20 week Ultrasound

Here he/she is! We resisted the temptation to peek, however I must admit now I am a bit curious. I originally thought it was a boy but now it could go either way so I have no idea. You'll have to wait another 20 weeks just like us to find out what the tie-breaker is. Any bets? You can see a bit of Kaitlyn (larger upper lip, bigger/wider Filipino nose) and Camden (narrow face, pointy chin) in the 4D pictures. I think it's pretty cool. The baby kept putting his/her hand in front of the face so we didn't get a real good clear picture in 4D. Everything is looking great developmentally so we are very excited the baby is healthy. I guess I'd better get to painting that yellow nursery now....

It's Potty Time!

That day is finally here. I am free of Diapers, YIPEEEEEEE! Well, actually just a break from diapers for the next 6 months anyway. I'll take it. I have been doing diapers for 6 years!! I have to say, Camden impresses me with his willingness to try new things and assert his independence in a non-tantrum manner. I had not planned on potty-training him at all but started noticing on our Hawaii trip he kept saying he had to go when we changed to diapers that did not keep him dry. He was also dry at night so I knew he was physically ready. I also noticed several of his friends were potty-trained so I decided to just see how he would do one day. Low and behold, he took to it instantly. We had a few mishaps and it took a few days for him to go poop but he had absolutely no complaints about that at all. He picked out underwear the first day and got him a new little toilet that sings and everything. He only used pull-ups a few times and has no problems going in public toilets. He was totally trained in under 2 weeks. Considering the horror stories from Kaitlyn's potty training I feel soooooo lucky. That's my boy! Way to go Camden. Now, any tips to get him to pee standing up from those of you with boys? Or how to get him to stop playing with his wee-wee now that it is freely accessible all the time? It doesn't help when Kaitlyn laughs when he whips it out for all of us to see! Ah, the joys of little boys.

Baby Update

Ok, so for those of you who didn't know...I'm expecting #3! I had my official ultrasound today (see above). My gut says it's a boy and if it's not, I will be hugely surprised. If it is then, well, I was right and Camden will be so happy. I'm holding on to both Kaitlyn and Camden's old clothes just to be sure until the arrival. Kaitlyn really wants a sister, of course. I will be happy as long as the baby is healthy. I have already had 3 ultrasounds so far and all is well. My down's risk is 1 in 12,000. I am feeling the baby start to move now at 18 weeks, just when they said I would. I still have some lurking nausea/digestion sluggishness so I am very sure the heartburn will be arriving in a couple of months as the baby grows. My cravings have subsided and I can no longer eat large meals or anything junky because my body just doesn't agree (except for ice cream and an occasional decaf Starbucks of course). That's a bummer because I would love to just pig out.

I finally have my energy back, at least I know I do when I am able to multi-task with housework and such instead of lumped on the floor begging my kids to just let mommy rest for a bit. Other than that, not much to report. I am in the nesting stage for sure because I just went to IKEA and dropped a ton of $ on baskets and things to get the house organized before April. I have many projects lurking over my head, least of which is getting the baby's room ready. I purchased some yellow hawaiian fabric in Hawaii and will hopefully get the crib bedding sewn in the near future. I am excited because this is the first time we have had a entire room dedicated to a nursery so I actually get to decorate! We do not have names yet but are considering a Hawaiian name. Shoot your suggsestions our way! I always have a hard time with the boys' names. Lots to think about but so far, we are just focusing on the present and taking everything day-by-day. If it weren't for people constantly asking me how I am feeling sometimes I think I would forget that I am pregnant! Anyway, I am loving that I will be wearing a lot of jeans and fall-type clothes this time and having a spring baby along with several of my friends. There must be something in the water.

Halloween 2008

We trick-or-treated with my little nephew Colin who is a nut for the Cars movie. Camden kept saying after each house, "but my pumpkin is not full." He wanted it filled to the brim in order to call it a successful night. Needless to say the pumpkin was not runneth over but they got plenty of goodies. Camden surprised us all with his new-found love of Skittles. We were all worn out and in bed by 9pm!



This year the kids actually wore their costumes out weeks before Halloween which was great! I got my money's worth this year. Here's Colin looking at his crazy cousin.


Camden went as "Bumblebee" from the Transformers. I tried to take him to the nursing home for a costume parade but he really didn't want to have much to do with that.


Kaitlyn went as Barbie from the 12 Dancing Princesses. They had a nice party in the classroom and I was so glad I got to be there.


