I am sorry for the delay in writing an update. It has been harder and harder to find time to write these where my Daddy can't catch me. Since I only have a few minutes before he sees the light of the computer under the door, I will just hit the highlights.
Daddy's birthday was super fun this year. Emeka and Jill and Sonny and Esphyr came for a visit. Mommy made spaghetti carbonara. I liked it a little, but Daddy looooved it.
I got to see my first live Spurs game!! At first, we were too close to the court and the Coyote scared me, but later in the game, we moved up top and I loved seeing the entire court. Tony Parker is my favorite, but I love Timmy, Manu, Gary Neal, and Kawai Leonard too.
We had more visitors (Punk, Cous, and Traci, cousin Lili and Tio Miguel) come through and had lots of fun with them.
Then we went on a great adventure to England!!! We stayed with Zoe (and Kyle and Mo) for the first few days. I saw some horses racing, a couple of castles, lots of ducks/swans, and a real life Paddington statue!!
After staying with Zoe, we went to visit our friends Griffin and Charlotte (and Glennis and Jason) in Linton (just outside Cambridge). Cambridge was a lot of fun. We saw the Eagle pub where Watson and Crick announced the structure of DNA. We went to Griffin's school carnival where we all rode a miniature train. We went for walks to the park and I watched my Daddy play basketball (just like Tony Parker).
After that stay, we relocated to London where we staying in a hotel where I had my very own big boy bed!! Right next to the window!! Diego had his own crib and Mommy and Daddy had their bed too, but none of them were right next to the window. In London, we hung out with our new friend, Gian (and MC and Rav). We had a lot of fun walking through the parks and walking through a tour of London by the big clock and the river.
When we got home, Diego had his first birthday party with dinosaurs. Lots of people came to visit for the party (Tia Michelle, Grandpa J, Brigitte, Punk, Romi, Lili, and lots more)! Brianna came for a visit that weekend too (with Zack and Candice). We went to the zoo and fed the ducks!
Two weeks later, Diego was walking!! He was also baptized. He did pretty well during the baptism, but Mom and Dad had to give him some milk in the middle of the ceremony. I had lots of fun playing with Sinjin and Chloe (Diego's padrino's kids). We were so happy that Kathy and David could be Diego's padrinos just like Don and Judy are my padrinos.
Next up was a second big adventure - going to Boston to see my cousins!! We spent almost a week in Maine with Izzie and Leo. Tio Nando and Tia Laura were there too along with Nana and Pete (and Auntie Jo came for the fourth of July). We got to ride kayaks, visit birds, go to the beach, and play outside a lot. It was a lot of fun!
Diego is walking!! He likes to play with my toys and I share, but sometimes, I have to go to my room so that he doesn't get the toys I am playing with right at the moment.
That's all of the updates for now. The link to the pictures is below:
https://plus.google.com/photos/101137831624121289778/albums/5763334860781759137?authkey=CPbsnZGgkMzCBw
Until next time,
PEA
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Diego's first hair cut
Me and my little brother went to get hair cuts with Mommy a few days ago. We both did really well. I had a full hair cut and Diego only needed a trim.
I love being a big brother!
PEA
Big version of pictures and a couple of extras:
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Quick update
I have been trying to write more often to make these shorter, but it's hard when I am so busy having fun all the time.
I couldn't wait much longer to share this news (warning, some of it is sad).
We found out that Jasmine has cancer. I am not sure exactly what that means, but Mommy and Daddy say that Jasmine is sick. She had to have surgery (which is way worse than getting a shot) and she had to have a big bandage for two days. The vet says she is doing well now, but the sickness had already spread. Mommy and Daddy keep telling me about 3-4 months, but I am not quite sure how long that is and what is going to happen then.
That was the sad news.
The happy news is that Diego can pull himself up now and I was the one who got to see him do it the first time. Mommy was in Alpine at a conference at Sul Ross. Daddy was in the kitchen making lunch. I was playing with my airport and Diego. He just grabbed the side of my airport table and pulled himself up. I was so excited that I started yelling for Daddy to come over. That's how Daddy was able to take some quick photos of Diego.
In other news, Diego had his first tooth. Daddy and I saw it while Mommy was away, but we forgot to tell Mommy (we both think she knew, but forgot about it). She found out (or remembered) when she was feeding Diego yesterday and he bit her finger. I am not sure why he bit her finger, but Daddy says he is still learning how to bite so he didn't know it would hurt Mommy. I think he bit his own finger a little later and decided to try not to bite people's fingers anymore.
Other firsts: we went to the park and Diego got to swing for the first time (he loves it). He got to ride the twisty slide for the first time. He even climbed up the hoops (Daddy calls it the beanstalk) with Daddy. I was able to climb the hoops too, but I needed some help. Check out the picture of Mommy at the top of the hoops.
Last week was Tio Monci's birthday. He had a belated party today and I got to sing happy birthday to him (sort of). It turns out, it is hard to sing happy birthday with your fingers in your mouth. I definitely loved his cake. Even better, Lita gave me a second piece of cake. For the whole rest of the night, Mommy and Daddy kept talking about something called a "sugar high". I am not sure what that is, but I was having a lot of fun tonight.
That's all for now. Here are a few pictures I was able to grab off of my Daddy's phone:
https://picasaweb.google.com/101137831624121289778/LotsOfNews#
Go Spurs G0!
PEA
I couldn't wait much longer to share this news (warning, some of it is sad).
We found out that Jasmine has cancer. I am not sure exactly what that means, but Mommy and Daddy say that Jasmine is sick. She had to have surgery (which is way worse than getting a shot) and she had to have a big bandage for two days. The vet says she is doing well now, but the sickness had already spread. Mommy and Daddy keep telling me about 3-4 months, but I am not quite sure how long that is and what is going to happen then.
That was the sad news.
The happy news is that Diego can pull himself up now and I was the one who got to see him do it the first time. Mommy was in Alpine at a conference at Sul Ross. Daddy was in the kitchen making lunch. I was playing with my airport and Diego. He just grabbed the side of my airport table and pulled himself up. I was so excited that I started yelling for Daddy to come over. That's how Daddy was able to take some quick photos of Diego.
In other news, Diego had his first tooth. Daddy and I saw it while Mommy was away, but we forgot to tell Mommy (we both think she knew, but forgot about it). She found out (or remembered) when she was feeding Diego yesterday and he bit her finger. I am not sure why he bit her finger, but Daddy says he is still learning how to bite so he didn't know it would hurt Mommy. I think he bit his own finger a little later and decided to try not to bite people's fingers anymore.
Other firsts: we went to the park and Diego got to swing for the first time (he loves it). He got to ride the twisty slide for the first time. He even climbed up the hoops (Daddy calls it the beanstalk) with Daddy. I was able to climb the hoops too, but I needed some help. Check out the picture of Mommy at the top of the hoops.
Last week was Tio Monci's birthday. He had a belated party today and I got to sing happy birthday to him (sort of). It turns out, it is hard to sing happy birthday with your fingers in your mouth. I definitely loved his cake. Even better, Lita gave me a second piece of cake. For the whole rest of the night, Mommy and Daddy kept talking about something called a "sugar high". I am not sure what that is, but I was having a lot of fun tonight.
That's all for now. Here are a few pictures I was able to grab off of my Daddy's phone:
https://picasaweb.google.com/101137831624121289778/LotsOfNews#
Go Spurs G0!
PEA
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Crawling like there is no tomorrow
It's been a fun couple of months! It seems like every couple of weeks there is another birthday party for one of my friends at school. I really like Kiddie Park now and Gretchen's party with a bouncy castle was really fun too!
The big news is that I have to keep better track of my toys now. Diego can crawl. When he sees me playing with my toys, he crawls on over and tries to play too. I am trying to learn that if I don't want him to play with some of my toys, I need to give him some other ones to play with. Sometimes I forget.
The cool part is that he can play with me more now too. We play firefighters together. We ride a train together. We wear crowns together. It's a lot of fun.
I hope all of you are doing well too. Daddy and Mommy say that we have a lot of travelling coming up. I hope it's fun travelling too.
Hasta Luego,
Pablo
Pictures are here: https://picasaweb.google.com/101137831624121289778/CrawlingLikeThereIsNoTomorrow#
The big news is that I have to keep better track of my toys now. Diego can crawl. When he sees me playing with my toys, he crawls on over and tries to play too. I am trying to learn that if I don't want him to play with some of my toys, I need to give him some other ones to play with. Sometimes I forget.
The cool part is that he can play with me more now too. We play firefighters together. We ride a train together. We wear crowns together. It's a lot of fun.
I hope all of you are doing well too. Daddy and Mommy say that we have a lot of travelling coming up. I hope it's fun travelling too.
Hasta Luego,
Pablo
Pictures are here: https://picasaweb.google.com/101137831624121289778/CrawlingLikeThereIsNoTomorrow#
Friday, January 13, 2012
My favorite times of the year...
My birthday AND Christmas!
I had a great holiday season this year. My birthday party was a success even though it was rained out from Kiddie Park. Tia Michelle and Grandpa from Houston came in and celebrated with me. My four closest friends from the bunnies class made it out along with some friends from music class, Alejandro, and my Dad's friends too. We collected lots of toys for the boys and girls at St. PJs in San Antonio. Lita made my rocket ship cake. I had a Buzz Lightyear pinata (with retractable wings) and we played put the sticker on Buzz. The only drawback was that Mommy put sparkly candles on my cake so my wish is not going to come true this year. Next year, I will be ready!!
After my birthday, the eternal 3 week wait until Christmas began. Time flew though since we went to Houston early for a Houston Christmas. We stayed with my Aunt Rachel (muchas gracias!!) and got to play with my Mom's family and some good Houston friends. We had a blast, but it was tough being away from home for so long. I was ready to get back home and guess who was waiting for us...
Izzie, Leo, Tio Nando, and Tia Laura!!! They came to Texas all the way from Boston for Christmas. We had just returned home from a week in Houston and were ready to call it a night when we got a phone call from Izzie and Leo. Next thing we know, we were having dinner together at Panchito's and staying up past our bedtimes. :)
I had a LOT of fun with my cousins. We did different things every day. We went to the museum. We saw the model trains. We played on different playgrounds. We played with some of our old toys. Then Christmas rolled around and we played with our new toys too.
Christmas was a blast this year. On Christmas Eve, we had dinner at Lita's house and got to open one round of presents before the Guerra's arrived. After that, we opened another round. If you count both rounds, plus every friend/family visit in Houston where we received presents, I think we had about 7 Christmases. I think next year we should go for 8!!
On Christmas day (super early, 3AM), Tio Miguel, Tia Danielle, and Lili made it down from Denton. We had a fun time playing with all the cousins together for the first time. I think we even sat still just long enough to snap a photo.
This year, Santa brought me a scooter and a Zurg along with some stocking stuffers. Diegui received an inchworm and some egg shakers and some clicking sticks. I showed him my drum and my slide whistle (which I can play now) and we made a lot of music together.
After Christmas, the fun times were still rolling at Izzie's birthday party. Tia Lisi was the hit of the party with her balloon animals. She says to thank YouTube for that.
Since then, it has been a tough job trying to play with all my Toy Story toys evenly, but I have managed.
I was sad to see Izzie and Leo leave, but we got to play every day for a week.
Diego is almost crawling now. I will really have to be careful and not leave little toys around once he can get around. Until then, I like to help him by bringing him toys that are big enough for him to play with. I love my brother!
I hope all of you had as good of a holiday season as I did!
Take care,
Pablo
Pictures: https://picasaweb.google.com/101137831624121289778/BirthdayChristmasAndTheNewYear#
Saturday, November 26, 2011
To Thanksgiving... And Beyond!!
