Welcome to our World!

Tis the season!

2009-11-30T15:54:00.000-08:00

Our babies are growing up fast and quickly becoming best friends - we're moving from Fall into Winter, from Thanksgiving to Christmas, into a new year - where Mina will turn 1 and Ayden will turn 3. It's amazing how time flies!

Ayden is talking up a storm and Mina is crawling everywhere and pulling herself up onto everything. She's starting solid foods and absolutely loves her mommy and daddy and especially her big brother. She's got such a personality - my little diva. Here are some pictures and videos to tickle your fancy - I'm sure we will have plenty more where that came from as the season moves forward :)

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-01T08:26:00.000-08:00

Our first trick or treat experience with both kids was a success! We went around the neighborhood some and got some candy (and even toys) from very gracious givers - it was great! Despite the rainy weather we still got both kids dressed and had a blast showing them off to the neighbors! Halloween is my favorite day so I look forward to the years when the kids actually know what's going on - I sense some decorating, pumpkin carving, and lots of trick or treating in the future!

Here they are - Mina the ladybug and Ayden the pumpkin! I think they're adorable!

Where have we been?

2009-10-24T10:05:00.000-07:00

Where HAVEN'T we been is really the question! I'm so excited to be back on. I've made a lot of changes to the blog - as you can see - and it's become my top priority to keep up with it and add new pictures and videos of our beautiful, growing family.

Mina and Ayden are doing fabulous as are Ali and I. We have moved recently and are now settled in a home that better suits are needs. Ali is working hard and the babies are growing fast. Ayden just turned 2 last week and has now started preschool! He has started talking - I love hearing him say Mama! He's so friendly and loves to say hello, bye bye, and thank you! Mina is a big girl - smiling and laughing - and already crawling at 5 months! She's beautiful and is looking more like her big brother everyday. They have so much fun together! I love watching them grow and being a mother is truly inspiring - I could not see my life any other way. I plan on posting plenty of new pictures and videos so bear with me - but for now - enjoy a few and take a look at the new layout - I promise to continue to change it and make it beautiful - being able to blog about my life that I so love has been an amazing experience. Thank you for bearing with us during our long pause - but we're back, welcome to our world again! Please keep it here for new pictures and videos very soon - for now, have a sneak peek!

Our beautiful growing boy!

A happy grandma!
She's so beautiful - our best Mina Grace!

Ayden blowing out the candles on his 2nd birthday!

Long time no blog!

2009-08-25T07:49:00.000-07:00

Things have been so busy - I'm so sorry for the lack of updates and pictures. The kids are doing great! Mina is getting so big - she's chubby and just has the sweetest personality. I absolutely love her smile! She's a pretty good sleeper for the most part but I think she's starting to teeth. It was horrible with Ayden so I hope it's a little better for her. Ayden is doing fabulous although he still doesn't talk much - he says a few things. He starts preschool on October 19 and we're really excited about that! He's going two days a week for 3 hours a day - and he'll get a lot of interaction with other kids and a really nice structured curriculum. We had a great time at the beach and we are currently in the middle of a move - we're going to a new townhouse that has a better floorplan for us, and Ayden will have his own playroom. I'm so excited about that - we move this week and next! Here are some new pictures for now and hopefully I'll be able to catch up soon and post more!

Mina Smiles!

2009-07-27T11:25:00.000-07:00

Our baby girl has started smiling and has such a sweet and loving personality - she's truly a Momma's Girl right now but that may change in the future. She's 11lbs 5oz and 23 inches long with a huge full head of hair - and she's just a sweetheart. She loves the hanging zebra on her bouncy chair and laughs at him...it's so cute.

Anyhoo - here are some pictures of our smiling girl.

Summer is here!

