We haven't had much going on these days to post about... So I thought I would just post a few of my new favorite pictures of Emma...

Every year, my parents would get us an ornament. I always got Precious Moments, my sister got Disney (can you imagine how jealous I was) and who knows what my brother got, probably race cars. I would always think, what the heck and I going to do with all of these pink ornaments.

I have a bit of OCD and everything in my house needs to match, including what is on my Christmas tree. There was no way I was putting a bunch of pink ornaments on my tree. So for years those ornaments sat in a box.

Last night I came up with this brilliant idea! Why not put up a small Christmas tree in Emma's playroom so we can see it from outside the house!?!? I convinced Nick that it had to be done. At 8:30 last night he went in the attic and got our little tree down.

Emma's playroom is purple, with pink, yellow and green accent colors. There was NO WAY I was putting red and green ornaments on this tree! Finally my stupid pink Precious Moments ornaments had a purpose! I must say, I love those stupid pink ornaments!

I NEED MORE NOW!!!

Forget...

I’ve wanted to type this all out for a very long time. A post on Café mom helped me make the decision to do it today.

When I found out I was pregnant with Emma I was shocked. Nick and I had been trying for over a year. We actually stopped trying and that is when I got pregnant. I wasn’t expecting it. We were thrilled! I had my first doctor appointment about 2 weeks after the positive test result. I was a little queasy at the appointment, but figured I was just nervous and hungry. I remember my doctor asking me if I had morning sickness. I said “no”. He then told me it usually starts at week 8.

By the time I got home the morning sickness kicked in. At first I thought it was all in my head. It wasn’t. I continued working for about 3 weeks. I was sick, very sick. I spent most of the time at work in the bathroom. I called my doctor’s office and told them that I wasn’t keeping anything down. They prescribe Zofran, an anti-nausea medication and told me if I threw up three more times to go to the emergency room. The medication was not working and there was no way I could continue to work. I called my doctor’s office again, and left a message. No one returned my call. What kind of doctors office doesn’t return calls! My mom had to get involved because I was too weak to take care of things. She got the on call doctor’s office. They had me go in for an appointment immediately. I never went back to the other office. I went to the doctor at least once a week. And by the end of my pregnancy I was going 3 times a week.

Everything made me sick. Noise, smells (even if no one else smelled what I did) movement, and light. I stayed in my room for months because my house smelled. My family thought I was crazy because it was a brand new home and didn‘t smell at all. Even Nick made me sick, poor guy. The only time I left my room was to try to eat, go to the hospital for a doctors appointment or a trip to the ER. Eating usually resulted in throwing it back up. I couldn’t keep water down. I went to the ER 10 times to be hydrated. I probably should have gone more, but there were times I just didn’t want to go. The ER doctors knew me, that’s how often I was there. My mom and Nick took a lot of time off work to take care of me.

It didn’t take long for depression to set in. Friends stopped calling, who wants to talk to the sick girl. (I know now that they didn’t call because they didn’t want to bother me) I never felt so alone in my entire life. No one will ever understand what I went through, unless they experienced it too. No one will ever know how sick I was. Or how it felt to hear that people didn’t believe I was as sick as I was. Why would anyone make this up? One thing that really makes me mad is when people compare their “morning sickness” to mine. It’s not a competition. I don’t care if you were still able to make dinner for your husband, I couldn’t! And if you were really as sick as I was, you wouldn’t be making him dinner either.

I felt guilty because I would pray for a miscarriage. I wanted to die. I don’t think I ever bonded with Emma while I was pregnant. My doctor gave me the option to terminate. Thank GOD I didn’t, but I won’t lie, I did consider it. I still think about it every day. It never leaves. The guilt NEVER leaves.

Having Hyperemesis robbed me of so much. I always wanted at least two kids. Now, I can not imagine ever going through that again. How would I take care of Emma if I was sick again? Would I really want to miss 7-8 months of her life? Is it ok for her to be an only child? Will I be truly happy with just one? I don’t know.

September 9th 2007, Emma was born. I don’t remember much from the delivery. I know she was face up and stuck. I pushed for 3 ½ hours. Finally she came. I remember being happy and relieved. I thought my nightmare was over. I could go home and enjoy being a mother.
Things did get better, but that nightmare was not over. I started getting excruciating pains in my back. Pains so bad that I couldn’t function. I couldn’t take care of my baby. Nick or my mom would have to leave work (thank God for them). I had more doctors appointment. I was depressed. Why was this all happening to me? It took a few months, but I finally got some answers. My gallbladder had to be removed. In early December I had surgery. Things are not completely better, but at least I am not in pain anymore.

