Penny Lea is One!

I really struggled with Penny's birthday.  I wrote this the night before her birthday, hours before I rocked her as the clock turned to midnight, tears running down my face over my baby not being a baby anymore.  I finally fell asleep but jolted awake at 5:05 the next morning, the exact time she had been born one year prior.

As wistful as I had been the prior evening, I woke up with happiness in my heart and was so excited to celebrate my little girl.  

We had a small party at my mom's house with strawberry cake and friends.  It was the perfect one year old birthday party--short and sweet, just like her.

I know you shouldn't compare your kids but it is actually one of my favorite things to do as a mom of two.  I love seeing the differences and the similarities.  At one, Penny has a much bigger and demanding personality than her sister did at her age.  She is the sweetest girl-making sure that if she offers a kiss to one family member, every other family member around gets a kiss only to start a contagion of kisses. 

To balance out her kind side, she can flip a switch and show true anger.  Mostly directed at her sister, this tiny 17 pound package holds her own and makes sure that no one takes advantage of her.  I have never seen something so little make such an angry noise and face, I try not to smile but can't help it.

Like her sister, she loves to make people laugh.  If she catches us laughing at something she does, she will repeat it over and over again to illicit a chuckle.  If we dare not laugh at her performance, she will cock her head back, laughing, to make sure we know she is still being funny.

The bond she and her sister share is incredible.  I knew it was likely they would grow up close, but had no idea their relationship would already be so deep, so early.  Just in the past few weeks I have witnessed Penny trying to do everything just like her sister and it makes Evelyn so stinking happy. Hopefully the harmony lasts!

The last year was full of adjustments, tears of frustration and sleepless nights. It was worth every moment of genuine love, pure happiness and hearts that are completely content knowing that Miss Penny Lea has completed our family.

Father's Day Recap: Beaches, Cajun Greek and Fecal Matter

Before I recap last Sunday, Evelyn made a One Day video for Boyfriend.  I love One Day videos because somehow they always seem to highlight our best attributes as parents.

Boyfriend expressed that he would like to spend Father's Day on the beach so we took our toot smelling, Avenger playing guy down to Galveston for a day in the surf and sun.

In actuality-we woke up at 6:00 am for our 7:30 am flight with it pouring rain.  I checked the weather in Galveston and saw that it wasn't expected to rain and the storm was rapidly leaving Dallas.  I hadn't packed our bag yet (we were just flying down for the day) so I ran around grabbing swim suits, towels and some TSA approved snacks.  

We left the house a little after 6:30 and I realized we weren't going to make it but I knew there was another flight leaving at 8:00 if we didn't.  Somehow though, we arrived at the gate at 7:15 and we were able to easily find two rows in front of each other with window seats open (when you travel with car seats, you are required to have the car seat next to the window).  

We picked up our rental car from Enterprise (my favorite car rental company) and started our drive down to Galveston.  We always rent the cheapest car-typically an Economy class and it has never been a problem before but Evelyn was freaking out because Boyfriend was practically in her lap since we were driving in a Scion.  Going forth, we may just spend the extra few dollars to get a full size car to avoid those meltdowns. 

Once at the beach, we just stopped at the first open spot along the seawall.  We set up a tent for shade which also doubled as a private space for us to change into our swim suits.  Evelyn immediately ran down to the ocean and started playing-I took just a few pictures but then put the phone up and didn't bring it out again until several hours later when we were leaving.

Both girls were obsessed with the water.  Penny just loved covering herself with the wet sand and splashing, Evelyn ran around jumping over waves and splashing her daddy.  I've heard the saying, "day at the beach" in reference to a really great day and I understand why-we just played together and enjoyed being there.

After awhile we were getting hot and hungry so we decided to pack up for lunch with intentions to do round two of beach time after.  Boyfriend had asked a high school friend for some lunch recommendations and one of them was called Cajun Greek.  I couldn't quite wrap my head around the concept but Boyfriend was intrigued and since it was Father's Day, we deferred to his preference.  

It happened to be a really wise choice (and recommendation) because we enjoyed our lunch immensely.  I didn't quite get the Cajun vibe other than the fact that their seafood had a blackened option.  I had a really tasty salad and tzatziki with pita.  Boyfriend really enjoyed his fresh fish-if you are in Galveston and looking for something a bit different definitely the place to go.

We were going to head back to the beach for a couple more hours but after seeing that both girls looked like they were about to pass out from exhaustion we decided to get some ice cream and then head back to the airport.  We went to La King's Confectionery  and we also let Evelyn pick out some candy to bring home.  Penny seemed a bit (or a lot) jealous she couldn't have any.

