Christmas

Wow! It's been quite some time since I've written and it seems like there is so much to say. Let me start with Happy Belated Holidays! Whatever you celebrate, I hope you had a wonderful time and were able to share it with family and friends. We were fortunate to be able to share this Christmas not only with the family we see often, but also with my brother Ted and his significant other Earl. The week went by way too fast and we not only shared the holidays, but also a nasty stomach bug which made the poor guys miserable part of the time they were here. Nonetheless, we are so thankful for the time we got to spend with them and though they only left yesterday, I miss them so much already. I'll be looking forward to June when we will hopefully get to go to Disneyland to celebrate Ted's birthday!

Our Christmas started out a little rocky this year. Anthony's older brother, whom he didn't really have a relationship with, passed away a few days before Christmas. The loss of any chance of building a relationship along with numerous other complications, put a cloud over what is usually a joyous season. I never had the chance to meet Bobby or his family, but I pray that God gives them comfort and strength in this time when they need it most.

Christmas Eve was at our house this year and boy was it exhausting. I'll try to focus on the positives (for now) though there were some difficult situations that are still unresolved and threatening to cause extreme havoc in our otherwise happy life. It was nice seeing lots of our family and dinner was yummy. The kids got to open presents from their aunts, uncles, and grandparents and created quite a mess in the process. We had quite the house full with about 30 people, including 10 excited children, and it was lots of fun even if it did border on chaos. After dinner we sat around and watched Rankin and Bass cartoons while enjoying the company of our loved ones until everyone went home. We put on our Christmas pj's, put out cookies and coffee (our Santa really needed it!) for Santa, read the Night Before Christmas, and sent the little ones off to bed so that Santa could get busy putting together presents. Here are some pics of the kids on Christmas Eve.

We didn't do professional pics, so here are a few good ones that I snapped Christmas Eve morning.


Opening Presents

Christmas morning was so exciting. We got up about 6am to open gifts though neither of the kids were really excited about opening anything due to the three gifts that were left unopened by Santa. The Giddyup Go Pony, Crazy Coupe Car, and Wonder Pets Ball Pit could have been the only presents and the kids would have been happy. They did eventually get through all of the other presents and there were some other favorites among them. Alexis is quite fond of Mr. Potato Head and Justin loves his Handy Manny Tool Box. Additionally, the Geotrax rail and air have been played with quite a bit even if nothing really topped the pony and the car. In the evening we went to Anthony's Aunt's house for tamales and more presents, then home to recover from the busy couple of days. It's been a constant mess of toys ever since and Alexis and Justin fight over everything, but all in all, I'm really satisfied with the way Christmas turned out.

Christmas morning with Uncle Ted and Sandy (her Giddyup Pony)

Let the fighting begin. This was supposed to be Justin's car, but you see whose driving it.

Playing nice together. If it could always be like this!

The day after Christmas was a beautiful, chilly, sunny day and the kids got to go outside to play with their new toys. I was so surprised that Alexis was able to make the pony go, but she did and loved it. I now am sure it was the perfect gift.


Though Justin hasn't yet learned how to use his feet to move the car yet, he still has fun climbing in and out and playing the music on the horn.

Posing with the Snowmen

All in all, Christmas was fun, but I'm glad it's over. It will take me weeks, maybe months to recover, but I'm well on my way. I took down all of our decorations and trees today which was a little sad because I love Christmas so much, but such is life. Hope you all had a great holiday season and good luck in the new year!

It is done!!

My Christmas shopping that is! Yay! Usually I don't finish until like the day after Christmas, but this year, I'm two weeks early! Anthony and I spent all day shopping yesterday and it was so much fun. I usually hate Christmas shopping because of the crowds and rude people, but yesterday was almost blissful. First of all, it was the first time I've been able to shop without the kids in ages! (thanks mom) Second, Anthony and I spend so little time together with us that it was wonderful to be able to just be together. We got to have a nice lunch together AND I found a new favorite lunch spot! Panera is a really cozy spot with great sandwiches and yummy soups! Their pastries look great too, though I didn't have any. Maybe next time. We were out all day and got a lot done. It helped to get me in the Christmas spirit, which I haven't really been feeling yet. I should be because Alexis is so into the season already and I know Justin is gonna have a blast, but though I've had some moments where I starting to feel a little jolly, like when we put up the lights and when I arranged my Christmas music, I just haven't been into it. Maybe it's because we haven't put up any decorations yet. We're waiting to get our tree until my brother gets here on the 21st (which is okay by me because it means less time I have to fight to keep the kids out of it) and I need to get some indepth house cleaning done before I put everything up, but now that I'm feeling more Christmasy, I'm ready to get started. I actually got in today and wrapped all the presents we bought yesterday and if I stay motivated, I'm gonna start on the stuff we got the kids, which will be quite a task. My kids are completely spoiled. There have been two instances where I have said, "I'm not buying anything else for the kids" and after both times, I have been out shopping and found stuff that my kids just "had to have". This time...I am definitely done! I'm not even sure we have room for everything we bought, so I may have to get rid of more old toys to make room for the new (even though I already did that a week ago). But for now, I think I'll go listen to some Christmas music and wrap more presents!