Since being pregnant, my memory is bad. Real bad. I forget a lot. I know it is normal to forget things and I am not the only one. I forget things that I really don’t want to forget. Why can’t I forget the one thing I don‘t want to remember?

Farm Livin

We brought Emma to see Nick's brother and sister in law in Lodi on Saturday. They live on a farm. Or is it a ranch? I don't know the difference=) Emma loved seeing all the animals. Her cousins Lina and Sarah had a great time bringing her around to see them all. They even brought a horse and a sheep out of the pens so Emma could get real close. She was not too sure about it. She likes the better behind the fence. Do you blame her?!? Three out of the four sheep are pregnant. One is pregnant with triplets! YIKES! Hopefully we will be able to get Emma back out there when the babies come!

Emma's Fist Dental Visit

Emma had her very first dental appointment yesterday. I had a feeling that she was going to be a tough patient. I thought she would cry, kick and scream. Since I use to work at a pediatric dental office, I knew what to expect. I have seen a ton of babies go for their first check up and it not go so well. No biggie. If she screamed at least her mouth would be open right!?!

When we got to the office, she played in the waiting room. The RDA called us back, and Emma reached for her. She wanted to be held by her. It was pretty cute. The RDA really liked her. Emma got a sticker (she still doesn't know what to do with them). She sat on Nick's lap while he sat in the dental chair (pretty funny to see a grown man sit in a child's dental chair). The dentist was so sweet with her. She showed her the little mirror and Emma loved it. She opened her mouth wide and let the dentist check her teeth. She didn't scream, cry or anything! I was so impressed. Emma is getting 4 teeth! No wonder she isn't sleeping well at night! I hope she does this well in 6 months!

Trick or Treating... leads to a doctor visit in the morning.

Thursday, Emma helped carve her pumpkin. She had a great time getting the "guts" out. She said pumpkin over and over again. I think it is her new favorite word. She even tried to eat it. She is very proud of her pumpkin.

Last night, Emma went trick or treating. She loved walking around the neighborhood in her tutu. It rained off and on throughout the night, but that didn't stop us. Em went door to door, with her cousins. She even tried to go into the houses, what a goof! Nick dressed in his teletubbie costume. David went as a cow and Nick #2 went as an 80's guy? Not too sure. I guess your never too old to dress up.

Emma had her first sucker! I think she really enjoyed it. She looked so cute sucking on the thing. Anyone who knows her, knows she won't eat so I thought for sure she wouldn't want the sucker either. WRONG.

When we were done, she helped Lexi check her candy. She thought it was hilarious to sit on the nicely organized piles Lexi worked so hard to make.

Last night, she did not sleep. She tossed and turned. She cried in her sleep. It was sad and stressful all at the same time. This morning, Nick changed her diaper and there was blood in her poop. Pretty scary! You can only imagine the thoughts running through my head. Could it be the sucker? Is this because she never eats? What is wrong with my baby? We called Dr. Singer and he had us go see an after hours office in Pleasant Hill. He told us it was probably nothing, but he would rather her be checked. The doctor was really nice, he took an xray of Emma's tummy. She did pretty well. Turned out she is constipated. This afternoon she was back to her silly self. Hopefully she will feel better by tomorrow.

Pumpkin

Emma was exploring the front yard yesterday waiting patiently to go to the park. She kept walking up to the pumpkins and I would say "pumpkin". A few minutes later I hear her say it! It's so cute! She won't say Mama (sore subject), but she will say pumpkin. I thought I was hearing things. I thought it was too big of a word for her to say but she kept saying it over and over again. Later at the park she was saying it to her Aunt and cousins. It was so cute! Today she was looking at pictures on the computer with her Nonnie, and one came up with a pumpkin and she said it again. She really knows what a pumpkin is!?! I was trying to get her to say it for me so I could record it, but being the stubborn kid that she is, she would not say it. Every time I would give up, she would say it.

Back to the sore subject. Since Emma was a newborn, I tried to teach her mama. I never said Dada because I wanted her to say mama first! LOL You know Nick must have been brainwashing her with the Dada's. It totally backfired on me! She says Dada all day everyday. It makes me so mad. It's like she knows I want her to say it and she refuses. I seriously have not heard her say it for WEEKS! She says, okay, bye, uh oh, pat, Dada, and now pumpkin. No Mama.

Halloween Party

Saturday was our 5th annual Halloween party. We has a nice turn out. Nick was a teletubbie, and I was a witch. Every year Nick tries to find the funniest costume. I think this year he really enjoyed what he chose. He was in character a lot of the night, and even did a freestyle rap. I have the video to prove. I hope to post that soon.

Here are some pictures from the night.

