Three Things

1. Nikos has finally figured out how to open regular round door knobs. For the longest time, he hasn't really had the dexterity to turn them, and we were just fine with that (since all our knobs are round!). But times have changed... The other night, he surprised Gus by opening the bathroom door and escaping before his bath. And then today, he showed me that he could easily open his bedroom door when I put him in there for a time out. Doh! Our days of feeling secure are over... Time to invest in some doorknob covers (and find the ones we already have... somewhere!).

2. Today, I did something I feel like you only see on TV. I bought a replacement for Orange Fishy who, quite sadly, passed away overnight. Yes, I was that mom at Petco, looking in the goldfish tank for one who most closely resembled our dearly departed Orange Fishy so that Nikos would never be the wiser (until he reads this, many years from now!). I hereby vow not to do this when he's older, but for now, it seems to be the right thing to do. He has no concept of death, and would have thrown a fit if he had noticed one of his fish missing. For the record, Orange Fishy #2 seems to be doing quite well, and Black Fishy continues to thrive. RIP, original Orange Fishy. And welcome to your new home, #2!


3. I got Nikos to wear his Halloween costume for about 5 minutes today! I have no clue if he will wear it tomorrow, but this was an improvement. My, that child can be stubborn! If he doesn't want to do something, he WILL NOT DO IT. Period. This is a quality that might serve him well later in life, but is very frustrating when Mommy and Daddy are just trying to help him. At any rate, here is a picture! It may very well be the only one we get, so enjoy it! We will certainly get pictures of Maya in her costume tomorrow, since she doesn't have a lot of control over that. So we'll save those pictures for tomorrow. :)

Patting Myself on the Back

I just wanted to take a minute to brag about myself, haha!

For the past two months, I have cooked a family dinner every single weeknight. This may not seem all that impressive to many people, but it's a huge change for me. It used to be that Gus would come home late and fend for himself. Which left Nikos and I on our own to eat. I'd fix something quick for him, and then something else for myself. Three people, three separate dinners. I knew that this would have to change at some point, since I really wanted us to have family dinners, but I wasn't sure when it would happen.

Well, Gus was able to adjust his work schedule slightly, making it home by 6pm every night. And I started doing weekly menu planning, coming up with a list of meals that were quick and easy to prepare after working all day. And I've managed to stick with it!

It's been great, too. We all sit down at the table together, and Maya joins us in her bouncy seat or the jumperoo. In general, it's such a nice time. Nikos seems to relish the attention he gets from both his parents at dinner time, and I enjoy just sitting with my family all together.

In other words, it's a good thing. I can definitely keep this up, because it's totally worth it. But I'm still proud of myself for making it this far! :)

His "Real" Birthday Party

We have had such a great day with our little guy today. He slept in late (thank goodness, after yesterday's crankiness!) and woke up in a really happy mood. He was so happy to see his new play kitchen out in the living room, and almost instantly began "cooking dinner" (his words). He spent most of the morning running between his various new toys-- mostly the kitchen and the train table and his new fishies from his auntie (who he has named "black fishy" and "orange fishy/Nemo's Daddy" and we're sticking with that). After Maya had taken a nap and nursed for a bit, we headed out to our favorite local breakfast place to have brunch, just the four of us. Nikos had lots of fun snuggling with me in the booth, building towers out of coffee creamer, and inhaling large quantities of food. After we finished there, we walked a few doors down to Petco, where he looked at the fishies and the turtles.





We hung out at home the rest of the day, capping it all off with a spaghetti dinner (his request). Our light eater had three helpings! We listened to a CD of kids' music, he looked at his fishies some more, and then he made a bunch of phone calls to say thank you for his gifts.

Overall, it was a good day... He seemed to be a lot happier, which was a nice change. The only downside was that I left my fancy camera on a low table, and Nikos, being a curious toddler, pulled it off... totally smashing my 50mm portrait lens on the tile floor (yes, I cried). But I will be getting a new one soon! And at least the body of the camera is still working fine (whew!). I'll just have to use my other lens in the meantime, even if I don't like it as much...

