Lopez Family

Kid, You'll Move Mountains!

2012-02-09T23:23:00.001-08:00

A friend recently posted this video of "Oh the Places You'll Go" filmed at Burning Man. I think it is a beautiful rendition of the book. I hope you enjoy it!

I found this printable online a few months ago and have it up in Tessa's room. I don't remember where I found it, but it is such a great inspirational quote for little ones!

It's Me Again!

2012-02-09T00:13:00.000-08:00

Double meaning to the title of this post. The obvious, I haven't posted since before Christmas, and I wasn't very good about posting often anyway! I can't say I'm going to be much better, but I sure will try a little harder! My life has been pretty consumed with a toddler lately!

The other reason for this title is my latest project is almost completely recycled! Back in September I shared an autumn shirt that I made for Tessa. I loved that shirt! It was so cute and festive! After Thanksgiving, though, there was no way I was going to have Tessa wear it again. So, I took off the leaves, buttons, and ruffle, and it sat on my sewing table waiting to be used. I thought of Christmas shirts, winter shirts, New Years shirts, but never got around to making anything. Finally, tonight, as I was looking at my to-do list, I decided to cross off "Make Tessa's Valentine's Day Shirt." I looked at a few (dozen) ideas on Pinterest and decided to make this shirt:

The main fabric is actually recycled from a dress of Tessa's from over a year ago. I can't believe I've carried it with us through 2 moves, but tonight I am glad I did! It was perfect for this project! I can hold my head high at storytime tomorrow with my Valentine's-Day-ready toddler! Now to get the Valentine's ready for her MOPS class on Tuesday! Here's what I'm hoping to make:

Here's the link to this project. For some reason, my link tool stopped working mid-post.
http://bugger-dixonline.blogspot.com/2012/01/diy-princess-and-super-hero-peg-doll.html

And, since it's been such a long time since I've posted anything, I can't leave without an updated picture of Tessa! This picture gives you a quick idea of interesting ways Tessa keeps me busy these days!

Lopez Family Christmas Card

2011-12-16T15:58:00.001-08:00

Simply Love Holiday Card

holiday party invitations and thank you cards by Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

I finally got around to ordering our Christmas cards. I LOVE them! Hopefully I'll be on the ball enough next week to get them mailed out in time. If you are on our Christmas list, you can expect our card a couple of days before or after Christmas. For all others, enjoy our online card!

It's Almost the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

2011-11-17T21:13:00.001-08:00

It’s that time of year again! I am planning our Christmas card photo! Ryan and I have been married for 4 1/2 years now, so this will be our fifth family Christmas card. I love photo cards. I love looking through the pages of options online and choosing the perfect card! This year I think I’m going to plan our photo around the card!

Shutterfly has their beautiful line of holiday cards out to peruse and order in time to get cards out! I love Shutterfly! I use their website throughout the year for printing pictures, ordering birthday cards, birth announcements, etc. I especially love playing around with the different options they have for Christmas cards and gifts! Last year I ordered acrylic prints of Tessa for my mom and mom-in-law for Christmas. They turned out beautifully! They have so many gift options and trinkets available to order, you could almost complete your Christmas shopping on their website!

Another very popular gift with my family is the photo calendar. At Shutterfly.com, you have so many choices between wall calendars, desk calendars, and year-at-a-glance poster calendars! What I love about this gift is once the year ends, you now have 12 prints of your photos! My sister still has her 2006 calendar hanging on her wall because she loves the December photo I put in! It’s fun to look through it from time to time and remember what my nephews were up to back then!

If you’re curious about our cards this year, I’m leaning towards the Sparkle Joy or the Blossoming Joy (both found here). I was toying with a black, white, and red theme for our family photo, and the Blossoming Joy card would work perfectly with that color choice!

FYI, Shutterfly provided my high-quality photo Christmas cards last year, and is giving our family (and other qualified bloggers!) 25 complementary cards this year! Whoo Hoo!

Media Socialite

2011-10-20T15:57:00.000-07:00

My Uncle Mark is visiting this week! I love when he comes out to Southern California for a visit. The last time he was out, Tessa was still in my belly, so she finally got to meet him. My Uncle Mark is a neat man. When we were little, we called him Crazy Uncle Mark because he was young and fun. He is always learning new things and expanding his horizons.

My sisters, Uncle Mark, and me. 3 weeks before Tessa was born!
His latest adventure is in the social media arena. We spent several hours together, teaching me about HootSuite, helping me learn how to use my twitter account, and finding topics of interest for me to start some daily e-newspapers. I now am the editor of two e-newspapers: Do It Yourself Daily and Sew What's New? I'm excited about my new adventure in social media and to see where it will take me. I'm thinking of topics for other potential newspapers. Maybe SAHM, crafting, repurposing... who knows what else is out there! Click on over to one (or both) of my e-newspapers and check them out! There are some pretty cool articles!

Welcome Autumn!

2011-09-28T22:29:00.000-07:00

Autumn is my favorite season (along with spring and summer!) I love the cooler weather, the warm colors, pumpkin and cinnamon scented EVERYTHING, my birthday, Halloween and Thanksgiving, so many great things to look forward to in the fall!
Last year I really wanted to make a fall onesie for Tessa. I never got around to it, so that was one of the first projects on my autumn to-craft list this year!

I love how this shirt turned out! I just sewed on a few silk leaves along the veins so most of the leaf is loose. The buttons are added just for extra cuteness! My favorite part is the plaid ruffle along the bottom! My mom found this adorable ribbon at JoAnn's. I just pulled out the wires, sewed it into a ruffle, and sewed it onto the tee! I can't wait for it to fit Tessa! Hopefully it will fit before we go to the pumpkin patch for pictures!

I'm linking up to Craftaholics Anonymous' Fall Frenzy Link Party!

;

First Sale!

2011-09-16T14:21:00.000-07:00

I just completed my first Etsy sale! Of course when I opened my store, I had these big dreams of items flying off the shelf, but as it turns out, almost a year and a half have gone by and I've just now sold my first item! I think it is really cute! It's a personalized diaper wipes case with a ruffled pocket on the front for diapers. My customer wanted something bright, sophisticated, yet still girlie. I think she's going to love this! I sure do!

Craft Hope: Christmas in Dixie

2011-09-08T13:09:00.000-07:00

This image is from the Craft Hope site. I hope to soon post a picture of my own stocking!

Just a quick post to mention this great new blog I just stumbled across. It is called Craft Hope, and from what I understand, they post about crafting opportunities for people all over the world who are in need. The current project is called Christmas in Dixie. Basically, people are making handmade stockings for tornado survivors who lost everything. I am going to try my best to make at least one stocking to send to a family and brighten somebody's holiday a little! I am STILL working on Tessa's stocking (that I started when I was pregnant!), but I'm going to set that aside again and really try to get this project done before the September 23 delivery deadline!

You'll notice I added Craft Hope's button to my side bar. I am really looking forward to making more projects for a cause and finding a way to do what I love while brightening another person's day! If you are crafty, and have time within the next week or so, join in on the good will and fun and make someone's holiday a little brighter! Here is a link for a free stocking pattern!

Seventeen Months!

2011-08-30T20:26:00.000-07:00

Tessa, this has been such a big month for you! I think you learn something new every single day!

• You are constantly signing “cracker.” I almost regret teaching you that sign! You really love to eat crackers! You are a really good eater, actually. You prefer fruit, but on most days, you’ll eat almost anything we give you!
• You are now singing, or doing the motions to “The Itsy Bitsy Spider,” “Mr. Sun,” Patty Cake,” “Riding in the Car,” "Where is Thumbkin," “Five Little Monkeys,” “Butterfly Floating By,” and you do the “Hokey Pokey!” I really need to get you on video! You are just too cute!

• You love to point at people as they come through the door. Anytime someone leaves, you have to run and wave bye-bye and blow kisses!

• You have two new teeth! Your front teeth have finally popped through! And the two next to them are working their way in!
• We had you dedicated to the church this month. It was a very special ceremony and a great time to celebrate with family and friends!

• You are still a great sleeper and take really good naps pretty much every day! We are sooooo lucky!
• You HATE the car almost always. I can’t wait to turn your car seat around. I know you’ll be so much happier!

• You are so social! You love going to Sunday School to play with the other kids. You love to play with other kids at the park. When we go out to restaurants, you love to look around and talk to other tables.
• Your favorite word is “Hey!” You use that expression all the time, when something unexpected has happened, when you want us to turn the TV on, when trying to get somebody’s attention. It is so cute, and you always get a laugh when you say “hey” to a stranger in public!

• You had a photo shoot for a Halloween Costume company. You were the cutest little ladybug and bumble bee! Unfortunately, the pictures won’t be published until next Halloween, so we have a long time to wait before we get to see the final product. But you were awfully cute in the digital images I got to preview!
• You love the water! We put you in your pool all the time. We went to the water park a couple of times, and even though you are too small for the water slides, you love wading around in the kids’ lagoon and floating in the lazy river!

• You love to laugh and are absolutely delightful! Tessa, every day I am more and more amazed with you and cannot believe how blessed I am to be your mom. I look forward to each new experience with you and miss you so much when you are napping or sleeping! I love you more and more every day!

This is Tessa last year at this time:

I can't believe how much you've grown!

Tessa's One Year Photo Book

2011-08-24T16:56:00.001-07:00

I finally got around to putting together a photo book for Tessa's first year. I wish I had started earlier. I know I could have made it even better, but Shutterfly had a free offer that ends tonight, so here's what I made! Enjoy!

Click here to view this photo book larger

Sixteen Months!

2011-08-03T16:19:00.000-07:00

My amazingly spectacular little girl is sixteen months old already! I got an e-mail toady that started off "Oh where, oh where has your baby gone?" and it rings so true to me! Tessa is heading into toddlerhood way too quickly for me! Here's what she's up to now-a-days:

~ You are trying really hard to jump. You crouch down and then pop up onto your toes and squeal with laughter!

~You have started doing chores! You love to help me load and turn on the dishwasher, do the laundry, and feed the dog!

~ You are a book worm! Your current favorite is the Peek-A-Boo Halloween book Grammie bought you last year at Target's dollar spot!

~ I just got out your nesting blocks and shape sorting ball and you have gotten really good at both! You love to stack the blocks as high as you can reach on your toes! You now point at the correct shape in the ball and then work your hardest to put the shape in. You get it right almost all of the time!

~ You are also getting really good at puzzles! You can now match the pieces to their correct spot and sometime get them in correctly with no help at all!

~ You have two new signs: cracker and please! You have become a cracker fiend since I taught you how to sign it. That is all you ever want to eat!

~ You figured out how to use your fork all by yourself! I left you with some watermelon and your baby fork, and when I looked over from the kitchen, you had a big piece of watermelon on your fork and were chomping away at it! You are too smart, little girl!

~ You love the beach, especially the ocean! Our little Southern California girl!

~ You are now running as often as you are walking. You spend most of your day running from one room to the other around the house!

~ You love to dance! Anytime you hear music, whether we are at home, in the car, or at a store, you have to stop and dance!

~ You said "Robbie" this month! Or at least something that sounded a lot like Robbie!

~ You want to do everything Mommy does. You like to put things in the trash can, climb on the step stool to look in the cupboard, brush and comb your hair and teeth, put toilet paper in the toilet! I swear you are doing new things every day!

~ You love to play Hide and Seek. You hide behind the coffee table or Baba's chair and bounce up with joyful squeals!

You really are such a lovely little girl! I am reminded every day how lucky your dad and I are to have you in our lives

Handmade Gift Exchange!

2011-07-28T14:45:00.000-07:00

Last month I participated in a handmade gift exchange with Craftaholics Anonymous. She is the same blogger who does the winter craft exchange that I participated in last year! I love these swaps! They are so fun and I love trying new projects for them!

My exchange partner was a girl who lives in Wyoming. She has a 6 year old daughter, so I decided to make Mommy & Me aprons! It was my first time making an apron without a pattern, but I just perused a couple of tutorials online and made these cute ruffly aprons!

Speaking of things I made last month, I tried my hand a freezer paper stenciling finally! I painted and embellished this little onesie for Tessa. I LOVE how it turned out! Sweet and whimsical!

One Year Photo Shoot

2011-07-25T14:21:00.000-07:00

I finally got Tessa's one year photos taken (only 3 months late), and the images came in the mail today! Last year I bought a photo package off of Group On. It was like $59 for the shoot and CD of images. I am so glad I bought that! The CD has 459 images on it, which is A LOT, but they are all mine! So you don't have to look through all 459 images, I created colleges of my favorites from each setting. We went to breathtaking Balboa Park, where I doubt there has ever been a bad picture taken! It took Tessa awhile to warm up to the photographer, so the first setting didn't have many great shots. Plus, we did a lot of impromptu Mommy & Me pics. I wasn't planning on being in any of the shots, so I am not wearing make-up, but at least I curled my hair!

All photos taken by Robert Goold Photography

Lake Arrowhead Village

2011-07-21T07:28:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Tessa and I drove up the mountain to visit Ryan's mom and her husband, Nauni and G-Pa. They have a family cabin in Running Springs and were doing some summer cleaning, clearing away pine needles, checking for broken tree branches, and doing minor baby-proofing (so maybe we can start spending more time up there this fall!). Nauni, Tessa, and I left G-Pa and his buddy behind at the cabin and ventured out to Lake Arrowhead Village.

I love the village. It is peaceful and quaint. I have many great memories of time spent in Lake Arrowhead throughout my childhood, high school, and a trip, post-college, with my coffee talk girls. I probably haven't been there in about 10 years, though, and there have been quite a few changes! Unfortunately, due to a beetle infestation and the poor economy, some of the changes aren't great, but one new thing is, there is now an amusement area for children. There is a little park with a playground, a mini golf course, and some rides!

We spent several hours there yesterday. Nauni doesn't get to see Tessa very often, so it was important to spend some good time together! We started off at a little tea shop where we sipped on iced lattes and shared a delicious lemon poppy seed cookie. Nauni shared some with Tessa, just for the special occasion! We then found a neat toy store. It had a little book section, which, anyone who knows Nauni can imagine how much time we spent there! We also walked around a looked at all the puppets and stuffed animals. Tessa left with a new book, The Princess ABCs, a calico kitten puppet, and a new pool toy. You've gotta love shopping with grandmas!