Emma and Presley

When I was pregnant, I wondered how Presley would react to a baby in the house. He was always afraid when kids were in the house. He would run off and hide. During the end of my pregnancy he spent a lot of time in bed with me. It was like he knew I was sick. I worried that he was getting too attached to me, and when Emma came I would not have enough time for him.

Boy was I wrong, he now wants nothing to do with me. He loves Emma. He lets her do anything she wants to him. She tortures him at times, and he comes back for more. Lately she will lay on him and cuddle or sit in his bed with him. They have become such good friends.

Emma spent a lot of the day chasing Presley around the house. I think they both enjoyed it. Em thought it was hilarious when Presley came up and kissed her cheek. I was lucky enough to get a picture of it!

Pumpkin Patch Fun!!!

Yesterday we brought Emma to the pumpkin patch! It was so much fun! We had a nice group with us. David, Rachel and the girls, Matt, Theresa, Alexis, Adrianna, Miguel, Dayna and baby Adriana. How fun! I can't believe that last year, Emma was as small as Adriana is now. It really showed us how much she has grown.

Emma was amazed at all the pumpkins. She went up and hugged them. She explored the Indian huts with Nick. Went through a hay maze with Jazzlynn. Watched a barnyard concert, and danced away. She has always been a sucker for music. It gets her every time.

She really enjoyed the hayride to the pumpkin area. Picking a pumpkin is a important job, and she did not take it lightly. When she finally found "her" perfect pumpkin she was so proud. It was big, round and MOLDY, ewww! Nick had to redirect her to another pumpkin. At this point she was more interested in playing in the dirt.

We can't wait to bring her again next year!!!

Here we go again...
Emma was doing so well eating her food. Now all of the sudden she refuses to eat. All she will eat is Cheerios (if we are lucky). I am so frustrated. She is obviously hungry. She is being a beast! I have tried everything in the cupboard. I waste so much food. Nick is staying out late tonight with some friends, and I need a break ASAP. I might run away. Anyone want to come with me?

Saturday we went to Great America, to watch my sister's cheer team (she coaches) compete. Let's just say that they were amazing! I can not believe how talented they ALL were. They were by far the best team there! I am so proud of them all. They qualified for nationals at Disneyland, and took first place. Emma was in awe. She really enjoyed watching the competition. Who knows, maybe she will follow in her auntie's footsteps. Let's just hope she has her aunt's skills=)

Sunday we went to San Francisco to watch the Columbus Day Parade (or whatever it was renamed to) We took a nice walk to my Aunt and Uncle's weekend apartment, it was so nice! I can see why they love it there. Emma enjoyed all the attention from her crazy cousins. Later we walked back to my grandmother's apartment and watched the parade. Emma got so much attention from all the people in the floats. She even got up close and personal with a horse and Dalmatian. After the parade, we went to the rooftop to watch the Blue Angels. Emma being Emma, fell asleep right when the show started. She can sleep through anything. Wow they are incredible. I can not believe how talented they are.

I hope this will be a new tradition. It was so fun!

Emma went to a costume party on Saturday. She skipped her nap (never again) boy was she a grump at times. I think she enjoyed walking around in her costume. She hit the pinata, ate cake, and walked around her Aunts house like she owned the place. Typical Emma. I don't think she even recognized her BFF Robbie in his Frankenstein costume.



Ariana (the birthday girl) looked absolutely adorable in her Lady Bug costume. She is such a cutie. She adores Emma.



I can't wait to take Emma trick or treating this year, I think she will have a blast with her cousins. Hopefully Stephanie and Gilbert will have Ariana! There are much more houses in our development this year!


We are looking forward to our 5 annual Halloween Party on the 25th!!! I can not believe it has been 5 years already. I think we will have a nice turn out. It will be nice to actually be able to enjoy myself this year, Emma will be with my mom.



Saturday, we will be going to Great America to watch my sister's cheer team compete! Should be fun. And Sunday hopefully we will be going to San Francisco to see the Columbus Day Parade! I have always wanted to go. Should be an interesting weekend.

Not much has changed since I last updated this. I guess the only thing is she now has enough hair for pigtails =) And we are definitely having fun with that!

Having a one year old is so much fun! I am loving every minute of it. She is such a good girl. This week my sister Stephanie was off, so Emma got to spend all week with her. We went shopping most of the week and Emmy loved it. I think we may be creating a monster. We even met up with Nick for lunch finally. Emma got to meet all of Nick's coworkers. She was a hit! She has the goofiest personality. I think she is going to be a lot like her daddy, god help us!

Today Emma is going to a birthday party. It is a costume party. She looks adorable in her little ballerina costume. I know she will have a blast. I am amazed at how much Emma loves being around other kids. As my sister puts it "she is the ring leader of all the kids on the block and she is only one" it is hilarious. Everyone wants to be around her.

The Queen of The Mountain...

