Daddy is back :)

We picked Emerson up at the airport yesterday. He is happy to be home. He has many stories about India, but I'm not writing about those. I want to have first hand knowledge when writing these things, otherwise I would feel like I have no idea what I'm talking about. Once we live there, God willing, I will let you know EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING.

"Just forget about ALL you know, Karla." ~ Emerson

The day before picking him up (Saturday), we went to have dinner at Gringo's. I don't know what has gotten into Libby, but she seems to eat, and eat, and eat, and eat. She eats to the point that when we eat outside, she always gets a bellyache. I've been trying to explain that she doesn't have to eat until her belly hurts. I've told her many times that if she feels satisfied and that her belly is full, she can and should stop eating.

And yes, I do feel like a hypocrite when giving her this advice :S

Crazy eater

So when we got to Gringo's she ate, ate, ate chips with dip. And then she had two chicken nuggets, and rice, and beans, and she also wanted some of my fajitas (she ate a whole taco), plus her apple juice. When she was finished, she began crying and complaining about her belly. Enzo began crying, too, because some people were too loud and were yelling and clapping. I took some photos of everybody. My mother in law asked me to take her a photo eating her fish tacos. When I was about to take the photo, she dropped the taco all over the floor. We felt so sad... then we laughed. She decided that I should take a picture of the taco only, just to make sure she wouldn't drop it again :(

Fish Tacos

"What's up with that taco, Nana?!"

Eating rice and beans

After dinner, we went to the outlet mall. We wanted to take Libby to the Disney store to get her a prize because she has been doing great going to the toilet. We let them play at the rides and at the slides for a little bit, before getting into the store. I was so excited to see her reaction once we were there. I was willing to buy here anything she wanted... Well, only one item, but she could pick it. I was secretly hoping for not having to buy any princess stuff because I don't like princesses. And I'm glad I didn't have to. 

Horsie rides

Once we were at the store, the first thing she grabbed was Winnie the Pooh. Okaaaay... Hopefully she'll see something else. Then she grabbed Igor, and Tigger. Then she grabbed almost every toy, coffee mug, shoes, clothes... but always put it right back. She never wanted to keep anything. I had mixed feelings about it. There was this child throwing a fit for her dad to buy her more stuff, and here I was trying to convince my daughter to please pick something. 

When we go out to the stores, we never buy her stuff. At least not all the time. She does get toys, and Dr. Seuss' books, and stuff. But even though I felt sad (and silly for feeling sad), I also felt thankful. Thankful that she is young and knows (or might know) that window shopping is okay. You know, that you can go to the store, and you don't have to buy everything you like. You can just look at it. It made me feel that she is content with what she has. 

OR it might be that Disney and princesses and those kind of things are not her thing. Which is great! Because (now that I think about it) whenever we go to Barnes & Noble she never lets go of the books she grabs, and wants to take them all. But I think I can live with that. 

Airport sign

Sunday morning we got ready to go to the airport. But before that we made a craft for Daddy. We were hoping he would recognize us :) 

We left the apartment like an hour and a half before Emerson landed. I don't know why but my husband gets the craziest ideas... He wanted us to go spot the airplane just when he landed. There's a sweet spot on a street behind the airpotr where you can see the plane flying just above you. So he wanted us to see his plane. There was no way to know for sure if the airplane was actually going to land on that directin, but we needed to be there becasue Daddy wanted us to. 

Long story short, it didn't. I had prepared food for a picninc in the car just in case we needed to entertain the children. When we were ready to go (I was very dissapointed and upset), I realized I was missing my phone. We looked, and looked, and couldn't find it. We spent at least 20 minutes looking for it. Not only had we missed Daddy's plane, now my cellphone was lost! 

Anyway... when I was ready to start the car, what do you think I saw?!

Being patient. Daddy will exit thru those doors. 

I saw Emerson's airplane right in front of us!! It had landed the opposite way, but it ended up going all the way to where we were, just to turn around and go to the gate. I yelled, and took them out of the car (they were already strapped), and we screamed, "Daddy!! Hello, Daddy! We are here! We are here!"

I was still pretty upset about my cellphone, but misplacing it had made us wait long enough to watch that plane. While I was driving to the airport I got a text... my cellphone was just under a plastic bag, that I didn't care to pick up when we were looking. So at least it wasn't lost.

Entertaining Libby and Enzo when they are exhausted can get tough. But Nana was there to take her to the stairs, up and down, all she wanted. We were getting anxious, because the children were kind of bored. But, at last, Emerson appeared...

"Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!"

Holding the sign

I missed you, Daddy

On the way home, we stopped to watch the same Lufthansa plane that brought Daddy home take off. It flew right above us. It is huge. We had Chipotle for dinner. We had to buy the burritos and bring  them home, because both children crashed after 20 minutes of driving.