Two Year Letter

Dear Nikos,

It's been so long since I wrote you one of these letters, and I just don't know where to begin! How, exactly, does one summarize a year in the life of an ever-changing toddler??

These days, you hardly resemble the Nikos we knew a year ago. Not only are you a walker now, but you run, jump, stomp, kick, and do all sorts of crazy and highly-mobile things. Not to mention the fact that your vocabulary seems to grow exponentially on a daily basis. When you were one, you had quite a few words, but you tended to clam up when you got around other people. Nowadays, you spout out multiple-word sentences on a regular basis: "No, Charlie, MY toy!" or "I want Thomas, pweese! Tank you, Mommy!" We used to have to repeat words over and over for you to learn them; these days, we are careful what we say, because you tend to learn and repeat them almost instantly. Many times, you will say things that cause Daddy and I to look at each other and say, "Where did he learn THAT?" But that's part of what makes you so wonderful-- you are forever surprising us and making us giggle with your developing language. In a weird way, I don't look forward to the days when you speak in full, grammatically-correct sentences. I am truly enjoying speaking Nikos-ese. :) ("I wike it!")

The real turning point for you this year was the birth of Maya, your baby sister. You weren't allowed to come and visit us at the hospital, which caused me to shed many tears and scare a poor nurse's assistant. But it was incredible to watch you meet her for the first time. In that instant, you went from being a baby in my eyes to becoming a little boy. And it wasn't just in my mind-- you really grew to fill your new role. And while there have been moments where you wanted to blink her out of existence, you have, on the whole, really relished your role as big brother. You are so sweet and gentle with Maya, bringing her a blanket or a pacifier whenever you find one. You are sometimes possessive with your toys, but after a little gentle reminding will often bend over backwards to offer them to your baby sister to play with. For her part, she worships the ground you walk on. Just walking into the room is enough to make her smile, and the slightest bit of silly behavior from you sends her into fits of giggles.

Long story short, we love you, we love you, we LOVE you! Picking you up from daycare is the highlight of my day. You run over to the door, yelling "Hi Mommy! Hi Mommy!" and proceed to hug my legs and tell me a million things at once ("I color!" "I play trains!" "Turn on lights!" "I hold it!"). Add to that the smiling and cooing on your baby sister, and my heart feels like it could burst. I am a proud mommy, and I know that your daddy feels the same way. You give the best hugs and kisses in the entire universe, and can make the worst day feel like something special. We love you, baby boy, just as we always have. Some things will never change!

All our Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Birthday Party

I wish I could call today a smashing success, and say that Nikos enjoyed every minute, but that really wouldn't be in keeping with his character. I don't know if I have ever mentioned it on here before, but while our boy is very happy and outgoing when he's in a small group, he does not like crowds or parties. He just gets completely overstimulated and falls to pieces. This was the main reason that we kept today's party on the small side: it was just us, all four grandparents, two aunts, an uncle, his great-aunt and great-uncle, his godparents, and Bonnie (our daycare lady and next-door neighbor). He knows ALL of these people, and loves them, and (in theory) shouldn't have had a problem. And as people started to arrive, he was fine. But as soon as the crowd got a little bigger, with lots of people calling his name and wanting his attention, he pretty much lost it. He wouldn't eat lunch, didn't want to blow out his candles or eat cake (though he did blow out the candle, anyway-- a minor victory!), didn't really want to open presents, and (basically) didn't really want to be there. A few times, he went back to his room and climbed onto his bed, probably to escape the sensory overload. I felt so bad for him, and sorry that our guests couldn't enjoy the Nikos that they know and love. And, true to form, as people began to leave, he managed to get happier and happier, ending the day on a high note playing in the backyard with Uncle Grant and Aunt Melissa (who he found hysterical when they were playing soccer). Note to self: With Nikos, less is more. Maybe next year we will just do something as a family, or spread out the celebrations over several days with very small groups of people. We'll see.