2009-06-25T10:03:00.000-07:00

Well, the hot days of summer have arrived! We have a lot planned for our now family of 4 for the next few months! We're having some pals over for July 4 to meet Mina, that should be fun, and then Ali got tickets to a professional soccer game in Washington D.C. that he's excited about on July 29...and then my Mommy's Day gift this year was a ticket to see American Idol on August 4...yay for a night off, I'm so psyched about it! We head off to our yearly beach vacation in the Outer Banks from August 8-15 - way excited for that too. I can smell football season already!

Mina has half smiling now, she's so sweet, and she's sleeping in her own bed (waking up twice a night) which is awesome! Ayden is going over to her, bending down and saying "hi baby." I LOVE it! He is such a good big brother! He's also pointing to her toes and saying "Toe" - but he doesn't do it on cue - someday I'll catch it on film!

Anyhoo, here's a few updated photos of our babies - growing so fast - can you believe in 4 months Ayden will be 2?! Stop the clock!

It's been a month!

2009-06-20T04:29:00.000-07:00

Our little girl is one month old! She's growing great - at her weigh in she was 9lbs 11oz and 22 inches long. She's precious and such a wonderful addition to our family and her big brother absolutely loves her. He's always rubbing her head and kissing her when she gets upset. She's starting to get quite a personality - I think she's a lot like her daddy, just like Ayden is! We still don't know what color her eyes are - I have a funny feeling they're brown.

Here are some new pictures of both Mina and Ayden (who is now 20 months old, only 4 months until he's 2 years old - that's crazy!) - enjoy!

Cute brother and sister!

2009-06-07T16:44:00.000-07:00

Even though Ayden has been acting out a LOT lately to get attention - he truly loves his sister and she's a cutie at that - she has her eyes open a lot more lately and has had more awake time during the day which is great - we're getting to know her and we can't wait until she gives us a sincere smile, I can already tell when she has gas that she has such a beautiful little grin!

Enjoy some new pictures!

We love hair bows!

2009-05-30T12:40:00.000-07:00

So I finally did it - I put bows in Mina's hair - I couldn't help it! I have to admit, they're so cute! Here's some other pictures as well...we're exhausted but absolutely loving life with our babies! Also some pics from Mothar Joon (I think I'm spelling this wrong, Ali's mother!) visiting over the week! Enjoy!

More Mina Pictures!

2009-05-28T12:00:00.000-07:00

As requested :)

Almost 2 weeks!

2009-05-27T11:42:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been 12 days as a family of four - and I'm shocked at how well we've transitioned. I am still just loving my little girl - and I love how great our family fits together. Ayden is an awesome big brother and he's growing and learning new things each day and he's trying to show his sister! Mina is doing fabulous and we have another appointment for her on Tuesday the 2nd - I've been doing great with breastfeeding and am hoping that will continue. Next Wednesday will be the first day that I'll be alone the whole day by myself - I'm trying to mentally and physically prepare as Mina has her nights and days mixed up - something else we have to work on. I'm running on pure love right now :)

Here are some new pictures and also a video of Ayden that is adorable.

We're Home!

2009-05-20T12:21:00.000-07:00

We are finally home from the hospital - we got back yesterday around 3 and we are settling in okay. The nights are going to be rough for a while until we establish a routine because Ayden still has sleep problems - but it was just the first night so I wasn't expecting it to be wonderful. I knew sleep deprivation was going to be a struggle for the first few months :) I'm still recovering and in some pain, especially where the spinal and epidural were, and am having a lot of dizzy spells from it as a result. I'm sure as time passes I will recover but for now, I'm continuing to nurse the pain and try and rest. Ayden just loves his little sister - it's like she was here all along! She's part of our family and we're completely in love with her - now if only she'd get her days and nights right, we'd be in business :)

Enjoy some new photos of our beautiful family!

Introducing Mina Grace!