Watching planes

I asked Daddy if he felt different being here, if he had missed the US. He said he didn't feel different or any better for being back in Houston. He said he was happy for being back with us. We are his life :)

Again, I'll give no details until I see Chennai first hand, but I think this trip really helped Emerson to figure out many things for the months to come. Most of all, God allowed Emerson to see that He is already there, and that He is able to orchestrate things to happen in a way only God can.

I'm really excited :)

Ready for India's fashion

Italian pastries for dinner ;)

Libby is making great progress in the potty training arena. She didn't have any accidents going pipis today. She still fights me every now and then when I ask her to go, especially if I see obvious signs that she has to go (like dancing while holding her private parts). She is still learning to push to go number 2, and sometimes she doesn't like the feeling, so she holds it until she cannot longer do it. That means sometimes she makes it on time to the toilet, sometimes she doesn't. 

BUT she always holds the poop when outside. Accidents have only happened INSIDE the apartment. And really... this is only her fifth day since dumping the diapers, so I'm letting myself breathe :)

Tonight I was telling her she is growing up so fast. While she was taking a bath, I showed her a photo of us when we were at the hospital the day she was born. I told her she was so tiny, and she said, "I'm growing, Mommy".

Yes, Sweetheart. You are. And these two years have been incredible watching you grow. I'm so thankful to God for letting me be your Mommy. As I told you tonight, you will always be my baby. No matter how big you get. Remember? I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, as long as I'm living, my baby you'll be. 

So, back to business.... I decided to stop giving her a cookie every time she went pipis. Just last night, I put her to bed owing her ice cream and two cookies. So we went to Walmart to buy stuff, and I bought stickers, and prizes for her (mainly just foamy stuff, and crafts that she would like). Enzo took a nap while shopping. 

About to crash

Done

That was yesterday. She has been doing so well, that today she already got a prize. I'm sure that with the poop tomorrow morning, she'll get another one :)

Go Libby!! 

Libby's toilet chart

Doing her craft. She LOVES spelling her name :)

This morning I told Libby we were going to the castle playground at Memorial City Mall, and that she needed to practice going pipis in the froggie in case she didn't want to use the toilets there. She did great. She actually agreed (thank you, Sweetie) to stop playing, just to please her mom and go to the bathroom. She didn't want to use the toilets. So crazy me - I had the potty by my side. It actually fits in the stroller, so it's not that big. Whatever works right now...

Enzo and Libby going down

Climbing

Riding the dragon

NOT happy

Enzo goes down on his own 

I think they ran around for little over an hour. Then we went to Panera, and Libby drank a ton of water :S On the way home, they watched about twenty minutes of a movie, and passed out. Since they were napping, we drove to a bakery that we saw on a TV show the other day. It is actually pretty close to where we live. 

Exhausted

I had a latte - which was amazing. Really bold coffee. I also had a cannolo (that's singular for canoli). My mother in law had a strudel, and Libby had a canoli cupcake. Then she also wanted a Texas cookie, to which I say no, because I didn't want to pay for an extra cookie that she was not going to eat. But Nana was paying, so of course Libby had her cookie :) 

Sweet sweetness

Yummy frosting

Nobody asked for dinner when we got home. After watching Libby devour that whole cookie, and Enzo eating almost all the cupcake, I didn't offer. When we got home, Libby was still refusing to go pipis, but then she decided to go on her own. I was very happy to see she held it for about three hours. 

Dinner

Then they just took baths. After that we played, read books, and talked to Daddy. He was going to take a flight to go to Pune. It was a quick flight, little over an hour. He was going to another city to assess some labs, and other stuff. 

Enzo splashing

Bubbles for Enzo

I miss Daddy, but we are closer and closer to see each other again. Also I need to run tomorrow, which might not be nice since the weather is supposed to suck. 

I'll pretend is a warm day in Ohio :)

Taking a bath

Libby is pooping in the toilet :))

Whatever my doubts were about Libby's physical ability to be potty trained, she just crushed them today. I am so proud of my girl :)

We woke up this morning at 7 am. I constantly checked her at night, and there was no sign of pipis. As soon as she got up, I asked her to go to the toilet, but she didn't want to. Today we just did the normal things we usually do every day. I didn't gave her lots of fluids like the last two days.

She didn't have an accident in five hours. The accidents she had, though, were probably our fault because we never asked her to go to the toilet. We were so busy following her around because we knew she was going to poop at any moment. She would run from one room to another, trying to dissappear, but we never ever gave up. We never, ever lost sight of her. FOR SEVEN HOURS!!