That being said, he was lavished with attention from all the people who love him today. I didn't get a ton of pictures, between attempting to play hostess and keeping an eye on two kids, and the best ones were taken after most people left, but here they are...
Before the party...

Two aunties

Ready? Get set...

BLOW!

Hey, there's a train on this cake! I LIKE trains!

Lightning McQueen, who he didn't want to put down after opening

Gift grom Grandma and Grandpa

Gift from Yiayia and Pappou (okay, mostly Pappou)

Cruising in his Cozy Coupe while playing bubbles with Uncle Grant and Aunt Melissa

Bubbles! (and a happy birthday boy!)

Maya, checking out the motorcycle

Free wagon rides from Uncle Grant!


Finally, here is the gift we got for him this year... He hasn't seen it yet, but will get it first thing in the morning. I can't wait to see his reaction!


And I should add that I don't have any pictures of him playing with the train table he received as a gift from his Nouno and Nouna, but he ADORES it and has already spent hours with it. It is seriously the most perfect toddler-sized train table EVER! :)

Cake!

I have to brag about Nikos' birthday cake. Not only is it going to taste incredible (lemon cake with raspberry creme filling and buttercream frosting with a hint of almond), but I am very proud of how it turned out! This was my first-ever attempt at a "fancy" cake. I had lots of advice from experts, and I think it turned out pretty well, all things considered! Nikos hasn't seen it yet, and I'm looking forward to seeing his expression tomorrow when he sees that there's a TRAIN on it! Not just any train, either-- it's the special edition Percy "Happy Birthday" train! I love that he will be able to look at it and recognize Percy right away. It's going to be great!

Evacuation Night

Almost two years ago (plus an hour or two!), we had to evacuate our home. I could see flames on the ridge not too far from us, and they seemed to be creeping closer by the minute. We waited for a while, debating whether or not to leave, but I was freaking out and eventually made the call to evacuate... I knew that there was no way I would be able to sleep in the house that night. We had already packed our belongings into the car earlier that day, but we then packed up the animals and headed to our friend Tony's house in an area of San Diego unaffected by the fires. And what a night it was! It was so hot (unlike tonight), and Tony let us sleep in his room, along with both the cat AND the parrot. He had a brand-new puppy at the time, and it just wasn't wise to keep either animal anyplace else in the house. We slept decently, until about 4am, when Charlie jumped up onto Corky's travel cage and knocked it completely upside-down! Talk about a rude awakening!

We had to wake up early the next morning to get to the hospital for a non-stress test. I had been trying to get in touch with my doctor, with no luck-- my medical clinic was in the area of town that was hardest hit by the fires. In fact, my coworker who lost her home lived less than two minutes from my doctor's office-- it's incredible that the building didn't burn down as well! At any rate, my repeated calling to the hospital about my situation resulted in them scheduling the non-stress test early that morning, so off we went. Nikos was just perfect-- active as can be, and with plenty of fluid. That, along with returning to our undamaged home, was the highlight of my day.

I spent so many hours on the phone with people over the next few days, trying to locate my doctor and see what the plan was. Originally, I was supposed to have an appointment with him on the 22nd, where we would schedule my induction. On the 24th, I finally spoke with a doctor who "got it." Really, if I could remember her name, I would hug her today. Truly, I would. I was in tears on the phone, wanting to get the baby out and worrying that he would be in danger if he stayed in my belly too much longer. She said she would schedule my induction, then call me back. She did call me back-- and told me to come to the hospital right away. My induction began at 1pm, and Nikos was born via emergency c-section almost exactly 24 hours later.

Yes, I know that I am being totally sappy lately. But that week was the most incredible emotional roller coaster that I have EVER experienced-- it ran the gamut from tragedy and sorrow to incredible happiness. I will never forget a second of it. And most of all, I can't believe that my little baby is almost two. Wasn't he just born yesterday?