The Not-So Routine Opthamologist Appointment

Today was Justin's appointment with the opthamologist...an appointment we expected to be pretty cut and dry. We expected them to look at the growth on his eye, tell us it wasn't causing any problems with a vision, and that would be that. I should have known the day was going to be rough when Justin woke up extremely cranky this morning. The kids were both up way too late last night, so when I had to wake him up at 7:30 he was besides himself and cried most of the way to the doctor. He finally calmed down once we got there only to once again be upset when I wouldn't let him play with the exam chair in the office. Our wait really wasn't too bad and the doctor was a very nice gentleman, but my cranky 16 month-old wanted nothing to do with the lights in his eyes or putting his chin on the chin rest. After a short but thorough exam, the doctor brought in some reading material about lipodermoids (fatty benign tumors that grow on the eye) and told me that they are common and would only be a concern if Justin were to have growths or skin tags near his ears or spinal cord abnormalities. Well...guess what? Justin's right ear has a spot that at birth was described as simply cartilage that didn't form properly. In all actuality, his right ear is slightly deformed, but not extremely noticeable unless you are his mother or a doctor who is looking for something. Anyway, the doctor believes he might have a mild form of Goldenhar's Syndrome which is a condition that is characterized by mild to serious facial abnormalities including dermoids and underdeveloped ears as well as spinal cord abnormalities. The doctor gave me some more literature and talked to me a bit about the condition and then showed me some pictures. Neither myself or the doctor could really see the same disfiguration that was in the pictures so if Justin does have this condition it is likely that it is a very mild case as the only real indicators are his eye and his ear. However, he will have to have some tests ran as well as some xrays in order to support or disprove the initial prognosis. I'm slightly freaked out because there are some other complications that this condition can lead to or that are a result of such as heart problems, lung defects, loss of hearing, and kidney problems, though in mild cases they may or may not be present. We could use some extra prayers tonight and through the next couple of months as the doctors try to figure out if Justin has Goldenhar's and if he does, how severe it is.

TAG! You're It!

Life has been pretty uneventful, but thanks to my friend and fellow blogger Heather, I finally have something to blog about! Yay! The way this works is I'm gonna blog about the six things that make me happy! When I'm done, I'll pick six of you to tag and you can pass along the joy. Thanks for playing!

1) Alexis and Justin. I really can't say enough about my kids. They are so incredible. Every day they are learning and growing and becoming such fantastic little individuals. They make me laugh and cry and teach me so much. I can't imagine anything more wonderful than being a mommy. I love them so much and they most definitely make me extremely happy!

2) Scrapbooking. I don't have much time for it anymore, but I love taking pictures and making them more than just a memory...it's a piece of art!

3) Hot things on a cold day. When it's so cold that you can see your breath and you think you are freezing, there is nothing better than bundling up, cuddling with someone you love in front of a fire place, and drinking some hot chocolate. Mmmm...makes me smile just thinking about it!

4) The beach. There is no place I'd rather be than laying in the sand, listening to the sound of the waves and the seagulls.

5) The perfect pair of jeans. Even on those days when you're feeling a little "fat", the perfect pair of jeans can make you feel sexy, confident, and...you guessed it...HAPPY!

6) Naps in the middle of the day. I love sleep and since having kids I don't get nearly enough of it. I am so happy when both kids take their naps at the same time and I can lay down and get a nap of my own.

In closing, my perfectly happy day would be throwing on a pair of great jeans, heading to the beach with my family, enjoying a nap in the afternoon, and cuddling up with my hubby when the sun goes down and the breeze coming off the water is just plain chilly.

And now the six people I wanna hear from....

1) Christia
2) Matthew
3) Michael (Hey...you blog about your art enough, how about something else? :)
4) Sergio
5) Lila
6) Charlotte

A Surprisingly Pleasant Doctor's Appointment

Justin had to get his second flu shot today and also had to have his eye rechecked. If you don't remember, about a month ago I found a pretty decent sized growth on his eye which at first glance, we thought was just an infection. Unfortunately, antibiotics didn't do the trick, so they had to reexamine him today. The morning started off a little hectic because we all slept a little later than planned. Even Anthony was rushing around to get off to work on time (not that he is ever really up on time), but it was even tougher because we were all up. The kids, or more specifically Alexis, wasn't very cooperative and refused to get changed, dressed, etc., but we made it out the door with a few minutes to spare. Thankfully, the wait at the doctor's office was minimal; probably the shortest it's ever been, and we got to see the P.A. pretty quick as well. Justin cried (as usual) and wasn't thrilled with the shot, but he recovered quickly. As for his eye, they think it's just a benign growth of some sort that we shouldn't really worry about unless it gets bigger or starts to obstruct his sight. Both the P.A. and the doctor looked at it and they did their best to reassure me that it was nothing to be stressed over, but they decided to refer him to an opthamologist anyway, just to be on the safe side. If you could just say a little prayer for him that whatever it is on his eye isn't and will not become a problem, I'd appreciate it. The thought of surgery on my baby is terrifying though I know whatever happens, everything will be okay.