It has been a while since my last post. As Diego gets bigger, it is harder to find time to write the blog since we spend so much time playing together.
Diego is almost six months now and I am almost three years old. I will be three years old next weekend and we are celebrating at Kiddie Park (thanks for the cool idea Alejandro). Yes, it will be a Buzz themed birthday party. I will hopefully get to wear my buzz pajamas for my birthday, but we will see (Dad says yes, but Mom says no). On my next post with the birthday pictures, you will see who won that discussion.
Since I last wrote, lots of things happened so I am just going to hit the highlights.
I went to Denton with the whole family to visit Lily, Tio Miguel and Tia Danielle. We went to the Peterbilt open house on Saturday and to the Texas State Fair on Sunday. It was a long weekend with lots of fun and lots of driving. Lily taught me how to cheer for the Rangers while I was there.
For Halloween, I was Spiderman, Diego was a spider, Mommy was a spiderweb, and Daddy was a Houston Astro player. One of these things is not like the other... We went trick-or-treating at Lita's house. Lita was dressed up as Amelia Bedelia. While we were out trick-or-treating, Lito, Tia Abuela Syl, and Tio Abuelo Mon were at home handing out candy. We saw lots of cool costumes on our trip around the block. I scored some good candy, but somehow, it was "lost" by the time we got back home.
The weekend before Thanksgiving was Lito's 70th birthday party. He wanted a small party, but he ended up with about 60 of his closest friends and family. All three of his sons (my Daddy and my two Tios) were there, but only Izzie made it down with Tio Nando. Leo stayed in Boston with Tia Laura. We look forward to seeing both of them at Christmas!! All in all, Lito had a really good birthday. He had a fun time with all of his friends and 4 out of 5 of his grandchildren. He got a coffee maker that Mommy says is really neat, but I still don't drink coffee so I couldn't tell you. After Lito's party, Izzie and Tio Nando stayed around for a couple of days and Lily went back home. I had a lot of fun playing with Izzie especially when Lita would pick me up early from school so we could play together.
Thanksgiving was fun. Brigitte came for another visit. Tio Monci was at Lita's too. The best part was that I had 5 days in a row to play with Mommy and Daddy and Lita all day. School starts back up again on Monday and I look forward to playing with my friends again. Until then, one more day of fun at home!
Nicknames for Diego (so far):
Diegui (pronounced D-A-Ghee with a hard G)
Diego-Bo-Bego
Diegui-Bo-Begui
Baby brother
DBB
Later Mater,
Pablo
Here are the pictures: https://picasaweb.google.com/101137831624121289778/ToThanksgivingAndBeyond?authuser=0&feat=directlink
Sunday, August 21, 2011
My parents are getting some sleep now
In case you were wondering, Diego is two and a half months old. According to my parents, he is sleeping more at night which is letting them get more sleep now. I don't know if it is true since I sleep through whatever crying he does at night, but I can see my parents are getting more rest. This is good and bad. They are less cranky (good), but they have more energy to call me out when I try to pull one over on them (bad). I will see if I can get Diego to put in a few rough nights for them at the end of each week so I can take advantage of sleepy parents on the weekends. :)
Things have been going well since I last posted. I have had some fun visits from folks in San Antonio (Grandpa/Tia Michelle, Tio Miguel/Tia Danielle/Lily, Tia Sandra from Saltillo, Laura my old nanny, and my friend Julian). I really had fun playing with Lily when she came. We stayed up way past our bedtimes, but I managed to get back to my sleeping schedule soon enough. I went to a birthday party at Kiddie Park (thanks for inviting me, Alejandro). Although I didn't play with too many of the other kids (they were a little older), I had a blast riding the rides. My Daddy tells me that a lot of the rides are the same ones that were there when he was a kid in the 80's. The merry-go-round has been there since the mid 40's.
There were two big events this summer for me. First of all, I got to go to Boston to visit with my cousins and only Daddy came along. That meant that Mommy was home with Diego. Things were going fine on both sides of the trip until Mommy got sick at home. Daddy says it's hard to take care of Diego by yourself, but really hard when you are sick. We told Mommy we hoped she felt better, but we reluctantly continued to have fun in Boston.
Tio Miguel, Tia Danielle, and Lily came to Boston (from Denton) at the same time. We had 4 out of 5 of the cousins together and we all had a lot of fun. We went to the park by Izzie and Leo's house. We went to the children's museum in Boston. We went to Maine to Nana's house. We went to a Red Sox game and watched a pitcher throw his 2,000th strikeout for the Red Sox. I am not sure how many strikeouts that is, but I know it is a really big number. We played with toys and made funny faces, spoke crazy languages (ask Leo about "jabi jabi"), and had an all around good time. The trip ended with a visit to Drumlin farms the morning before we had to go to the airport. We saw a ton of animals and even got to go on a hay ride!
The other big event for me was that I graduated from the duckies class to the bunnies class. I am definitely a big boy now. I have the underwear to prove it. Whether it's Buzz Lightyear or Woody or Lightning McQueen or Nemo, I always have some stylish underwear on these days (except nap time and bed time). I still have an accident or two from time to time, but I am getting there. My new teachers are Mrs. Susan and Ms. Lorraine. They are very fun. I especially like the way Ms. Susan reads me books at the beginning and end of the day.
After those two big events, I have had some smaller trips highlighted by visiting my padrinos in Houston. We stayed at Henry's house, but Henry, his mommy, and his new baby brother were not there. Henry's Daddy James was there and he made us feel like we were at home. Thanks a 2,000. During the trip, we were able to go spend a day with Kien and Madrina Judy. Diego came on this trip this time. It was one of his first car trips. I think he is starting to like the car seat, but he hasn't decided yet. I keep trying to tell him it is a great place to sleep, but he doesn't believe me yet.
We hope to see you soon!
PEA
Missing photo link from last post
Apparently, I am not the technilogical genious I thought I was. I somehow messed up the link to the photos on the last post. Here it is again:
https://picasaweb.google.com/101137831624121289778/3WeeksIn#
I blame IE9. I had to redo the post in Google Chrome to get the link in there.
PEA
Monday, June 20, 2011
3 weeks in and I have not been forgotten
I see that my Daddy finally made a post of his own after Diego was born. I am not sure when he found the time. From the looks of his stubble and the rings under his eyes, he hasn't been getting much sleep. I, on the other hand, have been sleeping like a baby. :)
The past three weeks have been fun and tough. I love my baby brother. I love saying his whole name, "Diego Nicolás Acosta". I love giving him hugs and pat-pats. I love showing him some of my old stuff so that he can play with it.
But he cries a lot. Daddy tells me that he can't talk so he has to cry instead. When he cries, he usually wants Mommy's milk. Sometimes he cries because he doesn't like his dirty diaper. I try to tell him he will get used to it (like me), but he doesn't seem to understand yet. During the day, he mostly drinks Mommy's milk, sleeps, or cries. I can't wait until he can play with me.
It has definitely been tough sharing time with Baby Brother and Mommy and Daddy. It seems like Mommy is always feeding him. It's also tough when I have to go to school, but Baby Brother gets to stay home. That was only tough for a day or two. Since he can't play yet, school seems like more fun to me now.
Daddy still plays with me a lot. Mommy plays when Baby Brother is not drinking Mommy's milk. Also, we have had Tía Michelle and Granpa J come visit us two times. Tía Michelle brought me some fun toys (thanks, Tía) and she brought a toy for Baby Brother too. Mommy has helped me with some fun projects too. She made me a spiderman costume and we worked hard to make Daddy's Father's day card. I am a little sad that Mommy can't pick me up right now because of her ouchie, but I ask her every day if she is feeling better. She is definitely feeling better, but she still can't pick me up yet.
Having a Baby Brother who can't play yet is not all bad. I have been able to go to the museum a couple of times with Daddy. They have an airplane there that you can be the captain of. They have a tractor that actually drives and scoops and dumps (although it has been broken lately). They have a trolley and a lot of balls, bubbles, fish, lizards, a cow that you can milk, a virtual dance machine, and a mini HEB with real checkouts and everything. I know there is something that I forgot about, but I will tell you about it next time.
Since Tío Miguel, Tía Danielle, and Lilly were in town for father's day, we got to go back to the museum to play again. The tractor was off duty, but we were able to play with the hard hats this time. I showed Lilly how to dance to the drums. It may look like a blue wall to you in the pictures, but across from us is a screen. When we move our hands around, we play the virtual drums. It is really fun!
Father's day was a special treat! Grandpa J and Tía Michelle came back to stay with use again. Tío Miguel, Tía Danielle and Lilly were there. Lito and Lita came over and so did Tío Abuelo Mon, Tía Abuela Syl and Tío Monci. We had a fun time barbecuing and eating all the yummy desserts. Mommy and Daddy seemed to handle it all pretty well even though they had to take care of me and Diego and get ready for the party. It's good that they had helpers. After all the eating was over, Lilly and I got to play outside in the water and it was a lot of fun.
For father's day, I made Daddy a picture frame at school that says "You're my all star Dad" and a coaster. Diego made him a frame too. Mommy and I also made Daddy a special card. We worked hard on it to be sure that it was perfect for him.
I guess the only thing left to tell is that Diego had his checkup with Dr. Fitch (he's a nice man) today. He had to get two pokes. Daddy told me that he weighs 8 pounds (25-30%), is 21 3/4" long (60%), and has a 14 3/4" head (25%). I am not sure what the percents mean, but Daddy says that I had a much bigger head when I was Diego's age.
I hope that you all had a happy father's day and we still have a guest room if you want to come play with me.
Oops, almost forgot. The pictures are here.
TTFN
PEA
PS Diego's ouchie on his belly button fell off today. Yay!!
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Welcome Diego Nicolás Acosta
So I was going to apologize for not posting since April 2010 when I noticed that a little friend of mine has been posting in my place. If you read the last few blog posts, you will see that Pablo has been sneaking online to make a few of them. Since he has already taken over, I will let him continue to post on his own. I may drop in and post on his blog from time to time, but this will be one of my last posts. Pablo, this blog is all yours (as the blog name suggests).
The past few days have been a bit of a whirlwind. Diego was a scheduled C-section. Despite knowning his birthday (June 1) we were still struggling with names through 10:47 AM June 2. We picked a name and turned in the form with 13 minutes to spare before he officially became Baby Verorinca-Martinez Acosta. They threatened us with having to deal with the government bureacracy to get that changed. It turns out we are procrastinators and work well under pressue. Who knew (besides all of our friends)?
We found out that the "scheduled" part of the C-section depends on the doctor's schedule, not ours. Dr. Hasty had a tough surgery before ours that ran late. We were delayed a little over an hour. That was pretty nerve-wracking for V. I tried to distract her by talking about names and being silly, but it only worked a little bit.
The surgery went off without a hitch. No mishaps with the surgeons (unlike last time) and the baby popped right out (also unlike last time). We didn't have a doula this time so the anaesthesiologist was key comforting/distracting V while I went with the baby (at V's insistence). It was all a bit easier this time around knowing what to expect and knowing from the start that it would be a C-section. Presumably it will be even easier next time around if there is a next time, but don't ask V or me about that right now. The one thing that doesn't seem to be any easier this time around is V's recovery from the C-section. It doesn't seem any worse either. It's just tough.
Logistically, Lito and Lita were super stars. Pablo spent the first two nights at their house and they took him to school the first two mornings. After a day in the hospital with V and Diego, I would pick Pablo up at school to visit baby brother (FYI: Pablo wanted to name his new brother Baby Brother Acosta, but V vetoed). We had a few hours for all four of us to hang out each night and then Pablo would leave with Lito and Lita to spend the night. The third night, V was feeling brave. She sent me home with Pablo so that we could sleep at our house. The plan worked well since the nurses were awesome and V was feeling a bit better by then. It really helped that Diego was a good boy that night for Mommy. Pablo got to sleep at home (he had been asking about that) and I got a full night's sleep in preparation for the lack of sleep to come.