After we left the toy shop, we discovered the amusement area. Tessa made a beeline for the carousel, which, unfortunately, was closed. The music was still playing, so my music-loving daughter danced along for awhile! We then headed into the shop where ride tickets were sold, and Tessa discovered funny mirrors! She LOVED them! She ran from mirror to mirror, laughing and laughing at her reflection! She also loved the clown paintings with cut-out faces (you know what I'm talking about?) and played peek-a-boo with Nauni, and laughed and laughed!

We took Tessa to the little train next. She did such a great job! My heart was so full watching her go around the track all by herself! She was so brave and had a great time! It was not easy for me to watch my little independent girl go on a ride alone, but she loved it!

After the train ride, we walked down to the lake and watched the boats and ducks. It was a beautiful day. One I will remember for a long time and will love to share with Tessa when we visit Arrowhead as she grows.

Since our weeks are pretty much the same ~ park, library, pool, church~ I decided I'm going to aim to write about interesting things we do that aren't part of the same ol', same ol'.

Fifteen Months!

2011-07-09T22:05:00.001-07:00

Wow! Tessa, you are growing and changing so much every day!
* You are walking like a pro, running like you have been your whole life, dancing 'til the stars fall from the rafters, and even trying to jump and skip!

* Your communication is improving everyday as you add more and more signs.
* You love to sing and have taught all of your toys to Patty Cake and the Itsy Bitsy Spider!
* Your favorite day of the week is Thursdays because we go to the library story time. You have a BLAST there!

* I know you are going to be an amazing friend as you already like to share, pat friends (and sometimes strangers) on the back, and kiss, kiss, kiss!
* You are a great sleeper, and even have become a great napper more days than not!
* You have become a little fish and LOVE the water!

I love you so much my wonderful and amazing little girl. I am so excited to watch you grow and learn and become more of a little lady every day.

Summer in Snapshots ~ Week 3

2011-07-09T21:42:00.000-07:00

I didn't do post for Week 2. So, here's Week 3!

Our Week in Pictures ~ June 26 – July 2 ~

1. Shopping! My mom and I went to Carters and Osh Kosh for their $3.99 sale. They have this Lego table in the back where Tessa was able to play while I was able to shop! I’ve gotta share my favorite deal ~ I found a summer tunic shirt for $3.99 with an additional 20% off. I bought 4 different colors in size 24 months for Tessa, thinking they’ll be perfect for next summer (always thinking ahead!). When I got home, I realized they totally work as summer dresses this summer, so she will get twice the wear out of them! Hooray!

2. My mom ordered a water table for Tessa to play outside. She LOVES it! If she could, she would be outside from the moment she wakes ‘til she goes down at night. We often eat breakfast outside because she waits excitedly at the door while I’m making my coffee, and I just have to indulge her and go outside!

3. Mommy and Tessa’s breakfast at Starbucks.

4. Driving the car shopping cart at Vons! This made for the most pleasant grocery trip I’ve had in 15 months!

5. Family day at the beach! Tessa loves the ocean. She wanted to spend the whole day in the water, which led to a 3 ½ hour nap!

6. We stayed with friends over the weekend. Tessa had a great time playing with their 6 month old daughter and their loving doggie!

7. The balcony at our friend’s house overlooks Point Loma, Coronado, downtown San Diego, and the airport. Gorgeous! Tessa loved watching all the airplanes take off and land. She spent so much time on the balcony (just to be outdoors!) and had a great time waving to all the planes.

*I labeled all the pictures TWICE, but Picassa didn't seem to want to save it tonight, so you'll just have to figure it out on your own! I'm sure you won't have any trouble!

Beautiful day at La Jolla Shores!

2011-07-02T21:14:00.000-07:00

Our beach-loving baby!

My Little Dancer!

2011-06-23T15:30:00.000-07:00

One of Tessa's favorite weekly events is story time at Riverside's Downtown library. We've been to many different story times in San Diego, Sacramento, and Ventura, and this one BY FAR takes the cake! Ms. Gloria is fantastic, they do a lot of singing, chanting, getting up and down, movements, etc. There is one point when every kid gets a rhythm instrument and they all play along to an instrumental song. Tessa loves this part. In fact, I often have to pry the instrument out of Tessa's hand to return it at the end of the song. Today, though, Tessa decided she would rather dance! She handed her maraca off to Cameron, and stood up and danced instead! I only got a portion of it on video, so you can enjoy 17 seconds of my beautiful, creative, rhythmically blessed baby girl dancing!

Summer in Snapshots ~ Week 1

2011-06-22T22:10:00.000-07:00

OK, so I've been terrible about updating both my Facebook and my blog with pictures of what we're up to! I am hoping that joining in on The {Starfish} Blog's Summer in Snapshots linky will keep me motivated to share what we do each week.

June 15 - June 22 (I did Wednesday-Wednesday for some reason!)
Starting with the goat and moving clockwise:
* Petting the goat at the petting zoo at the Woodcrest Library
* Drawing in the backyard ~ Tessa spends most of the day in the backyard, running from one thing to the next, and always stopping to draw for a little while (often in the nude)
* Playing at the park
* Ready for swim lessons!
* Swimming with Daddy
* Playing the drum at library story time
* Feeling a little nervous about the alpaca at the petting zoo
* "Swimming" in the backyard ~ Tessa is in and out of her little pool all day long!
* Playing the maraca at library story time (She got to pick out 2 instruments this week!)
* Playing with Mommy's sunglasses at the park

As you can see, we keep a pretty full schedule! Unfortunately, I have no pictures from Father's Day! I posted a sweet video on Facebook of Tessa in her pool with Ryan blowing bubbles for her. That's all I got from the weekend, though! Hopefully I'll keep my camera out and remember to use it throughout this week!

Thirteen Months!

2011-05-26T15:42:00.001-07:00

So, Tessa will be fourteen months old tomorrow, and I never posted her thirteen month post (or her Ventura or Riverside birthday party posts)! By now, the past two months are blending together, so I'm just going to say that on April 23rd, Tessa finally proved that she can walk on her own! She doesn't choose to walk very often without holding onto my finger, but we KNOW she can, because she does occasionally! Tomorrow (or whenever I get around to it), when I post her 14 month post, I'll have to update on all of Tessa's growth and milestones for the past 2 months!

We're still here!

2011-05-09T20:20:00.001-07:00

Man, life has been crazy lately! Well, as crazy as life can get for a stay-at-home mom! I am feeling so behind on my blog! Tessa has been going to bed later than usual, so I haven't felt like blogging by the time she is down. I wanted to post a few cute pictures of her, though!

First of all, happy Mother's Day! We had a great day. Tessa decided it was time to get up at 5:15, but fortunately for me, Ryan got up with her and I got to sleep in! Yay for Mother's Day! I made Tessa these diaper covers during her nap using this tutorial. They were pretty easy, although I needed a little help from my mom!

They are too big, but she'll grow into them before I know it!

Today Tessa had a casting call for Carter's. Hopefully she'll book it! I was reminded that it's time to update her photo resume, (I'm not sure what it's really called. That's just what I call it!) so I borrowed my friend's fancy camera and had my sister come over to take some pictures. She took over 700 pics, and of course most of them aren't usable, but they sure are cute! Here are three of my favorite non-usable photos:

Tessa and Cali, my parents' old dog

Beautiful sky and a beautiful baby girl

Sweetest girl I know

New Background

2011-04-08T22:50:00.000-07:00

I just posted this new background from Leelou Blogs for the spring. I love the plaid and the adorable header, but I'm not too sure about the font. Does it drive you crazy? If you don't like it, let me know, and I'll change the background. Otherwise, I'll probably change it soon anyway for the summer!

*I have two more birthday parties to write about. They were fabulous! I will really try to post about them soon! Here's a cute picture in the meantime!

Sew Along for Japan

2011-04-01T21:06:00.000-07:00

I came across this sew along for the children in Japan on Living with Punks, and decided to give it a shot! My mom and I each made one. We decided to do onesies, so we had to shrink the pattern, and it worked really well!

I had sewn a pink ruffle onto a onesie back in January, planning to make a really cute onesie for Tessa for Valentine's Day! That obviously didn't happen, so instead I used it and coordinated the Japanese baby's dress! I love how they turned out! I know the pictures aren't that great, but I really wanted to post them tonight. (Tomorrow is Tessa's third 1st birthday party, so we'll be really busy!!)

This is the one my mom did. She's much more crafty than I am, but I think they both turned out really cute! If you think you want to make one (or some) of these, the lady collecting them has until May 21 to collect them all! That gives you all kinds of time to make one! Here is the info, if you're interested!

Twelve Months!

2011-03-29T20:54:00.000-07:00

Tessa, I can't believe you are one year old. You are the most incredible little girl, and your dad and I are so proud to be your parents! You have changed our lives in the most spectacular way. I look forward to getting to know you even better this second year, as you continue to grow and blossom as a beautiful little girl! Happy birthday my sweet love!

I had to add this picture, too. It is just too cute!
At twelve months:
• You weigh 19 pounds and are 28 inches tall. You wear 9 and 12 month clothes (although you still fit some of your 6 month clothes!)
• You added the word “dog” to your vocabulary! I’m not surprised. You have always loved dogs!
• New foods you tried this month include salmon and tuna. You loved both!

• You aren’t walking on your own still, but you push objects around, walking behind them. You also run and skip while holding onto my fingers! You took two steps from Grammie to me, and your doctor said once you take 3 steps on your own, we’ll count it as walking!

• You smile, wave, clap, and laugh all the time! You have the most delightful personality!
• You LOVE music and dancing! Anytime you hear a little tune, you stop what you’re doing to start dancing!

• You started blowing kisses! I love this!
• You love Cali, Grammie and Baba’s dog. You follow her around the house, trying to pat her. She usually tries to avoid you, though!

• We go to the park all the time now. As soon as you see the jungle gym and swing set, you squeal with excitement!

• You love other kids. You like to hold hands and rub friends on the back.
• You went to Chuck E. Cheese for the first time. You had so much fun, but didn’t like Chuck E. very much!

• You went to Sunday School for the first time. You were kind of shy, but didn’t cry until the end, when Daddy came to pick you up and you thought he was going to leave again.
• You had your first professional modeling shoot this month. Daddy and I were so proud of you, sitting with the photographer and crew, charming them all!

• This has been the most amazing year of my life, Tessa. You grow and learn so much every single day. Daddy and I are so blessed to be with you as you grow!

Look how much you have grown! I am so glad we took your monthly pictures. I love looking back to see how much you've changed!

One Year Old!

2011-03-27T21:18:00.000-07:00

Today is Tessa's birthday! I am blown away that I am the mother of a one year old! This year has truly been magnificent! I love you more than the world, Baby Girl!!

* Tomorrow is Tessa's one year check up, so I'm going to post her 12 month post after that. I also hope to find time this week to post about her birthday party in Ventura this weekend. Let me just say, it was a great day!

First Birthday Party ~ San Diego Edition

2011-03-24T20:55:00.001-07:00

We are celebrating Tessa’s first birthday three times this year! Her first party was in San Diego last weekend. One of the moms groups we spent most of her first year with (and a good portion of my pregnancy!) had a March babies’ birthday party on Saturday! It was so fun to see everyone and spend some time together! Of course, the stage where Tessa is right now is very busy, so I spent most of the day walking with her around the park, swinging, climbing, etc!

One of the girls made healthy cupcakes for all the babies out of banana, applesauce, and tofu frosting! We lined them all up for a picture, which is never easy! Tessa just licked her cupcake for the first 20 minutes before she finally took a bite! Then, she carried it around for about an hour and only took two bites! I finally threw it away, amongst tears from the birthday girl, but it was starting to get slimy and all over her party dress!

I made Tessa this adorable hat, and one of the moms made a few hats for the other babies. They all looked so cute, but if you know 1 year olds, you probably already could guess, none of the hats stayed on for long!

After cupcakes, we sat the babies together on the grass for another “fun” group picture. This was disastrous! Once we sat the babies down and ran out of the way for the picture, all the babies started crying! My sister, Bethany, came to the party and was taking pictures for me. She said it was the funniest scene to see all these moms running away from their screaming babies!

One of Tessa’s friends is Juliette. I think she is one of Tessa’s favorites. She always has been. When they were really little, Tessa liked to sit near Juliette at the gym. At the party on Saturday, she wanted to hang out with Juliette and follow her around the park! I am very happy with Tessa’s choice of friends so early on. Juliette has a calm, sweet spirit and has great parents. I definitely approve of this friendship!

This was a really fun day to celebrate our babies and catch up with each others’ lives. Tessa crashed as soon as she was in her car seat, she was so worn out!

Next up, Ventura birthday party with Dad’s family!

City of Angels

2011-03-08T22:37:00.000-08:00

I'm such a tourist and had to get a picture of the Hollywood sign!

I had some business to take care of in LA today, and my mom lovingly (and bravely) chauffeured Tessa and me around, which is not an easy task in Los Angeles! We had a great time, other than when we were stuck on the freeways.

I love and hate LA. I love the history, the old buildings, the way you will casually be driving down the street and pass a major movie studio, fun things like that. I don't think people watching could be beat anywhere else in the world! I hate the traffic, the honking people, and the way I seem to get a parking ticket every time I go (hence, my mom driving!).

Today, we were pretty busy, and wanted to try to get everything done so Tessa's naps would coincide with the long stretches of freeway driving. We were able to take a lunch stop at the world renowned Pink's Hot Dogs! It was delicious, and quite the eating experience all in one! We sat next to a model doing some sort of shoot. She was wearing a black trench coat, but nothing underneath. I was unfortunate enough to see proof that she was not wearing anything other than that trench coat!
Tessa had fun people watching and eating her mangoes and puffs!

My mom had a classic chili cheese dog

My delicious "Lord of the Rings" dog ~ Super healthy!

Why Sacramento was worth it!

2011-03-04T10:57:00.000-08:00

We were only in Sacramento for 5 weeks, but it was so worth it for this little girl to spend some good, quality time with her Daddy!

Eleven Months!

2011-02-28T21:59:00.000-08:00

Eleven Months! I can't believe I'm already writing about you as an eleven month old. Time is flying, and you are getting so big! Here's what you've been busy doing this month:
• You crawl in your sleep! When you are in bed with us, we’ll wake up in the middle of the night to you crawling around on the bed. I often have to move you between us to keep you from crawling into the wall!
• You learned not to crawl past the edge of the bed. I am so happy that you discovered that there is a long fall at the edge of the bed. You now stop as soon as you get to the edge. You like to drop things off the edge and watch them fall!

