Teeth!

Christmas came and went and now we are in a new year. It seemed to fly by without the usual wonder and excitement this year. It is so much more fun opening presents Christmas morning with a child - even though she wasn't big enough to open them by herself.

Nowthat Amara has leaned how to be semi-mobile she is enjoying herself and discovering new things each day.
Last Sunday she got her first tooth - we are not officially dental! Then later this week on Thursday she got her second tooth. Both are bottom front incisors.

She is even trying to sit up by herself in the tub. I keep telling her to stop growing, she already is growing too fast.

This month she will be 6 months old and it makes me remember last year when I was just pregnant with her. I was uncertain about my future of motherhood, how pregnancy would fair, what labor and birth would be like, what she would look like and who she would be.

I was happily surprised by all of it. Labor was not as bad as I though and since it only took 30 minutes to push her out delivery was a snap. She did have a little bump on the way out and those first few nights were the most difficult I have been through. Now it all seems like a distant dream. She is so big and learning more about life and the world she lives in every day.

Yesterday she discovered the texture of a guitar case (Uncle Brandon's) and it made me think of what small things in life I take for granted. There should be something every day that amazes me too, something new to discover.

I guess for now I can just enjoy every minute of every day we spend together as a family. Thank the Lord for blessing us to go through life in families. Although at times they may be your worst friends, somehow they still make life a little better experiencing it together.

Movin' Already

Thanksgiving has come and gone and now Christmas is coming sooner than ever. Uncle Bubba surprised us this year and came home for the holiday.

On 11.27 the Saturday after Thanksgiving Amara rolled over for the first time from Belly-to-Back!

She thought it was great and was very happy about the fact that she could move so much.

Then, a few days ago on 12.9.10 she rolled over for the first time from Back-to-Belly!

She is such a happy little girl and is usually laughing and gigling at everything I say.

She started teething a while ago, so bedtime can be a challenge, but she brings so much joy to our family!

Three Months Old & Ready for Halloween

Well, Mars was two months and now she is three. At two months she got her first set of shots and didn't like them very well.

Three months old now and it is weird to think that a year ago she was barely in our lives.

We had our Halloween Party with Chuck's family last weekend.

Mars is a kitten and sometimes gets stuck up in a tree...

The rest of the time, she slept in the pumpkin patch.

She loves to read books...

But most of all she loves spending time with Mommy!... (and Daddy too!)

She is the most precious thing in my life and is ready for Halloween!

Work to Live - not Live to Work

Some people have not yet understood this concept. The world is so engulfed with gaining - money, assests, possessions, time, etc. The list never ends.

But how often to we become subject to lose sight of the reason we start working, doing the daily grind just for a paycheck. Do we start to live for work and lose sight of what is really important? I hope not.

I hope we still work to live and not live to work.

As I have started back to work I have realized a lot about myself.
I am human.
I am not as stong as I thought I was.
Being a working mom sucks.
I hate the thought of not being there for Mars every moment of every day. I hate the thought of missing anything in her life. My heart breaks every time I leave her.
I realize many people have it worse than I do. Many people don't even have a job to work at.
I know there is a little girl in the hospital that has had several procedures and surgeries done and is fighting every day just to breathe and live.

Lilly - I love you and Kim you are the bravest person I think I will ever know.

I know I can be a better person than I am, yet I fall short every day.
I think the world is a messed-up place most of the time, and other times it happily surprises me.
I know that even the simplest of things like looking at the moon make me happy.
I know I want to be more than I am and fear I will never get there.

These are just some things I have been thinking about lately.
Somehow writing them down just makes me feel a little better.

~Alicia

Labor Day 2010

9.5.10 LABOR DAY

As tradition, Labor Day began with morning sports at the green by our house. Grandma Garcia held me while everyone played kickball outside. We played two-hand-touch football after that to really get a good workout before breakfast.

We had great breakfast burritos, then headed into town and spent the rest of the day with the other side of the family and a great cookout!

Blessing

9.4.10

Today was Amara's blessing. It was a great time and a new step for her in her life. What a great blessing to have the priesthood in our lives and be worthy to have Chuck bless her. Family and friends shared in this moment with us. I could not believe that many people could fit into our house!

First Real Bath

Okay, so I have been giving Mars sponge baths since she came home. Finally a few weeks ago her umbilical cord came off and I wanted to give her a real bath. Well, we finally bought a baby tub (which makes it much easier since she is too long to fit in the kitchen sink) and I gave her her first real bath.