Yesterday when she pooped - I had mentioned it before - it was because we lost her for ten seconds.  But not today... What do you for seven hours with your child? You sing songs, read books, color, play with the dolls, play with Play Doh... You also have breakfast on the carpet, have lunch on the kitchen floor. So even though she had two accidents going pipis, she finished in the toilet. We didn't care too much about those because she already has the pipis down. She just needs reminders and practice, practice, practice. 

Today our prize was the poop.

My future

Emerson watched this today. He thought of Libby and Enzo :S

We kept on asking her to let us know when she was ready to go poopoo, because we knew she was so ready. She gave me a pleading look often, and her face was turning red at times. Then I would say, "Go! Go poop!!" She would run to the toilet, get up, and get down after three seconds. Up and down, up and down, up and down for hours!!

After five hours, I told her she would get a new Play Doh set if she pooped in the toilet. After one more hour, I added ice cream to the bargain. The last hour was really hard to watch her. She was afraid to go poop in the toilet. My mother in law was taking a bath, and I was changing Enzo's diaper when she ran to the toilet, and tried to hide. Somehow I managed to lock eyes with her, and she tried to go, but she just didn't want to. 

As she was getting out of the bathroom, she finally looked at me, and scream... "Right now! Go! Let it out!" I sat her down on the toilet. As soon as I did it, I bent my knees to hold her. She hugged me, and I heard a small grunt... and a big SPLASH!!! YAY!!!

As soon as that was over, she asked for her ice cream. I asked her to keep pooping if there was more poop. "Nope. I'm done, Mommy." Of course, I gave her a big scoop of blue bell red velvet ice cream ;))

I have no way to tell you how my mother in law and I felt after this. Oh, wait... I do have a video.

Thank you, Jesus!!

She asked to go night nights after that. She passed out for two hours. I think she was physically and mentally exhausted of holding it for so long. But it was a good thing. I wanted to believe that now, at least, she knew it was okay to poop. In the toilet.

The rest of the evening went great. When we were brushing our teeth I told her that if at any moment she wanted to go poop, she could go on her own. BUT se needed to call me so that I could clean her bottom. You know, sometimes I feel like I'm wasting my saliva because she doesn't acknowledge what I am saying. But she listens...

Anyway, Libby calls me all the time after putting her to bed, usually because she just wants one more little thing. One more sip of water (that she's not getting now), on more song, one more prayer, one more hug... So she called me. She asked me to, please, go clean her. She was almost crying. I thought she was just, I don't know, pretending, so that I would go. But I went. 

Get this: She had pooped on her own, and was waiting for me on the toilet to wipe her bottom :))))

Tomorrow, we'll brave Walmart after breakfast.  I'll keep you posted, Daddy :)

Potty training adventures :)

So now that Emerson is in India, I decided to start potty training Libby :S

That might seem kind of a bad idea, but the truth is, it is now or never. I have my mother in law here to help me get started. Here and there Emerson and I had been given Libby opportunities to go potty on the froggie (her potty) on her own, but we were never committed to do it (at least I was not). But now that we might move to India, I just thought it would be one less thing we have to do once we get there. I would rather have only one child in diapers when we move. I know it will be a long process, but I am committed to do it. I've been practicing patience. My daughter needs my patience :)

So we were doing the 3-day method of potty training, and don't get me wrong, I think this lady knows what's she is talking about. But at the same time, having observed Libby for two full days and having talked to Emerson's sister (who is a psychologist and specializes in working with children with autism), I don't think you can really train a child to go potty for life in just three days. Maybe what this method means is that at the end of the three-day period, your child will be able to recognize the signs, and openly tell you he needs to go. But that doesn't mean he won't have accidents. I don't know... We are not supposed to ask her if she needs to go, just remind her that if she needs to go, she should tell us. But Libby doesn't tell us with words! Sometimes I just see that she is dancing around and touching her private parts, and that's when I say, "You know what, Sweetie? I think you need to go pee right now". 

Playing with Bunny and Froggie

But of course, since it was my idea, she yells and says she doesn't have to. At other times she actually says, "Yes, I think  I want to go pipi". And then she goes. 

And this might be the sour kangaroo in me talking, but I think it is so funny that only in America (in Mexico, too, for all I know) there are plenty of methods on how to potty train your child, all claiming to be the one. We give Libby a cookie as a reward every times she goes. But I honestly have a hard time believing my mom would give me a treat every time I went. Or that she would do the victory lap with me on her shoulders every single time.  I love doing it with Libby. She gets so happy knowing she can do this by herself. I think it has boosted her self-confidence in ways I cannot explain. 

This is so new to all of us, but especially to Libby. She is definitely growing. 