Saturday morning, it was time for Diego and Mommy to come home. Lita stepped up again and took Pablo to music class and to the park/library while I went to the hospital to pick up the rest of the family. The ride home was uneventful and we were settled in when Pablo and Lita arrived.
Throughout the whole process, Pablo has been very excited about meeting and playing with baby brother. We have been reading him some books so that he knows what to expect, but he was still surprised at how little baby brother was and how few things baby brother could do. He loves holding baby brother and giving him pat-pats. He is a good helper in bringing things to Mommy or me as needed (ex. pacifier). He watches over baby brother when he is sleeping (sometimes). He can't wait for baby brother to be able to play with him.
All in all, it has been the expected emotional jumble of anticipation, excitement, incredulity, disbelief, and "what did we get ourselves into-ness". I wouldn't trade it for the world.
All the photos are here.
Enjoy the photos and the videos. Enjoy Pablo's future posts.
Alfonso (aka Pablo's Daddy aka Diego's Daddy)
PS The biggest mishap so far was losing less than a quarter ounce of some milk that V had pumped (definitely my fault). At the time, V and I were sleep-deprived and very emotional and it seemed like a huge deal. In retrospect, it was a trickle of gold, I mean milk, that was washed down the drain. You know what they say... don't cry over spilt milk... unless it makes you feel better.
PPS I updated the photo links on the previous blogs so that they will work now. If you had trouble in the past, you should be able to see them now.
PPPS One of the things Pablo is very interested in is how we change Diego's diapers. He knows that babies need to wear diapers. Consequently, since he is not a baby, he has concluded that he doesn't want to wear diapers any more. We told him that he needs to learn how to use the potty first. So in addition to the new born, we are starting the potty training with Pablo now (at Pablo's insistence which makes it much easier). I think his day care will help out too.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Four Day Weekend
Yes, I know that baby brother is coming soon, but with Memorial day and a teacher conference day, I had a four day weekend. Unfortunately, Daddy only had a two-day weekend, but that meant that Mommy and I got to play.
Friday, Mommy and I went to the children's museum. Did you know they have an airplane there that you can sit in? I was Captain Pablo for a while with Mommy as my copilot. They also have a tractor that you can sit in and load rocks from the scooper into the dump truck. It was so much fun!! Friday afternoon, Mommy brought out my surprise water toy and we had some fun in the sun. Daddy took a couple of pics and some video. Not too many though.
Saturday, I went to music class and fed the ducks. After my nap, I went to Lita's house to spend the night. Mommy kept talking about going on a date with Daddy (whatever that means), but I had a lot of fun at Lita's.
Sunday, I met Mommy and Daddy at church. After church some run of the mill playing happened before nap time. After nap, I helped daddy build a shelf and I played in the box. It was a tight squeeze, but I made it.
Monday, Daddy had to work, but he took his lunch break to go with me and Mommy to see where they are going to keep Baby Brother. Baby Brother is coming on Wednesday. I like goint to the hopsital because they have elevators and I can push the buttons. I liked watching the babies even though some of them were crying.
The day ended with Lito, Lita, Tio Abuelo Mon, Tia Abuela Syl, and Tio Monci coming over for burgers. Tia Abuela surprised me with a new blanket that has a lot of guitars and says "Rock"!! I love it!
Oh yeah, I opened my camera that Tia Michelle gave me so I have started taking my own photos. I am no longer dependent on my parents to take them. I will post some of my first works in this group. See if you can guess which ones are mine.
I hope to see you all soon,
Pablo Elias Acosta
Picture and video: click here
Friday, Mommy and I went to the children's museum. Did you know they have an airplane there that you can sit in? I was Captain Pablo for a while with Mommy as my copilot. They also have a tractor that you can sit in and load rocks from the scooper into the dump truck. It was so much fun!! Friday afternoon, Mommy brought out my surprise water toy and we had some fun in the sun. Daddy took a couple of pics and some video. Not too many though.
Saturday, I went to music class and fed the ducks. After my nap, I went to Lita's house to spend the night. Mommy kept talking about going on a date with Daddy (whatever that means), but I had a lot of fun at Lita's.
Sunday, I met Mommy and Daddy at church. After church some run of the mill playing happened before nap time. After nap, I helped daddy build a shelf and I played in the box. It was a tight squeeze, but I made it.
Monday, Daddy had to work, but he took his lunch break to go with me and Mommy to see where they are going to keep Baby Brother. Baby Brother is coming on Wednesday. I like goint to the hopsital because they have elevators and I can push the buttons. I liked watching the babies even though some of them were crying.
The day ended with Lito, Lita, Tio Abuelo Mon, Tia Abuela Syl, and Tio Monci coming over for burgers. Tia Abuela surprised me with a new blanket that has a lot of guitars and says "Rock"!! I love it!
Oh yeah, I opened my camera that Tia Michelle gave me so I have started taking my own photos. I am no longer dependent on my parents to take them. I will post some of my first works in this group. See if you can guess which ones are mine.
I hope to see you all soon,
Pablo Elias Acosta
Picture and video: click here
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Ready for baby brother!!
So the baby brother talk has been escalating the past few weeks. Apparently he is coming home soon. It is a little confusing since he is already home (in Mommy's belly), but I guess that means Mommy has to go away first and then they will both come home with baby brother outside of Mommy's belly. All I know is that I was pretty excited to be a big brother, but now they are telling me I have to stay at Lita's house for a night or two and I am not so sure I like this whole baby brother thing anymore. My room did get an upgrade so I have that going for me.
Since my last post, I had a huge Fiesta party at school. I met the King (see the pics) and played guitar and danced. For Easter, we went to Indiana to visit Jill, Emeka, Sonny, and Esphyr. For an added bonus, I got to hang out with Eshpyr's Grampa Paul and Grama Rosie. It turns out that almost everyone I know named Paul can really play the guiter (Mr. Paul at school and Grampa Paul in Indiana). Since my name is the spanish version of Paul, I guess I am destined to play guitar too. Maybe one of those big mariachi guitars....
Mom and Dad have been working hard on "getting ready for baby brother". I am not sure what the big deal is, but I can't wait to play with him. Mom and Dad keep asking me what I should name him. At first I said Rico (after a boy in my class), but I don't like that name anymore. Gretchen's (another classmate) baby brother's name is August. That sounded good for a while. Now I have setlled on simply Baby Brother. It's short and to the point. However, after my guitar-playing revelation, I may opt for Paul so that we can play guitar together.
I hope you enjoy this post. If this whole baby brother business is as good as they make it sound, it may be a while before I post again. If not, this blog may become a gripe-fest.
Hasta Luego,
Pablo Elias Acosta
Pictures: click here
Since my last post, I had a huge Fiesta party at school. I met the King (see the pics) and played guitar and danced. For Easter, we went to Indiana to visit Jill, Emeka, Sonny, and Esphyr. For an added bonus, I got to hang out with Eshpyr's Grampa Paul and Grama Rosie. It turns out that almost everyone I know named Paul can really play the guiter (Mr. Paul at school and Grampa Paul in Indiana). Since my name is the spanish version of Paul, I guess I am destined to play guitar too. Maybe one of those big mariachi guitars....
Mom and Dad have been working hard on "getting ready for baby brother". I am not sure what the big deal is, but I can't wait to play with him. Mom and Dad keep asking me what I should name him. At first I said Rico (after a boy in my class), but I don't like that name anymore. Gretchen's (another classmate) baby brother's name is August. That sounded good for a while. Now I have setlled on simply Baby Brother. It's short and to the point. However, after my guitar-playing revelation, I may opt for Paul so that we can play guitar together.
I hope you enjoy this post. If this whole baby brother business is as good as they make it sound, it may be a while before I post again. If not, this blog may become a gripe-fest.
Hasta Luego,
Pablo Elias Acosta
Pictures: click here
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Big Boy Bed
My Dad has been doing a much better job of keeping track of his iPhone so I haven't been able to post for a while. However, there is something called tax day that has my Daddy pretty busy and I managed to sneak his iPhone while I am taking a "nap" today.
The recent big change in my life has been the switch from a crib to a big boy bed. I know that Baby Brother is going to need my crib so Mommy and Daddy bought me a big boy bed to sleep in. I am pretty good at sleeping through the night in it, but I have had some trouble with nap time. It's all getting better now. The best part about my new bed is that it has a top bunk for when my cousins come to visit!!
I only have a few minutes so I posted a few quick picks from the month of birthdays in March. I also got to see my cousins from Boston when they came to Texas for a wedding. We went to the zoo and had a good time!! I can't wait to visit them this summer in Boston.
I have had lots of fun during Fiesta and I will post those pictures soon!!
Here are the pictures and a video or two.
:)
PEA
The recent big change in my life has been the switch from a crib to a big boy bed. I know that Baby Brother is going to need my crib so Mommy and Daddy bought me a big boy bed to sleep in. I am pretty good at sleeping through the night in it, but I have had some trouble with nap time. It's all getting better now. The best part about my new bed is that it has a top bunk for when my cousins come to visit!!
I only have a few minutes so I posted a few quick picks from the month of birthdays in March. I also got to see my cousins from Boston when they came to Texas for a wedding. We went to the zoo and had a good time!! I can't wait to visit them this summer in Boston.
I have had lots of fun during Fiesta and I will post those pictures soon!!
Here are the pictures and a video or two.
:)
PEA
Sunday, February 27, 2011
To the rodeo... And Beyond!!
I still haven't been able to get my Dad to make another post for me, but I had a little time for a quick update (Mom and Dad think I am sleeping, but I snagged Dad's iPhone on the way to bed).
Last weekend, I went to the San Antonio rodeo!! My friend Julian went with me (his Mom and Dad are friends from Rice). We had a good time playing on the tractors, petting the animals, eating rodeo food, and watching the calf-roping. I was so excited about the calf-roping that I put on my cowboy hat as soon as I got home and started roping my stuffed cow from the back of my trusty steed (er, I mean Moose). Unfortunately, Daddy didn't get any photos of that one.
The weekend after the rodeo, we went for an "adventure" (according to Mom). We stayed in Austin with our friends Stew and Angela. Did you know Stew has TWO BIG GUITARS!! I was in Heaven. I didn't even mind that Ali would lick my face any time she was within licking distance. Also, as it turns out, I might be part Brazilian. Angela was teaching me a very cool Brazilian song that I can't get out of my head.
After saying a very sorrowful good bye to Stew's guitars (and Stew, Angela, and Ali), it was off to Ikea to buy a bed for me. It turns out that Baby Brother (who I think we should call Rico, but Mom and Dad hate that name) is going to get my crib and I get a big boy bed. So far, this was my best Ikea trip ever. I got to sleep in the car with Daddy while Mommy went inside to do all of the work. At the end, we drove back to our house in San Antonio. I was so happy to be heading back home that I made up a song about it on the way. I don't think Mommy and Daddy were paying attention to my new song, but once I work out the kinks, I will play it for them on my little guitar. "Going back to our house. Going back to our house. going back to our house"
Yikes, I think the glow of the iPhone under the door is giving me away. Next time, I will need to pull the blanket over the phone first. Rookie mistake!!!
Here are the pics and videos
Hopefully, my Dad will write next time, but don't hold your breath.
PEA
PS Don't blame me for the lack of photos. Mommy and Daddy are still slow on the draw.
