its beginning to look a lot like Christmas

3 more days, actually 2 not counting Christmas in itself before Jesus' special day... Christmas!!! the christmas tree's up with all the ornaments & lights, the christmas banner's now hanging out the porch, stores are always full of holiday shoppers, the weather has been really cold for the past days -- its really beginning to look a lot like Christmas as the famous song goes... this will be my third Christmas with James, well sort of since during the year 2005, he was all the way in hawaii as a special gift from his aunt yasmin (needless to say i missed him terribly) and this will be our second Christmas withour little angel Julian. last year, Julian was just barely a few weeks old & now, he's more than a year old, can walk so well & is already trying to talk (he got the non-working cellphone that we now use as watch last night when he woke up, put it in his ear and said, 'a-dy?' -- he was looking for his daddy since james wasn't home yet then), among the other things that he now does AND he was even trying to help decorate the christmas tree yesterday with some christmas bells. we don't have much money nowadays since James is the only one working but it doesn't matter... because for as long as our family's together, Christmas will be a happy & special one. eversince i've met James though, Christmas has even been more meaningful to me... its all because it also marks another special birthdate of one very special person, him -- my husband, my best friend -- my sweet baby James :)

to all our friends & families, MERRY MERRY CHRISTMAS! We love you!

to Jesus, HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY & thank you for keeping our family in your hands always. We love you!

and to my baby James, HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Julian & I love you soooooo much!

thanksgiving

it was thanksgiving last november 22 and i was almost close to tears when i said my thanks before enjoying our dinner... i gave thanks for the people who have now been my family, with me being so far from my immediate family who are all in the Philippines. i was lonely too though not just because of that but because james wasn't home yet from his annual turkey bowl with his friends & things especially special occassions aren't just as happy for me when my husband's not there. he finally got home midway of the dinner. julian joined his daddy again in enjoying the fare even if he has already eaten with me & also on his grandma's plate. we had turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes & gravy, wild rice, blaukraut, pumpkin pie & candied apples... i wasn't able to take some photos but aside from me, james, julian & aunt yol, sacha & her boyfriend dustin came down from san diego & brought along with them their three lovely dogs mugsy, leilani & nala & dustin's mom connie was there too (she was th one who made the really good candied apples -- a nice addition to the already great list of food that were made by james' mom).

i really have a lot to be thankful of... for one thing, i'm so happy that my husband james didn't sustain any serious injuries when he was hit by a car while on his way to work last 16th of november... i was surprised to find him home after julian & i went to get julian's birth certificate all the way in downtown (i think maybe even farther than that) since he should've still been at work. i was so scared & so relieved at the same time when he told me what happened to him & to have him there right in front of me & julian, i had to give him a hug right away. (i actually had this urge to call him though for some reason earlier while i was doing the errand with julian but i don't have a cell anymore & didn't really have his office number memorized yet -- i'm thinking now that him getting into an accident could be it) anyway, it just made me realize even more how fleeting our life could be & that we should always make the most of our lives especially in letting the people in our lives know that they are special and they are loved by us. to my husband james, i know that we sometimes encounter rough patches in our lives but i know that things could never be better without you and julian in my life.

and i know that i have a lot of things to be thankful for but the most important for me is having the family & friends that i have in my life... thanks to you & of course to God who made and continues to make all things beautiful :)

our growing boy

julian is almost a year old now & there's just so many things that he can do. for one thing, he's so mobile now since he learned to take his steps the very last day before he turned 10 months... that's when he really took like 10 or something steps without any kind of support from any of us or even anything for that matter. his grandma jokes that he really tried to squeeze his being able to walk right into the 9th month mark & julian succeeded in doing that :)

he's also able to say & recognize more things now... he calls me mamamamamamy... his daddy dadadadadey (but honestly, even before he was like 4 or 5 mos, when he would cry when he couldn't get his way with me, i swear he calls for his "addy")... his grandma as emma... he can now even say 'bard' or 'ba' for the wooden bird hanging on top of our ceiling wall & he would always point up whenever he would hear an airplane or a helicopter pass by. he even said bubble to a month or so back while pointing to the bottle of bath soaps on top of the kitchen sink where he usually takes a bath. yesterday when we went to the market to accompany one of our neighbors, i took him out of his stroller & strapped him instead on the grocery cart... after maybe pushing him around 5 or so steps, he started to make noises, it sounded something like "ah! ah!" & he kept on repeating it... i finally stopped & asked what's wrong & that's when i realized that i left his stroller by itself near one of the fruit stalls. he quieted down & smiled at me when i finally got his stroller back :)