• You have started to sleep on pillows. You’ll crawl up on top of the pillows in the middle of the night and flop down to sleep there!
• You had your first swimming lesson! Daddy and I both got to go in the pool with you and swim around. You loved it!
• Your first tooth is finally breaking through!

• You love to climb into anything you can! I’ve found you in your toy box, the laundry basket, pretty much anything you can get to before Daddy and I catch you!
• You have started to imitate mine and Daddy’s movements. When you hug Daddy, you pat him on the back. You help me brush my hair in the morning, and then you comb your own hair!

• You took a step while playing with Daddy and Uncle Robbie! I screamed when I saw you, which made you sit down to look at me instead of continue walking.

• At the playground, you love the slide! You climb the steps on your own, then wait for me to help you down the slide!
• You are really starting to understand “no” and almost always follow directions when I tell you to do something.
• You FINALLY like blueberries! I think I've tried them 8-9 different times in different ways, and now you like them whole! Yea!

• You love to toast while eating! We often stop in the middle of meals to “cheers” each other!
Next month at this time I'll be writing about my one year old daughter. I can't believe you have grown so much. I especially can't believe how much my love for you continues to grow!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T14:31:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day! I love this holiday! I love love, and today is the day to celebrate! This year, I made two valentines using templates from eighteen25.
I printed a few copies of this one and sent it out to family and friends.

This one I posted on Facebook as our valentine to everyone else!

I whipped up a quick tutu and matching hair puff for Tessa to wear on Valentine's Day. I think it turned out pretty cute, considering my lack of sewing supplies up here in Sacramento! We went to a play group at the library this morning. Tessa felt like Queen of the Library!

(For those of you wondering where my blog has gone, Tessa and I are currently in Sacramento with Ryan, and we have no wi-fi, so my internet time is limited to when Tessa falls asleep in the car and I can find a free wi-fi hot spot!)

Ten Months!

2011-01-27T11:03:00.000-08:00

I haven’t found Tessa’s pillow yet! I hope it made it into a Sacramento box! I'm pretty disappointed with this month's picture. I'll have to make up for it with cute pics throughout the post!

Tessa, you are ten months old today! It is unbelievable to me that in two short months, you will be a full year old! Time is flying by! I’ve been thinking about your first birthday party for months now, but am actually working on the plans now. It is going to be a great day to celebrate! So, what have you been up to this month?

• You are still wearing some size 6 month clothes, but are mostly in 9 months.
• New foods you tried this month were cucumber, lasagna, meatballs, tuna, and yogurt. You love it all, of course!
• I started giving you a couple of ounces of prune juice each day, and you love it!

• Still no teeth, but that doesn’t stop you from eating really well!
• You started drinking from your sippy cup on your own right after Christmas!
• You follow simple directions, like “Put your arm in the sleeve.”

• You are now clapping on your own, and you love to do it! When anyone says “yea” you clap!
• You are climbing on everything now!

• You are cruising around on the edge of the couch, or anything else you can hold on to.
• When you are told no, you laugh hysterically, which make me laugh and makes it impossible to reinforce my “no!”

• You have gotten really good at stacking your blocks or cups inside each other! We practice putting your toys away every night, and you are getting good at putting things into your toy box.
• We relocated to Sacramento this week, and the move was pretty rough. You’ve been pretty clingy and want to be with me all the time. Naptime has been moved to the car (hopefully only temporarily!). You did a GREAT job in the car for the 6 hour drive from Ventura to Sacramento!

• Now that we are in Sacramento, you get to spend every evening with Daddy! I am so excited for both of you to get to spend more time together! We love you more and more every day and know that we are the luckiest parents in the world to have you as our amazing baby girl!

My First Project!

2011-01-12T16:44:00.000-08:00

For Christmas, my mom got me my very own sewing machine! I've been borrowing hers for a few months as I'm teaching myself to sew. I'm so excited to have my own! The first project I decided to make is a winter coat for Tessa. I know, don't start small, or anything! I found this really cute pink and brown plaid fleece in the remnants at JoAnn's for 50% off and the pattern was on sale for 99 cents! The most expensive part of the coat was the buttons (not pictured here)! I still haven't sewn them on. My mom and I practiced making button holes on scrap fabric, but had no luck, so I'm going to sew on velcro and just add the buttons for looks. They are very cute, trust me!

Next week, my moms group is having a sewing day. Most of us are new to sewing, so one of the girls is going to bring her mom-in-law to teach us. I think I'm going to try to make a long sleeved bib. My mom found an easy looking pattern, and I know it would come in very handy! If I'm successful, I'll post pictures!

And, here's my obligatory picture of Tessa:

We went to a play date yesterday, and they had this nylon tunnel. Tessa loved it, and I think this picture is too cute!

I'm linking this post to

Rosette Frames

2011-01-11T11:39:00.000-08:00

One of the blogs I LOVE is Ucreate. It is full of tutorials for some really cute crafts! Every month they host a "Create With Me" craft for readers to try and then they post pictures of the final projects. I've been wanting to craft along with them, and finally was able to (and was brave enough!) to try this month's project. It was so easy and cute that made two frames! I bought these plain wooden frames at Michael's for $1 each! The first I painted with a mix of black and silver paint. I used shimmery pink ribbon for the rosette. Super easy! The second, I painted with Warm White, and only painted one coat to make it look kind of cottage-y (at least that's the style I pictured in my mind!). I used some fun scrap fabric to make the rosettes. I kind of want to try to embellish them a little more, but haven't decided how yet. The picture in the white frame is from when Tessa was 17 days old! I used to not like it very much because she had her Soothie in her mouth, but now I just love it! She was so small and precious!

And, one more picture of Tessa...

Sweet Naptime!

2011-01-10T11:05:00.000-08:00

I shared this video on my Facebook, and I love it so much, so I wanted to share it on my blog, too! Yesterday, when I put Tessa down for her afternoon nap, I left the door slightly open so I could peek in on her, just in case.
She's been pulling herself up and getting stuck lately.
I put her down, and it was silent right away. That isn't normal for Tess. She usually talks for awhile before napping, so I peeked in, and this is what I found!

Isn't this the cutest thing!

When I checked in on her later, I found her squished up in the corner. Luckily I was able to gently stretch her out without waking her up!

This was a good nap for her, and she woke up with MAJOR bed head! She looks just like Nick Nolte!

In other news, we got our thumbnail images back from last month's family photo shoot. I should be getting the final images this week. Ryan and I weren't super excited about how they turned out, but I was able to choose some good ones. I'll have to post my favorites when they come in!

My 2010 Summed Up by Facebook

2011-01-01T19:09:00.000-08:00

Welcome to 2011! I can't believe it's already here! Ryan and I had such an amazing 2010! As I reflected on my happiest year yet, I couldn't think of how to post it all in a blog, so I used the Facebook app, My Year in Status. Most of them have to do with Tessa, surprise, surprise! Enjoy a quick glimpse into my past year!

Nine Months!

2010-12-27T22:01:00.000-08:00

Tessa Bear, you are nine months old now! Time is flying by! We had a wonderful first Christmas with you this year!

You are growing so quickly and learning new things every day! I can hardly keep up with you. Here’s what you’ve been up to this month:

• You are our petite little girl. You weigh 17 lbs, 1 oz and are 26 ½ inches long.
• You wear size 6-9 month clothes and size 3 diapers.
• You started sleeping in your own room this month. It was really hard on me at first, but now Daddy and I kinda like having our room to ourselves again! You are a really good sleeper and only wake up once during the night. You sleep for 11 hours at night and take 2 naps during the day!
• You are such a good eater. You have liked everything I’ve given you, with the exception of cottage cheese, blueberries, and rottini. Your favorites are chicken, toast, and strawberries! You also love to drink water.
• You talk a lot! Dada, Mama, and baba are most common. You also talk while you eat! You are so social, just like your daddy!
• Your hair is really starting to grow in and your little mohawk is almost gone!

• You are finally officially up on your knees crawling and get around so quickly!
• You pull yourself up on everything, even if you are still stooped over! You love to stand!

• You try to stand independently and walk on your own, which resulted in a big booboo on your little nose.

• You sign “milk” and respond to a couple other signs – more, play, all done, and we’re working on water.
• You are a pretty good traveler again, which is a good thing because you and I spend a lot of time on the road visiting relatives!

• You are a music fanatic! You bob your little head anytime you hear a tune. I bought you a piano and you absolutely LOVE it! Daddy, Nauni, and I took you to your first concert this month. We saw Hullabaloo, and you got to play the maraca and wave your little scarf around to the beat!

• You took your first bus ride this month from a downtown parking lot to Balboa Park.
• You have started to wave at your favorite people, which delights us all!
• You love to play with your big cousins and act like such a grown up girl when they’re around!

• You did a great job opening presents this Christmas! I'm not surprised! You love to try and play with paper all the time!

Here's a comparison of your first 9 months. Look how much you've grown!

Handmade Ornament Exchange

2010-12-14T19:49:00.001-08:00

This year I participated in a Handmade Christmas Ornament Exchange over at Then Heather Said! We could make up to 5 ornaments and receive that same number in return. The ship-by date is tomorrow, and mine are sitting in the car, waiting to go to the Post Office tomorrow morning! (We went tonight, but I looked up the hours to the wrong PO, and our local one was closed when we got there.)

These ornaments were so fun and easy! I just cut out matching pieces of felt, decorated with buttons/beads, blanket stitched around the outer edge, and stuffed with batting! I actually have only made 3 of each so far. I was assigned my mom and sister as two of my recipients, so they'll get their ornaments when I go up to Riverside next week!

I was going to wait to post about this exchange until I've received my ornaments, but I wanted to link up to We Did It! Wednesday at Sew Much Ado. That way, if anyone needs last minute ornament ideas, here's an easy and quick one!

Sunny Saturday in San Diego

2010-12-11T22:28:00.000-08:00

Today was an absolutely perfect day. Sunny, mid 70s, light breeze. I didn't have anything planned, and Ryan wasn't able to come home this weekend, so Tessa and I went to the park. We had so much fun swinging,

sliding,

rocking on the horse,

watching the birds,

wagon rides,

and practicing crawling!

Here's a little video of Tessa swinging and crawling. You can see her on her hands and knees for a couple of strides, then it's back down to her belly!

*Don't you love Tessa's leg warmers! I made them last night! I plan to make a coordinating onesie using the leftovers of the Santa hat I used for the leg warmers' trim.

Photo Dump!

2010-12-09T23:12:00.000-08:00

My photo card is full, and I realized we've been so busy and I need to catch up with my blog! As is typical during the holidays, our days have been full of fun and festivities.

First off, I participated in a craft swap with Craftaholics Anonymous. I made a couple of flower broaches and head bands and Sarah made some flower magnets. We decided to work together on this swap and sent each of our partners stuff from both of us! I didn't get any pictures before I sent the packages off, but this picture is from my swap partner's blog. I love the flower broach! So easy and I think very beautiful! Sarah's magnets turned out to be super cute, too!

I got a nice little gift package from my partner. She sewed a bunch of things for Tessa and me! You can see she made a bib, a crayon roll, baby washcloth (so soft!), coffee cozy, and a kleenex carrier. Unfortunately, I forgot to remove the kleenex from the pouch when I washed it, so it now sits empty! Here is a link to her Etsy shop, if you're looking for a home sewn gift!

**Thanksgiving**
Ryan and I went to Ventura for Thanksgiving. My birthday fell on Thanksgiving Day this year, but it didn't really feel like my birthday. I don't know if it's because of Thanksgiving, or if having a baby takes the focus away. It was a really nice day, either way!
There was lots of family, as usual! This is the best group shot from my camera. 16 adults (nappers and photographers not pictured!), 1 teenager, 2 babies, and 4 dogs. That's a pretty small celebration at the Gallardo house!

Tessa had fun playing with her cousin!

She didn't get much turkey, but loved her green beans, and got her hand into the mashed potatoes!

After Ryan left to go back to Sacramento, Tessa and I drove to Riverside to spend time with my family. Here's what I got for my birthday from my mom and dad!!

I made the cover last night. It was pretty easy, and now I feel more comfortable just dropping my Kindle into the diaper bag or my purse and taking it wherever I go!

**December Nights**
Last weekend, when Ryan was home, we took Tessa to Balboa Park to see the lights and festivities! It wasn't too crowded when we were there, but the crowds were flooding in as we left. Pictures are of Tessa and I in front of the Dr. Seuss Christmas Tree, Ryan and Tessa cuddled up while we listened to classical guitar and enjoyed some hot chocolate, Tessa and Ryan listening to the didgeridoo player, and another shot of a didgeridoo player. I love this event and hope to make it an annual tradition with our family!

**Craft Days with Mama Groups**
This week, Tessa and I went to two different craft days. One was holiday crafts and the other was tutus and headbands. I love doing crafts and having other babies around for Tessa to play with, so both events were great! At the holiday craft day, Tessa ate a silver star, which caused her to choke a little, and the day ended not so nicely. The next evening it came out in her diaper and I was able to laugh a little at the big scare from the previous day.
Here are some pictures from the tutu and headband day. Tessa was racing Asher across the living room! She also loves little babies, and is here playing with baby Antonio.

These are some random shots I took on the way to craft day. The house we went to was in the Coronado Keys. AMAZING!!! The first shot is of my GPS as I'm driving over the Coronado bridge. I thought it was funny that it's just a green line going over the ocean! The second shot I took while driving over the bridge (Hence the crooked-ness!) of the infamous Carnival Splendor in the shipyard where it's being worked on. The final shot is in the Coronado Keys. Instead of backyards, these homeowners have boat docks!

**Mover and Shaker**
Tessa has been on the move! She is getting into anything and everything! I spend my mornings following her around as she shows me what else needs to be baby-proofed!

She has started to stand (with help from another object!)

She is very brave and daring. She thinks she can do things she can't quite do yet, like walk on her own! Thus, she has her first boo boo! (Sad Mommy here!)

She loves this book with pictures in it. Her favorite is this one with Daddy. She just stares at it and pets Ryan's face. She'll lean over and kiss it. Last night she was snuggling up next to this picture. I tried to get a shot of that, but she moved as soon as the camera came out.