Last weekend, I went to the San Antonio rodeo!! My friend Julian went with me (his Mom and Dad are friends from Rice). We had a good time playing on the tractors, petting the animals, eating rodeo food, and watching the calf-roping. I was so excited about the calf-roping that I put on my cowboy hat as soon as I got home and started roping my stuffed cow from the back of my trusty steed (er, I mean Moose). Unfortunately, Daddy didn't get any photos of that one.
The weekend after the rodeo, we went for an "adventure" (according to Mom). We stayed in Austin with our friends Stew and Angela. Did you know Stew has TWO BIG GUITARS!! I was in Heaven. I didn't even mind that Ali would lick my face any time she was within licking distance. Also, as it turns out, I might be part Brazilian. Angela was teaching me a very cool Brazilian song that I can't get out of my head.
After saying a very sorrowful good bye to Stew's guitars (and Stew, Angela, and Ali), it was off to Ikea to buy a bed for me. It turns out that Baby Brother (who I think we should call Rico, but Mom and Dad hate that name) is going to get my crib and I get a big boy bed. So far, this was my best Ikea trip ever. I got to sleep in the car with Daddy while Mommy went inside to do all of the work. At the end, we drove back to our house in San Antonio. I was so happy to be heading back home that I made up a song about it on the way. I don't think Mommy and Daddy were paying attention to my new song, but once I work out the kinks, I will play it for them on my little guitar. "Going back to our house. Going back to our house. going back to our house"
Yikes, I think the glow of the iPhone under the door is giving me away. Next time, I will need to pull the blanket over the phone first. Rookie mistake!!!
Here are the pics and videos
Hopefully, my Dad will write next time, but don't hold your breath.
PEA
PS Don't blame me for the lack of photos. Mommy and Daddy are still slow on the draw.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
My Daddy dropped the ball....
... and I have to pick it up.
Yes, it's rough being a two year old these days. I finally learned about blogging only to find out that my Daddy hasn't posted anything since April. Good thing my Mommy has a Facebook account. If you want up to date news, that's where it will be. I will do my best to keep things up to date through this blog, but we don't get computers at school until I move up to the three year old class next Fall.
Since it has been so long since my Daddy has posted, I am just going to put a bunch of photos onto the web site and let you look through them. I will get you up to date on more recent happenings with me and my family.
Thanksgiving was great!! I love, love, loved the visit from my cousins from Boston and Denton. I can't wait to go to Boston this summer and I definitely want to go to Denton very soon.
My 2 yr birthday party was a BLAST!! About 6-7 kids came over and we played with airplanes!! I had an airplane cake (thanks Lita!!), pin the propeller on the airplane, a ball pit, and lots of friends/family to play with. What more could you ask for (other than presents, of course). I did get some presents, but Mommy and Daddy asked my friends to bring donations to St. PJs childrens home here in San Antonio. We had quite a haul. Mommy and I delivered them before Christmas so that those children could have a Merry Christmas too. Thanks to Noah, Mia, Lawson, Alejandro, Julian, and all my friends who came to my party. It was way better than my first birthday party (which was cancelled because I didn't want to get everybody sick).
Christmas was great! I spent Christmas Eve with my family in San Antonio. I spent Christmas day through New Year's with family and friends in Houston. I am very sorry for getting my Padrinos (and Kien) sick while I stayed with them.
After the Christmas break, I had a wonderful trip to Colorado with the Rice crew. For some reason I haven't figured out yet, my parents call this trip BBRAG. Last year at this trip, I vaguely remember helping Terry learn how to change a diaper (I was so young back then). This year, it was Jeremy's turn. I really like playing with all the kids (Kien, Grant, Zane, and Liam) and I can't wait for the next round (Jeremy and Bonnie's baby, Grant and Zane's littlest bro/sis, and of course, my BABY BROTHER). I just wish Kien could get in on the sibling action...
The trip was fun. I got to play in the snow, see horses, see tractors, go snowshoeing (well, Daddy wore the snow shoes and carried me), go sledding (this wasn't so much fun for me because the snow kept hitting me in the face), play with new games/toys, read new books, and generally have a blast! It was also my first trip in my own seat on the airplane. Mommy and Daddy bought a cool roller cart for my car seat so I was able to roll all over the airport. Extra bonus!! We got to eat cake for Arpi and Kate's birthdays!!
After that trip, it was back to the daily grind at school. Believe it or not, we did have a snow day thanks to about 1/4" of snow. I don't know how to drive yet, but I really don't know how to drive in snow.
It's now rodeo time. We had pony rides at school. Mommy and Daddy couldn't make it so I can't wait to show them the pictures. I heard Daddy say something about going to the livestock show this weekend. I sure hope so. This is the last weekend they are in town.
I hope all of you are doing well. Yes, I did mention a baby brother earlier. He will be joining the family in late May/early June. I was so excited to be a big brother. I couldn't wait. I even told mommy "I can't wait to meet baby brother and baby brother's mommy". I have since found out that MY Mommy is also going to be Baby Brother's Mommy. I am not sure how I feel about that yet, but I have been told that I will get all the new stuff and he will just get my old stuff... so I got that going for me.
Pictures (My Daddy also dropped the ball on taking more pictures, but this should at least let you know what I have been looking like for the past 8 months):
Album
Videos
I promise I will do a better job than my Daddy of posting blog updates (that's not very hard when it takes Daddy 10 months to post).
Ciao,
Pablo
Yes, it's rough being a two year old these days. I finally learned about blogging only to find out that my Daddy hasn't posted anything since April. Good thing my Mommy has a Facebook account. If you want up to date news, that's where it will be. I will do my best to keep things up to date through this blog, but we don't get computers at school until I move up to the three year old class next Fall.
Since it has been so long since my Daddy has posted, I am just going to put a bunch of photos onto the web site and let you look through them. I will get you up to date on more recent happenings with me and my family.
Thanksgiving was great!! I love, love, loved the visit from my cousins from Boston and Denton. I can't wait to go to Boston this summer and I definitely want to go to Denton very soon.
My 2 yr birthday party was a BLAST!! About 6-7 kids came over and we played with airplanes!! I had an airplane cake (thanks Lita!!), pin the propeller on the airplane, a ball pit, and lots of friends/family to play with. What more could you ask for (other than presents, of course). I did get some presents, but Mommy and Daddy asked my friends to bring donations to St. PJs childrens home here in San Antonio. We had quite a haul. Mommy and I delivered them before Christmas so that those children could have a Merry Christmas too. Thanks to Noah, Mia, Lawson, Alejandro, Julian, and all my friends who came to my party. It was way better than my first birthday party (which was cancelled because I didn't want to get everybody sick).
Christmas was great! I spent Christmas Eve with my family in San Antonio. I spent Christmas day through New Year's with family and friends in Houston. I am very sorry for getting my Padrinos (and Kien) sick while I stayed with them.
After the Christmas break, I had a wonderful trip to Colorado with the Rice crew. For some reason I haven't figured out yet, my parents call this trip BBRAG. Last year at this trip, I vaguely remember helping Terry learn how to change a diaper (I was so young back then). This year, it was Jeremy's turn. I really like playing with all the kids (Kien, Grant, Zane, and Liam) and I can't wait for the next round (Jeremy and Bonnie's baby, Grant and Zane's littlest bro/sis, and of course, my BABY BROTHER). I just wish Kien could get in on the sibling action...
The trip was fun. I got to play in the snow, see horses, see tractors, go snowshoeing (well, Daddy wore the snow shoes and carried me), go sledding (this wasn't so much fun for me because the snow kept hitting me in the face), play with new games/toys, read new books, and generally have a blast! It was also my first trip in my own seat on the airplane. Mommy and Daddy bought a cool roller cart for my car seat so I was able to roll all over the airport. Extra bonus!! We got to eat cake for Arpi and Kate's birthdays!!
After that trip, it was back to the daily grind at school. Believe it or not, we did have a snow day thanks to about 1/4" of snow. I don't know how to drive yet, but I really don't know how to drive in snow.
It's now rodeo time. We had pony rides at school. Mommy and Daddy couldn't make it so I can't wait to show them the pictures. I heard Daddy say something about going to the livestock show this weekend. I sure hope so. This is the last weekend they are in town.
I hope all of you are doing well. Yes, I did mention a baby brother earlier. He will be joining the family in late May/early June. I was so excited to be a big brother. I couldn't wait. I even told mommy "I can't wait to meet baby brother and baby brother's mommy". I have since found out that MY Mommy is also going to be Baby Brother's Mommy. I am not sure how I feel about that yet, but I have been told that I will get all the new stuff and he will just get my old stuff... so I got that going for me.
Pictures (My Daddy also dropped the ball on taking more pictures, but this should at least let you know what I have been looking like for the past 8 months):
Album
Videos
I promise I will do a better job than my Daddy of posting blog updates (that's not very hard when it takes Daddy 10 months to post).
Ciao,
Pablo
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Catching up
This will be a short post, but there are lots of pictures.
Pablo is almost 17 months old now. He is walking and talking and has been for some time. He is starting to lose the wobble now when he walks and has been known to run from time to time (although his stops usually involve a tumble). He now has 4 teeth (two came in on top). He can be very sweet, but has learned how to throw a tantrum. He knows what he wants and he is pretty good at letting us know. At school, he told the teachers he didn't want apple sauce and asked for yogurt instead. He gets grumpy hungry and grumpy sleepy. He loves to laugh and he even dances a little.
That's all for now. Here are the pictures:
Christmas 2009
Spring Break
Easter 2010
Fiesta
Pablo is almost 17 months old now. He is walking and talking and has been for some time. He is starting to lose the wobble now when he walks and has been known to run from time to time (although his stops usually involve a tumble). He now has 4 teeth (two came in on top). He can be very sweet, but has learned how to throw a tantrum. He knows what he wants and he is pretty good at letting us know. At school, he told the teachers he didn't want apple sauce and asked for yogurt instead. He gets grumpy hungry and grumpy sleepy. He loves to laugh and he even dances a little.
That's all for now. Here are the pictures:
Christmas 2009
Spring Break
Easter 2010
Fiesta
Thursday, January 14, 2010
New Year's Resolution - post more blogs...
I think we last left off right before our October trip to Chicago.
This post:
Chicago
Halloween
Baptism - Pablo's
Baptism - Mia Gee's
Thanksgiving
Pablo's first birthday
Next post:
Christmas
Pablo's cousins' visit
New Years
Chicago - (Pictures)
We headed to Chicago for Veronica's neuroscience convention. We stayed up there for about 10 days. Half of that being the convention and the other half being Veronica's fall break. Our first stop was Hutch and Carrie's place. We were able to visit with Zane (6 days old) and Grant and conveniently ended up bridging the gap between Carrie's mother and Hutch's mother visiting to help with the new baby. We had a great time, but unfortunately, didn't take very many pictures. It must have had something to do with constantly juggling 3 kids (or 4 kids when Carrie's niece was visiting) and some winter colds.
After a couple of nights staying with Hutch and family (Thanks again, Hutchinsons!!!), we moved on to the hotel for the conference. Pablo definitely enjoyed exploring the hotel. After a few days of Mommy working at the conference and Daddy working at Hutch's during the day, we headed out to Warrenville to visit our friends Craig and Margaret. We owe huge thanks to Carrie, her sisters, Hutch's sister, and Hutch's mother for taking care of Pablo while Mommy and Daddy were working.
In Warrenville, we once again didn't do a great job of taking pictures. We have a few photos of Mia and Andy and Craig, but Margaret managed to escape the lens. We had a lot of fun. Andy played his cello for us. Mia showed us how to eat chocolate and ride on the rocking horse. Craig took us out for burgers at a cool restaurant where your food comes on a train. We ate Uncle Pete's Pizza (best Chicago style pizza ever) and had Oberweis black cherry ice cream.
Other than Pablo battling a cold throughout the trip, it was a huge success!
