.twenty things a mom should tell her sons.

I came across this post on Facebook and thought I'd blog it, so I can always have it and remember to tell my boys when they are old enough to understand it:

1. Play a sport.
It will teach you how to win honorably,
lose gracefully, respect authority,

 work with others, manage your time
and stay out of trouble.
And maybe even throw or catch.

2. You will set the tone
for the sexual relationship,
so don't take something away from her
that you can't give back.

3. Use careful aim when you pee.
Somebody's got to clean that up, you know.

4. Save money when you're young
because you're going to need it someday.

5. Allow me to introduce you
to the dishwasher, oven,
washing machine, iron,
vacuum, mop and broom.
Now please go use them.

6. Pray and be a spiritual leader.

7. Don't ever be a bully
and don't ever start a fight,
but if some idiot clocks you,
please defend yourself.

8. Your knowledge and education is something
that nobody can take away from you.

9. Treat women kindly.
Forever is a long time to live alone
and it's even longer to live with somebody
who hates your guts.

10. Take pride in your appearance.

11. Be strong and tender at the same time.

12. A woman can do everything that you can do.
This includes her having a successful career
and you changing diapers at 3 A.M.
Mutual respect is the key to a good relationship.

13. "Yes ma'am" and "yes sir"
still go a long way.

14. The reason that they're called "private parts"
is because they're "private".
Please do not scratch them in public.

15. Peer pressure is a scary thing.
Be a good leader and others will follow.

16. Bringing her flowers for no reason
is always a good idea.

17. It is better to be kind
than to be right.

18. A sense of humor
goes a long way
in the healing process.

19. Please choose your spouse wisely.
My daughter-in-law will be the gatekeeper for me
spending time with you and my grandchildren.

20. Remember to call your mother
because I might be missing you.

 i love you boys!

.sleep envy.

Is there even a thing called "sleep envy?" Well if there is, I definitely have it. Every night I lay awake and watch my husband soundly sleep while I miserably sit up. Sadly enough, I know this is just the beginning of my sleepless nights.

Since, I've been lucky enough to work from home during my pregnancy, I am able to sneak in some nap time during the day. So I'm not completely functioning with no sleep (thank God). And for some reason, after dinner when John and I are done with the day and relaxing on the couch, I always fall asleep. And it's not a quick little cat nap either. It's more like a 4 hour nap. So, that definitely adds to my sleepless nights. So instead of sleeping through the night, I stay awake until 3 am or so, finally fall asleep, but have to get up every hour to use the bathroom. So, when I'm up, I like to watch John sleep. He sleeps so peacefully and like a baby. I feel bad because since I've been pregnant, I've taken up like 80% of the bed with my big belly and my fort of pillows. But he makes due of his tiny space without ever complaining. What a great husband I have! I'm so glad one of us is able to sleep because after next week, we will both be walking zombies.

I can't wait.

.thanks mah.

It is 12:45am, so I am officially 9 months pregnant today! God is good and has abundantly blessed us. I am so thankful that I have made it this far into my Twin pregnancy. I have to say the last 36 weeks have been an amazing experience for both John and myself. I have learned the beginning stages of what a woman must go through to become a mother. And I must say, it sure is hard (and the babies aren't even here yet). So with that said, I have to say THANK YOU to my own mother and all the mothers out there for what they have done to bring us all into this world and recognize all the sacrifices they must have had to make to keep us all healthy and safe.

Thanks Mah! I love you!

.a glimpse into the future.

According to my last ultrasound appointment which was done on my 2o week mark, we are having twin BOYS! Two boys to rule the house. Well, if you include my husband then it's actually THREE boys! Needless to say I am super thrilled to be having two boys... two mama's boys in the making.

This weekend, our nephews came over for a little bit while their parents went out. As our 7 year old nephew started to play with the bag of toys that he brought with him, it dawned on me that this is a glimpse into our future!  A living room filled with toys and our two little boys sprawled out on the floor.  I sure can't wait!!

 

And the more I think about all the "boy toys" that our babies will be getting, the more I realize that no one will be playing with all of my Hello Kitty goodies.  Hmmmm.. what am I to do?  I guess we'll just have to try for a third one in hopes of a girl. 

Ha! Thinking of a third one before one and two even arrive. Now that's hopeful thinking right there.

I'm just praying that Babies one and two come out healthy and strong.  

So, here's to another healthy and happy 20 weeks!

.answered prayers.

I am so thrilled to write this post! After a few years of trying and praying for a baby, our prayers have been answered times two!   My husband and I are expecting... TWINS!  Yes, twins.  God definitely answered our prayers.  We must have prayed so hard for a baby that he got annoyed and decided to just give us two :)

I am currently 17 weeks pregnant and feeling great (knock on wood).  I have been blessed to have a smooth pregnancy thus far.  Being pregnant has definitely been an amazing experience for me and I look forward to see how it progresses.  I just can't wait to feel their first kicks and movements.