So the first day, we had breakfast -still with a diaper- and then we threw her last diaper away. I am not putting a diaper again on Libby. I might carry tons of underwear, and pants with me, but she is done with diapers. Not only is this what this method suggests, but I think it is the healthiest -mentally wise- for her. She doesn't need to be confused. The objective in the long run is that she knows that she is done with that part of her life. She can do this. She can do everything. Plus, as a matter of fact, there will always be accidents. Heck, I still was having accidents at age 10! And even when I was like 25 or 26, I still wet the bed one night!! I was so tired at night, and I remember I was dreaming about going to the bathroom. I thought I had made it there and went pipis, but one minute later the bed was wet. 

Victory lap

We were just observing Libby and telling her to let us know when she was ready to go pipis... she had like eight accidents in a row. Little ones, big ones. But when we were on diaper nine, she was able to hold it, and she finished in the toilet. OH MY GOODNESS!!! I was so freaking happy for her, that I felt like screaming on her face. But I knew I was going to scare her. I kept quiet. This was the biggest challenge for me so far: letting her enjoy her big moment, instead of making it mine. 

When she saw she had finished going pipi in the toilet, she looked at me and smiled with a big smile. I told her she needed to put on new underwear, and she did, on her own. Then I told her I was so proud of her. She literally screamed... out of pure happiness!! It was just a praise overflow from me and Nana afterwards. Even Enzo clapped! And of course, I asked if she remembered the cookies she had bought at the store last time we went. She said, "Yes, the ones for when I go pipis in the toilet."

She got one :)

Day 1. She finished in the toilet :)

After that, she didn't have any more accidents for the rest of the day. We asked her obviously several times if she needed to go, and she went as she needed. Then we put the children to bed around 8:30 pm. This is such an exciting thing now that she was just "playing" getting up and down the toilet. Practicing taking her underwear off and putting it back on. 

I had made a quick trip to Walmart to buy some flavored water so that she would drink more liquids, and I bought her some night lamps. She loved them. So she was in the bathroom for at least 90 minutes. We were in the living room just doing our own thing, and then we heard the noise of her pee flowing down in the toilet. We were so happy for her. So happy.  

I got in her room after she had gone to sleep to make sure she wouldn't get wet. She woke up on her own around 2 am, and she told me there was a dinosaur in her bedrrom. Yeah, right... I think she was talking about the dinosaur show, which premier was on January 20th, and we missed!! Anyways, she saw me inside her room, and you know Libby. She never stopped talking, until almost 6 am. I never let the room, maybe that was my mistake. I stayed because she asked me to stay. I don't have all the answers to this mothering thing. At some point she was just sitting on her bed staring at the darkness, and I felt sad. I wanted her to talk, to be happy. But then, once I told her to go night, nights, she started talking again!! I had to leave.

She always shares her cookie with this little guy. 

She cried and cried. She yelled asking me to come back. She even said she would be quiet, and that broke my heart ;( I came back. I sat her down on her bed, and I told her, "Nena, I love you with all my heart. I don't care if you go pipis in the toilet. I am proud of you when you go, but that's not why I love you. If you go, I love you. If you don't go, I love you. I will always love you. Remember the song I made up for you and Enzo? Mommy and Daddy will always youuuuu.... Daddy and Mommy always will... No matter what you doooo, no matter what you say.... no matter whaaaaat. Now, that being said, I think you need to go to bed because you are really tired. I am really tired, too, and I need to go to sleep. If you need to go to the toilet, you go on your own. You can do it, Nena. You are a big girl. I trust you."

She calmed down. She stopped crying.  Then, this happened...

I'm not going to entertain you right now... 

(other than distracting you with this light)

Nana Azu heard all the screaming, and got up. She wanted to go and sleep with them, but I suggested she didn't. I mean, it was up to her. After being awake for four hours in the middle of the night, I was done. I went to bed. She got in their bedroom, and found Libby inside Enzo's crib (which she climbs from outside), but was actually climbing out. Enzo was also lifting his legs up trying to get out, just like Sister. Nana began calming Enzo down, and he passed out. Then she began massaging Libby's head, and she passed out. They woke up around 8:30 am today.

I am trying to be compassionate with my daughter. I understand this is new for her, but the crying last night might or might have not been because of the potty. She will talk your ears off, no matter what. That's Libby in the middle of the night, whether you are camping, gets a fever, or if you are at a hotel. So we decided to not sleep with her anymore, and I will just check on her throughout the night. I'll change sheets and pajamas as needed, but I won't chat with her. It's going to be so difficult. She always gets me when she asks me to pray for her again. How can I not pray for her one more time if she asks? You can always pray... 

My big girl

Today, the second day, we lost her out of our sight for thirty seconds. She hid behind a chair... then I saw  a big piece of poop coming out of her diaper. I took her to the toilet.  Poop fell on my foot, and on her legs, but there was enough poop to put inside the toilet and wave bye, byes. Today we worked on the five steps of going pipis: go pipis, clean your private parts, flush toilet, put your underewear back on, wash your hands. She is crazy about making lists of things to do. She loves knowing what's next, so it worked! She does that now on her own. 

