LOL, did you expect me to keep up?

Of course not. You know me. I don’t keep up. I forget to. Then I forget the password. Then… ooo shiny!

My baby boy is 1. I’ll post his birth story here later since I posted it on Facebook already. Josie is so much fun and is just plain amazing, Julian is a destructo-monster lol. Juan and I are great, better than you! 😛 I’m in school still, switched my major again… I’m enjoying photography to the fullest, though. I started a photo business and hope to see it bloom. I’m starting a blog for that too to update my clients and have somewhere to post all the goodness that comes of it. Juan is working at the jail and finally on a schedule I can deal with! I’m also working at a great restaurant called Number 13. Um… what else? Hmm… nothing! I should get to cleaning.

Well then. Here goes.

I posted something similar to this when I found out I was pregnant with Josie. So, while I wait on Julian’s arrival (any day now!) I wanted to reiterate: you can keep your unsolicited advice and comments on my parenting to yourself. Period end of story.

I am the mom here. If you have kids, you’ve had your turn. I don’t need you to butt in on my choices for my children. If I ask, sure, feel free to be helpful. If I don’t, then I didn’t ask. I will raise my kids how I see fit. If that means I want to dress Julian in a tutu and make Josie play softball, that is MY and MY HUSBAND’s choice. NOT yours. If you don’t like it, take to Facebook and rant about the crazy bitch who lets her son dress in drag but keep your mouth shut to my face. Because I don’t care! He’s not yours. He’s mine. Juan and I made him, I (hopefully soon will have) pushed him out, WE get to make decisions. Your input is unnecessary and unwanted. I put a lot of thought and research into the choices we make. It’s more than likely not a decision I took lightly if you have an opinion. I will not be changing my mind for you. Breastfeeding (in public uncovered, no less), introducing solids, where he sleeps, what goes on his butt, and which way his carseat faces: none of these things are your concern. If you would like to know more about why I chose to do such things, by all means ask. But do not think that is giving you an invitation to change my mind.

Another thing. I’m not afraid to hurt your feelings when it comes to my children. You WILL respect my choices and my wishes for my children. If you can not do that, you won’t be left alone with my children. You WILL be healthy and free from sickness in my home around my newborn. If you are not, you will not be in my home. DO NOT LIE ABOUT THIS. I find out you’re lieing, even about the sniffles, I can not promise the end result will be something to laugh off. You WILL NOT put my newborn in danger just so you can get a glimpse of his squishy face. I do not have a problem asking you to leave.

So now that my mama bear has had her workout for today, I’m hoping no one makes me bring her out. I love my family and my friends, but my children are FIRST. I will never put ANYONE’s feelings or considerations above their needs. Sorry. If you love me, you’ll respect me. I expect MORE from my blood relatives than I would a friend. If a friend disrespected me, they would not be a friend. You sharing lineage with me or my husband does not give you a free pass.

2012 Review

January I started off the year with a bang… When I hit the floor at Target from a seizure. I gave my family, especially my husband, a nice big scare.
February My beautiful niece was born! I was there within a day or so and got to be the first in our family to hold her! My awesome sister in law did amazingly!
March I went to Vegas! Twice! Once with family before my brother deployed and a second time for The Bradley Method® teacher training! It was the first step to my new life!
April My little brother deployed to Afghanistan. 😦
May Started the process for leaving the Navy! My first real Mother’s Day! Josie and hubby took me for sushi!
June Drove off the 32nd street base for the last time. I had an amazing run with the navy. I’ll miss everyone I’ve made friends with. My baby girl turned 1! The best year of my life by far!
July Josie’s birthday party was this month in TC. Also found out I am pregnant! Eep! I started school as well, just one more step toward owning my business.
August Very uneventful month for sure. Did find my amazing home birth midwife!
September Moved out of the in laws house. Big relief for me. 😛
October My baby’s first real Halloween. She was a kitty cat and I was a rounded roman princess. Also found out Julian is a BOY! I’ve got my matching set! Haha!
November Our biggest secret yet has been started. Eep! More news to come! Josie, aka little piggy, loved GPa’s fried turkey!
December Another great year is coming to an end. Some great times with friends and family. 🙂

That’s it. Big changes coming for our little family. Stay tuned for more!

