2 kids, 1 adult

Maya is 2 weeks old today. And because of my extremely helpful husband, friends, and mom, today is the first day I have been alone with my two girls.

Last night I got about 5 hours of sleep, which is good considering. Maya is very good at falling right back to sleep after her nighttime feedings. Even still, I was in zombie mom mode until about 9:30 am. Amelia watched Mickey's Christmas Carol and Tangled while I halfway slept and held the bink in Maya's mouth. 

I decided to be up and alive, and feed Amelia breakfast. This was my most favorite break. My biggest frustrations of motherhood are feeding my picky toddler. And for 2 weeks, I didn't do it. And now I'm back at it and breakfast ended with a cup full of yogurt being tossed off Amelia's high chair. Awesome.

Chaos #2 happened when I brought both girls into their bedroom to get changed into their clothes for the day. Maya was a champ, she doesn't even make a peep during her baths, her little lip shivers and she is definitely uncomfortable, but she is very patient. Once Maya was done, I chased Amelia around the house and as she kicked and screamed, I changed her diaper, got her dressed, and did her hair. Maya was also screaming and I came very close to losing it.

Then came success! For lunch Amelia ate 4 big bites, and didn't even find the hidden green beans in her bites to pick out. 4 bites may be nothing to some kids, but 4 bites is HUGE for Amelia. I was happy. All earlier frustrations were forgotten. And she went down for nap without a peep. There is my good girl that I know and love. This is day 1, each day I am going to become more patient. I have faith in myself.

As for our week with my mom, we were treated like a king and queen. My mom cooked, cleaned, did dishes, got up with Amelia each morning, fed her every meal. She was amazing. And we watched movies, played games, and even went to Austin for a tiny outing. My mom is the best!

 Amelia feeling proud she put Maya's binky in.

 I LOVE yawning pictures.

 

 My favorite picture yet.

 Mount Bonnell in Austin. The views were gorgeous.

 Amelia all dressed up for church, running from me and the camera.

 Something really great about Amelia is she can spend large chunks of time entertaining herself, oftentimes with books. 

 For this photo shoot, Amelia is being bribed with chocolate. And this is her smile, she really thinks she's smiling in these.

 I love this one. Maya and Amelia with the exact same pose. Do they look like sisters?

And another family picture.

Aside from the frequent chaos, life really is sweet. My girls are just the best things that have ever happened to me, and to sit and snuggle with my newborn baby is and always will be one of the best things in my life. Also the fact that my 2-year-old wants mommy to hold her and lay by her and scratch her back, I love when she is needy in loving ways like that. I'm grateful for all of these moments in my life right now.

More Details, More pictures

Maya and her tiny fist.

The Labor and Delivery
The labor and delivery was a little crazy this time. I pushed back the epidural too long. We checked in at 8 pm and by 8 am the next morning, I was still only dilated to a 1. I was so frustrated and didn't want to get the epidural because I was afraid I'd never progress since some people say epidurals slow down labor. I started strong contractions at 5:30 am and they became unbearable by 10 am. At 11 I requested the epidural, and it was still 45 minutes away. So for 2 hours I suffered the worst pain of my life, it was really bad. I was dilated to a 4 when I got the epidural, and then just 1 hour later she came in to break my water and I was at a 7. And then 25 minutes later I was ready to push. After 2-10 second pushes, Maya was out! It all happened so fast, when they laid Maya on my chest I thought, who's baby is this? I felt like my baby was still in my stomach. 

Adoring Maya
I have quickly remembered how much I adore newborn babies. The first few nights I slept maybe 3 hours, but I didn't get frustrated because the excitement hadn't worn off. I was so excited to see her every time she cried. I do have to say though, last night I got frustrated. Ha! At least the excitement kept me happy for a couple nights. I am living off of very little sleep. But I have so much help. Juan went back to work today, and so my friends took Amelia for the whole morning and Maya and I spent the whole day in bed it seems. It was so nice.

Showing off her hair. She does have dark hair like Amelia did, it's just all around the sides and the back.

Amelia picked out this balloon for her baby sister.

 Amelia
Things have been hard for little Amelia. She adores her sister and every morning when she wakes up, she runs to find Maya and give her kisses. She loves to sit by her and make her dance (move her arms around). She is in love with Maya.

But she is pushing her limits with us. She is throwing many more tantrums, the first 2 days were filled with non-stop tantrums. She is getting better little by little. I am just so happy that she adores Maya so much and that there is no resentment there.