Both girls immediately fell asleep as we drove back to the airport.  I even found myself nodding off which I felt a bit guilty for-I know Boyfriend was tired and would have appreciated a Father's Day nap but he was driving.  We made it to the airport just in time for the 6:00 pm flight and Boyfriend did get to take his nap on the flight home.  

Our trip was just over 12 hours total but so much fun.  I love having my flight benefits and getting to go to the beach, just for the day.  Unfortunately, just a few days later Galveston beaches tested high for fecal matter so I don't know how soon we will be making the trip again.  I know Galveston waters are brown but when someone was quoted to say that swimming in the beach was equal to swimming in a toilet, well that is a little bit too much imagery for me!

Adventures in Breastfeeding: I'm Done Pumping!

Even though it wasn't an intentional decision, after our trip to Chicago, I officially stopped pumping milk for Penny.  I had envisioned recognizing the occasion at work with some sort of ceremony once Penny hit a year-providing cookies and milk (not mine, of course) to my coworkers who never complained (to my face) about the extra time I took away from our shared duties so my baby could eat the next day.
Instead, long story short, I didn't have any milk to send with Penny to daycare one day.  We had already started to replace one bottle of milk with cow's milk in a cup so I had her switch over the other two bottles and she didn't even seem to notice.  We were so close to a year (less than two weeks away) that I just decided I was done.  And it was a momentous moment, knowing I would never have to pump again.
I hated pumping with a passion.  I was extremely blessed to have an oversupply so I never had to worry about having enough milk to feed my baby, that is until Penny hit about nine months and I was hitting just enough provided I also pumped over the weekend.  It was stressful and I resented the sucker and couldn't wait to be done.

Milk from one session on my oversupply days.  Oversupply=stress free pumping.

I did have some amusing times as a pumping mom though.  One time when I was pumping for Evelyn I was wearing a dress which in order to have free access to my breasts, I actually had to take it off all the way.  As I sat there in a chair wearing only my undies and sandals with my electric milking machine hooked up, I heard the bone chilling sound of the door becoming unlocked.  In slow motion I started to yell, "Nooooooo!!" but the damage was done as our mailroom guy walked in on me in my almost nude state.  He immediately turned and ran out the door as I finished pumping.  
The door was locked (he had a key and decided to ignore the "in use" sign) and I told him I wasn't upset because quite honestly I didn't care but he actively avoided me the rest of the time I worked there.
Then there was the time, as a brand new employee in my now department (literally in the first week) one of my new coworkers was displaying his "talent" for us, crying like a baby.  I felt the telltale signs of my milk letting down and quickly crossed my arms over my chest to hide the now huge wet spots where I had started to leak.
I've now hit what I call the sweet spot of breastfeeding-it is on my terms now. I have night weaned Penny and she nurses anywhere between 2-3 times a day for five minutes tops.  Nutritionally (and emotionally) it still is beneficial but I am no longer responsible for all of her nutritional needs and have the ability to say no if I don't feel like it.  I enjoy our nursing sessions now, a slow moment in our busy household to connect.  And while many days Penny eats more than her older sister, I feel comfort in knowing that she is still receiving some of her nutritional needs from my milk on the days she doesn't eat much.
I don't know how much longer she will continue to nurse.  I have said I will breastfeed until two, per the WHO guidelines  but I am hopeful she will naturally wean on her own between now and then. I'm not in a rush though and am going to savor the sweet spot before it is over all too fast. 

  

Chicago McGago

Over the last couple of months, North Texas has been flooded (literally with rain) and it has caused all sorts of issues.  One Saturday night while having dinner with my girlfriends, Boyfriend sends me a text message telling me that we are having electrical problems with our house-basically when our air conditioner turns on, the lights in the house work and when it cycles off the lights went out.

We had a call into our home warranty because we suspected our house may have been hit by lightening (electrical work is something I won't let Boyfriend mess around with) but due to the fact it was Memorial weekend we wouldn't be able to have someone come over until Tuesday.  Since the issue was only when our A/C was off we just decided we would have a high electricity bill and stay nice and cool.

All was grand until I woke up from my nap around 5:00 on Sunday afternoon sweating.  I went to ask Boyfriend what was up and he explained that the A/C was no longer working.  Y'all-I live in Texas and do not stay in houses when the A/C goes out.  I can't sleep when I'm hot and am not interested in even attempting one bit.  

We started throwing around ideas-we could stay at my moms but it would be a bit cramped.  We contemplated contacting a friend who manages a hotel to see if she has any rooms but we didn't want to put her out since it was a holiday weekend.  Taking into consideration that I actually had the next two days off from the holiday-I half jokingly said, "Let's see where flights look good to and go there!"  Boyfriend jokingly encouraged me, only out of curiosity.