Sick :(

So I’ve been getting progressively sicker for a while. Yesterday I woke up nice and germy. Today ugh. I got very little sleep and then Josie woke up early. At nap time, she decided sleeping was for punks. Blah. She finally did nap after 4, for 2 hours. But problem is now its almost bed time and I’m pretty sure she won’t be going to bed on time. 😦 she’s throwing clementines around right now. I’m too weak to stop her. She’s got free reign and I’m powerless to stop the madness. Le sigh.

Update!

Wow I haven’t been on in a while!

Where do I start? How about from the last post? LOL. Well a few days later, we packed up our little family and went to visit my sister in law. She kept Josie the whole day while me, Juan and Luis went to Six Flags. The next day we drove to Texas. So nothing really interesting. Well we had Josie’s birthday party (her Bee-Day party!) and started to get settled into our new life. Then the unexpected happend…

Oh. EM… GEEEE! Yes, I found out that I was pregnant. Crazy stuff! Four years of infertility and heartache then BAM pregnant without trying.

Since finding out, I have found a homebirth midwife and am preparing myself for another all-natural birth. I am so excited. We did find out he is a boy! Unfortunately, we forgot to record the big reveal. 😦 I know, I’m a horrible mother. I was so good about taking belly pictures and writing Josie letters throughout my pregnancy with her. This time, not so much. I am much busier now with her and school, but I don’t feel any less bad about it.

As I said, I’m in school now. I’m working towards a Business Management degree. I want to open my own store but first and foremost I want to make some money LOL! I will realize my dream of owning a store, but with our new house moving forward, it may not be right away. I did find an opening at a place called Elliot Electrical. It’s not an electrical job, but my background in the Navy is helpful. I’m hoping the position, or a similar position, is open when I finally go back to work. I think I am going to wait until Julian (yes, that’s my baby boy’s name) is about 8-12 weeks to start looking and applying. By then I’ll be closer to my associates and on my way to my bachelors so I think with the timeline, I’ll be right on track to get promoted and earn more. 🙂

As for me and Juan. Well… we’re doing good. We have our days. I hope we start having more good days but it’s going to take some work. I love him more than anything and I’m willing to fight to keep him in my life but it definitely takes two.

So in closing. Please pray for my baby boy, baby girl, my schooling, my job, and my marriage. 🙂

Roller Coaster

Oh geeze. What a week it has been. Last Tuesday my baby girl turned one. It’s so crazy how quickly this year has gone. I know everyone tells you it goes fast but I can’t believe it’s over! I survived! Haha! But I’m also very sad. My baby is growing up and there’s nothing I can do about it. It feels like yesterday I was crying and praying and screaming at God for a baby. The four long years was worth the wait because she’s such a joy and an amazing baby. I couldn’t ask for a better kid!

Today was my last day in the Navy (unofficially.) I don’t have to go to work anymore but my contract ends on Monday. It’s also crazy how fast the years went by. I’ve had a lot of amazing experiences and met some of the best people ever so I can’t say I regret it. I wish there were less bitter people in the navy. The attitudes and crap I dealt with really soured any semblance of a good experience I could have had. I don’t get it. But it’s over now. 🙂 I can’t wait to see what the next step has in store for me!

A-Z all about ME!

A. age :: 25
B. bed size :: full; I need to get a bigger bed!
C. chore you hate :: dishes. For some reason feels grosser than scrubbing toilets.
D. dogs :: 2 Boston’s-Roxy&bubba
E. essential start to your day : Going to the bathroom, lol
F. favorite color :: pink
G. gold or silver :: Silver or white gold
H. height :: 5 ft. 3 in.
I. instruments you play :: Flute and Oboe
J. job title :: Mommy, Wife, Daughter, Sister, and Sailor.
K. kids :: Just my Josie!

Cuteness!

L. live :: San Diego
M. maiden name :: Vazquez
N. nicknames :: Jay, Jas, j.
O. overnight hospital stays :: Appendectomy, depression
P. pet peeve :: Loud music; do I really need to hear your music?!
Q. quote :: Live your life how you want to be remembered
R. righty or lefty :: right
S. siblings :: Michelle, Carlos, Priscilla, Brittany, Jared
T. time you wake up :: 5am on a regular work day.
U. university attended :: None yet
V. vegetables you dislike: Peas
W. what makes you run late :: forgetting things
X. x-rays you’ve had :: chest, neck, thighs.
Y. yummy food :: phó
Z. zoo animal favorite :: The bonobos at sd zoo.

