Upset & Disappointed

I'm a little perturbed over something that I hope some of you feel the same way. The Olympics have started and some of my favorite sports to watch are swimming, diving, rowing and gymnastics. The US girls gymnastics team were competing yesterday; it wasn't for a medal but a very important night. Out of the 5 girls only 2 of them go on to the finals. If you were watching you would've seen the amazing routines, amazing landings, the mistakes and the scores. Jordyn Weiber who is the reigning champion I thought did an excellent job compared to the rest of her teammates. She hardly made any mistakes, was clean, didn't fall, solid landings BUT she didn't make the cut for the finals. What? You've got to be kidding me. A huge disappointment. Her scores were really low too. I felt so bad for Jordyn. I mean she's the reigning champion, hardly any mistakes and she doesn't make it. Does anyone see anything wrong with this? Her teammate Gabby made a HUGE mistake on the floor routine and got a higher score than Jordyn. How would you feel? Imagine you're the reigning champion for some sport, you work so hard to get to the Olympics, feeling confident you've done a great job on all of the routines and you'll make it to the finals when you find out you didn't. Heartbroken, angry, hurt, all the emotions hitting you at once. What do you do? I don't know what it was the judges didn't like in Jordyn, but I felt she was judged wrong on her routines; we're talking about 14.3 scores and that's without big mistakes if any vs. the other girls who made some mistakes maybe big mistakes and they get a 14.8 or a 15. something. Something is seriously messed up with this judging. I know life's not fair, but is it fair to the person who is clean and solid with their routine to not make it, but the one who is semi clean and makes mistakes does? I'm just sayin'! I just had to get that off my chest. Thanks for reading :)

Happy News

Starting on Mon. the 23 when Alexander was ready to get dressed I told him we were going to wear underwear. He was excited. He told me throughout the day he needed to pee. I put a pull up on at night, the next morning he wakes up tells me "I need to go pee" and to my surprise the pull up was dry. I'm happy to say my son I do believe is potty trained! :) Yippee. He's only had a few accidents, one was on purpose. He's really good about recognizing when he needs to go, and he'll do it himself. He woke up this morning and went to the bathroom on his own and came out and said he went pee standing up. He was so proud of himself. His pull ups all week have been dry, that's amazing! Now if only we can get him to be "Poo trained!" I think his behavior this week is due to the fact he's gone pee in the toilet all week. He's been really good and a lot of fun. Hopefully this behavior continues!! Way to go Alexander, I'm so proud of you.

Overly sensitive

I'm going to have a pity party for Lara. Maybe it's not so much a pity party, but more of a venting moment. I love being home with the kids, I love being a mom, playing with the kids, cleaning, cooking and all that jazz. However, I do get to a point to where I get exhausted with everything. I'm overly sensitive with what people say so I just want to hide and cry. The other day after giving Alexander a bath I was getting him dressed, but he told me he wanted Daddy to get him dressed because I was mean. He told me to go away. I can relate to my cousin Cindy when little Atticus would say he wanted to be with Eric. Of course they don't mean it, but for just a moment it cuts your heart. Today I've been sharp and feeling a little burnt out. I love cooking, but I get tired of cleaning up after the meal. Thankfully my husband helps out with that part. We live with my parents and my mom is in Ogden taking care of my sweet grandparents who are in their 90's so it's just my Dad with us. My Dad does a lot and it's not a complaint about my Dad, but a little help inside the house would be nice. It would definitely help. What's going to work? Team Work! Sometimes I just want to scream because I don't seem to get recognized or is appreciated for all I do even though my husband and father work hard. Do us mothers ever get a break? Sorry. It sounds more like complaining. It's just been a day to where I feel bad about everything and just want to hide and cry. Don't worry it'll go away, but mommy needs some TLC!!