Tomorrow is our third day, and I think it's going to be great. We are probably gonna spend it here, or we might take a little walk to see how she does outside. We are training her for real life, not only to go pipis while she is in the house. It's a learning process... and it is perfectly clear that my priorities are going to change. 

No more diapers, no more diapers, no more diapers!! That's our song lately. That means I won't get to put them in the stroller, go run for an hour, take them to the slides, have a picnic, and make them take a little walk. All in the same trip. At least not right now. Plus, there are no bathrooms at the slides! What about grocery shopping? What about...? What about...? I don't know, we'll figure it out. We can really do everything thru Him who gives us strength :) 

Love never gives up.

Love cares more for others than for self.

Sweet girl ;)

Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.

Love doesn't strut,

Doesn't have a swelled head,

Doesn't force itself on others,

isn't always "me first,"

Doesn't fly off the handle,

Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,

Doesn't revel when others grovel.

Takes pleasure in the flowering of the truth.

Puts up with anythings,

Trusts God always,

Always look for the best,

Never looks back,

But keeps ging to the end.

(1 Cor 13:4-7. The Message.) 

Sweet Déjà vu

I miss Emerson very much :(

I'm not sleeping very well at night because I keep on texting with him. I know he is awake when I am supposed to be sleeping. Plus I don't feel like going to bed until I pretty much pass out - either on the couch or on my bed - because I miss him. Hence, I'm eating like a pig out of anxiety. I have never experienced something like this before. The only time I would stuff my face in the pantry to eat a peanut butter sandwich (or Oreo cookies) with milk was when Libby and Enzo began taking naps at the same time. That was a long time ago... They would only give me a fifteen-minute break, and I was so, so stressed out, that I would just eat cookie after cookie trying to satisfy something that I can only describe as a hole in my gut. But I was never able to really satisfy it.

I obviosuly stopped that bad eating habit... otherwise I would be rolling right now. And it might be really cliche to talk about Jesus right now, but that's how I felt for most of my life before becoming a Christian. I felt I needed to fill the hole I had inside me. I knew there was something off. I don't want to say I knew there was something wrong with the way I was living my life, because for all I knew, I was doing good things. Stuff that was acceptable to others, and stuff that even other people were doing. But I felt empty.

Owning that squirrel ;)

It is true you have the power to conquer every single temptation, and every single weakness, in Christ.  When I say in Christ, I mean He can help you. He will help you if you are ready to accept the help. Ready to humble yourself, and accept the fact you are not good enough to do it on your own. Now, you can be super proud, and do whatever it is you need to do out of selfish will power. But in my particular case, I suck at that. I need someone bigger than me, and stronger than me. Someone who will be committed to help me and rescue me, even when I'm not even committed to myself. That's my Savior, Jesus.

Libby actually stopped scratching her beautiful face. And she's two. Come on, Karla. You can actually stop stuffing your face... The point is I've been eating pretty much crap since Emerson left. Chips and salsa, ramen noodles, ice cream... tacos al pastor my mother in law brought me, wine, beer, you name it. It's a matter of choice. You always have a choice. I'm owning my actions. Jesus can and will help me. But I still choose to stuff my face. It's wrong. I know.

Fortunately, though, we began potty training Libby yesterday, and I've been getting my mind entertained all day long just taking care of her, making sure she doesn't wet her underwear... that's a post on its own. Libby deserves her own post about that.

"It might not be that sour..."

"Dang it! I knew it would!"

Anyway, I just wanted to tell you, people, what we've been up to. I was going to convince my mother in law to go eat at Olive Garden, and I did. I didn't even have to convince her. When we picked her up at the airport, I had given Libby my word that we were going to see the train tracks. I, naively, hoped she would forget. She remembered. So I had to pay three dollars to park at the airport to watch the planes, and the "train" that takes people from one terminal to the others. After watching planes, we went to have lunch, and I finally had my chicken alfredo!! Oh my goodness, I was so happy!!

I ate like if belonged to the porcine family (but I had mentioned that before). Lots of salad, I ate all that was on my plate, and still had the cinicism to ask for dessert. And yes, I ate ALL my white chocolate raspberry cheesecake. After that, I felt great, as if a burden had lifted from my soul. I thought about the car-wreck the week before, the one for which we couldn't take the exit. I wondered if the people were okay. I hope they are. Anyway, I was very happy. I was very, very happy to have finally eaten there.

Riding the squirrel

.