Finally, we got the photos back from our shoot in October! I love them! Since I've already posted so many pics in this blog, I'll only share one today, and end this blog post with my beautiful smiling little girl!

~Snapshots of Life~ Thursday, 7:00 AM

2010-12-03T07:09:00.001-08:00

My mom and I put up her Christmas tree on Wednesday night after Tessa went to bed. I love decorating for Christmas and don't usually get to because I live in such a small apartment. Plus, Ryan and I travel to visit relatives throughout the holidays, so we aren't home often enough to really enjoy the decor. So, I was excited to get to help my mom decorate her home this year! When Tessa got up Thursday morning, I turned on the Christmas tree lights and showed her our tree! We looked at some of our special ornaments and I showed her the ones her aunties and I made when we were little. You can see the angel I made in Kindergarten in this picture!

I am so excited to share this Christmas with Tessa! I want to make it a special season full of warm memories for Ryan and me, and begin new traditions with our little family!

Eight Months!

2010-11-29T09:42:00.000-08:00

Wow! Eight months already! I remember when you were eight weeks and I accidentally said you were eight months old. I laughed at the idea of having such an old daughter, and now you are there! I am watching you sleep in your swing as I write this post, and I couldn’t love you more if I tried! This has been a busy month for you! Here’s what you’ve been up to:
• You are constantly on the move. I have to follow you around to see what needs to be baby-proofed around the house! Your crawling has become very good and you move so quickly now! You are up on your knees, rocking, but still not crawling on your knees.
• You have become a yoga baby and practice Downward Facing Dog all the time, even in your sleep! It’s as though you want to skip your knees and go straight to moving around on your feet.
• You love music. You like to dance all the time and love playing with musical instruments!

• You are such a talker now! You started saying ba-ba, blah-blah, DA-DA and MA-MA!!! You don’t connect the words to us yet, but I know in your heart you are saying, “I love you Mommy and Daddy!”
• Sometimes you nap really well. Other times, we resort to the swing, like today. I’m glad you still fit and will fall asleep there! This weekend you borrowed your cousin’s swing and figured out how to swing yourself! You got that thing swinging so fast!
• You have also started swinging in the big kid swings at the park!

• You are very strong. You can pull yourself up from laying to sitting if you have something to pull on, like a blanket or sheets!
• You got to play in a baby bounce house this month and had such a great time! You were the last one out!

• You want to stand all the time! I have to bend your legs while you’re still in my arms and trick you into sitting, and that often doesn’t work anymore! You also are taking practice steps! You really want to stand on your own, but keep falling every time you try. Keep practicing, and you’ll be a good stander very soon!
• Your Mohawk has become more pronounced and everywhere we go, people comment on it. It’s a good thing you are so cute!

• You had your first casting call for baby modeling this month! Daddy and I aren’t sure how long we will have you model, but as long as you keep up your big smiles and love for the camera, we’ll keep building up your college fund!

• You love pillows! You’ll crawl over to pillows and rest your head whenever one is in sight!
• You met Santa this month! You weren’t quite sure what to think of him, but at least he didn’t make you cry!

• You are a smiley girl! You smile all day long and smile at every one you meet. I think you got your dad’s outgoing friendliness!

I love you more than life itself sweet Tessa girl. I am so excited to share Christmas with you and show you all the lights and sparkles that come with this season! Your daddy and I are the luckiest two parents to have the sweetest, most clever, spunkiest, cuddliest baby girl!

*These monthly photo shoots are getting harder and harder as Tessa moves around more and more! Here's a peek into our photo shoot this morning:

Consider Me a Seamstress!

2010-11-23T06:57:00.000-08:00

Now that I have learned to sew, I am loving it!! I have made 3 1/2 pairs of baby legwarmers, Tessa's disco dress, a doll, a blanket, a tag blanket, I'm working on a ruffle skirt, and last night I made a bib. Easy, right? Well, I wanted a very specific bib.

Tessa has this bib, which I love because you just wipe it off and it's ready to use again! Plus, there is a catch-all at the bottom that velcros on the sides for easy clean up. I decided to try my had at making one, and after reading countless tutorials on sewing different things, I decided to just jump in and go for it! Basically, I just bought some cute oil cloth, traced her other bib on it, sewed on some velcro and bias tape, and voila!

The bias tape was a bit tricky, and I'm not very good at sewing anything that isn't a straight line, but I'm very happy with it! I'm not ready to go into the fashion design industry, or anything, but I feel very accomplished!

Thankgiving Dinner Blog Hop

2010-11-22T10:00:00.000-08:00

Welcome blog hoppers! I hope you are enjoying our Thanksgiving Blog Hop so far! If you came directly to my blog and want to start from the beginning, link back to Robin’s appetizer here.

I’m excited to share with you the broccoli salad my grandma always made during the holidays. I have strayed a little from her recipe, but I don’t think she’d really mind. In fact, I think she’d love it! After all, it is delicious!

Krista’s Version of Grandma’s Broccoli Salad

Salad Ingredients

2-3 bundles of broccoli crowns
½ lb bacon
½ lb shredded cheddar or mozzarella cheese
½ red onion
6 oz (one bag) dried cranberries
A couple of handfuls of walnuts, pecans, or sunflower seeds
~ Add any ingredients you like to make it your own

Dressing Ingredients

1 c. mayonnaise
½ c. sugar
2 T. cider vinegar

I start with the bacon so it has time to cool. One tip my mom taught me is to cut the bacon before you cook it when using it in a recipe.

Next, cut the broccoli into small pieces, using mostly just the top part, and very little stalk.

Chop the red onion. I don’t have any tips for chopping onions, and I cry every time. If anyone has a tip, please leave me a comment!!

Mix all salad ingredients together. I made two different salads, one delicious one, and one for my mom, the picky eater.

In a separate bowl (or measuring cup), mix the dressing ingredients together and chill.

About ½ hour before serving, pour dressing over salad and mix. If it seems dry, don’t worry! By the time you are ready to serve it, stir one more time and it will be covered with dressing.

I can’t eat this salad without remembering my grandma. I hope you enjoy it as you create new holiday memories with your family!

Now, hop on over to Becky’s blog to see what she’s cooking up!

Little Dancing Queen

2010-11-19T09:37:00.000-08:00

I got a great video of Tessa dancing this morning! She loves playing the music on her exersaucer and has started dancing along with it! So cute!

~Snapshots of Life~ Thursday, 9:00 PM

2010-11-19T08:42:00.000-08:00

Once Tessa is in bed, my life is not very exciting. I am usually cleaning house, working on a craft, or on the computer. Last night I decided to finally try to edit some photos to submit online. I was trying to change the DPI to 72, but had no luck. I hope Tessa isn't disqualified because I don't know how to edit photos!
Isn't this picture of Tessa so cute!!

Weekend with Daddy!

2010-11-18T22:10:00.001-08:00

I just realized I haven't posted all week! I have my Snapshots of Life post ready for tomorrow morning, and saw that my last post was Snapshots of Life for last week! Tessa and I have been busy!
Last weekend, Ryan was home for four whole days! It was spectacular! We picked him up from the airport late Wednesday night, and Tessa couldn't stop smiling! She was asleep in his arms, but kept waking up just to smile. It melted my heart to see her with her daddy!

Thursday morning, Ryan went to our MamaFit workout with us! It is always nice to have a Daddy or two there to help with the babies. We also had our monthly morning picnic in La Jolla. Ryan joined us there, too!

Saturday was a fun family day. We took Tessa to Toys 'R Us for the first time! Ryan really wanted to get her a wagon. She LOVES it! He had to go all out and get the Radio Flyer with the canopy and the cooler attached to the back. I know this wagon will become a necessary part of our trips to the park and beach in the years to come!

After our trip to Toys 'R Us, we went down to Balboa Park and met up with some friends from one of my new moms groups. We had an impromptu photo shoot! Two of the moms have nice cameras and they wanted to get some shots of the babies. I am always up for getting cute shots of little T! I love how they turned out, even though nobody there was a professional. Here are a few of the pictures we got:

And of course a baby group photo!

Ryan even got behind the camera for a few shots! Not surprisingly, he is a really good photographer!

Saturday night we went to a friend's house to watch the big boxing match. I am not really a fight fan, so I spent a lot of the time upstairs talking to our friend who is a soon-to-be new mom and sharing any advice I could! I do have to say, I enjoyed watching the main fight. I watched the 60 Minutes about "Pac Man" and was glad to see him win!

Sunday was completely a family day. We took Tessa to the park in her new wagon. She went on the swings for a little while, and we blew bubbles! It was such a nice, low-key way to spend time together as a family. We don't get to do that often enough!

Sunday night we were supposed to go to a charity event at my friend's gym, but we opted out and stayed home to spend the evening relaxing as a family and enjoying our last few hours together before Ryan had to fly back to Sacramento. If you are feeling charitable and want to donate to a GREAT cause, you can "buy a pie" for Thanksgiving. If you live in San Diego, you can actually get a pie in return for your donation!

Ryan won't be coming home this weekend. I'm pretty bummed, but am very excited for the upcoming four day weekend! My birthday is next week and I am so excited to spend the day with Ryan and Tessa!

~Snapshots of Life~ Thursday, 10:00 AM

2010-11-12T08:40:00.001-08:00

Tessa and I work out 3 days a week with a group of 10 new mamas and their babies. We often incorporate the babies into the workout as weights or our target (like, when we are jumping up and then touching the ground, we'll tickle our babies instead!) Now that most of them are moving around much more, the babies spend most of the workout playing in their gym-inspired punching bag play area! I love these mornings. The babies interact so well (most of the time) and I know it has been so good for me, physically, mentally, and emotionally, to get out and to the gym! Gina, our leader, is a championship Muay Thai Kickboxer, so you KNOW these workouts are not easy!
Check out Gina's link. There's a picture of me doing a kettlebell workout when I was 7 months pregnant!

Shutterfly Holdiay Cards

2010-11-10T11:20:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite holiday traditions is the sending of Christmas cards. I love getting mail. Let me re-phrase. I love getting personal mail! I remember growing up, checking outside to see if the flag on the mailbox had been put down, signaling that the mailman had come! The best time of the year for mail is the holidays because of all the holiday cards. The best holiday cards are, of course, photo cards! I love seeing all the unique shots families choose to send each Christmas. I love the different designs available to make cards. I love it all!

For the past three years, I have made photo cards for our little two-person Lopez family. I am so excited for our Christmas cards this year. You know they will be featuring Tessa! Shutterfly has their Holiday line up and ready for ordering. I have already been to their website 3 or 4 times, looking at the different cards, and playing around with our photos. I love using Shutterfly because you get an instant preview of your card, they are extremely quick (for those last-minute orders!), you can have your photos printed at a local store for pick up if you prefer, and they are very affordable!

You may have heard (or maybe not!) that Shutterfly has upgraded their cards this year to premium cardstock. I would never have known the difference until I received a birth announcement on cardstock a few months ago. It is really nice! I was very pleased to see that Shutterfly is now offering their premium cardstock for the holiday cards!

They have both folded cards and flat cardstock stationary cards. I like the folded ones because you can personalize the greeting, but I really think the flat one makes for nice and easy Christmas card sending! If you don’t really have time to sit down and write a card to all of your friends and loved ones during this busy season, you can personalize the inside of the folded cards with more pictures and a greeting! They will even stamp and mail the cards for you, for those who REALLY don't have time!

Shutterfly also has a great line of their good ol’ flat photo cards. You’ve got to go check out the really cool features they have added this year! Now is the time to get your order in if you want to be ahead of the game!

I won’t be ordering until December, when we get Tessa’s photo shoot images. I’ve already been playing around, though, with our “sneak peek” image. Isn’t this Joy card so simple yet sweet! I think it’s my favorite. Just imagine it with Tessa's sweet little smile and sparkling eyes!

Another really cool thing Shutterfly is doing this year is a special blogger promotion! Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly… sign up: http://bit.ly/sfly2010 Whoo hoo!! Go sign up today and get those free cards!

There are also many photo gifts available. My favorite is the personalized wall calender. I made one for my sister 4 or 5 years ago, and it still hangs on her wall! The photos are just too cute to throw out! Almost everything is 20% off right now, so hurry and order!

*And for those of you who are right on top of it all, Shutterfly actually has their Valentine's Cards ready, too!

Tessa's First Dolly

2010-11-06T22:37:00.001-07:00

About 5 months ago I started hand sewing a dolly for Tessa. I finished both arms and most of one leg. Then I took a long break from it. I finally finished the dolly last night. Now that I am borrowing my mom's sewing machine, it went much faster! The head is a little misshapen. I am not good at sewing anything other than a straight line (and I'm not too good at that, either!). It's not great, but I love it, and I hope Tessa will love it as well. I gave her blue eyes and black hair to match Tessa's.

I introduced the doll to Tessa this morning, and she really liked playing with the hair. She kept staring at the face, and then pushing the doll away. I don't think she knows what to think of it quite yet. After all, it has a face, head, and body only a mother could love!

~Snapshots of Life~ Thursday, 8:00 AM

2010-11-05T08:32:00.000-07:00

I had just put Tessa down for her morning nap ~ finally! She had been up since 5:15, so it was due! I need to finish her stocking (which I've been working on since January!) so I've told myself no more crafting until her stocking is done!!

Etsy Lady!

2010-11-04T22:16:00.000-07:00

Now that I am so crafty (hahaha!) and after much convincing, I have decided to open an Etsy shop! So far I only have one item, but I have so many ideas. I just need to be confident enough in my stuff to post it in my shop! I plan on selling the flowers posted, poinsettia pins, several different kinds of hair clips (flowers, bows, korkers, holiday themed), appliqued onesies, tutus, and I'll add things as inspiration hits. Wish me luck!

Of course I have to post a picture of Lil' T! She learned to drive today at the gym. Her friend, Serenity, got a new toy, and all the babies had to try it out. It was a hit!

The Not-So-Scary Baby Halloween Party

2010-11-01T21:06:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Tessa’s first Halloween with the Baby Mamas at a Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. One of the families opened up their beautiful home on Mt. Soledad, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. We had 45 parents RSVP, so you can just imagine the crowd ~ lots of babies! Little T wore her Boo! Onesie most of the day because it was pretty warm out. I put her in her costume for the group picture, though! Not surprisingly, during the group photo shoot, a couple of babies started crying, which caused a chain reaction. As a result, we only got about half of the babies in our group shot. It’s still pretty cute! I had to patchwork it together, but you get the idea!