2009-05-18T06:28:00.000-07:00

Our little girl is here! I just can't believe it! My water broke on its own ... I think sometime Thursday afternoon, the 14th, but it wasn't confirmed until my doctor's appointment the next day on the 15th. After 12 hours of labor, natural delivery no longer seemed possible, so Mina was born via c-section. Here are her stats:

Mina Grace
May 15, 2009
11:21 PM
8lb 9oz
21 inches long
13.5 inch head

She's such a sweetheart. She looks a lot like her brother (although chubbier, and chipmunk cheeks!), and she has taken to breastfeeding like a champ. With Ayden, I never experienced that first cry, and I must say with her - that was amazing. I am still in awe that I brought another life into this world! I also was not able to bond with Ayden for a while and breastfeeding truly suffered but she has jumped right in and we have an excellent bond going - I am loving that feeding time with her! I am still in the hospital but am going home tomorrow, Tuesday, and can't wait to have my family together at last. I am so happy to no longer be pregnant and at this point, we think we may be done, but won't make an official decision for about 3 more years. We are so complete and I just feel so over the moon with how things are. We are so blessed and couldn't ask for more! Enjoy some pictures and video below and keep it here for more updates on our new family of 4!

Meet Our New Ride!

2009-05-01T08:32:00.001-07:00

Meet the newest member of our family - the Honda Odyssey! We decided that with two children, my small Hyundai was no longer going to work for us - so we are now "soccer parents"! It's beautiful, has leather seats, a GREAT trunk (his stroller used to take up my whole entire trunk, now it just takes up a small fraction!), awesome space, and it smells terrific! I love the automatic doors and heated seats too! It's also very easy to drive!

Here she is!

Ayden's New Talent!

2009-04-29T14:23:00.000-07:00

He's learning! This makes my life a little easier, that's for sure!

Finally! A new camera!

2009-04-27T16:59:00.000-07:00

It has happened! We FINALLY have a new digital camera that works! As promised, here are some pictures of our little one - and of my full term belly. She could come at any point - but I doubt she will before her due date.

Enjoy - here's our 18 month old boy!

A New Word!

2009-04-24T13:19:00.000-07:00

I think it's official that Ayden is an athlete - one of his first noticeable words.

This is his daddy's fault :)

36 weeks along!

2009-04-22T13:29:00.000-07:00

Well, little Mina is still baking at 36 weeks as she should be - but we are now officially in a waiting stage. Things have started to progress and we are really hoping and praying she will come on her own naturally and avoid the c-section that we have scheduled for May 20, 2009 at 9 AM - exactly 4 weeks from today. She's getting bigger and on her last ultrasound measured about 5lb 9oz...we'll see if she can compete with her brother later, but let's hope she's a little smaller.

Ayden is ready to be a big brother - although he is definitely in that toddler stage that is extremely difficult to handle at times. He's such a sweetheart though and is slowly trying to talk. See the video below and also my most recent belly picture - you never know when it will be the last! The countdown is on until we're a family of 4 and will no longer, ever sleep again!

Our new digital camera is shipping so as soon as we have it and can actually take real pictures, I will certainly post new ones of our little boy and soon to be our little girl!

Happy Easter 2009!

2009-04-12T14:16:00.000-07:00

We hope everyone has had a WONDERFUL Easter! We enjoyed time with friends and family in Richmond, Virginia - and lots of wonderful food! Ayden had a grand ol' time searching for his Easter basket and found some toys inside - his Gampy also picked him out a fabulous Easter outfit that showed off his handsome face...although he is usually good about showing that off anyway :)

Little one has been scratching his face, so there are a few flaws in the pictures, but otherwise, I wanted to share some pics of our big 18 month old man...and one additional picture of me in my Easter dress. We have about 5.5 weeks until we're a family of four - WOW!

Mina's "official" date.

2009-03-31T08:56:00.000-07:00

Well, they scheduled a c-section for May 20, 2009 at 9 AM. I am hoping to labor on my own before then and have her naturally. I am really dreading the c-section - so everyone hope and pray for us that we will have a more pleasant birth experience this time around, no matter what happens.

Also, this is my actual due date, so the ticker on the right of the blog, and the "days left" will officially tell you how much longer we have until the c-section. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that self-induction will work.