julian hasn't taken a baby bottle too for almost 2 weeks now. i wasn't trying to wean him yet or anything but all of a sudden he just stopped taking it. i was even trying to give him some formula in a little glass since he usually prefers to drink the way we drink our drink (in a big glass) & not through his sippy cup but that too didn't do the trick. he still nurses with me though & boy, can he eat :) he doesn't say no to any kind food (at least for now -- and mommy's keeping her fingers crossed too). even the peas that he sometimes didn't like when he was a baby is a-okay now with him. a couple of days ago he even sneaked away from the chopping board some raw onions & even that he swallowed... i was joking james that either julian really liked the onions or he was merely trying to prove to mommy that he wouldn't regret taking those raw onions from the cutting board & that he's a real mean eating machine :)

and last night, while he was standing on the foot of the bed waving bye-bye to me, i waved back & blew him a kiss... julian then put his right hand in his mouth & smiled :) he knows how to give huggy & kissies but it was only last night that i ever saw him do a flying kiss... sigh, our baby boy is really growing... & he's not just growing, he's growing REAL fast. to our little boy julian, mommy & daddy loves you so much. and to my husband/baby james, i love you more everyday...

saying goodbye

last monday, while james was getting ready for work, julian went crawling into the room and sat down on the floor where he could see his daddy. for awhile julian just watched daddy move around the room when all of a sudden julian flapped his right arm waving bye-bye to his daddy. he knew that daddy will be going to work & that we'll be saying bye to daddy. julian & i always tried to make it a point to see james off to work. we give daddy huggies & especially kissies when he leaves. julian actually did the wave thing on the bus last sunday to an elderly couple on our way home from target but that was the first time ever that he ever did the waving to either me, james or his grandma. it was awfully cute & sweet at the same time when he did that.

it actually reminded me of the time around 2 and a half years back when i left our house, jumped on a plane to go here. it was one of the hardest things i ever had to do my entire life. saying goodbye to my family, friends & practically everything i grew up with for a life of uncertainty but at the same time endless new possibilities. i still miss my friends and most especially my family eventhough they're never really far away from me for i always have them here in my heart. i want to eventually go back but wherever james & julian are, that's where home is & always will be for me. our family needs to be & will be together. but i sure am looking forward to the time when my parents, siblings & their own families & OUR family will all be together again. here, there or wherever... it really doesn't matter :)

"boo"

this is a very late post. i wanted to write this since it happened but never got to. last monday, julian is having a pretty rough time with his errupting teeth. his right tooth is really out now but his left tooth & the teeth alongside those two front teeth have yet to show themselves pretty soon. tuesday was better. he was shrieking for most of the day but it was through sheer delight of whatever he/we were doing. mommy couldn't find time to blog then. my joints for some reason have been aching too especially in the late afternoons for the past days, and i'm just hoping that i'm not getting the flu. but then again, we've been experiencing a terrible heatwave so that could be just that too.

before i get sidetracked even more, let me go ahead and write about what i really meant to blog (& maybe brag too) about. this happened a couple of weeks back. while i was lying in bed and julian was on the carpetted floor in the room crawling around, julian made a beeline to where i was and pulled himself up to a standing position. he said what i first thought was "pooh". i repeated it to him and like what he normally does, gave me his ever sweet smile in response. it took a couple more times of julian squatting & standing up saying what i thought was "pooh" before i finally realized that what he was saying was actually "boo" and that he was playing peek-a-boo with me. and when i said peek-a-boo? his smile was bigger than ever. peek-a-boo continued on for a few more minutes but julian usually just mouthed the word. he knew that mommy knows it was "boo" that he was saying. mommy may have been clueless for awhile but julian was so patient until mommy FINALLY got it :) thank you my baby boy for being with me.

i inserted the link to the first ever set of blogs that i created last year. i didn't know that i actually created another one thereby not including the ones i wrote last year to be placed in the archive (duh, april... :)


**

anyway, last sunday james' cousin vincent & his wife evelyn joined us for a little barbecue dinner. it was really nice to finally get to meet vincent since james has been told me so much about him & most importantly, it was nice to finally have him safely back home. you see, he served for awhile in iraq & even the first time that we heard the news that he volunteered to go there, we all worried & we always prayed for his safety.

we took some pictures of vincent, evelyn & julian & they were just adorable... i really liked the one where julian was sitting on vincent's lap & julian had his head sideways just looking at evelyn... it was sweet. vincent & his wife didn't stay that long since they came all the way from san diego and will be driving all the way to gardnerville to his mom's house. there's definitely going to be a next time though for more stories & more laughter. the war has still not yet seen the end of its days but so glad that vincent is home to his family.

