A blog dedication to my hubby

I never really talk about J on this blog because I am one of those people who often give folks the side eye when they start gushing about their significant other on social media. So this post might be a little hypocritical of me but I can't let the year end without talking about just how awesome he is.

This year has been a trying year for us but we have also grown a lot in that time. I've known J for over 8-years and we are still learning about each other everyday.

When we first met, I often joke about the fact that he was wearing what I called bathroom slippers. They were these Addidas slip on sandals. Yes, he wore it on our first date!  
Side note: Guys, these are NOT first time date shoes. DO NOT wear these on a first date!!!

We were going to meet in an open parking lot close to where we both lived at the time. What you don't know is that I took one look at his shoes after I got out of my car and was not impressed so I almost walked into the store and pretended I didn't see him. 
BUT I didn't and I am so glad I didn't. Something stopped me in my tracks and over the course of what was supposed to be a quick 2-hour date which turned into almost 4-hours, I began the journey of falling in love with my now husband. Even then, God had things in motion that I didn't know about. 

That was in 2007. When my mom called me a few days after our first date and asked if I was dating anyone, I said "yes but it is nothing serious." My mom got quiet and said "hmmm...I think you should give this one a chance. I don't know why but there is something different about him." As they say, "mother knows best."

Since that first date, we've had many adventures together. 
 

Through the years, I have come to realize that he truly is the ying to my yang. There's been times where I just want to go off on someone and he has a way of calming me down so that I don't regret it later. Don't get me wrong...he certainly has his moments and sometimes, I want to give him a good pinch in a not so nice way. But his good ways far outweighs his challenging ways. 

J had never looked after babies or been around little ones as an adult before we had kids so he had a HUGE learning curve when JOE arrived. We had some pretty trying moments. From him learning to change a diaper to learning to hold a baby to learning to feed the baby. But the most important thing is that he was willing and he learned and became awesome at it. So much so that by the time JAE arrived, he was a pro. 
He is the one who has been feeding her in the middle of the night when she wakes up because I often get up at night to pump and he doesn't want me to have to get up a second time to feed or change her. He changes her in the middle of the night if she has a dirty diaper. He gets her to sleep almost every evening. 

Looking back, I don't think I gave him enough credit for how much work and love he put into being the awesome dad that he is today. So I am declaring it here to the world that he truly is an AWESOME DAD to our girls. He is great with them and 6 times out of 10, he is the one JOE wants to play with.
We recently had to go get JOE checked out for a medical procedure and when they asked "who do you want to hold you?" She said "I want dadda." 
As a mom, I was a little disappointed BUT I was also so happy to see the bond between them and how comforting her is not just something I do but something her dad does as well.

 

 

He really is my partner. Before I met him, I was always VERY independent. I felt like I could do everything on my own and didn't really need someone else. Even after meeting him and through our years of marriage, I still fall back on that independent part of me. BUT J has a way of making me take the help he offers. I know I don't say it enough so I want to put this out there...baby, you mean the world to me and your help and support each day is the reason I am able to be who I am. I love you from the bottom of my heart. THANK YOU for being a friend, a lover, a partner, my travel buddy, a shoulder to cry on, my baby daddy and most importantly, my husband! Bette Midler said it best. You are truly "the wind beneath my wings".

Boy, am I glad I didn't walk into that store. Becoming his wife and mother to his kids is by far the best decision I have ever made. 

While 2015 has been a challenging year, I am very much looking forward to a rewarding 2016 and many more years together filled with laughter, love, family and beautiful memories.

DIY Monday: Chronicles of a pumping mom - my treasure chest

I know I know...this is an unusual DIY Monday. Because it isn't like you can go out and make it if you're not feeding a baby. However, when thinking about this post, I convinced myself that it should be filed as a DIY project because I am doing it myself afterall :-).

And so, my pumping chronicles continues. JAE is almost 9-months and so far, I have a good freezer stash. At least enough to last JAE for a month. This has been a trying but rewarding journey and I honestly couldn't have done it without the support of my awesome husband. Granted, he loves that we are saving money by not having to buy formula BUT he has been extremely supportive when it comes to pumping and that has really encouraged me to continue. 

Throughout this journey, he has taken the kids when I had to pump, entertained and cared for them so I could be relaxed. He also keeps track of my pumping schedule and even schedules his activities around them to ensure that I have the support I need. Yup...he's a key-pah as they say in Boston.

Anyways, here is my treasure chest. Some of this milk is from June so I have started the process of cycling through them by storing what I pump now and feeding JAE the freezer stash. 

While taking care of the milk, here's J helping, JOE driving and JAE saying "get me outta here momma!"
 

I often pump a couple of times at work by using my lunch break. While pumping at work, I listen to an audio book. But sometimes, I forget my headphones. And on some of those occasions or simply when bored, I take selfies! :-D

And of course, I remind myself of why I do this.

She really is the sweetest baby. Seeing how well she is doing, how much she is thriving, how quickly she is able to recover when sick makes me know that the sacrifice is worth it. She is very determined and strong willed. She loves to play with her sister and her smile always melts my heart. 

Pumping has certainly been a sacrifice made by the entire family. J plans his schedule around my pump times. JOE waits at night to cuddle with me because I have to first pump or because J is holding JAE and can't play with her. HOWEVER, in it all, I know that we all just love JAE and are so thankful to have her as a member of our family. 

Photo Dump Wednesday: Time with family

Last week, I blogged about the Ugly Sweater Christmas party J and I attended 2-weekends ago. Last weekend, I attended a Pretty Sweater Christmas party. We also had an early birthday brunch party to attend so I didn't have much time to "pretty up" my sweater. 