2 Years Ago...

Well, with Nikos' birthday a mere 6 days away, I have to confess that I am getting a little sentimental. But I just can't believe that this was me two years ago:

...and that this is me today:

Two years ago, I was three days past my due date, and was completely miserable. It looked like I would most likely end up being induced, and I kind of hoped that Nikos would end up being born on the anniversary of our first date-- both which ended up happening! I was bored to tears, home alone on my maternity leave, waiting for something to happen. I had no idea that only a few days later, we would be forced to evacuate from our home and that I would feel relieved to still be pregnant (it was much easier to evacuate with a big belly than with a newborn!). Luckily, our neighborhood was spared, and we were able to return home the next day. The day after that, I was admitted to the hospital for my induction. And the day after THAT, my beautiful boy made his arrival via c-section and my life changed forever.

Seriously, how can he be almost two already?!? And Maya, my BABY-baby, is already nearly six months old. This is just mind-boggling.

Happy Early Birthday!

Gus gave Nikos his first birthday present today (a week early). Nikos' room has desperately needed some more storage for a while now, so Gus has been working hard on making him a bookcase. It looks fantastic!! And Nikos is really loving the easy access to all his books (can you tell?). Way to go, Daddy! :)

20 Years Ago Today...

This is a complete departure from the normal content of this blog, but I saw a post from a friend on Facebook earlier that reminded me that today was what I like to refer to as "earthquake day." Not only that, but today marked the twenty-year anniversary of said earthquake. It's strange to think that it's already been twenty years since I was a little sixth-grader, sitting at my desk in my bedroom and fiddling with the batteries in my Walkman. I was leaning back in my chair, trying to switch the dying batteries around so that I could squeeze just a little more life out of them, when BAM! At 5:04pm, everything started shaking. I fell onto the floor, and watched as one corner of my room seemed to rise and fall for what felt like an eternity (turns out it was only 15 seconds).

Once the shaking stopped, I ran outside. My brother was out there playing with our neighbor, Travis, who just stood there looking dumbfounded. I remember yelling at him to go home (which actually makes me giggle, because Travis was kind of a doofus). We spent the rest of the afternoon sitting in the driveway, listening to radio reports and being afraid to go back into the house because of possible gas leaks. For dinner that night, we attempted to barbecue a can of refried beans (it was awful). And after dinner, we went to the ice cream social at my elementary school. They had decided not to cancel the event, and it really became the place where everyone got together to talk about what had happened. It was probably the most successful ice cream social ever! Not to mention the fact that the school had electricity, while most of the houses did not.

I remember hearing that the Bay Bridge had collapsed, which turned out to be somewhat of an exaggeration. I remember going to sleep that night, and being jarred awake by a multitude of very strong aftershocks that made my heart race. Really, I can't believe it's been twenty years... I feel like it was yesterday!

Best Kids Ever

I know it won't always be this way, but for the moment, my babies really do LIKE each other. Maya thinks Nikos is just about the most interesting person on the planet (she grins and giggles just looking at him), and he thinks she's pretty sweet, too.

Exhibit A:


and Exhibit B:


♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Sweet Face

I just can't get enough of this beautiful face! Maya and I have had a great weekend together, enjoying mommy-daughter time. Her daddy came home around lunch time today, and her big brother will be back tomorrow afternoon. Which means that tomorrow will be a daddy-daughter day (Gus has the day off, but I don't). I hope they have as much fun as we've had together!

Awesome Day!

Forgive me. I am about to post a million pictures!