Cooking Bombs

I consider myself a pretty good cook. An even more of a cook when it comes to cooking for Alexander; i.e. the sweet stuff! Monday was Jose's birthday and being overly excited because of cupcakes I made Alexander could eat and were delicious I decided to branch out and try a cake. Easy to follow, had all the ingredients piece of cake. WRONG! It was as hard as a brick and the middle wasn't even done. It tasted nasty, but Alexander seemed to like it. Needless to say it was thrown out that night and Alexander hasn't asked about it since (maybe he really didn't like it)! Bombshell #1. Last night I was planning on making scones for navajo tacos and I found a recipe I could use for Alexander, but I was missing one ingredient. Bag that recipe. Found one and it seemed pretty ease, but when it said the dough should look like curds it wasn't getting to that point. I decided to cook it instead. It looked ok so I asked Alexander to taste it. He said he like it, but when it came to eating it for dinner he said he didn't like it. I don't blame him. I wasn't going to force him to eat it, especially when it felt heavy and didn't smell good. Bomb #2. What have I learned from these 2 bombs? Stick with the usual....cupcakes or cookies for Alexander!! Trust only Cybele Pascal when it comes to cooking dairy, wheat, egg and nut free! Thank you Cybele for your cook books and making food edible.

Summer Days

Summer days are here...finally! I'm always so anxious for Summer to come so I can enjoy being with my kids and hopefully to get a vacation in or two! My Summer started off with a funeral in Texas for my cousin's sweet 4 year old boy. My brother said it best "That was the hardest weekend of my life." It was hard and sad, but on the same note it was good to be there with family, to feel all the love and the spirit there. The spirit there was amazing and incredible; little Atticus was there watching. Eric and Cindy you really do have amazing friends in your ward and neighborhood and such an inspiration of that little guy of yours. He will be missed but never forgotten. Haven't done much since; just a few little things with the kids that are simple and not a lot of money. Alexander and Ava are growing up so much. We came upon a picture of Alexander from last year from Easter, my how chubby he is (as chubby as Alexander can be), and it's so...cute. Alexander is really into super heroes these days, he changes who he is from day to day. One day it's "Today I'm Iron Man" or "Mom, you're super woman and I'm Superman okay?" He even has special powers. He has a blast like Iron Man does with his hands and my favorite is the eye trick that blows people up. He just stares at you for 5 seconds then looks away. It's hilarious. Ava is my slow mover. She knows how to crawl, but she thinks she can move faster by scooting. She will stand and she will walk holding your hands, but she'll freak out if you try to get her to walk holding only one of your hands. This baby girl has NO fear. She'll go right to the edge of a bed; loves playing on the bed. She LOVES the stairs and loves to go to the right corner of the top stair and sit there. She knows how to go down, but on her bum. She makes me very nervous. We had to put a gate up. She's one busy body and very curious. Alexander was a very mellow baby, we never had to worry about "baby proofing" the house with him; Ava on the other hand it's everything! While in Texas her favorite sayings were "What's that" pointing to everything and "who's that." One morning when she woke up she was sitting in the pak n play and the first thing you hear is "what's that!" The simple joys of life. Jose and I are doing well. Jose is working hard and keeping busy. Me, I'm keeping busy, trying to balance playing with the kids, cooking, housework and trying to find time to myself. Life is good.

Where to begin...

This post is probably a bunch of mumbo jumbo since there's nothing in particular I really want to talk about. I can give an update on my sweet babies. Alexander is 3 and I was reading in the Parents magazine how they said "terrible two's and the testing three's!" Straight to the tee they are correct. It was like the instant Alexander turned 3 is when he started to be testy!! He likes to yell, tell us no and he's still scratching. I don't know how to get him away from that. However, he is still a sweet and good little boy. He weighs 27 lbs., still a tiny guy, but he's growing strong and healthy. He's been experiencing growing pains, which are really hard for him, but we always tell him it's because he's growing. Ava is so fun. She is 10 months and at her 9 month check-up she weighed 16 lbs. her height was good and her head is still off the charts because of how small it is. Don't worry, it's in proportion with her body!! She's going to be a little one just like Alexander. She can still wear 6 month clothing and her 9 month clothing is still a little big on her. I prefer that because she'll get use out of her clothes, wear them more than once or twice!! She has two teeth on the bottom and that's all I can see for now. She's not crawling yet, I practice with her every day, but she always cries when I put her on her stomach; probably because she thinks I'm putting her down for a nap! She'll scoot, man it's amazing how fast they can move on their bums. She'll stretch with her scooting as far as she can just so she doesn't have to get on her knees! She's getting close though. She has a pretty big appetite. She LOVES yogurt, mashed potatoes (without milk or butter) bread and those fruit puree things you can drink (thanks Cindy for introducing them). She really enjoys feeding herself and enjoys being held. Who wouldn't?! She waves and I wish I had a video to show you because it's really cute how she waves. If she's really excited she'll get both hands moving as well as her feet! My children bring me such joy. It's truly amazing the amount of love that can expressed and felt for your children. Thank you Heavenly Father for giving me such a wonderful gift, motherhood.

