Hasta Luego 2008 - Bienvenido 2009

Maria and I have had quite a year. I am glad to say that all but only a few hours are now behind us. 2008 had many ups and just a few downs. I think Maria and I accomplished great amounts and grew a lot. The year had its fair share of challenges but it was packed full of great moments as well.

Some of the great moments that come to mind include:

-Finding out that Maria was prego and subsequently finding out that we were having a boy.

-Our seperate cruises to Mexico.

-The purchase of our new home.

-The birth of Davis (I count that as a great moment, I think Maria still might see it as the single hardest and most painful moment of her life).

-The simple but wonderful celebration of our 2 year anniversary.

There were, of course, some not so great moments in 2008 but the amazing thing about time is that it manages to erase much of the negative and highlights the positive. While the negative moments are still fresh in our minds I hope that it will serve as a refiner to make us better people and a happier family.

Things that make me laugh

Tony Little's Gazelle

My Dad had a bunch of work out videos of Tony Little growing up and we used to watch them just to laugh. I am very envious of his long flowing pony tail.

Bette Midler

When Jennifer and I were 10 years old we had her CD and would make up dances in our living room. ( "Miss Ottis regrets were unable to lunch today, Madam" You know what I'm talking about Jennifer. )

Yani

enough said

Ho Ho Oh No!

Maria and I woke up early Christmas morning before Davis woke up and were able to spend the morning together. We prepared for family who was going to come over for breakfast and to open gifts. As the first of the visitors came they notified me that one of my tires was flat. I took the car to Wal-Mart this morning and there was a nail in the side wall so we had to replace the tire. Good thing Maria and I had decided not to spend any money on each other or Davis this year for Christmas to save for such expenses...

I have had many fun times under and around this tree. From swinging from it, swimming under it, hiking around it, and more. From the time I was a youngster, my best friend and I would pack a lunch and peddle our little huffy bicycles to this location and spend summer days near this tree. We would strip down to our briefs and swim under this tree (against our parents wishes) and when we got older it was the location of many great paintball wars.

I remember one night while driving around, my friends truck broke down and left us stranded here. We enjoyed the walk, in pitch black, back into town (we didn't need light, after all we knew the area inside out).

It was here where many a throw downs took place, between a Ford Escort and a Geo Tracker. That little Escort never let me down.

There was so much about this old tree and its surroundings that were forbidden that made it so much more intriguing.

The hill that lies behind this tree was a challenge to climb (in my parents Durango... again against their wishes) but no where else could you look over the sleepy town.

I found this picture, and flipped it upside down, and it is still recognizable to me as nature's playground.

Good'ole Paterson's Pond.

(Picture by: Russell Darling posted at "I grew up in St. Johns" - Facebook.com)

Feeling pretty crappy...

I am sick.

Well I was sick, I am feeling better now. Over the last 36 hours or so I have had the worst stomach ache and diarrhea. Most would get sick just seeing what I have done to the toilet. I am glad though to be feeling better. Tonight I ate the firs solid food since Tuesday night and it seems to be sitting well with me.

I don't know if I got a bug, the flu or as I suspect food poisoning from the work cafeteria (how could you do this to me Rosa- I once loved your wraps but now... after this... you and your chicken Caesar spinach wraps are dead to me!).

My First Day Back to Work

I have been dreading this day since Davis came into our lives on Oct 21st. Last night I cried, woke up this morning and cried before and on the way to work. Jake was such a support to me and just held me and let me cry. I hate to leave my little baby, but feel blessed that Kelly and Lara will be there to watch Davis. To take my mind off of not being home I went to Costco at lunch with a few of my co-workers. It just reminded me of how many times I have dragged Davis to Costco with me over the past two months. :) I love being a Mom and look forward to the day that I can stay at home with Davis.

The Gift of Life

Yesterday, out the the immense goodness and kindness of my heart I decided to donate blood. I showed up to work early and went through the screening process and before I knew it I had a needle in me. As the blood flowed the technician tried to slide a plastic sleeve over the edge of the exposed portion of the needle. When she attempted to do this she moved the needle and the flow of blood stopped. She then attempted to dig around to find the vein again with no success. After what seemed to be several minutes of scrambling the insides of my arm she removed the needle and asked if I would like to try the other arm. Me and my extreme generosity said sure. She then began to prep my other arm when she was stopped by her supervisor. I guess when blood reaches the collection bag (and it had... it was about 1/3 full!) they can't start a new line in either arm. My gift of life was rejected.

PS - I will try to post a picture of the huge bruise on my arm when I get home tonight.