The Big Decision

While nothing is final, me and Juan have come to a tentative decision on the path I’ll take after the navy. I’m going to start working on 3 (maybe 4) certifications.
1) Bradley Birth instructor- I took this class and without it, I would have begged for the epidural immediately. I would have taken my laboring behind straight to a hospital and begged to get cut open. Not only did the class give me the confidence to go through with a natural birth but I got the endorsement that I was doing the right thing for myself and my baby girl. I want to be that instructor for someone else. I want to empower other women to do what they were designed to do. 🙂
2) IBCLC (lactation consultant)- these professionals are so crucial to successful breastfeeding. I will be able to use my skills to help a mom attain her goals for breastfeeding and feed her baby the all natural way.
3) DONA doula- my doula was actually a last minute volunteer from the birth center. She helped so much in labor and I wish she was there from the start. I can’t wait to be able to support women in the most life changing moment of their lives.
4) CPST (carseat technician)- I hate hate HATE seeing carseats installed incorrectly. I’m hoping that having this certification means at the very least, my friends and family will always have someone to check their seats for them.

So why the assortment of certifications? Well the ultimate goal is an all natural mom and baby store. I’ll be a pregnancy concierge of sorts and will be able to meet almost every need for a new mom. The store will sell everything you need! Cloth diapers (still debating on doing a service as well), wraps/slings, nursing tops, baby food makers, and so much more. I’ll offer classes and workshops and I’ll be available for house calls.

I really feel like this is my calling. This is everything I’ve wanted! I want to teach, that will get fulfilled. I want to own a business, that will get fulfilled. I want to make my own hours, definitely fulfilled. It’s everything I’ve been searching for in a job. I can’t wait!!

Sweet potatoes

Josie’s first thanksgiving!

Insanity?

Well. I tend to change my mind. A lot. Sometimes it all works out and it’s no big deal but others it has the potential for being disastrous. Right now I’m going back and forth on what I want to go to school for. The truth is it isn’t an easy decision. I have three options I’m weighing right now. Each one has it’s pros and cons so I’m going to try to convey all the details.

Electrical Engineering
Pretty self explanatory, I’d use the degree to be an electrical engineer.
Pros: Really good chance of getting a big salary. With my background in the navy I could more than likely be picky about the jobs I take. The schooling I got in the military translates over to quite a few college credits towards this degree. We would definitely be okay for money.
Cons: I’m probably looking at a big commitment to working hours. My goal when deciding to get out of the military is to spend more time with my family. I don’t think my pay could justify the time I’d spend away. Also, I’m just not that great at working with electronics. I’ve never been able to retain anything I’ve learned and it leaves me feeling like an idiot. I don’t think that’s just going to change. I just don’t see me loving this career and feeling like I’m doing what I love.

Music
I’d use the degree and teaching credentials to be a music teacher.
Pros: I can definitely see me loving this career path. I absolutely love music and I love to teach. Bonus: summers off!
Cons: the salary. I know teachers aren’t broke. But they’re still not paid as much as they’re worth and it’s a damn shame. I want to make sure that no matter what I can take care of us. Just in case things don’t always go the way they should with Juan’s job opportunities.

Business Management
I’d use the degree to open my own business centered around pregnancy and babies.
Pros: The current plan is for me to teach the Bradley method while I’m in school anyway. I am so passionate about natural childbirth and I talk to anyone who will listen about the benefits. I figured it would be a great way to get paid to do this. The business would more than likely be a store that sells natural parenting stuff. Cloth diapers, breast feeding supplies, homebirth supplies etc. I’d offer classes and workshops too. I think that it could really be a success if I play my cards right. I could be doing something I love and possibly be a big success! On top of that I’d be able to make my own hours and that means time for family.
Cons: it’s really risky. The chance of it flopping is high but the chance for it to be a huge hit is high too! I know he potential for income but it’s just potential. I do know there is only a few cloth diaper stores in the Houston area but I don’t know if it’s because no one has tried or if it’s because they all failed.

So you see my dilemma. Take a risk to do something that would make me so happy? Or take the safe routes and choose money or happiness? It’s such a difficult decision.

Now I’d like you to weigh in. What would you do in my situation?