For those who may not know, I work for an airline so my family is privileged to fly nonrevenue, on a standby basis.  I first looked up flights to a beach but they were booked, especially considering at this point it was already 6:00 in the evening-not many flights left for the night.  I searched Chicago and there happened to be an 8:40 pm flight with a dozen or so seats open.  I said, "Want to go to Chicago?"  

Boyfriend looked at me, smiling and said, "Let's do it!"

I didn't know if he was serious or not but after about ten seconds I realized he was, thought it through and just said, "Yolo!"  As annoying as that phrase is, it does have some merit.  Why shouldn't we just hop on a plane, no hotel reservations made, no plans on what to do when we land?  So what if we have two young kids.  So what if we just threw a bunch of clothes in a bag, unsure if we brought way too much or not enough.  We could figure it out, we were on an adventure.  You only live once after all. 

Evelyn was surprisingly excited for our trip. Considering we had just come back from Disney, I think she now knew that plane trips=fun trips.  She was dancing around the airport singing, "Chicago McGago!!"  It honestly made me a bit sad that she was so much more excited for this trip vs our Disney trip but a five year old in a good mood I will take under any circumstances.

Within two hours from our decision, we were boarding our plane to Chicago and headed to the windy city.  On our way to the airport, we did do a bit of research and booked a hotel with the app Hotels Tonight.  We got an excellent rate on a hotel downtown right off the train station (my only requirement due to the fact it would be nearly midnight and I didn't want to drag the kids around the city that late).  Our expectations were far exceeded but we quickly realized our family was so not cool enough to stay at this hip hotel.  Evelyn loved the artwork above our bed and while we were reminded why we upgraded to a king size bed, we all fell asleep rather quickly excited for our adventure that would take place the next day.

We woke up fairly early despite only having a few hours sleep so that we could maximize our time there-our intentions were to catch a 7:30 pm flight that evening home.  Boyfriend picked a breakfast spot close to our hotel so that we could game plan the rest of our day.  At breakfast, we decided that we had enough time to visit the iconic Chicago Bean and the Children's Museum before having lunch with our niece and then heading to the airport.  It was going to be a full day!

As we were walking to the bean, it started to sprinkle a bit but not too bad.  Just as we were walking up the bean, it started to rain significantly more so we ran to a table with an umbrella and wait out the, thankfully, short storm.  As we walked up, Evelyn was less than impressed by the bean but still had some fun making faces at her reflection.  After about five minutes, Evelyn said, "Ok-what is next!?"

We started our trek towards Navy Pier, feeling really lucky that it didn't seem as though it would rain again.  We made it there right before the Children's Museum opened and waited in line to purchase our tickets.  Once inside, we quickly became overwhelmed with how many options we had.

By far this was the best museum for children that we have visited.  There were so many different interactive exhibits and kept both of our kids (despite their wide age gap) entertained and engaged. We ended up spending way more time than we originally anticipated.  

Cheater

At some point, I checked out to see what flights looked like and they were looking pretty tight and as though we might not make it on.  Boyfriend and I discussed staying another night but we were being cheap.  I just had no desire to take the trip out to the airport to not make our flight and have to turn around again.  We decided to let Priceline's Name Your Own Price be the final vote-after a four star hotel for $55 request was accepted, we were confirmed for another night in Chicago!

We left the museum and headed to Boyfriend's top dining priority-Portillo's.  Luckily it was a favorite of our niece who lives in Chicago for school and we were able to have a relaxed lunch since we didn't have a flight awaiting us. 

Not the best at group selfies and Penny is hiding in the baby carrier.

We made the very long walk to our next hotel which ended up being just as awesome as our first. Everyone rested for just a tiny bit and walked over to Oak Street Beach which was very close to our hotel.  I was so impressed by this beach-the sand was very clean and the water was clear.  Despite the fact that the water was posted to be a chilly 58 degrees, Evelyn had a blast jumping and splashing around.  Penny wanted nothing to do with getting her toes wet but loved eating the sand (or maybe not).

As the sun started setting we slowly walked back to our hotel, just enjoying being outside.  Exhausted as we entered our hotel room I made the girls jump in the shower with me to wash off the sand and then we all took a late nap.  We accidentally slept until 9 pm but woke up starving, there was a small restaurant just a few doors we walked over to.  I think we irritated them because it was 9:35 and they closed at 10:00 but we promised to be quick and we were out of there right at closing time. 