Halloween - (Pictures)
We had a good time trick or treating at the Zoo Boo at the San Antonio zoo. We were the pirate family and Pablo managed to keep the hat on for about two minutes (which was 1 minute and 50 seconds longer than we anticipated). He had a good time receiving candy (and oohs and ahs) from the girls handing it out at the zoo. He wasn't sure what to do with the candy and we weren't helping him. After a while, he settled on sucking on the twizzlers... still in the package. After zoo boo, we got home in time for trick or treaters. Pablo saw a few come through before he went to bed.
Pablo's Baptism - (Pictures)
November 15, 2009, our little baby boy was baptised into the Catholic church. The ceremony was held during mass at St. Alphonsus church. Father Patout presided and Don Tom and Judy Le are his god parents. I guess that makes Kien his god-cousin? god-brother? brothers...definitely brothers...
The ceremony went well and Pablo made it through the whole time without crying or fussing. Luckily, I had practiced pouring water all over his face during bath time a few times so he was ready for the dousing in church. At one point during the ceremony, they applied some oil to his chest. They don't tell you this ahead of time, but the oil smells pretty good. :)
Don and Judy were great godparents and Kien slept through the whole ceremony. Don didn't even start a fire or put out the candle when he lit our candle. The same can't be said for the other god parents of the other children. All in all, four or five children were baptised that day.
Afterwards, we snapped a few photos outside of the church and then we headed to Pablo's favorite part of the day... lunch time!
We had a nice lunch at Doneraki's with a lot of Pablo's Houston family. Out of towners: Miguel, Danielle, and Lilliana from Dallas. Los Abuelitos from San Antonio. Bridget from College Station. Horty and Rene from Humble (aka north houston). I think folks had a good time at the party. I know that Pablo did! Thanks to everyone for coming!! We loved that you could share this day with us.
Special thanks to Don and Judy for agreeing to be Pablo's godparents. We look
forward to many more happy occasions spent with them (and Kien). Also thanks to Tia Michelle for such a nice and yummy cake.
A week later, we attended Amelia "Mia" Gee's baptism. I have the honor of being Mia's godfather. Pablo definitely let her in on some tips in terms of making it through the ceremony. In return, Mia helped Pablo open a gift from Dave and Carol. It was great to see Dave and Carol and Noah and Mia. We can't wait for another visit!
Thanksgiving - (Pictures)
We were back in Houston shortly after the baptims for Thanksgiving at Granpa Martinez's. Tia Michelle and Veronica cooked up a storm. Granpa Martinez made the turkey and I was just a sous-chef/babysitter. Don't get me wrong. I did my fair share of chopping and mashing and crumbling, but the culinary geniuses behind the meal were Veronica and Michelle.
Bridget came in from College Station to have a home away from home Thanksgiving meal. At the actual meal time, we realized that we had more dishes than people times two. Never fear, we did not let it go to waste as we ate leftovers for a week straight.
It was a good trip. We spent lots of time with Tia Michelle and Grandpa Martinez. We even snuck in a visit to Tia Mary Jane's for their post Thanksgiving lunch meal (aka Thanksgiving dinner). Pablo had a blast. He definitely enjoyed his first Thanksgiving, but not as much as his Mommy enjoyed her first Thanksgiving post pregnancy.
After the turkey day itself, we had a little post-Thanksgiving fun with Don and Judy and Kien. Dim sum on the day after Thanksgiving... why not?!?
Pablo's first birthday - (Pictures)
Let me start by saying that first birthday parties are more for the parents than the children. That being said, we had a doozy planned. The "Twisted Sisters" were coming over (not the 80s rock band, but a couple of balloon twisters that claim they can "make anything given enough time"), some new friends would be there, goodie bags for all, pin the collar on the doggie, a pinata, lots of San Antonio familia, and Grady's BBQ. Grandpa Martinez and Tia Michelle were even in town. I was all set to tell the Sisters to make a Spurs Coyote for Pablo (of course). Then, nature struck... in the form of a stomach virus. I caught it first followed by Pablo, then Mommy. All of this happened the Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday before the Saturday party. Since we were all miserable, but recovering, we thought it would be best not to make everyone who came to his party miserable too. So the party was cancelled.
Never fear. Pablo didn't get sick until Friday which meant that he was able to chow down on his first ever cupcake on Thursday night (his actual birthday). In addition, Frances and her mother were in town so we had a mini celebration with them (we miss you Frances). Plus, the virus didn't stop Tia Michelle and Grandpa Martinez from coming to visit. We got to spend a long weekend with them and they didn't even get sick... until they got back to Houston. I guess it's a good thing for the rest of the guests that we cancelled the party.
On party day, we were finally able to escape the confines of the house and spend some time at the Mercado. We mostly walked around and did a little Christmas shopping, but it was good to get out of the house.
We were sad to say "bye" to Tia Michelle and Grandpa Martinez the next day, but they made it home safe and sound.
That's it for now. I will catch up on Christmas and such in the next post.
This post:
Chicago
Halloween
Baptism - Pablo's
Baptism - Mia Gee's
Thanksgiving
Pablo's first birthday
Next post:
Christmas
Pablo's cousins' visit
New Years
Chicago - (Pictures)
We headed to Chicago for Veronica's neuroscience convention. We stayed up there for about 10 days. Half of that being the convention and the other half being Veronica's fall break. Our first stop was Hutch and Carrie's place. We were able to visit with Zane (6 days old) and Grant and conveniently ended up bridging the gap between Carrie's mother and Hutch's mother visiting to help with the new baby. We had a great time, but unfortunately, didn't take very many pictures. It must have had something to do with constantly juggling 3 kids (or 4 kids when Carrie's niece was visiting) and some winter colds.
After a couple of nights staying with Hutch and family (Thanks again, Hutchinsons!!!), we moved on to the hotel for the conference. Pablo definitely enjoyed exploring the hotel. After a few days of Mommy working at the conference and Daddy working at Hutch's during the day, we headed out to Warrenville to visit our friends Craig and Margaret. We owe huge thanks to Carrie, her sisters, Hutch's sister, and Hutch's mother for taking care of Pablo while Mommy and Daddy were working.
In Warrenville, we once again didn't do a great job of taking pictures. We have a few photos of Mia and Andy and Craig, but Margaret managed to escape the lens. We had a lot of fun. Andy played his cello for us. Mia showed us how to eat chocolate and ride on the rocking horse. Craig took us out for burgers at a cool restaurant where your food comes on a train. We ate Uncle Pete's Pizza (best Chicago style pizza ever) and had Oberweis black cherry ice cream.
Other than Pablo battling a cold throughout the trip, it was a huge success!
Halloween - (Pictures)
We had a good time trick or treating at the Zoo Boo at the San Antonio zoo. We were the pirate family and Pablo managed to keep the hat on for about two minutes (which was 1 minute and 50 seconds longer than we anticipated). He had a good time receiving candy (and oohs and ahs) from the girls handing it out at the zoo. He wasn't sure what to do with the candy and we weren't helping him. After a while, he settled on sucking on the twizzlers... still in the package. After zoo boo, we got home in time for trick or treaters. Pablo saw a few come through before he went to bed.
Pablo's Baptism - (Pictures)
November 15, 2009, our little baby boy was baptised into the Catholic church. The ceremony was held during mass at St. Alphonsus church. Father Patout presided and Don Tom and Judy Le are his god parents. I guess that makes Kien his god-cousin? god-brother? brothers...definitely brothers...
The ceremony went well and Pablo made it through the whole time without crying or fussing. Luckily, I had practiced pouring water all over his face during bath time a few times so he was ready for the dousing in church. At one point during the ceremony, they applied some oil to his chest. They don't tell you this ahead of time, but the oil smells pretty good. :)
Don and Judy were great godparents and Kien slept through the whole ceremony. Don didn't even start a fire or put out the candle when he lit our candle. The same can't be said for the other god parents of the other children. All in all, four or five children were baptised that day.
Afterwards, we snapped a few photos outside of the church and then we headed to Pablo's favorite part of the day... lunch time!
We had a nice lunch at Doneraki's with a lot of Pablo's Houston family. Out of towners: Miguel, Danielle, and Lilliana from Dallas. Los Abuelitos from San Antonio. Bridget from College Station. Horty and Rene from Humble (aka north houston). I think folks had a good time at the party. I know that Pablo did! Thanks to everyone for coming!! We loved that you could share this day with us.
Special thanks to Don and Judy for agreeing to be Pablo's godparents. We look
forward to many more happy occasions spent with them (and Kien). Also thanks to Tia Michelle for such a nice and yummy cake.
A week later, we attended Amelia "Mia" Gee's baptism. I have the honor of being Mia's godfather. Pablo definitely let her in on some tips in terms of making it through the ceremony. In return, Mia helped Pablo open a gift from Dave and Carol. It was great to see Dave and Carol and Noah and Mia. We can't wait for another visit!
Thanksgiving - (Pictures)
We were back in Houston shortly after the baptims for Thanksgiving at Granpa Martinez's. Tia Michelle and Veronica cooked up a storm. Granpa Martinez made the turkey and I was just a sous-chef/babysitter. Don't get me wrong. I did my fair share of chopping and mashing and crumbling, but the culinary geniuses behind the meal were Veronica and Michelle.
Bridget came in from College Station to have a home away from home Thanksgiving meal. At the actual meal time, we realized that we had more dishes than people times two. Never fear, we did not let it go to waste as we ate leftovers for a week straight.
It was a good trip. We spent lots of time with Tia Michelle and Grandpa Martinez. We even snuck in a visit to Tia Mary Jane's for their post Thanksgiving lunch meal (aka Thanksgiving dinner). Pablo had a blast. He definitely enjoyed his first Thanksgiving, but not as much as his Mommy enjoyed her first Thanksgiving post pregnancy.
After the turkey day itself, we had a little post-Thanksgiving fun with Don and Judy and Kien. Dim sum on the day after Thanksgiving... why not?!?
Pablo's first birthday - (Pictures)
Let me start by saying that first birthday parties are more for the parents than the children. That being said, we had a doozy planned. The "Twisted Sisters" were coming over (not the 80s rock band, but a couple of balloon twisters that claim they can "make anything given enough time"), some new friends would be there, goodie bags for all, pin the collar on the doggie, a pinata, lots of San Antonio familia, and Grady's BBQ. Grandpa Martinez and Tia Michelle were even in town. I was all set to tell the Sisters to make a Spurs Coyote for Pablo (of course). Then, nature struck... in the form of a stomach virus. I caught it first followed by Pablo, then Mommy. All of this happened the Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday before the Saturday party. Since we were all miserable, but recovering, we thought it would be best not to make everyone who came to his party miserable too. So the party was cancelled.
Never fear. Pablo didn't get sick until Friday which meant that he was able to chow down on his first ever cupcake on Thursday night (his actual birthday). In addition, Frances and her mother were in town so we had a mini celebration with them (we miss you Frances). Plus, the virus didn't stop Tia Michelle and Grandpa Martinez from coming to visit. We got to spend a long weekend with them and they didn't even get sick... until they got back to Houston. I guess it's a good thing for the rest of the guests that we cancelled the party.
On party day, we were finally able to escape the confines of the house and spend some time at the Mercado. We mostly walked around and did a little Christmas shopping, but it was good to get out of the house.
We were sad to say "bye" to Tia Michelle and Grandpa Martinez the next day, but they made it home safe and sound.
That's it for now. I will catch up on Christmas and such in the next post.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Back to school
August, September, and October have been going by in a blur. Frisbee picked up for Daddy, Mommy started her semester, and Pablo started going to day care. Although there are just as many stories to tell about Pablo growing up, we ended up with fewer photos over this time period. As of writing this blog post, we have resolved ourselves to do a better job of taking pictures of our little one!