Our family, friends, and coworkers have been absolutely supportive and amazing. I could not have asked for anything more.  Now, I will continue to pray and give thanks for the continued health of the babies, my husband, and myself.  I just hope our babies continue to healthily grow and I continue to healthily carry these little miracles to full term.

 

Now a glimpse of our little sweet miracles as they look at each other in Mommy's tummy.

God Bless our babies!

.amazingly generous.

One of our Executive Producers aka boss gave us all one of these for Christmas! Talk about super generous. I love the people I work with. It makes coming to work enjoyable.

.the waiting game.

As I have mentioned in an earlier post, we are in the process of "trying."  I hate that darn term - TRYING.  Why can't people just say -- yeah, we're having sex in the hopes of a baby... hahahaha.  As soon as you are married, people assume it's okay to ask, "Are you trying?" Ha!  What if you reply with, "No, I'm not trying. We're just having sex cause we like it!"  I bet that person won't ask if you are "trying" ever again. 

Anyway, I kind of strayed away from my initial topic. So, we are "trying" and are now in the two week wait period.  And if you are someone who is "trying" then you know that the 2ww is the longest wait of your life!  You want the two weeks to go by so fast and for some reason it is the slowest two weeks.  The weeks drag on longer than ever. 

Come on two weeks! I'm waiting for you to give me our long awaited Positives!!!

p.s. I normally like to include some kind of picture or video with each post. But I don't think there is an appropriate image to share with this post :)

.meet me halfway.

Growing up in the 80s and 90s I've learned that there were so many cheesy movies out there (which I love, love, love).  And this movie, Over the Top is definitely one of them.  Cheesy? Yes. But it still had a great story which showed the relationship between a young boy and his father. It was really sweet.

I can remember my brothers and I watching this movie and soon after would arm wrestle each other doing the "over the top" move.  I have to admit that my favorite part of the movie was this Kenny Loggins song. 

Enjoy the clip. And if you haven't seen the movie, check it out. It's a good watch for a rainy afternoon.

.it's beginning to look a lot like christmas...MOVIES.

The Santa Clause

Jingle All the Way

Jack Frost

Home Alone 2

All I Want for Christmas

Elf

A Christmas Story

Home Alone

These are not the typical holiday movie classics. But these are my Christmas movie classics that I try to watch every year during the holiday season. I can't wait to start watching! They are not all award winning movies, but they do serve their purpose of making me laugh.
It leaves me with the warm Christmas spirit and simply reminds me of my childhood.  

My all time favorite Christmas flick is the movie with Dudley Moore, John Lithgow, and David Huddleston called Santa Claus.  I must've watched this movie every single year since 1985.  I even have it on DVD for my future generations :)

Santa Claus the Movie

Let the holiday season begin. 

God bless us everyone ;)

.el peluquero.

Property of Nickelodeon

This is one of my favorite Dora Characters!

In an episode of Dora the Explorer, they go on a journey to get to "el peluquero" (hairdresser/barber). And the el peluquero happens to be a good looking guy. Haha. Not only is he a good looking barber, but he can also sing. Maybe that's why I have a school-girl crush on him. Nonetheless, the episode is so fun and amazing...especially the song!

.fun to be a kid.

I was just going through my photos and came across this picture of my cousin's daughter, Juliana.  I saw it and just started to laugh :)

This was taken in the Philippines in the back of her family's car. We were just sitting and waiting for my cousins and she decided that she wanted to hang off of the car ceiling bars and bounce around the seats. She was having so much - dancing, bouncing, swinging, and laughing while I sat and watched her.  Kids are just so unpredictable and always find a way to have fun regardless of where they are and what the situation is. 

I'm going to take it from Juliana and just "hang from bars and bounce on seats." Have fun and make due with what we have. Life is too short to actually just "sit still."

.baby giraffe diaper cake.

 

I recently made this gender-neutral diaper cake for my coworker's sister-in-law.  She provided me with the Sophie Giraffe Teether for the topper of the cake.  It's a pretty cute toy and it squeaks!  Making diaper cakes are always fun for me.  But the best part of making this cake was the reaction my husband had about the giraffe.  He really really liked it and wanted to keep it. 

Just some background info, my husband has a collection of random things from Pez dispensers,  little green army men, to an awkwardly big BIGGIE doll. And he keeps this collection on top of our TV.  So, when he saw the Giraffe he wanted to add it to his collection. He even put a post-it note in the area where the Giraffe should be.  

I obviously wasn't going to let him keep it (since it technically didn't belong to me).  But I did promise him that as soon as we get pregnant, I will order him a Sophie Giraffe to add to his collection of chotchkies. 

Here's to getting pregnant and adding to his collection :)

.the back up plan.