I brought raw veggies for my appetizer. Here is what I planned to bring:

I left the trays at home, though, so it just ended up being a plate full of carrots and yellow peppers with ranch dressing. Nobody seemed to mind, though. Most people brought desserts, so I think everyone was just glad to eat something without sugar!
I’m already looking forward to next year’s Halloween! This holiday is truly all about the kids!

What I should be doing vs. What I am doing

2010-10-31T23:23:00.001-07:00

What I should be doing while Tessa is napping:
Getting the veggies ready for our Halloween party

Packing for our trip to Mom and Dad's

Cleaning up my craft stuff before Ryan gets home

Picking up Tessa's toys

Reading for my book club

Filling out my absentee ballot before I leave the county

What I really AM doing while Tessa is napping:

Making hair clips! Because we can do chores anytime, but a girl can never have too many hair clips!

Snapshots of Life

2010-10-30T21:48:00.000-07:00

Over at eighteen25 they are hosting a new blog idea. We take a snapshot of whatever we are doing at a given time during the week. This week it was at 5:00 pm on Thursday. Tessa and I were at the one hour photo at my least favorite store (but I really like their one hour photo department, so I put up with the rest of the store. Plus it's close to home!).

What I'm Making Today/Baby Loves Disco

2010-10-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

So, those of you who have known me for a long time are probably amazed at all the stuff I've been making lately. I've never been the crafty type, but the SAHM bug has bit me, and I love spending my evenings, once Tessa is in bed, looking up new tutorials and giving them a shot! Tonight I decided to make something for myself! One of the blogs I love, Samster Mommy, has some really great tutorials. She has an entire section of Naptime Crafts which are supposed to be doable during naptime. This necklace is one of her tutorials I tried out tonight!

I also started this pumpkin hairclip for Tessa for our Halloween party tomorrow, but my glue gun isn't heating up, so I'll have to finish it tomorrow.

In other news, Tessa and I went to Baby Loves Disco last night! We had so much fun dancing and spending time with friends! My mom made my silver go-go dress, and I made Tessa's dress and headband. Now, I haven't sewn anything (other than those baby legs I made a few weeks ago) since I was about 11 or 12 years old, so this dress was an adventure. I didn't do a fabulous job, but it definitely got me wanting to sew more! We'll see...
Here is a photo collage from Baby Loves Disco. Tessa and I are in our matching outfits! Next is a picture showing off Tessa's cute pants I got at Target on clearance. The bottom row is Yoshiko and her daughter, Robin; Marilyn, Majid, and their daughter, Mina. I wish you could see Mina's face! She is the cutest baby, second to Tessa, of course!

Seven Months!

2010-10-26T20:38:00.000-07:00

Little Miss T, I can't believe you are already 7 months old! You are getting to be more and more spectacular every day. I often tell you that you can never know just how much I love you! I am the luckiest lady alive to have YOU as my daughter! Here's what you've been up to this month:
• You are eating really well! You love everything I’ve given you, with the exception of cottage cheese. You are good at dipping your veggie sticks in hummus for an extra treat! When you swallow, you look at me desperately, as if to say you are only doing this to make me happy! You have eaten banana, apple, grapes, yellow squash, butternut squash, sweet potato, zucchini, hummus, cream of wheat, one of those little puff treats from a friend, roasted red pepper, avocado, tortilla, pita with baba ganoush, a little carne asada, and a lick of peanut butter!

• You have started to scooch around. You are working on getting the knees up, but right now it’s more of an army crawl. You are really good at going backwards, too!
• You love to spend time with your baby friends. I think you honestly miss them when we are away from home!

• You have started taking a 2-3 hour nap during the day! This makes me very happy! After 6 months of “power” naps, you are finally napping for a good stretch of time! You are still a great sleeper at night, too. You sleep in “the position” exactly the same way I did when I was little!
• You have started to use a sippy cup and love it! I hope you are always a good water drinker!

• We took you on your first camping trip! You had such a great time being outdoors and playing with all your friends.

• You love animals, especially dogs! I am sure we’ll have to get a dog for you once you’re a little older!

• You are a shoe girl already! I’ve never had you wear shoes, other than to try them on, but you like to play with your shoes any chance you get!

• You love the mirror! I can’t blame you, what a beautiful reflection you have! Sometimes I’ll sit you in front of the mirror and you’ll play, talk to, and kiss your reflection!

• You started to pull yourself up onto things. You look at me so proudly when you are standing, and you never want to sit anymore!
• You got to go to the Pumpkin Patch with Nauni, cousin Scotland, Aunt Molli, and Aunt Susan. You really liked all the different things to see and you licked all the pumpkins you could!

The months are flying by! I know you are going to be a year old before I’m ready. For now, I just love to hug you and kiss you as much as I can!

Lil' Mover and Shaker

2010-10-24T23:27:00.000-07:00

Tessa is really moving around so much these days! When I told her in September that my goal for her was to crawl by Halloween, I was joking, but she must have taken me seriously! Look at that baby girl move! She is getting really close to crawling! She also started pulling herself up yesterday! I would have taken a picture and/or video, but it completely freaked me out, so I ran to "rescue" her instead! First, she stood up in her co-sleeper...time to move her out of there! Then she stood up when I had her in the driver's seat of the car, holding onto the steering wheel. She hasn't found a safe place to pull herself up yet, but when she does, I'll do my best to capture the moment!

Birthday Boy!

2010-10-19T22:38:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my amazing and wonderful husband! Life is so fantastic when you are by my side! I love you more and more every day. I love how hard you work for our family. I love how silly you are with Tessa and me. I love that you are always telling me that we are together forever. You are the strongest, most loving, funniest, most clever person I know, which is why you are my favorite!

Laughter is good for the soul!

2010-10-11T22:02:00.000-07:00

Tessa was playing on our bed today while I was folding laundry. She was scooting around and laughing her heart out! I captured almost 5 minutes of video on my web cam, but edited it down to 45 seconds of beautiful laughter. I just love this baby girl!

Craftastic Weekend!

2010-10-04T22:49:00.000-07:00

This weekend Ryan went to San Francisco to cheer on the Padres, so Tessa and I went to my mom and dad’s for some crafting! I love seeing all the creative things people are doing around the web for Halloween, so I invited my sisters and mom to join me in a Halloween craft day. We took a couple of tutorials from eighteen25’s Spooktacular September posts. Our main craft was this Halloween wreath.

I love it! It was extremely easy, and I think it’s adorable! Cutting the burlap strips was fairly time consuming for me, the perfectionist. I was measuring 1 inch strips, pulling one fiber out, and cutting each strip to be very precise. When my sister, Sarah, finished her entire yard of burlap and I was only about 1/6 of the way done with mine (and I started before her!) I stopped the measuring and just eyeballed the cuts. It wasn’t easy at first. I cringed every time a strip was crooked. Then I took a peak at Sarah’s and saw how cute it looked with randomly cut burlap strips. I just started cutting away! I love the final result!

We also made candy corn jewelry out of paint chips. This was more of a side project and still isn’t quite complete, but they are looking pretty cute so far!

Another side project I made was a bow holder for Tessa's bows. I just quickly painted a wooden "T" and Mod Podged cute scrapbook paper onto the front. I then stapled a ribbon on the back and hammered in a wall hanger. That was it! Quick, easy, cute, and useful!

Last week I bought a couple pairs of knee high socks at the Target dollar spot. I wanted to try making leg warmers for Tessa. I brought them up this weekend and my mom helped me sew them into leg warmers. Now, I haven’t used a sewing machine since 7th grade, and that project was disastrous! I was pretty nervous to try using one again. Here I am trying to remember to breathe!

And the final product ~ not bad! Please ignore my makeup-less face.

Not great, but considering it’s been about 20 years, I’m content with the result! I’m actually inspired to try some of the great sewing projects out in blogland! At least the ones that don’t look too complex.

And since no post would be complete without pictures of my wonderful and amazing daughter, here’s a pictorial recap of her weekend:
Spent time with her cousins

Tried Cream of Wheat for the first time

Read with Robbie

Ate butternut squash

Practiced using the measuring tape

She also started getting up on her knees a little bit, preparing to crawl! I got a little of it on video. If I ever get around to editing it, I’ll post it (for the Grandmas!).

**Ryan flies home on Friday morning! Hooray!**

Project 5 White Onesies ~ Breast Cancer Aware

2010-10-01T22:25:00.001-07:00

Last night, after Tessa went to bed, I intended to finish her Autumn onesie. Instead, when reading my e-mail, I learned that MOPS is having Breast Cancer Awareness Day on Tuesday. I changed my mind and made her this Breast Cancer Aware onesie. I used a pair of her old pajamas for the ribbon. I cut to just under the ruffle and appliquéd the underneath part so the ruffle is not flat on the onesie. I used the center of the ribbon to cut out the heart on the sleeve. I then decided to use some leftover pink polka dotted ribbon to make the bow. I think it turned out to be pretty cute! I still want to add a little something to it, but I’m not sure what. I brought my supplies up to my mom’s to see if she can help me figure out what else to do. Maybe something with the collar, or something on the back. We’ll see!

If you notice the arrow in the second picture, that photo is the first one I took of Ryan and me on our very first date September 8, 2001! He framed it way back then and has moved it to every new place he lived over the past 9 years. I think it is now stuck to the glass! I love the fact that we have a picture from our first date!

Hummus Monster!

2010-09-29T22:33:00.001-07:00

I gave Tessa zucchini and water for the first time today. I found a couple of sippy cups at Target for 89 cents each, and tried giving her water with and without the sippy lid. She preferred the sippy lid because she liked chewing on it. She didn’t drink any water, though! Without the lid, I had to help her tilt the cup so she could sip the water. I don’t think she liked it much! More water ended up on her tray and on the ground than in her mouth!

The zucchini was a hit! It took a while for her to come around to it, but once she did, she really seemed to enjoy putting it in her mouth and taking it out, over and over. I gave her some of my homemade (very mild) roasted red pepper hummus to go along with the zucchini. She really loved that! It got everywhere! She looked like a hummus monster by the time she finished eating, so it was straight to the bath tub! All in all, I think zucchini was a successful first food!

Licking the tray

Hummus EVERYWHERE! Even on her forehead!

6 month check-up & Project Five White Onesies ~ Half Birthday!

2010-09-28T19:47:00.001-07:00

Today was Tessa’s 6 month appointment. It went really well! She hasn’t grown a whole lot since 5 months, but is still right where her pediatrician (and parents!) want her. Here’s where Tessa is now:
Weight: 15 lbs. 13 oz. ~ 25 -50%
Length: 26 in.* ~ 50%
Head Circumference: 16.25 in. ~ 5-10%
All percentiles are based on the Baby Growth Percentile Calculator on BabyCenter.com
*Her nurse measured her length at 25 in., but I know she didn’t shrink this month, so I measured her again at home, and she is still right around 26 in.

I really like Tessa’s pediatrician. She is very down to earth and always cites her sources, which is important to this teacher!! She also doesn’t make me feel guilty about anything and often states statistics and research followed up with “but you do what works for your family.”

Here are my ups and downs from the visit (a la PregTASTIC!):
Downs:
~ Shots! I hate watching my smiling, laughing baby girl crumble into tears with that needle prick!
~ Tessa’s doctor said it seems that Tessa may have a little stranger anxiety. This isn’t devastating, or anything. In fact, it’s probably good for her to be a little anxious around strangers. But, I don’t want her to be as devastatingly shy as I was! Another reason for me to keep going to MOPS, for the childcare experience!
Ups:
~ Everything looks very healthy! Skin, eyes, ears, growth chart, diaper area
~ Tessa’s doctor said she seems very smart. Her recognition skills are beyond six months and are more like a nine month old!

I forgot to add one thing to yesterday’s 6 month post. Tessa is moving around so much these days! I’m not sure how, because she always does it when I’m not looking. I’ll put her down on one side of the bed, and several seconds later, she’ll be all the way over to me with her arm resting on top of my shoulder. And our bed is a California King, so that’s a long way for her to move! Also, when I go check on her during naps, she’ll be completely upside down from the way I left her! It has become close to impossible to change her diaper because she flips around constantly! Poopie diapers are seriously dangerous now, with poo ending up in areas it should never be, like on her foot, on her elbow, on MY elbow, etc. It looks like we’ve officially entered the stage of disgusting diaper stories. I’ll try my best to not share too much, and always warn you if it’s gross!

And for my Project Five White Onesies ~ Half Birthday part of this post:

More appliqué! I showed off the front of the onesie yesterday, but didn’t show a picture of the back. Isn’t that heart so cute!

And an update on washing the onesies ~ I’ve machine washed and tumble dried all of them, and so far, so good!

Half a Year!

2010-09-27T12:07:00.000-07:00

Today Tessa is six months old! That is half of the year already! Tessa’s 6 month well baby check-up is tomorrow, so I’ll post her measurements tomorrow night.

Tessa, you are half a year old already! These past 6 months have been the best and most adventurous of our lives! You had a busy month. Here’s what you’re up to:
• You are barely wearing size 3-6 month clothing still and just moved up to a size 3 diaper, although they are really big on you.
• We went on our first long road trip this month to Ventura, Sacramento, Angels Camp, back to Sacramento, and back to Ventura! You were such a trooper in the truck and only whined a little bit! You got to meet your new cousin Scotland, your Lopez cousins, the Fulp family, Stephanie and Rob, your cousins Amy, Ryan, and Gavin, and the Eveland family. Everyone loved meeting you!
• We went to the California State Capitol building. I have wanted to go there for decades, so I took you for the tour! We didn’t get to meet the Governor, but you got to experience your first protest while we were there!

• You are communicating pretty well. I know your cries and yells much better now. You have even signed “milk” a couple of times to tell me you’re hungry!
• We started to feed you solid food last week. You aren’t quite sure what to do with it yet, but seem to enjoy exploring the new things we’ve given you.

• You are sitting so well now! You sit more often than you lay down now, while playing. You have become so strong and are confident enough to reach for your toys!
• You have graduated to the big tub! You like it so much more than your baby tub and the shower. You never liked your baby tub, and you barely tolerated the shower, but you actually have tried to enjoy the tub a couple of times! I know you'll be a good bather someday. You have to be! You're MY child!
Picture was censored to protect Tessa's privacy!