Vacation 2011

Yes I know, summer vacation? It's almost winter. It's better late than never. In August we took a family vacation down where the sun is hot...St. George. Us girls went down early to have a day without the men. It was nice to stay up late, eat whatever you want whenever you want and no one to tell you what to do. With that little entry here is the Top Ten Highlights of Vacation 2011.
10. Christy's "my little blanky;" a blanket she uses to rub her fingers together to create a certain sound and feel. (This blanket is very, very old and very, very sad looking).
9. Mom's "jerky" driving in St. George (mainly the parking lot areas).
8. Hearing this gagging noise only to find out it's Christy contstantly looking at her tonsils. She's obsessed.
7. Vacationing to St. George to swim (partly the main reason), but then realizing after checking into the hotel that the swimsuit was forgotten then hunting the stores for a new one!!
6. Jose and Dad capturing a creature of the forest....a horny toad, not just a little one, but a BIG one. Side note, if you ever catch one they hiss!
5. Mom being banned from sleeping in the bus due to excessive loud snoring!
4. "Earn a Dollar" with Marsha. (Created by Marsha)
3. Dad telling Jose to stay close by so he doesn't get lost only to have us turn around twice! Who's the lost one?
2. The double stroller being set aside and being abandoned at the outlet store. It almost got chucked, literally! That's what you get when you leave your Dad to buy a stroller at a yard sale. Side note #2: I'm not against yard sales, it's just this stroller was a piece of junk; a mind of its own, can't be put up or down without at least 5 people. How many people does it take to work a double stroller?!
And the #1 highlight of vacation 2011: Going to Tuachan to see "The Little Mermaid" and taking pictures with the cast. Not waiting in line to take the pictures. In the words of Jose "I have a baby with me...can't wait!"

All about Ava!

Ava had her 6 month check-up on Monday, wow! It's really amazing how fast they grow. She weighs a whopping 14.6 lbs dropping her to the 20%, her height is 24.8 in. long and I don't remember what her head circumference is. My mom calls her a "baby by the book" because she does everything by the book and when it's supposed to happen. At her 4 month check-up the Dr. asked if she was grabbing things and she wasn't really. Until that day after the appt. she started grabbing things. This check-up the Dr. asked if she was sitting up by herself and she wasn't...until a few days after. She's a "baby by the book!" She started rolling mid-July and exploring her feet and toes around the same time. You can count on her holding one foot in her hand while she nurses, guarantee. I never saw her roll from her stomach back onto her back until today when I put her down for her afternoon nap; sometimes it's an instant thing for her to roll when she lays down. Another thing you can count on is that no matter what time it is, if it's 7 at night or 3 o'clock in the morning she wakes up with a smile on her face. Her Aunts Leanne and Alisa call her smiley. Alexander has a talent for making her laugh. One time we were eating dinner and Alexander just looked at her, said something silly and she started laughing. Alexander LOVES her ears. He just can't seem to get enough!! I can't get enough of my two babies! They both make me laugh and smile. Everyday at work there's something in my kids that reminds me of my own and it makes me laugh and love them more and more. I love you Alexander and Ava.