I have to say, today has been really great. For a variety of reasons. This morning, we piled into the car and drove the whopping 5 minutes to our local fire station, which was hosting its annual Open House. Nikos was not a big fan of actually going inside the vehicles (just look at his face!), but I think that's mainly because those particular trucks were parked inside the very crowded and noisy garage. Our boy is not a big fan of crowds-- he even said so when we got home: "I like quiet!" He did, however, enjoy examining the trucks that were parked outside. He spent quite a bit of time going between the red truck and the yellow truck, as if he was doing some sort of compare-and-contrast activity in his head. And while he staunchly refused to wear his free Fire Chief hat while we were at the station, it was hard to get it OFF of him once we got home!






When we got home, he and Maya wrestled in the living room. Ok, not really, but she was very excited to be able to grab her brother's face, and he was a willing victim!


After lunch, Nikos and Gus took off to spend the weekend visiting Yiayia and Pappou (Gus is coming back tomorrow morning, and Nikos will be coming back on Monday afternoon). So Maya and I had some girl time! After nursing her, we went to the mall. She was quite the pleasant little shopping companion. She didn't complain at all for the 2.5 hours we were at the mall-- she just looked all around, gurgled, blew raspberries, and was just generally her happy self. I ended up buying clothing for all of us to wear for our family portraits in a few weeks, plus a bunch of other things. Between the sales, gift cards, and coupons I had, I ended up paying $50 for over $130 in merchandise! WOOHOO! I was really pleased, and it was so nice to get out and about. It is so much easier to take Maya shopping than Nikos, because he insists on walking everywhere and would have had zero patience for me to try on clothes!

Anyhow, it has been a great day. Now if only Maya would sleep all the way through the night, that would be the icing on the cake!

Misc. Ramblings of a Happy Mom

I love my babies! Yes, it sounds like I am stating the obvious. But really, I do! And right now, I just feel like saying it for all the world to hear read.

When Nikos was born, I was stressed out. I can look back on it and totally see it now. Between his almost-constant crying, our initial breastfeeding troubles, and my post-partum hormone rollercoaster, it was a very tough time for us all. But we weathered the storm, and I grew to love my son with a certain fierceness that is indescribable. I felt very protective of him, and wanted nothing more than for him to be happy. And when he WAS happy, my heart swelled.

Throughout my second pregnancy, I was so excited. But a few weeks before Maya's birth, I began to feel sad. I thought that I would be depriving Nikos of my full attention, which he had become so accustomed to. I thought that I wouldn't be able to spend as much time with my baby boy once she arrived. I thought that our relationship would change forever. And I was right.

But not in the way that I thought.

When Maya was born, she was so mellow and happy from the very start. And while I fretted about how Nikos would react to his new sister, it was completely unfounded-- he adored her from the moment he laid eyes on her (and covered her with kisses!). My perspective changed that day. I realized that I wasn't taking anything away from him, but that I was GIVING him a sibling. And that she was lucky enough already to be born with one-- a big brother who was crazy about her. And while there have definitely been rough patches here and there, I can honestly say that having two children is better than having one. Because not only do I get to interact with two amazing kids, but I get to see them interact with each other. And that, to me, is the very best part of all.

I know it's sappy, but I just love being a family of four. I am so excited that I get to experience raising a boy AND a girl. I feel like this is what I was meant to do with my life. And though it may not always be smooth sailing, I am so happy that this is my life.

I love my babies! (have I mentioned that?) :)

Nummy Nummy!

Sweet potatoes!

She's still not 100% sure if she likes them, but she has become a pro at chowing down on her oatmeal, so we thought it was time to mix things up. She is such an enthusiastic eater compared to her big brother when he was this age-- it's so much fun to watch! :)

Down on the Farm

We went to the pumpkin patch today! It was a little warmer than we anticipated, but it still felt good to officially welcome the fall season. :) Nikos wasn't quite sure about the petting zoo, but I had a blast holding the baby goats (they were so tiny and adorable!) and petting the chickens, ducks, pigs, bunnies, and sheep. Anyway, the real purpose of the visit was to take pictures, really, so here they are!