Me
I was prepared for an emotional roller coaster, remembering how I was after Amelia. I have been having multiple meltdowns per day. And a lot of my crying is about Amelia and imagining what she is feeling. My favorite thing that has come out of this: Amelia ripping off a tissue and dramatically fake crying into it. Copying mama. And possibly mocking me. Ha ha, she is the best.

Juan
Juan has exceeded all expectations. We got home from the hospital, Juan went back down to bring in our bags and returned to a house full of crying girls. He fed and bathed Amelia, helped with Maya, went out and picked me up lunch I had been craving, unpacked and cleaned up. He has A LOT on his plate and he has been amazing. My mom gets into town tomorrow, so that should give Juan a week-long break.

She is looking hilarious in this picture. Like she's the coolest kid on the planet. And possibly fake closing her eyes.

Together at home. Finally.

Amelia asks to hold Maya multiple times a day.

Sisters. Amelia just had to hold her hand.

I love how big these binkies look. So far she has hardly used the binky. She can't really keep it in and does well falling asleep without it, so I think I'll hold off and give it to her when she cries more.

I look forward to when things settle down, but as for now I'm enjoying this roller coaster adventure.

Baby Maya is here!

Maya Vera arrived yesterday, January 11 at 1:30 pm. She weighed 8 lbs 2 oz and 20 1/2 inches long. She is such a good eater to my relief, and just the sweetest baby. Enjoy pictures. More details later.

Baby Shower

My friends here spoiled me with a Baby Shower. For my second girl. Everyone is so nice. The decorations were fun, the food was delicious, it was a great reason to get together with all the friends I've made. I am overwhelmed with how welcomed we feel here and I am so grateful for everyone and their generosity. We played a few games, one where you match the celebrity to his/her baby photo. Love celebrity games, Steph knows me so well. Kasee and Steph were just the best of hosts.

 The food. The mini cheesecakes, yum. And the frosting on those cupcakes was delish.

 Look at those cute bows on the ducks.

 Luz, Karina, Darcy, Janssen, Landen, Lindsey, and Ish.

 Kasee, Sherry, Allison, Mary, Liz, and Amanda.

 Amanda, me, Steph, and Luz.

And we have 100% decided on a name, Maya Vera. I am in love with the name. 

In other news, I am being induced on Tuesday, the 10th at 8 pm! My doctor said I won't really get started until the next morning, so most likely this baby will be coming on her due date. Unless I go into labor this weekend! I still have hope. We went out for spicy Thai food last night, went on a 3 mile walk this morning. Either way, I am feeling GREAT for being 4 days away from giving birth and just enjoying every minute with my sweet Amelia. I did have an emotional day yesterday, thinking about how happy Amelia is now and how her life is going to change. But it will ultimately change for the better. The transition may be rough, but she'll pull through just as happy as ever and I LOVE to imagine my two little girls being the best of friends. 

Time for Guessing!

Let me give you an update. I will be 39 weeks tomorrow. At my last doctor's appointment, I was not dilated at all and 30% effaced. And she has not dropped. With Amelia, I was induced at 4 days overdue. And Amelia did not drop until I was dilated 10 centimeters. So let the guessing begin! Will it be the same old story? Or will this baby pave her own way and still come a few days early?! Additional info: my due date is Jan 11, Amelia weighed 8 lbs 12 oz and was 22 1/2 inches long.

And now so you can see how awesomely huge I am these days, a review of the end of our 2011 in pictures.

Juan had the whole week off between Christmas and New Year's. And here in Austin, it got up to 70 degrees most days. Amelia was spoiled with trips to many many parks, sometimes multiple times a day.

 And she finally keeps her cute cute sunglasses on. $6 not wasted afterall.

We celebrated New Year's with Amelia before she went to bed at 9.

 As you can tell, she was super into it.

 And Juan grew out his facial hair once again during break. He looks very handsome here, but inevitably he shaved today, so I didn't get too attached. Let's be honest, I never wanted the mustache to stick around. I really do like this picture though.

 Amelia showing off her painted nails. And Juan and I had a good laugh, her hands look adult-sized in this picture!

After Miss Amelia was down for bed, the second party started! We had a few friends over for games and a jammin' party! Woot woot!

 James, Allison, me, Kasee, Jason.

 I was laughing so hard because Blakely said right before, is this like an Awkward Family Photo? Ha ha, us with Blakely and Lindsey.

It was a fitting celebration for a great year. Juan graduated, I spent most of the year gratefully pregnant, we moved to our new home (meaning Austin, not an actual house), and Juan started his new career. Amelia turned 1 in 2011 and I am already calling her a 2 year old by now. She is such a sweet, easy-going girl. We love her.

Happy New Year!

And don't forget to guess when this baby will come, and how much she will weigh.