another milestone...

julian was having his usual afternoon snack of diced up fruits yesterday when he finally got a tiny piece of nectarine in his mouth all by himself. here's how he did it... he got some pieces of fruit (a combination of nectarines, mangoes & melon) from his tiny bowl which i was holding and was inspecting them when he clenched his fist and one piece of nectarine got left on top of his hand. he opened his mouth then slowwwly, he brought his hand to it & tada... he got to eat a piece of nectarine all on his own. mommy couln't help but clap for his boy & let him know that he did a good job :) when daddy came home he was so happy to hear & was so proud of what his little daddy (julian) was able to do...

to our baby julian: Mommmmmy & Dadddddy... Lovvvvves JD!

the first of yet many more to come...

julian is growing his first set of upper teeth and for a few days, he hasn't been eating much or sleeping much for that matter. he's been a bit cranky but its understandable. his gums right now are so swollen & so red from the errupting teeth. its a little bit frustrating when he cries in pain & there's not much me & or his daddy can do except to try to calm him down with our words & our huggies & kissies. its coming out though (the teeth) and pretty soon, the pain and the fussiness willll be over. well, at least for the time being... until new teeth start showing up again...



***




we celebrated julian's 8th month birthday by attending his first ever kids birthday party. our friends' rob & mary's son luke had his 2nd birthday at their house in la puente. the theme was the disney movie cars & julian & mommy & daddy at that had a lot of fun. they had those big, inflatable jumpers at the party & julian & james got inside. julian had his first taste of chicken nuggets which all the kids love & julian love as well. he also experienced his first ride on a little toy airplane that one can push & it makes sounds too. it was really nice seeing julian interacting with the other kids & vice versa. and even if he's just in the crawling stage, that didn't stop him from playing & having fun with the other kids who were mostly older than him & were already walking & running around. he looked so adorable everytime he would chase a balloon or the purple ball that was on the floor & when everytime he tried to grab it, it would just bounce away & off he goes again to chase it. and to further prove that julian was having a blast, he stayed up crawling & playing long after his other playmates where all in the comforts of their own home & bed fast asleep (i think he finally, reluctantly dozed off around 11 pm or so). we stayed the night there at la puente (which is a very lovely house). it was indeed a fun party & i can't wait for the next gathering... to see our friends once again & their kids too who has grown so much already from the last time we saw them.


**






last saturday, aug 18, i took julian to the nearby park & we played in the playground. he played with the sand & the abacus... he even went down the slide. of course i had to hold him from the sides since i was a bit skeptical whether my weight could be carried by the slides which were made of some kind of hard plastic. and i didnt really see any other parents get on it with their kids so it would be pretty embarassing if someone would tell on me when they do see me going down with julian. it was so nice to watch him have fun even if it was pretty hot out there & it was pretty funny whenever he would put his hand in his mouth forgetting that he has sand sticking on it. now, the swing is another story. here i was able to go on it & hold julian sitting on my lap. though julian held on with both hands on to the right side of the swing, i saw him smiling & heard him giggling so i knew it was fun for him. and it was really fun for me too. it brought back memories when i was a child playing with my siblings & cousins in the playground near our grandparents' house in sanville. anyway, though julian & i had a lot of fun, it would've been so much more fun if daddy was with us. next time though he promised he will go with us... i can't wait... maybe this coming weekend...


*

this next one though i wish will be the last one...

going home after a fun time at the playground last saturday, we had a little scare or maybe not so little. while waiting for the pedestrian light to give us the go
signal at the corner of Radford, which is just a few more steps and houses away from our very own this old lady in her car suddenly turned left all of a sudden w/o noticing that there was still another car going straight. bam, the cars hit each other & before you know it, i hear tires screeching & there i saw the other car kind of skidded out of control. it slammed right into the pole (& also unto the laurel hall fence) where julian & i were standing just a few seconds ago. its a blessing in disguise that i was carrying julian that time since he got a little bit fussy a few blocks back & we left his stroller farther than where the sidewalk kind of goes down OR else, who knows what could've happened. that was the reason you see why julian & i were not right beside that pole. we were going back for his stroller when the car skidded towards us. thank God too that our guardian angels were working way over time as usual & they made sure that my senses were so alive too that i didn't froze when i saw that fast moving car on its way to us.

i kinda froze though when i heard the driver of the car who slammed on the pole shouting when he couldnt get out of his side of the car. his car was in smokes and i was going to help him but seeing his car, i stopped for a moment because julian was still in my arms. i wouldn't do anything that would end up hurting my baby. another blessing, the driver was able to get out of the back door & he seemed alright. i dont know what happened next since i saw my mother-in-law from the other side of the street (she came running from our backyard when she heard that awful screeching noise from the accident) & decided that since everyone looked okay (both drivers were able to get out of their respective cars & walk towards each other to discuss what had happened), it was time for me & julian to end our eventful day.

i felt so happy & relieved when we finally reached our house. though still a little bit shaken, it was so nice to be in the safety of my husband's arms once again. thank you again Lord & our guardian angels for bringing me & julian back home...