• I left you at child care for the first time this month for MOPS. I cried when I left the room. So did Grammie! Grammie’s friend, Miss Mary, checked on you several times and said you were playing, swinging, and sleeping. When I picked you up, you were asleep with a toy gripped in your little hands! The nursery care lady said you had fun and played with the other little girl in the room most of the time. I know you’re going to be little miss social!
• You are now facing out in your big girl stroller. I think you like it, because you get to see a lot more of the world!

• You danced this morning for the first time! When you are in your exersaucer, you like to push the music buttons, and this morning I found you swaying and bouncing along with the music!

You got to spend a lot of time with Daddy this month! I think you are just as lucky as he is to get to spend all that time together! You are both my favorite people, and I love you so much!

I put together a collage of the pictures of her first 6 months. Look how much she has grown!

And here is a comparison from when she was just a few minutes old to now!

Last year at this time:

Project 5 White Onesies ~ It's Gameday!

2010-09-26T11:23:00.000-07:00

Ryan, Tessa, and I were invited to a diaper shower that takes place during a Chargers game. The hosts requested that we all wear our Chargers gear to cheer on the team as we celebrate the coming of their new baby girl! Tessa has some official Chargers clothes from grandparents and cousins, but it is all pretty much too big. It’s set aside for postseason and the Superbowl!! So, I quickly whipped up this appliquéd lightning bolt onesie for today’s party! I think it turned out to be really cute!!

I was a little concerned about the thickness of felt, so I appliquéd the blue bolt onto the onesie, and the white and yellow bolts together. Then I put them all together. I put the SD on her back to finish the look! For accessories, I cut a pair of her Chargers socks that no longer fit and used them as wrist bands. Her HUGE yellow bow tops off the outfit perfectly! Plus people will know she’s a girl with this big of a bow in her hair!

I am very pleased with the final result! We’ll see how it looks after being washed. I think I’ll probably hand wash.
GO CHARGERS!

Tomorrow is Tessa’s half birthday! I’ve already finished her onesie for the occasion! Tomorrow’s post will be a combo 6 month update and Project Five White Onesies post!

**When I was at MOPS last week, I was able to pick up 4 more plain white onesies! Now that I’m addicted to appliqué, I know the projects are going to keep on coming!**

2010-09-24T15:08:00.000-07:00

Welcome Fall!

Project Five White Onesies ~ Appliquéd Monogram

2010-09-12T13:49:00.000-07:00

I LOVED this project! It was so easy, fast, and adorable! I may start appliquéing a lot more often! Another one of my Five White Onesies ideas also involves appliqué, but I won’t be able to work on that one until I get back home. (Ryan doesn’t have an iron at his apartment!)

Tessa had just woken up from a nap when I took this picture. She wasn't in the mood to model.

So, I have two onesies done, two planned and/or started, and one more onesie. Any suggestions on what I should do for the final project? I’m thinking some sort of Halloween project. (The other appliqué I have planned has an autumn theme.)

Road Trip ~ Part 1

2010-09-10T21:32:00.001-07:00

Last Wednesday, Tessa and I hit the road for her first long road trip! We drove up to Ventura Wednesday night, late, so Tessa slept the entire way. Yea for a nice smooth drive through Los Angeles! On Thursday, we finally went to meet our newest family member, little Scotland! He is a doll! I can’t believe Tessa was that small just 4 ½ months ago! That evening, we drove out to Magic Mountain to pick up Daddy for Labor Day weekend! Yea!
We had a pretty low key weekend. Ryan's Mom was away, so we had her house to ourselves (plus Pura Vida (cat) and Teddy (dog)).

Tessa loved the animals! She kept grabbing their fur. I was able to quickly protect the poor, unsuspecting animals from Tessa's yank! She is one strong little lady, and I don't think the dog or cat would be as forgiving as Mommy is when her hair is pulled!

We spent time with Papa and Karie on Friday. Molli and Scotland came up to Ventura on Saturday, so Ryan was finally able to meet his new little nephew. Unfortunately, we didn't get any pics of Ryan or Tessa with Scottie! I only have some with me!

Look how well Tessa is sitting now!

Saturday night was Brandon’s birthday dinner (a cousin on the Lopez side of the fam.) We had a great time at the pizza parlor. Tessa was in a great mood and played with her aunties, uncles, and cousins with hardly any fussing!
Tessa with her Lopez cousins

On Sunday, Ryan, Tessa, and I went up to Ronnie and Mia’s for BBQ and pool time. Their daughter is 10 months older than Tessa, so it was nice to spend time in a home that is baby proofed and a hot tub (warm tub) that is kept at 90 degrees!

Monday was the first long leg of our road trip. Ryan, Tessa, and I drove to Sacramento. It’s about 6 hours from Ventura. I was pretty nervous, because I’ve had short drives from Riverside to San Diego that take 2-3 hours due to a certain unhappy, screaming passenger! Tessa was fantastic on this trip! She fussed a little, but I was able to keep her entertained most of the time! Hooray!

I just realized how long this post will end up if I write about the entire week, so I’ll just leave you with Labor Day weekend for now. I’ll write more about our trip soon. Let me just say that Tessa and I are so happy to be spending so much time with Ryan!

Project 5 White Onesies ~ Fabric Flower

2010-08-31T17:26:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, a friend of mine gave me a 5 pack of plain white Gerber Onesies. I am so excited, because I have had several ideas of things to do with onesies, but never went out to buy them. If you know me, you know I am a pseudo crafter. I'd love to be really creative, but I'm only kinda creative. Since I had the free onesies just handed to me, I have no excuse but to let my creativity come out! So, I decided to share my projects! I figure if I can complete these projects successfully, anyone can!

Project One ~ Fabric Flower

I started this project out by just making the fabric flower using this tutorial. I repurposed one of Tessa's onesies that no longer fits (another side thing I'm trying to do is repurpose some of her old clothes). I actually started this flower planning to make it into a headband decoration with a couple of solid pink flowers. Once I finished it, I changed my mind and decided to sew it onto one of the onesies. I think I'll make a few more flowers for a headband to go with this outfit! They were super easy and fast!

I hand stitched the stem using a loop stitch. (I don't remember the technical name for this stitch.) I just free-handed it. If I do one of these again, I'll draw some sort of line to follow. I ran a simple stitch around the neckline, but the perfectionist in me just couldn't handle any more non-uniform stitches! It looked really cute, but I took it out anyway.

My Muse

Tessa is starting to sit on her own! Way to go Baby Girl!

Our Weekend in Pictures

2010-08-29T23:16:00.001-07:00

FRIDAY:
Mommy and Me Workout

Movie Night with the Baby Mamas

SATURDAY:
La Jolla with Daddy

Balboa Park Dance Festival with the Kilbride boys

SUNDAY:
Balboa Park Dance Festival with the Baby Mamas

Hope you all had a great weekend too!

Five Months!

2010-08-28T20:37:00.000-07:00

Tessa, you are now five months old (and one day)! I can’t believe how much you are learning and how quickly you are growing! Here’s what you’ve been up to this month:
• You are 15 pounds and 26 inches long. You’re our growing girl!
• You are wearing size 3-6 month clothing and a size 2 diaper. You are starting to outgrow your 3-6 month jammies, and have to wear size 6 months.
• You love to talk, sometime shouting! You seem to think that church is a conversation between you and the pastor! You spend most of the time talking! Luckily we’re in the nursing mom’s room, so everyone thinks you’re the cutest thing!

• You have started to reach out for others to hold you! That is a big step for you, little mama’s girl.
• You are constantly grabbing Mommy’s cup and suck on the bottom rim. You especially love my venti iced Starbucks drinks!
• You love to roll! Your naps are often interrupted by you rolling onto your tummy and burying your face into the bed.

• You are sitting on your own for several seconds at a time. I know it is only a matter of days before you are an official sitter!
• We play peek-a-boo with your blankie, and you try to play peek-a-boo with your toys!

• You started making a pppppt squeaky noise. I’m trying to get a recording of it, but every time I get out my phone, you stop what you’re doing to try and grab my phone.
• You are a little girly girl! You love wearing dresses and hair bows!

Mommy and Daddy love you so much sweet Tessa. We are so blessed to have you in our lives!

Back in our Groove

2010-08-26T22:34:00.000-07:00

Finally back at home, Tessa and I are trying to get back into the swing of things. We went to baby sign language story time at the library this morning. Our friends Amy and Jonas were there! Tessa isn’t signing anything, but we are practicing every day. She loves to watch the other kids and parents at story time!
Tessa and Jonas playing after story time

Ryan came home tonight! There’s a big dance festival in Balboa Park this weekend, so hopefully we’ll get a chance to go see some great performances!

A Life Well Lived

2010-08-25T22:58:00.000-07:00

Today was a very special day. We celebrated the extraordinary life of Brandon Pentz. There was an estimated total of around 1,500 to 2,000 people gathered together to mourn the loss of and celebrate the life of Brandon with the Pentz family. I keep writing and rewriting this post, as I don’t know how to put this whole experience into words. I think I’ll just share my favorite moment of the service. Brandon’s Uncle Vic was one of the speakers, and he talked about the family. He said that Brandon would have been the last man in the Pentz family to pass down the family name. Uncle Vic said that once God created the best version of the Pentz man, He retired their jersey. I thought that was a really nice way to think about Brandon.

Please pray for the Pentz family as they grieve. Here is a link to Brandon’s obituary in the Press Enterprise. I think it is a nice snapshot of Brandon’s life. I wish you all had the opportunity to know this amazing, loving person. Just know that this world is a better place because of Brandon. He is greatly loved and will be terribly missed.

Weekend with the Baby Mamas!

2010-08-23T22:24:00.000-07:00

That’s the name of my moms group, The Baby Mamas of San Diego! We had a busy and fun weekend together! Friday was our weekly workout. Gina sure got us sweating! I love incorporating Tessa into my workouts! It makes it all so much more rewarding.

Saturday we had a Meet the Daddies BBQ. It was so fun to hang out as complete families, mom, dad, and baby! There are so many fun moms in our group, and it was great to meet the dads who complete these families.

Sunday afternoon, we went to a musikgarten demo class. It was a great time to sing, move, and play rhythm instruments with Tessa. She seemed to really like it! Unfortunately, I don’t know if we’ll sign up for the classes. We are going to be busy almost every Sunday in September, and the classes are on Sunday afternoons. Plus, because I'm staying home this year, we can't afford to do everything. It’s hard to choose what to do with Tessa because I want her to experience everything! This will probably have to be one of those things we have to pass on, though.

Sunday night, Tessa and I drove up to my mom and dad’s. Robbie and Cameron started school today and my parents hold a Back to School dinner for the boys every year. Usually I’m already back to work, but this year Tessa and I were finally able to join in the fun!

Cameron started third grade, and I’m super excited about that! Of course that is my favorite grade level! I hope to be able to spend some time with him throughout the year, tutoring as needed, and encouraging him along the way!

Robbie started sixth grade today!! I can’t believe he is already in sixth grade! He is really growing up to be a fantastic kid, and smart, too! He takes after his Aunt Krista!

Laughing Tessa ~ A video for the grandmas!

2010-08-19T20:08:00.000-07:00

...and everyone else who loves Tessa!
Tessa has started to really laugh good laughs! I caught a little on video, but the angle isn't good because if she knew I was taping her, she'd get very serious and stare at the camera! Enjoy!

Movie Day

2010-08-18T20:51:00.000-07:00

Tessa and I had another really busy day! I like to keep busy because I feel like Tessa has more learning opportunities when we go out, and I really like for her to spend a little time with people other than just Mommy! This morning, I had an appointment with my new doctor’s office. I was pretty impressed. The time it took Tessa and I to leave our apartment to the time we were back on the road, headed home was only 45 minutes! And we stopped at Starbucks during that time! If today’s visit was any indication of how efficient my new health care team is, I’ll be very happy!

When we got home, Bethany was still here. A family friend is in the hospital in Escondido, so Bethany stayed over last night. (Hence the stop at Starbucks!) Tessa loves her Aunt Bee, so when Bethany left, Tessa was really excited and not ready for a nap AT ALL! She and I played for awhile, and she is loving tummy time so much nowadays, so I wanted to shoot a video for Ryan. As soon as I turned on the camera, Tessa decided to roll over, so, here’s the video I got:

She’s growing so quickly! **I'm having trouble uploading the video, so if it gives an error message, sorry!

This afternoon, my Baby Mamas group met up in Carmel Mountain to see Eat, Pray, Love. It was a pretty good movie, but I heard that the book is way better. No surprise there. When is the book NOT way better! After the movie, a few of us walked over to Dairy Queen. I haven’t been to a DQ in so long! I don’t even remember the last time! Maybe 8 or 9 years ago? Tessa was pretty tired by then, but that didn’t stop us from an impromptu photo shoot! This is the only shot Ashley (our resident photographer) got of T, because she was not her smiley self. Look at her sitting up so well! That is a big-girl high chair that she’s sitting in!

Tomorrow we were invited to a play group at the beach. I’m still deciding if I want to take Tessa. I kinda would like Ryan to be with us the first time we go to the beach. Maybe we can go as a family on Friday or Saturday. We’ll see.

On Monday, I mentioned that Tessa wore her party dress for Scotland’s birth day, but realized the picture I posted didn’t show her adorable dress at all! Here are a couple of shots of Tessa in her party dress playing on her Boppy:

Ryan comes home tomorrow night! Yea! He has two very excited ladies waiting for him!!

Museum Day with the Baby Mamas

2010-08-17T21:53:00.000-07:00

My Baby Mamas group met up at Balboa Park today for Free Museum Tuesday. Every Tuesday, several museums are free for San Diego County residents, so we decided to take advantage while our babies are easily managed, and not running around like toddlers! Today the San Diego Museum of Art and the Museum of Man were two of the free museums. A group of almost 15 moms met up and enjoyed the fine art our art museum has to offer. There, of course, isn’t stroller parking at the museum, but we arranged a place where we could leave our strollers and wear our babies around the museum. I guess some other moms liked this idea, because when we were leaving, several others had parked their strollers with ours! I wish I had a picture of all the strollers. It was quite a sight!
Tessa napping while I enjoy the art

After the art museum, a bunch of us went to lunch at the courtyard just outside of the museum. We spent several hours chatting and planning more events. San Diego has so much to offer families!