Introducing Mina's new room!

2009-03-29T06:32:00.000-07:00

Well, here it is! I absolutely love it and want to thank my mom, my husband, and especially my mother-in-law who were so patient with me and helped me buy the items. I know she won't know the difference ultimately - but I never expected to have a baby girl...and I want to treat her like a baby girl :) I admit that having a lot of pink is still really weird to me but it's kind of neat and exciting and I wouldn't give up that feeling for anything! I still have a few more items to get such as a white lamp to replace the one in there and some other receiving blankets, burp cloths, etc, but for now, we are almost there. I don't have any pictures of her closet because it is still a work in progress with organizing, making sure we have her clothes, etc and so forth, so it's a bit of a tornado at the moment. We have about 8 weeks left til she's born. You can track the pregnancy on the right side of our blog under my pregnancy ticker!

Without further ado...

The view from the door:
Her changing table area:

I just absolutely love the wall hangings here - they match the rack over the changing table, the people who made it are awesome!

And her socket covers are in her theme - I love these too...they're so cute!

Booyah! Goal!

2009-03-21T14:42:00.000-07:00

Little one is becoming just like his daddy - how appropriate! He's a great soccer player but before he would only kick and smile. Way back when, however, his daddy would yell "GOAL!!" whenever he would kick in my belly - and how he yells "GOAL - BOOYAH!!" - Ayden has caught on :) Check out this video of his reaction, even though we're not sure what he's really saying, we're pretty sure he's trying to mimic his daddy :)

Also below - enjoy my alien belly. Mina is truly making her mark in there! I'm not sure what's up with the quality of the belly videos but they were taken on my cell phone - so it might look a little weird! Also, a picture of my 31 week belly - 6-9 weeks to go but I'm not ready yet! The doctor is going to let me attempt a natural birth up until a little after 40 weeks ... if she hasn't come on her own yet (she BETTER, I don't want another c-section) - our c-section date will either be May 22 or May 26 - but we're hoping she'll just migrate on down on her own, if you know what I'm saying :)

Some more pics and video of Mina!

2009-03-03T14:28:00.001-08:00

Here are some more 3/D photos of our little Mina! I haven't had a lot of time for videos but check back in another day or two and there should be some more on here :) There's one more added on this post at the bottom!

And more videos of her :) More later!

Meet Mina - in 3/D!

2009-03-03T07:59:00.001-08:00

We got to see our little girl today - in 3/D! The imaging place we go to for regular ultrasounds offered a one-time-only complimentary session with images and some video on DVD! It was wonderful. She is gorgeous, I can tell already (yep, I'm biased, but that's okay!) - she so looks like her daddy and I can see Ayden in her too. She was such a good girl and gave us some great shots. She was definitely sleepy but I loved seeing her - and she is getting pudgy, looking about the same size as Ayden was (yikes!). She is head down, which is great! She's truly precious and we are very much in love with her! So without further ado, meet Mina Grace ... in technicolor :)

This is her foot, in case you can't tell!

This is her little hand over the face!

This is her arms by her head!

She's all snuggly in there - look at her features, that's Ali!

And little Mina Grace - in video! I have lots of video but it's hard to upload, so this is just a teaser for now :)

Nursery Progress for baby #2!

2009-02-16T08:51:00.000-08:00

We've made a lot of progress on Mina's room - at this point in Ayden's pregnancy, we were already done and just waiting on supplies and such in order to complete it - but now, we only have 3 months left, and we hadn't even started yet! We took some time out this weekend to get things cleaned up and ready - and I'm so excited with the progress we've made and how it's coming together! Since we are not getting a baby shower for her, we've been able to come up with a lot of ideas on how to save money with the new stuff we need to get - and of course, we're also re-using a lot of Ayden's stuff! Pink is so different from blue, but I have to say, it's kind of fun! Here's a sneak peek at her nursery, still a work in progress, and my 6 month pregnant belly!

Belly progress first!
And now, her room!