myself down before I can even get worked up.  It's a horrible problem that I have been trying to stop for years.  That and I looove to eat and snack.  I'm trying to convince my brain that the little satisfaction (not to mention the guilt I get afterwards) I get from eating those yummy bad for you foods is not better than the longer satisfaction I'd feel from looking in the mirror and liking what I see and feeling comfortable in my own skin again. 
Wish me luck!!


~hyuu!

Surveys & 8 months old

I've always loved filling out surveys.  I thought I would point out one instance where it pays off.
We got a survey in the mail (kind of a long one too) from Edison, our power company.  Matt was going to throw it away but I said no I wanted to fill it out.  I filled it out and had Matt mail it back when he went to the post office to mail some bills.  That was a while ago, and I had totally forgotten about it.  The other day, we got a package in the mail from Edison.  Upon opening it we found a LED nightlight, a showerhead where you can adjust the water flow, a couple filters for your sinks and shower, and 2 light bulbs - one the common swirly LED, the other is the new lightbulbs that are coming out.  Matt's mom had asked why she didn't get one.  That's when we were like "oooh, did you fill out your survey?" She said no.  So hey, sometimes filling out a little survey can be rewareding.  Even though they may be dumb little things to some people, I love it!  Not only was it free and a package! It was a reward for doing something little :)
Oh yea....and my baby is 8 months old today!! Where did the time go?  I was talking to Matt about it and was saying she was 7 months because it was too hard to believe it was 8, but here it is...on the downward spiral to her first birthday.
Oh my big girl

~hyuu!

Home

We have made it back home.  It is so quiet here....I don't think I like it haha.
We had a blast in Utah!  Even though I didn't really meet up with anyone like I was going to.  It was so fun seeing Hailey interact with her cousins.  I think Matt enjoyed playing too :)
I also loved watching Kim take photos, and I can't wait for her to email me copies. 
Don't really have much to say right now.  We're going to go run some errands and take care of sick little Hailey...first sickness!  Her nose is running and stuffy (I never understood that!), she's a little hot, and last night she threw up.  I felt so bad for her.
Later!


~hyuu!

Today is special because...

...it's two birthdays

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SONNIE AND SADIE!!

(I don't have a picture of Sonnie on this computer)

~hyuu!

Preparing

Lately I've been trying to "prepare" for our trip to Utah.  I know there really isn't anything to prepare for, but I keep feeling like there is, and I like feeling prepared.  I do have a list of things I'd like to make sure are done before we're gone.  Like...making sure the house is pretty clean.  I hate coming home to a dirty house.  Plus giving "care" instructions to Matt's sister about Mia and his lizard, dishes all done, and laundry all clean.  We already shipped Austin's swords home and I taped up and labeled the box of diapers I'm bringing for Kim and I....or rather Hailey and Olivia.  I need to get some jeans, but I'll probably have to wait until we get to Utah to get them, which is probably better anyway because they may be cheaper.
Today Matt took Austin to the shooting range with him.  I think he enjoyed it.  I'm pretty sure he shot the hand gun and the rifle.
Hailey has pretty much mastered crawling.  She's still not very fast, but she sure gets around.  Her new fasination is trying to turn off my computer (wants to touch the light).  She also likes to talk to Mia.  Standing has also become her favorite thing.  She tries to stand up against everything and sometimes won't sit on her bum.  Speaking of turning off my computer...gotta go enterain my crazy baby.


~hyuu!