Once everyone went our separate ways to head home, Tessa and I headed to the Museum of Man. She was napping, so I seized the opportunity. I’ve only been to this museum with my third graders, so I was really able to enjoy it in a very different way! They have an exhibit about board games right now. I learned a lot of trivia, but my favorite tidbit was that Chinese Checkers is actually a German game. When it was brought over to the US, they changed the name to make the game sound exotic!
I didn’t get any pictures of the Museum of Man, but here’s a pic from Google images. Isn’t it a beautiful building! Balboa Park always takes my breath away!

Welcome Baby Scottie!

2010-08-16T20:18:00.001-07:00

Today was a very special day for the Lopez family! Ryan’s sister, Molli, and her husband, Jesse, had their baby! After 41 weeks in the oven and 33 hours of labor, sweet little Scotland Charles David Thomason was welcomed into our world at 2:16 this afternoon, weighing in at 7 lbs, 10 oz. Oh how I wanted to be there to hear his first coos, smell his sweet little head, and snuggle the newest gift to our family! Tessa and I celebrated together down here in San Diego. She dressed in her party dress and sent birthday wishes to her new cousin from afar. I’m aching inside to meet the little guy, and don’t know how long we’ll last in San Diego. I feel an impromptu trip to Ventura in our near future!

Our Weekend with Daddy

2010-08-14T22:10:00.000-07:00

Ryan drove home this weekend, so our time together was shortened, due to the looooong drive. Today was a low key, laid back, family day. Ryan took Tessa out for what has become my favorite part of every weekend - a two hour Daddy~Daughter walk. I look forward to Saturday mornings because Ryan takes Tessa and gives me one or two hours of completely restful, uninterrupted sleep! Plus, he usually comes back with either Starbucks, a doughnut, or a breakfast burrito for me!

Ryan wanted to take his girls out to lunch, so we went to Applebee's for their 2 meals for $20 deal. I enjoyed a skinny margarita with my lunch. It was pretty good! I think the main difference is they probably use sweetener instead of sugar in the margarita mix.
Ryan and Tessa at lunch (I was playing with Picnik tonight!)

Today was the first Chargers game of the season! It's only pre-season, but I was still super excited to kick off Tessa's first football season! Unfortunately, since the game was not sold out, it was blacked out and didn't air until 9:30 pm - way past Tessa's bedtime! Nevertheless, after her bath, we put her in her jammies and the Chargers tutu that I made for her, and took some pictures to mark the occasion. She loved the tutu! She loves experiencing different textures right now, so she loved playing with and trying to eat the tulle.

It's hard to believe how much she's grown since I took the pictures of her in her Padres tutu!

My Cutie Tessa

2010-08-13T22:40:00.000-07:00

Tessa and I have been keeping ourselves very busy this week. Yesterday we went to our monthly picnic in La Jolla with our moms group. It was a pretty cold day, so I took a quick picture of Tessa in her cute summer outfit, then wrapped her in a blanket for almost the rest of the day!

Last night, Bethany came down and she and I took Tessa to Balboa Park to watch the City Ballet perform at the Twilight in the Park Summer Concert Series. It was a nice evening out for the three of us, but it got pretty chilly, so I put Tessa in her adorable jacket that Julia and Joe gave her. Doesn’t she look like a little snow bunny! I can’t wait for the summer concert series next summer, when Tessa can move around to the music and enjoy herself a little more!

This morning, Tessa and I went to our Mommy and Me workout. We switched from yoga to a full-on workout session now. I love it! Here's the obligatory group shot of all the babies! Tessa wasn't too happy because she had just been dozing off when I put her down for the pic! Are you all starting to recognize some of our baby friends by now?!

Finally, Tessa and I have been playing peek-a-boo with her security blanket, with the hope that she’ll make a connection with it and be comforted at night when she wakes up and I am not with her. Anyway, she LOVES peek-a-boo and laughs every time we play.

This morning, she was in her swing and I was in the rocker reading, when I heard her laughing. I looked over, and she was playing peek-a-boo with the mobile that hangs above her swing! She looked so adorable, holding the blanket over her face, then pulling it away and laughing at the little bugs that hang from her mobile! I tried to get a video of her, but as soon as I got out the camera, she wouldn't play anymore. I’ll have to learn how to be more stealth with the camera so I can get some candid shots and videos of my sweet baby T! Here's the video I ended up with. I'm mostly posting it for Grammie and Naunie to get a short peek of their sweet little granddaughter and hear her little squeal of joy!

We call peek-a-boo "Where's the Baby?" or "Where's Mommy?" or "Where's Tessa?"

We've got a really busy week ahead, packed with activities with our moms group, plus a visit from Sarah and the boys! Yea!

* We're also expecting a very special arrival any day now... Tessa's cousin was due last Monday, but is taking his time making his debut. We're all anxiously awaiting this next little bundle of joy!

Baby Sign Language & Video of Miss T!

2010-08-10T20:15:00.000-07:00

Tessa and I went to a baby sign storytime today at the library. I was a little hesitant, thinking Tessa was too young, but last night I listened to the New Moms, New Babies episode about baby sign language, and the guest was the lady who does the storytime we went to! On the podcast, she said she started signing with her second child right after birth, so I figured Tessa should be just fine. I was right, she LOVED it! There were about 15 - 20 other kids there, so lots of people for Tessa to look at. She liked the music and the stories. I tried to do as many signs for her as I could. We'll definitely be going back!

After listening to the podcast, I got pretty excited about starting sign with Tessa, and compiled a list of words I'm going to gradually introduce to her. I thought of 13 words so far, but need to whittle it down to just a few to start with. I'd love suggestions of words I should introduce, so if you have any suggestions, please let me know! Here are the words I'm going to start with: milk, sleepy, diaper, dance, sing, dolphin, book, car, walk, outdoors, more, done, and swing. I want to mix up some daily routine signs with some fun things signs. The theme at storytime today was animals, so we learned some animal signs. I'm excited to see how long it takes Tessa to pick some of these signs up and start using them herself! You can bet I'll video tape her once she starts signing, and share it with all of you!

When we left the library, Tessa and I walked over to Cupcakes Squared for a little snack. I ordered a vanilla chai cupcake. It was only OK, but not worth the calories I consumed. That's too bad, because this cupcake bakery has received good reviews.

If you saw my Facebook update last night, I made some roasted red bell pepper hummus. I must say, it is delicious! I was snacking on some today, and Tessa has recently started showing interest in food, so I let her try a taste! This isn't the first time she's tasted hummus. I gave her a taste of my super spicy hummus a couple of weeks ago, and my roasted garlic hummus last week. This is the first time I taped her reaction, and the first flavor she seems to like! Here's a short video of her trying Mommy's hummus:

Our Day at Balboa Park

2010-08-05T18:54:00.000-07:00

I took Tessa to Balboa Park today just to get out of the house and enjoy the beautiful weather! We spent several hours walking around and taking pictures. I took her to the Timken Museum of Art since it has free admission. I held her in her Ergo so she could look at the pictures. She really seemed to enjoy looking at them! We only got to see half of the museum because she started to get hungry. I told her as much as I could about each painting or piece of art to develop that little growing brain of hers!

Afterward, we got out the picnic blanket and relaxed on the lawn outside of the Botanical Building. There was a man playing the sax, so we enjoyed the live music while we hung out. Tessa rolled over from her back to her tummy and spent some tummy time by her own will! She usually HATES tummy time, but she didn’t fuss a bit! When she was done, she rolled herself back over! She makes me so proud, even though she rolled partially off our blanket!
As you can see, she's a drool monster!

While we were in Balboa Park, I wanted to take pictures of some of the significant places in the park. There are so many beautiful spots, and with it being just the two of us, the pictures are mostly of Tessa in her stroller! That’s OK. We have plenty of future trips to Balboa Park ahead of us!

Fountain in front of the Natural History Museum
• I take a picture of my class at this fountain every year, and since Tessa is my only student this year, I decided to get a picture of her!

The Prado and Organ Pavilion
• Ryan and I celebrated our 6 month dating anniversary here. We have pictures of each of us at the pavilion from that day as well as some of our Save the Date pictures. I think it is one of the most beautiful structures in all of San Diego!

Botanical Building and Lily Pond

Doctors, Doctors Everywhere!

2010-07-30T17:15:00.000-07:00

Tessa and I both had doctor appointments today. My little sister, Bethany, came down to help me with Tessa. My appointment was actually my annual orthodontic check-up. All is good. They even complemented me on the cleanliness of my retainer multiple times! As if I'd let my retainer get grimy! And if it was grimy, you can guarantee I wouldn't use it! My ortho office is in Ocean Beach, so Bethany, Tessa, and I walked around for a bit after my appointment, went to Starbucks (of course), and walked the pier. As you can see, Tessa enjoyed a nice nap!

This afternoon was Tessa's 4 month well-baby check with her new pediatrician. And, just like her momma, all is well! She is one healthy baby girl! She had to get the next round of shots, but this time I didn't cry! She did a little, but Aunt Bethany was impressed at how quickly she calmed down and how mellow she was afterward.

So, here's where Tessa is at 4 months old:
Weight: 14 lbs., 4 oz. ~ 50-75%
Length: 25 in. ~ 50-75%
Head Circumference: 15.5 in. ~ 5-10%
All percentiles are based on the Baby Growth Percentile Calculator on BabyCenter.com

So she has a little pea head like her Daddy! Her doctor said not to worry because in her small head she has a nice big brain! (We already knew that, though!)

Four Months!

2010-07-27T20:35:00.000-07:00

Tessa, you are already four months old! This has been a big month for you! You are growing so quickly! We have your doctor’s appointment on Friday, so I’ll post your specs in a few days. Here’s what you’ve been up to this month:

• You are starting to outgrow your 0-3 clothes, but still fit into most. You have to wear 3-6 jammies because you are a long lady! You wear a size 1 diaper still, but I think we’re about a week or two away from size 2.

• You discovered your voice! You talk all the time, often shouting! You also like to “sing” along with others whether it be the radio or worship songs at church.
• You went swimming for the first time! You didn’t like the pool much, but you loved the spa! It was warm, and you loved the bubbles.

• You love to grab objects to taste or lick them. You even grab Mommy’s and Daddy’s faces to give kisses!
• You have learned to scoot around by using your lower abs and lifting your rear. When I get you out of your bassinet, you are often sideways with your legs up the side!
• You are transferring toys from one hand to the other, and playing with toys in both hands at the same time.

• When I sing to you or give you a kiss attack, you just laugh and laugh!
• You “help” me change your diaper by lifting your bottom for me.

• We video chat with Daddy up in Sacramento. You get so excited to see him on the computer and lunge toward the screen!
• We went to the beach for the first time. We went to OB and La Jolla a few times, but didn’t go onto the sand until last week when we went to San Elijo. It was so cold, though, that we stayed bundled up the whole time.

• You don’t roll over a lot, but when you do, you work so hard to do it! You are almost there!
• You love to stand with me holding your hands. During yoga, you stand on my belly and look so proud!
• I let you taste hummus. You did NOT like it at all! It was pretty spicy hummus!

Look how much you've grown!

Another Day in La Jolla

2010-07-19T21:10:00.000-07:00

Tessa and I had such a nice time in La Jolla on Thursday, so we were very happy to go again on Saturday. Our friend invited us to spend the day on his front lawn across the street from the beach to enjoy the ocean breeze and BBQ. It was a perfect day!

Kristy was down for a wedding, so she was able to stop by and meet Tessa!

Relaxing in the shade!

Mama and Tessa

La Jolla Play Date!

2010-07-15T15:57:00.000-07:00

Tessa and I had a busy morning today! We had two play dates scheduled, the San Diego Babywearers and our Baby Mamas group! We stopped by the park where the Babywearers meet for a few minutes, mostly just to drop off the water wrap we borrowed and to chat for a few minutes. Our play date with the Baby Mamas started 30 minutes later, and it was up in La Jolla, so we got there a little late, but it was totally worth it! I love spending time with these mamas and babies! The oldest baby there today was 6 months old, so all the babies are very close in age. I met most of the moms though our maternity group, so the babies have literally known each other since they were born!

We had a great turn out today! I think there were about 15 mamas there. The weather was beautiful (although a little humid, thus my frizzy hair!). We picnicked at the wedding point off the cove, which has breathtaking views! Good friends, good conversation, good babies, and good scenery makes for a perfect play date!

During the photo shoot, most of the babies started crying. One seems to set off another until most of the babies are crying! These are the non-cryers who were left:
Doesn't Jonah have amazing hair? He's only 4 months old!

Tessa was so relaxed and enjoyed being outside, I didn't want to leave!

Fill in the Blank

2010-07-14T18:25:00.000-07:00

Shannon at Luvin the Mommyhood posted this and I thought I'd give it a try since Tessa is down for a nap and how else could I waste my precious free time?

Making : a stocking for Tessa. I started in January and haven't picked it up since Tessa was born. I'm feeling the deadline start to creep towards me!!
Cooking : Chicken Spinach Artichoke Squares from Kelly's Recipe Blog
Drinking : iced coffee (Via from Starbucks. Not bad!)
Reading: "Baby-led Weaning" (see previous post)
Wanting: Ryan to finish working in Sacramento and come home
Looking: for fun crafts that I can try now that I'm a SAHM
Playing: on Tessa's floor jungle gym with her
Wasting: my precious minutes of Tessa's nap writing the second blog post in one day!
Sewing: a rag doll for Tessa
Wishing: I still got paid while I'm on leave!
Enjoying: staying home with Tessa and not having to plan for the next school year
Waiting: for So You Think You Can Dance to start
Liking: finding new mommy blogs to read about others' adventures
Wondering: the last time I changed Tessa's diaper before I laid her down for her nap
Loving: being a new mom!
Hoping: Tessa sleeps well tonight so we can enjoy our play date tomorrow!
Marveling: at how Tessa changes every single day
Needing: a pedicure
Smelling: the oatmeal spice cookies Tessa and I are baking for Daddy
Wearing: shorts and a tank
Following: too many blogs to keep up with
Noticing: a strange bump on my finger. Did I "catch" Robbie's wart yesterday?
Knowing: Ryan will be home tomorrow night makes my day so much brighter!
Thinking: Tessa may have just woken up. I heard some stirring...
Bookmarking: articles about Tessa's development
Opening: a package that came from my mom-in-law in the mail ... oops! I guess I left a couple of books in Ventura. Thanks for mailing them back!
Giggling: at Tessa's new found laugh when we sing!
Feeling: tired, but that I wouldn't change it for the world!