SIMPLE JOYS OF LIFE....WHILE WORKING

Sorry no pictures for this entry. It dawned on me yesterday while telling my mom a story or two I realized I should write these down to put on my blog. Then I realized I should carry a notebook with me at all times to write not only funny/cute things Alexander and Ava do, but to just write about anything. I started work a week ago and I realized there are some simple joys in my life while I work. It may not be much, but who knows there could be more.
#1. There's just something about coming home from work being on your feet all day and putting on a pair of flip-flops! It's pure bliss.
#2. Coming home to see one baby's face light up with a smile when they see you and the other one saying "mommy" while he runs to jump in your arms. It reminds me that being a mom is very worthwhile. Thank you Alexander and Ava, Mommy loves you.
#3. Being at work and feeling you have a connection with a lot of students you've taught before to where they love to come up to you and give you hugs, a high five or just a simple wave.
#4. Coming home from work after being dressed "professionally" and being able to dress down in the most comfortable clothes imaginable. For me it's scroungy! For some reason being a mom is nice because you can stay in your pj's or dress scroungy all day and it won't matter. Where else do you have to go? What else are you going to do? So working gives me an excuse to dress nice and not just to look presentable!! Is this a problem?!!
I know 4 simple joys doesn't say much, but like I said who knows. I mean I'm only in the 2nd week of school!

Construction Zone

I know in Utah we seem to always complain about there only being 2 seasons: Winter and Construction. This summer there has been construction everywhere, and not just on the streets, but in my house as well....literally! After 4 years and 10 months of living in our beautiful house in Woodcove we had to say goodbye; and in 2 weeks!



While Jose was off working I stayed home to take care of the kids, pack and find a place to live. Yes, it was stressful and overwhelming. However, we did it and managed okay.


We are living with my parents for a while until we can save money and have more time to find somewhere else to live. Although it's sad that we left our home the Lord has blessed us and me I feel in particular. We were able to stay in the house as long as we did without the home turning into a foreclosure. Through that time I was able to find and feel peace about leaving my home, which was a very big thing for me. We were able to have Ava Grace and get her settled for a bit before we moved and deal with the adjustment period for Alexander. Now we deal with the adjustment of a new "home." It's been an adjustment for everyone. Not true, Ava is the only one that seems to be adjusting very well!! The pictures you see are some of the construction zone and the aftermath!

The last 5 months

I know it has been a really long time since I wrote anything. I'm told I need to update more and with pictures!! Sometimes at night when trying to fall asleep I think of posts and what I'm going to write and what pictures I'm going to put up, but nothing happens!! The first one I have is entitled: Natural Disasters.
Living in the United States I'm sure none of us expect to see a natural disaster, well I have and I'm not just talking metaphorically. Literally I have seen a natural disaster, but it's more of the after math. My grandparents have a cabin, which we refer to as "the bus" down at Duck Creek. Early June my mom received a phone call from the neighbor who lives next to the bus; he said there were a lot of trees that had fallen down and the property needed to be cleaned up. We decided to go down with my parents and sister Christy to get away and see how bad this actually was. I thought "oh it won't be bad, it's just a bunch of talk." I was wrong and here are the pictures to prove it. After seeing what a disaster we had encountered it was time to cut down trees, burn the dead needles and make it clean again.

The "terribles" hit when?

I had envisioned that I wouldn't experience the case of the "terrible twos" until Alexander hit the age of 3. I envisioned this due to seeing/watching my niece Kianna go through the "terribles" at the age of 3. 2 was a piece of cake, 3 on the other hand not so much. Hoping this would happen with Alexander I was wrong. Alexander's "terrible" stage hit after his baby sister Ava was born. Us parents put up with so much! Please tell me they grow out of this "terrible" stage! Between all the pinching, biting, scratching, hitting, pulling hair and shouting what's next?! We're trying to teach him not to do those things, but how much of it actually goes in? I know there are those of you who just can't see Alexander being this way, but trust me he has his violent side and some of you have witnessed this side. So my vision of the "terribles" remains to be true as "the terrible twos!"

2 months!