I think she really enjoys warm water because she seems to calm down whenever it is bath time.

Big Girl

Mars is growing so fast now, it is unbelievable. We finally put her in her own room and have been getting much better sleep. Although she is getting bigger each day, she is still a little girl in a big crib (Thanks Aunt Julie and Uncle Brandon)!

Boys Fishing & Girls Night

Chuck went fishing last weekend with Uncle Gordy and Blake in the White Mountains. They caught 10 fish and had a good time. They caught Rainbow, German and Apache Brown Trout on the Reservation. Thankfully they did not smell when Chuck brought them home. Wheh!

That meant it was a girls weekend with Mars and I doing a little Saturday shopping trip together. I told her this is what girls do - shop...and we're good at it!

Aunty Loll came over and we had a girls night without the boys. So much fun!

Girls Love Dress Up

Sunday, we put Mars in a cute little dress Aunty Aub got her and Aunty Stubbs had a cute black headband she could wear.

She looked so adorable, I took a million pictures of her (okay, I really only took like 20). She was sleeping soundly, but eventually got mad at me and started crying.

Naked Bums and Newborns

There are so many great things about newborn babies. They are the sweetest things to watch when they are sleeping. They are so pure and innocent.

Mars just makes me smile more than 100 times a day. Especially when she laughs after she makes a messy diaper or passes gas.

Mars also takes the cutest naked bum pictures. I took some of her while she was sleeping one day. CUTE!

Numbers and Fate

As you all know, Amara was born on my birthday - July 17th, or 7.17.
These are my lucky numbers and the best day to have a birthday. At first, I was not excited to share my birthday month with Mars, but the only good day for her to be born was on my birthday. No other dates were good enough for her.

Here is why these numbers are the best:

• Mars gets to share 7.17 with Mommy
• She is #7 grandchild on Mommy's side of the family
• She is #7 baby girl on Daddy's side of the family
• Our room was number #1117 at the hospital
• She now weighs 7 lbs (and 9 ounces)

Home from the Hospital

This is what we wore home from the hospital. It was a great place to stay, but we were all happy to finally be going to our own home.

Bath Time!

Mars' first bath after we brought her home. She still had her umbilical cord, so it was only a sponge bath. I think she liked it. Her face is so expressive!

Roses

Grandma Garcia brought roses for Mom and Mars to the hospital when she was born. They were so beautiful! Here are the pics.

7.31.10

Two weeks old and growing strong. Here are some of the fun things we are discovering about her:

• Mars is now making all kinds of funny noises when she is sleeping, waking up or just wide awake. Mostly they are grunting noises.
• She loves to stretch and make all kinds of funny faces.
• Her hair is light brown-red and is wavy.
• She enjoys when her hair is washed, but does not like the rest of her bath.
• Just like all of her many ultrasound pics, she always has her hands in front of her face! Our favorite is the "don't bother me" pose.
• Like her daddy, she can sleep through many things - including family get together.
• She likes to wake up every 3-4 hours to eat.
• She smiles and sometimes laughs out loud.
• Coincidentally she and Mommy yawn at the same time.
• She likes to keep her legs in the air when she sleeps - at least for the first few minutes.
• She can roll over on her own. She is a wiggly worm.
• She likes when Mommy rocks her to sleep at night.
• She smells so yummy after her bath.
• Her chipmunk cheeks are so kissable!

The 1st 24

7.19.10
On the drive home so many things were going through my head. We were now responsible for taking care of this little person in the back seat. I wasn't starting from ground zero being the 2nd child of 9, but this was different.

This was our child and there was no mom or dad to pass the baby on to. We were the mom and dad and would care for this sweet spirit her entire life...and through eternity. It is a bit of a daunting thought if you think about it.

Once we got home, I wasn't sure to expect. She had slept all day and when night came we were horribly surprised at how many times someone so little could wake up.

She was still congested and had a hard time breathing in her sleep. I could not sleep because I was constantly making sure she was still breathing and not choking. Morning seemed so far away and take forever to come.

7.20.10
We took her to her first visit with the Pediatrician and she was still our little yellow jaundice baby. She had to get her heel poked to check the bilirubin levels and then we went home.

Our game plan was to keep her awake during the day as much as possible. Luckily that night she did much better and slept all night except when I woke her for feedings.

THANK GOODNESS!