This year I went as a "Mommy construction worker" which got many compliments! Heck, my older brother didn't even know I was pregnant so this was a creative way to find out! I am pictured along side my mom, uh I mean my sister dressed up as an elderly woman in one of my mom's old frocks.

My First Hula Performance

This is my hula class at our first-ever performance. I've been taking classes since April. Notice how I stick out as not only the tallest one but also the only Haole? How fitting was it that we danced to "Hapa Haole Girl of My Dreams" by Ale'a? It's a fast song and it's quick which means it's also over quick! We danced in front of 450 people at the Lau Kanaka Hawaiian Club Luau which is an annual event here in Phoenix. The money raised through auctions at the event is used to send Hawaiians to a week-long enrichment course to teach the youth about their culture. I was pretty nervous once we got on stage and made a few mistakes but overall it was a good experience. The more experienced dancers ran the show and were not only great but fun to watch as always. I'll keep going until my belly gets too big to swing those hips!

ALOOOOHA!

We made it to Hawaii at last! Over 5 years later. Not much has changed, beautiful weather, gorgeous beaches and ono local food. The kids did great on the airplane, both taking naps and eating well. Today we are celebrating Camden's 3rd Birthday. We'll go down a few blocks from out hotel and try the Big Kahuna mini-golf and maybe hit the beach for the 4th day in a row. Here is a run-down of what we've done so far on our much-needed vacation:

Day 1 (MON) - Left for the airport around 5:30 am. Got to Hawaii around noon, couldn't check-in yet so we hit the beach waiting for the electricity to come on in our hotel (yeah, not exactly the Hilton). The kids got soaked in the beach in their clothes and we looked a little ghetto at the beach but oh well. Walked down to the Waikiki Beach Walk, the kids got soaked again in their clothes in the fountain while we enjoyed people watching. Went to dinner at Chili's but the kids were so exhuasted they fell asleep before eating. What a long day!

Day 2 (TUES) - Ate at McD's--portugese sausage, eggs and rice (kids loved it). Finally got our trolley tickets and headed down to Ala Moana. Soaked in the calm shallow beach then hit the food court at Ala Moana. Our first taste of Korean Food. Mmm, love that bibimbap. I managed to eat everything despite this constant feeling of burping up everything I eat 24-7. I got my nails done (have to have some pampering) and walked around the mall a little. Headed back on the trolley to the Hilton Hawaiian to see the tropical penguins. For dinner we ate at the International Marketplace food court. The kids tried local saimen (ramen) with spam but didn't really like it. So we ended up giving away a lot of food to a poor old homeless man. We sat for a while and watched some Hawaiian steel-drum music then went back and crashed for another night.

Day 3 (WED) - Woke up to breakfast at IHOP, had a great waitress. Headed on the trolley once again to the Zoo. The kids really liked that, they even had a Keiki Zoo I didn't recall the last time we were here. The kids got to crawl inside a giant aquarium with Koi and loved the playground. Finally made it over the the beach near the Duke Statue and picked up some much-need sand toys at the ABC store. Kaitlyn wanted a snorkel and I was surprised just how quickly she took to it. She enjoyed floating around looking for shells and seeing little fish. Camden attempted the snorkel but just couldn't do it, bless his little heart. So he had fun playing in the sand. We went back to the International Marketplace for dinner and this time we had Chinese, Vietnamese and Filipino food. Caesar ordered his "chocolate meat" once again so he was happy and I had some Seafood Pho which was great for my uneasy stomach. Oh, almost forgot. On our way back to our hotel after the beach, we were walking down the Ala Wai and I looked up to see a jogger headed our way. As he got closer I could tell he was a familiar face. Then he looked at me because I think he knew I knew who he was so I smiled a little. Guess who? It was BEN from LOST!! A LOST sighting how cool. I know you are jealous Marie :)

Day 4 (THURS) - we'll keep you posted on how Camden's birthday is. I can't believe my little boy is 3 years old!!!

Caesar's New "Toy"

So Here it is! Our (other) new baby. A 1966 21-window Samba driven from Calif. by Uncle Al and Auntie Irma. In Caesar's own words, "It's a 50 footer." It looks great from 50 feet away :) It will take a lot of time and TLC to get it running but for now, it adds some interesting decor to our front yard. Al recounts the trip here with many "thumbs up" signals from other drivers who were no doubt admiring this historical piece of metal and it's potential. Even police officers would pull behind them to have a look. The kids are so excited and can't wait to go for a ride. I can only imagine the looks I would get dropping off Kaitlyn to school in such a vehicle. I suppose the nurses at work are right, Caesar needs some fun in his life after all, he works hard. So if you care to take a peek at the peach monster, come on over!