Where did we leave off... Oh yeah, August.
August started off with a trip to Houston for a baby shower in V's family as well as her church Bazaar. Pablo did all right on the car ride to and from Houston, but he actually likes travelling by plane better. Being stuck in the car seat for long periods of time is not his favorite activity. Mommy was excited for Pablo to spend time with his great-great aunt Leecha at the baby shower, and Pablo was the apple of his grandfather's eye at the church bazaar.
A couple of weeks later, Mommy had a class that lasted for a whole week in Houston. Mommy and Pablo flew to Houston, and Daddy joined them after returning from his frisbee trip to Seattle. We stayed for the whole week with Alice, John, and little Mia. Thank you so much for your hospitality!! Mia, thanks especially for sharing your toys with Pablo.
Mommy started her semester in late August and Pablo started attending his day care at the beginning of September. They had both gone to meet the teachers in mid August so seeing them again on the first day of school wasn't a complete surprise. After getting over the shock of Mommy leaving him in a strange place, Pablo decided that he loves playing with all the other kids at day care. Plus, they have different toys than the ones he has at home. This was a big change for Pablo, but probably a bigger change for Mommy. It was pretty tough for her to leave her little one when he wasn't 100% happy. Now, Mommy, Daddy, Pablo, and the teachers at the day care are all happy with the arrangement.
With the start of day care, Pablo also started his first bout with a head cold. It took just three days of day care for him to come home sick. Mommy and Daddy would spend the night sitting up with him so that his congestion wouldn't prevent him from sleeping. The end result was that Daddy wore down. 4 days after Pablo was sick, Daddy was sick too. Luckily Mommy has managed to stay healthy and help take care of her boys. Both Pablo & Daddy were better in a weeks time. I guess we should get used to this. :) And so goes August...
September gave us a few opportunities for travel...Pablo helped celebrate Zoe's first birthday party in Austin. The next weekend, we were back in Austin to cheer on Daddy and the rest of Chewbacca Defense at sectionals. The week after sectionals, it was back to the west coast for Bonnie and Jeremy's wedding in Hood River, Oregon. This has to be one of the most beautiful settings for a wedding in the world. The apple orchards were filled with apples ripe for the picking. The flowers were in full bloom. Mt Hood provided a scenic back drop to the ceremony and to the entire weekend. Did I forget to mention that Bonnie looked beautiful and Jeremy looked like... well, Jeremy. The wedding provided another mini Rice reunion. Arpi, Kate, Peter, Don, Judy, and KIEN (at 8 weeks old) shared a house with us in Hood River. We all agreed that we didn't want to leave. Only the LeToms acted on the impulse and stuck around the area for the rest of the week. Side note: you might think that at 8 weeks old, Kien was the youngest baby to fly to the wedding. Not so! John Reese (of "my friend John Reese" stories from Jeremy) showed up at the wedding with a 4 week old who also flew up from Texas.
October started with a bang (and by that, I mean Pablo getting sick again). This time, it was just another head cold, but Daddy managed to stay well while Mommy felt a little sick. The head cold prompted Mommy and Pablo to bail on the trip to Atlanta for Daddy's regionals tournament. Everybody in Atlanta was sad to miss Pablo, but happy that he was on the mend back home.
October has also given us opportunities to visit with friends. Brigitte came for a visit (along with her 2 very sweet kitties!) - we had a great time relaxing and shopping! Dana, Eric, and Lawson came over for some football and dinner on a Sunday afternoon. Pablo was really excited to see Lawson. He was chatting and chatting with him and he doesn't do that for just anybody. The next day, Romi dropped in for a visit on her fall break - what a treat! Pablo and Romi had lots of fun hanging out together! This week comes to a close with Mom scrambling to get her work done before the big Neuroscience conference in Chicago and hoping that her boys start feeling better (as they both now have the sniffles again). This week ends with Mommy, Daddy, and Pablo off to the Society for Neuroscience conference where Mommy and her research student will present their summer research and learn how to earn more grants! We will be sure to post some exciting pictures from Chicago!
That pretty much brings us up to date on Pablo's travels. Let's talk firsts!!
Pablo is eating like a champ now (2 jars of baby food, 1 cup of yogurt and some solid foods at his biggest meal). He sleeps through the night (most nights) and is down to one nap per day. He has been crawling for about 3 weeks now, and he LOOOOOOOOVES to be able to get around by himself. He also has a tendency to head for items/places that he shouldn't. Mommy is convinced that he is doing this in a mischievious way, but Daddy believes that it is simple curiousity. Since we never let him play with those items (ex. power outlets), they remain new and interesting to him. Of course, Mommy is right. :)
He loves "talking" to Mommy and Daddy. His favorite sounds include "bababababababa", "yayayayayayaya", and "dadadadadadada". He branches out with all kinds of other less intellible noises including growling and a high pitched highly expressive sound that can mean anything from "hey look at me" to "what's that thing" to "huh".
Pablo loves day care. He still really wants to walk. He loves watching the big kids play. He likes pepperoni. He still doesn't like vegetables (he only eats them when mixed with fruit or yogurt). He is beginning to want to feed himself more and more (which makes for messier and messier meals). He is recognizing more people now. He loves his doggies. He still really loves Frances. He loves her so much, he stashed her keys the other day so she had to stick around longer looking for them. He gets excited when he sees his Abuelitos and his tia Syl. Let's not forget Mommy and Daddy. He seems to know who we are. :)
November will bring more travels - this time back to Houston to spend some quality time with Grandpa Jay, Tia Michelle, and other Houston relatives and friends. We are excited to share Thanksgiving with the Martinez family and to see what Pablo thinks of his 1st Thanksgiving Lunch! ;) Mmmm....Turkey!
Here are the pics
Where did we leave off... Oh yeah, August.
August started off with a trip to Houston for a baby shower in V's family as well as her church Bazaar. Pablo did all right on the car ride to and from Houston, but he actually likes travelling by plane better. Being stuck in the car seat for long periods of time is not his favorite activity. Mommy was excited for Pablo to spend time with his great-great aunt Leecha at the baby shower, and Pablo was the apple of his grandfather's eye at the church bazaar.
A couple of weeks later, Mommy had a class that lasted for a whole week in Houston. Mommy and Pablo flew to Houston, and Daddy joined them after returning from his frisbee trip to Seattle. We stayed for the whole week with Alice, John, and little Mia. Thank you so much for your hospitality!! Mia, thanks especially for sharing your toys with Pablo.
Mommy started her semester in late August and Pablo started attending his day care at the beginning of September. They had both gone to meet the teachers in mid August so seeing them again on the first day of school wasn't a complete surprise. After getting over the shock of Mommy leaving him in a strange place, Pablo decided that he loves playing with all the other kids at day care. Plus, they have different toys than the ones he has at home. This was a big change for Pablo, but probably a bigger change for Mommy. It was pretty tough for her to leave her little one when he wasn't 100% happy. Now, Mommy, Daddy, Pablo, and the teachers at the day care are all happy with the arrangement.
With the start of day care, Pablo also started his first bout with a head cold. It took just three days of day care for him to come home sick. Mommy and Daddy would spend the night sitting up with him so that his congestion wouldn't prevent him from sleeping. The end result was that Daddy wore down. 4 days after Pablo was sick, Daddy was sick too. Luckily Mommy has managed to stay healthy and help take care of her boys. Both Pablo & Daddy were better in a weeks time. I guess we should get used to this. :) And so goes August...
September gave us a few opportunities for travel...Pablo helped celebrate Zoe's first birthday party in Austin. The next weekend, we were back in Austin to cheer on Daddy and the rest of Chewbacca Defense at sectionals. The week after sectionals, it was back to the west coast for Bonnie and Jeremy's wedding in Hood River, Oregon. This has to be one of the most beautiful settings for a wedding in the world. The apple orchards were filled with apples ripe for the picking. The flowers were in full bloom. Mt Hood provided a scenic back drop to the ceremony and to the entire weekend. Did I forget to mention that Bonnie looked beautiful and Jeremy looked like... well, Jeremy. The wedding provided another mini Rice reunion. Arpi, Kate, Peter, Don, Judy, and KIEN (at 8 weeks old) shared a house with us in Hood River. We all agreed that we didn't want to leave. Only the LeToms acted on the impulse and stuck around the area for the rest of the week. Side note: you might think that at 8 weeks old, Kien was the youngest baby to fly to the wedding. Not so! John Reese (of "my friend John Reese" stories from Jeremy) showed up at the wedding with a 4 week old who also flew up from Texas.
October started with a bang (and by that, I mean Pablo getting sick again). This time, it was just another head cold, but Daddy managed to stay well while Mommy felt a little sick. The head cold prompted Mommy and Pablo to bail on the trip to Atlanta for Daddy's regionals tournament. Everybody in Atlanta was sad to miss Pablo, but happy that he was on the mend back home.
October has also given us opportunities to visit with friends. Brigitte came for a visit (along with her 2 very sweet kitties!) - we had a great time relaxing and shopping! Dana, Eric, and Lawson came over for some football and dinner on a Sunday afternoon. Pablo was really excited to see Lawson. He was chatting and chatting with him and he doesn't do that for just anybody. The next day, Romi dropped in for a visit on her fall break - what a treat! Pablo and Romi had lots of fun hanging out together! This week comes to a close with Mom scrambling to get her work done before the big Neuroscience conference in Chicago and hoping that her boys start feeling better (as they both now have the sniffles again). This week ends with Mommy, Daddy, and Pablo off to the Society for Neuroscience conference where Mommy and her research student will present their summer research and learn how to earn more grants! We will be sure to post some exciting pictures from Chicago!
That pretty much brings us up to date on Pablo's travels. Let's talk firsts!!
Pablo is eating like a champ now (2 jars of baby food, 1 cup of yogurt and some solid foods at his biggest meal). He sleeps through the night (most nights) and is down to one nap per day. He has been crawling for about 3 weeks now, and he LOOOOOOOOVES to be able to get around by himself. He also has a tendency to head for items/places that he shouldn't. Mommy is convinced that he is doing this in a mischievious way, but Daddy believes that it is simple curiousity. Since we never let him play with those items (ex. power outlets), they remain new and interesting to him. Of course, Mommy is right. :)
He loves "talking" to Mommy and Daddy. His favorite sounds include "bababababababa", "yayayayayayaya", and "dadadadadadada". He branches out with all kinds of other less intellible noises including growling and a high pitched highly expressive sound that can mean anything from "hey look at me" to "what's that thing" to "huh".
Pablo loves day care. He still really wants to walk. He loves watching the big kids play. He likes pepperoni. He still doesn't like vegetables (he only eats them when mixed with fruit or yogurt). He is beginning to want to feed himself more and more (which makes for messier and messier meals). He is recognizing more people now. He loves his doggies. He still really loves Frances. He loves her so much, he stashed her keys the other day so she had to stick around longer looking for them. He gets excited when he sees his Abuelitos and his tia Syl. Let's not forget Mommy and Daddy. He seems to know who we are. :)
November will bring more travels - this time back to Houston to spend some quality time with Grandpa Jay, Tia Michelle, and other Houston relatives and friends. We are excited to share Thanksgiving with the Martinez family and to see what Pablo thinks of his 1st Thanksgiving Lunch! ;) Mmmm....Turkey!
Here are the pics
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Midsummer night's dream
I know we have been over due for a post for a while. Don't worry, we won't short change you on the photos. The links for the June and July photos are at the end of the post.
So our little boy has grown up a lot over the past two months, and he has also become quite the traveller. We are just amazed at the little person he is becoming...mommy cries on a regular basis because her baby is slowly turning into a little boy before our eyes. It's amazing to hear him explore his voice (you should hear some of the noises he makes and faces to go along with them). And he just keeps getting longer and longer...he quickly moved from 6mon. clothing (which he must of worn for about a week) into 9-12mon. clothing! Needless to say, he's growing into a very healthy boy!