Little Tokyo

The other day we decided to go to downtown LA and explore Little Tokyo.  Man was it a pain to find.  I was a little disappointed.  It was smaller than I thought it would be...but I think it didn't do well in the economy drop since the "mall" part of it had mostly shops that said "for lease".  Also, the two stores that Austin and I would mainly want to go in were closed.  But they did have cool other stuff.  Austin got a couple figurines.  They had some awesome weapons too!  Plus the bakery and grocery store had cool Japanese foods. 
Apparently we have at least one other mouse.  I heard it this morning and the crumbs from the pizza box (which I left to see if they would be gone) were, in fact, gone.  It's starting to drive me nuts...like I'll never have a clean counter again!  I want to get rid of them all (or at least most) before we go to Utah...which is in 5 days!  I'm so excited. 
I talked to Kim the other day on the phone and hearing the girls in the background always makes me laugh. Sadie was crying because it started raining and her penguin was outside.  And Arya decided to take a mudbath under the gutter haha.  So cute. 
I feel like I need to prepare for this trip starting now...but there really isn't anything I can do beside kill some mice...that and mail Austin's swords.  I'm afraid that is going to cost a ton of money.  Mainly because the box is oddly shapen.  I also had this idea about bringing a box of diapers with us instead of trying to pack them like I did last time...and that way I can have more and bring some for Kim as well.  But now I'm rethinking how I'm going to do it a little.  Maybe I'll ask Matt his opinion and maybe call the airline.  Another bummer is we wish we could bring our own stroller (but no way could we do that without a major pain).  I like it because we can put our junk under it, unlike an umbrella stroller.  That and because it leans back, if we're out and about I can give Hailey her bottle and lay the seat back and she's fine.  We could check it with the baggage, but than we'd have to pay for it.  And we all know your stuff doesn't get treated that well when being thrown on a plane. 



~hyuu

Venice

Yesterday we decided it was time to take Hailey to the beach!  We decided to go to Venice because I don't think Austin has ever been there.  I didn't take many pictures because I knew I'd drop my phone in the water and didn't want to risk it haha.  Matt took video, but it's on his phone so I'll have to get it once he gets home.  Austin bought a sun stone...he's into Aztecs right now.  And probably the best part is when Matt dropped Austin's wallet in the water and had to chase it!  The water had major pull and huge waves so swimming wasn't aloud.  I put Hailey's feet in the sand, than the water.  She didn't cry but when the water pulled back she lifted her feet out of the water.  Between the beach and Raging Waters, I have some funky tan lines now. 
Since we were already salty, we headed over to Matt's aunt's house to go swimming.  It felt really good!  After swimming around a little, we sat and relaxed in the hot tub. 
We finally caught our smart mouse....well....mice.  This morning I saw the first mouse trap snapped and I smiled.  When I looked and saw the second one trapped too I laughed sooo hard!  We usually only have one or two mice at a time, so I'm hoping the problem is solved...for now.  With as many holes that are in this place and the location, we're bound to get more :(
8 more days till Utah!  Hope you're ready Mom and Dad for a house full of craziness!! :)

 On the way to beach!

The view

~hyuu!

Raging Waters

Yesterday we got to go to Raging Waters.  It was fun!  I actually had more fun than I thought I would....being self consious the whole time.  Hailey loved it too!  I knew she liked water, but I thought maybe she wouldn't like the cold water (and it was pretty cold), but she didn't make a peep.  The only time she got frustrated is when I changed her out of her swimming suit at the end and when we had to put a life vest on her in the lazy river and it was choking her.  But we took her to the kiddie area and just sat her in the water where it's real shallow and shaped kind of like the beach.  She sat and played in there till she got tired.  And even than she didn't cry, she just wouldn't sit in the water anymore and kept crawling up me (and it was past her nap time).  So Matt's mom sat with her while she napped and we went and got in the wave pool for a while..where Austin went treasure hunting.  Than we went on a rapid ride which was awesome!  And spent a lot of time in the lazy river...after we kicked out this stupid girl who was splashing EVERYONE and getting it in our eyes (Matt almost lost a contact).  We had to leave early because Matt had to go into work.  It was a stupid situation because he had found someone to cover for him for the day, but his manager said no.  Vons has been a pain in the butt ever since he started working there.  My shoulders got pretty burned, but that was to be expected.
Also...we have a mouse in the house (I'm a poet!).  It is making me so mad!  I know this sounds dumb, but I think he's a smart mouse, and he's slowly making the whole place his.  It grosses me out and is very very annoying.  We've had snap traps out for 4 days now and he hasn't gotten in them.  He stole one of Matt's rattles from a rattlesnake, he ruined some bananas we were going to make banana bread out of, and this morning...instead of going for the open food in the traps, he tore open my bag of oreos!  What the crap mouse!  I'm afraid to eat anything in the kitchen since I don't know where he's been.  People can get very sick from mice.  I hope Mia catches it soon (I caught her hunting it last night, but she's not going to jump on the counter for it).
Oh, and 10 more days till Utah!

~hyuu!