I was talking to Nick on the phone, and out of the corner of my eye I saw Emma. She looked so tall. I was so confused. It took me a few seconds to realize that she was on the ottoman. Not only was she on the ottoman, she was standing on it! I was speechless, it took me forever to finally tell her no! I jumped up laughing (I know I shouldn't have laughed, but it just looked so funny) and grabbed her, she tried to do it again several times. Man am I in for it now! She is so much fun!

Emma's Big Day

Yesterday was Emma's birthday party. She had a great time visiting with her family and friends. What a day it was! Perfect weather, not too hot and not too cold. I think everyone enjoyed themselves. Emma loved all her gifts. She got a ton of toys and clothes. She has played with everything at least once, including her new clothes. Emma loves clothes. The icing on the cake was a hit, she was so gooey when she was finished! No one wanted to touch her, my mom got appointed as the baby cleaner. Lucky her!

Nick and I are exhausted. I think Emma is too! It has been a pretty lazy day today.

Up next, shampoo the carpet lol.

Adventures Outside

Emma was tired of being cooped up in the house, so we went for a mini walk to get the mail, then I let her walk around the yard. She is doing great! She walked up and down the sidewalks, looking at flowers and really enjoying herself. I need to get her outside more often. Maybe on Sunday we will go on a shopping spree for some new shoes! Fun!

Strike Two

We got to HWY 5 again, and Melanie's son called to let us know his sister went into labor and we weren't going to be able to get Emma's pictures done. Can you believe it! Hopefully we will get them done soon. 3rd times a charm right?!!?

One year pictures... Take Two

We tried to have Emma's pictures done last week in Sacramento. Melanie, our wedding photographer was expecting us at 3 pm. As soon as we got on HWY 5 traffic stopped. There was a horrific crash. Luckily it was not fatal. It took us over an hour to go one mile. Finally we were able to get off at an exit and turn around to go home. What a waste! Luckily Emma was a trooper in the car. She was too busy playing with my mom to know she was in the car for as long as she was. So today, we will try again. Hopefully we will make it. Emma has been such a grump, if only she was old enough to bribe her to take good pictures. Wish us luck!

Emma and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich...

Emma is the hardest kid when it comes to eating. I am trying to figure her out. Since 4 months old I have tried off and on to feed her food. She wasn't having it at four months so I decided to wait until 6 months, well again she didn't want to eat! So now at age one, we are struggling to find something that she will eat. I have tried everything I can think of. A friend of mine told me her son (who is 2 weeks younger) likes grilled cheese sandwiches.

This weekend I made her one. She likes it. She chews it and spits it out, ewww yuck who taught her that! For the most part she likes it though.

Now if only I could figure out what else she will eat. She can't live on pudding and grilled cheese.

She Walks!!!

An update on Emmy! I forgot the password, and was too lazy to try and figure it out, or have a new one made until now.

Emma started walking right before she turned one! She is almost a pro! We had a "practice" birthday party for her on Tuesday. Man was she a grump! Bad idea! She took the whole "it's my party I can cry if I want to" way to seriously!

Her birthday party is on Saturday. Let's hope she is a happy camper! We got a little out of control on the invites. It should be quite an adventure.

We ordered her cake yesterday! Fun! Ordered her balloons! I hope 4 dozen will be enough lol...

Tomorrow will be the start of me watching Adrianna only twice a week. I think Emma will like having me all to herself again. We will miss Adrianna, but I am sure we will see her everyday anyways. Having two kids under age one was rough! But we made it through it. I no now that I do not want another kid for a long time, if ever!

Emma went swimming all weekend long. I am pretty sure she is going to be a fish just like her big cousin Alexis. She loves to splash! She doesn't even mind getting her hair wet! She went in the pool with a few of her friends, check out the picture...

I broke the camera on Sunday. We bought a new one tonight, it was not in the budget, but we can't go another day with out taking pictures of our sweet little Emma Bug...

Emma Crawled for the first time last night. We are not sure if this is a good thing or bad?!? She is all over the place! When she isn't crawling she is scooting on her butt. She can really get around! Nick went to get some baby proofing items tonight. Man we are in for it! I have to put her in her crib just to run to the bathroom haha!

Later Saturday night we made the trip to San Rafael for Danny's confirmation. It was the first time all four babies were together. Adrianna was a hit! Everyone was finally able to meet her. Victoria slept the whole time, and Mia was a character, laughing a lot. Emma enjoyed being passed around from family member to family member. We get to do it all over again in a few weeks for Jason's graduation party! Hopefully we will get a picture of all the babies together!

On Saturday Emma went to a Pirate birthday party in Livermore. She enjoyed watching the kids play on the playground. She didn't even mind wearing her pirate attire!