As for his summer fun, we finished off May with a trip to Houston for Memorial Day and for his grandfather's birthday. The weekend ended back in SA with V getting into a fender bender near the house. Fortunately, Pablo was at home with Daddy that evening so no worries about him being hurt. The other driver was at fault and he had insurance so in the end, every body was ok and it was a slight inconvenience for us.
The following weekend we went to Austin to celebrate the upcoming arrival of Hoo Dat Tom (aka Kien Le Tom...Don and Judy's newest addition to the family). Pablo had a great time hanging out with all the Austinites as well as a Californian and some Houstonians who made their way into town. He also learned a new song, which quickly became a family favorite, "Don Gato"!
Then back to SA where Pablo attended his first family graduation. Cousin Robbie graduated from high school and will be attending Texas A&M in the Fall. Pablo slept through most of the dinner like a champ and woke up with just enough time to say hello and congratulations! Congratulations Robbie!!.
The rest of June was filled with visits from Grandpa Jay and Tia Michelle and our good friend, Mary Beth. Pablo loves when people come to visit! Later that month, Pablo returned to Austin where he partied like a rock star at Max and Casi's wedding. Actually, he managed to stay quiet (mostly) during the ceremony, make a huge mess during dinner, then pass out in the bridal changing room with mommy. All in all, it was a successful night. Thanks Max and Casi for such a fun time!
June also brought our 1st Father's Day! I know, I know, not as important as Mother's day, but we still celebrated with some tacos and friends at breakfast. All in all it was a great Father-son morning where we played at the local fountain park in the water. The Mackie's, Karia's, and Tom's all joined us. Good times!
July began with a bang where Pablo moved his show nationwide. I am talking coast to coast. For the fourth of July weekend, we all travelled to Boston to hang out with Fernando, Laura, Izzie, and Leo. After hanging out in Harvard Square with our friend Rhonda, we headed up to Maine to stay at Chez Reese. Lots of mud walking, kayaking, croquet, scavenger hunting, good beer drinking, and general relaxing was had by all. We also celebrated a big B-day for Laura!!! She received a lot of nice gifts, but the best one might have been Izzie's invention of the baby sea gull dance. (I think we have video, but no pictures...). It was great for the Acosta cousins to hang out - definately a summer tradition! At the end of the trip Pablo also visited with Naomi (mommy's old roomie) and Theresa. All in all...a very nice trip...not to mention the beautifully cool weather.
Pablo did great on the plane. No direct flights from SA to Boston so there were 4 flying legs of the trip. On each leg, Pablo was able to sleep for some or all of the time. He didn't make a big fuss at all (although an extremely dirty diaper change on the tray tables just before landing avoided one potential fussy spell) and won the hearts of his fellow travellers with his good looks and his ability to not cry. :)
Since Pablo passed his first long plane trip test, we decided to see if it was a fluke by taking him to the west coast for a mini Rice reunion. BBRAG 2009 was held in Big Bear, California. We met up with all but one of the travellers who were on the Alaska trip in summer of 98. In attendance were, Terry and Arpi (our hosts), Kate and Peter, Carrie and Hutch and Grant, and an unannounced Jeremy and Bonnie (soon to be married). Unfortunately, due to the impending arrival of Hoo Dat, Judy and Don couldn't make it. We also missed Uncle Damien (the lone member of the Alaska trip who couldn't make it).
At BBRAG, Pablo watched Grant's every move with something close to envy. Yes, our little boy can't wait to be able to move around on his own. So far, he has only managed some furniture assisted scooting and a ton of rolling over. He's on the verge of crawling but, really really wants to walk.
He enjoyed hiking and the baby pool, but even though he kept a decent sleep schedule, the time changes were starting to catch up with him a little bit. Pablo did a fair bit of co-sleeping on this trip and Mommy and Daddy knew that some serious schedule adjustments would need to be made once we got home.
There can't possibly be any more weekends of travel in July, right? Well, we actually chose to stay home for a weekend. Since we didn't travel anywhere, friends came to visit us! This was great because Mommy was home alone with Daddy in Tampa. The week started with a visit by the Lastovica's, Aunt Romi, and finished with Zack and Candace who joined us for the last weekend in July. We had a blast!! I am not sure if we convinced them that having a baby was easier or harder than they imagined, but Pablo may have spoiled them since he was on his best behavior that weekend. In addition to all the temporary visitors, Pablo has a new friend to hang out with every day...Frances! Frances joined us for a 12 week internship in SA. Pablo has a little crush on Frances...as he does on most cute girls he meets. It's been great for us to have a friend to hang out with at night and a new friend for Pablo. Welcome, Frances!
So... about that schedule thing. This past week, V and I have been making a concerted effort to get Pablo on a more regular sleep/eat/play schedule. This is especially important as Pablo will be starting daycare or "school" (as mommy likes to call it) in September. And every teacher in our family has told us often how important a good nights sleep is for a good day at school! We have taken all the advice that our friends have ever given us (not to mention all the books we've read) and put together the Acosta method. Basically, we follow the method that Angel outlined for us when they were getting Aiden to go to sleep (Thanks Angel, Roscoe, and Aiden!!) It has been tough on Mommy and Daddy, but Pablo has been able to put himself to sleep each night (with a little crying). Since doing so, he has slept through the night every night. We hope this keeps up, but with less crying (he was down to under 15 minutes of crying last night). He does better going down on his own for naps (usually under 5 minutes and he is out). It makes both V and I sad to hear him cry at night, but we know it is for the best. What we like best about this sleep plan was that although we are not allowed to pick him up, the time intervals are shorter so that we can comfort him more through patting his back and telling him how much we love him. That makes everything so much easier. So far, I have been the one to put him down each night, and Mommy is a little scared to do it on her own. She may need some moral support during my next frisbee trip so be alert for the phone call. :)
That's a brief summer journal for little Pablo. I think he is a silver elite member on Continental at this point. On one of our flights this summer, he was upgraded while V and I were not, go figure. Unfortunately, they wouldn't let him ride in first class alone so he was sent to the back with the rest of us. ;)
He had lots of fun visiting all of his friends and family. Thanks to everyone that hosted us or took us to the airport or gave Pablo a hug on his travels. We really appreciate it.
In terms of baby news, Pablo really really wants to move on his own, crawling or walking. He likes pulling himself up on his play table. He still loves his baby bouncer (which is now on the tallest setting). He is down to two naps a day and has recently been sleeping through the night. He loves loves loves swimming, especially at his Abuelita's neighborhood pool. He loves going to Baby Time at the Library on Monday & Wednesday and can't wait for Music Together to start up again in September. He recently visited one of Abuelita's line dancing classes and he had a blast (mainly because he gets tons of attention from all the line dancing ladies). He started eating strawberries and tears into them like his Daddy tears into Bacon (I'm a little scared to see what it will be like when he actually eats bacon...). He is still a Momma's boy, but Daddy is clearly in second place if you only count humans (fourth place if you count the dogs and I am steadily losing ground to Frances). He loves taking his nightly bath and looking at himself in the mirror. He loves his bedtime story (Goodnight Moon) and another favorite is Brown Bear, Brown Bear (which we read at least 50 times on one of the flights). He loves getting post cards (mostly he loves eating them - thanks Tia Michelle, Sonny, & Isabella!). Mommy downloaded some cool iPhone baby apps so Pablo now thinks her iPhone is his toy. He rides in his stroller without the baby seat (this is old news, but I am not sure if we mentioned it before). He regularly downs 6 ounces of baby food/rice cereal mix followed by strawberries in addition to all of his daily milk. He likes the whirling dervish dance in Fantasia (hmm, loud fast music, why would he like that). :) He loves typing on a keyboard at the computer. He loves pressing buttons in general. If there is something that you don't want him to put in his mouth, he loves putting it in his mouth (ex. rocks and dirt at SA frisbee pickup). He loves jumping off the edge of the bed and having someone catch him, although he almost immediately tried to jump off even if there is noone to catch him (Daddy definitely did not teach him this trick). Vegetables are not his favorite thing (I am actually sad about this, but we are working on it). He is not sure whether he likes the taste of salt. So far, the answer is no, but he keeps thinking about it. We could go on and on about all our favorite things about Pablo...but you can see for yourself...Enjoy the new pics!
Signed...Pablo's Mom & Dad
June - click here
July - click here
So our little boy has grown up a lot over the past two months, and he has also become quite the traveller. We are just amazed at the little person he is becoming...mommy cries on a regular basis because her baby is slowly turning into a little boy before our eyes. It's amazing to hear him explore his voice (you should hear some of the noises he makes and faces to go along with them). And he just keeps getting longer and longer...he quickly moved from 6mon. clothing (which he must of worn for about a week) into 9-12mon. clothing! Needless to say, he's growing into a very healthy boy!
As for his summer fun, we finished off May with a trip to Houston for Memorial Day and for his grandfather's birthday. The weekend ended back in SA with V getting into a fender bender near the house. Fortunately, Pablo was at home with Daddy that evening so no worries about him being hurt. The other driver was at fault and he had insurance so in the end, every body was ok and it was a slight inconvenience for us.
The following weekend we went to Austin to celebrate the upcoming arrival of Hoo Dat Tom (aka Kien Le Tom...Don and Judy's newest addition to the family). Pablo had a great time hanging out with all the Austinites as well as a Californian and some Houstonians who made their way into town. He also learned a new song, which quickly became a family favorite, "Don Gato"!
Then back to SA where Pablo attended his first family graduation. Cousin Robbie graduated from high school and will be attending Texas A&M in the Fall. Pablo slept through most of the dinner like a champ and woke up with just enough time to say hello and congratulations! Congratulations Robbie!!.
The rest of June was filled with visits from Grandpa Jay and Tia Michelle and our good friend, Mary Beth. Pablo loves when people come to visit! Later that month, Pablo returned to Austin where he partied like a rock star at Max and Casi's wedding. Actually, he managed to stay quiet (mostly) during the ceremony, make a huge mess during dinner, then pass out in the bridal changing room with mommy. All in all, it was a successful night. Thanks Max and Casi for such a fun time!
June also brought our 1st Father's Day! I know, I know, not as important as Mother's day, but we still celebrated with some tacos and friends at breakfast. All in all it was a great Father-son morning where we played at the local fountain park in the water. The Mackie's, Karia's, and Tom's all joined us. Good times!
July began with a bang where Pablo moved his show nationwide. I am talking coast to coast. For the fourth of July weekend, we all travelled to Boston to hang out with Fernando, Laura, Izzie, and Leo. After hanging out in Harvard Square with our friend Rhonda, we headed up to Maine to stay at Chez Reese. Lots of mud walking, kayaking, croquet, scavenger hunting, good beer drinking, and general relaxing was had by all. We also celebrated a big B-day for Laura!!! She received a lot of nice gifts, but the best one might have been Izzie's invention of the baby sea gull dance. (I think we have video, but no pictures...). It was great for the Acosta cousins to hang out - definately a summer tradition! At the end of the trip Pablo also visited with Naomi (mommy's old roomie) and Theresa. All in all...a very nice trip...not to mention the beautifully cool weather.