Just for fun, compare to last year's visit-- I can't believe how much he's grown (and Maya, too, considering she was just an 8-week-old embryo at the time)!!

Behold: A Video Extravaganza!

I've been recording a bunch of things lately, but finally got around to putting them on the computer tonight. So without further delay, here they are!

1. Maya's first taste of baby oatmeal, and then a second scene of her eating oatmeal tonight (almost a week later). She's getting to be quite the little oatmeal piglet! :)

2. Nikos jumping on the bed. The kid's a jumping fool (and has been for quite a while now)-- I just think it's cute!

3. A montage of Maya making her favorite noise-- the raspberry. I am afraid to take her in public with me, lest someone think I am passing gas as I walk around. :)

Five Month Letter

Dear Maya,

One day this month, I went to pick you and your brother up from daycare as I usually do. But as I walked in the door, I was surprised to see everyone crowded in the living room, surrounding your car seat. I watched for a minute as Bonnie tickled under your chin and sent you into an absolute fit of giggles. Your laughter spread like wildfire-- all the toddlers in the room (your brother included) started to laugh and roll around on the floor and just generally have a good time. And apparently, this was a regular daycare occurrence. :)

Anyway, I thought this was just the perfect example of your sparkling personality. Really, you are a little ray of sunshine, and you radiate happiness almost constantly. While your personality might be very different from your brother's at this age, I feel like that's why he adores you so much. He can be in the foulest of toddler moods, but your smiling/shrieking/gurgling will almost always make him smile and make some sort of comment ("Baby singing!" "Hi, Maya!" "I love you, Maya!" *mwah!*). Really, your brother thinks you are pretty great. And the feeling is mutual, as evidenced by how your eyes follow him and only him when he enters the room, and how you light up when he talks to you. He can make you giggle like nobody else can. I know it may not always be like this between you two, but I want it recorded here for posterity: you love each other, whether you care to admit it or not. And one day, when your daddy and I are long gone, he is the closest family member you will have. And I hope you will cherish each other forever, the way you do right now.

But sad and sentimental thoughts aside, you have continued to grow like a crazy in your fifth month of life. You roll around the living room floor like a little tumbleweed, from tummy-to-back and then from back-to-tummy. Really, you are quite pleased with your newfound mobility. You also try like crazy to sit up on your own, and I'd be surprised if you haven't mastered the skill by the time I write your six-month letter. If I place you on the floor, you are either on your tummy or have rotated 180 degrees within seconds-- you are simply no longer content to rest in one place. You have even started pulling your legs up underneath you when you are on your tummy. Simply stated, you aren't a little newborn baby, anymore, and it shocks me how quickly you have become mobile!

This month also marked you first foray into the world of solid foods! We started you out with baby oatmeal, and you did really well with it! You continue to be interested in the whole process, and try to grab the spoon from my hand almost constantly. Actually swallowing the food is a little more of a challenge for you, but we've had success following some tips from an occupational therapist friend. But overall, you are really enjoying the whole eating experience. You continue to nurse to get most of your daily calories, but eating cereal once a day is giving you some excellent practice for later on. I can't wait to introduce you to all the tasty foods this world has to offer!

In other news, we think you might be teething. I say "think," because we don't actually feel any teeth popping through yet. But you drool like crazy and try to chomp down on anything within your biting range, so that probably indicates that something is going on in there. You have also become quite the little raspberry-blower as of late. You are quite adept at making some rather rude noises, and it cracks us up! And seeing as how YOU crack up when WE blow raspberries back at you, we have come to decide that you enjoy potty humor just as much as the rest of us. There's just no denying that you are your mommy and daddy's child, now is there?

In short, you have been a busy, busy girl this month. But we just love you more and more with every new trick that you learn, even though we already loved you more than we thought possible. You were the missing piece in our family, and it is such a joy to watch you grow and discover your world. You are our number one girl, and queen of our hearts. We love you, Maya Bear!!

All our love,
Mommy and Daddy