It's true what they say, time flies by fast...

i'm holding julian in my arms right now as he nurses and i, try to create a blog. it seems not so long ago when around this time last year, i was still carrying in my tummy my now 20.12 pounds & 29 inches little (well not so little anymore) julian. i remember people always told me & james that we should enjoy every minute of having our baby especially since time flies fast & the baby, well, they don't stay little for so long too. & now, every time i look at julian & see how he's grown & all the things he can do now, those words of advice from our loved-ones & friends just resonate even more. even james can't help but say to julian sometimes, what happened to our baby? what did you do to our baby? :)

so much has happened eversince that day i started having my contractions late afternoon dec 3 & clutching james' arm as hard as i can muster evreytime they would come. being nervous on the way to the hospital at around 12 midnight since i was in so much pain already & finding out i was around 8 cm already. feeling happy like i was on the happy pill whenever i could feel only my leather pants as i called my rubbery legs as a result from the epidural. shouting 'but i'm ready right now' when the nurse informed me that my doctor is on her way to the hospital & will be there in 30 minutes. huffing & pushing with just james & sacha & feeling like i was the big bad wolf trying to blow the pigs' house down all the while pushing for julian to come out. feeling a wave of happiness & love when i saw james brought to tears when he saw out little angel who finally decided to join us 533pm dec 4. feeling terrible about being a big meany throughout my labor to my ever so loving & sweet husband. spending the next few days in the hospital room with james & julian... ahhh, heaven.

the following days of course we finally brought our angel home & from then til now, he has been co-sleeping with us. it was a little scary at first but it gets easier everyday & it helps that julian's getting more & more better with sleeping through the night. i just love it whenever he wakes up when his dad gets home. he loves to greet him for a little while & spend time playing with dad. and the first thing that julian does when he wakes up? roll over to james' side & start climbing him. he makes his dad his very own jungle gym & even when james is all tired from the day before or something, he lets julian pounce on him & climb on him still. (just one of the countless reasons why i love my hun-hon so much)

me & james have had our first mother's (may 13) & father's day (june 17) too... julian made a simple card for his daddy with a little leaf that he plucked from one of the plants that he so loves to touch.

julian even had his first road trip to his aunt yvonne's house all the way in gardnerville where he finally met his great grandpa... it was such a lovely weekend... after the family reconnect, on the way home on sunday we stopped by for awhile walker canyon where james & julian played in the water & we (james & i, julian & aunt yolanda) just got to enjoy the beautiful scenery. there was a time though when julian cried for like a whole hour in the car on our way back home since he wanted to get out of his car seat but even that was okay. and it was awfully beautiful when julian fell sound asleep after his dad sang to him for about 20 minutes.






james took me & julian to the fireworks display at hollywood bowl last 4th of july & it was just so nice to hear julian ooh-ing & aah-ing at the fireworks while his daddy carried him on his shoulder. & last week we went to the getty to view some art & danced (yep, even julian) to the music of the performers.

from being our little baby who just needed nursing & sleeping, our baby now has two of his lower teeth, he can eat solids, even bite on some fruits. from just sleeping or lying down he can now roll over, sit by himself, pull himself up, walk, run & yes, even dance while we hold his hands. sigh, time flies by so fast (i was even telling james the other day that in around 2 mos we'll be having our 1st wedding anniversary already) but i know it'll only get better for our family... how could it not? as long as have love & each other, everything is much brighter, everything is much sweeter, and everything for sure will be just GREAT.

ps
to my husband james & my son julian i love you with all my heart & soul

this is just the 3rd time that i'm writing something here on my blog as everything has been pretty crazy these past few months (not to say that it has stopped being crazy now :) for one thing, our little angel Julian has just turned a month last january 4 and me & james have been pretty much sleep deprived for a month now... hehehe... not that we mind since having julian in our lives has been nothing less than wonderful. the picture here is one which was taken during our wedding last september 30 and it's one of my favorites. i always look forward to my hubby's huggies and kissies (as we like to call it) and i know that i'll be looking forward to more of those even if i'm all old and wrinkly. this blog is actually a picture of how scattered my brain is right now but i definitely know that life has never been more happier and brighter being with james and now with our little julian