a looong break

Yeah, that's right. A loooog break. I lost focus and got busy. And I'm sure the two readers I have were super bummed. Hah! Well, I'm trying to get back on. At least as an easy way for family to stay up to date. Nana doesn't have facebook (I know right, craziness!). Everyone else is far. So, we'll rewind a little, get some quick updates on here over the next few posts and we'll be right back on track. Just in time to start some hardcore 1st birthday party planning! Who am I kidding, we've been planning for months now. Party planning is like crack for me. And I'm a self proclaimed addict.

So we'll start off with Ava. She's almost 9 months old and man this sweet girl is amazing. She is amazing in everything she does and she was amazing when she came into this world. And for those who don't know the story, amazing is a GIANT understatement. This girl thought she was some sort of superstar entering the world via the big screen.

It was a Wednesday evening. June 6th. Laying in bed trying to catch some Zs (at this point it was rare I ever got a good night's sleep). Jeff was next to me passed out. I felt some tightness in my stomach and a little cramping. Could this be a contraction? My biggest fear was not knowing I was in labor. I never had braxton hicks with Ashton and because I was induced with him and got my epi after a couple contractions, I was damn near clueless about them. So I thought, what the hell, and started timing. They started off 10 or so minutes apart, were painful and I was extremely uncomfortable. About an hour later they were around 7-8 minutes apart and growing in pain. Shortly after that I called the doc. She promptly told me that I needed to wait until they were 5 minutes apart for 2 hours. Is this chic crazy!? I'm 40 minutes from the hospital, one my second kid and know this is not a psych out. So I waited a little longer. They became around 6-7 minutes apart. I called my mom and she was pretty quick to tell me I needed to get my butt to the hospital ASAP. Coming from the baby factory herself, I trusted her knowledge and my gut. Called the doc again and basically told her I was going in. Got up, threw the stuff in the car and drove Ashton to our friend's house. God bless her for getting up at 3am to watch Ashton for us. Pulled up to her house and texted her we were there. It was 3:21 am. Then we hauled ass to the hospital. Looking back I am scared to think what would have happened should we have had to leave around commute time. Going around 90mph down highway 4, we were making excellent time. Until of course we pass a highway patrol. Yup, we knew it, we were being pulled over. Telling us to go the speed limit and asking if I needed an ambulance, the cop was very nice and let us go. Speed limit? I was about to have a car baby. No speed limit for us. Jeff raced off and about a half block from the hospital my body started to push. This kid was coming no matter where I was. Made it to labor and delivery (barely) and in 15 minutes and 2.5 pushes later, our sweet baby girl was here. At 4:21 am. Yup, exactly a hour after dropping Ashton off. She was the spitting image of Ashton. She was perfect and we were in love.

sunny days

It's finally getting warm out and the sun is shining! I'm so excited for summer to come. Not only will we have a new bundle of joy, but I get to be home with my favorite lil man. Park and pool days, play dates and overall fun in the sun! Ashton will love it!

We spent one of the first warm days of the year at our local water park. We held his first birthday here but A wasn't quite walking yet so we were extremely excited to take him there now that he's walking  running around. He loved the water and it was pure joy watching him smile as big as he did.

Easter

Easter Sunday we were invited to visit some family over in the Santa Cruz area. Most hadn't even met Ashton yet so it was a real treat to show my cutie off. My aunt and cousin were up from Carlsbad and that was an even bigger treat....especially since I hadn't seen my cousin since my wedding in 2006. This was at my Italian cousin's house and let me tell you, the food was delish! It was a gorgeous day and such a nice break from the rain. Ashton had fun and despite getting cranky around nap time, was on his best behavior. We headed home and waited for Daddy to get there to do a little egg hunting and basket opening. Overall, a great day! I wish I had snapped more pics.

So serious!

welcome home kitty

In late January we discovered our cat, GSXR (jixer), had escaped. It was a hectic week and we hadn't even noticed him gone for 24 hours. After realizing he wasn't anywhere in the house we got worried and frantically tried to remember the last time we had seen him. We realized that the night before we had heard scratching at the door. We convinced ourselves it sounded just like the cats leaving the littler box and left it at that. Unfortunately, it was GSXR trying to get back in. He loves to be outside but always comes right back in. We put up flyers around our neighborhood and called the local shelters. We got nothing. Just over a week ago I got a call that someone a few blocks away had seen our cat frequenting their neighborhood. He spotted an old beat up flyer that was still hanging and recognized the friendly neighborhood cat right away. It was nothing short of a miracle. We got him in the house and he raced straight for the food bowl. I gave him a flea bath and left him alone to get situated in his new old home. He was thin. I weighed him...11 POUNDS!! He had lost at least 10 pounds and it made me cringe to pet him. He was just so skinny. Well, he's been doing great and the cats are finally starting to welcome him nicely. He's gained almost 2 pounds and he is living life just relaxing as much as he can. We are so thankful to have him home but more importantly, that he is safe and sound. 

Enjoying some food after a bath

Relaxing

a cute tray

I have been on the hunt for a tray to put on the changing table/dresser. A spot for things like diaper cream, q-tips, lotion, etc. I have seen tons of cute ones. But all in the $30-50 range so I was hesitant to get anything until I found the perfect one. On a stroll though Target I found a small wooden one in their dollar section. It was even an aqua color. And at $2.50 it became that perfect tray. I found some cute scrapbook paper the other night I thought would lay in it perfectly. I didn't like the idea of paper laying in here. I imagined night time changes in the dark and spilling something on it. So I grabbed a laminating pouch and trimmed it to size. Voila...now I can wipe it clean when I make a mess. Isn't it cute!?

storing movies

Every day is the same. Ashton comes home and plays in the living room a little bit and by the end of his time there, I have at least one DVD case on the floor opened up. Not only was the ugly look of these movies in our tv stand annoying me, but so was the fact that he just could not stay away from them. So with some inspiration from my absolute favorite blog iheart organizing I found a cute and streamlined way to keep these eyesores out of sight.

I started out with The Container Store's 120 Disc Acrylic Storage Boxes. These are great because they come with the sleeves already and all of them are numbered. I have used a media key that I have filled in so we know where each movie is. Eventually I will add a separate box for video games and the kid's movies. 

I piled up the movies that were currently in our entertainment center. Divided them into categories (drama, action, kids, motorcycle, etc). I filled the sleeves and left room in between for growth. I added a chalkboard label and a piece of white card stock (until I find the perfect patterned one) to the front and TA-DA! Man o man, it definitely looks way better and Ashton hasn't touched it since.

chalk labels

The current craze is chalk. Labels, boards to hang in your home, you name it! I have no problem with this. It's a fabulous idea and super cute. Who better than Martha to run with it and create some great inexpensive items for all the chalkboard lovers. I took advantage of her new line at Staples and picked up some adorable labels to add to some current organizing projects. First stop was my pantry! I am drop dead in love with these. And it helps keep everything in its place. Jeff has even made sure to keep up with it. If you know my husband than you know that it HUGE!