Pablo did great on the plane. No direct flights from SA to Boston so there were 4 flying legs of the trip. On each leg, Pablo was able to sleep for some or all of the time. He didn't make a big fuss at all (although an extremely dirty diaper change on the tray tables just before landing avoided one potential fussy spell) and won the hearts of his fellow travellers with his good looks and his ability to not cry. :)
Since Pablo passed his first long plane trip test, we decided to see if it was a fluke by taking him to the west coast for a mini Rice reunion. BBRAG 2009 was held in Big Bear, California. We met up with all but one of the travellers who were on the Alaska trip in summer of 98. In attendance were, Terry and Arpi (our hosts), Kate and Peter, Carrie and Hutch and Grant, and an unannounced Jeremy and Bonnie (soon to be married). Unfortunately, due to the impending arrival of Hoo Dat, Judy and Don couldn't make it. We also missed Uncle Damien (the lone member of the Alaska trip who couldn't make it).
At BBRAG, Pablo watched Grant's every move with something close to envy. Yes, our little boy can't wait to be able to move around on his own. So far, he has only managed some furniture assisted scooting and a ton of rolling over. He's on the verge of crawling but, really really wants to walk.
He enjoyed hiking and the baby pool, but even though he kept a decent sleep schedule, the time changes were starting to catch up with him a little bit. Pablo did a fair bit of co-sleeping on this trip and Mommy and Daddy knew that some serious schedule adjustments would need to be made once we got home.
There can't possibly be any more weekends of travel in July, right? Well, we actually chose to stay home for a weekend. Since we didn't travel anywhere, friends came to visit us! This was great because Mommy was home alone with Daddy in Tampa. The week started with a visit by the Lastovica's, Aunt Romi, and finished with Zack and Candace who joined us for the last weekend in July. We had a blast!! I am not sure if we convinced them that having a baby was easier or harder than they imagined, but Pablo may have spoiled them since he was on his best behavior that weekend. In addition to all the temporary visitors, Pablo has a new friend to hang out with every day...Frances! Frances joined us for a 12 week internship in SA. Pablo has a little crush on Frances...as he does on most cute girls he meets. It's been great for us to have a friend to hang out with at night and a new friend for Pablo. Welcome, Frances!
So... about that schedule thing. This past week, V and I have been making a concerted effort to get Pablo on a more regular sleep/eat/play schedule. This is especially important as Pablo will be starting daycare or "school" (as mommy likes to call it) in September. And every teacher in our family has told us often how important a good nights sleep is for a good day at school! We have taken all the advice that our friends have ever given us (not to mention all the books we've read) and put together the Acosta method. Basically, we follow the method that Angel outlined for us when they were getting Aiden to go to sleep (Thanks Angel, Roscoe, and Aiden!!) It has been tough on Mommy and Daddy, but Pablo has been able to put himself to sleep each night (with a little crying). Since doing so, he has slept through the night every night. We hope this keeps up, but with less crying (he was down to under 15 minutes of crying last night). He does better going down on his own for naps (usually under 5 minutes and he is out). It makes both V and I sad to hear him cry at night, but we know it is for the best. What we like best about this sleep plan was that although we are not allowed to pick him up, the time intervals are shorter so that we can comfort him more through patting his back and telling him how much we love him. That makes everything so much easier. So far, I have been the one to put him down each night, and Mommy is a little scared to do it on her own. She may need some moral support during my next frisbee trip so be alert for the phone call. :)
That's a brief summer journal for little Pablo. I think he is a silver elite member on Continental at this point. On one of our flights this summer, he was upgraded while V and I were not, go figure. Unfortunately, they wouldn't let him ride in first class alone so he was sent to the back with the rest of us. ;)
He had lots of fun visiting all of his friends and family. Thanks to everyone that hosted us or took us to the airport or gave Pablo a hug on his travels. We really appreciate it.
In terms of baby news, Pablo really really wants to move on his own, crawling or walking. He likes pulling himself up on his play table. He still loves his baby bouncer (which is now on the tallest setting). He is down to two naps a day and has recently been sleeping through the night. He loves loves loves swimming, especially at his Abuelita's neighborhood pool. He loves going to Baby Time at the Library on Monday & Wednesday and can't wait for Music Together to start up again in September. He recently visited one of Abuelita's line dancing classes and he had a blast (mainly because he gets tons of attention from all the line dancing ladies). He started eating strawberries and tears into them like his Daddy tears into Bacon (I'm a little scared to see what it will be like when he actually eats bacon...). He is still a Momma's boy, but Daddy is clearly in second place if you only count humans (fourth place if you count the dogs and I am steadily losing ground to Frances). He loves taking his nightly bath and looking at himself in the mirror. He loves his bedtime story (Goodnight Moon) and another favorite is Brown Bear, Brown Bear (which we read at least 50 times on one of the flights). He loves getting post cards (mostly he loves eating them - thanks Tia Michelle, Sonny, & Isabella!). Mommy downloaded some cool iPhone baby apps so Pablo now thinks her iPhone is his toy. He rides in his stroller without the baby seat (this is old news, but I am not sure if we mentioned it before). He regularly downs 6 ounces of baby food/rice cereal mix followed by strawberries in addition to all of his daily milk. He likes the whirling dervish dance in Fantasia (hmm, loud fast music, why would he like that). :) He loves typing on a keyboard at the computer. He loves pressing buttons in general. If there is something that you don't want him to put in his mouth, he loves putting it in his mouth (ex. rocks and dirt at SA frisbee pickup). He loves jumping off the edge of the bed and having someone catch him, although he almost immediately tried to jump off even if there is noone to catch him (Daddy definitely did not teach him this trick). Vegetables are not his favorite thing (I am actually sad about this, but we are working on it). He is not sure whether he likes the taste of salt. So far, the answer is no, but he keeps thinking about it. We could go on and on about all our favorite things about Pablo...but you can see for yourself...Enjoy the new pics!
Signed...Pablo's Mom & Dad
June - click here
July - click here
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Month full of firsts
Well, almost another month has past and Pablo is still setting personal bests in almost every aspect of his life. He had a new biggest poop (and I think I am the definitive expert on the size of his poops) among other things.
Most importantly, it was Pablo's first Mother's day!! We took Mom out for a nice dinner on Friday night at a Puerto Rican restaurant called La Marginal. We loved the food and the atmosphere, but Pablo got a little fussy before we left. We bought Mom some wind chimes for the back yard which she loves. On Sunday, we went to church where Pablo had a poop that managed to escape his diapers. Luckily, I was able to catch it in his hand before it got all over the church carpet (Yuck!!!). After cleaning up and finishing mass, we went out to lunch with his abuelitos Acosta and his Tio Abuelos Guerra. His cousins Lisi and Monci were there too. At the restaurant, Pablo repeated his diaper defying pooping skills in his abuelita's lap. This kid has talent.
He really enjoys splashing in his baby pool. The water always seems cold to mommy and Laura, but Pablo likes it just fine. Sadly, the pool is very small and I have not been successful in my attempts to sit in it. I can see swim classes just around the corner for our little guy. Unfortunately, given my swimming genes, Michael Phelps' records are all safe from Pablo.
He loves to eat, but Mommy's milk is still his favorite. We started giving him some baby food and he loves to put his hands on the food end of the spoon as we try to feed him. Some of the food does make it into his stomach, but judging by the carnage after a "meal", I would say it is about a 50-50 proposition. Now that we are using the little booster seat, it allows him to sit up and it makes it slightly easier to feed him, but the results are still the same.
Lately, he has been sleeping well at pretty consistent intervals (two 3-4 hour stretches). Despite our best efforts, he still goes to sleep between 11P and midnight. If we manage to get him to go to sleep before that, he wakes up within an hour or two and is ready to play. I don't know if it was our fault or genetics, but we have a night owl on our hands. The past two nights, he has surprised us with long streches of sleep (a six hour stretch two nights ago, an 8 hour stretch last night). We know not to get our hopes up, but we can't help it. :) Once we get a consistent long stretch of sleep, we can work on starting it earlier and earlier. If that doesn't happen before Max and Casi's wedding, then Pablo can stay up later with his Uncle Damien!!
Let's see, here are some of the highlights:
- first time to roll over (front to back)
- first time to eat baby food (peas, then carrots, then sweet potatoes, then apples - pears and bananas are next)
- first mother's day
- first time sitting up in the stroller as a big boy (no car seat)
- first time sitting in a "high" chair (it's more of a booster seat)
- first time to sit behind home plate at a baseball game
- first picture with Mr. Buddy
- first time meeting his Tia Abuela, Sandra
- first time meeting lots of Austin folks including Marisa and Stew
- first dip in his kiddie pool
- first time wearing a Wisconsin t-shirt (Thanks, Dana)
- first wedding shower (Congrats again Max and Casi!! see you in a couple of weeks)
- first time the doggies came up to him to snuggle (he LOOOOOVED this)
- he likes to pet the doggies, but we have to be careful to keep him from pulling their fur
Here is the link to the pictures and a couple of bonus links to some video of our little guy performing his tricks:
Photos
Pablo rolling over take 1
Pablo rolling over - bird's eye view
Most importantly, it was Pablo's first Mother's day!! We took Mom out for a nice dinner on Friday night at a Puerto Rican restaurant called La Marginal. We loved the food and the atmosphere, but Pablo got a little fussy before we left. We bought Mom some wind chimes for the back yard which she loves. On Sunday, we went to church where Pablo had a poop that managed to escape his diapers. Luckily, I was able to catch it in his hand before it got all over the church carpet (Yuck!!!). After cleaning up and finishing mass, we went out to lunch with his abuelitos Acosta and his Tio Abuelos Guerra. His cousins Lisi and Monci were there too. At the restaurant, Pablo repeated his diaper defying pooping skills in his abuelita's lap. This kid has talent.
He really enjoys splashing in his baby pool. The water always seems cold to mommy and Laura, but Pablo likes it just fine. Sadly, the pool is very small and I have not been successful in my attempts to sit in it. I can see swim classes just around the corner for our little guy. Unfortunately, given my swimming genes, Michael Phelps' records are all safe from Pablo.
He loves to eat, but Mommy's milk is still his favorite. We started giving him some baby food and he loves to put his hands on the food end of the spoon as we try to feed him. Some of the food does make it into his stomach, but judging by the carnage after a "meal", I would say it is about a 50-50 proposition. Now that we are using the little booster seat, it allows him to sit up and it makes it slightly easier to feed him, but the results are still the same.
Lately, he has been sleeping well at pretty consistent intervals (two 3-4 hour stretches). Despite our best efforts, he still goes to sleep between 11P and midnight. If we manage to get him to go to sleep before that, he wakes up within an hour or two and is ready to play. I don't know if it was our fault or genetics, but we have a night owl on our hands. The past two nights, he has surprised us with long streches of sleep (a six hour stretch two nights ago, an 8 hour stretch last night). We know not to get our hopes up, but we can't help it. :) Once we get a consistent long stretch of sleep, we can work on starting it earlier and earlier. If that doesn't happen before Max and Casi's wedding, then Pablo can stay up later with his Uncle Damien!!
Let's see, here are some of the highlights:
- first time to roll over (front to back)
- first time to eat baby food (peas, then carrots, then sweet potatoes, then apples - pears and bananas are next)
- first mother's day
- first time sitting up in the stroller as a big boy (no car seat)
- first time sitting in a "high" chair (it's more of a booster seat)
- first time to sit behind home plate at a baseball game
- first picture with Mr. Buddy
- first time meeting his Tia Abuela, Sandra
- first time meeting lots of Austin folks including Marisa and Stew
- first dip in his kiddie pool
- first time wearing a Wisconsin t-shirt (Thanks, Dana)
- first wedding shower (Congrats again Max and Casi!! see you in a couple of weeks)
- first time the doggies came up to him to snuggle (he LOOOOOVED this)
- he likes to pet the doggies, but we have to be careful to keep him from pulling their fur
Here is the link to the pictures and a couple of bonus links to some video of our little guy performing his tricks:
Photos
Pablo rolling over take 1
Pablo rolling over - bird's eye view
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)