Once back at the hotel room Evelyn wasn't quite ready for bed so she entertained herself with videos on the iPad while I repacked our backpacks so we could catch an early morning flight. Another night of only a couple hours sleep and we were back at the airport to watch the sunrise.  Due to an Air Traffic Control delay (which worked in our favor and freed up some seats) Evelyn caught up on a bit more sleep.

We may have only been in Chicago 36 hours total but we fit a lot in and had so much fun.  Boyfriend had never been to Chicago before so we need to go back so he can experience more of the city itself, but I am tempted to fly back up there just for another Italian beef sandwich from Portillo's!

A Year of Penny

Newborn

One Month

Two Months

Three Months

Four Months

Five Months

Six Months

Seven Months

Eight Months

Nine Months

Ten Months

Eleven Months

First Birthday!

We Went to Disney! A Few Last Thoughts

We are at a little over a month since we have returned from our Disney trip.  I read about the "Disney Blues" that people experienced after returning home from a trip and I definitely experienced them-but I think for a reason other than most people do. 

This just was not remotely the trip the trip we had dreamed. We knew it would be different than our expectations but I wasn't prepared for the amount of disappointment I experienced.  This may sound silly to anyone who hasn't planned a Disney trip-but I found myself feeling incredibly sad when I went into the Disney store at the mall, so much that I didn't even want to be in there one minute longer.

I can't say that we had a bad trip-we didn't!  It was a wonderful week with my family and we have a lot of great memories but it makes my heart have all the feels when I think of how much distress the entire trip caused Evelyn.  As a parent, you never want to be the one responsible for heartache of your children, especially when your intentions were for joy.

Boyfriend and I found ourselves saying more times than we can count, "When we are here for Penny's trip..." figuring out how we will do things differently.  I feel confident we will not return to Disney World until we bring Penny around her fifth birthday.  That said, I have been working on Boyfriend to convince him we should go to Disneyland as a "redo" while Evelyn is still young and things will still be magical. 

Now that I am further removed from the trip, I am able to look back fondly on our trip.  I absolutely would (and will) do things differently the next go around but I suppose that is how most big things in life go-you live and learn!

Day Seven: The Last Day

Even though I had anticipated we would be sleeping in on our last day at Disney, around 5:15 I woke up and had a moment of panic-I realized that I had booked a second Be Our Guest 8 am reservation for that day and had forgotten to cancel it.  I didn't want to pay $40 due to my mistake (there is a $10 fee per person) so I woke up Boyfriend and the girls, as hard as it was to do.

Evelyn actually woke up in a wonderful mood-we reminded her that it was our last day at Disney and she replied, "Yay! Now I get to go back to daycare!"

Well ok then.

Everyone started to get ready for the day and we headed out to Magic Kingdom for our last breakfast at the park.  Prior to breakfast we wanted to take one last family photo in front of the castle.  Evelyn refused but as always, Penny was happy to play along.

Our photographer wanted to take a Magic Shot with Penny so he walked up closer to us.  He looked at me funny and finally said, "Can I say something without you getting offended?" I laughed and told him sure to which he said, "Can you please cover up your breast?"

After looking down, my left boob was practically hanging out and would have added a different version of magic than he was going for with Penny.

Fully covered and hungry we walked over to Be Our Guest.  Once again, breakfast was a fun (and fast) experience.

We had already done everything we wanted to do at Magic Kingdom so we hit up a few of our favorites and took some time to just play around looking at the scenery.

We also took the extra time to shop for souvenirs.  I was actually very worried about this part of our trip-Evelyn asking for a lot of souvenirs. I wasn't sure exactly how much to budget for it-I didn't want to go overboard but I also wanted her to be able to pick out a few meaningful mementos.  For her birthday, she actually asked for Disney gift cards so she had $150 in her pocket to burn on her own and surprisingly the entire week she had not asked for one thing.  The only thing she knew that she HAD to buy was Penny a Daisy Duck toy.

We didn't find anything she really wanted on Main Street (which I still don't know how she couldn't-I think it was just too overwhelming) but I did find something I wanted!  We had silhouettes of the girls made together, not only did we get one for us but we also got one for my mom since Mother's Day was coming up.  Easy peasy! 

After we finished our silhouette, we realized it was time to head back to the hotel for our last swimming break.  I had a wave of sadness come over me knowing that our trip was starting to come to it's end.  I asked my family to take a picture of us waving goodbye to the castle and the little girl who refused to happily participate in any picture was animatedly waving goodbye for this photo opportunity.

We spent the rest of the day swimming and napping and ended our last night with a meal at Ohanas overlooking Magic Kingdom during the fireworks.  It truly was a perfect last meal and while I was sad our trip was over, I was ready to get home.