New Moms, New Babies

2010-07-14T14:54:00.000-07:00

While I was pregnant, I had the opportunity to be on PregTASTIC podcasts. You all know how much I loved that! Well, I've now graduated to New Moms, New Babies! This podcast is full of information for new moms, just as the name suggests. Because we are a group of new moms, we don't have the time and convenience we had while preggos, so we record on a semi-monthly basis, record multiple shows at a time, and the shows are about half the length of a PregTASTIC show.

Back in May, when Tessa was just over a month old, I went in to record three shows. Two of the three have finally posted to newmomsnewbabies.com and are available on iTunes! I'm so glad because I've been referring to them for two months, and now everyone can hear what I've been talking about!

The first episode we recorded was about co-sleeping, more specifically bed-sharing. Ryan and I have a co-sleeper bassinet, but we don't bed-share very often. In fact, this past weekend, we were in Ventura and I didn't bring Tessa's travel bassinet, so we had to bed-share. It was not easy for us, and I think the only one who slept well was Tessa! I know a lot of people bed-share successfully and love it for their family. If you are one of those people, or would like to be one, listen to this podcast. It has some really important information!

The second episode we recorded was about baby-led weaning. This topic was really exciting to me! I actually ordered Gill Rapley's book and have been reading it, even though Tessa is still about 3 months away from solid food! I highly recommend listening to this podcast, and even buying the book, if the topic interests you! There is a link on the New Moms, New Babies website that will take you to Amazon, and a portion of your purchase goes back to support NMNB and PregTASTIC! Anyway, as I mentioned, I'm excited about baby-led weaning, I think I'll have to do an entire post about it! I've actually thought about starting another blog specifically dedicated to our adventures with BLW when we get to that point in Tessa's life. Although I have a hard enough time posting on this blog, I doubt I'd have time for a second blog! I was talking to Tessa's Great-Great Aunt Joanie about BLW this past weekend, and she said it is very similar to how her mother and grandmother did things! It's nothing new, in fact, it's more like going back to the way things were done before people changed everything!

The third topic we recorded was about colic and acid reflux in infants. It was also a really good episode, and I just loved our expert! I'll try to post a link to that when it is up on NMNB's website for any moms struggling with that!

And finally, I have to post an adorable picture of Tessa, just to make this blog worth your while!

Today I marry my best friend

2010-07-07T00:19:00.000-07:00

Three years ago...

...and I love you more and more every day!
Happy Anniversary Ryan!

Fourth of July Weekend

2010-07-06T00:03:00.000-07:00

Once again, in typical Lopez Family fashion, Ryan and I had a packed weekend! Ryan flew home on Friday morning, and we drove over to Ocean Beach for breakfast burritos and to take Tessa by the beach! We didn't stay very long, but it was nice to walk around our old neighborhood and talk to old friends!

Later that day we went back to the Kilbrides' to swim and BBQ. We took Tessa in the spa this time, and she enjoyed it much more than the pool. In fact, she fell asleep in my arms while we were in the spa!

On Saturday, we went to the Padres game. We had a great time, and the Padres won, which made it even better! The only bummer was that it was beach towel night, but I guess 25,000 people got to the park before we did, because all the towels were gone by the time we got there.

Sunday, the Fourth of July, was a pretty mellow day. This is my favorite holiday! I love how patriotic everyone is with all the red, white, and blue. I love BBQs and fireworks! It is such a fun holiday! I started off the day at the gym. (Sundays are the only day I get to go to the gym right now, so I try to make it every week.) Later, Bethany came down and we made our traditional Fourth of July dessert ~ this is now a two year long tradition!
Last year's flag fruit pizza and this year's star fruit pizza!

We all headed over to our friends, the Elliots' house for more BBQ and fireworks. It was fun to see everyone and for them to all meet Tessa! She looked so cute in her little Fourth of July outfit! (I dressed her in the same outfit I took her 3 month pics in. It is just too cute!!)

Tessa took a really good nap while we all hung out, but woke up before the firework show, so I took her outside to see the fireworks with everyone. I thought she'd be scared or nervous because of the loud booms, but she did very well! She actually fell asleep half way through the show!

Ryan had Monday off, so we just spent the day relaxing at home before his flight. We got Tessa's size 3-6 month clothes out of storage. They are still too big, but I think they'll start fitting soon! The pjs already fit, since she is such a long girl! It was nice to have Ryan home for that extra day. I just dropped him off at the airport a few hours ago, and I already miss him! Can't wait to see him on Thursday night and celebrate our anniversary on Friday!!
This baby girl loves her daddy!

Pool Time!

2010-07-01T21:30:00.000-07:00

Today I was supposed to take Tessa for a play date with my small group at one of the girl's condo pools. Well, it wasn't even 70 degrees here today, so I canceled that for Tessa and I. I was pretty bummed because I have been looking forward to taking her in the pool for weeks, and this was going to be our first opportunity! Who would have thought it would be so cold on July 1st!
I didn't give up, though. I knew it had to be warmer in East County, so I called up the Kilbrides to see if they were around. Nobody loves a good pool day like the Kilbride boys! Sky was home, so Tessa and I headed over there for a few hours! I used the water wrap, which worked well. Tessa didn't like the water that well, so I'm glad I had her wrapped up against me. We slowly lowered ourselves in and I waded around, trying to stay in the shade as much as possible.
Even though Tessa didn't love the pool, we're going back tomorrow, when Ryan is home, so he can swim with her, too! I know she's going to eventually love the pool, it's only a matter of time!
Here are the smallest pair of swim diapers on the market. They were HUGE on her! She sure looks cute in her swimsuit, though!

Ryan loves Tessa! He was so excited to have her over!

Swimming with Mommy and Ryan

Hanging out on the step

Tessa and the boys

She's a Talker!

2010-06-30T22:16:00.000-07:00

Tessa had a very talkative day today! She was chatty from morning 'til bedtime! I was able to catch some of her talking on video. I'm excited because she usually clams up as soon as the camera is on. Both Ryan and my mom say she's taking after her Aunt Bee. That wouldn't be too bad! Enjoy Tessa's and my conversation!

My Newest Obsession

2010-06-27T21:14:00.000-07:00

I have become semi-obsessed with baby carriers! I am now the proud owner of three wraps and two ErgoBabies. I LOVE holding sweet Tessa close to me, plus, it's extremely convenient to wear her rather than carry her around in her car seat all the time. The fact that she HATES her car seat also makes carrying her preferable!

I am borrowing a water wrap from San Diego Babywearers. So far I have only showered with her in it, but I have a play date at a pool this week, so we'll see how it goes in the pool! I may need my mom to make us a water wrap if it's a hit with Tessa!

Three Months ~ Already!!

2010-06-27T13:12:00.000-07:00

Three months! We can’t believe it! You’ve been busy this month and are growing so quickly! You weigh 12 ½ pounds and measure 24 ½ inches in length.
• You slept all the way through the night!! (Only twice, but it was great!)
• You started reaching for Mommy when you want to be picked up or nursed! You also started reaching for toys this month.
• You started holding objects in your hands.
• You had your first babysitter. I had to pack up my classroom, so we hired a babysitter to play with you at school while I worked.
• I took you to your first movie ~ Sex and the City 2

• You made your first funny face for the camera! If you are anything like your Daddy, there will be many more funny faces to come!

• I took you to church for the first time this month.

• You rolled from your back to your front! It has only happened once, but I am so proud of how hard you try new skills!
• Daddy left to work in Sacramento this month, so you have a picture of him on the back seat for you to look at while we drive. You like to “talk” to him when we’re in the car!

• Grammie and I finally got your room decorated!

• You started responding to your name!
• When I hold you in a reclined position, you pull yourself upright into a sitting position. You also like to sit in your Bumbo. Your neck is getting so strong!

• You pat or pet me while you’re nursing. It warms my heart!

Look how much you've grown since you were only one month old!

Yoga Baby

2010-06-24T19:37:00.000-07:00

Tessa and I went to our first Mommy and Me yoga class this evening. It felt pretty good to be back in a yoga class, but it was not easy to focus on my poses with my adorable, cuddly T Bear right there! There were only three of us moms and three babies in the class, so I got a lot of personal instruction. I know it was needed, but not necessarily wanted. Yoga is easier if I'm doing it MY way! Tessa slept in the beginning, but quickly woke up, so I got to do some yoga with her! She really liked some of it and laughed and smiled with me! She also had some cranky time. You know how when one baby cries, the others around start to cry as well? That's what seemed to happen today. Little Kai was fussing, which got Tessa started, and even Serenity joined in for a bit (which is not typical of Serenity! She definitely fits her name and is usually really calm and happy!). I'm looking forward to more classes, and hopefully more moms and babies joining in!

Ryan's First Father's Day!

2010-06-21T10:37:00.000-07:00

I don't know why Blogger keeps uploading this picture sideways! I love it anyway!
We had a great Father's Day weekend around here! I wanted to make it special for Ryan since it was his first Father's Day and since he is spending his weeks in Sacramento now. We had both of our dads come down and went to the Padres game. It was such a fun game, and they WON!! That's always a plus! It was neat to see all the things the Padres did to honor dads on this special day.

Here's a not-so-good picture of all three dads before the game. Too bright of a background, but for some reason, men don't like to pose and re-pose just for a good pic!

My dad and I

Tessa and I (right before she POOPED all over me!!)

And Ryan's gifts...
ErgoBaby carrier

Doesn't Tessa look adorable peeking through the side!

I made him a stamped washer key chain!

And some quality nap time with Tessa while I made a yummy breakfast casserole!

I also got Ryan a golf voucher for 18 holes and a cart for two, which he can redeem when he needs a much deserved relaxation day!
I loved making this holiday BIG for my baby girl's dad and can't wait for the years of Father's Days to come!

First Day at Church

2010-06-18T14:39:00.000-07:00

Tessa and I finally made it to church this Sunday! We sat in the Family Room with some other new moms. It was a pretty nice room with about a dozen gliders, a changing table, some toys, and a crib. Doesn't Tessa look adorable all dressed up for church?

I'm a Teacher, that's what I do!

2010-06-10T09:01:00.000-07:00

Lucky Tessa (or poor Tessa, depending on your outlook)! She has a teacher for a mother. That means every day will be packed with learning experiences! Tuesday was no exception. It was Election Day! Tessa got to hear all about the different offices for which we were voting, and I explained who was running and how I felt about him/her. I also read her the propositions, at least the ones I didn't quite understand myself. I hoped that reading them aloud would help. It didn't. Then, even though I'm a permanent Vote by Mail voter, I still like to go to the polls, so Tessa and I walked to our neighbor's garage to place our vote! (I've been voting either at the County Admin building or a school for the past 10 years, so I just loved going to somebody's home to vote! It made me feel so suburban!) Tessa got her "I Voted" sticker, and she fell asleep on the walk home! Two birds with one stone! I just knew reading her the ballot would get her to finally take a nap!

What We've Been Up To ~ A Photo Tour

2010-06-08T02:54:00.000-07:00

I haven't been spending much time on the computer lately. Tessa and I have been so busy! I try to do something with her almost every day so we can get out of the house and enjoy San Diego! I took her down to Mission Bay on her two month birthday just to relax and enjoy the weather. She really loves being outside!
As I was looking through the pictures, I found this one that I think is absolutely beautiful. Her eyelashes are to die for!

On Memorial Day weekend, we spent time with Ryan's family. We drove up to Ventura (what a nightmare driving through LA!) and celebrated Tyhler's 14th birthday!!

Since the drive up to Ventura was a nightmare, we drove home early Monday morning (like at 4:30 am!) and spent the day poolside in Rancho Santa Fe with Aunt Linda!

Isn't the view breathtaking!

We've also had a parade of house guests. Ryan's mom and sister came down just before Memorial Day and spent a few days. Molli came back down with us after Memorial Day to spend a few more days with us. Bethany came down for one evening as well. Our home cleared out for only one day before Ryan's dad came down for a few days! Our families just can't stay away from Tessa for too long!

On Sunday, my Baby Mamas group held a nanny speed-dating event where parents came and we interviewed a bunch of babysitters in a speed-dating style, where we had about 3 minutes with each girl before rotating to the next. It was a lot of fun and a bunch of great girls came out for the event! Tessa got to see her friends again. Here she is with Serenity!

Aren't they getting so big!

Ryan and I both made MAJOR changes in our lives this past week. I put in my leave of absence at work, so I'm officially going to be a Stay at Home Mom! I'm thrilled to have the chance to spend this year at home with Tessa! That means I have an extremely busy week ahead of me, cleaning out my classroom and storing all my stuff! Thank goodness for family, Bethany and my mom are coming down to help, plus we hired one of the nannies from the speed-dating event to watch Tessa while I sort through my classroom!

Ryan just got word that he'll be needed in Sacramento starting on Monday! I can't believe he's actually going to have to leave! We've been so lucky to have him here for the first 11 weeks of Tessa's life! Fortunately, his schedule up in Sac will be working four 10 hour days, so he can fly home on Thursday nights. We're going to miss him so much, but we knew this day was coming.

So as not to leave on a downer, here's a fun picture Tessa and I took one morning. She and I like to spend a few minutes in bed each morning just laughing and enjoying each other before the day begins. I obviously had not been out of bed yet, so pardon my puffy eyes and messy hair! My daughter, on the other hand, looks beautiful, as always!

Two Months!

2010-05-27T00:03:00.000-07:00

Tessa, you are already two months old! It has been an incredible month and you have already changed so much!
• You have started to take short naps in your swing or bouncer! This is really new, and Mommy is so glad that you are starting to take some naps during the day.
• You love your Moby wrap and sleep really well when Mommy or Daddy holds you close in the wrap. It automatically calms you down.

• You went to the zoo for the first time this month.

• You have started to coo! We have short conversations throughout the day.
• Your favorite place in the house is on your changing table. This is where I take a lot of pictures and we have a lot of our conversations. I often bring you there just to make you smile!
• You rolled over from your front to your back for the first time yesterday!

• You went on your first long car ride (to Ventura) and were excellent! I think you’re going to be a great traveler.
• You went to your first Padres game! You slept until the 7th inning stretch. You really love being outdoors!

• You smile and laugh with Mommy and Daddy now! You are even getting used to the camera and have let me take a few pictures of your smile!

• You make your Mommy and Daddy proud every day!