We went to the slides after that, the same ones we went last week. But this time I didn't puke ;)  Libby and Enzo were so happy once we got there... They began yelling in the car as soon as we got there, and they had a blast. After the slides, we came back home, and they took a nap. We gave them baths, and put them to bed. I hadn't mentioned this before, but my friend Cora brought me a cupckae Friday night. So I even had another cupcake! And that was the end of my actual birthday. 

Enzo sliding down

When the children were asleep, I read with my mother in law this document about the three day method of potty training. I wanted us to be on the same page the next morning. We decided to do our own thing. We were still following this lady's advice pretty much, but the truth is, up to this day, we had no idea what we were doing. She never potty trained Emerson or Pamela (her mother in law did it), so she was new to this thing, too.

Sharing a ride

I ended up going to bed around 2 am, after texting with Emerson for a little bit. These are some pictures he sent me. He visited a temple, and other neighborhoods. On Monday, they'll come up with the plans for his team. I'll keep you posted on how the India thing is looking ahead. 

He said this reminded him of us. 

No shoes at the temple, out of respect. 

People praying at the temple

I'll post about Libby's potty training as long as I have a chance to write. Just to give you a heads up, today was the very first day. We put her to bed at 8:30 pm. She kept on getting up to go to the toilet. We thought she was just exploring - playing, actually. It's the first time EVER, that she actually has access to the bathroom. Now, she also has night lamps in her room, and the bathroom.

We decided to let her roam about. At least she wasn't afraid of the big toilet, and she might have been "playing" but practicing taking off and putting on her underwear and pants at the same time. Then, at 10 pm... 10 pm!! we finally heard the sweet sound of pipis hitting the toilet water...


So it was a great first day :)

Left: Libby's first time ever at  Cypress Creek Park slides and Squirrel.
Right: Same squirrel, five months later. I'm proud of her confidence :)

Happy Birthday to me ;)

Tomorrow I'll be officially 31 years old. Man, thirty one... I was running this afternoon pushing the children on the stroller, and I saw a group of giggling teenagers. They were doing silly things, and just laughing. When I ran past the girls, they said it was cute. What was cute? I don't know, I hope not me! Maybe the children, or that I was running with them and Dori. Anyway, I thought, "Oh! To be young again. And to be real-problem free..."

But then I realized I am young. I am really young. Plus I feel great lately. I've been exercising more, and I actually feel better now than a year ago. I have been very, very blessed with many things. I think I don't hear that word a lot unless I'm around someone who believes in God. People say they are lucky, or that they just, you know, are amazing. They believe life is great just because they are great. Before I continue with this post, tough, I just wanted to share that I feel very happy for what I have. And I do not have a better word than blessed. I'm not this amazing woman, you know? I have lots of shortcomings, and yes, lots of good traits, too.

Enzo at his 15 month old checkup

But it is amazing that God can love me so much, not matter what I did, or what I said... and still He will always be by my side no matter what. And yes, it's good that I have a car, and live a very relaxed life where I don't have to worry about what I will eat tomorrow. But those are only temporary things. I love my life not for the things that we can afford, but because of my husband, my children, and all those gifts that God gives me; gifts you cannot touch, but you see them in your every day life. We have peace, and joy, and we giggle, and play, and we are silly. My family is my biggest gift. And that gift only God could have given it to me. So I guess I just wanted to openly say thanks to everybody who has made an impact in my life during these 31 years. You know who you are. And yes, I'm a little bit sad because Emerson won't be here to give me a hug. He is in India. He left on Wednesday.

Skinny? Libby's only 4 lb. heavier

Skinny guy

I've been talking to him before going to bed (when he wakes up), and when I wake up (when he goes to bed). He flew to Frankfurt, and it was a looong flight, around 10 hours. Then after changing planes, he flew another ten hours to Chennai. He has mentioned so far that at night (when they took him to his hotel) the streets were dirty, and ugly. He saw about 20 cows that night. In the morning, tough, the streets were still ugly, and dirty. People were just "fishing" on a river, or just standing there. The trash was burning, and the dogs were heavily barking at the cows. It's just funny, I just wanna laugh. I don't get the picture, but at the same time, I do. I think I'm going to cry when we get there :S

Then he said that he felt like if he were in Iztapalapa - if you've ever been there in Mexico City. But he did not feel threatened, so that's good. Because there's this saying than in Iztapalapa even the dogs carry a knife. So he said that as his first day went, he felt more and more in tune. Like it was really easy for him to adjust. "It's easy to adjust to India if you are a Mexican, Karla", he said this morning.