So, I came to the conclusion that I am slightly obsessed with the movie, The Back-Up Plan. Every time it's on Showtime or any of the premium channels, I find myself watching it.

For someone who is trying to get pregnant and not having any luck, I find this movie reassuring.  It'll happen to us one day soon (i hope!).

.scallops with risotto.

 

John and I had our "date night" - a term that he hates hearing and/or ever using.  But of course, I still use it just to annoy him. Haha  Well, we went out to eat at one of the local food chain restaurants (Houlihans).  John of course, got his signature Stuffed Chicken Breast.  And I tried something different.  I had their Scallops with Asparagus Risotto.  It was absolutely delicious!  The scallops were cooked perfectly.  Other times that I have had scallops, they were either too tough or too soft and slimy.  But this one was perfect.  The asparagus risotto went well with the dish!  I rarely give reviews on meals, but this time, I just had to share a good thing!

.sandals with socks.

I am far from being a fashionista, but Socks with Sandals is definitely a fashion faux pas (well at least I thought it was). But weirdly enough I see it everywhere from runways, magazines, tv, and everyday life. So maybe it isn't a faux pas after all. I guess Fashion is what you make of it.  So for all the Sock and Sandal wearers -- More power to you!

.new obsession.

My friend introduced a new site to me: www.pinterest.com
It is basically having a page with Boards where you can "pin" up images of things you like. At first it was overwhelming and I just couldn't figure out what I wanted to post. But I got the hang of it, and now I am obsessed. One of my new favorite obsessions.

Check out my pins!
http://pinterest.com/MariaLisa23/

.to tweet or not to tweet.

I feel like everyone and their mothers are on Twitter (including myself). I did sign up to a Twitter account about a year or two ago, but have not been actively on. At first, it was fun to follow other people's tweets especially "celebrities." But after reading and following and tweeting myself, I got really bored. I just didn't get what the big deal was. Did I really care what Ashton Kutcher was eating for breakfast? NO. Or what movie my friend was about to watch? NO. Or where NKOTB is performing on their tour?? YES. Well, the answer should be NO, so I can prove the point I'm trying to make. But I seriously think I would want to know where New Kids is performing :)
But that's besides the point.

In general, I don't find it interesting enough. But then again, it could be because of the people I choose to follow. Maybe I'm just not interested in what they are saying -- No offense to any of those who I actually do follow.
So, this is where my back and forth is coming from -- to tweet or not to tweet?

Is tweeting just a fad? Will something new come up and replace Twitter? The answer is... who knows or who cares. It is what it is at the moment and I either jump back on it or just sit and watch from afar. Either way, it's not a life altering decision :) Just a fun little thought that I felt like sharing.

.where have i been.

Wow. It has been four months since my last blog. I guess you could say I've been slacking. I have to get back on the blogging track. I guess I just got overwhelmed aka busy with life in general. So here's a quick rundown of what's been going on for the last four months:

December: - Saw doctors because we are TTC -- wish us luck!
- My new nephew, Ajay was born!- John's birthday -- dinner with friends
- Saw ELF the Musical -- pretty awesome!
- Food pantry
- Christmas- Holiday break -- a week of just relaxing and a lot of snow shoveling!
January:
- Still TTC :)
- Still shoveled tons of snow
- Work, work, work
- Food, Family, Friends- Became a member of the Old Bergen Church
- Discovered Instagram
- Food pantry
February:
- Still TTC :)
- The shoveling calmed down. Thank god!- Ordained as a Deacon at church
- More work, more edits
- John is overworked :(
- My new niece, Ryann Olivia was born!
- Food pantry
March:
- My birthday :)
- Went to AC and gambled. John won. I lost. Booo!
- More edits
- John is still overworked.
- Made some Diaper Cakes
- Getting a refi done on the house
- Had one great Spring Day (70 degrees)
- Discovered Beluga
- Brought something for my cute little Food Pantry pal, but he didn't show up this month :(

.crock pot meals.

I've been obsessed about using our crock pot/slow cooker. I want to try to slow cook all our dinners just because it requires no work at all. We get home from work so late that an already-home-cooked-meal is always a treat. My only problem is figuring out what kind of meals to make in this contraption. So far, I've made the typical meals like pot roast and chili. But we can't and will not live off of those two meals. So, I am on a quest to find good-tasting AND healthy meals that can all be cooked in the crock pot.
Any recipe suggestions are welcome.
Wish me luck!

If I find any fun meals, I'll be sure to share :)

.thankful.

Other than the love of my life - my husband... I completely adore and love my parents. I rarely say it to them, but I know that they know. I didn't get a chance to blog about my Thanksgiving, so I am taking the time now to say that I am thankful to have great parents who have always been there through thick and thin. Like all people, there are times when I get annoyed at little things, but that's just how it is. They get annoyed. I get annoyed. But that never takes away the love I have for them. And with that, I thank my parents for their unconditional love and support.

I love you Ma and Da!