So instead, I just removed the "stuff" from the weekend before and wore a pair of light colored pants then headed out while J watched the kids. It was an informal party but I thoroughly enjoyed myself. The host had several games which had us all laughing really hard. By the way, if anyone knows a Christmas word that starts with the letter Z, I'd love to know :-D.

Anyways, this is what I wore to both events. I was scared that with kids, my pants would get stained. Truth be told. I try to wear dark colored clothes or clothes that can hide a stain when going out with the kids. 

No apologies for the mirror. It is almost always like this. What can I say? I have kids that love to look at themselves in the mirror.

Loving my side swoop. I love the way it frames my face. I think this will be my go to style for the time being. Speaking of, I know I need to do a hair update post. I will try to do that more consistently in the new year.

Last Friday night, J's parents and brother came over for an early Christmas celebration. They came bearing gifts and it was very generous of them. JOE thoroughly loves her gift (a doll house) and has been role playing ever since.
She asked if it was Christmas yet. I told her no and that Santa dropped off her gifts early since he knows she's been a good girl. And that he'll give the rest to her on Christmas day.

On Sunday, we had a great time at Church. I often don't wear makeup because I really don't have the time for it but J encouraged me to add some color that morning and I must say that I love the way it turned out. So much so that I have to take a selfie of course :-D.

On Sunday evening, we had our family Christmas dinner. We like to do one with just us since we often share Thanksgiving and all other holidays (except for Christmas) with J's family and spend Christmas with my family. 
I cook a nice dinner and then we open our gifts. 

This year, I made an oven roasted bacon wrapper chicken, a mandarin orange cranberry walnut salad and potato latkes. 
It all turned out so yummy and while I spent 4-hours (yes, 4-hours) in the kitchen on my feet because I was also making holiday treats for my extended family Christmas, it was definitely worth it to see how happy everyone was to be enjoying Christmas as a family.

Delicious biscoff brownies. YUM!

This salad was DELICIOUS! I'm not usually a salad person so that says a lot. I'll be happy to share the recipe if interested.

After dinner, we opened presents. J spent time last week building this fire station and seeing the smile on JOE's face when she saw what Santa brought her? PRICELESS! She was so happy! J has been "saving the day" with Fireman Sam since Sunday. It came complete with a helicopter and a fire truck that actually has the sirens. AWESOME! I love that JOE loves both doll houses and firehouses. Role playing is her new thing and she has no problem "rescuing" the stranded princess from the top floor of her doll house with her fire truck. Cool huh?

JAE loved her presents too but very much enjoyed playing with JOE's as well. I love that they enjoy playing with each other...most of the time...sometimes...who am I kidding? J and I often spend time playing referee. I suspect this is just the beginning. I grew up with 3 other sisters so I know how that goes.

JAE was excited about her present too. Its a crocodile that spites out balls. Very entertaining for her. It is somewhat hard to get JAE something because JOE got a ton of age appropriate toys so JAE has a ton of toys from her already.

J got me some pretty awesome gifts but I have to say the one that got me laughing was this one. If you don't know, I grew up in New England and while I am not a die hard fan of the New England Patriots, I love to follow my team online and watch them win on TV when I have time. **Please no hater comments. They are a winning team!!!**
Anyways, this is a plush toy of our QB Tom Brady. I put this up in my office at work and it makes me smile every time I look at it. My husband definitely has a sense of humor.

I am very much looking forward to spending time with my family for Christmas and the girls spending time with their cousins. I love the magic of Christmas and as an adult, seeing the face of our daughters and how happy they are about all the festivities just brings back a lot of good childhood memories. 

Have a fabulous Christmas. Be save and enjoy your time with your loved ones. Remember, Christmas is about the birth of Christ so be sure to do something selfless for someone else and always be kind to strangers!

Photo Dump Wednesday: JAE meets Santa

It's almost Christmas! Every year since JOE's arrival, we've taken JOE to get a picture with Santa. The first year, JOE was about 6-weeks so she didn't really care much. The second year, she was more aware and I had to hold her. The third year, we were all in the frame. 
However, this year, JOE took one by herself! She went prepared with a mental list of EVERYTHING she wants and the minute she saw him, she got really excited. We had to wait in line for almost an hour but watching my daughter give her list to Santa totally made it worth it.

 

 

The plan was to have both JOE and JAE take a picture with Santa but as you can see from the next picture, that didn't go so well. Check out JOE smiling and JAE crying.

JAE wanted nothing to do with Santa. She was ready to bolt almost immediately.

Santa was very gracious and gave JOE information on how to be a good girl so as to get presents for Christmas.

Overall, I count it as a successful visit with Santa and even JAE didn't cooperate, I can certainly understand why. It is just the phase she is going through. It'll pass. I'll be curious to see how she does next year when she is somewhat older.

 

Before Church on Sunday, while I was pumping, J had JAE and they were playing together. At one point, J picked up JAE and I just had to get a picture of this moment. How cute is this? Often, JAE is trying to come to me but she was loving the time with her dad so I had to snap a picture of this moment.

These are some selfies I took with JOE and JAE over the weekend. I love doing these mommy-daughter selfies.
Here is one of JOE and I. 

And one of JAE and I. 

And one of me and my girls.

Oftentimes, I never know how J and I are able to pack so much into our week/weekends but I am so happy we get to do a lot as a family because we are creating memories that'll last a lifetime. The girls might not remember all of it BUT they will always know that they are loved and that we are family!

Happy Wednesday and enjoy the rest of your week!