The first time I felt like a mom

For mothers day I would like to share you a diary entry I had during my pregnancy.  The date of the entry was the day we had a pregnancy scare and this was the first time my mother instinct kicked in.

December 17, 2009

Dear Baby,

I am worried right now.  I stopped getting nauseas and I feel as though there's something wrong.  I hope you are okay inside me.  I've never wanted and fear anything in my life.  I talk to God and told him that since it took him 3 years to give you to us then he should keep you safe. I know I deserve to have you in my life and there is nothing I wouldn't do to protect you.  To comfort me your dad called the doctor and we will see her in a few hours.  I hope to see and hear very strong heartbeat.  I am sorry that I have been sad and anxious lately, I hope that you don't doubt my love for you.  Carrying you inside me is my proudest moment by far and I can't wait to meet you soon.  

Stay strong inside me and take as much energy and strength from me.  Believe me I can manage. I love you.

                                  Love, 

                                         Mommy

Happy Mother's Day to all moms out there!! 

Lunch date at the park

One of our favorite spot in our area is our local park and Lukas and I often visit the park to meet my husband for a little lunch date.  The area is truly amazing because there's such wide variety of people around.  In the park you will see mommy group dates, couple making out on a bench, little kids learning how to ride a bike, or mommy, daddy and son eating (us).  Such a good perk to take advantage of and a good way to build memories.

 Lukas spots the dogs, birds, and trees 

 weeeee....Lukas is the apple of Mark's eyes

My lunch dates 

Less is more now a days...

Now a days a 4 inch heel and a silk blouse outfit isn't just practical especially during hot sunny days running around with a little one.  These days I live in flats, jeans and blouses, and now that we have summer, nice comfy dresses that I can throw on.   I've been putting together some mommy friendly outfit ideas to share on a future blog post.  I call it baby proof outfits - you know what I'm talking about - tug, milk, spit, puke friendly type of outfits matched with tumble free shoes.  I want to challenge myself and do it in 5 different pieces worn in different ways to satisfy 5 days a week ensembles. I'm excited to share what I can come up with because even though practicality is our favorite word these days I still want to be able to do it in a chic way so us mothers continue to feel good about ourselves.  Did I mention this future post is also budget friendly?

 Blush pink sandals from Zara bought 2 years ago 

White eyelet baby doll from 2 years ago bought at our local boutique and old navy scarf for 6 bucks. 

Healthy hot weather food

We have been very lucky with this warm weather and I read that it's only going to get hotter this week.  Here's some food I've made in the past months that are just healthy and refreshing and perfect for a warm weather fun!

 Chicken Italian sausage orechiette pasta with broccoli 

 Lemon and mustard marinated pan fried Halibut over a bed of sauteed spinach

Oven roasted shrimp with lemon pasta

I try to make everything as light as possible and even though I cook pasta I try to make it without the heavy sauce or tomato sauce just to make it more guilt free and summer inspired.

Its the little things....

Baby in the city.....

I will never get over San Francisco and no matter how many times you roam around this place you will always find little pockets of hidden gems.  It was 78 degrees this weekend and although we didn't search of hidden gem in the city we went to the Marina for a nice walk and to show Lukas the boats and all the kites.

Sleep Training

We are now pass the 1 week mark of sleep training and I have to admit the first few days was difficult - extremely difficult.  Lukas cried for as long as an hour or more wanting to be held by either me or my husband.   Lukas' doctor said that since Lukas is now over 9 months he is now conscious of the cause and effect process specifically when he wants something.  He basically knows that if he cries loud and long enough he will get rewarded with either being held or milk so his doctor advised us not to reward the midnight cries but instead give him reassurance that we are there for him by gently touching him and talking to him softly.  In the beginning it was a difficult challenge because as a mother your instinct will tell you to hold your baby and rock him until he gets comfortable and not being able to do this just broke my heart (it tore my insides and crushed every bit of me).  I also noticed that Lukas frustration grew the more I talked to him or reassured him, his probably thinking "NO I want to be held".  A few times I was ready to throw the towel and give in to what he wanted and just bring him back to our bed just so that I can have a little break (countless times I feel the wrinkles seeping into my forehead because of stress and frustration) but I know that the more I cater to him the longer it will be for him to get the confidence of being independent.  It's weird because when times gets tough I blame myself for not doing this early on but I know that that doesn't help so I'll just have to live through it and convince myself that it will get better.  As the nights passed Lukas' cries became shorter and fewer and at this point only cries when he's looking for his binky.  I think we've passed the challenging stage and I am happy to have given Lukas the confidence he needs.  I don't regret co-sleeping that's what we needed at that point of time but if I can do it again I'll probably sleep train him a lot earlier than 9 months of age but it's never to late....