Enzo talking on the phone

Oh, great! I can't wait... Anyway, on Monday he'll talk to their manager because we might not go to Chennai, but some other city in India where they have labs. We'll see... I'm not anxious, or worried. I am not. I truly believe what a friend once told me when we were moving to Houston. He said, "God is already there". So God is in India already. He knows where we'll go. He will guide us there. And those are the gifts I have. That's the peace that's surpasses all understanding. My apartment can burn to the trashes, I can even lose all my photos and videos, but that peace is mine. It's in my heart. Nobody, no-freaking-body can take God away from me. See what I mean? I am blessed. Very blessed. Not lucky.

This song reflects how I feel tonight about everything... like I told Emerson, I'll follow him wherever. Home is wherever all of us are ;)

Lift my life up, by Unspoken

  

We took Daddy to the airport, and it was sweet to see Libby say she was going to miss him. I had a coffee, we bought muffins, and lemon pound cake. The children were really tired, but we made it home safely. It has been really interesting being with them on my own. I've always liked being with them, but Libby is getting more and more outspoken now. My challenges are not poopy diapers or plain vomit anymore. Now I have to hold it together when my 2 year-old daughter walks away from me, and says, "No, thank you, I don't want to listen to you." 

What the heck??

We've been hanging out with a really sweet neighbor, Cora. Clara, her almost five year old, really likes Libby. They play really nicely together, and even tough there have been just rough moments for Libby and Enzo, they are just children being children. They are not aggressive children at all. I really liked all of them. So I've noticed that Libby is very compliant to whatever Clara says. I want to teach Libby that sometimes it is okay to say No. She is also learning to defend herself, at least from brother, because she yells at him, "NO! NO! NO HITTING!", when he hits her. So the other day, we were talking and I told her that if at any time she felt like she didn't want to do something that Clara asked her to do, it was totally fine to say, "No, thank you. I don't want to do that". It back fired :S

Shame on you, Burger King!

She got a spanking because she disobeyed in the first place, and when we were talking about it in the bedroom, I asked her if she was listening to me. I repeated, "Are you listening? Be quick to listen, and slow to speak..." She said she didn't want to listen, got up and started opening the door... I didn't yell at her. I just told her that if she walked away, she was about to disrespect me greatly. And so she opened the door, and said, "No, thanks. I want to go", and left me there. And I had to let her go. How did I do it? I have no freaking idea, but I did. When she left the room, I laughed. I couldn't believe what had just happened. My two year old had walked away from me. And I was so proud of her, because that meant she is learning to let people know that she doesn't want to do something, but I was so mad at the same time, because I am her mother. She is not supposed to do this to me!!

Enzo at BK

I think I never told her that. So I had to go back, and bring her again to the room. I'm glad I didn't yell at her when she left because that would've taken away any credibility for the things I said later. I asked her to apologize, but she didn't. I explained to her that Clara is her friend, and that she doesn't have to obey her friend, but she has to obey me. We hugged, she apologized, and she asked me to pray for her - which I did. But yesterday the same thing happened when I asked to have my cellphone back. She said she didn't want to give it back. I honestly believe that she feels she is expressing what she doesn't want to do, and that's great. But for me, as an adult, it sounds very disrespectful. So I'm being very patient.

Tonight I told her it was time to get out of the bathtub, and she said with her sweet voice, "No, thank you. I don't want to get out. I want to swim". I think it's just a matter of time and boundaries. She is learning what is fine to say, and to whom. She is just learning about life. And she will get in trouble with me, when the occasion deserves it, but for the most part I just need to breathe, and not take it personal.

And all these things happen when Emerson is not here. But you know what? I'll take it, because last time he left, both children got sick with fevers, and it was awful! So I can be patient with my daughter... and my mother in law gets here tomorrow to help with them :)

The Airport

Thanks, Drummer Boy.

So finally... let's begin.

Mommy's Birthday Celebration

(Saturday, January 11th, 2014)

• Thai food place

So I ran in the morning, a lot. I was exhausted by the time I came back. By that time, Emerson had vacuumed the carpet, the right way. He actually lifts every single chair, and moves the night stands - he is a keeper! But my children hadn't had breakfast, only the smoothie I gave them before leaving... an hour and a half before!! So I gave them and Emerson something to eat. I had something, too, but it was too little. 

We took a quick shower, got ready, and we left to have lunch near this neighborhood that Emerson wanted to check out, The Heights. He said it would be nice to live there when we come back from Chennai. It's nice, I mean, not like, "Oh, man, I would kill to live here", but it's nice. By that time, I was ready to eat an elephant, I had just ran 10 miles in the morning and I was literally starving... Well, not really, I have no idea what real starvation feels like, but I know I could become some weird kind of person when I'm hungry. I was really in a bad mood, so we stopped to eat at this Thai place.

I originally wanted to go eat at Olive Garden  because I love their chicken alfredo, but there was an accident on the highway and we couldn't take that exit, so we ate at the Thai place. It was really yummy food. I should know better, though. My body is not used to a lot of grease anymore. I don't know if it was because that food was excessively greasy, or because I don't cook that way anymore, but I paid for that sweet and sour fried beef later.