Work Promotion

The new job is going well. So well in fact that I have decided to promote myself to: Executive Senior Assistant Supreme to Dan (Dan being our team leader). The promotion came after I decided to begin taking memo's for my supervisor after he randomly says "take a memo". Soon he began to ask me to send out group emails to our team, organize and conduct meetings and more. As I took on more 'responsibilities' I also took on additional superlatives. Dan says he likes the position I have created so much that he wants to begin rotating it around all of my team mates (so everyone else gets a chance to be what I became). So come Monday of next week I will be nothing once again.

Sugar Free Update (for Jake atleast)

Maria and I continue to be sugar free!! Maria only has a few months before her big payout and I still have the better half of a year. The weight loss for both of us has slowed. For a while I actually began to put the weight back on!! At the time I made the post "Sweet taste of weight loss" I had lost 17 pounds. I then put on about 3-5 of those pounds but today I stepped on the scale after a while of avoiding it found that I am back down!! To date I have lost 21 pounds (since June 10th)

Weekend Madness

This weekend was crazy to say the least. It started early Friday morning when Maria began to not feel very well. She had tossed and turned all night complaining that her entire body was achy. I suggested that she take a shower and she did. While in the shower she blacked out again and fell. I helped her up and back into the bed where she laid most the morning. I called in to work to stay home and play doctor daddy for both Maria and Davis (who was not feeling well either).

That night some friends came over with dinner (they are so good to us) because they knew that Maria was not feeling well. Having eight extra hands in the house I put them to work. I am so grateful for all of them and for their willingness to help. We worked until late into the night and got quite a bit done on our basement.

Saturday we busily prepared the house and food for our Davis and Dinner party. It was a lot of work and when five o'clock came around Maria and I were exhausted. We had about 30 people come (19 less than RSVPed) and everyone seemed to have a good time.

Sunday we had the baby blessing and had lots of family at the church to share that moment with us. After church we returned home and had leftovers from the night before and got changed our clothes for a family portrait and dinner at Maria's aunts house. We had Navajo Tacos and a big side of family drama!

We had a great time but I am so glad for this weekend to be over.

11:30 AM -- 8:00 PM

Tonight is my first night on the new work schedule. The last time I recall having to work so late on a regular basis was while working as a cashier at a grocery store. I am at work as I speak(metaphorically). Things here are slow and that is why I have time enough to blog.

I am enjoying my job and think I will enjoy the hours for the following reasons.

1) No rush hour traffic - Traveling 52 miles each way in high traffic volumes was not enjoyable.

2) Davis in the AM - Davis can be a bit fussy in the evening and night. It was fun to spend time with him this morning while he was in a good mood.

3) Day Care - AKA Kelly Care - I appreciate Kelly's willingness to watch Davis and am glad to minimize her responsibilities by working a shift somewhat opposite to Maria's.

4) Sleep - I enjoy this very much.

5) Delilah 99.9FM - One of my many guilty pleasures.

Some things that I am not looking forward to are:

1) Social Life - The rare occasion that we have to hang out with family or friends generally occurs in the evening.

2) Mack and Gaydos on the drive home 92.5 FM - They annoy the @#&* out of me but I can't shut them off!

3) Maria - Working opposite shifts and getting home so late is really going to limit our time together.

Holloween in December!

Trick-or-Treat!

"These are a few of my favorite things...."

You know that overwhelming joy that is felt when surrounded by all of your favorite foods. It could be at Thanksgiving, Christmas, or your favorite candy store. I think that must be the feeling Davis had during this picture:
You may be asking what could make Davis feel this way and what has captivated his attention....

The Victoria Secrets Holiday Fashion Show:

Tuesday Morning Random Thoughts

Basement - Maria and I managed to lay all the full tiles over the weekend and began to cut and lay the partial tiles. There is still a lot of work ahead of us but we got a ton done. We can't wait for it to be finished and livable.

Davis & Dinner - As of now we are expecting about 30 or so family members and friends to join us for dinner this weekend. We are looking forward to seeing everyone and want to remind all that there is an open invitation to everyone (just give us heads up!).

Davis - The little guy is doing great. I asked Maria to dress him up in some of his outfits and to pose him for some pictures but she has not gotten around to it yet... we've both been so busy- have some patience please.

Christmas - Maria and I still have not decided on where to spend the holiday (maybe Tucson?). Last year we started things off here in the valley with my family and then moved the celebration to St. Johns with Maria's family. This year I have to work the day after Christmas (really this time!) and Maria may have to return back to work earlier than expected.