Ava had her long awaited 2 month check-up. Happy to report she is 11.8 lbs which puts her in the 55%tile, bigger than Alexander at his 2 month. Her height is 22 in. long and I don't remember her head size just that it's small....and flat! The Dr. turned her head the opposite way and said she doesn't like her head to be turned that way, but it indeed turns. She definitely knows when she wants to go to bed. It has been at 7:30 and sleeps for 6,7,8, 10 and sometimes 12 hrs. DEFINITELY different than Alexander. She loves to be held and just like Alexander likes it more and relaxes more when Daddy holds her. She has started "talking" and her morning routine starts with talking at 7:30 in the morning. She has discovered her fingers which are often put into fists and she has the cutest smile that is contagious like most babies smiles are. Also happy to report that Alexander is getting so...much better with his little sister. One cute thing he did was when Ava got her shots she was in a lot of pain when we got home. I laid her down and she of course was crying so Alexander goes up to her and says "sweetie, sweetie" then goes to her eyes and says "no tears" as he wipes her tears away. Those are my babies and I love them.

Movies

Have you ever rented a movie to see what it was like and realized it was the dumbest movie? Well I just experienced that a few weekends ago. When I first saw Napolean Dynamite I thought it was the dumbest movie ever, but turns out it was pretty funny and not so much dumb. Jose decided to rent a movie he never heard about and just went by what red box tells about the movie. We started to watch it and it wasn't very funny from the start. We kept watching to see if it would get any better, it didn't. We continued to say "This movie is stupid, lets watch..." but neither one of us would move, we just kept watching the movie. Have any of you done that? Rent a movie to find out that it's stupid but continue to keep watching the movie hoping it will get better? We did and unfortunately it didn't get better. The movie is called Scouts Honor. It is definitely on the top 10 list of the dumbest movies ever made list. Why people filmed this movie is beyond me. So next time you rent a movie, check out the reviews first and don't pull a Jose!!

Introducing the newest member of the Leon family: Ava Grace Leon. A quick story. She was originally due on the 21st, but we decided to be induced on the 15th. I knew and my mom knew that I wouldn't make it that far. So on the 9th I went in for a regular check up and the Dr. said I still looked good and the real test would be to see what would happen over the weekend seeing how he was going to be out of town. I woke up Thursday morning with contractions, I went to work and by lunch time I left for the hospital. I knew she was going to come early. I just had this feeling when everyone I knew who was having their babies were having them over a week early. Needless to say she was born on March 10, 2011 at 6:17 p.m. weighing in at 7 lbs. 4 oz and 19 in. long. She came smoothly and perfectly. Cindy was right, the second time around is better!! So I didn't think Alexander would be very jealous of Ava because of how he was when she was inside...that's just it, inside!! Well....I was wrong. It's been quite the adjustment. Those of you who thought having one was an adjustment, just you wait until another one comes along! Although Alexander always wants to kiss Ava, hold her, rock her and basically be in her face 24/7 he almost seems to want to hurt her sometimes. Has anyone who has been through this witnessed this behavior?
So here are some little things about Ava. She has such a sweet smile, she LOVES to be held and doesn't really enjoy car rides when fussy. We believe she has acid reflux, which has its up and downs. One up is that she can eat on one side and be content for 3 hrs. She likes to go to bed early unlike her brother Alexander. A down to the reflux is she spits up, I never knew a baby's spit up could shoot that far! She does tend to get a lot of gas bubbles because either she can't let loose or she can't/won't burp. Despite all this she is such a joy.

4 Weeks!

So much for my goal of writing every month! I was hoping to at least have pictures, but....no. I know everyone just wants to see pictures and guess what? So do I!! For an update on things I have 4 weeks to go...unless she comes before then which is likely to happen. At my last checkup she had turned and 1 1/2 dilated. I've had some really good contractions so who knows. We might even decide to be induced, but my mom thinks I won't last that long because of all the pain I've been in. Alexander I think is getting excited because he gets a huge smile on his face every time he sees a baby at church. He still puts lotion on the belly every night, he gives her kisses and puts his ear on the belly and tells her night night. However, I think he's angry because he's been very abusive to me lately. Jose wonders if he's acting out on me because of the baby. I hope not, but it's interesting how Alexander won't be abusive with Jose; it's only me. Hm.. I have another check up this Wed. so we'll see if baby girl has moved down more. Things are going well aside from the baby. You would think with the 2nd child you would be more prepared, but no. I definitely feel less prepared for her to come into this world than I did with Alexander. Suggestions?!