The Delivery

7.16.10
On Friday I knew she was coming soon. I went to work that morning feeling fine. Went to the doctors and found out I was dilated to a 4. They scheduled an induction for Monday morning, but the doctor said I would probably not last until Monday.

Then off to go visiting teaching during which I had a few contractions. Nothing more than I had been feeling the past month.

Chuck came home around 8 and the contractions were progressively getting worse. Blake came over to stay the night and we went for some Chinese food. It was SO good!

Once home, I took a bath for some pain relief and then tried to sleep. It was around 11pm and neither of us were sleeping. Chuck started timing the contractions and they were about 5 minutes apart.

Off to the hospital we went.

They checked us into Triage and said I was dilated to a 5. YEAH! I was so ready for this baby to come.

We went to Labor and Delivery and they put in an IV line - after three tries (which hurt more than the epidural). Then we went to the soaking tub which was really more like a huge bathtub in a spa-like room. It provided some relief and felt nice.

I was at a 5 for a while so they started pitocin to aid the contractions along. Next time they checked I was at a 6 and feeling contractions stronger and more painful. I was at a 7 when I decided it was time for an epidural.

Needles are not my favorite thing and after the IV line I was nervous, but tried to be optimistic about the whole thing.

7.17.10
I was prepped for the epi and they tried twice before it went in. Chuck was watching them place the needle and started feeling nauseous then threw up in the trash can. After that he was fine. I still had full function of both legs we realized it had not been correctly placed. I wanted to cry! How many times could they poke me?

Around 8am the anesthesiologist came in and talked me into trying a third time, but this time he would personally set it. It was over and I started feeling pretty good.

Around 10am I was fully dilated and effaced and my awesome labor nurse Tara said it was time to start pushing. My doc was luckily the one on-call that weekend and ready for the delivery.

Chuck was nervous about his part, but the nurse just told him what to do. They each held one of my legs while I pushed. About 15 minutes into pushing, the nurse helped me feel her head as she was crowning. It was a bit weird, but totally thrilling moment. Then after 32 minutes of pushing she was out.

Chuck and I had both bet on time and weight of her delivery and he won both. I thought she would be born around noon and weight closer to 8 pounds. He thought she would be born around 11 and weight close to 7 pounds. I guess Daddy does know best.

Drama Queen from the Beginning

Well before she was born, I knew Amara would be our little drama queen. The girls at my doctor's office thought so too.

Once she was born, they put her on my chest and let Chuck cut the cord. Then off to get wiped down and her Apgar scores. Then back to mommy for some personal time. A few minutes later her color was not the best and they took her to the nursery. Chuck briefly held her before they whisked her away.

It was not until later around 4pm that she came back to us. She had swallowed some amniotic fluid on her way out and was congested.

She was in our room the rest of the night and they brought her to me for feedings while we kept her in the nursery so we could get some rest.

The next morning she was not doing very well and they took her off again and put her in the NICU for the humidifier to get some relief from the congestion. She could not breathe and eat at the same time, so they put a feeding tube down her throat. I cried. My poor little baby was in the NICU with a feeding tube.

Then family and friends came to see her, but could not hold her. They didn't want to distress her, so could only touch her lightly.

She started doing better the next day and the tube came out, but she was still having a lot of trouble breathing. I hard a hard time that night and broke down crying. All I wanted to do was hold and love my baby. So Chuck and I went to see her before going to bed and the nurse let us hold her and change her diaper. She calmed down right away when they put her in my arms. She was so perfect and I felt so sad she was having such a hard time.

She was off the humidifier and had done well through the night. The next morning they said she could possible come home. The lactation specialist came and we tried feeding her and her oxygen saturation was good.

Finally we had her discharge orders and were able to leave the hospital. Our family was going home.

Amara Rae

7.17.10

Today is the day our little angel was born. Amara Rae was born on mommy's birthday at 10:32 am and weighed 6# 13oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. We went in around midnight Friday night and started pushing her out at 10am. It didn't take very long because she was born 32 minutes later.

Daddy cut the umbilical cord and she was put on mommy's chest for a few minutes before they took her be cleaned off. She was having a little bit of trouble getting pink and went off to the nursery.

We didn't get to hold her until later that day, but she was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen!

She had a hard time that night and the next morning, had a few trips to the nursery for oxygen and monitoring and is in the NICU right now trying to get through some congession to be able to breathe easier.

We just can't wait to get her home and love on her all day!