"Let' see..."

"Humph!", said my little sour kangaroo

"Nice place, Mommy"

Trying to get a good birthday photo

• Walking to the bakery

Anyway, after eating, we walked about a mile to get a cupcake at a bakery. But it was an old bakery, so there were no cupcakes, only muffins and artisan breads. So we shared a blueberry muffin. Enzo walked the whole time! Also, on the way there, Libby fell down at least 5 times, and her knees were bleeding awfully. She is such a trooper. We talked about falling and getting up again, and we told her we were so proud of her for wanting to keep walking. There were life lessons in all the things Daddy told her. She was crying so hard, and real, big tears were strolling down those cheeks... Actually, the day after, Daddy showed her this video to help her remember how important it is to get up again when you fall. I almost cried...

Pick them back up

Good looking family ;)

Libby singing Happy Birthday, Mommy

• The slides

After coming back from the bakery to the car (that was parked at the Thai place) we went to the slides. Libby had been asking us to take her to the slides because that's what we had said we were going to do, and it was a gorgeous day! It was completely out of the way, and everybody took a nap. I was so exhausted from the morning run, and my head hurt so badly. The children were out in the back of the car, and Emerson took us to the ones I specifically wanted to go to. Libby and Enzo love it there!! She was going up and down, she almost fell from the stairs, but hold on tight until I came to the rescue. Enzo played in the swings, and went down the slides... they had a blast!

Lately I've been really bad at taking pictures of them all the time, which is good at the same time. I enjoy the moments. I've been less stressed about recording and documenting everything they do, you know. After the conversation with Libby where she said my cellphone was my treasure, I've been putting less and less attention to it when I am with them. That includes taking photos of them every five minutes. Still, I do take photos every now and then ;)

These photos are random (the thing is I don't have photos of the actual slides)

Runaway Enzo

Following Sister

Holding hands

The wind

So by the time we were at the park, I had to go and puke my stomach out in the trees, back in the woods... I felt so sorry about the people there, but I went as far as I could to make sure nobody could see me vomiting. I felt better, a little better. My head was just about to explode. We made it at the park for an hour, and when we came home, I had to breathe really fast so that I wouldn't throw up in the car. I made it to the bathroom and that was it... I had just flushed down the toilet fifty sweet dollars worth of Thai food. I had also peed my underwear because of the effort, and splashed my toilet with grease - lots of grease - coming out of my stomach. 

So my sweet, sweet husband did what I can describe as the best birthday gift possible: He took the children grocery shopping while I rested. Bless his heart. I took two advils, and still with chills, tried to rest. My head was spinning and it hurt so badly, but somehow after twenty minutes I passed out. I woke up when Libby opened the door and yelled, "Happy Birthday, Mommy". They had gone to Walmart, bought everything I had written on the list (we were supposed to go together after the slides), and bought half a gallon of Blue Bell red velvet ice cream (that wasn't on the list). They also bought me a red velvet cupcake from Gigi's.

Enzo is walking more and more

"We ate a blueberry muffin, Papa", I said

"Yeah, but you wanted a cupcake", Daddy said.

So, after having dinner (it was a banana for me after how I felt), we ate ice cream, and that was the ending of my birthday celebration. I really liked it.

Tomorrow, I might convince my mother in law to go to Olive Garden after we pick her up at the airport. She really likes it there, and I'm still craving that chicken alfredo. I don't know, we'll see.  

Picnics and walks

Oh, when they went grocery shopping, Daddy said the cashier told Libby she was going to take her to her house, or something like that. It sounds weird, but I'm sure it wasn't that weird. I just don't remember exactly what it was.

"Do I have to go, Daddy?", she asked him. "No", Daddy said. "No, I want to go to my own house", Libby finally replied.

"Good for you, Nena. You don't go to anybody's house, specially if they are strangers", I told her.

Exercising

See? I hadn't been having these conversations with her just yet. Otherwise, she would have said, "No, thank you. I don't want to go to your house. I want to go to my own house."

Emerson just sent me this video (10:30 pm). This is happening pretty much right now at the lobby. Reminded me of a Mexican wedding with mariachis. Emerson thought about The Godfather, when Michael marries Apollonia in Italy. NICE. We might actually blend in ;)

He's waiting for some people because they are gonna take him to visit a temple. It's Saturday morning already. I asked him if he was going to a service or whatever they call it, or just as a tourist. He doesn't know :S

Emerson's first trip to Chennai, India 

My family loves me. Just being with them a week ago was the best birthday gift ever. I am so happy and thankful to God for being one year older. I really am. And I want to grow older an older, as long as it is with them :)