A new year...already?!

I know I know, I've been really really bad at posting. Everyone knows how it is the last few months of the year....crazy busy. No excuses. I'm going to make that a goal for the coming year, to be better at my posts..more specific let's try to post at least once a month, that way it's something I can commit to! I just can't believe it's already a new year.
Well for those who don't know, we're having a baby girl. I had the ultrasound a week before Thanksgiving and it was exciting because my mom was with me this time and because I was further along than usual I got a little bit longer to look around. Shoot! I should've brought the pictures. There's some cute pictures of her; one with her yawning and the other is her arm up around her head. She's definitely not as active as Alexander and I don't feel her as much due to the placenta being up front, but I definitely feel her in my ribs. Everything looks good, she's perfect and right on track so that's good. Haven't really thought of any names yet, but we still have 3 months left to decide.
This is all I have for now, I'm hoping to achieve my goal and do a big post of the last 3 months with pictures included for January so there's something to look forward to! We hope everyone has a nice New Years and everyone is healthy and safe. We love you all.

Everyone else is....

Everyone else is so I might as well be! Might as well be PREGNANT that is!! It's been official since July even though I had suspicion in June. I'm 12 weeks along and due March 21. We are excited. Like Atticus, Alexander thinks he has a baby in his belly. It's cute because every once in a while Alexander wants to see the baby so he thinks he can see it by pulling my shirt up to see my belly and then he rubs the belly. I'm really looking forward to being pregnant in the winter...I'm hoping I'll be hot during the winter rather than cold like always!! I've hit the awkward stage of the pregnancy where I can't fit into any of my clothes. The maternity clothes are out because they're soooo big and my regular clothes are too tight so it kind of looks like I'm chubby. My mom will look at my belly and say "is that really all the baby there?" As if it's all fat! So there it is; Alexander is going to be a big brother; to what? I'm hoping for a girl, but of course Daddy is hoping for a boy! We'll find out next month. Yay!

CAUTION!

CAUTION! This post may contain details, if you have a weak stomach you might not want to read on, but if you think you can handle it read on!
I was thinking how this was probably one of the saddest things that could happen to your child. Little Alexander around 4 a.m. woke up coughing and crying. He was throwing up....well trying to! We asked if he wanted water and he said no. He laid down to sleep and 5 min. later he woke up coughing and throwing up, again trying to. Poor little guy he wanted to throw up and he just couldn't. It was so sad to watch. He cries just like his mommy when she throws up. I just thought this has got to be one of the saddest things ever-- to know your child is trying to throw up and just can't. I hope no one has seen that happen because it's really sad when you know you can't do anything to relieve their pain.
This isn't gross, it's just a little story. This past weekend we went camping with some friends. Alexander was feeling fine until the middle of the night when he wakes up crying and starts throwing up. Only it wasn't everything he had eaten it was just the pasta noodles that he can eat. I thought that was the weirdest thing ever. I warned you all for those who have weak stomachs! All is good though, he's feeling fine.

A long update

Here is the latest update with Alexander. He's now 19 months and at his 18 month check up he was 21 lbs. He's still in the 3%tile, but his doctor says he's very pleased with how he's growing despite all his allergies. Alexander has developed into one little busy bee. It's hard to keep up with him. Thankfully he can entertain himself and doesn't need attention or to be held 24-7. His vocabulary and signing is growing. Some words are more clear than others, and he doesn't quite know how to say some words, but we know what he's saying( (at least that's what we think)! He knows where his head, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, teeth and toes are. He'll point to your face and say what they are. He's really good at nose, eyes and mouth. We still haven't given him much sugar, occasionally it's a suck from a popsicle, and he still loves his fruit. His favorite right now is watermelon, which he attempts to say and apple which he signs. He's not a fan of time out, which he gets after 3 warnings from doing something he shouldn't. He's really into throwing things at people or throwing food on the floor (and it's always on the day I mop)! Needless to say he's growing and is more fun and cute every day. I'll post stories of moments later.